Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Having been in this world for two months, Shard had gotten used to the idea that each time he woke up, there would be a cat that suddenly sprang out from beside his pillow. Sometimes it would jump onto his chest, meowing for food, or it would rub its furry face against his face and the back of his hand.

So when Shard woke up beneath an unfamiliar ceiling and didn't hear the familiar meowing of Mia, he felt inexplicably lost.

"I haven't seen Mia for over 24 hours now."

Thinking about this, Shard felt even more lost.

The time was Wednesday night at eight o'clock, and having slept for twelve hours, Shard felt quite refreshed. It seemed like there was a banquet happening in the distance; he could hear the sound of an organ.

However, after sluggishly getting out of bed, he first discovered that he was wearing a set of pajamas he had never seen before, then noticed that the bedroom was empty, but his usual clothes and belongings were all placed on the nightstand. He glanced over them and saw that the only item missing was the Witch's Golden Ring.

"Hmm? Who changed my clothes for me?"

This room was new to Shard, its size comparable to the combined space of a living room and dining room on the second floor of his own house. There was a double-door wooden wardrobe in the corner, and opposite the bed with curtains, there was a desk, its shelf filled with books.

There was a painting of the Coldwater Port Dock hanging above the headboard, and the floor where the bed stood was actually a step higher than the carpeted room floor, and the bed seemed to be a double bed.

Under the wall by the door stood a piano, and the mermaid-shaped gas lamps above the piano, like the gas lamp beside the bed and the one above the desk, were all turned off.

"All the gas lamps at Aphrola Manor are mermaid-shaped, which, thinking about it, is a clue. I should have realized earlier that the Witch could summon mermaids."

Even so, the room was not dark because the curtains weren't tightly closed. Through the window, tri-color moonlight streamed into the room, shining onto the blanket covering Shard, as well as his hands and face.

Bathing in this moonlight, taking deep breaths of the room's air, Shard's mood was quite good. After all, he had saved Lecia, gained a drop of Divinity without paying much of a price, and had accomplished all of his goals in Coldwater Port.

"Is Silvermoon brighter tonight?"

Contemplating this, he prepared to find his slippers and get out of bed. But then he noticed a pull cord above the nightstand, so he gently pulled it.

He, of course, could not hear any sound, but the servants' bells would surely ring in the servants' quarters, and the running footsteps would inform Miss Aphrola that Shard had awakened. And the Witch, busy with who knows what, would likely soon see Shard.

The in-wall pipes not only had gas lines and steam conduits - this system of bells that could summon servants from any room had already appeared extensively in the estates and mansions of nobles before the Steam Age.

In this regard, it seemed that the Steam Age had not changed all aspects of people's habits.

From the mermaid-shaped gas lamps on the walls, Shard had guessed he wasn't at Sophia's Mansion but at the Witch's manor. When he had changed his clothes and saw the brightly lit dining room with the waiting Witch, his guess was confirmed.

"You woke up too late. Lecia Cavendish just left Coldwater Port by steam train an hour ago."

The Witch, her head adorned with beautiful brown curly hair that hung freely behind her head without any tying, had changed into a dress Shard had never seen before. She seemed in quite a good mood, but Shard didn't believe she had caught Daknis.

"She left already? I thought Lecia might be at your manor attending the banquet too. The place was bustling when Miss Maid led me here just now."

Shard asked in surprise, taking a seat to the left of the head of the long dining table.

"The banquet outside? After some unfortunate events, people wanted to liven things up a bit, and I just happened to be in a good mood, so I hosted another one. It's always so quiet here; a bit of liveliness once in a while isn't bad."

The Witch, propping her head up with her hand, looked at Shard:

"The Princess had originally planned to leave on Friday evening. Otherwise, she wouldn't have attended my banquet on Tuesday night. But the King's urgence was great; a serious incident occurred in Tobesk. Otherwise, she would have at least waited for you to wake up before leaving."

The Witch explained, and for some reason, Shard felt that her demeanor towards him had warmed considerably.

"Did Lecia leave me a letter?"

Shard asked again.

"No, she doesn't trust me and was afraid I'd read it. Hamilton, I thought you'd be disappointed. The Princess didn't wait for you to leave."

Hevy Aurora said with a smile:

"But aren't you curious about what happened in Tobesk? I bet, including all those people in the lively banquet outside, no more than five know about this news."

She scrutinized Shard's face carefully. Although they had had a long talk just a few hours earlier, at that time, the Witch had not paid much attention to Shard's appearance. Now meeting in the brightly lit dining room, taking a closer look at the young detective, even the Witch had to admit that Shard Suren Hamilton was the type of young man who could very easily attract the attention of the ladies.

"Tobesk... The mastermind behind the assassination attempt on Queen Diana has been found," Shard guessed outright, though he used a declarative sentence.

"How did you guess that?"

The Witch asked with great interest, choosing to meet in the dining room because the servants were there, preparing dinner for Shard. Miss Aphrola knew that Shard disliked unrelated banquets.

Now the serving cart had arrived, and Shard took a glance, feeling he wasn't hungry:

"It has to do with a Member of the Royal Family, and Princess Lecia must be involved. It should be related to recent major events because there were no signs before that. Thinking along these lines, the only possibility is that the murderer of Queen Diana has been found, and it should also be a Member of the Royal Family. Larus III wouldn't tell the public about this, but I think he would very much like all his children to be present when giving the murderer a suitable sentence."

He accepted the napkin the Maid handed him, thanked her softly, and then looked at Miss Aphrola:

"Am I right?"

"Partially correct. It was your superior, Mr. Dark Anros, who found the murderer. He claimed to be on a business trip to the south, but in fact, he was in Tobesk organizing the operation. And then..."

The Witch shook her head with a smile:

"When I received the news, it felt just like reading a court drama. Prince Sax, brother to Lecia Cavendish, seventh in line to the throne, burst into Yordle Palace with armed men, only to be pinned down to the ground like a fat pig in front of the King and Queen by the guards... tsk, tsk, tsk, I wonder what Miss Galina thinks of this."

Shard noticed that the servants were also preparing a plate and napkin for her. The Witch was going to dine with him.

"Aren't you joining the banquet outside?"

He asked inquisitively, as they could hear the melodious dance music and the buzz of people's conversations from there.

"What's interesting about banquets? If it were all beautiful girls, I might be a bit interested."

She elegantly immersed her hands in the brass basin brought by the Maid, dried them with a handkerchief, and then signaled to Shard that he didn't need to mimic her and could do as he liked.

"But a Prince barging into the Yordle Palace with a gun?"

Even though Shard was surprised, a smile appeared on his face, and the Outlander also found it novel-like:

"There are still such fools nowadays?"

"We must admit, not everyone is as clever as we are."

The expression on Miss Aphrola's face remained amused:

"That's why your Princess is in such a hurry to go back, otherwise, I bet she would..."

"Mia and I are just friends,"

Shard emphasized, not wanting to tarnish Lecia's reputation.

"You don't need to explain that to me, you should explain it to your Miss Galina."

She pointed at the badge that had been reattached to Shard's neck, and he laughed awkwardly:

"Mia and Galina..." Read latest stories on My Virtual Library Empire

"You should explain that to Princess Lecia, not to me."

The Witch laughed even more heartily now.

When the Witches were not hostile to Shard, they would always show this playful nature.

The dishes were served one after another, comparable to the banquet outside.

The gold and silverware glittered under the candlelight, and the local delicacies looked appealing. The appetizer before the formal meal was escargot, which sounded terrifying but looked appetizing.

This involved boiling specially raised quality snails to obtain their meat, then stuffing it back into the shells with garlic, spices, and onions fried in butter, sealing it with more butter, and baking it in a specialized dish until ready to be served.

Shard wasn't good at eating such "high-end" food, so Miss Aphrola showed him how to use the specialized utensils with a smile.

"So, Daknis has been found?"

He finally reached the question.

"No. When I entered the wine cellar, the passageway you ran through had collapsed. I followed the devil symbiote into the sea and even encountered a God Summoner in the Merman's Temple. Unfortunately, he wasn't willing to help me; he must be trying to heal himself."

As expected, the Witch's answer didn't surprise him as she shook her head regretfully, gestured behind her, and a servant immediately handed her a fresh napkin. In front of Shard, as Miss Aphrola reached back for the napkin, she brushed her hand over the young maid's chest.

This was a significant provocation for Shard, who was in his month of "uncontrollable desire."

"Did you reexamine the collapsed passageway? I thought you knew about it."

Shard spoke while looking at the maid, who was now blushing; he was probing.

"I didn't know originally, but while you were unconscious, I reentered the wine cellar and checked. After clearing the passage, I first found an empty hidden room, and then I followed the gap that you widened with your weapon. Likely, that passage was a secret route the Mermen used a long time ago to transport and store goods."

The Witch explained, and Shard nodded, knowing that "Desire" had left. But thinking of "Desire's" face made his uncontrollable desire even stronger.