Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 469: The Trace of the Seal

According to Luviya's opinion, directly divining "how to obtain the [Demon Hunting Seal]" would most likely only yield an absolutely correct but very vague direction. Directly divining "how to confront the demon within Daknis" might result in the answer to seek assistance from the church.

Shard thought for a moment:

"I want to divine how to obtain the Relic [Demon Hunting Seal] within two weeks around Tobesk and Coldwater Port, with minimal danger."

Luviya looked at him, and as expected, Shard added:

"If it's not possible to divine or if the result is still vague, we'll give up on the idea of using this Relic to contend with the demon and think of other methods. Luviya, if I used a large canvas to turn Dawn Chapel into a toy to carry with me and then release it at the right moment to suppress the demon, would the church come after me?"

Of course, he was joking. A Second Ring Sorcerer's spirit wasn't sufficient to manage such a feat, and since the church was constantly suffused with various prayers and confessions, it practically equated to a powerful Holy Alchemical Item; Shard's Arcane Technique [Toy-making] had no effect on Alchemical Items.

Luviya also started laughing:

"Shard, it's hard to say whether the church would chase you, but Priest Augustus definitely would."

The girl with shoulder-length brown hair closed her eyes and tossed the coin. As the coin reached its peak and began to fall, rust spots appeared on its surface, and before it returned to the table, it disintegrated into ash and dissipated into the air.

This signified that the divination was effective.

"What's the result?"

Shard asked expectantly.

Luviya opened her eyes, and the misty purple glow gradually retracted. The divination hadn't affected her much and had gone smoothly:

"It's a strange result – you just need to follow your own path, and you are very likely to encounter this seal."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that if you act according to your own plan, you are very likely to get this Relic."

Shard pointed at himself:

"Where do I have the luck to stumble upon Relics just by going out? You've also said that I'm the least likely person to become The Chosen One."

"Didn't you say that Priest Augustus mentioned the [Demon Hunting Seal] always appears near places related to demons? So, the likelihood of you encountering it in Tobesk is much higher than encountering any other Relic."

Luviya explained, and Shard thought it over; it did seem reasonable.

"But hasn't Daknis not yet arrived at Tobesk?"

"Tobesk itself already has a Demon Nest."

Luviya revealed a smile:

"I haven't been idle. In the uncontrollable Angel-Level Relic [Dark Realm], there exist terrifying creatures that leave the forsaken areas to spread the darkness further. I've found out; they are the [Servants of the Hidden], the Evil Spirit Demons left over from the Third Era. Although now derivatives of a Relic, they are still demons."

"So, does that mean the possibility of Daknis' Chosen One Ceremony being related to the [Dark Realm] has increased?"

Shard finally understood.

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"Yes, so you don't need to worry about the Relic. If it is meant for you, it will undoubtedly be yours. Oh, I almost forgot this. Shard, Iluna came looking for me yesterday. She hasn't been idle, either. She's been gathering materials recently, planning to make two more pins capable of using the [Sunlight Gun], one for me and one for you. Also, she's found more information from those scattered pieces of knowledge."

Luviya said, taking out her notebook to show Shard:

"This time she learned about the clergy corresponding to the Ancient Gods. Unlike the Old Gods, who are mostly linked to a single role, Ancient Gods are incredibly powerful and their core roles are not singular. The balanced Ancient God [The Upside-Down Judge] corresponds to balance, strength, perfection."

"That being said, the Ancient God of Time [Father of the Infinite Tree] represents time, trees, the protector of nature. I wonder if the door belongs to the Tree Father's power or the Ancient God of Space's power."

Shard spoke as well, always finding the topic of Ancient Gods very interesting. He counted with his finger:

"The Ancient God of the moon [Sage of Silvermoon] relates to the moon, night, archivist. Yes, archivist, hence the [Silvermoon Library]. I wonder if the stars count... So, which one is the Ancient God associated with darkness, and what powers does this Great One possess?"

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Luviya flipped through the notebook, which contained information organized by Iluna:

"The dark Ancient God is the 'Crawling Darkness,' embodying darkness, error, history..."

"Wait, history?"

Shard expressed surprise:

"This sounds like the power of the 'Father of the Infinite Tree.'

"It's normal for the powers of the thirteen Ancient Gods to overlap. You say the 'Sage of Silvermoon' possesses the power of a recorder, but don't forget about 'Genesis: Knowledge' in the Roder Card Genesis Series. Plus, time and history are not the same power. Just because both the 'Earth-shaking Worm' and the 'Earthly Giant Serpent' are related to the Earth, it doesn't mean their powers are exactly the same."

Luviya gave examples based on Shard's recent experiences.

"But so far, Daknis has only shown darkness."

Shard pondered, and the thought of "history" and "error" somehow brought the 'Box of Darkness' to his mind.

"No, 'error' has also been demonstrated. Do you think it's so easy to coexist with a demon?"

Luviya corrected him:

"So, Iluna currently only shows 'balance,' but she also has many more powers waiting to be discovered. The Chosen One, truly remarkable."

A smile crept onto her face.

Shard didn't stay long at the Prophet's Society; he was worried that if he encountered Vice-President Mark, they would start discussing next month's Big City Player Roder Card tournament, and an entire morning would indeed be wasted.

Upon leaving the grand entrance of the Prophet's Society, the city was still shrouded in mist today, but one could just make out the early summer sky. Beneath that overcast sky, Shard's gaze traveled beyond the towering buildings, past the smoking chimneys, toward the direction of Tobesk Train Station.

"In a few hours, Lecia will be getting off the train there... I wonder how long it will take her to come from Yordle Palace and meet me at Saint Delan Square."

Dorothy's body cannot be too close to Lecia, so she can't go to pick Lecia up. Moreover, when Lecia arrives at No. 6, Saint Delan Square, Dorothy won't be able to be in the same room with them either.

Considering this, Shard was quite concerned, worried that if their situation continued to develop, some terrible irreversible events might occur.

With no issues today, Shard decided to go home and pick up the commission material, planning to wrap up the last two commissions.

Between seeking an ophthalmologist and finding a missing girl, Shard chose the former this time. As he prepared to set off with the files in hand, a ginger cat nonchalantly trotted down from the third floor. It saw Shard leaving the second-floor room, meowed at him, and then quickly darted into the room, leaving him wondering what it had been doing upstairs.

When Shard wasn't home, surely that cat must have considered No. 6, Saint Delan Square its own adventure base. Considering its somewhat voracious appetite and the fact that it had not gained an ounce despite being under Shard's care for two months, its daily activity level must be quite substantial.

The commissioner of "Find a Doctor Who Can Treat Eye Diseases" was a blind man named Toma Mendis, living in the University District. He had many friends locally who also suffered from eye diseases. One of them, miraculously, had cured his own eyesight a month before the arrival of the Outlanders.

Naturally, Mr. Mendis wanted to treat his own eyes, but that friend simply refused to disclose the doctor's information. So he asked the detective to investigate, and by that time, Detective Sparrow's health was already quite poor; thus, this commission would most likely be the last formal task he took on.

As with the assignments of investigating an unfaithful lover and finding a lost cat, Detective Sparrow Hamilton had nearly completed this task as well. He found the "miraculous" Dr. Jacob Alfred through his own network on the third day after taking the commission.

Like Dr. Schneider, Dr. Alfred operated his own small clinic. However, the ophthalmologist's clinic situated in the northern Lower District was small and staffed only by him, so his name wasn't well-known, making him indeed hard to find.

Mr. Mendis had given a four-month deadline for his commission, which is why Detective Sparrow had left this task for Shard, hoping it would become part of his workload for the next two months.

For the case of trailing the lover, Shard could follow her one last time to perfectly wrap up the commission. For the task of finding an ophthalmologist, Detective Sparrow suggested in the files he left behind that Shard could try to observe the cured friend of Mr. Mendis, Mr. Frank Bondi, and include his current status and the extent of his vision recovery in the commission report. Perhaps, that would make the client more willing to pay the final payment willingly.

"The blind man Toma Mendis is the client, the ophthalmologist from Lower District, Dr. Jacob Alfred, is the target to be found, and the blind musician from Noan Opera Troupe, Mr. Frank Bondi, is the one whose eyesight was successfully treated."

Since this commission involved three core individuals, Shard carefully analyzed their information. Dr. Alfred is a foreigner who moved to Tobesk seven years ago and managed to establish his foothold locally with a clinic specializing in eye diseases.

Both the client, Mendis, and musician Bondi are locals, while the profession engaged in by the client involved proofreading Braille materials at City Hall's public department. Although it wasn't a high-paying job, it was respectable and he had not lost his ability to work despite his disability.

Shard decided to take Detective Sparrow's advice, visit the blind musician, and collect information about his current status and the extent of his eyesight recovery, before submitting the investigation report to the client.

If all went well, he could resolve the matter in a day.

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