Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

Feather Quill Lane's apartment layout was quite similar to Saint Delan Square, only the rooms were not as large as those in the Shard family's home. The lady, living alone, wasn't ready for visitors so early, but at least the living room wasn't too messy and didn't contain any articles of clothing that Shard shouldn't see.

The temperature inside seemed even higher than outside, and Miss Luisa's apartment was permeated with the unique aroma of spices. She had probably just finished breakfast, as Shard even observed half a bowl of salad remaining on top of the bowl cabinet in the dining area connected to the living room.

"Last night at the restaurant, Miss Luisa seemed to have also chosen a vegetable salad, Is she watching her figure?"

He speculated in his mind, but out of politeness, he refrained from looking further.

Shard took a seat on the living room's sofa, observing an old but unexpectedly lively fabric long sofa. Compared to the nearly decoration-less walls of the Detective Agency, Miss Luisa's apartment was filled with various photo frames and oil paintings.

If one said that Saint Delan Square was the cold style of an office, then this place was truly a lived-in apartment.

"So, have you finally decided to borrow the 'Joyful Dream Pen' and give it a try?"

As Miss Luisa brought tea to Shard, she asked teasingly.

Shard immediately shook his head:

"No, no, I was just reading last night and thought of some things, so I wanted to ask you about them."n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"You have a question? All right, please ask."

The Blonde Writer sat upright, a smile on her face.

"That being so, since we talked about the 'Matchstick Girl' fairy tale yesterday, could you tell me when this fairy tale originated?"

He hadn't asked yesterday to avoid prematurely affecting the result, but Shard had been curious about this issue all night.

Miss Luisa thought for a moment:

"It's probably around the year 1100 of the Fifth Era, which was one of the mandatory exam topics. But I can't specify the exact year, as you know, the end of the Fifth Era was almost demolished by the wars of the thirteen Witch Empresses. The name of the writer has been lost, only his surname, Chad, is known."

This answer aligned with Shard's thoughts. He swallowed, feeling nervous yet very serious, and asked:

"So, if, I say if, the person who wrote this fairy tale were still alive today, what would happen?"

Last night's activity had enabled him to summon fire directly, but Shard wanted more.

"Why would you think of such a strange idea? Let me think, if that were so, then he would be able to easily harness the power derived from the fairy tale."

Shard's eyes widened as he nodded:

"And then? What next?"

Miss Luisa looked at him quizzically, aware that today's detective was acting suspiciously, but she didn't think much of it and answered with a relaxed tone, clearly in a good mood this morning:

"Then, he would probably be able to easily master the powers related to that fairy tale. But this would require a condition; otherwise, he would be no different from an ordinary person."

"What condition?"

Shard asked eagerly.

"Arcane Techniques related to stories and books usually include manuscripts as Spellcasting Materials. Since he was the original author of the fairy tale, he must possess the initial handwritten version of the tale to be recognized by the world as the original Creator. After all, you understand that many stories are inspired by the ideas of others, so who really is the original creator of a story?

Detective, you answer," she instructed.

She examined him.

"The first person in history who fully wrote down the story?"

"Yes."

Miss Luisa nodded in satisfaction, then saw the detective covering his mouth, pondering thoughtfully.

She inspected his attire:

"You don't seem like you're out of control... did you not sleep well last night?"

"Yes, how did you know? Miss Luisa, do you also practice Divination?"

Shard asked.

"No, your overcoat's buttons are done up wrong."

The Blonde Writer laughed, leaning back on the sofa and clasping her hands together to bask in the morning sun, enjoying the reasonably pleasant morning.

Whether Shard could be recognized as the creator of the "Matchstick Girl" story depended on the original "Matchstick Girl" manuscript. Where the original manuscript was, Miss Luisa couldn't answer.

It seemed that gaining power by leaving one's knowledge in the past Space-Time, though feasible, was not a very good method of acquiring power.

Shard had to ensure that the left-behind story would continue to be passed down through thousands of years, thereby possessing mystical power. Moreover, he had to ensure he could obtain the manuscript across the millennia.

Rather than strategizing such a difficult task, it would be easier to delve into textbook knowledge. If Shard could easily obtain antiques across the ages, then making a profit from antiques to buy knowledge would be much easier than scheming for a story to be widely circulated for a thousand years.

However, he was still not giving up and asked Miss Luisa if she had a translation or manuscript of the original "Matchstick Girl" story. He wanted to obtain the Spirit Rune related to the "Matchstick Girl" from the books to determine if he could gain special powers as the Creator.

Miss Luisa did not have them, but a Circle Sorcerer friend of hers who preferred not to reveal their identity did.

"Although I don't know why you suddenly became interested in 'Matchstick Girl', I can bring you the items during the gathering at the doctor's place on Saturday, but I can only lend them to you for a week. Oh, Shard, I think 'The Mad Light Chaser' would suit you better than 'Little Match Girl.' Trying new methods is fine, but I still believe that 'Light' is the Spirit Rune suitable for you,"

Miss Luisa was indeed a good person, of course, if Shard had left without her joking with that 'Joyful Dream Pen,' it would have been even better.

When he stepped out of 211 Feather Quill Street, the Matchstick Girl was still on Shard's mind. He bid farewell to Miss Luisa behind him, then walked along with the crowd, hands in his pockets, heading toward his home.

"Civilization, the present one, the past ones, all the civilizations I've encountered."

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly as he looked at the streets of Steam City, experiencing many emotions in that moment.

Although the morning was a bit foggy, as the sun rose, the fog gradually thinned, and the day remained quite fair.

Temporarily diverting his thoughts from the Matchstick Girl, he engaged absent-mindedly in an internal dialogue about civilizations. When he left Feather Quill Street, it occurred to him that today was Thursday, and since he was already out, it made sense to visit a few newspapers in town as per the business card obtained from Miss Luisa, to discuss advertising.

No matter how wonderful traveling through time was, making money was currently the top priority.