Chapter Summaries

Hobart used the Country of Disorder to fuse Aputon's spirituality with a corpse's, foiling divinations aimed at finding him. After Aputon became a Believer of the Creator, Hobart arranged to collect two Extraordinary Characteristics and promised to teach him how to avoid Loss of Control.

• Aputon performed a Ritual to the Creator, and Hobart fused part of his spirituality with the corpse's to conceal him from divinations.
• Hobart considered the Mist of Uncertainty's connection to the Country of Disorder and planned to keep Aputon close for future traps and investigations.
• Doffis helped the corpses leave, startling Aputon, while Hobart cleared the altar.
• Hobart asked Aputon for the Bribor and Astrologer's Extraordinary Characteristics, and they agreed to meet at Harvest Church in a week.
• Hobart promised to teach Aputon how to avoid Loss of Control, then realized he needed to develop Believers of his own.

Hobart moved out of his family home and completed his deal with the Nighthawks Squad, gaining Sealed Artifact 2-355, two Barbarian Extraordinary Characteristics, and police credentials. He renamed the artifact the Teleport Stone Statue, gave Fors the Trick Master Potion Recipe, and told Xue he had also obtained the Sheriff Potion Recipe.

• Hobart told Christine he planned to move out, and Christine agreed on the condition that he came home for two days each week.
• Hobart told Monlisa he was moving out, and she accepted while offering to help pay his rent.
• Thomas and Ms. Daly finalized Hobart's deal for 2-355, and Hobart chose to take its Stone Casket despite learning that prolonged contact could petrify him.
• Thomas gave Hobart 2-355, two Barbarian Extraordinary Characteristics, and certificates for the Nighthawks and the Special Police Department.
• Hobart named 2-355 the Teleport Stone Statue, then gave Fors the Trick Master Potion Recipe and told Xue he had obtained the Sheriff Potion Recipe.

Hobart sold Xue the 'Sheriff' Potion Recipe and arranged for her to investigate two Tamara Family addresses, proposing cooperation to obtain their pathway formulas. After the group parted, the Tamara Family began searching for the missing members of its action team, while Hobart returned to work and received notice of Bob's upcoming hearing.

• Hobart sold Xue the 'Sheriff' Potion Recipe for 395 Pounds in exchange for her arranging a discreet investigation of two addresses linked to the Tamara Family.
• Hobart told Xue and Fors that the Tamara Family had Potion Recipes for the Lawyer, Arbiter, and Apprentice pathways, and suggested they cooperate while waiting for an opportunity.
• Hobart offered to sell Xue the 'Sheriff' Main Ingredients and advised her to contact the formula seller and cooperate cautiously with the authorities.
• A middle-aged man and Byrd searched Rose Street for the missing action team, and the man ordered an investigation to avenge his younger sister.
• Hobart returned to the Law Firm, decided to handle his delayed third case on Saturday, and received notice that Bob's hearing would take place next Wednesday.

Hobart settled into his new townhouse and reasoned that acting as a barbarian meant challenging order and rules. While visiting Kate about Bill’s compensation demand, he ran into Gael carrying black sparrow flower powder, a rare ingredient Hobart recognized from the secret supplicant potion recipe.

• Hobart informed Bob of the trial date, then told his family he had rented a townhouse at Blanca Street 192, where Monlisa arranged for servants to clean and furnish it and offered to cover part of the rent.
• Hobart reflected on his recent gains and concluded that barbarism was the opposite of civilization, involving challenges to established orders and rules.
• Hobart visited Kate to discuss Bill’s case, but Kate refused to reduce his demand for 100 pounds in compensation.
• Hobart met Gael outside Kate’s business and recognized the black sparrow flower powder he was carrying as an ingredient in the secret supplicant potion recipe.
• Hobart told the coachman to take him to Gael Herbalist Shop at 51 Henry Street.

Hobart confirmed that Mr. Kate had bought materials for a Secret Supplicant Potion and reported the lead to Daly, choosing merit as his reward. A mysterious woman Hobart had seen on the street later appeared in Christine’s Study and greeted him as an old acquaintance.

• Hobart tested Gael’s discretion and inferred that Mr. Kate had bought Poison Hemlock Juice and Fei Luo Duo Fish blood for a Secret Supplicant Potion.
• Hobart reported Mr. Kate to Daly at the Obsidian Bar, and he chose to accumulate merit instead of taking a cash reward.
• Hobart wondered whether to use his new items to save Captain Dunn, while deciding that Klein could die and revive.
• Hobart spotted an elegant, unsettling woman on the street, and his spirituality prompted him to look at her.
• After dinner, Christine sensed something and went to his Study, where the woman greeted him and criticized his Magic Barrier arrangement.

Christine confronted April, who revealed she was an Ancient Alchemist seeking Rex’s soul and had come to check on Hobart. Hobart received a powerful mystical spoon from his biological mother and set out for a case, wondering why he had seen the same strange woman twice.

• April told Christine she had left Hobart with her because she trusted Christine to raise him, and said she still intended to revive Rex.
• April said she had prepared a body for Rex’s soul and had brought Hobart two gifts, while Christine refused to let Hobart be drawn into her plans.
• Christine told April about Hobart’s recent work and his plans for an Extraordinary Battle, and April regretted missing his childhood.
• Christine gave Hobart a mystical dining spoon from his biological mother that granted Spectator abilities and resisted mental attacks, though it could make someone burst into tears or laughter.
• Hobart named the item the Psychological Spoon and headed to the East Suburb, where he saw the same strange woman again before deciding he could now dare to visit Tingen City.

Hobart mediated a dispute between Stan and Jamie over a patch of woods by arranging for the wild boars to decide which farm would receive it. After the boars unexpectedly ran toward Stan’s land, Stan won the dispute, while Hobart’s focused stare suggested he had influenced their direction.

• Hobart traveled to Stan’s forest farm and proposed settling the land dispute by letting the boars’ direction after a gunshot determine ownership.
• Hobart had Stan and Jamie sign an agreement making the outcome binding, despite Stan’s doubts about the plan.
• Hobart accompanied Stan and Jamie to the boars and told Stan to fire a shot into the air.
• The boars first headed toward Jamie’s farm, then changed direction and ran toward Stan’s land.
• Stan celebrated his victory, and Jamie accepted the agreement while wondering why the boars had acted strangely.

Hobart helped Harvey Hayden’s mercenaries pursue three thieves who had stolen jewelry from Earl Vincent’s home. While guarding a road, Hobart resisted a mental attack and pretended to obey the attacker’s order to ignore an approaching convoy.

• After Hobart used his Extraordinary Ability to send the wild boars toward Stan’s farm, Harvey Hayden invited him to help capture three thieves.
• Harvey told Hobart that Simon Vincent had hired nine mercenaries to pursue the thieves, one of whom was a Sequence 9 Beyonder.
• Simon assigned Hobart and Vico to guard a road while the rest of the team searched the mountain and watched other routes.
• Hobart felt a mental attack but recovered, while Vico fell under the attacker’s control.
• A richly dressed middle-aged man questioned Vico, confirmed the mercenaries were after the thieves, and ordered Hobart and Vico to ignore an approaching convoy.
• Hobart pretended to obey the order as the Psychological Spoon blocked another mental attack.

Hobart and Vico waited in ambush for thieves while a royal convoy passed unnoticed by Vico, leaving Hobart to suspect George III was among its passengers. They caught the thieves and recovered the stolen goods, including the ring Hobart sought, but he left it untouched and waited for another chance.

• A royal convoy passed Hobart and Vico, and Hobart suspected George III was inspecting his mausoleum while Vico failed to notice the procession.
• After gunfire signaled the thieves’ approach, Hobart and Vico caught two thieves, while another mercenary reported shooting a third.
• Hobart recognized Viscount Glynt’s ruby ring among the recovered goods but decided not to take it.
• Simon and Harvey Hayden arrived with the third thief, and Simon promised rewards to the mercenaries before ordering the prisoners interrogated.

Harvey Hayden interrogated the thieves who had tried to steal Earl Vincent’s ring, and Hobart learned that an unknown mastermind had bypassed the mansion’s guards. Harvey also pointed Hobart toward Dix, a former member of Rex’s guard unit, while Hobart and Glaint discussed forming the Justice League to find a future opportunity to retrieve the ring.

• Harvey Hayden used the Whip of Pain to question the thieves, who said they had entered Earl Vincent’s mansion without encountering anyone and had never seen their masked mastermind clearly.
• Simon offered Harvey Hayden a reward for finding the mastermind, and the group escorted the thieves back to Backlund.
• Harvey Hayden told Hobart about Rex’s departure from the military and directed him to Dix, Rex’s former guard captain, at 1899 Nicklow Street.
• After returning to Backlund, Hobart and Harvey Hayden exchanged mailing addresses, and Simon paid the mercenaries their reward.
• The next morning, Hobart told Glaint he had found his father’s ring at Earl Vincent’s residence, and Glaint regretted losing the chance to steal it.
• Hobart proposed convening the Justice League to recruit young nobles interested in Mysticism and perhaps create another opportunity to take the ring.

Hobart recruited Audrey into the Justice League’s first gathering and reviewed a suspicious land-sale contract for Earl Hall. At the Mercenary Club’s Information Wall, he found a bounty that might suit Xue and read an account of Chaotic Power that gave him an idea about destroying Extraordinary Characteristics.

• Hobart proposed holding the Justice League’s first gathering at Glaint’s residence on Tuesday, and Glaint agreed to inform Hugh and Fors.
• Hobart visited Audrey, told her about his deal with Bishop Utravsky, and invited her to the gathering; she eagerly agreed.
• Earl Hall asked Hobart to review a land-sale contract with Earl Vincent, and Hobart noted the East Suburb property might be connected to George III’s visit.
• Hobart found a commission to capture two Sequence 9 cult members hiding in Backlund and decided it could suit Xue.
• Hobart read a report that Chaotic Power had turned stone into sand and soil, and wondered whether it could also shatter Extraordinary Characteristics.

Hobart used the Country of Disorder to shatter a Barbarian Extraordinary Characteristic and strengthen the Teleport Stone Statue, then went out for dinner. Meanwhile, Alva and Boris reviewed a meager investigation report about a Rose Street incident and questioned the claim that the Nighthawks were involved.

• Hobart used the Country of Disorder’s Chaos Power to shatter a Barbarian Extraordinary Characteristic into two portions that would reform separately.
• Hobart strengthened the Teleport Stone Statue, increasing its spatial range from ten meters to fifteen and weakening its negative effects.
• Hobart left the Country of Disorder exhausted, resisted his urge to stay in the recliner, and went to Dixie Restaurant for dinner.
• Alva complained that the investigation had produced little despite his spending 200 Pounds.
• Boris explained that investigators suspected the Nighthawks because everyone on Rose Street had fallen asleep on the night of the incident, then denied that they had any reason to kill Alva’s people.

The Tamara Family struggled to explain the deaths of two Sequence 6 Beyonders, while Hobart received a case that would take him to Tingen City and attended a Tarot Club meeting where The Sun joined. The meeting ended with Hobart revealing that he suspected The Sun came from the abandoned Country of Silver.

• Alva and Boris speculated that Aputon had backing from the Loen Royal Family and planned to report their theory to the Tamara Family council.
• Hobart accepted Barton's commercial dispute case in Tingen City and agreed to travel there before the hearing.
• Hobart attended the Tarot Club, where Mr. Fool introduced Derrick Berg as The Sun.
• Audrey sought the Mind Reader Potion Recipe, and Derrick offered to obtain it from the resources of Silver City.
• Hobart asked Derrick whether he had been abandoned by the gods, leaving the Tarot Club in stunned silence.

At the Tarot Club, Hobart’s remarks revealed that Derrick came from the Land Abandoned by God, and Klein arranged a three-way exchange of potion formulas. Alger then asked Audrey and Hobart to help locate the pirate Qilingesi, who had secretly entered Backlund, and sought Mr. Fool’s aid if matters turned dangerous.

• Hobart explained that the Seven New Gods protected the people of the Northern and Southern Continents, while Derrick insisted that the Omniscient and Almighty God had forsaken the land rather than His people.
• Klein arranged for Derrick to give Audrey the Mind Reader formula in exchange for Klein providing Derrick with the Bard formula, with compensation to be settled later.
• Klein read Audrey’s diary and concluded that the conservation of Extraordinary Characteristics could apply to Adjacent Pathways.
• Alger asked Hobart and Audrey to help find Hurricane Lieutenant General Qilingesi, a dangerous Sequence 6 pirate who had secretly entered Backlund.
• Alger asked Mr. Fool to have his Blessed assist in a crisis and promised to pay a price that would interest him.

Hobart prepared for Bob’s case while planning to reach Tingen City before the Nighthawks Squad was attacked. In Crowlier City, Elliot’s delegation was ambushed by the Rose School, then escaped into the jungle as the Balk Family’s reinforcements counterattacked with the Sealed Artifact Wind Blade.

• Hobart decided not to seek out Mr. Azik and returned to the Law Firm to prepare for Bob’s case.
• Calvin told the delegation that the Rose School had sent a Demigod to attack them and ordered everyone to withdraw until reinforcements arrived.
• Elliot and his companion fought off animated objects in their room, and Calvin used Chaos to disrupt the attack before leaving as bait.
• Elliot and several companions fled through the jungle while Rose School pursuers chased them.
• The Balk Family’s attack horn sounded, and Wind Blade swept through the pursuers, killing Living Corpses and Werewolves.

After the Balk Family defeated the Rose School pursuers, Calvin asked Elliot to use Spirit Communication on an important enemy, ostensibly to learn about the family’s Curse. With the Creator’s guidance, Elliot recognized Calvin’s request as a test and performed the ritual with divine help, uncovering a memory that challenged the family’s assumptions before a terrifying presence interrupted it.

• Elliot and the Balk Family fought off the Rose School members, killed more than twenty, and pursued the survivors until the commander sounded the halt.
• Calvin told Elliot that a dead Rose School member held critical information about the Balk Family’s Curse and asked him to perform Spirit Communication.
• Elliot prayed to the Creator, who pointed out Calvin’s careful wording and helped Elliot realize that Calvin already knew what the ritual could reveal and was testing him.
• The Creator granted Elliot power, and Elliot performed Spirit Communication on the corpse, seeing a memory of Teacher Zatwin explain that the Curse came from the Balk bloodline and that the family needed an enemy.
• An arm covered in eyes and bearing a sharp-toothed tongue appeared behind Zatwin, abruptly ending the Spirit Communication.

Elliot’s Spirit Communication summoned a terrifying force that threatened to kill him, but Hobart severed its connection to the corpse. The battle ended with the Rose School demigod fleeing, and Calvin learned not to provoke the god who protected Elliot.

• Elliot saw the corpse at the altar awaken and summon a bloodshot eye, a toothed tongue, and a bone-spurred ear as a dangerous force descended.
• Jonah and Anthony sensed the force, while the demigods and Calvin’s group stopped fighting and began to react to the threat.
• Hobart used the Country of Disorder’s Power of Order to make the corpse lose its vitality and spirituality, cutting off the projection and saving Elliot.
• Jonah concluded that the Balk Family was more formidable than he had expected, and the Rose School demigod fled after losing an arm.
• Calvin hurried to Elliot, but Hobart’s appearance and a burst of chaos power drove Calvin toward Loss of Control before restoring him; Elliot warned him not to test the gods.

After confirming the Balk Family’s Curse was unrelated to the Rose School, Hobart watched Calvin become more respectful toward Elliot and discovered Lafite was possessed by the Red Angel. The next morning, Hobart joined Audrey, Glynt, Xue, and Fors at the Justice League’s first gathering.

• Hobart concluded that the Balk Family’s Curse came from its bloodline and resolved to investigate through Rex and the Balk Family’s Council of Elders.
• Hobart saw a black shadow clinging to Lafite, suspected possession by the evil spirit formed from Medici and His two mortal enemies, and hid Lafite’s star in the pool.
• The possessing spirits argued about Solomon and the new Black Emperor while Lafite rode away in a rental carriage, unaware of them.
• Hobart considered how the Balk Family might support the Creator’s future plans in the Southern Continent.
• Hobart arrived at Viscount Glynt’s residence, where Audrey, Glynt, Xue, and Fors joined him for the Justice League’s first gathering around an Astrolabe.

Hobart formalized the Justice League’s rules and led the members in exchanging information, commissions, and offers. The gathering ended with everyone agreeing to attend Hobart’s difficult lawsuit the next day.

• Hobart proposed that the five founders retain the Right of Initiative and Right of Veto, while later members could only speak, and the founders approved the rules for recruiting and expelling members.
• Hobart asked Glaint about medicine to nourish spirituality after a recent battle, and offered to share a formula if he found one; he also offered Fors a lead on the main ingredient for Trick Master.
• Audrey commissioned Xue to locate Qilingesi, the “Hurricane Lieutenant General,” while Hobart commissioned Xue to find two heretics and offered to help capture them if needed.
• Hobart announced that he had a difficult lawsuit to fight the next day, and the others decided to attend the hearing.

Hobart prepared to represent Bob in court over his workplace injury, attracting attention from the Church of the Goddess and the God of Steam and Machinery. The trial began with Hobart arguing that Arnold’s failure to protect his employee had caused Bob’s disability, and it remained unresolved as Hobart challenged the idea that worker compensation customs should be preserved for the sake of Backlund’s stability.

• Hobart declined Christine’s offer to intervene in Bob’s compensation case and agreed to deliver her personal letter to her former adjutant in Tingen City.
• Daly accompanied Hobart and Bob to court, explaining that the Church was observing the representative workplace-injury case.
• Hobart found Bob’s coworkers, Audrey and her companions, Donna, and representatives of the Machinery Hearts gathered to watch the hearing.
• Hobart accused Arnold of intentional injury, while Arnold’s lawyer argued that the case should not disrupt established compensation customs.
• Hobart countered that prosperity should not rest on workers’ suffering and that laws and regulations had to adapt as society developed.