Duelists Never Surrender!

"A shortcut!"

Ai exclaimed excitedly.

"Huh?"

"..."

And so, under the cold moonlight, a figure appeared on a tree branch behind the male dormitory building.

"Hurry, hurry, I'm already getting impatient," Ai urged.

"I wonder who it was that told me to cut down the tree branch last time," Hara Shichi muttered, tugging at the corner of his mouth. That's right, because the main gate at the bottom of the dormitory building was locked by the dorm supervisor every night, he had once again chosen to climb down using the tree branches from the balcony.

"Huh? Student Hara Shichi?"

A familiar voice rang out. Hara Shichi turned his head and saw a figure hanging from a tree branch beside him.

"Is that you, Student Aoshi? What are you doing out of the dorm so late?" Hara Shichi preempted him before Aoshi could speak.

"Eh, that's my little secret, you know? Do you want to know?" Aoshi winked playfully, a coy expression on his face.

"..." Hara Shichi nearly threw up his dinner.

"Hahaha! Your expression is hilarious. I was just kidding, I was going to the store to buy some snacks," Aoshi burst out laughing.

"Don't the school stores not sell those things?" Hara Shichi asked curiously. According to Yukikaze, the school stores only sold duel-related items.

"Ah? Oh, oh, you just transferred, so you wouldn't know." Aoshi seemed to recall something. "Although the academy store doesn't sell them, the student stores might."

"Student stores... I see."

"Well, of course, they're a bit more expensive, but it's convenient for everyone. Do you want me to take you?"

"No, thank you." Hara Shichi politely declined.

"Then I'll be going ahead."

Aoshi said, disappearing into the night.

"I actually feel like having some snacks," Ai suddenly said.

"Aren't you a spirit?"

"Heh heh, that's not necessarily true~"

Chapter 56: Paving a New Path.

"This way, turn right, ah, no, it's a dead end... Let's go around this way then."

Due to the curfew, the academy was deserted at night. Although it wasn't very lively during the day either.

Hara Shichi followed Ai's directions, weaving through the vast academy, panting, "I say, where exactly are we going?"

"Tired after only a few minutes? Your physique is too weak, you need to exercise more." Ai floated in mid-air, speaking without feeling the strain.

"How about I float and you walk then?" Hara Shichi retorted irritably.

"I wish I could, but my body won't allow it," Ai said, resting her chin on her hand.

"..."

"Alright, alright, I'll tell you. Just now, I remembered something very, very important." Ai slumped onto Hara Shichi, biting his ear excitedly. "Guess what I thought of?"

"Don't be a riddle-maker, just tell me already."

"Mmm, fine then. Remember I told you that Duel Power is generated during duels, with the winner absorbing the majority, the loser absorbing a small portion, and the rest dissipating into the air?" Ai said softly.

"I remember, what about it?"

"Then think about it again, where did the Duel Power that dissipated into the air go?" Ai asked with a smile.

"Into the air." Hara Shichi was confused.

"That's right, Duel Power doesn't just disappear out of thin air. It exists in the air. Since that's the case, the Duel Power in the air should logically become more and more concentrated, to the point where even normal people would notice it." Ai said this and clapped her hands. "So, here's the main point: why doesn't the all-powerful Ai just absorb the residual Duel Power from the air?"

"How should I know?" Hara Shichi said indifferently.

"You should be asking why here!" Ai sighed. "Never mind, I forgive you."

"Because... someone got to those Duel Power first and siphoned it away." Ai pushed up a non-existent pair of glasses on her nose.

"Who?" Hara Shichi also started to get curious.

"That's right, the mastermind who stole the residual Duel Power left behind by the students is... this academy!" Ai pointed at the teaching building ahead and said solemnly.

"Huh?"

"Ahem." Ai cleared her throat twice. "That's right, this academy actually has a Duel Power absorption device buried beneath the ground. Whenever a duel ends, the residual Duel Power is directly sucked underground, transferred to a central hub, and then, after energy compression and decompression, the Duel Power is converted into various forms of energy and transmitted to the academy's equipment. The light bulb in your room glows because it utilizes this Duel Power!"

"Duel Power that was generated by student duels, and this academy shamelessly claims it as its own! This despicable act makes me, a god, extremely angry, so next, we're going to seize the Duel Power collected by this academy!" Ai declared righteously, patting her flat chest.

"You know, is it possible..." Hara Shichi said, his eyelids drooping, "that this device might have been set up to save energy?"

"Yes, and in fact, many large cities in the kingdom have such devices installed." Ai nodded. "But that doesn't stop us from getting a piece of the pie."

"This absorbed Duel Power is completely raw, without any conversion or processing. I can absorb it directly. Then, won't we be able to print more powerful cards?" Ai patted Hara Shichi's shoulder. "I'm doing all this for your own good!"

"Even so, isn't what we're doing considered theft?"

"What theft? Don't we get a share of the Duel Power collected inside?! We're just taking back what belongs to us. If we accidentally took a little more, well, that's just force majeure!" Ai pointed ahead. "Let's go, I can sense it, the central area is up ahead."

Hara Shichi pondered for a moment, then felt that what Ai said made a lot of sense.

He looked at the building in front of him and suddenly noticed something. "This place... looks like an office building, doesn't it?"

"It's reasonable. Important things should naturally be kept in a safe place." Ai pointed to the now locked door and waved her small hand. "A-Qi, climb over."

"I don't think that's very likely." Hara Shichi thought for a moment and pulled out a card from his deck. "Ghost Ogre, are you there?"

"I am always ready to serve my lord." With a flash of white light, Ghost Ogre appeared before Hara Shichi.

She looked around, then focused her gaze on the door in front of them, placing her right hand on her sword hilt. "I understand. Do you need me to pave the way for my lord? Leave it to me."

"Wait!" Hara Shichi quickly stopped her. "I wanted to ask if you could carry me up to the second floor?"

That's right, although the first floor was blocked off, the walkway on the second floor didn't have any iron bars or railings.

"No problem." Ghost Ogre extended her hands. "Please, my lord, take a seat."

"Uh, what do you mean?" Hara Shichi asked, confused.

"It means..." Ghost Ogre gently pulled, causing Hara Shichi to fall into her embrace. "I heard this from students before – the legendary 'Lord Carry'."

"No, haven't you mistaken something? This is a 'princess carry'." Hara Shichi looked up at the bright moon hanging in the sky. "Could you please change the method?"

"Hold on tight, my lord, I'm going to jump." Ghost Ogre seemed not to hear Hara Shichi's words and leaped up, landing steadily on the second-floor walkway of the teaching building.

"I can sense it, that Duel Power is behind this door." Ai pointed at the door in front of them.

Ai got off Ghost Ogre and twitched the corner of her mouth, as she noticed a sign hanging on the door – Dean's Office.

"Are you serious? We've been here at least twice before, how come you didn't sense it then?"

"I followed the flow of Duel Power to find it, I'm absolutely sure, it's this place." Ai pointed to her eyes. "Besides, I wasn't paying close attention before. Didn't you notice the difference between my eyes now and before?"

Hara Shichi was taken aback and finally looked closely at Ai's eyes, noticing that within the girl's light blue irises, a colorful rainbow light was constantly swirling around her pupils.

"See? This time I've used my incredibly pure divine power. Doesn't it look dazzling?" Ai pointed to her eyes and smiled cheekily.

"It's quite pretty." Hara Shichi nodded.

"Could you be any more perfunctory?" Ai's face fell.

"Extremely beautiful."

"..."

Is my lord talking to his imaginary friend again? Ghost Ogre tugged at Hara Shichi's sleeve and asked, "What do we do next?"

"Next..." Hara Shichi walked towards the familiar door. "We're going into this room."

"My lord is going to steal something?!" Ghost Ogre exclaimed in shock.

"Ahem, it's not stealing, it's taking back our own things." Hara Shichi mimicked Ai.

"I understand." Ghost Ogre immediately believed Hara Shichi and stared at the door in front of them. "Do you need me to pave the way for my lord?"

"No, I think this door is..." Hara Shichi turned the handle, then gently pushed. The door creaked and then... opened.

"It's unlocked?"

Chapter 57: The Masked Girl

"Did the Head Teacher forget to lock the door when he left?"

Hara Shichi looked at the open door, hesitated for a moment, then walked in. The last time he was here was indeed the last time, and the room's furnishings were exactly as he remembered.

"It's very possible." Ai guessed from the side. "People who seem very meticulous on the surface might actually be careless."

"So? Where is the 'center' you mentioned?" Hara Shichi scanned the entire room, only seeing a rosewood desk, leather sofas for guests, and a crystal-clear glass table. On the glass table, there were fruits and tea for guests.

"It's right here." Ai pointed to the floor. "Do you remember how we entered the trial grounds before?"

Hara Shichi recalled the altar and said without hesitation, "You mean, this room is, in a sense, also a teleportation array?"

"That's right." Ai slowly descended from mid-air, squatting down. She patted the ground with a fair, tender hand, revealing a sly smile. "Watch this, this is the power of God!"

"Wait, I have a bad feeling about this..."

Before Hara Shichi could finish speaking, a blinding white light suddenly illuminated the floor, sucking him in. The next second, the office returned to its peaceful state, with only the door occasionally banging against the wall with the breeze, making a "thump-thump" sound, as proof that someone had been there.

Hara Shichi opened his eyes and saw a thick, large glass pillar standing straight in the center of this space. The glass pillar was filled with white light, and next to it was a huge instrument.

In front of the instrument, a petite girl with long black hair and a black dress stood with her back to him. On her arm was attached a red Duel Disk.

"Damn it, I knew someone would be here."

There was nothing else in the room except the light pillar and the instrument. Hara Shichi had nowhere to hide.

"Ai, someone's here, quickly send me back." Hara Shichi urged in a hushed voice.

"Since you're already here, stall her for a bit. I'm going to leech off the Duel Power!" Ai said, flashing away, eagerly floating towards the light pillar.

"Who?"

Seemingly sensing an additional person in this space, the girl suddenly turned around and saw a man wearing a high collar to cover the lower half of his face, wearing a hood, and slightly lowering his head.

"Who are you? What is your purpose for infiltrating this place?" the girl demanded in a hushed voice.

"I don't think that's a question you should be asking," Hara Shichi said, pointing at the white mask on the other person's face. "Who are you, and what's your purpose for sneaking in here?!"

"..."

A strange atmosphere spread between the two. Just as Hara Shichi was about to say something, the other person spoke.

"If I'm not mistaken, you're also after this pile of Duel Power, aren't you?" the young woman said calmly.

"And if I am?" Hara Shichi asked, looking at Ai, who was circling the pillar of light.

"As you can see, the Duel Power stored here is probably more than ten times the total amount you and I have. How about we just stay out of each other's way?" the young woman suggested.

"I have no objections."

"That would be for the best."

After receiving her answer, the young woman turned back to fiddle with the equipment, though she occasionally glanced back to keep an eye on Hara Shichi.

Just then, Ai floated back.

"You're done already?" Hara Shichi asked in surprise.

"No," Ai replied dejectedly. "The glass seems to be specially made, and the Duel Power inside is sealed tightly. I can't absorb it."

"Then what do we do?"

"Watch how she operates it," Ai said, pointing at the young woman standing at the control console.

Hara Shichi leaned closer.

Seeing him approach, the young woman cautiously took a step to her left. However, she didn't leave, as her right hand, as smooth and delicate as jade, reached into a circular opening on the console, leaving only a section of her fair, tender wrist exposed.

"So I just need to put my hand in?" Hara Shichi mused.

"You broke in without knowing anything?" the young woman under the mask frowned slightly. "The console is directly connected to the inside of the pillar. These two ports are for external devices to supply power, or you can directly insert your hand to absorb it."