Date: Unspecified
Ti: Unspecified
Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Central Region, Central Academic City, Morningstar University District, Morningstar University Campus, Garden of Beginning
"What do you know, young man? You speak as if you know , but you don’t. When I was your age, I had already traveled to the farthest point of the Way Beyond that any card apprentice has ever reached. I spent three months there—exploring, docunting the terrain, and studying the monstrous flora and fauna with the help of the local Supre Beings. Don’t tell I lack an adventurous spirit. I’m just as adventurous as any card apprentice out there. Maybe even more. And what about you? Have you ever even seen a Supre Being, let alone spoken to one?" Lucine remarked, excitent flaring in her voice. It seed I had struck a nerve. Truth has a way of doing that.
"Let guess—you weren’t alone, but traveling with a team of demigods," I said, already knowing how her mind worked. She wasn’t aware of her privileged life. I wasn’t blaming her for being born into a powerful lineage; I was trying to help her understand that it was precisely that privilege which kept her from ever pushing herself far enough to trigger her origin card during any of her adventures.
Besides, I had not only seen and spoken to a Supre Being—I had played with one. Her na was Bloodette, the Blood Supre, and we were the best of friends.
"Of course. I’m not an idiot. I considered every possible scenario and made the necessary preparations before entering the Way Beyond. I even hired a team of diamond array masters from the Central Array Master Association, just to be safe. Why do you think my expedition was successful?" Lucine replied with a confident nod. She was more than a little proud of herself. I would be too.
A seventeen-year-old card apprentice pulling off a successful expedition into the unknown depths of the Way Beyond was indeed sothing to be proud of. In her, I saw the sa overcautious nature and obsessive preparedness that I possessed. We were alike—we took calculated risks, always making sure the odds leaned in our favor. But sotis, a person has to leap without thinking. She had done that when she rescued Ahalya, triggering her origin card for the first ti—and now, she was doing the sa to rescue .
Because of my humble origins and ambitions, I took such leaps far more often than I should have. But in Lucine’s case, her royal background ensured she never had to take those leaps herself. Soone else always stepped in to take them for her. Until she was the only one left. Forcing her to take the leap this ti. Otherwise, I don’t think that Morningstar University or Dean Faust would send her out to rescue . I was impressed that Lucine gracefully stepped up when it mattered. Proving that Morningstar University was right to dot on their princess, the direct descendant of their founder.
I understood that there was nothing I could say or do. Lucine would have to realize it on her own. So, I simply shook my head and agreed with her. "Impressive. Now, let us get out of here."
Now that I learned I shouldn’t comprehend the ti rule inside the ti prison—unless I wanted to suffer from ti rule dentia—it quickly lost its attraction to . With Hive Spirit having already used my primordial soul pupils to collect and record all the data of this tiline, I was no longer interested in continuing to explore this past.
I planned to return to our present. So, I approached the lightning-struck stump in this past and, upon touching it, resonated with the frequency of the stump in our present, summoning the ti vestige that was anchored there to retrieve us.
We could travel through the temporal river, but without Lucine’s support, I would be swept away by its current. This ti, there were no temporal or spatial forces from the ti tunnel that sucked into this past to suck back to our present. If I wanted to return, I would need to summon the ti tunnel myself. Since, Morningstar University had no idea where in their Labyrinth of Myriad Pasts we were, to help us. And since I was already forming the ti tunnel, I might as well call upon the ti vestige to take us back with it.
Sensing the temporal and spatial shifts around us as I resonated with this tiline’s temporal anchor, Lucine quickly realized what I was attempting to do. Her astonishnt only grew as she saw the ti tunnel beginning to form, confirming that I had succeeded. Having heard earlier that I had not yet begun to comprehend the ti rule, she couldn’t help but ask, "Wyatt, how are you doing this?"
"Told you I can cure your ti rule dentia. Do you regret it now?" I teased, knowing this should be enough for her to understand that I hadn’t been lying—I truly believed I could help her. For soone in her situation, even that small promise was sothing worth giving a shot.
Lucine was left speechless when she realized I had taken offense at her not believing about my claim about helping her cure her disease. Just as she was about to reply, we were both startled by a loud, eerie laughter.
"Eheheh-eeeh! My patience and gamble have paid off. I finally get to be free of this damn place."
I turned toward the source of the laughter, only for Lucine to suddenly rise into the air. She summoned her diamond grimoire and ordered, "Wyatt, once the ti vestige arrives, take it and leave. I’ll hold this devil back. Don’t worry about . Sam will know what to do next."
"That’s brave of you, little girl. Unfortunately, neither of you is leaving this damned place. I am," the voice responded, mocking her resolve.
It belonged to Slay — one of the ten leaders of the fallen ’Ten Commandnts’ dark faction from the Dark Realm.
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