Standing before the imposing Velkairos Cardian Master Association building, Azrael let out a heavy sigh. "Looks like I'll need to craft new cards after all."
The pressure weighing on his shoulders grew heavier by the day. Though news of the secret realm incident hadn't spread widely, the constant fear of being tracked down by the Crimson Oath Society gnawed at his mind. The leak about their training session had clearly come from an insider who'd sold them out.
Who knew how many more traitors lurked in the shadows?
Azrael began tallying his current assets, calculating each piece carefully. Including the five unsold green centipede materials, his liquid funds totaled 370,000 Empyrean dollars. Beyond that, his inventory held an Elite Ghoul (purple grade), a Centipede (purple grade), and a Flesh Demon (gold grade).
He'd originally planned to craft the Kokushibo card, which would have formed a perfect bond with Yoriichi. However, the materials currently at his disposal presented better possibilities that he hadn't previously considered.
The most pressing issue was finding a way to replace the gold-grade Flesh Demon with something more suitable for his intended creation. He could only hope the trading website had what he needed. If not, he would have to make do with his current materials.
Mounting his Pidgeot, Azrael soared home through the evening sky. Once inside, he immediately powered up his computer and navigated to the trading website. His fingers danced across the keyboard as he applied various filters.
The results were sparse; only a handful of black iron, grade, and gold materials appeared on the screen. But when his eyes landed on the name of one particular item, his heart skipped a beat.
There it was: Exactly what he needed.
Item Category: Black Iron Grade Material — [Type 1 Biological Colonization Suit] (Gold).
Price: 660,000 Empyrean dollars.
Azrael's face darkened as he registered the astronomical price. Even if he sold everything he owned, he would still fall short by a considerable margin.
Just as he moved to add the item to his cart, planning to purchase it once he had the funds, the website flashed an unwelcome notification:
"The item has been sold and cannot be added to the shopping cart."
"Seriously? Are there really that many wealthy people out there?" Azrael's expression grew even grimmer. The golden material he'd set his sights on vanished before he could make a proper bid.
Listing the [Blood Demon] (Gold) on the trading website would have to wait. For now, at least.
The next morning, Azrael stumbled into class, barely suppressing a yawn. He'd spent the entire night obsessing over the Type 1 Bio-Colonial Suit (Gold), considering all the possibilities until dawn.
"Win some, lose some," he told himself, trying to push down the disappointment. "That's just how it goes."
The classroom buzzed with animated discussions about yesterday's Secret Realm training session.
"Hey, how'd everyone do yesterday? I only took down three centipede monsters. Still nowhere near enough for my next card," one student complained.
"Tell me about it. Everything ended so suddenly, too—just when I was getting into the groove," another student chimed in.
"What about you, Azrael? How was your haul?"
All eyes turned toward him; curiosity was written across his classmates' faces. Azrael scratched the back of his head awkwardly. There was no way he was going to reveal just how profitable yesterday had been for him. "It was all right, I guess. Nothing special."
Before the conversation could continue, Gabi approached his desk. "Azrael, I wanted to thank you again for yesterday. If you hadn't stepped in, I'm not sure I would have made it out safely."
Azrael shook his head dismissively. "I think any of our classmates would have done the same thing in that situation. Besides, you stayed behind to protect Yurek when you could have easily escaped."
Gabi could have fled the scene yesterday; Yurek and Cory were there to serve as human shields if needed. Instead, she chose to stand her ground against an unknown monster, even though her three-tailed fox had been defeated in a single exchange.
Speaking of Cory, Azrael was about to ask about the coward's fate when Gabi's expression turned cold.
"Don't compare anyone to that piece of trash. Cory was ready to let me die just to save his own skin," she spat, her teeth clenched in anger.
After a brief pause, she continued, satisfaction evident in her voice. "He's already been expelled. No other school will accept him either."
Since Cory was still technically a student and Gabi had emerged unharmed, expulsion was the harshest punishment available under the circumstances.
Azrael simply shrugged at the news. "Well, at least I won't have to watch that clown perform in class anymore."
After a moment of comfortable silence, Gabi reached into her pocket and withdrew an envelope. "Azrael, this is a thank-you gift from my father. He wanted to invite you over for dinner, but he's swamped with work right now. This was the best he could manage."
Azrael accepted the envelope and casually opened it to peek inside. The words of polite refusal died in his throat as his eyes widened.
Inside was the [Type 1 Biological Colonization Suit] (Gold).
"So you're the rich person who bought it!
Mentally tagging Gabi as a "little wealthy princess," Azrael quickly stuffed the envelope into his pocket. "I won't pretend to be modest. I genuinely need this material. Thank you so much."
With this final piece, he now had everything he needed for his planned card creation. He felt confident that he could craft something at the gold level and possibly even the red level within the black iron tier.
Seeing Azrael accept her gift without hesitation, Gabi smiled warmly. "Do you have a specific card in mind? When my father gave me this material yesterday, he said it works especially well for prop cards, whether for creature enhancement or personal use."
Azrael shook his head. His target was already locked in, and he wouldn't change course now. "I've got my plan figured out."
Just as he opened his mouth to share his intended creation, a figure suddenly dropped to the floor in front of them with a loud thump.
"Azrael! Gabi! Thank you both for saving my life! From now on, whatever you tell me to do, I'll do it without question. If you say go west, I'll never go east. If you say go east, I'll never go west!"
Yurek knelt there dramatically, still wrapped in bandages from yesterday's injuries. Thanks to the Lore Cardian's treatment at the hospital, he had recovered enough to attend school, though he looked like a walking mummy.
Azrael wasn't particularly interested in grand declarations of loyalty, but something mischievous sparked in his mind. "What if I tell you to go west and Gabi tells you to go east?"
Yurek's head snapped up. Confusion was written all over his face as he tried to process the logical contradiction.
Azrael chuckled and helped the bewildered student to his feet. "Just kidding, just kidding."
Ding-ling-ling-ling.
The class bell rang with perfect timing, sending students scurrying back to their seats like well-trained soldiers.
Victoria entered the classroom at her usual measured pace, scanning the room before speaking. "I'm sure yesterday's Secret Realm experience taught you all about the very real dangers that exist out there.
"However, I want to commend Azrael and Gabi specifically. These two students demonstrated the principle of 'never abandon, never give up,' successfully helping Yurek escape a life-threatening situation."
Azrael nodded approvingly as he listened to the teacher's carefully chosen words. This official narrative would prevent wild rumors from spreading and put the incident to rest.
Whispered conversations erupted throughout the classroom.
"No wonder Yurek was acting like that earlier."
"Yeah, he was lucky to run into Azrael and Gabi. If it had been Cory instead—"
Speaking of which, why isn't Cory here today?"
Victoria's expression soured at the mention of Cory's name. "Cory will no longer be attending Silverbrook High School due to family circumstances."
Considering the negative impact Cory's actions could have on school morale, Victoria chose not to reveal the true reason for his departure.
Since their teacher remained tight-lipped about the details, Azrael and Gabi certainly weren't going to elaborate either.
With that matter settled, Victoria transitioned into the day's lesson. "All right, students, please take out your copies of High School Card Making, 2.3, Velkairos University, Revised Edition."
"Finally, freedom!" Azrael stretched luxuriously in his chair as the final bell rang that evening.
Ever since receiving Gabi's father's generous gift, he had been focused on getting home to start his next project.
He rushed through his front door and spread his collected materials across his work table, a satisfied grin spreading across his face.
With this particular card in his arsenal, he was confident he would crush every opponent in the upcoming Nirvale District Four Schools Joint Examination. They wouldn't know what hit them.