Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 727 - : The Girl in the Mountain Stream

Chapter 727 -727: The Girl in the Mountain Stream

After stuffing the God’s Gift Box into a backpack he had made, he carried it down from the Ruined Tower to the city below. The bustling Cassandra Auction House, located in the city center, remained lively even in late autumn. At the top floor of the auction house, Shard met Granny Cassandra and Sister Delphine.

Sister Delphine was also there to witness the ritual; aside from the trio, due to Granny Cassandra’s teacher not wanting many people to know the details of the ritual, only Granny Cassandra’s young apprentice would accompany them up the mountain.

The apprentice, Miss Rita Swift, was a young girl who looked about the same age as Angelina, slight of build, with wavy, flaxen hair.

She responded to Shard’s greeting in a restrained manner but did not question the existence of a man like Shard. It was likely that Granny Cassandra had already mentioned it to the young apprentice.

Before departing, Granny Cassandra did express curiosity about the box Shard was carrying, to which Shard vaguely explained:

“This is a box used to seal the Evil Beast.”

“I thought it was that Angel-Level Relic ‘Golden Holy Wardrobe’; I remember that relic was clearly in the Papacy of the Church of Creation.”

The Old Witch was in a good mood today and even made a joke.

The ritual on Monday was a long-planned event, so no additional preparations were needed, and they could head up the mountain. Miss Aphrola was not present, and Granny Cassandra did not wish for anyone from the Witch Council to see the ritual. Even Miss Helen Black, who was supposed to participate in the ritual, was not around; when Shard asked about her whereabouts, the Old Witch chuckled that she had already gone up the mountain.

The carriage ready at the front door of the Cassandra Auction House was just right for four people.

However, no sooner had the carriage started than Sister Delphine claimed she had forgotten an important item at the auction house and asked to be let off, saying she would make her way to the mountaintop ceremony venue later.

“Would someone like Sister Delphine forget to take something?”

Shard found this quite amusing, as in his eyes, Sister Delphine was the kind of reliable person who would not make mistakes.

The carriage then continued with the three of them, but just as they had left the core area of the city and entered the west district near the mountains, Granny Cassandra asked to stop the carriage, slightly embarrassed:

“Just now, I saw an old friend outside, and I really must meet them.”

Having said that, the Old Witch also left the carriage and claimed she would go to the mountaintop ceremony venue alone.

“Which one is Granny Cassandra’s ‘friend’?”

Once the carriage started moving again, Shard curiously asked Miss Rita Swift, the young apprentice of the Old Witch. She blushed, seeming uncomfortable speaking with Shard, so he did not press further.

Sharing a carriage with a stranger felt strange, especially when the other party was unwilling to talk. Fortunately, this odd feeling did not last long. When the auction house’s carriage brought the two to the western part of the city close to the mountainous area, young Miss Swift suddenly spoke:

“Oh, I actually forgot something Grandma had told me to do!”

She hastily asked the carriage to stop, then stammered an apology to Shard:

“The teacher asked me to pick up a shipment at Milestone Train Station last night, and I accidentally forgot last night, now…”

“No worries, let the carriage go now; we’re not far from the train station,” Shard said, understandingly.

“But, that shipment… it can’t be known to others.”

Shard looked at her skeptically and then nodded:

“That’s alright, I’ll get off here and wait for you, you can come back and pick me up later.”

The young girl with the flaxen curls bit her lip and looked down, avoiding Shard’s eyes:

“Sir, you could head towards the mountains first, and I’ll catch up later. If I were to return here from Milestone Train Station, it would be like going in a circle, but if I go straight into the mountains, I could catch up faster.”

After finishing, still blushing, she apologized profusely:

“I’m really sorry, this is all my fault, please forgive the trouble I’ve caused.”

Since she insisted, Shard could only agree.

Then, carrying the box and his sword, he jumped off the carriage and, after informing Miss Swift inside the carriage of his route into the mountain, set off alone toward the entry of Sicarl Mountain.

He was already close to the entry point here, and Shard decided to walk the rest of the way to avoid the carriage not catching up with him. Wanting to make the journey a bit more enjoyable, Shard let the cat out of the box. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

Of course, Mia would absolutely not climb the mountain by herself, so she perched on Shard’s shoulder.

Though the plan was for four to go up the mountain together, it ended up with just himself and Mia alone, but thinking that he would soon see the twins he had not seen for a long time, Shard had nothing to complain about.

The golden autumn in Sicarl Mountain was everywhere, and the main path into the mountain was also littered with fallen leaves. The crisp sound under his shoes was quite pleasant, and being asked by a passing freight truck if he wanted a ride lifted his spirits:

“Thank you for your kindness, but I’m still waiting for someone.”

He pointed in the direction of the mountain’s base and then watched as the cart loaded with grain departed.

North of Midshire Fort at the northern slope of Sicarl Mountain lay the expansive Lancer Plains of the northern Old Continent, abundant in grain production; while south of the southern slope of Sicarl Mountain was still within the Rommel Mountains range. Although there were scattered towns, grain supply was not so readily available, so the farmers of Milestone often transported their grain across the Rising Wind Trail checkpoint to the southern countries during autumn.

The witch’s apprentice claimed she would catch up soon, but until eleven in the morning, Shard had neither seen the cart again nor encountered the earlier-descended Sister Delphine and Granny Cassandra.

At this point, he had already surpassed the elevation where the Ruined Tower lay and was advancing towards higher elevations of Sicarl Mountain.

The mountain road that allowed cart passage only extended to the vicinity of the Rising Wind Trail at the mountain’s waist, while the ritual was to be conducted at the summit. According to Shard’s current pace, he would probably arrive near the Rising Wind Trail by four in the afternoon. Wanting to return home by evening, he hoped his three companions could catch up soon.

“Can someone help me?”

While contemplating, he heard a cry for help, not from the mountain road allowing carts, but from a dense forest on one side. Although it wasn’t wise to rashly enter the forest, the voice seemed close by, so Shard hesitated for a moment then left the main mountain road.

Pushing through the bushes and walking into the dense forest, he soon heard the babbling of running water and a few steps further, the scene suddenly opened up. It was a mountain creek, and about several dozen meters upstream was a low dam that created a small waterfall nearby.

Stones and pebbles formed a shallow bank beside the creek where the noon sun directly hit the water’s surface. Exiting the shadowed dense forest to face the twinkling wave light, Shard even had to raise his arm to shield his eyes from the somewhat dazzling light reflected off the water.

An autumn breeze passed by the creek, bringing a hint of coolness.

Although Sicarl Mountain had already turned golden yellow, the trees on either side of this mountain gully were still as lush as in high summer. Tall treetops stretched over the creek from the dense forest and mingled above it. Sparse branches allowed patches of sunlight to cast mottled shadows on the water.

Those shadows swayed slightly with the wind, and squinting, Shard listened to the rushing water and saw a young woman wearing a black dress with a Red Butterfly Pendant hanging at her waist, sitting on a large rock in the middle of the creek.

Her arms propped back against the stone, her bare, pale feet slid through the crystal-clear mountain creek water, leaving trails in the water smooth as satin.

The creek was shallow enough to see the rocks below and the fish swimming about.

Shard was stunned, while the girl draped in dappled leafy shadows also looked towards the young man walking from the forest.

The creek flowed like a whisper in the heart; the shadows of trees swayed but couldn’t shake the gaze locked between them; insect hums were low, as if sighing for the scene; the sunlight was mildly intoxicating, and Shard was sure to remember this scene for many years.

“Sir, could you help me, please?”

The body of the young woman seemed to be in her twenties, yet her face appeared only about fifteen or sixteen.

She had long black hair and beautiful blue eyes. Her complexion was fair, and her appearance was no less striking than any other women Shard had encountered. She wore a continuous black dress with a black lady’s coat over it, probably to ward off the mountain’s chill, and she appeared about half a head shorter than Shard.

By chance or not, the mottled sunlight shone right on her feet, making her skin look reflectively pale.

“My shoes and socks are by the water. Could you fetch them for me? The creek is pretty cold.”

Shard stood still, feeling the wind and listening to the water, even feeling, for a moment, as if history and his own self overlapped.

It took a while before he slowly nodded:

“Alright, I’ll just…”

“No, please carry me to the shore instead. If the shoes get soaked, they’ll be no good for descending the mountain.”

The girl in the black dress continued, smiling at Shard. Shard corrected his stunned expression to one of nostalgia and relief:

“Alright, then please wait a moment. I’ll come right over…”

“Just don’t make me wait too long… It’s been too long already.”

Shard set down his longsword and the “God’s Gift Box” he carried on his back, tucked the seemingly sleepy cat into it to prevent it from getting lost in the forest or carried off by a wolf.

Then, he took off his own shoes and socks and rolled up his pant legs. Stepping into the water, the slightly icy creek made him shiver involuntarily. Although he possessed the “Water Walking” Sorcery, he did not show it at that moment.

“Shall I carry you out or should I give you a piggyback?”

Shard stood beside a large rock in the creek and asked, to which the girl in the black dress thought for a moment and whispered:

“Please give me a piggyback, sir. Thank you. Should I introduce myself? I’m a second-year history student at the Midshire Fort Mechanical Academy.”

She said, and Shard turned around, letting the girl in the black dress climb onto his back, then carried her to the shore.

[Outlander, you have felt the “Whisper”.]

“I know.”

He sighed softly in his mind.