"Just putting on a brave face. I set one card and end my turn."
"My turn, draw!"
"Wait, this card is..." Nafili looked at the card he had drawn, and his heart suddenly seemed to stop.
He had actually drawn this card at a time like this. Damn it! He still wasn't capable of using this card, but if he didn't use it... he would lose this duel!
Nafili stared fixedly at the card in his hand, cold sweat beading on his forehead. What should he do? Should he use it? If he couldn't control it... Nafili turned his gaze to Hara Shichi, who stood beside him, and fell silent.
I'm Perfectly Clear-Headed!
"Lost again?" the old man asked.
"It was just bad luck. If she hadn't Impermanence'd my Millet, I'd be the Duel King," Nafili said listlessly as he lay on the sofa.
"You said the same thing three years ago."
"Tch."
"What are you planning to do next?" the old man continued.
"Play in the professional league, fight for a spot in The Genesis Land three years from now, then become the Duel King," Nafili replied.
"The academy has two spots as well," the old man suddenly said.
"What do you mean?"
"Have you considered staying at the school and becoming a teacher?" The old man stared at Nafili.
"Why?" Nafili asked, puzzled.
"Sometimes, it's better to rest before moving forward," the old man said. "The high-intensity duels in the league will only exhaust your mind further. At this rate, you won't get stronger."
Nafili was silent for a while before saying, "I understand."
Then Nafili became a teacher for four years, eventually even becoming the Head Teacher.
Though only the deputy one.
"Damn it! You're not the same as before! You're a teacher now! Are you really going to disregard your student's life just for your own victory?!" Nafili lowered his head and clenched his fists. "And even if I use this card, I might not win..."
"But if you don't use it, you'll definitely lose."
"Hara Shichi?!" Nafili turned around and discovered that Hara Shichi had somehow come to stand behind him.
"Use that card. Don't worry about my safety," Hara Shichi said seriously. "Compared to something so trivial, I want to see you win."
"You... really are just my type!" Nafili grinned, a trace of madness flashing through his eyes. "In that case, I won't hold back!"
"I enter the Main Phase and Normal Summon Nekroz Lizard!" Nafili slammed the monster onto his Duel Disk, then immediately inserted the card he had just drawn into it. "Next, I discard Fairy Tail - Snow from my hand and activate the Quick-Play Spell Card—Super Polymerization!"
"Super Polymerization?!" The man in black cried out in alarm. "Have you lost your mind?!"
"No! I'm perfectly clear-headed! I send my Nekroz Lizard and your Master of Chaos to the Graveyard. Come forth! Nekroz of Midrash!"
Surging power erupted from the dueling field. A massive vortex swallowed Nekroz Lizard and Master of Chaos, but unlike what Nafili had expected, Nekroz of Midrash did not appear. Instead, the energy on the field began to grow violent, as though it would explode at any second.
"Damn it! Are you trying to get yourself killed?!" As he spoke, the man in black immediately put away his Duel Disk and tried to flee. But soon, with a thunderous boom, white light enveloped the entire space.
"Rumble!"
"What's going on?" Yukikaze suddenly felt the ground trembling. Then, a thread of white light began to seep through the door before her.
"Something's wrong. Something happened inside!" Ghost Ogre grabbed Yukikaze and Julie, one in each hand, and carried them outside.
"Wait! Hara Shichi and Teacher Nafili are still inside!" Yukikaze shouted desperately.
"There's no time!" Ghost Ogre's snowy bangs covered her red eyes as a tear rolled down her cheek and fell at her feet. "There's no time, damn it!"
"How could this happen..."
Ghost Ogre quickly left the trial grounds and set the two of them down on the grass beside the lake.
Yukikaze's blue eyes stared blankly at the calm lake. Guilt and sorrow stabbed into her heart like blades—one stab, two stabs, three stabs...
"Don't look like your mother just died," Julie said weakly. "With Teacher Nafili there, that guy won't be in trouble."
"Huh? But..." Yukikaze wanted to say more, but a loud crash suddenly erupted from the lake.
"Splash!"
A gigantic figure burst from the lake. The bright moonlight spilled over her body, water droplets glistening like crystal, making her seem like a goddess emerging from a bath.
"This is—Nekroz of Nefel?!" Yukikaze cried out as she looked at the enormous figure before her.
Nefel then bent down and spread her cupped hands, placing Hara Shichi and Nafili from her palm onto the grass before vanishing into the night.
"Hiss... Good thing I was prepared and had Nefel on standby at all times. Otherwise, our two little lives might have ended here," Nafili said as he held his waist and rose from the grass. Then he noticed everyone on the lawn staring at him and gave two dry coughs.
"Cough, cough. Actually, I did consider your safety. It's just that Nefel told me Ghost Ogre had already brought you out, so..."
"Hara Shichi!" With tears in her voice, Yukikaze suddenly threw herself at Hara Shichi. "Thank goodness... thank goodness you're okay. Otherwise, I..."
Nafili: "..."
"Sorry for making you worry." Hara Shichi smiled. "It's all right now. Let's go back to school."
"Mm."
"So, can we finally leave? I still have class tomorrow," Julie said impatiently.
"Wait!" Nafili shouted. "Before we leave, let's get our stories straight."
"I was resting in my dorm today. I don't know anything," Hara Shichi said first.
"Uh, then... me too." Yukikaze lowered her head guiltily. After all, sneaking into the back mountain would earn her disciplinary action.
"I was in my dorm too. I don't know anything," Julie said, turning her head away.
"Then I noticed illegal intruders sneaking into the academy, tracked them all the way to the back mountain, and after an intense battle, the shameless enemy used a huge flammable and explosive object to try and take me down with him. But at the critical moment, I called out my Duel Spirit, Nefel, and survived under her protection." Nafili struck his palm with his fist. "In short, none of us saw one another today. Understand?"
"Okay."
"No problem."
"Good. Let's go, then." After getting their promises, Nafili finally felt the weight lift from his heart. If the dean found out that he had taken students to chase some mysterious man in black, then used Super Polymerization despite barely knowing how to control it and nearly got them all killed...
He would probably be dead too, and Super Polymerization would have to be handed over.
"Ghost Ogre, aren't you coming with me?" Hara Shichi asked Ghost Ogre, who was crouching alone by the lake.
"My mission..." Ghost Ogre hesitated.
"The trial grounds have become ruins, and the sealed Duel Spirit has disappeared because of the explosion. You don't need to be bound by that mission anymore," Hara Shichi said.
"But I failed to protect you just now." Ghost Ogre lowered her head. "If not for Nefel, you would already have..."
"That was because you weren't by my side, so you couldn't protect me." Hara Shichi extended his hand. "Now, can you stay by my side and protect me?"
Ghost Ogre looked at Hara Shichi's gentle hand. In an instant, a wrinkled hand overlapped with the one before her, and an old woman's kind voice echoed in her ears.
"Then can you protect me?"
"It would be my honor." Ghost Ogre placed her hand in Hara Shichi's.
Hara Shichi smiled. Just then, he suddenly felt a chill run down the back of his neck. A cold gaze was looking down at him from somewhere high above.
"A-Qi, I could have protected you from an explosion of that scale too. And I've always been by your side. Of course, I don't mean anything else by saying that, but I hope that wooden head of yours can think about it and say something to me..."
"Got it, got it. Ai is so good to me. Ai is amazing. Ai is adorable. Ai is the cutest in the universe..."
"You're just brushing me off!"
"..."
At that moment, deep beneath the lake, amid the ruins, a badly wounded arm suddenly emerged. At its fingertips, a purple card gave off an enchanting glow.
My Lord, Please Rely on Me.
"Impossible!"
Inside room 307 of the boys' dormitory at Duelist Academy, Hara Shichi stood before the mirror in white pajamas, brushing his teeth as he said, "Why would I lie to you?"
Ai floated beside Hara Shichi in a sky-blue dress. She furrowed her cute brows, put her hands on her hips, and said, "It's impossible for someone to trap you in an illusion without me noticing, then even transform into you to probe your memories!"
"Memories don't lie. Want to look through mine?" Hara Shichi said, half-closing his eyes and tapping his head.
"I would never do something so rude!" Ai muttered. "But if what you said is true... doesn't that mean my existence has been exposed too?!"
"Seems that way." Hara Shichi rinsed his mouth.
"Then why are you still so calm?!" If Ai's Duel Power had not been too scarce for her to materialize, she would have already punched Hara Shichi twice!
"I'm a god! What if they have designs on me and capture both of us..." Ai lowered her voice halfway through. "Hey, do you feel like someone nearby is eavesdropping on us? There seems to be a shadow on the balcony behind the curtains."
"That's a tree branch. I checked it last night," Hara Shichi said blandly.
"Go check again! Go check again!" Ai insisted.
"Fine, fine." Hara Shichi pulled open the curtains and pointed at several branches extending onto the balcony in the sunlight. "See? I didn't lie."
Several ancient trees had been planted behind the boys' dormitory. According to the academy, they were there so students could enjoy the freshness of nature early in the morning.
"Cut it down," Ai said coldly.
"Huh?" Hara Shichi stared at Ai in astonishment.
"I said cut down that tree!" Ai fussed. "You think it's a tree branch now, but when someone really is standing on the balcony, you'll definitely instinctively think it's a branch too! And what if someone climbs up to the balcony using those branches?! Cut it down! Cut it down!"
"It's literally... convenient for sneaking out of the dorm at night." Hara Shichi twitched his lips. "Did you forget that I climbed down from here last night to avoid the dorm supervisor?!"
"I don't care! I sense danger!"
"All right, stop making a fuss. I need to change and get ready for class. Or are you planning to watch me change?"
"You think I haven't seen it before?! My business is more important right now!"
"...Have mercy on me."
"..."
"You really don't need to worry so much," Hara Shichi said as he bit into a piece of bread on the way to class.
"If they really had some ulterior motive, they would have acted already." Hara Shichi smiled faintly. "Besides... I feel like he doesn't bear me any ill will."
"What a strange smile... Did someone feed you a love potion?" Ai tilted her head.
"No. I guess we just had a pleasant conversation?" Hara Shichi said.
"What did you talk about?" Ai asked curiously.
"He told me not to force myself and to rely on the people by my side." As he spoke, Hara Shichi turned his gaze toward Ai.
"Why... why are you looking at me?" Ai said nervously. "I've always been your..."
"Please rely on me as much as you wish, my lord." Silver hair drifted in the breeze as a small figure suddenly appeared beside Hara Shichi.
"Ghost Ogre? Why did you come out?" Hara Shichi blinked at her.
"Didn't my lord just say he wanted to rely on others? I heard that, so I came out." Ghost Ogre's little face looked somewhat confused. "Was I not the person my lord meant?"
"No, it was you." Hara Shichi patted Ghost Ogre's small shoulder.
"Really? It seems I understood my lord's meaning correctly." Ghost Ogre nodded happily, then said, "In that case, allow me to escort my lord to the classroom."
"Is that necessary?" Hara Shichi asked awkwardly, noticing the strange looks people were giving him. Unfortunately, his hearing was rather good, and every bit of nearby chatter poured into his ears.
"What a cute kid. Is she a student here?"
"Idiot, look at those decorations. She's obviously a Duel Spirit!"
"By the way, isn't that the legendary Hara Shichi who can use Xyz Summon?"
"Looks like it. I heard his deck is a cute-themed Marincess deck, and even his Duel Spirit is this adorable. Who would have thought such a big man had the heart of a young girl..."
"No, I smell criminal intent..."
"What a coincidence. I smell one of my own kind."
"..."
Clearly, Ghost Ogre's appearance had drawn everyone's attention. Some people liked to summon their Duel Spirits, but ones as cute and humanoid as Ghost Ogre were rather rare.
Before you continue