Duelists Never Surrender!
Author: Shigure No. 10032
Synopsis:
Yu-Gi-Oh! fanfiction protagonist recruitment:
Requirements: You only need to know how to play cards.
Benefits: Start with a silver-haired loli, a high-intensity sustainable deck, fully maxed-out cheats, punch the meta dogs, kick the slackers, enjoy yourself from beginning to end, achieve a 100% win rate, and become the strongest Duel King!
Veteran card player Hara Shichi happened to pass by, gave the flyer a slight glance, and silently slipped it into his pocket.
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Volume One
The Goddess of Duels Is a Little Loli?
"Young man, do you like dueling?"
In a void-like space, a little girl with long silver hair asked Hara Shichi.
"The dueling you mean... Yu-Gi-Oh! cards?" Hara Shichi eyed the empty space before him suspiciously. He clearly remembered walking home from the card shop when a truck suddenly ran a red light and barreled straight into him...
"Yes, you were hit to death." The little girl looked at Hara Shichi with vacant blue eyes. "Now, based on your answer, I will decide whether to send you to a world where dueling reigns supreme, or let you be reincarnated."
"So if I say I like dueling, you'll let me keep living?" Hara Shichi asked with lowered eyes.
The little girl did not answer his question and instead asked again, "Answer me. Do you like dueling?"
"Obviously... no." Hara Shichi answered without hesitation.
"Why?" the little girl pressed on.
"Do I even need a reason?" Hara Shichi sneered. "No matter how fun Duel Monsters is, it's still a game where luck makes up fifty percent, deck strength thirty percent, and skill twenty percent, right?"
"You elevated a game where skill accounted for less than half of everything to the highest possible status. I don't even dare imagine how warped that world must be. Terrifying, absolutely terrifying. I'd rather just reincarnate. Oh, and although I won't retain my memories, could you please let me be reborn as a beautiful girl in my next life? I've always wanted to know what it feels like to be one..."
"Mm, decided. I'm sending you to Duel Continent." The little girl nodded.
"You agreed? That's really... Wait." Hara Shichi realized something was wrong. "What did you just say?"
"I said I'm sending you to Duel Continent." The little girl repeated herself.
"Huh? Are you serious?" Hara Shichi frowned. "I said I hated dueling, not that I liked it."
"Because I hate it too." The little girl frowned with her adorable brows as she explained, "I am the god of Duel Continent, the Goddess of Duels—Yi. Originally, I wanted to use dueling to bring everyone joy, but ever since humanity discovered the tremendous power contained within duels, dueling changed."
"Criminals can use duels to escape police pursuit;
Scum can be praised because they're skilled at dueling;
Research only ever revolves around how to make use of Duel Energy.
Those without talent for dueling are treated as inferior;"
"Dueling hasn't brought everyone happiness. Instead, many people have no choice but to stake everything they have on duels." Yi's expression darkened. "I don't like that."
"..." Hara Shichi's eyelid twitched as he felt a bad premonition. "I understand, but what does that have to do with me?"
"I need your help." Yi held out her slender little hand. "My goal is to abolish the law that puts dueling above all else, along with the energy within duels, and turn dueling into an ordinary game."
"Then go do it." Hara Shichi complained.
"A god cannot create a stone she cannot lift." Yi shook her head. "I cannot defy my own laws."
"If even a god like you can't do it, why do you think I can?" Hara Shichi asked in confusion.
"Because you're strong," Yi said. "You say you hate dueling, but you're strong. You pointed out all of dueling's flaws, but you're strong. Dueling may involve a great deal of luck, but you're strong."
"If skill and deck strength make up fifty percent of dueling, then you are the duelist who has pushed those two factors to their limits, even raising them to fifty-one percent!"
"Really? Why didn't I know I was that strong?" Hara Shichi asked skeptically.
"Even if it isn't true, it has to become true." Yi pressed both little hands against Hara Shichi's cheeks. "You have no choice. Come on, go to Duel Continent with me!"
"Wait... I'm not ready yet... Mmph..."
Hara Shichi's vision went black. After a wave of nausea-inducing dizziness, he lost consciousness.
When he woke again, Hara Shichi found himself seated in the spectator stands of a stadium.
"Where is this?" Hara Shichi rubbed his head and asked instinctively.
"This is the Gymnasium of Duelist Academy, the oldest Duelist Academy on Duel Continent." A cool voice answered Hara Shichi's question. He followed the sound and saw Yi, who had called herself the Goddess of Duels, floating beside him like a ghost.
"Not a ghost! It's my soul projection!" Yi seemed to have guessed what Hara Shichi was thinking. "And you're the only one honored enough to see me. So? Aren't you overwhelmed with gratitude?"
"Tch. So this isn't a dream?" Hara Shichi clicked his tongue.
"Face reality. You were already dead, so isn't it wonderful that you have a chance to keep barely living?" Yi said with her arms folded over her flat chest. "Just follow me. There'll be benefits for you."
"I think you have a point. So can you give me a cheat? I've never heard of a transmigrator who didn't have one." Hara Shichi quickly adjusted his mindset and began seeking a shortcut.
"I've already prepared your cheat for you." Yi put on an expression that said, Leave it to me.
"Where is it? Is it a system? The kind that gives you a lottery draw after every two steps?" Hara Shichi blinked.
Yet, under Hara Shichi's despairing gaze, Yi pointed her thumb at herself. "With an omniscient and omnipotent god like me by your side, what more could you possibly want? I am your cheat!"
"..."
After a moment of silence, Hara Shichi held out his right hand. "Then give me a full-power Dragon Rulers deck or a full-power Zoodiac deck."
"No."
"True Draco?"
"Not that either."
"Swordsoul."
"Ahem!" Yi coughed twice and placed a deck into Hara Shichi's palm. "Since I'm only a projection right now, I don't have much Duel Energy. Printing this deck is already my limit, so make do with it for now."
"What is this?" Hara Shichi asked.
"Your favorite deck—Marincess," Yi answered.
"I noticed a lot of cards are missing." Hara Shichi inspected the deck card by card and found that the hand traps were gone, Princess Cookie was gone, and even his favorite Solemn Judgment and Solemn Strike were gone.
Yi turned her head away, not daring to meet Hara Shichi's eyes. "Th-this is only temporary. As long as you keep winning duels, I'll gain enough Duel Energy. Then, whatever cards you want, I'll be able to print them!"
"Fine, fine. Stop making empty promises and tell me what I'm supposed to do next." Hara Shichi asked.
"See those students dueling down there?" Yi pointed at the group of boys and girls in black uniforms within the stadium.
"I see them. Looks like most of them are just having Axe Raider slugfests." Hara Shichi rested his chin in his hand. "This is the level of the oldest Duelist Academy?"
"You're only seeing first-year freshmen who haven't been enrolled for long," Yi explained. "Black uniforms are first-years, white uniforms are second-years, and gold uniforms are third-years."
"So what are you saying?" Hara Shichi raised an eyebrow.
"Find a second-year or third-year student to duel, then win." Yi pointed toward the crowd below. "Only then will we have a chance to draw the teachers' attention and become students at this academy."
"I get it. In short, I need to prove my strength, right?" Hara Shichi rose from his seat and headed toward the crowd.
"Oh, one more thing." Yi seemed to remember something and suddenly spoke. "The monsters in duels here aren't virtual projections. They are real Duel Spirits."
"If you're careless, the aftermath of their battles might kill you."
My Turn, Draw!
"I activate the Spell Card Reinforcement of the Army! I add Noble Knight Commander from my deck to my hand..."
"I enter the Battle Phase and activate the Spell Card Shrink to halve your Silent Swordsman LV5's ATK..."
"Idiot! My Silent Swordsman LV5 isn't affected by Spell Cards!"
"..."
Noisy cries of dueling filled the entire Gymnasium. Every so often, tremendous gusts and thunderous booms erupted from monster attacks, so Hara Shichi only had to follow the loudest sounds to find powerful duelists.
Boom!
A deafening explosion rang out. Before Hara Shichi could react, he felt a soft body slam into him, knocking him flat onto the ground.
"Mmph..." A girl in a black uniform gritted her silver teeth and let out a pained moan. Her cute, lively face had twisted up from the pain, while her long, snow-white hair had been dusted with dirt from the impact, leaving her looking thoroughly disheveled.
But she soon realized that she did not hurt as much as she should have. In fact, it even felt as if there were a soft cushion beneath her butt...
"Ah!" The girl suddenly realized what that cushion was. A blush spread across her fair face. "Sorry, sorry! Are you okay?"
"Could you stand up while you're apologizing?" Hara Shichi asked weakly.
"Oh, right, I'll get up." The girl hurriedly climbed off Hara Shichi, bent down, and held out her arm. "Come on, I'll help you up and take you to the infirmary."
"You still have the mood to worry about someone else, Yukikaze. Don't forget, the duel isn't over yet." Along with a sharp voice, a girl in a white uniform emerged from the crowd. Behind her floated a massive jet-black monster with a vicious face and two pairs of black wings, like a demon from myth.
"So that monster caused that impact just now. It looks familiar, though. Could it be..." As Hara Shichi pondered the monster before him, Yukikaze spoke from beside him.
"It's already over. My field has been cleared, and I have zero cards in hand. I surrender." Yukikaze lowered her head.
"Then as agreed, your deck belongs to me." The girl in the white uniform walked up to Yukikaze and held out her hand. "Hand it over."
Yukikaze bit her lower lip and placed her deck into the white-uniformed girl's hand.
"Hmph, at least you know what's good for you. Remember this from now on: second-year upperclassmen aren't people you can afford to offend. Oh, wait. Students without decks get expelled, don't they? You don't have a future anymore. Hahaha!"
"She's awfully arrogant," Hara Shichi remarked as he watched the girl's back.
"Even among the second-years, Senior Julie is one of the best duelists. Rumor has it that some third-years aren't even her match..." Yukikaze explained quietly.
"Then why did you stake your deck on a duel with her?" Hara Shichi asked in confusion.
"Because... she said my deck was picked out of a garbage dump..." Yukikaze's eyes reddened. "My deck wasn't picked out of a garbage dump. It was my sister's enrollment gift to me..."
"So you dueled her because of that?"
"Mm..."
"And what are you going to do when you get expelled for having no deck?"
"I don't know..."
Hara Shichi looked at Yi, who was floating in the air, and asked, "What do you think?"
"Terrible personality, somewhat famous, and a fairly capable duelist. She's perfect as a stepping stone." Yi waved her little hand. "Go uphold justice and punish evil! Crush her completely!"
"Rare for us to agree on something." Hara Shichi gave a light laugh, then shouted at Julie, "Hey, powerful Senior Julie! How about a duel with me?"
Julie stopped in her tracks, her expression turning cold. "Who are you? Judging from your clothes, you don't seem to be a student here."
"Who I am isn't important. What matters is that I'm a duelist." Hara Shichi took out his deck.
"You want to stand up for that little first-year girl?" Julie laughed in anger. "Good, very good. If I don't teach you a lesson, every stray cat and dog will think they can jump out and take a bite at me. You know the rules, right?"
"If I lose, I'll naturally hand over my deck. But if you lose, remember to return Yukikaze's deck to her," Hara Shichi said.
"Huh?" Yukikaze lifted her head in bewilderment and hurriedly grabbed Hara Shichi's sleeve. "Wait! Losing my deck was my own business. You don't need to get dragged into this."
"It's fine. Just trust me." Hara Shichi reassured her. "I'm strong, so I'll win."
"But..."
Yukikaze wanted to say more, but Hara Shichi continued provoking Julie. "What, are you really scared?"
"No. I'm very excited right now. I accept your challenge!" Julie raised her left arm. With a flash of light, a purple Duel Disk appeared on it.
Watching Julie conjure a Duel Disk out of thin air, Hara Shichi remembered that he did not seem to have one himself.
"Raise your arm too." Yi's voice sounded behind Hara Shichi. He instinctively lifted his arm, and a flash of light followed. A compact silver Duel Disk attached itself to his arm.
"Only those with Duel Power can use Duel Disks. You aren't from this world, so use mine," Yi explained. "Put your deck into the Duel Disk. The duel is about to begin."
"I understand." Hara Shichi nodded, then looked at the ready Julie. "Then..."
"Duel!"
"Duel!"
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