Card Apprentice Daily Log

There was a reason why my family members respected and followed my grandma's arrangement. It was because she was the strongest in the family and also because she was the only connection to the main Hill family in the central capital. My grandma had her own story and struggles before she became my grandma.

When my grandma was 21 years old and just completed her college education the main Hill family had engaged her to a renowned card creationist to recruit him into the family without my grandma's knowledge and agreement. When my grandma learned of her arranged marriage she resisted it until the family's words turned into sticks, sticks into stones.

No matter how much the family pressured her my grandma did not change her opinion of marrying a stranger forgetting the fact that the renowned card creationist was hundreds of years old and looked like an orc. My grandma was not someone who would let the family control her fate so she decisively made a decision to run away from the family to a place where they could not find her. That was how a rich girl from the central capital ended up settling and starting a family far down south in the southern region's third-rate city sun blossom city.

With her education and upbringing, it was not hard for my grandma to thrive in the sun blossom city and become one of its leaders. Massing enough wealth and fame to last generations of her small family but then I was born. Though grandma would say that I was the best thing that happened to her, I would strongly disagree. As I brought the disaster named the Circle upon my family.

Despite my tight lip and my grandma's discretion somehow the Circle learned of my physique and since the dark clouds hovered over my family.

My grandma's plan for me was simple, I would learn everything she could teach me before the college entrance exam, and then using what I learned so far I would get admitted into one of the top ten universities where I would reveal my physique to gain the attention of the higher-ups of the university I end up joining such that they would sponsor my growth and development seeing the potential in me.

However, we had to make changes to our plan because of the new development with the Circle. The Circle tried its best to make and keep its name and reputation spotless in the sun blossom city but my grandma did not fall for it, she knew that the Circle was bad news but not until the network wars that took place a few days ago in the sun blossom city grimoire network when all the dirty laundry of the Circle was aired openly in the grimoire network for everyone to look at did my grandma realize that the Circle was not some third rate force she had face till now.

Realizing what the Circle was capable of my grandma decided to use the last resort that she dreaded using during the countless difficulties and struggles she had faced over the years as she built her very own Hill family in the sun blossom city. The last resort was none other than begging for help from the main Hill family in the central capital.

Man, did the Hill family know how to hold a grudge, despite my grandma's desperate pleas they did not agree to offer help to our family. By now, Every night before going to the bed I would pray for the college entrance exam to be held sooner so that I would be recruited by one of the top ten universities sooner and the circle would back off but my prayers were never answered.

Cornered by the Circle, my grandma found no choice but to walk to the lesser of two evils, the main Hill family. Coming to this conclusion, my grandma decisively revealed to the main Hill family my physique which made them forget their grudge toward my grandma and offered to help our family. That was how she came to know Joe Hill. The youngest son of the current patriarch of the main Hill family in the central capital.

When Joe Hill and his entourage arrived at the sun-blossom city to help my family, we gratefully invited them as guests of our family and treated them with the utmost respect but these people were too haughty and act as if I and my family were beneath them, I wanted to the cut the disgusting look of theirs with my sword but I endured as they were the last line of hope for my family.

The day these people arrived was the day the city's card creationist association held the open auction so my grandma asked me to take Joe to the auction, where I found my fated ingredient. But unfortunately, someone bid more than what I and my family could afford. Seeing my desperation Joe offered to buy my fated ingredient for me, despite knowing that his help would cost me even more than the worth of my fated ingredient down the line but considering that my family was getting help form them I accepted Joe's help but by then the open auction had reached it's conclusion.

So I had no choice but to approach the organizer to help me with my dilemma. Fortunately, they were helpful and pointed me to the bidder who had won my fated ingredient in the open auction. But the bidder was not willing to meet me as they were busy and asked me to visit them at a later date. Dejected I headed home and narrated the events to grandma. Who was happy for me but sad that she could not amass the price required to buy my fated ingredient and that they had to depend on the main family's help for that.

That day I cried myself to bed considering the circumstance of my family and the shame my grandma was facing accepting the main Hill family's help again and again. But the next day she woke up to the best news of her life, the Circle, that was haunting their family was no more.