Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 1767 - 1766: Power of Existence
That evening, after saying goodbye to the Witch, the Maid, and the Little Princess, Shard didn’t stay in Green Lake City for dinner. Instead, he returned home to dine with Mia and Dorothy.
Since Luviya had been stargazing at Saint Delan Square recently, Dorothy rarely had the chance to date Shard. Now that Luviya’s stargazing was over, Miss Writer could visit frequently.
Since they had dinner together, Dorothy naturally stayed over that night. Shard and Dorothy also tried the effect of the "Love God’s Sting." For the Five Rings writer, this Arcane Technique enhanced her more than it did for Miss Galina and Tifa. During the experiment, Lecia’s spirit came over once and also tried this technique.
Of course, she didn’t forget to ask Shard if he saw Miss Galina in Green Lake and inquired about Angelina’s situation. Although she was usually a bit harsh with Angelina, Lecia genuinely cared for her sister.
At night, Dorothy, with her hair tangled and soaked with sweat, lay peacefully asleep, holding Shard’s arm. It was past midnight, a time for restful slumber. But in the midnight dream, Shard lay awake, staring at the dark bedroom ceiling.
[What are you thinking about?]
"She" softly whispered as pink light dots emerged in Shard’s empty left hand, forming the crystal spike:
"What would happen if I pierced my heart with the ’Love God’s Sting’?"
"She" smiled gently, neither supporting nor opposing. Shard brought the crystal close to his heart, but ultimately it disappeared, and he didn’t seek that answer. Sighing softly, he turned to embrace the soft girl beside him and drifted into a dream illuminated by Silvermoon.
After a night tangled in golden hair, time finally arrived at the Friday dinner in Green Lake City. Although the night’s banquet was the most important event, Shard didn’t waste his daytime.
In the morning, after sending off Dorothy who had breakfast, he took out the Black Time Key, tossing it in his hand, then gently touched the cat standing on the dining table.
The cat recognized the key, meowing and following Shard eagerly. It rubbed against his hand as he picked it up, but soon he took it outside with him.
The Black Time Key’s adventure was to challenge the few remaining Evil Objects after the Apocalypse in the Bygone Era: Sixth Era, but Shard wasn’t planning to undertake that task in the early morning. He’d wait until he went to bed at night.
The day was quite tight with plans, and since it was drizzling in Tobesk, Shard made sure to bring an umbrella. Bad weather naturally left Old John’s Pawnshop with few customers. While Shard folded his umbrella just inside the door, he heard the old man at the counter complaining:
"I was wondering who my first customer would be today. Detective, good morning." 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
"Good morning, Old Man John. Is there any problem with me being your first customer?"
"You’re fine all around, just a bit too frugal."
Just as being described as "unlucky" by Dr. Schneider could be awkward, being labeled as "frugal" by Old John felt equally uneasy for Shard.
Of course, he didn’t come here early in the morning just to discuss his attitude towards money. After placing the umbrella in the stand by the door, he brought Mia to the counter and produced the illusory book containing the "Conch," "Broken Sword," and "Black Coin":
"Take a look, do you recognize any of these items?"
"Your Arcane Technique is quite interesting,"
The old man commented as he adjusted his glasses and examined the book closely. Then he raised an eyebrow:
"Interesting, where did you see these things?"
He pointed to the black coin detailed with a three-view drawing, while Shard had labeled the corresponding content on the owner’s profile section.
Shard shook his head, not answering, so the old man didn’t press further, placing a temporary closure sign on the shop door and asking Shard to wait downstairs:
"Feel free to wander around the store with your cat. I’ll need some time, as those Relic Coins have an extraordinary origin, and it might take a while."
"Relic?"
Shard raised an eyebrow, clearly remembering the boy, Old Lady Miles, and young witch Miss Higgins’ coins didn’t have the Whisper Element.
"So, those coins turned into relics during the shift from the Fifth Era to the Sixth Era?"
Old John mentioned a long wait, and indeed it took a full hour. In that time, Shard wandered through the cluttered first floor of the pawnshop with Mia, finding every item intriguing.
For instance, there was a "Steam-Powered Mechanical Toothbrush" which had only appeared in newspaper articles last month, and had only recently arrived here. This toothbrush was mostly metal except for the bristles, with a hollow handle requiring high-pressure steam for each use. It could heat cold water, spray warm steam inside the mouth, and automatically rotate the brush, all via a button on the brush.
Unfortunately, the cumbersome steam charging process and frequent burns meant that, presently, this invention unheard of even in the Outlander’s hometown, remained merely a prototype.
"Come to think of it, I’ve never cleaned your teeth,"
Shard looked at the cat standing on his shoulder, and although she was already 1 year old, the young orange cat bared her shiny teeth to intimidate him.
When Old John was coming down the stairs holding a book, Shard and the little Mia in his arms were both peering at the round glass cylinder standing between the clock and antique cabinet on the west wall of the ground floor.
The glass cover was as tall as a person, and inside was a vertically standing metal rod. The rod was connected by flexible metal wires to densely packed hundreds of phosphorescent metal butterflies. Just by tightening the spring at the base, the metal rod would rotate inside the glass cover, making those metal butterflies seem to dance.
This is a purely mechanical device, and the principle is quite simple, similar to a large music box without sound. But because of the exquisite craftsmanship, it immediately attracted Shard and Mia.
"That was collected last month, if you want it, I can sell it to you at a discount."
Old John said as he returned to the counter, and Shard was quite tempted. His home was still quite empty, and buying this kind of decoration to put in a corner wouldn’t take up any space. Moreover, this kind of device is very easy to attach rituals to perform illusions:
"Let’s talk about this later, is the coin confirmed?"
"Yes, it’s a Poet-Level relic [Power of Existence]."
The old man nodded, reversed the direction of the large book in his hand, and displayed a segment of text written in the Fifth Era to Shard:
"Minimal danger level, but that doesn’t mean the coin itself is worthless. Do you know the origin of this kind of coin? This coin is created by stripping the very ’existence’ of living beings and transforming it into a coin. The pattern on the coin represents the identity of the coin’s owner. ’Existence’ is a concept, meaning this coin symbolizes an illusory concept. Its only known trait currently is that carrying it can resist ’erase existence’ effects. When out of control, it causes the holder to gradually be forgotten by everyone."
"Erase existence? This power is quite rare, right?"
"Yes, entities like ancient evil entities, The Great Ones, or Angels are proficient in such methods. Among the arcane techniques mastered by mortals, the more famous ones are ’Hand of the Void’, ’Black Moon Insignia’, ’Requiem for the Departed’."
Old John was introducing:
"Though these are the currently known traits, this coin is very precious and is a valuable research material. After all, we rarely get to see a pure concept polymer, let alone one that represents ’existence’ itself. Detective, although I’m not quite sure where you encountered this coin, if you can find and sell it to me, I can exchange it with a Sage Level (Level 2) relic."
Shard snapped out of his shock, realizing the transaction at the "Black Mist Camp" indeed had something peculiar—Witch Higgins, Grandma Miles, and the boy happened to have numerous coins; it truly wasn’t a coincidence:
"You probably forgot, Luviya and I are also collecting special coins... If a certain individual loses a large amount of the power of existence, what will happen?"
This means, Shard’s companions in the time adventure are actually using their own ’existence’ to trade with those strange entities.
"Loss of existence? That’s simple, you get forgotten. Not just forgotten by friends and family, but forgotten by the world."
Old John waved his hand as if to drive away invisible flies:
"It’s like disappearing into thin air. I’m not an expert in this area of research, all I can say is we should try to avoid losing our existence. Losing some of it won’t cause immediate disappearance, but it’s certainly not a good thing. As for the impact of increased existence, I’m even less clear. I’m interested in this kind of knowledge, but it’s not something one can research by just reading a few books."
Shard nodded, his expression quite grave. Although Tree Father didn’t say he should guarantee the safety of the three fellow travelers, Shard still felt he ought to find a way to protect them in case they didn’t act foolishly, ensuring the past story ends with a relatively perfect conclusion.
The Black Mist Camp clearly distorted part of the trio’s perception, making them believe the coins were brought by outsiders. Once Shard reveals the truth to them, they’ll likely be more cautious using those coins.
"I don’t know about the Broken Sword and Conch; if you’re not in a hurry, I can study them, but if you need time, you should ask others."
Old John said again, and Shard then prepared to pull out his wallet to pay for the "appraisal" service this time. But he turned to look at the giant glass jar he had just been viewing with Mia, and asked with satisfaction on Old John’s face:
"Adding this, plus a set of frames and tools for mounting oil paintings, how much in total?"
The elderly man with grey hair held out five fingers, to which Shard complained:
"You wouldn’t happen to be a believer of the God of Wealth, would you?"
"Are you saying I’m a demon?"
Old John raised an eyebrow, surprised when Shard asked:
"What does this have to do with demons? Demons have beliefs too?"
"I’m talking about ordinary demons, you didn’t know? As exotic creatures, demons mostly believe in the God of Wealth; I’m a pure human."
Shard blinked, feeling like he understood something. But in this way, the strange aspects of "Greed" chains, fair transactions, and the like were all explained.
