"A baby?" Mr. Bugade shook his head, "I have no recollection of that. In the stories my grandfather told me, the person mentioned most often was a lady named Mania. She was the owner of the black star and the wife of a very important person."
"An important person?"
"Yes."
Mr. Bugade showed a look of recollection and said: "My grandfather once said that the respected lady was the wife of a very important person. And that important person was a descendant who followed Emperor Roselle and was known as one of the Four Knights of the Apocalypse."
There's such a thing.
Hmm.
If she was a descendant of the Four Knights of the Apocalypse, then it makes sense that Mania possessed Roselle's Secret Treasure.
Lex reined in his thoughts and continued: "Then, did Mr. Selis ever mention Lady Mania's descendants?"
"Did Lady Mania have descendants?" Mr. Bugade asked in return, then shook his head, "No, I don't recall. My grandfather never mentioned it to me."
"He might have told my father, but unfortunately, my father is no longer in this world."
Lex already knew this, so he asked another question: "Does Mr. Selis have any other descendants? Did your grandfather have any siblings?"
After all, Mr. Bugade was Selis's great-grandson, too many generations apart. If Mr. Bugade's grandfather still had siblings who were alive, more information could probably be obtained.
Mr. Bugade smiled: "Unfortunately, my grandfather had no siblings. He was an orphan. I heard from my deceased father that my grandfather was adopted by my great-grandfather when he was very young."
"Adopted?"
"Yes."
Mr. Bugade nodded gently: "It seems my great-grandmother was unable to have children due to some issues. So, she and my great-grandfather adopted a lucky child from an orphanage, and that was my grandfather."
This was unexpected by Lex; Mr. Bugade's grandfather was adopted. In other words, they had no blood relation to Selis.
If adopted...
Lex suddenly thought of a possibility.
Perhaps Mr. Bugade's grandfather wasn't adopted from an orphanage, but was brought down from the black star by Selis, and was Mania's child.
Selis starting a family might have been to conceal the existence of this child, and then, under the guise of adoption, allowed that child to grow up safely and smoothly.
Lex felt excited by his bold guess, but of course, this was just a guess, without substantial evidence.
However, the doctor drew Mr. Bugade's blood yesterday. If Mr. Bugade is indeed Mania's descendant, then through Mr. Bugade's blood, Lex will be able to find the answer.
Even if he can't find it himself, taking this bottle of blood to the black star, Mania should be able to sense the presence of her descendant through the blood.
Seeing that Mr. Bugade was starting to look tired, Lex stood up to take his leave and said: "Mr. Bugade, please take good care of yourself. When you recover, you should pray at the church. The power of faith will help you get rid of some misfortunes in your life."
Mr. Bugade nodded in agreement: "That's what I think too, sir."
"Looking back, ever since I was deceived into buying a fake land deed, I've been having bad luck. This time I almost died. I really do need to go to church and pray."
Lex smiled, bid farewell, and left.
He left the doctor to continue treating Mr. Bugade at the manor, while he himself returned to Bayam, bought a boat ticket to Port Pritz, and on December 5th, boarded the 'White Agate' to return to the Loen Kingdom.
December 13th.
In the afternoon, a carriage drove into Enki Town, along Mermaid Road, towards Golden Champagne Avenue.
Lex and Levto sat in the carriage, looking out the window at the town bathed in the warm winter sun, exuding a familiar scent.
Arriving at the Baron's Mansion on Champagne Avenue, Lex stepped out of the carriage. Levto followed, carrying large and small bags, all gifts Lex had brought for his family.
He pushed open the main door and announced: "I'm home!"
He had originally expected that upon hearing his voice, the youngest member of the family, his brother Joe, would be the first to run out.
Then Sebastian the butler would come with the servants to greet him, after which he would see his mother and sister in the hall, and finally Baron Bison.
But after Lex's call faded, the Baron's Mansion was eerily quiet, as if neither family nor servants were present.
After a while, an old man walked over from the direction of the stables, made a sound of surprise, and called out from afar: "Young Master Lex? Young Master Lex, you're back?"
A moment later, Lex arrived in the hall, where all the furniture was covered with white dust sheets to prevent dust from accumulating when not in use.
Old Cook, one of the coachmen in the Baron's Mansion, sighed from behind: "Since the master and madam went to Backlund, I haven't been in this house for many days. It used to be so lively here, but now it's so desolate that even rats don't want to visit."
"When did my father and the others go to Backlund?" Lex asked casually.
"Last month. Oh, by the way, the madam left a letter, saying to give it to you if you came back. Young Master, please wait a moment." Old Cook ran out.
Not long after, he returned and handed a letter to Lex.
Lex opened it and saw lines of elegant and lively handwriting on the paper, recognizing it as his mother Amelia's handwriting.
His mother told him that in order to develop his career, Bison had decided to move the entire family to Backlund, and before leaving, had already rented the house at 162 Backlund Street, Backlund.
In the letter, Amelia told Lex that if he had a holiday and came home to find them gone, he should join them in Backlund to welcome the New Year.
"...I miss you very much, my child." Lex read the last sentence of the letter and exhaled.
Bison actually took the whole family to Backlund. Is he planning to make a big splash? It seems he's ready to make a move towards a seat in the Parliament.
Lex put away the letter, turned around, and looked at Old Cook, saying: "Why didn't you go?"
The coachman chuckled and waved his hand: "I heard Backlund is often foggy, and I'm afraid I'll get sick if I go. This place suits me better. Besides, such a big house needs someone to look after it."
"Young Master Lex, you're also going to Backlund, aren't you? But you can't leave today. I'll go up and clean your room now."
Lex didn't stop him. After letting Old Cook clean the room, he carefully considered his next itinerary.
"I definitely have to go to Backlund. I also need to report to the Naval General Office to collect my reward. However, before I go, I might consider going to Tingen City first."
"I want to see Old Man Hardy again. Perhaps he has found my father's notes, which would help me confirm who Mania's descendant is."
"Next, I also need to meet Kaven and Nafi to see if they are willing to go to sea with me after the New Year."
"Hmm, I'll do these two things before heading to Backlund!"