Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Although Father Nobel appeared to be a middle-aged man about the same age as Dr. Schneider, Shard noticed the obvious white hairs at his temples after he sat down.

Mr. Benhart and Shard sat on the same side, and upon learning Shard hadn't had lunch, he called for the waiter to reorder. Father Nobel very kindly extended his hand to Shard, and after Shard grasped those hands, he once again confirmed that the opposite party was an Eight Rings Sorcerer.

"This is the friend from out of town I mentioned."

Mr. Benhart introduced, then winked at Shard:

"Father Nobel and I have been acquainted for many years. He is a pious, loyal, and trustworthy clergyman. I've already explained that you're one of us, so you can trust him."

Shard nodded knowingly, and Father Nobel accepted Mr. Benhart's praise.

"Good afternoon, friend from out of town. You're looking for information from the Common Era Calendar of 1842, aren't you?"

He lowered his voice:

"I won't ask what you actually intend to do, but you must promise not to stir up trouble in this city."

"Yes, I can swear with my soul... Even if trouble arises, I will resolve it. I'm a peace-loving person, and Mr. Benhart can attest to that."

"Yes, this gentleman has helped me settle quite a few big troubles this autumn. He indeed loves peace."

Mr. Benhart immediately agreed, and Father Nobel then raised his glass:

"To peace!"

He said solemnly, with Shard and Mr. Benhart also raising their glasses:

"To peace!"

The three glasses clashed above the table, and after drinking this wine, Shard noticeably felt the priest's attitude become gentler. The middle-aged priest with greying temples took out an eyeglass case from his pocket, donned small gold-rimmed glasses, and brought out his notebook:

"Benhart had me looking for the materials from 1842 last week. Actually, after he described it, I almost knew what you were looking for. Many things happened in Common Era Calendar 1842. Sir, you can imagine, in such a big city, there's never a lack of oddities. As for the event matching your description, which corresponds to the time point you mentioned, the specific event..."

He flipped a few pages back in his notebook:

"There was an uncontrolled Sage-Level (Level 2) Relic incident in the city. That time, with assistance from the Xerxes Higher Medical Academy, we spent several months calming the situation."

The Church of the Five Gods and the Three Great Magics Academies have agreements to notify each other when Sage-Level Relics appear, so the church receiving assistance from the academy to contain the relic is quite normal.

"Angel-Level Relic? I have some impression, but is it that matter?"

Mr. Benhart frowned slightly:

"At that time, I was only in my twenties, far less mature than now. Yes, I remember it seemed to be an arrow. In my life, I've rarely encountered Sage-Level Relics, and this one left the deepest impression."

"What trait?"

Shard curiously asked. Father Nobel was very secretive, and when he spoke, Shard felt as though even the club room lights dimmed a lot. The fog outside the window spun as carriages rushed past, spreading slowly in the slightly gloomy winter noon, making the atmosphere more oppressive. The priest's words brought the three back to those times over ten years ago:

"Sage-Level Relic [Aikenora's Arrow of Knowledge], the relic's appearance is an arrow, more accurately, a golden arrowhead with cryptic text formed by bronze patterns. The wooden arrow shaft was added later by others, and the shaft is not important."

Father Nobel's voice was low and hoarse. That memory was not pleasant for him:

"One of the arrow's traits, an extremely rare trait, allows an ordinary person who is destined to become a Gifted One to immediately awaken upon being pierced; for those completely lacking talent, it can slowly drive them insane, photophobic, hear voices and see illusions, enhance their athletic ability, infeact them with a terrible pus epidemic, until the internal organs decay and die."

"Accelerated Ring Sorcerer Awakening?"

Shard was very surprised:

"Is there really such a relic?"

"Yes, more accurately, it accelerates the awakening of the Transcendent, but this acceleration causes the ring sorcerer to become very unstable in their vocation. According to rumors, this arrow comes from a time older than the Third Era, and possibly... It has been contained countless times in the river of time, yet always finds its way to be used at certain moments. Although only a Sage-Level, this relic... is very ancient, powerful, and mysterious."

Mr. Nobel looked at the two:

"If you understand Fourth Age ancient Germanic, you should know that the meaning of 'Aikenora' is..."

Because he pronounced it correctly, Shard provided the translation:

"Wisdom of the Crown."

Mr. Benhart showed a look of disgust:

"Years ago, a madman from the Pantanal Voodoo Society mastered that arrow, attempting to use it to mass-produce Circle Sorcerers in the city. But you know, Gifted Ones among normal people are few, and even if one becomes a Gifted One, they may not necessarily be able to smoothly assume the role of Circle Sorcerer. If you check the newspapers from those years, you'd find small-scale epidemic outbreaks and news of killings by madmen in Huntington City in the corner. That was the terrifying consequence caused by that arrow."

Shard took a deep breath; despite its various drawbacks, Aikenora's Arrow of Knowledge indeed has quite astonishing traits.

"But that's not the main trait. You already know the effect of accidental scratches on ordinary people. If Circle Sorcerers are accidentally scratched, they can directly acquire some... eerie knowledge."

Mr. Nobel did not wish to discuss further on this topic:

"That's just the case of scratches, but if this arrow is used as an 'arrow', after the charging process, and fired from a bow or crossbow..."

He drank from the glass in his hand, his voice becoming even more hoarse. The sheer curtain allowed faint sunlight to permeate the room, revealing an unusual rosy hue due to its color:

"Depending on the reservoir of knowledge the user has, the arrow can exert different effects. Theoretically, the more knowledgeable the person, the stronger the power of the fired arrow. This isn't limited to ordinary people or Circle Sorcerers, but after using this arrow, an ordinary person's head would explode."

Mr. Benhart nodded cautiously:

"I was still young that year and didn't directly participate in that event, but many Circle Sorcerers from the True God Church sacrificed during those years."

"More crucially..."

Father Nobel squinted slightly:

"In 1842, when we defeated and killed the Voodoo Society members holding the arrow, we didn't find that relic. That matter ended more than a decade ago, and the church believes other members of the Pantanal Voodoo Society took and concealed the arrow."

"Then is there another possibility?"

Shard asked, and the priest from the Peace Church nodded:

"Some also believe that the arrow is still in this city, and there were other followers of the Circle Sorcerers from those years that we haven't discovered. Interestingly, in the subsequent investigation, we found that Aikenora's Arrow of Knowledge is highly likely a weapon forged by an order of ancient Deities of Bygone Days."

Shard remained silent, merely nodding lightly. At this moment, the waiter pushed the trolley over, serving dessert to Mr. Benhart and Father Nobel, and prepared an appetizer for Shard's lunch.

"Do you have any clues about this relic?"

After the waiter left, the priest holding the wine glass asked.

"No, at least not currently. Actually, I'm not even sure if the accident I'm to investigate was triggered by this Sage-Level relic."

Shard shook his head slightly, Father Nobel's expression remained unchanged, while Mr. Benhart took a deep breath.

Based on Shard's recent behavior, the middle-aged Vampire Kind knew he was plotting something major in this city. At this point, the matter had already involved the Sage-Level relic, which made it hard for Mr. Benhart to imagine what would happen next in Huntington.

During lunch hour, Shard leisurely chatted with the Vampire Kind and the priest together at the White King Club. Mr. Nobel was quite an interesting person, clearly aware that Shard's identity was not merely an outside Circle Sorcerer, yet he still revealed some local secrets to him. Discussing the Pantanal Voodoo Society, he willingly shared the church's recent efforts to capture them, especially since they caused quite a stir before Princess Margaret left.

When Shard left the White King Club in the afternoon, Mr. Benhart and the priest were still inside passing time. Shard was very curious about the reason for their trust in him, only realizing afterwards that the priest was trusting Mr. Benhart.

The local Vampire Viscount and the Eight Rings Sorcerer of the True God Church could build a friendship spanning more than a decade, surely filled with plenty of stories. Upon exploring them, the excitement must not be inferior to Mr. Benhart's experiences in Midshire Fort during autumn.

Sometimes Shard would think, although he pursued the poem chapter of fate, in reality, every person he encountered has a marvelous and wonderful story. Although no one would write books about those who pass by, those stories indeed happened.

If possible, he'd be willing to witness those stories with his own eyes, and what he has to do in the increasingly cold Monday is to explore Professor Drake's past story.

Shard currently has reasons to believe that Aikenora's Arrow of Knowledge is likely the reason Professor Drake sought the Lake Goddess. Professor Drake's boastful description of his "physical condition" in his letter to Professor Manning generally coincides with the aftermath of being harmed by the Arrow of Knowledge.

But for safety's sake, Shard still thinks it necessary to seek more clues to verify this conclusion. Moreover, the second test he needs to answer involves not just Professor Drake's experience, but also the price he paid and the wish he made.