Duelists Never Surrender!

"It's necessary. The moment I appeared, I felt a killing intent. I suspect it's from someone narrow-minded, jealous of my master's superb dueling skills. To prevent any accidents, please let me escort my master."

"Killing intent..." Hara Shichi glanced at Ai, who had been silent since they arrived, a cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

"A-Qi," Ai finally spoke.

"Hm?"

"I feel that binding Ghost Ogre to a card is stifling her freedom. Why don't we let her return to the back mountain?" Ai said expressionlessly.

Hara Shichi looked at Ghost Ogre, who walked beside him, and lowered his head without replying.

"Just a mere Ghost Ogre. Once I have enough Duel Power, let alone Ghost Ogre, Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring, Proliferating G, and Infinite Impermanence will all be within my grasp. Do you understand what I mean?" Ai whispered into Hara Shichi's ear.

"Ahem, I don't quite understand what you're trying to say," Hara Shichi tried to brush it off.

"No, you do!" Ai hugged Hara Shichi from behind, her small hands once again landing on his face. This time, however, they lacked substance and almost passed right through him.

"You have to choose one today!" Ai said indignantly.

"Why?"

"It's redundant! The character archetypes are overlapping!" Ai hit Hara Shichi.

Hara Shichi looked at Ghost Ogre, who stood beside him with a sword at her waist, her expression serious, and then at Ai, who was playfully clinging to him.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible. What strange things are you talking about?" Hara Shichi denied.

Sigh, Master is talking to himself again.

Ghost Ogre's red eyes showed a hint of sadness.

Legend has it that a Duel King, whose dueling skills were too strong, had no friends. So, he imagined an imaginary friend and would discuss tactics with this imaginary friend every time he dueled.

Master is in the same situation, isn't he? How pitiful. I shouldn't expose him.

"Master, please rely on me as much as you need," Ghost Ogre said, looking at Hara Shichi with pity.

"Hm? Oh, oh... wait, Ai, stop messing around..."

Ah, Master's imaginary friend's name is Ai? I'll remember that.

Ghost Ogre nodded thoughtfully.

Chapter 26: Don't give away what you don't want yourself!

"Tell me, is there a possibility that you were just too stressed, and your body forced you to rest, causing you to have a dream?" Ai said, looking at Hara Shichi, who was sitting in class listening to the lecture.

Perhaps it was because Ghost Ogre had returned to the Deck, Ai no longer pestered Hara Shichi to "choose one."

"I don't know, maybe," Hara Shichi was indifferent now. There was no point in overthinking things he couldn't understand.

"That must be it," Ai said with relief.

"Ai."

"Hm?"

"What I said this morning, I was saying it to you," Hara Shichi said with a smile.

"Of course, I know!" Ai's lips curved slightly.

"And another thing," Hara Shichi said, looking at Ai, "When can you print Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring, Proliferating G, and Infinite Impermanence?"

"So you're finally getting to the point, huh?" Ai punched Hara Shichi's back.

"I can't help it. You saw them too, right? Midrash, Nafili, and... Super Magician," Hara Shichi said softly, resting his cheek on his hand. "If our next opponent is at that level, we'll lose."

"I know, sigh," Ai also started to look worried. "I don't have that much energy to print cards for you right now. It's hard enough to maintain myself, I can't even materialize... Ah, I've got it."

"What?" Hara Shichi looked at Ai.

"If we can't win, we'll just pull the plug! If we interrupt the duel, we won't have lost!" Ai said seriously.

"I meant, how to get stronger quickly," Hara Shichi said, holding his forehead.

"There are no shortcuts in the world. It's better to take each step steadily," Ai sighed. "However, dueling against powerful Duelists will generate more and stronger Duel Power."

"Powerful Duelists?" Hara Shichi's gaze shifted to Nafili, who was lecturing enthusiastically at the podium. "Are you suggesting I challenge Teacher Nafili?"

"If I lose, it'll be meaningless! I'll challenge him again later," Ai shook her head. "We need to find an opponent who is strong, but one you can actually win against."

"Is there anyone?" Hara Shichi began searching his mind. Did he really know anyone like that... Wait, if it's her, maybe he could try.

During lunch break, in the courtyard.

"So, what do you two want with me?" the girl with short purple hair resting on her shoulders leaned against the wall. "If it's to say thank you, there's no need. You both know, right? I was secretly following you two that night."

"Especially you," Julie pointed at Yukikaze. "I almost took your Deck. Don't you feel any resentment?"

"Hmm..." Yukikaze frowned, then relaxed. "You have a point, but that's a separate matter. I still have to thank you."

"You're an idiot," Julie scoffed.

"Wait, I'm not here to say thank you," Hara Shichi interjected.

"Eh? Classmate Hara Shichi, aren't you here to thank her with me?" Yukikaze asked in surprise.

"In that situation, we had already won the Dark Duel and were preparing to leave. Even if Senior Julie hadn't called Nafili over, we wouldn't have been in any danger, right?" Hara Shichi shrugged. "Rather, I dislike being followed."

"But you can't say it like that..."

Yukikaze looked troubled, but before she could finish speaking, Julie interrupted, "Then you're just here to pick a fight?"

"Of course," Hara Shichi said, hands in his pockets. "Didn't you say you wanted revenge last time? How about we have a duel right now?"

"Tch, you think... with that powerful Xyz card, you can do whatever you want?" Julie gritted her teeth.

"I took the afternoon off from class. I'll be waiting for you at the stadium. Of course, if you're scared, you don't have to come." Without waiting for Julie's reply, Hara Shichi left without looking back.

"Eh, um... See you later, senpai!" Yukikaze quickly said goodbye to Julie, then caught up to Hara Shichi.

Julie watched their retreating figures, her fair face suddenly darkening. She clenched her fist and slammed it hard against the wall. "Bastard!"

"..."

"Hara Shichi-kun, why did you say that just now?" Yukikaze asked, puffing out her cheeks like a little squirrel.

"What did I say?" Hara Shichi tilted his head.

"You were clearly provoking Julie-senpai just now," Yukikaze said.

"Didn't she provoke you before too?" Hara Shichi asked, confused. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, don't you understand such a simple principle?"

"But, even though Julie-senpai did things I really disliked, I feel like she's a bad person. And if you do this, aren't you no different from her?" Yukikaze said earnestly.

"Yes, that's why I want to duel her," Hara Shichi nodded. "Although Julie-senpai isn't inherently bad, if you think about it carefully, her behavior is quite terrible. Don't we need to help her correct it? I want to wake her up through dueling!"

"Is that so?" Yukikaze asked doubtfully.

"Of course not, it's all for Duel Power," Ai scoffed, floating in mid-air. Come to think of it, Julie's dueling skills are decent, but without the Evil Dragon, her setup with Dragonic Doom as an Ace Monster of Zombie-Type is nothing to fear. It's a good opportunity to fleece her.

"Of course it is. If I don't use this kind of provocation, how else would she take the bait?" Hara Shichi said, handing a card from his deck box to Yukikaze. "By the way, here's your Black Hole."

"Was it useful?" Yukikaze asked curiously.

"Mhm," Hara Shichi recalled his duel with "himself" and nodded slightly.

"Then you keep it," Yukikaze said generously. "I feel like this card will unleash even greater power in your hands."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Hara Shichi looked at Yukikaze strangely. "This is a prize you worked hard to win. Don't just give it to me."

Saying that, Hara Shichi forced it into Yukikaze's hand.

"Okay," Yukikaze stuck out her tongue and put the card away.

"It's her kind gesture, just accept it. Why are you being so coy?" Ai said from the side. "Black Hole can also be used as a Raigeki in the back row, it's quite strong."

"I owe too many favors, I don't even know how to repay them. How can I have the nerve to accept more?" Hara Shichi whispered to Yukikaze beside him.

"You give me something, I give you something," Ai waved her hand. "Just give her something. Let me think, I'll give her the White Rabbit I printed last time."

"Are you serious?" Hara Shichi looked at Ai in surprise, not understanding why such a cute little girl would say something so terrifying.

"Then give her a Madolche Messenger. There's no need to Summon Madolche Messenger in the third slot anyway, or Mille-Feu Cat would work too. Girls would definitely like such cute cards," Ai mused.

"Don't give people things they don't need!" Hara Shichi said irritably, but Ai had a point. It was important to reciprocate at times like these.

"Yukikaze, your deck has very few Trap Cards, right?" Hara Shichi asked.

"Mhm, I don't know why, but I can never seem to get any useful trap cards," Yukikaze said with a troubled expression.

"Then I'll give you this card. Without any disruption on the first turn, it can be very inconvenient in many situations," Hara Shichi said, handing Breakthrough Skill to Yukikaze.

"Wait! What are you doing?!" Ai grabbed Hara Shichi's head and shouted. "This card is useful, it's useful!"

"Don't you need it?" Yukikaze asked, not reaching out to take it.

"For negation effects, I already have Forbidden Chalice in my deck," Hara Shichi said.

"It's not enough, it's nowhere near enough!" Ai yelled in Hara Shichi's ear.

"Then... thank you," Yukikaze took the card, a brilliant smile appearing on her pretty face.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Blockade

Duelist Academy, Stadium.

Because it was still during class hours, the stadium, usually crowded, was now very deserted. When Hara Shichi arrived, he only saw Julie standing there alone.

"I didn't expect you to actually come," Hara Shichi walked forward.

"Let's agree beforehand. The duel can happen, but I have one condition," Julie took out her deck. "If I win, you have to give me your Tiramisu of the Tiara."

"You really can't forget my card, huh?" Hara Shichi said helplessly.

"Nonsense, who wouldn't obsess over such a powerful card!" Julie said coldly.

"Then what if you lose? If we're betting cards, you have to offer something of equal value," Hara Shichi raised an eyebrow.

"If I lose, I'll do whatever you want," Julie pursed her hot red lips, gently lifting the hem of her skirt to reveal a section of her fair thigh. "I'll do anything."

"Does she think I'm some naive little boy who's never seen the world?" Hara Shichi twitched his lips.

"Have you experienced it?!" Ai exclaimed, her blue eyes wide with curiosity.

"No."

"However, Tiramisu of the Tiara is a very important card to me, and I don't want to use it as a stake," Hara Shichi said. "After all, I can't guarantee I'll win the duel 100%."

"Hoh, scared now?" Julie sneered.

"Mhm, scared," Hara Shichi said, drawing a card from his deck. "If you don't mind, how about this card as a stake?"

"This card is... an Xyz Monster?!" Julie swallowed hard. "You have other Xyz Monsters?!"

"What do you say? With this card, you might just master Xyz Summoning," Hara Shichi said, shaking the card in his hand.

"Wait, you're not trying to fob me off with some useless monster, are you? Tell me its Summoning conditions and effect!" Julie knew very well that even among Xyz Monsters, there were strong and weak ones, some with harsh conditions and no use at all.

"Fiend Death God Thanatos. Its Summoning condition is two Level 4 DARK monsters. Its effect is: Once per turn, you can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card to activate. This turn, this card is unaffected by the effects of monsters other than itself. This effect can also be activated during your opponent's turn."

"It's not as strong as Tiramisu of the Tiara," Julie frowned.

"It's unaffected by Tiramisu's effect, and its ATK is higher than Tiramisu's. If you use this card, you might be able to beat me," Hara Shichi shrugged. "Besides, do you really think I'd offer a powerful card like Tiramisu as a stake if I still had it?"

"In that case, I accept this Duel." Julie began to step back, and a purple Duel Disk appeared on her arm.

"Then... Duel!"

"Duel!"

Julie: 4000 LP

vs

Hara Shichi: 4000 LP

"Beep!" Julie looked at her chiming Duel Disk and smirked slightly. "Looks like I'm going first again."