Lord of Mysteries: The New Black Emperor

Join www.patreon.com/KeyofStars for advance chapters

~~~

To avoid drawing attention, Hobert, Xio, and Fors got off the carriage early and left the main road, walking through the fields until they reached the countryside villa of Upton.

Xio found a good vantage point for surveillance. The three hid near their observation post, with Hobert using binoculars to look at the villa.

In the yard, a man in his forties was chopping wood, likely Upton's butler. Through the window, they could see shadows moving in a room on the second floor, which should be Upton himself.

However, despite watching for a long time, Upton did not come out.

Hobert checked his pocket watch. It was only around 4 p.m., and he whispered, "We'll move after dark."

Fors took the binoculars from Hobert, keeping watch over the distant farmyard. "Life here seems so peaceful. I dream of living like this. If only…"

If only it weren't for the whispers under the full moon, she would have saved up to buy such a small estate and spend every summer in peace.

Hobert smiled and said, "Dreams are only valuable when they remain dreams."

Fors sighed. "Emperor Roselle may have said something wise, but that's because all his dreams came true. I wouldn't know what it feels like to have my dreams fulfilled."

Hobert chuckled. "Alright, alright, all the famous quotes come from Emperor Roselle."

As the three of them chatted, the sun gradually set, and night descended.

At around 7 p.m., after having a simple meal in the wilderness, Hobert handed masks to Xio and Fors. "Don't reveal your voice, habitual movements, or anything else that could give you away. Upton might have ties with some secret Beyonder organizations."

After preparing, the three approached Upton's farm under the cover of darkness.

Though this place still belonged to Backlund, it was in a very remote area, with no nightlife to speak of. The nearby village had long since gone dark, leaving only one light shining on the second floor of Upton's villa.

Standing before the yard's wall, Fors kept watch outside while Hobert and Xio agilely jumped over the wall and into the yard.

Earlier that afternoon, Hobert had mentioned he had acquired a Beyonder item that made him more agile.

As partners, it was essential to inform one another about such things to avoid misunderstandings during operations.

However, Hobert hadn't told Xio about the "Spirit Necklace." While he trusted her, one always needed a few trump cards.

The two of them swiftly climbed up to the second-floor window, where the light was on. Inside, the dim light illuminated only half of the room, and they saw the figure of Upton lying in bed, as if he'd forgotten to blow out the oil lamp before falling asleep.

Hobert signaled Xio with his eyes, and they pushed the window open together and jumped inside.

According to the intel Hobert had gathered, Upton was likely a Lawyer or, at most, a Barbarian.

Even if they couldn't subdue him, both Hobert and Xio were confident they could easily escape, so Hobert suppressed many cautious thoughts and chose to take the most direct approach to get the information he needed.

As soon as they entered the room, Hobert sensed something off. The air was unnaturally cold. While it was late August in Backlund and the evenings could be cool, it shouldn't have been this cold.

Xio also realized something was wrong and didn't recklessly advance. She stayed by the window, guarding their escape route.

Though she might not always be the sharpest thinker, Xio was extremely reliable in action.

Suddenly, Hobert's spirituality was stirred. He quickly activated his Spirit Vision and saw a figure with an unnaturally long face and disheveled hair standing not far from them.

Hobert took a step back and immediately realized that the figure was a spirit. Though not aggressive, its appearance was certainly terrifying.

The Spirit Necklace gave him the ability to identify a spirit's weaknesses. Combined with his Lawyer ability to detect vulnerabilities, Hobert instantly realized that this spirit was afraid of fire, which was why it stayed in the farthest corner from the oil lamp.

Hobert stepped forward, grabbed the oil lamp, and hurled it at the spirit.

Crash!

The oil lamp shattered, and flames spread along the spilled oil, igniting the floor.

Whoosh!

With a howl, the spirit swiftly fled the room.

At the moment the oil lamp hit the floor, a figure rushed out from the dark corner. In the firelight, they could see it was a young man with evident nervousness on his face.

He swung a fist toward Hobert's head, but Hobert easily dodged.

After activating Spirit Vision earlier, Hobert had glanced at the bed and hadn't detected any living aura there. Instead, he sensed a person's aura in the darkness of the room, and he had guessed that Upton was hiding there. Thus, he had been prepared for Upton's ambush.

But Hobert found it odd that Upton was so guarded.

When Upton's punch missed, he followed up with a series of attacks, each blow carrying tremendous force.

However, Hobert skillfully used his cane to counter Upton's strikes, holding his own in the fight. It was as if he instinctively knew how to attack his opponent and how to dodge each blow, moving like a natural-born fighter.

At the same time, Hobert realized that Upton had consumed the Barbarian potion. His strength was astonishing, and several times, Hobert's cane was nearly knocked from his hands. The Lawyer pathway wasn't supposed to be this strong.

However, Hobert soon noticed that, while Upton's attacks were powerful, they were somewhat slow.

At this moment, Xio joined the fight, and Upton lost the ability to retaliate.

Yet, he sneered, "Did the Tamara family really send two nobodies like you to kill me? How naive!"

Upton's face suddenly turned pale, and Hobert abruptly saw that the door to the room had opened.

But beyond the door was a strange, indescribable world—a place of chaos without up or down, filled with vast amounts of information. One could see every detail of that world, with nothing obstructing their view.

Hobert and Xio both felt a wave of dizziness and nausea as they stared.

The Spirit World!

Hobert realized what he was seeing—the Spirit World!

While low-sequence Beyonders could sense the Spirit World and some with heightened spirituality could even receive revelations from it, they could not yet directly touch or enter it.

As the door to the Spirit World opened, a humanoid monster emerged, with long arms and a tongue, lacking eyes and ears.

Hobert and Xio's spirituality immediately screamed of the incoming danger.