Join www.patreon.com/KeyofStars for up to 120 advance chapters
~~~
The crimson moon was obscured by clouds in the night sky, plunging the outskirts of Backlund into complete darkness.
A shadowy figure paused in front of a typical countryside yard. After confirming no one was around, the figure swiftly vaulted over the courtyard wall.
As soon as his feet touched the ground, a hoarse voice came from inside the house: "Who?"
"Lord Hillman, it's me."
"Oh, Heyman!"
The clouds above shifted, revealing the crimson moon once more.
Under the moonlight, a middle-aged man with a sincere smile could be seen standing in the courtyard. It was Heyman the Swindler, the man who had escaped from under the noses of Hobert and Xio.
"Lord, I've come to inquire about two people. One is a tall young man who seems to have some resistance to mental influence. The other is a short woman, agile and looking quite capable in combat," Heyman explained. "They were tailing me this afternoon, but I managed to spot them and successfully shake them off."
There was a brief silence from inside the house before the person spoke: "You suspect I sent them?"
Heyman smiled sincerely. "I suspect no one, Lord. Only you know some of my secrets."
Hillman let out a cold laugh. "If I wanted to deal with you, you'd be dead by now! You'd better think about whether you've offended any big shots during your swindling."
"Since it's not you, Lord, then it's very likely the official Beyonders," Heyman spread his hands. "They've sabotaged your plan, and I think Zachary has already been taken by them.
"I thought about it all night, and there's only one possibility: the ritual you had Zachary perform caught the attention of the official Beyonders, and through Zachary, they found me."
Heyman never considered that Mr. Robin, whom he had swindled, might have provided information about him to others. In Heyman's mind, Robin and his cousin were insignificant figures in Backlund, and at most, they could only track down Zachary, never pinning the blame on him.
"Hah!" Hillman let out a sinister laugh. "I understand now. Your aggressive approach earlier was just a cover for the failed plan!"
In a cold voice, he continued, "Although Mr. A said we are partners and I should show you proper respect...
"But if things go wrong, there's always a price to pay."
Before Heyman could retort, a solemn muttering suddenly echoed in his ears, and his brain felt as if someone were twisting a knife inside. He was immediately overwhelmed with excruciating pain, thrashing his head against the wall with loud bangs.
He now deeply regretted approaching these lunatics three years ago, all for the sake of obtaining the Acting Method.
But it was too late now. Enduring the intense discomfort in his head, he shouted, "I'll cultivate another Secrets Supplicant, one who will willingly participate in Lord Hillman's experiments!"
The solemn muttering gradually faded, and Heyman collapsed in the corner, gasping for breath, feeling as if he had narrowly escaped death.
From inside the house, Hillman spoke: "Find a place to hide. If anyone continues pursuing you, you know what to do. Don't worry, when the time is right, we'll avenge you.
"If no one pursues you further, go and cultivate a new Secrets Supplicant.
"Go now. I won't report your failure to Mr. A."
Heyman propped himself up against the wall, standing shakily. "Thank you, thank you for covering for me. I won't make the same mistake again."
The muttering from earlier had left him feeling as if he'd just recovered from a serious illness. He no longer had the strength to vault over the wall, so he walked out through the gate, leaning against the wall.
As Heyman exited the courtyard, a hand emerged from the shadows behind the wall and gently closed the gate.
---
Southern Continent, the Nonexistent Town.
The morning dew glistened, slowly sliding down the blades of grass before finally falling to the ground.
Whoosh~
A young woman with messy hair and slightly shabby clothes was running through the grass, humming an out-of-tune nursery rhyme. Dew had soaked her pants, but she didn't care, happily playing.
Elliot smiled as he caught up, gently picking a leaf off her head. "I have to go out for a bit. Be sure to listen to the teacher," he said.
She was Elliot's older sister, Moira. Because their family's Beyonder characteristics were limited, typically, only one child in each family could consume the Lawyer potion at the age of 12.
When Moira turned 12, she gave the opportunity to her younger brother.
As a result, she became like other family members who hadn't consumed a potion—insane, after enduring the torment of frenzied howls.
Once she turned into a lunatic, the maddening howls seemed to fade away. However, whenever her symptoms of insanity slightly improved, the frenzied howls would return.
Thus, the Balk Family's lunatics would remain insane forever.
After settling in Nonexistent Town, the Balk family purchased many slaves to care for the family's lunatics.
Meanwhile, those like Elliot, who remained clear-headed, had to leave town to engage in Beyonder combat and provide income for the family, allowing it to sustain itself.
Sometimes they were hired by warlords to fight, and other times, the various churches of the Southern Continent would employ them for dirty work.
As Beyonders of the Lawyer Pathway, who possessed considerable combat strength after reaching Sequence 8, they never lacked commissions.
The only work they refused to accept was from the Rose School of Thought. Of course, the Rose School never sought them out either, since the Balk family and the Rose School, though not on adjacent pathways, were mortal enemies who would fight to the death upon meeting.
Elliot looked at his sister. "I think I've found a way to save our family. Even if it means sacrificing myself, I will break free from the family's curse. You'll get better. We all will."
In the distance, someone called, "Elliot! Time to go!"
Elliot squeezed his sister's hand, which was covered in grass and dirt, before leaving without looking back.
Moira smiled foolishly as she watched her brother walk away, tears unconsciously streaming down her cheeks.
---
At 8:10 in the morning, on Gasbin Street in the East Borough of Backlund.
Wearing a light trench coat and carrying a cane, Hobert glanced at his pocket watch again. Miss Arbiter was ten minutes late.
Another horse-drawn cab approached, and when the door opened, Hobert finally saw Xio.
Xio jumped out of the carriage. "Sorry, I'm late."
Hobert smiled. "No, I just arrived early."
He noticed Xio's dark circles. "Didn't sleep well?"
Xio glanced around warily. "Yeah, I never sleep well with a new pillow."
Unlike Fors' imagination, where she expected to be immediately captured by seven or eight Beyonders as soon as she stepped off the carriage, Hobert hadn't realized that Xio and Fors had changed locations overnight, only getting some rest in the early morning.
As Hobert and Xio walked side by side for a short distance, Hobert suddenly turned around. The street behind them was filled with workers rushing to their jobs and a few beggars slumped against the walls.
Hobert remained calm but whispered to Xio, "We're being watched."
Xio was briefly startled. Indeed, someone was tailing them from afar. The person trailing them was Fors, whose dark circles were even worse than Xio's, and whose skin looked terrible, as if she hadn't slept in three days.