As Momoka returned to the GEN Academy room with a deflated expression, all of our attention was drawn towards her.

"Welcome back, Aiuchi-san. Don't worry about it, you tried your best and did great out there!"

Lucina-sensei was the first to greet her, trying to comfort her after the loss she suffered to the Ace of Alba, Jouraku.

"Yeah, don't mind it, Momoka-chan!" Iori said.

"You'll get another chance in the future. I'm sure of it." Akitani said.

"Momoka-san, welcome back." I said.

Momoka looked up at everyone and smiled briefly, before nodding.

"Sorry."

That was the only words she could muster before gritting the back of her teeth and rushing over to sit down, going past Kuyou who said nothing and Iori who seemed concerned for her wellbeing.

"Momoka-chan, is everything okay? Are you alright?"

Iori got up and sat next to her, patting her back. Seeing this, Kuyou snickered.

"Ku ku... what a softie."

As those words left his lips, he looked away for a second, before biting his tongue and looking straight back at Momoka.

"Huh? Kuyou-kun, what are you saying?"

Iori narrowed her eyes towards him.

"Don't try to console her. Momoka-san had every opportunity to win given to her on a platter. She's a loser. Let her soak in the loss so she can do better next time."

"...are people's skills all their worth to you, Kuyou-san?"

Before I knew it, I snapped back at him despite not being involved. Kurosaki's eyes widened as I broke my earlier promise to not interact with him again.

"Right now, when we're at a high level tournament like this? Of course. You either win or get out. I'm here for complete victory, not to clean up after someone else because they couldn't take responsibility of this position gifted to them."

"How can you be so heartless like that? We're all teammates here, we should be supporting each other and bringing each other up!"

This time, it was Iori who was angry at him. Despite being friends with Kuyou, she was closer to Momoka, so she probably didn't take too kindly to Kuyou's needless snark towards her after the loss.

"Let her soak it in. The bitter feeling of not being good enough. She needs it if she ever wants to improve. Why do you think she's been stuck at Category Queen for so long?"

Momoka's eyes widened at that stabbing comment from Kuyou. Her main goal in this tournament was to gather enough points to be promoted to Category King, and defeating Jouraku would've been enough to push her score up to hit the threshold.

"That's..."

Iori was stunned. She couldn't believe what she was hearing come out of Kuyou's mouth. Those words were rotten, dripping off his tongue like a vicious venom.

"Kuyou-san. We can each have our own personal beliefs for how someone should handle things after a loss. However, if you're going to criticise Aiuchi-san's performance, do it in a constructive manner. Right now, you're just saying hurtful words."

Akitani scolded him. Kuyou laughed.

"Ku ku... alright. Do you want me to break down step-by-step where you failed, Momoka-san?"

Kuyou's piercing gaze met Momoka's hollow eyes.

"I'd be more than happy to comb over each and every step you failed."

The atmosphere twisted with each stress Kuyou put on every word. Momoka narrowed her eyes at Kuyou, glancing at her own hands, grinding her teeth even harder.

I narrowed my eyes at him. Kuyou looked at me with an arrogant smirk, goading me to say something. I wanted to challenge him and his horrid way of doing things.

Yet somehow, I couldn't find the words this time. Feeling the dread and helpless emanating off everything around me, it felt like Kuyou's ruthless aura had dominated the room, leaving no way to fight back against him.

"Momoka-chan, you don't have to listen to this guy, he's just being a—"

As Iori tried to protect Momoka from him, Momoka pushed her away. She raised her head, looking at Kuyou with begrudging eyes.

"M-Momoka-chan?"

Momoka ignored Iori and glared at Kuyou.

"For an Ace, you sure act cocky..."

Kuyou laughed.

"Ku ku. I wouldn't be an Ace if I wasn't good at what I do."

Momoka sighed, relaxing her jaw.

"...please teach me how I should've won."

"Gladly."

Kuyou got off the table and sauntered over to her. Iori looked at her with wide eyes.

"Huh? Are you sure about this? Earlier, he..."

"...I know. I don't like it either. But that's just how Kuyou-san is, isn't he? He was the same towards Kurosaki-san, so this reaction should've been expected."

Iori's face went pale. She glanced over at Kurosaki, then at Momoka. Kurosaki raised her eyebrows, shrinking slightly as Iori looked at her.

"I... I also acknowledge how much better he is than me. Because he's in a higher Category than me, Kuyou-san can see things I can't. So, if he's offering me help, I'll take it. Otherwise, I'll never improve."

"What a mature response. I'd never expect it from a girl like you."

Kuyou slammed his foot in front of Momoka's table, leaning forward to face all of us.

"Listen up, assholes. We've had three fights so far, and we've lost two out of three of them. Do you understand how much of an embarrassment that is? Don't you feel any shame knowing Takamine using his Absolute Zero crap has done better than Busujima on Prison and Momoka on Ominagruzio going second? Now that the situation has come to this, we have no choice but to win the rest if we want GEN to have any shred of credibility, otherwise we're screwed, ku ku."

"Calm down, we're all aware of how bad this looks for our school. However, I don't think you need to worry about me or you, since we'll win our fights for sure. Kurosaki-san, though..."

Iori pushed Kuyou's leg off the table before crossing her arms and looking back at Kurosaki.

"Huh? Don't get cocky. The only guarantee here is Kurosaki will lose."

Kurosaki looked away, hiding her face from Kuyou's dismissive gaze.

"For me and you, though..."

Kuyou planted his foot back on the table, this time in front of Iori.

"...neither of our wins are assured. So don't get full of yourself and start assuming things like that, otherwise you'll make sloppy mistakes like Momoka. And that brings me to my first point, ku ku. Your first mistake was overestimating your own abilities against an opponent you underestimated."

Iori raised her eyebrows. Momoka looked away, scratching her cheek.

"You didn't think Jouraku was a serious threat worth taking seriously because of his stupid way of speaking and his deck choice being Draj, right? You only cared for getting one up over him because he was annoying, right? You completely forgot he was an Ace and the leader of Alba. You should've gone in with more caution regarding your opponent than dismissing him based on those factors."

Momoka sighed.

"That's true... I didn't think he would win against me the moment I confirmed his deck was Drajeweled."

"That stupid deck might be glazed to hell and back, but it's still more competent than your Ominagruzio slop. Hell, you even got to go second, so your slop should've been able to pop off, but you failed to capitalise on it. The hell was Akitani-senpai teaching you guys? It was an awful display out there."

Kuyou bore down on Momoka, lifting his foot and sitting on the edge of the table instead. He then went over how Momoka could've played better, including more efficient usage of her early game pieces and tweaking her deck.

Momoka nodded, making notes on a holographic tab. Iori sighed and went to go to the toilets. Kurosaki glanced at me.

"T-Takamine-san..."

"Yeah?"

"Do you... do you think I can win?"

I thought back to our fight on the beach.

"Of course. Kuyou's preaching all this about never underestimating your opponent, yet here he is... underestimating you."

I held out my fist to her.

"You've got this."

Kurosaki smiled a little, bumping her fist into mine.

"T-thank you... I hope my fight comes up soon. Waiting like this and watching everyone else... it's making me even more nervous."

A pop up appeared in front of everyone in the room.

<Commencing next game>
[Jinrai] Etou Isuzu vs [Alba] Tsuruha Mizuho

"L-looks like our school's finally getting a break from the action..."

"Back to back Ace games too? Damn."

Etou Isuzu, the Ace of Jinrai High. If Kuyou and Jouraku's abilities were any indication for how good these players were, she would probably win this game. However, unlike the other two, Etou remained friendly with her teammates while still carrying a regal demeanour.

"I'm looking forward to seeing this one!"

"M-me too!"

It didn't take very long for things to get going, as both Etou and Tsuruha arrived to the fight table early. Outside of Jouraku and Agon, this would be the first time I'd get to see another member of Alba and what their personality was like.

"It's nice to meet you, Ace of Jinrai High."

Tsuruha was a cool beauty with short ice blue hair and a knightly charm to her.

"It's nice to meet you too, Queen of Alba."

In contrast to Tsuruha's approachable smile, Etou held a cold frown that seemed to keep everyone at a distance.

"Let's have a good fight, alright?"

"Of course... good luck to you."

"Likewise!"

A blue card each descended in front of them, with Etou letting hers fall into her hand and Tsuruha grabbing hers with two fingers. A burst of special effects ignited the cards, realising their decks.

A bright yellow crest of a royal crown strewn through by a sword appeared over Etou's deck, while a blood red crest of sharpened fangs appeared over Tsuruha's deck.

The system decided Etou would go first.

"Stand up, Vanguard!"

"Knight of Integrity, Thegrea!"

"Admired Dear Sister, Feltyrosa!"

"What?!"

"T-Thegrea jumpscare!"

Both me and Kurosaki were shocked to see the Ace of Jinrai flip up Thegrea as her starter.

"Ku ku. Remember you two, starters don't mean anything."

Kuyou was confident it was just a bluff from Etou. I looked at him bluntly.

"Last time you said that, Kurosaki-san was really playing Thegrea."

"The Thegrea playerbase is on the brink of extinction, no one plays that crap these days except gooners and people with mental disorders. You'd be more respected if you played Gram, since he doesn't have two airbags coming out of his chest."

I rolled my eyes, trying to ignore the fact he was trying to insult Kurosaki again by calling her a gooner and/or implying she has a mental disorder.

"You've jinxed it. Now watch Etou-san play Gramgrace."

"Ku ku. Aight, bet."

"Stand and draw. I discard to ride Pink Moth Girl, Maple! I set the Energy Generator, and turn end!"

"Oh, she's definitely playing Thegrea." I said.

"Yikes, a Thegrea player." Kuyou said.

"A-and she went first... oh no, this isn't going to end well..."

Kurosaki covered her mouth and squeezed her eyes shut. I guess as a fellow Thegrea player, she was worried about her fellow kin...

Etou:
Hand: 5
Damage: 0
Energy: 0
OXO
OOO

Tsuruha:
Hand: 5
Damage: 0
OXO
OOO

"Stand and draw! I discard to ride Beautiful Day Off, Feltyrosa! Feltyrosa's skill, I draw and get the Energy Generator with 3 energy! Feltyrosa attacks! (8000)"

"No Aura?"

Kuyou raised an eyebrow.

"Why would Felty run Aura? It's not an Order deck."

"Don't speak if you're a dumbass."

Hearing me challenge him, Kuyou brushed me aside.

"I was just asking you a question..."

"You're the Lyrical main, you should know what Felty does."

"I do, but that's what makes your logic so nonsensical to me."

"Do you need to be spoon-fed all the time? Figure it out yourself."

I sighed. Trying to talk to this guy would get me nowhere, so I dropped it.

"No guard!"

"Drive check! (Canon of Overlaid-spinning, Dietlinde)"

"Damage check! (Divine Sister, Biscotti)"

"Turn end!"

Etou:
Hand: 5
Damage: 1
Energy: 0
OXO
OOO

Tsuruha:
Hand: 7
Damage: 0
Energy: 3
OXO
OOO

"Stand, draw, and charge. I discard to ride Harsh Training, Thegrea! Biscotti's skill, since she was discarded to ride, I energyblast 3 to draw! I counterblast to play the order, A Former Encouragement! I scry 7 and call a unit from among them! I call Retrospective Dragon!"

Seeing that, Kurosaki slumped— no, she died.

"Why..."

A dying wheeze came from her throat, which made me panic and look at her.

"K-Kurosaki-san, are you alright?!"

She shook her head no.

"What's wrong? Do you need water? Are you struggling to breathe?"

Kurosaki weakly lifted her hand and pointed at the screen, hissing.

"T-that... she's running that card..."

"Huh...?"

I looked back, seeing Kurosaki pointing at the card Etou just called— Retrospective Dragon.

"B-bad... that card is... bad..."

I looked at Kazuraba for clarity, and she shrugged.

"I'm not sure what's going on either, Takamine-san... I'm just as lost as you are. Come on Yuuma-chan, sit up, have a sip... good girl, good girl."

Kazuraba tried to help the deflated Kurosaki. I thought Kurosaki would be happy seeing another Thegrea player, but instead, it looked like she was filled with dread instead.

"Retrospective's skill, since I have a Thegrea vanguard, I soulblast and discard to add a grade 2 or 3 set order from deck to hand! I add Oath of Vengeance, Thegrea! Then, I call Forefront Knight, Teithfallt and Cerrgaon! Teithfallt's skill, since I played a normal order this turn, I soulblast to scry 5 and call a unit from among them! I call another Cerrgaon! Retrospective attacks! (10000)"

"Marguerite guards! (23000)"

"Boosted by Cerrgaon, Thegrea attacks! Cerrgaon's skill! (10000 > 23000)"

"No guard!"

"Drive check! (Healer of Heavenly Staff, Arshes) Heal trigger, recovering a damage and giving power to Teithfallt! (10000 > 20000)"

"Damage check! (Night Sky Searing Divertimento, Ortrud)"

"Cerrgaon retires, I scry 2, add one to hand, and botdeck the rest. Boosted by Cerrgaon, Teithfallt attacks! Once more, Cerrgaon's skill! (20000 > 33000)"

"Heh... you Ket decks sure love your Teithgaon combo. No guard! (Transparent Snowy Night, Beretoi) Alright, a draw! (10000 > 20000)"

"Thegrea was already playing Cerrgaon before the combo existed. We just couldn't afford to play Teithfallt since our order for turn would be Magenta, preventing us from casting Wisdom. However, with this new order, we can finally do the combo, strengthening our formerly non-existent early game. Cerrgaon retires, scry 2, add to hand. Turn end!"

Kurosaki coughed, making another dying wheeze sound as she collapsed in her seat once more.

"K-Kurosaki-san, are you okay?!"

She shook her head as her soul began leaving her body.

"I-I think she's trying to give me a heart attack..."

"Huh?!"

Kazuraba put her hands together in a flash of realisation.

"Ah! I figured it out, Takamine-san."

She laughed, rubbing Kurosaki's back in consolation. Kurosaki coughed.

"You did? Did Kurosaki-san suddenly become sick? Do we need to bring her to the infirmary?!"

"Well, you could call it some form of sickness... she's dying from how much she disagrees with Etou-san's way of playing Thegrea."

"...eh?"

"Have you noticed? Just how different her build is to Kurosaki-san's build? Despite playing the same deck, they both came to highly different conclusions on how it should be used."

"Yeah, I have, but... honestly, I thought Etou-san's build was the more standard version of Thegrea."

Kurosaki made another dying wheeze.

"Ah?! S-sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you, Kurosaki-san!"

A trickle of blood roll down her chin as she looked at me with a betrayed gaze.

"I mean, it's true that Yuuma-chan's way of playing Thegrea is the deviation. If she told any Vanguard player worth their Category she wasn't using the set order searcher, they'd write her off immediately."

Kurosaki then flipped that gaze onto Kazuraba.

"However... just because she plays it differently from what's expected of her doesn't mean it's wrong. It just means she hasn't yet proved to the world that her way of playing Thegrea is the correct one."

Kurosaki's eyes widened hearing Kazuraba's unwavering support for her.

"R-Reona-chan..."

"Look, Yuuma-chan. I don't know anything about Thegrea, but I know she means the world to you. If you truly believe that your way is the right way to use her... then I know you'll show everyone on this world stage. I'm sure of it!"

Kazuraba hugged Kurosaki, encouraging her. Kurosaki smiled and hugged Kazuraba back.

I looked back to the screen, staring at Etou who stood firm with her massive hand.

Looks like Kurosaki now has a rival she's got to beat no matter what, huh?

Etou:
Hand: 6
Damage: 0
Energy: 0
XXX
OOO

Tsuruha:
Hand: 7
Damage: 2
Energy: 3
OXO
OOO

"Stand, draw, and charge! I discard to ride Talent of Enjoyment, Feltyrosa! Beautiful Day Off's skill, I soulblast to return a Ghost from drop to hand! I choose Marguerite! Feltyrosa attacks! (10000)"

"No guard!"

"Drive check! (Moon Adorning Partita, Aloisia) No trigger."

"Damage check! (Palladium Zeal Dragon)"

"Turn end!"

Etou:
Hand: 6
Damage: 1
Energy: 0
XXX
OOO

Tsuruha:
Hand: 9
Damage: 2
Energy: 6
OXO
OOO

"Stand, draw, and charge. I discard to ride One Who Walks the Path of Light, Thegrea! Harsh Training, Thegrea's skill, when she's rode upon by a grade 3 Thegrea, I scry 5 for a Thegrea or Maple and add it to my hand. I add Atrocious? Moth Girl, Maple! I set Oath of Vengeance and call Knight of Evil Slash, Meyrig. Now, with this circuit of hope... reveal my fate, Arcana!"

Etou raised her hand into the air like she was holding up a sword, the pure white circuits in her body surging upwards into the palm of her hand, gathering at the combined shape of her fingertips, and emerging into a Roman numeral.

V.

"Hierophant ability, activate."

"Apex Punishment! Until end of turn, your vanguard gets grade +2, then I put cards from my drop equal to the number of your grade! Since you're currently grade 4, I put four cards from my drop into soul! Two Cerrgaon, Biscotti, and Volition Rigour!"

"Wait... that Arcana is insane for Thegrea!"

Kurosaki was suddenly revived, her jaw dropping seeing how much better Etou's Arcana was than hers.

"N-not only does it set up excess soul for Maple looping, but you also turn your opponent's vanguard into a grade 3 or greater unit, enabling—"

"Meyrig's skill! Since your vanguard is now grade 3 or greater, I bind her face up to put One Who Blooms in the Dark, Thegrea into my soul, and superior ride..."

Etou raised the card high into the air and swung down, slamming it on the vanguard circle like it was a heavy sword.

"The sword of hope that fragments despair shall burn red through heaven, casting out all sin as it cuts away the detestable half of this corrupted world. Before the blooming scales of judgement... all evil shall be banished by my avatar! I ride Epee De Justice, Thegrea!"

"She can make Thegrea a going first deck...!"

Kurosaki passed out.

"I... I can't believe it... I-I've been bested as a Thegrea main... how...?"

Kurosaki coughed, dying again.

"K-Kurosaki-san?! Oi, hang in there! Hang in, there Kurosaki-san!"

I shook her limp body, but there was no response. Kazuraba laughed, waking Kurosaki up by lightly tapping her cheeks.

"I've never seen Yuuma-chan this lively before. I'm not sure if I like it or not..."

"It honestly keeps worrying me even time she makes a noise I've never heard before..."

Me and Kazuraba had very different reactions to seeing Kurosaki tweaking.

"Hmm, maybe she's having heart attacks?"

"If that's the case, we should probably get some sugar water for her..."

"Good idea! Oh, make sure you don't confuse sugar for salt."

"That's... oddly specific advice."

"Family story, don't worry about it."

"Justice's skill! I discard to superior ride One Who Blooms in the Dark, Thegrea from my soul! Justice binds herself and I activate Persona Ride! Oath's skill, my Persona Ride gets another +5k and I draw an additional card! (10000 > 25000) (13000 > 28000) (10000 > 25000) I move Retrospective back and call Maple! (10000 > 25000) Encouragment's skill in drop, I energyblast 3 and remove it from the game to add a Thegrea from bind to hand. I choose Justice! Next, Thegrea attacks! (28000) Mete Recollection!"

"Ah... Persona Ride on turn 3 against a grade 2 vanguard is pretty nasty. I should've guarded more earlier when I had the chance... no guard!"

Tsuruha ran a hand through the back of her hair, making a struggling expression. Etou's ice blue eyes remained excessively cold and piercing.

"Twin Drive!! (Epee De Justice, Thegrea, A Former Encouragement)"

"Damage check! (Capriccio of Circulating Star, Ingrid)"

"Thegrea's skill! I counterblast and discard to restand her with drive -1! (28000/2d > 1d) Once more, Thegrea attacks! (28000/1d) Mete Recollection!"

"Judith perfect guards!"

"Drive check! (Divine Sister, Natilla) Front trigger! Everyone gets +10k! (25000 > 35000) (28000 > 38000/1d) (25000 > 35000) Maple attacks! (35000)"

"No guard! (Precious Tune, Edwige) Critical trigger! All to vanguard! (10000 > 20000)"

"Teithfallt attacks! Her skill, since she's attacking a grade 3 or greater unit and I have 4 or more units, she gets +10k! (35000 > 45000)"

"Marguerite and Nora guard! (50000)"

"Turn end!"

Etou:
Hand: 9
Damage: 1
Energy: 0
XXX
OOX

Tsuruha:
Hand: 5
Damage: 4
Energy: 6
OXO
OOO

"Stand, draw, and charge! Dancing in the velvet moon, the innocent vampire is released by the sound of the night, each melodic form intensified by the brilliant silver light! I ride my avatar, Rondo of Plenilune, Feltyrosa! Talent of Enjoyment's skill, I return a Ghost from my hand to the top of my deck and put a Ghost from drop to my hand! I return Eleonore to add Judith! Feltyrosa's skill, I counterblast to give her two skills! Time to unleash the Queen's dominion!"

Tsuruha clicked her fingers, sending the entire digital space into a pitch black night. Hanging above her and Etou was a singular crescent moon, bright yellow in colour, yet shining a blinding silver that illuminated their battle in a cool hue.

"This is my Arcana!"

Cool blue circuits filled through Tsuruha's entire body, before concentrating themselves at the side of her neck, where she tilted her head to show off the Roman numeral now engraved upon her skin.

I.

"Magician ability, activate."

"Forbidden Rosario! I superior call two units from my deck, drop, soul, or bind! From my deck, I call Rondo of Eventide Moon, Feltyrosa and Night Sky Searing Divertimento, Ortrud!"

"Ku ku... so that's why she doesn't use Aura. Her Arcana's just Forbidoll on crack!"

Hearing that, I finally understood what Kuyou was on about earlier now.

Because Plenilune wanted a Feltyrosa in soul for her other effect, Tsuruha could have used Aura's on hit effect to tutor Forbidoll, and use it cheat to out Feltyrosa so that either Ortrud or Aloisia could put it into soul to activate it.

But because Tsuruha's Arcana allowed her to tutor directly, she didn't need to run Forbidoll or Aura, allowing her to tune her deck with more Ghosts to not whiff Felty's skill.

"I energyblast 7 to draw! I call Dedicated Serenade, Eleonore and Join Grasp, Ernesta! Boosted by Ortrud, Feltyrosa attacks! (13000 > 21000)"

"Maple and Teithfallt intercept! (23000)"

"Ortrud's skill! End of battle, since I have a Feltyrosa vanguard, I counterblast and put another rear-guard in the same column as her into soul to draw! I put Rondo of Eventide Moon into soul! Now Feltyrosa's other skill activates! When I have a grade 3 Feltyrosa in soul, all my front row Ghost get +10k! (10000 > 20000) Boosted by Ernesta, Eleonore attacks! (20000 > 28000) Eleonore's skill, I soulblast 2 to give her +15k! (28000 > 43000)"

"No guard! (Retrospective Dragon)"

"End of battle, Eleonore returns to the top of my deck! Feltyrosa attacks! (13000) Moonlight Reservoir!"

"No guard!"

"Twin Drive!! (Dedicated Serenade, Eleonore) Feltyrosa's skill! When I drive check a Ghost or a grade 3 Feltyrosa, I can call it to an open rear-guard circle and give Feltyrosa an extra drive! I call Eleonore in front of Ernesta! (13000/2d > 3d) (10000 > 20000) Ernesta's skill, when a Ghost is placed during battle phase, I stand her! (Traumerei of Grazing Hands, Roswitha) Feltyrosa's skill once more! (13000/3d > 4d) Roswitha's skill! When she's called other than from hand, since I have a Feltyrosa vanguard, I stand all the rear-guards in the same column as her, and she gets +5k! (10000 > 20000 > 25000) Ortrud stands! (Glutton, Nora) Critical trigger! Power to Roswitha, critical to vanguard! (13000/1 > 2/4d) (25000 > 35000) (Moon-nesting Fantasia, Adelheid) Nothing on the last one."

"Damage checks! (Epee De Justice, Thegrea, Forefront Knight, Teithfallt) No triggers!"

"Boosted by Ortrud, Roswitha attacks! (35000 > 43000) Roswitha's skill, on attack she gets +5k! (43000 > 48000)"

"No guard! (Divine Sister, Biscotti)"

"Ortrud's skill, counterblast and put her into soul to draw! Boosted by Ernesta, Eleonore attacks! (20000 > 28000) Eleonore's skill, soulblast 2 for +15k! (28000 > 43000)"

"Palladium Zeal Dragon, perfect guard!"

"Eleonore goes to the top of my deck. Turn end!"

Etou:
Hand: 7
Damage: 5
Energy: 0
OXO
OOX

Tsuruha:
Hand: 8
Damage: 4
Energy: 2
OXO
XOX

"Stand, draw, and charge! The sword of hope that fragments despair shall burn red through heaven, casting out all sin as it cuts away the detestable half of this corrupted world. Before the blooming scales of judgement... all evil shall be banished by my avatar! Persona Ride, Epee De Justice, Thegrea! (13000 > 28000) Both my Atrocious and Pink Maple activate, reviving both! Pink Maple gets +5k! (10000 > 25000) (8000 > 13000) Justice's skill, I discard to superior ride One Who Walks the Path of Light, Thegrea! Justice binds herself, then I activate Persona Ride once more! (28000 > 43000) (25000 > 40000) I counterblast to play A Former Encourgament! I scry 7 and superior call Forefront Knight, Teithfallt! (10000 > 40000) Teithfallt's skill, I soulblast to scry 5 and superior call Cerrgaon! Thegrea's skill! I counterblast to scry 5 and call two units from among them since I have a Dark in soul! I call Biscotti (10000 > 40000) and Meyrig! Biscotti's skill, since I Persona Ride this turn, I energyblast 3 to scry 3... and leave one card on top, returning the rest to the bottom."

Tsuruha gulped.

"That can't be good... with all that filtering you've done just now, your deck must be a bomb of triggers."

"B-bold of her to assume she didn't already draw into all of them..."

Somehow, Kurosaki sounded grumpy, like this was a common occurrence to her.

"You'd be correct. In fact, I'll give you a little heads up. The card I left on top is my overTrigger."

A cool smile emerged on Etou's glossy lips. Tsuruha raised an eyebrow, bringing her cards forward to meet the challenge.

"Bring it on then, Ace of Jinrai!"

"T-that's bold of her to admit..." Kurosaki said.

"Yeah... if Tsuruha-san knows she has the overTrigger ready, and she doesn't have enough PGs to stop it, she can bet on checking a miracle heal earlier."

I scratched the back of my head.

"Ku ku. You guys aren't seeing the full picture here."

"We aren't?"

Kurosaki looked away.

"A-as... as much as I hate to admit it... K-Kuyou-san is right."

"I'm always right."

"Huh? You're agreeing with him, Kurosaki-san?"

She nodded, but didn't look happy about it.

"Etou-san... she's betting everything on this turn. Sure, she might have increased her odds of getting double triggers... but it was at the cost of her deck size. Unless she has Dark in hand... she can't double Persona Ride, otherwise she'll deck out."

"I didn't even notice her deck was so small now..."

"Ku ku. Don't let a Category Zero have better observational skills than you now, Takamine."

"H-hey, I was distracted by the fact she announced her oT was on top..."

"And that's the secret behind her trick, dumbass. Etou's trying to draw attention away from her dwindling deck size and Tsuruha's obvious win-con by making her sweat over her own survival. It doesn't matter if she actually has the oT or not... she's trying to force Tsuruha in a position where she'll be more likely to risk the sixth damage miracle if she doesn't have enough PGs in hand, instead of trying to survive no matter what."

I got shivers as Kuyou explained the psychological tactic Etou ruthlessly deployed in order to give her the edge in this do-or-die turn of hers. I wouldn't have even thought to mess with my opponent like that... is that the difference between me, a King, and her, an Ace?

"Granted... using mind games in this stage of the game is also a sign of uncertainty in her own victory. Etou might not be all that she's cracked up to be, ku ku."

Kuyou snickered, looking down on Etou. I raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that?"

"If she knew she could close out the game right now, she wouldn't need to do that. Why would she take such an obvious risk when she could have just swung four times and passed? Tsuruha obviously can't keep up with her, and she has more than enough resources to block a Feltyrosa turn. It's the definition of playing with your food... Aces should know better than this."

"B-because... it's a bigger risk if you try to drag out the game another turn."

To my surprise, it was Kurosaki who challenged Kuyou's thinking. But, because it was her talking to him, he completely ignored her.

"T-the way Etou-san plays Thegrea... leaves her with a lot of shieldless cards in hand. If she had the resources to protect herself... she would've used them last turn, instead of allowing herself to be pushed to five damage. That's why... she's trying to end the game now, so she won't lose next turn."

"Ku ku... ku ku ku."

Kuyou just laughed at her.

"Boosted by Maple, Teithfallt attacks! (40000 > 53000) Teithfallt's skill, she gets +10k! (53000 > 63000)"

"No guard! (Dedicated Serenade, Eleonore)"

"Boosted by Meyrig, Thegrea attacks! (43000 > 51000) Mete Recollection!"

"Judith... perfect guard!"

"Twin Drive!! (Spiritual King of Aquatics, Idosfaro) overTrigger. All effects to Biscotti (40000 > 100,040,000/1 > 2) and returning Palladium Zeal from drop to hand."

"So you weren't lying after all..."

"I have no reason to lie. I was just trying to level the playing field between us."

At those surprisingly arrogant words, Tsuruha's eyes widened. She laughed a bit to herself.

"And here I thought you would be the first sensible Ace I've met... I guess the saying really is true. Every Category Ace is a little screwed in the head."

"It just comes with being a good cardfighter. (Healer of Heavenly Staff, Arshes) Heal trigger. Power to Teithfallt and recovering a damage! (40000 > 50000) Thegrea's skill! I discard to restand Teithfallt! Maple's skill, when a unit in the same column as her stands, she stands too! Boosted by Cerrgaon, Biscotti attacks! Cerrgaon's skill! (100,040,000 > 100,053,000/2)"

"I'm not done yet... Judith perfect guards!"

"Boosted by Maple, Teithfallt attacks! (50000 > 60000 > 73000)"

"I've held on just long enough for this moment... come on, sixth damage heal!"

Tsuruha reached out, flipping over the top card of her deck with a decisive grin.

However, the blinding light that came crashing down from the ceiling finished it.

At the apex of heaven, carrying the flaming sword of justice, Etou blocked her only way out.

"Ah... (Rondo of Plenilune, Feltyrosa) No trigger. Good game, Etou-san."

"Good game, Tsuruha-san."

The moment the match ended, Kurosaki got up and ran out of the GEN Academy room.

"Kurosaki-san?"

I got up and went after her. As I passed Kuyou, he began laughing.

"Ku ku... I wouldn't bother if I were you. How long are you going to stick to that Category Zero's coattails for, Takamine?"

"For as long as I damn want. I respect her a hell of a lot more than you, you asshole Ace."

Kuyou chuckled again before making a shooing motion with his hand, telling me to buzz off, and I happily complied.

I ran after Kurosaki, quickly catching up with her since she wasn't very athletic.

"T-Takamine-san?!"

"Yo. Hope you don't mind me tagging along..."

She shook her head.

"N-no, it's okay... I was just surprised to see you..."

"Where are you headed?"

"T-the tunnel... so I can meet Etou-san."

"Makes sense... you want to talk Thegrea with her, right?"

Kurosaki nodded.

"I... I wanna... become friends with her."

I smiled.

"That sounds like a great idea! Maybe we should invite her to lunch too!"

"T-that might be too bold of me for our first time meeting..."

"Don't worry about it, I'll do the asking!"

"R-really? You will?"

"Of course. Besides, I want to get to know Etou-san better too."

"E-eh? You do?"

I nodded, my eyes softening.

"It's for a silly reason though, so don't worry about it."

I laughed, rubbing the back of my head.

Kurosaki's usually innocent gaze lingered on me for a second longer than usual, before she nodded.

Together, we reached Jinrai's side of the tunnel.

However, standing by the entrance, also waiting for Etou, were her teammates Touka and Kumohiko.

"Oh? Minoru-kun, what brings you here? With a cute girl, no less!"

Immediately, Touka recognised me and greeted the two of us. Kumohiko gave both of us a scary look before backing off as Touka began to act friendly towards us.

"You know 'em, Hazuki-san?"

"Yeah! Me and Minoru-kun are fated rivals at this tournament!"

"Didn't ya lose to him round 1?"

Touka froze up and twiddled her fingers, puffing her cheeks out.

"Kumohiko-kun, you meanie..."

He rubbed the back of his head, rolling his eyes.

"I ain't got time to entertain' your stupidity. The hell d'you two dweebs want?"

Kumohiko didn't hold back at all when it came to hostility. Being 6ft, he easily towered over both me and Kurosaki. I could feel her stick behind me, holding onto my sleeve.

"We just wanted to meet Etou-san..."

Kumohiko clicked his tongue and looked at Touka, almost as if he was asking her what they should do. Without hesitating, she nodded.

"Why not? I don't see the harm in letting them meet Etou-chan. Cutie-pie, what's your name?"

Touka was obviously referring to Kurosaki, who was blushing as Touka casually called her a nickname.

"I-I'm Kurosaki Yuuma..."

Touka blinked, before sparkles lit up in her eyes.

"No way, are you the daughter of that Kurosaki?! You know, the race queen who's married to the super famous racer Ta—"

"Awawawawawa!"

Kurosaki panicked, bursting forth and covering Touka's mouth with both her hands.

"D-don't say! H-how do you know about my daddy?!"

Kumohiko nearly burst out laughing. For a delinquent type, at least he had a sense of humour...

"Ha ha ha! That was adorable!"

Touka pulled Kurosaki's hands away from her mouth, laughing happily.

"You see, my mommy was a race queen with your mom when they were students! And in that same race, my mom also competed against your dad!"

"H-huh?!"

"Yeah! Obviously, they never continued that career, but it's one of their most cherished memories!"

Seeing that Touka somehow also knew Kurosaki through a family connection, I decided to ask if Kumohiko was the same.

"Don't tell me, does she have a connection to you to?"

"Huh? Don't talk to me, small fry."

Kumohiko shoved me aside.

"Ow... rude."

"I-I had no clue... u-um, how did you even know she was my mommy...?"

"Because you two look super similar! See, see!"

Touka sent Kurosaki a holographic picture of both their mothers standing next to each together doing a peace sign. Kumohiko peered over their shoulders, nodding his head.

"I approve. 'Specially the chick with the dog in her hands."

"That's our pet doggo! His name is Otsuchi! He's somehow over thirty years old, isn't that amazing?!"

"The hell? Modern medicine is crazy, holy..."

Kurosaki was blushing as Touka immediately got on with her. Even Kumohiko was acting like a half decent guy, though I guess it might be because Kurosaki's a delicate woman...

"T-Takamine-san, help, they're so friendly..."

She whispered over to me, but for some reason I ended up just laughing a bit.

"I think that's because they want to be friends with you, Kurosaki-san."

When she heard that, her eyes widened and her pink face turned red.

"What are you two doing...?"

In the midst of our unexpected meeting, Etou emerged from the other end of the tunnel, seeing all of us interacting.

"Ah, Etou-chan! This is Kurosaki-chan, she—"

Touka paused as she noticed Etou's gaze had been stolen away by something else.

I froze in place, unsure what to do.

Etou was staring directly at me, her usually ice cold expression melted into pure shock.

"You..."

"Me...?"

"Your name... is Minoru, isn't it?"

Realising how she must appear right now, Etou cleared her throat and her expression returned to its usual self.

"Um... yeah, it is. Takamine Minoru, to be exact."

I scratched my cheek.

"Do you two know each other?"

Touka looked between us.

"Takamine, huh...?"

Etou stared at me just a moment longer before shaking her head.

"No... I must be imagining things. My apologies for staring at you so rudely."

She turned to Kurosaki.

"And you must be Kurosaki Yuuma, correct?"

She nodded, stepping forward to face Etou head on.

"Y-yes... and I... I-I play Thegrea, just like you!"

Etou raised her eyebrows before smiling gently.

"A fellow Thegrea, hm? I never thought I'd see the day."

"Oh my god, you two are deck twinsies! That's so cool!" Touka said.

"Don't a billion other twerps play Odium like you, though?" Kumohiko said.

"Yeah, but Thegrea is a rare deck, which is why it's even more impressive!"

"I guess the Thegrea player-base is that small after all..."

"U-um, E-Etou-san... I-I know my ranking compared to yours is, um... well, they're worlds apart... b-but... while I was watching your game... I-I was just wondering... w-why do you play Retrospective Dragon...?"

"Because he searches the set order."

"B-but... doesn't he feel like a brick once you have it? I-isn't it difficult to find cards to discard for his cost...?"

"No."

Kurosaki's face went pale. Her admiration for Etou vanished as her eyes went hollow.

"B-but... t-the usage he has afterwards..."

"He's just shield and discard fodder once you find your set order. It's not that big of a deal."

Kurosaki clutched her chest, looking away from Etou.

"A-ah... I-I see..."

"Kurosaki-san..."

She must've been having trouble trying to convey her point, and getting shut down by Etou must've made her fold this argument immediately.

"Umm... m-maybe... w-when the tournament is over... or between rounds... w-we could talk more about Thegrea?"

"What is there to talk about? She's not a relatively customisable deck."

"S-she is! T-there's a lot of different options you can use with her, l-like..."

Kurosaki opened up a holographic tab that had at least a hundred different variations of Thegrea and showed it to Etou with shaking hands.

"U-ummm, l-like all of these... I-I've been testing with her a lot, so..."

"And how many of them are successes?"

"A-ah... well, only one—"

"Then those aren't different versions of the deck. They're all failures that you've kept on your road to find the best."

"Oh... I-I guess you're right... ha ha..."

Kurosaki closed the tab and ran back over to me, hiding behind my body.

"If you want, I can take a look at your deck and give you pointers on how to improve."

Etou, sensing Kurosaki's sensitive nature, quickly tried to make up by offering to help her.

"N-no... it's okay... I-I know what your list is like... it's really different from mine... but that's not the way I want to play Thegrea."

She raised an eyebrow.

"You can play Thegrea a different way...?"

Kurosaki nodded.

"Yes... you can. I'm sure of it. A-and, I'm sure..."

Her voice died out at the end, not letting Etou and the others hear it.

But I did.

Even though it was a frail whisper, it was a bold statement packed with unwavering confidence.

"...it's the right way to play Thegrea."

"Then show me during your fight."

Etou provocatively declared that to Kurosaki.

"Show me your style of Thegrea. And I'll determine with my own two eyes if it's a good version of the deck."

She then beckoned Touka and Kumohiko to follow her back to Jinrai High's room, before leaving one last lingering gaze on me.

"T-Takamine-san..."

Once the three of them were no longer in view, Kurosaki began crying into my chest.

"I-I was so scared... T-Takamine-san..."

"Kurosaki-san..."

I wrapped my arms around her, rubbing her back.

"I-I could tell... I could tell she wasn't taking me seriously... if she wasn't so deadpan, she would've laughed... the face she made when I showed her all my versions... I'm so embarrassed..."

"Yeah..."

"S-so much for becoming friends... I just... r-ruined it..."

Kurosaki gritted her teeth and hit my chest in frustration. Even though it was a gentle punch, I could feel the weight of her frustration behind it, especially as I held her.

"No... it's not over yet, Kurosaki-san. You heard what Etou-san said at the end, right?"

She nodded, sniffling. I put a hand on her head, stroking it.

"Then, with all your strength, show her— no, show the world what you and Thegrea are capable of! I know that you can do this, Kurosaki-san!"

I smiled, trying to encourage her.

"T-Takamine-san..."

Kurosaki wiped away her tears and hugged me tightly.

"T-thank you... for always being on my side... no matter what..."

"It's what friends are for. Come on, let's head back."

Kurosaki nodded.

As we made our way back to the GEN Academy room, in the distance, something caught the corner of my eye.

It was that pure white hair that belonged only to Agon.

Just as I was about to turn around and go greet him, I stopped, noticing he was with someone else.

He was walking together with Tsuruha, talking to each other about something.

Even though it should've been a normal sight, as they were both teammates...

...deep down, somewhere in my gut, my instincts were telling me this wasn't right.

I hope my intuition was off.