Card Apprentice Daily Log

Chapter 2356  Temperamental Judges

Date: Unspecified Time: Unspecified Location: Myriad Realms, Lil. Red Storm, Seed World, Trophy Section, Duel Realm, Crafting Sector, Venue: Chaos Dwarven Forge.

With time, the Colosseum grew quiet as the audience realized their mistake. The once-boisterous chatter dwindled to murmurs, and then to silence, as uneasy glances passed among the spectators. In their heated debate over the unknown demon merchantʼs Frosling corpse puppets, they had touched one of the taboos of the duel world: ignoring the Judges during a duel. Slowly, heads turned toward the Judges, who hovered above with their expressions veiled, their eyes fixed on the unknown demon merchant and his Chaos Dwarven attendant. The two, oblivious to the scrutiny, shared a light laugh, their postures relaxed, as though they were immune to the tension thickening in the air. Thus, the Judges observed the unknown demon merchant contestant under the patient but simmering gaze of the audience.

Noticing this, Bigoldʼs face twisted with worry as he fumbled for his demon codex. His fingers trembled slightly as he connected the call. ”Dulas, you fool! Didnʼt I warn you about socializing with the contestants, especially this one? Now look what youʼve done—the Judges are angry and are purposefully delaying the duel.” His voice was sharp, but beneath it lay an undertone of blaming, which made him rub his temple in frustration over his nieceʼs incompetence as he paced.

Reminded by her uncleʼs scolding, Dulas stiffened and glanced upward. Her brows furrowed as her gaze met the piercing eyes of the Judges, their expressions unreadable yet oppressive. She clenched her jaw and ended the call without a word, her grip on the codex tightening briefly before she recalled it. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she turned to the contestant. ”Sorry, it seems Iʼve gotten you into trouble,” she said, her voice soft but tinged with guilt. Her eyes darted upward briefly, subtly signaling toward the hovering Judges.

Wyatt raised an eyebrow and smirked, leaning back slightly as if to emphasize his lack of concern. ”Ignore them. You didnʼt get me into trouble, nor did I by talking,” he said calmly, his voice laced with indifference. His gaze flickered to the Judges briefly before returning to Dulas. ”They just overestimate their value as slaves to the Devil Merchant Code.” He waved a hand dismissively, as though brushing away their presence. To him, the Judgesʼ delay was nothing more than a childʼs tantrum.

The crowd shifted uneasily, their anticipation mingling with a growing impatience. A little drama makes a duel a lot more fun, but too much drama could ruin it. The Judges could only afford to be moody as long as it didnʼt harm the profits of their lord, the Devil Merchant Code. Their occasional displays of authority served as entertainment for the stream viewers, who chuckled at their antics and even placed unofficial bets on how long the Judgesʼ moods would last. On the other hand, the live audience squirmed in their seats, their expressions ranging from annoyance to resignation. After all, they had paid to watch the duel unfold, not to endure the Judgesʼ temperamental delay.

The Judges, hovering above the arena, glazed at the unknown demon merchant who was deliberately ignoring, their faces impassive but their gestures deliberate—fingers or tail tapping, arms crossed, or the occasional tilt of a head. They served as both props and precedents for the duel, their actions carefully calculated. Yet, there was a limit to how temperamental they could afford to be. Too much drama risks becoming monotonous or even irritating, whether for the audience or the stream viewers. Such a shift could directly affect the profits of the Devil Merchant Code, a reality that the Judges understood all too well.

Even so, their occasional mercurial outbursts often went unnoticed in the grand scheme of things. With hundreds of thousands of battles happening across the duel realm, viewers could easily switch to another if one duel grew tiresome. As for the live audience, they were accustomed to the risks of disappointment when purchasing tickets for matches between two unknown and unnamed contestants. Many shifted in their seats, their faces resigned as they realized this duel might take longer.

The only reason the viewers and the audience continued to stay was their anticipation of seeing the unknown demon merchantʼs corpse puppets in action, displaying their remarkable skill in crafting icy weapons and armors of SS-rank in no time. Dispite the Judges scrutiny occasional murmurs and hushes would ripple through the audience, accompanied by the occasional sound of someone shifting in their seat, unable to contain their excitement. Many were utterly intrigued by these three Frosling corpse puppets, their eyes gleaming with curiosity. Most of them were crafters themselves, and knowing the ingredients used to create the puppets, they wanted figure out the mystery surrounding the extraordinary skills these corpse puppets displayed, it was like an unsolvable riddle calling out to their competitive and ambitious nature.

Like Dulas, the audience wanted desperately to uncover how the unknown demon merchant had crafted his Frosling puppets to enable them to forge armors and weapons of SS-rank in mere fractions of a second—an ability that seamlessly integrated crafting into combat. Some leaned forward in their seats, their brows furrowed in thought, while others clutched their codices tightly, jotting down frantic notes about every observation. They had the ingredients list the unknown demon merchant had used, but as they puzzled over it, frustrated sighs and muttered exclamations of disbelief filled the air. They decided they might as well use the delay to quench their mental thrist. But even with the ingredients laid bare, the connection between those raw materials and the puppetsʼ abilities eluded them. Some scratched their heads, while others exchanged whispered theories, their faces etched with a mix of awe and greed.

Unable to piece the puzzle together, their curiosity and avarice kept them rooted in their seats. The viewers at home were no different; their eyes were glued to their demon or devil codex, fingers hovering over screens as they rewatched the puppetsʼ every movement. Desperation to grasp the secrets of the unknown demon merchantʼs crafting recipe made the tension in the Colosseum grew.