Chapter 493: Dark Demon Constructs Basic Deck (5k)
Today was a fine day; why not have a Mana Duel to liven things up?
Dark looked at Geoffrey and felt that this senior was saying something like that.
Therefore, he didn’t take it as a formal challenge and casually said, “Is it a Mana Duel?”
“Of course.” Geoffrey’s natural smile surfaced, “We are after all Magi.”
Dark chuckled, “But Senior, you’re in fourth year, and I’m only in first year. If you accidentally lose to me, how will you face people outside in the future?”
Geoffrey felt sweat trickling down his spine but smiled on the surface, “It’s just for fun, it won’t be that bad.”
Dark shook his head, “But others won’t think so.”
Geoffrey gritted his teeth, “You’re in first year, and I’m in fourth year, so why must I necessarily lose?”
Dark smiled, “Isn’t it because I care about you?”
Geoffrey said, “Thank you for your concern!”
In fact, based on the strength Dark had shown in the last competition he participated in at the academy, he was confident he could win.
Just as Dark had said, he was after all a fourth-year student.
Even if he wasn’t particularly strong in Mana Duels, with the resources of the noble history research club at his disposal, he couldn’t possibly be too weak.
And this time, according to the instructions of Prince Charles, he was dueling Dark in this salon. If he really lost, it would surely spread rapidly throughout the entire noble circle.
Thus, he also had the belief to win.
Although Prince Charles did not require him to win the duel.
So, what exactly was Prince Charles’s purpose?
Geoffrey found it hard to speak his mind.
He wasn’t someone who liked to charge into battle…
…
In the secluded VIP room of the salon.
Prince Charles was drinking a bottle of strong liquor bought from a dwarf tribe, feeling displeased.
The execution ritual for the Demon King organized by the Church of the Saints was beyond his control.
When the Church discussed this matter, they even excluded him.
This made him suddenly realize the depth of the alliance between himself and the Church more clearly.
They were merely cooperating for mutual benefit, not truly united.
Nor could they ever be truly united.
And since he couldn’t completely rely on the Church, he had to find someone more trustworthy.
But to match the Valkyrie…
At least at the level of the court Grand Magus Niels Boer and the great Duke Trance Thurgood joining forces.
Moreover, he must try to gain the support of the military faction.
However, last month, he received the distressing news that the Bear family was inclined towards the Valkyrie. Afterward, when he extended an olive branch to the Tudor family, it was not immediately accepted.
The situation he faced was indeed full of setbacks.
He found it difficult to intervene in the Church’s schemes.
Although the Archbishop promised to share the credit with him if it succeeded, what if it failed?
Now, the faction of the Big Princess was deploying defenses across the capital under the pretext of this matter, while he was left as a bystander with nothing to do, drinking alone. The taste was truly unbearable.
“Why can Elizabeth earn the trust of the Valkyrie, but I cannot? Is it because she is a woman?”
Prince Charles became increasingly agitated, took a big gulp of the liquor, and then choked, coughing uncontrollably with his face turning red.
In the current capital, the Valkyrie stood at the pinnacle in terms of power, prestige, and personal combat ability.
Only the deep-rooted Church could contend with her.
Other factions needed to form multiple alliances to secure a place.
For example, the joint efforts of the court Grand Magus Niels Boer and the great Duke Trance Thurgood.
But none of these matters were significant.
If Charles wanted to find them, he could still gather a bunch of supporters.
But those old-timers were each with their own hidden motives; seeking their help would be akin to cutting off his own flesh, resulting in no profit.
In other words, there was no one as pure as the Valkyrie!
“No, I need to think of a solution.”
Prince Charles’s intoxication surged, and he couldn’t help but think again about the golden-haired youth.
Dark Demon, as the Valkyrie’s most doted-on only son, was indeed a very good entry point.
If he could win him over, it would certainly weaken the resistance brought by the Valkyrie.
Therefore, the Archbishop had previously considered recruiting him as the Saint Son, adopting a strategy of appeasement.
But the appearance of the Imp Beast had led to this idea being abandoned halfway through.
Then, Dark showed the possibility of being ennobled as a “Brave Candidate” during the Easter Duel Festival.
But the identity of “Hero” was two-sided.
It represented infinite glory.
Yet, it also carried a fated curse.
Charles had always been considering whether to invest in the previous Hero’s Child, Wit Gold.
After all, the “Hero” was both useful and not easily retaliated against—after all, “Heroes have short lives” was not a secret within the inner circle.
But before this, he had focused on “the glory of the Hero” while ignoring “the fate of the Hero.”
There was nothing in this world that couldn’t be utilized.
Charles had a sudden idea.
What if he promoted Dark Demon as a Hero?
Wouldn’t it make the Valkyrie preoccupied and unable to focus on political affairs?
Once this thought arose, it couldn’t be stopped.
“Let’s confirm once more!”
Charles looked at Dark Demon and the Deoxys among the group of Golems in the circular corridor, his heart surging.
…
Afterward, the female swordsman playing the role of “Hero” challenged Dark Demon under his instruction.
Charles originally thought Dark would send a “sword-wielding Golem” to represent him.
But unexpectedly, it was neither Deoxys nor Lion Beast, but Dark’s maid who took the stage.
But this slight surprise was negligible.
Charles immediately sent word to Angus Jeffrey.
Jeffrey’s family was already completely aligned with his, so they could be considered allies.
To let his allies help…
“A small favor, he shouldn’t be unwilling, right?”
Charles gave himself an instant hangover remedy.
This was of the same type as the hangover potion prepared by Sister Carrian for him on Christmas.
Once a pill was taken, one could instantly sober up no matter how drunk they were.
The price was that there would be double the hangover afterwards.
But since he was going to lie down anyway, wouldn’t lying down twice still be lying down?
Thus, this hangover remedy was very popular among the nobility.
“Angus is at least a fourth-year student, he should win, right?” Charles recalled Angus’s record and muttered to himself.
…
In the “Enchantment Hall” club.
It wasn’t uncommon for nobles to personally participate in duels.
Although the war had ended, the older generation still held a deep-seated passion for combat, and the martial spirit hadn’t diminished with the arrival of peace.
Therefore, a noble participating in a duel wouldn’t be considered impolite but rather brave.
Of course, the treatment of the loser and the winner was entirely different.
Especially for duels like those between Jeffery and Dark, even if they were for entertainment, losing would inevitably tarnish one’s reputation.
Dark thought it was unnecessary, so he reminded them.
But since Jeffery was so confident, this side wouldn’t let up during the duel either.
He didn’t refuse Jeffery’s invitation but chose to accept it.
“Just warming up, I’ve been cooped up in the mansion long enough.”
Dark made a gesture to Trina indicating ‘biggest’.
Trina nodded slightly, having no objections to Dark’s decision.
In this uneven grade duel, even if the first-year young master really lost, it wouldn’t have any negative impact.
Moreover, she didn’t think the young master would lose.
Anyone who had spent some time with the young master’s golems would probably not think so either.
Only Aurora, who wasn’t quite familiar with the strength of Saint Maryan’s fourth-year students, expressed some concern to Diana.
Diana pondered and said, “That senior is a fourth-year student, but he doesn’t seem to have participated much in duel competitions. I’m not sure, but he probably isn’t very strong.”
Aurora frowned, “But if he isn’t strong, why would he invite Dark to duel?”
“Hmm…” Diana thought carefully and guessed, “Maybe he’s eager? I often feel eager too.”
Dark shook his head at their intimate discussion.
Jeffery clearly seemed like someone who wouldn’t act unless necessary, and this duel invitation clearly had another purpose.
But precisely because the other party came with a purpose, this side had the motivation to compete.
“A long-awaited duel.”
Dark clapped his hands.
The golems, already poised and ready, transformed into light and entered his personal card deck.
Some people who didn’t understand mana technology only realized at this moment that these “magical creatures” were actually golems!
In a blink, only the vampire noble and the phoenix girl remained by Dark’s side.
The vampire noble needed to enroll, so it wasn’t suitable to leave too many impressions related to “golems”.
Dark didn’t mind revealing her identity, but revealing it too early might result in her being ignored when she first enrolled.
If her identity could be revealed after she integrated into the group, it would be better.
As a parent, Dark naturally hoped she could have a normal academy life.
But now was too early to consider such things.
After leaving the vampire noble here, Dark followed the maid’s guidance to… well, this protruding area on the circular corridor!
Upon closer inspection, one would notice that the circular corridor had two platforms that could serve as competitors’ platforms.
Whether this design was intentional or not was unknown.
In any case, Dark and Jeffery quickly arrived at the two protruding areas, and then the maids on both sides pressed a button, and indeed a spellboard rose from the floor.
“I need some time,” Dark activated the spellboard and used the amplifier to speak to Senior Jeffery opposite him.
Jeffery naturally wouldn’t refuse.
So Dark took out his deck and began enriching mana.
Since there was no partition behind the platform, Diana and others also walked over.
On the other side, many people gathered around Jeffery as well.
Everyone was excited, and there was no tension in the atmosphere, as if it was truly just for entertainment.
However, as the two set up their formations, more and more people noticed the commotion and came over to watch, making the so-called “entertainment” impossible to remain truly entertaining.
Angus Jeffrey was a regular at “Enchantment Hall”; most of the noble gentlemen and ladies who frequented this place knew him.
Even without his father’s background, Jeffery was an excellent talent himself.
Not only was he a fourth-year student accepted by Saint Maryan Academy, but he was also the president of a large club mainly composed of noble children—these factors gave him high scores in others’ eyes.
Therefore, seeing that it was Angus Jeffrey in the duel, many people couldn’t help but look curiously at the other side.
Once they looked, they couldn’t tear their eyes away.
Although Dark Demon was visiting “Enchantment Hall” for the first time, could any of the nobles, especially the older ones, fail to recognize his face?
In fact, Dark himself was like a moving label; his face and character were both very well-known.
“Isn’t that Alvaraite’s son? Why is he here?”
“I heard he was also invited by Saint Maryan Academy, it’s almost been a year, hasn’t it?”
“Fourth-year against first-year? Is this a teaching match?”
“Unbelievable, the mischievous child back then has grown up so much. He looks quite gentlemanly.”
“Heard he just turned thirteen last month, and the precious daughter of the Gretbail Family was also invited to their family’s private dinner…”
“Speaking of the precious daughter of the Gretbail Family, could you mean the one over there?”
“Over there, which one?”
“This, I can’t tell which one…”
“What’s going on? How did the precious daughter of the Gretbail Family become two?”
…
Before the onlookers’ idle chatter drifted off-topic, Dark finally completed the mana enrichment, then he began to systematically build his deck.
In a regular mana duel, both sides default to a Magic Guidance Ball Life Barrier at level four with 8000 points, and the number of cards in a deck must be no less than forty.
After the Easter Duel Festival, Dark hadn’t properly assembled a deck, so today was a good opportunity to put one together casually.
He first added all the Mana Spirit Cards to his deck.
“Excluding the Vampire Noble, there are sixteen Mana Spirit Cards.”
①【Magical Beast: Eevee】
②【Magical Beast: Ditto】
③ “Trash Slime”
④【Curse Cage: Imp】
⑤ “Piplup”
⑥ “Mana Book”
⑦ “Huhu”
⑧ “Wrestler Eagle”
⑨ “Meow”
⑩ “Mana Spirit”
? “Deoxys”
? “Big Milk Jar”
? “Eevee”
? “Solo Sword Sheath”
? “Lion Beast”
? “Primordial Dragon Egg”
Then he added the necessary Capital Sin Cards.
① 【Pride I】
② 【Pride II Old】
③ 【Pride II New】
④ 【Greed II】
⑤ 【Pride III】
⑥ 【Bliss III】
⑦ 【Greed III】
⑧ 【Bliss III Moon】
⑨ “Bliss III Moon” improved;
⑩ “Bliss III Moon” improved;
Next, he added four Armed Cards.
① 【Die】
② 【Soul of the Moon Goddess I】
③ 【Sour Plum Hero】
④ 【Light Emissary】
Then three Magic Spell Cards.
① 【Fusion】
② 【Flight Spell】
③ 【Zoo】
Finally, he stuffed in any usable Magic Spell Cards and Item Cards to complete the forty-card deck.
① 【Flash Spell】
② 【Flash Spell】
③ 【Energy Potion】
④ 【Energy Potion】
⑤ 【Energy Potion】
⑥ 【Silence Potion】
⑦ 【Revealing Powder】
“In this way, the construction of the deck is complete.”
Dark smiled slightly.
Although there wasn’t much technical skill involved in building this deck, it was at least more visually pleasing than any previous deck.
Because the Mana Cards used to fill out the deck were almost depleted.
Once he created three more Mana Spirit Cards, he could replace three “Energy Potions”.
If it were a more important occasion, he could include the “Vampire Noble” to increase its strength.
At that time, he would truly possess his first complete deck.
With this deck as a foundation, he could continue developing other series decks.
For example, “Pride” decks, “Bliss” decks, “Armed” decks, etc.
Perhaps he could even develop an entertaining deck centered around “Die” and “Sour Plum Hero.”
After all, the essence of mana duels is to bring smiles.
“I’m increasingly looking forward to the next three Mana Spirit Cards.”
“But for now, let’s focus on the duel and test the strength of this basic deck.”
Dark stacked the forty Mana Cards neatly and placed them in the Spellboard’s Card Slot, then said to Angus Jeffrey, “Senior Jeffrey, I am ready for now.”
“Very well.” Jeffrey took a deep breath.
He keenly noticed that Dark’s deck was richer compared to the Easter Duel Festival.
Moreover, Dark didn’t include high-star Mana Spirits like the Vampire Noble and the Phoenix Girl, which also increased his pressure.
Generally speaking, there was only one reason for such behavior.
That is, the current deck was already strong enough without adding these high-star Mana Spirits.
“Jeffrey, do you think you can handle it?”
Phyllis Laraman, who was equally perceptive, casually asked.
As the daughter of Baron Laraman, another one of the thirty-two council members, Phyllis, though not fond of taking the lead, held a position comparable to Jeffrey’s in this small circle.
And Jeffrey, at this point, certainly couldn’t say he couldn’t handle it.
He nodded solemnly, “At Saint Maryann Academy, there’s a threshold between third and fourth year. My mana control is definitely above him, but his Mana Spirits are somewhat special.”
Phyllis was surprised, “I thought you were sure to win. If you lose, aren’t you going to crawl away? Speaking of which, what exactly are you aiming for?”
“It’s beyond my control,” Jeffrey sighed inwardly.
He too wondered what he was aiming for.
But not everyone could act recklessly like Dark Demon.
Standing at a precarious height, he could easily be pushed down at any moment.
If you don’t climb up, others will surpass you.
After many unsuccessful attempts against Dark, he had learned his lesson.
Though this hadn’t stopped him from making Dark his imaginary opponent, he could have been more cautious and covert about it.
Unfortunately, when he hid his weapon in the forest, he had to reveal himself.
This duel, regardless of the outcome, would be more harmful than beneficial to him.
Unless he could gain the trust of the Crown Prince, the benefits would outweigh the drawbacks.
In other words, he was already at a point where he could only win and not lose.
“Let’s begin!”
Jeffrey placed his deck into the slot and gave it his all!
