"Alright, the matter is resolved, we should probably head back now." Jonouchi stretched lazily. "Thanks, Youyu, I'll treat you to a meal someday."
"Yeah, it's about time we say goodbye. I had a great time today," Yugi added.
Kagurazaka, who had been quietly watching the big shots chat, was silent for a while. He stared at Jonouchi with a frown of deep thought for a moment before finally exclaiming, "Ah! You're... the so-called Dice War God's Gambling God Jonouchi!"
Jonouchi's face turned dark immediately.
"What dice? I've got nothing to do with that stuff!" Jonouchi was instantly displeased. "And you recognized Yugi and Youyu, but only realized it's me now?"
"Sorry," Kagurazaka scratched his head in embarrassment. "I didn't see any dice, so I didn't remember..."
"Hey, I said it has nothing to do with dice, okay!?"
"..."
Jonouchi felt indignant, sensing the world's unfairness and the darkness of the Duel World...
... Why does everyone only remember me for throwing dice!?
Isn't my ace the Red-Eyes Black Dragon? A Super Rare Card! A legendary dragon bringing possibilities!
Why do you all only remember the dice?
This further strengthened Jonouchi's determination to quit gambling. From now on, no more using dice in duels, those unjust judgments...
"Alright, alright, let's just head back first," Jonouchi relented.
"It's already late, why not stay on the island for the night?" Youyu suggested. "I can call a plane to take you back tomorrow morning."
"No need," Jonouchi waved his hand. "Mai just messaged me. Valon seems to be back in the city. He wants to have a meal with us tomorrow to catch up... maybe even a duel."
Jonouchi confidently patted the deck on his Duel Disc.
"Hey, my Red-Eyes deck just got boosted, that guy doesn't stand a chance!"
Youyu thought to himself, no no no, I think with this deck without coins or dice, you've actually gotten weaker compared to before.
But speaking of...
"Valon?" Youyu raised an eyebrow. "As in the Valon from the Doma Three Musketeers?"
"Yeah," Jonouchi smiled brightly. "He's actually a pretty nice guy, we keep in touch quite often."
Youyu: "..."
Wasn't Valon the guy who fought Jonouchi for Kujaku Mai?
Now Mai is already with Jonouchi, and the three of them casually meet up and reminisce about the past, laughing and chatting?
Honestly, what do they have to reminisce about? Wasn't their past filled with Jonouchi and Valon fighting fiercely over Mai?
Youyu felt maybe he had too low of an EQ to comprehend the forthright ways of these martial folks.
Even if you took my girl, we're still good brothers?
That feels pretty... weird.
"By the way, I was meaning to ask earlier," Yugi said, "if Mai's around, why didn't you bring her over?"
Upon hearing this, Jonouchi's face turned unpleasant again, giving Youyu a sidelong glare.
Yugi looked curiously at Youyu.
Were there stories between you during the time we weren't here?
Youyu awkwardly looked away and started admiring the scenery.
This is a long story.
Last year, when Youyu returned to Domino, he happened to visit Jonouchi.
At that time, Youyu unintentionally glanced at the carpet in their living room and said, hey Jonouchi, the edge of your carpet looks a bit weird, as if it's not laid out properly?
And then...
Then, Mai found Jonouchi's half-year-long stash of private money from there...
Since then, Jonouchi hasn't been too keen on letting Youyu meet with Mai.
This time, getting caught hiding money was a small matter, but what if next time he was caught hiding something else?
In any case, Kagurazaka's card deck theft incident came to an end like this.
Yugi and Jonouchi bid farewell to Youyu and left first. As the only school staff present, Youyu confiscated Kagurazaka's stolen exhibition deck and called the teacher who was investigating the missing deck to handle the follow-up matters.
Kagurazaka, caught stealing decks, would undoubtedly face disciplinary action from the school—possibly even expulsion if serious.
However, as a group of teachers and students came to watch, Kagurazaka seemed excited, showing no sign of expecting punishment. He excitedly told everyone that Muto Yugi and Jonouchi Katsuya were both on the island, and he even duelled with the real Muto Yugi!
Back in the day, the Paradox Brothers who came to the Academy got thrashed by Muto Yugi and became "Legendary Duelists." I just got thrashed too, so am I a legend now?
Though he didn't even catch a decent monster, just got KO'd by a Watapon...
... But that counts as having a duel, right?
"Mr. Yugi's guidance made me completely realize what I'm lacking!" Kagurazaka said seriously.
Everyone fell silent, holding their breath and perked up their ears to listen.
The First Duel King Muto Yugi's guidance? This wasn't an opportunity that just anyone could encounter!
Youyu, hearing his statement, couldn't help but become interested.
Oh? Could it be that Yugi's casual advice actually had an enlightening effect?
But then again, that wouldn't be too strange. After all, Kagurazaka had an exceptional talent, with very solid theoretical knowledge of dueling, it's possible he realized something during the duel with Yugi...
Then they saw Kagurazaka speak earnestly: "The part lacking in my imitation, that is...
...that multicolored hairstyle!"
Youyu: "....."
Huh?
"It's not just the hairstyle, but also the attire, clothing, even the 'Millennium Pendant' accessory, I have to replicate the whole set!" Kagurazaka continued enthusiastically, "Until now, my imitation has been too half-baked, failing to capture the essence of a strong duelist!
I must transform myself from the outside to the inside, even turning my appearance into that of the other person..."
Youyu sighed.
Alright.
This kid is a lost cause.
...
In some unknown location, inside a dim and dark room.
Seven people, seven shadows appeared in the room, each dispersed and occupied a corner of the room.
In the completely sealed room, there was almost no light source. Darkness spread unchecked in the enclosed space, and the invisible pressure made the air feel as heavy as lead.
Each person was a selected strong fighter, outstanding in their own dark domain.
A large electronic screen lit up. A blurry shadow appeared behind the screen, its cold gaze sweeping past each person in the room through the screen.
"The time has come." A gloomy and hoarse voice echoed from behind the screen.
Someone in the room spoke: "Is the target... Duel Academy?"
"I'll go first."
The person stepped out from the shadowed corner, their figure illuminated by the glow of the electronic screen.
It was a person dressed in a pitch-black trench coat, their face mostly covered by a black sectional mask, with a scarlet jewel embedded on the forehead of the mask.
"Duel Academy is a pretty nostalgic place for me too," he said lightly, "there are things for me to do there."
The shadow behind the screen stared at him indifferently for a moment.
"...Alright."