episode_0215

LLVII.

We eventually left the land of artisans, the Craft Country, without waiting for the beer festival called Oktoberfest.

It wasn’t because the dwarves annoyed me that I made this decision. It wasn’t because I felt uncomfortable seeing them. It wasn’t because I was afraid they’d steal my old scrap sword.

It was just a feeling of foreboding, like when I decided to visit this area. No, it would be more appropriate to say it was a feeling of emptiness.

No, it’s not.

To be honest, I don’t think it’s fair to say that the dwarf craftsman’s actions had any real impact.

But the biggest reason is that after the Arcana briefly appeared on the unidentified golden card, whatever aspiration had drawn me to this area completely disappeared.

It gave me a terrible sense of emptiness, like the time of wisdom that comes after the breakdown of ejaculation at the end of sex.

As if the impatience at that time was to make the Arcana sleeping on the golden card absorb the unidentified meteorite.

After the woman appeared and disappeared, a strange sense of emptiness took over my whole body, along with the desire to go to the World Tree and rest.

With all these mixed emotions, I didn’t want to just stay in this area, and as soon as the sun rose, we left the craftsman’s land.

Inside the horse carriage heading to Moderato.

Inside, where a strange silence had descended, I was so lost in my thoughts that I was oblivious to my surroundings.

It started with the question of why Arcana, who showed her face, disappeared without even revealing who she was.

And the thoughts that continued like that reached the conditions for the flowering of the Arcana, and the current situation was one in which the conditions for the flowering of the Arcana were being checked.

The first arcana to bloom and the one with the highest number.

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Arcana No.0 The Jester [THE FOOL].

[Card Master Fee]

[A dose close to lethal]

[Full of vitality]

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These three conditions must be met not as an ‘or’ condition, but as an ‘and’ condition for the clown to wake up. In other words, all three conditions must be met at the same time for the clown to wake up.

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Arcana No.1 The Witch [THE WITCH].

[Trust in the Card Master’s Arcana]

[The Card Master’s Desire for the Arcana]

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The witch’s conditions were easy. At least for me.

Perhaps, under normal circumstances, the first Arcana I would summon would have been the Witch.

Of course, a witch must satisfy both conditions at the same time, but I personally think this is the easiest condition to achieve.

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Arcana No.2 High Priestess [HIGH PRIESTESS].

[Card Master Fatal Wound]

[Linked passive “Reverse death and turn back fate.” activated]

[Contamination by Card Master Magi]

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Santa’s opening condition is not ‘and’ but ‘or’, as is typical of her personality. If any one of the three conditions above is met, she will bloom.

Of course, the conditions were all serious, but since it was a situation that could be resolved by her appearance, if only ‘instant death’ could be avoided, Arcana Santa would have been summoned at any time.

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Arcana No.4 The Matriarch [THE MATRIARCH].

[Card Master witnesses a phenomenon that is tantamount to a ‘miracle’]

[Card Master Experiences a Phenomenon Near a ‘Miracle’]

[Card Master’s Firm Trust in Arcana]

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May blossomed after the day Nitas defected, the day the dragon was struck by a volley of thunderbolts from the sky.

Mei’s flowering condition is similar to Santa’s, only one of the two needs to be met. However, uniquely, ‘Card Master’s firm trust in the Arcana’ must be met.

That is, one of the previous two conditions and the third condition must be satisfied for it to bloom.

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Arcana No.5 The Pope [THE HIEROPHANT].

[Card Master Holy Power]

[Card Master Holy Power 150 or higher]

[Accumulate 10 or more deaths of the Demon Race in the linked card [DEATH]]

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As the first female pope, Hwang Yi has strict conditions for becoming a pope, just like a clown, given her high status. Like a clown, she must satisfy all three conditions.

The first and second conditions were already achieved, but the second condition could only be summoned after reaching the level of a quasi-superhuman through 100 days of training.

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Arcana No.20: Punishment [JUDGEMENT].

[Card Master Faces Thunder Spirit]

[Card Master confronts a thunderbolt that is equivalent to the spirit of thunder]

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These two conditions for the flowering of the punishment were actually very difficult. Originally, that is.

Even if only one of the two could be achieved, ‘thunder spirit’ is not naturally generated on the continent.

Perhaps the God of Magic punished the dragon that day by striking it with lightning magic instead of other magic, and that wasn’t part of the bigger picture?

Well, otherwise forget it.

Are there any connections between the conditions for the blooming of Arcana and Arcana’s past?

To conclude, there is one.

The clown desperately longs for love after being betrayed by his loved ones, and wants vitality because of the moment before death when he is lost in emptiness.

The witch wants trust, and Santa wants the moment when he is needed.

May wants a trust stronger than the witch’s, and the punishment wants a brain that will wake her up.

So then, what did the Arcana that appeared earlier want?

That unique meteorite itself?

Or is it the ‘King’s Scar’ exposed to the ‘God’s Eye’?

I don’t know.

When you try to sigh at the end of your thoughts, feeling frustrated,

“There is one hour left until the destination.”

Only after I heard the system voice of the magic car did I have time to look around.

and,

“Sorry.”

I had no choice but to start with an apology. The atmosphere inside the car was as quiet as a dead mouse.

“No, honey~. Are you done worrying?”

Although the clown said it was okay as a representative, it must have been quite frustrating for even the superhumans, judging by their actions such as secretly sighing after I apologized.

So much so that I couldn’t even breathe comfortably.

My concern over the unopened Arcana was not simply my impatience for the woman I could not obtain.

Absolutely not, absolutely not.

It was a concern about a phenomenon that was unknown even to the power of the Card Master, and also a concern about the Arcana that showed potential for development.

No, to be more honest, the real truth inside me that I don’t want to reveal is,

‘Is it because I am lacking in that Arcana?’

It was.

The Arcana in some way demands emotional qualifications from the Card Master.

The clown loves,

The witch and May trust,

The punishment is the master’s rank,

Santa is considerate enough to tell her that it’s not her fault.

Hwang-i’s fighting spirit towards the demon tribe.

I was obsessed with this thought, wondering if perhaps that Arcana was lacking something and thus disappeared without blossoming.

It may be useless self-deprecation, but isn’t it human nature to fall into the trap of saying things that are useless?

“I’m really sorry. I’m sorry.”

After apologizing to Arcana, Catherine, and Lina, I also apologized to the superhumans and Catherine’s parents, my uncle and aunt.

“Well, that’s fine. Then can I do that now?”

“Yes?”

I wasn’t flustered by Canviel’s question, which was very misleading. This woman was always like this, and it was time to get used to it.

“Green Marble! Can I do that? Huh? Huh? ”

“They say it will arrive in an hour?”

“How about it! We can play two rounds in an hour!”

Superhumans gathered around Canviel, who received the green marble from May while saying the typical lines of a gambler.

The inside of the car became noisy again as usual, with laughter, jokes, and shouts of grabbing people by the collar and threatening to blow their hands off.

As if time had stopped and then started flowing again.

I feel both grateful and burdened that all the noise and silence started with me.

Each of them is a superhuman who has reached the heavens through their martial arts.

If they had pointed their swords at each other for the purpose of war, the continent would not have been as prosperous as it is now.

It’s a blessing and a blessing that they are so interested in my every move, but on the other hand, it’s also a burden.

“My lord.”

Have you been feeling strangely gloomy and thoughtful today?

Just as I was about to feel strange again, I was pulled out of my swamp of serious thoughts by the warm voice of Santa calling me like the sun on a spring afternoon.

“It’s okay.”

“Huh? Huh. ”

“It’s really okay.”

Then, he apologized to Lina, who was sitting next to me, and came over to hug me.

Although Santa was quite tall for a woman, she had to bend over to hold me, and at her gentle touch and voice, I lowered my body and bent over as if I were lying on her lap.

As the warm, cozy breath repeatedly reached my scalp, I closed my eyes without realizing it.

And when I opened my eyes again,

“You have arrived at your destination.”

When we woke up, we found ourselves at the entrance to Moderato, the largest city in the Sumerian kingdom.

And the change began as soon as we entered Moderato.

◈ ◈ ◈

The deepest part of the Sumerian kingdom.

It was a space that belonged to the Sumerian kingdom, but also did not belong to it.

A space where the World Tree, which stretches out as if it will pierce the sky and whose end cannot be seen, is located.

Even though the World Tree is rooted in the continent, that doesn’t mean it is simply rooted in the ground and photosynthesizes using water and light energy. Absolutely not.

Although the World Tree is rooted in the land of the continent, its power and vitality interfere with the dimensions.

So, it is a space where the scent of the World Tree is strong.

A space where the wide and plentiful branches of the World Tree spread out,

Even if you see an unauthorized being that reaches the shadow, you cannot enter.

“He. Is. Here.”

The elf’s mutterings are filled with deep regret.

The moment she raises her body, the silver hair covering one side of her face falls down and settles neatly.

Beautiful beauty.

She is a woman who is not lacking in the title of beauty.

If the Arcana is a beauty armed with its own charm, and the Two-horned is a perfect beauty realized through magic, then this woman is expressing the beauty of nature.

Unique vitality and freshness.

“Do I really have to do that?”

Swaaa …

Even though I know, I ask again out of regret. But the World Tree’s answer is always the same.

“I see… … . Then. Take care until we meet again.”

The World Tree that received her greeting did not move at all. It was observing the world as it always was.

“In the name of Sylvia, the last descendant of the World Tree’s gardener, I permit a limited opening of the sanctuary.”

Gggg …

Nothing has changed.

But a lot has changed.