"A shortcut!"
Ai said excitedly.
"Huh?"
"..."
Thus, beneath the cold moonlight, another figure appeared on a tree branch behind the boys' dormitory.
"Hurry, hurry, I'm already getting impatient," Ai urged.
"I don't know who was the one telling me to chop this branch down last time." Hara Shichi twitched his lips. Sure enough, since the dormitory's main gate was locked by the dorm supervisor every night, he once again chose to climb down from the balcony via the tree branch.
"Huh? Hara Shichi?"
A familiar voice rang out. Hara Shichi turned his head and found another figure hanging from a nearby tree.
"You're Aoshi, right? Are you heading out of the dorm this late because you have something to do?" Hara Shichi struck first before Aoshi could speak.
"Um, that's my secret, you know? Do you want to know?" Aoshi blinked playfully, looking bashful.
"..." Hara Shichi nearly threw up tonight's dinner.
"Hahaha! That expression of yours is so funny. I'm kidding—I'm going to the shop to buy some snacks," Aoshi said with a laugh.
"Doesn't the school shop not sell that kind of thing?" Hara Shichi asked curiously. According to Yukikaze, the school shop only sold duel-related supplies.
"Huh? Oh, right, you just transferred here, so you wouldn't know." Aoshi seemed to recall something. "The academy shop doesn't sell them, but that doesn't mean the student shops don't."
"Student shops... I see."
"Well, sure, they're a little pricey, but they're convenient for everyone. Want me to take you there?"
"No, thanks." Hara Shichi politely declined.
"Then I'll be going first."
With that, Aoshi vanished into the night.
"I kind of want some snacks too," Ai suddenly said.
"Aren't you a spirit?"
"Hehe, not necessarily~"
Opening a New Path
"This way, turn right—ah, no, dead end... Then we'll go around this way."
Because of the curfew, the academy was empty at night, though it wasn't particularly lively during the day either.
Following Ai's directions, Hara Shichi ran around the enormous academy until he was panting. "Say, where exactly are we going?"
"You're tired after only a few minutes? Your stamina is way too weak. You need to exercise more." Ai floated in midair, speaking without knowing the burden of walking.
"How about I float while you walk, then?" Hara Shichi said irritably.
"I'd love to, but my body won't allow it." Ai rested her cheek on her hand.
"..."
"Alright, alright, I'll tell you. Just now, I remembered something very, very important." Ai sprawled across Hara Shichi and excitedly nibbled at his ear. "Guess what I remembered?"
"Don't make it a riddle. Just tell me."
"Mm, fine. Remember when I told you that Duel Power was generated during duels, then the winner absorbed the bulk of it, the loser absorbed a small portion, and the rest dissipated into the air?" Ai asked softly.
"I remember. What about it?"
"Then think about it. Where does the Duel Power that dissipates into the air go?" Ai asked with a smile.
"Into the air?" Hara Shichi was confused.
"That's right. Duel Power doesn't just vanish into thin air—it exists in the atmosphere. In that case, the Duel Power in the air should theoretically become denser and denser, to the point where even ordinary people could notice it." Ai clapped her hands. "And now, the important question: why doesn't the omnipotent Ai directly absorb the residual Duel Power from the air?"
"How would I know?" Hara Shichi replied flatly.
"You're supposed to ask why here!" Ai sighed. "Fine, I forgive you."
"Because... someone got there first and siphoned away that Duel Power." Ai pushed up a pair of nonexistent glasses.
"Who?" Hara Shichi became curious as well.
"That's right. The mastermind stealing the Duel Power left behind after students' duels 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 has a Duel Power absorption device buried beneath this land. Whenever a duel ends, the remaining Duel Power is directly sucked underground and transferred to the core. After being compressed and decompressed as energy, the Duel Power is converted into various forms of energy and transmitted to the academy's equipment. The reason the lightbulb in your room shines is because it uses this Duel Power!"
"Duel Power generated by students' duels, and this academy shamelessly claims it for itself under a noble pretense! This despicable behavior makes this goddess extremely angry, so next, we're going to take the Duel Power this academy has collected!" Ai righteously patted her flat chest.
"Tell me, is there a possibility..." Hara Shichi said with half-lidded eyes, "that this device was installed to conserve energy?"
"Yes, and many major cities in the kingdom actually have devices like this." Ai nodded. "But that doesn't stop us from getting some free loot."
"The Duel Power absorbed by this thing is Duel Power that hasn't undergone any conversion or processing. I can absorb it directly. Then wouldn't we be able to print more powerful cards?" Ai patted Hara Shichi's shoulder. "I'm doing this for your sake!"
"Even if you put it that way, wouldn't what we're doing count as theft?"
"What theft? Doesn't some of the Duel Power collected in there belong to us?! We're merely taking back what belongs to us. As for accidentally taking a little extra, that's beyond our control!" Ai pointed ahead. "Let's go. I can sense it—the core area is ahead."
Hara Shichi thought for a moment, then decided that Ai made a lot of sense.
He looked at the building before him and suddenly realized something. "This place... seems to be the administrative building?"
"That makes perfect sense. Important things should naturally be kept somewhere safe." Ai pointed at the tightly locked entrance and waved her little hand. "A-Qi, climb over it."
"I don't think that'll work." After considering for a moment, Hara Shichi pulled a card from his deck. "Ghost Ogre, are you there?"
"I am ready at all times to serve my lord." A flash of white light appeared, and Ghost Ogre materialized before Hara Shichi.
She looked around, then fixed her gaze on the door in front of them. Her right hand rested on her sword hilt. "I understand. Do you need me to clear a path for you, my lord? Leave it to me."
"Wait!" Hara Shichi hurriedly stopped her. "I wanted to ask whether you could take me up to the second floor."
That was right. Although the first floor was sealed off, the second-floor corridor had no iron bars or similar railings.
"No problem." Ghost Ogre held out her hands. "Please take your seat, my lord."
"Um, what does that mean?" Hara Shichi asked in confusion.
"It means..." Ghost Ogre gave a gentle tug, pulling Hara Shichi into her arms. "I heard about it from the students before—the legendary lord's carry."
"No, I think you've got something mixed up. This is a princess carry." Hara Shichi gazed up at the bright moon hanging in the sky. "Could we do it another way?"
"Lie still, my lord. I'm jumping up now." Ghost Ogre seemed not to have heard him. She leaped into the air and landed steadily on the second-floor corridor of the teaching building.
"I can sense it. That Duel Power is behind this door." Ai pointed at the door ahead.
Ai climbed down from Ghost Ogre and twitched her lips, because he discovered a sign hanging on the door—Dean's Office.
"Are you serious? We've come here at least twice already. Why didn't you sense it before?"
"I followed the flow of Duel Power here. There's no way I'm wrong—it's here." Ai pointed to her eyes. "Besides, I wasn't looking carefully before. Haven't you noticed anything different about my eyes now?"
Hara Shichi froze, then carefully examined Ai's eyes. Within the girl's pale blue irises, a multicolored rainbow light flowed continuously around her pupils.
"Now you understand, right? This time, I used my incomparably pure divine power. Don't they look dazzling?" Ai pointed at her eyes with a grin.
"They're pretty."
"Could you be any more perfunctory?" Ai's face went blank.
"They're very beautiful."
"..."
Was his lord talking to his imaginary friend again? Ghost Ogre tugged on Hara Shichi's clothes and asked, "What do we do next?"
"Next..." Hara Shichi walked toward the familiar door. "We enter this room."
"My lord intends to commit theft?!" Ghost Ogre asked in shock.
"Ahem, it's not theft. We're taking back our own things," Hara Shichi said, copying Ai.
"I understand." Ghost Ogre believed Hara Shichi instantly and stared at the door. "Do you need me to clear a path for you, my lord?"
"No, I noticed this door seems to..." Hara Shichi turned the handle and gave it a gentle push. The door creaked, and then... opened.
"It was unlocked?"
The Masked Girl
"Did the Head Teacher forget to lock the door when he left?"
Hara Shichi looked at the open door. After hesitating for a moment, he walked in. The last time he had come here was last time, and the room's furnishings remained exactly as he remembered them.
"That's very possible." Ai guessed from the side. "People who look meticulous on the surface might actually be careless."
"So? Where's this 'core' you mentioned?" Hara Shichi swept his gaze across the room. All he saw was a sandalwood desk, genuine leather sofas for receiving guests, and a crystal-clear glass table. Fruit and tea for guests sat atop the glass table.
"Right here." Ai pointed at the floor. "Remember how we entered the Trial Grounds before?"
Hara Shichi recalled that altar and immediately said, "You mean this room is, in a sense, also a teleportation array?"
"That's right." Ai slowly descended from midair and crouched down. One pale, tender palm slapped the floor as she revealed a sly smile. "Watch closely—this is the power of a god!"
"Wait, I have a bad feeling about this..."
Before Hara Shichi could finish speaking, blinding white light erupted from the floor and sucked him in. The next second, calm returned to the office. Only the door occasionally banged against the wall in the breeze with a thump, thump, proving that someone had been there.
When Hara Shichi opened his eyes, he saw an enormous, thick glass pillar standing straight in the center of the space. The pillar was filled with white light, and beside it stood a massive machine.
Before the machine stood a petite girl with long black hair and a black dress, her back facing him. A red Duel Disk was attached to her arm.
"Damn it, I knew someone would be here."
Other than the pillar of light and the machine, there was nothing else in the room. Even if Hara Shichi wanted to hide, it would be pointless.
"Ai, someone's here. Send me back, quickly," Hara Shichi urged in a low voice.
"Since we're already here, keep her occupied while I go mooch some Duel Power!" Ai said. Then she flashed away, floating eagerly toward the pillar.
"Who's there?"
Seemingly noticing that someone else had entered the space, the girl abruptly turned around. She saw a man with the lower half of his face hidden behind a high collar, a hood over his head, and his head slightly lowered.
"Who are you? What are you doing sneaking in here?" the girl demanded in a lowered voice.
"Shouldn't I be the one asking that?" Hara Shichi pointed at the white mask on her face. "Who are you, and what are you doing sneaking in here?!"
"..."
An eerie atmosphere spread between them. Just as Hara Shichi was about to say something, she spoke.
"If I'm not mistaken, you're here for the Duel Power too, aren't you?" the girl said calmly.
"So what if I am?" Hara Shichi countered as he watched Ai circle the pillar.
"As you can see, the Duel Power stored here is probably more than ten times the combined amount you and I possess. How about we don't interfere with each other?" the girl proposed.
"I have no objection."
"That's for the best."
After receiving his answer, the girl turned back and fiddled with the machine, though she occasionally glanced over her shoulder at Hara Shichi warily.
At that moment, Ai floated back.
"You're done already?" Hara Shichi asked in surprise.
"No." Ai drooped her head. "That glass seems specially made. The Duel Power inside is sealed tightly within it, so I can't draw it out."
"Then what do we do?"
"Go see how she operates it." Ai pointed at the girl standing before the control panel.
Hara Shichi moved closer.
When the girl saw Hara Shichi approach, she cautiously stepped to the left. She did not leave, however, because her jade-like, warm and delicate right hand was inserted into a circular opening on the control panel, leaving only a fair, slender wrist exposed.
"So I just need to put my hand in there?" Hara Shichi said thoughtfully.
"You snuck in here without knowing anything?" The masked girl frowned slightly. "The control panel connects directly to the inside of the pillar. These two ports are for connecting external devices to provide energy, but you can also insert your hand directly to draw from it."
Before you continue