Long-Term Commission: King of Games' Path of Friendship (Part One)

On the Magical Train back.

Cana had no interest in admiring the dull scenery outside the window. Clutching a bottle of booze, she slept like a log, sprawled across two seats in a rather undignified pose.

Fortunately, this was the last train of the day, and there were no other passengers in the carriage besides her and Noah.

The ride from Iron Furnace Ridge to Magnolia took an hour. Noah had planned to close his eyes and rest for a while, but a sudden ding in his mind caught his attention.

After completing three Prayer orders, a new one had actually come with a notification sound.

Noah rubbed his chin. Could the Prayer magic have functions he hadn't discovered yet, ones that would gradually unlock as he completed Prayer orders?

He glanced at Cana, who was grinning foolishly in her sleep, and marveled at how carefree she was. Then he opened up the Prayer magic.

White magic power appeared in his hands in the form of a page.

[An otherworldly Prayer Commission has been received]

[Long-Term Commission: King of Games' Path of Friendship (Part One)]

[Yugi Muto is an ordinary high school student in Domino City. Lonely, he longs desperately for friends. Please teach him how to make friends.]

[Reward: Trap Card "Soul Resurrection"]

[Deadline: Before Yugi Muto finishes assembling the "Millennium Puzzle."]

Noah frowned as he read the order.

The wish was to make friends? A socially withdrawn student, huh...

But what was a "Trap Card"?

And what was with that strange deadline? How long could it take to put a puzzle together? A few hours at most. It couldn't possibly take years, could it?

Though he was utterly confused, Noah still wanted to give his first long-term commission a try.

After all, the words "King of Games" in the commission sounded impressive, and they were obviously closely connected to the name "Yugi Muto."

Not knowing when that so-called "Millennium Puzzle" would be finished, Noah decided to complete the commission as soon as possible.

It was just some advice on making friends. He could knock this out in no time—

His finger, poised to write on the magic page, stopped. Noah suddenly froze as something occurred to him.

He... didn't really have any friends either.

During his eighteen years in Edolas, Noah had been the respected and noble second prince, but most people he knew had only ever exchanged pleasantries with him because of his status.

And after training, Noah would usually hole up in his own palace. Apart from his old man, he rarely spoke much with anyone else. He was all about staying cooped up alone until the end of time.

Since coming to Earth-land, had he made any friends?

The three Mira siblings?

Noah felt that they were willing to be close to him mainly because he had saved their lives. That wouldn't be much use to Yugi Muto.

Aside from them, was there anyone else he could call a friend?

Natsu and Happy?

Could he even count as their friend?

Noah shook his head and looked at the seat opposite him, where the beautiful, drunken girl was drooling in her sleep. Although they had known each other for less than a day, he and Cana might actually be closer to being friends.

So how had he become friends with Cana?

The moment he asked himself that, Noah fell silent. He had no idea how he and Cana had suddenly become friends.

He buried his head in his hands and thumped it against the little wooden table attached to the train seat. Now he understood: just like the client, he had no idea how to make friends!

Damn! No wonder it was a long-term commission. They'd given him something this difficult right from the start.

But he really didn't know the answer...

Noah's commotion woke Cana. She opened her eyes, wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth, and instinctively reached for her bottle, but then she noticed Noah's troubled expression.

"Something bothering you, Noah?"

Cana seemed so mature. Surely she had plenty of friends. In the end, Noah decided to ask for outside help.

"Cana, please tell me how to make friends!"

"Huh?"

Noah's suddenly serious expression startled Cana. She'd only just woken up, and her mind was still foggy, so she misunderstood what he meant.

Did you need lessons on making friends?

Could it be...

Wearing the knowing smile of a big sister, Cana figured she understood what Noah meant by "making friends."

Young boys. She knew how it was.

"You came to the right person."

"Let me tell you, there are enough guys chasing me to circle the guild hall."

Putting on the air of an experienced woman, Cana launched into a long string of tropes she'd read in romance novels.

A love-hate relationship, constantly missing each other, the unattainable first love, killing everyone in the world for you...

The more Noah listened, the more wrong it sounded. What was she even talking about?!

He only wanted to make a friend. Did it have to be that ridiculous?!

Noah cut Cana off, a dark look on his face. He was afraid he might not be able to stop himself from complaining.

"Cana, I have a male friend who's very withdrawn. I want to collect some advice about making friends and share it with him."

Cana now realized she'd been reading too much into it. Though she was dying of embarrassment, she kept up a calm front.

"Oh, that's all? You should've said so."

"The easiest way for men to become friends is to have a fight."

Noah's face darkened. How was that any way to make friends?! Wouldn't it just make their relationship worse?

Seeing how thoroughly unconvinced Noah looked, Cana offered her second suggestion. "Drinking is another way to build a friendship."

"My friend's still a student. He's underage, understand?"

Cana smacked her lips at Noah's rejection and said dismissively, "The Kingdom of Fiore says you have to be fifteen to drink, but I started at thirteen. And look, nothing's happened to me. Don't worry."

Noah eyed the confident Cana suspiciously. Since he knew absolutely nothing about making friends, he wasn't sure whether he should trust this booze-loving woman.

Not knowing how fast Yugi Muto was assembling the puzzle or how much time he had, Noah still chose to trust Cana so he could complete the commission as quickly as possible.

Using "getting some air" as an excuse, Noah left the carriage. In the empty space between the train cars, he wrote Cana's dubious-sounding advice onto the Prayer order and submitted it with a thought.

Ten minutes later, Noah received a notification that the commission's reward was ready.

That fast? Did it actually work?!

Noah eagerly opened the Prayer magic.

[Otherworld Commission completed]

[Reward: Trap Card "Soul Resurrection"]

[Client's comment: I don't know who you are, but thank you very much for the advice. Unfortunately, I'm underage and can't drink. But fighting really did help me make a friend. Jonouchi even begged me not to die. That's something only friends would say, right?]

You got beaten half to death!

And you still remembered to thank me...

Noah felt his conscience weighing heavily on him. He really shouldn't have trusted Cana.

But the reward had already been sent, and Noah didn't know how to return it, so he could only keep it.

A card appeared in a flash of pure white light and dropped into Noah's hand. It had a magenta front, with the character "Trap" printed in the upper-right corner.

[Soul Resurrection (effect adapted to the current world)]

[Requirements for use: Card Mage, immense magic power]

[Target one dead ordinary creature and revive it]

[Note: This card only works on a single target. If the card is destroyed, the revived ordinary creature will die again as well.]

Noah stared blankly at the card in his hand.

Resurrecting the dead. Even with its scope restricted to ordinary creatures, it was still outrageously powerful.

What the hell was this doing in the hands of an ordinary high school student?!

But I don't know Card Magic...