Chapter 1303: Chapter 1303: Letters, Statues, and Ruins
Haila Osenfort was not joking when she said she would have Shard pose for an oil painting. After the maid brought the painting supplies, she really set up the easel and had Shard stand next to the snow-covered garden and shrubbery.
Being an oil painting model allowed for movement, but not large movements. During the somewhat dull hour that followed, the veiled noble lady focused entirely on her painting and did not speak to Shard. The maid standing behind Haila Osenfort also showed no inclination to converse with Shard.
When the painting was finished, requiring only coloring, it was already noon. The old butler approached from the front yard of the estate and handed Shard a letter:
“Sorry, Mr. Watson, the master has something to attend to at noon and cannot return.”
It was a letter from Ston Osenfort, sent by someone from the city. He had been detained by Prince William Anjou for lunch, and they would be spending the afternoon together at the local club, so he wouldn’t be able to return to the estate today.
Osenfort expressed little apology in the letter, merely suggesting Shard arrange another visit. It was peculiar since he must have known Shard was visiting because he found at least one of the three items. Yet, his indifference seemed odd.
“Sorry, Mr. Watson.”
Haila Osenfort apologized on behalf of her husband, and Shard shook his head:
“The purpose of my visit, apart from returning an item, involves another matter. I am looking for a sculpture that is important to me. It took me a long time to learn it’s in Mr. Osenfort’s possession.”
With that, he handed the photo of the sculpture, acquired from the Cassandra Auction House, to the woman:
“Madam, since Mr. Osenfort is not here, could you possibly decide to sell it to me?”
But the woman gently shook her head:
“My husband has purchased numerous sculptures, and he has a dedicated room for them. Without his permission, no one may handle these sculptures. However, I can take you to see if the sculpture is here.”
The maid and the butler silently listened to their conversation, and Shard nodded:
“Then I would appreciate it. Since Mr. Osenfort isn’t here, I will leave after seeing the sculpture. I will arrange another time to visit.”
The Osenfort Estate’s mansion had three floors. The top floor was for the owners’ private life and rest, while the first floor was for Ston Osenfort and his “friends” to enjoy themselves. The room for storing sculptures, like the drawing room, was on the second floor, in a relatively secluded corner. Haila Osenfort even did not have a key to that room; the old butler had to unlock it.
When the old butler took the key from his keychain, Shard noticed that the metal door handle of this room was blacker than those of any other room in the house. This sign of frequent use indicated that the room was quite regularly accessed.
Upon unlocking the door, Haila Osenfort led Shard inside, while the butler and maid waited outside. Contrary to Shard’s expectations, this was not a gallery but rather resembled a stonemason’s workshop. The statues purchased by Ston Osenfort were densely arranged in display cabinets along the walls, while the center of the room was somewhat spacious.
In the center of the floor stood an unfinished full-body statue, seemingly of a tall woman. The work was only in its rough form, with tools for sculpting placed in a nearby cart.
“Men enjoy sculpting, women enjoy painting… Old Hack, who attacked Prince William, said Ston Osenfort had studied skills at the Stonemason Guild.”
With this thought in mind, he asked aloud:
“Madam, does your husband enjoy sculpting?”
“When he’s home and those friends aren’t with him, he spends long hours alone in here, locking himself inside.”
The woman spoke indifferently, pointing to the side with hands originally clasped together in front of her chest:
“Is this what you’re looking for?”
In the southeast corner of the cabinet, there was a bust protected by a glass cabinet. The glass cabinet was locked, preventing Shard from touching it directly.
“Yes, that’s it.”
Shard approached to see, noticing the golden plaque mounted on the cabinet beneath the statue:
“May the Earth be with you and me—Edward Marcus.”
It’s rumored that “Edward Marcus” established the city of Randall Valley and was its first monarch. According to the local Miss Lathis, the history behind “Edward Marcus” traces back to the Fourth Era of darkness and chaos, and whether this name was even the exact one is hard to say.
Local legends believe Edward Marcus discovered a gold mine and received the Earth’s blessing, using wealth and power to establish a human settlement in the valley, which was then a primal forest. Until around the year 1000 of the Sixth Era, there was still a festival commemorating him, though few of the contemporary people are aware of these traditions.
Shard and Miss Benanis associate this item with the “Heart of the Earth,” in part due to this legend.
The statue before them dates to approximately the year 500 of the Common Era Calendar. Although relatively well-preserved, the stone surface inevitably bears the marks of time and erosion.
Of course, Shard was more interested in the room than the statue itself. Merely stepping into the room, he felt extremely strong and malicious traces of elements. Even without the Demon Hunting Seal and Night Watchman, he could be certain the place was imbued with demonic power.
Using Magic Demon Sight again, he saw large patches of tainted traces scattered throughout the room, with all of them gathering at the unfinished statue. The statue is heavily infused with demonic power, leading Shard to believe that once completed, it might come to life.
“Is this statue the physical form of that unknown demon?”
Shard felt uncertain but did nothing, as disturbing the demon and allowing it to escape would complicate matters greatly. His current advantage is that the demon does not know his intentions. He memorized everything he saw, planning to discuss it with Dr. Schneider later.
As for Shard’s target this time, the antique statue of “Edward Marcus,” merely looking and sensing from a distance, seemed nothing but ordinary. If not for the potential demon hidden here, Shard could easily come to inspect it at night, but the current situation does not permit this:
“Madam, does your husband alone have the key? To have found it yet unable to even touch it is truly regrettable.”
Shard addressed Haila Osenfort once more, but the noble lady remained silent. When they left the room and returned to the corridor, the old butler made a suggestion to Shard:
“Sir, perhaps you could directly go into town to find the master. If you could obtain his verbal confirmation or return with the key and a token, then you could take it away.”
“That’s indeed a good idea.”
Shard nodded with a smile and said goodbye to the lady of the manor, then followed the butler to the backyard to reclaim his horse. Along the way, he attempted to inquire about the butler’s personal information, such as his previous occupation and whether he was a local, but the old butler skillfully deflected the questions.
Once Shard led his horse out through the estate gate, mounting it while observing the butler locking the gate behind him, he used the Magic Demon Sight one last time.
The butler walking back into the manor was enveloped in black fog, within which countless crimson eyes blinked. While atop the horse, he elevated his view to scan the old manor by the dock, enveloped above by swirling black mist like a gruesome giant hand covering the estate.
Admittedly, the visual effect of the Magic Demon Sight is quite remarkable.
It was already eleven in the morning, and if Shard paced himself accordingly, he might just catch lunch when returning the horse at Wilder Opera House. However, he didn’t rush to return to town; upon reviewing the Golden Dawn’s Sublimation Codex, he discovered the sublimation incantation “Shadow of Silvermoon guides the ultimate direction.” Miss Lathis mentioned that this incantation’s origin is unique, derived from retrieving memories from the land of Randall Valley (Chapter 1266).
The location recorded in the Sublimation Codex was not far from the Osenfort Mansion, so Shard planned to check it out along the way.
Riding through the forest, he did not cross the bridge but continued eastward deeper into the woods. Shortly, he entered a transitional area between the river valley plain and hill regions at the forest’s edge due to complex terrain inconvenient for riding, he proceeded by leading the horse.
Fortunately, the destination wasn’t far; shortly thereafter, he discovered ruins within the woodland. A low stone fence surrounded the area, with a rusted metal sign hanging from a nearby tree:
“Ancient Moon Worship Ritual Site, United Kingdom of Carsonrick Level Two Cultural Heritage Protection Area. Rangers, Hunters, and Travelers are prohibited from entering. The area is administered by Sun Church. Trespassers bear consequences.”
The date at the end was “Common Era Calendar 1803.”
The so-called “Cultural Heritage Protection Areas” are categorized into four levels, with the rating criteria based not on importance but on danger. Generally speaking, a “Level One Cultural Heritage Protection Area” indicates Sixth Era historical remains, “Level Two” signifies pre-Sixth Era historical remains with severe degradation and negligible value, “Level Three” denotes relatively complete and valuable pre-Sixth Era historical remains, “Level Four” indicates extremely dangerous pre-Sixth Era historical remains.
For instance, the collapsed Karas Mountain tower last spring, suspected to be related to an outlander associated with this body, belongs to a Level Four Cultural Heritage Protection Area.