Chapter 70: Silver Business Card Case
Kortopi sat on the beach, his body aching from Razor's casual assault. He glanced around, his single visible eye scanning the dark shore.
It was still night. He hadn't been unconscious for long.
But the boy, Kai, and the girl, Shizuku, were gone.
Did Razor banish them, too?
But I'm still here...
Razor, having watched Kai and Shizuku vanish in a flash of light, turned his attention to the remaining intruder. He formed a small, glowing ball of Aura in his palm and pressed it against Kortopi's forehead.
"I'm going to kill that lying brat," Razor said, his voice deceptively pleasant. "But before I do... I need to know something. How was he controlling you?"
Kortopi's mouth twitched. He was weak, exhausted, and surrounded. "I'd like to kill him too..." he rasped. "But..."
It was humiliating. He had been used like a tool, stripped of his dignity, and forced to betray his leader. And yet, even now, he had no idea how the boy had done it. He hadn't felt a needle, a kiss, or a command.
"...I don't know."
'So the boy, Kai, hides his ability well,' Razor thought, nodding internally.
He turned and began walking inland, toward the lights of the island's town. He gestured to his two burly Devils. "Bring him."
Kortopi let out a silent sigh of relief. He was alive.
The two Devils, however, sighed in disappointment.
Razor was a monster. He didn't show mercy. If he said he followed the rules, he followed them to the letter. He had banished the boy who had laughed and joked with him without hesitation. Why would he spare a Phantom Troupe member?
This Spider, Number 12, probably didn't realize it yet... but when the sun rose at 7:00 AM, his life was forfeit.
"RAZOR! YOU JUST WAIT—I'LL BE BAAACK!"
Kai's vision was swallowed by white light. For a split second, the world spun, vertigo assaulting his senses.
Then, the light faded.
The sound of crashing waves and the salty smell of the ocean were gone.
Instead, he was assaulted by the flashing neon lights of a city skyline and the distant, chaotic hum of traffic and urban life.
He was standing on the rusted balcony of a dilapidated apartment building. He knew the expression on his face must have been incredibly stupid.
He rubbed his cheeks vigorously and looked around.
Sure enough, Shizuku wasn't there.
Neither was Kortopi.
I hope Kortopi stayed with Razor, Kai thought.
His memory of the manga was correct. When Razor used the ELIMINATE card on the Phantom Troupe, they had been scattered across the Azian Continent. Razor's banishment split groups up.
Realizing this, Kai had severed his connection to Kortopi the moment Razor pulled the card.
If he hadn't, and Kortopi had been banished alongside him, they would have been separated anyway, breaking the physical link required for control.
Unless Kortopi was injured and the Star Marker activated its healing, Kai would have no way to reconnect. And honestly, letting a Spider leech off his healing ability for free felt like a bad deal. Better to cut him loose.
"I wonder where that squinty-eyed bastard sent me?"
Kai slapped the rusted railing, looking out at the unfamiliar city. "He swapped cards at the last second... so this definitely isn't the Azian Continent..."
Good. As long as it's not Kakin.
He had no desire to run into any more "Hui Guo Rou" relatives right now.
"First, location," Kai muttered, vaulting over the railing. He dropped two stories, landed lightly, and sprinted toward the main street. "Second, Shizuku..."
He rubbed the Crescent Moon mark on the inside of his ring with his thumb. Just as he was about to activate it, he felt a faint thrum against his skin.
Shizuku was calling him.
Kai smiled, looking up at the pale moon. She must be far away, but the signal is crystal clear. Not bad.
He activated the connection.
{Kai, are you okay?}
Shizuku's voice echoed clearly in his mind.
Kai imagined her standing in some random, unfamiliar place, looking around, realizing he was gone, and immediately reaching for her ring.
{I'm fine. You?} He responded mentally, weaving through the crowded street.
{I'm fine,} she replied. {But I'm somewhere else. Oh, Rock Sparrow and the crows are with me. I don't know which city this is.}
{Same here. Let's figure out where we are. Who knows, maybe we got lucky and ended up in the same city?}
{Okay.}
Let's rewind time just a little bit.
Somewhere on the Azian Continent...
On a lonely mountain observation deck, a flash of white light deposited a very surprised Pariston Hill.
He looked around, blinking in confusion at the sudden change of scenery.
After a long moment, a smile spread across his face. "Interesting."
He flipped his hand over. A ball of Aura materialized in his palm, forming into a sleek, silver business card case.
He opened it, pulled out a single card, glanced at it, and then casually tossed it into the air.
The mountain breeze caught it...
It fluttered away into the night.
[Hatsu Analysis: 'I Am Who I Am' (Golden & Silver Card Cases)]
[Type: Conjuration]
[Pariston can conjure two card cases: Gold and Silver. Placing a written identity card into a case activates an effect.]
[Only one card can be active at a time.]
[Golden Case: Whatever is written becomes absolute truth.]
[Silver Case: Whatever is written generates a corresponding 'opportunity.' This could be an obstacle to overcome, or a helping hand.]
[Vow & Restriction: Pariston has sworn NEVER to use the Golden Case, in exchange for amplifying the power of the Silver Case. If he breaks this vow, both cases will be destroyed, and he will lose the ability to use Conjuration forever.]
The card landed silently on the ground.
On the front, in simple text, it read: [Visitor to Greed Island: Pariston Hill].
A moment later, a web of cracks appeared on the card's surface. It crumbled into dust and blew away on the wind, vanishing completely.
"The Yorbian Continent?"
Standing under a streetlamp in the strange city, Kai checked his phone.
Their original plan had been to fly to the Gukan'yu Kingdom (South Ames), then transfer to the Yorbian Continent to visit Heaven's Arena.
But thanks to Razor's "generosity," they had skipped the middleman and been yeeted straight to their final destination.
That guy is a Bodhisattva in disguise. Free travel.
{Kai, I'm on the Yorbian Continent too,} Shizuku's voice chimed in his head.
{Nice. Let's pin down the cities...}
Kai bought a map from a nearby kiosk. He scanned it, found the city name matching the signs around him, and...
His grin widened into a grimace.
(End of Chapter)