Is this the poker world?Ada thief!

Chapter 1846 Amon: I'll drink two bowls

Two flowers bloom, one on each side.

While Hayato was preparing to ambush Yubel in the "Magic World," Hachiko was in trouble, and Jaden was in a terrible situation.

Hayato's disappearance was unexpected. Although they were almost in a panic at first without an adult leader, they quickly recovered because they had Judai.

From the very beginning, Jaden was determined to rescue John. His action made him the leader of the group, allowing everyone to temporarily forget the pressure of being in another world and uniting them to move in the same direction.

While Hayato was communicating with the [Divine Dragon - Timaeus] and entrusting his students with his mission, Jaden had already led everyone to defeat the ruler of the area they had crossed over to—the [Birdman], and liberated the Bird-Beast race, who seemed to have originally been the inhabitants of the "Bird-Beast Great Forest" world.

Here, Jaden and his companions encountered Tania from the "Amazon" world, who had interacted with Misawa in the past. Considering that this new world was different from the Spirit World they had visited before, and that the various regions were not completely connected but were linked by dimensional gates, Misawa chose to stay and learn more about dimensional transfer from Tania.

When Hayato first arrived in the "Magic World", Jaden and his companions encountered the human forces, represented by the "Wandering Hero - Freed" and the "Warrior - Raz", and the "Overlord Army", mainly composed of monsters from the "Dark World". However, the two sides were not evenly matched; on the contrary, the latter were overwhelmingly stronger than the former.

Although the humans were transferred to this new world along with their homes, the "Overlord Army," as outsiders, relentlessly attacked them, forcing them to leave their original homes and find other hidden locations to hide in. Even so, the human forces continued to dwindle, with fewer than a hundred people remaining, and only a handful of combat-capable individuals such as [Warrior-Raz] and [Wandering Hero-Freed] were left.

Even worse, the "Iron Knights" team, to which [Warrior-Raz] belonged, had all been captured by the "Overlord Army," and their fates were now unknown. Only [Wandering Warrior-Freed] was left to protect the villagers and struggle to survive.

Because a boy named Kyle from the village went out and returned to his original village to retrieve a photo of his father, the [Warrior-Raz], he was captured by the "Overlord Army" member, [Scout of the Dark World-Ska]. Jaden fought to save the boy, defeated [Scout of the Dark World-Ska], and caused him to die due to the rules of the world. Only then did they gain the trust of [Wandering Hero-Freed] and arrive at the villagers' hiding place.

The entrance there was extremely well hidden, almost perfectly concealed on a mountainside far from the town. If no one had led the way, Jaden and his group would never have been able to find this place, and presumably the same was true for the "Overlord Army".

"Finally, we have a place to rest for a while." Marufuji Sho took a bowl of hot soup shared by a villager, first serving it to Judai, and then taking his own portion. "Those guys from the [Dark World] are terrifying. It's a good thing we have a place to hide."

"Compared to appearances, I think the most troublesome thing is not being able to defeat the monsters of the Dark Realm. Big Brother only defeated a Dark Realm Scout - Scar, yet he managed to summon a large force," Jian Shan complained. "And that Dark Realm Scout - Scar, who almost caused Big Brother to suffer a bitter defeat, actually really is a 'scout' in the literal sense. It's hard to imagine how strong the higher-level Dark Realms are."

"Speaking of this," Manjoume said, looking at Judai with a serious expression when Kenzan mentioned the previous duel. "The reason that duel almost ended in defeat was entirely due to your own fault, Judai. You recklessly attacked without any regard for your opponent's face-down card. Even if you had regressed to when you first entered the academy, you wouldn't have engaged in such a duel, Judai."

"And Judai, you've been looking distracted the whole time." Asuka asked with some concern as she watched Judai holding the hot soup but not taking a sip, just looking around as if he were staring at something. "Your anxious state is written all over your face."

"I just feel we can't rest here because John is still in danger." Judai stared at the bowl in his hand for a long time, but ultimately didn't take a sip. He pressed down on his leg, which was shaking unconsciously from anxiety, but still couldn't stop it. Restless, he simply stood up and was about to leave. "So much time has passed since John sent us away. I've rested long enough at school. It's not time for me to give up yet. I can continue—"

"Wait a minute, Judai!" Manjoume stood up and grabbed Judai's shoulder, stopping him from going any further. "Didn't [Fried] just say that because of the death of [Scar, the Scout of the Dark World], the outside is now full of 'Overlord Army' people? Even if you manage to break through now, how much strength will you have left to find John?"

Not only Wan Zhangmu, but O'Brien also objected: "Our mission is to find and rescue John Anderson. Although we don't have the luxury of meddling in the affairs of the Iron Knights who have been captured by the Overlord Army, we should not act blindly and expose this hideout to the Overlord Army."

“But are we just going to sit here doing nothing? I’ve asked everyone here, and nobody knows where John is.” Judai, whose shoulders were being pressed, uncomfortably broke free but didn’t leave. Instead, he voiced his thoughts, “This feeling of knowing someone is in danger and being able to do nothing is awful!”

“Actually, I’ve wanted to say this before, Judai, you don’t have to force yourself to shoulder all the responsibility.” Fubuki looked at Judai, who was clenching his fists tightly, and sighed. “It was the same during that duel not long ago. Everyone had the stamina, and you had experienced the battle with the Birdman before. You could have left it to us to deal with.”

“But the duels in this world are different!” Jaden couldn’t help but retort. “The most dangerous duels we’ve ever encountered in the past were nothing more than Professor Cobra’s ‘Expose Duel’ that would exhaust you to the point of unconsciousness, and the ‘Seven Star Key’ Guardian Duel where losing would seal your soul.”

"But in this world, losing a duel means certain death." Recalling the two opponents he had dueled since arriving in this elven world, both the [Birdman] and [Scout of the Dark Realm - Scar] were instantly "annihilated" after losing their duels, with no chance of being saved. "I will not let any of my companions die!"

However, upon hearing Judai's words, Manjoume frowned in annoyance: "You bastard, stop talking nonsense. Do you think we're the kind of useless trash who would die without you? There's a limit to arrogance!"

"You're just a student, what right do you have to bear the burden of other people's lives? Don't get it wrong! When we came here, everyone was prepared to die after Hayato-sensei confirmed it before we even took that step. Don't presumptuously take on the responsibility for our lives!"

Marufuji Sho also held Judai's hand and said, "Big brother, you said it before, right? If I can't believe in myself, then let me believe in you, my big brother. I believe in you, so please continue to believe in us."

“Sho and everyone else.” Looking at his friend who was sincerely holding his hand, and at his companions, Manjoume and the others, whose words, though stern, were actually meant to comfort him, Judai’s heart, which had been tormented by the uncertainty of John’s fate, found a moment of peace and warmth. He looked at everyone and finally picked up the soup he had put down. “I understand. We will go together and rescue John.”

"That's more like it." Kenzan saw that Jaden wasn't just giving them a perfunctory reply, but that he was visibly relaxed, and he smiled as well. "In any case, it was a dangerous duel that risked your life. You've already experienced two of them, so if you encounter a situation like this again, it will be my turn to take action. You should save your energy for the crucial moment of rescuing John-senpai."

"What nonsense are you spouting, you mere goldfish brat? Judai has already shown off twice, it's clearly my turn next. As Judai's underling, you should go to the back of the line." Manjoume said arrogantly, mocking Kenzan, whose headband resembled a goldfish.

"I can't agree with that. I think I also need to show off my real skills and let the ladies from another world witness my charm. Maybe I can even gain fans from another dimension~"

Hearing Fubuki's words, Asuka sighed and rubbed her forehead, "Now that we're in another world, you should just calm down, brother."

Beside Judai and the others, Jim took a bowl of hot soup from Edward and thanked him, saying, "Thanks, Edward." "I thought you, who spends so much time on archaeological excavations, would have good stamina. Even Judai's underlings are only mentally exhausted without breaking a sweat, yet you're this tired, Mr. Jim?"

Seeing Jim stroking the crocodile Karen and leaning back in his seat, Ed noticed a fine layer of sweat on Jim's forehead after he took off his hat. Instead of keeping his doubts to himself, he asked directly.

Jim paused in his stroking motion, instinctively reaching out to touch his right eye, but then stopped himself. After a moment of silence, he simply shook his head and said, "There are some reasons I can't explain in detail, but my body is actually fine. Hmm, probably."

“If you want to put people at ease, don’t add that last sentence.” Amon came over carrying two bowls of hot soup, glanced at Jim and Ed who each had a bowl of soup, and then looked at Caesar who had nothing in front of him.

Before he could speak, Caesar had already said, "For me, duels are a more effective source of sustenance; I don't need these things."

Upon hearing this, Amon showed no embarrassment at being rejected or appearing presumptuous. Instead, he placed a bowl of soup in front of himself and began drinking another: "I'll have two bowls."

"What is O'Brien doing?" Jim, who had been sitting for a while but had perked up again, asked curiously, looking at O'Brien who was asking [Wandering Hero - Fried] something not far away. "Didn't Judai just ask the villagers here? Didn't they all say they hadn't seen John?"

“But at least we can gather some maps of the surrounding area.” As he was speaking, O’Brien had finished asking questions and returned to them, replying as Jim spoke about his own affairs. “It’s uncertain when it will come in handy, but it’s better than knowing nothing about the area.”

“At least I know that the ‘Overlord Army’ has a camp at the foot of a cliff not far from the village, and the general composition of their forces,” O’Brien explained. “The Dark World Scout-Scar, who was defeated by Jaden before, was a scout for the ‘Overlord Army.’ Although there is a lower-ranking fighter, the Dark World Vanguard-Bege, his status is not much higher.”

"The 'Overlord Army' near the village is mainly composed of [Dark Realm Hunter - Brau], [Dark Realm Assassin - Kachi], and a large number of [Goblin] grunts. They are accompanied by the military advisor [Dark Realm Strategist - Grin], and their leader is [Dark Realm Knight - Zul]."

"They're all low-level monsters. It's good news that there aren't any higher-level 'Dark World' monsters." Edward said, then added with a complaint, "But I guess the card descriptions from the International Illusion Society are just made up, aren't they? I remember the description of 'Dark World Knight - Zul' said that he was a 'noble knight' and 'wouldn't attack the weak.'"

"But in reality, the [Knight of the Dark Realm - Zul] who captured and killed the villagers here is completely different from the description on the card." Amon also shrugged. "I thought that in the design of the International Illusion Society, the [Dark Realm] was the kind of contrast between a fierce appearance and a kind force. But in the real elven world, the [Dark Realm] has become a villain in the truest sense."

"After all, there have been precedents like the [Lion Wizard] being over-interpreted," Jim joked, completely unaware of the trouble such criticism of a great god would bring upon him.

Just as O'Brien was organizing the intelligence he had gathered and sending the hastily drawn map to everyone present, a shout suddenly came from outside—

"Captain Fried!"

Because of a shortage of manpower, a young girl who was filling in for the original soldiers and was in charge of reconnaissance in the shelter hurriedly pushed open the door and shouted, "Lord Fried, a soldier from the Iron Knights has escaped back!"

Behind him, four people carried in a door panel that served as a stretcher. On it lay a person whose face was exactly the same as the man in the photo that Kyle had specifically gone to retrieve. It was one of the captured members of the Iron Knights - [Warrior-Raz]!
(Two teenage girls and two children carried a thick wooden plank for an adult man; these villagers are also inhuman.)
"Raz!?"

[Wandering Warrior - Freed], who had been sitting silently by the campfire in the corner, drinking hot soup to replenish his strength, was surprised to stand up. Kyle and his sister Gina also rushed to their father's side immediately. However, [Warrior - Raz], who was already exhausted from escaping, had risked his life to reach the vicinity of the shelter. At this moment, he was so weak that he could barely breathe.

He turned his head with difficulty to look at his children, forced a smile at them, and then tried to convey the information he had obtained after being captured to [Wandering Hero - Fried]. The captured members of the "Iron Knights" were being held in the "Overlord Army" camp not far from here, and there were also people captured by the "Overlord Army" from other places.

Although the reason is unknown, it seems that the "Overlord Army" is capturing people with certain strength from various places, concentrating them in one place, and then transporting them to another location for centralized gathering. It is unclear what they are doing by specifically capturing so many people.

Drawn by the story of [Warrior-Raz], Jaden and the others listened attentively. Jaden didn't pay much attention to anything else, but he clearly heard that the "Overlord Army" had captured many people from other places. After [Warrior-Raz] finished explaining the situation, he quickly pressed on, asking, "The cell... So, is there a boy in the cell wearing a blue and white uniform with light green hair? His name is John!"

"At this time?" Even though he knew that Judai was concerned about John, Marufuji Sho couldn't believe that Judai would ask about something like [Warrior-Raz], who looked unwell, at a time like this.

"Big brother, he's really going too far..." Kenzan also felt that Judai's behavior was not good, but he really didn't know what to say.

"This guy, because of the heavy responsibility, his mind is full of John's affairs." Wan Zhangmu crossed his arms and snorted coldly in dissatisfaction, feeling that all his previous "talk therapy" had been a waste of breath.

Seeing the urgency in Jaden's eyes and realizing that the other party might be able to help rescue his comrades, [Warrior-Raz] disregarded his own body and replied as if he had recovered a little: "Yes, I saw him there—although I don't know if his name was John, and he wasn't wearing the blue and white uniforms you guys are wearing, because people imprisoned in the cell have their belongings taken away and are replaced with prison clothes."

"However, there was indeed a boy with bluish-green hair, about your age, who was also imprisoned there with my companions."

Upon receiving confirmation, Judai's eyes gleamed: "John! Maybe, that person is John!"

However, while Jaden was energized by the news that it was someone who resembled John, [Warrior-Raz] could no longer hold on. When he returned to Jaden, it was not that he had recovered, but rather that it was his last burst of energy before death. He could not suppress his pain and it was revealed on his face. His children, who were beside him, seemed to realize something and held his hands tightly, calling out "Father".

"Kyle, and Gina too, I'm sorry I'll be absent from your lives from now on. Please forgive this weak father."

With his eyes closed, [Warrior-Raz]'s body glowed and vanished completely before everyone's eyes.
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