rely a coin was not enough to divine the matter of the third The Chosen One. Even though Luviya had used the ti of a Big City Player to advance from the Three Rings to the Four Rings, it did not significantly reduce her demand for Currency Relics in her "Divination of the Cost."
However, the information she had applied for from the headquarter of the Prophet's Society regarding Midshire Fort had finally been obtained. It contained a vast description of the "Interstice of Life and Death," but for Shard, it was already of no use, as he would not enter that place again.
The only thing that surprised him was that the Prophet's Society believed that Sicarl Mountain, this "dead volcano," was not a naturally ford mountain but had been ford due to external forces. Moreover, Sicarl Mountain still had the potential to erupt, but what might spew out would not be magma.
"Could it be that the Society believes that once death erupts, the most likely point of eruption would be the summit of Sicarl Mountain?"
Shard wondered, but Luviya was also at a loss.
After practicing sword swinging one hundred tis in the forest in front of the tower on Sicarl Mountain, which he reached from his ho's basent, he then made his way downhill into the city's interior.
The Cassandra Auction House could be considered the most well-known chain auction house across the Old Continent. The headquarters of the auction house were right in the center of Midshire Fort City.
The auction house, along with the local Nature Chapel, Dawn Chapel, and City Hall, were all located on Saint Kara Avenue in the city center. From a geographical standpoint, this was not the very center of the city but rather shifted to the southern part; however, this nearby area was the economic, political, and cultural center of the entire city.
The two ends of Saint Kara Avenue, anwhile, were Oak Street and Punjab Avenue. Many important border agencies of the Kingdom, such as the Border Managent Bureau, were located on the forr while the latter was dotted with offices of various large and small cross-border trade consortia.
"Wait, Punjab Avenue?"
In the latter half of the Month of Harvest, the leaves on the roadside trees had already begun to peel off. When Shard alighted from the carriage at Cassandra Auction House, he suddenly startled, then turned his head towards the intersection where Saint Kara Avenue t Punjab Avenue:
"I rember that in the intelligence delivered by the gray hawk, the Duchy of Seth told the Carsonrickians that the goods they helped to transport were in a warehouse on Punjab Avenue... Wait, what does this have to do with ?"
He imdiately forgot the matter he had just recalled, very certain that the loyal MI6 Major Shard Hamilton had no connection with the evil Carsonrickians (note).
His main purpose for visiting Cassandra Auction House today was to et Grandma Zina Cassandra of the Grand Witch and Sister Delphine of the Spiritual Practice Order. In addition to thanking them, he would further elucidate what exactly had happened last Saturday night in the Interstice of Life and Death.
Shard certainly would not say that both he and Priest Augustus had "died" once and then returned from the world of the dead. He rely ntioned that he had encountered many strange people in the Interstice of Life and Death and had even caught a distant glimpse of a very powerful Vampire Kind.
"The other was really strong. It could have been that winged person who perhaps caused the crimson aurora above Sicarl Mountain—it might also have been that Vampire Kind. After all, isn't the power of the Vampire Kind often accompanied by a blood-red color?"
Shard said without any sense of burden.
He had saved a middle-aged Vampire Kind and his nephew, and since they were not only Exotic Species but also foreigners who spoke the Carsonrick language, he probably would never see them again in his lifeti.
"Vampire Kind, huh? There seem indeed to be so long-residing fellows around here, but haven't they always been acting as ordinary citizens?"
Granny Cassandra and Sister Delphine had a short conversation and seed to harbor no doubts about his words.
Both of them also inford Shard that including Priest Augustus, a total of 17 missing persons had been found sequentially by the City Hall and the soldiers of the Draleon Royal Army from Rising Wind Trail since yesterday.
All of them had lost their mories from the "Interstice of Life and Death," not only due to the influence of the Level 0 Relic itself but also because living people should not have any mories related to the world of the dead.
In any case, Priest Augustus had already returned to Dawn Chapel. After undergoing a physical examination and simple questioning, he could return to his normal duties. Compared to the other sixteen missing people, there was nothing peculiar about the priest, and no one rembered what he had done in the "Interstice of Life and Death."
Despite knowing that Shard had co to Midshire Fort from Tobesk using special ans, Granny Cassandra told him before he rose to leave that if he ever encountered trouble in this city, he could always co to her for help. Although Sister Delphine of the Spiritual Practice Order also heard all this, she did not express curiosity about Shard's spatial crossing.
She did not understand why the Grand Witch was fond of a man, but she also promised that Shard could always get help from the Spiritual Practice Order. She still did not disclose the location of the Order to Shard, but he could contact her through the House of the Blind.
After expressing his gratitude again, Shard also ntioned his intention to purchase special blood, Currency Relics, and the Ti Key, then departed from Cassandra Auction House. As he reached the entrance, soone behind him called his na:
"Mr. John Watson!"
Turning around, it was the lobby manager of the first floor of the auction house who had guided Shard earlier. The middle-aged man with neatly dressed brunette hair hurried over and handed Shard a brass-colored card.
Shard initially thought it was the man's business card, but after looking at it, he realized it was not.
"Mr. Watson, this is a VIP card from Cassandra Auction House. It can be used in all the auction houses and their branches across the Old Continent. I forgot to give it to you earlier."
He respectfully said, Shard nodded and tucked the card away, then proceeded to inquire:
"If I wanted to contact an officer stationed at Rising Wind Trail, what would be the simplest way to do so?"
These frontier units' camps were all in the Sicarl Mountains, and Shard did not want to traverse Rising Wind Trail into the mountains—it was too far.
"Do you know the specific unit number or the location of the camp?"
the middle-aged manager asked, to which Shard shook his head:
"I only know the rank and na."
"In that case, I suggest you go to a tavern in the South District and inquire there. Officers like to go into the city and unwind at taverns during their off-duty hours, and they are well-acquainted with each other; you might find your answer there."
Upon seeing Shard nod, he hesitated before adding:
"I don't an to offend those respectable frontier officers, but they are typically... rude and coarse, and a gentleman like you may find it difficult to deal with them."
This middle-aged man did not know Shard's true identity, but seeing him favored by Ms. Cassandra, the owner of the auction house, he assud Shard was the descendant of a young noble or from a wealthy rchant family.
"What do they like to do at the tavern?"
Shard asked curiously.
"What else? Won, alcohol, and Roder Card."
"I see..."
Shard mused thoughtfully; he believed he would get along well with the local officers.
Because it connected the most important railway lines in the central-eastern part of the continent, the area around Midshire Fort Train Station in the southern part of the city was packed with an astounding density of taverns and inns. Even during a workday Tuesday afternoon, most of the taverns on the street were open and bustling with patrons.
It was noon, and Shard decided to find a place to eat while gathering so information. He did not want to squeeze into a crowded small tavern, but going to an upscale restaurant was not only expensive but also ineffective for gathering intelligence.
He intentionally looked for a grand inn, similar to the Three Cats Inn at Tobesk Hymn Square, that appeared decent and conducted relatively formal business. Just then, during his carriage ride, the enthusiastic coachman had recomnded the "Sicarl Inn" located two streets away from the train station on Birch Wood Street.
The na was quite straightforward, but this simplicity seed to make a stronger impression on people.
"I wonder if 'Sicarl' is a franchise; if so, soone would probably co to collect franchise fees,"
Shard amused himself with the thought, a notion that only he understood the aning of.
Midshire Fort was rich in timber resources, but the buildings constructed in the old era in the South District were made of stone due to military and fire safety requirents. The Sicarl Inn was not as large as the Three Cats Inn in Tobesk City, but this inn was also four stories high, with the upper two floors for lodging and the lower two containing the restaurant and tavern.
When Shard, having applied eye shadow, pushed open the door to the inn, it was precisely eleven-thirty in the morning. The weather was decent today, and light stread through the gray stone window fras, casting patches of light and shadow over the tables and patrons.
There was a scent of alcohol in the inn, and by this ti, two-thirds of the tables on the first floor were occupied by lunch diners. The restaurant was bustling, filled with people of various languages and backgrounds conversing with each other.
Even as Shard entered, he could hear soone loudly complaining in Carsonrickian about the excessive humidity of Midshire Fort's autumn, a scene only seen in peaceful tis.
By the wall, a long-haired male bard with a red hat was sitting on a barstool playing the lute, with a silver Carsonrick whistle standing beside him.
Seeing an empty table nearby, Shard took a seat and then called over a server to fetch the nu, choosing dishes that seed to suit his taste by their nas. He didn't order too much, since he had an appointnt in the afternoon to et with Priest Augustus, who owed him a al.
When selecting beverages, Shard unconsciously thought of the wine Tifa had brought him during dinner the previous night. He kept his face tense, showing no particular expression, handed back the nu to the server, and watched the bard perform while waiting for his lunch to arrive.
Bards earning money by performing in taverns usually chose heroic epics and legendary stories as their material, sotis catering to the kingdom's needs by singing the latest political news for money.
The bard before him was singing about the local legend of the Phoenix. The current verse had reached the conclusion of the story, where the people were commorating the Phoenix that had sacrificed itself for the city.
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