Mystery: The Stars Returner

At the Backlund steam train station, as the steam train whistle sounded, another steam train from South Wales pulled into the station.

As the door opened, passengers who had been waiting for a long time on the steam train scrambled to get out of the carriage, and Klein was one of them.

After setting foot on the land of Backlund again, his face showed the same dazed and excited expression of returning to his hometown as the other passengers.

In order not to be discovered by Backlund's acquaintances, Klein has used the extraordinary ability of the faceless man to give himself a new identity and appearance.

He was a tall and thin man, with a slightly sickly pale face, and a thin body, as if a strong wind could blow him away.

His new identity is that of a sick young man who returned to Backlund from the sea to recuperate.

This is to differentiate himself from Gehrman on the sea.

After leaving the station, Klein naturally stopped a carriage at the station entrance and spent 1 sole and 2 pence to go to the south area of ​​the bridge.

The price was a bit expensive, but Klein was not short of money now, and although the other party treated him as a foreigner, they didn't kill him too hard, so he didn't bargain.

He opened the curtain, holding a golden pocket watch in his right hand and caressing it gently, looking at the streets passing by outside the car window, feeling inexplicably heavy and depressed.

If he hadn't pretended to be dead and changed his identity, he could now go home openly and reunite with Benson and Melissa, and even ask Leonard out for a drink and chat.

But there weren't so many ifs. When he decided to fake his death, he had already anticipated that he would be walking alone in the rest of his life.

"I have to go back and take a look. If I don't see them in person, I feel relieved."

Klein sighed inwardly and decided to rent a house on a street not far from the house he originally rented.

He did not choose a long-term lease, but a monthly short-term lease, for which he paid a little extra rent.

By the time I was cleaning my new house ready for move-in, it was already completely dark.

Of course, it was impossible for Klein to cook at home alone. He went out and ate at a restaurant on the street below the house he originally rented.

He was sitting along the street. From here, he could see the lights of his original house when he raised his head.

As it gets darker, the lights in other houses gradually brighten.

The lights in the house where Benson and Melissa lived only came on briefly, then fell into complete darkness again.

Klein ate the tasteless food and wondered who would wash the dishes at home tonight.

It should be Benson. Melissa always comes back later because of her classes. Now that he is not at home, Benson will definitely love Melissa, her only relative, even more.

He would definitely say this: "Your time should be spent on studying. Learn more knowledge so that you don't become a curly baboon."

If Melissa tried to protest, Benson would send her back into the room to tinker with her favorite mechanical items.

As Klein thought about it, a smile unconsciously appeared on his lips.

He did not choose to meet Benson and Melissa. Tomorrow, he would take a walk in the morning and take a stroll here.

Benson has been admitted to the civil service and has fixed working hours, and the same goes for Melissa, except on weekends when she doesn't have to go to school or work.

At night, around nine o'clock.

Klein came to the Brave Bar that Leonard had always liked to go to, ordered a glass of Southwell beer, sat in the corner and drank slowly.

Sure enough, Leonard walked in from the door around ten o'clock.

He was obviously a regular customer here, and as soon as the waiter saw him, he was very enthusiastic to serve him.

Leonard ordered three cocktails in one go, sat in front of the more conspicuous bar, and drank silently alone.

After not seeing each other for a while, Leonard looked a little thinner, his beard began to become unkempt, and his brows were always furrowed.

This kind of image is not like the poet Leonard in the past. In the past, he cared most about his external image and even had to comb his hair neatly.

Leonard now really looks like a frustrated poet.

Perhaps sensing Klein's prying eyes, Leonard glanced in this direction, but quickly turned his gaze away and took a long sip of wine.

Klein withdrew his gaze, preparing to finish the glass of Southwell beer and leave. He came here just thinking about whether he could see Leonard.

But before he left, another acquaintance walked in at the door of the Brave Bar, Earl Hastur Campbell.

He did not stay in South Wales and returned to Backlund.

Klein patiently sat in his seat again, occasionally glancing at the figures of Leonard and Hastur chatting happily.

It seems that Leonard is not lonely alone, which is good.

Klein smiled, stood up and wanted to leave.

But he saw Hastur and Leonard walking towards his position with a glass of wine each.

Did they see through their identities?

Probably not. If Leonard knew about it, he would definitely rush over.

"Sir, would you mind sharing a table?" The speaker was Hasta. Before Klein could say anything, he waved to the waiter to bring a few more glasses of wine.

Klein glanced around and saw that the other tables were indeed full.

He smiled and said, "Of course you can, I'm just thinking about going back."

Leonard looked at him and said teasingly: "Are you already married? If not, what's the point of going back alone? You might as well stay here and chat."

“Give this gentleman a glass of a true man’s drink and it will be credited to my account.”

Leonard was very considerate and gave Klein a glass of wine. Klein wanted to refuse, but Hastur chuckled and said, "It's a kind of fate to meet here. Let's have a drink together and see you tomorrow. No one knows each other."

Klein felt that there was a profound meaning in this sentence, but he did not think that the other party could see through his disguise so easily. "

"Thank you gentlemen for the wine." Klein sat patiently again, with no panic on his face.

"Hey, Hastur, you have to stay in Backlund for a few more days this time, otherwise I will never be able to find a drinking partner. Drinking alone will be too boring." Leonard's tone was already tinged with drunkenness.

Hasta brushed his fingers over the edge of the wine glass and asked curiously, "Isn't Mr. Klein also in Backlund?"

"He went to a far away place and probably won't come back again."

The look on Leonard's face was visibly lonely. He picked up the wine glass and took a big sip.

"That's it." Hasta whispered, picked up the wine glass and clinked it with Leonard, and added: "There are no absolutes in this world. Maybe he will come back when he wants to come back."

return?

Leonard opened his mouth, trying to explain the true meaning of what he just said, but in the end he said nothing, but his eyes were a little bitter.

Klein looked at this scene and was touched in his heart, but there was still no unnecessary expression on his face.

"Do you think what I just said is right?" Hastur suddenly raised the topic to Klein.

This made Klein stunned for a moment, but he quickly reacted and said with a smile: "I also think your friend will come back after he handles his own affairs."

"You guys." Leonard wanted to laugh, but he still didn't say that Klein was dead.

At this time, the waiter brought the wine that Hasta and Leonard asked for.

Hastur held the wine glass, looked at Klein and said, "You don't look like a Backlund person?"

"Well, I just came back from overseas." Klein answered calmly.

Leonard stared at him for a while and said, "You don't look very good. Can you really drink?"

Using these words, Klein declined the wine Leonard gave him and said, "I can only have a small drink, I really can't drink too much."

"What a pity." Leonard did not force it.

Hastur glanced at Klein again, and deliberately raised the topic to ask about Klein's current situation. Faced with such a temptation, Klein also felt a little more confused.

Could it be that Mr. Hastur saw his disguised identity and there was a flaw in him?

No, he was just testing and not sure of his true identity.

It seems that I can't stay here any longer, otherwise my disguise at this moment will definitely be exposed.

When Klein had this idea, Hastur had completely stopped probing and focused on talking to Leonard.

From talking about Backlund's current situation to the Kingdom of Loen's declaration of all-out war on the Feysac Empire, to Leonard's personal relationship issues.

"Oh, love, I won't believe this illusory emotion." Leonard resisted.

"That's such a pity. Miss Serafina just asked me about your current situation last time."

"what!"

Leonard's body froze for an instant, and his tone also became much louder.

"As expected, you still care about Miss Serafina?"

"..." Leonard was silent for a moment and said in a painful tone: "This is not a matter of not caring, but another reason."

Hastur smiled and patted his shoulder and said, "It's okay, I just made that sentence up."

"...Hasta!"

Leonard was so angry that he wanted to sever ties with Hastur. Klein couldn't help but feel happy when he caught a glimpse of this scene. But when he raised his eyes, he found that Hastur, who was supposed to be fighting with Leonard, had a serious look in his eyes. Suo Si looked at himself.