Chapter 333: This Is the Blessing of the Stars

Chapter 333: This Is the Blessing of the Stars

Beckland, Earl Hall's Residence

Audrey was in a good mood. By her calculations, it had been almost half a year since she last saw Mr. Hastur, and they had only been corresponding through letters.

"Susie, you look like you're in a good mood."

"Audrey, you seem to be in a good mood too."

Audrey lifted her head slightly. "Susie, I specifically told Mr. Hastur in my letter not to bring you any of the Complete Works of Roselle. Reading too many of those books isn't good for you."

"…"

Susie was silent for a moment, then looked at Audrey with a calm expression. "Audrey, I've already finished reading all of Emperor Roselle's works."

This time, it was Audrey's turn to fall silent. After a long pause, she asked, "When did you finish reading them?"

"A month ago."

Audrey and Susie exchanged a few glances, and Audrey sighed with emotion. "Susie, you're getting smarter and smarter."

"Reading can increase wisdom. That's what the books say. Woof."

"…"

Audrey sighed heavily, feeling a bit nostalgic for the silly Susie of the past.

Knock, knock, knock.

The door was knocked on. Without needing Audrey's command, Susie immediately closed her mouth, found a shady spot, and lay down, pretending to sleep.

Audrey opened the door, and the maid outside informed her that Earl Hall had something for her to attend to in the study.

Susie, lying on the ground, perked up her ears, got up, and followed Audrey to the study.

Inside the study, Earl Hall was gently rubbing his eyes.

"Honorable Earl Hall, did you call me to help relieve your fatigue?"

Audrey smiled as she walked behind Earl Hall and began massaging his shoulders.

Earl Hall closed his eyes slightly and rested for a while before speaking. "You should know that Hastur is returning to Beckland, right?"

"Yes, will my second brother be coming back too?"

"No, he won't. He and your elder brother have always had a rift. It's better for him to stay in Southwell County."

Audrey felt a bit fortunate that she was a girl. Otherwise, she would also be involved in the internal struggles of the nobility. Even if she had no such intentions, it would still arouse suspicion among her relatives.

"The Queen has been inquiring about you frequently lately."

Audrey's small hands paused in massaging Earl Hall's shoulders. Susie, lying in the shadow of the bookshelf, couldn't help but perk up her ears and listen more intently.

Earl Hall chuckled lightly. "It seems you already understand the Queen's intentions. Who made my daughter the brightest jewel in all of Beckland?"

Audrey withdrew her hands from the massage, frowned slightly, and finally pursed her lips. "I don't like the life of the royal family."

Earl Hall naturally understood his beloved daughter's thoughts. He also didn't particularly want to have any familial ties with the royal family. There were too many rules and too much chaos there.

He wasn't at the point where he needed to marry off his daughter to maintain his title.

So he had always tried to deflect and refuse these matters as much as possible.

But recently, the Queen seemed to be particularly interested in Audrey. It was unclear which prince had been thinking about her.

Audrey had only just come of age, so there shouldn't be such urgency.

"Don't worry, I'll shield you from these messy things. My daughter is so outstanding that she should naturally make her own choices in life, rather than being chosen by others."

Earl Hall's tone was gentle yet firm as he reassured her.

"Mm!"

Audrey nodded heavily, and a smile slowly blossomed on her previously troubled face.

"Woof!"

Susie also barked at the right moment, expressing her firm support for Audrey.

Fors and Xio's Residence

Fors, who typically rested for two hours on the sofa after one hour of writing, rarely had a worried expression on her face.

Recently, for some reason, many Beyonders had started investigating the followers of the Stars, making her afraid to go out and unable to concentrate on writing.

She had also sought a solution from the Stars, but they only said that the Stars would protect every follower.

This made her consider whether to convert Xio into a follower of the Stars as well. With the protection of the Stars, Xio would be much safer while out and about.

Bang! Bang!

Suddenly, there was a loud knocking on the door, startling Fors on the sofa.

Could it be that a Beyonder had come looking for her?

Her face turned serious. She touched the bracelet on her wrist, took a deep breath, and then walked to the door.

"Who's knocking?"

"It's me, Little Jerry."

The familiar young voice outside the door made Fors breathe a sigh of relief.

Little Jerry was a seven-year-old boy who lived on the next street and had a good relationship with Xio. He was the youngest informant under Xio's command.

Most of the time, children were less noticeable and more suitable for gathering intelligence.

"Are you alone?" Fors was still a bit uneasy.

"Yes, someone asked me to deliver a note to you."

Creak, the old door made a sound befitting its age and stiffness.

Fors still opened the door, and sure enough, only Little Jerry was outside.

Little Jerry placed a crumpled note in her hand, his expression urgent, and spoke quickly. "Sister Xio might be in danger."

Xio?!

Fors hurriedly opened the note, which read: "If you want your friend to be safe, come to Warehouse No. 32 on Tess Street."

Had Xio been kidnapped?

Or was this just a prank?

Fors's face turned pale. She clenched the note and asked Little Jerry for more details.

"When I was looking for Sister Xio on the street, I was suddenly targeted. A tall, thin man with a scar on his right cheek came over, gave me this note, and menacingly told me to deliver it to you…"

After hearing Little Jerry's account, Fors reassured him not to worry and promised to find Xio.

If she was right, the person must be targeting the followers of the Stars. Many wild Beyonders had already been targeted recently.

Xio had been out and about, and no matter how careful she was, there would be a day when she was noticed.

After sending Little Jerry away, Fors locked the doors and windows, returned to her bedroom, briefly reported the situation to the Stars, and received a response of "understood." She then took the trident left by Xio and headed out.

Warehouse No. 32 on Tess Street was in a remote area, surrounded by nothing but piles of trash.

Inside the warehouse, Xio was tied to a pillar, her face pale and eyes full of worry.

Recently, people had gone mad searching for followers of the Stars. She had been lucky, thinking nothing would happen. But today, after leaving a secret gathering, she was captured.

These people had gathered detailed information, even knowing that Fors lived with her. They set a trap using her as bait to lure Fors here.

She didn't want Fors to come and save her. If she guessed correctly, Fors was the follower of the Stars they had been searching for.

But Fors still came.

When Xio saw Fors appear at the warehouse door, her eyes reddened, and she shouted, "Fors, you fool! How could you fall for such an obvious trap? Didn't you think of hiding and finding someone else to rescue me?"

Fors smiled. "I was afraid that if I didn't come, there wouldn't be any future to talk about."

She knew very well that if she didn't show up, Xio would have no chance of survival.

As for whether she could save Xio today, she could only place all her hopes on the protection of the Stars.

There were three people guarding Xio, one of whom was the tall, thin man with a scar on his face described by Little Jerry.

"Your friend has only one chance to live." Someone pressed a sharp knife to Xio's smooth throat.

Fors forced herself to remain calm. "What do you want?"

"Are you a follower of the Stars?"

The voice seemed to come from within her mind, filled with an undeniable authority.

"Yes!"

Fors felt her mind go blank and uncontrollably admitted her identity as a follower of the Stars.

But before the three could rejoice, vines suddenly burst from the ground, piercing through them from head to toe.

Their bodies hung on the wrist-thick green vines, blood dripping down and being absorbed by the roots.

Xio, who was tied up, was stunned and couldn't help but ask, "Fors, when did you become so powerful?"

Fors forced a smile at Xio, staggered, and quickly leaned against the warehouse door frame, retching.

The sight of people being impaled by vines was too shocking for her to accept immediately.

After recovering a bit, Fors bowed to the vines and respectfully said, "Thank you for your help."

In fact, she had no idea who had saved her.

Her intuition told her it was the blessing of the Stars.

"Leave now and be more careful in the future."

A knowledgeable and pleasant voice came from the shadows. More vines emerged from the ground, completely devouring the three bodies, leaving no trace of blood.

"I will be careful."

Fors didn't wait for a response. After a brief silence, she ran to Xio, took out the trident, and cut the ropes binding her wrists.

"Wow! Fors, when did you get to know such a powerful person?" Xio exaggeratedly asked after being freed.

Fors knew Xio was deliberately changing the subject to prevent her from feeling too guilty about today's events.

Her smile was bright, and she proudly said, "This is the blessing of the Stars!"