Cards and Cards
[S-rank Fate: 'Genius Actor' has been selected.]
[Are you sure?]
Am I sure?
Yeah, I was sure. Absolutely sure.
…Damn it.
[S-rank Fate: 'Genius Actor' has been granted to Gilroshan Ello di Balt!]
[Insufficient slots. The card will be stored in item form.]
[May fortune favor you.]
To be perfectly honest, that fortune felt disgustingly ambiguous.
If I tried hard enough, I could twist it into a positive.
"Well… it's still S-rank, right?"
At least it was a better pull than when I'd gotten that Slave Gladiator.
Statistically speaking, S-rank cards had a mere 5% appearance rate.
So, sure—technically I was lucky.
But my mood? Not so great.
"Genius Actor."
A non-combat card.
And right now, when the city guards were hunting us down and a massive high-difficulty quest was looming?
"What am I supposed to do with this—practice method acting?"
Sure, maybe its skills could be useful somehow, but first I needed combat power.
Survival came before performance.
"And once another card slot opens…"
Then it would have real potential.
For now, though, even with an S-rank Fate Card, I felt zero reassurance.
Someone unfamiliar with this system might think:
"If it's useless now, why not dismantle it and use it for promotion materials?"
But that would be criminally inefficient.
Let's look at what I had:
D-rank:Novice Spirit Summoner
D-rank:Pet Trainer
F-rank:Slave Gladiator
What an impeccably awful lineup.
There wasn't a single viable main card among them.
So dismantling the Genius Actor for materials would be a total waste—a case of the tail wagging the dog.
Honestly, it felt like someone up there was toying with me.
Every card I drew seemed to mock me—mediocrity at its finest.
But my decisions couldn't be mediocre too.
Without hesitation, I selected the Genius Actor.
"This is a future investment."
Once I got an A-rank card, it could serve as top-tier promotion material.
Or, if I unlocked another slot before that, I could equip it directly and make use of it.
Gilroshan's stats had one standout trait—
the only one far above average:
Charm.
The Genius Actor was directly influenced by that stat.
In time, it could become a formidable support card.
When exactly that would happen, I couldn't say…
"But before I hit level 20, it should be possible."
The system stirred again.
[Gameplay will resume in 5 seconds.]
Shuuuuh!
The disassembled background reassembled itself.
The split ceiling sealed shut, and the tavern floorboards slid neatly back into place.
"..."
And I was already deep in thought.
Time to figure out how to make the most of my remaining cards.
"How to grind these trash-tier cards into something truly mine."
That was the problem to solve.
And the conclusion I reached was…
[3.]
[2.]
[1.]
"Ha… you've got to be kidding me."
I sighed heavily.
It wasn't even funny anymore.
Why did it have to come to this?
The conclusion I'd reached felt like a bad joke—
but it was the most logical one.
There simply wasn't a better alternative.
[0.]
[Gameplay resumed.]
Time began to flow normally again.
Everything that had been broken apart snapped back into place.
I rose from my seat, reached out my hand, and said:
"Unequip current card."
The system responded.
[Are you sure?]
[Unequipped cards cannot be re-equipped for 24 hours.]
I nodded lightly.
Shff.
An F-rank Fate Card: 'Slave Gladiator' appeared above my palm—
emitting a faint light, infused with all the merit it had accumulated.
It was still the same low-tier, bottom-of-the-barrel card it had been ten days ago.
But now, things would change.
"Yeah… for now, raising this one is the best option I've got."
I'd fuse and feed every other card into this worthless scrap, and make it evolve.
That was the best course forward.
My conclusion.
The Next Day — Noon
By the time the sun was high, I finally summoned Kals.
He tilted his head at me, taking in my dirt-covered appearance.
"You said you had business this morning, Your Highness. Did you… play in the dirt?"
"Something like that. Let's just say it was a 'hands-on' task."
"...A dirt-related one?"
"Never mind that. I need a favor."
"Command me."
"This time, you'll be buying weapons."
I listed what I needed, and Kals nodded along.
"Daggers, arrows… Got it. And for the longsword—should I prioritize durability?"
"Exactly. That's the most important part. You're a Six-Star Knight—buy something that lives up to that name. Don't get swindled."
"No need to worry, Your Highness. The Order taught us well about not getting fleeced."
"You'd better not get fleeced."
"Still, why three blades? You already have mine."
"Ah, about that."
I unbuckled the Ordinary Knight's Sword from my waist and handed it back to him.
Kals blinked in surprise.
"...Why the sudden change, Your Highness?"
I smiled faintly.
"It's a good sword—good enough to face Marquis Reut with. Wouldn't want to break it during training, would we?"
"Pardon? Are you saying—?"
"I'm going to start using a real sword."
"...!"
"And I'd rather not wreck your blade in the process."
From here on, I was setting Gilroshan's path in stone.
"Since it's come to this, I'll train him properly—relentlessly."
Enough to survive any field, no matter how dangerous.
I'd forge Gilroshan into a fierce and tenacious gladiator.
Fortunately, I had obtained the Sea-Soothing Sword Art.
Like most Eastern techniques transplanted into this Western world,
the Sea-Soothing Sword Art ranked among the most powerful within S-tier martial skills.
I could already hear the skeptics:
"Isn't it inefficient to raise an F-rank?"
But anyone truly versed in The World Abandoned by Gods knew that by the second card shuffle, you had to make a choice:
Will you abandon the character, or will you keep raising them?
And if you keep going—
then it's time to decide exactly what path to take.
Aiming for the Third Card Shuffle
Could I wait until the third card shuffle instead?
"…That requires reaching level 20. By then, it'll be too late."
Especially in a situation like this—charging recklessly through enemy lines under a lunatic meta—it would definitely be too late.
That's why, come hell or high water, I had to push forward with the Slave Gladiator.
That was my conclusion.
Some might call it an irrational choice.
After all, in the last shuffle, I'd tossed away the D-rank card, "Apprentice Mage."
And in my inventory, I still had another D-rank card, "Novice Spirit Summoner."
So why on earth would I invest in an F-rank instead?
The reason was simple.
"Honestly, D-rank and F-rank aren't that different."
They were both bottom-tier—just acorns of slightly different sizes.
In fact, the Slave Gladiator was more efficient.
It already had accumulated merit points, and I even had a decent swordsmanship technique suited to gladiators.
"…The problem is me."
Yeah, once again—the issue was me.
Truth be told, I wasn't the type to enjoy clashing on the front lines.
"I always preferred ranged DPS."
In the original game, my character CitrusTasteCombo was a long-range build, specializing in both damage and healing.
So naturally, I'd been hoping for a chance to switch over to the mage line.
But—
"Well, it can't be helped."
I quickly brushed off the thought.
This cursed thing was called a card draw for a reason.
If everything always went my way, what kind of "draw" would that be?
It was called a shuffle because you couldn't control it.
And in the face of things you couldn't change, humility was key.
"Accept the fate you're given—and do what you can, right now."
I nodded at Kals.
"Take Thomson with you. Even if my master insists on coming along, tell him no."
"How should I refuse, Your Highness?"
"Just tell him, 'It's dangerous outside the blanket.' He'll blush and back off."
"Understood, Your Highness."
I was slightly concerned about the tightened city patrols, but with our forged IDs, it shouldn't be an issue.
I'd been wandering around fine just yesterday, hadn't I?
After confirming Kals and Thomson had left, I sat down at a corner table in the tavern.
"Alright then. Let's do this."
For some reason, I felt nervous.
I took a sip of water from the glass on the table and spread out the cards before me.
F-rank:Slave Gladiator
D-rank:Novice Spirit Summoner
D-rank:Pet Trainer
I laid them out in order and recalled what Chero had told me.
"Card promotions always use the card on the left as the base! Got it?"
The old drunk, tipsy on whiskey, had repeated that countless times.
Naturally, I knew it by heart.
"The card in the left hand is the target; the one in the right is the material."
My goal now was to raise the F-rank up two levels—to C-rank.
That would evolve Slave Gladiator → Prison Gladiator → Mercenary Gladiator.
And since fate cards carry over their accumulated skills and merits, the final result would be far stronger than its humble beginnings.
…Could I actually pull it off?
"Who knows."
Promotion success was purely based on chance.
No matter how much I knew about this world, I couldn't dictate lottery odds.
"All I can do is find the ticket with the best chance—and take it."
That was the best I could do.
Without further delay, I moved my hands.
It felt strange doing in real life what I'd always done with a mouse—but the process was simple.
First, I tore one D-rank card into two pieces.
The Novice Spirit Summoner.
There was a reason I shredded that one first instead of the Pet Trainer.
With the fragments in my right hand, I pressed them against the Slave Gladiator card in my left.
[F-rank Fate, 'Slave Gladiator,' promotion attempt initiated!]
[Success rate: "Fairly High."]
It began.
My heart pounded as I watched the colors swirl between the cards.
That phrase—"Fairly High"—meant about a 70% success rate.
"So basically, odds are in my favor!"
Surely that meant I'd succeed—
and see the card immediately ascend to D-rank: Prison Gladiator.
Of course, my fantasy didn't last long.
[F-rank Fate, 'Slave Gladiator,' promotion failed!]
…Figures.
I'd never once seen it succeed on the first try.
Grinding my teeth, I picked up the remaining fragment—
And then—
[F-rank Fate, 'Slave Gladiator,' promotion successful!
Promoted to D-rank Fate, 'Prison Gladiator.']
Success—finally!
"Kkkiii-yaaah-cha!"
A strangled cry escaped me.
Across the room, Lucard looked up from where he was wiping a table.
"Huh? Something happen?"
"N-no! Just… a bit of a cold."
I waved my hand, coughing awkwardly.
Why did something this trivial have me sweating like this?
Still… it was embarrassing to admit, but I felt genuinely moved.
At last, I'd climbed out of the bottom tier.
"Can you believe it? I'm finally D-rank."
After a brief moment of triumph, I grabbed the Pet Trainer.
Now it was D feeding into D.
"Which means the success rate should drop to around 50%…"
[D-rank Fate, 'Prison Gladiator,' promotion attempt initiated!]
[Success rate: "Extremely High."]
Wait—Extremely High?
That meant over 85%!
Better odds than the previous upgrade!
"Of course! It'd better pay off after all that dog crap I went through this morning!"
Before sending Kals on his errand earlier, I'd literally rolled around the city doing "dog work."
Meaning—I'd equipped the Pet Trainer card and spent the morning playing with every stray dog I could find.
They all loved the Belly Rub skill far more than I expected…
"Anyway, that kind of activity builds merit points."
Once I unequipped the card, those points factored into its promotion success rate.
In other words, it became a material card with a massive bonus.
I'd rolled in the dirt with every dog in town for this.
"Even chugged mana potions to keep it up…"
And finally—
[D-rank Fate, 'Prison Gladiator,' promotion successful!
Promoted to C-rank Fate, 'Mercenary Gladiator.']
…Yes.
At last, I'd done it.
From trash-tier to C-rank!
"Wahahahaha!"
I laughed so hard my eyes started to sting—
or maybe that was just sweat.
But who cared?
I'd finally succeeded.