Duelists Never Surrender!

Yukikaze looked at Nero's small figure on the dueling field and said, "If I, who cannot perform an Xyz Summon, were to Xyz Summon with your help, using the cards you printed for me."

"Then this duel would be too unfair for you, Miss Nero."

"Are you serious? You don't want to Xyz Summon for that reason?" Ai's face was covered in dark lines, and she wanted to raise her soft, pink fist to punch Yukikaze.

"Mhm," Yukikaze replied earnestly.

"Is your brain filled with water?!"

Chapter 97: Is there a possibility that tongues are naturally red?

Ai felt that as a God, she had always been very tolerant.

Even when that bad woman tricked her out of her authority, she hadn't said a single word.

But today, she really couldn't hold back anymore.

She pointed at Nero, who stood opposite them like a doll, and said:

"Your opponent is Nero Arisa. She comes from a prestigious family, has been exposed to dueling since she was three, and her family arranged for professional duelists to spar with her since she was five. Her family basically poured resources into her. She's currently using a powerful deck prepared by her family. I guarantee you won't find a second one on the market."

"And you, Yukikaze, are an ordinary duelist. Your talent is decent, otherwise, you wouldn't have gotten into this academy, but it's definitely not top-tier. Your family isn't a dueling family, and you haven't even seen many rare cards. The two Xyz Monsters you currently have were obtained from the Duel Spirits after you risked your life in a Dark Duel and gained a little favor. I merely gave you a gentle push."

"And you are thinking about fairness for your opponent?" Ai tapped Yukikaze's forehead irritably. "Have you ever considered that Nero Arisa is an inherently unfair existence for many people?"

"But that's outside the duel," Yukikaze remained unmoved. Her small mouth opened slightly, revealing pearly white fangs, and she said without backing down, "As a duelist, once a duel begins, you must abide by the rules of the duel. A fair and just duel, otherwise, you will be disliked by the Goddess of Duels."

I AM the Goddess of Duels!

But... Yukikaze isn't exactly wrong.

Rather, as the Goddess of Duels, Ai should be steadfastly behind Yukikaze at this moment, agreeing with her viewpoint.

"As expected... Am I becoming more and more like a human lately?" Ai couldn't help but murmur.

Not only could her body materialize, but her thoughts were also slowly transforming in the direction of humans... Wait, what was I like at the very beginning?

Forget it, I won't think about it.

"It's passable, that answer." Ai looked at the resolute Yukikaze, and most of her anger dissipated. "But if that's the case, this duel is without suspense. Let's meet again next time."

With that, Ai's figure began to fade before Yukikaze's eyes.

"Huh? Without suspense?!" Yukikaze scratched her face. "I think there's still a chance..."

"No, no, you're done for this round, I'm telling you." Ai waved her hand and disappeared completely.

"Is that so... I'm sorry I couldn't meet your expectations, but thank you for your help." Yukikaze said with her eyes lowered.

"Mhm."

As soon as Ai left Yukikaze's side, she returned to Hara Shichi's.

"You failed? That light just flashed over here, I thought you succeeded." Hara Shichi asked curiously, looking at Ai's exhausted appearance.

"The card printing was successful, but something went wrong afterward." Ai rolled her eyes irritably. "Yukikaze looks fragile on the outside, but she's incredibly stubborn deep down."

"She said it would be unfair to Miss Nero if I helped her Xyz Summon."

"It made me spit blood." As she said this, Ai deliberately opened her small mouth and stuck out her pink tongue. "See? My tongue is stained red with blood."

"Is there a possibility that tongues are naturally red?" Hara Shichi quipped.

"Hmph, anyway, she really angered me." Ai said with her arms crossed.

"I see." Hara Shichi nodded and looked at Yukikaze standing in front of them. "Isn't that a good thing?"

"You... you also think Yukikaze is right?" Ai looked at Hara Shichi with a complex expression.

"Would I, someone who cheats, say something like that?" Hara Shichi still had some self-awareness. "I mean, it's a good thing for Yukikaze to have her own principles and beliefs."

"I thought you were going to clamor about 'fairness' too."

"Who looks for 'fairness' in a duel..."

On the dueling field, Nero, who saw Yukikaze end her turn just like that, was first slightly stunned, but without much hesitation, Nero calmly extended her hand: "My turn, draw."

Yukikaze watched Nero nervously. Currently, she had Hellebore with 2600 ATK and Yuki-Renka with 2600 DEF on her field. If her opponent didn't draw Thunder Emperor or Preparation of the Rites, she still had a glimmer of hope.

After all, Hime Peacock's 2500 ATK was only 100 less than Yuki-Renka's.

Then, she saw Nero lightly flip over the Set Card she had placed last turn.

"I activate the Trap Card—Emergency Ritual Art."

"If you do not have a Ritual Monster on your field, you can banish 1 Ritual Spell Card from your hand or Graveyard to activate this card. The effect of this card becomes the same as the Ritual Summon effect when that Ritual Spell Card was activated."

"I banish Ritual of Descension from my Graveyard, Tribute Amanogawa and Soul Bird 'Soul Bird Token' on my field, and Ritual Summon... Hane-Kujaku, the Soulbird God."

Hane-Kujaku, the Soulbird God, holding a long sword, appeared on the dueling field. Its handsome face revealed a hint of sharpness, as if it were ready to eliminate any enemies in front of Nero at any moment.

Looking at the Hane-Kujaku that suddenly appeared on the opposite field, Yukikaze felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. She finally remembered that on the first turn, Nero had activated the Ritual Spell Card "Ritual of Descension" from her hand, which meant Nero had a Ritual Monster in her hand at the time.

And if she had Hime Peacock in her hand then, she wouldn't need to use Preparation of the Rites to search for a second Hime Peacock.

This meant... Hane-Kujaku had been in Nero's hand from the very beginning!

"It seems it's really over." Yukikaze's small face showed a bitter smile, but seeing this, for some reason, she felt a sense of relief.

Because if Hime Peacock had been in Nero's hands from the start, Yukikaze wouldn't have been able to win against Nero, regardless of whether she performed an Xyz Summon or not.

Nero only needed to perform a Ritual Summon on Yukikaze's turn and send the monsters on Yukikaze's field away.

"I'm sorry, Hua Quan, for asking for your help without permission, and not even managing to summon you." Yukikaze silently recited in her heart.

"It's alright," Hua Quan quickly replied. "We still have plenty of time in the future, so keep up the good work!"

"Mhm."

"Activate Hane-Kujaku, the Soulbird God's effect, and return two monsters on your field to their owner's hand," Nero commanded.

Hime Peacock drew its long sword and lightly swung it towards the two girls on Yukikaze's field. Sword energy, like wind blades, appeared in the air, piercing through the girls' bodies.

"Are you going to surrender?" Nero asked abruptly, looking at Yukikaze, who had nothing left on her field.

Taking Hime Peacock's attack directly like this would hurt.

"Just attack directly," Yukikaze chuckled.

"Then, I enter the Battle Phase. Hime Peacock, attack directly."

"Bang!"

The powerful sword energy sent Yukikaze flying. Fortunately, Hara Shichi was prepared and caught her from behind.

Yukikaze: 600 LP → 0 LP.

Winner: Nero!

Chapter 98: Can't Duel Without a Duel Disk? Duels Are Such Inconvenient Things!

Inside the Game Club room, Hara Shichi, Julie, Sera, and Yukikaze sat around a table, discussing something.

"No, I disagree!"

"Nero.Arisa can join our team to compete, but she can't take a single step into our clubroom!"

Sera was the first to voice her opinion.

In her eyes, Nero was just a tool to make up the numbers, and more importantly, she was someone from the opposing faction before.

How could such a person be allowed into her sacred and inviolable clubroom?!

"Think about it, what if she's a spy sent by the Crimson Lotus Society? What if she lurks by our side, stealing information, and then betrays us during the competition, catching us completely off guard..."

"Ahem," Julie coughed lightly from the side, giving Sera a subtle glance. "I used to be from the Crimson Lotus Society too. Do you think I'm also a 'spy'?"

"Th-then that's still not okay," Sera lightly tapped the table. "Look, this table is a square table with four sides, right?"

"Yeah, so what?" Hara Shichi replied.

"How can five people sit around a four-sided table together?"

Sera's reasoning seemed unreasonable.

In fact, it was quite unreasonable.

"You're small, you can sit next to me," Julie quickly offered a solution.

"What?! I, the dignified president of the Game Club, have to give up my seat to a newcomer?!" Sera exploded.

"Don't you usually sit on your bed and play games? When have you ever sat at the table?" Hara Shichi pointed to the somewhat messy bed nearby. The girl couldn't even be bothered to fold her blanket.

"No, I just can't accept a stranger entering the clubroom, no matter what," Sera was unusually attached to the clubroom.

"If you slowly get to know Ms. Nero, everyone will become friends soon," Yukikaze couldn't help but say.

"Why should I make friends with her?" Sera said dismissively.

"If we win, we'll be teammates, and we'll have to go to the National Higher Academy Tournament together," Julie looked further ahead. "We'll probably have to spend quite a bit of time together then. Since that's the case, we might as well build a good relationship starting now."

"That... we'll talk about that later. Besides, there's no need for her to enter the clubroom just to build a good relationship," Sera was still a bit resistant.

"What does Hara Shichi-kun think?" Yukikaze looked at Hara Shichi expectantly.

"Indeed, Hara Shichi, you're the captain. You should be the one to make this decision," Julie also turned her head to Hara Shichi.

"Junior, you should be able to understand my thoughts, right?" Sera looked at Hara Shichi pitifully.

Hara Shichi pretended not to see Sera's hint and said seriously, "We're all on the same team. It's indeed inappropriate to exclude Ms. Nero just because she joined a bit late. However, what Senior Sera said isn't entirely unreasonable, so..."

"So?" Sera blinked rapidly.

"So, let me think about it some more."

"Tsk!" Sera kicked Hara Shichi hard. "You said something that was like saying nothing at all."

"We really can't jump to conclusions," Julie agreed with Hara Shichi's statement. "However, if too much time passes, this matter will lose its significance."

"Mhm, I'll be as quick as possible."

"Then that's all for today. Let's break up."

"Wait!" Just as everyone was getting up, Sera slammed the table.

"Senior, you're really that resistant to Ms. Nero..." Yukikaze looked at Sera's serious little face, feeling a bit surprised.

"No," Sera shook her head. "When you go out, keep an eye on the door."

"What about the door?" Hara Shichi asked curiously.

"It's almost dinner time, and the cafeteria staff might leave my dinner outside my room. Please bring it in if you see it," Sera said gravely. "As you know, I'm not feeling well and can't be exposed to sunlight…"

"I refuse," Hara Shichi and Julie said in unison.

Yukikaze let out a sigh of relief. "I can help, but if you keep being this lazy, senpai, you won't be able to live alone in the future."

"Hmph, once I become a professional duelist, I can hire a nanny to take care of me," Sera said dismissively.

Night, Central District.

Hara Shichi greeted the Masked Girl, who had arrived before him. "Good evening."

"Mm, good evening," Crimson Lotus replied, glancing back at Hara Shichi. She didn't seem surprised.

"Today, a student named Nero joined us," Hara Shichi said, walking up to Crimson Lotus.

"Congratulations. Does that mean your team is complete?" Crimson Lotus said, though her tone was completely flat.

"Does this have anything to do with you?" Hara Shichi asked directly.

Crimson Lotus stiffened slightly, then chuckled. "Why do you say that? Is it because of what I said yesterday, 'someone more suitable than me will join'?"

"Because I invited her before," Hara Shichi explained. "I told her that if she joined my team, I'd return the deck I won from her."

"And she refused."