Summer of 346, A.D.
“I can’t believe this is what you’ve been up to, Alex.” Kai trudged after his friend, his complaints never-ending, but his curiosity keeping his feet moving.
Alex didn’t even slow down. “See? That’s why I didn’t tell you earlier. I knew you’d freak out.”
“Freak out? Only Trudy is supposed to go to the Wall for the news rally! Not you!”
Alex shrugged. “If she can go, why can’t I?”
“There’s a reason Daisy set things up like this. She’s trying to protect humanity.”
Alex scoffed. “Yeah. Sure.”
Kai narrowed his eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
His friend let out a deep sigh—the kind adults do when they’re about to explain something painfully obvious to a child.
Alex glanced at him sideways. “You ever heard the story of the elephant and the rope?”
“No.”
“There was this guy walking past some elephants. He noticed they were only tied up with a tiny rope around one leg. No chains. No cages. These were massive animals. They could easily break free. But they didn’t.”
Kai crossed his arms. “Let me guess. The rope was enchanted or something?”
Alex shook his head, disappointed. “No, Kai. Just… no.”
Kai scowled. He hated it when Alex acted like this, like he was some untouchable genius just because he was a couple of years older.
Alex continued. “A trainer was standing nearby, so the guy asked why the elephants weren’t running off. The trainer explained that when they were babies, they’d been tied with the same kind of rope. Back then, they weren’t strong enough to break free. They tried, failed, and learned not to bother. By the time they were big enough to snap the rope like a twig, they still believed it was impossible.”
Kai waited for Alex to get to the point. He didn’t.
“And? What’s your point?”
Alex waved him off. “Forget it, Kai. You’re just a baby elephant. You wouldn’t get it.”
Heat crept up Kai’s neck. That little—
His hands balled into fists, but Alex had already turned away, walking toward the Wall like he hadn’t just insulted him to his face.
Kai gritted his teeth and stomped after him.
*
353rd Daisy Trials, Round of 128.
Kai studied his shadow cards, his fingers lightly tapping the edge of the cards. He couldn't help but straighten his posture, standing a little taller as he took in what he had.
Shadow Unicorn ???
Shadow Wolf ???
Shadow Goose ???
Shadow Bunny ???
His excitement was tempered by lingering questions. Why was [Shadow Wolf] weaker than expected for an uncommon card? Its total HP + VP value was only three, which felt off. It was almost as if Daisy had deliberately nerfed it, shaving off an extra point to balance something.
And why was the Shadow Unicorn conversely stronger than a regular rare card? Its total points should be 7, but Daisy had buffed it.
And why did [Shadow Unicorn] and [Shadow Wolf] both have only one HP? Was it so they could contribute their points across multiple rounds? Or did Daisy have another purpose for them—something hidden within the crafting system?
Kai sifted through his deck, considering his options. From all the cards he owned, two possible merges stood out.
The first was an obvious one: combining the shadow cards themselves. Shadows were linked to one another; it made sense that they might synergize when fused.
The second option was riskier—but far more intriguing. [Light].
He had three [Light] cards, each with infinite HP. The card was supposed to be ideal for repeated crafting, yet up until now, he hadn’t discovered a single recipe where it was useful.
What will happen if I merge shadow and light?
Would Daisy only reward him for stacking synergies? Or would she acknowledge the player who dared to fuse opposites?
There was no risk in experimenting with [Light], but losing one HP on [Shadow Unicorn] could cost him eight points next round. That was a dangerous gamble. He was stuck between playing the long game or going for an immediate gain.
A quick glance at the scoreboard settled it.
He was too far behind. He had to take the risk.
Kai grabbed [Shadow Wolf]. At only two victory points, it was a much safer test subject than [Shadow Unicorn]. If he was going to gamble on a theory, it was better to use a weaker piece first.
He placed [Shadow Wolf] onto the engraving. The table hummed, drawing it in with a flicker of energy. His pulse quickened.
Taking a deep breath, he placed one of his [Light ] cards onto the table. The moment it touched the engraving, the crafting table pulsed with a sudden, intense glow.
[Shadow Wolf ???] + [Light ?]
Shadow Wolf ??? | HP: 1 → 0
Light ? | HP: +∞ → +∞
Crafting successful!
You’ve crafted [Wolf ??].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Wolf ?? (Rare)
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A formidable and highly adaptable carnivore.
HP: 2
VP: 5
Kai’s hands trembled as he reached for the card.
The image of a bold, fearsome wolf stared back at him. Its black, glossy fur coat gleamed under the table’s light, and its deep, lonesome eyes held a piercing intensity.
“No way…” he whispered.
He had crafted a wolf. A real one.
Not only that—it had much better stats than its shadow counterpart. Five VP! This was exactly the kind of card he needed right now.
His gaze flickered to the remaining shadow cards in his hand.
Have I just… broken the exam?
Excitement surged through him. He had spent countless childhood hours with Alex doing shadow puppet shows. He could form dozens of animal shapes with his hands alone.
And now he had [Light], a card with infinite HP.
His heart pounded.
Even if Daisy sent him to a barren wasteland, he didn’t need materials anymore. He only needed a dark space and his gaslamp. If this worked the way he suspected, he could create unlimited value, crafting shadow creatures from nothing.
Only after two rounds had the true power of [Light] begun to reveal itself.
And Kai was just getting started.
Kai held the [Wolf] card to the light, then set it proudly at the center of the table. His gaze flicked to [Shadow Unicorn], anticipation buzzing in his chest. What would happen now?
[Shadow Unicorn ???] + [Light ?]
Shadow Unicorn ??? | HP: 1 → 0
Light ? | HP: +∞ → +∞
Crafting successful!
You’ve crafted [Unicorn ??].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Unicorn ?? (Legendary)
A mythological one-horned horse. Legend has it that its horn can pierce through anything.
HP: 0
VP: 15
Kai’s breath caught. His hands trembled as he lifted the card. A sharp laugh escaped his throat—half-disbelief, half-triumph.
The [Unicorn] gleamed in his hand—a muscular horse, its white coat nearly glowing. A spiraling horn cut through the air, and its flowing silver mane shimmered like liquid moonlight. By far, the most valuable card he owned.
He glanced at the scoreboard—129 points. His opponent was still ahead at 137, but barely. Thirty minutes left on the crafting clock. For the first time in this round, victory didn’t feel impossible.
He placed [Unicorn] beside [Wolf], analyzing the pattern. [Shadow Wolf] had been an uncommon card. When merged with [Light], it became rare. [Shadow Unicorn] had been rare—now legendary. The process seemed to elevate shadow creatures by exactly one tier.
If only I could keep [Unicorn]…
Its victory points were incredible. He thought back to the last stage, eyes flicking toward [Fire] and his surviving [Mining Wagon]. Maybe there was a way. But now wasn’t the time to gamble on a future round. First, he had to win this one.
His opponent’s score climbed at a slower pace, but they hadn’t stopped. Neither could he.
Kai reached for his next card. [Flint Knife]. He weighed it in his hand, holding it over the others. A knife… it cuts. Slices.
He hovered the [Flint Knife] over the [Acacia Tree], tilting his head. Harvesting? Maybe. But if trees were meant to be cut, why would there be a [Flint Axe]?
He moved the knife over a few vegetation cards. Could he slice something? That didn’t seem right either.
Then, his fingers landed on [Arabian Oryx].
Daisy had clearly designed the trial to let runners replicate Stone Age technology using cards. A [Flint Knife] could work as a weapon, sure, but maybe it had other uses too. What if combining it with [Arabian Oryx] produced something valuable, like meat or leather?
He decided to risk it.
[Flint Knife ????] + [Arabian Oryx ?????]
Flint Knife ???? | HP: 1 → 0
Arabian Oryx ????? | HP: 5 → 4
Crafting successful!
You’ve crafted [Oryx Forager].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Oryx Forager ??????? (Rare)
Mutant desert creatures that have learned how to harvest nature’s resources.
HP: 5
VP: 1
Kai stared at the new card, dumbfounded. He lifted the card, shaking his head. There, in full color, was an anthropomorphized oryx standing on two legs, gripping a primitive blade in its hoof-like hands. It even had clothes. The image looked like something out of a child’s dream—like the kind of thing an over-imaginative kid would draw in a school notebook.
Kai snorted. Was Daisy messing with him?
But the more he thought about it, the more things started falling into place. Up until now, the exam had seemed like a logic puzzle, but hadn’t Daisy said that this year’s trials were also designed to test contestants’ creativity?
If he remembered correctly, creativity was actually the first trait Daisy had mentioned—not logic.
It explained why crafting [Unicorn] had worked earlier. Why else would Daisy throw a mythological creature into a trial built around survival mechanics? She wasn’t just checking whether players could think critically—she wanted them to think beyond logic.
Kai shook his head, still grinning. The test had started out grounded in reality, but now it had veered into something far more unpredictable. But one thing was clear—his victory points were rising.
That meant it was time to stop overthinking and start taking advantage of his discoveries. He cracked his knuckles and eyed his remaining cards. If flint tools could push creatures to evolve, he was about to build an entire flint tool assembly line.
[Oryx Horn ????????] + [Big Flint ????] = [Flint Knife ????]
Kai already knew what would happen if he merged this with [Arabian Oryx]—another [Oryx Forager]. But what if he combined it with [Wolf] instead? Would he get a [Wolf Forager]?
[Wolf ????] + [Flint Knife ????]
Wolf ???? | HP: 2 → 1
Flint Knife ???? | HP: 1 → 0
Crafting successful!
You’ve crafted [Wolf Warrior].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Wolf Warrior ???? (Rare)
A formidable and highly adaptable mutant carnivore trained for war.
HP: 2
VP: 5
Kai examined the new card.
What is this? Some kind of mutant mercenary?
The [Wolf Warrior] stood on two legs, blade clutched in its paws, its fur bristling under a set of battered leather armor. If [Oryx Forager] looked like a peasant, this one was straight out of a battle-hardened warband.
Placing [Oryx Forager] and [Wolf Warrior] side by side, Kai frowne.
Same crafting method. Opposite results. Why had the same tool created such wildly different results?
He flipped back to their base cards, skimming their stats. Five HP, two VP. Two HP, five VP. His fingers tightened around the edges of the cards.
A perfect inversion. This can’t be a coincidence.
A theory started forming. Oryxes were herbivores. Peaceful. Wolves, on the other hand, were predators, and with a weapon in their paws, it made sense they’d become warriors.
The logic checked out—until he remembered [Unicorn].
That card had zero HP and pure victory points. If VP meant aggression and HP meant resilience, then… did that mean unicorns were the ultimate warriors?
That didn’t make sense. Maybe his logic only applied to anthropomorphized creatures.
Kai exhaled sharply and turned back to the table. There was something else that intrigued him. He grabbed the [Oryx Forager], turning the card in his hands. “Forager. Why forager? What are you thinking, Daisy?”
Foragers didn’t hunt—they gathered. Berries, roots, fruit, mushrooms. But they also collected crafting materials—branches, vines, flint. The question was, had Daisy translated that idea into this exam?
He had an idea, but it felt like a gamble. If he was right, this could be even bigger than the synergy between shadow and light.
Only one way to find out.
[Oryx Forager ???????] + [Acacia Tree ????] = [Acacia Branch ??]
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Kai grinned. Just as expected. This was far better than fusing [Flint Axe] with a tree directly. A [Flint Axe] had only one HP, but [Oryx Forager] had five—meaning he could harvest repeatedly. As long as he had foragers, he had resources.
Now, it was time to put his forager to work.
[Oryx Forager ???????] + [Acacia Tree ??]
Oryx Forager ??????? | HP: 5→4
Acacia Tree ?? | HP: 2→1
Crafting successful!
You’ve crafted [Acacia Branch].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Kai’s lips curled into a smirk. That proved it. This wasn’t just a passive ability—it was a reliable harvesting system. He tried it again.
[Oryx Forager ???????] + [Acacia Tree ??] = [Acacia Bark ?????]
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Another result. The forager could strip away different parts of the tree.
[Oryx Forager ???????] + [Acacia Tree ??] = [Acacia Bark ?????]
[Oryx Forager ???????] + [Acacia Tree ??] = [Acacia Branch ????]
Kai exhaled. “Thank you, forager.”
He tossed the spent [Oryx Forager] into the graveyard pile.
He frowned, scanning his harvested resources. Leaves, bark, branches… but no trunk. Not even once.
Why?
His gaze flicked back to the [Oryx Forager] card. The little creature wasn’t a lumberjack—it was a gatherer. A forager wouldn’t chop down a tree, just strip its accessible parts.
If he wanted logs or planks, he’d need something else. Something stronger.
His score kept climbing—but not fast enough. His opponent’s lead was still there, looming like a wall he couldn’t break through.
He checked the timer. Two-thirds of the round were gone.
If he didn’t move faster, he was out.
[Curiosity ??] + [Follow ??]
?? | HP: 2 → 2
?? | HP: 1 → 0
Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Bonus Chapters ????].
Click here and follow. As we reach certain milestones, I’ll post bonus chapters!
