5 Card Mage Historia

"Whoa, whoa Lady? Please calm down. There must be a mistake." Ahli could not comprehend at all why the female swordsman suddenly considered him her enemy. One thing for sure he could comprehend at that moment was to keep his distance with the tip of her sword. And backward steps he took, so he could pay attention to what the female swordsman will do.

"There is no such mistake. You're a card mage, your existence is a threat to the peace of this kingdom." Rebutted the female swordsman as she moved forward with her sword's tip following Ahli's neck wherever he moved, either to the left, right, or back.

"What do you mean threat?" Asked Ahli, as this new piece of information basically added more to the confusion of their situation at the moment.

"Oh, don't you act like a fool. You are one of them. The traitorous 'Heroes'!"

[Heroes? What the hell is she talking about?]

For Ahli, the female knight added too much information and it just made him harder and harder to process his situation. He quickly stopped walking backward and with dead-serious eyes, he stared at the female swordsman and asked, "What do you mean by 'them'?"

"Huh? Don't joke. You know what I'm talking about!" Yelled the female swordsman at him, as she seemed to be really annoyed with Ahli's constant denial. She grabbed him by the neck and positioned her sword tip at the front of Ahli's left eye.

He tried his best not to close his left eye, as he was really scared, yet he needed to show his dignity and bravery in order to uphold his truth.

"They came with angelic faces and we trusted them to save us from the demons! Yet, they were the true demon!" The female swordsman's grip got stronger and it choked Ahli.

He felt the air get harder to pass his throat and he just could not stand it. He tried to resist by trying to remove her hand from his neck, but she was just stronger than him. He knew he just needed to beg her and so Ahli started to tap her hand repeatedly. "Please…Lady…I'm not…your…enemy…"

As Her choke got stronger, Ahli started to lose consciousness. With that, his tap gradually became slower and weaker. And as he thought about how his other world journey came to an end in such a short period, he felt the grip loosen, and then came a rush of air entered his lung, making him choke and cough.

Ahli groveled at the ground, trying to control his breathing. As it got better, he looked up toward the face of the female swordsman. There was still that serious expression on her face, yet he could feel that the anger seemed to reduce. She, however, still pointed her sword at him.

Ahli knelt while still trying to control his breathing. "I just came from the other world, when I stumbled upon you and the goblin…"

He slowly stood as he tried not to alarm the female swordsman. "…that is the truth."

He stared her in the eyes and even though it was surely scary, he was not blinking this time. And so, none of them spoke for a minute or two, exchanging stares, waiting for one to lose contact. It was silent between them with the sound of the wind hitting the branches of the trees being the only thing that they could hear.

[Oh, crap. My eyes can't hold it anymore.]

Seeing things would not proceed if they kept their silence, Ahli decided to be the first one to break it. "I am a card mage as you said. However, I don't know anything about it except the ability to wield the cards…"

He took a deep breath before continuing his words, "…therefore, please tell me about what their role is in this world, so I know, who would be my enemies and my friends."

As he finished with his sentence, the female swordsman did not reply to him immediately. As he waited for her to respond, again, the silence lingered between them.

Ahli observed the female swordsman's expression and gestured. The position of her eyebrows and loosening of the grip on her sword made him guess that she might be thinking of what to do next. He waited and waited, and when that moment came. She lowered her sword, even though she did not sheath it.

"The first card mage appeared two years ago. As like you, he was summoned from another world." Said the female swordsman.

"As I said before, he was summoned to help us to deal with the demon king army, and yes, his help was very beneficial for us." After she finished that sentence, her expression suddenly took 180 degrees turn, as it changed to sorrow.

"And what follows after that, more and more card mages were summoned from another world. The tide flowed in our favor and in the end, we won our war against the demon king…Little that we know how after that, our new nightmare would start…"

"What happened?" asked Ahli, even though he could predict what the female swordsman would say after, as he knew a similar story that he'd read in a light novel.

"The first card mage killed the king and took over the throne. All the fine general soon followed his majesty's fate." It was not just sorrow, but an expression of horror as the female swordsman continued her story.

"The card mages then took over the vacant positions and start ruling over this kingdom as tyrants. Of course, there were more oppositions, however, no matter how many times we tried to fight them…we lost…" There, at that moment, Ahli saw sadness in the female swordsman's eyes as she said the last few words. He knew what the sadness for as he remembered it well when he saw it in Jena's mom's eyes a few hours back.

"Who did you lose?" From the female swordsman's gesture, as she heard his question, it can be assumed that she was surprised to be given such a question. Ahli just knew that his hunch was correct.

Calming herself, she did not confirm nor deny at first, but then she answered his question. "My husband…He was the king's personal bodyguard, and after his highness passed away, he led the rebellion against the card mages. Yet, he was slaughtered along with the rest."

"My condolences." Said Ahli after hearing those stories. He also felt turmoil arise inside his heart. He began to question what was the purpose of him being transported into this new world. He wondered was he also supposed to be part of the card mage order, or would another purpose had been waiting for him.

"So, card mage, that is the truth of what you are. Will you still be denying your status?" asked the female swordsman.

Ahli was still in his deep thought as she asked that question and he was unable to give the answer immediately. He wondered and search his heart as he knew how hard the wall he needed to overcome if he decides to fight against the order. It was then when his sight captured the deck box at his side, a revelation came to him.

"I too lost someone 3 months ago, and I thought how there was no more future for me." Ahli looked at the deck box and showed it to the female swordsman. "However, I found this in her room a few hours ago, and it brought me here. For now, I would like to think that she's still alive in this world, and maybe I'll find her if I side with good."

"Are you sure your woman would be in the righteous path? She might be one of them by now." Asked the female swordsman with a cynical tone.

"I know she won't be swayed to evil. Jena will always help people in need." Answered Ahli. "Therefore, I will follow on her path."

As if Ahli's conviction had passed through her heart's gate, the hostile aura that the female swordsman emitted, finally perished.

"Okay, then. I believe you." As proof of she's trusting Ahli, she finally sheathed her sword. "I'm really sorry for not trusting you."

"Nah, it's fine. I was too naïve to think this is a typical isekai story." Replied Ahli.

"Isekai?" Asked the female swordsman in confusion, which made Ahli realize he really needed to keep his other world knowledge let out as minimum as possible.

"Sorry to confuse you. It's a term used in my world that means another world. Especially the ones that involved a similar situation like me." Answered Ahli.

"I see…" The female swordsman seemed not satisfied with the answer that Ahli had given as it was shown on her face, however, after a few moments of thinking, it was clear she was not bothering about it anymore. She then looked at him and put her right palm on top of her left chest, and then she said, "My name is Sharon, heir of the House of Mendua."

Seeing how she introduced herself, Ahli made the same gesture and said, "I'm Ahli, a card mage."