Recaps

Hobart developed a theory about status and the Acting Method, studied strange reports about Longtail Island, and began organizing a factory and employee training. At the Tarot Club, Cattleya asked why Rosell had chosen madness, while Alger offered an undiscovered island in exchange for help with his advancement ritual.

• Hobart and Audrey shopped and discussed how social status depended on mutual recognition, leading Hobart to suggest that some pathways' Potions were digested through recognition from others.
• Hobart examined Longtail Island's geography, resources, and reports of supernatural incidents, then planned to investigate its indigenous deity and ask Alger and Cattleya about the island.
• Vincent urged Carl to attend Glaint's gathering and learn what Hobart intended, while Hobart hired Todd to find professors, a factory, and a management team.
• At the Tarot Club, Cattleya asked why Rosell had driven himself mad, and Klein explained that Rosell had feared all things would be destroyed and that the Seven Gods could not be relied upon.
• World gave Derrick the Notary Potion Recipe and sold Alger the Ocean Singer Potion Recipe and main ingredient, then agreed to seek Mr. Fool's help with Alger's advancement ritual in exchange for an undiscovered island's location.
• Alger described the island's demigod-level creatures and ancient ruin, and World said Emperor would need to join the exploration to ensure their safety.

The Tarot Club members made several private deals, including plans to explore an uncharted island and exchanges of money and intelligence. Hobart learned about Longtail Island’s Mountain God faith, while Klein privately asked whether the God Above the Gods was sealed within the Crimson Moon and was quoted 600 pounds for an answer.

• Alger described an uncharted island near the edge of the Rost Sea Area, and Klein agreed to explore it with him after Alger advanced.
• Klein reserved Hobart’s Traveler-characteristic Mystical Item, and Hobart agreed to join the expedition in exchange for priority selection of spoils.
• Cattleya confirmed the Black Hunt Giant Lizard spinal fluid for Audrey and asked Hobart about suspected Six-legged Sprite marrow; Hobart said he had already hunted one.
• Cattleya and Alger sold Hobart intelligence about Longtail Island, including the Mountain God Church, its practices, and the island’s history of uprisings and colonial repression.
• Klein asked Hobart whether the God Above the Gods was sealed within the Crimson Moon, and Hobart offered a yes-or-no answer for 600 pounds.

At the Tarot Club, Hobart explained how gods influenced Beyonders and how Believers served as Anchors, while the members discussed his hunt of the Twilight Lieutenant General. After the gathering, Klein received Frank Lee’s letter announcing a new mushroom bred from a Rose Bishop’s flesh and blood.

• Klein asked whether a True God influenced Beyonders of the same pathway, and Hobart explained divine influence through authority, prayers, and petitions, along with ways to resist it.
• Hobart described Believers as Anchors who helped gods stabilize their states, and he conjectured that Believers shared in divine madness and Distortion.
• Hobart revealed that he and a companion had killed the Twilight Lieutenant General, Bratov, and discussed the pirate’s powerful flagship and 36,000-pound bounty.
• The Tarot Club members discussed Little Sun’s exploration in Afternoon Town and a Mad Captain connected to the Royal Family’s slave-trading scheme.
• After the gathering, Klein opened a letter from Frank Lee announcing a new mushroom cultivated from a Rose Bishop’s flesh and blood.

Hobart used the bounty money from the Twilight Lieutenant General Bratov hunt to pursue the Blood Admiral, Senior, aboard the Flesh and Blood Tree Ship. After fighting through the ship’s living flesh and killing Cesar, Olied, and Gena, he confronted Senior and a Rose School demigod, whose call for Lord Jakes left the hunt escalating.

• Hobart collected 72,000 pounds for Bratov and decided to hunt the Blood Admiral, using the spirituality he had taken from Senior to find the Flesh and Blood Tree Ship.
• Senior escaped Hobart’s first attack, and the ship’s living flesh trapped Hobart with two captive girls until he used Chaos and Distortion to make it let them go.
• Hobart defeated Cesar, killed him, and cut off the heads of Cesar, Olied, and Gena before continuing his search for Senior.
• Hobart found Senior with a Rose School Marionettist, stole the Marionettist’s ability to curse, and injured Senior while the demigod escaped into a bottle.
• The Marionettist attacked Hobart and ordered Senior to summon Lord Jakes, a Sequence 3 Silent Apostle.

Hobart killed Senior and escaped the Flesh and Blood Tree Ship as a Rose School angel arrived, while Klein received a warning from Orange Light Hilarion and then intercepted a threatening telegram. Back in Backlund, Hobart counted his new wealth and sensed Klein praying to him.

• Hobart used the Bull Demon King and Overturning Sea Great Saint to fight the Marionettist and Jakes, then found Senior aboard the ship and killed him before freeing the captives.
• Hobart escaped the Rose School angel, but 1-101 caused Senior's head to disappear from his backpack; he later claimed bounties for the other three pirate crew members in Backlund.
• Kleist arrived at the ruined ship with Senior's head and ordered Jakes and the Marionettist to find Orange Light Hilarion.
• Klein deciphered a Rose School telegram revealing Helmholtz's hiding place and broadcast it to the military and Storm Church; Hilarion later visited Klein, warned him about the Desire Mother Tree, and left before Klein received the message, "I see you!"
• Hobart returned to his residence, admired the money in his new safe, and entered the Country of Disorder after sensing a prayer from Klein.

Hobart answered Klein’s prayer by completing their trade for a travel-capable Mystical Item, while Alice’s plea for vengeance brought her a painful warning from the Creator. After Jakes and a Wraith ambushed Klein near Bayam, Klein called on several powers for help, and Hobart saw a chaotic confrontation involving Sua, Kleist, and a strange mass of fog.

• Hobart gave Alice’s prayer a thread of Chaos Power, causing her to suffer a brief loss of control, then traded Klein the travel-capable Mystical Item for 12,000 Pounds.
• Jakes and Barrit prepared a tracking doll to pursue the person who had stolen intelligence from them, while Hobart began interviewing noble children for village-management positions.
• Klein traveled into the forest outside Bayam, where Jakes and a Wraith ambushed him and his Messenger Reneette Tinekerr attacked Jakes.
• Klein wounded the Wraith and tried to escape as Sea King Yarn Cottonman arrived, but Sua extended a monstrous arm into the forest and intensified the danger.
• Klein used Grosell's Travels, the True Creator's Whisper, a copper whistle, and a feather, then prayed to the Creator for help.
• Hobart responded to Klein’s prayer and saw Sua, the angel Kleist, and a strange mass of fog amid the chaotic battle.

Hobart intervened in the battle near Bayam as the Creator, rescued Klein, and helped defeat Jakes before obtaining a new Sealed Artifact. He then expanded his plans for Jeffrey Territory and ended the chapter as Captain Dunn urged him to establish a branch on the West Bank.

• Hobart projected the Creator's imposing form onto the battlefield, rescued Klein from Sua, and fought the Godspawn while concealing Klein's escape.
• Hobart used the Bull Demon King and the Overturning Sea Great Saint to defeat Jakes, who suffered Loss of Control and died; Hobart sacrificed Jakes's resulting marionette to the Country of Disorder as Sealed Artifact 1-108.
• Klein escaped beneath the Stormy Sea, realized that the Creator had rescued him, and entered Grosell's Travels to search for the Wraith after finding blood on the book.
• Hobart rented a factory, told Dennis that his father had returned, and brought Dennis and thirty-five noble children to Jeffrey Territory for an assessment and administrative training.
• At the Knight Conference, Hobart planned to recruit people from Backlund to address the territory's population shortage and ordered development to continue, including construction of an industrial district.
• Captain Dunn told Hobart that they needed to establish a branch on the West Bank.

Hobart expanded his plans for training and deploying Official Extraordinary while preparing for a coming attack on the Aurora Society, and he spent time with Audrey at an art exhibition. Audrey recognized that she held a special place in Hobart’s heart, and they left together to inspect his royal manor.

• Dunn advised Hobart to strengthen Extraordinary security in reclaimed regions and said he planned to settle in Jeffrey City, so Hobart decided to establish an Official Extraordinary Training Center.
• Hobart told Angus to prepare for an attack on the Aurora Society and establish a branch in Felix Town, then urged Helen to earn merit in the battle and offered her a chance to obtain a potion ingredient.
• Hobart invited Witches and Pain Witches to work at his new entertainment center, with rules limiting their clients to nobles and tycoons.
• Hobart cooked pumpkin baozi for Donna and Fors, then returned to Backlund and welcomed Audrey to his townhouse.
• Audrey admired the painting she had given Hobart and realized she might matter more to him than his other friends, then invited him to an art exhibition.
• Hobart and Audrey saw Princess Alice at the exhibition and left together to inspect the manor awarded to Hobart by the king.

Hobart inspected his estate with Audrey and outlined plans to turn it into an industrial and agricultural hub, recruit and train workers, and resettle forty thousand vagrants. The next day, he met Principal Portland at Backlund Technical University and demonstrated a generator as he began discussing large-scale electric power.

• Hobart toured the estate with Audrey, examined its mills, fields, warehouses, and other resources, and ordered its flax facilities converted into workshops and laboratories for researching glass, rubber, and electric wire.
• Hobart told Todd to recruit and train workers, including vagrants, and explained his plan to settle forty thousand people on his fief through paid work and access to land and housing.
• Hobart and Audrey debated poverty, land ownership, and food shortages on their return journey, and Audrey agreed to visit the university with him the next day.
• Audrey told Earl Hall and his family about Hobart's resettlement plan, and Earl Hall encouraged Hibbert to build a relationship with Hobart.
• Hobart met Audrey at Backlund Technical University, donated five thousand pounds for student living conditions, and discussed scientific research with Principal Portland.
• Hobart demonstrated a hand-cranked generator to Portland and asked whether steam engines could drive large generators to produce substantial electrical power.

Hobart recruited scientists and funded research into long-lasting light bulbs, tungsten, and natural rubber while preparing to build an electrical industry. That night, an Aurora Society Black Knight attacked him and coordinated assaults on Jeffrey City and its military camp, leaving Hobart confronting the Black Knight with his Chaos ability.

• Hobart told Portland he planned to bring electric lighting into homes and arranged to interview a recovered student skilled in electrical science and mechanics.
• Hobart pledged 3,000 Pounds to Professor Isaac’s research and recruited materials-science and natural-rubber specialists to help develop tungsten filaments and electrical wiring.
• Hobart and Audrey discussed his investment plans, and Hobart decided to brand his bulbs as Earl’s Light; later, he quoted the Balk Family a price for twenty-one Steam Engines.
• Hobart traveled to Jeffrey Territory, where a Black Knight from the Aurora Society revealed his plan to kill Hobart and Fors and control South Colson Region, then attacked using shadows and Degeneration.
• Fors remained in Backlund while Hobart fought the Black Knight; Angus, Helen, and Dunn defended Jeffrey City, while Archibald’s group confronted a Shepherd and his allies near the military camp.
• Hobart drew the Black Knight into revealing his location, used Arrogance to meet his attack, and declared Chaos as the fight reached its next stage.

Hobart defeated the Black Knight after a prolonged battle, then led his forces across the river to destroy Aurora Society strongholds and reclaim the West Bank of Full Moon Lake. At a ruined church, he shattered the True Creator’s statue and converted the gathered believers, discovering that many had already been corrupted into monsters.

• Hobart exploited the Black Knight’s loss of control, overcame his shadow and escape attempts, and killed him after Maximilian caught the fleeing monster form.
• Hobart subdued the Black Knight’s remaining out-of-control flesh and the Law Enforcer evil spirit, recovered their Extraordinary Characteristics, and obtained a Sealed Artifact.
• Archibald and Angus reported repelling Aurora Society attacks, and Hobart rewarded Archibald with a Shepherd marionette before ordering his forces to reclaim the West Bank.
• Hobart, Fors, and the Special Operations Department crossed the river, defeated Aurora Society forces, and raided their church and other strongholds.
• Hobart collapsed the church, destroyed the True Creator’s statue with Chaos Power, and preached to the gathered believers, converting most of them.
• Some believers attacked Hobart and transformed into mindless monsters, revealing the severe corruption Aurora Society had inflicted on the local population.

After driving the Aurora Society from the west bank of Full Moon Lake, Hobart organized the cleanup, rewarded his allies, and inspected the spoils while extending his influence over South Colson. At an auction in Jeffrey City, several demigods competed for a Sealed Artifact, and the next morning the mysterious demigod from the auction approached Hobart and asked to see his blade.

• Hobart assigned Archibald, Shier, and the Defense Force to clear monsters, spread the Creator’s name, and secure the west bank, while Angus and Helen reported their teams’ losses and spoils.
• Hobart rewarded Angus with a Punishment Knight Extraordinary Characteristic, offered Tudor Family relatives a path into government work, and gave Helen a Sequence 5 main ingredient; he realized that establishing rule over the west bank was digesting his Potion.
• Hobart relocated Fors to Green Manor, protected her advancement to Astrologer, and arranged for the Earth Mother Church to help increase Longtail Island’s rubber yield in exchange for the chance to preach there.
• Hobart inspected the battle’s Sealed Artifacts and Extraordinary Characteristics in the Country of Disorder, then hosted a major auction where a mysterious woman bought a Grade 2 Sealed Artifact for 23,000 Gold Lire after several demigods bid against one another.
• Hobart and Fors counted 47,000 Gold Lire in auction income and discussed aid for the newly acquired territory; Hobart also asked Fors to pray to the Creator during the next Blood Moon as an experiment.
• The next morning, Hobart reassured Jeffrey City’s residents, and an elderly hooded demigod approached him and asked to see his blade.

Hobart met the demigod Artisan Wen Shidun and arranged for him to forge weapons and Mystical Items, then sold a large stock of Extraordinary Characteristics to Bishop Simpson and organized recruitment for his territory. He visited Leonard, discussed clues about Sherlock Moriarty and the Creator, and Leonard ended the evening reflecting on the friends he believed he had lost.

• Hobart met Wen Shidun, offered him a villa and servants, and delivered materials and Extraordinary Characteristics for him to forge.
• Hobart sold Bishop Simpson Extraordinary Characteristics worth 82,720 Gold Lire and arranged recruitment for impoverished people in Backlund.
• Hobart received bounty checks totaling 58,700 pounds and used an address from LuoLuota to visit Leonard at No. 7 Pinster Street.
• Leonard told Hobart that Sherlock Moriarty was linked to several major cases and speculated that Sherlock and Gehrman Sparrow served the Creator.
• After Hobart left, Leonard spoke with the aged voice about Hobart's demigod status and said that Captain Dunn and Klein would live forever in his heart.

Hobart met Klein by the Tasok River, then hired four researchers to develop electrical technologies before joining the Tarot Club. There, he explained that Mr. Door had been contaminated in the starry sky and that Emperor Rosell had also suffered hidden contamination, while Klein arranged sales of two items and the chapter ended with Audrey and Fors planning to share a mystical book.

• Hobart met Klein by the Tasok River, offered to help him investigate the Night Goddess Church, and heard that Klein planned to return to Backlund under another identity.
• Klein visited Dunn Smith's and Old Neil's graves in Tingen, while Hobart reflected on Klein's growing withdrawal and prepared to hire researchers.
• Hobart hired Feiqi and three other students to research power stations, tungsten electric lights, rubber applications, and electrical sound conversion.
• At the Tarot Club, Hobart told Cattleya, Fors, and the others that Mr. Door was contaminated while wandering the starry sky, warned that Emperor Rosell had also suffered contamination, and explained why Mr. Door's full-moon whispers cautioned his descendants against rescuing him.
• World sold the Biotoxin Bottle to Fors and offered the Book of Mysteries, which Audrey and Fors agreed to share through Mr. Fool's ability.

At the Tarot Club gathering, Hobart arranged several transactions and described the Creator’s recent strikes against the Rose School, while The World revealed that Gehrman Sparrow had been involved in a battle at Bayam. Fors then recounted the campaign against the Aurora Society in South Colson and the Creator’s destruction of a True Creator statue, leaving Derrick with the Creator’s Honorific Name and the members weighing the growing alliance between the Creator and Mr. Fool.

• Fors bought an Interrogator Extraordinary Characteristic from The World, and Hobart arranged a three-way payment for Emlyn’s materials from Derrick.
• Hobart offered Emlyn a Crimson Scholar Extraordinary Characteristic in exchange for missions in Backlund, then privately offered Audrey a discounted appearance-changing Mystical Item.
• Alger reported that Gehrman Sparrow had been wanted by the Storm Church, and Hobart and The World described the battle in Bayam that killed Blood Admiral and a Silent Apostle and defeated Sua.
• Fors told the gathering that she and Hobart had helped defeat the Aurora Society in South Colson, where the Creator destroyed a statue of the True Creator.
• Hobart gave Derrick the Creator’s Honorific Name after assuring him that the Creator had no current plans to recruit believers in Silver City, and the gathering ended.

At the royal ball, Hobart accepted Duchess Georgina’s offer to become deputy director of Military Intelligence Section 9 and learned that Princess Alice hoped he could help her contact the Creator. He began work two days later and met Operations Department director Chunas Kolger.

• Hobart attended the royal ball, where Duchess Georgina recruited him to Military Intelligence Section 9 as deputy director and arranged for him to start work the day after tomorrow.
• Hobart danced with Princess Alice, who revealed that she had helped arrange his position and asked him to help her receive a response from the Creator; he said the matter depended on the Creator’s will.
• Hobart danced with Audrey, who warned him that noble families hoped he would remarry to strengthen their status, and he told her about joining Military Intelligence Section 9.
• Hobart told Tyrone about Georgina’s offer and Alice’s favor, while Monlisa and Christine discussed his new post and the Royal Family’s interest in him.
• Hobart reviewed documents about Longtail Island and, on Wednesday morning, arrived at Military Intelligence Section 9, where he met Operations Department director Chunas Kolger.

Hobart investigated Longtail Island’s history and present conditions while beginning his work at Military Intelligence Section 9, then took Audrey to Backlund’s Night Market in disguise. The outing helped Audrey discover the lives of ordinary people and gave Hobart hope that everyday experiences could preserve his humanity.

• Hobart reviewed Military Intelligence Section 9’s files on Longtail Island and learned that the Royal Family suspected Megli, the Mountain God, was an angel of the Lawyer pathway who had empowered an indigenous king through a wooden crown.
• Hobart visited Longtail Island and saw the harsh colonial treatment of indigenous people, then visited South Colson, where Conrad reported that the Madmen were difficult to control.
• Hobart collected two Mystical Items from Wen Shidun and gave Audrey a shape-changing bracelet in exchange for 5,000 pounds.
• Audrey asked Hobart to take her to the Night Market, and they planned to slip away from the ball in disguise after discussing the security around her family’s home.
• Hobart helped Audrey disguise herself as Annie, and they explored the Night Market, sampling food and browsing stalls while Audrey experienced ordinary life beyond noble society.
• Hobart asked Audrey not to give up on him if he became cold and lost his human warmth, and Audrey promised she would not; they bought pulled pork for Susie before leaving.

Hobart settled into Military Intelligence Section 9, accepted a role in its ransom scheme, and invested in Isaac’s new plastic material while helping Norma seek her family’s release. A letter from Lafite revealed that the Tony Family worshipped the Mist of Uncertainty and that Lafite had been parasitized by one of Amon’s avatars, prompting the Messenger to propose a hunt.

• Audrey worried about Hobart’s concern for her, while Hobart declined most invitations and agreed to attend a banquet with Elizabeth.
• Chunas invited Hobart to join the East Balam Veteran Officers Club, and Byron asked him to mediate Lord Bradley’s case; Hobart recognized the request as a test and agreed to participate.
• Hobart invested eight thousand pounds in Isaac’s patent for a soybean-oil material and directed Gena to research hard and soft plastics.
• Hobart promised Norma he would discuss her father’s and brother’s case with Byron, then received Lafite’s letter about the Tony Family’s worship of the Mist of Uncertainty and its Marauder pathway Sealed Artifact.
• The Messenger told Hobart that Lafite had been parasitized by an Amon avatar and proposed hunting it for six Time Worms; Hobart postponed his decision and entered the Country of Disorder to recover his sealed memories about Amon.

Hobart joined forces with Beverly, Raymond, and the Tony Family to hunt the Amon avatar infiltrating Tony Manor, exposing it as the impostor who had replaced Valentine. After Hobart trapped the manor in a hidden space and Raymond attacked, two more Amon avatars appeared, revealing that the hunt was far from over.

• Hobart agreed to help the Messenger hunt Amon's avatar in exchange for three future fights, then established a spiritual contract with her and prepared Sealed Artifacts.
• Hobart used the Goddess of the Night's blessing to enhance a fruit-shaped Sealed Artifact and instructed Lafite to keep praying, which helped remove the Time Worm parasitizing him.
• Hobart met Osmon, confirmed that Amon's avatar had infiltrated Tony Manor, and gained the support of the angel Raymond and the demigod Valentine.
• Hobart exposed Valentine as Amon's avatar by questioning his reactions and testing his supposed plan, then summoned Beverly and blocked Amon's attack with the Order Crystal.
• Hobart used the Secrecy Fruit to hide Tony Manor and escaped with Lafite while Raymond attacked Amon's avatar.
• Two more Amon avatars appeared on a rooftop and warned Hobart that Amon's avatars never acted alone.

Hobart and his allies fought Amon’s avatars across Tony Manor, while Beverly and Raymond battled another avatar. Hobart helped the Holy Infant King defeat the Angel-level avatar, and the surviving Amon avatars were killed or driven off.

• Beverly and Raymond attacked Amon’s avatar together, but it exposed their fatal injuries and revealed that another Angel-level avatar was pursuing Hobart.
• Hobart used the Order Crystal barrier to enter the Country of Disorder, then projected his power and allies into the Secrecy World while Amon’s avatars sowed confusion among Tony Manor’s defenders.
• Beverly and Raymond recovered their strength beneath the Order Wood and renewed their assault as Hobart summoned the Holy Infant King and fought the Angel-level avatar alongside it.
• Hobart used the Sealed Artifacts 1-108 and 1-105 to kill several Amon avatars, while the Overturning Sea Great Saint and its allies ambushed and captured the fleeing avatars.
• The Holy Infant King weakened the Angel-level avatar, and Hobart helped restrain it until the Holy Infant King destroyed it; Hobart said it had to die because it knew too much.

Hobart and the Creator’s forces defeated Amon’s avatars at Tony Manor, where Hobart learned that the Mist of Uncertainty had bestowed permanent abilities on the family’s believers. He left Tony Manor allied with the Tudors and began assessing the Bestowed, whose powers appeared stable but whose new gifts had made them eager for conquest.

• Hobart restrained his urge to kill Osmon and Lafite, returned to the real world, and ordered Osmon to gather the Time Worms from the manor.
• Beverly and Raymond discussed the black-armored figure, their hope of restoring the Tudor Family, and the importance of staying close to Hobart and the Creator.
• Hobart questioned the Tudors about the Mist of Uncertainty, then distributed the sixty-eight captured Time Worms among the Goddess of the Night, the participants, and the Creator’s forces.
• Osmon agreed to keep Lafite at Tony Manor as a liaison, and Hobart warned him against using the Marauder Sealed Artifact carelessly before learning that young family members had received gifts from the Mist of Uncertainty.
• Hobart tested the Bestowed and discovered that Amon’s avatar might have stolen one recipient’s Bewitchment ability; he found no signs of madness, but learned the gifts had fueled the group’s ambition to conquer and rule more territory.

Hobart accepted a palace protection assignment and saved Princess Alice from a curse during her visit with the Queen, discovering that the attack was tied to her investigation into Edessak. The visit continued despite the assassination attempt, and Hobart noticed an evil force surrounding Duke Bowen.

• Hobart advised Osmon to stop supporting further bestowals while monitoring the Bestowed, then returned home and considered the risks posed by Amon and the Mist of Uncertainty.
• Hobart learned that Georgina had assigned him to protect the Queen, while he and Byron arranged Lord Bradley and his son's release in exchange for 30,000 Pounds.
• Hobart joined the Eastern Baylam Veterans Club, rested with Fors, and missed the Tarot Club after asking the Fool for leave.
• Hobart took over palace protection and rode with the Queen and Princess Alice to visit Duke Bowen.
• When a curse struck Alice in the carriage, Hobart found the cursed leg ring, transferred most of the curse to the canary, and learned that Edessak had given Alice the ring.
• Alice agreed to stop investigating Edessak's affairs, but the party continued to Duke Bowen's estate, where Hobart sensed an evil force around the Duke's spirit body.

Hobart investigated Duke Bowen’s suspected curse at the Queen’s request, then protected Alice during a Witch’s assassination attempt. After meeting George III and suspecting the King’s previous public appearances had been substitutes, Hobart was assigned to remain with Alice.

• The Queen asked Hobart to investigate whether Duke Bowen had truly been cursed and promised him advancement and royal support for Longtail Island if he made a breakthrough.
• A Witch attacked the Queen’s carriage, but Hobart protected Alice and drove the assassin away after the attack was disrupted.
• The Queen took Alice and Hobart to meet George III, who questioned Hobart about the assassinations and promised to find the culprit.
• Hobart suspected that the George III he had met before might have been a substitute rather than the real King.
• Alice asked Hobart to protect her and learn more about the Witch, and she invited him to dine in her private dining room.

Hobart spent the day protecting Princess Alice, who confided her findings about Edessak’s death and accepted his advice to pause her investigation. After completing his assignment at Earl Vincent’s ball, Hobart confronted Georgina about the Queen’s role in his transfer, then found himself facing questions from Audrey about arriving with Alice.

• At lunch, Alice asked Hobart about his rescue, the Demoness Church, and the assassination attempt, while Hobart avoided commenting on Edessak’s case.
• During a private walk, Alice revealed that the Demoness Church had moved slaves into Backlund, that Triss might still be alive, and that the Royal Family was cooperating with the Demoness Church and the Aurora Society.
• Alice told Hobart she wanted someone to know her findings in case she died, and Hobart advised her to stop investigating temporarily; Alice praised him as a potential adviser.
• Hobart and Alice attended Earl Vincent’s ball together, where their dancing and arrival in the same carriage sparked speculation among the Nobles.
• Hobart handed Clement the button and talisman, then used a staged wine spill to get Georgina alone and challenged her for withholding the Queen’s role in his transfer.
• After joining Audrey and Glaint, Hobart confirmed he had arrived with Alice but worried that confidentiality rules left him unable to explain why.

Hobart arranged trade and military cooperation, received a powerful new sword, and welcomed Azzik to tour Jeffrey City. The chapter also showed Selena and Freya returning to support their families, while Hobart’s tour highlighted the territory’s growth and agricultural plans.

• Earl Vincent approached Hobart at the ball after learning how Carl had benefited from Hobart’s official training system.
• Selena returned to her family in Tingen, gave Chris 30 pounds toward his wedding, and described her new life in Backlund.
• Freya reunited with Daisy, brought her clothes and food, and promised to pay her lodging fees.
• Hobart completed arms and steam-engine transactions, recruited an Extraordinary squad from the Balk Family, and received a transforming sword from Wen Shidun.
• Hobart used the sword and Azzik’s mark to open a fissure into the Underworld, then later welcomed Azzik and toured Jeffrey City with him.
• Hobart showed Azzik the planned New District and the wheat fields and vegetable plantations, explaining his plans to grow the city and expand agriculture.