Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Since the meeting on Tuesday, Shard's experiences over the past few days have been quite spectacular, encompassing the Joyful Dream Pen, Miss Galina's commission, the Sunlight Gun, and the Roder Card.

Naturally, the event involving the recovery of the Relic "Joyful Dream Pen" with Miss Luisa did not need to be recounted by him. And as per their agreement, he did not mention his second meeting with Miss Galina or the "Sunlight Gun" of Miss Beyas, so he simply shared the successful identification of Genesis: Silvermoon.

Everyone was happy for the young detective, but except for Miss Annette, the others did not understand the uniqueness of the "Genesis" series cards, so they simply treated it as the detective having acquired a very valuable treasure.

In the eyes of the others, the young detective was a pretty good person who deserved to come into a significant sum of money.

However, Priest Augustus, being an elder, warned Shard not to casually develop the habit of gambling with Roder Cards. He had seen countless stories related to Roder Cards in the church, and the confessionals were filled with gamblers repenting their sins.

As the Old Cleric wiped his pipe, he said with disquiet:

"Mr. Dawn, our Lord, tells us that mortals must restrain unnecessary desires, and gambling is one of them."n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Regarding the Blood of Mercury, everyone tacitly mentioned very little, but Shard believed that apart from Priest Augustus, who was truly unrelated to the matter, everyone else had their own plans.

Miss Luisa and Dr. Schneider were interested in the Forged Philosopher's Stone, and Miss Annette was concerning herself with Miss Beyas.

While bedridden, Dr. Schneider had also gathered some intelligence through his own channels. Besides what Miss Luisa had mentioned, that the Blood of Mercury was fragmented, he also revealed that the church was preparing a major operation against the cultists who worshipped the Lord of the Blood Feast.

And Miss Annette had received some news from the Prophet's Society as well.

According to her, the cultists were all abnormal, that's why they firmly believed in the abnormal doctrines of the Evil God. For instance, the followers of the Lord of the Blood Feast believed that being food on the Evil God's table was the best way to be with the deity.

The cultists still had not given up on the idea of summoning the Evil God to descend. However, after the failure at Lakeside Manor, they had abandoned the direct calling of the Evil God's essence to Tobesk and instead prepared a mortal vessel for the Evil God's descent, allowing him to come to this era in the form of a Saint.

"Let me guess, the mortal vessel is Mr. Lawrence."

Shard said, and Miss Annette looked at the detective with some surprise:

"You could guess that too?"

Shard shook his head; he had simply connected the clues he held:

"Actually, it's not surprising at all. Otherwise, there's no way to explain 'Lady Lassoya's' painstaking efforts to make contact with him. The last time the Academy said that the ring is called the 'Transmutation Ring.' Although the Relic indeed twisted his preferences, to be honest, a greasy middle-aged man like Mr.

Lawrence doesn't seem like someone who could attract women, especially since the Blood of Mercury isn't short on money."

He thought about the dead Mrs. Lawrence and pursed his lips as he continued:

"Moreover, I have made connections with the police department recently because of a commission, and I've heard about the affairs of the Lawrence family. It's not hard to guess that Mr. Lawrence, who was abducted, is the vessel prepared for the Evil God."

Mr. Lawrence's birth date, personality, age, physique, and what is called the soul in mysticism all met the criteria for becoming the Evil God's vessel. With the deliberate use of medication to make him a sufferer of Gluttony, he became the chosen candidate for divine descent prepared by the Blood of Mercury organization for the cultists.

Using the method of calling upon a Saint for divine descent is much easier than the direct summoning of the Evil God's essence and causes far less impact. Therefore, the church has recently increased its scrutiny to ensure that no second Divine Descent Ritual occurs in the Tobesk Region.

Shard, the doctor, Miss Luisa, and Miss Annette provided information about the cultists, while Priest Augustus offered news from the True God Church.

"Next week, the Sun Church's Thirteen-Ring Sorcerer 'Sunlight Greatsword' Mr. Hog Lendel will arrive in the Tobesk Parish. At that time, the Church of the Five Gods will carry out a joint operation to capture all the cultists in one fell swoop, then deal with the scattered Blood of Mercury in the city."

"It is that Rendell? I thought it would be the 'Sun Emblem' instead."

Miss Annette said, while Miss Luisa quietly informed Shard that the two were the contemporary Thirteen-Ring Sorcerers of the Sun Church. The former is famous for his Divine Arts "Sunlight Greatsword," and the latter is a female proficient in Arcane Techniques and Divine Arts based on the "emblem" system.

"The 'Sun Emblem' has recently gone to the New World to handle some affairs, something about ruins related to the Sun God."

Priest Augustus was indeed well-informed.

"Then what about the original Thirteen-Ring Sorcerer of the Tobesk Parish? I remember he was referred to as the 'Iron Right Hand'."

Shard also joined the inquiry.

"I'm not too clear on that; the Church of Creation has sealed the news. But it's said that he's entangled in some troublesome matters, incidents involving Angel-Level Relics (Level 1) have occurred in the towns around Tobesk, and the Church of Creation has been busy with that recently."

The priest shrugged his shoulders and seeing Shard's surprised look, he added:

"While such events aren't common, they do happen every few years, which is considered a normal frequency. This world has never been peaceful."

After Miss Luisa shared the containment incident of the "Joyful Dream Pen," she spoke with Shard about the battle with the merman the night before. Others regretted that they didn't obtain more clues about the "Blood of Mercury," but there were many interesting opinions regarding that scale.

Since no one else had anything noteworthy to talk about this week, the conversation somehow shifted to politics.

They collectively discussed the succession topic of the Draleon Kingdom's next heir and believed that the current King's numerous offspring would inevitably lead to a great war of succession in decades to come. Miss Luisa had some excellent insights on this issue, and she was very familiar with the Royal Family's secrets.

Then the conversation turned to the scenery of the United Kingdom of Carsonrick.

The doctor talked about his youth when he had visited Carsonrick for an academic conference, mentioning the seascapes of the Southern Nation; Miss Annette preferred the primal forests of Carsonrick, thinking that staying in such an environment for long periods was good for the skin; Miss Luisa had a particular fondness for the vineyards of the Southern Kingdom and claimed her biggest dream was to have a vineyard of her own.

When the topic got to the winter exhibition in Atak City, the art capital of our country, and then drifted to the ribbon-cutting ceremony of Princess Diana next week, the time finally arrived for the professors of the academy's appointed moment.

The ceremony was still conducted using the same ritual Shard had used at home, which required people to be seated on chairs to the east, west, north, and south. Professor Rontgen of Saint Byrons Divinity Academy and Professor Garcia of the History Academy were coming, while the doctor couldn't leave his bed, so the higher-year Miss Luisa and Miss Annette occupied two chairs.

The doctor's bedroom was large, with curtains tightly closed. A white embroidered round carpet laid between the desk and the four-poster bed; it now held a basin of water and chairs. When Shard, checking his pocket watch, declared the time had come, the blonde writer immediately lit a piece of parchment and tossed it into the basin.

A blue luster scattered across the water's surface, and with the appearance of two beams of light, Professor Rontgen, a slightly plump figure with a hair net, and Professor Garcia, with somewhat pointed ears, materialized on the chairs in their translucent bodies.

"Professor Rontgen, Professor Garcia."

The five people respectfully greeted, and both professors nodded back with smiles.

Deputy Dean Hensinger Garcia of the History Academy came specifically for Shard, so after responding to the greetings, he did not speak further.

Professor Rontgen coughed and, with a transparent palm, picked a piece of parchment out of thin air; unfolding it, he said:

"Let's skip unnecessary formalities and get straight to reading the academy's report on the Lakeside Manor incident. Cough—

The investigation into the Lakeside Manor incident during the Sunlight Moon of the year 1853 of the Sixth Era has been completed. The Divinity Academy and the School of Mathematics sent two deputy professors to the Tobesk Region to verify the site of the incident and your investigation report."

Continue reading at empire

Shard was a bit nervous since the report had significant issues. But he noticed that Old Cleric standing next to him and the two ladies facing the professors didn't seem nervous at all, making him wonder if they often forged reports.

"The investigation report is mostly true, with some vague details awaiting confirmation with the True God Church."

Professor Rontgen said, smiling at the five people lying in bed, sitting on chairs, and standing, his walrus-like face beaming:

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm pleased to see that after such an event, you are all safe and sound before me."

The doctor hastily coughed.

"Of course, regarding Bill Schneider's injuries, the School of Chemistry has provided a batch of magic potions to heal mental injuries. But I must warn you, never use Sublimation Incantation lightly, you might not be able to withstand it next time."

As he said this, the professor gazed at the doctor, his tone becoming somewhat stern. The doctor weakly nodded, but Shard felt he seemed even "weaker" now than before the professors arrived, nothing like his animated self when discussing economic topics earlier.

"Regarding the award for practice credits, a response was already given on Tuesday, so I won't elaborate here. By the way, a reminder, Miss Dorothy Louisa, your practice credits for the fourth year have been completed, and if you wish to participate in the promotion examination by the end of this year, please advance to Five Rings as soon as possible."

Miss Luisa smiled:

"Alright, Professor, I think that shouldn't be an issue. I have prepared the Sublimation Incantation relying on the 'Matchstick Girl,' and I plan to advance to Five Rings in autumn."

Professor Rontgen nodded:

"Additionally, after investigating by the academy and verifying the situation you faced, it's been determined that your group made an exceptional contribution beyond the ordinary. Therefore, in addition to the credit rewards, your group is awarded a special contribution bonus of 1000 pounds from Saint Byrons Academy."

Shard's eyes widened slightly, holding his breath. As expected, the Saint Byrons Integrated Academy, being of the Good Alignment, did indeed award extraordinary rewards for acts of "saving the world."

Knowing that Shard was a new Circle Sorcerer, Professor Rontgen even added:

"This money can only be used for the study of Circle Sorcerers and only for expenses incurred at Saint Byrons Academy. It's essentially a voucher with a value of 1000 pounds, valid for one year, and can only be used at Saint Byrons."

Shard was aware of the academy's prices, so his excitement subsided a bit. Unexpectedly, the professor's gaze then shifted from him to the others, warning:

"In principle, this money cannot be cashed, but I'm aware that you lot will come up with many tricks. I'm not concerned with that, but I warn you, don't go too far. If the academy's year-end accounts don't add up, the accountants will come looking for trouble."

It was then that Shard realized that the people here were all far from being quiet and obedient.