Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Since Baron Lavende had agreed to reimburse the travel expenses, Shard didn\'t need to leave too early.

He spent the morning playing with the orange cat and reading, of course, while he waited for clients to show up. Mia was the most well-behaved pet Shard could imagine, and she had adapted well to life at No. 6 Saint Delan Square, so Shard was very comfortable leaving her at home.

After lunch, believing he wouldn\'t be lucky enough to have a client show up, he went out again and headed to Old John\'s Pawnshop.

The address Miss Luisa had provided was indeed that shop not far from the Silver Parrot Milk Delivery Company. As Shard pushed open the door, the old man sitting in the rocking chair, who had been dozing, immediately perked up:

"Oh, a familiar face. I certainly won\'t be dealing with that cane again..."

He stood up to welcome the detective. Shard spoke softly,

"Let\'s leave the matter of the cane aside, this time I\'m interested in... some intriguing items."

He surveyed the cramped shop, where walls covered in bronze-toned wallpaper allowed the feeble gas light to shine as brightly as possible. Gas pipes climbed the walls, intermittently hanging with items like broken carriage lamps, and longswords that only had their hilts.

Most of the shop was filled with wooden shelves, on which items that appeared to be junk were displayed. Shard couldn\'t understand the sense in displaying Roder cards with ordinary patterns and empty glass bottles in this place.

The shop owner, Old John, had already returned behind the counter, where a stack of old books lay on the left side, and on the right was a small steam engine furnace, the left half wiped clean while the right was still covered with ashes—a new addition since the last visit.

Old John showed no surprise at Shard\'s words:

"Everything here is quite interesting,"

he said, then quietly watched Shard from behind the counter.

The elderly man was slightly overweight, but his gaze was very sharp. Therefore, Shard cleared his throat and spoke the secret code Miss Luisa had given him, necessary for purchasing mystical supplies or even relics:

"Because one plus one equals two, the sun will rise in the west. Oh, my Maria, I\'m going to kick your... butt fiercely. Don\'t go barefoot, or the curly-haired baboon will eat your decayed teeth."

This was the contact code for the shop, indicating Shard was referred by a regular customer and also a Circle Sorcerer.

But Shard was suspicious that this code was Miss Luisa\'s joke on him, possibly plagiarized from the ramblings of patients at Dr. Schneider\'s Clinic.

However, Old John understood and waved his hand at Shard:n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Oh, you were referred by Dorothy Louisa, haven\'t seen her in a while. How is her new book, \'Mystery of the Blood Letters\' coming along? She mentioned giving me a copy after publishing it."

\'Mystery of the Blood Letters\' was a detective novel Miss Luisa was currently writing, planning to serialize it in a newspaper and had already contacted the press. Unfortunately, her writing had been interrupted by the exam season, and just yesterday at the study group, Shard had heard the young female author complain about this matter.

"If I had said I was referred by Miss Luisa last time, would the price for that cane have been higher?"

Shard asked.

"Of course not, that was already the highest price. Detective, are you doubting my integrity? Old John\'s Pawnshop never cheats its customers... indeed, never, no doubts necessary, that\'s just the way it is..."

Facing the young detective\'s skeptical look, Elder John coughed and quickly changed the subject:

"Speaking of which, Detective, I didn\'t expect you to be a Circle Sorcerer as well. Very well, what do you need? Considering our last transaction with that staff, I can offer you a discount for the first deal."

Shard had given Elder John his business card, so the latter knew Shard\'s profession.

Elder John Jones was certainly a Circle Sorcerer, but regarding his specific identity, neither Miss Luisa nor Dr. Schneider were clear.

All they knew was that this place was a channel for a large organization in Tobesk City to collect relics and other cherished items. As for whether Elder John belonged to the True God Church, Magic Academy, or some other organization, no one could be sure.

Dr. Schneider\'s group of four couldn\'t even confirm whether Elder John was affiliated with Saint Byrons Integrated Academy. The old man, always smiling at his guests, kept his own identity a closely guarded secret, but at least he had good professional ethics and a rich collection of items.

If it weren\'t for a personal introduction, this place wouldn\'t receive unknown Circle Sorcerers, which was also a convenience of joining Dr. Schneider\'s group.

"Recently, I\'ve been studying the Arcane Technique related to \'Silvermoon,\' so I was thinking..."

"Understood, so how much are you willing to pay?"

The old man asked, pinching his right index finger and thumb together.

After paying off the debt for the first month, Shard\'s savings were actually not much, and so far, his biggest income had still been related to commissions involving Mia.

But the Arcane Technique of \'Silvermoon\' was related to whether he had the power to protect himself. Therefore, even with the money from selling the staff here, he still worried it wouldn\'t be enough.

After hesitating for a while, he unilaterally used ten pounds of Mia\'s "living expenses," and before leaving, he even specially hugged the cat to apologize, promising to repay the money as soon as possible. The orange cat, of course, did not understand and, being drowsy at the time, showed no reaction.

"Around 15 pounds,"

Shard cautiously said, and Elder John nodded:

"This price..."

He took a thick ledger from under the counter and, after flipping through it for a few minutes, he lifted his head:

"I indeed have a Poet-Level \'Relic\' suitable for your situation, but at a price of only around 15 pounds, you probably understand that it won\'t be very powerful, only enough to help you feel the power of Silvermoon."

Relics were generally expensive, and Shard nodded in understanding. Find exclusive stories on empire

So, Elder John left through the back door of the shop, and about several minutes later, returned carrying a wooden jewelry box.

Placing the jewelry box on the counter and opening it, Shard saw a round bead resting on a red velvet cloth. The top of the bead was connected to a tiny golden hook, which was tied with a thin thread.

The bead was milky white in color, resembling a pearl but very small in size. If it weren\'t for the thread connecting it, it would probably be lost if it fell to the ground.

"You have made contact with \'Whisper\'."

The voice arrived belatedly, as if to highlight the meagerness of the \'Relic\'.

"This is the Poet-Level Relic \'Orb of Silvermoon.\' The last time it was documented was by one of the Three Great Magics Academies, the Xerxes Higher Medical Academy, but that was in the Late Fifth Era, so even if it\'s brought out, it wouldn\'t be considered stolen goods."

Elder John slid the jewelry box toward Shard, who extended a finger to touch the small bead, and immediately felt a chill surge through him, even visually perceiving that lunar Silvermoon.