Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 431 - Lecia’s Ambition

"I received some news about The Chosen One in Coldwater Port, but I didn't tell Miss Galina, instead, I was forced to tell Lady Hevy Aurora,"

Shard admitted honestly.

"I heard from the Miss that the witch spoke very highly of you,"

Miss Maid said with a smile.

"Oh, I did help her... So, what now?"

"Your intelligence was obtained in Coldwater Port, and she can understand that you couldn't inform her in time. What really upset her is that Lady Hevy Aurora took the initiative to contact you, and you left a very good impression on her."

With a skeptical tilt of his head from behind the newspaper, Shard looked at the maid sitting opposite him, Miss Maid smiled and relayed a rather unfortunate piece of news:

"Mr. Hamilton, your existence is equivalent to a direct challenge to the longstanding rules of the Witch's Curse. For such a secret, the Miss prefers to be the only one in the know. Now because of your adventurous actions, another witch also knows... She believes another witch has stolen her secret and treasure."

"Hmm..."

Shard hadn't expected the Red-Haired Duchess to think that way, but after giving it some thought, he figured he would probably wish to keep certain secrets to himself as well.

"Miss Servit, is there anything Miss Galina particularly likes? I think, perhaps this time when I visit, I could bring some gifts."

Miss Maid, even as she smiled, maintained an elegance:

"The Miss likes many things, but you probably can't afford them."

"How about this?"

After some thought, Shard pulled out a handkerchief, then reached into the inner pocket of his coat. Subsequently, he revealed a milky white pearl as big as half a fist from inside his garment. The Divinity stored inside the pearl had been perfectly absorbed by Shard, and unlike the toys made by the Deity to store Divinity, the pearl was a real object, therefore it was preserved, albeit unfortunately reduced in size by half, and it couldn't store Divinity anymore.

The black-haired maid's smile vanished as she leaned forward slightly, her eyes wide with surprise at the treasure in Shard's hand:

"Oh~"

She let out a moan-like sigh of admiration. Although Miss Tifa Servet had seen many wonders and was a Circle Sorcerer herself, probably no woman could resist such a piece of jewelry.

Actually, men probably couldn't resist it either.

Shard, holding the pearl, met Miss Galina in the manor's library, and when the Duchess was about to say something, she saw what he was carrying and set down her pen in astonishment:

"Although I thought that one day you might give me a piece of jewelry as a gift, isn't this a bit much... I have larger pearls than this in my collection, but I have never seen one as round as this... Where did you get it from?"

"Picked it up in Coldwater Port, I went down to the sea yesterday morning too. After the collapse of the merman's ancient ruins, all manner of sundry items have been falling downwards, and now the True God Church in Coldwater Port Parish is searching the whole sea area for abnormal objects."

Shard handed the pearl to Miss Galina, who accepted it with apparent delight but after examining it, handed it back to Shard:

"Rather than giving it to me, better that you keep it. You'll have a use for it soon enough. Don't sell it, leave it at home. When I give you a prompt, you can then pass it along."

"To whom?"

Shard wrapped the pearl in his coat, turning it back into a toy before tossing it into his pocket.

"Queen Diana, her birthday is at the end of this month."

Miss Galina passed the document she had signed to her secretary, who then took it away. She capped her fountain pen and looked at Shard:

"There will probably be a few political incidents in Tobesk soon."

The Duchess frowned slightly, seemingly deep in thought:

"Shard, when the time is right, I will let you give this gift to Queen Diana. Although you have no interest in politics, the upcoming turmoil will inevitably affect you since you saved the Queen. Sometimes doing the right thing can make you the target of envy... Moreover, Queen Diana will bring greater benefits to your life in Tobesk."

"But I have you,"

Shard joked, Miss Tifa standing behind Galina showed a smile, the witch seemed pleased as well:

"But after all, I am the Duchess of Saradiel, not the Duchess of Tobesk. Compared to me, Queen Diana has greater influence in this country. And I can't easily intervene in the coming turmoil of Tobesk... You understand."

Standing up to move towards the sofa, Shard also stood up and moved to another place:

"I heard from Lady Aphrola that the mastermind behind the assassination attempt on the Queen has been found? Sax Cavendish."

Shard tentatively asked, to which Miss Galina nodded:

"Yes, MI6 has finally been of some use this time. As the Duchess with real power, I cannot easily intervene in this matter."

"Because it relates to the royal succession?"

Miss Galina's lips curved into a captivating smile:

"It's good that you thought of it. I'm surprised you're so attuned to politics. I won't delve too much into political matters, so let's talk about what happened at Coldwater Port. I've heard about your dealings with Hevy Aurora from her herself, and this time she really made quite a splash in the Council."

As she lifted her teacup, she looked towards Shard:

"When I wrote to you, I was indeed a bit angry, but on second thought, it wasn't a big deal. I'm not that petty."

This statement was different from what Tifa said. Shard glanced at the Maid standing behind the Duchess, whose black-haired Maid was intently looking towards the door, deliberately avoiding looking at Shard.

"However, I need to confirm one thing: the so-called 'God Summoner', was it you who once again employed the power you used at Lakeside Manor, or did that Thirteen-Ring Sorcerer really heal from his severe injuries? This is very important for the Council's subsequent arrangements."

"It wasn't me; I was washed out to sea by the tide at the time."

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Shard had already thought about this question; he saw no need to admit that the deed had been his own doing. This way, the next time he was compelled to use Divinity, people would naturally assume that the "God Summoner" had recovered, hence calling on a deity again wouldn't be problematic.

Miss Galina pondered for a moment:

"That's a bit troubling, then. Although there are several Thirteen-Ring Sorcerers with mysterious identities, this one can summon a deity. After the first time, there could well be a second... What exactly is in the Merman Temple that can directly heal injuries inflicted by calling upon a deity?"

Shard carefully remained silent, eyeing the afternoon tea pastries on the coffee table. Here, there were no sugar frosting pancakes served by Lecia, which were a delicacy of Coldwater Port; the Royal Capital preferred intricately crafted sweets for afternoon tea.

While Shard was pondering the flavors of the pastries, Miss Galina asked an unexpected question:

"Shard, what is your relationship with my niece, Lecia?"

"What?"

Taken aback, Shard watched as the Witch leaned back against the sofa, laughing:

"Don't tell me you're just friends. Hevy and I were told that you hid in Lecia's wardrobe in her rest room, where she caught you... and you were entangled in a garter belt?"

"No, it was a sash, and I can explain that."

"I know that Lecia is a Circle Sorcerer of Zaras. If she hadn't been exposed so early, I would have actually preferred her to become a Witch. Shard, no matter how you came to know her or what relationship you plan to develop with her in the future, you must be careful—she is quite an ambitious woman."

It was the first time Shard had heard anyone describe Lecia in such terms.

"Ambitious? Could it be that Lecia wishes to be crowned Her Majesty the Queen of Draleon?"

Shard joked:

"Where would she find the time for that? Attending meetings, giving speeches, touring the nation—even with a staff team, Lecia does not have that much time. Unless she is willing to give up her status as a Circle Sorcerer, but how could that be possible?"

"Of course she won't give it up."

Miss Galina chose her words very carefully, squinting her eyes at the perplexed expression on Shard's face:

"She doesn't have time to be a Queen, but others do, and my nephew Larus III has plenty of children. It's not difficult to find a few who would be willing to listen to her. Lecia doesn't need to become Queen to gain power."

Shard suddenly understood her meaning and looked at Galina Cavendish in amazement:

"Are you suggesting that Lecia wants to support..."

The Witch placed her slender finger to her lips, gesturing for Shard to be silent and not to continue:

"I have no interest in that position, and I can't be bothered to meddle in the kingdom's succession, so let's not discuss such matters here. If you're interested, you should go ask Lecia; aren't you two on good terms?"

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She twirled her red hair by her ear, her tone laden with teasing.

Shard nodded, not expecting the red-haired girl to harbor such grand ambitions.

The Witch Council was still on the trail of Daknis, although divining information about The Chosen One was extremely troublesome. However, with the aid of that boot, the Council had at least confirmed that he had not gone to the New World, but instead moved inland from the West Coast.

It would take some time for new information, but Daknis couldn't reach Tobesk without revealing his trail. Miss Galina hadn't anticipated the possibility of his arrival in Tobesk, and Shard didn't mention it; the Witch would likely learn of this "surprise" within half a month.

After parting with Miss Galina, the carriage took Shard into the city. It was only four o'clock in the afternoon when he arrived home, so he took his cat to the Prophet's Society to talk to Luviya about what happened at Coldwater Port and the fleeing Daknis.

Unfortunately, Luviya wasn't at the Society, but she should be back by evening.

Having nothing else to do that day, Shard decided to check out the latest Roder Card Set at the Society and inquire about next month's events for the Big City Player. But as he placed the cat on his shoulder to leave, he saw Vice-President Mark and Mr. Yadis Stan of the Tobesk Branch entering the building together.

"Looks like there's something to do now."

Shard went to greet them.