Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

"So, Shard, is this the reason you've come to see me?"

It was still an ordinary Saturday following the disaster, and the time had reached eleven in the morning. Inside the divination room on the second floor of the Prophet's Society on Silver Cross Avenue, Shard sat face to face with Luviya, holding a well-behaved cat.

The room within the Society was pleasantly cool, and the Diviner with purple eyes had a teacup in front of her and was holding the divination request form that Shard had just filled out at the front desk. She asked with some irritation:

"Do I need to emphasize it again? Shard, I've already told you last time, your cat is really just a normal cat."

"Meow!"

The soft orange cat squirmed happily in Shard's arms. It enjoyed being held by Shard, especially when they went outside.

"No, Diviner Mia is still just a pretext."

Shard shook his head, looking somewhat exasperated.

"Then what are you here for? I thought after shooting the police commissioner of this city, you'd choose to hide at home for a few hours."

Luviya joked, setting the piece of paper in her hand down.

"Two things. First, the doctor asked me to inform you that the study group is suspended for a week. You know, the doctor is under investigation after his patient with Gluttony turned into a vessel for the Evil God, so the study group is on hold."

Luviya nodded, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear:

"I'm glad the doctor's operation went without a hitch this time. Indeed, letting you follow him was the right decision. Go ahead and notify the others, then. Seeing the troubled look on your face just now, I thought you had learned of something involving the Evil God."

The Prophet's Society was also very busy at the moment. As the official Circle Sorcerer Organization cooperating with the Church of the Five Gods, the Prophet's Society was also involved in the investigation of the "Common Era Calendar 1853 summer's second Evil God descent incident" because they had the most and best Diviners.

Now, Luviya was extremely busy. The Society had given her tasks that did not require appearing in front of the True God Church, and she was much busier than Shard, who nominally was a Detective but more of a "Freelancer."

"Stop joking, Luviya. You know I just came from Queen Mary's Street before seeing you."

"So, what's bothering you? Feeling guilt over a murder, or discomfort from arson? Do you need me to console you?"

The Diviner with purple eyes chuckled as she quipped.

"Oh, Luviya, what do you think I am? Here's the thing..."

Shard waved his hand, pulling out a Genesis: Balance card and swatting away the cat's paw that had reached out. He mixed the card into his Roder Card Deck. After having a clueless Luviya shuffle the deck, he tapped his finger on the top card and flipped it over with a flick—revealing the Genesis: Balance card.

Luviya furrowed her brow:

"Did you meet a ghost with a story to tell again?"

The Diviner who had heard of the Moon Dance Festival Card asked, then shook her head and added:

"I'm not joking this time."

"It's not about meeting a ghost; all of a sudden, I just acquired this ability. Moreover..."
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With the Genesis: Balance card in his left hand, the card suddenly flew from his fingertips, fluttering up and down around the room, and then circled around the two of them in complex motions that formed infinite symbols. It smoothly returned to Shard's hand afterwards as if the card itself had intelligence:

"This isn't about moving objects with Sorcery, but rather, I have gained the ability to manipulate this card. It feels like an instinct of the body; I can control raising my hands and legs, I can control my speech, and I can control the movement of this card anywhere."

The Diviner looked at him hesitantly:

"Shard, you've actually found a method to use an Impermanence Card? How did you do it?"

"Of course not, I don't know what happened either... Listen, Luviya."

Shard looked very serious at the purple-eyed diviner, who, under Shard's gaze, blushed slightly as if embarrassed:

"Go ahead."

She brushed her hair behind her ear, and the cat sitting on Shard's lap eyed her hair as if it wanted to reach out a paw and touch it.

"Luviya, what are the conditions for being The Chosen One of 'Balance'?"

"Three conditions: Understanding balance, possessing an artifact with Ancient God power, and completing the upside-down judgment ritual of sacrificing an eye," she said softly, unsure of what Shard wanted to convey.

Shard asked further:

"So, on Thursday night, the Night of God's Descent. Do you remember what the God of White Robes, oh, that is, this body of mine did?"

"Of course not, I can't directly witness the deity, and what I know is all from what you've told me, but your description is far too abbreviated,"

the female diviner immediately responded.

"Alright then."

So, Shard described again the experience when he incarnated as a deity, naturally, from a third-person perspective. In summary, the deity that night just happened to have the card "Genesis: Balance," which contained Ancient God power, and performed actions that fully met the requirements: "Praying to the Ancient God, willingly offering an eye, in the hanged position, under the witness of those with special fates, to justly judge the enemy of fate":

"So, is it possible that I..."

After speaking, Shard hesitated, pointing first at himself and then at the card.

Luviya shook her head and laughed:

"No way. One identity corresponds to only one Chosen One. Moreover, it's impossible for someone like you, who is beyond fate, to be chosen... According to what you said, the deity you summoned from the past used Impermanence: Balance, and perhaps for this reason, you were able to use some power of this card."

But that couldn't be, because Shard also used "Genesis: Silver Moon." He shared his thoughts with Luviya, but she insisted that Shard could never be The Chosen One. The current situation, although unexplainable, surely had nothing to do with the Great Prophecy of the Whispering Verses.

"You've seen the power of The Chosen One, what kind of power did Iluna receive? What power did you get? If you're saying the power of The Chosen One is only to manipulate a card, can you believe it? Shard, the current situation is occurring probably because your body was once a Divine Descent Vessel, so whatever happens can be understood."

Luviya stood up as she spoke, confirming that Shard had nothing more to ask and prepared to take her leave:

"If you don't need me to perform Divination Cat for you again, I should leave. We'll be very busy these next few days."

Shard also thought Luviya's explanation made sense and probably just overthought things, but he indeed had another matter:

"Oh, I also want to ask you to search the Prophet's Society records for information on an Old God known as the Blazar Gate. Here's a list of books, all ancient ones, if you could find them for me when you have the time."

He then handed over the translated list of books, of course not forgetting that Miss Feliana and her two companions were still waiting for him in the Forest of Thousand Trees.

"No problem, I'll send the information directly to you once I find it."

"Until next time, Luviya, go ahead and leave; I'll leave after finishing my tea."

"Goodbye, Shard, I wish you a smooth day today. Just a reminder, it's already the third weekend of the month, please don't forget, next week is exam week."

After saying that, she really did leave in a hurry.