Chapter Summaries

Shade deciphered Detective Sparrow Hamilton’s hidden messages and discovered that Sparrow had been Kasonlik’s Gray-headed Eagle, an undercover agent assigned to contact Virgil Cameron and retrieve a secret letter. Shade burned the evidence and refused to continue Sparrow’s mission, leaving the detective’s espionage past buried with him.

• Shade discovered that the coded letter was an emergency mission order for the Gray-headed Eagle to contact Virgil Cameron and obtain a secret letter before the Great City Player tournament ended.
• Shade connected Sparrow Hamilton to the Gray-headed Eagle and realized the mission intersected with Director Anlos’s investigation into Cameron.
• Shade burned the mission letter and decided not to share its contents with Military Intelligence Section Six or assist Kasonlik.
• Shade remembered Chairman Stan’s divination and deciphered a newspaper code revealing Gray Gloves contact procedures, Sparrow’s warning, and the offer of 2,000 pounds in operational funds.
• Shade refused to collect the money or deliver intelligence to Kasonlik, burned the newspaper and his translations, and said farewell to Detective Sparrow Hamilton.

Shade declined a lucrative job to honor Sparrow’s last wish, then learned that Miss Black had gone to Middlesburg and discovered a faint trace of Whisper at her apartment building. The 1853 Tobesk Great City Player Rhodes Cards Tournament opened at the Seer Association, where Shade received his entry card and joined the invited players.

• Shade visited Luvia at the Seer Association, but she declined his dinner invitation because she was busy preparing for the tournament and suggested going out with Iluna the next evening.
• Shade learned from Miss Black’s neighbors that she had gone to Middlesburg and found her letter asking him to tell Miss White where she was.
• Shade touched the apartment’s door handle and heard that an extremely faint trace of Whisper was present there.
• Shade collected his formalwear and went to the tournament’s opening ceremony, where Vice President Mark gave him a Great City Player Series card as his qualification to compete.
• Shade met Mayor Johnson Water, Baron Lavend, and Baron Rwanda among the invited players as Great City Player 1853 officially began.

Shade attended the opening ceremony of the 1853 Great City Player tournament and learned the rules for its preliminary round, semifinals, and finals. He planned to compete in Tobesk while keeping his face out of the newspapers, then visited Priest Augustus, who was preparing to leave the city for an unexplained church assignment.

• Chairman Yadis Stan announced that registered players would compete in preliminaries, while invited players such as Shade could enter the semifinals directly.
• Yadis Stan announced six semifinal venues across Tobesk, where players would compete for bronze coins, with the top sixteen advancing to the finals.
• Shade planned to play at all six venues and aim for a place among the top sixteen.
• Shade gave paid interviews to the Three Penny Newspaper and Steam Bird Daily, praised the tournament, and arranged to be photographed from behind.
• Shade declined Baron Lavend's invitation for a drink and heard her tease him about whether he was a criminal.
• Shade visited Priest Augustus, who was packing for a church assignment in a southeastern city the following week.

Shade helped Priest Augustus prepare to travel to Middlesburg and told him about a relic sword buried nearby. After spending a peaceful evening with Luvia and Iluna, Shade later asked Saint Byron's Academy to recommend his next Spirit Rune.

• Shade learned that Priest Augustus was traveling to Middlesburg, told him about the Silver Sword buried in Sikar Mountain, and received his promise to look for it.
• Shade handled city hall paperwork for the Priest, then had dinner and watched an opera with Luvia and Iluna.
• Luvia returned to Shade's home after Iluna left, and she and Shade spent the night together while Iluna wondered whether they were hiding something from her.
• Priest Augustus announced that he would leave Tobesk by train the following Tuesday and promised to send postcards and bring gifts.
• Shade returned The Mad Light Chaser to the Academy and asked Saint Byron's for advice on which Spirit Rune to choose next.

Shade saw Captain Rades off as he departed for Wind Arising Path near Middlesburg, then visited Mr. Edmund at Coldwater Port and discussed the rumored appearance of the Fifth Epoch witch Feliana. At midnight, Shade entered the Time Corridor and arrived at a Fifth Epoch banquet hosted by Vampire Duke Lawell, where he had to stay with the mortal guests until the banquet ended.

• Shade saw Captain Rades off at Tobesk train station and learned that Wind Arising Path was near Middlesburg, whose defenses the captain's unit helped protect.
• Shade visited Coldwater Port, where he and Mr. Edmund discussed Miss Feliana's rumored appearance and her possible connection to the Time Key.
• Shade waited until midnight, opened the key to 3014 of the Fifth Epoch, and entered the White Fog without Mia.
• Shade arrived at Night Manor in the East Continent in spring 3014 and received a trial to attend Vampire Duke Lawell's banquet with mortals until it ended.
• Shade learned that completing the trial could earn him the Silent Moonbeam thaumaturgy and true information about elves.

Shade arrived at the God of Vampires’ wine party at Night Manor, where he joined five mortal guests seeking the god’s blessings. He learned that the party would end only when all the mortals died or all the Blood Brew was tasted, leaving him to face a deadly gathering with no clear way out.

• Shade followed the corridor through Night Manor and entered a grand dining hall, where the God of Vampires and five other guests awaited him.
• The god made the witch give up her seat, and Shade sat at the table as golden cracks and light appeared across his body under the god’s gaze.
• Shade asked how the wine party could end, then learned what each mortal guest hoped to gain from the god.
• Shade told the god he wanted the party to end at an appropriate time, but the god said he would need to bring valuable blood at a future gathering.
• The God of Vampires opened the wine party and explained that guests had to taste his Blood Brew; the party would end when all mortals had died or all the wine had been tasted.

At Duke Lawell’s banquet, Shade and five other guests tasted blood brought by the attendees and heard their stories. The king died after drinking mixed-blood dragon Blood Brew, while Shade survived Ice Crystal Butterfly Blood Brew and found that his resistance to cold had improved.

• Duke Lawell explained that the guests would taste their own blood offerings before hearing their stories, and that survivors would receive blessings according to what they brought.
• The king of Xia Paer Country offered what he believed was pure Dragon blood, but Duke Lawell identified it as mixed-blood dragonkin blood and warned that the king’s reward would be limited.
• Shade detected toxins in the dragon Blood Brew, drank it, and watched the king die after taking only three sips; the Witch and the twins also drank, while the armored old man used a potion beforehand.
• The armored old man offered Ice Crystal Butterfly blood and said he wanted to learn who had killed his friend, the poet Feng Ke Liqing, during an expedition.
• Shade drank the freezing Blood Brew and discovered afterward that his resistance to cold had improved somewhat.

Shade attended a banquet hosted by the God of Vampires, where a witch and twin sisters offered rare blood and explained their stories. After leaving through the White Fog, Shade left the Saint to play a game with the remaining guests while he prepared for his next visit.

• The witch served Star Sea Whale Blood Brew, and Shade and the other guests drank it, causing faint starlight to appear in their eyes.
• The twin sisters explained that their family’s ancient contract required one of them to die in a ritual, but they asked the Saint to free them from their fate so they would not be separated.
• The Saint praised the twins’ blood, and Shade used his right eye to absorb his portion instead of drinking it normally.
• Shade said goodbye to Duke Lawell and left Night Manor through the White Fog as his allotted time ended.
• The Saint proposed playing the Game of Life with the remaining guests, and the old man took out his cards.

Shade learned that the star-like lights in his eyes came from Star Sea Whale blood and could only fade with time. After asking Miss Galina for information about the evil god’s banquet and help finding the required blood, he left determined to win the Great City Player championship and use the prize money to prepare.

• Shade received cream cake from God's Gift Box and planned to donate half a pound to a children's welfare facility.
• Shade asked Miss Galina to examine his eyes, and she explained that Fifth Epoch witches used Star Sea Whale blood to make their eyes look starry.
• Miss Galina said Shade’s altered eyes could not be changed directly and would likely return to normal within a week.
• Shade told Miss Galina about the evil god’s banquet and asked her to find records about God's Banquet.
• Shade said he would use his Great City Player winnings and the two thousand pounds from the Gray-headed Eagle mission to buy blood for the god’s demand.

Shade helped Mrs. Morse realize she could leave her unfaithful husband and referred her to a lawyer, then saw Priest Augustus off as he departed for Middlesburg. The Priest expected to be away for months, and Shade worried about a divination that had foretold his death.

• Mrs. Morse hired Shade to investigate her husband's mistress, but his questions made her realize her inheritance could support her without her husband.
• Mrs. Morse decided to consult a lawyer about inheritance and divorce, paid Shade, and left with a referral to Lawyer Locke Laurel.
• Shade used Tifa's eye shadow to conceal the strange lights in his eyes and prepared to compete in the Great City Player semifinals.
• Shade saw Priest Augustus off at Tobesk Train Station and agreed to look after the Priest's Magic Potion Workshop while he was away.
• After the train departed, Shade remembered Professor Wiya Mirall's divination predicting the Priest's death and wondered if the Priest would be safe.

Shade began the Second Stage of Great City Player, playing his first match and meeting Virgil Cameron, a man he had been tasked with monitoring. The chapter left Shade considering whether to bet on himself as he joined Cameron for another card game at the opera house.

• Shade visited the Seer Association, learned that about 108 players had advanced to the Second Stage, and collected his tournament compensation.
• Shade won his first Second Stage match at Marquis Martinez's mansion by holding twenty-five copper coins, drawing Origin · Silver Moon without using its special effect.
• Baron Lavend told Shade that Virgil Cameron was a skilled Rhodes Cards player with six Special Rule Cards and strong odds of reaching the finals.
• Baron Lavend revealed he had bet on Shade to become champion and offered Ancient Fairy Tale · Match Girl as a congratulatory gift if Shade won.
• Shade considered betting on himself to raise money for rare blood, then encountered Virgil Cameron again at Hall No. 3 of the Delarion King Opera House and joined a multiplayer game.

Shade won his Great City Player semifinal games, met Princess Angelina Cavendish and Iluna, and arranged a group wager on the tournament with Doctor Schneider, Dorothy, and Luvia. The chapter ended with Shade learning that the Academy had recommended Thunder as his next Spirit Rune and receiving the prophetic Book of Wild Thunder.

• Shade won his second semifinal match, declined Virgil Cameron’s invitation to speak alone, and watched an opera with Princess Angelina Cavendish.
• Shade won his games at the Shadith Cotton Mill and Three Cats Inn, where he met Iluna and Mia defeated the inn’s cats.
• Shade, Doctor Schneider, Dorothy, and Luvia agreed to wager money on Shade winning the tournament, and Luvia kissed him after he rolled a total of seventeen.
• The Academy recommended Thunder as Shade’s next Spirit Rune and gave him Book of Wild Thunder to study.

Shade bought Elf's Detoxification Technique and continued his lessons with Leisha, who taught him about the Sleeping Princess stories for Enlightenment—Slumber. He also revealed the four banknote printing plates to Leisha, who chose to keep them hidden in Shade's basement, and their conversation about using them ended with her admiring the Star Sea in his eyes.

• Shade paid 500 pounds for Elf's Detoxification Technique after the Doctor explained the rarity of its elven materials.
• Shade and Dorothy discussed Leisha teaching him Enlightenment—Slumber through Dorothy's body, and Leisha later began his first lesson on Sleeping Princess stories.
• Shade remembered the parchment he had burned for Mystic Lock—Tree's Kiss, but Leisha declined compensation because she had received his Youthful Immortality Leaf.
• Shade showed Leisha four genuine printing plates for one-shilling banknotes, and she told him to keep them hidden behind the wall in his basement.
• Leisha avoided discussing whether the plates could be used to disrupt the kingdom's economy, then looked into Shade's eyes and admired the Star Sea.

Shade obtained Abyss-Eyed Dragon Squid blood from Miss Sivie Aurora and asked Old John to find one more rare blood for his journey into the past. He advanced to the Great City Player final, where he was set to face Mr. Virgil Cameron.

• Shade learned Miss Galina had arranged for Miss Sivie Aurora to provide Abyss-Eyed Dragon Squid blood, which the Mermaids had found in the deep-sea abysses.
• Shade discovered he had ranked first in the semifinals and asked Old John to find another kind of blood before the key activated.
• Shade defeated Professor Wilde in two rounds, then declined Mr. Virgil Cameron’s request to meet alone.
• Shade invited Luvia to watch his match against Captain Butler and won after losing the first round.
• Mr. Virgil Cameron defeated Mr. Dirac, setting up a final between him and Shade.

Shade prepared for the Great City Player finals while helping Director Anlos monitor Virgil Cameron for a meeting with the elusive Gray-headed Eagle. At the final table, Shade discovered Cameron had passed him a note and that one of Cameron’s commemorative coins was a relic, leaving Shade poised to decide how to approach him.

• Luvia and Dorothy were unavailable to attend the finals, so Shade invited Tifa to accompany him.
• Director Anlos told Shade that Military Intelligence Section Six expected Gray-headed Eagle to meet Virgil Cameron at the Seer Association, and Shade agreed to watch Cameron.
• Tifa helped Shade prepare for the evening and gave him a lucky kiss before they left for the Seer Association.
• Shade arrived at the finals determined to win and entered the auditorium alongside Virgil Cameron.
• During their handshake, Cameron secretly passed Shade a note, and Shade noticed that one of Cameron’s commemorative coins was a relic.
• As the card game was about to begin, Shade wondered whether he should approach Cameron first and told the dealer to deal.

During the first-round break, Shade met Virgil Cameron in the smoking room and received a concealed message and three commemorative coins. Shade returned to the tournament with the information and coins, while Cameron left relieved.

• Shade defeated Virgil Cameron 10 to 4 in the first round as Cameron was distracted.
• Tifa warned Shade that Cameron was involved with the current Grand Duke of the Sete Duchy, but agreed that Shade should risk trouble to obtain the coin.
• Shade left Mia with Tifa and followed Cameron to the smoking room after finding his note asking whether Shade was the person he sought.
• Shade accepted a brass fountain pen containing information from Cameron and warned him not to reveal his identity.
• Shade bought Cameron's two commemorative coins for two shillings, added them to the genuine commemorative coin, and watched Cameron leave.

Shade decided to pass incomplete intelligence to Military Intelligence Section Six while delivering the sensitive information to Gray Gloves under the mistaken identity of Gray-headed Eagle, hoping to earn two thousand pounds. He resumed the Rhodes Cards final against Virgil Cameron, whose strong play turned the second game into a tense contest.

• Shade learned that the Sete Duchy would store sensitive goods in a warehouse on Punjab Avenue in Middhir Fort City, and decided to report indirectly to Director Anlos while completing Gray Gloves' task.
• Shade returned to the Auditorium, where he and Virgil Cameron resumed their match after Cameron had passed along the intelligence.
• Cameron won the first two rounds of the second game, but Shade used a Sun 3 Founding Silver Moon card to take the next round and then won another with a Founding card.
• Shade won the fourth round after drawing Founding Series cards that let him continue past a bust, putting him ahead six to two in the second game.
• Cameron drew a Moon 1 Great Steam Age Worker Getting Off Work card in the fifth round, but his die roll of six failed to activate its special effect.

Shade won the 1853 Great City Player final after using Royal Decree to make Mr. Cameron bust, then drawing the card he needed to secure victory. He was crowned champion in Tobesk and celebrated with Tifa, Cameron, and Mia.

• Shade led Mr. Cameron 8–2 and entered the sixth round with match point.
• Shade used Royal Decree to exchange Cameron’s hidden Stars 1 for Flowers 2, making Cameron bust.
• Shade drew Flower Four to raise his total to eighteen and win the match.
• Vice President Mark declared Shade Suellen Hamilton the 1853 Great City Player champion, and Shade and Cameron shook hands.
• Shade corrected Cameron’s private remark from “Kingdom Spy” to “Royal Decree” as they congratulated each other.
• Mia jumped onto Shade’s shoulder, briefly turning the celebration into a scramble.

Shade celebrated winning the 1853 Great City Player Rhodes Card championship, then gave Director Anlos information about Virgil Cameron before going home to rest. As Shade fell asleep, Priest Latt Augustus called to him from the World of the Dead with a final message.

• Shade won the Rhodes Card championship, received a trophy, a 3,000-pound Bill of Exchange, and a unique champion card, and attended the awards ceremony and banquet with Tifa.
• Shade met Director Anlos outside his home, reported Virgil Cameron's strange reaction to the name Middhir Fort City, and was told not to get involved further.
• Shade put away his prizes, planned his upcoming tasks, and went to bed with Mia after checking his Rhodes Cards.
• As Shade slept, Latt Augustus's voice called to him from the World of the Dead, saying he had a final message.

Shade received Priest Augustus’s last words in a dream and learned that the Priest had crossed the boundary of death in Middhir Fort City. After waking, Shade resolved to go there and save him.

• Shade used the Destiny Ring and Soul Echo to summon Priest Augustus’s spirit in his dream.
• Priest Augustus said he was dead and gave Shade instructions about his property, buried relic, grave, and promised donation.
• Transparent hands dragged Priest Augustus through a dark opening, and Shade gained insight into death.
• Shade woke to find that the Priest was in a state between death and life, and decided to travel to Middhir Fort City.