Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

To retract my previous statement, although he is better than Marufuji Sho, Yuki Judai is such an infuriating student. Not only does he make such useless theoretical statements here, but he also doesn't respect me. This year's freshmen are so rude!

Among the group of girls sitting a few rows behind Judai, Asuka glanced at Judai a few more times, recalling the conditions she had negotiated after several arguments with the principal yesterday to request entry into the abandoned old school building, and made up her mind.

The first-year students have the busiest schedule, with their days filled with classes. After Professor Chronos's course on the basic theory of dueling (cards), there is a course on the basic theory of dueling (chains) taught by Kira Aoki, the head teacher of the Yellow Dormitory. However, after finishing the welcome party yesterday, Aoki went on a business trip, so the class time was temporarily freed up, allowing the freshmen to move around freely in the academy.

The freshmen who didn't get enough sleep this morning went back to their dorms to catch up on sleep, while the competitive students went to the school library to study. Many curious students continued to explore the interior of the academy, which they hadn't finished exploring yesterday. After thinking for a long time (about a second), Judai decided to give up thinking and find a place to play a game of cards first.

“Honestly, my name isn’t hard to remember at all, so why do people always call me by the wrong name?” Misawa complained to Jaden. “Anyway, let’s have a duel, Yuki. If I win, you can call me by my name Misawa from now on, and stop calling me No.3.”

“Okay, no problem. Anyway, Manjoume lost to me yesterday, so he won’t duel me again for at least three days.” Jaden put the brand-new textbook with only his name written on it and no notes at all into his bag, and took out the folded Duel Disk and card deck. “At least that’s how he was when he was a kid. I wonder if he has changed over the years.”

"Furthermore, I will not lose, Liu Zhe!"

"It's Misawa Daichi!"

Misawa and Jaden walked side by side. Misawa took out his Duel Disk from his backpack and prepared to put it on, intending to find an empty duel arena to play a game of cards with Jaden. Marufuji Sho followed behind the two. Maeda Hayato, being a repeat student, was kept behind by Chronos for extra tutoring, so he didn't follow them.

As Judai said, although he saw Judai and Misawa going to play cards, Manjoume, who left the classroom through the same exit, chose to pretend he didn't see the three of them. Instead, he went back to his dormitory with a large group of his underlings. He would only come back to Judai to "avenge his humiliation" at least three days later, when the rain stopped, the sky cleared, and Manjoume felt he was back to his old self.

However, before the three of them had gone far from the classroom, three girls appeared at the fork in the road leading to the dueling area and blocked their way.

"Judai Yuki, I'll have to face you sooner or later anyway, but for the sake of the principal's mission..." Asuka Tenjouin, who had already put on her Duel Disk, adjusted her gloves, striving to be in the best condition for the duel, "Duel with me!"

Chapter 1073 Dragonfly Captain Dan Kuroto

Looking at Tenjōin Asuka, who had suddenly appeared and challenged him to a duel, Jūdai scratched his head and said, "Huh?"

"Didn't Asuka explain it clearly?" Seeing Judai looking dazed, Asuka didn't say anything, but the two girls with her said rather unfriendly, "After you defeated Professor Chronos, you became so arrogant that you bragged about it everywhere. You're practically slapping the face of our Obelisk-Blue dormitory."

"Asuka couldn't stand it anymore, so she challenged you, you arrogant jerk, to a duel to show you what true arrogance is. Don't be so presumptuous, it's useless."

Upon hearing this, Judai simply scratched the back of his head without refuting it. He wasn't actually the type to boast about his achievements; the reason he had said those things in front of Professor Chronos in class was mostly to ease the anxiety of the nervous and flustered Marufuji Sho.

Upon hearing the words of her two followers... I mean, her best friends Junko Makita and Momoe Hamaguchi, Asuka quickly retorted, "No way! I never said that the duel was for that reason!"

"Huh? Isn't that right?" Hamaguchi Momoe was somewhat surprised. "If it's not because of that, then... could it be because you, Asuka, like this Yuki Jaden?!"

"How could this be! Asuka, how could your taste be so bad!" Junko Makita took Hamaguchi Momoe's guess seriously and said in surprise and even horror, "Although he's better than that idiot with glasses next to him, he's still not that great, and he's so long-winded. I would choose that even more arrogant guy, Manjoume, or Misawa Daichi, the Sun God-Yellow, rather than someone like that."

(Manjou, on his way back to his dorm: Achoo!)

Although Marufuji Sho looked dejected after hearing the two girls' words, Misawa was very happy to hear someone call his name for the first time and said, "Hello, you two, I am Misawa Daichi."

The two girls seemed to have only heard Misawa's name from others before, and they didn't recognize him even though he was standing right in front of them. After hearing his self-introduction, Junko Makita said in surprise, "That's it? What a disappointment. He looks like he's gone crazy from studying too much."

"Although it's all true, anyway, I'm sorry, Shizhe-kun, you're a good person." It seems that they only pronounced Misawa's name correctly before because they didn't know him. After seeing Misawa in person and finding that he looked completely different from what they had guessed, Hamaguchi Momoe gave Misawa a "good person" card without thinking twice, and even mispronounced his name again.

"...It wasn't because of that kind of thing..." Asuka thought for a moment, seeing her best friend silence the two boys next to Jaden with just a few words, and instead of explaining further, she compromised, "Fine, just consider it as me trying to save face for Professor Chronos and the Obelisk-Blue dormitory."

"I don't know what's going on, but it's a duel, right? Then I won't refuse!" Jaden wasn't affected by Momoe and Junko's words at all. Seeing Asuka also wearing her Duel Disk and ready to duel, she said confidently, "Because a hero can't run away from the battle, and I love heroes the most."

“Hero…” Asuka looked at Judai, whose overly bright smile reminded her of her overly optimistic, frivolous and unreliable older brother. Although Judai’s personality was different, the two were somewhat similar in some ways.

This only strengthened Asuka's resolve to achieve her goal. "However, beliefs are useless in a duel; only strength matters."

"I will defeat you, Jaden Yuki, absolutely!"

Hearing that Judai and Asuka had quickly agreed to go duel together in just a few words, Misawa, forgetting his dejection, hurriedly said, "Wait, wait a minute, I was here first—"

"Oh dear, you're so nagging! Don't you know the principle of ladies first?"

"That's right. And it's just that Asuka will have to fight Yuki Judai once first. You boys can continue to fight later. Anyway, no matter how you look at it, Yuki Judai will definitely lose to Asuka quickly and won't waste much time."

"Besides, can you even find an empty dueling arena? We've already found someone to wait for an empty one. You don't want to waste your whole morning looking for one, do you?"

Junko and Momoe kept talking, shutting down Misawa's words. Even though he wanted to retort, Misawa, feeling tongue-tied, ultimately said nothing. He glanced at the happy Judai and the spirited Tenjōin, sighed, and murmured, "It won't be too long... I hope so."

The planned duel with Misawa was postponed for the time being. Jaden didn't care; as long as he could play cards, that was enough for him. Besides, neither Asuka nor Misawa were people he had dueled before, so either of them would bring him a sense of novelty. Misawa, on the other hand, didn't have much expectation that the duel would "end soon." He thought he might as well take this opportunity to collect data on Jaden and Asuka's decks so that he could adjust his deck and play some counter cards when he faced them in the future.

Marufuji Sho, Junko, and Momoe were neither interested in learning anything from the duel nor concerned about why they suddenly had to play cards; they simply wanted to join in the fun and cheer for their respective sides, and could be described as "pure bystanders."

Led by Judai and Asuka, who walked side by side, the six people headed straight for the pre-prepared dueling arena. As soon as they entered the empty arena, they saw someone move a large white plastic chair from a food stall and sit on the arena with their back to them.

"If you want it, come and get it yourself. You know the rules." As if someone was asking him for something, the person sitting on the plastic chair suddenly said that out of the blue after Jaden and the others walked in, stood up from his seat and turned around.

The group noticed that the person was wearing a fake white wig, and when he turned around, he also had a mask that looked like an insect on his face.

While others didn't recognize him, Jaden excitedly pointed at the mask and exclaimed, "Captain Dragonfly!?"

"First, never act impulsively!"

"Secondly, we must never let any wrongdoing go unpunished!"

"Thirdly, the referee will be absolutely fair and excellent!" In line with Judai's words, the masked person declared, producing a microphone from who-knows-where, "This duel between Tenjouin Asuka and Yuki Judai will be judged by Captain Toad!"

Whether it was because the mask wasn't tied tightly enough or because of the excessive movements while speaking, the mask on the person's face suddenly fell off, revealing the face of a young man in his twenties.

"What Dragonfly Captain? Isn't this Principal Kobayashi?!" Marufuji Sho said after seeing the face under the mask.

Despite his identity being exposed, Hayato remained serious and said, "What a joke! When has Captain Dan Kuroto ever needed to impersonate someone else? I am who I am, and I have absolutely no connection with the gentle, kind, and friendly duelist Kobayashi Hayato, who is the most loving duelist in the world."

"Why is there another name? What is Dan Kuroto anyway!" Marufuji Sho couldn't help but complain. "Besides, this is just self-praise. Who would believe something that can be seen through at a glance?"

"So Captain Dragonfly's name is Dan Kuroto. This name didn't appear in the drama."

"Why did you actually believe that, brother?!"

Compared to the boisterous Judai and Sho, Misawa looked at Asuka's two followers with some curiosity: "Why is Principal Kobayashi here, you two?"

—Although he could remember their names, out of revenge for not calling him by his name, Misawa decided not to call them by their names either. Thinking about it that way, he realized how wicked he was, hehehehe…

“Because this dueling arena was specially arranged for us by the headmaster, and he also needs to witness the outcome of this duel.” The one who answered Misawa wasn't Junko Makita or Momoe Hamaguchi, but Asuka Tenjōin. As she spoke, she glanced at Daichi Misawa, recalling what Hayato had told her after she made her request yesterday—

"The Duel Academy Council? Does that kind of thing have any binding force on you, Principal?"

"There is no such thing as a Duel King, but I am now the principal of the Duel Academy, so there is some, though not much. And I actually agree with their requirements, which is that for security reasons, only teachers can go to the abandoned old school buildings, and no students are allowed to enter."

"Why? Even the teachers are only a little older than us. In a duel, some students are probably stronger than many of the teachers."

"Then prove yourself, Tenjouin. Prove that you are better than the teacher. First, set your goal as becoming the number one among the first-year students. When you have defeated the number one first-year students in the Osiris-Red, Sun God-Yellow, and Obelisk-Blue dorms, then we can continue to discuss your request to enter the old school building."

—Pulling her thoughts back, Asuka stopped looking at Misawa Daichi. Hayato had asked her to defeat the top first-year students in the three dormitories before discussing entering the old school building. With a clear goal in mind, she immediately began to act today. Her first task was to defeat Yuki Jaden, who had previously defeated Manjoume. Defeating him would essentially be considered as defeating Manjoume as well, leaving only the Fourfold Sky as the remaining challenge.

This is the so-called "witness" that Hayato is here to witness. Asuka wants Hayato to see clearly how she defeated Jaden, so that he won't use excuses like "I didn't see it, I don't know if you really won or not".

Hayato threw the plastic chair from the food stall onto the field, and Asuka and Jaden stood facing each other in the cleared dueling arena, the atmosphere becoming somewhat tense—although it was only Asuka's side. The somewhat oblivious Jaden didn't sense anything, he was just a little eager to duel.

"Osiris-Red Dormitory, first-year student Yuki Jaden, [E·hero] deck user, reporting for duty!"

Upon hearing Jaden's words, Asuka, who had just inserted her deck into the Duel Disk, saw the smile on his face and, with a furrowed brow, replied seriously, "Obelisk-Blue Girls' Dormitory, first-year student Tenjouin Asuka, is using the [Cyber ​​Angel] deck."

Jaden, who had just given a simple self-introduction and was surprised that Asuka had followed suit, wiped his nose somewhat sheepishly and said, "You're quite energetic, Tenjouin-kun. Well then, let's have an interesting duel!"

"Is it fun? I care more about winning than that. Duels are not a lighthearted form of entertainment." Unlike Jaden, who dueled without any pressure, Asuka said calmly.

The two men, staring at each other, simultaneously drew five cards and shouted, "Duel!" x2

[Tenjouin Asuka: 4000 LP, 5 card in hand]

[Yujo Judai: 4000LP, 5 cards in hand]

"I'll go first!" Slightly faster than Jaden, Asuka drew a card from her deck. "My turn, draw!"

Looking at the card she had drawn, Asuka realized that it was the same "entrance gift" that she and Manjoume had received when Hayato gave Jaden the "Lava Demon" card. It was quite a coincidence.

Asuka glanced at Hayato, who was sitting in the stands by the dueling arena, applying hair gel to his wig, and played a card from her hand: "During my Main Phase, I activate the Spell Card [Planetary Modification] to add one Field Spell Card from my Deck to my hand. I chose this card, [Blessed Church - Ritual Chapel]."

"Next, activate the Field Spell Card [Blessed Church - Ritual Chapel]."

Compared to the portable Duel Disk, the virtual projection system in the Duel Arena, operating at full power, provides a far more stunningly realistic effect. As the card was activated, a towering church rose above the arena where Jaden and Asuka were, enveloping them within its confines.

"Wow, it's a church!? Could it be that Tenjouin-kun really has feelings for my older brother—"

In that instant, Misawa Daichi seemed to hear the sound of Marufuji Sho's heart breaking beside him.

Junko and Momoe said to Marufuji Sho with disdain, "Seriously, that card isn't Asuka's first time using it. It's the original design of the [Electronic Angel] card. It's not like Asuka herself walked into the church with that Yuki Jaden."

"Instead of worrying about those things, some of those underachievers who can't even answer the Field Spell Card should think more about their studies." After saying that, Junko turned around and whispered in Momoe's ear, "Although, I actually had some misunderstandings. Asuka actually took out this Field Spell Card, doesn't she care at all how romantic 'walking down the aisle with her sweetheart' is?"

"That's just how Asuka is. She often says things like, 'I'm going to become the world's number one duelist. Men are just a hindrance.'"

With no love in her heart and playing cards as a matter of course, Asuka couldn't hear the whispers of the audience below. After activating her Field Spell Card, she sent a card from her hand to the Graveyard: "The effect of [Blessed Church - Ritual Chapel]: Once per turn during my Main Phase, I can discard a Spell Card from my hand to activate this effect and add a LIGHT Ritual Monster or Ritual Spell Card from my Deck to my hand."

"I discard 'Ritual of the Mechanical Angel' from my hand and add the LIGHT Ritual Monster 'Cyber ​​Angel - Benten-' to my hand." After retrieving a card, Asuka immediately activated another card, "Then I use the Spell Card 'Preparation of the Ritual' to add a Level 7 or lower Ritual Monster from my Deck to my hand, and after that, I can choose one Ritual Spell Card from my Graveyard to add to my hand."

"I add [Cyber ​​Angel - Nasatemi-] and [Ritual of the Machine Angel] from my Graveyard to my hand, and activate the Ritual Spell Card [Ritual of the Machine Angel] to release [Cyber ​​Angel - Benten-] from my hand to make its Level 6. If it is Level 5 or higher, I Ritual Summon [Cyber ​​Angel - Nasatemi-] from my hand!"

A mechanical altar rose behind Tenjouin Asuka. As she released a Ritual Monster from her hand into the altar, the altar's mechanical device activated to perform a ritual summoning, and a female mechanical angel with one centaur, four arms, and four eyes appeared on her field!

【Cyber ​​Angel - Nasatemi-】【5☆/Light】

[Angel Race/Ritual/Effect]

[1000/1000]

Chapter 1074 There are three level X monsters, we're about to attack!

【Cyber ​​Angel - Nasatemi-】【5☆/Light】

[Angel Race/Ritual/Effect]

[1000/1000]

Although it's a Level 5 monster and looks pretty good, when Marufuji Sho saw the Attack and Defense stats of [Cyber ​​Angel - Nasatemi-], he exclaimed in surprise, "A Level 5 monster with only 1000 Attack? Isn't that even worse than [Lion Wizard]?"

"What era are we living in? How come people still judge a card's strength based on its attack and defense?" Junko said dismissively. "Asuka's [Cyber ​​Angel] is very strong. How can it be compared to a card like [Lion Wizard], which isn't even a decent monster?"

"And didn't you see Asuka's hand, and that she didn't even have a Normal Summon this turn? If you don't understand duels, can you please be quiet?"

Junko and Momoe each said something to shut Marufuji Sho up, and Misawa's attention was also diverted to Asuka's hand because of their words.

"【Cyber ​​Angel - Benten-】When she is released, activate her effect to add one LIGHT Fairy monster from my Deck to my hand."

Adding one card retrieved from [Cyber ​​Angel - Benten-] to her hand, Misawa discovered that she still had a full four cards in her hand. Considering the ongoing Field Spell Card and Tenjōin, she actually managed to summon [Cyber ​​Angel - Nasatemi], which should have required at least three cards for a Ritual Summon, without losing a single card.

"Although it's a ritual deck, it not only doesn't lose cards but actually gains them. [Cyber ​​Angel] seems to be very good at resource management..." Misawa muttered to himself, noting down the characteristics of Asuka's deck. "However, the data on other aspects is insufficient; I need to continue collecting..."

On the field, Asuka glanced at the four cards remaining in her hand, then drew one and said, "I haven't performed a Normal Summon this turn. I'll Normal Summon this monster to my field in Attack Position. Come forth, [The Proclaimer's Witch]!"

A rainbow descended upon Asuka's front area, and under its sacred and sublime light, a shrine maiden with illusory wings of light slowly rose and began to chant a sacred hymn.

[The Proclaimer's Shaman] [2☆/Light]

[Angel Race/Effect]