Recaps

Shade explained that the Time Key and a god’s help had left traces of him in the past, allowing him to inscribe the Little Match Girl Spirit Rune. Miss Louisa promised to keep his secret and asked him to let her become his teacher.

• Shade demonstrated that he could only make snow fall over a limited area, and Miss Louisa said his low Ring Arcanist level restricted his Thaumaturgy.
• Miss Louisa described how the Little Match Girl story shaped her Words of Sublimation and asked why Shade had inscribed its Spirit Rune.
• Shade confirmed that he was the original author of “The Little Match Girl.”
• Shade revealed that his first exploration used an Unknown Level Time Key, through which he saw a god who helped him leave traces in the past.
• Miss Louisa promised not to reveal Shade’s secret and asked him to become her teacher.

Shade agreed to let Miss Louisa teach him about Enlightenment Spirit Runes in exchange for studying his Spirit Rune, and learned that her close friend is Princess Leisha Cavendish. After recovering from the previous night’s encounter with an evil god, Shade received a letter saying the Church would delay opening his second-floor room until it could perform an exorcism.

• Miss Louisa offered to teach Shade about Enlightenment Spirit Runes and study his Spirit Rune, and Shade agreed to meet her for lessons and research every Saturday.
• Miss Louisa revealed that the owner of the burned pages was Princess Leisha Cavendish, a Fifth Ring Arcanist and her close friend, and promised to explain their connection when Leisha returned to Tobesk.
• Shade and Miss Louisa compared the Blasphemy Element spells they gained after encountering the evil God of Drowning in the Deep Sea: Shade learned Underwater Breathing, while Miss Louisa gained Bubble Head Charm.
• Miss Louisa left to rest, recommending that Shade ask Priest Augustus about the White Stone Crystal and the triangular mark on the medicine bottle.
• Shade read Mr. Franchi’s letter from Dawn Church, which said Room Two could not be opened until Church professionals performed an exorcism, and the voice in his heart assured him there was no evil spirit on the second floor.

Shade spent a hot day preparing for a formal evening, then traveled with Tifa Servit to Duke Lucas’s residence for a Rhodes Cards game. He arrived at the banquet hall and had his cards inspected while the other guests waited.

• Shade cooled his study by making snow fall into washbasins, and Mia jumped into a bucket to play in it.
• Shade read and rested before a tailor and an etiquette instructor arrived to prepare him for the evening.
• Tifa Servit collected Shade and confirmed that he had brought his cards for the game.
• Shade and Tifa traveled to Duke Lucas’s residence, where the butler welcomed them and led them upstairs.
• Shade met Vice President Cindyia Mark, who appraised his deck and admired his newly acquired cards.

Shade learned that Miss Galina could provide the rare White Stone Crystal he needed, in exchange for considering a commission from Tifa Servit. He arrived at Duke Lucas’s Rhodes Cards gathering, where he spotted Miss Bayes disguised as a maid and was introduced to the duke.

• Shade had two special Rhodes Cards from Miss Galina added to his deck during the pre-match inspection.
• Shade asked Tifa Servit about White Stone Crystal, and she offered to bring him some if he considered a commission after the match.
• Shade and the Seer Association group went to the third-floor banquet hall, where he recognized Miss Bayes working in disguise as a maid.
• Duke Lucas greeted Shade and said he had heard of him.

Shade faced Duke Lucas in a Rhodes Cards match arranged on behalf of Miss Galina, with the outcome tied to naval personnel transfers. The deck inspection ended in astonishment over Shade’s Origin · Silver Moon card, and the three inspectors wished him victory before the match began.

• Duke Lucas praised Shade’s Rhodes Cards skill, and the two took their seats for the match.
• Vice President Mark announced a best-of-three format and introduced the three men inspecting the players’ decks.
• The inspectors examined Duke Lucas’s deck, then found several rare cards in Shade’s deck, including Origin · Silver Moon.
• Baron Herle and Baron Scavin were stunned by Origin · Silver Moon, while Viscount Ford asked whether it was genuine and insisted on staying to watch the match.
• The three inspectors returned Shade’s deck and told him, “Victory be yours,” leaving Duke Lucas curious about their reaction.

Shade played Rhodes Cards against Duke Lucas, winning the first game and taking two rounds in the second before the fourth round turned on a Founding Series card. The card game ended with Viscount Ford collapsing after Shade drew Origin · Silver Moon.

• Shade won the first game against Duke Lucas after his opponent’s Special Rule Card failed to overcome Shade’s 18 points.
• Shade and Duke Lucas traded wins in the first two rounds of the second game, then Shade won the third round with 20 points.
• Duke Lucas revealed a King in the fourth round and challenged Shade to beat it.
• Shade drew Sun 3, Origin · Silver Moon, whose value could be adjusted from 1 to 5.
• Viscount Ford clutched his heart and fell with a smile on his face.

Shade won Duke Lucas’s Rhodes Cards wager with Origin · Silver Moon and was brought to meet Miss Galina, who confirmed she was a Great Witch on the Witch Council and an Eleventh Ring Arcanist. The chapter ended with Shade learning the extent of Galina’s power.

• Shade used Origin · Silver Moon to win the first two rounds against Duke Lucas, and the Black-Haired Maid said the card belonged jointly to Shade and Miss Galina.
• Duke Lucas took Shade to Miss Galina’s nearby study, where he discussed naval officers with her before leaving in high spirits.
• Miss Galina told Shade that the Myriad Aspects of Impermanence Cards held secrets even the Witch Council only partly understood.
• Miss Galina revealed that she was one of the Great Witches among the Round Table Thirteen Seats and an Eleventh Ring Arcanist.

After helping Miss Galina win the card game, Shade secured her promise of a relic that could transfer energy from a living being into its user. She also introduced him to Military Intelligence Section Six director Dak Anlos, who hired him for a nominal, well-paid position and told him to report the next day.

• Miss Galina promised to have Tifa deliver Shade a suitable energy-extracting relic before the end of the following week.
• Miss Galina introduced Shade to Dak Anlos, the director of Military Intelligence Section Six.
• Dak Anlos offered Shade a nominal intelligence position with a weekly salary and a monthly reimbursement allowance.
• Dak Anlos told Shade to report the next day to collect his sidearm, identification, and firearms permit, and to submit regular reports mentioning the Southern Spy Case.

Shade met Galina Cavendish, who offered him protection and revealed that the final Witch Emperors of the Fifth Epoch inherited the powers of the Thirteen Old Gods. After Galina left, Shade noticed her unusual Whisper Element and wondered what it meant for the Witch Council and the current epoch.

• Galina told Shade that Founding Silver Moon could bring him valuable friendships and that they would have opportunities to work together.
• Galina Cavendish entered the study and offered to answer one more question; Shade asked whether the Ancient Gods were connected to the Witch Emperor.
• Galina said the matter was a Council secret, then promised Shade her protection and revealed that each final Witch Emperor of the Fifth Epoch inherited the power of one of the Thirteen Old Gods.
• After Galina left with Tifa Servit, Shade checked whether she had used Thaumaturgy or a curse on him and found no sign of either.
• Shade sensed that Galina's Whisper Element nearly equaled her other three Elements combined and wondered whether the Witch Council and the Thirteen Chosen Ones shared a mission.

At Duke Lucas's Rhodes Cards salon, Shade met Baron Herle so Iluna Bayes could question him about Blood of Mercury and its leader, Silver-Eyed One Diake. Shade confirmed Herle was an ordinary person and lured him away from the banquet hall, leaving the interrogation to Bayes.

• Duke Lucas introduced Shade to the salon guests, who eagerly sought to meet the Detective holding Founding Silver Moon.
• Miss Bayes, disguised as a maid, asked Shade to help her learn from Baron Herle about Blood of Mercury and Silver-Eyed One Diake.
• Miss Bayes showed Shade a relic called Tamer's Memory Wipe Rod and promised to use it to erase Herle's memory afterward.
• Shade returned to the salon, befriended Herle and his companions, and confirmed through a handshake that Herle was an ordinary person without elements or relics.
• Shade gave Herle a meaningful look, excused himself, and left the banquet hall to draw the baron into the corridor.

Shade and Miss Bayes secretly interrogated Baron Herle and uncovered his long sponsorship of Blood of Mercury. After Miss Bayes met Shade to offer compensation, a threatening Ring Arcanist appeared at the alley entrance.

• Shade and Miss Bayes lured Baron Herle into a broom closet, where Miss Bayes interrogated him while Shade impersonated Military Intelligence Section Six.
• Baron Herle revealed that he had funded Blood of Mercury for thirteen years in exchange for potions, and Miss Bayes used a memory-erasing Relic before letting him return to the salon.
• Shade left Duke Lucas's residence and walked toward a carriage stand, but Miss Bayes pulled him into a dark alley to offer compensation.
• Miss Bayes refused to share details of her investigation, then stepped between Shade and a deathly pale man who appeared at the alley entrance.
• Shade's whisper identified the man as a Ring Arcanist using the power of a Relic.

Shade investigated an alley while Miss Bayes fought a grave robber connected to the Silver-Eyed One, and he discovered a relic hidden in a wall. After Miss Bayes won, Shade revealed that he was a First Ring Arcanist.

• Miss Bayes told Shade to leave so she could face the grave robber, and Shade retreated through the alley.
• A controlled corpse blocked Shade's way, but he cut it in two with Silver Moonlight.
• A ghost emerged from the wall and pointed Shade toward a hidden relic; he pulled out a brick and found a carved finger bone wrapped in newspaper.
• Shade heard the grave robber scream and the Sunlight Gun flare, then waited for Miss Bayes to arrive with the defeated man's corpse.
• When Miss Bayes questioned whether he was ordinary, Shade introduced himself as a correspondence First Ring Arcanist of Saint Byrens Comprehensive College.

Shade and Miss Bayes tested his nature with the Scales, then renewed their cooperation after he revealed that he was a Ring Arcanist. Miss Bayes shared what she had learned about Blood of Mercury and gave Shade until Tuesday to search for the Falsified Philosopher's Stone through two new leads.

• Miss Bayes used her Destiny Ring's Scales to question Shade, whose answers suggested extraordinary goodness and order before the Scales overturned at the final question.
• Miss Bayes took Shade to his home, where he admitted he was a correspondence Ring Arcanist and confirmed his Military Intelligence Section Six connection; she agreed to keep working with him.
• Shade asked Miss Bayes about The Truth Society and described a symbol he had encountered, which she agreed to investigate in the Church library.
• Miss Bayes told Shade that Baron Herle had revealed two people who might possess Blood of Mercury relics: Mr. Pangdun and Mr. Roosevelt.
• Miss Bayes agreed to delay reporting the two names to The Church until Tuesday so Shade could search for the Falsified Philosopher's Stone, provided he did not take other relics or alert the suspects.

Shade and Miss Bayes identified the relic Undead Corpse Remains and agreed to sell it, while Miss Bayes warned him about recent dangers in the city. Shade kept his connection to those events secret and learned that Iluna Bayes was only seventeen.

• Shade placed the finger bone on the table and asked Miss Bayes about its powers.
• Miss Bayes explained that the relic could grant near-immortality but would gradually turn its user into an undead corpse.
• Shade and Miss Bayes agreed to sell the relic and split the money.
• Miss Bayes warned Shade that an evil god had gazed upon the city and an unknown High-Ring Arcanist had deployed a near-Miracle Mystic Lock.
• Shade promised to be careful but withheld his connection to the recent events, then learned that Iluna Bayes was seventeen.

Shade gave Doctor Schneider leads on two people connected to Blood of Mercury, then visited Old John's pawnshop to buy a Time Key and sell the Undead Corpse Remains. Old John proposed trading the relic for a rare sheet of Witch's Copy Paper, whose supernatural effect he explained.

• Shade told Doctor Schneider that Mr. Pangdun and Mr. Roosevelt were likely hiding relics for Blood of Mercury, and agreed to join the doctor and Louisa in investigating them that evening.
• Shade visited Old John's pawnshop and bought a Time Key corresponding to around the year 3002 of the Fifth Epoch for twenty-three pounds and fifteen shillings.
• Shade offered Old John the Keeper of Secrets Level relic Undead Corpse Remains, which Old John recognized and verified.
• Old John suggested trading the finger bone instead of paying cash and introduced the Keeper of Secrets Level relic Witch's Copy Paper, which could copy supernatural abilities being cast.

Shade visited Old John Pawnshop, where he considered trading for Witch's Copy Paper, then went to Blackstone Security Company to find Miss Bayes. He met her at the company and followed her to a resting room to talk.

• Shade learned that drinking Ash Water caused intense mental contamination and considered trading two sheets of Witch's Copy Paper for one of his finger bones, but delayed because the bone belonged to someone else.
• Shade paid Old John for the Time Key and left, deciding to visit Miss Bayes at Blackstone Security Company before reporting to Military Intelligence Section Six.
• Shade arrived at Blackstone Security Company and told the receptionist he was looking for Miss Iluna Bayes.
• The company's white Cat took a liking to Shade, and Miss Bayes greeted him and led him to an unused resting room.
• Miss Bayes asked Shade why he had come to see her so soon after their previous meeting.

Shade traded the Corpse Finger Bone for two pages of Witch's Copy Paper and gave one to Miss Bayes, then failed to use his new Time Key while still in the Father of Infinite Tree's mission. He collected his Military Intelligence Section Six identification and a Luger Revolver from Giles Johnson.

• Shade exchanged the Corpse Finger Bone for two pages of Witch's Copy Paper and gave one to Miss Bayes, who invited him to visit the Black Raven Library and mentioned Hogg Lundell's arrival.
• Shade returned home, where Mia smelled that he had recently held another cat, then discovered that he could not use his new Time Key until his current mission ended.
• Shade visited the City Waste Management Center, Military Intelligence Section Six's disguised base, and followed directions to the Equipment Maintenance Department.
• Giles Johnson gave Shade his Military Intelligence Section Six identification and explained that he would handle Shade's affairs.
• Giles Johnson issued Shade a six-round Luger Revolver, which Shade inspected and tested by pulling its trigger.

Shade completed the paperwork to join Military Intelligence Section Six and learned about several investigations and security concerns in Tobesk. He left wondering why Miss Galina had helped him so generously.

• Mr. Johnson gave Shade his firearm license, ammunition, enlistment form, and tax-withholding declaration, and Shade signed the documents as Sherlock Holmes.
• Mr. Johnson explained Shade’s salary and reimbursement rules, then told him to report information about the Drake Type II Steam Bomb explosion and the missing children case.
• Mr. Johnson warned Shade that a secret organization might target Queen Diana at Tobesk Station on Wednesday, though Gray Gloves denied planning an attack.
• Shade officially joined Military Intelligence Section Six and wondered what Miss Galina’s motive was for arranging the position.

Shade, Doctor Schneider, and Miss Louisa investigated two people linked to Blood of Mercury, but found no useful lead at the nursing home. At Mr. Pangdun’s house, they discovered that everyone was dead and followed the killer’s blood trail inside, where they found more victims and suspicious antique silverware.

• Doctor Schneider searched accountant Roosevelt’s dream and learned that Roosevelt helped Blood of Mercury fence stolen goods but knew nothing else about the group.
• The three went to Mr. Pangdun’s house, where Doctor Schneider found that everyone inside had been killed.
• Shade noticed faint blood traces leading farther into the house, and the group followed them past a servant’s body in the foyer.
• They found a fifteen-year-old boy dead in the dining room, his throat cut with a sharp weapon.
• Miss Louisa discovered antique silverware from the Norov Dynasty in a kitchen cupboard.

Shade, Doctor Schneider, and Miss Louisa investigated a brutal murder at Mr. Pangdun’s house and followed the killer’s blood trail through the victims and rooms. They found Pangdun dead in his study, then a knife-wielding man appeared behind Miss Louisa.

• Shade, Doctor Schneider, and Miss Louisa examined the maid and a boy killed in the house, noting valuable silverware and signs that the owner was not as wealthy as his possessions suggested.
• The three found an old woman and a housewife dead on the stairs, and Doctor Schneider concluded that a Ring Arcanist had killed them with a curse.
• Shade and the others followed the blood trail upstairs, where they found a teenage girl dead and Doctor Schneider prayed for her.
• The group tracked the blood to the third floor and discovered Mr. Pangdun dead in his study from the Brain Shatter curse, with account books on his desk.
• Shade spotted a figure in the corridor, and a man appeared behind Miss Louisa with a short knife as lightning lit the study.

Shade, Miss Louisa, and Doctor Schneider captured the knife-wielding murderer and discovered that his uncontrollable Magic Eye had no effect on Shade. While Doctor Schneider entered the man’s dream to question him, Shade removed the eye and sealed it in a bottle, and Miss Louisa prepared to kill the murderer for the innocent maid he had slain.

• Doctor Schneider and Miss Louisa ambushed the knife-wielding man, who fled into Shade’s silver mist before Miss Louisa drove him back.
• The man exposed his Magic Eye, but Shade remained unaffected, allowing Doctor Schneider to put him to sleep and enter his dream.
• Miss Louisa guessed that Mr. Pangdun had embezzled money from Blood of Mercury, prompting the murder.
• At Miss Louisa’s request, Shade pulled the Magic Eye from the unconscious man and sealed it in a bottle, where it stopped moving.
• Miss Louisa explained that Magic Eyes were dangerous relics and said they would kill the murderer after Doctor Schneider learned what he knew.

After the doctor learned the truth about Earl's Left Eye and the Silver-Eyed One's weakened position, he revealed that he knew where God's Gift Box was hidden. The relic lay fixed in ruins beneath Tobesk, and Shade recognized the excavated entrance as being close to where he had found the statue of the Old God, Vampire Duke Lawell.

• Doctor Schneider explained that Earl's Left Eye was a relic that could mentally shock weaker targets, and Shade kept it after Miss Louisa declined it.
• Doctor Schneider said the Silver-Eyed One had sent the dead man to silence Pang Dun and that the man knew nothing of the Silver-Eyed One's hiding place.
• Doctor Schneider killed the assassin, and Miss Louisa used Thought Writing to leave an account of the night's events for the Church.
• Doctor Schneider told Shade he knew the location of God's Gift Box and realized that Shade and Miss Louisa had confronted an evil god in Tobesk.
• Doctor Schneider revealed that Blood of Mercury had found ancient ruins beneath Tobesk, where God's Gift Box remained fixed to a pedestal.
• Shade recognized the ruins' entrance as being one street from the alley where he had found the statue of Vampire Duke Lawell.

Shade and Miss Louisa visited Old John's pawnshop, where Shade arranged for him to find a buyer for the Magic Eye. Back home, Shade stored two dangerous relics behind the basement's Hidden Wall, treating the house as a safe place while reflecting that trouble might be what drove Chosen Ones to power.

• Shade and Miss Louisa agreed to sell the information about the underground ruins after the Doctor obtained the Falsified Philosopher's Stone, then left Mr. Pangdun's neighborhood separately from the Doctor.
• Miss Louisa took Shade to Old John's pawnshop, where Old John showed Shade a photograph of a living leech relic and mentioned that Annette was seeking a disaster-linked box with a bell inside.
• Old John gave Miss Louisa the ink-erasing brush she had ordered and offered Shade a ten percent fee to find a buyer for the Magic Eye he brought in.
• Shade returned home, welcomed his orange cat, and stored Earl's Left Eye and Witch's Copy Paper behind the Hidden Wall in the basement.
• Shade reflected on the danger and rewards of his life as a Ring Arcanist and thought that Miss Bayes might possess many relics and considerable wealth.

Shade accepted Mrs. Lemmer’s commission to investigate whether a lawyer offering her a 50-pound inheritance was legitimate. He spent the rest of Tuesday trying to learn how to bathe Mia and visiting the Seer Association, but Miss Annette was absent.

• Shade tricked Mia into letting him pick her up, then met Mrs. Lemmer, who hired him to investigate the lawyer handling her late relative Jonathan Lemmer’s inheritance.
• Shade agreed that Mrs. Lemmer would pay five shillings if the lawyer was a fraud, or five pounds if Shade accompanied her to collect the inheritance.
• Shade took Mia to Good Man Peter’s Pet Shop to ask about bathing her, and the shop owner told him that his wife and Miss Cindy had run off together.
• Shade had lunch with Mia and went to the Seer Association to tell Miss Annette about his recent contact with Miss Bayes, but learned that Miss Annette was away.

Shade visited the Seer Association and received a tea-leaf divination from its president, Addis Stan, about his client Mrs. Lemmer. Stan also divined Shade’s future and saw him as a sword-bearing knight, leaving Shade baffled by the prediction.

• Shade accepted Vice President Mark’s recommendation to meet the association president, Addis Stan, for a divination.
• Shade met Stan and recognized him as a Ring Arcanist when their hands touched.
• Shade asked Stan to divine whether Mrs. Lemmer would safely obtain a large sum of money, and Stan’s tea-leaf reading gave a favorable result.
• Stan said his divination of Shade had shown him becoming a sword-bearing knight, and Shade wondered how that could happen in the Steam Epoch.