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"We can confirm now that his fusion spirit has Seven-Star combat capability." Roland kept his voice low, ignoring the continued chatter from the other branch presidents at the far end of the monitoring deck. "And as you said, Father, I've never seen a card spirit quite like it either."
Edmund's gaze remained fixed on the screen where Luke was collecting the Holy Dragon Furnace Heart. Roland watched him and resisted the urge to sigh. The Immortal Realm's poker face was genuinely infuriating sometimes.
Stop staring at me. I didn't say the impossible thing. You did. If you have a problem with someone being this strong, go talk to Luke about it.
The thought was entertainment only. Edmund's position and rank meant Roland would keep his complaints internal where they belonged.
"Even the specialized mechanical spirits from Forge Capital can't achieve this level of power increase through combination," Roland continued. "One full tier up, with a skill kit that rewrites the underlying identity of the card. I'm starting to understand why Luke made the choice he did."
A single-card setup like Mana's could never beat Elise's three-spirit formation through traditional means. The fusion wasn't Luke showing off. It was the solution to a tactical problem.
"Unfortunately, with Luke's circumstances being what they are," Roland went on, "and the added variable of his being an Original Card crafter, Ellie lost this one thoroughly."
He allowed himself a small sigh. In public, the Capital benefited from having produced, or at least hosted, a talent of Luke's caliber. In private, Roland was Elise's father, and watching his daughter become the stepping stone on Luke's rise to regional fame wasn't the outcome he would have chosen.
"It is what it is." Edmund's voice was calm. His eyes finally moved from the screen. "And yes. If the engineers at Forge Capital ever learn about the existence of the Dragon Knight formation, they will lose sleep over it. Mechanical combination for power increase has been their central research focus for decades. Neither the Spellcaster nor Timaeus is a mechanical construct, which means Luke has demonstrated a form of spirit fusion that operates outside their entire theoretical framework."
The comparison between Vance's Blazing Centaur and Luke's Dragon Knight was, in retrospect, illuminating. The Centaur was two Six-Star Legacy spirits Linked to produce a Six-Star Perfect. The Dragon Knight was a Six-Star Perfect and a starless Special Card fused to produce a Seven-Star Legendary. Different mechanics. Different scaling. Different implications entirely.
"Have you considered," Edmund said, carefully, "what happens if this technique scales? If it can be applied to higher-tier spirits, to lower-tier spirits, to combinations not even Luke has explored?"
Roland's breath caught.
"Father. If that kind of scaling is possible…" He worked through the implication. "If lower-realm Card Masters could routinely field spirits operating a full tier above their Card construction ceiling… the entire hierarchy would destabilize. High-realm dominance would be threatened. The power structure of the Eastern Region, maybe all of Magic Card Civilization, would need to be recalibrated."
Over a long enough timeline, it meant low-tier Card Masters could legitimately threaten high-tier ones on a regular basis. Something that currently required once-in-a-generation talent would become routine.
"That's the theoretical outcome," Edmund agreed. "But theoretical. For it to actually affect the Kingdom, Luke's construction philosophy would have to spread. Not just to curious researchers. To enough Card Masters across enough cities to change the statistical baseline."
"The odds of that happening are essentially zero."
He let that sit.
"First, the replication difficulty. Luke crafted an Original Card, an Original fusion card, and the Spellcaster it pairs with. Three Original Cards, all in harmony with each other. The theoretical knowledge to reverse-engineer that would be decades of research even for a research institute, and Luke isn't about to publish his methodology."
"Second, Luke himself would never freely teach the technique. If I were in his position, I'd hoard it. So would any rational Card Master."
"Which means the most likely outcome is that we maintain the current hierarchy, with Luke as an anomaly inside it. And since Luke came from our jurisdiction, the anomaly benefits us. Our job is to keep him safe until he can protect himself."
Roland nodded slowly, absorbing the analysis.
"If someone had told me, a week ago, that a freshly-minted Commander Realm Card Master could theoretically rewrite the development path of Magic Card Civilization…" He shook his head. "I'd have thought they were drunk."
"But seeing it in person," Edmund said, "forces the recognition. Some talents exist outside standard metrics. Luke is one of them."
"I almost feel old, watching him."
Edmund allowed himself a small smile. "Each generation brings forth its own giants. That's how civilizations advance. It's a good thing." He turned to face the monitoring deck as a whole. "And now, it's time to bring our students back. The competition is over."
He stood, and the observation staff around the deck immediately began the recall procedures.
-----
Inside the sanctum, the immediate aftermath of the fight played out quietly.
Elise hadn't left the Relic yet. She'd defeated her own conditioning enough to walk across the ruined floor and face Luke directly, her expression controlled but carrying a trace of something hard to read behind her glasses.
"Congratulations, Luke."
Luke inclined his head politely. "Thank you. You were strong."
Elise's eye twitched.
That's what people say at funerals. Don't pity me, you just curb-stomped me in front of my entire family.
She didn't voice the thought. She gave him a dry smile instead, and Luke caught the edge of it and understood. He almost apologized, decided against it, and moved toward the pedestal where the Holy Dragon Furnace Heart waited.
The Heart hadn't moved during the battle. Despite the Dragon Knight's combat having scoured most of the sanctum, the central pedestal and the artifact above it were untouched, clearly protected by a high-grade invisible defensive enchantment. The core chamber hadn't been as undefended as it had appeared.
But the defense also didn't resist the tournament winner. Luke extended his hand, and the Heart responded, detaching from its hovering position and descending gently into his palm. Compact. Dense. Pulsing with faint internal light.
The moment it transferred into his possession, the Mist Relic's systems registered the victory condition.
Across the Dimensional Plane, every remaining competitor felt their Teleportation Cards warm in their storage. White light engulfed them one by one, displacing them back to the Capital Association plaza. The second stage was over, regardless of how close they'd gotten to the core.
In the sanctum itself, Luke, Elise, and the Dragon Knight Dark Magician Girl also dematerialized in twin flares of white light, displaced back to the Association's main hall.
As they vanished, fog flooded into the empty core chamber from every direction, resaturating the space. Ruin Guards materialized at regular intervals around the now-empty pedestal, taking up guard positions. The Mist Relic reset itself, ready for the next Youth Training Competition, whenever that would be.