Chapter 2130: Sir Donald
Shard stood at the head of the Saint George Stone Bridge, holding a cat and looking at the snowfall in the sky. He really didn’t know what to say.
The three addresses given by the coroner weren’t very close to each other. The "Magician Sean" that Shard had already visited was roughly located in the southeast of Moon Bay City, while the "Sir Donald" he visited this morning lived in the northeast of Moon Bay City.
The vampire "Sir Donald" didn’t actually have a real title. "Sir" was a title given to honor his social status and dual PhDs in political science and history, so he could also be called "Mister" or "Sir." Mr. Albert likewise only gave Shard the work address of this Sir Donald, which was the Academy of Political Economy in Moon Bay City.
When Shard saw Sir Donald at the city’s most famous Advanced Academy, the middle-aged man with a floating bat emblem above his head and wearing gold-rimmed glasses was comforting a crying woman along with a few other colleagues.
Upon hearing someone was looking for him, he temporarily bid farewell to his colleagues and came out of the office to see the young man with a dog perched on his shoulder:
"Hello, um... is there something you need from me?"
Shard withdrew his gaze from the emblem above his head:
"Yes, Mr. Albert sent me."
Confirming that there was no one else in the hallway, with only the sound of a woman’s sobs coming from the office, Shard briefly explained about the prostitute’s corpse and the issue of being drained of blood.
Like the magician, Sir Donald immediately suspected that a same clan member from out of town had committed the crime unknowingly. Hearing Shard say that the Church of the Five Gods was checking all vampires in town, he frowned:
"This is really troublesome, although we’re usually quite well-behaved, who knows what the church might uncover if they start investigating carelessly?"
Seeing Shard look at him oddly, Sir Donald quickly shook his head:
"Don’t misunderstand, other than purchasing blood from the black market, I haven’t done anything illegal. You see, I have tenure at this school, live well, and my students adore me. Now, I’m just pursuing a peaceful life and passionate ladies."
He coughed:
"Anyway, thank you for informing me. I won’t be visiting Ptolemy for a while, please thank him on my behalf."
"No problem."
Shard enjoyed these simple tasks, just a few words in the right place, without needing a fight:
"Can you satisfy my curiosity? Why is the lady inside crying?"
He asked again, and the bespectacled vampire, covering his forehead, said:
"May God bless poor Ms. Connelly. Her husband didn’t return all night last night, and just now news came that his body was found in an alley, head missing, just like the recent serial killings circulating in town. Poor Ms. Connelly waited until she was 29 to meet her husband, only to become a widow after just a year of marriage... May God bless us all."
Shard glanced inside the room, sympathizing with the lady:
"Mr. Albert also mentioned this to me. Unfortunately, there has been no progress in the police investigation so far."
But according to the porter at the docks, these headless serial murders are related to the "Eternal Light."
"I doubt there will be any progress."
Sir Donald said, preferring not to go in and comfort the crying lady, he continued to satisfy Shard’s curiosity here:
"In my opinion, this is not a serial murder case at all, it’s just legends coming true."
He turned away from the people inside, and with Shard, looked out at the snow-covered and gloomy campus from the corridor window:
"When Wealth accumulates like mountains, and sin flows like rivers, Moon Bay will ultimately face its destruction. These strange occurrences in town recently seem to me to be nothing more than these legends coming to fruition in unexpected ways, and I’m very sure this is just the beginning."
"Sir, I remember you’re a PhD in history and economics, why are you interested in legends and stories too?"
"Young man, history and folklore are intrinsically linked."
Sir Donald said with a smile. Seeing that Shard seemed interested in the topic, he asked:
"You look like a Northerner?"
"Yes, I just arrived in Moon Bay recently. My understanding of local legends is limited to the Seven Great Families and Dragons."
"Knowing this is enough. Based on my research and investigation, most of the legends circulating in the Moon Bay Region can be traced back to these seven ancient families. What people always fail to realize is that the ancestors of Hawthorn, Belindel, Edington, Black, Wright, Blue, and Wood must have encountered some exceptionally powerful being."
"Why?"
Shard asked curiously, and the Vampire Kind replied contentedly:
"See, you hadn’t realized it either. How could mortal regimes and mortal power persist for a thousand years without change? But according to records in Moon Bay City, long before Carsonrick and Draleon appeared, these seven surnames were already influencing everything in the Moon Bay Region. From ancient times to the present, civilizations have changed, the world’s situation has altered, lifestyles and production methods have evolved; knights on horseback have become soldiers with firearms, farmers digging the earth have moved to work in city factories, and even adulterous couples know to avoid using gas lights to prevent the discovery of a gas bill differing from last month sent by the gas company. Yet the Seven Great Families have continuously ruled everything in Moon Bay. But is this reasonable?"
Shard suddenly understood:
"Indeed, even with family inheritance, it’s impossible to last this long, let alone having seven surnames lasting so long. And such matters... does the Church know about it?"
"The True God Church’s records must be more comprehensive than what I’ve seen, so they should be aware. I hypothesize there exists some kind of peculiar blessing, ensuring the Seven Great Families always have descendants and that their descendants can always rule Moon Bay. If this is the truth, even if the Church knows, they probably wouldn’t intervene, as it doesn’t harm civilization or stability."
He voiced his hypothesis, and Shard nodded, saying with great admiration:
"That sounds very fascinating; if I were to investigate myself, it would probably take me months to discover this."
What intrigued him was that Miss Belindel had never mentioned this matter:
"However, stories of a ’mighty being bestowing power upon mortals and their descendants’ are more likely to appear in fairy tales than in reality."
Sir Donald was quite pleased with Shard’s reaction:
"The Seven Great Families themselves have lost a lot of their history and records, and whether they are aware of the source of their family’s power is uncertain. It’s a pity this research can’t be made public, otherwise I might be able to secure a seat in the city council... or be assassinated by an unknown assassin in the lavatory."
Shard laughed along; after all, he had nothing to do before noon, and Sir Donald seemed quite talkative, so he asked:
"Could I inquire about something regarding Moon Bay City and Dragons, do you have any unpublished research?"
"You’ve certainly asked the right person."
The Vampire Kind said confidently, but added:
"But my research hasn’t been acknowledged by anyone; it’s merely my personal interest."
"No problem, I can listen to them as modern myths."
Thus, Sir Donald took Shard to his private office, invited Shard to sit down and prepared tea, before discussing his research findings that he never had the chance to publish:
"Moon Bay City is a very suitable place for research; since the Early Sixth Era, it has always been a populous and developed area. Because civilization has continued on this land, there are more legends and stories here than elsewhere."
He retrieved a book from the drawer and handed it to Shard, titled "The Ancient Harbor: Folklore of the Moon Bay Region."
"Even from an ordinary person’s perspective, one can find many magical aspects in this city. The stories circulating within the city need not be overstated; outside the city in the hills, forests, and swamps, there are even more tales about ’Moon Worship Werewolf,’ ’Millennial Ancient Tree,’ ’Ogre Swamp,’ and ’Wailing Manor.’ And the legendary creature ’Dragon’ is invariably tied to the stories of Moon Bay, many stories upon closer examination can be linked to dragons."
He sipped his tea:
"Mr. Watson, the legend you just mentioned about the ancestors of the Seven Great Families encountering an Ancient Dragon in Moon Bay, thereby gaining the power and Wealth to rule Moon Bay, in my view, is the origin of all the legends in Moon Bay City. And by tracing this origin and investigating further, it’s not hard to discover that ’Dragons will return to destroy Moon Bay’ is the underlying message many legends express, albeit in various ways."
Shard thought for a moment;
"So, the ancestors of the Seven Great Families received blessings and Wealth back then, and the cost is that their descendants and the city must face disaster?"
"It’s just a guess, but if seen this way, doesn’t it seem fair?"
Sir Donald said, and then stood up to retrieve some black and white photos from a safe and handed them to Shard:
"I participated in many ancient ruins excavations in this region, and although sensitive information and items were taken away by the Church, I kept some photos. For instance, these ancient Dragon Language Runes, although I cannot understand them, roughly mention meanings like trade, power, and sacrifice."
The yellowing photos indeed showed ancient Dragon Language Runes engraved in stone. However, after Shard translated them, their meaning was completely different from what Sir Donald described—
[The deity that devours dragons was defeated in Moon Bay, (indecipherable) imprinted on the bay, (large section indecipherable) search for.]