Chapter 2411: Unknown Dweller of the Underground Cemetery

Chapter 2411: Chapter 2411: Unknown Dweller of the Underground Cemetery

"Well... everyone is very busy, and I don’t like having people serve me. Also, things are different now compared to the Fifth Era; they don’t have as much power anymore."

Shard explained this from the front, while the girl behind him snorted softly:

"What you can’t have, you can only look back on. What you have, you don’t know how to cherish. The Red Butterfly Sisters, once protected by Miss Feliana, came first; I came second. Do the witches of this era feel no sense of crisis at all? Luviya told me, those butterflies have already crawled into your bed, yet they’re not reflecting on their so-called dignity?"

The embrace on Shard’s waist tightened slightly, and only then did Shard realize it was the rare moment Miss Eles recognized him, and they were alone together.

Before expressing his apology, he thought of something else:

"Helen and Grace once met Miss Feliana, how did you know about this... because it’s part of their past privacy, I don’t recall telling many people."

Originally, he asked casually, assuming Grace and Helen had spoken with her when they were summoned by Shard during that "Edge of Life and Death" impulse on that day. He didn’t expect the blue-eyed girl to abruptly close her mouth, saying nothing.

Holding the reins, Shard was surprised for a moment, then asked incredulously:

"Wait, I have a strange suspicion. Miss Feliana, Miss Orland, and Fiona, these witches from the founding period of Saint Byrons, lived around the year 3002; while when I witnessed your birth story at the Sea of Darkness, it was already 5180.

The interval between them is over two thousand years, longer than the entire Sixth Era so far... Have you met Miss Feliana?"

The girl behind him simply leaned her body firmly against Shard’s back:

"Your scent, compared to the time at the Sea of Darkness, hasn’t changed at all."

"So you really did meet Miss Feliana!"

The first instance was a question, the second was a statement.

"Seriously, why are you so smart?"

The girl, who was both a ship and a dragon, complained softly without avoiding the topic:

"Shard, do you know? In this boundless river of time, searching for you, it’s definitely not just us."

This was already the answer. Shard knew long beforehand that Miss Feliana was attempting to find him using the "Space-Time Dragon" trait Fiona acquired in the City of Eternal Night, and she had successfully communicated twice during the Black Mist Camp as well as when Shard attempted to use "Poetry Cards" to communicate with Miss Feliana in the Witch Council.

Due to the interval between eras and the world-destroying space impacts caused by Long-Haired Luvia, communication from the Fifth Era to the Sixth Era is much more difficult than within the Fifth Era itself.

Hence, perhaps those Demigod Witches who once formed deep ties with Shard have truly interconnected and are looking toward the Sixth Era together.

Of course, Shard couldn’t assess their progress from his perspective because, for him, everything has already happened; it was a story from the past.

"The one furthest from me is Chloe who lived in the early Fifth Era..."

The image of the short silver-haired "Ice Witch" suddenly jumped to the forefront of his mind. Shard remembered helping her complete the Demigod Road at the summit when they first met in the Silver Mountains, and also remembered their interesting travel story sitting around a campfire while embracing in the Lostwoods.

"I always feel like you’re thinking about other girls now."

The voice from behind interrupted Shard’s reminiscence of the Fifth Era, prompting him to ask:

"Do you know Chloe? Chloe Marcus Marquez, a demigod, and she was once a witch in the Council."

"I’ve seen her name in books, an ancient demigod who could freeze time and space solely with the power of frost."

The girl behind him whispered, but Shard, familiar with this type of wordplay, knew she seemed to have answered the question but actually avoided saying whether she ever met the silver-haired witch who transcends time.

And such a roundabout reply itself signified an answer... Shard often spoke this way.

He didn’t press the question further, for he knew long before that matters of time and fate would lead him into traps if probed too clearly.

"You’ve waited for me alone for so many years, it’s been really hard."

He just said this, and the girl behind him clearly sighed with relief:

"I know the stories of Grace and Helen, they are the ones who truly endured hardships. I just took a nap, then wandered for hundreds of years, witnessing the civilization shifts of the Sixth Era. You know, compared to my lifespan, this period is just a blink of an eye... Although I am different from those humanoid relics with infinite lifespans, my life is much longer than any dragon in this era."

"Indeed, after all, your essence isn’t a dragon... Although I’ve said it before, but I... Radiance, being able to see you in the Sixth Era, in the time I live in, is really wonderful."

The girl behind him didn’t answer, but pressed her cheek tightly against Shard’s back. The smile she showed while biting her lip was something Shard couldn’t see.

Then, the wind carried her song, a song so light that Shard could only hear the melody. It sounded like mermaids in the sea, joyfully praising the sun under the sunshine.

The horses from the Belindel family’s farm were indeed excellent, carrying the two of them deep into the countryside north of Moon Bay for over an hour, merely needing a little rest and some fodder.

The Wright family’s old family burial ground was on the outskirts of the "Poisonous Swamp" to the north of Moon Bay. Of course, the swamp wasn’t truly poisonous, and its environment was far simpler than the "Pantanal Swamp."

The burial ground was away from the city because the entire "Poisonous Swamp" was the private land of the Wright family, the most important asset other than the multiple steam factories in the city.

Although it’s the family’s "ancestral land," because it’s far from the city and not very convenient for life, important members of the Wright family rarely come here, except during autumn when they invite friends and city celebrities to hunt and vacation in the estate.

The family’s huge estate here showcased past glory, while the fact that they were far inferior to Edington, Hawthorn, and the Belindel could be clearly seen in the poorly maintained outer walls of the estate.

Shard and Miss Eles’ target wasn’t this estate, which still had servants and stewards active, but the cemetery not far from the estate.

The horse was tethered in a small grove and hidden with a talisman to conceal it from sight and sound. The two companions followed the path extending from the back gate of the estate, quickly spotting the cemetery surrounded by stone column fences.

Although a family burial ground, due to its age, the area is not particularly small.

In the center of the cemetery is the Gravekeeper’s Cottage and a small church adjacent to it, surrounded by scattered ground tombs.

"The Wright family’s tradition is to place coffins in underground cemeteries, so these ground tombs belong to family members who were, for various reasons, not well-received."

Shard explained, closing his eyes to listen for heartbeats, discovering that although there were two people in the Gravekeeper’s Cottage, their heartbeats were slow as if they were asleep. He couldn’t hear anything from underground cemeteries, as the soil blocked even the Heart of Stone’s detection ability.

The cemetery gate was hung with chains, and after pushing open the gate, the inside appeared unremarkable. Approaching the window of the Gravekeeper’s Cottage, Shard and Miss Eles saw two men in their forties or fifties slumped over a small table as if asleep. The table was covered with wine glasses, fried beans, and scattered Roder Cards everywhere.

No deduction was needed; Shard could guess what had happened:

"The tomb guardians, bored, played cards, then fell asleep while playing."

"Did someone arrive before us? How coincidental?"

The blue-eyed girl frowned and said, while Shard shook his head and drew the Angel’s Right Arm from the sword scabbard:

"Nothing unusual on the surface. Let’s go down and have a look."

The door to the massive underground cemetery was naturally locked, and when the door opened, a sinister cold mist wafted out. Shard and Miss Eles didn’t immediately step forward:

"A large ritual inside has been activated."

"Not a modern ritual setup, perhaps an ancient circle mage’s countermeasure to prevent grave robbing, but..."

Shard frowned, sensing:

"The person who originally set up the ritual wasn’t very strong, and it’s so ancient. What kind of trap could someone fall into?"

Whether church, cultists, or the Light Worshipper Training Association, those involved in the Moon Bay event are elite among elites.

"Didn’t our Miss Diviner prophesy who is searching for the scales? Did she not say a fifth force is seeking this item?"

Miss Eles asked, and Shard shook his head:

"She never said, but her divination arts cannot miss anything unless the other party has no chance of finding the Dragon Scales, hence the divination doesn’t reveal fate. Or, the other party possesses Angel-Level... no, Angel-Level destiny artifacts wouldn’t fully block her divination. Unless the opponents have Unclassified Level destiny relics hiding fate."

Miss Eles curiously asked:

"There have been enough high-level relics appearing in Moon Bay these past months. Unclassified Level destiny kind? It can’t be the ’Fate’s Pedestal’ discussed by your Prophet’s Society, right? But would a circle sorcerer possessing such a high-level relic be trapped by this grave defense ritual?"

"Moon Bay’s Unclassified Level destiny relic, you know of one."

"She" suddenly whispered in Shard’s ear, the gentle voice carrying a smile to inspire Shard’s thought:

"Yes, my original purpose for coming to Moon Bay."