Let's see what new shenanigans everyone's pulled! / If you also want to stand on the stage of the National High School Tournament...

"Isn't that only natural?"

Inside the Dean's Office, the Head Teacher adjusted his black-rimmed glasses. "If you defeat the starting roster members, you will replace them in the National Higher Academy Tournament."

"But if we win four to one or three to two, will the two people who lose also receive Starting Roster Spots?"

"They will." The Head Teacher nodded.

"If we represent the academy in the National Higher Academy Tournament, will the academy give us any rewards?" Hara Shichi continued.

"...Hm?"

The Head Teacher seemed not to have heard clearly. After a long pause, he asked again, "What did you just say?"

"I asked what rewards we get for representing the academy in the National Higher Academy Tournament." Hara Shichi repeated himself mechanically.

The Head Teacher was covered in black lines. He wanted to say something, but the words caught in his throat.

It was his first time encountering a student like this.

You were representing the academy in a competition. Didn't you consider that an honor?

The academy was sending you onto the nation's greatest student dueling stage so you could show yourself off. Shouldn't you be grateful?

Why were you still thinking about rewards?

"We're participating in the tournament to win honor for the academy, right?" Hara Shichi pressed.

"More or less." After thinking for a moment, the Head Teacher nodded.

"Then since we're fighting and striving for the academy, shouldn't the academy give us corresponding compensation?"

"I can't deny that..." the Head Teacher said ambiguously.

"So what's the reward?" Hara Shichi continued.

"Would having your magnificent dueling performances broadcast on screens across the country count?" After racking his brains, the Head Teacher came up with that answer.

"Are you serious?" Hara Shichi was stunned.

"..."

The Head Teacher fell silent.

He suddenly remembered something.

Back when he represented the academy in the National Higher Academy Tournament, the academy seemed not to have given him anything either. They had not even reimbursed his meal expenses. After winning the championship, they took a photo and put it in the Hall of Honor, and that was it.

"If you achieve good results, we can give you honorary certificates?"

"Anything more substantial?" Hara Shichi rubbed his fingers together.

"Then we can add some Credits?"

"Anything else?"

"At most, I can help you apply for a scholarship. If you win the championship, I'll personally give you an additional reward." The Head Teacher spoke calmly. "There won't be anything more than that. Besides, you aren't even a starting roster member yet. What right do you have to negotiate terms with me?"

"I just wanted to clarify the benefits first." Hara Shichi explained. "To be honest, I'm still short one teammate, and I was planning to recruit someone by offering a Starting Roster Spot."

"I see." The Head Teacher nodded thoughtfully. "In that case, you don't actually need to worry too much."

"No student can refuse that temptation." The Head Teacher spoke calmly. "The National Higher Academy Tournament is a major event watched by the entire country. Even the King will attend to watch. What young person wouldn't want to stand on that stage and show themselves off?"

"Besides, the royal family has prepared exceptionally generous rewards this time."

"How generous?" Hara Shichi asked curiously.

"Each starting roster member of a top-eight team can receive two million Gold Coins.

Each starting roster member of a top-four team can receive one 'Effect Veiler.'

Each starting roster member of the third-place team can receive an application letter from the Professional Duelist League.

Each starting roster member of the runner-up team can enter the Level 2 Treasury and choose any one card.

Each starting roster member of the champion team can enter the Level 1 Treasury and choose any one card.

The top-eight and top-four rewards can be stacked."

"Now do you understand why the academy won't give the starting roster members any compensation?" the Head Teacher said calmly.

"Letting you step onto that stage is the best reward."

Let Me See What New Tricks Everyone Has Come Up With!

Unlike other higher academies, Duelist Academy did not actually have many students.

The reason was that, as the oldest academy on Duel Continent, Duelist Academy had its own pride and principles: it absolutely refused to lower the difficulty of its entrance examinations. Having few students could only mean that the young people of this generation had poor overall qualities and could not pass the entrance exams.

It definitely had nothing to do with its remote location, outdated facilities, or its increasingly poor results at the Higher Academy Tournament year after year.

"Ugh." The girl could not help sighing. "Why did I come to this school in the first place?"

Five days of closed-campus study every week was one thing, but the cafeteria did not even have cake. The shop sold nothing but dueling supplies. If she wanted snacks, she had to visit the snack shop run by younger students. All daily necessities had to be bought outside on Saturdays and Sundays...

Worst of all, she had actually joined the student council and become this time-wasting broadcaster. On such a leisurely afternoon, she could not even eat a steaming bowl of rice and could only gnaw on bread she had prepared that morning.

"Senior Shirano, it's time for the broadcast." The short-haired girl beside her watched as her senior continued eating at a leisurely pace and could not help reminding her.

"Tamako, play some music first. If one song isn't enough, play several. No one cares what the broadcast actually says anyway." Shirano Rin held a piece of bread between her lips, a trace of melancholy flashing through her black eyes. "If the student council didn't take attendance, I wouldn't even have come to the broadcasting room today. You know, I've been eating red bean bread for almost a month. At this rate, I'll turn into a red bean alien."

"Senior, I still have a few pieces of pork floss bread." The girl named Tamako took several egg-sized pork floss buns from her pocket.

"Are you trying to turn me into a pork floss alien?" Shirano Rin pulled a miserable face. "Rice... I want rice. Noodles would be fine too. Just not bread. Eating bread every noon is seriously making me sick."

"I think bread is delicious. I never get tired of it, even if I eat it every day." Tamako said blankly.

"When you reach your second year like me, you'll understand." Shirano Rin swallowed the last piece of bread, then stuck out her soft pink tongue and licked the crumbs off her fingers. Next, she picked up a bottle from the table, twisted open the cap, and gulped it down her throat.

"Refreshing!"

That was what Shirano Rin said. Chugging down a drink after eating was simply the best!

"Senior, we've already played music for three minutes." Tamako looked troubled.

According to student council rules, campus broadcasts required two people to work together. Therefore, before every broadcast, they would prepare a script for the two hosts. If Senior Shirano Rin did not plan to broadcast today, not only would the prepared script go to waste, but Tamako also had no experience improvising...

"What a hassle... Ahem." Shirano Rin cleared her throat, lightly pressed a button, and leaned toward the microphone. "Good afternoon, teachers and students. I'm your host, Shirano Rin."

"I'm your host, Tamako."

"Today's broadcast topic is 'Youth and Dreams'..."

"..."

"Another boring topic." Aoshi picked up a golden fried chicken nugget and put it into his mouth.

"The broadcast themes haven't changed much all year." The boy beside him sighed. "It's always striving, working hard, fighting on... It's not interesting at all."

"Anyone can shout slogans. It's not like I haven't worked hard before, but I still ended up this ordinary." Another boy complained.

"Are you still going to challenge Hara Shichi to duels this afternoon?" Aoshi suddenly asked.

"Would Hara Shichi still agree to duel us?" another boy asked doubtfully. "He's already dueled quite a few students since transferring here. He's done more than enough for us."

"I challenged him to a duel again during practice class yesterday afternoon. He himself didn't seem to mind us troubling him." Aoshi said.

"Forget it." Another boy spoke gloomily. "Continuing to bother someone is too shameless."

"If you had the talent, you would have sensed the Xyz Network long ago. If you can't sense it, that means you don't have the talent. In that case, it's better not to waste time."

"Exactly. One time, Hara Shichi could clearly have beaten me without using an Xyz monster, but he specifically performed an Xyz Summon for my sake. Just thinking about it makes me feel ashamed." Another person agreed.

"Actually, I think I've recently sensed a tiny bit of the Xyz Network's existence..." Aoshi suspiciously stroked his chin.

"The size of a fingernail?" The boy beside him wiggled his eyebrows.

"No, probably the size of a body hair." Aoshi covered his face.

"Pfft."

"Next is the campus letters segment."

As the gentle voice rang out, the volume at the dining table visibly dropped.

"It's here, it's here. Our daily dose of fun."

"What new trick did you all come up with this time?"

"I confessed to our class's duel practice instructor in the letter."

"Huh? You went that far?"

"I used your name."

"Damn it!"

As mentioned earlier, Duelist Academy had very little entertainment, so the campus letters segment in the noon broadcast was one of their few sources of joy.

Everyone would write prank letters and stuff them into the broadcasting station's mailbox, hoping their own letter would be read aloud for the entire school to hear.

What? You thought the hosts would select some normal letters?

Hilarious. There were no normal letters at all.

"Isn't there even one normal letter?" Shirano Rin scratched her head. She picked through a pile of letters covered in black ink, then finally gave up, randomly grabbed one, and handed it to Tamako. "You're a first-year. It's time to train you. Read it."

"Eh?! Senior, this is workplace bullying!" Tamako protested with her arms around her chest.

"Read it."

"No!"

"Read it!"

"Waaah... X﹏X"

"Thank you for this letter from Onishi Tetsuya of Class 1-3." Tamako first glanced at the sender, then continued reading the letter:

"To my beloved Teacher Alice.

That day, I entered the training room and saw a young woman. She had long, curly golden hair and a tall figure. The instant she turned around, her jade-like, radiant face made my heart stop beating.

That was you, Teacher Alice.

Today, I wrote twenty identical letters and threw them all into the broadcasting station's mailbox, because I worried that my letter would be buried beneath the other piles and never reach the hosts.

Here, I wish to use the power of the broadcast to express my feelings for you. That is, I..."

"I..." Tamako read to this point and seemed to get stuck. Her little face turned as red as a boiled crab, while her rosy lips trembled nonstop.

"Read it." Shirano Rin said eagerly.

"Read it! Everyone's listening." The students in the cafeteria muttered.

"Get on with it! Get on with it!"

"I didn't write this letter at all! This guy wrote it! Don't let him fool you, everyone!"

"Ugh! Onishi-kun, calm down! Don't strangle me!"

"Are you reading it or not?!"

"I... I..." Tamako closed her eyes, threw the letter aside, and shouted with all her strength:

"I love you, Teacher Alice!"

"Ooooooh!"

"Yes!"