Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

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The four of them were still seated in four chairs, and as Professor Garcia raised his hand, Miss Jones began to record the ensuing events with even greater speed.

The slightly pointy-eared professor's hands radiated a halo of light, and as he whispered and chanted the Spell Words, Shard saw patches of brilliant colors filling his living room lit by the gas lamp.

The entire living room was split in two; the normal part was the eastern side where the four were sitting upright, while the western side became blurry with the filling colors, yet gradually growing clearer.

Only, the half that became clear turned into the likeness of a dim, low-ceilinged room.

The low-ceilinged room was also split in two, connecting with Shard's living room, and the light inside was extremely dim. There lay a squat bed with a dirty yellow sheet, a desk with a rusty gear-metal typewriter, and a bookshelf filled with various other reagents.

Inside those reagents were human eyeballs of all sizes, and even a small, curled-up primate-like animal carcass with closed eyes, which made Shard feel quite uneasy.

The room was unbearably dim, the old gas lamp above the desk looked as if it would go out the next second.

The man sitting hunched on the chair in front of the desk was scrawny, with patchy hair, wearing a brown coat, and looked like a rat. He twisted his head in shock, staring at the suddenly appearing unfamiliar living room and the four people in it.

His face was pockmarked, with a red nose covered in blackheads. His pupil shrunk from terror, and in his left hand, a bottle was tilted, pouring mercury onto the table.

"The Arcane Technique I'm employing is Spatial Segmentation, Spatial Assembly, which can only be learned at the level of Eleven Rings."

Professor Garcia of the History Academy said.

"Please tell the truth."

Professor Sanchez, with a stern expression, extended his hand, pointing towards the man in the low half of the room, with an ambiguous pink glimmer on his finger:

"Who are you?"

The professor asked aloud.

"Dwarf Rat Peter from the 'Blood of Mercury'."

The small man, under the glow of the professor's finger, had a glazed look in his eyes. His accent was very similar to Professor Garcia's, probably a former Carsonrickian. His bottle of mercury fell onto the table, and he was completely unaware of it.

"What are you doing?"

Professor Sanchez asked again, the ambiguous pink glimmer on his finger growing stronger.

"We've lost an important item—an Old God Statue, 'Vampire Duke Lowell', and wanted to take revenge on the person who stole the statue using a Keeper of Secrets Level Relic. But the adversary was too powerful. So, they made me use the Arcane Technique – 'Rat Partner's Sense of Smell' to look for clues.

The alley smelled complex and had witnessed a fight the night before. I searched all day and found that one of the individuals who had been there was conducting a ritual, and was very weak. Now, I'm trying to directly kill him using the Arcane Technique – 'Mercury Poison Mist'."

Professor Sanchez nodded, and as Shard watched the pink glimmer on his finger, he felt a bit dizzy himself. Professor Garcia explained:

"This is 'Sorcery - Enchant Humans'. Its effect isn't normally this strong, but because of Professor Sanchez's Spirit Rune System and regular practice, it can manifest such a trait... Trying to get the unruly young students at the Academy to tell the truth about their homework is indeed not easy."

"Who else knows about Mr. Hamilton's affairs?"

Professor Sanchez's normal finger pointed at Shard, and Dwarf Rat Peter, with glazed eyes, answered slowly, his voice getting gentler, as if he were speaking to his beloved:

"Only I know. I have not yet had a chance to report it, wanting to take all the credit for myself. This move of mine has never failed, even the Silver-Eyed One has praised my Arcane Technique."

"Have you ever killed someone?"

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The professor asked.

"Yes, I have killed quite a few, many arcane techniques demand fresh human organs as..."

"Alright then."

Professor Sanchez's pink glimmer on his finger extinguished, followed by a dark light flying from his fingertip, crossing the boundary between two houses. Dwarf Rat Peter's corpse hit the ground, ushered into eternal sleep.

Shard was slightly agape, gaining a newfound appreciation for the professor's swift actions. It took him several seconds to remember to say:

"Professor Sanchez, Professor Garcia, thank you for your assistance."

This effectively solved the trouble caused by that Old God Statue for him.

As for the deceased man, Shard felt no pity; the man was a villain to begin with, and had intended to harm him. He was even relieved that he didn't have to dirty his own hands.

"No need for thanks, if it weren't for my meeting with you today, he wouldn't have discovered your identity."

Professor Sanchez said and then gestured for Shard to rise:

"Go check his desk for any important documents, but don't touch anything. We cannot leave our seats during the ritual, or else the projection will disconnect unilaterally."

Shard nodded and got up, hearing Mia scratching at the door louder, the curious but timid cat was probably eager to know what was happening outside.

He left his seat and walked to the other part of the bisected living room. As his body crossed the center line and stepped into the low-ceilinged house, a stench of long-unventilated foul air and decay hit him immediately.

He had traveled from the second floor of No. 6, Saint Delan Square, to a narrow and chilly rented apartment somewhere in Tobesk City. He did not check the line of reagent bottles on the shelf, but went straight to the desk.

On the desk, other than a pool of mercury, there were also two arcane techniques for tracking clues and spilling mercury, along with the required spellcasting materials. The only document was an unfinished letter on the typewriter, written in Carsonrickian, and the end wasn't completed yet.

Most of it was Dwarf Rat Peter bemoaning the troubles of his work, the dangers he encountered, and the heavy fog weather in Tobesk City.

The last paragraph only had the beginning written, mentioning their collaboration with the cultists of the "Lord of the Blood Feast," and "Blood of Mercury" attempting to obtain some materials from the cultists.

Another organization, "Blood Spirit School," had promised to assist them but seemed preoccupied with something to do with birthing houses in the New World, and so far, had only sent a Keeper of Secrets Level Relic as help, which greatly angered the Silver-Eyed One.

The cultists of the "Lord of the Blood Feast," "Blood of Mercury," and "Blood Spirit School," suddenly, three organizations were implicated.

Shard took note of this information and after returning to his own living room and sitting down, he reported everything verbatim. The two professors did not comment on this, and Professor Garcia lifted the spatial anomaly, returning Shard's living room to normal.

Even the mercury mist had vanished, as if everything was just an illusion. This way, the cautious Outlander didn't have to worry about dying from mercury poisoning.

"In any case, Mr. Hamilton, as a First Ring Sorcerer, you'd better avoid getting involved in such dangerous matters. Where were we in our conversation just now?"

To the two professors, everything that had just happened was a trifling matter not worth mention. Shard, too, felt relieved to be free from hidden dangers. After jotting down "Lord of the Blood Feast" and "Blood Spirit School," as well as the recent happenings, he sat up straight in his chair and said:

"Just now we had mentioned two things. Professor Garcia said he was here tonight to guide my practice with time travel, and after discussing everything, we would proceed. The second matter was that you, Professor Sanchez, wanted to talk about something related to our group of five."

Professor Garcia nodded at Shard, and Professor Sanchez then slapped his forehead:

"Oh, right, about the group of five–one of you in your group has a serious problem. One of you, 'another me,' is not in a normal state, and the Academy considers it a major risk."

Shard, who had just been relieved, felt a sudden tightness in his chest, his complexion drastically changed.

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