Chapter 1293: Chapter 1293: Year 3028 of the Fifth Era – City of Eternal Night
Aside from the killer, the deceased, and the valet, everyone seemed satisfied with uncovering the truth. Shard bid farewell to Angelina, took the cat from Tifa’s arms, and left with Miss Maid as people spontaneously made way for them.
When they returned to the temporarily empty corridor, the black-haired girl quietly said to Shard:
“You did really well tonight.”
“Really?”
He patted the cat in his arms:
“Mia deserves the most credit, otherwise I really wouldn’t know what evidence to present to prove my point. Fortunately, this matter is resolved, and His Majesty the King will have to contemplate for some time on how to arrange Angelina’s marriage.”
Tifa chuckled softly and winked:
“I thought you solved the case so quickly because you wanted to return to Her Highness Lecia and Miss Luisa as soon as possible.”
Shard turned to look at her, and Miss Maid reminded him softly:
“This is Yordle Palace, Knight, you can’t misbehave.”
She happened to be standing under a gas lamp marked with the Royal Crest, and the bright light made her delicate face appear even more radiant.
“Speaking of which, since Miss and I returned, we haven’t had a moment alone… last time in the room, we were interrupted by Miss.”
Shard looked around, then embraced and kissed the smiling Miss Maid.
When they returned to the corridor leading to the lounge holding hands with Tifa, she finally let go of Shard, stood on tiptoe to kiss him on the cheek, raised her right forearm to wave goodbye. Of course, she didn’t forget to take the cat since she knew Shard still had things to do.
Lecia and Dorothy hadn’t returned from the banquet hall yet, as evidenced by the absence of Lecia’s maid. Shard solved the case in just forty minutes, less than the one hour Lecia allotted.
But news of the case would soon spread, and the two ladies would also return. So while there was time, Shard took out the Time Key gifted to him by the Elf Girl Amelia on Monday, calculated that now was the time to use it, and approached the door.
[At such a moment, you still remember this.]
“Do you think I’m the kind of guy whose thoughts are clouded by desire?”
Shard asked softly in his heart, muttering:
“May the World Tree bless me in time.”
Inside the door came a clear “click” sound, and behind the open door pulled by Shard was an endlessly writhing white mist. He took a deep breath and stepped in:
“Only after completing this can I truly enjoy the night, right?”
[Outlander, you have stepped into the “Time Corridor.”]
[Message from Ancient God “Father of the Infinite Tree”:]
[Autumn of Year 3028 in the Fifth Era, Northern Continent, City of Eternal Night.]
[Event: Whisper of the Veil of Eternal Night.]
[Duration 40 minutes (1/4).]
“Year 3028 of the Fifth Era… Wait, forty minutes? And this time it’s actually four times?”
However, upon further thought, no one ever said Shard’s tasks always consisted of three completions. After all, ordinary Time Investigators typically complete theirs in one attempt.
And the time point of Autumn 3028 is only four years after Shard parted ways with the three witches in the Valley of Dead Silence and handed the flower to Miss Feliana in 3024. Elf Girl Amelia, who offered the key, claimed it was a Time Key from around 3000 years ago, which turned out to be highly accurate.
“Old God – Veil of Eternal Night? I recall this Deity is also known as the ‘Monarch of Eternal Night’ and… the God of the Night?”
“Darkness” has existed since the world’s inception and will continue to exist, representing half of time and nearly all darkness. The Old God symbolizing “Darkness” is extremely powerful, even among all Old Gods.
It could be said that the deities Shard encountered in past times, aside from the “Blazar Gate” in the Forest of Thousand Trees, had no higher level of mystery than this Deity.
However, there are few records of the God of Night from the Fifth Era, whose followers largely maintain secrecy, if not outright secretive. Text-based information from the Sixth Era concerning the Old God “Veil of Eternal Night” is mostly from the descriptions of the Church of the Five Gods. The only thing Shard can think of now is that this Deity has departed, and the “Night Cult” uses a black veil curtain as their symbol.
“What’s the mission this time?”
[You have gained additional information.]
[The figure of Father of the Infinite Tree is watching you.]
[The Ancient God of Time is giving you a test.]
[Help mortals break through the Maze of Eternal Night and uncover the truth behind the curtain.]
[Father of the Infinite Tree will reward you: Miracle Soul Rune – Night.]
“Hmm?”
The reward this time truly stunned Shard; he had only seen Spirit Rune rewards the first time he used the Time Key. That Miracle – [Echo] had become the starting point for his Low Ring Ascension Words. And this time, [Night] seemed exceptionally compatible with his Circle Sorcerer System. Even if not him, for others, “Night” would be an extremely powerful Spirit Rune as well.
Although “Night” has always existed, acquiring the [Night] Spirit Rune is incredibly difficult. To give a simple example: it’s like one of Luviya’s Core Spirit Runes, [Fate]. Though it exists and is within reach, hardly any mortals can truly comprehend it.
There’s no evidence that the Tree Father’s reward is related to the difficulty of the mission, but the rich reward and the unusual frequency indicate this mission is very special.
“I wonder if the so-called ‘Maze of Eternal Night’ is a real maze or some kind of metaphor.”
Thinking about this, he prepared himself, stepping forward into the thick white mist.
The silent fog silently spread around, like a curtain being drawn, revealing a corner of the time mantle of the Year 3028 of the Fifth Era to Shard.
This time there was no nauseating smell of the Bug Lair. When the white mist dissipated, he first felt the rain, then noticed the night sky without stars and moon above his head, and the slightly lower road paved with rectangular stone bricks with a high center.
In front and behind were stretches of gray stone buildings. The sky was drizzling rain, wetting the walls and soaking the mud between the bricks beneath his feet. A faintly damp and musty smell of soil filled the air, but this smell wasn’t unpleasant.
Though he was in darkness, there was still some light around him. From the windows of buildings along the street, some weak flames could be seen. They looked like gas lamps but could also be candle or kerosene lamp flames.
This was truly a city, only the atmosphere in the city was extraordinarily oppressive. Shard’s perception could only detect the sound of the rain but couldn’t hear any traces of human activity. Yet, the unattended carriages on the streets, the store signs lit along the street, the flyers on walls soaked by rain, he could see traces of life everywhere. It felt as if, a moment ago, there were passersby with umbrellas walking on the streets.
This sense of contradiction and contrast greatly enhanced the eerie feeling of the current environment. And as always, the Tree Father would never directly place Shard in a safe place.
The quiet night scene suddenly moved with one of Shard’s breaths. He thought it was the darkness attacking at first, but then realized it was the light from lamps extinguishing one by one from afar, as if the night had gained consciousness, closing in on him from left and right.
In the silent night, there was nothing, but it was in this emptiness within the darkness that Shard directly sensed a fatal crisis:
“I absolutely cannot fall into the night here!”
He made a judgment and ran toward the brightly lit store sign in front using past experiences. Unfortunately, this time it wasn’t the colorful sign of “Hope Town Toy Shop”; bizarre letters conveyed even more astonishing content:
[Dragon Maid Café]
Even if it was “Dark Coffin Shop,” “Cultist Gathering Hall,” or “Soul Drainer Club,” Shard wouldn’t be as surprised. But there wasn’t time to think; the darkness had almost gathered to his sides.
He suddenly rushed through the rain toward the wooden door in front, worried about whether the door would be locked, as he hurriedly almost “pounced” into the ancient yet seemingly frequently used building.
Upon leaving the rainy night, the dry and warm environment nearly made Shard moan. The extreme mental pressure from the rain-soaked City of Eternal Night was greatly reduced, and the void of night couldn’t invade here.
But he didn’t immediately observe the interior of the building, instead turning to look behind.
The door here was fitted with a spring and would slowly close automatically. At this point, the outside street was completely covered by darkness; the night was at the door yet couldn’t permeate through it.
Shard, relieved in his heart, hadn’t had the chance to say anything before a new voice appeared in his ear:
“Welcome to Dragon Maid Café, what can I get you?”
Shard turned to look at the inside of the store and saw a red-haired girl dressed as a maid holding a menu, standing among the tables and chairs of the café. The maid outfit, although slightly different from the Sixth Era’s style, maintained a black-and-white color scheme paired with black leather shoes and a white lace headband. Additionally, a black choker around her neck, which Shard hadn’t seen before, was equally beautiful.
Inside, it was warm and comfortable. The fireplace on the wall brought peace of mind. In the not-so-large space were arranged about a dozen white round tables, with a counter and a shelf for plants on the other side. The old walls were covered with warm yellow wallpaper, decorated with vividly colored paintings. The clock in the corner slowly rotated backward, then suddenly frantically spun forward.
But Shard didn’t care about these; he was shocked as he looked at the young maid’s face in front of him, and her familiar large, scaly tail behind the maid. Last time he saw her, she was wearing a thick winter coat:
“Miss Fiona Drago? How are you here?”