Lord of Mysteries: Return of the Stars!

"I have the Apothecary potion formula you need. How many gold pounds are you willing to pay for it?"

Maric gave Glaint yet another surprise.

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"300 gold pounds!"

Glaint, snapping back to his senses, immediately quoted a relatively high price.

Hastur had once told him that the price of a Sequence 9 potion formula ranged between 200 and 300 gold pounds.

The Apothecary potion formula was a bit more valuable, roughly around 250 gold pounds.

"You are very generous, a good trading partner."

Maric said, taking out a piece of paper from his pocket and handing it to Glaint, adding, "If you can't gather the materials listed here, you can come seek my help. Of course, I will charge a reasonable labor fee."

Glaint, grinning from ear to ear, accepted the paper excitedly and said, "That's only proper, only proper."

As for the authenticity of the Apothecary potion formula, he had no doubts whatsoever. He wasn't trusting Maric; he was trusting Hastur's reputation.

If Hastur wanted to deceive him, he would have given him a fake Apothecary potion formula long ago, no need to wait until now.

"Your luck is better than mine." Hastur gave Glaint a reassuring look.

Maric and Sharon were indeed trustworthy.

"Haha…" Glaint laughed for a while, then hurriedly ordered his servant to prepare some things, intending to have Maric and Hastur stay for dinner.

Maric, being in the Corpse sequence, didn't really need to eat, so he politely declined and left.

Hastur, of course, couldn't just leave as Maric did; he had to show his gratitude for Glaint's courtesy today and also answer some of Glaint's questions.

After all, he could be considered Glaint's guide into the Beyonder world.

After dinner, Glaint took Hastur to his study to chat and ask about Beyonder materials.

Hastur only recommended a relatively trustworthy Beyonder material trading black market, believing Glaint wouldn't be foolish enough to take risks personally every time.

When it came to purchasing Beyonder materials, he could easily send trusted people to buy them.

As their conversation was coming to an end, Glaint mentioned a private gathering to be held this week, saying he wanted to give him a little surprise.

"Don't tell me you invited Miss Audrey?"

Hastur casually guessed, recalling how Audrey had seemed slightly unusual during their last meeting.

"…Hastur, can't you at least pretend to be a little slow sometimes?"

"Glaint, I also hope you can be a little smarter."

"Alas, we can't be friends like this."

Glaint sighed, but his frustration was soon swept away by the joy of acquiring the Apothecary potion formula. Grinning again, he kept Hastur around for more conversation.

Before leaving, Hastur especially reminded Glaint not to casually tell others about the resurrection ritual he had once held, or it would cause trouble.

Now that Glaint had one foot already in the Beyonder world, he had begun to realize how terrifying performing a resurrection ritual was.

Even though the ritual had ultimately failed, it was still terrifying.

Hearing Hastur's warning, he quickly agreed and promised never to tell anyone again.

…

After returning home, Hastur glanced at his pocket watch, it was around half past nine, and ordered a hearty late-night snack.

When he went to the washroom to take a bath, the mirror in front of him revealed a slender figure.

She was wearing a Gothic-style court dress of a different color from the one that afternoon, with a small black veil hat. Her azure eyes were as calm as a pool of still water, without the slightest ripple.

Seeing Hastur looking over, she lifted both sides of her dress and gave a graceful courtly bow, then disappeared from the mirror.

Hastur didn't even have time to say anything and could only sigh at how unpredictable and hard to guard against the Beyonder abilities of wraiths were.

Thankfully, he was still wearing clothes; if Sharon had suddenly appeared in the mirror while he was bathing, that would have been truly frightening.

But Sharon wouldn't be that bored, would she?

Hastur tried softly calling out twice but received no response, which made him relax.

He lingered in front of the mirror for a moment, then channeled his spiritual power to establish a new rule for the washroom:

"No invisibility! No hiding!"

After setting the rule, Hastur opened his spiritual vision and carefully scanned around. Indeed, he found no trace of Sharon.

He couldn't help but laugh at himself, just taking a bath, yet acting as if he were a thief.

Being a thief in your own house was quite a novel feeling.

After his bath and a hearty late-night snack, Hastur felt exceptionally energetic. Checking his pocket watch, there was still more than an hour before 11:30.

He went to his study and began reading advanced law books.

Thanks to the Barbarian's physique enhancement, he was now full of energy, and even reading such tedious and boring legal provisions didn't tire him.

After two hours, he finally put down the book, stretched, and returned to the bedroom to rest.

Lying in bed for a while, he entered the Hall of Stars, with two Chains of Order hanging on either side, gently swaying.

Hastur stared at the star where the Son of Chaos resided for a long time, finally suppressing the urge to whip Him a few times.

He was so used to whipping that it felt a little uncomfortable not doing it.

With a sigh, he shifted his gaze to the star where the Mother Tree of Desire was, then withdrew his gaze and began pondering what kind of rule should be set for the second Chain of Order.

With the foundation of the first rule established, he could now freely consider rules beyond combat power, such as destiny.

From the day he was born into this mysterious world until now, he seemed to have had a deep connection with the word "fate."

The name Hastur Campbell itself was not a simple name in the field of mysticism; whether the King in Yellow existed or not, it was something that warranted caution.

A person's name could influence their fate, and in mysticism, the relationship between the two was even closer.

And he had already inherited this fate.

Voltaire Campbell, that gambler, seemed to have been cursed by a Beyonder of the Fate Pathway, which caused his luck in gambling to be utterly disastrous, eventually losing his family fortune and drowning by the river.

Andrew coming to blackmail him also had the shadow of a Fate Pathway Beyonder behind it.

Connecting this series of events, it seemed as if his fate had already been arranged by someone unseen.

So, could he use the Hall of Stars to free himself from the influence of fate as much as possible?

To create a Fate that escapes his destiny?

That was clearly impossible, because no matter what kind of Fate it was, it was still Fate. There could be no Fate beyond destiny.

All he could do was reduce or rid himself of fate's influence as much as possible.

But how should such a rule be set? Hastur struggled again, falling into deep thought.

This was not something he could decide in just a day or two; he still had time to think slowly.

…

At six in the morning, Hastur had already woken from his slumber. With the physique of a barbarian, his sleep time had been greatly reduced; four hours of sleep a day was enough.

Having nothing else to do, he went to the study to continue reading law books.

Around eight-thirty, after breakfast, Hastur told the coachman to head to the countryside.

With nothing else to do, he planned to visit the village where that old man had lived and erect a gravestone for him, the only thing he could do for the old man.

In the story the old man had told, he had no relatives or friends, no children or grandchildren, living alone in seclusion in a remote village on the outskirts.

The countryside was a bit far away, and with the jolting of the carriage, it took nearly four hours before Hastur arrived at that small village.

Surrounded by mountains on three sides and bordered by water on one, it was indeed a suitable place for retirement.

However, for the villagers here, this geographical layout was the root of their poverty and backwardness.

There were many mountains but few plains, and with no rare mineral deposits nearby, no company would come here to invest in building factories to drive economic growth.

Hastur's arrival attracted many curious glances. The village was quite a distance from the city, and it was rare for nobles to come here.

When the villagers heard that Hastur was looking for the old man, they whispered among themselves, wondering if the old man's grandson had come to visit.

A young man who was responsible for leading the way was quite talkative. Without Hastur having to ask much, he explained everything he knew.

The old man was considered something of an oddball in the village. Though he had come from elsewhere and lived alone, he always seemed to have an endless supply of meat at home.

According to hunters who went into the mountains, the old man was very familiar with the forest environment and skilled at hunting; a single trip into the mountains could provide him with enough meat to last a week.

The old man occasionally exchanged his game with the villagers for daily necessities, always at a fair price, so his relationship with them was fairly good.

Led by the young man, Hastur arrived at the old man's home. Opening the door, he found few belongings inside, but each item was neatly arranged.

Hastur thought that must have been a habit cultivated from the old man's many years of military service.

He didn't disturb the old man's home too much, only asking the young man to fetch a set of the old man's clothes and purchasing a small burial plot. He buried the clothes and erected a gravestone for him.

It read: A penitent eternal warrior.

After completing all of this, Hastur handed a gold pound to the young man who had busied himself helping him and then returned to the carriage under the villagers' curious gazes.

As for lunch, he bought some local bread in the village to make do with, planning to have a proper meal once he returned.

On the carriage, Hastur gazed at the distant mountains, lost in thought.

Playing the role of a barbarian in a metropolis like Backlund was a very difficult task and easily attracted attention.

But if he went to the countryside, near the forests, would it be easier to play the role of a barbarian?

For a barbarian, wildness was also an important aspect.

Nothing could unleash one's wild nature better than the natural environment.

However, the areas far from urban zones were relatively dangerous.

He considered letting Maric serve as his bodyguard for a while. If Miss Sharon was also willing to come, it would be even safer.

Hastur felt this plan was quite feasible, and coincidentally, he also had a large estate in the countryside that he had yet to visit.

It was a good time to take a look, hopefully, it hadn't all been ruined by mosquitoes, snakes, and rats.