Chapter Summaries

Shade discovered that his evolved Blood Echo could reveal living people’s recent movements and a dead person’s movements around the time of death, then shared the remaining potion with Tifa. While he and Luvia prepared to confront Daknis, the days passed without news until Dorothy told Shade that Leisha would visit him that night.

• Shade explained his new thaumaturgy, Shade's Blood Echo, and gave Tifa the remaining potion as a keepsake.
• Shade showed Luvia the Demon Hunting Seal and Weak Angel Potion, and they planned to kill Daknis and seal the released Demon if necessary.
• Shade learned that Miss Black was away on holiday, delaying the final commission, and spent Thursday and Friday waiting for news of Daknis.
• Shade submitted Shade's Blood Echo to the Academy Library and received a reward of 100 pounds.
• Dorothy told Shade that Leisha would leave Yodel Palace to visit him that night, canceling their lesson.

Dorothy arranged Shade’s secret evening meeting with Leisha, the princess, and explained why she could not join them. As Shade waited to meet Leisha, he witnessed Tobesk’s gas street lamps ignite for the first time.

• Dorothy gave Shade a detailed schedule for meeting Leisha, attending the opera, and escorting her back before midnight, and arranged a bouquet as a gift.
• Dorothy told Shade she and Leisha could not see or touch each other, then left him at Saint Derain Square and wished him well.
• Shade reached the alley beside the Seer Association early and used gray gloves and an eagle brooch as his identifying tokens.
• Addis Stan predicted good luck if Shade turned his gloves inside out, switched to the Three Penny Newspaper, and held a red rose, so Shade followed his advice.
• As Shade waited on Silver Cross Avenue, the gas street lamps lit along the street, leaving him amazed by the sight.

Shade failed to form a Spirit Rune from his brief insight into civilization and spent the evening waiting for Leisha Cavendish, who was delayed by a dispute at Yodel Palace. At the opera house, a maid led him to Angelina Cavendish instead, who greeted him and asked why he had never replied to her salon invitation.

• Shade experienced a powerful moment of insight about civilization but did not obtain the Enlightenment Spirit Rune.
• After someone bumped into him, Shade found a newspaper marked with pencil numbers, then accepted a carriage ride arranged for his meeting with Leisha.
• Lady Hels told Shade that Leisha was delayed because His Majesty and Prince Rendall Cavendish had quarreled over the New Continent Vanguard Legion.
• Shade ate alone, then attended the opera with Leisha's maids and pondered the meaning of light.
• A maid led Shade to a different private box, where he discovered that the woman waiting was Angelina Cavendish rather than Leisha.
• Angelina told Shade she had hoped he would attend her salon and asked why he had never written back.

Shade discovered that three suspicious men had entered Princess Angelina’s private box and realized she was in danger. After coordinating with her through the doorway, he prepared to confront the kidnappers, but the fight had not yet begun.

• Princess Angelina invited Shade to watch the opera with her, and they discussed politics and the New Continent until he left to return to his box.
• Shade noticed Blood Echo revealing fresh bloodstains on the carpet and saw three men enter Angelina’s private box.
• Shade returned to the box and used a garter and lines from the opera to signal Angelina that he knew something was wrong.
• Angelina came to the doorway and discreetly indicated the enemies’ positions while Shade assessed his limited options.
• Shade readied his revolver and four Rhodes Cards, preparing to attack the men inside.

Shade rescued Angelina Cavendish from a gunman at the opera, only for her to reveal she had secretly armed herself and shoot the attacker. As Military Intelligence Section Six investigated the failed kidnapping attempt, Leisha explained it was connected to her brother Sachs Cavendish and invited Shade to their mother's birthday banquet.

• Shade rushed into Angelina's opera box, disarmed two attackers with gunfire and cards, and tried to negotiate with the last gunman holding a maid hostage.
• Angelina shot the last attacker with a concealed pocket pistol, then explained she had hidden it while removing her garter.
• Leisha told Shade that Sachs Cavendish's followers had likely attempted the kidnapping as his trial approached, and that Military Intelligence Section Six and the police would investigate.
• Angelina said she had invited Shade to the opera, and Leisha invited him to their mother's birthday banquet before telling him he could seek Angelina's help.
• Shade returned Angelina's garter as officials arrived to question those involved.

Shade returned home after helping Angelina and Leisha escape an attack, then realized the Life Gambling Table’s card slots matched the dimensions of Rhodes Cards and considered using his Origin cards in Mister Riddell’s gamble. As Daknis approached Tobesk, Miss Galina told Shade that she had been assigned to kill him, while Shade also accepted a missing-cat commission.

• Shade accepted Angelina’s garter after she explained its meaning, and Mr. Anros praised his actions while warning him to avoid political entanglements.
• Shade discussed the Life Gambling Table with Luvia and proposed placing Origin · Silver Moon and Origin · Balance in two of its card slots, then planned to trade information about Daknis for Mister Riddell’s files.
• Shade received a pair of red high heels from God’s Gift Box and accepted Old Lady Midra’s commission to find her missing blue-gray shorthair kitten.
• Miss Galina told Shade that Daknis had appeared near Tobesk and that the Council had assigned her to kill him if possible.
• Shade learned that two Thirteenth Ring Warlocks were in Tobesk and that Tifa had kept quiet about their investigation of the Servant of Secrets.

Shade asked Miss Galina for help learning the Light Spirit Rune and coordinated with Luvia and Iluna about Daknis’s arrival. He then searched several nearby stray-cat gathering places for Old Lady Midra’s missing kitten, but had not found it yet.

• Shade asked Miss Galina for advice about learning the Light Spirit Rune, and she offered to arrange a meeting with Sivie while warning him to be careful around the demons.
• Shade, Luvia, and Iluna discussed Daknis’s appearance near Tobesk and agreed that they might have to kill him if the Church failed to stop his ritual.
• Luvia told Shade she would attend Queen Diana’s birthday banquet on Wednesday, and Shade wondered whether Doctor Schneider would attend as well.
• Shade retrieved the Doctor’s materials from Coldwater Port, then took Mia to search for Old Lady Midra’s missing blue-gray kitten.
• Shade bought a copper engraving at Johnson Copperware Shop and asked the proprietress of Good Luck Bookstore about nearby places where stray cats gathered.
• Shade searched the alley pipes and the shipping company’s backyard, but Mia startled cats in the pipes and the missing kitten was not at either location.

Shade returned Old Lady Midra’s cat and learned from Doctor Schneider about Luther Kinwise, a newly awakened Gifted whose dreams could yield a Mind Crystal. Shade and the Doctor broke into Luther’s home to explore his Dream World, leaving off as they entered his bedroom after the Doctor used cigar smoke to prepare it.

• Shade found the Blue-Gray Shorthair Kitten, returned it to Old Lady Midra, and received an extra half-pound as thanks.
• Doctor Schneider told Shade he had found a newly awakened Gifted, Luther Kinwise, whose Dream World they could explore to create a Mind Crystal.
• Shade recognized Luther as the burned man he had encountered at 2 Black Corner Alley while investigating Lady Swan’s mysterious watcher.
• Shade and Doctor Schneider met at Lewis Street late that night and quietly broke into Luther’s home.
• After finding Luther’s bedroom locked, Shade opened it with thaumaturgy, and Doctor Schneider exhaled cigar smoke into the room before they entered.

Shade and Doctor Schneider entered Luther Kinwise’s nightmare to find him in a burning house and investigate the strange forces inside it. They fought off a charred creature, then continued toward the dream’s owner, knowing the resistance would grow stronger.

• Doctor Schneider used Slumbering Dragon Mist to keep Luther Kinwise asleep while he and Shade prepared to enter his dream.
• Shade and Doctor Schneider entered a nightmare where a three-story house burned without disturbing the surrounding street.
• Doctor Schneider detected strange black strands in the dream and used Dream Sprite’s Blessing to protect and strengthen Shade before they entered the house.
• Shade unlocked the front door with his Door Key, and Doctor Schneider warned him that dream injuries could drain Spiritual Power and that dying would weaken Mental Resistance.
• A charred creature charged them inside the burning house, but Doctor Schneider struck it with a shield and scattered it into ash.

Shade and Doctor Schneider climbed through Luther Kinwise’s burning dream, using its monsters to infer how the fire had unfolded and who might have caused it. They reached the Accounting Office to find Luther’s dream form, but the corridor collapsed behind them and trapped them inside.

• Doctor Schneider analyzed the corpses and stairway hands as clues that the dream’s owner had witnessed the fire and someone being pushed downstairs.
• Shade fought a headless, eight-armed murderer monster, then used Silver Moon light to destroy the strange black fluid it left behind.
• Shade suspected the black substance resembled Demon Man’s Pus and decided not to tell Doctor Schneider about Ivan Daknis.
• Shade and Doctor Schneider fought flying Gold Pound monsters and reached the third floor, where they found no guardians but had to clear rubble from the corridor.
• Doctor Schneider opened the Accounting Office door by telling its occupant they had brought more Gold Pounds, and he and Shade entered.
• The corridor ceiling collapsed behind them, blocking their way out of the Accounting Office.

Shade and Doctor Schneider found Luther Kinwise in the burning Accounting Office, where Kinwise’s refusal to be forgiven unleashed a monstrous mass of black pus. Shade battled the corrupted dream owner in the basement while Doctor Schneider left to prepare a ritual, and Shade tried to hold Kinwise off for three minutes.

• Shade and Doctor Schneider found Luther Kinwise beside a safe in the burning Accounting Office.
• Kinwise asked Shade to forgive him, but Shade refused, causing black pus and a giant limb to erupt from Kinwise’s body.
• Kinwise’s attack collapsed the floors, sending Shade and Kinwise crashing into the basement while Doctor Schneider remained above.
• Shade dodged Kinwise’s attacks and learned from Doctor Schneider that the black pus was made of dense negative emotions.
• Doctor Schneider left to prepare a ritual, and Shade continued fighting Kinwise with Moonlight Slashes as the dream owner’s reason faded.

Shade and Doctor Schneider subdued Luther Kinwise inside his dream and extracted three Mind Crystals, then returned to reality with Kinwise freed of demonic power. As Schneider explained that objects could be hidden in dreams, Shade suddenly realized the significance of Object Hiding in Dreams.

• Shade fought Kinwise’s dream form until Schneider bound him with a Ritual Matrix and black chains.
• Schneider performed Mind Alchemy while Shade rang a bell and purified Kinwise’s negative emotions with moonlight, producing three Mind Crystals.
• Shade and Schneider woke in Kinwise’s bedroom and confirmed that the Pus of Man’s demonic power was gone.
• Schneider gave Shade the crystals and explained that dream objects could sometimes be transferred into reality or hidden in dreams.
• Shade suddenly stopped walking when he connected Schneider’s explanation to Object Hiding in Dreams.

Shade realized that the name Miss Feliana had been hidden from his memory by the Academy’s dream relic, then arranged to borrow it and eagerly awaited its arrival. As Daknis’s presence in Tobesk raised the stakes, Shade prepared for a meeting with a Twelfth Ring Warlock and Queen Diana’s banquet, and asked Iluna to dance with him before the final confrontation.

• Shade connected his first hearing of Miss Feliana’s name to the Academy’s dream relic, thanked Doctor Schneider, and hurried home.
• Doctor Schneider secretly consumed a crystal containing extracted demonic power and recognized the Demon’s pus as the ancient Pus of Man.
• Iluna visited Shade with two holy emblem brooches, and Shade gave her a letter about his encounter with Daknis for Luvia.
• Iluna explained that Daknis could not release pus on a large scale, and Shade asked her and Luvia to decide whether to alert The Church.
• Shade said he needed to handle spellcasting materials, meet a Twelfth Ring Warlock, and attend Queen Diana’s birthday banquet.
• Shade invited Iluna to dance with him by the living-room window.

Shade danced with Iluna before taking three Mind Crystals to Old Dad John to be set into a ring, then visited Dorothy to discuss their plans for Queen Diana's evening banquet. He returned to Saint Derain Square as the city's birthday celebrations began.

• Iluna invited Shade to dance, and they danced together before parting outside Saint Derain Square.
• Shade asked Old Dad John to make a ring from the Mind Crystals, choosing Mind Shielding Alloy for seventeen pounds and seven shillings.
• Shade visited Dorothy, who planned to travel to Yodel Palace with Luvia and told him Leisha would try to meet him at the banquet.
• Dorothy warned Shade that Queen Diana might speak with him and that Galina's admirers could cause trouble, and asked him to meet writers and journalists with her.
• Shade returned home and saw bands and parade groups celebrating Queen Diana's birthday in the city.

Shade consulted Miss Aurora about obtaining the light-related Spirit Rune and planned to use the Darkness Box and a terrifying encounter in the past to force an Enlightenment. He then prepared for Queen Diana’s birthday banquet, collected a powerful ring, and brought a large pearl as a gift.

• Shade returned home, found Mia scratching a wall, and stopped her before Miss Galina and Tifa arrived to take him to the Witch Council.
• Miss Aurora advised Shade to use darkness and fear to deepen his understanding of light, and Miss Galina said Shade could collect the Darkness Box from her manor the next day or the day after.
• Shade decided he might confront the terror in Terror Castle while traveling to 1784, but realized he still needed Mister Riddell’s life experience to fill the final Time Key slot.
• Shade left the Witch Council and asked Miss Galina about Slaichi Riddle, but she knew no records of the ordinary Fifth Epoch man outside the Seer Association.
• Shade prepared for Queen Diana’s banquet, collected a silver ring set with three crystals from Old John, and showed him the large pearl he planned to give as a gift.

Shade learned Mind Blast while waiting for Dorothy and Luvia to get ready, then used Echoes of the Past to overhear their recent conversation and choked at an embarrassing remark. He and Dorothy traveled to Yodel Palace with Director Anlos, who told Shade that Princess Angelina had praised him after the Opera House incident.

• Shade used the Mind Crystal ring to learn Mind Blast while waiting at Dorothy's apartment.
• Shade activated Echoes of the Past to hear Dorothy and Luvia discussing their banquet outfits, then choked when Luvia asked Dorothy about her dress padding.
• Shade and Dorothy left for Yodel Palace after Luvia got off at the Seer Association to meet her colleagues.
• Director Anlos invited Shade and Dorothy into his carriage and brought them past the entry checks at Yodel Palace.
• Director Anlos told Shade that Princess Angelina had praised him to the King and Queen after the Opera House incident.

Shade and Dorothy attended Queen Diana’s birthday banquet at Yodel Palace, where Shade met Dorothy’s fellow writers and discussed popular fiction with them. The banquet continued toward the Queen’s scheduled appearance, with Shade’s Rhodes Cards match still ahead.

• Shade and Dorothy entered Yodel Palace, registered their gifts, and reviewed the evening’s banquet schedule.
• Marquis Grasley found Shade and arranged a Rhodes Cards match for half past eight, mentioning that guests were eager to play against him.
• Dorothy brought Shade to meet her writer friends, including Prosi Newman, Miles Garov, Yeva Swift, Hughman Francois, and Professor Muld Gode.
• The writers and nobles welcomed Shade, asked about his detective work and Rhodes Cards, and drew him into a conversation about popular fiction.

Shade argued at Queen Diana’s birthday banquet that detective fiction was the modern form of knight novels, winning the writers’ approval and making Dorothy admire him. The banquet paused for Queen Diana’s grand entrance, while Shade spotted Leisha and Miss Galina among her entourage.

• Shade explained that knight novels had declined and proposed that urban detective stories were the new-fashioned knight novels, depicting detectives as modern knights who fought crime through civilized means.
• Dorothy asked whether detectives were modern knights, and Baroness Yeva Swift called Shade a knight of Northern Pearl; Shade agreed in Kartherian Language.
• Shade exchanged business cards with the writers and sought commissions before the French horns announced Queen Diana’s arrival.
• Queen Diana descended the stairs with her family and attendants, including Angelina Cavendish, as the guests applauded and reporters took photographs.
• Dorothy hid behind Shade to avoid seeing Leisha, while Shade spotted Leisha and noticed that Miss Galina seemed absentminded.

At Queen Diana’s birthday banquet, Shade learned that a powerful Church warlock had arrived and that Daknis had entered Tobesk, then went to meet Leisha. After confronting Jason Dimock for insulting Miss Galina, Shade reunited with Leisha, who kissed him, and they were interrupted just as they began to talk.

• Dorothy briefly became ill when Leisha went to the second floor, but she recovered after explaining that she and Leisha could not safely get close without taking precautions.
• Miss Galina told Shade that Sari Pirot of the Creation Church, the Iron Right Hand, was at the banquet, and Shade informed her that Daknis had entered Tobesk.
• Tifa led Shade to Leisha’s resting room, where Jason Dimock insulted Shade and Miss Galina; Shade challenged him to a gun wager, fired the empty Gun of Kindness at his temple, and made Jason flee.
• After the other guests left, Leisha kissed Shade and explained that Angelina Cavendish could help him if he ran into trouble in Tobesk.
• Leisha invited Shade to sit and talk, but someone knocked on the door before they could continue.

At Queen Diana’s birthday gathering, Shade received the chance to win a rare Origin Rhodes Card by defeating his opponent at Marquis Grasley’s banquet game. The wager drew attention across Yodel Palace, where preparations began for the match.

• Tifa summoned Shade to meet Queen Diana, and Angelina reminded him to wipe the lipstick from his face.
• Queen Diana thanked Shade for saving Angelina and offered him a Rhodes Card in return for his pearl birthday gift.
• Shade discovered the card was an Origin card recovered from Sotos Glacier and recognized its exceptional value.
• Queen Diana made the card a wager: Shade would win it by defeating his opponent at the banquet game, or it would be auctioned if he lost.
• News of the wager spread through Yodel Palace, and Marquis Grasley arranged a large table in the banquet hall for the game.