Thick, pitch-black clouds pressed down upon this vast expanse of sea, blocking all sunlight from penetrating its depths. Dark energy permeated these waters, rendering them not only pitch-black but also fraught with unseen perils. It was as if a giant hand firmly grasped this place. This was an island in the central area of the Realm of Pitch Darkness, but the island had long been devoid of living creatures. All that remained were the skeletons and undead—creatures that had perished in the dark outburst, only to be reanimated. A young man was leaning against the wall of a not-yet-completely-collapsed ruin of a house, panting heavily.
His short, jet-black hair was tucked under a small flat cap, and he wore a slightly worn brown leather jacket. The collar of a cotton undershirt peeked out from the neckline. Apart from the rings on each thumb, his most conspicuous feature was the metal chest he carried on his back. The silver chest was adorned with patterns of religious motifs.
At this moment, two cards suddenly appeared in the man’s hand, which he slipped between his fingers and flicked away. The two cards shot out simultaneously, but along different trajectories towards separate locations, quickly disappearing into the boundless surrounding darkness. Alka regulated his breathing and began to move. He traversed the darkness as if it were broad daylight, moving freely as though on solid ground. Despite carrying the heavy metal chest, his steps were silent. It was as if any sound he might have made was absorbed, swallowed by the darkness itself.
After walking for about another 100 meters, he leaned against an intact house. A head-sized mirror materialized before him, but the scene reflected in it was not Alka. Instead, it displayed another scene: a shattered street corner, surrounded by numerous dilapidated buildings, some of which had not yet completely collapsed. Such scenes were commonplace in this small, ruined city. Alka stared intently at the image until, within the reflection, a loose stone on the ground inexplicably rolled twice.
Instantly, a streak of blue light flashed. A card with a gradient blue back exploded like a water balloon. The resulting splash condensed in mid-air, forming five Water Chains. The five Water Chains shot out, binding an unseen entity in the air and revealing an invisible Evil Spirit. The sudden appearance of the Water Chains caught the Evil Spirit off guard. Its limbs and waist were bound, and it struggled relentlessly.
Alka smiled at the sight. However, before the smile could fade, his brow furrowed, and he squatted down, clutching his head. A stinging sensation accompanied by murmurs and chants began to assail his mind. What terrible timing. A white mist flew out from the Magic Mirror on his chest and drilled into his head. About five seconds later, Alka’s eyes fluttered open. He looked dazed for a moment before regaining his senses.
Instantly, a rod-like weapon appeared in his hand, one end of which was a round sphere. Alka stepped out from the street corner, and the sphere immediately detached, floating away from the rod. A card, flicked out by him at some unknown moment, shot straight down the street into the distance. Then, Alka, now fully emerged from the corner, gripped the rod with both hands and forcefully struck the sphere floating before him.
One hundred meters away, directly in front of Alka on the street, the Evil Spirit was still struggling, trying to break free from the Water Chains. Because Alka had been delayed for several seconds by the sudden Spiritual Invasion, the Evil Spirit was now on the verge of escaping the Water Chains’ restraint. The sphere, about the size of two adult fists, shot forward, erupting into pale white flames in mid-air—it was the Holy Flame. The weapon itself didn’t possess this effect; it bore the Holy Flame because Chadite had applied an Enchantment to it at Alka’s request. The Enchantment was single-use, but it was better than nothing.
Just as the sphere was about to strike, the Evil Spirit finally broke completely free from the Water Chains. It quickly dodged aside but was still hit by the sphere. A small cavity instantly appeared in one half of its body, that portion burning away into green smoke from the sphere’s impact. The tearing of its soul made the Evil Spirit howl on the spot. However, it had barely opened its mouth when a card, unseen until now, landed at its feet. It was a card with a gradient red back. The flaming cross on its face lit up, glowing like fire.
A huge flame erupted from the card. A column of fire directly engulfed the Evil Spirit, while three other jets of flame spread out to cover the surroundings. The cross-shaped flames erupted. Only dark green smoke could be seen drifting from the conflagration before dissipating. Fire was a relatively effective means of harming Evil Spirits, though naturally, it was significantly less potent than attacks of the Holy Light Element. Alka retracted the rod-like weapon, straightened his clothes, and walked towards the spot where the Evil Spirit had perished.
The Mirror Surface that had shown him the distant scene moments before disappeared, reverting to a card. The card was plain white, its face bearing a black-lined frame containing an eye marked with the number 1. He took this card and slipped it directly into his Ring. Alka didn’t go directly to where the Evil Spirit had died. Instead, he walked to the nearby corner wall, retrieved another card—this one marked with a number 2 eye—and slipped it into his Ring as well.