Chapter 147: Welcome Banquet
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The last piece of mysterious knowledge Hobert acquired was: "Sequence 5, Advancement Ritual of the Astronomer: Riding on the back of the colorful star-eyed beast and drinking the potion under the midnight sky."
He immediately felt that the explosion in his head just now was worthwhile, as it enabled him to grasp the potion formula for the Mystery Pryer pathway in the continuous sequence, as well as the formula for the starting pathway of the "Savant."
So far, Hobert had mastered four consecutive potion formulas, all ranging from Sequence 6 to Sequence 9. Although these accumulations were for relatively higher sequences, they would surely be of great use someday.
Selling these potion formulas was their smallest value.
Then, Hobert thought of the scene he saw with the black eyeball just now. The eyes in the wilderness didn't seem to be from the "Hidden Sage"—could they be from the "Knowledge Moor"?
He remembered that the "Hidden Sage" seemed to be the unique activated form of the "Hermit" pathway. Now, does the "Knowledge Moor" also have its own consciousness?
Moreover, one could already project their power through some rituals?
The ceremony of Old Neil was told to him by the "Hidden Sage." Could this be the effort made by the "Hidden Sage" in search of the "Knowledge Moor"?
It seems that the seal of the Western Continent has indeed loosened.
Afterwards, Hobert thought again about the strange gains he had made coming to Tingen City, apart from the eye he obtained today, there were also two golden deer antlers.
They both looked quite exquisite, but he dared not use them in reality; once used, it would either lead to death or madness. Moreover, they were difficult to liquidate.
They could only be temporarily stored in the "Nation of Disorder" to see if they would be useful in the future.
With signs of spiritual exhaustion already appearing, Hobert left the "Nation of Disorder." The aftermath of his head "bursting open" just now brought into reality. He had a splitting headache for more than ten minutes, and only then did his spirituality begin to recover, with the headache gradually disappearing.
Today's near-death experience made him just want to lie in bed and not move at all.
Suddenly, he saw the towering giant palace, and a mysterious and majestic figure sitting on a high-backed chair said, "Cancel the gathering next week."
Hobert sat up abruptly, then slowly lay back down. It seemed that "Mr. Fool" had already sensed something.
In the evening, the steward reminded Hobert that Mr. Ulysses's invited guests had arrived.
Having lazily spent half a day, Hobert washed his face, adjusted his condition, and changed into the formal wear he had brought before heading to the living room.
The first to arrive was Mr. Dominic and his family, his wife, who was Mr. Ulysses's sister, a baroness, expressed gratitude to Hobert.
Although Elizabeth had forgotten the details of Hobert's battle with Achille, when she saw Hobert, she immediately felt an unprecedented sense of security.
She sat beside Hobert. "Mr. Hobert, I heard that you don't need to handle the lawsuit anymore?"
"Yes," Hobert said, "Mr. Claude has already sent himself to prison."
He found that this cute girl seemed a bit too close, but it would be impolite to move aside, so he moved forward to ease the embarrassment.
Elizabeth also followed suit. "Then are you going back in a few days?"
"In two more days," Hobert smiled, "I really can't bear to leave the fresh air of Tingen City."
Dominic and his wife exchanged glances, and of course, they noticed that their daughter was a bit unusual. But Elizabeth did not behave excessively. She seemed satisfied just sitting next to Hobert.
"Then let's go shopping together this weekend," Elizabeth said, "I want to give you a gift to express my gratitude."
"No need to be so polite, and I may have something to do this weekend."
"What's up?"
"Participating in the operation to save Tingen City."
The family of three thought Hobert was joking and laughed along, flattering.
At this point, the real owner of the villa, Ulysses, entered. "I heard that someone dared to kidnap our little princess?"
In front of Elizabeth, Ulysses finally showed a genuine smile, not so stiff, showing that he loved his nephew and niece.
"Yes, Uncle," Elizabeth greeted him. "But the ransom letter of the kidnappers wasn't even finished, and Mr. Hobert rescued me."
Hobert smiled. "This shows that the kidnappers are really uncultured. They probably need a dictionary even to write a ransom letter, and they'd be frustrated by grammar issues."
Everyone immediately had the image in their minds of the kidnappers looking up words in the dictionary while frowning as they wrote the ransom letter, which made everyone burst into laughter.
Then the guests arrived one after another, all dressed in military uniforms, shouting as soon as they entered, "Where's Commander Christian's son?"
"Huh? Commander Christian's son? Why does he look a bit like Commander Rex?"
"Nonsense! How could Commander Christian's son... Wait, don't say it, he really does look like him."
"Haha, tomorrow I'll write a letter to Commander Christian, reporting your faces to him."
Someone else asked, "Hobert, right? Do you have a girlfriend? Do you want Uncle to introduce you to one?"
"If Commander Christian gives instructions, I guess the kids will have them!"
They didn't care about Hobert's answer at all. Even if Hobert didn't say a word, they probably could keep chatting.
Amidst laughter and joy, the banquet began. Hobert strongly suspected that they hadn't gathered for a long time, welcoming him to Tingen City's banquet, just as the reason for their gathering.
After all, Hobert had been here for several days and was almost ready to leave.
At the dinner table, there were only Hobert and Elizabeth, the two juniors who had some common topics, occasionally chatting, which made Hobert, the "protagonist" of the banquet, not too awkward.
After ten o'clock in the evening, the guests began to leave one after another.
Having drunk a lot of wine, Ulysses patted Hobert on the shoulder. "If you have any plans, go ahead and do it. Don't let down the expectations of both commanders. As long as Commander Christian speaks, we can still accompany him into battle."
Hobert smiled helplessly. "Okay, it's late now. You should go rest."
Watching Ulysses leave, Hobert's smile gradually disappeared. He almost asked Ulysses for external support just now.
Fortunately, he endured it because Ulysses was polite to him, out of respect for Commander Christian. His relationship with Ulysses had not yet reached that point.
The final preparations began, and Hobert didn't go anywhere on Friday, staying in the villa to conserve his energy and adjust the negative effects of sealed artifacts and mystical items.
On Saturday morning, Hobert took a carriage to the Blackthorn Security Company. He told the coachman, "You can go back first. Come pick me up around... hmm, four or five in the afternoon."
Seeing off the coachman, Hobert glanced at the somewhat cloudy sky, stepping into the lobby of the security company step by step.
In the lobby, Leonard looked somewhat unnatural as he chatted with a woman wearing a broad-brimmed hat and loose skirt.
"Hobert!" Leonard exclaimed. "You, you've come..."
He didn't know whether to say it was the right time for Hobert to arrive, or if it wasn't the right time.
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