Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 1408: A Dangerous Situation
"Okay."
Shard actually very much wanted to ask about Mia at home, since he didn’t return last night, but the other ladies around the bed sighed in relief, and he could only patiently wait for Luvia to finish feeding him the bowl of porridge.
After Luvia really finished feeding him the porridge in which they had infused magic potion, they still didn’t let Shard get out of bed but instead had Miss Sylvia conduct another examination on him.
It wasn’t an examination by a Circle Sorcerer, just an ordinary method to check if his fever had gone down. Miss Sylvia was not only Margaret’s tutor but also her personal doctor, so it was most appropriate for her to handle this.
Of course, after the examination, just as Shard had said, his fever had completely disappeared, though his body remained somewhat weak. Even this weakness, typical after recovering from a major illness, was rapidly improving due to his inherently strong recuperative abilities.
Shard even thought that if he stayed in bed a little while longer, he would fully recover, but the witches insisted he rest in bed the entire Wednesday morning. They would allow him to move around only if he truly felt fine during their shared lunch.
To ensure Shard rested well, other than Luvia, all the other ladies temporarily left his room, leaving just two maids waiting outside for any duties.
Luvia adjusted Shard’s pillow so he could sit up against the headboard and chat comfortably. She sat on the bedside, holding his right hand with her left:
"We were really worried last night. For a Circle Sorcerer, a common cold is often scarier than poison, as it means that strong bodily recovery and resistance have vanished."
She used her other hand to open the nightstand drawer and took out the pink perfume vial:
"I know this relic is very important to you, sometimes even enabling you to turn the tide. Even though we were very worried, I couldn’t forbid you from using it. But you promised me not to use it recklessly in the future."
She placed the vial on the cabinet, and Shard nodded.
He really didn’t know what had happened to him last night. He could only guess that poison had infiltrated his body, collapsing alongside his strong immunity, allowing the cold to exploit this weakness. But the onset seemed unusually fast.
"Speaking of which, I didn’t go home last night. I wonder how Mia is doing now."
Shard asked worriedly since Mia had been at home in Tobesk the whole time yesterday.
"You really are just recovering from a severe illness. Miss Sylvia can also use the ’Spatial Labyrinth,’ have you forgotten?"
Luvia said, half-concerned, half-amused:
"We all knew you would worry about Mia, so we had Miss Sylvia make a trip to the Church of the Forgotten. She couldn’t turn the cat into a toy to bring it over, so she took it to Dorothy’s place. Miss Sylvia really went through a lot; you should thank her properly later. After lunch, you can take a trip back to Tobesk."
Hearing that Mia was alright, Shard felt relieved:
"Did you inform Miss Lathis about Mr. Lathis’s situation? I don’t know if she can accept this fact."
"Shard, don’t underestimate that young lady."
Luvia shook her head slightly:
"That night, when you held her as she cried until past midnight in the Church of the Forgotten, she had actually already accepted the fact of her father’s permanent departure. Last night, Miss Benanis took the time to explain your discoveries and speculations; she took it calmly. Instead of her father’s state, she was more concerned about yours. You wouldn’t know how high your fever was, yet it was just a common cold, and the usual medicines for common folk had no effect on you at all."
In other words, his recovery from the fever was actually due to Shard’s natural resilience.
"After you recovered from the fever this morning, we even joked that if we truly wanted to find out what was happening to you, the best way would actually be to give you another dose of lethal poison to see if you would die outright or just get a fever again."
Luvia joked, while Shard asked with concern:
"So, you didn’t sleep a wink all night either?"
"I slept for a while by that table in the early morning until Miss Lathis came to wipe your sweat, which woke me up."
She shook her head slightly:
"For a Five-Ring Sorcerer, missing a few hours of sleep is no big deal. See how energetic I am now? Worry more about your health. If you really went down, what would happen to the family? Especially your cat, it would be really without care then."
Shard nodded in agreement:
"Since you won’t let me get out of bed this morning, let’s talk about the Randall Valley matter. Any new developments?"
"What new developments could there be? Last night’s affair ended smoothly, and now everyone knows the truth about the Guardians. But this doesn’t affect the current situation; the infection numbers of the Petrification Plague keep rising, and there have been two more instances of Crazy Earth in the region. The Church of the Five Gods is busily engaged. However, the witches discovered that the church is trying to communicate with the Heart of the Earth to attempt contact with the Guardians."
Shard frowned slightly:
"The Guardians told me last night that due to the increasing distortion, they must stay by the Heart of the Earth. Once the Earth’s distortion stabilizes, they can meet with me again and conduct the Chosen One Ceremony."
"So, as long as we wait for the Guardians to appear again, the Randall Valley matter will be resolved?"
Luviya asked in surprise.
"No, no, if the demons aren’t eradicated, they probably won’t appear so easily. And... the Earth is distorting, could this cause the Guardians to also... distort?"
He still remembered that Long-Haired Luvia was facing a situation where she had to guide Miss Lathis’s soul to death.
"It’s hard to say, but if they are indeed polluted by the Earth’s distortion, are we to deal with the Chosen One again this time?"
Luviya was very worried about this, but for now, it was only Shard’s speculation.
"Any news on the cultists and demons from last night?"
Shard asked again.
"No news for now."
Luviya slightly shook her head:
"But this morning before you woke up, Princess Margaret came by, sat by your bed for a long time, and said she would come back at noon to have lunch with us. Oh, Margaret also mentioned that the business investigation on Osenfort you requested is nearly done, and if you’re up to it by noon, you can hear her out."
"That’s great!"
Shard smiled, knowing that Mrs. Haila required a comprehensive downfall of Osenfort, which wasn’t as simple as just stabbing him with a sword:
"As for the demon’s conspiracy, I actually already guessed. After seeing the truth of the Guardian last night, I realized what it truly wanted to do. Just like I mentioned last time, it absolutely doesn’t intend to eliminate the first candidate Guardian, then let the second candidate, Ston Osenfort, take over..."
He recalled the brief conversation Long-Haired Luvia had with Miss Lathis during their first visit to the Night Shrine:
"The Guardian is composed of different souls, and is constantly searching for new, like-minded souls to join them."
Shard spoke and looked at Luviya. The girl with purple eyes narrowed her eyes slightly; she understood as well. In fact, after the sudden headache last night, she had vaguely understood:
"When the four of us went to the Night Shrine together, you asked Miss Lathis not to give up on life no matter what anyone said... did you already have your suspicions then? How did you realize it at that time?"
Shard, of course, couldn’t say it was she who said it, so he could only express his full speculation:
"The addition of new souls must enable the Guardian to gain new powers. If the new souls integrate into him and become part of him, does it mean the new souls can also influence this miraculous and complex individual known as the ’Guardian’ to a certain extent?"
Shard suddenly clutched his chest and coughed with difficulty. Luviya immediately picked up a teacup and handed it to him:
"You should speak less, perhaps rest some more? Whatever it is, we can discuss it in the afternoon."
"It’s okay, it’s okay, I’m recovering."
Shard took a sip of water and put the cup back on the bedside:
"The demon’s true intention is not to replace the ’Guardian’ with Ston Osenfort, but to make Ston Osenfort become the ’Guardian’. Before this, the demon might not have known the truth of the Guardians as clearly as we do, but it definitely knows more than we do."
"Your speculation is very likely correct. Osenfort already has the qualification to hold the Chosen One Ceremony, and if his soul merges with and pollutes the Guardian, essentially, he becomes the first candidate himself."
The girl with the purple eyes had a very serious expression:
"I never thought that the rules for the Chosen Ones could be exploited this way."
But in fact, aside from Iluna’s instance, every time the Chosen One rules have been exploited in various ways.
During the Chosen of Darkness, Human Pus attempted to use soul inversion to become Ivan Daknis; during the Chosen of Death, everyone utilized the special death rules to circle a bonfire in True Death to discuss the Chosen One candidates; during the Chosen of Knowledge and Wisdom, Shard used the [Aikenora-Arrow of Knowledge] to bind the qualification of the Chosen One.
"I guess at some point in the future, a situation will definitely exist where the Guardians need new members to join. At that moment, if Miss Lathis doesn’t die and her soul integrates with them, Osenfort might seize the opportunity. This isn’t about the second and third candidates vying for the Chosen One’s qualification, but rather who among them can become part of the first candidate."
Shard explained, thus making Long-Haired Luvia’s decision back then understood.
"Are you saying the demon will create such an opportunity?"
Luviya doubted.
"No, it’s also possible, as I mentioned earlier, that the Guardians are instead polluted by the Earth, hence needing fresh souls to join to maintain clarity."
Shard hesitantly shared his view.
