Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

In fact, he did lie down on a bed, but not his dormitory bed, but a hospital bed in the school clinic. After getting rid of his "Darkness" identity, he had slept in this "private bed" for almost longer than he had slept at home!

However, after looking around, he discovered that Ms. Ayukawa Megumi, who had been working there for a long time, was not in the school clinic. Instead, because the screen separating the beds had been put away, Fubuki could see another person lying on the bed next to hers. Upon closer inspection, it was none other than Ed Phoenix, the man she had dueled with before.

Thinking of the duel, Fubuki was momentarily confused, because he really couldn't remember the outcome of that duel. He only remembered that when he attacked with Red-Eyes Black Steel Dragon, Ed Phoenix used the self-destructive Destruction Wheel to try and drag him down with him and wipe out his life points.

"Oh, you're awake?" The curtain in front of the hospital bed was suddenly lifted, and Fubuki saw that Kobayashi Hayato was actually in the medical room, peeking in from behind the curtain. Seeing Fubuki sitting up, he waved and greeted her, "How are you feeling?"

"I had a terrible nightmare..." Although the feeling of fear only lasted for the moment she woke up, and the specific details of the dream were completely forgotten by Fubuki the next second after she sat up, Fubuki was still a little shaken, and vaguely felt that the figure of the man in front of her had appeared in the dream. "And, I don't know if it's just my imagination, but it seems like I dreamed about Principal Hayato."

"Oh, it's normal to dream about it, since I beat you up. Don't worry about it," Hayato said casually, waving his hand. "I didn't ask what you dreamed about; I asked about how your body felt."

"No, that doesn't sound like something I can ignore, does it?" Fubuki retorted. "Besides, since you said you beat me up, Hayato-sensei, my body must be feeling... wait? Not only does it not hurt, but it feels quite relaxed?"

“It’s easy, of course. After all, I finally managed to catch the guy who’s been clinging to you.” Hayato said, pulling out a card from somewhere and showing it to Fubuki. The card clearly showed the mask Fubuki had been wearing earlier—the symbol of the “Darkness” power.

However, unlike the mask that was bound by chains in Fubuki's hands before, the mask in Hayato's hand was covered in cracks, as if it would shatter at the slightest touch.

"Although I did tell you that Edward's deck has special power, I didn't tell you to go and duel him. I was thinking that although you are usually unreliable, you are much more mature than Jaden and the others, so you can stop others from dueling with Edward. After I finish dealing with these recent matters, I will slowly deal with the hidden dangers in Edward's deck."

Hayato pressed the front and back of the card with two fingers, flicked it as if he didn't care whether the card would be damaged, and the card spun in his hand. "Judai is an idiot, Marufuji Sho is indecisive, Manjoume loves to show off, Asuka can't lie to Judai, and There's also Itsawa Sora who has no presence. But you're more of a show-off than I expected."

"However, you also benefited from this misfortune. After I noticed the data on the use of the new Duel Disk on the island, I went to check your location and happened to see the power of 'Darkness' on you fighting fiercely with the power in Ed's deck. I wiped them out in one fell swoop."

Yes, from the very beginning, Hayato never asked Fubuki to go find Edward. From start to finish, Hayato only told Fubuki about the special power in Edward's deck, and then asked her to use her excellent clowning skills and ability to attract fans to stop other students from dueling with Edward when necessary. This is something that neither Jaden nor Manjoume could do, only Fubuki with her large fan base could do.

Hayato was surprised that Fubuki, after agreeing to his request to his face, was secretly plotting something like "I'll defeat Edward first, then the others won't have to fight Edward," just like Dr. Gatling.

Hearing Hayato's words, Fubuki was very happy that she had completely gotten rid of the shadows of the past, but then she remembered something and quickly asked, "Compared to those things... what was the result of that duel, Hayato-sensei? Did you see the result of the duel?"

Hayato glanced at Edward, whose breathing had changed slightly, on the hospital bed beside him, then smiled at Fubuki: "The result of the duel... have you forgotten what cards you have?"

Chapter 1448 The Tennis Ball Bounces After Touching the Net

"...In the blink of an eye, Ed Phoenix, realizing the danger, actually resorted to the unorthodox method of the [Destruction Wheel], attempting to take me down with him!"

Looking at the beautiful women sitting around her, feeling their expectant and curious gazes, Fubuki deliberately paused for a while, keeping them in suspense.

"And then, Fubuki-senpai?" a second-year girl couldn't help but ask. Although Fubuki was also a second-year student this year, the age difference between them was obvious, so she naturally still addressed Fubuki as senpai.

"Heh heh, luckily I had this card in my hand at the time."

As she spoke, Fubuki took out a card and showed it to the girls around her. The girls instinctively looked at the card and read out the card's name: "【Mysterious Chinese Pot】?"

"Just like that Ed Phoenix thought that rather than letting me destroy his monster, he would rather use [Destruction Wheel] to blow it up and take me down with him. Rather than watching my life points go to zero, I would rather fry and eat my [Red-Eyes Black Steel Dragon] first."

Fubuki snapped her fingers. "Although the [Destruction Wheel] will deal a full 3000 points of effect damage, I used the [Mysterious Chinese Pot] to recover 3800 points of base score first. So in the end, the base score will rise from the original 250 points to 1050 points. The only one whose base score will be wiped out by the [Destruction Wheel] is Ed Phoenix."

"Wow, as expected of Lady Fubuki!" "So cool!"

However, faced with the praise and cheers from her junior classmates, Fubuki suddenly shook her head, then raised a finger, slowly pointed it towards the sky, and said in a mysterious tone, her voice slightly hoarse, "What can you see in your eyes?"

The girls looked in the direction Fubuki was pointing, but all they saw was a clear blue sky.

"White clouds?" "Sky?" "Sky?"

Upon hearing the keyword "sky," Fubuki, like a long-term vegetarian woman who had triggered the keyword and started questioning "why play Haruhi Kage," suddenly started wiggling her buttocks to show off her "Obelisk Blue perky butt."

"Ten (sky) —"

Turning around, Fubuki winked at the girls, gave them a thumbs-up, and grinned, showing four teeth: "—Join (Upper House)!"

Although Fubuki's actions and lines are somewhat corny, the same actions would be considered greasy if done by an ugly person, but when done by someone as handsome as Fubuki, the effect is amazing—the best evidence is the girls in front of Fubuki who are staring at each other with hearts and fainting on the beach, whether they are first-year students or second- or third-year students, they all win her over.

"Wow!" "Lady Fubuki~"

Even Asuka's two best friends, Junko Mamuda and Momoe Hamaguchi, were easily defeated. Last year, they were more infatuated with Caesar, who had already graduated this year, but this year they have quickly "transferred their affections" to Fubuki.

Not far from the beach, Hayato watched the commotion on Fubuki's side and remarked with a touch of melancholy, "This is youth~"

Across from Hayato, Edward, still dressed in his usual suit, seemed a little uncomfortable as he stomped his leather shoes on the sand, looked up at Hayato, and said, "Mr. Hayato..."

"Besides being a professional duelist, you are also a legitimate new student of this year's Duel Academy, having successfully passed the cultural exam and the practical test. Although your agency has pulled some strings, it only means that your exam was conducted independently."

Hayato shook his head. "So don't be so formal. Whether you call me 'Hayato-sensei,' 'Sensei,' or 'Principal-sensei,' it's up to you."

"I always feel like there's a title that's hard to ignore," Edward muttered, but then said seriously, "But unlike others who are just students, Mr. Hayato, you are special to me!"

"Do you still remember six years ago? That night, you helped me avenge my father and retrieve the card that was stolen from me. Your heroic figure commanding [D·hero Blood Demon-D] that night is etched deep in my memory. It made me understand what a true hero looks like. It is with my wholehearted admiration for you that I have been able to get to where I am today."

Hearing Edward's words, Hayato raised an eyebrow. He naturally remembered the duel six years ago during the KC Cup, in which he defeated DD and helped Edward retrieve [D·hero Blood Demon-D]. After all, just seeing the physical card effect version of [D·hero Blood Demon-D] in his hand would easily remind him of that incident.

However, he looked at Edward and said, "Hero? I don't remember helping you. I did hear that a guy named Dan Kuroto killed a guy named DD in a duel. Isn't that the name of the person you adopted?"

Regardless of what connection "Dan Kuroto" has with me, just tell me if this name is the same as "Kobayashi Hayato"? What does the fact that Dan Kuroto committed murder and arson have to do with me, Kobayashi Hayato?

However, Edward shook his head and said, "I found out the truth myself afterward, Mr. Hayato. The person who killed my father was 'DD'. He only adopted me so that he could know the progress of the investigation as soon as possible. As for your identity... I also watched the follow-up matches of that KC Cup."

"A name alone cannot conceal your identity. Someone as radiant as you is like a firefly in the darkness, so bright and outstanding, no matter where you are."

"I've admired you for a long time!"

Upon hearing Edward's words, Hayato covered his forehead, because he couldn't help but think of the same kid from last year who was also full of aspirations for him—Saotome Rei.

This is one of the prices of becoming the Duel King; having enjoyed the fame it brings, one naturally also bears the obligations of a public figure. In other words, one must act as a qualified idol, fostering a positive atmosphere and guiding admirers to become useful members of society.

"Hehe~ In that case, how about paying an 'idol fee'? Like a 'friendship fee' to maintain a friendship. Since you admire me, then offer me a tribute. Give me a hundred thousand or a hundred thousand, and treat me with the utmost respect, like a flight attendant serving caviar to a first-class passenger." Hayato shamelessly extorted Edward. "You want to study at Duel Academy for this? Where do you want me to sign your autograph?"

"Ten thousand dollars for your autograph? That's cheap!" Edward exclaimed with delight, instinctively reaching for his pocket, but then his hand froze. He remembered leaving his wallet and luggage on the ship, supposed to be delivered to his dorm by a school worker after he was assigned a room.

However, before I could go to school to report to the teacher, I went to the school clinic before entering the school because of my duel with Tenjouin Fubuki. After confirming that I was alright, I and Tenjouin Fubuki were kicked out by the school doctor who seemed to be very dissatisfied with Tenjouin Fubuki. Then, Mr. Hayato took me to the beach on the east side of the school.

(Assuming north is at the top and south at the bottom, the beach and blue dormitories are on the east side of the school, the red dormitories are on the west side and the yellow dormitories are on the south side.)

In other words, he simply couldn't produce $100,000 on him at that moment. He couldn't say he was penniless; he could only say he had nothing.

Edward was filled with regret for missing the chance to get Hayato's autograph. He had already planned to never wear the suit that Hayato used to love after getting Hayato's autograph again, and instead put it in a glass cabinet to preserve it.

With a look of disappointment on his face, Edward awkwardly changed the subject, saying, "No, I didn't come for Hayato-sensei's autograph."

While it would be better to have one, I'd be quite satisfied with just getting an autograph.

Taking a deep breath, Edward revealed a serious expression: "Originally, I wanted to enroll here because I had grown into a professional duelist who was capable of winning the championship trophy in the past five years and considered myself good enough. I wanted to see what level the students trained by this dueling academy, which has also spent five years and countless efforts on, were at."

"But that man, that man named 'Caesar' made me change my mind, and that 'Tenjōin Fubuki' over there also made me understand why he was able to be on par with 'Caesar' back then, and why he was able to get the title of 'King'."

With a complicated expression, Edward glanced at Fubuki, who was already applying sunscreen to the girls and running and playing on the beach with water guns. He thought to himself, 'Duel Academy starts in May, which is already considered warm spring, but isn't it a bit too early for them to be playing in the water on the beach? Aren't they afraid of the cold?'

Clearly, having spent years in America, he was unaware of the terrifying willpower of high school girls. They wouldn't just go to the beach at this time of day; they'd even show off their bare legs in the dead of winter, without stockings. As for Fubuki, he was even less aware of her—wasn't it common knowledge that a skilled card player has a resilient physique?

(A seahorse, on a business trip somewhere, jumped off a plane that hadn't landed yet while giving a thumbs up.)

“I realize that the Duel Academy must have something special that makes you, Mr. Hayato, so interested in it and have worked here for five years. In order to become stronger and get closer to you, Mr. Hayato, I want to find an answer in this school about what it means to be strong.”

After a pause, Edward seemed a little embarrassed: "But, regarding that 'White Power' you mentioned in my deck, I..."

On one hand, the person in front of him was his idol whom he had idolized since childhood, and Edward wanted to show Hayato the records of his online arguments with those trolls on the Duelist forum in order to protect the other party's reputation; but on the other hand, Edward was also well aware of the source of the special power in his deck.

Although what he learned from Saiou was that the power could help him avoid being harmed by the Dark Games, and he had indeed successfully used it to avoid the invasion of the evil power that came from who knows where when he was attacked by those criminals in the past, he really knew nothing about the ability to "brainwash the defeated".

However, Saiou was his friend, and this power had never brainwashed anyone he had defeated before, nor had it protected him for so long. He couldn't possibly betray his friend, could he? Torn between his friendship with his friend and his admiration for his idol, Edward was in a real dilemma.

But Hayato waved his hand: "Anyway, that power has already been crushed by Fubuki and 'Darkness' together, so it doesn't matter. Although it's not the main body, but a separate wisp of power that split off, Fubuki is still the winner of the duel, so it's still a certain bonus. It'll be too easy for her to suppress your little bit of 'light'."

Hearing Hayato's words, Edward was also somewhat surprised: "Hayato-sensei, you seem to know where that power comes from?"

"Isn't that your old friend, that tarot card charlatan Saiou Takuma?" Hayato said casually. "And let alone that unlucky Saiou who was chosen as the 'Agent,' I also know the true source of the power, the 'Light of Destruction.'"

Hayato's first sentence made Edward, who was previously struggling with keeping his friend's secret, quite embarrassed, but the second sentence shocked Edward because he had previously heard Saiou's divination about himself.

In the fortune-telling industry, there is often a rule similar to "a doctor cannot heal himself"—that is, one should not predict one's own fate. Rather than being a custom or rule, it is probably more about avoiding having one's lies exposed. Otherwise, someone might actually be clenching their fist as big as a casserole pot and asking the fortune teller if they will suffer a bloody disaster. And not everyone has a mind-reading substitute like "Atum God".

However, Saiō was not the kind of fortune teller who could deceive others by playing psychological tactics, conducting prior intelligence gathering, or using deceptive language. He truly possessed the ability to foresee the future, and therefore, he could also divine his own destiny without restriction. The result he obtained was the symbol of the tenth number in the Major Arcana – "The Wheel of Fortune".

The Major Arcana cards can be interpreted differently depending on whether they are upright or reversed, but the Wheel of Fortune is the most prominent one because it represents the ever-changing nature of fate. One moment of good fortune may turn into misfortune the next, and the next moment of misfortune may not be a turn of luck but an even worse misfortune.

Saiou told Edward that his fate was like a tennis ball that bounces off a net; no one knew which side it would land on, and only fate itself could determine the outcome.

In the subsequent divination, Saiou discovered that the two people who could most influence his fate were respectively hinted at as "the Pope" and "the Fool." These were Ed Phoenix, the close friend Saiou met by following the guidance of fate, and Jaden Yuki, whom Ed noticed by chance because of Caesar.

Edward had once asked Saiou what the different outcomes would be if the tennis ball landed in different places. Saiou's answer was that depending on which fork in his destiny led him down, there would be a mysterious black representing infinite possibilities, or a white that would engulf everything and bring despair.

Isn't this exactly the existence Hayato was talking about, the one that even Edward had never heard of before, called "The Light of Destruction"?

Chapter 1449 Duel Academy "Great Expedition"

"Mr. Hayato, if you know a part of Saiou's future destiny, does that mean you also have a way to change that destiny—"

“Sure, I can help your friend change his fate.” Hayato nodded under Edward’s surprised gaze, but then added, “What was the fate your friend Saiou predicted? Anyway, as long as I kill Saiou right here, changing his future will be a piece of cake.”

"Huh?" Edward was taken aback, not expecting Hayato's method of changing his fate would be this. "Kill Saiou? This is a bit too..."

"Never mind the methods used, just tell me if the result changed his fate?"

Hayato shrugged indifferently, "His future is nothing more than whether he will pose a threat to this world. Sacrificing him alone can save the world, isn't that a good deal? Anyway, he's not my friend, this is just a necessary sacrifice."

"It's not my style to go to great lengths for someone who's not even a relevant person. Even if there's a better solution, I'll only choose this one. Otherwise, I'll just use the method your friend told me to solve the problem myself."

Edward thought for a moment and said, "The method that Saiou told me... he did say that the two people who hold the hints of 'The Pope' and 'The Fool' can influence the course of his fate, respectively representing me and a student in the Duel Academy named 'Yuki Judai'."

"But does that person really have the ability to change Saiou's fate?" Edward said uncertainly, because he had witnessed the duel between Jaden and Kenzan, and the strength Jaden showed in that duel was not enough to convince him.

"Tenth generation? 'The Fool'? That's quite fitting." Although not a divination enthusiast, Hayato knew a little about Tarot cards, because that's how card readers are—they know a bit about all sorts of random things. He knew that in Tarot, "The Fool" didn't refer to a fool, but rather to an idealistic adventurer just starting out. It wasn't in the sequence of the first to twenty-first cards, but rather represented "0," which symbolizes both beginning and end.

"From what you're saying, you've already met the Tenth Generation. Is it because of Saiō's prophecy?"

Hayato remembers that in another world, Edward approached Jaden because of Saiou's prophecy. Edward used a deck of cards randomly bought from a card pack at a convenience store to fight Jaden to a standstill. In the end, as expected, Edward lost to Jaden, but he also used this opportunity to test Jaden's abilities.

On his way to take Edward and Fubuki to the infirmary, he did run into Jaden and his friends. For the sake of their newly acquainted Dilano Kenzan, they had each gotten their own iron rack, charcoal, and ingredients and were secretly barbecuing in a clearing in the forest. As a result, Hayato caught them red-handed and punished them by making them copy safety slogans such as "Fire in the forest, the police will come looking for me" a hundred times after the barbecue. Hayato also stole two skewers of grilled chicken wings from them.

When Fubuki collapsed "again," the others were surprisingly unsurprised. Even her younger sister, Asuka, remarked that Fubuki lying in bed was a better Fubuki than out partying, a testament to their sisterly affection. As for Edward, they only vaguely recognized him but didn't really know him, indicating that he hadn't even had a chance to approach Jaden before Fubuki ganked him in the jungle.

“I did see him, but it was really just me watching his duel from a distance. And it wasn’t really because of Saiou’s prophecy, but more because of ‘Caesar’s’ appearance.” Edward paused, “In our previous duels, he kept comparing me to Jaden Yuki, who is also a user of the [Hero] deck, so I wanted to see what kind of person he was that could make ‘Caesar’ so obsessed with him.”

"Is just looking enough? It might seem about the same for the average person, but it's probably not enough for duelists, right?" Hayato asked. "The best way to understand someone and see them clearly is to have a soul-searching duel with them face to face, isn't it?"

"May I?"

Edward was somewhat surprised. "I thought you, Hayato-sensei, would protect your students from all the outside world's storms and prevent them from being defeated by outsiders like famous professional duelists."

"A greenhouse can cultivate flowers, but it can't grow towering trees. Although the main purpose of the Kaiba Group in establishing the Duel Academy is to continuously inject fresh blood into the Duel Monsters world, my plan has always been to cultivate enough outstanding strongmen."

Hayato shrugged and smiled at Edward, "But then again, do you really think you came to the Duel Academy to smear fish?"

"Don't forget that Fubuki just defeated you and gave you a taste of your own medicine. Who knows who will win if you fight my students?"