Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic
Chapter 869 - 869: Coins and the Ball

The order of the game was decided after seven people politely deferred to each other. Shard ended up in the middle, the fourth position. When he saw his opponents taking off their coats and rolling up their sleeves, looking eager in their white shirts, he found it amusing.

He had played many Roder card games at parties, but this was the first time he played a coin-throwing game.

"I wonder what Mia is doing now."

Out of boredom, he thought about his cat, then suddenly felt like laughing. Because his opponents, with their enthusiastic, showy demeanor, really reminded him of his cat at midnight, begging for food with exaggerated affection:

"The nobles of Huntington City are quite entertaining."

The crowd gathered around, making various comments about Her Highness the Princess's party game.

First up was Mr. Mig Helshus, the younger son of Marquis Hersius, who was 20 years old. The young gentleman wore a white shirt with a warm brown vest over it.

Holding the coin tightly, a servant blindfolded him at the starting line. Then, amid the encouraging voices of the crowd, he waved his hand around before throwing the first coin:

"Go!"

"Oh!"

He used so much force that the coin flew over the coffee table and almost hit the wife of the Mayor of Huntington City, who was sitting on another couch. People laughed uproariously, and the plump noble lady even smiled and gracefully cursed under her breath, making Princess Margaret cover her mouth and giggle, further enlivening the atmosphere.

Blindfolded, Mr. Helshus couldn't see anything but knew he missed because of the laughter. So, he held a coin in each hand and threw both forward simultaneously.

This time, he controlled his strength but unfortunately, both coins hit the edge of the table and rolled off to the side.

The second participant was Baron Galal, 29 years old, boasting two neatly trimmed mustaches under his nose. He too held the coin tightly and let a servant blindfold him, then hesitantly shook one coin. As the coin reflected the gas lamp's light, Shard wondered if it would hit:

"God bless!"

Baron Galal said softly, then swiftly raised his hand. The coin was thrown high and nearly hit the ceiling. Descending in a parabolic motion, it accurately flew towards the table and landed in a glass cup with a clinking sound.

"Baron Galal, you made it!"

Someone immediately called out, followed by applause and cheers. Regardless of hitting or missing, everyone enjoyed the process rather than the result.

Since he was just blindfolded and knew the exact position of the cup, it wasn't surprising that the first coin hit. But for the remaining two coins, the Baron wasn't as lucky, as they both hit the coffee table but failed to touch the glass cup.

The third participant was the grandson of a Duke, whom Shard didn't catch the name of. This young man was more cautious than the previous two. After missing the first throw, he adjusted his hand movements based on the sound and precisely hit with the second coin. As for the third coin, though it struck the rim of the glass cup, it bounced off, landing on the table, which was quite unfortunate.

"Next is Mr. Holmes from Draleon."

Hearing the princess's maid call his name, Shard stepped out of the crowd. Like the previous participants, he first took hold of the coin and let a servant blindfold him. The cloth was tightly secured and very thick, making it impossible to peek:

"This game is indeed less interesting than Roder cards."

Shard thought to himself as he held two coins in his left hand and prepared to throw a third with his right. He also took off his coat and wore only a white shirt like his opponents, attracting a lot of attention under the bright crystal and gas lights with his well-proportioned figure.

[Lower.]

Shard's hand lowered slightly.

[A bit to the left.]

Shard's hand moved slightly to the left.

[Relax your muscles, yes, a bit more.]

Shard adjusted his strength.

[Throw.]

Very casually, he threw the coin forward. Under the various gazes of people who were either joking, nervous, or expectant, the coin fell straight into the glass cup at the apex of the triangle, clinking as it spun inside.

"Great! It's a hit!"

Shard was pleased to hear this response, and a soft voice in his ear reminded him:

[Margaret Anjou is applauding for you.]

"So, why did she invite me?"

[Relax a bit, to the left, then to the right, good.]

The second coin was quickly thrown by Shard. People hadn't even stopped clapping from the first hit when they saw the coin accurately land in the second glass cup:

"Another hit!"

This time it was a man's voice, apparently one of the Vampire Kind from earlier, who also came to watch the party game.

Shard held the last coin in his right hand. After hesitating for a moment, he lightly tossed it forward. When he removed the blindfold, he saw that each of the three high-stemmed glass cups contained a coin.

He held the cloth strip in his hand and walked towards the coffee table amid people's congratulations. The ladies on the sofas praised Shard, of course, not only because he ended the game early but also because his handsome appearance and demeanor were indeed quite charming.

"Congratulations, Mr. Holmes, that was impressive."

Princess Margaret said softly, instructing the servant to hand over the three coins to Shard. She also took off her earrings and brought over a jewelry box, handing it to Shard.

Ladies often liked to use jewelry boxes to store their accessories, unlike Shard, who would put everything directly into his pocket... or turn them into toys and put them in their pockets.

Although he didn't know the exact value of the earrings, Princess Margaret's generosity impressed Shard. After receiving the jewelry box, he respectfully expressed his gratitude and, in broken Carsonrick language, complimented Princess Margaret on her beauty.

Everything was in line with etiquette and tradition, so even though Shard, an Outlander, won the party game, no one complained. Princess Margaret engaged Shard in a few more conversations, allowing the interested noble ladies to ask him about the New World and Draleon.

Soon, the melodious sound of a cello announced the start of the evening's dance. It was now half-past eight, with over an hour left before the party ended. As people dispersed to enjoy the rest of the evening, Shard was about to leave to find Mr. Benhart, who was still playing cards, when the Princess called out to him again:

"Mr. Holmes, the dance has begun. Since you won the game, would you be interested in having a dance with me?"

"Hmm?"

Shard was a bit surprised, hesitating whether to accept. The Princess's witch power was minimal, and if danced with gloves on, he wouldn't have to worry about being discovered. The possibility only arose from direct contact. His hesitation was due to not knowing the Princess's true intentions.

"Oh, Your Highness, you didn't add this bet during the game!"

Before Shard could respond, Mr. Mig Helshus, the first to throw the coin, quickly objected.

The resting area with sofas was still crowded. Seeing everyone looking at him, Mr. Helshus blushed and said:

"Your Highness, you've never easily danced with anyone at a ball. How could you dance with this Outlander from Draleon..."

The Southern Nation's nobles still held some prejudice against the Draleon People, especially since Shard had just beaten them.

Wearing her crown, Margaret Anjou frowned displeasedly at his words. Mr. Helshus quickly added after seeing the Princess's annoyance:

"I propose wagering Roder cards against this gentleman. If he wins, then I have no objections! The most crucial part of party games is Roder cards, and I believe Mr. Holmes wouldn't refuse."

"Haha, after being in this world for so long, I finally encounter such a situation!"

The Outlander thought with some joy while people around talked quietly, neither opposing nor agreeing.

Princess Margaret, who was leading the group visiting Tobesk, couldn't let a conflict between local nobles and a foreign gentleman occur at her farewell party. She was about to mediate when Shard suddenly spoke:

"You want to wager Roder cards against me?"

He stared at his opponent, unsettling Mr. Helshus, then slowly took out his Roder card deck.

After apologizing to the young ladies around him, Shard sat opposite the Princess. Leaning slightly forward, he spread the deck in a fan shape on the coffee table using his right hand and gently pulled out the top card, smoothly turning the deck face-up.

Shard then nudged the cards to the left, making them face down again, and gathered them into a stack. After a few casual shuffles, he slapped the rearranged deck onto the table:

"How shall we play?"

He asked with a smile.

"Hmm..."

Mr. Hersius, who was startled by Shard's "performance," pressed his lips together and hesitated for a moment, then decisively shook his head:

"I respect the Princess's wishes. Sorry, sir, I was being presumptuous just now."

After speaking, he turned and left. Such an exit was still somewhat dignified, but if he had actually played cards and lost, it would have been truly humiliating.

"What happened?"

Mr. Benhart, having heard the commotion, finally came over.

"Nothing much, someone wanted to gamble Roder Cards with me."

Shard said, Mr. Benhart first greeted Princess Margaret, who was just standing up, and then asked Shard in surprise:

"Gambling Roder Cards with you? Who's so bold?"

He knew very well that Shard was the champion of "Big City Player 1853" and had witnessed Shard's card skills and luck in the Sin Mansion.

"It was Mr. Mig Hersius, but he got scared off!"

Someone said, causing a burst of laughter and making the atmosphere of the ball even more lively.

"Viscount, is Mr. Holmes really good at cards?"

Princess Margaret asked curiously, the middle-aged Vampire noble struggled to find his words:

"Your Highness, it's not a matter of being good. Mr. Holmes often plays Roder Cards with the rough sailors on sea ships, so he has honed quite the skill. Moreover, his luck is unmatched."

"I see."

The Princess with the light golden hair chuckled lightly and said, taking back his cards, Shard extended his hand to the Princess:

"Your Highness, it is an honor to dance with you... Please forgive me, I am not very skilled at this."

"It's all right."

Princess Margaret placed her hand on Shard's outstretched palm, and they walked together towards the people dancing to the music.

Leaving Mr. Benhart standing alone, very puzzled about what had happened during his card game:

"Princess Margaret Anjou has always been cold to men, hasn't she?"

On the other side, Shard and Princess Margaret had already started dancing beneath the crystal chandelier. The Carsonrick dance tune was relatively gentle, or at least this particular one was, so no vigorous movements were required.

But even so, Shard was still very careful with his steps, moving his feet in the "slow four" steps taught by Lecia, whereas Princess Margaret seemed very adept at dancing.

Shard held his right hand together, with his middle and ring fingers slightly bent, clasped tightly at the edge of Princess Margaret's gown below her left shoulder blade, while holding her right hand lightly. This minimal contact was evident as the Princess clearly didn't want too much physical contact with Shard.

Indeed, she had a reason for inviting Shard to dance. Amidst the sound of violins, the Princess cautiously said:

"Mr. Holmes, sorry for dragging you into this. I heard from Mr. Benhart that you had long adventures in the New World, excelling in swordsmanship, marksmanship, and horsemanship, which is why I invited you to join the previous game."

It didn't need to be said that Mr. Benhart "boasted" a little about his friend when he was hiding those goods at the Princess's request.

"So, you invited me to participate in the game because..."

"The earrings."

She lowered her voice to prevent a third person from hearing:

"Using the earrings as a bet wasn't my idea; it was my cousin's, that annoying Erin's idea."

She was talking about Erin Cullen, the daughter of Duke Krum Cullen, who had been sitting next to Princess Margaret earlier. This lady's mother was the sister of the current King of Carsonrick, "Lion Ryan," making her Princess Margaret's cousin.

"They were a birthday gift from my mother, so..."

She said, a little embarrassed, and Shard finally understood:

"After this dance, wait for half an hour. I will wait for you in the courtyard, and you send a maid to take the earrings."

"I'm really sorry for involving you in this matter."

The Princess apologized again, but Shard didn't find any problem with it. Everyone has relatives who are helpless yet undeniably present, except the Outlander. The conflicts and disputes over jewelry among these noble girls are quite common in contemporary court novels, though Dorothy finds such plots "boring and cliché."

So, Shard didn't plan to tell Dorothy or Lecia about what happened at this Carsonrick-style ball tonight. After all, the story was too uninteresting.

"Mr. Holmes, are you enjoying this ball?"

The Princess asked again, probably to ease the atmosphere.

Shard thought about it and finally didn't forget Lecia's "prank":

"Quite nice, especially the food. Mr. Benhart recommended the vegetable salad to me, and the taste of Carsonrick sweet onions, purple cabbage, and Huntington radishes is quite good."

So, Princess Margaret stopped discussing food with Shard until the dance was finished.

Shard and Princess Margaret danced only one dance before parting politely. The Princess returned to the sofa in the resting area, apparently not wanting to dance a second dance, while Shard found Mr. Benhart, and this rather refined Vampire Viscount was quite surprised by Shard's performance:

"You are really good at handling young ladies."

He didn't find anything wrong with that, but was surprised by Shard's methods:

"There are actually some rumors among the nobles in Velindale that Her Highness Margaret doesn't usually get close to men."

Mr. Benhart lowered his voice with a strange expression. Shard nodded knowingly, aware that it was because Princess Margaret Anjou had not given up on becoming an apprentice of the Grand Witch.

Though they had agreed to exchange the earrings, Shard didn't move immediately to avoid attracting attention. Instead, he and Mr. Benhart watched people play Roder Cards together.

Mr. Benhart had bad luck tonight, so he didn't plan to play cards anymore. Shard didn't want to attract attention at this ball either, so he didn't join the game.

On the contrary, Mr. Benhart mentioned that when Shard went to Miss Sylvia, a lady joined the game, won two Special Cards in a row, and then left.

Although the atmosphere is more open now, a woman openly playing cards with men at a ball is still a rare sight. Mr. Benhart told Shard about this amusing incident and then pointed out the lady's position.

She wasn't dancing with anyone but was chatting with a middle-aged gentleman who looked like a scholar at the window, watching the night scene of the courtyard. Since only the back view could be seen, it was impossible to judge her age. The lady was wearing a long dress in black and red, and her hair was a rare pale golden color, almost white.

They were a bit far from Shard and Mr. Benhart, but Shard still frowned slightly:

"Circle Sorcerer?"

"That lady is a Circle Sorcerer?"

Mr. Benhart looked over with some interest:

"I am very sure that when she played cards just now, there was no cheating."

"There are indeed quite a few Circle Sorcerers at this ball."

Shard muttered, and Mr. Benhart nodded and didn't say much:

"As long as they don't cause trouble, we are just here to attend the ball."

"Indeed."

Shard looked again in the direction of Princess Margaret, certain that there were no Circle Sorcerers around her:

"In one hour, this ball will be over... Hopefully, everything will be peaceful."

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