Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Of course, the Arcane Technique "Blade of Chaotic Time" also has its drawbacks.

Firstly, the Arcane Technique doesn't increase the power of the attack itself. If Shard's initial attack hits the target but doesn't break through the defense, the second strike within three seconds would also fail to penetrate the defense.

Or, when facing an opponent who is extremely skilled at blocking, if the first strike is blocked, it's very likely that the second strike within the three seconds will be blocked as well.

Secondly, time empowers the spellcasting medium wielded in hand, thus the use of the Arcane Technique requires a specific weapon with a "blade" property. Ordinary alchemical items would likely shatter after a single use, while Relics, Shard could only think of the "Cloth Sword" held by Miss Beyas at the moment.

However, he soon realized that the sword seemed to lack an edge and did not meet the requirements of the Arcane Technique.

Weapons that can serve as Relics are usually extremely precious, and those from the cold weapons category are even rarer. So even though Shard now had a few hundred Gold pounds at hand, it would be wiser to spend the money on acquiring Arcane Techniques or Sorcery.

Crafting techniques and Sorcery that can create blades are, relatively speaking, not uncommon. Of course, "Silvermoon Slash" does not meet the criteria—it is not an Arcane Technique that forms a weapon... Considering its combination with "Blade of Chaotic Time," Shard suddenly realized the "Witch's Reproduction Paper" might come in handy after all.

He then used the second leaf, likewise holding it up before his right eye. This time, as the icy current flowed into his brain, the Ring of Fate on his back spontaneously emerged amid the sound of bells and steam whistles, and then began to spin rapidly.

As the steam bathed the room in warmth, a golden halo representing the Miracle Element appeared above the Ring of Fate. The whole process lasted at least five minutes, and as the spinning of the Ring of Fate slowed down, the golden halos gathered on the surface of the ring and finally condensed into a golden Spirit Rune—[Whisper].

"Oh!"

The blonde girl, holding a teacup in her hands, quietly marveled at the scene, which was a rare sight indeed. The cat that Shard had placed on his lap, curious, looked up at the Ring of Fate, its amber eyes reflecting the golden halos. And it seemed that a trace of the miraculous luster truly imprinted itself in the cat's eyes.

"Now, just the last of the four distinct Spirit Runes, [Whisper], remains."

Shard's expression was extremely excited; he casually placed the two leaves on the coffee table in front of him and picked up the curious orange cat that wanted to fiddle with the leaves.

Miss Luisa, too, was happy for Shard:

"That's great. If you get a chance to look at the Sublimation Codex on Saturday, with the current rate of almost one rune a week, it's possible you could advance from the First Ring to the Second Ring within a month of your official appointment. It seems there hasn't been such speed in the last several centuries."

"So regarding [Whisper], Miss Luisa, do you have any advice?"

Shard asked for guidance.

The female writer pondered for a bit:

"Just as the doctor once said, Circle Sorcerers have limited energy. Even though each Ring has at least four Runes, it's impossible to study each Spirit Rune in detail. The usual approach is to define one's Circle Sorcery system and associate any unrelated Spirit Runes with one Arcane Technique.

For instance, my Low Fourth Ring is focused on the Matchstick Girl as my primary research subject, while the doctor's revolves around abilities related to the mind and dreams."

Miss Luisa sized up the young Detective:

"Shard, if I were to advise you, your core Runes, whether it's [Silvermoon] or [Space-Time], both have tremendous potential. Focusing your research on just one of these would be enough to support your entire system."

She was right. Just the current [Silvermoon] alone had already shown immense versatility in attack, healing, Illusion Technique, Exorcism, and more. The [Space-Time] Rune, even more so, held boundless potential. Therefore, Shard's system was actually quite simple to choose—progress equally with [Silvermoon] and [Space-Time].

"That makes sense, so you're saying I just need to learn a corresponding Arcane Technique for the [Whisper] Spirit Rune?"

"You could learn none, or even two—it's all permissible. The point of learning one is to understand the power you have mastered while expanding beyond your core system to prevent being at a loss when faced with situations your favorite Arcane Techniques can't overcome."

The female writer explained; having declared her intent to be Shard's mentor, she wouldn't hide anything from him. Besides, aside from the opportunity to study the Matchstick Girl, Miss Luisa truly thought teaching someone like Shard would be very interesting.

After all, it was events like what happened today that ordinary Circle Sorcerers couldn't even imagine in their lifetimes.

Once he made sure the cat wouldn't interfere, Shard reached out and picked up the two leaves from the table. After thinking for a moment, he handed one of the leaves to Miss Luisa.

She expected what he intended to do as he reached for the leaf, but in the interest of decorum, said nothing. Only when Shard passed her the leaf did she think to put down the teacup and start to refuse, but Shard preempted her:

"Miss Luisa, could you keep this safe for me?"

"What?"

The blonde was genuinely surprised by his request.

"I think the effects of the Ever-Youth Leaf probably can't be stacked, so carrying one leaf is enough for me."

He shook the vibrant green leaf in his hand, attracting the cat's gaze, which looked ready to pounce and swipe at it. And it was in the midst of this shaking that Shard noticed that when the leaf was held up to the light, its veins seemed to form a series of vine-like words, which read:

[The Tree of Immortality, the Immortal Man.]

"Since carrying one leaf is enough, wouldn't it be wasteful to hide the other?"

He inquired.

"But you could exchange it for Gold Pounds."

Miss Luisa took the leaf from Shard's hands, a somewhat embarrassed expression on her face.

"I just bought a new Time Key from Old John, and now I'm off to sell the 'Ever-Youth Leaf.' Though the chances are slim, I can't help but worry he might suspect something."

There were no records indicating that the rewards from activating the 'Time Key' would yield such a thing. But ever since last week's conversation about "civilization," Shard had come to view Old Man John as a rather magical old gentleman, so it was possible he might know something about it.

"Besides, I'm not exactly short of money right now, so you can hold onto this leaf for me for the time being. When I need it, I'll naturally take it back."

Miss Luisa looked at Shard, her cheeks blushing slightly, but she did not return the leaf to him:

"It looks like I'm taking advantage of you."

"It's nothing, I'm not giving it to you."

Shard shook his head indifferently, reasoning that since he planned to follow Miss Luisa to advance in Enlightenment Elements, it was of course a good thing to somewhat close the gap between them. Besides, as he said, it was a loan, not a gift; he had lost nothing.

"Alright then, I'll... hold onto it for you for now. Whenever you need it, just come to me. This Saturday, I think I should teach you something really practical. I'm not one to take advantage without payback... Have you made some more money recently?"

The blonde girl asked curiously, her right thumb and forefinger twiddling the stem of the leaf.

"Of course, this morning alone I got 300 pounds, and there's still a reward waiting for me once I find the missing children... Oh, Miss Luisa, you probably don't know about yesterday. Have you read the papers? The developments in the case of the children's continuous disappearance, and the attempt on Queen Diana's life..."

Shard recounted his extraordinary experiences from the previous day in detail and sighed at the end that 'The Twenty-Sided Die of Destiny' was indeed not something to be trifled with. His first use led him directly to an Evil God and his second, to getting shot in the dark:

"I dare not tamper with fate so carelessly anymore."

The words he didn't say in the street yesterday, he could now freely speak in front of Miss Luisa.

"Was it you who saved m... Queen Diana?"

The title she was about to blurt out was definitely not that. Shard watched her suspiciously, only to find Miss Luisa suddenly stand up, as if to embrace him, but then she quickly sat down again, her emotions completely out of control in that instant:

"It was you."

When Shard had handed her the 'Ever-Youth Leaf' a moment ago, she had not been this excited. The female writer put down the leaf in her hand, her face flushing red, but she had the look of someone not knowing quite what to say.

Only after a while did she regain her composure:

"If only Lecia was in Tobesk, with her here, along with your boss and Miss Galina, you might have gotten a even better reward. Unfortunately, she only finished her visit to Carsonrick this week and is taking a ship back to the country, and she still has to stay at Coldwater Port for a while."

Biting her lip, she looked at Shard hesitantly:

"Detective, let me thank you on behalf of Lecia. I think she definitely won't hold it against you anymore for the few sheets of paper with 'Matchstick Girl' written on them being burned."

Watching the blonde girl's behavior, Shard suddenly had a strange premonition:
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"Miss Luisa's relationship with Princess Lecia Cavendish goes beyond mere friendship."

"Then what could it be?"

She whispered it into his ear, while Miss Luisa across from him continued to express thanks in place of the distant princess:

"I'm not sure for the moment, but it's definitely not just any ordinary friendship."

To express her gratitude, Miss Luisa invited Shard and the cat for lunch. It wasn't at a restaurant outside, but a meal cooked by the solitary single lady herself. She believed that this was the only way to show her appreciation.

Shard didn't quite grasp whether the lunch was to thank him for the leaf or for the matter with Queen Diana.

Even without any preparations, Miss Luisa managed to cook a pretty good lunch from the food she had at home. Although the Outlander was still struggling to adapt to the diet of this world so much like the Victorian Era, he couldn't deny that Miss Luisa was a very good cook.

The cat thought so too.

After lunch, Miss Luisa wanted to talk with Shard about yesterday's events. But since Priest Augustus had scheduled a meeting with Shard at the Dawn Chapel, and Shard didn't want to break the appointment, he had to take his leave after lunch.

Miss Luisa escorted Shard downstairs, and as she waved goodbye at the door, the beautiful girl's blonde hair, smiling with a hint of light, seemed to glisten in the summer sunshine.

Under the street trees, sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting mottled shadows on the ground, which trembled with the breeze, while the leaves rustled softly.

Despite the misty haze, the height of summer had arrived in Tobesk.