Walking down the street felt like the most normal thing I had ever done in my life. I couldn't even differentiate it from when I walked in my neighborhood, it felt so real.
The buildings were simple and looked somewhat comfy to tell the truth, the entire environment was calm and fresh. It wouldn't be a surprise if most of the Players had been entangled by this scene.
Soon I arrived at my destination.
The 'building' was a mix between a stall and a circus tent, squeezed between two stone buildings that seemed to be either family houses or hotels.
The purple cloth resembled silk, glistening in the sunlight as if stars had been sewed in its very foundation. It was a marvelous view, and very contrasting with the rather dull colored environment that was filled with whites, grays and browns.
Entering the tent was like being teleported to another world; the interior was dark, but the 'stars' let in light enough for me to see the table in the middle of a small room.
The table had a blue cloth on top of it alongside a deck of cards with its back up, a beautiful yellow pattern being visible in them.
Sitting beside it was an old hunchbacked lady. She was wearing a white buccaneer shirt and multicolored pieces of cloth from her waist below, like a long skirt. On her head was a dark red scarf, and two golden earrings, one on each ear.
The woman beckoned for me to get closer and I promptly walked to the other side of the table, sitting in front of her.
"Hello young man. What brings you to this humble lady's house?" The old lady asked with a gentle voice. It reminded me of grandma.
Of course, I answered the line that would start the scenario. "Esteemed elder, I came here to learn of my future"
"Young man, surely there are other ways to learn of your future. Why bother with coming here to meet this old lady when there are so many other ways and younger woman that can help you?"
What the old lady was true; there were many ways to learn the future of the game, the most common ones being prophets or seers that had contracts with the gods.
But to activate the [Card Mage] Quest, a certain type of person was needed.
A Fortune Teller.
But not any kind fortune teller. The person needed to know how to use tarot cards to read my luck, or else the System would not recognize the scenario.
"Indeed, there are many ways for me to learn of my future, and places where most man would give up their fortune to have an audience with the tellers."
Saying until here was not an exaggeration. Those crazy programmers must have been Neets or something like that 'cause most of the woman in this world were Top-Class beauties. Even the commoners were pretty enough to be inside the Top 10 of each country!
"But such methods are not what I seek; instead, I look towards the cards. The cards are impassive and unchangeable; they can show the past, the present and future, all at the same. With such a method in sight, why bother with someone that can lie, all to get a miser amount of coins?"
The old woman gave a faint smile, her eyes seemed to glow for a moment and then she started to take the cards of the deck, one by one, until three cards were left face down in front of me.
"Many seek the future for their own gain, and none care what methods they use. Yes, the cards are stoic and can't lie, but the same can't be said for the teller, who can change them without you even noticing. Can you still trust this old hag after hearing this?"
It was a test. One that I knew very well how to answer after my years of playing card games.
"While I cannot be sure if the teller will change the cards, I am sure you will not do so old lady"
"Oho, and why is that?" She asked with curiosity gleaming in her eyes. Which, in my opinion, seemed more alive than they were supposed to be?
Inwardly shrugging I promptly answered, "because the card's voice will talk louder."
The woman stopped and looked at me with a complicated gaze. In return I simply smiled and continued my speech.
"No matter how much you may want to alter the reading, the cards will never allow it. That's because they have a voice of their own, a heart. And no force could change this heart in the past, neither Gods nor Devils."
Flipping the first card, a blank face greeted my sight.
The woman smiled fondly and continued from where I stopped. "The heart of the cards is a mystery many tried to solve, but none actually found an answer, only rumors and dreams. But that voice cannot be heard by many, and so was forgotten from this world."
The second card turned out to be blank again, but I kept the smile on my face and continued talking.
"Only those acknowledged by the cards can hear their voice. Cards are gates for a different world, inside them are fantastical creatures, legendary warriors, and dream like landscapes that could mesmerize even blackest of hearts. Their possibilities are boundless, and so is the future of someone who can wield them."
The third card was flipped over, and another blank face appeared.
I looked back at the woman in front of me who had a smile on her face. The fact that someone capable of drawing three blank cards was sitting in front of her must have brought immense joy to her heart.
According to the lore of the game, if someone drew three white cards in a tarot reading it meant that the person had unlimited potential. At least, that was what the NPCs would think, and for them, such a thing was akin to having a Genius in front of them.
But for Players it was nothing, after all, they could keep climbing higher and higher as long as they could level up.
Resting my hand on the deck of cards I drew a fourth one, which I then flipped and left right beside the deck.
In the card was a golden chariot, beautiful wave-like patterns were carved in the body. Pulling the golden cart were two seahorses, but not the small ones. They were blue in color, with kelp like arms and tail and they were as big as the chariot itself.
The card I drew was the 'Sea Chariot'. Like the sea, this chariot was unrestrained, following the flow wherever it led it. This was, of course, not a lucky draw, but something prepared by the system.
All that talk about the voice of the cards was a pre-requisite to reach this point, but it wasn't like I didn't use a few original lines in the dialogue. As someone who loves cards, some of the things I said were from the bottom of my heart, and the System didn't seem to mind.
The moment it confirmed the completion of the requirements, the System changed the top card to that of the chariot. The chariot is the symbol of travel, and the next phase was exactly that.
"Old lady, I am an Adventurer that wish to see the world and learn many things. The cards seem to agree with my decision, and I would like you to see where they will lead me."
Now, the old woman would draw a card from the deck, and that card would show the destination I would have to go to complete the Quest.
The problem was ... It was completely random.
The System would choose the next location at random, so it could be as simple as visiting a beach, or as crazy as going to heaven or hell.
I simply stood there, anticipation filling me as I saw the old lady move. She lifted her wrinkled hand and took the top card of the deck before resting it on the table.
When she flipped it, though, my smile froze and I swear I nearly fainted in the spot.
Red, cracked ground with dead trees and boulders filled the landscape. In the background a large, black mountain stood out, with rivers of fire flowing down its sides onto the land.
It was a Volcano.