Card Apprentice Daily Log

ραndαsnοvεl.cοm

Date- 13 April 2321

Time- 9:52

Location- Southern Region, Southern Capital

“What is this guy blabbering about? Doesn’t he realize it’s all over for him? I won. His soul is mine to pick,” Belphegor pondered, tuning in to Wyatt’s last words before his body crumbled into dust. Then, he realized that Wyatt’s Ego Gem and Grimoire were nowhere in sight. Weren’t they supposed to fall after the card apprentice met their demise? When he had defeated the 18 demigods, their shattered Ego Gems and Diamond Grimoires had all fallen, and he had gathered and stored them in his personal space item.

Coming to this understanding, Belphegor anxiously scanned the battlefield repeatedly, relying on his spiritual senses, as he knew that after obliterating Wyatt’s physical form, his soul ought to be within his Ego Gem. Despite his persistent and thorough search, he couldn’t detect even a hint of its presence. Time was of the essence – if he intended to dedicate a portion of his own life to imprison Wyatt’s soul within the Ego Gem, a move that would render any pacts Wyatt made with other infernal beings regarding his soul difficult to fulfill as he was employing forbidden arts to lock the soul away. So he had to locate it promptly.

A couple of seconds later, the phrases Wyatt uttered before his body crumbled into dust echoed within the devil’s mind once more, and this time Belphegor grasped the intended meaning of those words. With this understanding dawning upon him, Belphegor clenched his teeth, his face contorting into a grotesque expression as he mumbled, “That bastard isn’t dead.” In no time, the anger that had seemed to simmer down burst forth like a volcanic eruption, and he bellowed, “Show yourself, you scoundrel! Have you had your fill of amusement at my expense? Reveal yourself, you miserable bastard!”

Belphegor’s shout reverberated across the secondary time flow, yet there was no response. Nevertheless, he persisted in shouting like a crazed devil. The humiliation of being deceived brought back memories of his most disgraceful history – being defeated by a mere mortal. The amalgamation of past and present shame bore down on his pride, and this burden amplified his rage to an unprecedented level, overpowering his usual cautious and fearful demeanor.

Belphegor couldn’t fathom how he had fallen for another trick, especially after swearing to never again underestimate his opponent. Yet, facing the might of the Temporal Annihilation Fist, nobody emerged unscathed from a direct blow. Thus, when Wyatt took that devastating attack head-on, Belphegor grew confident in his triumph and began his celebrations prematurely, unaware that the battle was far from over. That cursed Wyatt – he had become Belphegor’s nemesis. This was the reason Belphegor exercised an abundance of caution when dealing with Wyatt. He recognized that Wyatt, despite his mortal origins, was not to be underestimated, especially due to his shrewd intellect.

“Reveal yourself, you sneaky bastard! If you don’t, I’ll begin attacking the folks in this city, starting with the girl you sought to protect when you borrowed my power,” Belphegor shouted, pointing at Ann. His purpose was evident. if Wyatt persisted in toying with him and purposeful embarrassing him, Belphegor would shift his focus to individuals Wyatt held dear, coercing him to step out of hiding.

Wyatt’s decision to remain concealed within one of his pebble-encased pseudo calamity soul gems scattered throughout the city wasn’t driven by a desire to further humiliate Belphegor, but rather, he aimed to decipher Belphegor’s Temporal Annihilation Fist. This particular strike was a manifestation of an absolute void where there was no concept of time. His elder gigamite physique’s defenses proved futile against its inexorable power. Once touched by this attack, one became a fragment of nothingness, with no means of evasion or defense available. 

Following Wyatt’s directives, the Hive AI diligently reviewed battle footage, aiming to deduce Belphegor’s attack and formulate an effective defense. Wyatt recognized that until the Hive AI cracked this puzzle, he could feign his demise. Yet, the devil soon discerned this ruse and used Wyatt’s companions as leverage to coerce his appearance before the Hive AI completed her analysis. Now, Wyatt had no choice but to show himself while thinking of a way to defeat Belphegor while evading the formidable Temporal Annihilation Fist. 

“Hahaha, what happened you do not like a good game of hide and seek? Since you couldn’t find me, does that mean I won?” Abruptly, a colossal human figure, standing at a towering 110 feet, materialized from the streets of the Southern Capital – Wyatt had revealed himself to Belphegor. His ongoing taunts were aimed at diverting Belphegor’s attention to himself, ensuring it didn’t shift toward his companions. However, Wyatt executed this plan with careful consideration, as he aimed to prevent Belphegor from becoming so exasperated that he would redirect his hostility toward those close to him stuck in the original time flow. 

“Yes, indeed, and your prize is a Temporal Annihilation Fist,” Belphegor affirmed. 

As soon as Wyatt made his presence known, Belphegor wasted no time and lunged towards him, employing infernal temporal stride, his fury reaching its zenith. Having learned the overwhelming potency of Belphegor’s fist, Wyatt deftly evaded the attack retreating out of Belphegor’s melee range. Consequently, Belphegor’s Temporal Annihilation Fist struck nothing but empty air, creating a fleeting void that sealed shut within a matter of seconds.

This time while evading the attack, Wyatt took meticulous care to observe Belphegor’s Temporal Annihilation Fist, and in doing so, he stumbled upon a staggering revelation – Belphegor was inherently unable to control and harness the full might of the Temporal Annihilation Fist. Hence, Belphegor had ingeniously sheathed the ends of an unknown chain around his hands like protective gauntlets. These chain gauntlets effectively absorbed any uncontrolled energy emanating from the Temporal Annihilation Fist, preventing potential harm to his own hands whenever he wielded the devastating technique.

Wyatt also observed that each time Belphegor unleashed the Temporal Annihilation Fist, a substantial amount of sand from the lower portion of his hourglass relic diminished significantly. Should Belphegor employ this technique a few more times, the lower chamber of the hourglass relic would be entirely drained of temporal sands.