Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

"So, Mr. Watson, can the story be called 'Heart of the Ocean'?"

Miss Princess suggested, her hair fluttering slightly in the sea breeze.

"Of course, it can."

Shard nodded and then coughed before saying,

"Then I'll begin. This is a true story that happened not long ago, perhaps..."

It actually didn't require many details to be changed to tell the tale of the great shipwreck that had been passed down in his homeland for ages, after all, the era of the story's setting wasn't very different from the present day.

With the sea breeze on his face and the scenery of Coldwater Port fading into the distance, Shard narrated the story at a gentle pace, while Miss Princess stood with her hands on the railing, listening and gazing out at the sea.

In the wind, her golden hair swayed slightly backward. Initially, she just wanted to pass the time before the auction and find an excuse to have Shard join her for a drink. But by the time Shard's story had ended, the young lady had forgotten all about the alcohol.

"...that sapphire necklace, she cast it into the sea. The waters engulfed it, just as they had swallowed her lover on that disastrous night many years before. Watching it vanish without a trace, the old woman with white hair felt as though she had returned to that night from so long ago, back on that ship. She transformed once again into the young, golden-haired girl, stepping into the ballroom filled with the pleasant sound of violins alongside the man by her side."

Shard's voice gradually softened as he delivered the end of the story, touched by the very tale he had narrated and rather impressed with his storytelling ability—one of his strengths. A beautiful tale carried its charm in any world.

Turning to his companion, it was unfortunate that she wore a mask, so he couldn't see the expression of the girl in the blue dress, but he could see her lovely eyes:

"That's the end of the story, what do you think?"

"It's quite nice."

Her voice sounded normal, devoid of any particular emotion, suggesting that Miss Princess wasn't greatly moved:

"Do you... often use this method, telling stories to ladies?"

She asked softly against the wind.

"What?"

"Nothing,"

The girl, whose hair's color had faded and now revealed red tips, shook her head gently and looked back at the sea:

"Alright, you don't have to drink, I admit it's a very beautiful love story, very beautiful... although, I suspect you've omitted some parts. For example, when you mentioned the painting scene, it's obvious you skipped some details, making the story incoherent."

She glanced at Shard, who gave no particular reaction, then sighed:

"For someone like me with not much time left, it's wonderful to hear such a story."

"Don't talk about not having much time left, there must be a way to wipe out the curse."

Shard had to speak up now. Even though he had known Miss Princess for only half a day, he already considered her a friend and didn't want anything to happen to her:

"But this is not my story."

Even if no one could see through him, Shard wouldn't claim another's story as his own, or else he wouldn't even have the face to meet Mia:

"The story is one I heard from someone else, a local tale that has been passed down for a long time."

"I do hope it's just a story and not something that actually happened, otherwise it's too sad. I really dislike tragedies... although I acknowledge the allure of tragedies."

Miss Princess took a deep breath, as if trying to expel all the negative emotions:

"After the auction, we're going to part ways, and we might never get the chance to meet again in this life. Mr. Watson, since we've had the good fortune to meet today and have come here together, why not enjoy a feast as well?"

"What, you want to experience standing at the front of the ship like in the story?"

As he spoke, Shard even spread his arms out to demonstrate, and the girl with the mask laughed:

"No, there isn't a beautiful sunset shining on the sea right now, nor is there a band playing your off-key tunes that you hummed. If there's a chance, with my ship... I mean, there are fifteen minutes until the auction starts. Would you like to dance with me?"

She extended her right hand to Shard. As it wasn't an official gala, she wasn't wearing gloves. Her fair hand hovered in the air:

"Shall we dance?"

Shard thought for a moment, considering that she seemed composed, but was still affected by the emotions from the story:

"Of course it's not a problem,"

he lifted his right hand, allowing Miss Princess's hand to rest on his:

"If you don't mind, then I certainly have no problem. However, I'll only dance once."

He emphasized this because he actually wasn't too keen on dancing with strangers; it felt quite odd.

"Just one is fine. I thought you might use the excuse of not knowing how to dance to decline,"

Miss Princess said with a smile, then released Shard's hand and twirled with her skirt. The blue hem unfurled like a blooming flower as she turned back to Shard: Stay updated via My Virtual Library Empire

"Let's not go where there are many people; it's fine right here, we can still hear the music."

"No problem."

Shard nodded and added:

"I'm not adept at this, just a beginner in dancing. I attended a very important social event not long ago, where two beautiful girls taught me to dance. At that time, I stepped on their feet quite a few times."

If it weren't for the masks, one would certainly see the expression on the face of the girl claiming to be "Miss Princess." However, through such probing, Shard had almost figured out who she was, but this made the relationship between "Miss Princess" and Miss Writer seem all too preposterous.

He planned to reveal the true identity of this noble girl after the cruise ship had safely docked. At the moment, almost everyone knew but no one burst the bubble. Outlanders thirsting for more stories, as well as the princess using a small joke to relax herself, both desired to quietly enjoy the peaceful "Coldwater Port Holiday."

The sound of the orchestra came from the other side of the deck, but for the two dancing in the night breeze, the most audible sound was the waves whispering in their ears.

Although Shard had learned dancing from Luviya and Iluna, he was still quite unskilled. Luckily, Miss Princess was very considerate, and even when Shard clumsily nearly stepped on the young girl's shoes, she just laughed it off, not minding at all.

During this time, neither of them spoke, and instead they quietly savored the moment. When the dance music paused and Shard released his hand, Miss Princess hesitated before letting go, allowing Shard to step back:

"Yes, you indeed don't really know how to dance."

She joked:

"Just now, you gave me the impression of a clumsy elephant carefully avoiding banana peels on the ground."

After speaking, without giving Shard a chance to respond, she pointed toward the other side of the deck:

"Let's go; the auction is about to start. By the way, did you bring enough Gold Pounds? I brought a bank draft."

"I brought quite a bit of cash,"

Shard replied.

"Is that so?"

Miss Princess looked at his clothes, puzzled about where Shard had hidden the "substantial" cash he mentioned.

The auction was held at the very front of the deck, where wooden crates were stacked to form walls, and people could only enter through the guarded space between the crates. Only guests with special invitations could participate in the auction to prevent ill-intentioned individuals from boarding the ship and to deter common folk from accidentally wandering into the auction.

There were at least a hundred guests on the deck, but including Shard and Miss Princess, only twelve ultimately entered the auction.

Loose benches were scattered on the deck, and those wearing masks chose seats far from strangers. Most people came alone; it was a minority to arrive in pairs as Shard and Miss Princess did.

With time being of the essence, the auctioneer, an old gentleman with a white beard, quickly explained the rules without much ado and then the auction began.

There were eleven items on auction: five were Relics, one was an antique stone slab from the Fifth Era, one was a Magic Potion, two were alchemical items shaped like pistols, and the last were two old books. One book was about the Spirit Rune "Soul," and the other was a study notebook of a Seven-Ring Sorcerer who had died in the New World.

There was no listing of items before the auction, so people only discovered what was being offered when the items were presented, making the examination and viewing of the goods quite an effort.

There are a mere five-digit total of cataloged Relics, so the appearance of five at this auction was a significant event. Of these five Relics, three were Poet-Level, one Scribe Level, and one Keeper of Secrets Level. Unfortunately, none of them were the coin-type Relics that Shard needed, nor were there any items of interest to him.

Miss Princess, however, had her eye on the Keeper of Secrets Level Relic, "Sand of Time," which when scattered could very slightly affect the flow of time in the surrounding area. But as the bidding rose to 460 Pounds and others competed, Miss Princess gave up. Such Relics, though interesting, did not offer practical use and were mostly purchased for research purposes.

Shard didn't buy any Relics, but he became interested in the antique stone slab. Half his height, the slab came from an Ancient Ruin unearthed in the New World, documenting a rain-praying ceremony in the Southern Continent during the Late Fifth Era. The writing on the slab had yet to be deciphered, but as Shard observed the item, he fully memorized this large-scale rain prayer, which required the participation of hundreds.

With this, the stone slab was of no further use to him, and in this way, he had essentially acquired some rather pointless knowledge free of charge with a little trick.

The most popular item at the auction was not those five Relics but the bottle of Magic Potion. Inside a flat glass container, it glowed a regal purple. Named "Circle Sorcerer's Grace," drinking it would make the soul extraordinarily sensitive for an hour, greatly increasing the chances of acquiring a Spirit Rune through reading, touching, or perceiving, and also increasing the likelihood of encountering otherwise invisible beings.

In other words, this potion with significant side effects could effectively boost the efficiency of acquiring Spirit Runes. Even if the improvement was minimal, the Magic Potion was sold for a high price of 210 Pounds, higher than the cheapest Poet-Level Relic sold.