Chapter 2818: Betrayal
Date: Unspecified
Time: Unspecified
Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Southern Region, Blossom District, Three Mischief Encampment, Limitless Celestial Blood Fate Rule Domain
"Master, due to the oath, it will be hard for me to assist you against the emissary ofâ" Karl began, pulling me out of my thoughts.
Before he could finish, I cut in. "Donât worry. I have an understanding with the Card Celestial. The oath no longer binds you or Sansa while youâre on my side."
"Thatâs great, Masterâ"
"Donât call me Master. Just call me Boss."
"Understood, Boss!"
I shook my head at Karl and let out a long sigh. It was hard to reconcile how... kind he seemed. Kind, at least, to his own. To him, card apprentices were little more than petsâtools to be used. Many were nothing but means to an end, like those in the Circle or the ones who became his womb incarnations.
Yes, he came from the peaceful faction of the Viltroniansâbut he was still a Viltronian. He had watched card apprentices hunt down his family. How could he not carry resentment from that? Being adopted by a grieving couple didnât erase what he had seen, or how he felt toward card apprentices as a whole.
That resentment hadnât faded over time. It had deepenedâtwisted into something far more disturbing than simple hatred.
"Letâs go see what their fight is about." Looking into Karlâs eyesâclear on the surface, yet hiding a twisted darknessâI retrieved the Limitless Celestial Blood Fate Domain. But before I could focus, my attention snapped to a massive white snake.
As my vision sharpened, I saw Field Marshal Lorn and Corey resting atop its head, while a gray mist coiled around them, seemingly restraining the Emissary of Light.
The sight annoyed me more than it should have. That damned snake would let Field Marshal Lorn ride it, but not me. Yes, I was also irritated that it had gone against my orders and returned with Coreyâbut that, I could excuse. Corey could be... persuasive.
What truly bothered me was something else entirely. The snake seemed perfectly fine letting Coreyâs friends and acquaintances ride it, yet not meâthe one Corey called her best friend.
That settled it. I will create my own primordial familiar. One stronger, faster, and far more beautiful than that damned snake. Whatâs more, I decided I would use its own soul pathways to create my primordial familiar from scratch. It wasnât like I had many options. The only other primordial beings I knew of were pixies and the World Calamity Tree.
Pixies were outâtheir soul pathways were far too complex, even for my Primordial Soul Pupils that could peer into the Origin Source. And the World Calamity Tree was an even worse choice. If I used its pathways, the result wouldnât be a pet, but an equalâsomething I had no intention of dealing with.
That left only one viable option: the snakeâs soul pathways. I was going to create a better version of herâso superior that sheâd develop an inferiority complex and hide herself away. And if she ever dared to show her face, Iâd have my familiar bully herâ
...yeah, no. That escalated quickly. Still, one thing was certain. I would create a better version of her as my familiar. That much wasnât negotiable.
Corey, Field Marshal Lorn, and the Emissary of Light all looked stunned as Karl and I appeared beside Lilâ Baemâtogether, as if we were acquaintances rather than enemies.
"Donât tell me you admitted him into your criminal reintegration and rehabilitation program." Corey rose to her feet as she spoke, eyes fixed on Karl. He offered her a gentle smile, but she found it unsettling and turned away in disgust.
"Yes, I did. With a second demon invasion on the horizon, we canât afford to lose capable card apprentices like him. Donât worryâheâs promised to turn over a new leaf," I said, meeting the gazes of both Corey and Field Marshal Lorn.
"First Sansa, then Gideon, now the Supreme Leader... all thatâs left is the Emissary of Light," Corey shot back. "What are you waiting for? Go on, invite him into your little rehabilitation program. I want to see what it is you tell these people that makes them give up their ambitionsânot just surrender, but actually try to atone for their sins. Go ahead. Show me that even he can turn over a new leaf, leave his past behind, and make amends."
Corey tilted her head toward the gray mist, silently urging me to go do my thing. Even the Field Marshal glanced over with keen interestâshe, too, seemed curious to see how her young lord guided these unredeemable heathens onto a path of redemption.
"Supreme Leader, whatâs going on?" The Emissary of Light struggled to accept what he was seeing. The betrayal was right there in Karlâs actions and attitude, yet he couldnât bring himself to believe it.
"Sorry, my friend. I canât keep our oath. I hope you wonât hold it against me," Karl said, genuinely apologetic. Despite their differences in age and race, he had considered the Emissary a friendâhis strength being no small part of that regard.
The Emissary had been waiting for Karl to arrive and pull him out after capturing the target. Instead, he found Karl standing beside that very target.
Hearing Coreyâs words only made it worse. It wasnât just the Supreme Leader and the MatronâHandsome Fox had also switched sides. Not that he cared much about that devil merchant bootlicker, but the realization still stung. What truly enraged him was that he now stood alone in a fight that had never been his to begin with. He was here to help someone whom he could consider a friend, but it turns out he was a fool for thinking so.
"Hahaha!Hahaha!" the Emissary of light laughed loudly while his grief at being betrayed was evident in his voice. Even though he knew they werenât to be trusted, over the decades of cooperation he came to feel this sense of comradery. He only blamed himself for this. Using his divine enlightenment he had many people betray their loved ones, friends, those they care about, and today he got a test of his own medicine. Shaking his head, he spent a butt load of faith to keep the gray mist at bay just enough for him to teleport out of here.
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