[Third Person’s PoV]

“I see…” Annabeth said, placing a thoughtful hand on her chin. “So we’re in the mid sequences currently. Is there anything you can tell us? Something that won’t get us killed just by knowing?” Her curiosity was evident as she looked toward the future Lucian.

“Let me think…” Lucian said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “There are things I could tell you, but that would defeat the purpose of the journey. So, I’m not going to. But I will give you this one piece of advice: Always find something to do. A god’s greatest bane and curse is their boredom.”

“How is that supposed to help us?” Annabeth muttered in annoyance. “That’s so obvious. Even I could have told you that.”

Lucian’s eye twitched, and just as he opened his mouth to retort, Annabeth held up her hand. “Just give us the cards and be on your way if you have nothing else useful to add.”

³Lucian stared at her for a moment, then smirked. “You think I don’t know what you’re doing?”

Annabeth clicked her tongue and pouted, looking away slightly.

Lucian scoffed, standing up. He motioned to Nico and Bianca. “Come here, you two.”

They approached cautiously, eyeing him warily.

“Don’t worry, I don’t bite,” he said teasingly. “Or do I?” He flashed them a grin, revealing his canines.

As Nico and Bianca stood in front of him, Lucian smiled softly. “You’ve got something behind your ears,” he said, reaching over.

With a swift motion, he pulled out two cards, holding them between his fingers. “Were you two looking for these?”

Bianca rolled her eyes at the cheesiness as Lucian handed them the cards.

“I’ll give you another piece of advice,” Lucian said before they could examine their cards.

They looked at him curiously, holding the cards tightly in both hands.

“Have fun,” Lucian said warmly.

“Have fun?” Nico echoed, confused.

“What kind of advice is that?” Bianca asked, looking at him skeptically.

“The good kind,” Lucian replied. “This journey is treacherous, filled with challenges meant to test your worthiness as you advance through the sequences. Enjoy yourselves. Don’t see it as a challenge; enjoy the journey.”

Annabeth’s eyes widened slightly, her hand returning to her chin as she pondered his words. ‘A test? Is that the true nature of the sequences? A test to decide if we are worthy to advance to the next stage, beyond the gods? If it’s a test, who is the judge? Who decides if we’re worthy? And what constitutes failure?’

Annabeth’s thoughts spiraled as she questioned everything.

“Annabeth… you honestly terrify me sometimes,” Lucian said warily, watching her.

“Huh? You know what I was thinking?” Annabeth asked, raising an eyebrow.

Lucian motioned toward his third eye but said nothing more on the matter. “Anyway, I should be going. I’ve completed my purpose here—ugh!”

He punched himself in the face. “Son of a… I forgot to lift this stupid curse,” Lucian growled softly. “I’d forgotten what pain felt like.”

Lucian dismissed the curse and closed his eyes as his third eye began to shut, crumbling to the floor in exhaustion.

“Lucian!” they shouted in surprise.

He was breathing heavily, as if he had just run a marathon, his fist pressed to the ground to keep him from collapsing entirely. “Judging by the pain on my face, I must’ve managed to at least punch him. Please tell me I got him in the face…”

Thalia chuckled as she helped him to his feet. “Don’t worry, you got him twice, actually.”

“Seriously? Ha! That’s what that bastard gets,” Lucian cheered.

Annabeth wore an amused expression. “He must’ve had a good reason for what he did. You don’t do things without reason.”

Lucian gave her a bewildered look. “How can you know me the longest and still say something that dumb? Have you learned anything about me? I don’t even know why I do half the things I do—I just do them, and it somehow looks like I had a plan.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes. “That’s for things you don’t care about or consider unimportant.”

With Thalia’s help, Lucian turned to Nico and Bianca, his expression serious. “To be loved is to be known…” He glanced at Annabeth. “You don’t love me at all if you say dumb things like that.”

“To be loved is to be known…” Bianca echoed softly. “Why is that so poetic?”

“Never mind that! How are your cards? Are they cool?” Lucian asked, his excitement contagious.

“Oooh!” Nico exclaimed, looking at his card for the first time. “Who’s this handsome guy? Is that seriously me?”

They all gathered around Nico, staring in awe at his card. It had a black frame with the word “Soulless” inscribed at the bottom.

Nico appeared tall and striking, with messy black hair and pitch-black eyes, save for his glowing green pupils. He wore a black, wispy robe-like toga, slightly open to reveal his muscular physique. Skulls and green flames surrounded him, and he held an obsidian skull in his hand, his expression indifferent to everything around him.

“Woah, Nico!” Lucian exclaimed. “As expected of my brother! Quite the looker! Not as handsome as me, but you aren’t bad. Seems the handsome gene runs strong in our family.”

“Nico… is that seriously you?” Bianca asked, glancing between her goofy-looking brother and the god-like figure on the card, unable to believe they were the same person.

Nico blushed at the compliments, feeling both embarrassed and proud.

“Flip the card over,” Annabeth urged, eager to learn more. “I want to see how your sequences develop.”

Nico quickly flipped the card, and they read the sequences aloud:

Sequence 9: Soldier

Sequence 8: Mortician

Sequence 7: Paranormal Investigator

Sequence 6: Bone Mason

Sequence 5: Spirit Priest

Sequence 4: Necro Maniac

Sequence 3: Soulforge

Sequence 2: Horseman of Death

Sequence 1: Death Inquisitor

Sequence 0: Soulless Anomaly

Thalia let out a soft whistle. “Talk about impressive, Nico.”

Nico stared at the sequences in awe, flipping the card back and forth repeatedly before giggling to himself. “Hehehe, it’s like I have my own mytho card…”

“What about you, Bianca?”

Bianca glanced at her card and was taken aback. “The hell? Why am I so beautiful?!”

They all leaned in, and Thalia and Annabeth instantly agreed.

“You… you’re better looking than me…” Thalia said in disbelief.

Bianca’s card had a black and white snowy theme. She appeared with long, wavy dark hair and pale skin, seated on a throne made of ice. She wore a black winter dress adorned with white fur, held together by an ice-blue crystal. Her jewelry looked like it was crafted from ice, and her expression was cold and slightly disdainful. A crystal tiara and a forehead band with a central crystal completed her regal appearance. At the bottom of the card was the title: Winter Matriarch.

“Holy… wow,” Bianca muttered. “Is that seriously what I’m going to look like?”

“It’s unavoidable. We children of Hades are just destined to be too good-looking,” Lucian said with an arrogant smirk.

Bianca held her head slightly higher. “Although… I would have preferred to keep my olive skin,” she muttered.

“You could, you know. As a god, you could definitely change your appearance,” Annabeth said, making Bianca smile.

“The Winter Matriarch, huh,” Thalia murmured. “Now that’s a cool name if I ever heard one.”

“Flip it over. What does yours say?” Nico asked excitedly.

Bianca quickly flipped the card, and they read the following sequences:

Sequence 9: Toxophilite

Sequence 8: Stalker

Sequence 7: Frost Ranger

Sequence 6: Mystic Bowmaster

Sequence 5: Icebound Sorceress

Sequence 4: Cryomancer

Sequence 3: Snow Maiden

Sequence 2: Winter Spirit

Sequence 1: Necrotic Priestess

Sequence 0: Matriarch of Eternal Winter

Bianca read it over and over before finally asking, “The hell is a Toxophilite?!”

“A Toxophilite is another word for a lover of archery or someone who studies it,” Annabeth explained.

“AND WHY THE HELL IS THE NEXT ONE A STALKER?!” Bianca exclaimed in grudging disbelief.

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A/N: The image of the cards are gonna be in the comment section

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep