HPxLOTM: A Wizard's Path to Divinity

"The silver armour is a Sealed Artifact of the Church of the Evernight Goddess. You were unintentionally affected by it—it was just an accident. But the devil dog…that's a different story."

Edward's tone turned grim.

Susie chimed in from the side, "That monster was killed by the silver armour."

"Yeah," Lilith added, "Miss Lilith fainted at the time, and when she opened her eyes, it was already exploding."

"I know," Edward nodded. "But it had a master."

In the original timeline, it was the Desire Apostle who was torn apart by the silver armour. But this time, it was the devil dog that died.

So…what about its master?

Had someone else been sent to deal with him? Or…did he escape?

Just as that thought passed through his mind, a commotion erupted outside.

The three of them quickly walked to the window and looked out. They saw Earl Hall and Hibbert hurrying toward the manor's main gate, followed soon after by the distant sound of galloping hooves fading into the night.

Given what had happened to Audrey just now, this all but confirmed it—Duke Negan was dead.

"Why are Father and Hibbert heading out in such a rush this late at night?" Audrey asked, puzzled.

"I'll go find out for you," said Susie, standing up.

"Miss Lilith will go too!"

Edward didn't stop them. Once they left the room, he said in a low voice, "I suspect…Duke Negan is dead."

"What?"

Audrey turned to him in shock. "Why do you think that?"

"Remember at the last ball—when Vice Admiral Hurricane Qilangos tried to assassinate Duke Negan?"

"Yes. You and the Fool's Blessed stopped him."

"The master of the devil dog that attacked you tonight…is essentially another Qilangos. He was hired by some organisation to assassinate Duke Negan. A few weeks ago, I actually gave several churches indirect intel on the case—I reported it under the guise of a serial killer investigation."

"The Grade 1 Sealed Artifact that appeared tonight was probably deployed specifically to deal with that killer. But somehow, he managed to lure it away using the devil dog."

"That killer may have not only succeeded in assassinating Duke Negan, but even managed to escape completely unharmed."

Edward flexed his fingers slightly. "Originally, someone this dangerous should be left to the official Beyonders to deal with. But now…I have no choice. I must find him and take him down."

Audrey quickly said, "But I'm fine now—you don't need to go after him just to avenge me."

"No, it's not just about revenge." Edward shook his head. "That guy has a strong sense of vengeance. If you don't kill him, he'll come back sooner or later and retaliate."

She blinked, confused. "Huh? Why would he come after me? I'm the victim here!"

"For someone like that—someone who kills for pleasure and power advancement—his mind doesn't work like a normal person's."

In the original story, every detective involved in investigating the devil dog ended up getting retaliated against. Audrey might have been a victim of its attack, but she was also indirectly involved in its death. Who could guarantee that man wouldn't take it out on her?

"Tomorrow morning, tell your father everything that happened tonight. Ask him to report it to the Church and request they dispatch some high-ranking experts."

"Got it!"

Then Audrey seemed to remember something. She said seriously, "By the way, Edward—I want to learn Apparition. I don't want to be caught in a situation like that again, where I can't even run away."

"No problem. Want to start now?"

"Yes!" She nodded. "And I'll teach you how to dance in return."

"Ugh…"

He almost forgot about the dancing lessons.

After a few seconds of hesitation, Edward asked, "Um…if Duke Negan really is dead, won't that affect your family's weekend banquet?"

"Not at all."

She shook her head without hesitation. "As the leader of the conservative faction, Duke Negan's death marks a major shift in the Loen political landscape. Since Father represents the Reformists, there will definitely be people looking to contact him in the coming days. A weekend banquet…couldn't be more perfectly timed."

"I don't understand politics, but that actually makes a lot of sense."

"…"

Just then, a pair of light footsteps approached, and the two little ones burst into the room.

Lilith spoke urgently, "A lot of people just arrived."

Susie added, "They're from the Church of the Evernight."

After a pause, she continued, "Earl Hall went out because…Duke Negan is dead."

Edward and Audrey exchanged a glance—just as they had suspected.

Knock, knock, knock.

There was a knock at the door, followed by Annie's voice: "Miss, are you still awake?"

"I am. What is it, Annie?"

"Miss, the Church's people would like to speak with you."

"…"

Audrey looked at Edward. Seeing him give her a slight nod, she replied, "Alright. Please ask them to wait a moment while I change."

"Do you need my help?" Annie asked.

"No, just focus on receiving them properly."

"Okay."

As Annie's footsteps faded into the distance, Audrey asked curiously, "Why would the Church of the Evernight Goddess want to see me?"

Edward replied, "Well, chances are the official Beyonders present earlier already noticed when you encountered the silver armour. They just didn't say anything at the time. They're probably here now to understand what happened."

"Go on—it's nothing to worry about. The Hall family has always been loyal followers of the Church of the Evernight Goddess. They won't make things difficult for you. It's probably just standard procedure, asking a few questions."

Audrey nodded. "Alright~"

She walked over to the wardrobe and took out a relatively simple formal gown, intending to get changed.

Edward quickly said, "I'll wait for you by the trunk."

"I can't get into this dress by myself. Help me."

"Huh?"

Audrey scrunched up her nose and huffed, "Huh what? I'm not getting naked—I'm just slipping this over what I'm already wearing."

"Oh, right."

She began struggling to put on the gown, while Edward fumbled about trying to assist her.

"Pull the back part up—"

"No, not like that! Are you trying to strangle me?"

"The left side is bulging."

"Don't—! You almost tore the outer layer of tulle!"

"I'm not doing my hair tonight. Just tuck it all into the hat for me—not a single strand should stick out, or it'll look disrespectful."

"By the way… why don't we just use the Switching Spell?"

"You couldn't have said that earlier?!"

Lilith and Susie sat nearby, watching them silently—first glancing at Audrey, then at Edward, their heads moving in sync. It was oddly adorable.

——

Twenty minutes later.

Audrey, now dressed in a white lace-lined formal gown with a deep green exterior, stepped into the Hall family's reception room. In addition to a few maids and Lady Hall, there were three Beyonders from the Church of the Evernight present.

One of them was a striking man with tousled hair, dressed in a white shirt, black waistcoat, and trousers. He had a casual, romantic air about him, but something in his demeanour hinted at sensitivity and a craving for safety.

Another wore a black trench coat and red gloves. His features were soft, and the streaks of grey at his temples suggested he was in his forties. Reserved and composed, his expression revealed little of his thoughts.

The third was a familiar face—Madam Daly, cloaked in black robes with blue eyeshadow and blush on her cheeks. She wore a smile and gave Audrey a polite nod.

From an observer's standpoint, Audrey quickly made a basic assessment of the trio. Since she wasn't sure why they'd come, she didn't reveal her acquaintance with Daly right away.

"Good evening, honoured guests," Audrey said with a pleasant tone. "Are you here to see my father?"

Lady Hall stepped forward, gently squeezing her daughter's hand. "No, sweetheart. They said they're here to see you. They want to ask you a few things."

Audrey blinked in surprise. "Me?"

At that moment, the man in the trench coat—Soest—spoke up. "Lady Hall, would you and the maids mind giving us a moment? We have a few questions for Miss Hall. Nothing serious—just matters involving some confidentiality, so it's best not to have too many ears around."

Audrey patted her mother's hand. "Mother, you should go get some rest."

"Alright."

Soon, Annie and the maids followed Lady Hall out of the room.

Audrey sat down across from the three visitors, blinking innocently. "May I ask—what would you like to know?"

"May I ask where you were about an hour ago, Miss Hall?"

"Let's skip the meaningless preliminaries," Soest cut in, his tone sharpening. "Do you recall what happened just now on Laurel Street?"

Instead of answering immediately, Audrey turned to Daly. Only when she saw Daly give a nod did she respond, "Yes, I remember. I was on my way back from the psychiatric hospital in a carriage when I was suddenly attacked by a monster."

Leonard frowned. "As the Hall family's heiress, why were you at a psychiatric hospital?"

"I'd heard about the tragic lives of many patients, and I wanted to offer them some comfort. I also donated a sum of money to help improve their conditions."

"And then you happened to take that road…happened to run into the devil dog…and just happened to escape unharmed?"

Daly spoke up calmly, "Leonard, your tone is rather rude."

Leonard was puzzled. Wasn't this kind of fast-paced pressure exactly how they got suspects to reveal flaws in their stories?

Why was it suddenly 'rude' just because she was an earl's daughter?

"Was I really that rude, old man?" he asked mentally.

Pallez chuckled in his mind, "You were rude—but your line of questioning wasn't wrong. Heh, that Daly…she clearly knows the girl."

"Huh?"

Sost now asked, "Pardon me for being direct, Miss Hall, but…are you a Beyonder?"

"…Yes."

"May I ask where you acquired your potion? From what I've found, you haven't registered with any official agency."

Audrey replied calmly, "I acquired it through a personal connection."

"Which friend?"

"It was…"

"It was me."

Daly raised her hand.

"Madam Daly?"

Leonard's eyes widened in astonishment.

Inside his mind, Pallez laughed softly, "She's lying."

———

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