Deck and preparation 1

Clayton collapsed on the couch in his extravagant academy apartment. His wavy black hair stuck to his forehead, hazel eyes blinking as his mind raced—ADHD in overdrive, anxiety making him just more miserable. It was 3 PM, two hours before his duel with Charles Edwards, the shonen-protagonist-wannabe from Dragondale who’d challenged him over Lily’s “accidental” bump. Honor above everything, my ass, Clayton thought.

He knew Charles, Rank 4 in Class A, was a beast compared to his measly Rank 52, but Clayton knew that was his rank before, but now he could easily be placed in the top 10. and he had a plan He always did. In two lives—Earth’s lonely strategist and Antigonus merchant heir—he’d learned one thing: outsmart, don’t outfight.

The stakes were insane: one high-grade Arcane Stone, a treasure that could power heavy magic or buy half a city. House Antigonus dealt in those stones, but betting on one still made Clayton feel uneasy. He knew he would have to hear an earful from family if he lost. The duel terms he’d set were his lifeline—land one hit out of three, and he’d win, snagging the stone and a public apology from Charles. Lose, and he’d owe the same.

The whole academy was buzzing, the viral video of their challenge trending higher than his run-in with Cynthia. # Antigonus being crazy, # Antigonus got balls, #HottieClayton. He wanted to stay low-key, but Lily kept dragging him into the spotlight. Who the hell is she?

First, he needed to tune his deck. Tuning was a Cardweaver’s bread and butter, a way to tweak your soul-bound deck before a fight. At the novice level, Clayton’s deck was 15 cards: 10 common, 3 uncommon, 1 item (Twin Crescent Axes of Flux), and 1 unique skill (Monocle of Insight). Tuning let him swap up to 3 cards from his pool into his deck, except unique ones, costing 2 AP from his starting 15 AP, leaving him 13 AP for the duel. It was a gamble—swapping meant better odds of drawing what he wanted in his 5-card starting hand, but the new cards weren’t guaranteed to show up. It’s like playing poker with your soul, he thought, smirking. And through back channels he heard that while registering, Charles added a condition for not using debuffs, saying those are for cowards. Goddamn Hypocrite

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Clayton pulled out an Essence Vial from his pouch, a small glass tube glowing with blue liquid—a House Antigonus specialty, 5 Lesser Arcane Stones a pop. These vials sharpened your focus, making tuning easier on the mind. Normally, tuning drained you mentally, like running a marathon in your head, but the vial smoothed the process, ensuring Clayton could swap cards without second-guessing. He popped the cap, downed the bitter liquid, and felt a cool clarity wash over him. His deck pouch glowed, and he focused, visualizing his deck:

Arcane Bolt (Common, Skill)

Effect: Costs 2 AP; deals one hit (a standard unit of damage, advancing the opponent’s hit counter by 1 toward the typical 3-hit win condition).

Ethereal Shield (Common, Skill)

Effect: Costs 2 AP; blocks one incoming attack (negates one hit from a Skill card).

Flame Burst (Common, Skill)

Effect: Costs 3 AP; deals one hit with a fiery explosion.

Quick Strike (Common, Skill)

Effect: Costs 2 AP; deals one hit with a swift energy dart.

Counter Trap (Common, Trap)

Effect: Costs 3 AP; cancels an opponent’s card effect

Mirror Snare (Common, Trap)

Effect: Costs 4 AP; reflects a Skill card’s effect back at the user

Energy Siphon (Common, Debuff)

Effect: Costs 4 AP; drains 2 AP from the opponent’s pool.

Shadow Bind (Common, Debuff)

Effect: Costs 3 AP; prevents the opponent from playing Skill cards for one turn.

Iron Ward (Common, Enhancement)

Effect: Costs 3 AP; the next attack taken deals half damage (e.g., a 1-hit skill deals 0.5 hits).

Arcane Flash (Common, Enhancement)

Effect: Costs 3 AP; grants a “Speed Surge” buff for two turns while active; skill cards cost half AP.