Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Whether it was long hair or short hair, Luvia always delighted in Shard’s infatuation with her. Just as before having concrete evidence, Shard never doubted Luvia for a moment, Luvia wouldn’t be upset by Shard hiding things about Adel Isabella.

She held his hand tightly, soul touching soul. The genuine love and attachment from the man before her could not possibly be mistaken.

Since Luvia already knew, Shard then recounted everything that happened after his encounters with Miss Isabella. This, of course, included the matters concerning the [Hope Diamond] and "Adel’s Principle of Return".

"Go find that gemstone, this relic will be useful to you."

Being aware of what she had done wrong and understanding why the Grand Witch of Time was guarded against her, the long-haired girl didn’t mind such an inspection. As for that Arcane Technique, Luvia also had her own opinion:

"You won’t be able to learn ’Adel’s Principle of Return’."

Necks entwined, she gently bit Shard’s neck, her long hair entwined around Shard’s arm:

"She is the true genius of this era, her achievements in the field of time are as outstanding as those of Laplace Howard in Divination Studies. I don’t doubt your talent, but what suits her doesn’t necessarily suit you. I’ve gone through the Sixth Era time and time again, even now, including myself, there has not been a second person apart from her who could learn this Arcane Technique."

With the tip of her tongue lightly touching the throbbing veins at his neck, Shard felt she wanted to merge her soul into his:

"So I shouldn’t contact this Arcane Technique?"

"No. The ideas and thoughts contained in this Arcane Technique are extremely valuable. Though you most likely won’t be able to fully master it, you can create your own move based on this Arcane Technique. Conduct rituals, keep attempting, and along the way, you’ll discover a more beautiful, uniquely your scenery."

She gently kissed Shard’s lips, yet Shard looked at the girl close at hand and said:

"Right now, you are the most beautiful scenery to me."

"Shard~"

She only felt her soul about to melt from that blazing emotion:

"Please love me once more."

She issued an invitation, passionately expressing her love and desire. And amidst the intermittent cries from the long-haired girl, Shard inquired about the ancient times when the evil god [Dragon Devourer] descended in the Moon Bay Region.

This didn’t involve "Bygone Era" matters, and Luvia was able to provide an answer:

"The dragon groups seeking shelter from the Ocean were responded to by the Ocean Gods. So the believers of the evil god [Dragon Devourer] prayed to their master, imploring the evil god to prevent the dragons from migrating to the deeper ocean. Thus in the now Moon Bay Region, a great war between gods broke out. That divine war was in the early Fifth Era. There’s no information to tell us which side ultimately emerged victorious."

Just from her description, Shard could imagine what a breathtakingly dramatic event that must have been.

"That was an event earlier than the establishment of Moon Bay City, a war that decided the fate of the dragons. Even to this day, the Moon Bay City dock at night still echoes with the wails of the dragons and... oh!"

As soon as Luvia with long hair mentioned matters related to Bygone Era, she let out a muffled groan, tears fell, and her muscles contracted a bit.

"Shard, my knight, my lover~"

She sighed, no longer speaking of past stories, but at least Shard had learned more details about that ancient divine war, knowing the war still had an impact on the Sixth Era.

"Can the dragon’s voices still be heard at the Moon Bay City dock at night?"

He thought, completely enchanted under the vast desert’s twilight sky, lost in the unexpected ecstasy.

In fact, any contact between Shard and long-haired Luvia, that is, Luvia’s "another self," in dreams, could indeed impact Luvia herself, as the two essentially were the same person.

Hence, when they were awakened by the cat scratching its claws in the wardrobe on Thursday morning, Luvia opened her sleepy eyes, gazing tenderly at Shard with tearful eyes, making Shard unsure of who exactly was looking at him.

"Your expression is strange... Shard, can I sleep for a while longer?"

She asked softly.

"Of course you can, I’ll go make breakfast and come back to wake you."

"You’re so kind."

She mumbled sleepily, and as Shard was about to leave the bedroom with the cat in his arms, he turned again to look at the purple-eyed girl with her hair spread on the pillow. Watching her sleeping face, her glowing profile in the morning sunlight, he felt an indescribable emotion welling in his heart.

"Is this what they call ’happiness’?"

As he descended the stairs, Shard pondered this question internally, while "She" retorted:

[I thought when you kissed her eyes in your dream last night, you already felt happiness.]

Shard chuckled:

"This is one of those rare moments when you actively tease me. Look, I feel happy now too."

Today is Thursday, and it’s time again to use the Time Key to head to the Sea of Darkness in the late Fifth Era.

So far, although Shard hasn’t figured out why the Radiant Messenger sank, he had at least acquired items that fulfilled the ladies’ wishes. Thus, at breakfast, he discussed with Luviya whether to use the key now or wait a few days.

Luviya offered a more considerate suggestion:

"That Miss Eles, also known as Miss Radiance, seems to be connected to your time adventure. Why not wait until you see her next time, talk to her, and then decide whether to use the key? Given the things she told you, she might even come to you without you having to look for her."

Shard agreed with this idea. Of course, if he didn’t see Miss Radiance before the week ended, he would go ahead and use the key, as he didn’t wish to delay any longer.

Because Silver Cross Avenue is nearby, Luviya didn’t have to worry about being late to work, which made breakfasts at the Shard Family house leisurely after overnight stays. But after breakfast that day, while Luviya was humming a tune and washing dishes in the kitchen, and Shard was dealing with Luviya’s unfinished bacon on her plate, the downstairs door was knocked.

"Who could be visiting me so early? Even if it’s a client, there’s no need to come this early, right? It’s not Miss Galina."

Shard touched the pendant on his chest, indicating to Luviya not to follow him, and rose to open the downstairs door. The cat, busy eating, glanced at the bowl of goat milk, and gave Luviya a "warning" growl, then quickly followed Shard downstairs, wagging its tail.

"Does Mia think I might steal its goat milk?"

Luviya chuckled at the cat’s reaction as she touched her face.

Upon opening the door downstairs, beneath the slightly chilly summer morning, stood at the doorstep of No. 6, Saint Delan Square, a blonde-haired elf girl wearing a wide-brimmed hat. This summer’s weather was quite odd; although it hadn’t snowed in the past half month, the morning temperatures remained low. Noticing Emilia’s cheeks slightly reddened from the cold, Shard quickly invited her in:

"Come on in, why did you come so early?"

When the two, along with the cat, reached the second floor, the young elf also saw Luviya:

"Good morning, Miss Annette! It’s been so long since the Randall Valley meeting!"

She greeted Luviya warmly, and the girl with purple eyes nodded and smiled. Then, the elf girl started wondering why the female diviner was having breakfast at Shard’s so early, but Luviya didn’t give her time to ponder:

"Shard, I’ve finished washing the bowls, but you’ll have to handle the plates yourself. It’s about time for me to head to work at the Prophet’s Society. Emilia, I hope you enjoy a beautiful summer in Tobesk. If you’re free on the weekend, we can go shopping together."

She said with a smile, and then bade goodbye to the two, taking her coat from the hallway coat rack and leaving. She signaled Shard with her eyes not to follow, so he refrained, and instead took the young elf’s coat from over her dress and hung it on the rack:

"This is my home, although it’s three stories, I only work and live here. How do you find it? Oh, have you had breakfast yet? Why did you come so early? And what about your two companions?"

In response to Shard’s string of questions, the answer was the rumbling sound from the stomach of the blonde elf, to which Mia gave a wary glance before rushing to the dining room to continue breakfast. Emilia blushed, and Shard cheerfully asked her to wait a moment as there was still a bit of breakfast left in the pot:

"Feel free to sit down in the dining room or wander around the living room while I prepare breakfast for you. But don’t hold your breath for my culinary skills, I’m no great chef."

He said, returning to the kitchen, while the young elf girl, whose blush was caused by her stomach growling, curiously inspected the "Detective Agency" she had imagined many times before:

"It really is just like the Hamilton Detective Stories."

She saw Shard’s Knight’s Award Sword hanging above the fireplace along with the "Big City Player 1853" trophy and "Tobesk 1854 Equestrian Competition" champion shield.

As she approached the fireplace for a closer look, her gaze fell on a mermaid oil painting hanging high.

Emilia raised her head and examined the painting closely, and just one glance captivated her. Even with the elven nobles’ aesthetic standards, the artistic level of this painting far exceeded most artworks she had seen. The more she gazed upon it, the more she felt even her soul was entranced:

"It’s truly gorgeous~"

Luckily, Shard’s call for her to eat broke this mysterious sensation. She took one last appreciative look at the painting before happily heading towards the dining room.

As for the mermaid in the painting, the curve of its lips seemed increasingly captivating.