Earl Hall's residence.
It had already been a week since the Backlund Great Smog incident, and Audrey was finally given permission to go out.
During this period, she had also attended a Tarot Gathering. At the gathering, Mr. Fool said that this was a disaster caused by a Witch.
Mr. Hanged Man said that many people had died in the Backlund Great Smog incident, and together with the death of Duke Negan, it had a huge impact on the Kingdom of Loen.
Even Miss Magician said that the ordinary people living in Backlund were in a miserable state, especially in the Dockyard, which had already been poor and backward. This time, it was facing despair. Only the nobles living in the Empress Borough and the West Borough had safely avoided this disaster.
As for her, she knew very little information about this matter, because she could not leave the house and could not know what the outside world had become like, nor did she know how many people had died in this Great Smog incident.
Her father placed great importance on protecting her and did not allow her to leave the house at all. Even when she went to take a walk in the backyard, a specific time had to be set, in case she was affected by any toxic smog that might still remain in the air.
It was only today that her father allowed her to leave the house and go out to relax a little.
She brought Susie with her, followed by two personal maids, and at a slightly farther distance there were several servants specifically assigned following behind.
She was surprised to discover that the shops on both sides of the street were still crowded with noble ladies and young misses who had come to choose goods. Their faces were filled with bright smiles, as if they had not been affected by the Great Smog incident at all.
As she continued strolling along King's Avenue, everything around her was no different from usual. The so-called Great Smog incident seemed as if it did not exist at all.
After walking around for a while longer, she could already be certain that everything here was the same as usual, with no differences at all.
There were no scenes like Miss Magician described, with corpses lying across the streets, people collecting branches and coal during the day, and braving falling snow at night to burn the bodies.
There was also none of the anxious, tense, and dangerous atmosphere that Mr. Hanged Man had mentioned.
Audrey felt a strong sense of dissonance, on one side were the words of Miss Magician and Mr. Hanged Man, and on the other side were the streets before her that were still prosperous and lively.
The smiles on people's faces could not be faked. The happiness on the faces of the people she saw on the streets was genuine happiness.
There were also many people along the street gathering in small groups to drink tea and chat, light laughter and sweet smiles filling the air. Everything felt beautiful.
Had the influence of the Great Smog incident really already passed? Or was it simply not as serious as Miss Magician and Mr. Hanged Man had said?
She really wanted to find someone to chat with and inquire about the real changes in Backlund during this period.
But Susie at her side, her personal maids, and the servants responsible for protecting her behind her were obviously not suitable conversation partners.
She thought of Mr. Hastur. Since the last time they parted, she had not met him again. It was said that he was very busy now, preparing to leave Backlund.
Would it really be good to disturb him like this now?
Audrey let out a soft sigh. In the end, she still did not choose to disturb him. Instead, she picked a shop that looked relatively quiet and secluded, ordered a cup of hot tea and some small desserts, and let her gaze follow the view outside the window, looking at the street beyond.
Carriages passed by one after another, the sound of hooves and the ground interweaving into a well-layered piece of music.
Should she go to take a look at the Dockyard that Miss Magician had mentioned?
This thought suddenly arose in Audrey's heart. Other than when she took a ship to go traveling, she had never truly been to the Dockyard. In her impression, there were many busy workers there, but she did not know the specifics.
However, it was obvious that she could not go there alone. She would need someone to accompany her, such as her elder brother Hibbert, or her father Earl Hall, or Mr. Hastur.
"Kind of troublesome." Audrey slightly puffed out her cheeks. Before her personal maid could speak, she had already returned to her elegant and dignified demeanor.
After more than ten minutes passed, a familiar figure suddenly appeared on the street outside, Mr. Hastur, who was taking a walk while holding a small black cat.
"Susie, go help me call Mr. Hastur over."
Audrey handed the task of striking up a conversation to Susie, who was lying on the ground, bored and dazing off.
"Woof?"
"Go on, I believe you can do it."
"..." Susie got up, shook her golden fur, and then ran toward the entrance.
At this moment, one of the personal maids said, "Susie is becoming smarter and smarter."
"Yes, because it's the one and only Susie."
Audrey felt a little proud. This was a Beyonder golden retriever she had personally trained. In the future, it was even going to become a psychologist.
Very quickly, Susie led Mr. Hastur, who was holding the small black cat, over to Audrey. Audrey patted Susie's head to show encouragement.
"Good afternoon, Miss Audrey."
"Good afternoon, Mr. Hastur."
Audrey had her personal maid arrange a seat for Mr. Hastur opposite her.
"Why does Miss Audrey have time to come out for a stroll today?"
"I've been staying at home during this period and could only go out today. I didn't expect to run into Mr. Hastur, my luck is really good."
"This is my good fortune as well."
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Audrey finally asked about the Great Smog incident in Backlund.
"Living in the Empress Borough and living in the Dockyard are two completely different kinds of things. The impact the Great Smog incident had on them was naturally different as well."
"Here, many noble ladies and young misses can still happily go shopping every day, occasionally gathering together for a tea party to chat about jewelry and dresses."
"To them, the Great Smog incident is more like just a line in the newspaper, or a term mentioned casually during idle conversation, light and floating, without any weight or anything worth thinking deeply about."
Audrey fell silent for a moment, then lifted her bright eyes and softly asked, "In Mr. Hastur's view, am I also one of those noble young ladies?"
"That is an attribute you possessed from the moment you were born. It does not change because of your personal thoughts. You don't need to deny it, because this is your daily life."
"Then can I go and see a different kind of life?"
"Of course. What we call broadening one's horizons and observing different kinds of lives is also a way of expanding one's perspective."
"Mr. Hastur knows many things that I don't, and seems to have experienced many things?"
"I'm just talking on paper. It's fine for casual conversation. After all, after the Great Smog incident, I also haven't been to the Dockyard."
After thinking for a moment, Hastur added, "But I can imagine what is happening there now, or what has already happened."
"Is this the benefit of reading more books?"
"No. It's because I already knew what kind of place that is from the start, so I can infer what would happen to them when they encountered the Great Smog incident based on the actual situation there."
"Mr. Hastur, I want to go to the Dockyard. Can you accompany me?"
"If Earl Hall agrees to let you go, I'd be very happy to act as your guide."
"..." Audrey frowned slightly. Convincing her father to agree to her going to the Dockyard was not an easy matter.
"Mr. Hastur, are you worried about something?"
"I'm just looking at this matter from the perspective of Earl Hall as a father."
Audrey did not quite understand this sentence, and Hastur did not explain it.
The current Audrey was very well protected, and he had no right to destroy the safety barrier that her father Earl Hall had built for her over so many years.
The current Dockyard was not a good place to go. Even though church personnel were there to help resolve issues, the actual situation was still very grim.
The impact of the Great Smog incident was not just about people dying. For those who were still alive but could no longer live properly, the real disaster was only just beginning.
"Mr. Hastur, can't you secretly take me to take a look?"
"No." Hastur mercilessly rejected Audrey's small request, completely ignoring her annoyed gaze.
"Don't even think about secretly taking Susie there. Earl Hall will definitely have people watching over you."
Another sentence from Hastur shattered Audrey's little thoughts at this moment.
"Mr. Hastur!" Audrey slightly clenched the small fist hidden inside her sleeve and waved it a couple of times, finally venting a bit of her anger.
"The tea here is pretty good. I still have to continue strolling with Ariella, so I'll take my leave now."
Hastur wisely chose to leave at this moment.
Audrey watched Hastur leave, snorted lightly, and said, "Susie, you must not learn to speak like Mr. Hastur in the future, or I'll give you a good beating."
"Woof?" Susie looked confused and subconsciously moved to a position a bit farther away from Audrey, in case she became an outlet for Audrey's bad mood.
Even though it knew Audrey wasn't really angry, why take that risk? Better to stay a little farther away, wait until Audrey's mood improves, and then go home together.
....
At night, after Earl Hall returned, Audrey, who had been thinking for a long time, took advantage of Earl Hall being in a good mood and brought up her idea of wanting to go take a look at the Dockyard.
"No. Wait until after the New Year." Earl Hall rejected her just as mercilessly, not giving her even a shred of hope.
"The New Year is coming soon. Recently, you also need to study the etiquette and procedures for the coming-of-age ceremony. You can also practice dancing. As for other aspects, I'll hire a few more teachers for you."
Earl Hall said another sentence that made Audrey's scalp go numb.
She really didn't want to waste her limited time on these things.
But she obviously could not directly oppose Earl Hall's arrangements, so she could only tell him that she was already very busy and didn't have much time to learn new things.
In the end, the reasonable and considerate Earl of Hall reduced the originally planned six or seven teachers down to two.
"..." Audrey could only helplessly accept this arrangement, while a thought arose in her heart.
Could it be that Mr. Hastur had already anticipated this result? Was that why he had her ask for Earl Hall's opinion first?