Bright light illuminated the card making workshop, reflecting off the magical instruments and equipment. The tools exuded an air of antiquity, having witnessed the glorious rise of many a card maker.
Lance was fully focused at the workbench. He carefully counted out the basic materials, took out a partitioned tray, and selected portions of what he needed. He placed them one by one into the tray's compartments.
Talia frowned slightly as she watched. What is this guy doing with so many materials?
Having lived in frugal poverty for so long, Talia had almost forgotten that she, too, had once been filthy rich.
While she wondered, Lance gradually finished his preparations and rolled up his shirt sleeves as his eyes shone with anticipation. He was ready to try making his first enchanted card.
He began mixing the ink somewhat clumsily, using finely ground non-elemental magic crystal powder and mana stone extract. Since he didn't know how to use his own mana during the ink-making process, he had to rely on tools for assistance, monitoring the mana fluctuations during the blending process with a measuring device.
In truth, the task wasn't difficult, but it couldn't be mastered simply by reading books. It required instruction and practice. Talia watched Lance’s amateurish actions impassively. However, she had no interest, nor any desire, to offer guidance to this human who possessed not a lick of magical talent.
At this point she knew exactly what kind of card the boy intended to make. Lance unrolled the magical scroll he was about to process, which housed a common Tier 1 Mental type spell: Mind Interference.
A magical scroll was normally consumed after a single use. However, if you transferred that spell to an enchanted card, the user could cast it repeatedly.
[Mind Interference]
Type: Spell
Grade: Blue (Uncommon)
Attribute: Mental
Tier: 1
Affects enemies within 3 meters, making them unable to act for a very brief moment. Mana cost and duration depend on the difference in mental power between the caster and the target. Cooldown: 120 seconds.
In most cases, an enchanted card crafted using just a single magical scroll as a base would yield roughly the same spell, with perhaps only minor fluctuations in the duration. If the card maker possessed exceptional skill, they might even manage to produce a higher-quality Purple Rare card. That would result in a more powerful spell effect or perhaps an additional bonus feature.
Even though Lance was only attempting to transfer a Tier 1 spell, crafting a Blue Uncommon card posed a significant challenge for a novice card maker. Even producing an inferior White Common version was considered a decent achievement, as it wasn’t outright failing.
Talia couldn't yet judge the boy's talent or the kind of card he would ultimately produce. However, for someone with genuine talent, starting to learn card making at this age was already quite late. Lance clearly didn't come from a poor family. If he had talent, he likely would have been provided with the best resources for his training long ago. He wouldn't be figuring it out on his own now, seemingly out of mere curiosity.
Lance gazed at the scroll in his hand. Sensing that Talia was staring at him, he asked, "Tali, do you know anything about card making?"
He liked having someone in the workshop to chat with. Talia, however, ignored him, turning her head away with an air of indifference. She had no desire to lie about such trivial matters, nor did she wish to reveal anything to this human that he had no business knowing.
Lance smiled tactfully and made no further attempt to engage her. To the Card Maker’s Association, he possessed decent value as a merchant, should he choose that path, but offered absolutely no discernible worth as a card maker. Come to think of it, the only people who truly believed in him so far were Hans and Francine.
With these thoughts in mind, Lance continued filling his inscription pen with the magical ink he just mixed. He could no longer afford any distractions as he was about to enter the most critical stage: finalizing the mana circuit structure and revision of the raw materials into the card.
First tier Mental magic typically involved only minor interference of the target’s state of mind. Spells capable of stronger mind control usually required close proximity to work. Rewriting a spell's effects demanded not only exceptional creativity but also repeated experimentation and refinement. This was a task far more difficult than standard card making.
Lance focused intently, concentrating fully on the task before him. As he moved the inscription pen slowly and precisely, he slowly infused his mana into each circuit. A card's magical structure could not simply be drawn by just any mage or magical artisan. It required understanding, creation, and spellcasting in equal measure.
Without outstanding talent and a profound grasp of the principles, a person might manage to replicate the appearance of an enchanted card, but would fail to imbue the product with any true power.
Lance held his breath. He had reached the most challenging moment of the process. The hardest part lay in inscribing an intricate line of magical runes onto the card. These twisted characters that resembled swarming ants were impossible to decipher, let alone write, without keen eyesight.
He frowned as he inscribed slowly and deliberately. Like an artist crafting a magnificent masterpiece, every stroke was exquisitely delicate, yet executed with unwavering steadiness.
Even Talia, watching from the sidelines, found herself regarding Lance with a new, serious interest. Setting aside the amateurish nature of the card the human was crafting and his glaring lack of experience, the aura he exuded was not that of a clumsy card making apprentice. Instead he resembled a master artist possessing consummate skill!
Dozens of seconds ticked by. Then, the card exploded with a resounding blast, emitting a haze of faint smoke.
Talia shook her head slightly, utterly speechless. Just a mediocre scion who is simply wasting his money.
Even if she didn't quite understand the inscribed human magical runes, she could roughly tell that Lance was doing something very odd. He wasn’t just satisfied with making a Mind Interference spell card. Instead, he was trying to alter the actual spell before enchanting it within the confines of a card.
A beginner should first figure out how to walk before attempting to run, yet Lance was going straight to flying. To attempt something like this meant that he was either an extremely conceited genius, or an overly ambitious idiot.
"Why did it explode..." Lance looked at the smoking card in a daze. Everything had happened too quickly, shattering his dream of making a card. Fortunately, the barrier in the workshop had protected him.
After thinking of something, Lance quickly ran out of the room.
"This guy..." Talia scowled unhappily. Even if her employer was in a bad mood after that failure and wanted to leave, he shouldn’t have lost his temper and abandoned her. She hated that feeling the most.
Just as Talia was also about to leave, Lance ran back. He rushed to the workbench and started to quickly write something with a pen.
Talia asked, "You're not leaving?"
Lance answered matter-of-factly, "Nope, this is just the beginning! I just asked the attendant to bring me something else."
He wasn’t dejected by his previous attempt. Instead, his eyes shone with enthusiasm and excitement, as if he was filled with an endless desire to explore card making.
Talia stayed silent and sat back down. She was a very patient person. There was no need for her to get angry about being paid three pounds to just sit around. I just don’t know how long it will take for this human to give up due to repeated failures.
Before long, the attendant came back with several books and some new materials. Lance picked up the book and started flipping through it like a mad man. He spent the entire afternoon attempting to make cards and recording his data from his failures. Then he did some more research and repeated the cycle.
***
Two weeks passed. Every day, Lance and Talia would come to this card making workshop and stay there until it grew dark. One blew up cards and the other watched. Yet Lance still hadn't managed to craft a single decent Mind Interference spell card.
Talia was seated in her chair, gently cradling her book and turning the pages at a leisurely pace. She was fulfilling her end of her deal. However, she no longer paid much attention to Lance’s crafting process, instead passing the time by reading books written by humans instead.
From her perspective, his repeated failures were to be expected. Even with the kind of relentless, no-expense-spared training Lance was putting himself through, a beginner could expect repeated failures before successfully crafting even a single Uncommon enchanted card.
Lance certainly didn't have much talent. Someone with talent might have already produced a few usable Tier 1 spell cards by now. There were even geniuses who could craft Uncommon quality cards the moment they first tried. Lance, on the other hand, had spent a full half-month churning out nothing but scrap.
A faint glow appeared at the corner of her eye. Even though her attention was mostly on her book, Talia knew that she would soon hear the sound of a card exploding. After all, she had lost count of how many times Lance had failed at this specific step.
The light intensified and then faded. There was no explosion this time. Talia couldn't help but look away from her book. Lance looked incredibly focused, resembling an artist putting on the finishing touches of his masterpiece. The card in his hands was radiating a soft, hazy halo of light.
Success! Lance breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, amid a swirl of mist, a finished enchanted card appeared!
Lance smiled with satisfaction as he gazed at his creation. He was highly pleased with the card's quality. Even as its maker, he couldn't help but admire it for a moment longer. The card shimmered with an amethyst-hued glow.
Talia couldn't help but stare at Lance. He produced a Rare card without any formal instruction?
For most card makers, creating a Purple Rare card was a feat usually achieved only after reaching Rank 4 to 5 and crafting multiple Tier 1 to 2 cards.
While it was true that Lance had invested a great deal of time and resources, and the demons certainly had its share of even more prodigious geniuses, what truly astonished Talia was that a random human she had simply stumbled upon possessed such raw talent... Fate itself was standing on the side of humanity.
A sense of powerlessness began to wash over her. It suddenly hit her that this was an era where humanity was favored by the gods. Therefore, her dream of restoring the Demon Kingdom was nothing more than a distant, fleeting illusion.
"Tali, come take a look at my masterpiece!" Lance’s cheerful tone caused Talia to look up just a fraction.
In truth, a Tier 1 Purple card wasn't exactly considered a rarity. Moreover, compared to the materials Lance had wasted, the value of this card didn't even amount to a fraction of the losses incurred.
Even though he had made a Rare spell card, Mind Interference was ultimately just a low-level Mental type spell. It wasn’t considered a versatile spell, let alone something that people needed to have. This was the sort of enchanted card that only close-combat professions would consider equipping.
Just as she was thinking this, Talia appraised the card and frowned when saw its effects. This modified Mind Interference was unexpected.
[Basic Etiquette]
Category: Spell Card
Grade: Purple (Rare)
Attribute: Mental
Tier: 1
Effective only against enemies within 3 meters. Forces the target to kneel before the user. Mana cost determined by the difference in mental stats between the two parties. Cooldown: 120 seconds.
Sir, please do not peek at people through the door crack, and certainly do not get carried away with yourself.
Although the card Lance created had a similar effect, with a slightly longer duration than the standard Mind Interference spell, it was a bit twisted. She really didn’t know what to say. Don’t cards like this usually just immobilize a close-range enemy for half a second or something similar?
After a moment's thought, Talia finally asked, "Are you selling this card?"
This was the first time she had initiated a conversation with Lance. With the dozens of pounds she had earned from him so far, buying a low tier, Purple spell card wouldn't break the bank. Of course, that applied to ordinary cards.
The spell card Lance created didn't exist on the market, so it was impossible to gauge what it would sell for. Its value didn't lie in whether it was practical to use. This was something that absolutely must not be used by anyone else. So, it was better to keep it under her own control!
Lance glanced at Talia out of slight surprise, seemingly taken aback by her appreciation of the card. He smiled, shook his head, and declined, "Ah, no. I'm keeping this one for myself; it makes for a pretty good trump card for harrowing situations, you know."
Talia stared at him. A trump card for harrowing situations? ...Are you sure this card is meant for keeping your head attached to your body? The fight might not have been to the death, but once you use this card, it’s a whole other story.