Duelists Never Surrender!

"Stop! Icarus! Stop! Don't get any closer to the sun! I'll be burned to ashes by the sun! And you'll fall into the sea and never be able to surface again!"

"Huh? Who's Icarus? What nonsense are you spouting? It's almost time to leave, let's go!" Julie tugged at Sera's wrist outside the activity room door, trying to pull her out.

"Icarus! You arrogant fool! Have you forgotten your father's instructions? Even so, you shouldn't drag me down with you. I'm just a pair of ordinary wings! I can't carry your dreams! If you want to fly to the sky alone, then go alone!" Sera gripped the wall with one hand and kicked backward with her legs, their struggle continuing until Hara Shichi, impatient at waiting at the school gate, appeared with Yukikaze.

"What's wrong with her?" Hara Shichi asked.

"She seems to not want to be in the sun," Julie said coldly. "She claims she's Icarus's wings and will be burned to death by the sun."

"..."

Hara Shichi looked at the faint dark circles under Sera's fair eyes and realized she had likely been playing some strange game again last night. He spoke, "Senpai, everything in games is fake. Don't have a breakdown. I don't want to rush on the road under the scorching sun at noon."

"N-no! I have a terrible illness where I'll die if I touch sunlight. It's coal mottling disease! Do you know coal mottling disease? It's..."

"How about... we bring an umbrella?" Yukikaze suggested.

"..."

And so, Sera, holding a large black umbrella, followed everyone out of the school gate.

Near the academy, there was only a commercial street and a few surrounding villages. However, for the students who had been confined to the academy for five days, this was enough to pique their interest.

Julie didn't enter the commercial street but stopped in front of a group of carriages at the entrance.

"Where would you like to go?" a middle-aged coachman asked.

"We'd like to go to Elkland Forest," Julie said calmly.

"Sorry, that place is very dangerous..." The middle-aged man was about to wave them away when his eyes suddenly flickered. Two silver coins dangled from the girl's fingertips, seemingly about to fall.

"Clink."

The coachman quickly caught the falling coins, his eyes immediately curving into crescents. "Profit always comes with risk. Please, miss."

Julie then got into the carriage herself and said to the three behind her, "Come on up."

Hara Shichi and Yukikaze sat on one side, while Julie and Sera sat on the other. As the carriage began to bump along, Hara Shichi knew they were on their way.

"I say, shouldn't we have gotten a bigger carriage just now?"

Sera's soft and warm body pressed tightly against Hara Shichi, making him a little parched.

"I think it's fine." Perhaps because Sera was smaller, Julie didn't feel too crowded.

"That's because you squeezed me into the corner, you fat woman!" Sera said, hugging her umbrella.

"Stop arguing. The road is a bit bumpy, be careful not to bite your tongue... Ouch!" Yukikaze closed her mouth, tears welling up in her eyes, right after she spoke.

She had bitten her tongue.

With Yukikaze's lesson learned, the carriage fell silent. Thus, the carriage swayed and rumbled until it reached their destination – Elkland Forest.

It was still spring, and the forest was lush and green, full of life. The moment Yukikaze stepped out, her foot landing on the soft earth, a weak voice echoed in her mind.

"Save me..."

"Huh?" Yukikaze turned her head, looking behind her, but saw no one.

"Don't just stand there," Hara Shichi, walking ahead, grabbed Yukikaze's wrist. "Why don't you walk in front of me?"

And so, the formation became a straight line: Julie—Sera—Yukikaze—Hara Shichi.

Julie glanced back at everyone and reminded them, "Once we enter the forest, you must follow my commands. No one acts alone, understand?"

"No problem."

Soon, they found their first Duel Spirit – a squirrel lazily sleeping under a tree.

"Let's try our hand with that one first," Julie said, pointing. "Weak Duel Spirits don't have strong attack power and won't harm humans, but they are also easily startled. Who wants to try?"

Hara Shichi and Sera looked at Yukikaze in unison.

"Huh? Me?" With everyone nodding, Yukikaze cautiously walked over.

"Squeak?" As if sensing someone approaching, the squirrel's eyes snapped open, and it looked at Yukikaze with a wary expression.

"Um... I mean no harm..." Yukikaze crouched down, opening her hands, and stopped in place.

"Release your Duel Power," Julie whispered from behind the bushes. "Duel Spirits like Duel Power. If it likes your Duel Power, it will come to you on its own."

"Oh, oh." Yukikaze quickly emitted her Duel Power. The squirrel blinked, its tense expression relaxing, and it slowly approached Yukikaze, nuzzling its little head against Yukikaze's palm.

"Okay, now's the time!"

Yukikaze quickly took out her Duel Card and gently placed it on the squirrel's forehead. Immediately, a white light flashed, and an image of a monster appeared on the white card.

"Success," Julie smiled and slowly walked closer.

"Let me see, what kind of monster is it!" Sera held up her umbrella and curiously leaned in.

Yukikaze showed them: Acorn Squirrel, Level 1. Each time your opponent Special Summons a monster, place 1 Acorn Counter on this card. You can remove 1 Acorn Counter from this card; destroy 1 monster your opponent controls. ATK 100 / DEF 100.

"If only its attack and defense were a little higher," Sera frowned, not entirely satisfied.

"What are you thinking? This is just a small Duel Spirit on the outskirts," Julie said, tapping Sera's head.

"Isn't it great?" Hara Shichi chuckled. "This is Yukikaze's first time sealing a Duel Spirit, right?"

"Mhm," Yukikaze smiled, then immediately asked Julie, "Julie-senpai, how do I release it?"

"Huh?" Julie looked at Yukikaze, confused. "It might be a bit weak, but as your first Duel Spirit, wouldn't it be nice to keep it as a memento?"

"If I do that, won't it be lonely?" Yukikaze shook her head. "I brought it away from its home without its permission, and then I don't fight alongside it. That's too cruel to it."

"It's its choice, Yukikaze," Julie patted Yukikaze's shoulder. "It's not just you who chose it; it chose you too. Even if you can't fight side-by-side, it can still be your partner."

As soon as she finished speaking, the Acorn Squirrel emerged from the card, hopping affectionately onto Yukikaze's head and chattering.

"Alright, if that's the case, let's keep moving," Sera said, holding her black umbrella high as she led the group. She was clearly getting into the spirit of things.

"You directionless person, just follow behind obediently."

"Yukikaze, why are you spacing out again? Let's go," Hara Shichi reminded Yukikaze, who was standing still.

"Oh... coming."

Yukikaze shook her head. Just now, she thought she had heard those cries for help again.

"Someone... save me..."

"I'm so scared..."

I received the news about the book going on sale from my editor yesterday.

Upon learning that it was time to go on sale, I felt immense panic. I tossed and turned in bed that night, unable to sleep, thinking, "With such a small collection, how could it possibly be going on sale?"

What if, after it goes on sale, all you readers dislike my book and deem it unworthy of the cat biscuits in your hands, removing it from your bookshelves without hesitation? How would I bear that?

So, I thought, I must find a way to keep readers. Whether it's by playing the victim or by releasing a flood of chapters, as long as I show my sincerity! I'm sure I can gain everyone's support!

However, humans have limits, and my limit is four thousand characters a day. I've never had any backlog. Today, after finishing two chapters and trying to push past my limit, my head suddenly spun, and then I saw a silver-haired loli, her eyes covered with a black cloth, appearing before me in flowing white robes.

The little loli looked down at me, gently tapped my forehead with her index finger, as smooth and delicate as jade, and spoke in an ethereal voice: "Young man, you may only go this far and no further."

Then I awoke.

This was the writing god's advice to me.

A burst of effort is ultimately not as good as sustained stability.

To think I actually tried to break my limits – how utterly foolish!

Alright.

Jokes aside, there's really nothing to complain about. If you look at the book's comment section and its collection count, you'll know I'm miserable enough. A flood of chapters isn't realistic either; I can only say I'll try my best. Rushing out something without preparing a backlog beforehand isn't ideal. The only thing I can promise is that I won't stop updating or abandon the book. I'll listen to reader feedback and strive to improve myself.

Subscribing to a book isn't really expensive, but considering you might be reading more than just my book, not subscribing is understandable. I'll do my best to make this book worth your money.

Finally, I want to thank the readers who have consistently voted and commented on this book. Seeing those familiar names in the backend every day gives me the motivation to write. Thank you to my friends who have always supported me; when there were few readers at the beginning, they were the ones comforting me (though it feels like there still aren't many now). Thank you to the readers who have collected this book; whether you've read this far or not, I'm still encouraged (though I often suspect they're just "dead collections"). Thank you to the patrons who have interacted with me; I hope you all achieve great success. Thank you to my editor, who has given me a lot of helpful advice.

Lastly, the first-day subscription count is the number of subscriptions for the first chapter within 24 hours. I hope you'll help me make that number look good. Also, please give me some votes...

Chapter 67: Humans... Die!

"I choose you! Go, Rock Golem, use Headlong Rush!"

The hard stone golem charged at the monster wielding a vine whip. With a fierce impact, the monster let out a scream and collapsed, dazed.

"Alright, I've captured the Nuclear Pregnant Rose!" Sera exclaimed excitedly, holding up her card as a white light flashed.

"Didn't you say your deck doesn't need monster cards?" Hara Shichi asked, looking at the enthusiastic Sera. "And isn't your method wrong? Duel Spirits aren't captured like this."

"Forced capture is also a method of capture," Julie chimed in. She hadn't captured any Duel Spirits all morning. It was indeed too difficult to find monsters suitable for her undead deck in the forest.

"Aren't you going to capture any Duel Spirits, Hara Shichi-kun?" Yukikaze asked curiously.

"Hmm? I... don't really need to for now. What about you?" Hara Shichi countered. "Aren't most of the Rikka deck plants? Since this is a forest, you should be able to find useful monsters."

"I don't recognize these Duel Spirits, so I can't tell what race they are," Yukikaze admitted sheepishly.

"If they look good to you, just go for it. Look, I've already collected so many cards!" Sera boasted, fanning out the monster cards in her hand.

"Are you really going to use these monsters?" Julie walked over, looking at the cards in Sera's hand. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she pulled out a card. "I'll take this one."

"No, I caught it!" Sera protested.

"I'll trade you for a Trap Card," Julie offered, holding out a Trap Card.

"Mind Collapse... Fine, let's trade," Sera nodded. In truth, as Julie had said, she couldn't use most of these monster cards.

"Senpai, what monster did you take a liking to?" Yukikaze asked curiously.

"Nine-Tailed Fox," Julie showed it to Yukikaze.

"Fire attribute, undead... So there are undead monsters here too?" Yukikaze was surprised. Shouldn't undead monsters dislike such a vibrant place?

"Where there is life, there is death. But it is a bit strange to encounter one here," Julie frowned.

"Hey, let's duel with spirits!" Sera shouted enthusiastically.

"What's that?"

"It's where we summon our Duel Spirits and fight each other!"

"Boring."

"It's getting late, shall we eat first?" Yukikaze suggested.

"Has time flown by that quickly?" Hara Shichi subconsciously glanced upwards, finding the sun high in the sky. It was already noon.

So, everyone moved to a patch of shade to begin their meal.

"Hara Shichi, you didn't have much luck this morning?" Julie asked, watching Hara Shichi slowly chew his sandwich.

"No, why?" Hara Shichi replied nonchalantly.

"We're here to find powerful Oddity cards, not to go on a picnic," Julie sighed. "Honestly, the most important thing right now is to strengthen your deck, especially since your opponent is that woman, Crimson Lotus."

Hara Shichi blinked, looking at Julie with a complex expression. "I appreciate you looking out for me, but actually..."

"Ugh!"

Before Hara Shichi could finish, Yukikaze beside him suddenly grunted. Immediately after, she clutched her ears tightly and collapsed to the ground.

It hurts! It hurts! Save me! Someone... Ahhhhhhh!

"Yukikaze, what's wrong?" Hara Shichi quickly helped her up.

"I'm fine," Yukikaze forced a smile. "It's just... I think I'm hearing things?"

"Hearing things?" Hara Shichi frowned. "What did you hear?"

"A cry for help. Someone is asking for help."

Hara Shichi stood up and scanned their surroundings. The only sounds were the rustling of the breeze through the treetops and the calls of birds and wild animals.