Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 461 - Crystallization, Professor, and Deities

On Thursday morning, after checking on the progress of the renovation, Shard took Mia and set off for Dr. Schneider's clinic. He had thought that the doctor wouldn't be busy early in the morning, only to find that he indeed started seeing patients at eight o'clock.

Shard waited two hours before he saw the yawning doctor. Schneider was wearing a clean white shirt, sitting behind his desk, writing medical records with a fountain pen. The greeting in his voice and the look in his blue eyes both conveyed his fatigue as Shard walked in.

The room was filled with the strange scent of burning spices. On the desk sat a sphere fixed in a wooden frame.

"Doctor, is your work that exhausting?"

Compared to him, Shard was the epitome of sloth.

"Oh, I'm not tired. I just used hypnosis as part of the treatment. Did you smell the scent in the air? That's the spice used to aid sleep; didn't Alan give you a bottle as well when we saw him at Hymn Square last time?"

Dr. Schneider gave a brief explanation, gestured for Shard to sit down, then whispered,

"I really like hypnotic treatment as a method of healing."

"Why?"

Shard asked curiously, eyeing the psychology books on the desk that were clearly often handled. Those were not Saint Byrons' textbooks, but the doctor's own professional books.

"Because I charge by the hour for my treatments."

Dr. Schneider laughed and slapped the alarm clock beside him, the delicate brass mechanism ticking away pleasantly:

"It's 1 shilling 3 pence for ten minutes, that makes 7 shillings 6 pence for an hour. This morning over the course of two and a half hours, I've made nearly a pound."

Shard showed an even more admiring expression instantly. The doctor earned more in one treatment than an ordinary worker did in a month. Just by sitting in the office, he lived a decent life. This was the life Shard wanted.

"Speaking of which, how do you have the time to come here? Is there something you need?"

Dr. Schneider inquired after putting the cap back on his fountain pen.

"Yes, I've been learning a new Arcane Technique recently, but I'm short on Spellcasting Materials and was hoping you could help me acquire some."

"What do you need?"

"Mind Crystals."

"Hmm?"

The doctor clearly knew what they were and thought for a moment with a frown:

"Alchemical items made from the mind and spirit, involving the field of Advanced Psychic Alchemy. That's not easy to come by. Shard, how much do you need?"

"Two dozen lans (approximately 3.5 grams) of crystals, one lan each. The spell requires two small crystals."

The peculiar crystals were not dense, a lan was about the size of a grain of rice.

The doctor pondered and then mused out loud:

"This is difficult. The Academy does have these materials, but they are very expensive, around 500 pounds, which is almost the price of an ordinary Scribe Level Relic. So, if you aren't in a hurry, I wouldn't recommend buying from the Academy. But if you want to purchase from the black market, it's not guaranteed you'll find a seller by the end of the year. However, I could make some; I've studied Advanced Psychic Alchemy."

"Is it troublesome?"

Shard asked.

"Yes, the trouble is finding the raw material. That is, a subject capable of producing Mind Crystals."

"What characteristics are needed?"

Shard took out his notebook, ready to jot down notes.

Dr. Schneider listed with his fingers, Shard noting a stain of blue ink on his index finger:

"A strong mind from which to extract the Mind Crystals. Rich imagination to explore his dreams. An unstable mind and spirit, for only such a person can produce crystals... Those are the criteria for now, if you find a candidate, I'll need to conduct further examinations."

"So we're looking for a mad artist with strong spiritual power... Should I try my luck at the Draleon Art Academy?"

Shard summarised.

"It's not that simple,"

the doctor waved his hand:

"If you go looking, you won't recognize them even if you find them. I'll visit the mental hospitals around Tobesk over the weekend; if there's any news, I'll inform you. If not, I'll spend two weeks on an investigation. If I still find nothing, then you'll have to pay the Academy. But I can't do this job for free."

"No problem, how much do you need, doctor?"

Shard was not one to take advantage of his friends.

"The cost of materials for the ritual and alchemy isn't much, just 30 pounds. But the labor cost... let's do it this way, Shard. You pay the 30 pounds for materials, and aside from that, I heard from Priest Augustus that you have smuggling connections in Coldwater Port. I happen to need some New World Ritual Materials to assist my Six Rings Ascension Ceremony. I'll write you a list, and you help me get these things. I'll pay for this batch of materials, and your labor cost will offset the labor cost for creating the Mind Crystals."

Meaning, Shard only needed to pay 30 pounds.

"No problem, doctor."

"That's good."

The blue-eyed doctor nodded and then asked curiously:

"But, what Arcane Technique are you trying to learn?"

"Psychic Shockwave. I have prepared all the learning materials. Now I'm just missing the Spellcasting Materials."

"Psychic Shockwave, eh? The most primal of psychic attack abilities, not bad, it'll give you another means of dealing with adversaries."

Only then did Shard realize that this ability would be his third purely offensive active skill after "Moonlight Slash" and "Moonlight Greatsword".

"Well, in that case, I have some notes here you can take back with you. They cover tips for using psychic powers, they might be of help to you."

The doctor stood up, pulled a book from the shelf, and handed it to Shard. Within their group, borrowing notes was a courtesy that didn't cost anything.

```

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In the next two days, Shard didn't go on any more adventurous activities. The rest of Thursday was spent at Professor Manning's office, although Shard was reluctant to bring Mia along to visit the professor, he couldn't leave Mia at home while it was under construction.

The professor still remembered his archaeological experiences in Hercules Town decades ago, and after receiving the photos of Old Mrs. Ilal from Shard, he excitedly pulled Shard into storytelling until noon, even inviting Shard to have lunch at his home.

Although Professor Manning had strange ideas about cats, his archaeological skills were absolutely top-notch, and so was his storytelling ability, which captivated Shard.

In the afternoon, hearing that Shard didn't have much to do today, Professor Manning took him to tour the archaeology department of the Draleon Royal Academy where he worked.

Though it was still summer, it was hard to see anyone wearing short sleeves in such a serious place as the academy. And even though women had the right to education decades ago, female students were scarce in the academy.

Walking on the stone paths of the academy, dappled light filtered through gaps in the leaves overhead. Watching the young people and scholars, clutching books and engaging in discussions as they walked, Shard wore a smile on his face; he liked this atmosphere a lot.

It's a pity that he didn't have time to be a proper student in this era. If this world had no real mysticism, just an ordinary world, he would have been quite willing, like Professor Manning, to spend the rest of his life in school.

Professor Manning had his own private office, and a group of students awaiting graduation worked under him. He eagerly showed Shard the artifacts he had collected from the archaeological excavations in Hercules Town over a decade ago, and then summoned his students to bring even more piled-up relics related to the eastern ruins of Hercules Town from the storeroom.

Although the professor's team did not discover the underground temple at the time, they had confirmed that the ruins were built by the worshippers of the Old God, the Earth-shaking Worm.

Talking about his field of expertise and seeing Shard's interest, Professor Manning began to talk at length. He sat behind his desk by the square window, tipping his chair back and speaking to Shard, who was sitting by the short side of the desk. Behind the professor, the windowsill was adorned with some potted plants, while his students could only stand behind Shard, listening to their teacher's story.

The professor spoke for an hour, and Shard was impressed that the students behind him could all endure it. After all, even the orange cat on his lap got bored and flipped over at least 23 times during that period.

Shard's attention was not only on the cat. He also observed the flowerpots behind Professor Manning, the drafts of theses piled on the professor's desk awaiting correction, and the documentation materials almost overflowing behind the glass doors of the bookcase on the east wall.

Professor Manning's office was not dirty but rather cluttered; all kinds of files and artifacts were placed in every visible corner. The boxes stacked on top of the bookcases seemed like they might all fall down at any moment. And yet, it wasn't too chaotic. Upon closer inspection, Shard felt that this simple disorganization, coupled with some decoration styles from older times, fit the ambiance of a busy scholar's office.

"Maybe I should also refurbish the second floor to make myself look more professional."

Shard thought.

Professor Manning continued unabatedly to explain to Shard the connections between the Old God, the Earth-shaking Worm, and the Old God, the Earthly Giant Serpent, along with the mythological system described by the True God Church, linking it to the True God, the Lantern Bearer, also known as the Sun and Earth God.

"In fact, there are quite a few deities related to the land, but each deity focuses on different aspects," said the professor, holding a teacup.

"The True God Church is very secretive about it, but there is a theory that suggests all powers of deities related to the Earth come from a more ancient Earth Goddess."

"Professor!"

Shard hurriedly stopped Professor Manning from continuing, although the True God Church may appear as a positive figure, the Religious Tribunal is not something of legends; it exists for real.

Professor Manning laughed and shook his head:

"When it comes to something I'm interested in, I often can't control my tongue. Shard, just pretend you didn't hear anything."

"Of course."

"What about you guys?"

```

The professor changed his tone and, with a very serious voice, asked the young people behind Shard, who unanimously replied:

"We did not hear anything."

It seemed like this was not the first time such an incident had occurred.

"But why do we not consider that the True God, the Lantern Bearer, has divided His authority among other Old Gods related to the Earth and the Sun? The True God is stronger than the Old Gods, so this conjecture is also possible."

Miss Aphrola on the train had mentioned the relationship between Ancient Gods and Old Gods, so with renewed curiosity, Shard asked another question, suggesting another speculation. Professor Manning laughed a little:

"If it were the True Gods who had granted powers to the Old Gods, then the True God Church would certainly mention it, to demonstrate the greatness of the deity they worship. But I can tell you for certain, Shard, that not a single book in the Church of the Five Gods mentions the Old Gods' powers as stemming from the True God. Actually, the church's documents place Them on an equal footing with the True Gods when discussing the Old Gods."

Shard nodded his head in understanding, not continuing to ask. Continuing to question would have led them into sensitive topics again.

However, if the powers of the Old Gods did not come from themselves but were indeed obtained from somewhere else, then it is highly likely that all the Old Gods related to the Earth, and even the powers of the Earth held by the True God Lantern Bearer, came from the Ancient God associated with the Earth, the Earth Mother Goddess.

The Ancient Gods were confirmed to be the earliest deities.

"When the Box of Darkness went out of control, it seemed like a voice said the Old Gods were thieves..."

Shard pondered in his heart.

It seemed discussing religion and history with ordinary people could be of great help to him. Shard thought that he could have more exchanges with Professor Manning in the future. Of course, it would be better if Mia kept her distance from him.

Most of Professor Manning's students were young people of about the same physical age as Shard. When the professor introduced Shard to them, they immediately recognized him as the rumored "Rejed's Hamilton."

So although Shard could only be considered 'illiterate' compared to them, he still received the respect of the crowd. Before Shard left the academy that evening, he even exchanged name cards with the professor's students.

Most of them had name cards since those who could study archaeology at the Advanced Academy generally did not come from ordinary families. Shard had been thinking about further expanding his detective business recently — he wanted to attract more clients to come to him instead of having to stumble upon cases — so it was necessary to make more acquaintances.

Only, what troubled him the most was that the spread of his reputation as Rejed's Hamilton seemed to be synchronous with the rumors about his relationship with Miss Galina.

Although the professor's students didn't mention Miss Galina, when Shard was chatting with the professor and mentioned that he had recently acquired a large sum of money from the Duchess, hence wanting to obtain an honorary degree, there was still a choking cough from behind.

[So, what bothers you? Is it that you've gotten a bad reputation, or that you've gotten one without having done anything at all?]

"Is there a difference?"

[Outlander, of course you understand the difference.]

Shard did not respond to this question, and taking the cat, who had slept all afternoon and now was looking forward to dinner, along the stone pavement of the Draleon Royal Academy, he arrived at the main street.

The sunset was faintly visible on the horizon, making it appear as though twilight had just fallen. Carriages passed from his left to his right, groups of students walked past behind him. The man in a hurry clutching a briefcase who brushed past looked like he was on his way to an appointment. And two bare-armed workers were squatting under a street gas lamp on the side of the road, appearing to be repairing a problem with the underground gas pipelines.

Within this rapidly changing scene, it seemed only Shard was strolling along the street, not in the slightest hurry with time.

He had his hands in his pockets, kicked a pebble to the side out of boredom, then petted the cat before contemplating how to settle dinner, walking leisurely towards the direction of the setting sun.

Before there was news from Daknis, he had plenty of time to manage his life in this era of the steam wave.