Spring of 346, A.D.
Everyone watched from a distance as Ariel cried and screamed at her brother, her body caught in a struggle between the overwhelming rush of strength that came with anger and the crushing weakness of grief. They were too far away to hear the words exchanged, but close enough for Kai’s heart to ache at the sight. The two people he loved most—torn apart like this.
They hugged. Then Ariel broke away from Alex. Her steps were shaky at first, uncertain. But as soon as her eyes found Kai, something shifted. Her legs carried her faster. Stronger. She was running now—straight toward him.
Kai glanced to either side, unsure. Was she really coming for him?
She didn’t slow down.
“You...” she roared through clenched teeth—
Her hand struck his face with a crack, and pain lit up his cheek like fire.
“Ariel, what... why?”
“You knew! YOU KNEW!”
“I don’t understand. What are you—”
“The girl!” she cried, voice ragged. “You knew about the girl! You let my brother do this!”
Then the anger gave way. Her whole body trembled, wracked by sobs. The sound of it clawed into Kai worse than the slap ever could. His throat tightened. He reached out, meaning only to rest a hand on her shoulder, but she saw it coming and slapped his hand away.
“He wants to see you.”
She turned and walked off, fists clenched.
Kai stood there, surrounded by older men and women. Their gazes met his—not with judgment, but with something quieter. Sadder.
He blinked away the tears beginning to well up, wiped his face, and took a deep breath.
Then he walked toward his friend.
*
353rd Daisy Trials, Round of 64.
Now that Kai had all the necessary ingredients, he moved ahead with recreating the third recipe from the manager’s office blueprints.
[Bronze Sheet ??] + [Rusty Pipe ??]
Bronze Sheet ?? | HP: 3 → 2
Rusty Pipe ?? | HP: 1 → 0
Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Bronze Frame ?????].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Bronze Frame ????? (Uncommon)
Shell that can be worked to fit different machines.
HP: 1
VP: 3
It was a shame he hadn’t managed to salvage the [Rusty Steel Door]. Steel would’ve made for a tougher frame. More durable than bronze—but also harder to shape. Even if he’d tried merging it with [Fire], he wasn’t sure that alone would’ve done the trick.
All that remained now was the final piece: the power source.
He grabbed the card with yellow metal barrels, a black radioactive symbol painted across them.
Radioactive Waste ???? (Uncommon)
Hazardous mixture of radioactive materials.
HP: 2
VP: 2
It wasn’t pure uranium, but it was still radioactive—and packed with energy. Hopefully, that would be enough to synergize with [Steam].
As he readied the cards, Kai silently gave thanks that Daisy didn’t demand technical perfection.
Building a nuclear reactor, smelting alloys, repairing industrial components—none of it was simple. In the real world, those processes took precision equipment and in-depth knowledge. But Daisy wasn’t grading him on engineering.
She was testing logic and creativity. For that, imagination was more valuable than precision.
As the table lit up, a new, gleaming card shimmered into view.
[Radioactive Waste ????] + [Steam ??]
Radioactive Waste ???? | HP: 2 → 1
Steam ?? | HP: 1 → 0
Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Recycled Power Source ???].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Recycled Power Source ??? (Uncommon)
The energy output isn’t as good, but it still works.
HP: 2
VP: 3
Kai let out a low, appreciative whistle. With a combined stat line of five, this card was solid—above average for its rarity.
Not bad at all.
He had managed to recreate functional equivalents for each of the blueprint recipes Daisy had hidden. That alone felt like a victory.
He gathered the four cards he’d crafted: [Bronze Frame], [Recycled Power Source], [Circuitry], and [Salvaged Gears].
Now came the real question: how to combine them?
He slid [Circuitry] and [Recycled Power Source] to one side of the table, then placed [Bronze Frame] and [Salvaged Gears] on the other.
This configuration made sense—electronics and energy on one side, mechanical components on the other.
Then he tried another: [Circuitry] with [Bronze Frame], and [Recycled Power Source] with [Salvaged Gears].
That layout also had logic. A generator connected to moving parts, and the control systems mounted inside the frame.
He considered a third combination—[Recycled Power Source] and [Bronze Frame]—but quickly ruled it out. There was no synergy there.
He trusted his first instinct.
Even if the merge didn’t work, both [Recycled Power Source] and [Circuitry] had enough HP left to give it another try. And if not, he still had the components to craft replacements.
[Recycled Power Source ???] + [Circuitry ??]
Recycled Power Source ??? | HP: 2 → 0
Circuitry ?? | HP: 3 → 0
Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Recycled Power Core ????].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Recycled Power Core ???? (Rare)
Energy storage unit that has been repurposed for renewed functionality.
HP: 4
VP: 4
Kai stared at the now lifeless ingredient cards he’d just used. The recipe had consumed all their HP.
That meant—if the attempt had failed—he would’ve lost everything. He winced. One misstep and he would’ve destroyed the results of all his earlier effort.
Still, it had worked out. The stats of the new card were a clean fusion of its components, and the result was a solid rare card crafted from what was essentially scrap.
That gave him hope. If this merge had succeeded, then maybe the next one would too.
But before seeing what came out at the end of this blueprint chain, he needed to plan ahead.
He was sure now—he had what it took to reach a strong result, maybe even a legendary card. But he was also starting to pick up on Daisy’s limitations. These high-level recipes drained every last drop of HP from their ingredients, leaving no room for repeats.
He could recreate the [Recycled Power Core] if he needed to—but he’d used up his only [Rusty Pipe].
That left him with two options:
Wait for the next stage and hope to copy whatever came from the [Bronze Frame] and [Salvaged Gears] combo by sacrificing rare cards or make a second [Bronze Frame] now by sacrificing two uncommons.
The second option is safer.
He picked up the [Bronze Frame] card and slid it into the photocopier’s groove. The engraving shimmered, ready for the sacrifice. Kai selected the two donor cards—[Big Flint] and another [Acacia Leaf].
As each card touched the copier, they crumpled into dust, and motes of light condensed in the form of a fresh copy.
Copy successful! You’ve exchanged [Acacia Leaf ????] and [Big Flint ????] for [Bronze Frame ?????].
Thankfully, [Bronze Frame] offered three victory points. Even after sacrificing [Acacia Leaf] and its two VP, he hadn’t come out behind.
Now that he had all the necessary ingredients for a second full attempt, Kai moved forward.
[Salvaged Gears ????] + [Bronze Frame ?????]
Salvaged Gears ????| HP: 1 → 0
Bronze Frame ??? | HP: 1 → 0
Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Salvaged Bronze Chassis ????].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Salvaged Bronze Chassis ???? (Rare)
Recovered bronze enclosure, with multiple gears and joints. Shows signs of wear and tear but remains suitable for recycling.
HP: 1
VP: 5
Not quite on par with the [Recycled Power Core], but still a strong result. He picked up the two cards—the [Salvaged Bronze Chassis] and the [Recycled Power Core].
Even if the merge didn’t work, he’d earned valuable points just by following the blueprint chain.
It had taken a lot of effort to get here. Now it was time to find out what this factory had once produced.
[Salvaged Bronze Chassis ????] + [Recycled Power Core ????]
Salvaged Bronze Chassis ???? | HP: 1 → 0
Recycled Power Core ???? | HP: 4 → 0
Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Scrapdroid ??].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Scrapdroid ?? (Legendary)
A humanoid robot that has been assembled from scrap.
HP: 2
VP: 7
An android?
That’s what this whole recipe chain had been leading to?
Kai stared at the newly minted legendary card, swallowing hard.
The artwork showed a slender, humanoid figure. Articulated limbs, plated legs and arms—its casing made of dull, bronze-gold armor. Intricate wires curled across its surface like veins, converging at the head, where two glowing receptors stared back like eyes.
It matched the old drawings. The historical records. This was what had made Phineas Cotton the wealthiest man in the world.
Was Daisy paying homage to her creator?
He wasn’t complaining. This was a legendary card, and it gave a generous chunk of points! Sure, it was still on the low side compared to [Unicorn], but it was a solid win.
Now it was time to make another. He started by retracing the steps that had brought him to [Scrapdroid].
[Rusty Gearwheel ??] + [Dried Drive Belt ??] = [Salvaged
Gears ??]
[Broken Control Panel ??] + [Solder ????] = [Salvaged Control Panel ??]
[Salvaged Control Panel ??] + [Copper Wire ??] = [Circuitry ??]
[Fire ??] + [Copper Wire ??] = [Heated Copper ????]
[Heated Copper ????] + [Water ??] = [Brittle Copper ????] + [Steam ??]
[Radioactive Waste ??] + [Steam ??] = [Recycled Power Source ???]
He didn’t bother softening the [Brittle Copper]. Right now, he just wanted another [Scrapdroid].
He grabbed the [Bronze Frame ] he had copied specifically for this and went through the final steps.
[Salvaged Gears ??] + [Bronze Frame ???] = [Salvaged Bronze
Chassis ????]
[Salvaged Bronze Chassis ????] + [Recycled Power Source ???] = [Scrapdroid ??]
He looked up at the scoreboard—157 points.
His opponent was at 125.
Kai almost felt bad for whoever was on the other side. Almost. After all, he’d only gotten access to the blueprint recipes thanks to sheer luck—stumbling across those [Dimensional Gloves] had changed everything.
He shook his head.
Luck counted. Wasn’t even their spawn location random?
Kai channeled his guilt into crafting. He still had work to do—loose ends to tie. He could make more bronze, and he already had a [Heated Copper ] card ready.
Might as well use it.
[Fire ??] + [Solder ????] = [Heated Tin ????]
His once-mighty [Fire ] card had dropped from a towering nine victory points to just four.
He crafted one more [Bronze Sheet].
[Heated Copper ????] + [Heated Tin ????] = [Bronze Sheet ??]
Kai scratched his chin, eyes narrowed. There had to be another way to use this metal. Melt it down and pour it into a cast? Hammer it in a forge?
He lacked both.
He started testing possibilities, sliding the [Bronze Sheet] card against every other card on the table. One pairing made him pause: [Scrapdroid].
As an experiment, he decided to see what would happen if he merged metal into the robot.
[Scrapdroid ??] + [Bronze Sheet ??]
Scrapdroid ?? | HP: 2 → 4
Bronze Sheet ?? | HP: 3 → 0
Crafting failed!
Kai’s eyes lit up.
He recognized the mechanic instantly. It was like feeding cards into [Fire]—but different. This wasn’t destruction. It was enhancement.
He lifted the upgraded [Scrapdroid ??] card.
Scrapdroid ?? (Legendary)
HP: 4
VP: 10
Two more hit points. Three more victory points. And it had failed the merge.
He fed it the second [Bronze Sheet].
[Scrapdroid ??] + [Bronze Sheet ??]
Scrapdroid ?? | HP: 4 → 5
Bronze Sheet ?? | HP: 2 → 0
Crafting failed!
Scrapdroid ?? (Legendary)
A humanoid robot that has been assembled from scrap.
HP: 5
VP: 13
Interesting.
Unlike [Fire], [Scrapdroid]’s power didn’t scale with HP. It absorbed the victory points of whatever scrap was fed to it. That gave him an idea. Risky, but potentially worth it.
[Scrapdroid ??] + [Scrapdroid ??] = [Super Scrapdroid ????]
Scrapdroid ?? | HP: 5 → 6
Scrapdroid ?? | HP: 2 → 0
Crafting failed!
[Scrapdroid ??] has upgraded into [Super Scrapdroid ????]!
Upgraded?
Kai blinked. He hadn’t seen anything like this before.
The weaker [Scrapdroid] had dimmed completely, while the other now gleamed with a stronger light—brighter plates, sharper limbs. A true evolution.
Super Scrapdroid ???? (Legendary)
A mighty humanoid robot that has been assembled from scrap.
HP: 6
VP: 20
Its text had changed, too. The previously slender frame of the android had thickened with armor, its dull bronze replaced by a golden sheen. It looked stronger, heavier, more advanced. Was this the result of pushing it past some invisible threshold? Or had it happened because he’d fed one [Scrapdroid] to the other?
Kai gulped. He had a crazy idea. One that might cost him a lot—but if it worked, the payoff could be enormous.
He placed the [Super Scrapdroid] card onto the photocopier. Originally, he’d been planning to copy [Unicorn], but this could potentially be much more valuable.
The engraving beneath the card glowed. It might’ve been his imagination, but the photocopier felt brighter than it had when he placed [Unicorn]. When the rectangular glyphs lit up, he selected his two sacrifices: a pair of [Light] cards. Losing them would hurt—four steady victory points per round—but he still had one left.
If his theory was right, this would be worth it. The more points he earned, the better the upgrades. Better upgrades meant more efficient crafting next round. Plus, the only recipe that used [Light] had required pairing it with shadow cards. With one still in hand, he wasn’t closing any doors.
As he slotted the cards into place, the machine lit up like a miniature sun. His whole field of vision turned white for several seconds. When the light faded, he blinked against the afterimage, adjusting to the glow.
There were two cards in front of him.
Two [Super Scrapdroid].
He didn’t hesitate. He placed them both on the table.
The response was instant. The burst of light that followed made everything up to this point feel like candlelight. The table glowed for a full thirty seconds before finally dimming. When it did, both [Super Scrapdroid] cards were gone.
In their place was a single, gleaming white card.
[Super Scrapdroid ????] + [Super Scrapdroid ????] = [Mega Scrapdroid ????]
Super Scrapdroid ???? | HP: 6 → 0
Super Scrapdroid ???? | HP: 6 → 0
Perfect merge! Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Mega
Scrapdroid ????].
New recipe added to your recipe book.
Mega Scrapdroid ???? (Mythic)
A Scrapdroid that has fed on so much technology that it has transcended into the realm of sentience.
HP: +∞
VP: 40 (Max)
This card also works as an upgrade. You’ve unlocked [Scrapdroid Companion].
Kai stared at the notifications, unable to react. Maybe it was the flash of light still burning in his retinas, or maybe it was the sheer weight of what had just happened.
A perfect merge. What did that even mean? Was it simply the result of fusing two identical legendary cards? And this card—[Mega Scrapdroid]—it wasn’t just legendary. It was mythic. A grade he’d never seen before.
There was no way his opponent could catch up now.
He examined the artwork. Unlike the muscular, armored design of [Super Scrapdroid], the figure on this card looked sleek and elegant. The humanoid form was more refined, almost natural. Seamless armor, no visible joints. Gears rotated slowly in its head and arms, and delicate circuitry traced lines along its skin like glowing tattoos. It was... beautiful.
He also got a notification saying that it had maxed out. VP: 40. No need to feed it more cards. Still, the real power wasn’t just the point total. The fact that he now started every round with a forty-point advantage was incredible.
His gamble had paid off.
Apparently, mythic cards grant automatic upgrades.
He didn’t know what [Scrapdroid Companion] did yet, but he was going to find out soon.
He checked the clock. Twenty-five minutes left.
There was still plenty of time to make the most of this.
[Opinion Fragment ??] + [One Minute ?]
?? | HP: 1 → 0
? | HP: 1 → 0
Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Public Review ????].
Leave your sincere opinion about the novel—it helps a lot!
