Card Apprentice Daily Log

Chapter 2590: Nanny Cards

Date: Unspecified

Time: Unspecified

Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Central Region, Central Academic City, Morningstar University District, Brothwork Manor

After Demigod Von left, I immediately contacted Lois through my hive spirit, leaving her a message to ask about the Masters facing divine retribution. I didn’t attempt to contact her directly. I had no idea where she was at the moment, nor did I understand the full extent of the Masters’ means. Instead, I left her messages, trusting that she would reach out to me when she could.

”Wyatt, don’t blame Uncle Von. He means well,” Jill said after making sure Demigod Von had truly left. ”In fact, he was my nanny. Being a single parent wasn’t easy for my genius father. For someone who could unravel the mysteries of the world, he somehow couldn’t figure out how to raise a baby. Uncle Von, on the other hand, became a father in his teens. He had plenty of experience in that area and helped my father tremendously.”

”If not for his love for you, he and his companions wouldn’t have left this place alive,” I assured her, making it clear that I hadn’t taken offense at Demigod Von’s overprotectiveness regarding our relationship. ”That said, if your father truly understands how difficult parenthood is—especially single parenthood—what is he doing researching pleasure cards? Shouldn’t he be developing nanny cards instead? Unless...” I paused, a crooked smile forming. ”Unless he plans to get all men addicted to pleasure cards, leaving them with neither the interest nor the time to make babies with real women. Now that would be a truly diabolical plan. As expected of a Founder.”

”That’s not funny,” Jill said, fixing me with a stern look. If anything, it only encouraged me to push further.

”Why?” I teased. ”Because it could very well be true?”

Jill narrowed her eyes at me, but realizing that the more she reacted, the more I would needle her, she forced herself to calm down and smoothly changed the subject. ”Actually, the nanny card idea isn’t bad at all. Maybe nanny summons could take the form of the parent while caring for the baby. That way, parents wouldn’t worry about their children forgetting them—”

”What is it with you and your father?” I cut in, feigning indignation. ”Why are the two of you so determined to steal my ideas and claim them as your own? Can’t you come up with something original for once?”

”Since when did nanny cards become your idea?” Jill shot back. ”You only brought it up to mock my father. I’m the one who realized that, if it were a real card, the Five Regions would have a strong market for it. Stop being such a greedy narcissist. By your logic, the first person who ever joked about creating a powder to boost one’s soul power or a card to digest soul-energy monster meat should be credited with your Silver Milk Powder and VR-Slime cards.”

She didn’t pause, her frustration finally spilling over. ”And my dad didn’t steal your idea. At best, he copied it—no, he took inspiration from it. That isn’t a crime. You should be flattered that my father found inspiration in one of your works. Instead, here you are, ungratefully calling him a thief.”

”Yeah? Are you even hearing yourself?” I shot back without thinking. ”You sound like every damn lawyer out there defending a thief.”

The moment the words left my mouth, regret hit me—I knew I had gone too far.

Jill was right about her father drawing inspiration from ideas. Unless he had created pleasure cards using the actual card recipe of my Slime Fairy card, he hadn’t technically copied or stolen anything from me—he had merely taken inspiration from my work. The real reason I was angry lay elsewhere. It was how he had taken that inspiration. He had trespassed into Fine Gold’s research facility and gone through my work without my permission. That was what truly infuriated me.

Still, considering he was my girlfriend’s father, it was something I could have overlooked. But after what I had just said, I wasn’t so sure I still had a girlfriend.

”Call my father a thief one more time and see what happens,” Jill warned, her gaze sharp and unyielding as it locked onto mine.

”You saw me kill nearly four dozen demigods in the blink of an eye, didn’t you?” Instead of apologizing, I coldly reminded her of the gap in our strength. At that moment, I was certain I had crossed a line that couldn’t be walked back.

”No, I didn’t,” Jill snapped, her expression stern. ”All I saw was you collecting nearly four dozen divinities and diamond grimoires.” Then she pointed at me, her voice hardening. ”That’s more like it. Don’t you ever insult my father in front of me again.”

”So, it’s fine if I insult him without you knowing?” I asked. At that point, it sounded less like I was trying to save the relationship and more like I was actively trying to end it—let alone fight for it.

”I’ll remember this,” Jill said grudgingly, then added firmly, ”Take me home.”

”Sure, but that will have to wait,” I replied, turning my gaze toward the Brothwork Manor. The ambush meant for me had been arranged right outside their estate. That alone made their involvement obvious. And I wasn’t in the habit of letting enemies walk away, nor of forgiving them.

”Wyatt, tell me you’re not thinking of raiding the Brothwork Manor,” Jill said, horror creeping into her voice. ”Tell me you’re not that foolish.”

She had watched me kill nearly four dozen demigods, but she also knew exactly how terrifying the descendants of the Founders were. It wasn’t just their personal strength—everything about them was overwhelming. Their subordinates, their resources, their arrays—they surrounded themselves with the best of the best.

Jill didn’t believe I would fail to achieve whatever goal I set my sights on inside the manor. What she feared was what would come after. Once I was done, I would place myself squarely at the top of the Founders’ hit list. And she didn’t want her boyfriend to die before he had even taken her out on a proper date.