Vol 5. Chapter 24: Wrong!

“Of course there are people like that. Margaret, did you not know that even in Carillian Academy, there are plenty of commoner students?” Vinny’s expression turned a little strange. “Their families are not exactly well-off.”

“Some of the students in our club are commoners too.”

“But everyone is living very well.” Margaret looked puzzled. “Everyone at the academy gets along happily. There are no especially serious conflicts.”

“That is only the world inside the academy,” Vinny said deeply. “The fact that they were able to get into Carillian Academy already means their lives have reached a tremendous turning point. From now on, they definitely will not have to worry about having food to eat.”

“But the world outside the academy is different for people like them.”

“The world outside the academy?” Margaret’s eyes widened.

“Margaret, you have not gone your whole life without seeing the world outside the Church and the academy, have you?” Seeing her reaction, Vinny frowned.

“Is there something different about the world outside the academy, outside the Church?” Margaret asked hesitantly. “Because I was frail and sickly from childhood, I basically spent all my time inside the Church.”

“Oh. That explains it.” Vinny looked as if he had suddenly understood. “You have no idea what the outside world is like at all?”

“Mm. I have not seen it, but I very much want to go outside and take a look.” Longing appeared on Margaret’s face, though in the end she still restrained it. “But that would cause trouble for everyone in the Church again.”

“Oh, right, Upperclassman Vinny. If I remember correctly, you said you did not have a surname?”

“Mm.” Vinny nodded. He had indeed said that to Margaret.

Honestly, he was becoming less and less able to understand what exactly was going on with Margaret. The more he investigated, the more confused he became.

If she had been raised by the Church since childhood, a precious flower kept in a greenhouse, never exposed to the world outside her ivory tower and only able to talk emptily from a lofty pavilion, then did that not make everything seem to add up?

But that character setting could also have been fabricated by her.

“Upperclassman Vinny, did you grow up in the outside world from childhood?” Margaret asked curiously.

“If by outside world you mean anywhere outside the Church, then yes.” Vinny nodded.

“What is the outside world like?” Margaret’s beautiful starry eyes seemed to shimmer with a crystal-gem luster.

“What is it like?” Vinny lifted his head and looked out the window. “The same, and yet somehow not the same.”

“? The same, but not the same?” Margaret did not quite understand what he meant.

“Mm. It is clearly the same sky, the same open fields, yet for some reason, the sky is terrifyingly low. Rather than calling it the sky, it feels more like being shut inside a little bottle the color of the sky. If you jump even slightly higher, you will hit the sealed cap at the top.” Vinny seemed to be talking to himself. “It feels as if you have been locked there for life. You can see the end with a single glance, and there is no hope at all.”

“When you are small, you once have all sorts of longing for the future. You look forward to what you will be like when you grow up. But in the end, all you hope for is to be a little fuller at the next meal, to stop freezing and starving.”

“Do you know, Margaret, I was far luckier than them. Ugly as it was, I managed to scrape my way out of that suffocating bottle half-alive. But they were not as fortunate as I was.” Vinny looked out the window, his tone carrying a faint trace of distraction.

“The skies above Carillian Academy and the Holy Capital of the Church are cloudless, clear, and clean. But in the same world, the sky in their eyes is covered in haze.”

“The outside world is actually like that??” Margaret listened in shock and disbelief. “But...”

“But that is completely inconsistent with the world you know, right?” Before Margaret could speak, Vinny said it first.

“I think there is a very large gap.” Margaret stopped, wanting to speak but hesitating. “I do not think you are lying, Upperclassman Vinny, but how do I put this? I find it somewhat impossible to...”

“Impossible to believe?” Seeing this, Vinny smiled in a way that was hard to read. “That is why you should not stay only inside the academy, only inside the Church, seeing this world only through other people’s eyes and understanding this world only through other people’s mouths—if you truly regard yourself as the Dawn Saintess.”

“Of course, I am not trying to lecture you, and I am not trying to advise you either. I am only saying what I personally think. If you do not like it, just treat it as wind by your ear.” Vinny added.

No one in this world liked being lectured, especially young people.

“Upperclassman Vinny.” Margaret was stunned for a long while. “I will remember your advice. It truly opened my eyes.”

“I already said it is not my advice. Who am I? How would I dare give advice to the future Saintess?” Vinny smiled noncommittally.

“No. You are right, Upperclassman Vinny.” Margaret shook her head.

“So, the love and bonds you spoke of earlier were related to this?”

“Mm. Of course they were related.” Vinny looked away.

Originally, he should not have said so much to Margaret, but after hearing what she had said earlier, he had not been able to stop himself from saying a little more.

Leaving aside what he personally thought, this club really was just a card-playing hobby club. What core meaning was there? That was all something Ferdi had made up himself.

“I understand.” Margaret said with a serious expression. “Upperclassman Vinny, I understand what you mean.”

“Mm, good, as long as you do not understand... wait, what did you understand?” Vinny instinctively affirmed it after hearing her, then immediately looked astonished.

What did she mean? Even he had not understood it, and she already understood?

What exactly had she understood??

“Upperclassman Vinny, what you mean is that love and bonds are things one must discover for oneself, rather than blindly following others. When I discover the true meaning of love and bonds on my own, I will be qualified. Is that it?” Margaret wore an expression of sudden realization.

“Ahem. Looks like you do have some comprehension after all. Not bad. That is exactly it.” After listening, Vinny froze for a moment, then gave a dry cough.

“Card playing and the like are only surface-level things. They are only a shell. You need to understand the true meaning and core hidden beneath that shell.”

“As for this question, if I tell you, it will lose all meaning. Or rather, saying any more would be giving away the answer, and I could not say it even if I wanted to. You have to seek it yourself.” Vinny smoothly followed along. “Then this will be your first assignment after joining the club, and also your final assignment.”

“Seek the goal this club pursues: love and bonds!” Vinny pointed out the window. “If you can understand that, then you will truly have made it.”

Those words were so passionate that even he almost believed them.

“I understand.” Margaret nodded seriously. “I will engrave your words in my heart, Upperclassman Vinny.”

“Mm-hmm.” Engrave them in her heart? She said that, but even he had only said it offhand. Who would engrave something like that in their heart?

Vinny glanced at Margaret. Clearly, he did not believe her.

After that, Vinny personally taught Margaret the basic rules of Deity Cards. It had to be said that Margaret’s learning ability really was strong. Vinny only taught her once, and she understood.

When the two returned to the hall, they discovered that Mason, who had looked dazed earlier, now had both eyes shining brightly.

Hm? What was going on?

Mason’s reaction surprised Vinny.

“I will display my Earth Dragon King in spiral form. How will you respond?”

“Mm, this is indeed very troublesome, but what if my ambush card is ‘Levitation’?!”

“What?! It’s actually ‘Levitation’?! Tch. Not simple at all, brat. You learned pretty fast!” Aiden scratched his ears and cheeks with a gnashing expression.

What was happening??

A trace of astonishment appeared on Vinny’s face.

“Oh my, Brother Aiden, no way, right? No way, right? Are you going to lose? Lose to a first-year junior who only just learned the rules??”

“How embarrassing. How are you going to survive as an upperclassman after this?” The other card players behind him were also spectators who never minded a bigger mess. They all patted Aiden’s back and teased him.

“All of you, shut up!” Aiden seemed to have gotten so desperate that he was about to summon “my fist” in attack form. Looking at the only three cards left in his hand, no one knew whether he was overheating or whether his brain had overloaded. His face was flushed red.

“I have to say it, Aiden. You really suck. With this, you still want to challenge me, the club president?” Ferdi also joined in to fan the flames.

“Get lost! This round does not count. I did not use my full strength at all, and I have not lost yet!” Aiden naturally refused to accept it.

Damn it. Usually, he could not compare to others in grades, could not compare to others in magical talent, and could not compare to others in real-combat reactions. Surely he could not get crushed by a new student in card games too, right?

He had already lost everywhere else. This was the only field he was good at. How could he admit defeat??

“Brother Ferdi, what is this?” Vinny and Margaret walked over.

“Yo, Brother Vinny, you finished teaching Margaret? Hey, hey, well done. This Brother Mason you found is a once-in-a-century good seedling. I taught him one round, and he picked it up immediately. He has considerable talent!” Seeing Vinny walk over, Ferdi praised him.

“See? Once people start playing cards, they cannot stop.”

“Right, Brother Mason? Playing cards is very fun, right!”

“Mm! Super fun!” Mason had only just said this when he immediately froze. His brows furrowed. He always felt as if he had forgotten something.

“Tch! Do not get cocky, junior. Do not think you have won the match just because you have a slight advantage. I was going easy on you before because you are a newcomer!” As he spoke, Aiden started shouting at the top of his lungs, like the battle cry of an animated protagonist before unleashing his finishing move. The louder the shout, the stronger the finishing move.

“I have not used my ultimate move yet. Just you watch!”

Looking at the two people playing cards, Vinny also found it funny.

This Mason was another oddball. Earlier, he had been full of vigilance, yet now he was playing so wholeheartedly.

“It seems Mason likes your club very much too,” Margaret said with a soft laugh.

“Maybe.” Vinny did not know what to say either.

He walked to the window, opened it, swept a glance over the scenery outside, then closed it again without saying anything.

“Brother Ferdi, it is getting late. Are you all going back?” Vinny asked.

“Huh? Going back? We have barely started. Today, we finally got new members. How could we go back so quickly? What time is it even?” Ferdi waved his hand, clearly addicted to teaching. He was not going home until he dropped.

After all, the feeling of bringing someone into the pit as an upperclassman was far too satisfying. He was starting to be unable to stop.

“What time is it even? Do you not have homework? Are you not going back to do homework?” Vinny asked with a laugh.

“Homework? Brother Vinny, you have homework? Tsk, tsk. How miserable. Ever since our class was notified that they were holding that whatever-it-was Chosen One Granted by God Tournament, they have barely assigned any homework.” Ferdi said smugly.

“You did not even remember the whole name?” Vinny frowned. “Then do you know why they stopped assigning homework?”

“Of course. Is it not to give everyone time to prepare for that whatever-it-was Chosen Tournament? Eh, I think that was the name. I do not remember very clearly.” Ferdi said carelessly.

He had not even read the documents that had been handed out. He had not even flipped through them. After returning, he had tossed them who knew where. As for what exactly this tournament meant, how long its history was, what year it had begun, and why it had begun, he was even more completely clueless.

“Since you know that, why are you all acting so relaxed? You are even playing cards. There is only one month left before the tournament begins.” Vinny was amused by this group. Other people wished they could even use their sleeping time, betting everything on this once-in-a-lifetime chance. These guys, on the other hand, had completely lain flat, and they were lying flat with an utterly clear conscience. Seeing everyone else so enthusiastic, most people should have been swept up by that atmosphere.

Should he say their mentality was good, or that they had absolutely no competitive spirit?

“Hey, hey, Brother Vinny, it is not as if you do not know what kind of people we are.” Ferdi gave a long sigh. Vinny felt that if there had been cigarettes, he would have had to borrow a light, take a drag, then blow out a smoke ring.

“Not everyone is like you, with such powerful talent and strength, and willing to work hard on top of that. As for us, we all think we have reached our limit. In this life, being able to enroll was already our greatest luck. We have hit our ceiling.”

“Sigh, sigh. After saying all that, the truth is, people like us are not interested in that sort of thing.” Ferdi smiled helplessly. “Brother Vinny, I know you are definitely going to participate. We all support you.”

“You are different from people like us.”

Only then did Vinny realize that at some point, all the card players had turned their gazes onto him. Even Mason, following the crowd, was looking at him too.

“So, do your best, Brother Vinny. We will all be there that day to cheer for you. Do not embarrass our card-player-soul club.”

“Did you even need to say that?” The corner of Vinny’s mouth curved up, and he lightly punched Ferdi on the shoulder.