Chapter 2360: A New Deal

Chapter 2360: Chapter 2360: A New Deal

Closing his eyes and then opening them again not only meant another Friday had arrived, but also that the Thunder Moon had ended and the Month of Blossoms had come. This slightly chilly summer had officially entered its second half.

"What was I doing around this time last year?"

He murmured to himself as he sat up, flicked his fingers, and drew open the bedroom curtains.

"Shard, is it raining outside?"

The golden-haired girl lying beside him asked softly through sleepy eyes, and over the sound of the rain she gently greeted him:

"Lecia asked me to tell you good morning too. It’s already August... and I’ve only written the opening of this month’s manuscript."

Over breakfast, Shard told Miss Galina and Dorothy what had happened in Moon Bay yesterday. After eating, Shard took the cat and went back to Moon Bay, but he didn’t immediately restore the cat from its toy state, because he was going to visit a dangerous "person."

Earl D’Armanin’s Mansion was located in the westernmost part of Moon Bay City. When he reached the outside of the manor by way of the straight uphill road and saw the building standing solitary beneath the overcast sky, Shard felt that even if this place hadn’t drawn the attention of that Mermaid, it would definitely be targeted by other strange things sooner or later.

The enchanting and voluptuous Countess had already been waiting for Shard with her equally alluring Maids. Although they still said some teasing things while leading him to the lift that went down to the basement, they didn’t dare delay Shard’s meeting with their "master."

The ancient lift rattled with a series of sounds as it worked, and when it reached the bottom and he stepped out, he found himself on the reef that jutted out toward the sea beneath the Sea Cliff.

Shard restored the pink Crystal from its toy form, bent down to place it at the edge of the reef, then backed away a few steps. Under the gloomy sky, white mist suddenly rose and quickly wrapped around the surroundings.

When it had grown thick enough that Shard could no longer clearly see the distant surface of the sea, there came a sound from beneath the water near the reef like a large fish swimming, and with a plop~ that beautiful head of a black-haired woman broke the surface of the sea.

Droplets slid across the shallow rosy birthmark between her brows, and her purple eyes, full of seductive charm, looked toward Shard on the reef:

"You really are just as capable as I thought."

The waves surged up and swallowed the pink Crystal. When the tide receded, the Crystal had vanished, replaced by a red wooden gift box that looked very high-end.

The box flew of its own accord to hover before Shard. When it opened, nestled in the soft velvet lining was not the Dragon Scales Shard had imagined, but a roll of Parchment tied with a red ribbon.

He reached out and took the Parchment, unrolled it, glanced at the contents written on it, and then said:

"Actually, you could have just told me directly. There was no need to specially prepare a box and Parchment."

The bewitching face in the water smiled:

"Little boy, this is called a sense of ritual. How can you not even understand that?"

She did not directly hand over the promised piece of Dragon Scales to Shard, but instead told him the location and history of that Dragon Scales.

To be specific, it was a Silver Dragon’s Dragon Scales, belonging to the "Silver Family," the family that did shipping business in Moon Bay but had never managed to outcompete the Aphrola Family in Carsonrick.

The Dragon Scales were not within the Moon Bay City District, but on a small island outside Moon Bay Port. According to what was recorded on the Parchment, roughly 1,200 years ago, at the beginning of the Sixth Era, the Moon Bay Region experienced a major upheaval.

At that time, when the Silver Family was still in its flourishing period, they feared the family would be wiped out, and so had some of their members take the family’s treasured possessions to sea to seek refuge. In the end, the people who remained in Moon Bay safely weathered that turbulence, while the Silvers who went to sea encountered a once-in-a-century tempest; both people and ships vanished into the boundless ocean.

Among the ships that met with disaster was one carrying that Dragon Scales whose true value ordinary people did not know. As the seas shifted and the ages passed, it now lay quietly buried on a small island not far from Moon Bay Harbor, and its specific location was described on the Parchment in great detail.

With this address, it was practically equivalent to having already obtained that Dragon Scales. Counting the previous black, gold, and green ones, more than half of the seven Dragon Scales were now in hand; perhaps he could try having Luviya perform Divination again.

"What did you talk about with Richard?"

Just as Shard was thinking, that beautiful head watching him suddenly asked again. He raised his head to meet those water-laden eyes for a moment, then quickly looked away:

"We talked about him and Madeline’s story back in the Fourth Era... and then we talked about you."

Shard didn’t believe that Desire truly didn’t know what they had discussed last night, so he did not conceal anything.

As expected, that beautiful head showed no surprise or Rage. She still wore that gorgeous smile, and she even smiled more beautifully than before:

"Good. The little boy does know that I don’t like people lying to me.

That way, that foolish girl Madeline’s matter has been conveniently settled as well. Her Soul Residue will remain forever together with Richard’s Soul Residue. If that God of Love has not yet departed, I think He would also praise me for fulfilling a pair of lovers’ wish."

Shard made no comment on this, just as he had not shared his own opinion with Galina and Dorothy when he told them Richard and Madeline’s love story at the breakfast table this morning.

"I won’t speculate whether, in those two’s story, you were merely an observer or whether you also helped bring certain things about... Actually, there’s one more thing."

The lips, painted with some unknown shade of red, lifted slightly; with the sound of water, a fair left hand rose from beneath the surface and cupped that slightly tilted, beautiful head by its left cheek:

"I knew you definitely had more on your mind. I understand the craving in your heart."

Her smile brimmed over:

"You want to inquire about ’Gluttony’, don’t you?"

Shard was not surprised that his thoughts had been laid bare:

"Yes, you do understand, as expected... For the battle that’s coming, even I’m not confident I can win. Those Cultists are already making their preparations; I need to gather a few more cards myself. This matter—can you help me?"

Only after asking did he realize he seemed a bit too greedy; that thing in the water had no reason to help him like this.

Yet what he received was a smile, a light laughter dancing upon the sea. The splashing water sounded as if the legs of a girl hidden in the mist were gently slapping the surface again and again:

"See? You really have been influenced by me. At First you were so wary of me, and now you already dare to open your mouth and propose a deal."

That smiling head was, to the Outlander’s eyes, the most exquisite work of art. Just staring at her, he felt an impulse to cut off that head, set it at his bedside, and admire it—and use it.

Holding his breath, he cast away the imagined scene, pushed aside distracting thoughts, then lowered his gaze:

"This is what you told me yourself: when the ultimate calamity arrives, even Sin is Power... All right, even I feel like I’m quibbling. Will you help me? If you can give me aid, what price do I have to pay?"

"Of course I’ll help you. My goal, after all, is to watch you rely on me again and again, until in the end you can’t live without me."

Her tone sounded like a joke, yet Shard still felt a chill along his spine.

"Because of what happened in Tobesk last year, it’s already too late to go looking for His Believers now. As for that pepper shaker you used in that Spring City, I don’t have it in my hands anymore either."

She deliberately paused, as if trying to whet Shard’s appetite; Shard waited patiently.

And so those violet eyes looked at him with mock reproach:

"Honestly, I was waiting for you to press me for more. I really don’t know how you manage to Enchant those Witches.

But as for Calling that one—there’s actually an easier way. You don’t need a Ritualist Group or some grand ceremony; you don’t need specific Relics or Divine Items to assist you. You only need to possess a strong, an extremely strong Gluttonous Desire, and He will naturally fix His gaze upon you. After all, He has long since stamped His label on you."

Shard nodded; this method did sound reliable. The problem was how he could harbor such intense Desire, how he was to persuade the other side to help him, and how he should prepare a Godfall vessel.

"You don’t need to worry about why He would help you."

The beautiful head upon the sea continued, letting slip secrets Mortals did not know:

"He and the Dragon Devourer are inherently, bitterly opposed."

"Why... Is it because both of their Powers are tied to devouring and Gluttony?"

Shard understood at once. The left hand in the water withdrew beneath the surface; with the sound of splashing, that head edged closer to the reef’s side. Those limpid violet eyes tugged at Shard’s soul:

"The Godfall vessel is even simpler. His requirements for it are not high. You only need to find a body bearing the Great Sin of Gluttony; you don’t even need to care whether it’s alive or dead."

She had seen straight through Shard’s thoughts:

"As for how to make you possess such mighty Gluttonous Desire... I’m right here, am I not?"

"Desire" said with a smile:

"Look at me, or I won’t go on talking."

Shard was forced to raise his head and meet the gaze of that head, now almost at the edge of the reef. She looked at him, eyes brimming with laughter, saying nothing at first. She waited at least two minutes; only when Shard’s lips were pressed together and his face had flushed red did she finally speak:

"When you need help, I will naturally help you. But whether you succeed or not still depends on yourself. As for the price... I see you’ve been busy enough lately. So, after the matter in Moon Bay is over, come find me. Bring me a full bottle of Essence as a calling gift, and then I’ll tell you what price you must pay."

Her right hand emerged from the water, index finger tapping her own lips. That sultry gaze made Shard want nothing more than to gouge those eyes out and keep them.

"Of course, I won’t make you do anything you don’t like. After all, I’m very fond of you."

A full bottle of Essence was simple enough. But learning the price only after the Moon Bay incident was over was equivalent to saddling Shard with a debt whose interest he did not know. Yet after some thought, he felt there was no need to refuse. Compared to the Mermaid before him, it was still the Evil God—the Dragon Devourer—that was far more terrifying.