The shrill, piercing wail of the emergency alarm sent a jolt through Russell's nerves.
He rushed to the window. A thick fog had already swallowed everything within view.
Terrifying roars echoed faintly from deep within the mist.
On the television, the emergency alert blared on repeat, each warning more urgent than the last.
From within the apartment building, the sound of frantic footsteps rang out in every direction.
Russell opened the door. Residents were hurriedly pouring down the stairs, panic evident in their expressions.
The middle-aged woman from across the hall spotted him and shouted, "Xiao Luo, come on, hurry!"
Before he could respond, she had already grabbed him by the arm and dragged him into the flow of people.
As they descended, Russell silently observed the crowd—fearful, but not chaotic. Their retreat was fast, yet orderly.
He sighed inwardly.
People in this world had long grown accustomed to the sudden invasions of secret realms.
At the entrance of the residential complex, a loudspeaker droned in a monotonous loop.
"Cardcasters are en route. Please remain calm and wait for rescue."
"Cardcasters are en route. Please remain calm and wait for rescue."
The dense black mist had fully engulfed the area.
Not a single resident of the Fortune Garden Complex dared to move recklessly.
No one knew what could be lurking in the fog—monsters could emerge at any moment.
Only cardcaster-forged cards could destroy monsters from the secret realms. That was the harsh truth. It was why humanity had been utterly defenseless when the secret realms first appeared.
Most civilians could only create entry-level white-rank cards—typically weak creatures like squawking Cuckoo Chicks.
Gradually, unrest stirred within the crowd. After all, Hu City was massive, and even the Cardcasters' Association struggled to dispatch reinforcements swiftly enough during widespread invasions.
And this time, the incursion came from none other than Demon Nest—the largest secret realm on the outskirts of the city.
Suddenly, a scream tore through the crowd on the outskirts.
"Monsters! It's the Demon Nest's monsters!"
As the scream echoed, scarlet eyes began to flicker within the fog.
One young man on the perimeter clenched his jaw. "Go, Paw Patrol!"
Card Name: Paw Patrol
Type: White-rank Biological Card (Black Iron tier)
Effect: Summons one randomly selected large dog breed.
This time, it summoned a German Shepherd.
The young man pointed toward the mist. "Paw Patrol, attack!"
The German Shepherd let out a sharp bark and lunged into the fog.
"Woof! Woof! Awoooo—"
The ferocious growls were soon replaced by low whimpers. And then, silence.
The young man's face turned ghostly pale.
Around him, panic began to crack like glass under pressure.
"Mom, I want my mom!"
"The Cardcasters must be off protecting the rich! That's why they haven't come!"
"I don't want to die—!"
Cries of fear spread through the crowd like wildfire.
Meanwhile, in the shrouded mist, the shapes of the monsters began to take form.
Seven ghouls.
The lowest-tier creatures of the Demon Nest.
Three of them had fresh blood still smeared across their jaws, their sinister fangs slick with sinew and flesh.
Oddly enough, Russell felt relieved.
Ghouls. Good. Manageable.
According to what he remembered, even a basic black-iron tier cardcaster could handle ghouls with ease.
It was the other things that worried him—the ones whose names should never be spoken.
Like the most infamous creature from the Demon Nest: The Lord of Flesh and Blood.
Russell exhaled.
His past-life education had left him with a deep-rooted sense of responsibility. He couldn't just stand by and watch innocent people be slaughtered.
Shaking off his unease, he stepped forward—ready to act.
But before he could move, the woman from across the hall grabbed his arm.
"Xiao Luo, don't be reckless!"
Russell gently freed himself from her grip and offered a small, calm smile.
"Aunt Xu, I'm a Cardcaster now."
Aunt Xu blinked, stunned. Cardcaster?
She'd always known the boy next door had dreams of becoming one—but she hadn't heard anything about him actually succeeding.
Aunt Xu froze.
"Cardcaster? What do you mean, Cardcaster?"
She'd always known the boy next door—Xiao Luo—had dreamed of becoming one. But she had never heard that he'd actually succeeded.
Under Aunt Xu's suspicious gaze, Russell squeezed through the crowd of anxious residents and stepped to the front line.
All eyes turned to him.
"Who's this kid?"
"No idea…"
"Someone pull him back! He's too young to throw his life away!"
By now, the ghouls were frighteningly close.
Russell could see the viscous drool dripping from their snarling mouths onto the pavement.
He reached into his mind—and touched the card.
In an instant, Yoriichi Tsugikuni appeared before him.
The moment the residents of Fortune Garden caught sight of the summoned warrior, the air went still.
And then erupted in whispers.
"A real Cardcaster?"
"We're saved! A Cardcaster's here!"
"But he looks so young… can he really handle it?"
Tuning out the buzz around him, Russell spoke softly.
"I'm counting on you, Yoriichi."
Yoriichi nodded silently and slowly drew the katana from his hip.
He exhaled.
With that single breath, the blade in his hand ignited into a searing crimson glow.
A heartbeat later, he vanished.
When he reappeared, he was already among the ghouls.
One lay at his feet—its head cleanly severed from its body.
Agitated by the death of their kin, the remaining six ghouls howled and lunged at him all at once, claws outstretched, jaws snapping in mid-air.
Surrounded on all sides, Yoriichi inhaled again. His knees bent slightly.
A blazing arc of crimson light exploded from his sword—a flash that etched itself into the eyes of every onlooker.
The crescent slash passed cleanly through each ghoul.
The next moment, all six collapsed to the ground, their bodies neatly sliced in two.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Russell drew in a quiet breath. He'd known that a purple-tier card was powerful—but not this powerful.
According to the official registry, a typical black iron Cardcaster with blue-tier cards could handle five ghouls at most—with effort.
Yoriichi had just dispatched seven in a single breath.
And it didn't even look like he was trying.
Russell shook his head, banishing the clutter of awe and calculations from his mind.
He stepped forward and let his spiritual energy flow outward, weaving it slowly around the fallen ghouls.
Then—he pulled.
With a flicker of light, seven glowing material cards appeared in his hand.
Summon Material: [Ghoul] (Green) ×7
Russell gazed at the cards in his palm, marveling quietly.
No wonder Cardcasters make so much money.
The average price of a green-tier black iron material card was over twenty thousand Daming Baochao each. With just this one sweep, he'd pocketed a cool 140,000.
He was still lost in that realization when Yoriichi stepped forward again—silently raising his blade to stand protectively in front of him.
In the fog ahead, a massive shadow began to form.
Russell frowned deeply.
That's... big. Can Yoriichi handle this one too?
Just as the weight of unease began to settle over him, a voice called out from within the mist.
"Sorry! Sorry! I ran into a Gluttonous Behemoth on the way and it slowed me down. I'm not too late, am I?"
The looming figure stepped out of the fog, finally revealing its true form—
A towering silver wolf, as tall as a two-story building.
Its icy blue eyes locked onto Russell.
"Oh? So you're the one who took down all those ghouls? Not bad, classmate. Not bad at all."
The voice appeared suddenly at Russell's side, making him jump.
He turned and saw a young man dressed in a gaudy floral shirt, beach shorts, and flip-flops.
The man turned to the giant wolf and waved casually.
"All right, Xiaoyue. Stop scaring the kid."
The silver wolf obediently lowered its massive head, leaning into the young man's hand with a contented growl.
"Nice to meet you.
Xiao Yifei, third-year student, Hu University Cardcasting Division."
(End of Chapter)