Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Chapter 133 Battle on the Bridge

"No problem, this is what I came to get."

Shard nodded, simply re-wrapping the makeup box in newspaper:

"The lady did not bring me your payment."

"She has already paid, she threatened us, and then bought it at a low price."

The Circle Sorcerer from [Blood of Mercury] said in a muffled voice, glancing at the stranger:

"You were hired by that lady, weren't you? She doesn't want us to know her true identity. But one can probably guess, with such tactics, it must be a witch from the Witch Council, just not sure which one, those crazy women..."

"You don't need to tell me your speculations."

Shard stopped him, not forgetting that [Blood of Mercury] were not good people; even if everything they said was true, it was still better to hear less.

"Oh? Are you afraid that listening too much will get you silenced? Those women who claim to inherit the legacy of the Ancient Witch Empress really dislike men. Hiring you is merely using you. She probably doesn't want her existence known, so you definitely do not know who she specifically is. Or perhaps...

you are not a man at all?"

The other side provoked again, and Shard scoffed in disdain, finding such a tactic to stir up trouble too primitive.

He chose to ignore the other party, watching the coachman and slowly backing up, until he reached a safe distance, then turned his head and left.

The fog was thick tonight, and even after just a few minutes of the brief exchange, it was starting to blur the view of the bridge end.

The man disguised as a coachman laughed when Shard wouldn't listen and was about to climb onto the coach to leave from the other side of the Tower Bridge. But just then, a figure in a black robe and hood suddenly sprang up from beneath the bridge.

Her appearance was very timely, taking advantage of both the dense fog and the lull after the handover. After climbing onto the bridge, she charged towards the coachman, who threw a punch at her, his arm wrapped in mercury-like liquid, tearing through the air with a startling screech.

The figure with the hood agilely dodged to the side, and then, amid the tolling of bells, summoned the Ring of Fate. The Ring of Fate spun, with the brass-colored Enlightenment Rune [Frozen Dead] flickering, and amid the summer night's fog, the rustling sound of steam condensing arose.

Shard turned to watch this sudden fight, the mercury on the coachman's fist seemingly faulty under the low temperature, but the figure with the hood still did not dare to confront him head-on.

Both combatants in the fight had summoned their Rings of Fate, and the emerging steam mist made visibility even worse.

"Stranger, this is my conflict with [Blood of Mercury], and it doesn't concern you, leave this place."

The woman's voice came from beneath the hood; Shard, who was about to leave, hesitated. He carefully placed the newspaper-wrapped makeup box on the bridge, while at his back, the glimmer of a First Ring Sorcerer's Ring of Fate began to appear.

"A First Ring Sorcerer? Help me out here, you won't be at a loss."

The man from Blood of Mercury called out.

"Of course, no problem."

Shard responded, swiftly moving towards the two entangled fighters.

The current situation was evenly matched, but since the hooded person had the element of surprise, they seemed to have the upper hand.

The brass-colored Enlightening Aura on the hooded person's body opposed the power of the coachman's mercury-filled fist. As both their Rings of Fate rotated, it was clear that both the hooded person and the coachman were Four-Ring Sorcerers, but the latter was obviously more skilled in direct combat.

Shard had already made his way through the thick fog on the bridge to approach them; his right hand shimmered with a silver radiance, drawing a bright glimmer in the air. The brilliance was so dazzling and eye-catching that it appeared in the fog-enshrouded summer night, momentarily causing the coachman to lose focus:

"How beautiful... No, why is that light coming towards me..."

The Silvermoon Slash arrived in a flash at his face; although aware that the force of Arcane Technique would not be powerful from a First Ring Sorcerer, a subconscious alertness still prompted him to raise his other arm to block.

Unexpectedly, the silver light actually sliced open a thin wound on his arm, the blood mingling with a silver sheen quickly soaking through the shoulder of his clothing.

"It can't be! How could you possibly slice through my skin?"

Knowing he could not bridge the vast gap of the rings with the Divine Afterglow State alone, Shard followed up with a second Silvermoon Light Trace immediately. At the same time, a silvery fog slowly gathered from the surroundings, as the Illusion of the Moon Shadow allowed him to conceal himself in front of the enemy.

Facing the second Moon Track, the coachman chose to dodge immediately, but while he evaded the distant silver lunar radiance, he couldn't dodge the close presence of the hooded figure.

The hooded person grabbed his shoulder, and with her pale hand tightening and knuckles bulging, Shard understood the meaning of the Spell Words:

"At the end of the fairy tale, the fire takes away traces of life!"

The dazzling firelight shot up into the night fog, and the coachman seized by the Hooded Man burned like a torch. With a scream, he broke free from the Hooded Man's grasp, and then a third Silvermoon's radiance slashed across his left arm.

It merely broke through the inner layer of the Mercury protection in his skin, but it wasn't fatal. Amidst the flames, the coachman violently wrenched himself out of the Hooded Man's grasp and then leaped powerfully, plunging into the Terael River amid the dense fog.

The Hooded Man hesitated for a moment, then followed the trail of fire light in the air and also jumped off the bridge. When Shard dispelled the Illusion Technique and peered down from the bridge edge, the heavy fog made it impossible to see the water surface or the two people who had jumped.

So he could only use "Echo of Blood" to observe the blood traces. Of course, there was a long streak of red halo in the air, but once in the water, the blood was quickly dispersed by the current, and the trail was lost.

"So the nemesis of the tracking ability 'Echo of Blood' is the water surface or river," he thought, shrugging his shoulders. He exchanged a look with the startled horse for a moment before turning to pick up the makeup box placed on the ground.

Five minutes later, Shard met up with a soaking wet Miss Luisa under the bridge. She had already taken off her hood, and her wet blonde hair clung to the side of her face, highlighting the golden-haired girl's sour mood even further:

"Good evening, Detective. It's quite a coincidence to run into you again, and to think he got away even with this situation, that's really unlucky!"

She said dejectedly, having recognized Shard from the silver moonlight earlier. Shard recognized Miss Luisa by her voice, which was easy to do; her voice was distinctive.

"It is a coincidence, I was hired to retrieve an item, and just happened to be here."

He shook the object in his hand.

"I've been by the bridge the whole time and saw everything. Was that lady's task this? It seems quite simple."

Miss Luisa said while tidying her hair; she didn't care much about the trade concerning the "Blood of Mercury." As long as there was no deep cooperation with the "Blood of Mercury" and it was merely a transaction, it was quite ordinary. And based on Shard's intelligence, "that lady" held high status and power and definitely couldn't be a partner of the "Blood of Mercury."

"Detective, do you have any of that healing water?"

After tidying her wet hair and not bothering with her still-dripping clothes, Miss Luisa turned to Shard and asked.

"Are you injured?"

As he asked, he took some water from a small bottle he carried and gently touched it, making the surface of the water gleam with silver light.

"Just a light injury, I got punched in the river. He seems to have the ability to transform into a fish or maybe that's the Relic. I'm not seriously hurt, just feel a bit uncomfortable in my lungs."

Miss Luisa said, but remembering the lesson learned from a hiccup last time, she only drank a little and then, avoiding Shard's gaze, poured the rest of the water over her belly before handing the bottle back to Shard.

During this process, Shard very gentlemanly looked away, pretending to be interested in the night view of Tower Bridge and Tobesk. Experience exclusive tales on empire

"Do you need 'Cyndia's Silvermoon Blessing'?"

Shard asked again, casually offering his cloak used to conceal his identity to the drenched Miss Luisa. It was summer, and the cloak was only significant to Shard for hiding his identity, not for warmth.

Miss Luisa didn't expect this gesture, and after a soft thank you, she wrapped herself tightly with the cloak.

Although she could set others on fire, she couldn't use fire to warm and dry herself. After all, in any version of the Matchstick Girl story, the Matchstick Girl never managed to use the flame to save herself.

"No need for healing now, that punch didn't contain any spiritual attack elements. Also, your 'Silvermoon Slash' is really something, being able to break through the defense of a Four-Ring Sorcerer, but its power is still not enough, after all, the rings are too few..."

She sniffed.

Shard appeared for the reason of a pickup, while Miss Luisa appeared dressed like this in the middle of the night still in pursuit of Dr. Schneider's Academy Bounty Notice.

Although the doctor is now bedridden, Miss Luisa, as a partner, can still take action. Right now, under the relentless pursuit of the True God Church, the "Blood of Mercury" organization has spread out and scattered throughout the city. Miss Luisa, while trailing an important member, learned of the transaction taking place tonight.

Hence, she hoped to capture a live subject to inquire about the "Forged Philosopher's Stone," but despite Shard's unexpected assistance, she still failed.

"Now all the Circle Sorcerers in Tobesk City know, the Church of the Five Gods has made a deal, and next week the Sun Church will send a Thirteen-Ring Sorcerer to fill the temporary absence of a Thirteen Ring in the Tobesk Parish.

Cultists and the 'Blood of Mercury' are eager to hide, scattering important items and materials across the city to be stored by ordinary people, so now is a good opportunity to find the 'Forged Philosopher's Stone.'"

"So, do we keep searching for that guy who went into the water? If I can find where he came ashore, I think my eyes can spot him,"

Shard suggested, sure that if the man was still bleeding, he would have left traces after coming out of the water.

But he shook the object in his hand:

"I can only stay for half an hour, I need to get this item to my employer as soon as possible."