AFTERWORD

Chapter 36

Chapter 33

Overview

Carl and Donut engage in practice battles at the mock combat arena to prepare for the Faction Wars. They face Der Schachmeister, a level-25 child deckmaster with two powerful level-100 wolves and fast deck summoning mechanics. The fight ends in a loss when the enemy wolf strikes Donut, but Carl gains crucial insights about combat strategy and totem coordination.

Summary

Carl and Donut spend hours in the mock battle arena, first defeating easier challenge difficulty opponents with relative ease. Donut becomes distracted when learning that Empress D'Nadia has sold her sponsorship to Long Haul Biological Waste Management Solutions, upsetting her deeply. They unlock "Secret Challenge Mode" for free practice matches. During their first deck-versus-deck battle, they face Der Schachmeister, a 12-year-old deckmaster with two level-100 wolves and an eight-second card summoning cooldown—faster than the standard ten seconds. The opponent immediately deploys mystic cards: a Peekaboo card to see their hand and a To Hell With Ya card to burn Shi Maria from their deck before they can summon her. Raul manages to kill the first wolf but struggles against the second. Samantha attempts to use a new glowing blue attack but exhausts herself before completing it. The second wolf reaches Donut and the simulation ends in defeat. Carl analyzes their failures: they need to attack the deckmaster directly rather than focus on totems, improve totem response times, and develop coordinated strategies like he and Mongo use. He notes that Asojano and Uzi Jesus are unreliable despite their power, making them nearly useless in time-critical fights. Carl considers accepting a totem card from Katia to replace a weak totem. They have limited time—just over a day until the real competition begins—and decide to practice again immediately.

Characters

  • CarlDeckmaster and primary strategist attempting to coordinate totems and develop battle tactics with Donut
  • DonutCo-deckmaster engaged in practice battles; becomes distracted by sponsorship issues but refocuses on combat
  • Shi MariaPowerful spider totem card that Carl and Donut have relied on; burned from their hand by opponent's mystic card before she can be summoned
  • RaulCrab totem who participates in the practice battle, kills one wolf but struggles against the second; generally submissive in nature
  • Der SchachmeisterChild deckmaster (level 25) and primary opponent in the practice battle, deploys two level-100 wolves and strategic mystic cards including Peekaboo and To Hell With Ya
  • Der KornwolfLevel-100 wolf totem summoned by Der Schachmeister; killed by Raul's Bris spell
  • Die KartoffelwölfinLevel-100 wolf totem summoned by Der Schachmeister; defeats Raul and strikes Donut to end the simulation
  • MongoAlly who participates in practice but is held back by Carl to avoid unrealistic simulation conditions; prepared to attack the deckmaster directly
  • SamanthaAlly who attempts a new glowing blue attack during the battle but exhausts herself before completing it
  • AsojanoTotem card mentioned as unreliable and potentially hostile despite being powerful
  • Uzi JesusTotem card with a 50% success rate of following orders and tendency to lie about completing tasks
  • GeraldoMonk seal totem card who fights with Raul and struggles to cooperate
  • Skylar SpinachHybrid totem card with donkey head and bat wings; mentioned as a useful distraction but with limited summoning time
  • Empress D'NadiaPrevious sponsor of Donut who sold her sponsorship to a waste management company
  • KatiaAcquaintance offering to trade one of her totem cards to Carl and Donut due to her own totem coordination issues
  • FlorinPerson who provided Uzi Jesus card; responds with laughter when Carl sarcastically thanks him
  • MordecaiReferenced for earlier advice about mage combat tactics