Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 1004: Water and Fire

Taking advantage of the time today, Shard and Lecia went out together, with their first stop being Old John’s pawnshop. Not only did he spend over 100 gold pounds to order a sufficiently strong alchemical crossbow from the old man, but he also purchased materials needed for the "Water of Moonlight" and "Sunfire" rituals.

Although it might be cheaper to buy at Coldwater Port, Shard wasn’t in the mood to wait.

He decided to set up the ritual in his attic, where the windows allowed both the noonday sunshine and moonlight to shine directly onto the ritual circle. Since the positions of moonlight and sunlight vary by season, to prevent himself from making a mistake, Shard went with Lecia to find Luviya.

The girl with purple eyes was skilled in astrology, and upon learning that Shard needed help, she took leave to follow him back to No. 6, Saint Delan Square.

Shard and Lecia assembled the main structure of the ritual, while Luviya used the astrological equipment on the third floor to calculate the best position in the attic.

Eventually, Shard brought in a wooden round table, and using a file, Luviya carved a star map into the dark brown tabletop, then filled the depressions with silver powder, and finally poured in mercury. After processing it with a special technique, the entire tabletop presented an unusual silvery beauty; at two symmetrical positions on the round table, circled areas outlined in mercury were arranged for rituals related to the Sun and Moon.

This made the entire tabletop look more like the back of a Roder Card. However, the "Sun, Moon, and Stars" pattern on the back of a Roder Card is actually a kind of advanced astrological ritual in itself.

With the ritual arranged, it was eleven thirty in the morning. Luviya adjusted the table’s position again, ensuring that sunlight and moonlight in this season could both illuminate the tabletop through the window. Next, Shard only needed to order a custom-made rotating wooden table and then connect the ritual-arranged tabletop to the surface of the rotating table.

In this way, in different seasons, he only needed to rotate the table angle to adapt to the positions of the Sun and Moon at noon and midnight.

As time approached noon on Sunday, the three eagerly awaited the effects of the ritual in the attic. ƒreewebɳovel.com

As Shard’s "Time Perception" precisely captured the moment of noon, a faint spark actually appeared in the transparent crystal bead at the center of the ritual circle representing the "Sunfire" ritual.

The "Water of Moonlight" is stored using a crystal container, while the "Sunfire" is stored in a crystal bead. Both can store up to a week’s amount, as long as Shard remembers to collect it once a week.

The "Water of Moonlight" is liquid and can be stored long-term in a larger capacity crystal container. Meanwhile, "Sunfire" is actually flame and can’t be stored in a regular container, so Shard stored it in an old-fashioned lantern Sister Delphine had given him, which could preserve the kindling flame (Chapter 831).

The nun doesn’t just need firewood for the primal fire; she also needs "Unholy Fire" for the primal fire to devour.

The sky was shrouded in gray fog, and the cloud cover reduced the sunlight, so the "Sunfire" generated at noon was just a very weak spark. This faint spark reacted with the "Fire of the Primordial" within Shard. Clearly, just like the "Flame Demon’s Fire," it could also be devoured by the primal fire. However, because there was currently only a tiny spark, Shard didn’t hand it over to Sister Delphine.

"Devouring flames, as long as not burned to death, can elevate one’s abilities related to fire; igniting a bonfire can repel undead and evil wraiths within a certain range; attaching it to a weapon can give the weapon attributes like ’Holy,’ ’Fire,’ ’Bane of Evil,’ and so on, for a certain period of time."

Shard explained the functions of the spark with a smile to the two girls while holding up the old-fashioned lantern. Of course, the premise for these effects is that the flame must be substantial.

So, although these two new rituals are very important to Shard, at the moment, they can’t play a significant role.

Fortunately, the Outlander quite understands the meaning of "accumulating little by little," and is happy to wait for the harvest. Although it gives him a feeling as if he’s "growing vegetables" in the attic and "harvesting" from time to time, it’s a very pleasing kind of waiting.

To thank the two girls for their help, the three of them had lunch together at Silver Cross Avenue. Even though the Outlander’s Great Sin made their relationship quite delicate, Lecia and Luviya behaved normally during lunch.

After lunch, Luviya returned to work, while the blonde girl accompanied Shard to handle matters in the city, leisurely enjoying wintertime in the "City of Steam," the "Northern Pearl," without having to worry about their livelihood and work.

By evening, they had dinner outside with the cat, and then took a stroll through the scenic University District around seven o’clock, after which Shard walked Lecia back to Feather Quill Avenue.

This beautiful day left Her Highness the Princess thoroughly satisfied:

"Taking some time to relax like this occasionally is really nice."

She embraced Shard downstairs at Dorothy’s rented apartment building, and Shard noticed the landlady upstairs on the second floor was looking at them with disapproval.

"Tomorrow night, at the Opera House, be sure not to forget."

The Princess whispered in Shard’s ear and then pushed him with a smile, causing him to stumble down the steps:

"See you tomorrow, Knight."

She seemed to want to end the perfect day with a kiss, but Lecia also noticed the landlady watching on the second floor. For Dorothy’s reputation, she finally just placed her gloved right index finger on her red lips, then sent Shard a blown kiss.

The apartment Dorothy rented was only available to single women. Every time Shard entered, the landlady would question him. Dorothy had mentioned that the landlady was warm but old-fashioned and cared deeply about the tenants’ personal morality. Even Lecia had some "fear" of that enthusiastic lady.

Returning home in good spirits, the diligent Outlander did not go to bed early to prepare for Monday. Instead, he sat by the fireplace reading until midnight.

Staying up late wasn’t for better revision; Shard was pondering what exactly the "Water of Moonlight" was.

At midnight, Shard, dressed in pajamas and holding a lively cat from the evening, climbed up to the attic. The attic lights were off, but the bright moonlight streaming through the window illuminated the round table. The starlight caused the astrological ritual that Luviya had meticulously arranged to glow faintly. Also emitting light was the weak flame in the old-style lantern and the silver spiritual light generated by the moon ritual.

That scene was exceptionally quiet and visually impactful, so much so that Shard paused for a moment before approaching the table.

At the center of the ritual, the bottom of the transparent crystal bottle already had a thin layer of silver liquid, though the amount was very small. In the darkness, the "Moonlight" glowed faintly, with a texture very much like mercury, yet undeniably beautiful.

"Almost half an ounce (0.5dr ≈ 1.8ml). In today’s lunar phase, March tends towards a full moon, so the quantity was slightly more."

Shard calculated in his mind, considering only the volume, not the Gold Pounds. He had no intention of selling the "Water of Moonlight" or the "Sunfire" to anyone. He was quite pleased to store these precious substances, even if he did not use them himself.

"Meow~"

Mia nimbly jumped onto the table adorned with glowing stellar patterns, timidly withdrawing her head, at times gazing at the sparks in the old-style lantern, and at times the liquid at the bottom of the bottle in Shard’s hand, with eyes full of eagerness to try.

"How should such precious liquid be used?"

Shard pondered, looked out the window at the moon, and thought about his sealed Spirit Rune. Carefully, he uncorked the crystal stopper and directly poured the liquid into his mouth.

"Oh~"

Though the quantity was very small, the invigorating sensation immediately swept through his body. The comfort at that moment made him moan, prompting the cat on the table to widen her eyes, meowing a bit anxiously yet obediently.

The taste of the liquid was hard to describe. If forced to find adjectives, Shard could only use "soft" and "cool," both non-flavor-related words, to describe it. Drinking it felt wonderful, as if he was truly bathed in moonlight, absorbing the moon’s power.

He lifted his left hand, allowing it to emit a faint silver moonlight, vaguely sensing a deeper connection to the power of [Silvermoon].

"Regular consumption would undoubtedly greatly enhance all my moon-related powers."

Shard marveled inwardly, and "She" beside his ear prompted:

[The power of the Red Moon remains sealed, but if you can consume approximately 90 to 120 times the amount at once, there is a probability of unsealing the Spirit Rune.]

"About three to four months, right?"

Though the time seemed lengthy, at least there was hope, which put Shard in an even better mood. And more than 100 times the previous amount was still under 200 milliliters. Shard felt if he completed that, he might experience truly "melting" into the moon.

"I don’t have much now; I’ll let you try some once I’ve accumulated a bit more. As for fire, Sister Delphine and Iluna probably both need it, so I can’t give it to you. Also, good cats shouldn’t play with fire."

Placing the expensive crystal bottle back into the center of the Ritual Circle, Shard picked up Mia and said with a smile. Since this cat had once absorbed a trace of divine power, drinking such a special liquid should be fine.

The cat seemed to understand Shard’s words, obediently meowed again, then rested its fluffy little head against Shard’s pajama-covered chest.

Comparing the rewards given by previous Time Key tasks, though there was no Arcane Technique this time, the two rituals were quite useful. Gazing at the moon outside the window, Shard couldn’t help but wonder what rewards the [Father of the Infinite Tree] would offer in the future.

This Ancient God’s bestowed powers were not limited to "trees" and "time," and the powers given to Shard were always exactly what he needed.

"What kind of story will the next key bring?"

Holding the cat, he prepared to rest. The first day of the last month of Common Era Calendar 1853 officially ended, making this Sunday perfect for Shard.

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