Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

"Then let me join you lunatics for a round of the game."

Iluna, sitting down, said softly, then placed her hand on the surface of the large round table and looked toward the opponents in the other two directions. She frowned slightly as a massive flow of information surged into her mind through the "other me," detailing a highly complex set of game rules.

"Miss Pavo mentioned that we have the privilege of playing a game with The Chosen One; I have been looking forward to it for a long time. Miss, I hope you enjoy the game."

Professor Anse continued to smile and, after speaking, announced in a loud voice:

"The players are all ready, Mister Keeper of Secrets, please begin tonight's story."

Before anything could happen, Angelina suddenly seized Lecia's sleeve, trembling all over. Then, with a clattering sound reminiscent of dice hitting the ground, a figure in a black hooded robe walked to the table on the west side, where no chair was placed, hidden within the darkness that the skylight did not illuminate, as if it had stood there waiting for the three to take their seats.

No one could make out any of its features, the robe trailing on the ground, the sleeves covering its arms and hands, the hood utterly black underneath.

For a moment, no one spoke. The eerie Whisper Element made everyone frown. The two High Ring Sorcerers protected the three princesses, yet each of the three had different thoughts in mind.

Iluna frowned as she turned her head to look at the black-robed "Keeper of Secrets," her tied-up brown hair swaying. The seventeen-year-old girl was not facing an Angel-Level Relic for the first time. She felt that the power exhibited by this relic was not particularly strong so far.

The black-robed figure did not speak but raised the arm hidden within the robe. From the sleeve fell six ten-sided ivory dice, the clattering sound making everyone feel their heartbeats changing frequency in response.

The six dice rolled towards the three people, eventually stopping near each's hand. Two dice per person, one inscribed with the numbers 0 to 9, and the other with 00, 10, 20 to 90.

Professor Anse of the Truth Society picked up the dice with a smile, as if admiring a work of art under the light; the cultist who believed in the Evil God Mr. Misfortune looked down at the dice, frowning as though unsure of the meaning; Iluna also reached out to grab the two bone-colored dice, the cold feel making her inhale sharply.

The surrounding people watched the trio, Princess Margaret squinted her eyes, not noticing Lecia observing her, while Angelina half-fearful, half-excited, hid in Lecia's reach, biting her lip as she watched the three under the light.

"Sixth Era, Common Era Calendar 1857, Dice Story Collection Scene 1472 — The Chase for Thief Jack. Story Narrators: Isaac Anse, Felipe Dion, Iluna Beath."

The voice seemed to originate from all directions, and Professor Anse smiled:

"The scene is set here precisely for this. Winning a game brings two victories; Miss Pavo's plan is quite clever."

"But how do we capture the thief while sitting here? Since we are the narrators of the story, who, then, are the characters in the story?"

Iluna asked in a low voice, the next words changing her expression.

"Choose an ordinary human as the manipulated character. The target must be familiar with you and currently active in the area."

"What?"

From the wide sleeves of the black-robed Keeper of Secrets, a silver hourglass fell onto the table, its sands flowing steadily downward. There was no need to explain; Iluna understood it signaled the countdown.

Professor Anse chuckled lightly:

"I wish to pay a Coin of Wisdom for an additional choice."

A blue coin was placed on the table:

"I choose First Ring Sorcerer Jogori Deus as my manipulated character. He is now at Silver Cross Avenue - Golden October Restaurant."

"I also pay a Coin of Wisdom for an extra choice."

The cultist devoted to Mr. Misfortune, Dion, also smiled, placing a blue coin on the table as well:

"I choose First Ring Sorcerer Lydia Pangleau as my manipulated character. She is also at Silver Cross Avenue - Golden October Restaurant."

"You're cheating! I can only choose an ordinary person, but you..."

Iluna hissed under her breath.

"Young Chosen One, this is a fair game."

Professor Anse said softly, the sharply dressed professor lecturing like one might in a university class:

"Extra effort brings extra rewards. We paid with relics and you did not, so it is fair. By the way, the hourglass is running low on time."

He added "kindly" as a reminder.

"Beath, there are quite a few armed police officers outside now."

Miss Green, who had been silent, had to quietly remind Iluna at this moment. She placed a hand on Iluna's shoulder to calm her down:

"Carefully recall the people you know."

"Beath, do you know any devout followers of the Sun Church residing here?"

Old Mr. Modro also gently reminded her and added:

"Don't be nervous; I've participated in containing more than one relic of this rule-based kind. Treat it as a game, a story. Exceptional martial strength might be useful, but in such a game, devout faith can also play a role."

"This is the Prophet's Society. Maybe try those diviners with high inspiration but who are not Circle Sorcerers."

The bearded captain of the Church of Creation whispered, although he wasn't sure if The Chosen One was acquainted with any ordinary diviner.

Iluna pursed her lips, watching the hourglass in front of her. Whenever she wanted to say a name aloud, "another me" would prompt her about whether those names could be chosen. The Circle Sorcerer's "another me" was designed to prevent a mortal's soul from directly encountering the terrifying power of such relics, thus proving useful now.

"I can also give you a suggestion."

Professor Anse, playing with two dice, said with a smile:

"The story characters we manipulate lack self-awareness during the relic's effect. They will only follow our orders and act according to instinct, forgetting everything after the relic's effect ends. So, you should pick a character with a strong sense of self."

Iluna didn't speak, as names flashed through her mind. She was exceptionally clear-headed:

"There should be weapons, combat ability, ideally knowledge of the transcendent, spiritual power strong enough not to collapse easily..."

She was adapting to this strange rule-based relic. During her training in the Papacy, Iluna had read about some similar relics. Reading the materials felt interesting, and she wondered what she would do if she encountered one; this time, she really did... If it weren't for her opponents "cheating," she would still find it quite intriguing.

The sand in the hourglass fell quickly, and no one disturbed Iluna's thoughts further. Because she had thought of a particular name too many times tonight, abruptly, a rather unsuitable name jumped into her mind, and then "another me" provided a shocking conclusion.

Iluna slightly widened her eyes, and after confirming with the gentle voice by her ear multiple times, she turned to her colleagues:

"I do have the best candidate, but he's a friend of mine, and involving him makes me a bit uneasy."

"He will lose his memory afterward, won't even know about the relic. Beath, you can choose the person you like, and the Church will handle the aftermath."

Miss Green whispered, and Iluna nodded, glancing at Lecia with her peripheral vision. Before the fine sand in the ornate silver hourglass ran out, she spoke the name that shouldn't have been possible:

"An ordinary person... Shard Suren Hamilton. He should be at the Prophet's Society now. He ought to be in this room, but I don't see him; he must still be on this floor."

"An ordinary person?"

Lecia slightly furrowed her brows but then relaxed. Anything happening to Shard was normal. Little Princess Angelina didn't see anything wrong; she always believed Shard was capable of anything. Princess Margaret widened her eyes, suspecting something significant had occurred.

"Hamilton."

Professor Anse thought over the name, remembering Miss Pawo mentioning that she had lost to the knight from Tobesk at Lakeside Manor in a game of Roder Card.

After Dorothy made her choice, three rolls of parchment appeared at the side of each person, and at the same time, dense blocks fell from above on the massive round table.

The falling blocks made a strange rustling sound, and the seemingly chaotic small squares built a topographic and architectural model around Yordle Palace-Saint Delan Square. The Church Ring Sorcerers familiar with this district could see that every detail constructed by the blocks was extraordinarily realistic.

"The Dice Story Collection will soon begin. The parchment documents each character's abilities. During actions, dice are rolled for judgment, and based on the character's uniqueness and abilities, additional bonuses are given. Some unique symbols can grant special powers to the manipulated character, enriching the story's intrigue."

The voice continued to come from the surrounding darkness, and the three at the table each opened the parchment at their side. The professor and the cultist both smiled with satisfaction; the dense information was the key difference between a Ring Sorcerer and an ordinary person.

Iluna worriedly opened the parchment for the "ordinary person" Shard Hamilton, knowing through the rules that the people behind her couldn't see what was on her parchment.

"[Mortal's Luck] Shard Suren Hamilton."

She first saw the story character name at the top line. "Mortal's Luck" was the title given to each character by the story.

Then, squinting her eyes, Iluna continued down and saw rows of letters denser than a math textbook. She took a deep breath, scanned through the Four-Ring Sorcerer's list of abilities and the various ancient characters she didn't recognize at all, and finally closed the parchment with a tense face:

"Winning isn't the issue; the key is hiding that Shard is a Ring Sorcerer."

She thought to herself.

"Hamilton's luck score is very high."

She sighed softly on the surface.

The story for tonight officially begins here.