Chapter 4: Blue Blood - Crowned

Crystal Koizumi, fifteen years old.

A few days ago, I end up in the same class as my friends Hikari Kite and Nature Kobayashi in Toki Academy.

I also made a new friend: Akane Kuroyuki.

Due to Kite's suggestion, we all agreed to show Kuroyuki around Midoru Mall on Saturday.

And so...

"A...ah...Koizumi...so what should we do when we get to Midoru Mall...?"

Crystal blinked as she and the other three girls walked. All of them were carrying bags. The small girl, Hikari Kite, who was walking beside her, spoke to her.

"Anything, I guess," another girl, Nature Kobayashi, spoke in Crystal's place. "At the end, though, we'll have that duel we promised."

Hikari smiled and Crystal chuckled to herself. The two were friends back in middle school. Crystal knew her as the type of person who was shy around everyone. However, if dueling was involved, her personality would completely change.

"Say, Koizumi," Nature turned her head toward her. "Last night, you mentioned something about having a new deck, right?"

Nature was another friend that Crystal met shortly after meeting Hikari. However, due to certain circumstances, she had to transfer out after a week. Despite this, the three often kept in touch with each other.

"Yeah," Crystal nodded. "I've gathered enough of those Poker Knights to create a deck around them."

"Really?" Nature asked. "If that's the case, then it's probably a good time to replace your old deck with it."

"No," Crystal responded. "The new deck's mainly a test deck. And besides, Kobayashi, you should try changing your decks as well."

"What? I do change my decks!"

"B-but...your deck strategies are the same..." Hikari pointed out.

"Eh?"

"It's true," Crystal said. "No matter how many decks you used, all of them relied on beatdowns and swarming. No to mention that almost all your monsters in each one are Plants. It's as if the spirit of the Personality Deck Creation Theory's possessing you."

"You actually believe that?" Nature retorted. "What about Kite, no offense, and Kuroyuki's deck? Superheroes and dogs don't exactly fit them."

"...The Personality Deck Creation Theory..."

Akane spoke as she continued facing forward.

"It is the theory that someone's personality matches the deck that they use, correct?"

"Yeah," Nature nodded. "You don't believe it, right?"

"...To be honest, the theory does have strong points."

"What!?" Nature sighed.

Akane made a gesture as she flicked a finger in the air.

""A duelist's soul creates the deck. The personality, the appearance, the preference and dislikes, the type of person they are, they and many others make up the cards of a deck." That is the Personality Deck Creation Theory," Akane spoke as though she was reading something.

"The physical appearance of the cards aren't the only ones that can allow you to tell what someone is like," she continued as she pulled a card out of her pocket. "Take the monster Cerberushka for instance. It has the appearance of a strong and fearsome beast, giving others the impression that the owner of the card is a feared and strong person."

"However, when you think closely on it, you may think of the owner as a guardian of sorts. Cerberushka is a portmanteau of "Cerberus" and "matryoshka". Cerberus is the three-headed dog who guards the gates of the Underworld, preventing the dead from escaping and the living from entering. It is a powerful beast, but it is willing to become weaker to continue fighting, hence matryoshka, the dolls inside dolls that continues to become smaller and smaller the more you opened each of them."

She pocketed the card and looked at Nature.

"As for you, Kobayashi, the similarities between you and your deck are fairly obvious."

"Ugh, the nature jokes," Nature sighed as she looked up. "Finally, we're here."

Midoru Mall was a towering structure, almost twice as big as Toki Academy. The structure was a white building with countless massive glass windows that people from the inside could use to view from. The mall was built to supply almost all of the customer's every desire. There was even an entertainment floor in the higher levels of the mall, although a VIP pass was required to enter.

The interior of the ground floor seemed like the streets outside the mall. Crowds of people appeared and disappeared among each other with rows of stores lining up in each of the vast hallways. At the center of the ground floor were a group of large fountains with benches surrounding them.

"It's massive..." was all Akane said as she looked around.

"Ha, glad you like it," Nature grinned. "We could spend hours exploring the first three floors and we wouldn't even be close to reaching the top floor. We'd probably die of hunger or thirst if we try."

"Speaking of which...Kobayashi, did you brought lunch like I asked you?" Crystal asked.

"..." At that point, Nature stopped walking.

"...You didn't bring it, did you?" Crystal sighed.

"Yep."

Crystal sighed again as she looked around. "Fine. I think I see a vendor all the way over there. Let's go."

"Um...actually," Hikari started, "...is there a bathroom near here?"

"Forgive me as well," Akane added, "but I'm starting to feel tired from the walk."

Ah. Sitting in the bench right next to the fountain felt nice.

All four of us went on our different ways after Kobayashi, Kite, and I expressed each of our problems.

Kobayashi left to buy us lunches from the vendor located quite a distance away. Koizumi and Kite, meanwhile, went together to go find a bathroom, leaving me here to rest.

As I sat with my back facing the fountain, I felt a cool sensation from the water drops that the fountain was shooting out. Despite how much water it was billowing out, the distance between me and the center of the fountain was somewhat large, so I wouldn't worry about me being completley drenched.

From where I sat, I looked around the area. The vast amount of people walking around was truely staggering. I haven't seen this many people since the summer festival last year.

I closed my eyes. The cool sensation was really pleasant. However, in a matter of minutes, Kobayashi, Koizumi, and Kite would be back and I would most likely still be tired.

Ah. What to do...

Maybe I should use "it" and rest.

"...?"

But as I thought about it, I felt the cool sensation become colder as I felt water dripping down my head. Now that I think about it, it was now dripping down my forehead.

"...!?"

Seconds later, I realized that it wasn't water drops but a stream of water falling on top of me.

"Mark! What do you think you're doing!?"

"Haha! C'mon, it's a joke, Akira."

Mark? Akira? I opened my eyes and someone quickly jumped down to my side.

Ah. I remembered now. Mark and Akira Himura, brothers who went to the same school as us. Mark Himura, our classmate, was standing on the ledge of the fountain, pouring water on my head when the older brother, Akira Himura, scolded him.

Still chuckling to himself, the younger brother sat down next to me as the older brother approached us.

"Oh! You're...Kuroyuki, correct?" the older brother asked. "Are you okay?"

"C'mon, bro, can't you take a joke?" the younger brother spoke as he folded his arms behind his head. "Just a harmless prank, y'know?"

"That's still rude," the older brother frowned as he sat down on my other side. "Besides, who would stand on the edge of a fountain filled with water? That's really inviting people to a scene where you fall and embarass yourself."

"Aw, you're doubting my skills of getting out of trouble!" the younger brother laughed.

The way he laughed and his laidback attitude, what kind of character would I have him be? The trickster? The fool? The clown? Either way, it was a stark contrast to the more serious, responsible older brother. I wonder what would he be like if the younger brother was the opposite of who he was, maybe a more serious loner-type of person?

"Honestly, one of these days, I'll have to cover for you when you get yourself in trouble," the older brother sighed. Given his personality, though, I was sure he got himself into trouble countless of times. "Anyways, what are you doing here, Kuroyuki?"

Didn't someone mentioned to the older brother of our plans?

...

Ah. I guess we didn't. I quickly explained the plans to the older brother, who nodded.

"I see. Well, Kuroyuki, how do you feel about Koizumi and Kite."

It took me a second to realize that the older brother haven't meet Kobayashi until that meeting.

"Koizumi and Kite are both pleasant," I responded. It was a very standard answer to anything, but it did its job.

"That's good to hear," the older brother replied. "Well, me and Mark are going to meet someone, so I think this is a good time to leave..."

"Only after a few minutes of conversation?" the younger brother asked. "So, Yuki, mind if I ask you a question?"

Yuki? Was it some sort of nickname?

"So how'd you get the surname "Kuroyuki", anyways? If you ask me, something like that would be found in some anime or manga or whatever."

Ah. The younger brother was now asking about my name. Maybe I should have have used my father's surname...well, no matter.

"...Actually, Mark is sort of correct," the older brother added. "A surname like that is a bit outlandish."

"It is a true surname," I responded. "Maybe I can talk to you two about it another time?"

The younger brother stopped smiling. It wasn't a satisfactory answer, but he was smiling again in a second.

"Eh, I get it," he shrugged. "So how about - "

"Actually," the older brother interrupted as he was looking at something, "I think we should get going. I see the person we're supposed to meet."

I looked at the direction the older brother was looking at. There were people walking, but I could see someone standing among the crowd, looking right at us.

"Aw, looks like our little chit-chat's over," the younger brother sighed. "Guess we're off. Oh, you want this?"

The younger brother was holding some sort of small wooden box roughly the size of his hand. It looked fairly old, but on the sides of the box were small colored stones. Six on the sides and four on the front and back.

They seemed to be colored stones, but given the appearance of them, they would be like jewels. But if that was the case, why would the younger brother give me something valuable?

"This was sitting right next to you," the younger brother explained as he shook the box. "It is yours, right?"

Ah. That would be the reason then. If the two brothers believed that the box belonged to me, then the older brother would had scolded him for trying to steal.

But before I could respond, I felt a presence right in front of us.

"Sorry, but that's mine."

A woman, possibly around twenty-five, stood in front of us with black hair and fair skin. She looked beautiful, but the look that she was giving us had a look of intimidation on it.

The woman held out her hand. Oddly enough, the younger brother handed the box to her without making a joke. Maybe it was the intimidating look?

"Thank you," the woman nodded as she walked away.

"...Huh. Wonder what that was about..." the younger brother muttered before returning to make his grin. "Ah well! I guess it's time we get out of here, right?"

"Yes, we should," the older brother said as he and the younger one stood up. "Time to say our goodbyes, Kuroyuki. Let's talk again back at school."

"Goodbye," I simply said as I watched them walk into the crowd. I turned my head to the direction that the woman was walking, but she was nowhere to be seen.

"I swear, the prices of all this food..."

When Crystal and Hikari returned from the bathroom, they found that Nature was already with Akane. Four bags were sitting next to Akane on the bench she was at.

"I would guess that that's our lunch," Crystal said as she and Hikari approached them.

"It isn't much," Nature said as she handed them two bags. "Do you know how much the standard ones cost? One thousand and five-hundred yen each. Even the cheapest ones cost me a thousand each."

"Well, it is your fault for forgetting our food," Crystal responded as she opened her bag.

"Yeah, but I hope you remember that I'm not an endless supply of money unlike you, Koizumi."

"Don't worry," Crystal replied. "I'll pay you back later. But for now...Kuroyuki, are you rested now?"

"I am," Akane stood up as she placed the bag into the larger bag she was carrying. "Shall we continue on our way?"

"Right," Crystal nodded. "Although this trip's just to show you around, I think it would be better if one of us went with you while the other two go another way. Kobayashi, why don't you go with Kite?"

"Huh? Why me?"

"You've already had your fill of getting to know Kuroyuki," Crystal replied. "Why don't we switch roles for a change?"

"Hmm...fine, guess I'll tag along with Kite," Nature agreed. "So what time should we meet?"

"Well..." Crystal closed her eyes, thinking of what to do next. "...Let's say around twelve at the cafeteria area. We'll have our lunch before finishing up our trip with a duel."

"Ah. Are these smoke pipes?"

"That's a Noir Black Pipe. It's a kids toy where they can pretend to smoke. It's probably not worth it."

"...But it looks nice..."

"Really? Who would buy something like that?"

Crystal watched Akane, who was walking in a fast pace, stopping to look at items presented behind windows of stores, before moving on. Crystal chuckled to herself as she knew that despite her calm expression, she was excitedly looking at everything she could see.

Crystal recalled what Detective Nagise told her about Akane during the few moments that she ran into him a few weeks prior to meeting her.

'He told me that she literally almost never leaves her home,' she thought. 'He also said that her parents died a few years ago. I wonder what's it like, living in a home with no parents, almost never getting the chance to leave and see what the outside world looks like.'

Crystal closed her eyes as she began falling deep into her thoughts.

'I wonder if she ever had the impulse to escape from her home and run away. Of course, if she did, what would she do then? I would imagine her running into a complete stranger, telling her that they could help her. And like a naive person who never spoke to anyone before, she would blindly trust them, allowing them to take her to parts unknown.'

'...That's kind of creepy, actually.'

'I'm surprised that she isn't really naive. She's capable of talking to others perfectly despite being isolated from others, she seems to have a good grasp of everything so far, and she's able to ride that escalator perfectly.'

'What kind of life does she live in her old home, anyways? Kuroyuki's the type of person who is a proper girl. I would say that she was taught to be like that, but after that little incident with Morimoto, I wonder...'

'...I wonder if she loved her parents and her parents loved her back truthfully...'

"Ah...it seems that this section is empty."

Crystal stopped and looked forward. Sure enough, the section of the mall before them was empty of any people.

"That's odd," she muttered as she looked around. "Wonder if something happened here. Maybe we should turn back..."

She was about to turn when a voice spoke.

"Oh, are you two going somewhere...?"

Crystal turned around and saw an older girl approaching them. She was dressed in gothic lolita fashioned-clothing and had long silver hair. Both of her hands were holding onto two different objects: a medium-sized black purse and a stack of something.

'Where'd see come from?' Crystal asked herself as she eyed the girl cautiously. However, the girl looked at Akane and began speaking.

"Akane Kuroyuki..." she smiled. "It seems that we meet again."

Akane stared at the girl for a few seconds before blinking. "Ah...you are Akogare Kokoro, correct?"

"Akogare Kokoro?" Crystal asked, crossing her arms. "That's a bit of an odd name..."

"Perhaps," the girl named Akogare spoke in a soft tone. "But...may I ask who your companion is?"

"I'm Crystal Koizumi," Crystal introduced herself. "I'm a classmate of Kuroyuki. Me and a few others are here to show Kuroyuki around the mall."

"That's nice," Akogare said. "I am simply wandering around this location. However, it seems that this section of Midoru Mall is vacant."

"Are any of the stores here opened?" Crystal asked.

"They appear to be, but it seems that all the store owners are wary of something, so they are closing until further notice."

"Then may I ask what that is?" Akane asked, pointing at the stack of something in her hand.

"Ah, this? A young man handed it to me by the entrance of the mall," Akogare smiled as she showed the object in her hand to them. It was a small stack of papers stapled together. The front cover was titled "Destiny Draw Probability Theory".

""Destiny Draw Probability Theory"...?" Akane muttered, repeating the name to herself.

"I've heard about this theory for a while," Crystal said as she crossed her arms. "I wonder if Touri's handing these out again..."

"Touri?" Akane asked. "May I ask who that is?"

"Torikku Torito, but he also goes by Touri as well," Crystal answered. "I heard that he's been something of a hermit until recently. He's a pretty nice guy and a smart one to boot. Those papers she has is probably stuff written by him."

"Correct," Akogare nodded as she began reading them. ""Throughout the history of dueling, there are countless of times where duelists have turned the tables on their opponents at the most critical stages of a duel, allowing them to win. While a duelist may possess the cards that they need to win already, there are moments where the losing duelist draws the exact card they need to win when they are about to lose, even when the chances of getting the card are slim and the card in question being highly situational.""

"The Destiny Draw Probability Theory is the theory of duelists drawing their key cards at the very beginning of the duel or at the end, where they are in critical danger of losing," Crystal explained. "I don't believe it, myself, how this works. To me, it's just how you build your deck and simple luck."

"Then why don't we give it a test?" Akogare suggested as she opened the black purse in her hand. She stuffed the stack of papers inside and pulled out what seemed to be a Duel Disk with no card platform to be seen.

Crystal smiled as she pulled her Duel Disk out of her bag. "Sure thing," she agreed. "I needed to give my new deck a test run, anyways."

As Crystal activated her Duel Disk, Akogare held out her arm. Five seperate feather-shaped card platforms sprang out and combined together to form a single platform.

"So which one of us will fortune smile upon?" Akogare asked as she drew five cards. "Come. Let us duel."

Akogare Kokoro: 4000

Crystal Koizumi: 4000

"I suppose I'll start off this duel," Crystal said as she drew. "...Alright, I'll begin by summoning Queen's High Knight (1500/1600)."

A female knight rose up from a portal. She had long blonde hair that ran past her waist. She wore a tiara on her head, but despite this, she wore dark red armor and wielded a long sword and a shield that was strapped to her forearm.

"Next, I'll be activating the Continuous Spell, Poker Knight's Bombardment."

A large catapult appeared next to the female knight.

"Once a turn, I can inflict 400 damage to you for every Poker Knight monster I control."

"Poker Knights...?" Akogare tilted her head.

"It is the term for a group of Warrior monsters," Akane explained. "The main members of the Poker Knights are Queen's Knight, King's Knight, and Jack's Knight."

"Right," Crystal nodded. "Poker Knight's Bombardment leaves behind a long list of names to mention, so to simply put, Queen's High Knight is one of them. Now, take 400 points of damage!"

A collection of small rocks appeared inside the catapult. The large device creaked before the rocks were thrown at Akogare.

Akogare Kokoro: 3600

Crystal Koizumi: 4000

"With that, I'll be placing a card facedown and end my turn," Crystal concluded.

"...Then it is my turn," Akogare smiled as she drew. "...Perhaps I'll start by summoning Mezuki (1700/800)."

A muscular demon with a horse's head appeared. It snorted as it twirled the large axe in its hands above its head.

"...Now, Mezuki will attack your Queen's High Knight."

Mezuki bellowed as it charged forward. The female knight raised her shield to block the beast's attack, but the axe instantly shattered it. With another swing, the axe found itself buried in the female knight's chest. She let out a scream of pain before disappearing.

Akogare Kokoro: 3600

Crystal Koizumi: 3800

"...Hmph," Crystal grunted. "Unfortunately for you, Queen's High Knight has an effect when she's destroyed. By banishing her, I can add a regular Queen's Knight from my deck to my hand."

She extracted her deck from her Duel Disk. After a quick glance, she pulled a card out and added it to her hand.

"Lastly, I will also set a card and end my turn."

'That Mezuki might have a lot of attack points,' Crystal thought as she looked at her hand. 'But I just need two more cards to pull this off...'

"Then to me again," Crystal drew. She looked at the card and smiled. "I'll be setting a monster and end my turn."

She set the card that she drew.

"A simple move this time?" Akogare asked. "Well then...it is my turn."

"I send Skull Conductor to my graveyard," she began as she showed Crystal a card of a red-skinned demon in a conductor's uniform. "By doing that, it allows me to special summon two Zombie monsters with the combined attack of 2000 attack points."

She picked up two cards from her hand and placed them next to each other onto her Duel Disk.

"...And so I will special summon Burning Skull Head (1000/800) and Smouldering Skull Head (1000/800), both having the combined attack power of 2000."

Two human skulls appeared and were instantly on fire. Both had a similar appearance, but one of them was slightly smaller and had a darker appearance.

"When I special summoning Burning Skull Head, it inflicts 1000 damage to you," Akogare smiled. "Smouldering Skull Head has a similar effect, but it only does 500 damage instead."

"...Tch," Crystal growled. "Even so, that's...!"

Both skulls cackled as they flew around Crystal, igniting her on fire.

Akogare Kokoro: 3600

Crystal Koizumi: 2300

"Now, Smouldering Skull Head will attack the set card."

The darker skull flew back a few feet before spitting out a fireball.

"In that case, I'll use my Trap, Poker Knight's Reinforcement," Crystal countered as her set card flipped over. "If I don't have a Poker Knight out, I can special summon Poker Knight Horse (500/500) in defense mode from my deck and redirect the attack to it."

A horse wearing golden armor with poker symbols all over it appeared. It galloped toward the set card and jumped to get hit by the fireball instead.

"When a Poker Knight Horse is destroyed, I can pay 800 Life Points to add King's Knight from my deck to my hand. However, since this Horse has been summoned due to Poker Knight's Reinforcement, it gets banished as well."

Akogare Kokoro: 3600

Crystal Koizumi: 1500

"Even so, I still have more monsters to attack," Akogare reminded her. "Mezuki now attacks the set card."

The horse demon gripped the handle of its axe as it charged forward.

"...Big mistake," Crystal smiled. "That monster you've just attacked..."

The set card flipped over just as Mezuki swung its axe...

...And a second later, the beast squealed in pain as it flew back. The set card was a green-skinned warrior with leaves a tree bark all over his body. The warrior pulled the axe out of its wooden arm and threw it back at Mezuki.

"...Is my Elemental HERO Woodsman (1000/2000)," Crystal finished. "Sorry, but with a defense as high as this, you can't touch him at your current state."

Akogare Kokoro: 3300

Crystal Koizumi: 1500

"Hmm," Akogare's face remained the same. "I shall end my turn."

"Then to me," Crystal drew. "And with that, Woodsman's effect activates."

"During my standby phase, Woodsman allows me to add Polymerization from my deck to my hand," Crystal explained as she pulled a card out from her deck. "With that, I'll be using it!"

She insert the card into her Duel Disk before pulling out three additional cards.

"From my hand, I fuse King's Knight, Queen's Knight and Jack's Knight together to Fusion Summon Arcana Knight Joker (3800/2500)!"

A large portal opened up in front of Crystal. A dark haired man wearing black, gold, and white armor rose out. He silently gazed at Akogare's monsters as he held the longsword in his hands.

"The strongest monster of the Poker Knights," Akane spoke. "The way you rapidly gathered the needed monsters to summon it, that is your strategy, correct?"

"That's sort of obvious, Kuroyuki," Crystal responded. "But now that Arcana Knight Joker's out, everything is over. But first, I will set a monster facedown. Now, attack Burning Skull Head!"

Despite the size of the sword and the armor he was wearing, the knight charged at the burning skull in alarming speed. The Burning Skull Head spat several fireballs at him, but he quickly dodged them all before cleaving the skull in half.

Akogare Kokoro: 1500

Crystal Koizumi: 1500

Burning Skull Head exploded, sending shards and flame everywhere. Through the debris, however, Akogare smiled as she pressed a button on her Duel Disk.

"I activate my Trap, Cursed of the Doomed," she announced. "When I take battle damage, I can destroy a Zombie monster on my field to add a monster from my deck to my hand equal or lower to the amount of damage I took."

"With that, Mezuki shall say its goodbye..."

A dark portal opened up underneath Mezuki and it slowly sank into it.

"...So now, I can add a monster with 2800 or lower attack," she smiled as she pulled a card out of her deck.

'With that high of an amount, she can add anything to her hand,' Crystal thought. 'But then again, she probably will need more monsters to summon a strong one...'

'Even so, my Arcana Knight Joker's the most powerful monster on the field. Along with its effect, it should be able to stop any effects she tries to throw at me.'

'...I swear, if I jinx this...'

"...Alright, I guess I'll end my turn like this," Crystal concluded.

"Then to me," Akogare spoke as she drew. "...Koizumi. You made a big mistake on not attacking Smouldering Skull Head."

"...Huh?"

"Smouldering Skull Head, while being a weaker version of Burning Skull Head, it has a unique effect that it doesn't have," Akogare smiled. "You see, Smouldering Skull Head can be treated as two tributes for the summoning of Skull Flame."

"Wha - !?" Crystal flinched in shock.

"With the effect of Curse of the Doomed," Akane began, "she must have the needed card already, just like you have the needed cards for Arcana Knight Joker."

"Correct. I tribute Smouldering Skull Head..."

The darker skull split in half before disappearing.

"...To summon Skull Flame (2600/2000)."

A pillar of fire erupted from where Smouldering Skull Flame was at. A skeletal figure wearing purple robes and a burning cape emerged from the pillar as it died out.

"Now, I set two cards and activate Card of Equilibrium," Akogare continued after she set two cards. "The player that has the lowest amount of cards in their hand can activate the effect of this card."

She smiled as she looked at her empty hand.

"As I have no cards, I can choose what effect to use for Card of Equilibrium. The effect I choose...you must discard cards until you have the same amount of cards as I do."

"No...!" Crystal gasped.

"Because she has none, you must have the no cards as well..." Akane murmured.

Crystal growled as she sent the last cards in her hand to the graveyard. As she did so, Akogare pressed another button on her Duel Disk.

"I now activate the Quick-Play Spell, Darkest Curse. By targeting a Fiend monster such as my Skull Flame and another monster such as your Arcana Knight Joker, your monster loses 200 attack points for every level Skull Flame has."

"Arcana Knight Joker has an effect that negates any card effect that targets it at the cost of discarding the same card type," Akane spoke. "Without any cards at hand..."

Skull Flame held out its hand and shot out a dark ball of energy. The ball struck the knight, who yelled out in pain and forcing him to drop to his knees.

Arcana Knight Joker: (2200/2500)

"Skull Flame now attacks Arcana Knight Joker."

The skeletal fiend chuckled as it snapped its fingers. Moments later, the knight erupted into flames and quickly became ash.

Akogare Kokoro: 1500

Crystal Koizumi: 1100

"...Well, looks like I jinxed myself," Crystal groaned.

"Come now, this duel has no reached its ending yet," Akogare smiled. "However, given the situation right now, this may be over very soon."

"But at this moment, the one in critical danger of losing is Koizumi," Akane pointed out. "With this, the requirements for "destiny draw" are fufilled."

"You still believe that?" Crystal sighed weakly as she looked at Akogare's field.

'But that Skull Flame...if I don't do something about that, I'm done...!'

"Alright, here goes...!" Crystal winced as she drew. She turned the card over to look at what it was and...

"...Perhaps it really is true," Crystal spoke softly as she looked at the card.

"First up, I flip my set monster, Big Shield Gardna (100/2600)."

A burly man kneeling behind a massive shield appeared.

"Now, I summon the Tuner monster, Quick-Span Knight (1000/800)."

A small robot with a wrench-shaped head appeared.

"Here goes nothing," Crystal sighed as she picked up Quick-Span Knight and Elemental HERO Woodsman from her Duel Disk. "I'm tuning my level three Quick-Span Knight with my level four Elemental HERO Woodsman!"

The tiny robot transformed into three large rings and aligned themselves above Woodsman. The green-skinned warrior's body transformed into four stars as it flew into the center of the rings.

"Let's go!" Crystal shouted as she pulled out a white card. "I Synchro Summon Regis Basilisk (2500/2700)!"

A pillar of light swallowed up the rings and stars. A long, reptile-like creature emerged from the light. It resembled a lizard, except that it had multiple legs and had a crown-shaped head.

"First up, when Quick-Span Knight is used for a Synchro Summon, I can choose a monster on the field and have it lose 500 attack points."

An aura enveloped Skull Flame, which caused it to stagger slightly.

Skull Flame: (2100/2000)

"Furthermore, when Regis Basilisk is Synchro Summoned, it can negate the effects of all face-up cards on the field and it gains 300 attack and defense points for each one as a result until the end phase."

The large reptile's eyes flashed red. Seconds later, Big Shield Gardna, Skull Flame, and the catapult of Poker Knight's Bombardment turned to stone.

Regis Basilisk: (3400/3600)

"...And as long as Basilisk remains on the field, all monsters who have their effects negated lose 1000 attack and defense points."

The basilisk growled as it flailed its tail everywhere, smacking into the frozen figures of her and Akogare's monster.

Big Shield Gardna: (0/1600)

Skull Flame: (1100/1000)

"It's all over!" Crystal shouted. "Regis Basilisk, destroy Skull Flame!"

The giant reptile roared as it charged straight into Skull Flame. The statue shattered into pieces and the giant monster swung its tail into Akogare, wiping out the last of her Life Points.

Akogare Kokoro: 0

Crystal Koizumi: *WINNER*

Crystal gave a sigh of relief as the remaining cards disappeared. Akogare chuckled to herself as she approached her and Akane.

"Very impressive," Akogare complemented. "The way that you turned this duel around in one turn was quite the sight."

"Thanks," Crystal nodded as Akogare removed her deck from her Duel Disk. "Your deck's pretty nice as well."

"Ah, but I fear that this will be the first and last time I will use this deck," Akogare responded as she stared at the stack of cards.

"...Oh?" Akane tilted her head. "I'm sorry, but what do you mean by that?"

"I simply have a bad habit of losing cards," Akogare smiled. "It is a satisfactory duel, but I think it is time for me to go now."

With a single bow, the dark-clothed girl quietly left.

"...Earlier, Koizumi," Akane began. Crystal looked at her and noticed that she was watching Akogare walking away. "Kobayashi mentioned that you had built a new deck, correct?"

"Yeah," Crystal nodded. "Why'd you ask?"

"Are you satisfied with it?" Akane asked. "Like Kokoro said, it was a satisfactory duel, but how do you feel about the deck?"

"It's nice, I suppose," Crystal shrugged. "However, I think I'm going to stick with using my old deck."

"May I ask why?"

"Heh, it's embarrassing, but my only reason's this."

Crystal pulled a card out of her pocket and handed it to Akane. It was a Water Spellcaster. The monster of the card was a blue-haired girl in a white dress and had a ball and chain as a weapon.

"Blizzard Princess?"

"Yes. It's a personal favorite of mine," Crystal explained as she stared at the card. "It's a gift given to me by my...parents..."

Crystal had a smile that was both happy and melancholic at the same time. She knew that Akane would notice, but something else drew her attention.

"Excuse us..."

Approaching the two were a group of people. All of them were suited and wore shades that hid their eyes. Crystal narrowed her eyes in alarm as she hastily stuffed the card into her pocket. Crystal knew that she was in a dangerous position as she and Akane were alone with them in an empty section of the mall.

One of the suited people stepped forward and looked at Akane. "Are you a friend of Miss Koizumi? Don't worry. We just need to speak to her for a few minutes."

"I'll be fine, Kuroyuki," Crystal smiled as she turned to look at her. "Just go. I'll meet with you later."

Akane silently looked at Crystal for a moment before bowing. Once she was several feet away from them, Crystal turned to look at them, her expression becoming more grave.

"So what is it now?" she asked. "As the heir been chosen yet?"

Crystal wondered if Akane saw the barely visible tattoos many of them had and some that had a finger missing. Crystal knew who they were, but wondered if Akane realized it.

Crystal's Cards

Arcana Knight Joker

LIGHT/Warrior/Fusion/9/3800/2500

"Queen's Knight" + "Jack's Knight" + "King's Knight"

A Fusion Summon of this card can only be done with the above Fusion Material Monsters. Once per turn, during either player's turn, if this face-up card on the field is targeted by a Spell Card, Trap Card, or monster effect: You can discard the same type of card (Spell, Trap, or Monster Card); negate the effect.

Big Shield Gardna

EARTH/Warrior/4/100/2600

During either player's turn, when this face-down card (and no other cards) is targeted by a Spell Card: Change this card to face-up Defense Position, and if you do, negate the Spell Card's activation. If this card is attacked, change it to Attack Position at the end of the Damage Step.

Blizzard Princess

WATER/Spellcaster/8/2800/2100

You can Tribute Summon this card in face-up Attack Position by Tributing 1 Spellcaster-Type monster. After this card was Normal Summoned, your opponent cannot activate Spell/Trap Cards for the rest of that turn.

Regis Basilisk

LIGHT/Reptile/Synchro/7/2500/2700

1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters

When this card is Synchro Summoned: Negate the effects of all cards on the field and this card gains 300 ATK and DEF for each card negated this way. When a monster's effects are negated while this card is face-up: It loses 1000 ATK and DEF.

Elemental HERO Woodsman

EARTH/Warrior/4/1000/2000

Once per turn, during your Standby Phase: You can add 1 "Polymerization" from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand.

King's Knight

LIGHT/Warrior/4/1600/1400

When this card is Normal Summoned while you control "Queen's Knight": You can Special Summon 1 "Jack's Knight" from your Deck.

Jack's Knight

LIGHT/Warrior/5/1900/1000

A strong master swordsman. His loyalty is to justice, his duty to protect the weak.

Queen's High Knight

LIGHT/Warrior/4/1500/1600

When this card is destroyed: You can banish it to add 1 "Queen's Knight" from your Deck to your hand.

Queen's Knight

LIGHT/Warrior/4/1500/1600

This knight catches her opponents off guard, dominating them with swift yet graceful attacks.

Quick-Span Knight

EARTH/Machine/Tuner/3/1000/800

If this card is sent to the Graveyard for a Synchro Summon: Target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; that target loses 500 ATK.

Poker Knight Horse

LIGHT/Beast/3/500/500

When this card is destroyed by battle: You can pay 800 Life Points; add 1 "King's Knight", "King's High Knight", "Jack's Knight", "Jack's High Knight", "Queen's Knight", or "Queen's High Knight" from your Deck to your hand.

Poker Knight's Bombardment

Continuous Spell

Once per turn: You can inflict 400 damage to your opponent for every "King's Knight", "King's High Knight", "Jack's Knight", "Jack's High Knight", "Queen's Knight", and "Queen's High Knight" you control. If this card is destroyed: Banish all Level 4 or lower Warrior-Type monsters in your field.

Poker Knight's Reinforcement

Trap

When your opponent declares an attack and you control no "King's Knight", "King's High Knight", "Jack's Knight", "Jack's High Knight", "Queen's Knight", or "Queen's High Knight": You can Special Summon 1 "Poker Knight Horse" from your Deck and redirect the attack to it. If the Special Summoned monster leaves the field, banish it.

Polymerization

Spell

Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or your side of the field as Fusion Materials.

Akogare's Cards

Burning Skull Head

FIRE/Fiend/3/1000/800

When this card is Special Summoned from your hand, inflict 1000 damage to your opponent. You can remove from play this face-up card you control to return 1 removed from play "Skull Flame" to its owner's Graveyard.

Skull Conductor

DARK/Fiend/4/2000/0

If this card is face-up on the field at the end of the Battle Phase: Destroy this face-up card. You can send this card from your hand to the Graveyard; Special Summon up to 2 Zombie-Type monsters from your hand whose combined ATK is exactly 2000.

Skull Flame

FIRE/Fiend/8/2600/2000

Once per turn, you can Special Summon 1 "Burning Skull Head" from your hand. You cannot conduct your Battle Phase the turn you activate this effect. You can add 1 "Burning Skull Head" from your Graveyard to your hand instead of conducting a normal draw in your Draw Phase.

Smouldering Skull Head

FIRE/Fiend/3/1000/800

This card is treated as "Burning Skull Head" in your hand and in your Graveyard. When this card is Special Summoned from your hand, inflict 500 damage to your opponent. This card can be treated as two tributes for the Tribute Summon of "Skull Flame".

Mezuki

EARTH/Fiend/4/1700/800

You can banish this card from your Graveyard, then target 1 Zombie-Type monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target.

Card of Equilibrium

Spell

The player with the lowest amount of cards in their hand can activate either of the following effects:

The player(s) can draw cards until they have the same amount of cards as the player with the highest amount of cards.

All players that have a higher amount of cards in their hand must send cards to the Graveyard until they have the same amount as the player with the lowest amount of cards.

Darkest Curse

Quickplay Spell

Target 1 monster your opponent controls and 1 Spellcaster, Fiend, or Zombie-Type monster you control; Your opponent's monster loses ATK equal to the Level of the Spellcaster, Fiend, or Zombie-Type monster x200.

Curse of the Doomed

Trap

When you take battle damage, targeting 1 Zombie-Type monster you control: Destroy it, and if you do, add 1 Zombie-Type monster from your Deck with ATK equal to or lower than the damage you took.

What Comes Next...

As the trip in Midoru Mall continues, the spotlight now turns to the mysterious beautiful, yet intimidating woman. Looking for a certain someone, she and her partner depart to Midoru Mall looking for her. Despite being tipped off of who that person is, the search is not easy as she finds herself in unforeseen complications.