Leonard stood there frozen. At this moment, he felt like he was a complete clown.
What kind of plot development was this?
This witch had let him go, and now she had set her sights on Hastur?
It hadn't even been that long, Hastur had already fallen for the witch's charm?
Well, he couldn't really blame Hastur for having weak resistance. Back then, he himself had been easily taken down by just a few words from this witch.
Besides, Hastur's face was indeed very attractive, along with his tall, slender figure and his extraordinary temperament. On top of that, he could even write poetry.
No, he absolutely had to warn Hastur to stay away from this witch!
This girl who looked so innocent was actually a terrifying existence that gnawed people to the bone!
In that instant, Leonard thought about a lot of things. He put an arm around Hastur's shoulder, pretending to be angry, wanting to drag him out of the bar and then look for a chance to tell him the true nature of Miss Seraphina.
He pulled hard. Huh? He didn't manage to drag him. Hastur was still sitting in his seat, looking at him with a curious expression.
"Leonard, no need to be so nervous. Miss Seraphina just said that on purpose in front of you." Hastur smiled and soothed Leonard, signaling him to have a drink first before talking.
"Hastur, this isn't a matter of whether it's true or not. She simply-" Leonard wanted to say it out loud, but when he caught sight of Seraphina's smiling eyes, he swallowed the words back down.
"Don't worry. Miss Seraphina came here tonight just to see me about something. She's not here to settle past love and grudges with you." Hastur reassured Leonard again, telling him not to worry too much.
"What, she came to see you?" Leonard was dumbfounded again. He could no longer make sense of what kind of situation this was.
"I happen to know her daughter. She just came on someone else's behalf to deliver something to me."
As Hastur spoke, he looked toward Seraphina. "That's right, Miss Seraphina?"
"Daughter?!" Leonard's head felt like it had been struck by a heavy hammer again. This Sequence 3 actually had a daughter!
And Hastur even knew her daughter!
Wasn't this relationship way too complicated?!
Wait, didn't that mean he had fallen in love with a friend's friend's mother back then?
The corner of Leonard's mouth twitched. He really wanted to slap himself.
Only now did he understand why Hastur had acted so strangely about his relationship with Seraphina, like he was holding something back.
Hastur must have been too embarrassed to tell him that the other party was already a married woman with a daughter!
"Of course, I didn't come here on purpose to catch some heartless man."
Seraphina glanced at Leonard, whose expression was full of mixed emotions, chuckled softly, and handed a sheet of paper filled with writing to Hastur. On it were written the potion formulas for the Witch pathway from Sequence 8 to Sequence 5.
"Sorry to trouble Miss Seraphina to make this trip in person. You've worked hard." Hastur took the paper and directly put it into his pocket.
"Someone always has to pay the price for their recklessness. I just hope there won't be a next time." After saying that, Seraphina finished the wine in her cup, then stood up and left.
Only after her figure disappeared from the bar did Leonard come back to his senses from the shock. He stood up, placed both hands on Hastur's shoulders, and stared straight at him.
"Hastur, shouldn't you give me an explanation?!"
"An explanation about what?"
"When did your relationship with that Unaging… Miss Seraphina become so good?"
"She's Mrs. Germani's mother. I only found out about it not long ago."
"Her daughter is already married?" Leonard froze for a moment. Even though he had already expected it, hearing that the witch was already at grandmother level still made it hard for him to bear.
Back then, he had actually fallen in love with a grandmother and had even seriously thought about marriage and settling down…
"Yes, Leonard, your taste is really good. Miss Seraphina's daughter is also very beautiful."
"…" Leonard let go of Hastur's shoulders, sat blankly back down in his seat, not knowing what he was thinking.
After a while, he slapped himself, then downed a big cup of wine and muttered for the bartender to bring more.
Hastur thought about it and decided not to tease Leonard anymore for the time being. The shock he had received tonight would probably be unforgettable for the rest of his life.
After that, the two of them didn't talk anymore, each drinking their own wine.
Hastur drank slowly, savoring each different kind of alcohol here, while Leonard started guzzling big mugs of Southville beer again.
At a little past eleven at night, Leonard, already reeking of alcohol, looked at Hastur and said, "Hastur, tell me honestly, did you already know Seraphina's true identity?"
Hastur raised an eyebrow slightly. "You mean the fact that Miss Seraphina is Mrs. Germani's mother?"
"…" The words Leonard wanted to ask got stuck again. After pausing for two or three seconds, he waved his hand and said, "Nothing, I just feel like something's a bit strange."
"I also feel a bit strange. Back then, your breakup with Miss Seraphina probably wasn't that simple, right?"
"…" Leonard turned his body sideways, leaving Hastur with a weathered-looking back, and said in a low tone, "It's all in the past. Flowers bloom and wither, and what's gone can't be brought back."
Seeing Leonard like this, Hastur couldn't help but poke at him a bit. "Leonard, this kind of world-weary, story-filled vibe you have makes it very easy to attract girls. That's why Miss Seraphina fell for you back then, right?"
"…" Leonard immediately shivered, hurriedly picked up his glass, and shouted loudly, "Drink!"
It was close to one in the morning when Leonard finally staggered to his feet and left.
Already about eighty percent drunk, Leonard had completely forgotten about paying the bill.
Hastur, who had been eating gossip all night, could only help pay, including the money for the cup of wine Seraphina had drunk.
"You can take a carriage back by yourself, right?" Hastur was a bit worried about Leonard's state tonight. He had been drinking cup after cup, and had gone to the restroom four times already.
"It's fine, I, cough… I know the way." Leonard was clearly overestimating his alcohol tolerance.
Hastur flagged down a carriage and had his family's coachman take Leonard back to Saint Samuel Church, while he himself took the carriage he had hailed and went home.
On the carriage, Leonard lifted the curtain and let the cold early-morning wind blow on his face, gradually sobering up from his drunken state.
When they arrived near Saint Samuel Church, he gave the coachman a one-pound tip, then staggered slightly as he returned to his residence.
As soon as he got home, Leonard flopped onto the bed and shouted, "Old man, shouldn't you explain tonight's doubts for me?"
"Heh, aren't you not dead yet? In such a hurry to call me for help."
"That's a Sequence 3. I called you so you'd have plenty of time to prepare."
"You were clearly scared out of your wits."
"…I'm only Sequence 7. Of course I'd be nervous facing a Sequence 3."
"Wasn't your friend Hastur very calm the whole time? Why don't you learn from him?"
Mentioning Hastur sobered Leonard up a bit more. He said seriously, "Do you think Hastur actually knows Seraphina's true identity as a Sequence 3?"
"Don't you already have the answer in your heart?"
"Sigh." Leonard let out a breath. "I really didn't expect Hastur to stay that calm in front of a Sequence 3. Could he also be a member of the Demoness Sect?"
After saying that, he laughed himself. "Actually, if Hastur turned into a witch, his looks definitely wouldn't be inferior to Seraphina."
"And then you start thinking about falling in love again?"
The mocking laughter made Leonard's face stiffen. "I'm not as filthy-minded as you think!"
"How do you know Seraphina didn't turn from a man into a witch by taking a potion?"
"…" Leonard's face darkened. He really didn't want to talk about this topic.
"Is there any good way for me to deal with Ince Zangwill?"
"Where you are is your greatest assistance."
"Besides that?"
"You still want to take revenge on a Sequence 4 Nighthawk all by yourself?"
"Cough, cough, I was just asking."
"Stop dreaming."
"…Old man, you're really heartless."
"Don't blame me for not reminding you. When you start paying attention to Ince Zangwill, 008 will also start paying attention to you."
"I understand."
…
The next day, Leonard took half a day off and went to the western district to look for Klein.
His own abilities were limited, and he needed a suitable helper.
After Klein learned Leonard's purpose, he told him not to speak for the time being.
After their last encounter with Ince Zangwill and 008 in Tingen, Klein had already grasped some corresponding mystical knowledge.
Without the protection of secrecy, every word he and Leonard said could be known by 008.
Making plans in advance simply wouldn't work. It would be very hard for them to hide from 008's abilities.
"Let's go to Saint Samuel Church and then talk about it."
Klein and Leonard took a carriage back to Saint Samuel Church.
The two of them directly explained matters about Ince Zangwill to Archbishop Anthony Stevenson, who was guarding the church.
Archbishop Anthony understood and led them into a prayer room, indicating that they could speak freely.
"It's like this. I learned from a friend that Ince Zangwill has some kind of relationship with Prince Edessak, and has even secretly arranged multiple coincidental events involving Prince Edessak."
Leonard told everything he had heard from Hastur.
"It must be him!" Klein suddenly had a kind of spiritual premonition.
"Prince Edessak is a member of the royal family. Without any evidence, you can't just act recklessly," Archbishop Anthony reminded them.
Leonard took the initiative to volunteer. "I want to personally get in touch with Prince Edessak and then flush out Ince Zangwill."
"That's very dangerous." Klein didn't agree with Leonard's risky behavior. 008's ability to arrange coincidental events was extremely terrifying, it could even use dirty tricks like giving someone a stomachache.
"Someone has to go solve this matter. I'm a member of the Red Gloves team. The more dangerous it is, the more we have to face it head-on."
"But-"
Klein wanted to persuade him a bit more, but Archbishop Anthony stopped him. He looked at Leonard with an appreciative gaze before slowly saying, "Since the Church once sealed 008, it naturally knows how to avoid its prying. For it to arrange a script for someone, certain preconditions also have to be met. It's not completely at will."