Chapter 23
“Huh? I’m a Cardsmith. I won’t be much help in a fight.”
Shouren was taken aback at the older teen’s request.
No way am I entering the dungeon with pumpkin-head over there. I won’t be able to use any of my corrupted abilities, and I don’t want to get involved any more with Isola’s group until I know more about who they actually are.
Shouren’s thoughts rumbled inside his mind.
“Of course I know that, you idiot. I need you for your Sharding ability. You know how to use it, right?”
Rubin flicked Shouren’s head, eliciting an annoyed yelp from the younger boy.
“I know how to shard cards. But why do I need to go into the dungeon with you? Just bring them to me, pay the standard fee, or the express fee if you want it done quick.”
Shouren pushed the blonde teen aside before he could flick his forehead again.
“Nah, it’ll take too much time for you to recover your lumen out here. The dungeon has a much higher lumen density for how I want you to shard the cards—Also, stop trying to rip people off at every turn. I’ve never heard of an express fee before.”
Rubin protested to the shrewd, dark-haired child.
“Sounds shady. I don’t want to. Go lure some other 10-year-old to do your bidding.”
Shouren squinted his eyes in suspicion. He already didn’t want to have more dealings with Rubin’s group, and the blonde teenager was being too fidgety from the norm.
Seeing the younger boy turn around to leave, Rubin swiftly sidestepped him. Just as Shouren was about to channel his lumen to run away, Rubin’s following words stopped him in his tracks.
“I can help you unlock your second trait.”
Shouren froze and turned around to look at the older teen, confusion evident on his youthful face.
“I thought the second trait would unlock at my Tier 1 evolution.”
“This is why I don’t like talking to village bumpkins.”
Rubin sighed while running his hand through his coarse blonde hair. He later continued speaking.
“Most people think you can only have 3 traits in your life because a majority of them don’t reach the Tier 1 evolution. Think about it, froggy. Why are there certain Cardists like the luminaries that are stronger than those in the same tier? If you only have a single trait before your first evolution, your final result won’t amount to much.”
Does he mean my evolution is tied to my traits? Grandma never completed her evolution, so I don’t have any information about the outcomes. But why does Rubin want me to come to the dungeon with him and why even offer me knowledge about the second trait?
Shouren became pensive at the blonde teen’s information. However, the boy couldn’t figure out why Rubin was sharing these details with him in the first place.
“How many traits do you have?”
Shouren asked with unhidden curiosity.
“I have two for now, but I’m very close to unlocking my third one. Which I need your help with.”
Rubin didn’t say what his traits were, but knowing that the teen had more than one trait was enough to prompt Shouren with even more questions.
“Don’t ask me what they are, froggy. I’m not going to tell you. Only Isola and Thalin know because they helped me with my second one.”
The blonde teenager smirked, seeing the hazel-eyed boy twitch in agitation. He could tell Shouren was eager to know.
“One of your traits has something to do with perception or body control.”
Shouren stared at Rubin as he stated his conjecture. Back when Shouren fought the older teen, something had been gnawing at him. Rubin was a Tier 0 with a Healer class card. Shouren didn’t know what rarity his class card was, but for a non-combatant class, Rubin moved too eloquently.
Shouren didn’t believe the blonde teenager’s attributes were necessarily higher than his. He felt the force behind the dagger’s strike and it shouldn’t be at E rank, and neither did Rubin move at a speed of an E rank attribute. The ease at which Rubin dodged his attacks had been bothering Shouren until now.
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“I can’t believe Isola the dolt was right. Froggy, your Intelligence is at E rank, correct?”
Hearing Shouren, Rubin covered his eyes with his palm in resignation.
“Wait, why does Isola think my Intelligence is at E rank?”
Shouren didn’t confirm Rubin’s accusation. However, the boy’s response seemed to have already confirmed it within Rubin’s mind.
“Do you think a normal 10-year-old kid can stay that calm while in the presence of 2 high tiered Cardists? Not only that, you devised a strategy on the spot and got yourself a system contract to sell your forged cards. If it wasn’t for your [Common] class card, Isola would have recruited you right then.”
Rubin explained in a steady tone. The teen’s sapphire eyes gazed at Shouren, faint speckles of respect hidden for the younger boy.
I did notice that after my Intelligence upgraded, the speed of my thoughts has increased, along with how fast I can process the information in my surroundings. I know Isola and Thalin are high tiered, but isn’t it abnormal for me to not be scared of them? I did think the chances of them actually killing me were low, but why did I think that?
It dawned on Shouren that he had indeed changed a lot since his attribute upgraded to E rank. Back in the dungeon, he was momentarily surprised, but the effects of that upgrade were beginning to show.
The fact that Isola wanted to recruit him didn’t faze Shouren at all. He wasn’t going to join them anyway. He had too many secrets to risk displaying them. Until he was strong enough to protect himself, all his risks would have to be calculated.
“How do you upgrade your attributes?”
Shouren paused briefly before posing his question.
“Shut up, brat. If it was that easy, then all my attributes wouldn’t be in F rank. Do I look like I’m your teacher? Stop pestering me with so many questions. So, are you joining me for the dungeon or not?”
The blonde teen exhaled loudly, waving his hand at Shouren’s tirade of questions.
Pumpkin-head knows about how to upgrade attributes, but if he hasn’t managed to do so yet, it means the process is difficult or uncertain.
Shouren stored that bit of detail for later.
“Fine, I’ll ask about your original offer. That’s fair game. Why would you offer me the information about traits for just sharding cards? You can get any [Common] Cardsmith in the village to do it.”
Shouren was eager to learn about unlocking his second trait and the attributes, but his wariness didn’t leave him yet.
“I don’t know, froggy. I just want to, okay?”
Rubin chuckled and shrugged his shoulders without care. Shouren had the cunningness of a little monster, but there was something about the boy that all three of them liked.
“You’re not going to give a reason like I remind you of your son or someone important to you?”
Shouren took out his raw hide wineskin and took a gulp of the cool water.
“Shut up, brat. If I had a son your age, wouldn’t I have to be married while still in the womb? I know you’re a scrubby kid that spent his time on the streets, but you don’t have to be suspicious about everything. Isola likes you, and even if Thalin doesn’t say much, he approves of you as well. Hell, I like your guts as well. You went straight after my head without thinking about my class card or my tier.”
Rubin frowned at the clumsily stitched wineskin while he resumed talking to the younger boy. When Shouren offered the water to the teen, Rubin retched out the water while glaring at the boy once he tasted the meat-flavored water.
“You’re not trying to finish me off in the dungeon when no one’s looking?”
Shouren grinned watching the older boy spit out the water. By now, he’d gotten used to the meat flavored water.
“Heh, you pestered Isola for a couple more chronas. Trust me, you’re not worth enough for even a kidnap ransom.”
Rubin stared at the boy in bewilderment before cracking up into laughter.
He doesn’t look like he wants to target me. Pumpkin-head doesn’t seem much like a thinker. Could Isola have put him into this? I doubt she’d let Rubin venture off his own. Maybe she just wanted to confirm if my Intelligence was at E Rank. Well, it doesn’t matter. I need more information about the dungeon, attributes, and my traits. Grandma doesn’t know either, so doing a few dungeon runs with pumpkin-head is worth the risk. Maybe I’ll squeeze out details from Rubin about who they are as well.
“I want half the loot.”
After pondering over his thoughts, Shouren came to decision. He’d go with Rubin.
Shouren would make sure not to reveal his corrupted abilities and only stick to the regular Cardsmith ones. It would be limited to the 1st Floor, so Shouren wasn’t too worried about the danger.
Unless the lightning beast showed up again.
“Not this again.”
Rubin groaned. He was well-versed to Shouren’s antics by now. The little loot-grubber wouldn’t give an inch if left alone.
“If you’re going to fight, then I’ll gladly give you half the loot, froggy. I doubt your sack would fare well as a weapon against the monsters.”
The blonde teen raised his hand to stop Shouren from speaking.
“I’ll fight all the monsters, but if you kill any on your own, the loot from that monster will be yours. I want you to shard the cards I give you, and it’ll be the standard fee. One shard per successful activation.”
Shouren stood there silently, thinking about Rubin’s proposition. The terms were good. Shouren wouldn’t have to fight, and he’d simply collect shards. There was also the added information about the traits. In truth, just the last part was enough for Shouren to delve in the dungeon with Rubin.
“Alright, that’s fair. But let’s add one more part. If any of the monsters drop a class card, we both flip a coin and if I win, I get to keep that card.”
Shouren liked the terms, but he still didn’t want to let go of collecting more cards. He needed to upgrade his class card as soon as possible. No way was he going to do a fair trade and give Rubin chronas for the cards.
“I’m changing your nickname, froggy. You’re ‘little goblin’ from now on. We have an agreement then. Let’s go.”
Rubin shook his head in amusement at Shouren’s addition of the coin flip, but the blonde teen didn’t really care as long as he got to unlock his third trait.
In truth, Isola and Thalin didn’t know about his plan to take Shouren to the dungeon. They had only asked him to confirm the doubt regarding Shouren’s attributes and any details he could find in the village about the boy.
However, Rubin was different. He fought Shouren up close and he saw the blazing fire masked behind the boy’s eyes. It’s why he was in disbelief that Shouren was a Cardsmith. As a non-combat class, Rubin was the same. His ambition was to unlock the relevant traits to let him fight as a healer. It was the only way to contend against the system’s restrictions for using non-class cards.
He wanted to show Shouren that path as well.
Coming from a clan of prolific healers, Rubin was forced to select the Healer class card on his awakening day. However, he never wanted to sit back and leave the fight to others.
Rubin saw the same flames flickering inside Shouren.
The only difference between them was that Rubin started with a [Rare] class card, while the poor boy had a [Common] class card. Isola and Thalin didn’t think the guild would accept Shouren, regardless of how talented he was if his chances of reaching Tier 1 were this low.
“You’re a good kid, pumpkin-head.”
Shouren laughed cheerfully when Rubin agreed to his clause and reached on his tiptoes to pat the taller teen on the head like an elder.
“Get your grubby little hands off me.”
Rubin snorted and pushed off Shouren playfully.
“Let’s meet at the dungeon’s entrance. I need to make one last stop and I’ll join you in 30 minutes.”
Shouren summoned his lumen, allowing the waves of energy to course inside his body. He needed to drop the chronas and a few cards with Rhea so she had enough money to cover their rent if he was delayed in the dungeon.
“Don’t be late, little goblin.”
Rubin turned around and left after waving.
He needed to inform Isola and Thalin as well.
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