Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 435: A Letter from the Princess

About Daknis, developments have so far been within Shard and Luviya's expectations.

Daknis's identity had been exposed, and under the influence of the demon residing in him, he had betrayed the Blood Spirit School and stolen several relics.

If nothing unexpected occurred, he would learn about his Chosen One Ceremony, which needed to be conducted in Tobesk City. Shard and three others were expected to meet him by the end of this month.

"Now the troubles are not only that strange dark power, but also the demon inside him."

Shard recounted what he had heard from Miss Aphrola, the witch's summary of Daknis's combat methods:

"He uses his own Circle Sorcerer power and the demon within him as his core combat strength, using the Chosen One's unique 'Dark' gift for self-healing, defense, and movement.

In a normal state, he does not remove his red gloves and fights in the guise of a human Circle Sorcerer;

If he encounters an enemy he cannot handle, he removes the red gloves, using the mouth on his palm to aid in combat;

After obtaining the relic 'Fish Training Ring,' the mouth on his palm gained the ability to speak, and could even take over his arm, transforming it into a half-body demon, which is the third state;

The most terrifying is the fourth state, when Daknis encounters a fatal threat to his life, the darkness and the demon simultaneously corrode his body, forming a horrifying dark pus, which... my friend called human abyss."

Shard recalled the image of Daknis shattering the floor of the Merman Temple with a punch:

"According to my friend in Coldwater Port, in this final state, Daknis's physical condition is troublesome even for a Twelve-Ring Sorcerer, and his control over his arcane technique, sorcery, as well as his Dark Gift greatly enhance. He has a mental pollution ability, and the dark pus his half-body transforms into can cause extremely terrifying corrosion and infection effects to any who come into contact... However, my Moonlight can cleanse that stuff."

Considering Shard's Silvermoon was extraordinary, he was uncertain if other similar magical spellcraft like 'Flash Spell' would also be as effective.

"Four combat states..."

Luviya pondered with a tense face.

"That Twelve-Ring lady only witnessed and summarized four states, it does not rule out the possibility that he could become even stronger."

Shard remarked:

"It's really troublesome, we and Iluna are friends, no need to consider opposing her, so we didn't have such trouble before. But facing Daknis, even if Iluna suppresses the Chosen's Dark Gift, we must confront that demon ourselves."

Demons in this world are divided into two types, the first type are the commonly acknowledged exotic demon species, and the second type are more like a combination of what the Outlanders know as demons, devils, evil spirits, and strange evil objects.

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"But did you notice, Shard? Even though he is a Chosen One, he didn't focus on mastering his Chosen Gift but rather tended to rely on the power of the demon within him."

Luviya pointed out, and after thinking for a moment, Shard agreed:

"Did he choose the wrong path?"

"That's hard to say. I'll write a letter to Iluna, let's meet at your place on Sunday morning and discuss this further."

"No problem."

Shard nodded:

"But, what exactly should we do about Ivan Daknis? Just capture him? Kill him after he becomes a Chosen One? Kill him before he completes the ceremony and wait for the second candidate for the Chosen One to appear?"

Shard asked, and Luviya shook her head:

"Thinking about this now is too early, we'll do what we can, but no matter what, we cannot let him take the second spot. Also, regarding the demon inside him, I've already found some information within the internal records of the Council. The demon's name is difficult to pronounce in the common language, but its primary abilities include absorbing negative emotions to strengthen itself, devouring energy and matter, and to some extent mind reading."

Although the combat capability of the Prophet's Society is far less than the Witch Council, the ancient diviners' organization stores documents and literature even the True God Church envies.

"These abilities have already been demonstrated in Daknis's battles, it seems we really need to meticulously plan how to counter him."

Shard said while petting a cat, then asked:

"Luviya, I've recently heard some things. Remember the spaces left by the Thirteen Ancient Gods? I've learned that some call them sanctuaries, left by Ancient Gods as our last hope of survival when the apocalypse comes."

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"So when does the apocalypse come?"

Luviya asked with a smile, her violet eyes looking at Shard.

"I don't know."

Shard shook his head, smiling:

"That makes sense, given that the organization does believe in an apocalypse theory. It's getting late, would you like to have dinner together?"

He invited her, and after thinking for a moment, Luviya replied:

"It's rare for you to invite someone to dinner. Sure, but let me touch up my makeup in the resting room, please wait a moment."

"No problem."

Shard wanted to wait in the hall downstairs, so he headed towards the door with Mia first. But when he grasped the doorknob, another thought struck him, so he turned and asked softly,

"Luviya, is it the Sixth Era now?"

Luviya was still seated at the table, with her back to the window and the setting sun, so her face seemed to be covered by a layer of shadow, and her purple eyes appeared to emit a captivating color:

"Yes."

She looked at Shard:

"The Sixth Era."

Because of the strange interplay of light and shadow on her face, Shard couldn't see her mouth moving, he could only hear the spoken words. The scene was somewhat frightening, but Shard didn't mind it, only nodding in amazement:

"I'll wait for you downstairs, if you can't find me, I might be playing Roder Card with someone."

He opened the door and walked out, leaving only Luviya seated there.

Shard didn't close the door, so the cat on his shoulder looked back:

"Meow?"

The cat tilted its head in curiosity, as it clearly saw behind the human female, there was another almost identical transparent human, embracing her neck with both arms, whispering something in her ear.

The transparent figure seemed to sense something, lifted its head towards the door, but by then the cat had already turned away.

Mia, unbothered by such oddities.

Thus, a rather leisurely Thursday passed, and when Shard woke up early on Friday, he realized that everything concerning Coldwater Port had totally concluded, and he suddenly found himself temporarily without anything else to do.

Considering the time, it was soon mid-Month of Blossoms, and the letter mentioned by Detective Sparrow was still half a month away. Considering the recent lack of business, Shard planned to use the money he had saved to renovate the third floor of Saint Delan Square before Daknis arrived at Tobesk, meanwhile handling the other two remaining tasks assigned by Detective Sparrow, effectively concluding all unresolved matters left by the former detective.

That morning, fetching the newspaper and both cow and sheep milk, he discovered a little surprise. Someone had sent Shard a letter, and astonishingly, the envelope contained a bundle of crisp, consecutive banknotes totaling 20 pounds.

Since there was no stamp or sender's address on the envelope, Shard initially feared that it was a scam involving counterfeiters randomly choosing unlucky victims to test if their printed banknotes could deceive others, but there was also a letter scented with perfume in the envelope.

It was high-quality stationery, and upon examining it, Shard realized he was mistaken.

The letter was from Princess Angelina Cavendish, whom he had met yesterday, and the banknotes were a token of gratitude for Shard and Mia finding the "real culprit". She formally thanked Shard in the letter, praising the loyalty and wisdom of Rejed's Hamilton Knight.

The content of the letter was quite formal, but in a postscript after her signature, the princess wrote the following line:

[Compared to the last time I saw you, you have become more interesting.]

"Last time? When did I ever meet Princess Angelina?"

Shard sat at the dining table, pondering, pouring sheep milk into the bowl filled with cat food and pushing it towards the wide-eyed cat waiting eagerly, then he slightly squinted his eyes:

"Wait, it couldn't be the original Shard who had met her? A homeless man and a princess, a man curled up in a corner and a noble girl looking out from a carriage, and then... Could this be what I've been worrying about, someone who really knew the original owner? No, this won't do, even if she is Lecia's sister, but if..."

His thoughts drifted far away.

[Outlander, I must remind you to think carefully if you've ever encountered her.]

The voice in his ears brought Shard's mind back from considering whether the space behind the basement wall could fit a bed and a dresser. He tried hard to remember, and the voice of the woman, with a hint of laughter, provided a few key details like [noble girl], [red hair], [likes to attend parties and salons].

"Oh~ Lakeside Manor!"

At that moment, Shard remembered that at the magical night in Lakeside Manor, affected by good fortune, he experienced many things that, at the time, seemed innocent, but were actually significantly related to him.

Shortly after entering the manor that night, Shard saw Miss Tifa Servet. As he stood near the long table in the courtyard looking up, he saw a few girls in ball gowns conversing on the second-floor balcony of the manor.

One of the red-haired girls holding a glass of wine noticed Shard looking at them and pointed out his location to her friends (note).

At that time, worried about causing trouble, Shard quickly left, without paying much attention to the girls upstairs. But recalling it now, the red-haired girl he saw was very likely Angelina Cavendish. And since she was looking from a high place down at him, it was quite possible she remembered what Shard looked like.

[Yes, looking at the height and physique, it was her.]

"Tobesk really is small, for me to have encountered her like this."

He murmured softly, tucked the banknotes from the envelope away, then set the letter aside.

In the letter, Princess Angelina formally invited Shard to attend her salon when he was available. The princess was probably interested in Shard, who had a dubious relationship with Miss Galina, but Shard had no interest in befriending an underage princess.

He still had to deal with individuals possessed by demons and to renovate his own house. Of course, avoiding contact with Angelina Cavendish was also to prevent Lecia, who would be returning to Tobesk City soon, from considering him a frivolous person.