Date: Unspecified

Time: Unspecified

Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Way Beyond, Ocean Supreme’s Territory, Bay Of Butch

"Seraphina!"

The moment he heard the Southern Heir’s voice and sensed her presence, the bulky man planted his hands into the fractured ground and surged to his feet in a single explosive motion, not caring in the slightest about Aqualas still sitting on his back.

"You’re back. Does that mean you’ve finally agreed to my marriage proposal?" 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

"Veerott, you asshole!"

Aqualas stumbled off his back but landed lightly on her feet. The next moment, she planted both hands against his back and shoved him forward.

The push looked casual, almost playful, yet it carried the force of a raging tsunami.

BOOM!

Veerott was blasted off the island like a cannon shell, tearing through the air before crashing deep into the ocean. The impact split the sea apart for miles, sending colossal waves roaring toward the horizon while the entire island shook violently beneath the aftershock.

"I see you still haven’t managed to get your power under control, Aqualas," Seraphina remarked to the Ocean Supreme as casually as if they were old friends reuniting after years apart.

Around them, the ocean still raged from Aqualas’s casual shove. Yet Aqualas merely crossed her arms and huffed, strands of flowing water-hair swaying around her like living tides.

"Hmph. That idiot deserved it."

"What brings you back, princess? I thought you were relieved to finally get rid of that idiot."

Aqualas looked at Seraphina with clear surprise, as though she had never expected to see her here again. The tides around her shifted restlessly with her emotions, the surrounding seawater rising and falling like a living creature awaiting her mood.

"A lot has happened since I left. I lost my throne and was imprisoned. But my great-grandniece saved me and restored my right to the throne, and now she’s in trouble. She needs my help.

"However, the enemy is not only powerful, I also have no allies I can truly trust except the two of you."

Seraphina did not go into detail. She only revealed enough for her old friends to understand one thing clearly: she was in deep trouble, and she had come here because she needed their help.

"Great. The two of us are all the allies you’ll ever need. Let’s go rescue your niece," Aqualas said with such casual confidence that it sounded like the matter was already settled.

Seraphina did not doubt her confidence in the slightest. After all, Aqualas was the Ocean Supreme, one of the most terrifying Supremes the Card Apprentices had ever faced. If she truly wished to, she could drown all five regions beneath the ocean with a single thought.

"No, this enemy isn’t that simple—"

"Relax, princess. No matter who your enemy is, Veerott and I can handle them."

"Will you listen to me for a second?" Seraphina snapped, her voice turning sharper. "I don’t doubt your prowess. If I did, I wouldn’t have come seeking your help in the first place. But this time... the enemy is in a league of his own."

*Swoosh!*

Veerott exploded out of the ocean and landed beside the two women, seawater cascading off him before instantly evaporating midair. By the time his feet touched the fractured island, he was already dry and presentable.

He had deliberately taken his time beneath the sea to clean himself up for Seraphina. She was the one who got away.

However, he no longer pursued her because she had a habit of bossing him around and shamelessly taking advantage of the feelings he once had for her, even though she had no notion of reciprocating his feelings for her. Veerott had grown tired of that nonsense long ago and chose to live as a hermit instead.

Unfortunately for him, Aqualas refused to leave him alone.

On a whim, she had shifted an entire ocean to this isolated region just so she could continue tormenting him with her absurd strength and demands. After all, in the entire Card World, Veerott was the only being whose body could withstand her abuse without breaking apart.

Or, as Aqualas liked to put it, the only toy sturdy enough not to snap.

"This enemy of yours must be something else. I’ve never heard you describe anyone like that before," Veerott said while subtly flexing his muscles, shamelessly peacocking in an attempt to draw Seraphina’s attention.

Clearly, he still wasn’t over her. If anything, years of isolation and hermitage had only deepened the feelings he carried for her.

"Yes, he is. And he has the backing of two Supremes: the Stone Supreme, Petra, and the Blood Supreme, Bloodette."

"Bloodette? That bitch is hiding there?" Aqualas’s expression instantly darkened. The surrounding ocean churned violently in response to her anger, waves rising high enough to blot out the horizon. "I’m sick of her damn mourning period turning my waters red. I’m constantly expending energy to push the Bloodstorm away from my ocean. Let’s go now. Either she ends her mourning period, or I kill her myself."

The Ocean Supreme had raised a massive high-pressure dome of cold, dense air above the ocean surface, creating a barrier the Bloodstorm could not penetrate. Whenever the storm collided with it, the conflicting pressure systems tore it apart and dispersed it. She did all that because she didn’t like seeing her water getting crimson.

"What’s a mourning period?" Veerott asked. "Did you go through one too?"

"A mourning period is an emotional overload experienced by Supreme beings who keep dying repeatedly, unable to cope with reliving their past memories every time the world’s Rule Stream rebuilds them back to perfection." Aqualas explained dismissively. "It’s basically something weak Supreme beings experience. I haven’t died enough times to ever undergo one, and I don’t plan to anytime soon."

She then grinned, though the smile carried a terrifying edge to it.

"And you better hope I never do either, because if I enter my mourning period..."

The ocean around the island suddenly grew still.

"The entire world will drown."