Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 1737 - 1736: "Transaction

Even amidst the mist, the face that gathered the features of all the beautiful ladies Shard knew was unaffected by it; Shard could clearly see every detail on that face.

Desire’s pale hand opened, revealing the black sheet. The contrast between white and black was quite apparent at this moment, yet surprisingly she didn’t crush it to destroy it, instead placing it on the water’s surface, letting it drift towards Shard, her purple eyes still watching him:

"Little boys are always curious about everything. Since you really want to know, then let me reveal some things to you. I’ve always been good to you."

The black sheet drifted silently to the shore, then suddenly sank into the water. The bubbling sound accompanied by lights emerged from beneath the water. Shard hesitated for a moment, then took another step towards the shore, letting the lake water soak his boots, and looked down at the scene in the water.

Desire certainly handled that sheet, so Shard knew what he was seeing wasn’t the complete content, and might not even be the truth.

The woman’s head smiled at him, while he looked at the two pink glows in the water’s scene.

The ambiguous pink, capable of making one’s heart joyful and the body excited. The two glows seemed to chase and collide with each other. After waiting a moment, Shard saw one of the glows soar into the sky while the other plummeted to the ground.

The glow ascending turned into a brilliant golden light, while the one descending was tainted with a dark hue. They parted ways, yet remained connected.

The scene abruptly stopped, with a more prominent smile on Desire’s face. Shard’s eyes, like some mechanical device, slowly moved from the water towards Desire, then reached into his pocket, taking out the [God of Love] Holy Emblem he had just put away.

He gazed at the red Holy Emblem, then once again moved towards the "Desire" in the water:

"You all..."

"Are you really going to say it?"

She said softly, with her hand resting on her cheek, slightly tilting her head, her hoarse voice trembling in a captivating way:

"Can you really separate love from desire?"

Teeth bit on her lip, saying this as her damp cheeks showed an affectionate expression.

Shard was momentarily speechless, staring blankly at Desire. It was quite a dangerous move, for even in a focused mental state, one should not gaze upon her for too long.

But "she" did not remind Shard, nor interrupted him pondering. The pretty woman’s head in the water then looked past Shard, towards the silhouette behind him.

Laughter came from the water’s surface, sounding to Shard like another attempt by "Desire" to tempt him. But to Megan and Audrey, who clearly wore earplugs yet suddenly heard the laughter, it instantly seduced their souls. Within the grip of the Unclassified Level Relic’s power, their bodies and souls lost in emotions and desire quickly turned to look at Shard.

But before she took a step, the "Great Sin Chain" that had somehow moved under their feet firmly bound her.

Since Shard brought Megan to meet Desire, he naturally thought of various possibilities:

"This matter has nothing to do with them."

He still faced his back to the brown-haired girl, speaking to the head in the water, who gently smiled, lifting her head from the water to look at Shard:

"Just seeing such a rare dual soul, I couldn’t hold back, wanting to meet her. She’s much more interesting than the clueless girls or charred wood that accompanied you the last two times. Do you like her? Oh, don’t answer. I can tell from your eyes."

Eyes remarkably similar to Luviya’s looked at Shard, setting his inner turmoil ablaze, forcing him to momentarily avert his gaze. Meanwhile, Megan behind him made no further movement, as if "Desire" was truly just joking with Shard.

"Let’s play a game like we used to."

The head in the water suddenly proposed, with Shard cautiously shaking his head:

"I won’t use anyone outside myself as a stake."

"But I’m not exactly seeking your consent."

She said with a smile, retracting her arm into the water, only leaving the head above the surface.

The chin was soaked with water, with black hair sticking to pale skin down to the water’s surface. For some reason, a strange brutality unexpectedly surged in Shard’s heart; he wanted to plunge into the water, using his teeth to tear at the beautiful white female body surely present beneath the water, defeating her now gentle demeanor in her pain, moans, and pleasure.

"Mia, Iluna; Iluna, Mia."

The moment he realized something was amiss, Shard recited the symbols of purity in his heart, trying to dispel the evil thoughts. The image of the cat jumping and Iluna smiling back at him under the sunshine at Saint Delan Square gradually calmed him down, though he knew it was only temporary.

"I’ve given you very important information, so why can’t you satisfy my request?"

The voice in the water continued in a hoarse yet gentle tone:

"I am helping you; haven’t you noticed that every time we play the game, it ultimately ends up benefiting you?"

But each time it was also quite dangerous.

Shard took a deep breath:

"What do you want me to do this time? Seek out some special soul, or do you want me to perform for you again?"

"No, no, it’s very simple, simpler than ever before. Under tonight’s lunar eclipse, on the lake..."

The woman’s smile grew wider, her eyes filled with desire and love, almost drowning Shard:

"Kiss the girl behind you."

The voice was not only gentle, it now had a sugary sweet tone.

Shard was taken aback, then his expression instantly changed:

"I’ve said, I won’t let anything between us involve anyone else."

"I won’t harm her, I just want to see you kiss her."

The woman spoke softly, her speech was slow, her voice seemed to transform into a tangible entity, caressing Shard’s cheek:

"Just a kiss, not even requiring it in the mist of this island. Think about it, under the lunar eclipse, a beautiful witch kissed by a handsome knight on the lake, how romantic is that?"

Her lips curved into the perfect arc, unmistakably Tifa’s trademark gesture.

Purple eyes gazed at Shard with tenderness:

"And in return, I’ll tell you how to heal the hidden ailment of the girl behind you; I can intimidate those on the island at the right time tonight. Even...what are you planning to do with the believers of the God of Love?"

Even though he knew that complying with her request would only lead him step by step into the abyss of desire, Shard was still tempted.

He took the risk of using that small thin piece here, attempting to incite conflict between the island’s Thirteen-Ring Diviner and "Desire." But now the diviner hadn’t acted yet, unsure if they truly couldn’t keep everything on the island under constant watch or were too scared to emerge. Even without this factor, the other terms of the trade were quite enticing.

After pondering for a moment, he had the intention to agree:

"Megan and Audrey..."

"I promise not to harm them."

Black eyebrows matching the hair color subtly moved with the perfect expression on her face:

"And besides, you can acquire that painting of mine and hang it in your home."

Seeing Shard again wanting to refuse, she bit her lip, her eyelashes trembling slightly:

"Don’t worry, once it’s in your home, my painting won’t have any special effects. If you don’t believe me, you can try it. I just want you to always remember me."

Shard had nothing more to say, now sending away "Desire" was the priority. He already felt himself losing control; it was certainly not the loss of his soul, but the loss of control over his body. Clearly, although divinity could help suppress abnormalities in the soul, the Primal Fire didn’t have the power to reduce bodily desires.

"So, I just need to kiss Megan and Audrey during the lunar eclipse, right?"

"Yes, any phase of the lunar eclipse will do. I am looking forward to it."

The water surface ripples again as her head slowly moves backward, simultaneously sinking beneath:

"See you tonight, interesting soul."

As the final hoarse voice vanished, the beautiful head completely immersed into the water. Subsequently, a massive shadow glided beneath the mist-covered lake surface, swimming toward deeper waters. That shadow, as large as a giant, was clearly the full form of a mermaid.

"Oh."

Shard closed his eyes, and sighed deeply at the lake surface. Only when the faint aroma of perfume finally dissipated, did the burning flame in his heart slightly reduce, he then turned and ran towards Megan pulling the chains.

As the chains were retracted, the girl with brown hair felt Shard’s hand pressing on her shoulder, then cautiously asked, suddenly hugging Shard:

"Oh, that really scared me. What was that just now?"

She seemed unaffected beyond a slightly heavy breath, "Desire" earlier seemed more like it was teasing Shard than maliciously targeting.

"A level 0 relic, even if I do nothing, it might still appear at Green Lake because of a painting in the near future. So I wanted to test if it could conflict with your ancestor. No worries, it’s gone. Don’t think about it, don’t listen, don’t feel it. It’s not an enemy, it’s a friend."

Shard tried to make his tone gentle, Megan nodded lightly, her restless spirit gradually calming down:

"An Unclassified Level Relic, how many more surprises can you bring me?"

She once again felt, when hugging Shard, something at his chest was quite hot. And apart from that...

"You were also affected."

She kept her head on Shard’s shoulder, whispering in his ear. Then she didn’t give Shard a chance to counter, suddenly moved her head away, then seized Shard’s head and neck with both hands, and kissed him.