Mysterious: The Innate Sacred Body of Destiny

Chapter 372 High Popularity and Avoiding the Storm

"James Scott————"

Earl Hall put down his coffee cup, his brow furrowed as he pondered what he had seen and heard at the Negan family party earlier.

"What's wrong, Count? You look like a contemplative man."

Audrey Hall walked in with light steps from the study door, and seeing her father's appearance, asked curiously.

"Nothing much—" Earl Hall shook his head, snapping out of his reverie. "I was just thinking about something that happened at the Negan family dinner. They publicly thanked James Scott for saving Duke Negan in a moment of crisis."

"And he was given a generous reward."

"Oh? This sounds like the most fascinating social news lately. Could you tell me more, Count?" Audrey walked over to the sofa next to her father and sat down, her eyes brightening with just the right amount of curiosity. As an "observer," she was adept at guiding the conversation and gathering information.

The heroine of the Eastern District bravely rescuing the Duke is undoubtedly the hottest news in the kingdom recently. Moreover, as far as she knows, the assassin who tried to kill the Duke was a Sequence 5 "Demon".

During the Tarot reading, Mr. "The World" shared information very mysteriously and generously, including the identity of the "demon" and his formidable strength. From this, Audrey realized that James Scott, who could exorcise the "demon," must also be exceptionally powerful.

As she spoke, she subconsciously raised her hand, her fingertips gently brushing against the ruby-encrusted necklace around her neck. The weather in Backlund had been getting increasingly cold lately, and this necklace, which she had received from her and possessed a temperature-regulating effect, kept her feeling refreshed, so Audrey had been wearing it constantly.

Earl Hall chuckled as he looked at his daughter's expectant expression. Indeed, young people were always more drawn to stories with a heroic and dramatic flair.

He picked up his coffee, took another sip, cleared his throat, and began to recount his experiences at the dinner party.

Two hundred thousand pounds in cash, plus various properties and real estates—Audrey was slightly surprised when she heard the figure her father mentioned.

She owns properties, fields, ranches, mines, jewelry, stocks, shares, and bonds worth £300,000. Although she earns between £15,000 and £25,000 annually, a significant portion of this comes from real estate.

James Scott suddenly had so much liquid capital. Including the land and property, the wealth he received directly this time might even exceed what she already owned.

Top-tier fame, formidable strength, and wealth comparable to that of ordinary nobles.

In addition, he had the Negan family as his backer—

Audrey's mind raced. She could almost foresee that in the days to come, James Scott would become one of the most sought-after figures in Backlund's social circles. Besides those bigwigs with obvious political entanglements with the conservatives, countless minor nobles and celebrities would flock to him, trying every means to establish a connection.

Moreover, James Scott himself had no family constraints.

Because Fors and the others had asked her for help, Audrey knew a lot about James Scott from them. Among the information was that James Scott had no family and lived alone.

For those fallen nobles who desperately needed fresh blood and wealth, James Scott was a perfect marriage partner. He possessed enormous wealth and social prestige, but had no entrenched family interests to worry about. Once the marriage was arranged, it would be easy to combine his resources with his noble title and network of connections to achieve a rapid revival.

Audrey had some images flashing through her mind.

Those minor nobles eager to consolidate their position would send their most beautiful daughters to him. Those reserved noble ladies would also become intensely interested in him because of his heroic deeds and enormous wealth.

Indeed, compared to the traditional aristocratic scions who might be rigid, arrogant, and have complicated family relationships, a young, handsome, legendary "hero" like James Scott, with his immense wealth and fame, undoubtedly has a fatal attraction for many young women who yearn for romance and independence.

His story itself is full of adventure and heroism, enough to satisfy the fantasies of countless young girls.

Even disregarding the political benefits of the marriage, he would undoubtedly be one of the most popular men at the salon ball.

"I'm afraid many impoverished noble families would try every means to arrange a marriage with him," Earl Hall remarked, also considering this point. "With his wealth and power, he could easily support a respectable newly rich family."

"Most importantly, they have a great reputation. Despite doing charity work for so long, I may not be as well-known as them in the public eye."

"This is a fatal attraction for nobles and politicians who desperately need to improve their reputation."

"Dad doesn't do charity work for fame," Audrey added.

"Hmm—" Earl Hall lowered his eyes and responded.

"And I don't need to improve these things."

"Sherlock, thank you for your hard work."

Looking at Klein, who had come to deliver the message for him again, Lorne expressed his gratitude.

"By the way, Charles seems to be quite busy these past few days."

"Yes, there have been some problems in the guild recently, and the council members have been overwhelmed with work." Klein did not deny what the other person said.

Because the subway station base was abandoned, a large number of sealed artifacts, magical items, and data were transferred to the guild. All the official members of the guild are currently scrambling to deal with this mess. Being called upon to deliver the data is actually quite a relief.

"By the way, Sherlock, I heard you're not a native of Backlund."

Lorne glanced at the documents in his hand and asked casually.

"I--"

"Don't be nervous, I'm not a native of Backlund either, I'm just feeling a bit sentimental and curious —"

"Yes, I'm from the Sea County." Klein glanced at Lorne, and seeing that his expression was normal and he didn't show any particular emotion, he answered.

"Jianhai County—what a wonderful place! I'd love to visit sometime." Lorne looked longingly at the place, then asked curiously, "Besides my hometown and Backlund, have you been to any other cities? I always felt there was a hint of—well, a northern accent in your accent? Maybe it's just my imagination."

"No—" Klein shook his head, his tone natural, "My accent is probably influenced by my neighbor; I had an old neighbor from the North when I was a child—"

"Is your family still in Intersea County? Are they all alright?" Lorne's tone became more casual.

The word "family" made Klein momentarily dazed.

"They're doing well in their hometown, so why are you asking?"

"It's nothing." Lorne shook his head slightly. "I just suddenly thought that with your abilities and age, Sherlock, you should be doing quite well in Backlund, but it seems you haven't considered starting a family yet? Is there some difficulty at home, or relatives who need care? If there's anything I can do to help—please don't hesitate to ask."

Why the sudden pressure to get married? — Klein's lips twitched slightly. This "hero" man's train of thought can be quite unpredictable at times.

"No, it's simply because the income from being a detective is unstable. Speaking of which, Mr. Scott, you've become quite famous lately, with many admirers—" He skillfully steered the conversation back, making a joke, "Haven't you received any enthusiastic letters from any ladies?"

"No," Lorne shrugged, looking disappointed. "But I'm still looking forward to it."

"Ha ha."

That's all.

"That's all," Lorne said to Hazel beside him, pointing to the boxes that almost filled half the room.

After the first small batch of drugs was successfully produced and inspected by Lorne himself, he sent it to the foundation's office building.

His arrival caused quite a stir. Many of the female employees were very enthusiastic, but in the end, it was Hazel who stepped in with a stern face to help him out of the awkward situation.

-

"These potions—are they really effective?" Hazel picked up a glass bottle, looking at the pale green liquid inside, which didn't look very appealing, and asked doubtfully.

"You don't trust my stuff?" Lorne smiled confidently.

"It's precisely seeing that expression on your face that makes me uneasy," Hazel thought to herself.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Distribute these medications free of charge to those who truly need help," Lorne explained briefly about the antibacterial and infection-treating effects of the drugs.

"Let's call it 'Hope' for now. Since it's being distributed for free, it needs a catchy name."

"Be careful of those who fraudulently claim the benefits, and there's also the possibility—no, the absolute certainty—of middlemen appearing. As soon as the news of the free distribution spreads, these kinds of people will definitely emerge."

"Make proper identifications so that the medicine reaches those who truly need help."

"How do I know who truly needs help and who is just trying to take advantage or resell?" Hazel raised the most crucial question in practical operation.

"That's your job, isn't it?"

"There's always a way if you use your brain—for example, you could contact the medical staff at the East District clinic and have them screen out patients who truly need help, or you could ask some experienced police officers; they definitely have their own methods for identifying people."

"As a fund manager, let me see your capabilities."

Having been put on this front, Hazel had no choice but to accept the task.

"And what about you? Just like before, you gave your instructions and then disappeared—" Hazel asked.

"I've been really busy lately, you know."

"And now that I'm in the spotlight, there are naturally more people who don't like me. You have to be careful of their tricks," Lorne advised.

"If you run into trouble, you can go directly to the police and the church—if they can't solve it, or it's inconvenient for them to come forward—" He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.

That's Sharon's address.

"Go to this address and ask someone for help. The contact information is here—"

"Judging from your tone, it seems you're planning to leave Backlund?" Hazel asked.

"Hmm—" Lorne nodded, readily admitting it.

"I've been attracting too much attention lately, so I plan to go to another city to check out some business opportunities and see what markets are like in other cities, and also to lay low for a while."

After leaving Heyrule's office, the foundation's employees, who were peeking out in the corridor, were whispering among themselves.

"Mr. Scott is gone."

"He brought a lot of free medicine to distribute to the poor; he's so kind!"

"His relationship with Miss Macht seems quite unusual? He always sees her whenever he comes—"

"Perhaps it's not just a work relationship? Look at the way Miss Macht looks at him—and the congressman seems to admire him too?"

"A hero and a lady, quite a well-matched story—"

"Shh, keep your voice down, don't let anyone hear you—"

After spending a few more days arranging the work at hand temporarily,

Lorne arrived at the train station.

"I clearly wanted to leave Backlund to avoid the limelight—but why do I feel like I'm actively walking towards another problem?"

,——

"My luck hasn't recovered much either."

He picked up a coin and tossed it into the air. The coin tumbled in the air and finally landed heads up.

"Forget it, this has been bothering me for a while now—if I don't go now, I'll probably have even less time later, and it'll be even more troublesome—"

Moreover, the main purpose is to avoid the limelight and dissipate some heat. At worst—we'll do nothing, treat it as a vacation, and then come back.

After making up his mind, he first bought a luxury train ticket to Dixie under the identity of James Scott, deliberately drawing attention to his trip to other places for research.

He then removed his disguise and bought a ticket to Tingen.

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