Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 648 - The Reappearance of the Twins
Chapter 648: Chapter 648: The Reappearance of the Twins
Chapter 648: Chapter 648: The Reappearance of the Twins
Miss Black’s neighbor, the old man who was walking his dog when last encountered, was at home today and still recognized Shard. When Shard explained his purpose and wanted to learn more about Miss Helen Black, the old man holding the leash shook his head:
“Although we are neighbors, I seldom see my neighbors, only occasionally helping to look after the house. If you want to know more, you could try Mr. Pasolo. They seemed to have been in touch… Oh, yes, Mr. Pasolo also died a few days ago.”
The old man was somewhat sorrowful:
“Another of the old neighbors on this street has passed away.”
“Have you lived here long? Do you know anything about Miss Helen Black’s sister, Miss Grace White?”
Shard asked again.
“Yes, but not much. I moved here thirteen years ago and only met Miss White three or four times.”
Thus, the lead was interrupted here; Shard attempted to ask other neighbors on the street, but they either weren’t home or knew very little. It seemed that Mr. Simir Pasolo, who had died, knew the most on this street.
“However, I still have the address of our client, Miss White. I even sent a letter to that address.”
As the carriage headed towards the cemetery outside the city, Shard recalled this. Conveniently on the way, Tifa then had the coachman stop in front of Miss Grace White’s house.
After knocking and receiving no response, Shard knocked on the door of the neighboring apartment to gather information from the neighbors. Unexpectedly, he retrieved another letter.
“Miss White has also gone to Midshire Fort?”
Shard looked at the letter passed by the neighbor with surprise.
“Is this the letter left for Detective Sparrow?”
Tifa asked.
“No, it’s, well, for me. Miss White said she had already received my previous letter and that the retainer fee would be transferred next month to No. 6, Saint Delan Square. She seemed to have guessed someone would come knocking… If I hadn’t known Miss White was already dead, I might really believe this letter.”
He frowned and tucked the folded letter into his pocket; the carriage started again, heading towards the public cemetery outside the city:
“With this, the client has declared the commission over, so does this matter now seem unrelated to me?”
“So, are you going to continue the investigation?”
Tifa asked curiously, as she was also intrigued by the matter.
“Of course I will continue the investigation; I’m not one to quit halfway.”
Shard sighed.
After all, the investigation of Lady Lassoya and the search for an ophthalmologist, both due to actions Shard took beyond the duties of his commission, had led to significant new developments and directly or indirectly to substantial gains for Shard.
Now, as the case became more confusing and had connections to both the completed fourth Time Key and Midshire Fort, Shard was naturally willing to continue his investigation until he meets Helen Black and Grace White.
With this in mind, he suddenly frowned, glanced through the carriage window past the buildings lining the street, and looked towards his home under the gray sky:
“If I were to further delve into the commission of finding Mia, could there be other gains?”
Nonetheless, the most important task at hand was still to find the Stone Figurine that bore the inscription of a fragment of “Whispering Verses.”
For ordinary people, the best time for tomb raiding would definitely be at night, but Circle Sorcerers did not have that concern.
The carriage delivered the group near the city’s public cemetery, where two female magicians, whose names Shard could not recall, went to investigate the burial site of Mr. Simir Pasolo.
Half an hour later, they had the results, so Miss Maid Laila and the coachman stayed in the carriage while Shard and three other Circle Sorcerers headed to the tomb.
Today was a lucky day, as Mr. Simir Pasolo had not been directly buried but had chosen the Underground Cemetery, so there was no need to worry about digging up someone else’s grave.
Even without Shard using the “Moonlight Silence” to mute sounds, the three female sorcerers independently used arcane techniques to conceal their shadows, eliminate noise, and block detection.
The only thing Shard did was use the “Key of the Door” to open the doors to the Underground Cemetery. He then led the way with the light of Silvermoon, guiding the group through a tomb area heavy with the smells of tide and mold, following the direction of the gas pipelines. After disturbing a few rats and spiders, they successfully located Mr. Simir Pasolo’s tomb.
Shard opened the stone door at the entrance of the tomb, and the two female sorcerers went to inspect the coffin placed in the center of the tomb. Tifa wanted to discuss necromancy with Shard, but as soon as he entered the tomb, he directly looked toward the southeast corner.
“Is there something wrong?”
She looked over as well but saw nothing.
The source of this c𝓸ntent is frёeweɓηovel.coɱ.
“I think we won’t need necromancy, the spirit is right here.”
Shard pointed to the southeast corner of the tomb, and Tifa blinked, taking out a small bottle from her pocket. Inside was nearly transparent dust:
“Soul-Revealing Dust, to detect spiritual bodies that are difficult to capture with the naked eye.”
This was a basic alchemical product but had a narrow use as spirits that even Circle Sorcerers could not feel were generally useless. However, this type of item often ended up in the hands of ordinary people, serving as a tool to assist those do-gooders or mysticism enthusiasts on their journey towards death.
Tifa sprinkled some towards the direction Shard had indicated and with the gradual appearance of a faint green glow, Mr. Simir Pasolo’s spirit was revealed. Meanwhile, the two female sorcerers also inspected the coffin and the tomb, essentially confirming they were the first to arrive here.
“What do you want to do?”
Perhaps because he had only died two days ago, though his spiritual body was faint, his spirit still possessed a strong sense of self. He had originally just been “standing” there, only realizing these people could actually see him, a deceased person, when Tifa approached to sprinkle the dust and Shard looked directly at him.
“We are here for a stone figurine.”
Still, it was Shard who communicated, as he had substantial experience talking with ordinary spirits:
“It is an antique meant to accompany you in burial. I apologize for disturbing your rest.”
Shard said politely, as the old man’s spirit glared at him, his beard bristling:
“No need to be so polite. Even if I had objections, could I really stop you thieves?”
“Oh, please don’t be upset. I know this is wrong, so I want to help you sort out your estate division issues.”
“My estate division?”
The spirit of Mr. Simir Pasolo looked skeptically at the young spirit before him:
“You’ve been to my house?”
“Yes, we met your children and Miss Maid Lina, but we did not see a will.”
Shard spoke the truth, and the spirit nodded:
“Of course you wouldn’t see it, since I never left a will.”
“So that’s how it is.”
Shard shook his head with a smile, both he and Tifa had realized that the Maid was lying. They initially thought she was just playing small tricks, but it turned out she was bolder:
“You see, I told you there was something off about that Maid. We were all fooled by her.”
He said to Tifa, who was not too surprised but smiled.
“What on earth has happened to my family?”
Mr. Pasolo asked, somewhat at a loss:
“I thought I was in good health and believed that making a will prematurely was a curse on myself, so I never got around to it, and then suddenly, I had a heart attack… What has happened in my home? Have my children started fighting over the inheritance?”
“No, no, the gentleman and the lady are getting along well. It’s your Maid who is about to start fighting with them.”
Shard recounted what he had witnessed a few hours prior, and Mr. Pasolo, agitated by the emotions, felt his spirit become somewhat unstable:
“Oh! I was so good to her! I even paid her double the usual Maid’s wage! And she actually, she actually…”
“We will ensure she receives the punishment she deserves. If you would like to make an oral will, I believe this lady would also assist you in putting it together.”
Shard nodded at Tifa:
“So, in exchange for helping you with the will, we may take that Stone Figurine, may we?”
The old man’s spirit immediately nodded:
“Of course, oh, I really didn’t expect. I’m dead and yet still encountering such things. Don’t people always say that you can find peace after death?”
He covered his face, trying to cry, but for some reason, this lingering spirit did not possess that capability.
Having obtained the coffin owner’s permission, the two Female Sorcerers lifted their hands, used Sorcery to open the tomb, and removed the Stone Figurine that was used as a burial object. Tifa noted down the oral will of the old man—Bic Pasolo to take one-fifth of all his assets, Jenny Pasolo to take one-third, and the remaining two-fifths to be donated to the Church of Creation—and she promised to execute it on his behalf.
After the other party finished stating his will, Shard asked:
“Although I don’t know why you have lingered, you probably want to leave, right?”
The old man nodded and looked despondently at the tomb:
“Before I died, I really thought that death would free me from all troubles. I didn’t expect I couldn’t find peace even in death. I accept my sudden passing, as everyone must die, but encountering this kind of situation after death is truly disheartening.”
“I have an ability that can release you by touching your spirit. But before you leave, I would like to ask some questions about Miss Grace White and Miss Helen Black.”
The ‘Gate of Death’ can also lead spirits directly into True Death, but that way, it’s impossible to touch the lingering attachments of the lingering spirits, so Shard uses ‘Guide to Death’ on spirits like this, which is a better way to send them off.
The spirit looked at him unexpectedly:
“That’s a surprising question, young man. What do you want to know?”
“Haven’t you felt that these two ladies are very strange?”
“Certainly strange, but what does that have to do with me?”
“So you just need to answer two questions for me, Miss Helen Black, 22 years old this year, lost her sister 11 years ago. How old was Miss Grace White when she passed away?”
“22 years old.”
Mr. Simir Pasolo provided the answer.
“Good, then do you know any elders of Grace White, who has passed away?”
Mr. Pasolo’s spirit even showed a smile:
“Young man, you’ve grasped the key point, not bad. I thought I was the only one who had discovered this wonderful little secret.”
Shard squinted slightly:
“The elder of Miss Grace White, who died in 1842, she wouldn’t happen to have been a Black, would she?”
The spirit nodded slightly:
“I promised someone I would keep this secret. Young man, the secrets of ladies are not so easily explored.”
After saying this, he spoke no further, obviously not intending to reveal any more information. And Shard, adhering to their agreement, used the Arcane Technique “Guide to Death” to touch the other’s spirit.
The hand, emitting an ambiguously grey glow, touched the glowing spirit, and then scenes from the spirit’s life flashed before Shard’s eyes. Compared to the knowledge laden with supernatural powers, a few most important images from a mortal’s life posed no pressure on Shard.
However, when the spirit in front of him turned into points of light and disappeared, and Shard’s vision returned to normal, he saw in the last image a girl in a black tulle dress.
She stood in front of the apartment’s steps, dusty as if she had returned from a journey, and behind her a servant held two suitcases. The weather that day was good, seemingly in early spring, Helen Black wore a black long dress, and on her head was a beige wide-brimmed hat adorned with black iris flowers.
She nodded slightly outside the frame, probably greeting the owner of the memory. Under the bright sunshine, this lady of quite extraordinary appearance was as beautiful as the most delicate flower of early spring.
Shard couldn’t be sure which era the memory belonged to, but he could affirm that the girl in her twenties, with a half red butterfly pendant around her waist, had a face almost exactly like the face of the thirteen or fourteen-year-old girl in a black dress he met at the last century’s party.
The aura about her was not at all like that of a person who had lived for thousands of years. She still resembled the young girl of that time, playful and somewhat shy. Just like when she said goodbye to Shard at that party.
“So it really was them…”
[Surprised?]
“A little.”
Tifa, seeing that Shard had finished his talk, came over and handed him the stone figurine. Although it was a burial object, the figurine had not been in direct contact with the body and was not very dirty after a slight cleaning.
Still somewhat moved, Shard ran his palm over the cold base of the stone figurine and, with the light of Silvermoon, looked at the engravings, which contained only two lines:
“Death…”
The two female sorcerers had already exited the cemetery, leaving only Tifa standing beside Shard. The black-haired Miss Maid looked at Shard’s profile under the moonlight, her well-defined lips curving into a smile, while Shard softly translated:
“The great responsibility of death will fall upon the shoulders of the one who can see through death. That is…”
The last few words were somewhat blurred, and it took Shard a while to recognize them:
“That is, the person with the Eye of Death.”
