Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

The deity let the three colorful bubbles float towards Shard, attracting the attention of even the cat and Miss Teresa. Inside those bubbles were scenes of a girl swinging with her father in the garden, a boy running with friends and a puppy on the grass, and another boy cradling his face and gazing at the starry sky from the window.

The colorful glimmer was unusually gentle, just looking at these bubbles seemed to make all the unpleasant thoughts vanish instantly.

"Look at this glimmer, only childhood dreams can fight the deepest dark in places without light."

A curious cat stretched out its little paw to grab the bubbles again, but Shard stopped it.

The deity smiled as he spoke to Shard:

"This is something purer and more beautiful than the crystal of dreams, the most precious and magnificent thing to be harvested from this sea where glimmer does not exist."

"No, here, the most precious and beautiful thing is certainly not this."

Shard unexpectedly expressed his dissent, then held Miss Teresa’s hand. The young witch blushed with shyness, while the deity retracted the colorful bubbles:

"Then continue to fish, let me see what else you can catch. Childhood dreams and past dreams weave together into one’s adult self. And when childhood is once again used as a beacon to attempt to find the past, often people can see those things they previously overlooked. If you can lead them away from here, I offer you a crystal of childhood dreams, Outlander, have you ever reminisced about your most innocent and beautiful age?"

The Maid’s earrings had been tied securely, and as Shard flung out the fishing line, the pair of earrings fell into the icy seawater. Almost a second after the earrings hit the water, the tugging force appeared instantly, as Miss Teresa grabbed Shard’s hand from behind, and together they pulled up the constantly struggling thing, which turned out to be a water-soaked, wrinkled notebook tangled in the fishing line.

Strangely, the completely soaked notebook quickly dried after Shard gently shook it a few times. When opened, the ink inside did not blur because it was submerged in water, and the deity gently brushed it, causing the notebook to emit a glimmer.

A black-haired young girl embraced the notebook, appearing amidst the glimmer. Miss Teresa curiously watched the young version of Miss Maid. Back then, Vaine Maxim had freckles on her face, hugging her notebook, she stood on tiptoe to peer into the fictive shop window filled with colorful-covered storybooks, ultimately bowing her head in regret before turning to look at Shard.

Without anyone explaining, Shard understood this was the "Mirror Fairy Tale" Miss Maxim mentioned she never truly owned during her childhood.

At this moment, the hopeful eyes of the girl hugging the notebook were very much like the gaze of little Mia when she wanted to eat something and looked at Shard. Miss Teresa nudged Shard gently, prompting him to take out that storybook. Shard reached into his pocket but hesitated after taking out the book, bending down slightly to ask the girl holding the notebook:

"Do you like fairy tales?"

"Yes, sir."

The girl said timidly, her eyes still fixed on the book in Shard’s hand.

"Why do you like fairy tales?"

"Because... I just do."

The "Mirror Fairy Tale," deliberately translated by Shard into the universal language of the Late Fifth Era, was handed to the girl:

"If you like, you might try writing some yourself; it may be more interesting than reading stories."

The girl timidly nodded, pointing to the sea surface beyond the floating board:

"Then you must find the right direction, remember, I am there."

Her figure then disappeared, and Shard handed the notebook to the deity, casting the fishing line a second time.

Seconds later, the line tightened again, and this time the struggle was stronger than before. Fortunately, Miss Teresa assisted, so the hook was successfully reeled back.

The item encased in the fishing line turned out to be a rotten severed human hand.

Shard was startled, unable to comprehend why it was such a thing. As Miss Teresa had already reached out to untangle the fishing line, seeing she did not mind, Shard took the hand in his possession as well. The deity gently brushed it again, causing the severed hand to emit a glimmer, and Miss Maxim in her teenage years appeared before them.

Miss Maxim, resembling a fifteen or sixteen-year-old, wore a black and white maid’s dress. Holding an old-fashioned longsword, she stood beside and before someone.

Beside her was a maid with an indistinct face:

"Vaine, go forth, prove your courage and bravery. A maid who has never witnessed blood cannot become a qualified maid."

Before her was a curled-up humanoid entity, so indistinct that its race and gender could not be determined, shackled at wrist, foot and neck, trembling, clutching its head timidly.

The same fifteen or sixteen-year-old Miss Maxim shook with fear as she held her weapon hesitantly.

Shard felt Miss Teresa tug at him, then heard her voice:

"I’ve also heard that Aunt Violet’s formal maids undergo special training... it’s quite brutal, right?"

Shard did not want to comment. If it was a peaceful era in a peaceful country, it would certainly be brutal. But for those living in this dangerous world, he didn’t think senseless killing was correct, but he also didn’t find such training meaningless.

"Should we help her? Help her... spill blood?"

Miss Teresa asked softly, as the deity watched with a smile and then looked satisfied as Shard shook his head:

"Of course, we cannot intervene to help her. The deity has already said that the purpose of fishing is to make up for those past regrets. Miss Teresa, do you really think Miss Maxim regrets that in those past times she really took action?"

The young witch pondered for a moment, confirming that the decisive, merciless maid, who even tied alchemical throwing knives under her skirt, definitely wouldn’t feel regret for such a past.

Therefore, she shook her head, but still felt puzzled:

"So what exactly does Vaine regret?"

The young maid holding the sword turned her gaze towards them, her eyes pleading.

"Isn’t it obvious?"

Shard said as he was about to step forward but immediately retreated:

"You go, hug her from behind. Yes, you don’t need to do anything else, just hug her and gently comfort her."

Miss Teresa suddenly understood, and so she gently embraced the young Miss Maxim as Shard suggested, softly saying:

"It’s alright, it’s alright, I’ll be with you."

Only then did Miss Maxim tremble and raise her weapon again, then closed her eyes and fiercely swung forward. The three figures disappeared, and Shard and Miss Teresa did not see what happened next.

"So, this is Vaine’s wish."

Miss Teresa looked at her own hands, her expression somewhat forlorn:

"It turns out that all she wanted was a little comfort and encouragement. Such a simple thing, and I couldn’t see it. Aunt always said I’m immature; it seems she was right."

"People’s wishes are often not complicated; what’s complicated is figuring out what others want. Miss Teresa, you will have time to grow. Both Miss Violet and I have gone through many things."

She was destined to become the head of Xerxes Higher Medical Academy, and the Outlander downstream of Time knew this.

Miss Teresa nodded again, and glanced at Shard with golden scars on him, feeling that he certainly excelled at seeing what witches wanted.

Next came the third time casting the fishing hook, this time in the direction Miss Maxim had just swung her sword. This time, the object caught on the hook struggled more fiercely, and even with Shard and Miss Teresa exerting all their strength and using arcane technique to enhance their power, they managed to pull it up.

The third time, the "fish" caught was still not their target. This time, the hook tied with earrings pulled up a silk handkerchief. Miss Teresa immediately recognized that the handkerchief embroidered with marigolds was the one she carried with her on this trip together.

Sure enough, when the Deity’s hand brushed over the handkerchief, the appearance of the third black-haired maid was already identical to the one sleeping by the campfire.

But this time the scene shown was clearly not on the ship, for several maids stood beside her with similar attire. The girls chatted noisily, envying Vaine Maxim for being able to go to Silver Beach Island for vacation with Miss Teresa, while offering her advice and telling her what luggage to bring for the journey.

This time, many maids revealed their appearances, with some Shard even having seen during the adventure in "Lost Lake." Miss Teresa beside Shard also introduced these phantom maids one by one; all were trusted "Royal Maids" by Miss Violet, which meant they were not only maids but also major assistants in Witch Empress Violetta’s administration of the Kingdom.

One maid with long curly black hair even smiled and took out a set of Divination Cards:

"Since you’re going far away, you should certainly divine the upcoming fortune. Want to try?"

"Of course."

Still unaware of what would happen on the journey, Miss Maxim nodded with a smile, choosing the ninth card from the top. Shard and Miss Teresa both leaned in to look, but what they saw was not a normal divination card face.

From the Fifth Era to the Sixth Era, although the names and contents of the 108 Divination Cards underwent some adjustments, the changes were not significant. Even though Shard didn’t understand divination, he was very familiar with the cards’ faces from being with Luviya for so long. He was quite certain that the card face displaying "Dragon Entwined Great Ship" was very unusual.