Chapter 330: Cards [#1]
He thought that maybe, just maybe, he could be happy.
"Huh? Are you serious?" Standing before him was the hottest man he has ever seen in his life - He had gathered the courage to ask him out on a date, but the guy reacted by laughing loudly before pausing, asking if he was being serious with a disgusted expression: "Ew, no." Erin froze the moment he heard those words leaving the tall guy's mouth. Rejection isn't easy, but to be humiliated before several people and rejected at the same time, even more so when you're just a shy introverted young man with anxiety, breaks away every tiny teeny piece of confidence you had left in your mind.
Erin just nodded, keeping it all in, and said: "Oh, okay then." Before leaving - Well, why wouldn't he be rejected? This is the 4th in his life that he has been rejected like that. At this point, he should just stop trying! 'Ah...' With a tired sighed, he went to cross the street, his heart heavy with regret at being bad... If once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, and thrice is a pattern - What is four?
He couldn't even think before a painful impact pushed him. His body went flying a few feet up in the air as the world came to a crawl, his brain processing the information of pain - a broken spine? The impact came from the side, so most likely no. A broken arm, a few broken ribs, and a broken shoulder blade? Possibly. His eyes could only see the asphalt a few feet down and a dark shadow, looming beneath him as a truck passed through. The thing was speeding too quickly. However, his body was not directly hit but rather hit in an angle where his whole body was thrown up to the sky due to the sheer speed and force of the object.
The ground, fast approaching, turned dark as his consciousness faded due to the sheer shock of the pain and impact. A little delayed, but tha thankfully, he fainted, or else he'd be forced to watch as the ground beneath his split open with toothy maw thousands upon hundreds of eyes as it reached out to devour his corpse.
-Scene Cut-
[You've received the <Starter Pack>]
[Would you like to open it?]
[...]
[Automatically opening the <Starter Pack>]
[You've received the cards (Fire - Tier 0), (Water - Tier 0), (Earth - Tier 0), (Air - Tier 0), (Mana - Tier 0)]
[Card Combinations unlocked!]
It's been a day since he woke up in this unfamiliar world. He was inside this cavern when he woke up, said cavern is now his home, and he has been trying and working hard to survive! The first thing he did was complete the starter quest this system of his gave him - To survive. He gathered wood, dry leaves, and rocks before the quest was completed, and he received this <Starter Pack> that gave him 5 cards, and each card represented an element, while the 5th one represented the aspect of magic itself. 'What can I do with these?' Dying was not fun, and waking up in an unfamiliar world with another's body was even worse! This new body of his was, thankfully, of a guy.
Well, besides how weak he was, he was doing fine. He couldn't carry that much weight, but he could drag them behind him! "...Fire?" Speaking the name of the card, he waited - But nothing happened.
[You haven't equipped any cards. Would you like to?]
'Oh...'
-x-
[Status:
Name: Erin Ernakulam
Race: Human
Gender: Eruthan
Archetype: [Locked]
Bloodline: [Locked]
Age: 18 (24)
Tier - 0
BE: 10/50
ME: 500/500
Body Stats/Mind Stats
Strength: 2 | Intelligence: 20
Endurance: 3 | Willpower: 30
Vitality: 5 | Sanity: 50
Agility: 10 | Thought: 100
Dexterity: 5 | Imagination: 50
Deck (5/5):
[(P) Fire - Tier 0 - Elemental Card]
[(P) Water - Tier 0 - Elemental Card]
[(P) Earth - Tier 0 - Elemental Card]
[(P) Air - Tier 0 - Elemental Card]
[(P) Magic - Tier 0 - Essence Card]
-x-
"Uhm, [Water]." From the tip of his finger, a bubble of water appeared for a few seconds before popping, the water spilling out and falling to the ground. 'Magic...' He noticed how his ME [Magical Energy?] went from 500 to 490, meaning he could create a little bit of water with 10 points! Meaning he could use this card slash skill slash magic 50 times! "Wow..." He was about to try something when another screen popped up:
[Card Fusion unlocked, at Tier 0, you can combine 2 cards to make a new one. Permanent Cards (P) are not consumed upon fusion but create new other cards! At Tier 0, there is a 0,5% that the card produced is also a Permanent Card and a 99,5% that the card is a Consumable Card (C).]
[Card Combinations List:
Fire + Water = ???
Water + Earth = ???
Earth + Air = ???
Air + Fire = ???
Fire + Earth = ???
Earth + Earth = ???
Fire + Fire = ???
Water + Water = ???
Air + Air = ???
Magic + Fire = ???
...]
The list shows every single possible combination he could do at the moment. He thought for a second and decided to go with the one most likely to be harmless - Water + Air! The moment he chose that option, the two cards suddenly appeared before the screen, and they both glowed before fusing into one card.
[New Card Created!]
[(C) Ice - Tier 0 - Elemental Card]
[Can be used to create the element <Ice>! Due to the low tier, it can not be used offensively.]
'Oh wow.' Erin touched his own chin as he tried again - Or so he tried to, but another screen appeared before his eyes saying [Cooldown: 30 seconds for Tier 0 fusion.] 'So I need to wait for a while huh?' Since in a minute he'll have another [Ice] card, he stretched out his finger as he consumed the card - Permanent cards have to be equipped, while Consumable Cards don't have to be equipped and can be consumed to use! Since the card itself is consumed, it didn't use his Magical Energy. As he looked over his hand, a cold feeling overcame his hand, and a small 2-inch crystal of ice floated above his hand before it fell unto his hand. "Huh."
The ice slowly melted unto the warmth of his hand, making him shake his hand. 'This...' After a minute, he decided to try again. This time, he went on to fuse [Magic + Water] and watched as both cards fused together and -
[New Card Created!]
[(C) Water Bubbles - Tier 0 - Elemental Magic Card
Creates bubbles of water, upon impact it explodes, splashing the target in water.]
"Oh... This is interesting."
-Scene Cut-
Jöl, Son of Ghòl was a very powerful warrior. He was born an Aruthan, and his ranking stands now at Tier 3 even though he is so young. The highest tier his tribe has ever seen was Tier 4, and that person is his father, who is the tribe's chief and protector. At the age of 20, Jöl is one of the rare Aruthans that did not rush to find an Erutan to mate with. He decided to focus on increasing his Tier so he could grow stronger, and only then he'd choose to have a wife! He was the most desired warrior and hunter of his tribe, but one day, the tribe was attacked by the Eguraths, a race of battle hungry beasts that are cursed to always seek destruction and death.
Jöl was one of the few who survived, but he paid the price. The stump where his left arm used to be is enough evidence... Now, alone and hurt in the world, he had to work hard to feed himself. "Ah..." Groaning as his strength was greatly decreased due to his missing arm (He doesn't feel pain) and the weakness he felt, Jöl kept walking through the forest. "Jöl!" Thankfully, he had his little brother, Vök. Vök has grown up with him, and together, the duo of Aruthans had made a hunting group powerful enough to take down a Valaz! A Valaz is a giant lizard with a long tail. Their bodies are covered in hard scales, and they have thick hide to protect their underbelly, too! Their strength comes from their Mystical ability to command the earth to do their bidding, protecting them from attacks.
There are a few animals who can do this, and fewer people too.
He has only seen his tribe's Witch, Évė (eh-vee), do something like that! He could use what he called the Mystic to help him in the conjuring and protecting of the tribe, but he failed, and they all died... It was sad, but ultimately, it couldn't be all placed upon the witch's shoulder. "Vök... Have you found water?" Vök" shook his head - To survive, they took the survivors of the massacre and they all left for the woods, the unknown wilderness, not knowing if they would all survive or die in the end. "No... I found a cave, it looks empty, we could gather everyone there so they can be safe while we search for water." Jöl was now the leader of a group of 7 people, three children, two Erutans, and a young Aruthan.
"...let's go."
The journey to the cave was quicker than they expected. The small group was able to quickly get to the cave Vök said he found, and to their utter surprise, they found an Erutan there, a lone Erutan. He also seemed surprised by their presence and backed away, tense as he looked over at their group - Jöl felt it deep from within that he had scared the poor Erutan, and as a Aruthan, that was the definition of failing. He is supposed to protect them, not scare them! "Don't worry, little one, we're not gonna hurt you-" He took a step forward when something happened, the Erutan's eyes widened in fright as he pointed his hand towards them, only for this bubble of water to rush toward him and hit him in the face, wetting a good portion of his body. The Erutan said something in a language he couldn't understand, and by Vök's face, he couldn't understand it either.
But one thing was clear - This Erutan was a Witch! Witches are born with their abilities, and according to their own Witch, they are the ones meant to protect the tribe with their abilities while being protected by the tribe! "Wait... Water?" Their Witch was able to command the earth, does this mean witches have different abilities? "Witch!" Vök raised his hands above his head in a greeting, but the Witch didn't seem to understand what he was doing because it took another step back, making Vök feel ashamed as he scared the poor Erutan. "But... why is he alone?" An Erutan is like a treasure to the tribe. Why is he alone in the dangerous wilderness? Even if he is a witch, their witch fell by the weapon of the enemy.
"Witch -" Jöl fell to his knees, looking down so as not to scare the small Erutan - by his looks, he seemed to not have been treated well by Aruthans before, why would he afraid of the ones meant to help him if not for the fact that he was hurt by Aruthans before? Jöl's father, Ghòl, did tell him that not all Aruthans see Erutans as precious treasures to be protected, but items to be used and abused before throwing them away. "- I won't hurt you. We won't hurt you."
It took a while, but when Jöl looked over at the Witch again, he wasn't looking as scared as he did a few moments ago, although he looked just as tense. But that changed when he saw the three children and the two other Erutans. They all had damages across their bodies, from simple scratches to deep wounds. The Witch said something no one understood before he walked away into the cavern under the watchful eyes of the small group.
Gãn, the young Erutan, watched a little too intently, which had Jöl slap the back of his head - He was in that age, being interested in Erutans was only natural, but a Witch? They naturally want only strong mates, and the way they are right now, there's no way the witch would choose one of them anyway.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone