Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Chapter 278 Enemy God's Notes

The appearance of the "Moonlight Greatsword" was expected, but the other Arcane Technique, "Toy Manufacturing," was entirely unexpected.

Shard had directly contacted the Relic, "God's Gift Box," from which the Whisper Element had produced the Spirit Rune "Toy Manufacturer." This was another relatively specific Spirit Rune, with low potential for developing further Arcane Techniques.

If the "Moonlight Greatsword" represented a purely offensive Arcane Technique, then "Toy Manufacturing" was purely supportive.

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As long as Shard's spirit was sufficient, and he had enough fabric, he could turn any non-transcendent object into a toy. For living beings, only those who trusted Shard enough could be transformed into toys.

Although Mia's true owner was not Shard, after living together for a month, this cat's trust in Shard was absolutely sufficient; therefore, last night was the first attempt, and it turned into a toy under Shard's clothes.

Of course, it might also be because the naive Mia Cat was too simple.

When Shard invited Luviya to test the Arcane Technique "Toy Making," even though the Female Diviner was prepared, after using a bedsheet, no matter how she draped the sheet over herself, the Arcane Technique failed to work.

"Human thought is richer and not as simple as that of small animals," Shard explained.

This was Shard's explanation, and Luviya certainly trusted Shard enough, but this trust was not yet to the extent that she could entrust everything to him like Mia Cat.

"If I could be turned into a toy, I'd like to see the past stories you've told."

Luviya expressed regret over this, and Shard felt considerable regret as well. The task of the Ancient God was not easy, and if he could bring a group of helpers, even if no one could face the deity like he could, at least many effective suggestions could be put forth. Moreover, not limited to traveling through the Time Corridor, he could even take people on swift travels between Tobesk and Coldwater Port City...

"Speaking of which, since Mia can turn into a toy, why not take her to see the sea when there's time?" Shard thought idly.

Thus, Shard and Luviya spent a peaceful Friday morning together at Saint Delan Square. During this time, they repeatedly saw groups of soldiers hurriedly marching alongside clergy members in their robes, around the roads surrounding the square. Since the Cultists had successfully summoned the deity for the second time but the deity had been expelled by another, the "Lord of the Blood Feast"'s Order would, at best, lie dormant for at least twenty years.

The God Summoning Ritual was not easy, and the cost of two attempts was enough to bankrupt a small duchy. Plus, with the True God Church's citywide hunt, even without last night's witnessed "fair" duel by the Ancient God, Shard had no concerns about being harshly retaliated against by the Evil God.

The next time "Lord of the Blood Feast" came into the material world, perhaps Shard would have risen to the Thirteen Rings or even ascended to true divinity.

In her spare time, Luviya also curiously and reverently asked Shard about his feelings when "being with a god." She listened attentively to Shard's recollections of the previous night and carefully inquired about various details, occasionally expressing astonishment.

The people of this world innately revered gods, unlike outlanders like Shard, who, attempting deification, had a somewhat lesser sense of reverence. Any matter related to gods, in the eyes of the people of this world, must be approached with utmost caution.

The gods here are not powerful humans, but truly higher-dimensional beings. The experiences of Thursday clearly demonstrated that it is best not to confront gods recklessly without divine power.

"All Unclassified Level (Level 0) relics are definitely related to gods, but not all god-related relics are Unclassified Level. Even among the Unclassified Level relics, to my knowledge, there are no more than ten that can have a slight effect on gods," she explained.

Luviya eagerly shared these insights, which even ordinary Circle Sorcerers were unaware of, believing it was fortunate for Shard to be a vessel for the Old Gods, making it essential for him to know these things.

In fact, the absorption and burning of divinity had indeed granted Shard bits of knowledge. But perhaps because the divinity had been absorbed too thoroughly, those pieces of knowledge lay quietly in the deepest recesses of his mind like grains of golden sand. "She" said she could try piecing them together, but it would be a lengthy process. There might be a surprise at the right moment, but Shard wasn't to hold too much hope.

"Speaking of which, aside from Level 0 relics, are there other dangerous relics that might affect gods?" Shard asked next, expecting a negative response. To his surprise, Luviya nodded:

"Matters related to deities are seldom shared privately, but I indeed know of an Angel-Level (Level 1) relic that has a minor effect on gods. Shard, most students of Saint Byrons are aware of it because it belongs to Saint Byrons. The Angel-Level relic, 'Enemy God's Notes,' belonged to Miss Mana Feliana, the founder of Saint Byrons and a Thirteen-Ring Sorcerer. I don't know its specific traits, but it's said that its bearer can extract some effective escape ideas when encountering an Evil God."

Luviya sat at the coffee table, examining the letters, while Shard sat at the dining table, holding a cat and reading a newspaper. He then stopped petting the cat and suddenly had a strange premonition.

"That Witch of the Fifth Era had many peculiar experiences, and that relic, according to ancient legends, was a notebook Miss Feliana used to teach her students beside a bonfire, following ancient mentor-apprentice traditions."

The style of Miss Feliana's notebook quickly emerged in Shard's mind. The witch beside the bonfire during last night's time travel was listening to Shard's story while writing indecipherable content in the notebook, eventually deriving some useful advice. Items documenting knowledge of gods indeed had a high likelihood of becoming relics once they crossed eras.

"Oh, a Circle Sorcerer like Miss Mana Feliana is indeed someone all the female sorcerers of this era's Saint Byrons admire... Shard, what's that look for?" Luviya asked curiously, as Shard shook his head and hid his face behind the newspaper.

Thus passed the morning. By noon, it was still Luviya cooking in the kitchen. Her culinary skills might not match those of Miss Luisa, who had once used this kitchen too, but since someone was willing to cook for Shard and the cat, he certainly wouldn't speak out of turn.

During lunch, Luviya shared with Shard her findings from browsing through the stack of letters that morning. The letters were mostly written in cryptic text, requiring a Diviner to decode, and most of their content was irrelevant to them.

From the morning's casual perusal, the only useful clue gained was the hiding place for the "Forged Philosopher's Stone." This relic marked the beginning of a series of events Shard had encountered and had only emerged after the conclusion of these events.

"In the statue held by the chief of police at Riddlevitch Field, only the Silver-Eyed One knew about this. That police chief was even involved with the Blood of Mercury."

Luviya stirred her vegetable soup with a spoon as she spoke:

"Also, your client, Mrs. Lawrence, was killed by someone he hired."

Shard stopped eating and looked towards the sofa in the living room. The death of that generous lady was his greatest regret so far:

"The chief of police had a bright future ahead; what was the point of getting involved with these illegal organizations?"

"The Blood of Mercury were his henchmen, helping to handle matters that couldn't be dealt with openly. That also explains why the Blood of Mercury could do so much here locally, yet only today have they met their demise,"

said Luviya, who wasn't concerned with these matters but wished to know from the letters carried by the vampire what he was originally doing in the Tobesk Region.

"We need to tell the doctor about this relic soon, it would not be good if the church got ahead of us."

Shard said, holding a piece of bread, recalled encountering the doctor at the charity banquet.

Although Shard's presence had caused Dr. Schneider to leave early, in hindsight, the doctor's luck was surprisingly bad. Had Shard not run into him on the first floor, the doctor would have definitely come into close contact with the Evil God. Now Shard fully appreciated why, when he met the other members of the group, they all thought Dr. Schneider had used a relic that overdraws luck.

"The doctor's luck is really terrible."

He tore the bread in his hands and soaked it in the soup, a common way of eating in this world.

"It's abnormally bad. I think it might be related to the demon you mentioned, but demons are not known to decrease luck. Anyway, there will definitely be a way to resolve Dr. Schneider's issues."

Even though the matter with the Evil God was resolved, there were really still many things waiting for them ahead.

The city's martial law would not end until six o'clock tomorrow morning, followed by a curfew lasting a week, so they still couldn't go out in the afternoon. Shard had been planning to use his time today to seek Luviya's advice on divination, to see if he had any talent for it, especially since the performance of the female diviner was truly impressive when they had ventured into the ruins.

Unexpectedly, not long after lunch, someone knocked on the door downstairs.

"Did Iluna come back early?"

Shard asked suspiciously, walking over to the living room window to look down and gesturing for Luviya not to worry:

"It's the familiar carriage, Duchess Galina Cavendish's carriage."

The female diviner also looked downstairs with Shard, she hadn't seen the Duchess's carriage before, but seemed to make a connection, frowning suddenly:

"Shard, can I ask you a question? Is that powerful Sage Level (Level 2) relic, the Ancient Witch's Golden Necklace, on loan from this Duchess?"

Shard paused, shaking his head:

"I refuse to answer."

"Very well."

Those purple eyes inquired deeply into Shard:

"So, Galina Cavendish, she is a Grand Witch of the Witch Council?"

Sometimes Shard really admired her ability to think.

"I still cannot answer."

"Then I understand, all right."

Luviya nodded lightly, then looked at Shard as if observing a miraculous creature:

"When did witches start getting close to men? How did you manage it? Oh, no need to answer, I'm just wondering. But you must be careful, witches don't have the best reputation, be careful not to get deceived."

Shard went downstairs to open the door, but instead of the Duchess, it was her personal maid, Miss Tifa Servet. Still dressed in the familiar, elaborate maid's long dress, her hands were folded and placed on her lap; she looked somewhat distressed. She beckoned Shard to follow her onto the carriage, as Miss Galina was waiting for the young detective at the manor.