Investigating himself?
Duke Southwell really knew how to find things for him to do.
In the study, Hastur finished reading the letter sent by Duke Southwell and casually set it aside. His right index finger lightly tapped against the desk, producing a rhythmic sound.
This was probably Klein and Crestet Cesimir using Duke Southwell to pressure him.
A very good strategy and test. It also gave him a suitable excuse.
After thinking for a while, Hastur got up and headed out.
He ordered notices to be posted all across Puning Port offering rewards, while also contacting newspapers and asking them to publish information related to the Red Gloves squad members.
Anyone able to provide useful clues would receive a generous reward.
Of course, publicly they could not be described as the Red Gloves squad secretly responsible for handling Beyonder incidents under the Church of the Evernight Goddess.
Instead, they were portrayed as tourists from Backlund visiting Puning Port for leisure.
At the same time, Hastur ordered the Puning Port garrison to dispatch several squads to sweep through every dark corner of the city.
Whether it was useful or not was one thing, but the appearances had to be convincing.
Such a massive operation naturally alarmed Crestet Cesimir and Klein.
"His speed in handling things is truly impressive." Crestet Cesimir could not help admiring the young count's efficiency. In just a single day, the other party had already created such a huge commotion.
Klein said nothing. Toward this Mr. Hastur, he always felt an instinctive wariness.
There simply seemed to be too many mysteries surrounding this person. It was better not to interact with him too deeply.
But regarding this matter, there was nothing suspicious about what Hastur had done.
At the inn. The four Red Gloves squad members gathered together to discuss the contents published in that morning's Sea and Sky Morning Post.
"Should we take this chance to contact Earl Hastur Campbell? Maybe he can arrange for us to leave Puning Port."
"We can try." After a discussion that was not particularly intense, they ultimately decided to send two people to test the waters, while the remaining two would continue leaving messages around Puning Port so that future rescuers could discover them.
The two Red Gloves members carried a newspaper with them and headed toward the former governor's residence. They met Hastur very easily and very smoothly.
Naturally, they had already forgotten the memories of previously being unable to find Hastur. They simply believed this was their first time seeking his help.
The moment they arrived, the two described the predicament they were facing and asked Hastur to arrange for them to leave Puning Port.
Hastur suggested traveling by sea, and the two gladly agreed.
That very afternoon, Hastur arranged a ship traveling directly from Puning Port to Backlund for them.
As long as no accidents or coincidences occurred, they would return to Backlund safely and smoothly.
Before they left, Hastur deliberately asked whether any other members were still trapped.
The two did not answer directly. They only said that if they safely escaped Puning Port and got out of their predicament, the remaining team members would also come seek his assistance.
Hastur did not particularly care about such minor caution.
All he needed now was to send the remaining two Red Gloves members back to Backlund before Crestet Cesimir and Klein could reach them, preventing them from exchanging information face-to-face.
The memories of the four Red Gloves members had been tampered with. If they compared notes in person, they might realize something was wrong with their memories.
On the third day after the notices and newspapers were released, the remaining two Red Gloves members also came to seek Hastur's help.
In response, Hastur warmly arranged another ship for them to return to Backlund.
Once all four of them had left Puning Port, Hastur would have the Yellow-Robed Monks alter their memories concerning him.
The reason they escaped was because of their own efforts and attempts, not because of him.
That way, the entire Puning Port incident would appear to be nothing more than a bizarre misunderstanding. It sounded absurd, yet still believable.
In the Beyonder world, there were many reasons why someone could become trapped in a place and unable to leave.
A powerful Sealed Artifact, a high-sequence Beyonder, and so on.
If the Church of the Evernight Goddess wanted to investigate further, they would simply have to send more people. That would become an entirely different issue.
Before Crestet Cesimir and Klein could uncover any useful clues, Hastur had already removed himself completely from suspicion.
All that remained was to wait for them to come knocking at his door.
Judging by the ship's speed, the first two Red Gloves members would safely arrive in Backlund within a few days.
Once they returned, the person in charge at Backlund would definitely issue new instructions to Crestet Cesimir and Klein.
…
Upon the sea, the Black Emperor sailed steadily across the turbulent waters.
Inside the cabin, Leonard lay on the bed, thinking about this unusual experience.
They had already been aboard the Black Emperor for nearly a week. Despite all their efforts to gather information, the only answer they received was that 008 was in the possession of the King of the Five Seas, Nast.
Although Madam Ilya frequently tried communicating with Nast in hopes of having 008 returned to the Church, nothing came of it.
Originally, they had hoped the Church of Storms' ships would arrive in time to blockade the Black Emperor so they could recover 008 together from Nast.
But after so many days, not a single ship from the Church of Storms had appeared.
Wasn't the Church of Storms supposed to rule the seas? Wasn't the storm supposed to be strongest upon the ocean?
Without the Church of Storms' cooperation, there was simply no way for them to seize 008 aboard the Black Emperor.
What puzzled Leonard the most was whether this King of the Five Seas, Nast, was perhaps a little too kind and friendly.
He was a pirate king, after all. Yet toward people who intended to steal his treasure, he not only invited them aboard but treated them with courtesy.
It almost made Leonard suspect that the King of the Five Seas harbored some ulterior motive toward Madam Ilya.
Compared to Leonard's anxiety, the old man was not worried at all. He even said that being treated politely all the way back to Backlund was not a bad thing.
Knock knock.
A knock on the door interrupted Leonard's thoughts.
He got out of bed and opened the door. Outside stood another teammate, informing him that Madam Ilya had something to discuss and wanted him to come over.
When he arrived at Madam Ilya's room, the doors and windows were tightly shut.
Ilya said nothing. She merely handed each of them a blank sheet of paper and a feather pen.
This had become their main method of communication during this period, generally used when discussing plans of action.
"The Church of Storms has already contacted me. Tomorrow, three of their ships will intercept the Black Emperor in the sea ahead. We should look for an opportunity to act," Ilya wrote before holding up the paper for Leonard and the others to read.
"Is the information reliable?" Leonard asked.
Ilya nodded without writing anything more.
"How should we cooperate?" another teammate wrote on the paper.
"Find the exact location of 008."
"Could he be carrying it on him?"
"I've investigated. 008 is not on his person."
"The captain's cabin and study are the most likely places."
After discussing for a while, Leonard wrote on the paper, "What if 008 isn't even on the Black Emperor?"
This had always been his suspicion.
"We still have to try." That was Ilya's answer.
The next day arrived quickly, but the Church of Storms' ships never appeared on the horizon as promised. They had been stood up.
Because of this, Nast summoned them for a conversation.
Then, under the pretext that they harbored ill intentions, he expelled them from the Black Emperor, giving them only a barely usable small boat.
Fortunately, they were not too far from the coastline. After sailing for two days and one night, they could already see the towering lighthouse.
On the small boat, Leonard secretly glanced at Madam Ilya's grave and complicated expression before withdrawing his gaze and letting out a heavy sigh inwardly.
What exactly was this mess? After going out to sea, they had accomplished nothing except wasting time. They could not even confirm whether 008 was truly in the hands of the King of the Five Seas.
It felt as though they were kites, guided by someone holding the string as they circled around the sea. Once the other party had finished playing with them, the string was cut, and their freedom returned.
Coincidences and chance, their experiences during this period felt like a script written in advance.
Leonard himself had once been toyed with thoroughly by 008, so he did not feel too strongly about it. But for Madam Ilya, known as the Goddess' Eye, her feelings were probably very complicated.
As the small boat approached the shoreline, they finally saw the dock hidden behind the mist.
They had returned to Backlund. Returned to the place where everything had begun.
The old man truly was farsighted. How had he known the King of the Five Seas, Nast, would send them back to Backlund?
Leonard sighed inwardly, while also feeling fortunate that they had managed to return to Backlund alive this time.
After returning to Saint Samuel Cathedral, they learned that the Red Gloves squad originally left investigating the incident in Puning Port had also returned to Backlund, arriving only one day earlier than they had.
"The kite string let loose." Leonard's expression became very complicated. Being manipulated like a puppet kite really left an awful feeling.
When he learned that Klein had also gone to Puning Port in order to rescue the Red Gloves squad, the look on Leonard's face became even more colorful.
Madam Ilya reacted to this matter with great anger and determination, insisting on making another trip to Puning Port to uncover what exactly was hidden there.
However, this proposal was stopped by Archbishop Anthony, who told her to patiently await instructions from the Church of Serenity.