Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

The blue-eyed girl still smiled as she looked at him:

"Since you’re so insistent, I can indeed share some stories. But it’s getting late today, and I have some matters to attend to."

She thought for a moment and took off the silver anchor used for decoration on her hat. However, it wasn’t a pure silver ornament; it seemed to be coated with silver:

"This piece is cast from the fragments of the ship’s hull salvaged years ago with two pieces of wood. It’s not worth much, but please take it, and don’t pursue the two pieces of wood anymore."

She seemed to sense Shard’s reluctance to give up:

"Please don’t refuse, just consider it a symbol for our next meeting. Next time, I will tell you some stories related to that shipwreck; it will be quite interesting."

The anchor silver ornament entered Shard’s hand; it was an ordinary object, very delicate, but truly not valuable.

He wanted to express his gratitude, but the girl had already waved and turned to leave. Shard wanted to catch up with her, but the badge on his chest was already heating up. He didn’t want this stranger girl to be dragged into the witch’s business, so he had to watch her walk up the stairs.

And Miss Eles Tretris happened to be on the stairs leading to the first floor, brushing past the Great Witch of Destiny. The latter glanced at her, and Miss Eles Tretris politely nodded to her.

"Good morning, Mr. Watson. Were you just speaking with that girl?"

The witch still had two maids with her. The dark red birthmark on her forehead had been cleverly concealed with makeup, making it hardly visible at the moment. Shard casually explained:

"Discussing the exhibition items with her; Randall River Valley doesn’t have a museum dedicated to ships."

"Moon Bay City is the most prosperous city on the West Coast. Spring City may have beautiful springs, but in other aspects, it indeed falls short of here."

She was proud of her hometown and didn’t dwell further on the previous girl’s topic, looking around to ensure no one was nearby:

"I communicated with Van yesterday, and she said that Hevy also knows about your matter."

"Madam, you don’t need to conduct such tests. Currently, only Miss Benanis and Miss Sylvia are aware of my matter."

He corrected her:

"I have only heard of Miss Aphrola and don’t know her well."

Miss Bella Belindel nodded:

"Then let’s get to business. Vanessa promised me that during your stay in Moon Bay, you will help me with some things. This is the letter Vanessa gave you."

Shard opened the letter, whose contents he already knew, and pretended to frown as he read it carefully:

"Since it’s like this... that’s fine. Miss Belindel, I hope the next two months go smoothly for our collaboration. But I also hope that you will fulfill your promise and help find the whereabouts of the ’Hope Diamond’."

"But I can only assign a few people to assist with your matter. Lately... this isn’t the best place for a conversation; let’s find another location. Now that we’ve established preliminary trust, you won’t mind following me, will you?"

She suggested, her eyes quickly scanning Shard’s face, seemingly more satisfied the longer she looked.

Shard naturally wouldn’t refuse:

"Of course, Miss Benanis advised me to fully trust you, but please also ensure the confidentiality of my identity."

"But before that, I’d like to confirm something."

The witch’s golden eyes looked at him:

"Even though you acknowledged it yesterday, are you really..."

Shard then extended his wrist, and Miss Belindel grabbed it. Several seconds later, just as yesterday, she looked at her palm with disbelief:

"Even though we confirmed it yesterday, it’s really... many incredible things have happened in the past few years, but your appearance is the most surprising to me. But why is this? There must be a reason... The carriage is parked in the alley next to the museum, Mr. Watson, ride that carriage, and we’ll depart a little later; don’t let anyone see us together."

Shard nodded and walked alone towards the stairs.

Once his figure disappeared at the staircase, the witch took out the Divination Cards and swiftly cut them:

"The girl just now must be connected to him; I want to see who she really is. John Watson, just because I can’t divine your situation doesn’t mean I don’t have other means."

The two maids silently watched their mistress, who seemed to be at odds with the man just now. This time, the cards laid out in front of her appeared normal, yet they were difficult to interpret:

"Shipwreck?"

The witch frowned and pondered for a while but couldn’t quite understand what identity this card could represent.

The Belindel Family had numerous properties locally, among them, the Belindel Estate in the city center was both their first and most important property.

Although the land and property "No. 6, Saint Delan Square" owned by Shard were valuable, that house was probably not even worth one-tenth of the total value of the Belindel Estate. After all, the area of this estate itself exceeded that of the entire Saint Delan Square, which was unimaginable in the similarly pricey city center of Moon Bay City.

The Belindel Family had quite a few members, besides Countess Bella Belindel, quite a few held significant governmental positions locally, and there were even more members with the surname "Belindel" among the city councilors. But those currently residing in the estate were only the Great Witch of Destiny, her widowed mother, and several unmarried sisters. Shard did not have the honor of meeting them, as he was directly taken to the study on the second floor of the estate upon getting off the carriage.

Having become accustomed to the luxurious estates of the Tobesk nobility, Shard wasn’t surprised by the solemnity and majesty of the ancient estate. After the witch arrived a little later and settled on the sofa, they began to discuss serious matters.

"John Watson."

The seated witch uttered Shard’s current name, watching as he sat opposite her. Shard withdrew his gaze from the oil painting of a hero fighting a dragon on the wall and looked at the witch with a dark red birthmark on her forehead.

"Mr. Watson, you might have noticed that the number of young ladies under my command is not fewer than those in your opera troupe. Borrowing you from Vanessa this time was not merely because some matters are inconvenient for young ladies to handle."

Tea was brought by the maids who quickly exited the room. Despite it being morning, the dim daylight meant the study still had its lights on:

"I need reliable Circle Sorcerers, clearly unrelated to the Belindel Family, to handle some upcoming matters."

"To resolve matters with the Hawthorn Family and Edington Family? I’ve heard your three families have been contending with each other."

Shard asked, and the witch shook her head:

"An amusing joke, but at least you’re on the right track. It does indeed relate to the Seven Families of Glory Moon Bay. However, before we get to the main business, I want to ask for your impression of the entire city. Mr. Watson, Vanessa mentioned you’ve only been here a week or two. What do you think of the Moon Bay Region?"

Shard thought for a moment:

"It’s pretty much as I learned from others before coming here. Wealthy and prosperous, yet with undercurrents. I’ve only been active in the Lower District, got acquainted with friends living there, saw the lives of small citizens, had encounters with the gangs, and due to certain matters, interacted with members of the Hawthorn Family."

The witch smiled without inquiring further about Shard’s grudge with the Hawthorn Family.

"I’ve even had a brief encounter with an organization in the Lower District called the Eternal Light and noticed those tensions. Overall, these tensions aren’t sharp enough to erupt immediately; economic development sufficiently conceals most issues. In my view, you manage this city fairly well."

This was not a deliberate attempt to flatter the witch, but a candid statement. To the Outlander Shard, achieving a perfect societal form seemed improbably difficult. Given the current productivity level, the situation in the Moon Bay Region indeed wasn’t bad, and its prosperity was not just stuck in newspaper propaganda.

"Development sufficiently conceals issues... It seems you do have some insight. Yes, although undercurrents exist, overall, the Moon Bay is quite decent. It’s our city, and the Seven Families maintain a tacit understanding in guarding it."

She raised her teacup, her beautiful golden eyes continued to scrutinize Shard:

"So my purpose in inviting you is not to resolve the Seven Great Families’ conflicts or societal issues. What I intend to discuss involves prophecies and legends, yes, very ancient prophecies and legends. It seems you’ve already heard a prophecy from the Circle Sorcerers associated with the Hawthorn Family?"

"When wealth piles up into sin, the ancient dragon shall return here to cleanse Moon Bay’s earth with light."

He repeated, and the witch corrected him:

"There are many versions of that prophecy, the latter phrases also state ’to burn Moon Bay with flames’ and ’to bury everything in the roar of destruction’. In any case, all versions forebode a great calamity involving a dragon will befall Moon Bay City."

"But it’s merely a prophecy. The fulfilled prophecies by the Prophet’s Society are fewer than the hairs on my pet cat’s tail."

The witch chuckled, recalling the unique ability the man before her had due to owning a cat:

"That’s why I believe the Prophet’s Society is unreliable. But you’re right, prophecies aren’t always reliable; nevertheless, someone has confirmed that the ancient prophecy has credibility."

"Who confirmed it?"

So the witch pointed to herself:

"I confirmed it myself. Besides me, after my teacher’s passing, I found some notes in her writings, but my teacher didn’t complete this task in her later years, so she never mentioned it to me while alive... But I trust my teacher’s and my own capabilities. Perhaps we misunderstood that ancient prophecy; it might not mean the city’s destruction, but it surely indicates a significant event altering the city’s fate. I was already convinced that the prophecy referred to a time within this decade, and with the increasingly bizarre world starting from last year, I am even more assured of my thinking."

"Are you implying that the seemingly incredible events occurring worldwide suggest that Moon Bay will also fall into peril, like those cities or regions?"