Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

"Earl, do you mean..."

The ladies looked expectantly at Bella Belindel, while at that moment the only man around the sofa was Shard. Hence, the Countess glanced around, and Shard very gentlemanly stood up, turning his back towards the Witch and shielding her with his body.

[She closed her fan.]

Although Shard hadn’t requested it, "her" voice still gently sounded immediately, tinged with laughter:

[She bent down, using the fan bones to lift the hem of her skirt, revealing red high heels and...]

Shard had already heard exclamations from behind, as people in other parts of the salon curiously looked over. But due to the position, they naturally couldn’t see the shoes obscured by the sofa and coffee table. The Countess also lowered the hem of her skirt to cover her ankles at that moment.

She tugged Shard’s sleeve, indicating he could sit down, while she once again opened the fan to shield her smiling face. As for the other ladies, they pulled at each other’s sleeves, whispering among themselves, some excitedly speaking without knowing why.

[Black.]

"I didn’t ask."

[But you wanted to know, didn’t you?]

"She" always understood the outsider’s thoughts so well.

"This fabric looks really nice, very fitting."

Another lady unfamiliar to Shard softly remarked, observing the Countess’s expression:

"I just wonder if wearing it feels as comfortable as it looks. Also, while the fabric looks upscale, sometimes observation alone isn’t enough to judge the texture of the fabric."

"What do you think?"

As the blonde Countess chuckled and nudged Shard’s arm, Shard instinctively replied:

"The feel is quite good, it has the smoothness of stroking silk and young women’s hair, along with a slight roughness from the intricate weave..."

He abruptly closed his mouth, and the Witch with a birthmark on her forehead smiled at him again, as did the noble ladies who were chuckling amongst themselves. Shard felt sure they must be imagining something improper.

Soon, Miss Matilda came over with two maids, holding eight long paper boxes. The boxes were circulated among the noblewomen for them to touch in person; the delicate smooth fabric, light texture, and resilient elasticity immediately captivated everyone’s interest. Though no one asked, almost each person was calculating how much they would have to spend to catch up to Velindale’s fashion.

"You described it so... vividly just now; you’ve definitely seen it more than once before, right?"

The Witch’s voice reached Shard’s ears. He glanced at the Witch beside him, noticing that the other ladies’ attention was entirely elsewhere, he gently nodded:

"I’ve seen it at Miss Sylvia’s place."

It wasn’t just seeing. Miss Aphrola, Miss Benanis, Miss Galina, Megan, and Audrey had all, including Miss Sylvia herself, used different colored fabrics to show Shard the comprehensive beauty of Witches. But truthfully, Shard thought, given their physical condition, Witches wearing those fabrics didn’t make much difference since their skin was smooth with hardly visible pores, tender to the touch, and incomparably... long.

[Ahem.]

"She" timely pulled Shard’s thoughts back, but overall, instead of saying Shard "saw" them, it’s more accurate to say he "used" them.

"How did Emma show them to you?"

Miss Belindel quietly asked, choosing not to use the telepathic transmission like Miss Galina had before, but simply covered her mouth with the fan to speak softly.

Shard hesitated for a moment, suppressing the emerging whimsical thoughts:

"Um... That’s a privacy issue, can I choose not to answer?"

"Of course you can."

Though she said so, the blonde Countess inwardly knew for sure there was something between them. Her legs rubbed against each other under the skirt, and the slick fabric gave her a very different sensation. She thought about the man beside her possibly having connections with the Space Witch and believed that even if other Witches had incorrect thoughts, they wouldn’t be as bold as her:

"He’s by my side now, I have the upper hand."

She was quite confident in her charm.

Promoting Miss Sylvia’s products and preparing for their future sales in Moon Bay was just an incidental part of attending this salon. Miss Sylvia and Miss Belindel have already negotiated the specific cooperation details, and once the first batch of goods is transported by train to Moon Bay, the Belindel family’s stores will sell these "specialties" from Velindale City.

As Mrs. Rachel, who returned from Velindale City, put it, this business is even more enviable than gold mining.

The most important matter for attending this salon is naturally the werewolf issue. As the time approached, Miss Belindel invited the salon’s hostess, the Marchioness of Ankara, to speak elsewhere. The thirty-something noble lady with well-maintained blonde hair led the Countess and Shard to the nearby study room.

She was initially puzzled about why to bring along the "cousin," but when the servants delivered the tea and closed the door from outside, Shard’s words left her in shock:

"I am a Circle Sorcerer."

This was a pre-arranged strategy; with the Seven Great Families currently engaging with Circle Sorcerers, Shard claiming such wouldn’t be odd, especially since no one knew his real identity:

"I am hired by Earl Belindel to investigate certain matters and unexpectedly discovered werewolves at a hidden location outside the city."

The Marchioness widened her eyes and covered her mouth, stepping back, and leaned on the desk to avoid falling. Miss Belindel, with arms crossed, stood against the wall by the door, keeping a distance from the two talking, with an expression hard to decipher... still considering this man’s relation with other witches.

"I had the Earl do a brief investigation on the identity of the woman who, after reverting to human form, claimed to be Mrs. Maryca Frost, and unexpectedly discovered a thing or two. The Frost family originally were wealthy local merchants over two hundred years ago but was persecuted after offending the then Hawthorn family, leaving the area and subsequently declining. Mrs. Maryca Frost is a descendant left behind from those times; my investigation found that since the events two hundred years ago, at least one-third of her ancestors and relatives have committed suicide."

Shard made a slight pause:

"The werewolf belongs to a hereditary bloodline, but there’s also a fifty percent chance of inheriting the bloodline without manifesting the curse. In the Circle Sorcerer academic world, this is referred to as the ’werewolf’s invisible inheritance,’ yet the probability of descendants manifesting the werewolf bloodline for the invisible bloodline carriers is merely half that of those with visible inheritance. Fortunately, most werewolf bloodline carriers are infertile for life."

The Marchioness’s face turned pale like white paper:

"Sir, what are you saying? You are a Circle Sorcerer? Aren’t you afraid I’ll report you, report your employer?"

Shard gave a slight smile:

"I just unexpectedly found out that, Madam, your suicidal grandmother’s surname seems to be Frost too, right?"

He blinked, and finally, the Marchioness of Ankara couldn’t hold herself any longer. She uttered a desperate groan and collapsed onto the carpet.

"Even if you report me, what good would it do? I am an outlander, simply leaving Moon Bay, and the New World offers a nice place to stay. As for Earl Belindel, he might be heavily fined by the Church, but that’s about it since we haven’t done anything yet. But for you, it’s different, isn’t it?"

These lines were given by the witch behind him; Shard felt it might be a bit excessive, making him appear evil, but having taken on the task, he had no choice but to continue:

"But for you, it’s different. Not mentioning the strategies the Church might employ if they find out about your werewolf’s hidden bloodline carrier identity. Guess what your husband, the Marquis of Ankara, would do? I won’t say ridiculous lines like ’Oh, ma’am, you wouldn’t want your husband to know about this, right?’..."

He paused, curious where the witch behind him got these lines:

"But compared to us, aren’t you more afraid of your secret being discovered?"

"Oh, God~"

The woman on the carpet groaned again, covering her face and began sobbing:

"I couldn’t choose my birth, and I only learned of this after I came of age from my cousin. I am the Marquis’s second wife; he already has a son and daughter. I promised him for familial harmony not to birth any children, but why won’t you spare me?"

"You’re too much."

The Countess at the door finally spoke, of course chastising Shard:

"How can you threaten a Marchioness like this?"

She cast a stern glance at Shard, then stepped forward to assist the sobbing woman:

"Let’s talk on the sofa, Lina. Your makeup is about to smear; let’s talk on the sofa. I won’t threaten you."

Shard plays the villain, while Miss Belindel plays the good cop; this is a simple conversational technique. Don’t let the Marchioness of Ankara’s current fragile appearance fool you; as stated by Miss Belindel on the carriage journey here, she is quite an astute and capable woman. If not for initially suppressing her and dominating the conversation, extracting any relevant information would be difficult.

The strategy worked effectively; amidst the Marchioness’s sobbing, Shard and the witch learned about her relationship with the female werewolf Maryca Frost.

The two share a great-grandfather but hadn’t met before coming of age. After learning of family history from her cousin, the Marchioness of Ankara met Mrs. Maryca Frost in Moon Bay City and they frequently communicated afterward.

"About five years ago, Maryca’s father committed suicide; her husband passed away due to illness three years ago. Unable to withstand the blows, coupled with the torment of the full moon nights, she avoided interacting with others for a while, even reducing correspondence with me. When I finally sensed something amiss and visited her home, she had been absent for a long time."