Teaching Chazz a Lesson!
Chazz swept a hand through his hair in an attempt to look cool and spoke confidently.
The first signs of his goofiness were already beginning to show.
"It's almost time for the welcome party at the dorms. There's no time for you to duel now."
Alexis ignored all of that and spoke just as coldly as before.
She looked ready to put a stop to the duel.
"Tch, let's go!" Chazz was somewhat unwilling when he heard that.
But he couldn't very well skip the welcome party for the new students, so he had no choice but to call his two lackeys along.
Before leaving, however, he turned back with a smile and challenged Jiang He. "If you've got the guts, come back here after the welcome party tonight, and we'll finish the duel we didn't get to have!"
Only then did he leave for good.
"Don't let Chazz and his friends provoke you so easily, especially into a duel where you wager cards. Those guys who came straight up from Duel Academy's middle school aren't easy to deal with."
After Chazz and his two lackeys left, Alexis Rhodes immediately cautioned Jiang He.
She wanted to keep him from falling for the provocation, actually coming to duel Chazz that night, and losing badly.
Before this, several students who had crossed Chazz and his friends had suffered a severe blow to their confidence after losing duels against them.
In the end, they had grown disheartened and voluntarily dropped out.
"..." Jiang He felt a little exasperated.
Though he knew Alexis meant well, he really wanted to know something right now.
If he punched this mature beauty with her aloof looks and demeanor, how long would she cry for?
The Emotion Points he had been so close to getting had nearly flown away...
Fortunately, coming back that night to give Chazz a dose of "warmth" would work just as well.
"The Slifer Red welcome party should be starting soon too. If you go back late, you'll miss it," Alexis reminded them again.
Although she also wanted to see Jiang He's true strength, it was rare for interesting new students to enter Duel Academy.
She didn't want to see these new students suffer such a blow that they dropped out shortly after entering the academy, then lose their sense of purpose and sink into a slump.
"Well, thanks for the reminder, then." With things as they were, Jiang He waved a hand as he spoke.
Knowing the plot, he could appreciate Alexis's kindness more than Jaden Yuki and Syrus Truesdale could.
Besides, he was a little hungry.
He'd go back to the Slifer Red dorm and eat at the welcome party first!
"That guy... doesn't seem to have given up on the idea at all."
Watching Jiang He and the others leave, Alexis couldn't help frowning slightly and muttering with some annoyance.
When Jiang He returned to the Slifer Red dormitory hall,
he soon saw its simple furnishings, which resembled a small private cafeteria: a row of rectangular wooden tables and benches.
At the very front was the dining table of the duel instructor in charge of the dorm, set up like a lectern.
A fat, tawny cat with the character for "king" on its forehead was sprawled on it, fast asleep.
At every seat along the row of wooden tables, there was a meal tray.
Each wooden tray held a bowl of rice, a bowl of curry mapo tofu, a plate of tamagoyaki, and a plate of pickled dried fish...
"The difference between the food at the welcome parties really is as huge as I remembered. The other dorms should be having fish and meat, right?" Jiang He remarked.
It made him consider
how he should improve his meals here at Duel Academy.
It wasn't that the food tasted bad.
In fact, it was surprisingly good.
But Jiang He remembered that the food at the Slifer Red dorm
seemed to be dried fish and curry mapo tofu almost every day...
It only changed once in a while.
So even if it tasted good, he couldn't stand eating it every day from now on!
Soon,
as Jiang He chewed on his tamagoyaki, inspiration struck, and he came up with an idea!
He remembered that the family of that goofball Chazz,
the Chazz Princeton Group, seemed to be quite rich...!
When night came, it looked like he could fleece him while he was at it!
Meanwhile, in the hall of the luxury dormitory for male Obelisk Blue students,
Chazz suddenly sensed a mysterious chill and sneezed!
He kept feeling as though he had a bad premonition!
Chapter 11: Teaching Chazz a Lesson!
At ten at night, at Duel Academy's duel arena.
All was silent, and only the peaceful chirping of insects could be faintly heard throughout the academy.
After eating and drinking his fill, Jiang He had even gone back to his room and lain down for a while to digest his food before joining Jaden Yuki and Syrus Truesdale, who had come to fetch him.
Together, they arrived at the duel arena.
As soon as he went inside,
Jiang He saw a familiar figure in a blue coat, pacing back and forth on the dueling field with his back turned as he waited.
Beside him were those two blue-clad lackeys whose faces were impossible to remember.
It was none other than that fat sheep Chazz!
"You're too slow! I thought you'd been too scared to come!"
Alerted by his lackeys, Chazz immediately turned around and taunted Jiang He, having grown impatient from waiting.
"How could I not come? Haven't you heard that rather famous proverb?"
Jiang He spread his hands.
"It goes, 'Beat up Chazz after dinner; you've got nothing better to do anyway.'"
"Now that I've finished dinner, how could I not come?"
"Huh? There's a proverb like that?" Jaden Yuki and Syrus Truesdale were both taken aback and immediately believed him.
Although they didn't know where the saying came from, they could easily hear how leisurely and effortless beating up Chazz sounded!
It was like beating up your own kid!
"Pfft." Alexis, who had just reached the entrance to the arena, happened to hear him and couldn't help covering her mouth as she giggled.
"You bastard, stop making up proverbs! How dare you make a fool of me, the great Chazz!" Chazz was immediately provoked by Jiang He's words and spoke angrily.
"Listen up! We're dueling under card-wagering rules, with each of us putting our best rare card on the line!"
"When you lose, I'll take the most valuable rare card in your deck!"
"Wait a moment." Jiang He raised a hand to stop him.
Then he smiled at Chazz. "You don't mind if I change the stakes I want a little, do you?"
"Hmph, are you scared? What do you want to change?" the nameless lackey beside Chazz jeered.
Chazz himself,
as well as Jaden Yuki, Syrus Truesdale, and the others waiting below on Jiang He's side, all looked at Jiang He in puzzlement.
Even Alexis's eyes showed a trace of curiosity.
"If I lose, I'll still give you my rare card as the wager. But if I win, you can replace the rare card with around twenty million in cash."
Smiling, Jiang He placed his deck into the Duel Disk the academy had just issued him.
A rare card might be quite valuable to others.
But to him, even if he won one, it wouldn't be very useful.
Cash would be more useful.
He could use it to greatly improve his meals and, while he was at it, improve his living conditions!
He could build himself a better house right next to the Slifer dorm!
"Choose whatever you want. The one who wins in the end will definitely be me, the great Chazz!" Chazz didn't refuse at all.
The rare card in his deck was worth around twenty million!
His two older brothers had acquired it with the resources of the Chazz Princeton Group.
"Then let's get started!"
"Duel!"
Chazz and Jiang He called out at the same time. The Duel Disks on their arms flashed red and unfolded.
Both drew their starting hands of five cards from the tops of their decks!
The number [400LP] also appeared beside each of them.
"I'll let you go first, as a gesture of courtesy from an Obelisk Blue elite to a Slifer Red dropout!" Chazz declared.
He refused to believe Jiang He could be lucky enough to start with a perfect hand every time, drawing all five sealed pieces of Exodia the Forbidden One at once!
Luck like that could only come once in a lifetime!
"Then I won't stand on ceremony. I'll take the first turn!" Jiang He looked at Chazz as though he were a fat sheep and gave a faint chuckle.
He had no intention of holding back.
In fact, he once again used his Clear Mind ability!
Once per duel, he was guaranteed to draw a card he wanted!
"My turn, draw!"
As Jiang He drew a card from the top of his deck,
"That feeling again...!" Beside the dueling field below, Jaden Yuki's expression suddenly changed, and he watched Jiang He's movements intently!
He had just sensed that special aura again, the same one he had felt during the daytime duel test when Jiang He dueled Professor Crowler!
Alexis had also walked right up beside the dueling field to watch the duel from close by.
She watched Jiang He with interest, waiting to see what he would do next.