The next day arrived with the weight of unfinished business.
Since the entrances to the three Master-level Secret Realms within Great Britain had been barely sealed by King George VII through special means, suppressing them as quickly as possible remained crucial.
A large contingent of Lore Cardians stood before the entrance to the weakest of the three Secret Realms. The vast majority hailed from Great Britain, with smaller numbers from the Empire of Aetherlight and the Indo-American Federation.
Standing at the forefront were, naturally, the three Master-level Lore Cardians: Azrael, King George VII, and Apache.
Unlike the two men beside him who stood in a state of intense anticipation, Azrael found himself reflecting on last night's conversation with Charlotte.
Charlotte had indeed provided a wealth of useful intelligence, particularly regarding the factional divisions within the Indo-American Federation.
The Federation was divided into two primary factions: the Conservative Party, whose members were primarily pale-skinned refugees from Europa. This was why Leon had previously called them poor.
The other faction was the Radical Party, primarily composed of brown-skinned Native Americans. The Skinners and Apache belonged to a major family within this faction.
As for Edley, he served as the current leader of the Conservative Party and was committed to integrating both parties, one reason he'd cared so much about the Skinner incident.
Besides this information, Azrael had also learned from Charlotte about one of Apache's Master-level cards: [Destroyer Carrier Storm Tlaloc], a massive ship the size of an island.
Unfortunately, that was all the princess knew. After all, she didn't dare pry too deeply into a Master-level Lore Cardian's secrets.
However, based on his own intelligence, Azrael could roughly deduce that this Apache card was also inspired by the Indo-American Federation's mechanical deity mythology, similar to Edley's Sovereign-level card.
"Storm Tlaloc."
Thinking of Artoria, who also bore the name Storm, Azrael's eyes flickered with calculation. But he wasn't about to expose the Lion King just yet.
As his thoughts drifted, King George VII spoke in a serious voice. "Prepare yourselves! I'm about to open the secret realm."
He took a deep breath, observing the distorting spatial cracks before him. A Master-level card appeared beside the King, and the spatial force that had previously enveloped the secret realm's entrance slowly dissipated into the air.
The next moment, an incredibly terrifying aura emanated frantically from the entrance.
It was undoubtedly the Master-level demon from the secret realm, eager to enter Earth and unleash its slaughter.
However, what seemed like divine might to the lower-level Lore Cardians was nothing more than a gentle breeze to Azrael.
"Too weak," the young man muttered to himself, then summoned his card.
With a sound like roaring flames, all the lower-level Lore Cardians present were draped in a layer of blazing feathers.
"This..." They raised their hands, staring at the fiery energy now enveloping them, stunned for a moment.
Seeing this, George VII's eyes flickered, and he said, "Thank you, Lord Azrael, for your concern."
Hearing this, Azrael waved his hand slightly, signaling him not to take it seriously.
After all, for Naruto Uzumaki in Six Paths Sage Mode, a mere Tailed Beast Coat was nothing to his reserves. Furthermore, his purpose was simply to minimize potential casualties.
Apache, standing beside Azrael, observed this and silently took note, preparing to gather more information about the Empire's strongest Lore Cardian upon his return.
Elsewhere, after completing all of this, Naruto entered the secret realm first to lead the charge. The defenses of Six Paths Sage Mode were sufficient for him to easily face any Master-level being.
However, George VII and Apache couldn't simply stand by and watch Azrael struggle alone. Their Master-level cards followed suit, and soon their expressions grew strange as they both received messages from their own cards.
"Lord Azrael," George VII said with some difficulty. "Your strength is indeed formidable."
He now understood why Azrael had previously claimed he could suppress the enemy single-handedly. According to the information transmitted by George VII's card, the Master-level demon in the secret realm was practically defenseless against Azrael's summon. Its defeat was only a matter of time.
However, Apache's expression was less conspicuous than George VII's.
Azrael's strength had somewhat exceeded his expectations.
Because the young man had not yet created Naruto during his earlier confrontation with Edley, the Indo-American Federation knew very little about this card. The only relevant records were fragments from his encounter with Motian at Lord Lioren's funeral.
"No wonder Lord Edley adopted that attitude," Apache thought to himself, glancing at Azrael. "But it's only been a short time. I imagine he only has two Master-level cards at most."
Apache felt he'd accurately estimated Azrael. Creating new cards for a Master-level Lore Cardian was no easy task. Most Master-level Lore Cardians were bottlenecked by materials, finding the materials they needed was incredibly difficult.
Unfortunately, he didn't know Azrael possessed a cheat.
The material problem that plagued normal Lore Cardians wasn't a problem for Azrael at all. He now possessed not two, but three Master-level cards. However, for this Master-level secret realm, he only needed Naruto to handle it.
A moment passed, and King George VII's frown suddenly relaxed. His card had relayed the news that the Master-level demon within the secret realm had been killed. In other words, this secret realm no longer posed a threat to Great Britain.
The King breathed a sigh of relief at the smooth progress of the battle.
"Thanks to you both. Let's move on to our next location," King George VII said in a relaxed tone, looking at Azrael and Apache beside him.
Naturally, the two outsiders wouldn't object to his plans.
After leaving behind some Lore Cardians, George VII led Azrael and the others to the second secret realm.
Since Great Britain wasn't very large, it didn't take them long to reach the entrance to the second Master-level secret realm. Like the first secret realm, there was only one Master-level demon in the second secret realm. After all, realms like the Rebel Secret Realm, which had multiple Master-level demons, were rare.
Soon, the events of the first Master-level secret realm were repeated.
By this time, Apache had also gathered some information about Naruto.
"A fox that can transform into a gigantic form with exceptional offensive and defensive capabilities."
"But its abilities are rather limited, and it lacks a decisive kill move."
Apache's eyes flickered as he silently reviewed the information his card had transmitted. In his opinion, the strength of this unknown Master-level card, judging by its current performance, was already terrifying, and it clearly had hidden tricks up its sleeve.
"Red?"
"No, it's most likely a Chromatic quality card."
At this thought, Apache couldn't help but feel a surge of curiosity. He wondered how Azrael, at the Master level, had managed to create a Chromatic quality card.
"I'll have to report this to Lord Edley when I return," the thought flashed through Apache's mind.
Meanwhile, the princes and princesses following the three Master-level Lore Cardians were in varying moods.
Leon, for example, was practically leaping with excitement. For him, the stronger Azrael was, the better, after all, he was on his side.
Unfortunately, the young man didn't know that his sister had already made a deal with Azrael last night, and that he'd been abandoned in the process.
After all, Azrael and Leon weren't close. They weren't even close friends.
As for Charlotte, she felt her decision was absolutely correct. Bringing in the Empire of Aetherlight to counterbalance the Indo-American Federation was indeed the right move.
"Looks like we need to find some way to strengthen our relationship with the Empire," the princess thought to herself.
Soon, the group arrived at the third, and most dangerous, Master-level Secret Realm.
Although George VII hadn't yet released his seal, a chilling aura still emanated from the spatial rifts. Looking at the entrance to the secret realm before them, George VII frowned and said, "This is the most dangerous secret realm. Lord Azrael and Lord Apache, please exercise extreme caution."
With that in mind, Azrael naturally wouldn't delay and immediately summoned Sasuke.
Upon seeing this, Apache couldn't help but think, "As expected, he has two Master-level cards, just as I guessed."
While he felt confident he'd correctly guessed the number of Master-level cards Azrael possessed, he felt no joy at the moment. After all, just from his stance, he could tell Sasuke was incredibly powerful.
Compared to Apache, King George VII felt a sense of relief. For him, the stronger Azrael and Apache were, the better.
Apache had already summoned his Master-level card. Unlike his previous, ordinary cards, this time he used his ultimate card, a ship as massive as an island that appeared out of thin air above the secret realm.
Seeing this, King George VII immediately unleashed the seal of the secret realm.
Whoosh!
The next moment, a shrill roar echoed, and a massive Western dragon suddenly burst forth from the secret realm.
"So fast!?"
King George VII's pupils constricted at this sight. He clearly hadn't expected the Master-level demon in the secret realm to react so quickly, bursting forth the moment he unsealed it.
Just as the King was about to order the Lore Cardians behind him to retreat, a fiery red dragon's tail swept across, interrupting him.
However, before the dragon's tail could reach George VII, it was stopped.
A massive fox, draped in purple armor, suddenly appeared before him, gripping the dragon's massive tail with both hands.
Boom boom!
The clash between the two behemoths shook the battlefield.
Apache's eyes flickered with gloom upon witnessing this. He'd already determined that Azrael's newly summoned Sasuke and Naruto were from the same series of cards, and most likely possessed a bond.
"Tsk, that's a bit tricky."
Apache admitted he'd considered attacking Azrael, but the sight of Naruto and Sasuke temporarily shelved that thought. After all, it would be difficult for him to defeat the duo alone, especially since his cards weren't good at assassinations or sneak attacks.
Meanwhile, the clash between the mighty Nine-Tails and the dragon was drawing to a close. A gigantic demon fox grasped the dragon's tail with both hands and, like swinging a sling, spun several times before fiercely flinging it away.
"Ouch!"
A deafening cry of pain echoed throughout everyone's ears.
Seeing this scene, all the Lore Cardians present were filled with excitement. Only Azrael and the other two Master-level Lore Cardians stared at the entrance to the secret realm with serious expressions.
They could all sense that there were at least three Master-level demons within, the number was truly excessive.
Of course, if Azrael were giving it his all, this level wouldn't be a big deal for him. But didn't he still have George VII and Apache? Thinking this way, Azrael decided to observe the level of his two fellow Master-level Lore Cardians before deciding whether to summon Artoria.
He didn't intend to let Naruto and Sasuke use [Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei], such a powerful move was better kept secret for now.
George VII and Apache had already allowed their cards to enter the secret realm. After all, if they actually fought on British soil, the impact would be too great.
King George VII then looked at the mighty Nine-Tails, who was battling the dragon, and asked, "Lord Azrael, how is it going?"
"Can it be solved?"
Hearing this, Azrael nodded slightly and said calmly, "It will take some time."
Honestly, the dragon demon's strength was indeed somewhat beyond Azrael's expectations, but that was perfectly normal. After all, each secret realm had its own unique power system, so the upper and lower limits of each individual were naturally quite different.
Unfortunately, this secret realm faced Azrael.
At that moment, under the stunned gaze of all the lower-level Lore Cardians, the mighty Nine-Tails grasped the dragon's tail, refusing to let go despite its struggles, and steadily advanced toward the secret realm's entrance.
This was Azrael's professionalism as a mercenary: minimizing damage to his employer's territory.
Clearly, King George VII recognized his intentions. His Majesty opened his mouth and said, "Lord Azrael is very thoughtful."
Just as the mighty Nine-Tails and the dragon demon were about to enter the secret realm, the expressions of King George VII and Apache suddenly changed.
At the same time, Azrael frowned slightly, sensing the presence of his own kind.
"Is it such a coincidence?"
But soon, Azrael realized he was wrong.
Because the one that appeared was not one of his kind, but a Master-level demon that seemed to have devoured one of his kind before.