The Legendary Ghost Hunter

Chapter 122: Jim's Lessons

“Aw, man! I’m so screwed…” Jim muttered as he walked out of the main hall, regretting his words. “That bloody bastard, Lei… I won’t forgive him for snitchin’ me out!”

Finn, hearing his voice, stepped out of the shadows and intercepted him.

Jim, having been blocked, stopped walking and looked at Finn with a raised eyebrow.

“Need somethin’?”

Finn could hear faint footsteps in the distance not too far away, so he asked quietly.

“… Can we speak privately?”

*****

– Within Jim’s Room –

“Alright, kid. We’re speakin’ privately now. So, tell me — whaddya need?” Jim asked, leaning back on his comfortable leather seat and taking a sip of the beer he had poured himself.

“I want to learn the Cardmaster Angelica from you.”

“PFFSH!” Jim spat out the beer in his mouth all over the place, staining Finn completely wet. “Cough, cough… agh… s-sorry, kid, I though I heard somethin’ bloody ridiculous, so I-“

“I’m being serious,” Finn said, completely unbothered by the fact that he just got splashed with beer.

“Yeah, I bet you are! Haha! Funny joke.”

“… Did you forget?” Finn asked, voice low and threatening. “You owe me a wish. And now is the time to grant it.”

“Listen kid, I would love to, buuuut how am I supposed to teach ya the Cardmaster Angelica when ya don’t even have… it…”

Jim trailed off as a glowing white aura enveloped Finn’s sitting figure, and the projection of a deck of cards appeared over his head.

“W-Wha… how is this…”

“… Don’t ask any questions, and just teach me how to use it.”

Jim knew he couldn’t argue, since it was true — he did promise Finn a wish that was never granted, until now. A genie didn’t question why or how somebody made a wish, he just granted it. Jim was the same. So, instead, he chose to give a fair warning.

“… Ya sure about this, kid? I can only teach ya — but whether ya actually manage to learn it or not is completely up to you. And it won’t be bloody easy, trust me.”

“That’s fine. I’m aware. I just hope you don’t purposely give me bad lessons.”

“Ha! Don’t worry ’bout that, kid. I take everythin’ I do seriously, whether that’s gettin’ myself a date or teachin’ an ignorant kid about the bloody Angelica I have.”

Finn pretended to not have heard his jab and instead calmly picked up a cup from the table and took a sip of the liquid inside.

“This tea… it tastes weird.”

“Uh… kid.”

“…?”

“… That’s my beer.”

*****

– A Short While Later, Training Grounds –

“No, no, no!” Jim cried, bawling in despair at Finn’s horrendous attempts at mimicking his movements. “I told ya to raise yer right arm, not reach for the bloody stars!”

“No! I said bend down, not do a goddamn squat!”

“AGH! Kid, by ‘reach behind ya with yer arms’, I don’t mean ‘HUMP THE AIR IN FRONT OF YA’! Are ya even lookin’ at yerself right now?!”

“AY, WATCH THE SQUIRREL! WATCH THE DAMN SQUIRREL! YOU’RE GONNA BLOODY STEP ON IT!”

Raiju, who sat comfortably beneath the shade of a tree, watching the whole thing unfold, yawned in amusement.

Finally, after a long while of Jim screaming and Finn continuing to not meet his expectations, the two decided to take a break.

“Ugh… I told ya, kid, this ain’t gonna work,” Jim said in dejection, sitting down on a slab of rock. “Learnin’ each card’s stance is the fundamentals of the Cardmaster Angelica. If ya can’t even get this right, we can’t move forward.”

“Are you blaming this on my blindness?” Finn raised an eyebrow. “Because in my eyes, the incompetent one is often the teacher. You know I’m blind, so you should be giving me precise, accurate directions. Not just ‘bend down’. How much am I supposed to bend down? What position should my legs be in?”

“T-Tch… in yer eyes? Ha!” Jim chuckled. “Ya can’t even see, kid. Nothin’s in yer eyes.”

“Don’t try to change the topic,” Finn cut in coldly, not buying it at all. “Besides… do I really have to learn these various stances? I don’t remember you doing this when we fought in the simulation.”

“Heh, that’s because I already mastered all 21 Cards a long bloody time ago,” Jim snickered. “Give it up, kid. Ya won’t be able ta reach my level unless ya first master the fundamentals. I had ta start here too.”

“Teach me,” Finn said, standing back up.

“Huh?” Jim raised an eyebrow, looking at him.

“Teach me how to do it without doing the stances.”

“Oi… kid, are ya deaf as well as blind, or what? I just said, ya won’t be able ta do that unless ya first master the bloody fundamentals. Usin’ the Cards without posin’ requires knowledge on them, but more than that, ya need immense mana capacity and control. Yer mental strength must also be unbreakable. I’ll admit, ya’ve impressed me many times now, but there is no way ya can do this. Give it up.”

“Well…” Finn activated his Cardmaster Angelica once more, basking in the sunlight. “… I happen to know a thing or two about tarot cards thanks to a now-deceased friend of mine, and my mana and mental strength are both factors I am confident in. If you’re so convinced I won’t be able to do it… how about a gamble?”

“Oho… a gamble?” Jim smirked and stood up as well. “Now that’s a word I like ta hear. What are yer terms, kid?”

“You tell me how to use the Cardmaster Angelica without having to pose like edgy teenagers afflicted with chunnibyo — and if I fail just like you say, I’ll consider the favor you owe me a done deal, and I’ll also give you the gem I received from the Dungeon as a bonus.”

“Hoho! Now we’re talkin’.”

“However,” Finn continued, furrowing his brows and intensifying the powerful aura around him. “If I do pull it off… you have to teach me everything else you know about this Angelica, and also owe me another favor on top of it as bonus. It’s only fair — how about it?”

Jim pondered for a moment, arms folded, then smiled darkly.

“… Yer a cheeky one, kid.”

“What, scared?” Finn taunted, raising an eyebrow.

“Ha! I, Jim Halifax, the Ultimate Cardmaster, Alias: Tarot, have never been bloody afraid of a thing in my whole life!” Jim shouted proudly, pointing at Finn. “Kid, ya got some guts, challengin’ me in a bloody gamble! I only take bets I have confidence in winnin’… and I’ve yet to lose one. The gem is mine, boy!”

But Finn, completely unfazed, merely shoved his hands into his cloak’s pockets, completely unconcerned.

“Very well. Enlighten me then… geezer.”