Adel would be keeping watch over Koina as she was bedridden, way before the children even met the likes of this supposed 'Knight of Shadows.' His mind was set, focused, checking back once or twice to ensure she was healthy in both recovery and state of mind. As he did so, however, he noticed something off the corner of his eye. A glimmer, a light that shimmered far out of Kabanaska. A small cave being visible amongst the many trees, a light that keeps flickering at the mouth of it. Adel, of course, tried to ignore it, closing his eyes and turning away like a child. As he kept watch, however, the light kept getting brighter, almost as if it was noticing him just as much as he noticed it. Curiosity was slowly beginning to plague him, and eventually, he'd crack.
He'd look back every now and then as he made his way to the light, like a cat that found some mice before checking if its owner is still there. As he went farther and farther from the Kingdom, he noticed other details that were left behind, figures with no blood being ravaged, their clay components exposed and ripped off. A looming thought came to his head, making him wonder was hiding over there. Once he arrived at the cave, he'd see the source of the light: A metallic set of claws, bound over by arms made of large cards. Each card had a specific number and suit, trailing up as they clicked and laid dormant, almost as if it was sleeping. The Serpent got closer, leering his head over just enough to get a full view before immediately backing up and hiding inside the cave. A massive beast with a flattened half body, no legs to speak of, the cards laid out on the ground as if nobody picked them up. A jester hat atop his grisly head, a wicked smile left bare as it cackled in its sleep. Adel wondered how long has it been here to have such feasts, to camp out and wait patiently for its next day to roam.
That's when he noticed to his side more bodies. More exposed and crumbled clay. More 'people' that were consumed by its hunger. Despite such a morbid sight, Adel was just as curious and tried to investigate it, slowly looking over the carcasses to see how they all fit. He watched as each body held something for a 'heart', a Contract bound within themselves, a living battery for the 'Sun' to feed into and get more power. He'd be quick to draw onto the stone floor, being careful not to make a sound, as he would learn the whole plan of the 'Sun', as well as what he can assume would be the products of those under it. While he doesn't know the full extent, he does know it changes people, to which he guessed that this must be how it does such a change, and to an extent, how he is able to take the world if he would get his way. He'd get himself up and began to run straight out, ready to give the children such information and give them an opportunity to potentially damage the 'Sun's growth.
Then, it woke up.
Snickers as the massive arms lunged out, forcing Adel to parry and catch the second arm, quickly pinned into the ground and dragged across, inevitably pierced into his heart. He would be chucked into many trees once the beast threw him away, watching him break apart and be forced to revive, a face left on his body ripped through, the blood coursing through to give as much adrenaline as he can. He watched on as the monster was quick on giving chase, gripping at the floor and pulling it close, forcing the Serpent to be dragged in and be face-to-face again. He'd deliver a heavy roundhouse kick to the jaw in order to stunt it, but all it did was expose how the cards worked, as it was able to break apart and scatter into cards and reform again, shifting into a monster card that began to warp and mutate his mouth.
Landrus.
Once formed, the clay began to rise and attach itself onto the Card Beast, not only growing a massive mouth to reach out and bite into him, but also growing several other mouths on the ground to grip and bite off his feet, forcing him to stumble over and be devoured like the rest. Time and time again, he'd try to keep himself up and stave off the beast's appetite, yet without fail, he'd eventually get ripped apart and consumed, before being revived again by whatever flesh was left intact, all to repeat such a process. As he'd keep making such distances, he watched as the Card Beast kept shifting his body to house different monsters, showing to Adel its full extent, acting almost like a monstrous version of Harvard's Deck, switching between monsters to get an upper hand and keep overwhelming his opponent. His arms shifted into Caramel's in order to lather the land in chocolate, the aroma slowly waning his consciousness. The body into Bumble, laying down honeycombs wherever it crawled to set up traps and keep him from escaping properly. Even during the time Wyvios ascended and became the Morningstar, such a chase still ensued.
Nothing mattered to the Card Beast. Nothing but hunger. Eventually, Adel would be able to give it the slip at his last life, forcing himself close to one of the Kingdom's quarters, where it backed away and hid from sight. The second he latched onto Calibren was the second he was thankful he was allowed to live, forcing himself to recover from his injuries, with most of the carbon breaking off after being torn asunder. Few remain, but he'd have to make more in order to make use of his second Style, a pain in his chest after having to catch his breath. His heart was struggling. He was running low on time. He must've spent another half of his lifespan in order to keep up such revivals, slowly connecting them to be the reason why he was dying.
He was not ready to go just yet.