Cards and Cards
"I couldn't catch Chero, but I managed to take this instead."
Back at the tavern Cold Sun, I handed a single sheet of paper to Lucard.
His eyes widened like lanterns.
"...This is!"
[Quest Item] — A scammer's contract that deceives people with enticing terms. The signature line bears the name Lucard, scrawled hastily.
Lucard's fingertips trembled as he stared at the paper that bore his own name.
"Wha—this is the original! The genuine original! Hahaha!"
Apparently, he'd already forgotten all that nonsense about unpaid tabs when he first gave me the quest. He was grinning like a child who'd just found treasure.
The story behind this quest went like this:
Chero had been drinking here at Cold Sun one day when he casually struck up a conversation with Lucard.
He told him about a huge gold mine located in the Blackridge Mountains that cut across northern Auraux—and claimed there was an investment opportunity.
A classic investment scam.
Lucard, confident in his own information network, even confirmed that such a gold mine did indeed exist.
It was real—so he judged that Chero's offer was a "promising opportunity."
And so, the contract was signed.
But the moment Lucard proudly penned his name, that contract turned into a debt notice.
Almost immediately after the signing, the mine ran dry and was shut down.
The reason was simple.
"The gold vein was exhausted."
The mine lost all value, leaving it an empty pit.
Lucard had, in effect, bought a useless, depleted mine at a high price.
He'd been completely swindled—until I showed up and recovered the contract.
No wonder his face was all smiles now.
"Ahem."
The tavern keeper awkwardly scratched his head, pretending to play it cool while glancing at me.
"Heh, well now. When did I ever ask you to bring me a contract, eh? What about collecting the guy's unpaid tab, huh?"
I tilted my head with a crooked grin.
"Oh? If you don't need it, I can just take it back and return it to him. Hand it over."
"No, no, that's not what I meant!"
Panicking, Lucard quickly stuffed the contract out of sight.
I smiled brightly at him.
"Then, the promised reward?"
"Honestly, you should've brought that con artist back here in person!"
"So you're saying…?"
"...I'll give you partial credit for the effort. Thanks!"
[Quest 'Card Cheater Chero' has been partially completed.]
[Quest reward granted.]
[Reward Details]
Gold Coins ×10
EXP +1000
(Failed to obtain)Sword of the Retired Knight
Partial completion it was.
As expected, I didn't get the Sword of the Retired Knight.
"Agh, if it were up to me, I'd have beaten that swindler senseless myself!"
Raising his eyebrows, Lucard grumbled and disappeared into the kitchen without another word.
No room left for negotiation.
"Hmph."
Not that I was expecting much anyway.
If I'd followed the original plan and brought Chero here directly, the quest could've been fully completed.
Then I might've received a rather useful early-game sword.
"But whatever—it's just the Sword of the Retired Knight."
What mattered was that this quest confirmed something critical:
the elements from the beta version existed in this world.
Among them was the Thirteenth Demon Temple that Chero had mentioned.
To visit that place later, I'd need high affinity with the NPCs who knew its location.
"So of course, not trading Chero for a sword was the right call."
And besides…
"I might need a staff, not a sword."
The quest reward filled up the remaining experience I needed.
[Level Up!]
Finally, Level 10!
Now came the time for the Second Card Draw.
There was no need to decide what weapon I needed yet.
I'd see what card I pulled first—then optimize my promotions.
[The Selection of the Second Fate Card begins.]
The system message echoed, and the scenery around me began to shake.
The tavern beneath me trembled violently, as if an earthquake had struck.
Wooden planks lifted from the floor, the shelves rattled, and glass cups stacked neatly before vanishing somewhere beyond sight.
The table beneath my hand crumbled into dust and blew away.
Tsussshhh…
The ceiling split open, connecting me to the night sky beyond.
The black, velvet-like sky unfurled above me.
[Player, confirm your character's fate.]
"Damn, this animation's still ridiculously dramatic."
Snapping out of my daze, I began to think again.
I'd seen this scene countless times in the original.
No need to be intimidated.
I spoke calmly.
"Pause card draw."
A new system message appeared.
[The selection of the Fate Card has been paused. You may resume at any time.]
I opened my inventory.
"Every draw requires a sacrifice, after all."
Of course, I knew full well that—statistically speaking—this made no difference.
Each draw was an independent event, unaffected by any other.
"But hey, luck's a feeling."
I pulled out my two guaranteed D-rank tickets.
One was from the Survive quest reward,
and the other from Chero's reward.
"Hooo…"
They might be D-rank, but who knows what could come out of them?
"Maybe…"
A Mud Sculptor—which could evolve into a Sun Sculptor at the transcendent tier…
Or perhaps a D-rank Taming Beginner, which could later advance into a Taming Meister.
The future was full of hope!
"All right—let's gooo!"
I tossed both tickets high into the night sky.
The cards cracked open like hatching shells, radiating a burst of dazzling light.
I swallowed, my heart pounding.
And then—!
[D-rank Fate: 'Novice Spirit Summoner' has appeared!]
[D-rank Fate: 'Pet Trainer' has appeared!]
"..."
So much for hope.
Utter failure.
The Spirit Summoner class required forming contracts with spirits and gradually nurturing power—
completely useless right now.
"I've got an urgent quest waiting. I can't go wandering around making pacts with spirits."
And Pet Trainer…
"…Wait, this card actually exists?"
In this harsh and perilous world, I'm supposed to train dogs?
Wouldn't cats at least make more sense?
"...Ah, right. This is the C-rank branch of Dragon Trainer. That's what it was."
My dazed mind finally came back to focus.
No wonder I didn't recognize it right away—this was a card I'd never even bothered to equip before.
Flap, flap.
Regardless of my mixed feelings, the two cards floated gently through the air and landed in my hands.
"Ha… this is rough."
I scratched the back of my head and sighed.
Both cards had come from guaranteed tickets, so there was no point choosing.
I just had to accept them.
"Well, they're only D-rank for now."
As mentioned before, cards could be used as enhancement materials for other cards.
Through dismantling, even lower-rank cards could absorb higher ones.
"Maybe I could split one and use it to enhance the Slave Gladiator card."
If the second draw didn't produce anything useful…
"I might really have to raise the Gladiator card."
…Not a pleasant thought.
Praying that such a fate wouldn't come to pass, I resumed the shuffle.
The main event had begun once more.
[Fate Card selection resumed.]
[Player, confirm your character's fate.]
Stars of brilliant light spun in the night sky.
Before the 1,024 swirling cards, a chill tension gripped my neck.
What kind of cards would appear this time?
Of the three that would descend from that starry sky… which one should I choose?
Then I remembered—
"That EX-rank Archmage!"
Thinking back to that card from the first draw made my stomach twist.
But at the same time, a flicker of hope returned.
"Could another miracle like that happen again?"
The odds of drawing a Transcendent-tier (EX-rank) Fate Card were less than 0.01%.
Practically impossible.
But still, I couldn't help but hope—
no, I really hoped.
"Who knows? I'm part of that bloodline, after all."
…Gilloshan, third prince of the Balt Magic Empire.
That lineage fanned my quiet expectations.
I suspected that my royal bloodline—descended from generations of mighty mages—might have influenced the first draw.
"A family that produced such powerful magicians… surely the third prince inherited that blood too."
So maybe that magical heritage could even affect my Fate Card pulls as an NPC.
Tsussshhh…
The rotation of the cards began to slow.
A strange chill ran down my spine.
All right, maybe hoping for another Transcendent card was greedy…
I'd settle for an S-rank!
Just one S-rank would make the game so much smoother.
"Yes. Perfect."
I nodded vigorously.
"Even just a War Mage would be amazing."
Let's see if fate would be kind to this poor, pitiful third prince.
"Come on, RNGesus! Let's go!"
Eyes wide open, I watched as the light froze mid-motion.
Finally, from among the halted stars, three cards fell.
[D-rank Fate: 'Apprentice Mage' has appeared!]
[C-rank Fate: 'Geomancer' has appeared!]
"...Huh?"
Apprentice, not War?
I blinked stupidly, dumbfounded.
And don't even get me started on the Geomancer.
"The Dog Trainer was more respectable than this."
What good was reading landforms and water flows in a world full of swordfights?
Normally, these non-combat professions only became useful later—
once an extra card slot unlocked and you could equip them as support.
…But I doubted I'd ever have room for a Geomancer.
"Unbelievable."
I let out a deep sigh.
How could the draw be this miserable?
Where was the sense of fairness? D and C ranks? Seriously?
Then I remembered—the first draw had also given me an F-rank and a D-rank before.
And the final, third card that appeared afterward had been that EX-rank Archmage.
"Then… maybe?"
Maybe this time, the last card would also be something incredible.
But then—
[S-rank Fate: 'Genius Actor' has appeared!]
…S-rank, sure.
But an actor?
Was that lucky? Or pathetic?
Hard to tell.
It was basically in the same category as the Geomancer—
a non-combat profession that only became useful when an extra slot unlocked.
"Ugh, this stupid RNG trash game!"
I sighed heavily, then suddenly remembered something.
"Wait—didn't an actor card appear last time too?"
Yes. I'd drawn a D-rank Third-Rate Actor in the first pull.
Now it was the mage line that dropped to D-rank, while the actor line had climbed to S-rank.
"Is there some kind of pattern here or what?"
Completely baffling.
Still, I had to choose one of the three.
Apprentice Mage.
Geomancer.
Genius Actor.
…Well, the Geomancer was out.
Between a D-rank mage and an S-rank actor, the decision was obvious.
"Genius Actor."