Chapter 2064: Chapter 2064: Target Location
Without delving too deeply into the issue of the three mysterious Roder Cards, Shard continued to ask:
"The second question. Someone asked me to find a special person, about two or three months ago, he had contact with you. Yes, you know what I’m talking about, Circle Sorcerer. Don’t be so surprised, you just need to answer me, what was that person doing here, and where is he now."
A shirtless Hawthorn hurriedly shook his head:
"I don’t know what you’re talking about, don’t ask, this isn’t a topic we should be involved in."
"I’m curious, are you really willing to pay the price for someone else?"
Shard asked:
"You should be able to tell, I’m from Draleon. At the Yordle Palace in the distant Northern Capital Tobesk City, I have heard of a type of attendant officer called ’Eunuch Servants’. Sir Hawthorn, are you interested in this profession?"
Freeman Hawthorn opened his mouth:
"You sure love to joke... No, don’t be like that! I don’t really know that Circle Sorcerer either, it was my grandfather who asked me to send people to help him find something, but he himself didn’t clarify what he was looking for, just said it was in the Lower District, of a very high level, and had my men check out any unusual events recently. But in the end, nothing was found; that person, although still occasionally appearing beside my grandfather, never contacted me again. Later, I heard from my father that it seemed that thing was taken by the Belindel Family. If the Church found out about this kind of thing, we’d all be in trouble, so both sides tacitly acted like nothing happened."
"Belindel?"
Unexpectedly, after such a big circle, it still leads to finding someone:
"The Seven Families of Glory in Moon Bay City, do they all have contact with Circle Sorcerers? Are the nobles of this city all so bold?"
"We all understand the Church’s rules, but this is Moon Bay, a city where wealth gathers..."
Which means, if Shard wants to know if that relic is the ’Hope Diamond’ he’s looking for, he’ll have to find someone from the Belindel family. But the Freeman Hawthorn in front of him does not know about things on the Belindel side, Shard needs to start with the Circle Sorcerer the Hawthorn family had contact with.
However, he did not ask the man in front of him about the whereabouts of the Circle Sorcerer their family was in contact with, but instead posed the final question:
"The third question, are you involved with the illegal organization ’Eternal Light’ in Moon Bay City?"
Hawthorn immediately shook his head:
"How could I be involved with them? They’re a bunch of madmen trying to overthrow the Seven Families of Glory’s control over the city. If I supported them, wouldn’t I be opposing myself? Oh, sir, since you say you’re from out of town, why don’t we sit down and have a nice chat, I really..."
"What number is this?"
Shard interrupted him, extending the index finger of his right hand wearing the Mind Crystal Ring.
"One?"
"Psychic Shockwave!"
His finger touched Freeman Hawthorn’s forehead, his eyes immediately rolled back, and he collapsed foaming at the mouth. Shard did not have a very effective means of erasing memory; the Psychic Shockwave is a direct attack on spiritual power. Though Shard couldn’t be sure if, upon awakening, he would become a fool or just lose part of his memory, this result was satisfactory for him.
Still unsure how to solve the dock office and the Hawthorn family’s obstruction to Lecia’s business, unexpectedly it involved the Belindel family as well. But more than Lecia’s three shipments, what that relic actually is was something Shard had to find out.
He chose not to immediately inquire about the Grey Glove from Mrs. Frei at the club but left the club to find the journalist known as the "Boatman," then inquired about the residence of Old Earl Hawthorn, as well as his daily routine.
The contact arranged by Director Anlos was indeed reliable, asking nothing, just saying whatever Shard wanted to know. Shard thus spent the entire afternoon sorting through intelligence with the "Boatman." By evening, after returning home to have dinner with his cat, he was just about to head out again when he happened to meet Luviya arriving.
Luviya seemed to have just gotten off work and came to the third floor of No. 6, Saint Delan Square for stargazing. Shard intended to find her on his way out, so he recounted the investigations of the past two days at home:
"Old Earl Hawthorn meets with that Circle Sorcerer periodically, and I want to find that Circle Sorcerer to figure out what the relic actually is. But I’m not sure of their meeting times, perhaps you could help me divine them."
"This is rare, you actively seeking my divination, that’s far less often than Iluna. If Iluna encounters trouble, she always seeks my guidance, she’s much more..."
Shard didn’t hear the rest of Luviya’s words.
The girl with purple eyes excels in cartomancy, but this time, for more accurate results, she also used the relics "Diviner’s Silver Coin" and "Obsidian Pendulum" for assistance.
She shuffled the cards in an ornate manner, and after a series of "performances" that even dazzled Shard, a Roder Card expert, finally let Shard choose two cards from five divided piles.
"Fate and the stars tell me that tonight is a good opportunity to take action."
The two sat across a desk, Mia crouched on it, occasionally glancing at the cards and then at Shard.
Although Luviya’s eyes were on Shard, Shard clearly felt she was looking at somewhere further away:
"But be careful, tonight’s operation might not go smoothly. You might encounter strong opponents, but caution will help you avoid unnecessary trouble."
"Are they strong?"
"Of course not, the target you are looking for should only be a Five-Ring, and without any Anti-Divination power. But if you make contact with them, it might attract others. So be very careful, after all, the Moon Bay Region is a place we have never ventured before, who knows what else is hidden there."
Shard trusted Luviya’s Divination Ability very much, since she believed today was a good opportunity for action, he naturally wouldn’t miss it. Therefore, while maintaining caution, he still entrusted Luviya to take care of the playful cat tonight and then took advantage of the night to head once again towards Moon Bay City.
The cityscape lit up by gas lamps, along with the seemingly endless household gas lights, outlined the city in such a way that it surpassed even the nighttime brilliance of Tobesk in certain areas.
At nine in the evening, the Harbor Opera House in Moon Bay City was dispersing, well-dressed gentlemen and ladies discussed the opera’s content as they descended the steps outside the opera house’s main entrance. The waiting carriages at the opera house’s entrance formed a line to welcome the guests ready to return home.
However, in the southeastern corner of the Opera House, on the well-lit open ground, there were no empty carriages daring to stay. The carriages bearing the crests of the Hawthorn Family, Belindel Family, and Edington Family awaited the return of their noble masters.
The 67-year-old Old Earl Hawthorn appeared to be in good health. He descended the steps with a man wearing a black top hat, followed by servants. The Old Duke was the first to board the carriage at the lowest step in front of the grand staircase of the opera house, followed by the man in the black top hat, while the servants took another carriage to accompany them.
The coachman rang a bell, and the carriage began to move along the wide harbor street in front of the opera house. The bystanders and other carriages made way, accustomed to this scene.
The night was deep, and though Moon Bay City had a vibrant nightlife, there were not many pedestrians on the street. Thus, when a red butterfly flew into the stable moving carriage window with the wind, no one else noticed the anomaly.
But the people inside the carriage surely saw the Red Butterfly. The carriage stopped, and the man with the black top hat got off, while that carriage fled along the street at a faster speed.
The Red Butterfly fluttered ahead, and the man with the black top hat frowned, following it through a nearby alley into the Lower District, then climbed the iron ladder alongside a house under construction on the side of the street to the rooftop, where he saw a young stranger viewing the city nightscape with his back to him.
The Red Butterfly leading the man with the top hat collided with Shard’s body, causing faint ripples to appear on his back.
"Good evening, how was the opera?"
Shard said as he turned to look at the other person, confirming that it was just as Luviya said, this was a Five-Ring Sorcerer.
"Who are you? You have broken the rules; the Church does not allow Circle Sorcerers to casually provoke secular nobles."
The man with the top hat said, raising his hand to touch his hat.
"But does the Church allow Circle Sorcerers to freely cooperate with nobles?"
Shard also asked:
"The Church also doesn’t allow the casual use of Relics. As long as it’s not overstepping, the Church doesn’t concern itself with so many things. Besides, I’m not here for Earl Hawthorn tonight; I’m here for you."
"Me?"
The man with the top hat asked in confusion:
"But I don’t know you."
"Yes, I don’t know you either, but that’s okay, you just need to answer a few interesting little questions for me."
"But why should I answer you? Also, was it related to you that the Earl’s grandson suddenly fainted at the Parsifal Club this afternoon and lost a week’s worth of memory upon waking up?"
He said as he took off his hat, and Shard nodded in understanding:
"Going to fight, right? That’s why I chose to meet here. The terrain is open, a few light-avoiding charms and Silence Charms can avoid the sight of others."
With silver Thunder jumping into his right hand, the man with the top hat sharply grabbed the brim, forcefully pulled it down, and then he entered into the hat in full.
"Oh?"
The hat fell to the ground and quickly spun, skimming the ground, shooting like a dart towards Shard’s legs, and sparks flew as it scraped against the ground. But Shard ignored the hat in front to the left, took the opportunity to step sharply rightwards, and his right foot accurately stepped on the invisible hat in the air:
"Daring to play Illusion Technique in front of me?"
A scream came from beneath the black top hat, and Shard, holding the silvery Thunderbolt lance with both hands, already struck down with dazzling thunder.
The hat pierced by the Thunderbolt lance exploded into a puff of white smoke, allowing the man to "escape" back into the hat flying into the air. Within the Steam Mist, the Five-Ring Life Ring emerged under the Starry Sky, the Enlightenment [Air] shone as he pulled the hat suspended in the air with his right hand to keep himself aloft while forming a gun shape with his left hand, making a "biu~" sound with his mouth towards the mist where Shard was.
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