Under the crimson moonlight, the garden, already blooming with flowers, now wore a faint red veil, appearing even more luscious and enchanting.
Inside the small garden pavilion, Hibbert and Hastur sat on one side, while Audrey held Countess Hall's arm and sat on the other.
With Earl Hall absent, both Hibbert and Audrey appeared much more relaxed, and Hastur also found the atmosphere rather pleasant.
Hibbert glanced at Audrey, thought for a moment, and asked, "Hastur, how did you first meet my sister?"
"At a gathering hosted by Glaint. Miss Audrey was among the invited guests. I was fortunate enough to exchange a few words with her. Later, I met her a few more times at Glaint's place, and that's when we really became familiar."
Hastur answered honestly; there was no reason for him to lie on this matter.
"My sister must have made you worry quite a bit, no?"
…Something about that sounded a little strange.
Hastur considered it and still replied honestly, "Miss Audrey is very intelligent, graceful, and magnanimous. In many ways, I'm actually the one who made Miss Audrey put in extra effort."
"Really?"
Before Hastur could answer, Audrey feigned a complaint, "My dear big brother, you don't seem to trust your adorable sister very much."
"Because I know and trust you, that's exactly why I have such doubts."
Hibbert's reply made Audrey gently shake Countess Hall's arm as she acted spoiled, "My most beloved and fair Countess Hall, surely you'll give your daughter a fair judgment, yes?"
Countess Hall smiled and patted Audrey's small hand. "Of course. My Audrey has always been the daughter I'm most proud of, excellent and perfect in every aspect."
"Countess Hall, your discerning eyes are as wise as always."
Feeling triumphant, Audrey shot a smug glance at Hibbert. But when she caught, from the corner of her eye, Hastur's fleeting look of surprise, her cheeks warmed.
She had actually forgotten he was still there… The Audrey who had just acted cute and spoiled would definitely shatter the elegant and composed image he always had of her, right?
Hastur remained silent.
He was indeed surprised, but not because Audrey had a coquettish side. What surprised him more was how harmonious and warm the Hall family was.
Perhaps only such a happy and free family environment could raise a noble girl as pure and kind as Audrey.
The reason Audrey was the brightest gem of Backlund was precisely because she had been sculpted to perfection from the moment she was born.
And as she grew, that jewel's radiance naturally illuminated all of Backlund.
After chatting for a while, Hibbert found an excuse to leave, leaving Hastur with Countess Hall and Audrey.
Without Hibbert present, Audrey relaxed even further. A faint smile lingered on her face as she occasionally spoke with Hastur, occasionally told Countess Hall interesting stories from her gatherings with Hastur, Glaint, and the others.
For example, Glaint's little golden-furred dog could do backflips, very smart, able to understand human speech.
In the distance, hidden quietly among the flowers, Susie turned aside in disdain.
Backflips? Such a simple trick, she had mastered that when she was tiny. Was that really worth bragging about?
As for being smart and understanding people… could that silly dog even compare?
She could even turn pages and read books on her own!
The book once said: Humility is a virtue.
Thinking of that line, Susie no longer felt the need to compete with the little golden dog. She lifted her head happily and wagged her tail.
Back at the pavilion, Countess Hall glanced at the smiling Audrey, then at the composed Hastur across from her, softly yawning.
"I'm a little tired. I should go rest for a while."
Audrey immediately stood, ready to support Countess Hall back to her room.
But Countess Hall shook her head. "Leaving a guest here alone would not be the Hall family's way of hospitality."
"You're right, dear Countess Hall." Audrey smiled and gestured for a maid nearby to escort Countess Hall to her room.
Soon, only Hastur and Audrey remained in the pavilion.
"Hastur, were tonight's desserts to your liking?"
"They were excellent. I'm even thinking about poaching one of your chefs."
"That may be difficult. Every chef in our household is a precious treasure."
"Then it seems I won't have the blessing of enjoying that food regularly."
Hastur knew well that chefs in great noble families ranked loyalty above all.
A chef lacking loyalty could easily be bribed by enemies to slip poison into meals.
"Hastur can always visit our home often," Audrey suggested with a smile.
"That would be my honor."
Audrey sighed dramatically. "So it turns out all it takes is dessert to make Mr. Hastur give in."
"That is the price of seeking fine cuisine."
"Does Mr. Hastur cook for himself?"
"When I lived alone, yes, otherwise I'd starve. But now? No. I'm too lazy to bother."
"That's… painfully relatable."
"How are Miss Audrey's cooking lessons going?"
"..." Audrey fell silent for a moment, then blinked and smiled. "Mr. Hastur, let me show you around the garden. Just sitting here is too boring."
Hastur felt slightly surprised. Was Audrey not good at cooking?
But with her intelligence, cooking shouldn't be that hard… right?
He did not ask further, pressing the topic would be impolite.
He accepted her invitation and walked with her into the garden.
The Hall family's back garden was enormous, one couldn't even see its boundaries. According to Audrey, their household had more than ten gardeners alone.
Under the crimson moonlight, the white cobblestone path stretched between blooming flowers.
Hastur and Audrey walked side by side, chatting softly.
Halfway through the walk, Hastur suddenly stopped. The smile on his face faded, replaced by a strange expression.
This… felt familiar.
Had he seen this somewhere before?
After thinking it over, he finally remembered: he had once glimpsed a scene like this through fate-divination in the Hall of the Stars.
That painting was almost identical to the current scene. The surroundings were nearly the same.
The only difference was that, in the painting, Earl Hall had already appeared.
Hastur quietly exhaled in relief. Luckily, that hellish illustration did not come true.
"Hastur, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Noticing his expression, Audrey instinctively stepped closer, trying to see what was troubling him.
"I'm fine. I just suddenly remembered something… unpleasant."
"Woof!" Just as Hastur explained, Susie, still observing from afar, let out a bark.
Hastur and Audrey both looked in the direction of the sound.
Earl Hall was standing at the end of the cobblestone path, gazing at them from a distance.
Thump.
Hastur's heart jolted violently, and his expression almost froze. Fortunately, his self-control had improved; no panicked "caught red-handed" look appeared.
He maintained a calm, composed face.
A man with a clear conscience has nothing to fear.
He and Audrey were merely ordinary friends. Even if it looked like that "hellish painting," it was just a coincidence, nothing more.
Audrey smiled, waved innocently at Earl Hall, looking charming and pure.
"Hastur, let's go over."
"…Alright."
Side by side, with half a meter of polite distance between their shoulders, they walked toward Earl Hall.
Within a few minutes, they reached him. Audrey happily looped her arm around her father's.
Standing not far behind Earl Hall, Hibbert's lips twitched slightly, as if suppressing laughter.
When Hastur looked at him, Hibbert shot him a good-luck-you'll-need-it expression.
That made Hastur's heart tighten.
Even though he believed nothing was wrong with the earlier scene, the fact that he had foreseen this "hellish painting" made everything feel awkward.
He had come tonight to bribe Earl Hall.
But now, before he even began, Earl Hall had witnessed that moment.
No way Earl Hall didn't make some kind of connection.
With such a hellish start, Hastur felt bribing Earl Hall would be very difficult.
After speaking with Audrey for a moment, Earl Hall let her leave.
Now only Hastur, Earl Hall, and Hibbert, standing a little distance away, remained.
The warm smile Earl Hall had shown Audrey disappeared completely.
He said nothing, exerting enormous pressure on Hastur.
And that pressure came not from his rank as a powerful earl, but from his identity as Audrey's father.
Hastur sighed inwardly. Just from this look, he could tell Earl Hall currently had little goodwill toward him.
If this were a drama, he could practically predict Earl Hall's first line:
"You approached my daughter to curry favour with me, hoping I'd help you get a noble promotion?"