The Banned Mythic Card

Tokyo, dusk, the Oma-ga-toki.

In a yokai Secret Realm, an ancient Japanese-style mansion was being torn asunder by a giant demonic tortoise. Standing over the ruins of the mansion, the beast was eight or nine meters tall, its back covered in heavy armor and its head adorned with a single long horn. Its thick skin and solid shell projected an aura of absolute arrogance.

The Hades Beast—a legendary demonic tortoise from the Warring States period. It was particularly famous for its defense, once hailed as the strongest defensive yokai of that era. Its shell was said to be harder than diamond, something even a Yokai Lord could not tear through. The creature standing before them now was a Secret Lore Yokai born from the legends of the Hades Beast. Any sharp blade striking that solid armor would only produce brilliant sparks. Currently, Encho had turned the Hades Beast into his most formidable shield. Logically, it should have been extremely difficult for any yokai in the mortal world today to breach this defense. This was the foundation of Encho's confidence.

As Encho sat safely within the shell, using a special method to observe the outside world and his opponent's response, he suddenly noticed a strange figure.

Following Miketsu’s loud declaration, a seemingly ordinary human male emerged from a glow of light before the Hades Beast. He had an average build, neither tall nor short, and was somewhat lean. He wore only a pair of simple trousers, his upper body completely bare. Beneath a mess of short hair sat a pair of glasses, and behind those glasses was a look of unwavering determination.

'What kind of yokai is this? No matter how I look at it, he's just an ordinary human.' Encho thought as he stared at the figure standing before the towering Hades Beast. From every possible angle, he appeared to be nothing more than a common, everyday human. He didn't have a single special feature compared to the previous yokai, Irelia, who manipulated blades. Could something so plain really be called a Secret Lore Yokai?

'No, this opponent's cards are all too bizarre. I cannot afford to be careless.' Thinking this within the shell, Encho issued an order to the Hades Beast.

"Attack, Hades Beast! Clear out all the yokai summoned by the enemy!"

Following Encho's command, the Hades Beast moved. Bright electrical arcs began to dance upon the spikes of its shell, discharging fierce bolts of lightning toward the enemy ahead. Faced with the rolling thunder surging toward her, Irelia controlled her blades to guide the lightning away, using the sharp edges to divert the wild strikes. Seizing this opportunity, the ordinary young man standing still also moved.

The youth leapt up, soaring into the air in a single bound. He looked down at the massive Hades Beast below, clenched his fist, and plummeted straight down. He slammed his fist heavily against the Hades Beast's diamond-like shell. At that moment, Encho, tucked inside the shell, couldn't help but feel his heart tighten.

However, what happened next was beyond Encho's expectations. The youth's fist did not move the Hades Beast's shell at all. In fact, it failed to cause even the slightest bit of damage. The punch really did seem like it belonged to an ordinary person. Seeing this, Encho snapped his folding fan open and shook his head with a smile. Observing the youth's poor performance, he suddenly realized his previous worries were entirely unnecessary.

"Hades Beast, release your electricity! Shock that lowly fellow down!"

Closing his fan with a crisp snap, Encho issued a direct command. At his word, the Hades Beast roared. Its shell crackled again, and the youth standing upon it was struck directly by the flowing arcs of lightning. Hit by the powerful voltage, he was sent flying back into the air.

Encho watched with satisfaction. He then turned his attention back to the summoner of these Secret Lore Yokai—the girl in the high school uniform. However, he didn't see any of the panic or disappointment he expected. Instead, the smile on her face remained unchanged.

As if sensing that Encho’s attention had shifted back to her from within the shell, Miketsu spoke with an unvarying, relaxed tone and a smile.

"Did you know? Even weak, ordinary humans are not something that can be generalized. Anger can trigger human potential. In situations of extreme anger, some humans can burst forth with superhuman power."

Hearing Miketsu's words, Encho scoffed with disdain. He then used an amplification spell to speak to the outside.

"Superhuman power? Heh, just a human. No matter how superhuman, how far could it possibly go? Hmm?"

Suddenly, Encho felt an extraordinary aura coming from above. He looked up and saw that the youth who had been sent flying into the sky was now undergoing an abnormal transformation.

The youth’s bare chest was turning bright red. His muscles began to bulge rapidly and violently, and even his bones seemed to be expanding. In a brief moment, the youth's physique swelled to more than twice its original size. His tightly clenched teeth made his face look ferocious. Steam began to rise wildly from his red, scalding skin, and an indescribable pressure exploded from his body. Even Encho, hidden within the shell, couldn't help but tremble.

With a roar, the youth adjusted his position in mid-air, turning his feet upward. He then kicked off violently, compressing the air with such force that it created a sonic boom. He lunged through the sky toward the Hades Beast below. The fist on his thick arm was already clenched, containing a power capable of punching through a fifty-meter-thick steel plate.

"Boom!"

A fist of rage fell. That infinite, majestic power—enough to easily pierce the main armor belt of a battleship—slammed into the shell of the Hades Beast. For a moment, the beast's four limbs were completely unable to support this force. Its bones shattered instantly as it collapsed, its massive body pinned ruthlessly to the ground. The human-faced tortoise head rolled its eyes in agony. Under the crushing weight of that angry fist, the diamond-like shell rapidly cracked and shattered, with deep fissures spreading from the point of impact across the Hades Beast's entire body.

And it wasn't over. After that, the angry youth began a rapid-fire barrage on the Hades Beast's back.

"SO ANGRY SO ANGRY SO ANGRY SO ANGRY SO ANGRY SO ANGRY!!!"

Amidst the continuous roars, the crimson fists of rage fell like raindrops upon the beast's shell. Under this barrage, which hit with the force of a surging flood, the solid shell—reputed as the strongest defense among all yokai of the Warring States—shattered in an instant. Large sections of it disintegrated, and the vulnerable internal organs beneath began to suffer the merciless impact, erupting in a spray of blood.

Encho had attempted to flee the moment the first fist of rage hit and the shell began to show deep, widespread cracks. By the time the subsequent barrage of punches arrived, he had already scrambled out of the shell. However, the powerful shockwaves and energy from the rapid-fire punches still caught him. Encho was blown away, crashing heavily against a pillar in the ruins of the house. The shards of the shell that sprayed in his direction also grazed and cut his body in multiple places, leaving blood staining his clothes.

On the other side, with its shell broken and its organs pulverized, the Hades Beast gradually vanished into nothingness amidst its wails, leaving not a trace behind.

"Ah, you escaped quite quickly... or should I say, your intuition is pretty good."

Looking at Encho, who had narrowly escaped a fatal crisis, Miketsu spoke slowly. Encho panted as he replied.

"Phew... thank you for the compliment. My intuition has always been my point of pride."

As he spoke, Encho glanced toward the other side, toward the youth standing upon the vanishing remains of the Hades Beast, steam still rising from his body. He sighed in admiration.

"I truly didn't expect it. To think there was a yokai in this world capable of piercing the Hades Beast's defense. Furthermore, I’ve never even heard of him. How strange. Without a corresponding secret lore in circulation, it should be impossible for a Secret Lore Yokai to exist..."

Staggering to his feet, a blood-covered Encho opened his fan to cover his mouth and asked the question.

"The so-called 'circulation' doesn't have to be done through traditional secret lore. In our era, the forms of 'circulation' are extremely diverse. As long as something has enough popularity, then with enough ability, it can be made into a yokai."

Miketsu answered lightly. In this day and age, it wasn't just original secret lores and ghost stories that could create yokai; even internet memes could do so. Common human emotions possess power, much like faith in a deity. Logically, as long as the popularity is sufficient, many memes can be processed into yokai. In this world, there did indeed exist a Huaxia that was very similar to Miketsu’s former world. Compared to Japanese websites and Twitter, Miketsu was more accustomed to browsing Huaxia's internet, and some memes she had seen in her past life actually existed here too.

Thus, using these internet memes as a basis and mimicking Ao Andon's demonic power, Miketsu could create various meme yokai. Generally speaking, the power of such yokai was equal to the degree of circulation and the quality of the original secret lore or meme. However, Miketsu didn't need to follow that principle. For her, when creating meme yokai, she just had to brainlessly stuff energy into them, just as she had done when creating the sugar people. And for Miketsu, who had infinite mana, how much energy she stuffed in depended entirely on how much the subject could handle.

Hearing Miketsu's words, Encho murmured to himself as he slowly stood up. Although he was covered in blood, his expression was calm. There wasn't a hint of panic, as if he hadn't just been put at a disadvantage.

"Looking at you, you don't seem very afraid."

Seeing Encho before her, Miketsu spoke with an unchanged expression. Encho responded with extreme composure.

"Why should I be afraid? Admittedly, little girl, your Secret Lore Yokai are very strange, very novel, and very powerful—so much so that ordinary Secret Lore Yokai are completely no match for them. But fortunately, in my collection, I have one that is not ordinary."

"Not ordinary? Heh, it seems you’ve kept a trump card."

Hearing Encho's words, Miketsu spoke with interest.

"A card... no, calling it a trump card is a bit too disrespectful to her. This card shouldn't be commanded by anyone, myself included. Instead, it should be enshrined in a shrine and worshiped forever."

As he spoke, Encho began to wave his folding fan, his spirit suddenly surging as he continued.

"Among these Secret Lore cards that have circulated for a thousand years, there is a series of cards so powerful they were excluded from the rules of battle and are not allowed to be used. This card is said to be the first one ever placed on the banned list. Its existence in the world is extremely rare; it's likely only found in the collections of famous and powerful yokai collectors. And through a stroke of immense luck, I was most fortunate to obtain it."

Encho murmured. Hearing his words, Miketsu's mouth twitched. Suddenly, it was as if she had thought of something.

"Heh, one thing you said just now was correct. The source of a Secret Lore Yokai's power is the collective emotions of humanity. Therefore, anything that can trigger emotional resonance can become a Secret Lore card. For a Secret Lore card that has had its seal released, the deeper, broader, and more numerous the resonance, the more powerful the card becomes."

As he spoke, Encho spread his hands.

"So, in this world, what kind of resonance can compare to the faith of all living beings in the gods? How can a yokai created by secret lore compare to a god created by faith? Although how it was done remains a mystery, that Lord of Hyakumonogatari who created the Secret Lore cards a thousand years ago did indeed use faith as a foundation to create Mythic cards that mirror the celestial gods!"

As he spoke, Encho gave a sudden flick of his folding fan. From the ruins of the house, an exquisitely crafted treasure box flew out, inlaid with jewels and glowing with radiant light. Around the edges of the box were paintings of foxes chasing each other, and on the lid were paintings of rice ears weaving together.

"Myths created based on faith... is there such a thing?"

Looking at the radiant treasure box flying before Encho, Miketsu murmured with a surprised expression. Encho smiled slightly, opened the lid of the box, and took out the meticulously preserved, glowing card from within.

"Furthermore, the faith that serves as its cornerstone has grown to an unprecedented scale today. In this world, there are hundreds of millions of believers. Under the emotional resonance of these hundreds of millions, exactly what kind of Mythic card will be born?"

"You shall be the first to witness it, little girl! The unsealed Mythic card of the Inari Chief God, Uka-no-Mitama-no-Kami!"