“Not bad, truly not bad. Although this book is dangerous and reading too much of it could lead to loss of control, extracting a few chapters from it could easily allow for the compilation of a brand new book that might help a Ring Artist obtain spirit runes. Look, here is the story of the ancient merfolk, the ancient war between mermaids and mermen, the fusion and hostility of the three great faiths of Coldwater Harbor...”
The old man flipped the pages casually; every page seemed to offer him a new discovery
“With this, the final section of my *Study of the Three Secret Cults of Coldwater Harbor* can finally be completed.”
A smile appeared on his face, and he looked up at Shade
“I said before that all material gains would belong to you, and we would share knowledge. This thing you brought...”
He patted the book
“Is far more valuable than the information I provided you. I will take ownership of this book; feel free to make some additional requests so that the Light-Guiding Hermits aren't taking advantage of you.”
Shade thought for a moment
“Mr. Edmond, I hope that if I need to consult this book, I can do so at any time.”
The old man nodded
“A very reasonable request. You are welcome anytime.”
He continued
“Additionally, I also need the knowledge within this book, so I hope to receive the valuable notes you have compiled from it. Of course, I will assist you in translating the contents; I learned some of the languages of aquatic intelligent species from a friend.”
When facing [Desire], Shade had been forced to flip through the book. Under normal circumstances, he would not read a book that recorded the secrets of evil gods. Moreover, the book had no table of contents or summary; if he were to browse it carefully on his own, he didn't know how long it would take.
“That is simple, but you must come and see me yourself. I won't go through the trouble of mailing letters to Tobesk.”
Mr. Edmond nodded again.
“Those are my only requests for now. If you feel you've gotten the better deal, you'll have to give me a discount the next time I come to buy things.”
Shade said while holding his cat. The cat Mr. Edmond was raising was currently lying at Shade's feet, which left Mia greatly dissatisfied.
“Trading with you is far better than trading with John. If it were him, he certainly wouldn't let me go until he had squeezed every last drop of value from this book.”
The old man said with a smile. Just then, the kettle on the stove began to whistle; he stood up to get the hot water and poured a cup of tea for Shade.
“Speaking of which, Mr. Edmond, is it currently the Sixth Epoch?”
Shade asked.
“Of course it is. Why do you ask?”
The old man asked back in surprise. Shade shook his head
“Something happened a while ago that caused my sense of time to become distorted.”
“That is a precursor to loss of control,” Mr. Edmond warned. Shade nodded without explaining further
“Additionally, I want to ask you about something. I remember you mentioned last time that there were local rumors of a Grade 0 relic appearing in Coldwater Harbor in recent modern times?”
He did not say the name [Desire] directly.
“Yes, though I don't know the specifics. I only settled in Coldwater Harbor thirty years ago, and such rumors already existed among the local Ring Artists then, but no one could produce evidence. Later, the rumors subsided. I suspect very few people remember this now.”
Shade nodded. Before coming to the lighthouse, he had first swum to the secret chamber beneath Aurora Manor. As expected, just as the Witch had said last night, there was nothing left in the chamber. That Grade 0 relic had broken free from its seal and could now be anywhere.
He suddenly asked again
“Are all Grade 0 relics dangerous?”
Mr. Edmond considered for a moment
“Not necessarily dangerous, but certainly eerie. Most Grade 0 relics possess the ability to directly cause a Ring Artist to lose control, so records of them are very scarce. The Church and the three academies strictly control related information.”
Shade nodded and said nothing more. The thing calling itself [Desire] had helped him greatly, but he absolutely did not want to see it again.
He planned to inform the local church about this later, signing it as "The God-Caller," of course. Even if the diocese could never catch the thing, at least the Church would understand that a troublesome Grade 0 relic was active in the material world once again.
This could be considered Shade's small contribution to the peace and stability of the world.
Shade hoped that one day he could find information on [Desire] in the Saint Byrons Library. But no matter how friendly his relationship with Miss Danest was, a librarian would not open information regarding Grade 0 relics to a low-ring artist.
Mr. Edmond invited Shade to stay for lunch, which consisted of the fish he had caught. Since it was still a long time before the hour Miss Galina required him to appear, Shade accepted the invitation.
The two of them processed the fish together and set up a grilling rack outside the lighthouse. While eating, Shade gave Mia a piece of fish with the bones removed, and the cat ate happily.
When Shade prepared to take his leave, saying with a smile that he might come to disturb him from time to time, the old man suddenly asked
“Are you interested in joining the Light-Guiding Hermits?”
Judging by his expression, Mr. Edmond was not joking.
“Would I have to shoulder any responsibilities?”
“Many responsibilities. The responsibility of inheriting civilization.”
The old man's expression was solemn, but Shade shook his head
“If there is anything you need me to do, you can give me a commission, but shouldering civilization is far too heavy. I know that what you do is collect information on civilization—storing, preserving, and passing it on. I admire you for that, but I don't have the time right now. Ten years. Ten years from now, Mr. Edmond, if I'm not dead, even if I've gone to Saint Byrons to be a teacher, you can invite me again. At that time, I will likely agree immediately.”
Instead of being disappointed, the old man smiled
“Beyond the responsibilities you mentioned, we actually have more to do. For example, investigating and maintaining ancient seals, containing and managing relics just like the Church and academies, and since the year 1306 of the Sixth Epoch, we have been searching for the thirteen shelters left behind by the Ancient Gods. The Hermits believe those are the final protections prepared by the Ancient Gods for the lives remaining on the Day of the World's End. Then it's a deal; I will write to you in ten years.”
Shade was stunned. This was the first time he had heard of the thirteen shelters. Linking this to the content of the parchment he had seen behind the hidden wall in his own basement, it wasn't hard to deduce that the Light-Guiding Hermits viewed the spaces behind the White Mist Gates left by the thirteen Ancient Gods as shelters.
“Shelters?”
“I cannot tell you that. Even if you agreed to join the Hermits immediately, it would take at least ten years before you could gradually be exposed to these secrets,” the old man said. Shade shook his head regretfully
“Then it's a deal. I look forward to your letter in ten years.”
Holding the cat, which had begun to feel sleepy after its meal, he waved to the old man guarding the lighthouse alone and prepared to head home. Mr. Edmond stood beneath the lighthouse, watching his retreating figure, and couldn't help but sigh
“As the light of civilization is about to be extinguished and more and more rumors of the world's end surface, will we, the inheritors of the last ember, gain a new companion?”
(Xiao Mia is running.)
First, he went to the entrance of the Nature Church to find someone to help deliver the letter regarding the Grade 0 relic [Desire] to the priest. Afterward, Shade went to the Seven Broomsticks Tavern to inquire about the purchase of coin-type relics. After regrettably finding no results, he did not linger in Coldwater Harbor but returned home, intending to bathe before meeting the Witch.
Lacia was expected to return to Tobesk in about a week, so Shade didn't need to stay in Coldwater Harbor for long, meaning Dorothy wouldn't need to come often to help him look after the cat. However, the blonde girl remained very interested in the detective records in the study and would likely come to disturb him occasionally. Thus, although he didn't see Dorothy today, there would be plenty of time to see her at St. Delan Square in the future.
Miss Galina's carriage stopped downstairs punctually at two in the afternoon. The one who came to pick up Shade was, naturally, the maid Miss Tifa Servet.
Seeing Shade holding this morning's newspaper, she tilted her head slightly to look at the content as the carriage slowly started moving
“Is this the *Steam Bird Daily*?”
“Yes, I'm reading a serialized novel by a friend.”
Shade flipped the newspaper over and showed her the section featuring Dorothy's *The Collected Stories of Detective Hamilton*
“You've probably not heard of it, this is...”
“I've heard of it. It's the most popular detective novel recently.”
The maid's words surprised Shade. Dorothy's novel had only been serialized for a week; he hadn't expected it to attract attention so quickly.
“The *Steam Bird Daily* already has a huge circulation, and the paper specifically gave this detective novel a very good layout. Plus, the story itself is quite good... was this written with you as the prototype?” the maid asked curiously.
“Yes, though it's been heavily adapted.”
Shade opened the newspaper again, wanting to see how Dorothy had described that half-century-long grudge and passion without mentioning occultism or ghosts
“I thought people nowadays were still keen on ancient knight novels or modern court novels. I didn't think they would accept detective novels depicting contemporary life so quickly.”
“It's not that people won't accept them, but that there haven't been good stories to attract them. Most people's lives are very dull; it's only natural that they want to find some fun in stories,” the black-haired maid said with a smile. Shade nodded. But to him, his life was far more interesting than the detective stories in the newspaper.
“Speaking of which... um... is Miss Galina angry?”
Hiding his face behind the newspaper, Shade finally asked the question he had been wanting to ask.
“Angry? Sir, did you do something to make the Miss angry?”
Shade stole a glance; the maid had a beaming expression. It wasn't that she didn't know, but that she was asking despite knowing.
(End of Chapter)