Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

After bidding farewell to Shard and Luviya, Iluna and Emilia headed to the study to verify every detail regarding the Misfortune Cult and the four relics that had recently appeared around Emilia.

Initially, Iluna was a bit displeased with Emilia’s presence, but as they became more acquainted, those minor feelings faded completely. Amidst their conversation and documentation, Emilia spoke generously in admiration of Iluna’s talent:

"I’ve heard of many impressive seniors at the Academy, but none of them compares to you."

Iluna smiled modestly. She had heard similar remarks many times but never felt pride from them. In her view, Shard was the true genius, and it was only with Shard and Luviya’s help that she could reach her current place.

The Elf girl seemed to possess a unique charm, and Iluna soon became friends with her. While discussing last night’s final battle, Emilia inadvertently mentioned a detail that Iluna caught onto—

"...That black magic wand must be a powerful relic, right? Oh, Iluna, in this summer since I left Saint Byrons, I’ve encountered more relics above the Keeper of Secrets level than I’ve seen in the past fifty years combined. That wand must be very potent, and I’ve learned at school that wand-type relics are rarer than cold weapon-type relics, but... for some reason, seeing that wand made me feel very sad..."

She pursed her lips, recalling last night’s situation, unsure if it was the relic "Friendly Neighbor" affecting her. After all, she had been quite overwhelmed at the time. This content certainly wouldn’t make it into the investigation report, and Iluna was momentarily surprised, then seemed to have a sudden insight:

"Is the wand something that’s dead?"

"Sorry, what?"

Emilia’s beautiful, innocent eyes looked at her, prompting the deeply thoughtful Iluna to rephrase:

"Do you know what that wand is? Although I’ve seen it, Shard never mentioned its origin. Since Luviya doesn’t ask, of course, others wouldn’t either... Do you recognize it?"

The Blonde Elf shook her head swiftly:

"Feels familiar, but I suppose I’ve never seen it before. Each wand-type relic is distinctive, my memory wouldn’t mislead me... Once I return, I can look into it... but does this count as prying into Shard’s privacy?"

"This..."

Iluna hesitated for a moment and then noticed the cat lying on the desk. This morning, the city was foggy, and the sunshine at the living room windowsill was not abundant, so the lazy cat accompanied them in the study.

"Mia, does this count as prying into Shard’s privacy?"

Iluna thus asked the cat, and the cat, sprawled out pretending to sleep, only let out a "meow~" upon hearing its name.

"See, Mia says it doesn’t count."

Iluna stated confidently, then met the young elf’s skeptical gaze:

"Iluna, do you understand cat language?"

"Of course not, but hear me out. I’ve never had any ill intent toward Shard. We’re..."

She wanted to say "lovers," but noticed that the cat seemed to squint one eye at her as she hesitated. Feeling slightly embarrassed, she didn’t voice it, and thus lowered her voice, speaking softly into the elf’s pointed ear:

"We’ve kissed. And not the kind of innocent kiss you’re imagining, a very passionate one. It was Shard’s Year-End Festival gift to me, right in my apartment."

After speaking, she sat back in her seat with a flushed face and sure enough saw the pure elf girl also blush:

"Shard is involved with so many... I’ll investigate that wand, which feels very familiar, once I return to the Academy. It might be related to the elves, I’ll need some time."

Iluna nodded with satisfaction, never daring to forget the clues she obtained from "If":

"Flame, Power, Resurrection, Card, Love."

Repeating those five words in her heart, she failed to notice the cat pretending to nap still watching her.

Meanwhile, Shard had arrived in Moon Bay City. Although there was no rain or snow today, the usually overcast Moon Bay City still wasn’t experiencing good weather. Seeing it was still early, Shard decided not to head to Spider Alley immediately, but instead went to Belindel Estate in the city center first.

The maids at the estate were quite familiar with Shard, and Miss Matilda quickly led him to the third floor, as Miss Belindel was just about to head out. She wore a white dress and tilted a lace-decorated floral wide-brimmed hat, not a look for attending formal meeting events:

"Marchioness of Ankara, Lady Edington, Old Lady Hawthorn, and several other noble ladies invited me to a manor outside the city to unwind. Although such social life can be dull, sometimes one has to participate."

But she didn’t seem to truly think it boring.

Shard stood at the door while the Countess accepted adjustments to her jewelry and attire from the maids. Standing before the floor mirror inspecting herself, she complained:

"Speaking of which, if we need to find you, where on earth should we contact you? The address you provided at Princess Trading Partners only takes your mail. What if we need to find you immediately? Shouldn’t you have a place to stay locally?"

"This... it’s hard to say."

"Yes, yes, you always have a lot of your own secrets. People often say that ladies with secrets are charming. In my opinion, men with secrets are also charming."

The maids all laughed lightly. Shard saw the golden eyes of the Countess in the mirror looking at him, so he coughed:

"Is there something you need from me? I apologize, my friend encountered some trouble yesterday and was entangled by a cultist. No, not the Dragon Feast Cult, it’s another one, but it’s been resolved."

"Indeed, I have something to discuss with you. The Marchioness of Ankara and Maryca Frost met at my estate yesterday. The latter no longer wishes to return to a normal life. After some discussion, I’ve arranged for Maryca Frost to stay temporarily and assist in the kitchen. I can periodically supply her with Wolf’s Bane Potion to suppress the urge to transform during the full moon, so I suppose I have another werewolf under my command."

She waved the maids to step back and twirled once in front of the mirror as if admiring her own figure, but everyone there could see she was showing off her attire to Shard.

The outlander perceptively offered his praise:

"Very beautiful dress, it suits you well."

Although the compliment was simple, the Countess seemed quite satisfied:

"The Marchioness of Ankara and Maryca Frost accompanied me to see what remains of the Frost House, and we confirmed that the ghost attached to the tree is indeed the grandfather of Maryca Frost’s deceased husband. He once held a high position in the Wood Family. After a bit of investigation, I confirmed that the ghost knew certain secrets of the Wood Family while alive, and he did not attach to the tree by accident; he knew of that place when he was alive."

Shard raised an eyebrow:

"You managed to uncover so much in just one day?"

"I am a diviner, and a very skilled one at that."

The maids continued attending to the Earl’s hair as Miss Belindel continued:

"And that’s not all. Since that ghost could find things while alive, I followed the clues to investigate and discovered some interesting documents on the Wood Family side. It’s now nearly certain that the ancestors of our Seven Great Families all received something quite interesting from the dragon they encountered together back in the day."

"Ha, I knew it; the Chosen One Ceremony indeed involves collecting seven dragon scales!"

"Don’t be so sure, how did you come to that speculation?"

The witch looked at him through the mirror and said:

"But it is indeed about dragon scales. At least, Belindel holds a Golden Dragon Scale, and the Wood Family seems to have Green Dragon Scales. I’m still looking for the exact location. It’s frustrating that the Wood Family has the location of our dragon scales, yet my ancestors knew nothing. The Wright Family received something very clearly a White Dragon Scale. As for the Hawthorn Family, I’ve only found information suggesting it’s related to a Brass Dragon. We still don’t know about the Edington, Black, or Silver lines."

Shard noted this information:

"You mentioned that the Golden Dragon Scale likely originated from an incarnation of the Ancient God. It’s really intriguing; what kind of dragon did your ancestors encounter, and how could the given scales be so different? A single dragon shouldn’t have different types of scales, should it?"

The witch also did not know:

"What’s even stranger is that the ancestors encountered the dragon in the late Fifth Era, but by then the Ancient God had long departed."

"Even though it’s uncertain if this is related to the Chosen One Ceremony, we should acquire it."

"Yes, that lines up with my thinking. Leave this matter to me, while you continue the investigation towards the underground lab. I’ve prepared the sewer plans around the Steam Bathhouse. I’ll have Matilda take you to them shortly. The church’s investigation in the sewers yielded nothing yesterday; today, you and your friends can head in... do you need me to send someone along with you?"

She asked with some concern, but Shard shook his head:

"Aren’t you aware of how capable I am?"

Recalling the events of Sunday night, the witch involuntarily nodded, yet couldn’t bear the thought of the dirty sewers tainting those beautiful silver scales:

"Then are your friends reliable?"

"Very reliable. I knew Miss Benanis before I met him."

This eased the witch slightly:

"Would you like to stay for dinner tonight? Let me hear about your findings for the day."

The topic changed a bit too quickly, but seeing her expression in the mirror, Shard nodded:

"If the investigation goes well, I think that would be fine."