His fellow sufferer, Sievert, seemed to be right next door...
Dark smiled discreetly.
For an official duel, the decks had to be placed on the "card tables" on the Duelist Platforms. The Magic Guidance projection system enlarged the Magitech Cards so the audience could see them.
There were also rules such as "shuffle on site," "five-card opening hand," "30 seconds per turn," and "draw two cards per turn."
The duel itself had only three phases.
1. Preparation Phase: shuffle, communicate (taunt), opening hand
2. Battle Phase: draw cards, summon, fight (beat each other up)
3. End Phase: communicate (taunt), collect cards, declare the result...
Of course, today's duels didn't have nearly so many rules.
The twin-tailed girl from Magister House had already pinched the only "Magic Phantom Beast" card between her fingers. She looked tense as she waited for the referee's whistle.
Dark suddenly worried that she might crush the "Magic Phantom Beast."
Both Magitech Balls had already been surrounded by Life Barriers with a magic power value of 500. They now floated in front of their respective owners.
Using magic to control a Magitech Ball from a distance was an advanced technique, and wasn't part of the first-year curriculum.
So the only way to move a Magitech Ball was to push it physically.
Roentgen: "Beep—Preparation Phase begins."
Dark took "Magic Phantom Beast: Eevee" from his Card Case, held it between his index and middle fingers, and entered the Preparation Phase.
Roentgen: "Battle Phase countdown, 30 seconds!"
Roentgen: "3, 2, 1, begin!"
The instant the Battle Phase began,
"It's my turn! Magic Guidance Summon!"
Dark raised his Magitech Card in a flash. In just eight seconds from the start of the Battle Phase, he successfully summoned his Magic Phantom Beast!
Eevee-chan landed lightly without the slightest pause, then sprinted off like the wind.
Twelve seconds after the start of the Battle Phase, it had already raced across the mere ten-meter arena and pressed its paw pads against the Magitech Ball floating just above the ground!
"Bui|w`)?"
Tilting its head as it looked at the young lady opposite, Eevee-chan put on an adorably cute expression.
Then it slapped the ball four times in a row, reducing the Life Barrier to a sliver.
The twin-tailed girl was so overwhelmed by the cuteness that she nearly bled. Her magic power was interrupted, and she hurriedly began a second summon.
Eevee-chan very kindly waited for her to summon her Magic Phantom Beast, then → landed the final blow on the Magitech Ball.
"Battle over!"
"Winner: Dark Dimon."
Dark sighed, collected his cards, and turned around.
Boring.
Dull.
Chapter 33: Diana Never Feared a Challenge
"That's it?"
Diana watched Dark stroll back at a leisurely pace and blinked. Something just didn't seem right.
All four matches were happening at once, and the others had only just started. How was he already back?
|°°)
There was something Diana had kept to herself.
She hadn't actually had much faith in Dark. Little Eevee didn't look like the sort of Magic Spirit that could take a hit or dish one out. How could it compare to her Big White Bear?
But it turned out you could duel like that?
Without even a clash between Magic Spirits, he'd seized his opponent's weak point by summoning faster and pinning down the Magitech Ball before the other girl could summon her Magic Spirit!
He'd probably gone easy on her at the end as an act of charity.
After all, it was her first duel in her life. If she hadn't even managed to summon a Magic Spirit, that would surely have haunted her forever.
Diana wasn't the only one following the match, of course.
Both Emma and Victor shifted their attention to Dark as he left the arena.
But no one could have predicted that the duel would end this way!
Emma carefully assessed her own summoning speed, and her face turned pale.
Dark was simply too fast!
A summoning time of just eight seconds was far beyond the level of a first-year student!
She'd thought her own twelve seconds were fast enough, but now she could see they were nowhere near fast enough!
This wasn't something that could be turned around by comparing the strengths of their Magic Spirits.
This was a crushing victory in magic skill!
On the other side,
Victor's expression was just as grim.
He was determined to win this class competition.
But if you could lose a match without even summoning a Magic Spirit—how were you supposed to compete?
"How long does my Summoning Technique take again?"
Victor suddenly realized that he'd never actually timed it!
"Next group, number one. Number one."
Professor Jones drew the number for the fifth group.
Robert exclaimed in surprise, "It's your turn, Victor!"
Victor nodded and walked toward Arena Three with his number in hand, his steps heavy.
His opponent was a boy from Fool House whom he didn't really know.
The other boy looked honest and good-natured.
But as they entered the arena, the Fool House boy suddenly lowered his voice and asked, "Are you really the Son of the Hero?"
Victor froze, unsure why the boy would ask.
The two of them began their Summoning Techniques at almost the same time!
Victor summoned Stag at least two seconds earlier. But just as Stag landed, picked up speed, and charged into the opponent's summoning zone, the boy finally completed his summon.
A Black Bull with a layer of Rock Skin covering its forehead suddenly appeared in front of the Magitech Ball, blocking Victor's Stag!
But Stag charged on without hesitation. The added force from its acceleration sent the Black Bull tumbling over!
Victor held onto his advantage and eventually wore down the tough, thick-skinned Water Buffalo.
Next up,
Diana, Rose, Emma, and Robert all took their turns.
Diana won without a hint of suspense. Her "Magic Phantom Beast: Polar Bear" slapped her opponent's "Magic Phantom Beast: Unicorn Rabbit" into pieces.
In another match, Rose ended up playing the part of the little white rabbit...
Emma, on the other hand, managed to win with her Otter.
Emma had originally planned to use her twelve-second summoning time to try and replicate Dark's strategy.
But her opponent was an honor student from Magister House. Though just a little slower than her, the student still finished the summon in under fourteen seconds.
Their Magic Spirits collided in the left half of the arena.
Emma's Otter was a standard "Magic Phantom Beast," with 100 in magic attack, defense, and health. It was briefly at a disadvantage in the purely physical fight, but eventually found an opening to spray a mouthful of Salty Soda into its opponent's face, turning the tide!
As for Robert...
He was lucky enough to face a student from Fool House.
Both of them took more than sixteen seconds to summon their Magic Spirits.
Robert summoned "Magic Phantom Beast: Castle" directly above the Magitech Ball. The hollow castle chess piece perfectly covered the tiny ball, turning into an immovable, impregnable fortress!
→The match dragged on until the entire first round was over.
As the students stared in bewilderment, Professor Jones reluctantly declared that both sides would advance.
And so, forty students advanced from the first round, despite it being billed as a contest between seventy-eight and thirty-nine.
The second round began right after.
Dark was still up first.
His opponent was a student from Noble House.
The student had been bragging to his friends just moments ago.
His Magic Phantom Beast was a small dinosaur of Dragon Type, and it had shown overwhelming strength in the previous duel!
Looking around the arena, only Diana's Polar Bear could stand up to it.
So he certainly had reason to boast.
But that was life. Sometimes, no matter how strong you were, you couldn't simply cut your way through every obstacle—there were plenty of people stronger than you.
Dulong entered the arena looking ashen.
As he approached Dark, he suddenly had an idea and asked with a shameless grin, "Dimon, could you let me summon my Magic Phantom Beast before we start fighting?"
Dark replied coolly, "What do you think?"
Dulong could only laugh awkwardly and set off down the road to certain defeat.
After his quick defeat, Dulong immediately ran into the washroom and pounded on the sink.
"Damn it, he's just a little faster! What's he so smug about?"
"He must've learned the Summoning Technique before he even enrolled!"
"Otherwise, what could that little fox possibly do? Damn it!"
"Just you wait—I'll catch up with you!"
After cursing and crying, he stepped outside once more as a proud and elegant noble.
Dulong left the washroom with his eyes slightly red, and happened to see the one opponent he truly cared about—Diana—dueling Robert from Knight Academy!
The Dulong Family was a public rival of the Greatbear Family in the kingdom, but the two families weren't actually on such bad terms.
He and Diana had met during a family visit long ago.
But carefree Diana didn't remember him at all.
That had left him feeling down for quite some time.
And the person opposite her...
Before you continue