Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 363: The House of Paintings of Mad Sean

"Sir, thank you."

The soul avoided the sunlight, bowing slightly to Shard in the shadows. Shard shook his head, indicating it was nothing.

Mia looked at the soul, but Shard didn’t notice the cat’s actions.

"Not sure if you remember, but we actually met once in the church. At that time, I didn’t realize the problem with you, otherwise who knows..."

"I no longer have what-ifs."

The soul said with a wry smile. Compared to the souls Shard had encountered in the cemetery, which were related to love, family, and half a century of emotions, Mr. Freeman was more like a person:

"I know I shouldn’t stay here, I should go. Just, I want to ask you to do something for me."

He bowed once more, and Shard thought for a moment:

"You tell me first what you want to do, I won’t make promises lightly to others."

"Actually, I had saved some hidden money privately. I don’t know if you are married, but it’s a habit that men who have families tend to have."

He smiled sheepishly and continued to explain:

"That money is about 50 pounds, which I’ve saved for ten years. Originally, I planned to buy things behind my wife’s back that she thought were a waste of Gold Pounds, like Carsonrick’s handmade brass battleship models, or commemorative stamps worth collecting...The money is hidden in our original house, there is a hollow under the attic floor..."

Perhaps the hollow for hiding money was too small, that’s why Shard and the Old Cleric didn’t find it when they inspected that morning.

"Please take this money to my family; it’s very important to them now... You can take half for yourself, and the rest for them would be enough."

He gave Shard an unnatural smile, clearly worried that Shard would take it all for himself. But he had no other way, after all, he was just a soul.

"Since that’s the case, I promise Mr. Dawn that I’ll only take the cost of the carriage fare and 1 pound as a commission fee. Although I’m not a wealthy man, I will not earn money like that."

Shard said softly as the soul’s expression paused slightly, and then he bowed to Shard for the third time. Afterward, while Shard blinked, the soul disappeared into the shadows.

He continued on his way, going where he should.

When Shard returned from Hangton Garden Street with the money, Mrs. Freeman and her family hadn’t arrived home yet. So he took the liberty of opening the door to someone else’s house, went upstairs, and after deducting the fare for the carriage and 1 pound, he placed the remaining change in one of the opened moving boxes.

Of course, since the painting was still untouched in the folio, the Relic’s Trait wasn’t activated.

To ensure that Mrs. Freeman didn’t overlook the money, Shard thoughtfully placed the notes on top of the miscellaneous items and pressed one side down with the children’s cloth toys.

But perhaps because the well-made cloth toy also resembled a cat, it left Mia, who was being held by Shard, quite disgruntled. If Shard hadn’t stopped her, she might have even rushed into the box to fight a battle to the death with that "cat."

Although Mia was timid, whenever she faced someone she didn’t see as a threat, the cat would display great courage and strength. This was also why Mia had made such a lasting impression on the pet shop owner.

"You did well today; for dinner, let’s eat something nice."

Shard said happily, holding the orange cat; he enjoyed the feeling of self-satisfaction that came from doing good deeds.

Walking from the temporary apartment of the Freeman Family to Dr. Schneider’s clinic, Mrs. Freeman happened to be taking her children back home.

Dr. Schneider had already returned to the clinic, having wasted some time blurring the memories of the family, which is why they encountered Shard at the clinic entrance.

The memories had been blurred, but Mrs. Freeman’s impression of Shard hadn’t faded that quickly. When they met, the middle-aged woman thanked Shard again, then left with her children.

Shard stood at the doorstep watching their figures disappear into the distance of the street and pondered the relationship between the mystical and the ordinary people before shaking his head and turning to enter the clinic.

The doctor and the priest waited for him in the study on the second floor. When Shard entered, Dr. Schneider was listening to Priest Augustus recount their day’s activities.

"Very good, Shard, that was the standard containment procedure for a Relic. Identify the problem, conduct an investigation, face danger, resolve the difficulty, contain the Relic. You’ve learned a lot following Priest Augustus today, much more than you would have with me or Luisa," the doctor praised. The Old Cleric smiled, squinting his eyes, and humbly said that all the credit for today belonged to Shard.

Feeling cheerful, Shard too took a seat and then showed the doctor the painting. As expected, a new model of a house appeared in the painting, the very image of this clinic.

Since no one had touched it, the painting could be taken out of the clinic. When it would enter the next house, the model on the table would change to a new appearance.

"Based on your descriptions, I think it’s more likely that this Relic is Scribe Level (Fourth Level)," the doctor with the blue eyes contemplated before making a cautious judgment, explaining:

"When you first encountered it, you didn’t find its function of turning wood into real existing items. Compared to the Bandage Puppet that chased you around the house, the transformation between wood and real items, as well as the costless generation of detailed models of building interiors, these are the most valuable Traits of this Relic."

"But at the moment, we still don’t know, aside from the original wood puppets created by Shard’s Arcane Technique that were real items, how other creations can be accepted by this painting."

Priest Augustus pointed out:

"So, I still think that this item is more likely to be of Poet-Level."

Of course, the final rating of the Relic would depend on the Academy’s records. If there were no records, a comparison with other academies and the Church’s archives was required. If there still were no records, then, after lengthy testing, a conclusion could be reached.

Writing the containment report for a Relic isn’t something that can be done in an instant, but Relics can be submitted directly to the Academy; nobody wants to keep such things in their own home.

Of course, when submitting a Relic, one cannot directly use Poet Cohen’s Manuscript pages to send it. The Academy, to prevent correspondence students from sending strange items, usually keeps the manuscript pages in a separate safety compartment.

The doctor first sent a note explaining that the group intended to submit a Relic. After receiving a reply from the Academy, Shard gave a simple description of the Relic’s appearance and its basic traits, then sent the message back to the Academy.

This time it took a full half-hour before the message came through, permitting the transfer of the Relic. The Academy used this half-hour to look up information and set up appropriate containment measures, as no one knew exactly what correspondence students might send.

The painting was rolled up into a tube by Shard and placed on the manuscript page in the doctor’s hand. Shortly after it disappeared, a receipt appeared from the manuscript page, signifying that Saint Byrons had received the Relic sent by the student.

Another ten minutes passed before an official document bearing the Saint Byrons Emblem arrived. Explore more stories with novelbuddy

This was the formal Relic reception letter, stating the time and place, along with the names of the student submitting the Relic, and the names of the Student Affairs Office and the Library Academy’s professors on duty that day.

The middle part gave the specific information of the Relic, indicating that the Relic had been found in the records, a known Relic that had been previously documented.

Dr. Schneider’s opinion was correct; it was a Scribe Level (Fourth Level) Relic.

"Mad Sean’s Painting Home," a piece created by an unknown painter during the Fourth Era, was thoroughly documented in the Fifth Era.

The specific traits of the Relic, Shard and Augustus Cleric had approximately figured out in today’s adventure. The only thing they did not know was exactly which type of puppets could enter the painting, and the Academy’s records provided an answer.

"Puppets made with all the passion and heart, endowed with unique inspiration and creativity. For ordinary people, it consumes a vast amount of spiritual power and could even cause a mental breakdown; for Circle Sorcerers, apart from high artistic skill, it also requires Spirit along with immense passion and concentration.

A live person who sends a self-fashioned puppet into the painting can replace their own puppet in the painting and enhance the intelligence and mobility of the puppet. If a person affected by the Relic dies, the puppet that entered the painting can become the vessel of their soul. Until the puppet is destroyed, the soul will not be absorbed by the painting."

Shard read out those words, and Dr. Schneider, holding a glass of wine, clicked his tongue. Having returned from a call, his work for the day was done, which is why the middle-aged man could casually drink his "off-duty drink" and chat with the two.

"If someone had indeed carved such a puppet but still met an unfortunate death, the puppet entered the painting after they died, and then if the painting was never touched by anyone else after that, doesn’t that mean that the unlucky fellow has to contend with the bandage murder puppet you mentioned in the painting for hundreds of years until they are caught or give up themselves?"

"That’s right."

Shard nodded and continued to read the Academy’s document.

"Shard, other than like what we did, by destroying the house within the painting, are there other ways to contain this Relic?"

The Cleric asked with genuine interest, as the method Shard used was something most people definitely couldn’t replicate.

"Indeed there are. The method we used is very rare. The correct procedure recorded by the Academy is to find more people skilled in carpentry and have them send their carved puppets into the painting together. Then have those puppets defeat the Bandage Puppet, so that everyone involved can be freed."

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freёnovelkiss.com.

Shard paused to turn the page:

"This method would not result in the Bandage Monster running into the real world because it would be destroyed within the painting. While our approach is simpler, we must face the final attack."

"And the containment methods? What would happen if this thing got out of control?"

"Containment is quite simple; it is best to store it in a standard way without human contact. This item loses control only during the period when the painting’s attributes are active. If someone tries to add to the painting with a brush, then the Bandage Monster will grab that brush and step out of the painting."

Shard explained, as Priest Augustus showed a relieved expression:

"It’s good we didn’t come up with that idea. We really should be thankful to Mr. Freeman, for he showed us the way."

"Run out? Like what you and Priest Augustus experienced?"

The doctor asked with a smile:

"Wasn’t it quite weak?"

The Cleric peering at the document in Shard’s hand shook his head:

"The Academy says what we encountered was an incomplete Bandage Monster because we had contained it already. A complete Bandage Monster, carrying the Whisper Element, requires at least an 11th Ring Circle Sorcerer to deal with, a very powerful Evil Object."

All three showed expressions of amazement.

"I’m glad I didn’t go; otherwise, I would have been very likely to suggest altering the painting with a paintbrush,"

the doctor even said quietly.