Card Apprentice Daily Log

Chapter 2531: Lucine’s Bad Day

Date: Unspecified

Time: Unspecified

Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Central Region, Central Academic City, Morningstar University District, Morningstar University Campus, Garden of Beginning, Time Vestige, Morningstar University 2nd Campus

In the corner of the card lab, Lucine squatted with her back against the wall. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to sit properly—it was simply that her princess gown made it impossible. But as she stayed there, she suddenly wondered why she was even doing this. That was when it hit her: she was following the boy’s orders without him having to force her, moving like his puppet.

She couldn’t help glaring at his back grudgingly. The only reasons she could endure this humiliation were the oath she had sworn before the Card World’s will—and the fact that he was far stronger than she was.

After witnessing his true strength—how he subdued Slay with ease and even defied the Card World’s will—she couldn’t help but reconsider her view of the younger generation. For the first time, she felt a spark of hope. Perhaps, with people like him rising up, they might actually have a chance of achieving the same miracle their ancestors once did when they successfully held back the demon invasion.

But to her disbelief, he had turned out to be a complete psychopath—someone who not only believed he could cure a disease even the Celestials were helpless against, but also forced her to undergo his ridiculous treatment for time-rule dementia. How in the world were the four-petal vine and the blood swamp cucumber supposed to help with something that had plagued even the celestials?

She couldn’t stop herself from wondering whether he actually planned to kill her and then quietly pocket all those expensive ingredients for himself. He said he wouldn’t kill her, but she could no longer bring herself to trust a word he said.

Right now, Lucine felt as if the entire world were conspiring against her. She had never felt this wronged in her life. Maybe she could have understood it if it had happened anywhere else—but here of all places? She felt hopeless.

It was happening on the sacred grounds of Morningstar University, the institution founded by her own family, surrounded by her trusted aides and students. As the princess of Morningstar University, she had never imagined that one day she would be treated this poorly within the very place she ruled and the place where she was loved the most.

Lucine had no choice but to swallow her grievances, because the boy whose V-shaped back and broad shoulders she was staring at in a trance was undeniably stronger than anyone in the university. Only now was she beginning to understand why he dared to act so boldly within Morningstar University—like a loan shark visiting a defaulter. Yet, Sam had only good things to say about him.

It was all Samuel’s fault. If he hadn’t spoken so highly of the boy, she would never have gone out of her way to recruit him using those "unconventional" methods—and she wouldn’t be in this miserable situation now. She planned to teach Sam a lesson when they returned to their present.

After directing all her grievances and anger toward Sam, Lucine felt a little better. Her thoughts grew lighter, her mind clearer. Only then did she finally have the presence of mind to observe what the boy was doing with the four-petal vine and the blood swamp cucumber.

She extended her intent toward his platinum grimoire, trying to peek into his crafting process. But to her astonishment, her intent couldn’t penetrate the grimoire at all. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get past its barrier.

"Stop messing around. You’re the one paying for these ingredients," the boy warned, having sensed her attempts to break past his grimoire’s barrier and peek at his soul-crafting process. Unfortunately for her, his grimoire wasn’t platinum grade at all—it was unranked. Unless she were at the ruler class or above, she could forget about breaking through its defenses with intent alone.

Lucine froze like a spooked cat, then immediately pretended it hadn’t been her—as though someone else had done it, despite there clearly being only two people in the card lab.

"Huh? Did you say something, Wyatt?" Lucine asked, feigning ignorance with the most exaggerated innocent expression she could muster at that moment.

"Ah!" Lucine exclaimed when a familiar face surfaced on the back of the boy’s head. It was him. He looked at her with clear disdain and said, "You do realize there are only two of us in this lab, right?"

"Stop doing that," Lucine muttered, creeped out by the sight. "Your physique is the most bizarre physique I’ve ever seen."

"You stop playing around and at least pretend to be a proper hostage." The boy remarked before the face on the back of his head slowly submerged back into his head.

"Wait, don’t go," Lucine called out and then, seeing the face resurface, she asked, "Tell me what you are doing with Four Petal Vine and the Blood Swamp Cucumber? How are they going to help with my condition? Tell me, I have the right to know. After all you are—wait, don’t leave, I’m not done asking."

As she continued with her questions and complaints, the face instantly sank back into his head. Seeing this, Lucine called out in surprise—only for the voice to warn her sternly, "Quiet. If I hear one more peep from you, I’ll sedate you and continue without you. I don’t need you awake for this process."

Hearing his threat, Lucine fell silent immediately, not even daring to mumble under her breath. She knew all too well that the boy could be ruthless over the smallest things. Instead, she began plotting all the different ways she would punish Samuel once she got out of this mess — if she got out of this mess alive.

Just as her boredom was starting to set in, the boy’s grimoire suddenly shone with brilliant light and expelled three four-petal vines. But these were nothing like the ones she knew. Each one looked... altered—mutated in a way that made her instincts tighten.