Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

"Hmm? What is he doing here, have all my acquaintances come... Mr. Lawrence is a major factory owner, so of course, there\'s no issue with him being invited to such a banquet."

Shard thought to himself, shifting his gaze away to see if there was still some of that delicious sheep\'s milk pudding on the table, thinking of bringing some back for the fostered orange cat at his home.

But suddenly, the young detective thought of a question:

"Since Mr. Lawrence is attending the banquet at Lakeview Manor in such formal attire, it wouldn\'t make sense for him not to have a lady companion. Has Lady Lawrence also come?"

He carefully glanced again out of the corner of his eye and saw that the woman standing beside Mr. Lawrence was none other than Lady Lassoya, dressed in a red, floor-trailing evening gown with its ruffled neckline, making the "woman" still wearing that pebble ring look exceptionally radiant this evening.

"Oh, something big is really going to happen. The ally Lady Lawrence found won\'t be confronting Lassoya here, will they?"

He withdrew his gaze, thinking about whether to leave the place. But suddenly he was tapped on the shoulder from behind, startling Shard, thinking he had been approached by Lady Lassoya.

But when he turned around, he found it was his employer for the evening, Baron Lavende, accompanied by several gentlemen of a similar age to himself.

"Oh, my Mr. Dawn, it\'s really Hamilton! It has been such a long time since we last met!"

The middle-aged Roder card enthusiast exclaimed in a very exaggerated tone, while winking at Shard and reaching out to shake his hand.

"Yes, it has been a long time, Mr. Lavende."

Shard immediately understood his meaning:

"The last time I saw you and played Roder Card with you was, what, three years ago?"

In order to show his dedication to the commission, Shard also responded with an overly enthusiastic tone:

"What a coincidence, I didn\'t expect to run into you here."

"Yes, such a coincidence, it must be the arrangement of the deities. Speaking of which, these are my friends, and I am going to play Roder cards with them over there. Would you like to join us? If you have other matters..."

As he spoke, Mr. Lavende waggled the hand that was clasped with Shard\'s. Shard believed that if he did not agree with the other party, he would definitely not be let go easily.

"Of course, I can join you. Oh, gentlemen, let us use Roder Cards to while away this dull night. The banquet is certainly interesting, and Lakeside Manor is very nice too, but Roder Card is still the best. Here\'s my business card..."

As Shard handed out his business cards to Mr. Lavende\'s high-class friends, he saw the Baron secretly giving him a \'well done\' gesture.

While warmly greeting Baron Lavende\'s friends, and with a glance out of the corner of his eye, Shard saw Mr. Lawrence and Lady Lassoya heading towards the mansion of Lakeview Manor. Only then he relaxed and walked with Baron Lavende and his group towards the back of the manor, where the tense and thrilling Roder Card competition was about to begin.

On the way, the group of travelers exchanged intriguing anecdotes about their Roder Cards, discussing rumors of special cards that had appeared on the market, and speculating about the edition size and theme of the special Roder Cards that the Prophet\'s Society might release this summer.

Shard, in order to better fulfill his commission, also joined in the conversation. Continue your adventure with empire

"I even heard a rumor that a Genesis Series Roder Card appeared in Tobesk City,"

he said with an exaggerated tone. Though it was hard to say how many people believed it, the news still elicited surprised expressions from everyone. As Roder Card enthusiasts, it was impossible for them not to know about the "Genesis Series" cards.

"Not long ago, I was at the Prophet\'s Society on business. On the third floor, I overheard Vice President Cyndia Mark discussing this matter with someone. But the authenticity is hard to pin down, since it\'s a card from several hundred years ago. Still, if a Genesis Series card really appeared, I would indeed be very curious to see it,"

Shard shared his interesting piece of news, and his obvious passion for Roder Cards, as well as his wide network of contacts, quickly transformed him from a stranger into an accepted friend.

By the time the group reached the stone table under the vine trellis, no one was wondering why Shard had come along anymore.

Baron Lavende was very satisfied with the young detective he had hired.

Baron Lavende\'s Roder Card opponent, Baron Rwanda, was a middle-aged gentleman of similar age but of quite short stature. Shard was reluctant to use words like "dwarf" to describe others, but the term actually seemed quite apt.

Despite the problem with his height, the features of Baron Rwanda were all mashed together on his face, making him seem exceptionally shrewd. Like Baron Lavende, he had also come to the card game with a group of friends who were Roder Card enthusiasts.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

When everyone met under the vine trellis, there were no unpleasant incidents. The two barons exchanged pleasantries, introduced their friends to one another, and chatted about the dinner at Lakeside Manor and the weather that day before taking their seats on opposite sides of the stone table.

The men they had brought with them immediately surrounded the table instead of just standing behind them. Each face was filled with excitement and eagerness, as if the atmosphere had suddenly changed in that moment.

This didn\'t appear to be gamblers simply chasing thrills, but more like an audience anticipating a fascinating series of stories, or perhaps an entertaining opera performance.

Due to Baron Lavende\'s special arrangement, Shard found himself standing closest to the stone table.

He saw the two barons each take out their stakes; Baron Lavende\'s was his only Special Rule Roder Card, belonging to the "Northern City" series, the "Flower 13," which was the card that allowed a redraw if one rolled a 20. The card depicted the silhouette of Atak City, the city of arts.

Baron Rwanda, of course, brought out his Roder Card with special rules. He deliberately laid both of his Special Rule Cards on the table, waited until all the onlookers had seen them, and then picked one to put aside as his stake.

That was the "Ancient Fairy Tale" series card, "Star 6," featuring the "Matchstick Girl" that Baron Lavende had mentioned before.

However, the special rule of "Ancient Fairy Tale: Matchstick Girl" was even more demanding than that of Baron Lavende\'s "Northern City: Atak City," requiring that one roll a 10 or 20 twice in a row on the twenty-sided dice to adjust the card number between 6 and 7.

While there are Special Rule Cards in Roder, most of them have stringent conditions of use. This ensures that Roder card competitions remain relatively fair and filled with intrigue.

Like Shard\'s "Genesis: Silver Moon," cards that allowed immediate use of special rules upon drawing were exceedingly rare.