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Elliot knelt devoutly on the ground and said, "Mysterious and Great Being, thank you for your guidance, which allowed me to obtain the Beyonder characteristic of a Barbarian.
"Thank you for reminding me not to be lost in greed.
"Thank you for helping me escape my pursuers.
"Your loyal servant wishes to offer this necklace as a sacrifice, expressing my heartfelt gratitude."
After repeating this three times, the image of the "Great Being on the Throne" finally appeared in his mind.
Then, the Great Being spoke in a solemn voice: "I am not interested in your offering."
Mainly because it would consume too much spirituality, and if the sacrifice didn't make it to the Nation of Disorder, things would be awkward.
Elliot's voice became even more humble. "Great Being, I know this offering is crude in your eyes, but it is the most valuable thing I possess. I really don't know what kind of offering would properly express my gratitude."
After a second or two of silence, the solemn voice replied, "Tomorrow night, prepare a simple altar. Draw this symbol in the center of the altar, light three candles in the format of 'Binary Law,' and burn spiritually rich herbs. The incantation is..."
Elliot breathed a sigh of relief. The Great Being finally wanted his offering!
The solemn voice added, "From now on, you may call me 'Creator.'
"Also, in the Beyonder world, always remember to exercise restraint!"
The voice faded, and the majestic throne disappeared from Elliot's mind. He was filled with indescribable excitement, believing that his heartfelt gratitude had moved the Great Being, prompting Him to reveal His "true name" (referring to the name of a true god).
Regardless of whether the "Great Creator" could hear him, Elliot respectfully said, "I will obey Your will!"
He understood that the Creator's final words were a reminder, a lesson, and a blessing.
What Elliot didn't know was that the "Great Creator" simply didn't want His eyes in the southern continent to carelessly turn into a Beyonder characteristic.
That night, after Hobert left the Nation of Disorder for the fourth time, he was utterly exhausted and fell asleep as soon as he lay down.
...
On the southern continent, along the road to Kansel City.
Loen mercenaries were cleaning up the battlefield. The mercenary captain, Caster Augustus, frowned as he questioned his three subordinates: "You're saying that the other party suddenly appeared in midair and didn't attack you?"
The battle had been a great victory, and the entire mercenary team was immersed in an atmosphere of exhilaration.
However, during the latter half of the battle, a minor incident occurred—someone had snatched two insignificant spoils of war from them!
It was a matter that was neither too big nor too small, but it had to be clarified.
One of the three pursuers who had been chasing Elliot said, "Captain, if they wanted to attack us, we wouldn't have stood a chance."
Caster frowned even more deeply. At this moment, his assistant, Conrad, came rushing over. "I've confirmed that the Beyonder characteristic taken was from Borg Calvin."
"Viscount Calvin's nephew?" Caster asked.
"Yes," Conrad replied. "As for the Beyonder item taken, it's hard to determine. While we have most of our opponents' information, we don't know exactly what Beyonder items or Sealed Artifacts they possess.
"However, based on descriptions from the subordinates tending to the wounded, it should be an item at Sequence 7 or Sequence 6 level."
Caster was silent for a few seconds before suddenly laughing. "Clearly, the other side knew about our actions and took advantage of our battle to achieve their goal.
"But a High-Sequence Beyonder, using such critical information, sent their servant or subordinate to take such a risk, only to grab a Mid-Sequence Beyonder item and a Sequence 8 Beyonder characteristic?"
This was the funniest thing he'd heard all year.
Conrad analyzed, "Perhaps the Beyonder item was extraordinarily significant?"
He continued, "By the way, the divination indicated that the person who stole the Beyonder characteristic belongs to a local Beyonder faction.
"However, any divination about the strong figure on the Throne failed without exception."
"It seems a new strong power has emerged in the southern continent, and the forces within Anthony's territory will have to be reshuffled," Caster said. "Since the losses aren't substantial, let's avoid conflict with the local Beyonder organizations. Quickly gather the spoils, and let's retreat as soon as possible!"
Luckily, this new powerhouse harbored no malice towards them. Given the displayed strength, if the figure wished, most of the mercenaries would have turned into Beyonder characteristics on the southern continent.
...
The next morning, Hobert felt his spirituality and mental state had recovered significantly. After sitting in the law firm for a while, he went out to "visit clients."
He planned to rent a house on a nearby street that morning. His wealth had returned to over 70 pounds, not including the dividends from the two spoils of war or the reward promised by Mr. Robin.
As for the type of house, he had already decided—a two-story terraced house would be ideal. The space would be large enough to conduct rituals without attracting the neighbors' attention.
Preferably, the house would be near the law firm so that if he worked late, he could easily rest nearby.
After strolling around Brightland Street and the neighboring streets, Hobert soon found two suitable rental properties.
Following the instructions on the rental notices, he easily located the landlords who lived nearby. After comparing the two rental properties, Hobert chose the terraced house at 192 Blanca Street.
The house's structure was similar to the popular two-story terraced houses of the time. The first floor had a living room, kitchen, dining room, and a small storage room.
Upstairs were three bedrooms and a bathroom with a bathtub.
The house was quite spacious, equivalent to a three-bedroom, two-living-room layout that Hobert remembered.
The annual rent was 52 pounds. Hobert rented it for half a year and paid 26 pounds, leaving him with 48 pounds, 1 soli, and 6 pennies in savings.
The newly rented house was close to the law firm, only a ten-minute walk away.
After having lunch at the office, Hobert, not having received any letters from the Mercenary Club, indeed went out in the afternoon to visit clients.
The client he planned to visit was one of the cases Barton, the lawyer, had given him last week. Mr. Barron, the owner of a suburban farm, had written to the law firm seeking legal assistance.
Following the address in the letter, Hobert took a hired carriage to a suburban farm.
The repeal of the Corn Laws had caused many small landowners and tenant farmers in Loen to go bankrupt, but that was only part of the story. Several farms around Backlund survived, including Mr. Barron's.