CHAPTER 1358: CHAPTER 1358: THE DOCTOR’S PREPARATIONS

"Alright."

The priest said with a smile, folding his arms just like Shard, then turned aside to watch the flames in the fireplace. The two were silent for a while, each lost in their own thoughts. Amidst the slight crackling of the flames, only Mia’s breathing was even and calm; the cat seemed to be asleep.

"The spring of 1854, it’s coming soon, isn’t it?"

"Yes, I hope so... it would be best if it does."

That night, Shard had a very strange dream. When he woke up on Tuesday morning, he couldn’t clearly recall what exactly he saw in the dream, only remembering himself chasing after Long-Haired Luvia, running incessantly through the snowy Dark Forest.

He was awakened by the sound of Mia scratching the wardrobe door, feeling a bit of an inexplicable sense of loss in his heart. But then he suddenly felt a chill, surreptitiously glancing at the sleepy-eyed golden-haired girl beside him, who was also woken up, and cautiously asked in his heart:

"I didn’t talk in my sleep and call out Luvia’s name, did I?"

[No, you have never talked in your sleep.]

"That’s good."

Shard felt relieved.

"Shard, is the inside of your wardrobe door alright? Should I have Lecia send someone to replace it?"

This was what Dorothy was concerned about at the moment.

After breakfast, Dorothy kissed Shard on the side of his face downstairs and left; Miss Writer was a busy person. Shard didn’t stay home either, and seeing that the lazy cat had no intention of going out today, he forcibly carried it outside and took a carriage to Dr. Schneider’s clinic.

The doctor knew that Shard had gone to a haunted manor yesterday, so he was waiting for Shard to visit. Shard simply recounted his encounter yesterday, focusing on his first encounter with the demon:

"The other party is different from all those ancient evil spirits that are old, weak, sick, or disabled that we’ve encountered so far. I even suspect that now is the peak of their history."

Although it seemed that Shard drove the demon away, in fact, the demon also didn’t intend to kill Shard on the spot.

"No, no, it’s only the peak of this era. You don’t understand the stories of the Third Era, you can’t imagine what it was like back then."

The doctor shook his head slightly:

"Things are a bit troublesome, but you did well yesterday. As long as you’ve arranged for the next meeting with the demon, we can plan ahead."

"Yes, the Stone Mirror Demon: Goethe said he would appear after I completed the task. That means I need to obtain the finished weapon—I have already found the forgemaster in the Randall Valley, then I must ’teach’ Ston Osenfort a lesson."

"You mentioned just now, that you won’t get the weapon before next Wednesday at the earliest?"

"Yes, but I can’t just do this so easily. This time, ’teaching’ Osenfort means I need to destroy everything of his. His wife, that emotionally indifferent lady, seems to imply that I must shatter all his parts before I can pierce the sword into his chest."

"You also want to complete Haila Osenfort’s task."

The doctor said. Shard stroked the cat lying on his lap while nodding:

"Not only that, but there’s also Ston Osenfort’s own task. The third item, the sapphire earring with his blood, I still haven’t found yet. This task, is probably Osenfort’s act of resistance against the demon. Completing it should benefit our actions."

Before the doctor could react, Shard added:

"It’s not just for the clues about [Genesis: Earth] he promised."

As he spoke, he patted Mia’s head, which immediately elicited a compliant "meow."

The doctor laughed:

"You don’t need to explain these to me, after all, it’s you taking the action, I’m only waiting for you to create an opportunity for me. I’m already ready, I’ve arranged the matters at the clinic and can go to the Randall Valley anytime."

"It will probably take another half a month to a month, around late winter or early spring."

Shard said cautiously:

"That demon is even more cautious and powerful than I imagined."

The Ring of Fate slowly emerged from the thick steam mist behind Shard, with the Five Rings’ Desecration Spirit Rune—[Pride] currently flickering with a somewhat frenzied silver shimmer. The shimmer shone upon Mia’s fur, reflecting a more peculiar light.

"That demon is even connected with cultists. Although the formation of this spirit rune is also related to the evil god statue, it mostly came from the power of the evil spirit I absorbed through a relic."

"You must be careful recently, don’t lose control. Generally, normal people wouldn’t do something like absorbing demon power, especially through relics, which are prone to loss of control."

The doctor was very worried, but Shard wasn’t worried at all. He had already gestured with [Night Watchman] at himself this morning, and nothing happened. Moreover, compared to the spirit rune formed by the divinity of an evil god, demon power was nothing.

"Arrogance..."

Shard whispered softly, while the doctor asked:

"Regarding these Spirit Runes, I know many interesting Arcane Techniques; would you like me to share some knowledge?"

"I’m planning to consult Miss Danester. Last week, she inquired about my progress in studying, but as you know, I’ve been quite busy in the Randall Valley lately..."

The doctor showed a sympathetic expression, knowing that Shard had been running around the Randall Valley since last month.

"So, before she leaves the Academy for her business trip, I’ll ask her some questions about Circle Sorcerer Studies. This will make her feel that I’m earnest and proactive, which will help improve her impression of me."

As Shard spoke of his plan, the doctor nodded in agreement. Being a graduate of Tobesk Medical University, he had seen various things while studying under his mentor in his youth, so he understood its importance.

In fact, after waking up this morning, Shard had already sent a message through his manuscript pages to Miss Danester, requesting an appointment. Miss Danester had chosen to meet on Wednesday morning, which was the same time as the previous week.

Therefore, the only thing Shard had to do today was to visit Earl Granger in the afternoon.

Just like last night, Shard also asked the doctor if there was any way he could completely destroy Ston Osenfort’s soul at the moment of killing or destroying his body, or banish his soul entirely from the Material World.

"Demons have many similar methods, such as the most famous Sage-Level Relic: the ’Demon’s Soul Casket.’ However, these only target ordinary souls. The fallen soul of a Demonized being can inherently resist the power of other demons except for its master. So, if you have such a deep resentment towards Ston Osenfort, or if there are other reasons, I suggest using a powerful attack to crush his soul directly."

Shard frowned slightly, even stopping his hand that was stroking Mia:

"What I’m worried about are other scenarios. If I could directly crush his soul at that moment, that would certainly be better... Doctor, please be ready. I’m planning to invite you to the Randall Valley by the end of next week."

"Next Friday is the last day of the Sparse Star Month, and then it’s March... I think it should be fine; it’ll give me enough time to arrange things here in Tobesk."

The doctor nodded:

"I just hope we’re not so unlucky that the Academy’s 1854 Correspondence Student identity verification happens in our area while I’m away from Tobesk."

"Doctor, you shouldn’t say things like that lightly."

Shard hurriedly stopped him, and the doctor covered his mouth, looking a bit fearful.

After leaving the doctor’s clinic, Shard didn’t immediately head to the Randall Valley. Instead, he took a carriage from the city to Galina Manor outside of town.

Since he left early, it was only a bit past nine when he arrived at the manor. The maid Miss Maid, who was already quite familiar with Shard, welcomed him as if he were the master. The lady of the manor, of course, was still there at such an hour—unless she had stayed the night at Yordle Palace the night before, Miss Galina usually wouldn’t head to the city before ten in the morning.

Tifa, who heard of Shard’s visit, met him and the struggling Mia at the stairs on the first floor. Little Mia was loudly "roaring" at the other cats gathered in the hallway from the first floor. If Shard hadn’t been holding her, she probably would have started a fight with them.

"Shoo, shoo."

The black-haired maid Miss Maid easily dispersed the cats kept in the manor, then pointed upstairs:

"Good morning, Shard. The lady is talking with a guest; let me take you to her directly."

"If she’s with a guest, I can wait a bit longer."

Shard quickly shook his head, but the black-haired maid Miss Maid smiled and said:

"It’s no problem, it’s Her Highness Lecia; she arrived half an hour ago."

"Lecia visited Miss Galina on her own?"

This was indeed news to Shard:

"Could it be that the Kingdom sent her to deliver some important document?"

The weather outside was pleasant, and the bright sunlight streaming through the study windows illuminated the faces of the beautiful ladies.

After Tifa knocked, she didn’t even announce the reason; she just opened the door and pushed Shard inside. The Duchess and Her Highness the Princess, sitting in and outside the desk, were surprised to see Shard:

"Shard, why are you here, have you had breakfast?"

"Shard, didn’t you go to the Randall Valley?"

Shard wasn’t able to find out what they were discussing, but it probably wasn’t an important topic. However, when Miss Galina walked out from behind the desk, Shard noticed the black fabric from Miss Sylvia that she was wearing on her legs.

The morning light streaming through the windows on the study’s side wall made the fabric look even more textured and alluring.

Noticing Shard’s gaze, Miss Galina blushed slightly, yet was quite pleased with the effect. Even though in her own manor, she didn’t wear them every day. This kind of top-quality fabric, there weren’t many pairs from Miss Sylvia’s place, so she wore it sparingly. Today was for showing off in front of Lecia, not expecting Shard to also be here.