Mystery: The Stars Returner

Drink Augustus, the former Grand Duke of South Wales of Loen Kingdom.

Back then, he was stationed in South Wales, and any pirates who dared to land to rob were killed by his thunderous means.

In order to serve as a warning, he also ordered the corpses of the pirates to be strung up on wooden stakes and erected on the coastline.

This kind of iron-blooded behavior makes all pirates frightened and dare not go ashore to rob fishermen and towns on the seaside.

Times have changed, and the current Grand Duke who guards South Wales is no longer as tough-minded as his predecessor. Instead, he only knows how to have fun and enjoy himself, allowing pirates to become rampant again.

Many people, including some members of the royal family, have not seen the legendary former Archduke of South Wales for a long time.

He has been living a secluded life in his manor and has not appeared in official events for many years.

"Let's go, the Duke wants to see you."

"Yes."

Lockhard followed the attendant respectfully and headed towards the depths of the manor, to a five-story tower that didn't look very impressive.

Lockhard finally met the former Archduke of South Wales of Loen Kingdom, Drink Augustus.

This is one of the strongest pillars behind the current king and has a great reputation.

After assassinating Duke Negan, he quickly fled here to seek asylum from the Grand Duke.

As long as he has the protection of this Grand Duke, he is absolutely safe.

Lockhard was secretly shocked when he saw him for the first time. The Grand Duke did not look old. His black hair was mixed with some silver threads, and there was no beard on his face, which made him look much younger.

As the former Archduke of South Wales, his actual age is at least sixty-seven years old, but few people know his exact age.

"You did a pretty good job at this."

"Thank you, Grand Duke, for your compliment." Lockhard lowered his head.

"You can stay here with peace of mind during this period and wait until the limelight passes before leaving."

"Thank you, Grand Duke, for your protection."

"What is the current situation in the kingdom?"

Lockhard began to describe the current situation in the Loen Kingdom to the reclusive Grand Duke.

……

Holy Wind Church, someone sent a secret message today, saying that they had discovered the whereabouts of the assassin who assassinated Duke Negan.

The current hiding place is in the suburban manor of Archduke Drink Augustus.

This source of information was the intelligence of the wild Extraordinaries scattered in Backlund by their Church of Storms.

Most people have long forgotten the existence of Archduke Drink Augustus, so the credibility of this news is extremely high.

But this matter is very difficult. Grand Duke Drink Augustus himself is powerful and a powerful Beyonder, and behind him stands the Loen royal family.

If it is true that the Grand Duke provided asylum to the assassin, then it is difficult not to think that the assassination of Duke Negan came from the king's instruction.

This is a major event that can divide the royal family and the great nobles!

Once the two are inconsistent, the situation in the Loen Kingdom will be several times more serious than it is now.

"Check?"

"check!"

"What if it causes unrest?"

"That only shows the incompetence of the Loen royal family!"

"Do you need to say hello to the king?"

"No, just take someone to check."

The person in charge of the Church of the Holy Wind quickly made a decision. Duke Negan was a believer in the Storm, and now he was assassinated. It was necessary for the Church of the Storm to resolve the matter.

Just as the people from the Church of Storms began to take action, the Church of the Goddess of Night and the Church of Steam and Machinery also sent people there.

Their stance has always been consistent in terms of containing the power of the Loen royal family.

At nine o'clock in the evening, personnel from the three major churches had surrounded the suburban manor of the former Archduke of Southwell.

Facing the menacing members of the three major churches, even the reclusive Drink Augustus had to personally deal with the matter.

"We received reports that Lockhard Siakam, the criminal who assassinated Duke Negan a few days ago, has haunted this manor."

"Butler, have any outsiders visited our manor recently?"

"not at all."

"It seems this is a misunderstanding."

Drink Augustus lowered his stance. Although he was stronger than the clergymen leading the team tonight, he still had to succumb to the power of the three major orthodox churches.

"It is easy for a person to lie, but it is very difficult for a group of people to hide the truth. The Grand Duke should think clearly before answering this question."

Faced with such cruel words, Drink Augustus' face darkened, he looked at his butler and said displeasedly: "Are you doing something shameful without telling me?"

The butler shivered, then fell to his knees, fanning his mouth, crying and begging: "There is such a thing, but I didn't know at that time that Lockhard Siakam was an assassin." Duke Negan’s criminal, for the sake of a good personal relationship, I took him in to rest in the manor for one night, and the next day, he had left the manor and disappeared.”

"Damn it! How dare you do these little things behind my back!"

The angry Drink Augustus kicked the butler who was kneeling on the ground and flew him away, smashing a wooden table into pieces.

Yu was still angry and said: "He made a mistake, and he should naturally be judged by the law. You can take him away for investigation now."

"We will."

The person in charge of tonight's operation took a deep look at Drink Augustus, who was still angry, and then ordered someone to take the housekeeper with him. At the same time, he sent someone to search the manor, but Lockhard Sia was not found. No sign of Cam.

"Excuse me, we're leaving now."

After the members of the three orthodox churches left, Drink Augustus put away the anger on his face and his expression turned gloomy.

Lockhard Siakam has only been in the manor for two or three days, but the three major churches have received relevant news and successfully found this place. Who leaked the news?

Could it be that there are spies from the three major churches hidden in his manor?

Drink Augustus glanced at everyone working in the manor, but in the end he did nothing, but his face became more gloomy.

Some of the three major church members who had only captured one butler were not satisfied with tonight's harvest, and they all questioned the former Archduke of Southwell's suspicion in the assassination of Duke Negan.

The person in charge explained: "Of course I also know that he is lying, and he knows this himself, but he has shown his attitude by severing the relationship. We should also give him some face to avoid escalating the matter."

"Then what do we do now?"

"Take the person back for questioning and then conduct a search of the immediate area."

……

In the forest on the outskirts, Lockhard had sneaked out of the back door before the Three Gods Church personnel arrived at the manor.

This was a retreat that had been prepared long ago, in order to try not to involve the Loen royal family.

If he hadn't been of some use, he would have been killed by Grand Duke Drink Augustus to avoid further trouble.

"It seems that I need to live in the depths of the forest for a while."

Lockhard walked deeper into the jungle to avoid being found by the Three Gods Church personnel.

As long as he avoids this most restrictive period, someone will arrange for him to leave Backlund. At that time, he can change his identity and live freely.

Originally, he didn't have to take such a desperate risk, but he didn't know where Duke Negan got the news. He knew that someone would assassinate him in the near future, so he set a trap so that the real killer who took over the organization's mission could not successfully complete the mission.

Fortunately, Duke Negan was also severely injured and did not doubt himself yet, which gave him a chance to make amends.

For this reason, he could only give up his identity as a businessman for more than ten years and become a wanted criminal.

He still likes the metropolis Backlund very much, but unfortunately, he can no longer stay there.

Just as Lockhard continued to go deeper into the jungle, he suddenly felt an omen in his heart. He hurriedly rolled around on the spot and hid behind a big tree.

After hiding for a while, I didn't find anything unusual.

"Am I feeling wrong?"

Lockhard seemed to have relaxed his vigilance and came out from behind the tree, but in fact he had already set up an ambush in the area around him, just waiting for someone to fall into his trap.

But after waiting for more than ten minutes, there was nothing unusual except for the cooing of wild birds in the deep mountains and forests.

He turned on his spiritual vision and scanned around, but found nothing unusual.

"Am I really overthinking?"

Lockhard murmured, glanced at the crimson moon in the sky, and decided not to rush tonight, but to find a place to rest nearby.

He was hiding on a branch of a big tree, leaning half against the trunk. He was holding a two-finger-wide knife in his left hand, and there was an object like a button in the palm of his right hand.

Even if he didn't find anything abnormal, he still remained extremely alert. In the extraordinary world, reminders from his own spirituality are often the most accurate.

He doesn't take risks easily.

He closed his eyes and pretended to rest. After waiting for a few minutes, a pressure suddenly came over him. This was personal suppression!

Lockhard quickly confused the space around him, then activated the button object in his right hand, and he traveled through the space out of thin air and left the place.

This is a precious and extraordinary item used to save his life. Even he only has this one now.

As soon as Lockhard landed on the ground, seven or eight hundred meters away from here, he hurriedly ran forward.

Although he saw no sign of the enemy, this did not prevent him from sensing the danger.

Run, get out of this place quickly.

Seek shelter from others, otherwise he will surely die at the hands of the stalker behind him!