Yugioh [855-858] (Patreon)

Chapter 855: Master of the Academy

Jesse Anderson did not show up right away.

As Adrian had said, the boy was like a ghost. Five people had come to the Duel Academy this time, and he was the only one who had yet to appear before the others.

But the reason wasn’t that he was aloof or mysterious. It was simply that Jesse… was hopeless with directions.

Yep, he got lost like Zoro.

Not that it mattered much. After the chancellor spent a few awkward seconds smiling on stage, the legendary Jesse Anderson finally appeared at the doorway, panting, drenched in sweat as he hurried up to the podium.

“Ahahaha, I’m so sorry. I didn’t expect the main campus to be this big. I couldn’t find the auditorium for a bit, ahaha.”

The chancellor cleared his throat and let it pass.

The last to be introduced was Professor Viper.

He had a downright vicious face, and his tone was even harsher. He took the mic and said bluntly, “Today was supposed to be about greetings and building rapport, but saying all that won’t make anyone stronger.

So let’s skip the boring pleasantries and go straight to live combat. That’s my teaching policy!

We’ll implement it right now: an inter-campus exhibition duel!”

At that, even the chancellor and the instructors on stage looked at him in shock.

Huh?

This was on the agenda?

No one said anything about that.

 Just deciding this on his own…

“The duelists will be chosen by me.”

Though he was a visiting professor, Viper spoke as willfully as if he were the chancellor himself.

Viper narrowed his eyes.

The student he was most interested in here, of course, was—

“Jaden Yuki!”

In the stands, Jaden pointed at himself, bewildered. “Huh? Me?”

Professor Viper didn’t answer. He then pointed at Jesse, who had only just made it on stage.

“Jesse Anderson!”

He’d tried to gather Jaden Yuki’s data before and failed. Since the indirect approach hadn’t worked, he’d do it the straightforward way—use his authority as exchange professor to arrange a duel.

He glanced at Chancellor Sheppard behind him. “No problem, Headmaster?”

Sheppard frowned, then decided to give the guest professor some face. “Well, practical combat is indeed best. I have no objection.”

Viper nodded, satisfied. “Excellent. Then it’s decided—”

“Hold on a second.”

Someone cut in.

Viper looked toward the student seats and frowned at the person standing up.

The students started buzzing.

The Lord of the Yellow Dorm!

 “Mr. Kira!” Jesse, who already knew Kira, waved energetically.

Axel and Jim, who were seeing him for the first time, couldn’t help but look over as well.

“So that’s the living legend of Duel Academy, the Duel King…”

Jim rubbed his hands. “What I wanted most on this trip was to try my hand against the legend, after all. Right, Shirley?”

The crocodile named Shirley on his back growled excitedly twice.

“You’re Fujiki Kira, right?” Professor Viper frowned. “Do you have a problem with my policy?”

He couldn’t help griping inside. He’d heard the rumors: nominally Sheppard was the chancellor here, but in reality this guy called the shots. Viper had figured that no matter what, he was still a student and would give the chancellor face…

 Yet even after the chancellor nodded, this student objected. Did everyone really accept that this academy is run by this student?

“No, no, no objection.” Kira smiled. “I just think that since it’s an exhibition duel, we should showcase the highest level possible. It would be more valuable than student exchanges for the strongest professor to demonstrate in front of all the students, don’t you think?”

“Oh?” Professor Viper frowned. “So what you mean is—”

“I heard before that Professor Viper is a duelist from the military, who came to teach here with rich real-combat experience.

Since this is a rare opportunity, how about the professor give me some instruction and show everyone what a top-level duel looks like?”

Viper’s expression darkened… though that was his usual look, so it was hard to tell the difference.

He looked over at Sheppard.

“What do you think, Chancellor Sheppard?”

“Uh, Kira has a point,” Sheppard said, rubbing his shiny bald head. “Why don’t we do that?”

Behind him, the two highest-ranking professors at Duel Academy, Crowler and Professor Jean-Louis Bonaparte, both nodded repeatedly.

Professor Crowler: “Kira-kun is right, no ne.”

Head Professor Jean-Louis Bonaparte: “Let’s do as Kira-kun says, de aru.”

These two had their quirks—one’s catchphrase was “no ne,” the other’s was “de aru.”

Colorful people; most of the time they felt more like comedians than professors.

Last term, Professor Crowler had been promoted to acting chancellor, and Professor Jean-Louis Bonaparte to head professor, which had been Crowler’s previous post.

Now that the chancellor had returned, Crowler was back to being an instructor—but Jean-Louis Bonaparte was already in that role, so things were a bit awkward. They were rivals and hadn’t gotten along.

Professor Viper curled his lip slightly.

What is wrong with this school’s chancellor and leadership? They really don’t bother to hide that they’re taking this kid’s lead…

 This threw off his plan.

“…Fine.”

Viper nodded.

“Then an exhibition duel it is. I’d heard of Duel King already anyway. This is a good chance to see for myself.”

He paused, then said:

“But I’m not prepared for a sudden duel. Let’s set it… for two days from now.”

He looked to Chancellor Sheppard.

“The evening two days from now is a school-wide banquet, yes?”

Sheppard blinked, then nodded. “Yes—both to welcome new students and our exchange colleagues.”

“Then we’ll do it then.”

Professor Viper nodded.

“Conveniently, I also have a subsequent teaching activity to announce to all students at that time.”

Kira sneered inwardly.

Teaching activity likely meant hosting a school-wide duel event, like the GX tournament—letting all students duel freely across the academy island’s open map, tallying standings and points.

He claimed it was training through real combat, but his true aim was to siphon off the energy generated during the students’ matches to revive Yubel. The process would leave students drained, fainting, bedridden—and depending on their constitution, possibly worse.

“Is that acceptable, Fujiki Kira?”

Professor Viper looked at Kira.

“Of course.”

Kira smiled, as if to say: I’m just a student; what opinion could I possibly have?

“I’ll leave it to the professor.”

Chapter 856: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada

Duel Academy Island.

Waves crashed against the shore. Thin moonlight filtered through dense canopies, barely lighting the moss and ferns on the ground like the faintest signs of life amid the silence.

Professor Viper, from the Western Academy, walked through the woods. Twigs cracked underfoot. The air was thick with an indescribable heaviness and pressure, as if even breathing had grown laborious.

He held a device in hand, walking and stopping, using it to orient himself.

It was his first time on the island. His impressions so far were hard to put into words—especially in the middle of the night in this forest. The towering ancient trees cast huge interlacing shadows, like an invisible net that wrapped tightly around all outsiders.

It didn’t feel like a school, but like the forbidden domain of some demon lord.

But he eventually found what he was looking for.

Hidden deep within the island: a long-abandoned laboratory.

A rusted metal door hung ajar like a portal to another world. Moonlight seeped faintly through cracked window glass. A chilly wind threaded through the fractures with a low, wailing hum.

You’d never imagine how many bizarre secrets were buried on an island that seemed to house only a school.

This place had originally been an animal-centric lab exploring whether animals could learn to duel. It sounded absurd, but the research had proven feasible.

Back in Jaden’s first year, a dueling monkey escaped from this lab and even dueled him.

Some scholars argued that compared to humans, animals have greater natural affinity with spirits, so having animals duel could help explore ties to the spirit world. The project was later shut down for suspected animal cruelty.

The lights flicked on. The control room’s monitors lit up, casting an ominous glow across Professor Viper’s stern face.

“Outdated equipment,” Viper sniffed, unimpressed. “Well, at least it works.”

He tapped away at the consoles and pulled up surveillance feeds—projections from across Duel Academy.

He’d already planted covert surveillance devices throughout the campus, plus some mobile probes. Tiny cameras, nearly invisible to the naked eye, moved around the academy to feed him first-hand intel as fast as possible.

With that, the school’s every movement was essentially under his control.

At the thought, a viper-like dangerous smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

The situation had diverged a bit from his plan, but overall remained within control.

The Duel King, Kira… He hadn’t expected this guy’s influence to be so great in the open. Judging by the vibe, if he raised a banner to overthrow the chancellor, the whole school would side with him…

 No—Sheppard might support it himself.

And he’d specifically asked to duel him. Had he already grown suspicious?

Viper stroked his chin, thinking.

Well, whatever.

His goal was just to absorb enough dueling energy to revive that Lord. The original plan already accounted for personally stepping in if the energy fell short. He was quite confident in his own dueling ability.

The Duel King… why not.

A duel with him should produce high-quality energy.

Everything was under control.

But clearly, Professor Viper had never heard the old saying:

While the mantis stalks the cicada, the oriole lurks behind.

As he monitored the entire academy, he was oblivious that his own leering face before the monitors was, at that very moment, on someone else’s surveillance.

Kira watched Viper on a floating projection screen and muttered, “All these years later and I still remember the plot—sure enough, the old fox hid in this busted lab.”

Vampire Fraulein, holding a parasol, peeked in.

“He doesn’t look like a good guy. Master, should I…”

She trailed off, flashed small fangs, and made a throat-slitting gesture at her pale neck.

Kira gave her a helpless look. “Can you not be so gory? That’d get us an adults-only rating.”

Vampire Fraulein went limp and soft. “But I’m a vampiress…”

“Still, she’s got a point,” said Dark Scorpion Meanae, wearing a lab coat and officially the school nurse.

“This guy screams ill intent. Why not just get rid of him?”

“It’s fine,” Kira smiled. “I know what he’s after. I’ve got it under control.”

Since he said so, the spirits held their tongues.

Leaving his own lab, Kira hadn’t taken more than a few steps down the corridor when he ran into upperclassman Seika Kohinata.

Strictly speaking, she’d already graduated. But later, since Kira’s lab worked closely with the student council, Seika ended up handling a lot of its affairs.

Eventually Kira realized she’d gotten the hang of many tasks and that replacing her after graduation—handover and all—would be a pain. So he directly made her a generous offer to stay on.

Seika now considered herself lucky. Her research talent was average, and while her dueling ability was outstanding among ordinary people, it was mediocre among academy elites.

Today, Kira’s lab was one of the duel world’s top outfits. Each quarter, talented people from all fields fought to get in. Since she’d joined early during the lab’s startup, she’d even landed a managerial role—respectable by any standard.

“President.” Kira greeted her with a smile.

Seika flushed. “Please don’t tease me. I haven’t been president for a while—you’re the boss now. Since you’re here, there’s something the school wanted me to ask your opinion on.

If you’re not too busy…”

“Go ahead.”

“It’s like this. As you know, many of this year’s freshmen enrolled because of you, and the new boys and girls all want a chance to meet you.

So the freshmen jointly petitioned the school to send a student representative to request an exchange duel with you. Would you be…”

“Oh, that’s all? Sure, I can. But the student rep…”

Kira thought for a moment.

“This year’s first-years? If I recall correctly, it should be…”

Seika handed over a student file.

“Blair Flannigan, first-year in Ra Yellow.”

Kira’s expression turned a bit odd.

Huh? Yellow Dorm?

 Wasn’t she supposed to be in Slifer Red?

Chapter 857: A Maiden in Love

“Kira-sama!”

Standing on the dueling platform, Kira watched a girl in a yellow dorm vest dash toward him with sparkling, starry eyes, and couldn’t help wanting to quip.

Shouldn’t you be Jaden’s fangirl?

 And before that, weren’t you supposed to be Slifer Red?

In fact, Blair Flannigan was a prodigy admitted ahead of schedule—by age, she should still be in middle school. She’d been fast-tracked into Duel Academy because of exceptional performance, and given her strong showing in the GX Tournament, she could have been placed directly in Obelisk Blue.

But in the original story, she rejected the elite dorm herself and insisted on staying in Red. The reason was simple: to be near Jaden.

Blair was pure love-brain. Back in elementary school, she’d snuck into Duel Academy to get close to her crush, Zane Truesdale.

Then, after being defeated by Jaden’s duel at the academy, she switched to idolizing Jaden, striving to catch up to him, and coming to Duel Academy mostly for that goal.

But now, seeing the yellow vest on the girl and those almost glowing starry eyes, Kira realized Jaden’s little fangirl might have been stolen by him…

 But he swore he was innocent. He’d never even met the girl before. And the first-year duel she had was something he hadn’t poached—Jaden had taken that one himself.

Blair reached the platform, face flushed. “Um… Kira-sama, I came to Duel Academy because of you. I’ve dreamed of having a chance—just once would be enough—to duel you…”

The new students—especially the first-year girls—totally understood.

More than half of them had enrolled with starry-eyed devotion, hoping for a chance to get close to the duel world’s absolute pinnacle.

He was witty, his dueling style was fun and full of joy. He looked handsome, and his sunny smile…

 The upperclassmen didn’t feel the same.

They thought the newbies really didn’t know their place. Dream big if you want, but dreaming of dueling the Lord of Yellow…

 Kira took his place on one side of the arena.

Vampire Fraulein teased at his side. “Master, you’re really popular with the girls.”

Silent Magician stood nearby, pouting and saying nothing.

“Oh, stop. She’s just a little girl.” Kira shrugged. “Being admired by a naive middle-schooler isn’t much to brag about.”

He paused, then grinned.

“Besides, I’m so excellent—having many admirers is only natural, no?”

Eye: “…”

Even this usually noisy spirit was stumped into silence.

She wondered if his thick skin correlated with his dueling skill. After all, there’s a saying: ‘If you have no shame, you’re invincible…’

 Silent Magician, however, found nothing odd about it and even nodded solemnly—as if to affirm that someone this handsome and strong being admired was only right.

“Then, starting now,” Professor Crowler announced, “we’ll have the representative duel between seniors and freshmen!”

He smiled at Kira.

“I’m counting on you, no ne, Kira-kun!”

“Duel!” x2

 [Kira, LP 4000]

[Blair, LP 4000]

“I’ll go first. Draw!”

Blair took the first turn.

“I summon ‘Maiden in Love’ in Attack Position!”

A beautiful princess-like girl in a long dress appeared, complete with a pink, girly backdrop and sparkling bubbles.

[Maiden in Love, ATK 400]

Syrus’s eyes lit up in the stands. “What a pretty monster!”

“I set one card and end my turn!” Blair set a back row.

“My turn. Draw,” Kira said.

The Love Deck deck perfectly fit a love-brained character. It was anime-original; no physical cards. But it exists in video games like Tag Force and the mobile Duel Links, and plenty of casual combo players enjoyed it there since it’s unavailable in paper.

“I summon ‘Alchemist of Black Spells.’”

A black-armored spellcaster strode from a magic circle, gold lines tracing the dark plating, imposing in form.

[Alchemist of Black Spells, ATK 1200]

Jaden had lost the first time because he didn’t know the Maiden in Love’s effects. As they say, heroes fall before beauties—Jaden’s HEROes stalled at the sight of a pretty girl, got charmed, and defected one after another, leaving him dumbfounded…

 Even though it’s anime-original, Kira knew a bit about the effects. Basically, if you attack rashly, your monsters can get lured away.

But…

Kira’s mouth curled slightly.

Well, she’s a newbie—and a little loli at that. At least give her a chance to show her stuff.

He waved casually.

“Alchemist of Black Spells, attack ‘Maiden in Love.’”

A bolt of magic power pierced the pretty girl, and the shock made Blair stumble back two steps.

“Uwah!”

[Blair, LP 4000 → 3200]

The Maiden in Love dropped to her knees, looking up with big, innocent eyes. “It hurts… You’re so mean…”

The black-armored mage suddenly panicked, as if he’d committed a heinous act, not daring to meet her gaze. Though masked, a blush somehow appeared on his covered face as a special effect.

“Girls get stronger when they’re in love, Kira-sama,” Blair said with a smile. “Maiden in Love’s effect: while in Attack Position, she can’t be destroyed by battle, and when she’s attacked, the attacking monster gets a ‘Maiden Counter’!”

[Alchemist of Black Spells, Maiden Counters: 0 → 1]

“Interesting effect,” Kira smiled. “Then I activate the Continuous Spell ‘Arcane Barrier.’”

The Spell appeared in Kira’s back row.

“The Arcane Barrier gains a Spell Counter each time a Spellcaster-type monster on the field is destroyed,” Kira said.

“Then I activate Alchemist of Black Spells’s effect. Once per turn, it can change itself from Attack to Defense Position, and place one Spell Counter on a card that can hold counters.

I’ll place a Spell Counter on the Arcane Barrier.”

[Alchemist of Black Spells, DEF 1800]

[Arcane Barrier, Spell Counters: 1]

“Next, I activate the Spell ‘Spell Power Grasp’—place one Spell Counter on a card that can hold them, and add another ‘Spell Power Grasp’ from my Deck to my hand.”

Kira continued.

“Place another counter on the Arcane Barrier.”

[Arcane Barrier, Spell Counters: 2]

“I end my turn.”

Chapter 858: A Duel Not Suitable for Children

“My turn. Draw!”

Blair straightened up.

A duel with the idol of her dreams—she had to be at her best no matter what.

Stand tall like a girl in love!

 “I activate the Equip Spell ‘Cupid's Kiss’!”

A pink-heart-themed card; a chibi, blond love-god wielded a cupid arrow tipped with a heart.

“Cupid's Kiss equips to ‘Maiden in Love,’” Blair said. “Then Maiden in Love attacks ‘Alchemist of Black Spells’!”

The long-dressed beauty rushed forward through a rosy, dreamy backdrop, clutching a huge bouquet. “Mister Mage~”

The Alchemist froze, and the beauty tripped right in front of him, taking a spill.

[Alchemist of Black Spells, DEF 1800]

 [Maiden in Love, ATK 400]

 [Blair, LP 3200 → 1800]

The long-dressed girl stood up with tear tracks on her cheeks. “So cruel… Are you rejecting my feelings?”

The Alchemist was moved, hurriedly helping her up. She beamed instantly and, arm in arm, walked off to the other side’s field.

The crowd: “…”

Seriously?

Blair smiled. “When a monster equipped with ‘Cupid's Kiss’ battles an opponent’s monster with a Maiden Counter and I take damage, I gain control of that monster.”

“Not bad,” Kira said. “But Alchemist of Black Spells is in Defense Position and can’t change positions during the Battle Phase. Even if you took control of him, he can’t attack me.”

Blair pouted.

True.

She’d sacrificed over half her LP to steal control but couldn’t attack—because the Alchemist had that rare once-per-turn self-switch to Defense.

Otherwise, her usual combo would let her steal control and swing in for heavy damage…

A thought flitted through her mind.

Did Kira-sa,a actually calculate all of this?

“Then, that’s the end of my Battle Phase,” she said. “I set two cards and end my turn.”

“My turn. Draw.”

Kira drew, glanced at the card, slipped it into hand, then played another.

“I Normal Summon ‘Magical Exemplar.’”

A green-robed priestess manifested, holy text inscribed on her robes; her face was pure and solemn.

[Magical Exemplar, ATK 1700]

It might seem odd that even female monsters get charmed by the Maiden in Love, but this isn’t the Age of Rule-of-Cool—by duel rules, it happens.

You could say the Maiden in Love is gender-blind and even cross-species—dragons and fiends alike would fall.

 One wonders how that tiny body can handle it…

“I activate ‘Graceful Charity,’” Kira said. “Draw three, then discard two.”

He sent two cards from hand to the Graveyard.

“At this moment, Magical Exemplar’s effect activates.

While she’s on the field, each time a Spell Card is activated, she gains two Spell Counters.”

[Magical Exemplar, Counters: 2]

“Then I activate ‘Spell Power Grasp’ again. Place another Spell Counter on the Continuous Spell ‘Arcane Barrier,’ then add my last ‘Spell Power Grasp’ from the Deck.”

“Next, Ritual Spell ‘Advanced Ritual Art’!” Kira said. “Send Normal Monsters from the Deck to the GY as the Tribute, until their total Levels equal the Ritual Monster in my hand, then Ritual Summon that monster!”

The deck auto-searched; Kira pulled a card.

“I’ll send the Level 1 Normal Monster ‘Skull Servant’ from the Deck to the GY as the material to Ritual Summon!

 Let the sacrificial fiend of fantasy descend—

—Relinquished!”

A vast darkness swelled, coalescing into a huge, horrifying creature. A single eye snapped open, and even the surrounding darkness seemed to ripple outward with its surge of aura.

[Relinquished, ATK 0]

The appearance drew a stir across the arena.

“Relinquished!”

“Mr. Pegasus’s ace—one that even Yugi Muto struggled against!”

Yes, as an opponent’s monster, its aura of evil was enough to make one’s sanity slip.

Especially when the opponent was a mentally immature loli…

Blair shrank back, frightened. “R-Relinquished…”

“Don’t be nervous. Even if it looks a bit scary…”

Kira smiled gently.

Blair blinked and probed carefully, “…Actually?”

Kira smiled. “Actually, it is really scary.”

Blair: “…”

Kira didn’t hesitate. “Relinquished’s effect activates.

Once per turn, it can absorb one opponent’s monster and equip it to itself.”

He crooked a finger without mercy.

“Absorb ‘Maiden in Love.’”

Blair: “!”

What followed was a scene almost worthy of an adults-only rating.

Relinquished opened its body and loosed that vast darkness. The blackness, like tentacles, seized the beautiful girl. She struggled helplessly, crying out in a voice on the verge of tears, but the tendrils bound her and dragged her into the dark, merging her body into Relinquished.

Until the struggles ceased, and her pretty face, streaked with tears, accepted her tragic fate…

The crowd: “…”

Syrus sweated. “As expected of the Lord of Yellow—to do something so brutal…”

“Well, it’s a duel,” Misawa coughed. “You have to give it your all. If you hold back because the opponent’s a pretty girl, you’re not a proper duelist.”

Even so, Misawa couldn’t help glancing at the field again.

Saying that was one thing, but to do something this savage without batting an eye… only the Lord of Yellow could.

Also, Mr. Pegasus, why did you design your monster’s animation to be so not safe for kids…

That said, Misawa realized, to his own shock, that he was a little excited watching it…

 He shook his head to clear that pervy thought and focused on the duel.

For Blair, a not-yet-mature girl, the scene was a critical hit—she looked like she’d just been punched and was about to cry.

“K-Kira-sama…”

“Easy, we’re not done yet.”

Kira smiled reassuringly.

“I activate the Spell ‘Metamorphosis.’ Tribute a monster on the field to Special Summon a Fusion Monster of the same Level.

I tribute the Level 1 ‘Relinquished’ and let the fiend of fantasy evolve—

—Thousand-Eyes Restrict, summon!!!”