NOVEL WEB Chapter 1 Part 5
“Go and pick your card. I wish you luck.” Elder Hill was glad that Leo was the last one. He really hoped this young man would be able to pass. There had been too few who had passed this year. In the past few years, the number of Card Master’s has reduced by too much. If this trend continued, then in ten years' time, humanity will end up suffering.
Leo had no idea what Elder Hill was thinking nor what Elder Lancaster was thinking or saying. He was completely focused on the cards in front of him.
‘If I go with a Fire Sloth, I can have decent offense, but the question is, will I be able to overpower it?’ He made a note of the card position before scanning the others. ‘Oh? A Wind Snake. From my research that I have done over the past few years a Wind Snake could turn into a flood dragon. But that was during the height of Card Masters.’
Once more, Leo’s gaze scanned the rest of the cards until his eyes fell on a lone card at the bottom right corner. ‘A Rock Salamander. Known to be the weakest of all cards. Only giving 10 points of defense and no attack.’
Leo shook his head and was about to move to the next row of cards, but he felt drawn to the Rock Salamander. He felt it seemed to have a strange glow to it compared to the rest. ‘I know I should pick something with at least decent attack power but…’
Leo, for some reason, felt he should pick this card. He couldn’t shake this feeling, no matter how much he tried. And every time he tried to look at other cards, he felt as if the glow of this one card grew brighter, catching his attention once more. ‘Screw it. At least it’s weak… I will at least pass without issue.’
“I will take the Rock Salamander.”
“Young Man are you sure? Everyone knows the Rock Salamander is basically useless. If you chose this card it will be with you for almost half a year before you will be able to venture into the dungeon for the first time.” Elder Lancaster felt the young man could do much better than a useless card like this. He had actually meant to remove it since it was such a useless card.
“I am sure. This is the card I want.” Leo was being stubborn but he just had a strange feeling about this card.
“If that is the case…” Elder Lancaster did not try to push the subject anymore. It was the kid's path to choose for himself. He waved his hand, and the Rock Salamander floated down in front of Leon.
Leon promptly reached out and held the card in his hand. He did not need any directions. His mind instantly connected with the Chaotic Realm.
“This kid…” Elder Lancaster was surprised to see the young man easily enter the Chaotic Realm without any instructions.
“He seems to have some talent but to choose a Rock Salamander.” Elder Hill sighed. He really wondered what the young man was thinking.
“Everyone has their own trials. This is his and his alone. Whether he will do great things in the future or not is up to him and how hard he is willing to work with the handicap he has given himself.” Elder Hill nodded at Elder Lancaster’s words. Everyone had their own path.
- - -
Inside, a fiery landscape filled with large rock formations and pools of magma. Leo stood in front of a rock formation that seemed to be in the shape of a throne. Upon that stone throne was a young woman with a long red scaled tail. A pair of spiky wings and a set of red horns protruded out of her head. This was matched with her fiery red hair and orange eyes.
The young woman looked no older than Leo, but her eyes seemed filled with the wisdom of the ages. Her long white armored dress went down to her ankles that barely revealed her red-scaled feet with five distinct red claws.
She looked just like a human girl, with certain parts of her body taking on the image of her actual race. But Leo was confused. He should not be seeing a humanoid figure but a rock salamander.
He couldn’t help but ask: “Miss, May I ask who you are?” Leo watched as the girl, who had no expression on her face, suddenly showed a small smile on her lips. She stood up from her throne that was at least twenty feet off the ground and stepped off the edge, floating gently down. Her armored skirt fluttered ever so slightly.
When she landed on the desolate ash-covered landscape, she made no noise. Her gaze never left Leo’s for even a second. “I knew you would pick me. What is your name young human?”
“Le-Leon Tristan. But people call me Leo.” Leo replied. He was slightly taken aback. ‘If Jasmine was considered beautiful in this village then the girl in front of me would be a beauty that could cause the downfall of the world. It’s as if she had dropped down from the heavens.’
“Hehe. The heavens, you say. I see… Leo…” The girl’s smile turned brighter as she reached out and took Leo’s hand before kneeling on the ground in a knightly manner, giving Leo no time to ask why she knew what he was thinking. “I wish for you to give me a name. I will do everything I can to assist you to become the best Card Master this world has ever seen.”
“A name…” Leo had thought of man names but he was at a loss as to what to name this girl. All the names he had thought of did not seem to fit her. But now she was kneeling in front of him as a knight would do to their Master, the one they have chosen to protect. “Li-Liana… Liana. What do you think?”
“Liana hmm?” The girl fell into deep thought for a moment, repeating the name over and over in her mind.
After about a minute, the girl looked up at Leo. “I like it. Liana. The name my Master has given me. From this day, I swear an oath. I will make you the strongest Card Master and allow my Dragon race to once more appear in this world.”
After saying her vow, Liana stood up, reached up with her hands and cupped both of Leo’s cheeks. “A vow sealed with a kiss.” And before Leo could figure out what was going on, Liana kissed his lips and his vision went dark once more. He felt as if all the energy from his body had disappeared instantly. He did not understand what Liana meant by her dragon race. He only remembered picking a rock salamander.