A tiny critter’s feet scratched against the gravely pavement as it scuttered around searching for food. It briefly stood on its hind legs, the thin whiskers on its snout sniffing the air, as it detected a strong, sweet aroma.

  Scrambling towards the fruity scent, the small street rat gradually arrived at its source. It was the crushed pulp of a juicy peach. Its beady eyes shined with joy as the rat leapt up at the mound where the fruit was stuck, swallowing large chunks of the peach while also lapping up the sugary juice pooled underneath it.

  Suddenly, the mound moved.

  “Ughh.”

  Shouren groaned, his head thrumming with pangs as he struggled to open his eyes. There was a loud ringing in his eyes, like someone just pommeled his head through a bunch of rocks. In fact, that’s close to what had actually happened.

  “It hurts.”

  The child touched his nose with his bony hands, feeling a warm wetness soaking his skin. It was blood. Shouren was bleeding through his nose, though much of it was already starting to dry up.

  The tiny critter realized that it had mistaken the mound for a small human. Glancing regretfully at the peach pulp, the street rat took one last look and bolted away from sight.

  “Why…”

  As he regained his balance, the memories of what had just happened flashed through Shouren’s head. He was only trying to help a stranger, but that resulted in him getting humiliated and bleeding alone on the road. The boy noticed the pieces of crushed peaches scattered around him. Those kids didn’t even take those fruits. Instead, they tore it apart and threw it on him like he was garbage.

  “Why…”

  Shouren curled up into a ball over the filthy chunk of peach on the ground. His fists clenched on the side as his vision blurred. Water droplets silently splattered over the crushed fruit. Why was it raining? No, it wasn’t rain.

  “Why…”

  The frail boy sobbed, his dirty, unkempt hair falling over his teary eyes. He could taste blood on his tongue every time he took a breath. He worked tirelessly for days so he could finally have those peaches to take home. He didn’t steal or cheat them out of someone, so why was he still punished?

  Was it because he was poor? Or was it because he was weak?

  It was both.

  A smoldering hatred began to bubble inside the sickly boy. He’d fight back next time. Even if they shattered his bones, he’d not let others take what was his. Shouren stopped crying and wiped the nectar and tears off his gaunt face. His hazel irises looked up at the cloudless sky.

  One day, he’ll become a ranker and leave behind this miserable town with his grandma.

  Oh no, grandma!

  A shock tingled through the boy’s head as he remembered that his grandma was still waiting for him at their home. He didn’t know how much time had lapsed since he was unconscious, but his grandma would definitely be worried.

  Shouren hurriedly patted all the dirt and sticky fruit off his clothes. His shirt was already splotched with blood, so he couldn’t do anything about it.

  Running back to his original path, Shouren sprinted towards home.

  Should he tell his grandma what had happened? Rhea always told him to respect others even if they didn’t return the favor. It was essential for a Cardsmith to have a dignified heart. It was their family motto from generations.

  Shouren felt a tinge of anger at those thoughts. He had to treat Favian with respect after the brute smashed his face? What kind of motto was that? Shouren and his grandma were not some members of a noble family. They barely had enough food for a single meal a day.

  Yet, that reality wouldn’t change his grandma’s mind. Rhea was a Tier 0 Cardsmith, someone who had failed at her first evolution and was now forever doomed to be a lowly Tier 0.

  His grandma had a ‘Common’ gray class card, the lowest rarity of all available class cards and also the cheapest. If that was the only issue, it wouldn’t be so bad. However, the rarity of class cards had a few important functions.

  Primarily, the first Trait unlocked at Tier 0 was the same rarity as the initial class card. However, it was its other function that destroyed many early Cardists’ lives. The number of times you could attempt the evolution was wholly dependent on the class card rarity.

  A common class card only gave you a single chance to evolve from a Tier 0 to a Tier 1 Cardist. If you failed the evolution, there was no hope for the future. Once you select a class card, you could never change it.

  When Rhea failed her first evolution with the common class card, it meant that she would be a Tier 0 Cardsmith for the rest of her life. She’d only be able to forge Tier 0 cards, which were already cheap and plenty in the market.

  If they were rich and had lots of chronas, his grandma wouldn’t be in this situation. Only the wealthy could afford class cards above the ‘Common’ rarity. The next higher rank, ‘Uncommon’ class cards gave you three chances of evolution, followed by ‘Rare’ class cards with their five chances. The last two, ‘Epic’ and ‘Legendary’ class cards were elusive and Shouren had never even seen anyone with it in his village. They were extremely rare and only dropped in the deeper floors of the Akarsha dungeon.

  Shouren didn’t know the exact number of evolution chances ‘Epic’ and ‘Legendary’ class cards gave, but it had to be high.

  The class cards had another restriction tied to their rarity. The ‘Common’ ones only allowed you to evolve up to Tier 1. Meaning, even if you succeeded in evolving your ‘Common’ class card in the first try, Tier 1 would be the maximum rank of Cardist you’ll ever be. ‘Uncommon’ class cards allowed you to evolve up to Tier 3, and ‘Rare’ class card pushed it up to Tier 5. To reach Tier 6, the same rank as the major faction rulers, the Cardist needed to have a ‘Epic’ class card.

  The only exception to this rule were the ‘Unique’ class cards.

  Shouren took in ragged breaths as he ran past the familiar series of shabby houses. His grandma’s shack was at the end of this road. Their neighborhood was effectively a slum, but no one liked to call it that, especially the citizens.

  “I’ll get an Epic class card one day.”

  Shouren slowed down to a walk. His knees couldn’t keep up and were starting to ache. The grumbling of his empty belly didn’t help either. As far-fetched as Shouren’s dream of obtaining an Epic class card was, it wasn’t entirely impossible. While the elite could buy those class cards, the rest of the world had another path.

  During every evolution, there was a small chance of the class card evolving as well. If you were lucky enough for your ‘Common’ class card to evolve to ‘Uncommon’, then all the guilds would be lining up to recruit you. It meant your synchronization with that particular class card was high and there was a possibility of it becoming a ‘Rare’ class card in the future.

  This small beacon of hope was everything Shouren had. He couldn’t afford an ‘Uncommon’ class card, so he was betting his whole life on that one chance with the ‘Common’ class card.

  “I’ll do it. I won’t fail.”

  The sickly boy wheezed through his nose. The congealed blood had clogged up his air pathways. He trodded towards his house. It was right around the corner now. The images of Favian punching him while the other kids watched swirled within his mind, eliciting a wave of melancholy. No one would help him and his grandma. The world will just continue to watch them suffer from the sidelines.

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  Shouren hated how pathetic he looked. Were they ridiculing him on the inside when they were watching him? The boy’s bright hazel eyes glinted underneath the shadows. The young child’s heart was already blooming with rage at the injustice of the world.

  I’ll ask grandma’s permission to sell the Cardsmith class card for a combat one.

  Shouren contemplated how he’d go through with this plan. Rhea had been saving that ‘Common’ Cardsmith class card for his next birthday when he’d undergo the ceremony to become a Cardist. However, Shouren loathed the Cardsmith class. They were weak, had little to none combat ability, and their only purpose was to improve the lives of other Cardists.

  Shouren would rather die than serve people who looked down upon him.

  Even if the risk of death was higher with any common class card, he would choose that over the Cardsmith class. At least he would die on his terms.

  The main hurdle would be convincing Rhea. His grandma was strangely strict when it came to their Cardsmith heritage. Shouren’s father, his father’s father, and all previous generations of his family had always been Cardsmiths. It was rule passed down from their ancestor that every generation of their family had to have at least one living Cardsmith. When Shouren asked his grandma what their family name was, the old lady was conspicuously silent and brushed the question off.

  Shouren didn’t have many memories of his parents, and neither did he have any other siblings. That meant his grandma had instilled in him that he’d be a Cardsmith since he was 5 years old. Even as a toddler, Shouren dreamed of becoming a warrior and entering the dungeon. It was every kid’s dream. To be a ranker and be the first to clear a dungeon floor. The rewards could change your very destiny.

  When the old sun shattered, Aethoria was shadowed by a wave of disease and plague. The oxygen in the air had dwindled to its lowest level, leading to the collapse of all life on the planet. Other races fared just as bad as the humans, with their life expectancy declining and entire ecosystems were in disarray.

  However, that all changed when the first dungeon exploration party cleared the 10th floor of the Akarsha Dungeon. Within that 10th floor was an empty land that stretched wider than any kingdom on their planet. It could house millions of people. The air was infused with lumen, allowing the Cardists to unleash even greater powers from the cards.

  But that was not all. When the 10th floor was conquered, the world outside was affected as well. The skies were purified of contaminants returning to the previous oxygen levels. Traces of lumen were discovered mixed within the air, and although its density was vastly lower than the inside of the dungeon, it was still a shocking discovery.

  The lumen altered the bodies of every child that was born thereafter, increasing their lifespan towards 150 years.

  When the next group of rankers cleared the 20th floor after decades, it transformed the outside world once again. New species of vegetation infused with lumen appeared along with beasts that could inherently manipulate lumen like the Cardists. The world’s inhabitants experienced yet another upgrade to their bodies.

  By now, everyone realized that clearing every 10th dungeon floor brought about immense benefits to their planet. It had been almost over a century since they had cleared the 20th dungeon floor, and all the guilds and kingdoms have been stuck on the 27th floor. It had taken them close to seven years to go from the 26th to the 27th floor.

  Shouren had a feeling that the higher ups were hiding something, as they never told the people what the rankers actually got in reward. There had to be a reason why all those Cardists risked their lives to clear those floors. Shouren didn’t believe it for a second that they were doing this for the benefit of other people.

  The world was full of Favians.

  If Shouren wanted to change his life, it had to be inside the dungeon. He had to become someone capable of fighting, someone who could control his own destiny.

  “Shouren!”

  A pair of skinny arms grappled him into a hug, lifting his petite body into the air.

  “Grand…ma?”

  Shouren was deep within his thoughts that he failed to notice he was already on his street. His long and shaggy hair didn’t help his vision much either. Inhaling the familiar and earthy scent of his grandmother, the boy’s emotions spilled out of control.

  “There there, my sweet potato.”

  Rhea put her grandson down and gently held him whilst he cried into her robes. She had a feeling that something must’ve happened to the boy when he didn’t return on time, and seeing from his reaction and bloodied clothes, it should be connected to the other villagers.

  “They took… my peaches… from me… said… I stole…”

  Shouren spoke between crying and taking in quick breaths. At the end of the day, he was still an 8-year-old child, and seeing his grandma made him forget all the earlier dark thoughts he had, and simply pour out his feelings to her.

  “Come inside, little one.”

  Rhea sighed and ushered to boy to their shack. She saw the pain in her grandson’s eyes, but there was nothing she could do about it. Even if she voiced a complaint to the governor, they’d do nothing to stop it. Who cared about a useless Tier 0 Cardsmith?

  The boy would have to get accustomed to this treatment. It would only get worse when he’d get older.

  “Why don’t we leave this village, grandma?”

  Shouren trailed behind Rhea, his breathing back to normal after letting out his pent-up emotions. The boy tugged at his grandmother’s dirty gray robes as he looked up at her.

  “And who would pay the chronas for the transportation, little potato?”

  Rhea poked him playfully. It wasn’t the first time Shouren had asked her this. She knew the desires in the boy’s heart, but she was powerless to bring them to reality. If only… Rhea stopped that train of thought.

  “Forget about that. Look what grandma saved you for dinner instead.”

  The elderly woman brought out a small slice of dry bread from within her robes and held it out to Shouren.

  “Rusk Bread? I love it!”

  Shouren swiftly grabbed the slice and nibbled on it, letting his saliva moisten the sides so he could bite through it. He was famished and didn’t have any food since the morning. Rhea smiled and parted Shouren’s unkempt hair to tidy it up a bit.

  “What about you, grandma?”

  Shouren paused to look at Rhea. Was this the only slice she had?

  “Don’t worry about me, potato. I had already had a slice before you came.”

  Rhea used the edge of her robe’s lining to clean off the remaining dried blood on the boy’s cheek.

  Shouren stopped chewing on the bread and glanced at his grandma.

  She was lying.

  He saw her bony frame, similar to his own. She looked like she was all bones and skin. How did she bear through it?

  Shouren’s stomach growled, urging him to take more bites of that dry bread.

  “It’s not fair.”

  The boy whispered, his hand letting go of that bread as it dropped with a dull thud.

  “The world was never meant to be fair, little potato.”

  Rhea chuckled, yet the wrinkles on her face deepened. She bent down to pick up the bread and held it out to her grandson.

  “I will become a warrior and enter the dungeon.”

  Shouren smacked the bread out of her hand and yelled. He couldn’t take this anymore. He didn’t want this life. Getting beat up during the day and then starving during the night. Even if his grandma opposed it, he would learn to fight.

  “You will do no such thing, Shouren.”

  Rhea ignored the bread and stared sternly into the boy’s hazel eyes, the same as her. The old woman’s tone took a serious turn.

  “I would rather die than become a Cardsmith!”

  Tears rolled off the boy’s cheek as he shouted at his grandmother.

  “Shouren…”

  Rhea was taken aback by her grandson’s reaction. She didn’t want to force the boy, but should she abandon her family’s traditions for the child’s happiness? But a warrior meant that Shouren would have to enter the dungeon and risk his life. It was better to be poor. At least the boy would be alive.

  “It’s late, go to sleep, little potato.”

  Rhea lightly touched Shouren’s cheek and turned around towards one of the two mats on the floor. She’d try talking some sense into the boy tomorrow when he was well rested.

  Shouren stood there silently. He felt horrible for yelling at his grandmother. She was all the family he had. He knew the old woman often went days without food just so he could have a full belly at least once a day.

  He stared at the piece of bread on their shoddy floor and walked over to it. Gingerly picking it up and swiping any dust stuck to the bread, Shouren made his way to Rhea. His grandmother was sleeping on her mat with her eyes closed.

  Sitting down next to her, Shouren broke the bread in half and placed the bigger of the two halves beside her.

  “You need to eat as well. Don’t leave me alone, grandma.”

  Shouren muttered in a quiet voice and then proceeded to his own mat. The boy didn’t see it, but the wrinkles on elderly lady’s face softened slightly.

  It was a cold night, but Shouren’s heart was warm for now.