Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

As for daring to appear directly in front of the witch behind him at this moment, it was naturally the unexpected Dice Story Collection that disrupted Shard’s previous plan to conceal his identity. Now that she already knew so much about him, rather than letting the Great Witch of Destiny make random guesses or misunderstand Shard’s identity due to investigations, which would cause trouble, it was better to seize this opportunity and appear directly.

Moreover, he felt that the witch behind him would not repay kindness with malice, and he also believed that he had preliminarily intimidated her.

Shard didn’t keep playing with the dice, knowing the amusing expression of the witch from "her" narrative, he put the relic back in his pocket, leaned against the railing, and spoke to the lady behind him:

"Madam, why aren’t you continuing to move forward? I’ve waited so long for you; you seem to lack some manners."

His voice startled the Blonde Witch from shock, and she unconsciously stared at his back, mumbling to herself:

"A man, how is it possible... You’re the pervert who...?"

"What? Pervert?"

Shard turned his head in surprise to look at her, not expecting such an evaluation, considering he knew everything except what was written on that parchment roll.

And because he canceled the illusion technique to reveal his true appearance, the act of turning his head allowed the Great Witch of Destiny, Bella Belindel, to see his face for the first time.

"It really is a man, wait, how... so handsome?"

The surprise in her heart vanished inexplicably when she saw that face. In fact, at that moment, his stunning glance back against the sunset made her heart race:

"No wonder the charm is 96... No, no."

Confused by her own reaction, she pushed aside the feeling as if her heart had just stopped, striving to make a serious expression:

"I mean, who are you exactly?"

Thinking that he just saved her and recalling his special destiny, even knowing the person in front is a man, her face still blushed slightly. Miss Belindel kept her distance from Shard, while Shard looked at her with a strange expression:

"What a strange question, wasn’t the game very enjoyable this afternoon? Speaking of which, I was caught up in this because of you, so why use the tone of interrogating a criminal on me now?"

"I..."

The witch felt it was an ironic comment from him but also understood that during the Dice Story Collection, the person in front of her was entirely aware of what was happening:

"Who exactly are you, and what is your relationship with Vanessa..."

Looking at his face, the throbbing sensation in her heart grew stronger. Although she didn’t want to use such a serious tone, instead wanting to invite him for a drink, she suppressed her strange thoughts to protect the honor and interests shared by the witches.

"First of all, I know you definitely care about this the most."

Shard extended his left hand to her, and the lady with a crimson birthmark on her forehead hesitated before stepping forward to take his wrist, looking in amazement at her palm:

"How is it possible?"

She wanted to draw a card but remembered the person before her seemed to have a special talent for fate interference in divination. So she pursed her lips, looking at him, not knowing that her expression was extraordinarily adorable.

Seeing her calm down, Shard continued:

"I know you have many questions, but the relationship between Miss Benanis and I cannot be faked. Upon arriving in the Moon Bay Region, I heard of Miss Amethyst’s remarkable divination ability, so why not play a game?"

Then he wiped his face, letting the illusion technique disguise him again:

"I’ll ask some questions about myself, Miss Belindel, and you can divine my answers. I’ll give you three chances; if you can divine correctly even once, I can answer all your questions now. If you guess wrong, sorry, please ask Miss Benanis yourself."

He shook his head gently:

"This is not evading your inquiry, but handing over the right to answer to that lady."

The Great Witch of Destiny’s corners of her mouth twitched slightly; in the evening, the sky’s dark clouds unexpectedly dispersed a bit. A hand rested on the railing, turning to look at the young man bathed in the sunset light, making her feel exceptionally charming:

"Do you know what you’re saying? If your gender and appearance are consistent, your existence means... for us."

"Can it be regarded as compensation for saving you and helping you?"

Shard asked again, then blinked:

"Saved twice, once during the Story Collection, and once from that arrow just now."

Miss Belindel tried hard to control her face to avoid blushing, agreeing with his point in her heart while her mouth refused to concede:

"It’s indeed me who involved you in the Dice Story Collection, but if you want to use this to threaten me...hmph. But if you think I couldn’t divine your position and gender just now, then it’s truly naive. Vanessa and I, at least a month ago, were of the same level."

She took another step forward, subtly glancing at Shard, thinking about the information she learned about him at the top of the tower, and stood at the riverside railing with Shard:

"Sir!"

She emphasized the word again, looking at Shard up close, and Shard looked at her closely as well. The crimson birthmark on her forehead efficaciously distinguished her from other witches, and the trace on her fair skin was not a flaw, as per the language of the outlander’s hometown, that birthmark had a beauty akin to adding the finishing touch to a dragon.

"Considering we cooperated well in the afternoon, and you managed to help me solve a big trouble, tell me, what do you want me to divine?"

She glanced at Shard’s wrist again, feeling a bit eager to try once more.

"The first question, where is my hometown?"

Shard asked, turning his head to look at the steamboat on the Taton River, the witch hummed;

"Since you ask like that, it’s definitely not Randall Valley."

She drew out her special card deck again, which included the Relic [Strange Painting Tarot Card], shuffled it briefly, and this time chose the bottom card. Just flipping it over, and seeing nothing but a blank under the sunset.

"It seems you do have some skills, I’ll give up on the first question, on to the second one."

She was glad in her heart that his fate was indeed unique. She didn’t dwell on it, and took the divination failure lightly.

Then Shard curiously asked again:

"The second question, what power am I strongest in?"

Miss Belindel drew another card, and this time saw an orange cat crouched on it. Of course, an official divination card would not have such imagery, hence the Relic played its part again.

Originally thinking of the Witch of "Time," she blurted out instinctively:

"Cat."

After she spoke, she realized what she had said. Sure enough, the man standing before her smiled, and she bit the inside of her cheek to refrain from blushing.

"Sorry, although I have a pet cat, that’s not my power. Wrong answer. The last question, and the final chance: Aside from the follower relationship, is there any other relation between me and Miss Benanis?"

For witches who could not have descendants, the most intimate relationships left, apart from "apprentice and mentor," were only "lover relationships." She almost blurted out this answer, but as a more traditional-minded witch, she didn’t believe that the self-proclaimed "Celibate" Witch of the Earth would do such a thing:

"So, are you Vanessa’s relative? Or maybe Miss Lathis’ distant kin? Are they also related to Draleon?"

She carefully scrutinized the young man’s face in front of her, pursing her lips to maintain seriousness, yet felt more satisfied with this face the longer she looked. But her identity as a witch reminded her of her duties; she knew she couldn’t lose face.

So she attempted to match this face with the appearances of the two leaders of the Golden Dawn Opera Troupe. This time, she didn’t use the divination cards but instead gestured to the maids by the carriage. Soon, a maid brought over a crystal ball.

This act was quite peculiar on the street, but the Grand Witch ensured that no one noticed the scene behind the carriage.

The witch’s right hand gently brushed over the crystal ball before her, the dusk’s sunset making the crystal emit an increasingly strange glow. And in Miss Bella Belindel’s eyes, the white mist swirling inside the ball gradually dispersed, then revealing a strangely indistinct scene of a woman dancing on stage. Because it was so indistinct, she could only see the woman shaking her body and waving her arms, which wasn’t a dance she knew well.

"What is this supposed to mean?"

Today, the things she couldn’t figure out seemed to be increasing, the witch frowned at the scene in the crystal ball, staying silent for a long time. Shard didn’t urge her, instead continuing to look at the glittering scenery on the Taton River:

"What lovely weather it is this evening."

He sighed gently, then looked at the maid holding the crystal ball. The maid outfits of Carsonrick had slight differences from those of Draleon, but both used a black and white color scheme. Unlike the black-haired Tifa, the girl with witch power before him had blonde hair.

"Are you Miss Belindel’s apprentice?"

He asked the maid, who looked at her mistress, and the witch glared at Shard:

"Don’t talk to my apprentice."

"Madam, when you say it like that, it seems like I’m some sort of pest. So, have you got results yet?"

The hesitant witch could only guess:

"She’s your... dance teacher."

"Sorry, wrong again."

Not knowing what she had seen in the crystal ball, Shard felt relieved, yet regretfully shook his head:

"So regarding who I really am, please ask Miss Benanis. Or, you might try to force me to answer your question right now. You mentioned your level earlier, so I’m sure you’re stronger than me, I have no doubt."

"I’m not that despicable, you helped and saved me; I wouldn’t be that kind of person."

The witch said, watching him, not entirely confident that she could definitely best the man in front of her. She wasn’t good at frontal combat, and the power of prophecy had minimal effect on him:

"Come with me, I’ll arrange a place for you to stay. You can’t leave until I get definite information from Vanessa, I promise I won’t pull any tricks."

As she spoke, facing the sunset, the beautiful lady at the railing reached a hand out to Shard. The sunset illuminated her arm, the gold bracelet on her right hand, yet also hid the red tint on her cheeks:

"Man, welcome to Moon Bay City."

Shard reached out to shake that hand, Miss Belindel’s hand was small yet soft. And the witch felt the warmth in Shard’s palm, and upon this close touch, her extremely acute senses felt the soul before her, a power as vast as the Earth itself.

Under the brilliant sunset glow, listening to the rustling water beneath, his smiling expression seemed like it might melt into the sun. Miss Belindel couldn’t ascertain exactly what trace she had captured, but she was quite sure, fairly certain—well, even though he was a man, he was truly charming.