Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 668 - 【Travelers Gate】
Chapter 668: Chapter 668: 【Traveler’s Gate】
Chapter 668: Chapter 668: 【Traveler’s Gate】
After having lunch with Luviya, Shard had originally planned to take Mia for a stroll to the House of the Blind, perhaps even encountering Sister Delphine. However, shortly after lunch, Tifa unexpectedly arrived at Saint Delan Square to take Shard to the witch’s estate outside the city for a visit.
Miss Galina had nothing particularly important for Shard, she merely wanted to discuss the Stone Figurine with fragments of “Whispering Verses” that had been recovered recently.
At the same time, she also learned that her student Iluna would temporarily leave Tobesk, hence she cautioned Shard to be particularly careful in his recent movements in Midshire Fort. The church had dispatched the only The Chosen One to that city, indicating that there might be significant changes in the situation at Midshire Fort soon.
In any case, Shard didn’t leave Tobesk on that Friday. And since there was a meeting scheduled for Saturday afternoon, he had no plans to go to Midshire Fort then either.
But after the weekly study meeting on Saturday afternoon ended, Shard asked Dorothy, who had been waiting for him, to leave first, while he stayed behind for a private conversation with the doctor. The doctor had borrowed a Relic from friends in the city that could allow him to perform short-term Spatial Movement.
“Look at this!”
Perhaps because of the matters concerning demons, the doctor was very excited and showed Shard a door located in the bedroom on the third floor of his clinic.
It was a Relic, the door frame and door panel were made of thick brown wood that looked quite ancient; the left and right sides of the frame were set into metal bases, while the handle and the lock on the door appeared to be made of the same metal as the base. In addition, a black key was inserted into the lock.
The metal base was adorned with intricate patterns that resembled a schematic diagram of steam pipes, while the wooden door frame was decorated with vine-like stripes, as if there were long, intertwined worm corpses inside the wood. The door panel was decorated with clusters of intricate flowers centering around a two-faced man, each face turned to the left and right respectively.
The top of the door frame bore a line of ancient scripts, which translated to something quite intriguing:
“Behind the door, the journey is decided by the key.”
“Scribe Level (Level 4) Relic, ‘Traveler’s Traveler’s Gate.’
Without needing Shard to ask, the doctor began to explain.
“You take the key.”
The doctor took the key from the door and handed it to Shard, the black metal of the key felt unusually cold to the touch.
“Now, turn your back and make sure you can’t see the door.”
Shard turned around as the doctor had instructed.
“Imagine the door, yes, be precise, and then picture yourself inserting the key into the lock in your imagination.”
Concentrating a vivid image was known as meditation, and was a fundamental part of being a Circle Sorcerer, so it was simple for Shard.
He extended his right hand forward, the key piercing the air. Since there was a maid cleaning the house, Shard had also brought Mia out; the cat curiously watched Shard’s actions.
“Now turn the key, remember, don’t make a mistake. Turn it clockwise three times, then counterclockwise once. After turning, release the key immediately.”
Shard continued to visualize the door, then proceeded to turn the key as instructed. In the process of turning it clockwise three times, unless Shard’s arm could twist into a pretzel, he had to let go of the key to continue turning. But when he released the key, it stayed suspended in mid-air, as if truly lodged into a lock.
Simultaneously, Shard could sense the alteration in the Whisper Element within the space as the Relic Properties activated. Owning a Core Spirit Rune of Space-Time, he was highly sensitive to any abnormalities in space.
After turning three times clockwise and once counterclockwise, Shard immediately let go of the key. Centered on the key, the door that should have been behind him appeared bit by bit within three seconds, as if invisible hands were piecing together a puzzle in space.
“Shard, step back a bit. Oh, remember, don’t turn around,” the doctor warned anxiously, following which Shard heard the sound of a door opening behind him.
At the same time, the door in front of him opened automatically, the doctor stepped out from inside it. Shard even saw his own back through the door behind the doctor, the two doors actually achieved spatial integration.
“Look.”
Stepping out of the door in front of him, the doctor smiled and said:
“This method can be used for Spatial Movement, only one person can pass through the door at a time, and you must return within 3 minutes and 12 seconds.”
Only then did Shard notice the doctor was holding a pocket watch.
“The door will disappear only when I return or when time is up. During this period, the key cannot be removed, and the door cannot be destroyed or moved by non-spatial forces. Also, I cannot leave a radius of about 10 feet (approximately 3 meters) from the key. If I reach the boundary, I’ll walk out through the door again.”
“What happens if the time exceeds? Will it return automatically?”
“Of course not, it will maintain the same elevation but randomly appear at any location in the physical world,” the doctor explained as he turned and retreated back through the door. And as the sound of the door closing behind resounded, the door in front of Shard vanished as if erased by an eraser, and the key clanged onto the floor.
“Two scenarios can cause the Relic to go out of control, one is if the user uses the key while looking at the door itself, the other is if the key is inserted into the door and turned three times clockwise, then once counterclockwise.”
“What happens then? Being Poet-Level, the consequences of losing control must be severe, right?”
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Shard asked curiously.
“It will summon some terrifying things that live in the cracks between spaces. It’s similar to the frequent use of your Arcane Technique ‘Lagre’s Leap’, but much more terrifying. Besides, every time the door is opened and crossed, according to Saint Byrons’ research which contained it, there is about a 0.2% chance of being torn apart by a spatial storm. But considering the probability of being hit and killed by a carriage on the street is about the same, you needn’t worry about that.”
Dr. Schneider shook his head, letting Shard pick up the key:
“This Relic cannot be used in areas with spatial anomalies, as it would cause a spatial rift, such as in the Dark Realm, you cannot use this Relic. Also, this door cannot be used frequently, once an hour is the limit. Other than that, the containment conditions are simple, just insert the key in the lock when not in use, and under no circumstances should the key be away from the lock for more than 8 hours, nor should the key itself cross through this door.”
The final restriction determined that the door’s utility is not very significant. One must possess Spatial Power, be able to return the key within eight hours, and only then can the key be taken far away, but since possessing Spatial Leap powers, the hassle of opening a door for a single person for just three minutes seems hardly significant.
“Can this be used for smuggling?”
Shard asked again, curiously.
“Yes, but the door cannot carry special items through, nor can it transport items exceeding the weight of the user.”
Thus, as useful as this door seems, it’s only rated as ‘Scribe Level (4)’, which makes sense.
“Shard, when do you plan to go to Midshire Fort to deal with that demon? Tell me the exact time, and I’ll prepare here. You only have 3 minutes and 12 seconds, which seems sufficient to me, but we should prepare in advance.”
“Let me think… Dorothy is giving me a lesson tonight, I need to open a Time Key tomorrow morning, and I have to visit a Diviner who can predict death at Midshire Fort in the morning, so I’ll only have time to come back for the key in the afternoon… How about seven o’clock in the evening?”
“Are you that busy?”
Dr. Schneider asked curiously, but seeing that Shard did not reply, he didn’t think much of it:
“The key should not be away from the lock for more than 8 hours, or something will come out from behind the door, plus the time you return the key… For safety, come for the key after three o’clock tomorrow afternoon.”
“No problem.”
Shard nodded, hesitated for a moment, and then asked:
“Doctor, does the Correspondence Group at Zaras Literary Academy intend to sell this door?”
“Are you interested in this?”
Dr. Schneider asked, and Shard nodded again:
“This door has Spatial Power, which might help me better utilize the ‘Space-Time’ Spirit Rune.”
More importantly, whether in Coldwater Port or in Midshire Fort, he always acted alone. He could find some Aiders locally, but they were not as close as Iluna or Luviya.
Although the door could only be opened for 3 minutes and 12 seconds, sometimes half a minute could make a big impact.
“They are indeed willing to sell, especially since not being able to leave the lock for more than 8 hours by itself is a ridiculous restriction. Moreover, the short usage time and distance restrictions after opening significantly diminish the value of this Relic. But I have heard that they only wish to trade Relic for Relic, not accepting other transactions.”
“I see.”
Shard actually owned several Relics, including the ‘God’s Gift Box’ of Sage Level, ‘The Twenty-sided Die of Destiny’ of Keeper of Secrets Level, ‘Spear of Kindness’ of Scribe Level, ‘Soul Fishing Rod’ of Scribe Level and papers of Poet-Level, three rings ‘Demon Hunting Seal’, ‘Transmutation Ring’, and ‘Fish Training Ring’ which he had to keep, while Blood Coin and Standing Coin were certainly not for sale.
Only the ‘Ever-Youth Leaf’ of Poet-Level and ‘Corpse-Hiding Mirror’ of Scribe Level could be considered for selling, and the other party might accept them. He had two pieces of the former, and could foresee getting more in the future; the latter, with its trait of hiding things within the mirror, was very useful, but not essential for Shard, as its absence wouldn’t affect his combat abilities.
“I actually have so many Relics.”
Realizing this, Shard was surprised himself. After all, except for the fishing rod and the Standing Coin, all the other Relics were acquired without spending money, so he wasn’t aware that he had such valuable items.
“Well then, Doctor, would you please contact them for me?”
In front of the doctor’s desk, he wrote down the specific information about the ‘Ever-Youth Leaf’ and ‘Corpse-Hiding Mirror’:
“Ask them which of these two Relics they would accept. If it’s the ‘Ever-Youth Leaf’, they need to add money.”
The ‘Ever-Youth Leaf’, although only Poet-Level, is very expensive due to its unique trait.
If it’s the Corpse-Hiding Mirror, he preferred a direct exchange. If the party had other conditions, they could meet to discuss.”
A secret mission of the Grey Eagle had made Shard quite wealthy – that 200 Krone, as well as the 1000 pounds he had yet to collect, gave Shard strong confidence in negotiating. The difference in value between that door and his Mirror should not be large, and he was completely willing to accept anything within 100 pounds.
Dr. Schneider nodded:
“Wait for my good news then. The other party is an acquaintance of mine, I will handle this deal and surely won’t let you suffer a loss. It’s already afternoon, so it might not be possible to find anyone. I’ll inquire for you tomorrow morning, and by the time you come here for the key in the afternoon, the deal might already be settled.”
