Hey guys, Akane here, and welcome back to the next chapter of The Body of the Dragon!

First of all, I'd like to apologize for the... 4-5 month hiatus. I had no intention of having that long of a time gap between chapters, but some things got in the way, with most of that being personal stuff. I actually wrote up a part of the chapter that would've taken place during Luka's duel with Professor Frank, but I decided that it would be better if I skip that duel entirely. I did reuse the original start of that chapter though, so at least some of the writing didn't go to waste...

Also, I might have missed some typos since I really wanted to post this, so if you see one, please tell me in a review so I can fix it!

Finally, thanks for all the follows and favorites! Seeing those numbers go up inspired me to continue writing even when I was going through some tough times!~

Anyway, onto the chapter!~

Yusei and I started walking back to the lounge after talking with the others for a few minutes. I was still shocked that they had accepted the fact that I could see Duel Monster Spirits so easily, especially after what I had gone through when I tried to help people during the time I lived on the streets after I ran away from an orphanage.

I looked at Yusei out of the corner of my eye. He hadn't said anything since we met up in the hallway with the others, and I was rather curious as to what he thought about my duel. Mostly, I was just looking to see if I could get any advice.

"So," I started, drawing Yusei's attention. "How did I do?"

"You did well," he stated. "But you did struggle during the first half of the duel."

I sighed when I heard that. "Yeah, I did," I replied. "I let my opponent get to me, and it affected my duelling. I actually thought I was going to lose when Ido attacked Blizzard Dragon near the start. I only ended up winning through pure luck."

Yusei shook his head slightly. "No, your cards came through for you. I think the fact that you have a close bond with them helped."

I shrugged. "I guess. But it was still luck that I got Thunder Dragon when I did," I said as we came up to the lounge. I was about to open the door when Yusei spoke.

"You have a mark as well," I turned back to face him in surprise. I wasn't aware that he had one as well.

"Yeah, I do," I said quietly. "But I don't really know much about it, other than the fact that it just appeared on my arm one day, like I told the others." I grasped my arm tightly as I said that.

"Apparently, they're a part of a being called the Crimson Dragon, and those that possess them are called Signers. There was a tribe long ago that worshipped the dragon, and the Signers could summon it, with each of them having a mark. That's what Yanagi told me."

"Signers, huh?" I muttered quietly. Well, at least I now had a name for what I was, even though I was going to wait until I got more information before I started to refer to myself as that. I looked up at him in confusion when my brain finally registered the last thing that he said. "Wait, Yanagi knows about these?" I motioned to my arm.

Yusei nodded. I wasn't entirely sure what to make of that, but if it meant that I got some answers, I would be fine with it.

I opened the door after that, and once I had entered, I held it for Yusei. He walked in, and I let go of the door, letting it shut behind the two of us. I walked over to the couch where Professor Frank had been sitting, and sat down, looking at my right arm as I felt Yusei sit down next to me. It was quiet for a few minutes after that.

"Everybody!" The MC spoke, breaking me out of my thoughts. I turned towards the monitor. "Yeah! We have an emergency on our hands! Event Sponsor Goodwin has just made a surprising proposition!"

"Hey, all you losers who were regrettable defeated in the first round, are you listening to this?!" You didn't have to call them losers, I thought irritably. I certainly wouldn't want to be called that.

"It's been determined that we will now be holding a consolation game!" I frowned. While I knew that Lua would be jumping up and down in excitement at the chance to duel once again, it was rather suspicious that they chose now to do this…

"Yeah! Now we're about to announce the match-up for the consolation game! The match will be conducted only by the randomly drawn set of players! And the person fortune has chosen was regrettably defeated by Contestant Bommer, but at the mere age of 11 her skills have received Sponsor Goodwin's seal of approval!" I froze. Luka, I thought worriedly. They must have figured out that Luka wasn't the one who had duelled Bommer.

"She has promise that's simply soaring through the roof! The Duelling Angel from the Heavens! Ms. Luka!" The MC announced as a spotlight was shown down on Luka. She looked shocked, and I couldn't blame her, especially since she suddenly has to duel now.

"Luka…" Yusei murmured as he looked at the monitor.

"That girl is the real Luka, right?" Bommer asked, causing both Yusei and I to look towards him. I hadn't seen him when I entered the room. "The imposter showed me some duelling. I wonder how the real one will fare."

After he said that, he walked over to his previous seat and sat down. I didn't really pay attention to him though, since my focus was still on the shocked face of Luka that was being displayed on the monitor. She eventually stood up and started walking down towards the field, but I could see how nervous she was.

"I'm worried…" I said quietly. "Luka doesn't like duelling, and the one time I saw her duel against her brother, she was really tired when the duel had finished. It's probably because she sees Duel Monster Spirits like I can."

"Now on the field is the Young Duelling Prodigy, Luka!" The MC announced as a cloud of smoke appeared on the field, before it disappeared, leaving Luka standing there nervously. She put her duel disk on her arm, and as soon as the band enclosed around her arm, she looked shocked for a second, until she looked up with a small smile.

"And now, facing against Ms. Luka, the Young Duelling Prodigy, will be Professor Frank!" The MC finished, as smoke rose out of the ground, showing my previous opponent standing there with the same fake smile he had when I duelled him.

"Why are they having her duel him…?" I questioned quietly as I remember what he tried to get me to do during our duel. While I had easily recognized what he was trying to do, even though I hadn't managed to avoid his psychoanalysis completely, I wasn't entirely sure that Luka would be able to do the same. She was still a child, after all.

I sighed in relief when the duel ended with Professor Frank falling onto his back in defeat. I didn't really register the fact that the duel had been a tie, as my concern for Luka outweighed everything else, especially after I watched her practically become comatose after the man had activated his trap card.

I looked down at my right arm curiously. During the duel, I had felt the same pain as I had when I awoke after Aki had abducted me, and I noticed a red glow coming from it, though it settled down after the duel ended.

"I would've thought that you would be down there, since you seem rather close to that girl," Bommer commented, drawing my attention from the screen where I watched Yusei catch Luka before she collapsed.

I turned to look at him. "I should've been, but I guess I didn't know what to do…" I trailed off. It was true, after all.

It was silent for a few moments, before Bommer spoke again.

"I have been in the same situation, being unable to help my loved ones," he told me, but that didn't really make me feel better. I should've been able to do something to help, but instead I just sat around and watched, just like I had done back at Arcadia.

I stood up and made my way to the door, ignoring the way that Bommer stared at me as I walked past him. I wanted to get to Luka as fast as I could, so that I could verify with my own eyes that she was fine.

I opened the door and walked out, speeding up my pace as I started to navigate the corridors of the stadium. As I did so, I started thinking about the duel I had just watched. I still felt that the whole thing was suspicious, especially the fact that they chose a child. Why would they choose her out of all other duelists who had lost in the first round? It just didn't make sense to me, and I had a feeling that it wouldn't for a while.

I was broken out of my thoughts when I heard Lua's voice. I must not have realized that I had gotten to the stands.

"Luka! Why'd you go and force the game into a tie?! Jeez! Jeez! Jeez!" he shouted at his sister, who looked completely unfazed by her twin's behaviour. Considering she had been dealing with him for longer than I had known the both of them, it was understandable.

"It's better than losing. It wasn't like I was going to win at that rate anyway," she retorted calmly, closing her eyes as she turned away. A small smile came to my face as I watched the two of them. These two could be quite entertaining during one of their arguments, if they weren't annoying me.

"But, jeez!" Lua whined, and I rolled my eyes at his behavior.

"Lua, whining isn't going to fix anything," I commented as I approached them, coming to a stop next to Yusei. Lua looked back towards me, along with Tenpei, though I did notice that Yusei's eyes shifted to look at me for a few seconds, before he turned back towards the rest of the group.

"But Sora-nee!"

I sighed. "Lua, calm down. You'll have many more chances to duel again."

He looked like he wanted to reply, but I noticed Luka lift up her left hand and cover her right arm, right where a mark would appear. I inhaled sharply, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Yusei's eyes widen.

Yanagi turned to face Luka. "Luka, are ya feelin' okay?" he asked in concern as the rest of the group turned to look at her.

"Yeah. You did space out during the duel too," Tenpei added, leaning towards her, or as much as he could with Lua in the way.

Luka took her hand off of her arm when she heard that, looking up and moving her head side to side so that she could see everyone. "Uh-uh. I'm fine."

I didn't quite believe her, but I wasn't going to pry, especially in front of all these people. If she wanted to tell me, she would tell me on her own time. Besides, I had a feeling like it had something to due with her ability to see Duel Monster Spirits.

"Anyway," Yusei stated, causing me to look at him. "I'll be seeing you three home today."

The rest of the group looked up. "That's a good idea," Himuro said with his arms crossed.

Lua, being his normal excited self, stood up to face Yusei. "Really?!, then you should come sleep over at our place!"

Luka looked at her brother. "Lua, you should ask Sora-nee if it's alright before you invite people over," she scolded. I started to relax as I saw her go back to her normal behaviour.

Luka looked at me. "Please, Sora-nee! Let Yusei come over!" he begged. He looked like a puppy, and it was adorable.

I rolled my eyes slightly, but I had a smile on my face. "I have no problem with it," I told him.

Lua jumped up and down in happiness. "Yes! Thanks, Sora-nee!" he cheered.

"Everybody listen!" Everyone in the group turned their heads and looked at the orb that was in the center of the stadium as the MC appeared. "This concludes the heated first day of the tournament!" he leaned back slightly as he extended his right hand, though most of it was cut off due to the size of the screen. "And these will be your match-ups for tomorrow's semifinals!"

I looked at the screens that showed the match-ups with narrowed eyes. I had already known that I was going to be dueling Aki based on the match-ups from the preliminaries, but that didn't mean that I was happy and excited to do so. Though this may be the only way to get through to Aki…

"And on that note, today's excitement is left to be continued until further dueling tomorrow! Good bye!"

"You're up against the Black Rose, girly," Himuro commented.

I frowned at what he called me, but I didn't really react otherwise. "Yeah. I'm not exactly happy about it, even though I had a feeling that it would happen."

Himuro glanced at me when he heard my reply, but he turned back to the screen and didn't say anything. "He's a formidable opponent," he said to Yusei. "Since it's a Riding Duel, I'm looking forward to what kind of D-Wheel Bomber's going to ride out on."

"What's wrong?" Luka asked her brother, causing me to look over at the two of them. The first thing I noticed was that Lua had a serious look on his face, and I scrunched up my eyebrows as I tried to figure out what he was thinking.

He looked at his sister in surprise. "Eh? Um, nothing at all!" he said quickly as he waved his hands, and I raised my eyebrow at his actions. That was a rather quick response to an easy question, I thought.

"Listen, you guys head home without me. I remembered something that I have to do," he told his sister as he walked around her.

"What is it?" Luka questioned him.

"Let's see, what was it again?" Lua said cheerfully as he put his left arm behind his neck. "I'll just have to remember that too!" He laughed nervously as he ran down the stairs.

"Lua!" I called after him, before I turned to face the others. "I'll go after him. Yusei, can you take Luka home?"

Yusei nodded, and I gave him a quick smile before I turned around and ran.

Where on earth did he go? I wondered as I ran through the halls once again.

For the second time that day, Lua had managed to evade me, and I had lost sight of him in the crowd. I wasn't entirely sure how he did so, since he had a hair color that was even more noticeable than mine, but he did.

I stopped running and put my hands on my knees, panting slightly as I tried to regain my breath. I had looked everywhere that I could for about an hour, considering my horrible sense of direction, but I wasn't able to find him. It was like he had vanished.

I sighed in defeat as I stood up and headed to the exit so that I could go back home. I knew that I would have to wait for Lua to come home, even if that was exactly the opposite of what I would like.

I didn't notice that someone had approached me from behind. That was, until they spoke.

"So, this is where you were, Sora," I froze when I heard that voice. Please tell me that's not who I think it is, I thought worriedly, but I knew that it couldn't be anyone else.

I turned around slowly, only to see my fears confirmed. There he was, wearing a brown trench coat. Divine, the leader of the Arcadia Movement. A man who I had thought I had left behind like my days at that place.

I narrowed my eyes at him as I spoke. "Hello, Divine," I said calmly, masking my unease at being in his presence once again. "It's been a while."

"It certainly has," he replied, before he got a serious look on his face. "Why did you run away?"

I blinked in surprise. "You mean Aki didn't tell you?" I asked, before my eyes narrowed. "It's not like it's any of your business anyway. It's my life, and you can't tell me what to do," I told him as I turned around and walked away.

Before I left, he said something that truly scared me. "I'll get you back to the Movement, Sora. Even if it's by force."

I wouldn't let him see how much his statement bothered me, and I continued walking until I saw an intersection. I darted around the corner, sitting down as soon as I could, wrapping my arms around my knees and leaning my forehead against them.

Why did I have to run into him? I questioned. All I wanted was to be free of the Movement, but reminders of it were appearing everywhere.

I sat there in silence for a few minutes, before I heard a sound. I turned my head slightly in the direction I heard the sound come from, and came face to face with Clear Wing.

It growled slightly and tried to nudge the side of my face, but due to the fact that it was just a spirit, it wasn't able to. However, its behaviour brought a small smile to my face.

"Thanks," I said quietly, holding my hand over where its head would be. Clear Wing always knew how to comfort me when I needed it, and for that, I was grateful.

"I should probably head back," I muttered as Clear Wing growled again before vanishing. I stood up and made my way out, attempting to push my encounter with Divine out of my mind as I did so.

I stopped by a grocery store on my way back so that I could make dinner, as I didn't have the time to yesterday. By the time I got back home, the sun was starting to set. I took my boots off and made my way to the kitchen so I could put the bags of food down.

"Oh, Sora-nee! You're back!" Luka said happily as she looked over the back of the couch. Yusei was sitting on other couch, and the two of them stood up, making their way over to me.

"Did you catch up to Lua?" Yusei asked, and I shook my head in response.

"No. I nearly did, but when the stands started emptying out, I lost him in the crowd," I sighed. "I stuck around for another hour looking for him, but I had to go get some ingredients for dinner, even though I wanted to stay and continue looking."

I started unpacking the bags so I could start cooking as I said that last part, and I didn't mention my encounter with Divine.

Luka seemed to pick up on that. "Did something else happen, Sora-nee?"

I tried not to react to that question, but I failed as I froze for a split second. I turned and faced her, giving her a smile that probably didn't reassure her.

"Nothing else happened, Luka. Don't worry," I said to her as I turned back towards the stove. "Would you like to help me make dinner?"

"Sure!" she replied happily.

It was quiet for a bit as the sounds of sizzling food filled the room. I focused on not burning any of the food, since when I started living with the twins, I burned the food several times. However, Luka spoke up after I turned off the burner.

"Sora-nee… Have you heard of a World for Duel Monster Spirits?" she asked quietly.

I put the pan that I was holding down and turned to face her. "No, I haven't. Though that would certainly explain where Clear Wing goes when its not around," I commented. "What brought this up?"

"During my duel today, I ended up in the Spirit World, and my opponent followed me," I frowned when heard that, as I wasn't exactly pleased, but Luka continued on. "While I was there, I remembered that I had promised the spirits there that I would protect their world. I also saw the protector of the Spirit World, Ancient Fairy Dragon frozen in stone…"

"Did anything else happen, Luka?" I asked in concern, kneeling down to look her in the eye.

"Professor Frank also called me a Signer, but that was it," she looked up at me. "What is a Signer, Sora-nee?"

"I'm… not really sure to be honest," I told her. I wasn't exactly lying, since I really didn't know that much, and all that I did know I had learned second hand. So I didn't exactly trust what I heard.

"We'll probably find out eventually, though," I continued. "So, we'll just have to wait." Even if I would rather not wait, I added mentally.

"I guess…" she trailed off at the end, and I put my hand on her shoulder.

"Let's bring the food to the table, ok?" I said as I stood up again, picking up a few dishes and walking over to the table.

"Lua sure is late," Luka said with a worried expression on her face.

"He really is," I replied. "It's not like him to miss dinner, especially since we made his favorite hamburger." I lifted the lid of the dish in front of me at the same time I said that, before I looked up at the clock. I could feel a worried expression make its way onto my face as I saw the time.

I heard the sound of a chair scraping against the floor, and I turned towards the sound to see Yusei stand up. "I'm going to look for him. Something may have happened to him."

I put the lid back on the food, before I stood up as well. "I'll go with you," I said, and he turned his head towards me. "After all, two pairs of eyes are better than one when it comes to searching."

Yusei nodded, and we were about to leave when I heard Luka stand up. "I'm coming with you two."

I frowned. "You should rest, Luka. I'd like to know that you're safe, especially at this time of night."

"I'm feeling fine now, Sora-nee," Luka argued, beaming brightly at the two of us. "And I might feel worse if I stay here. He's my brother, after all."

She had a point, and I sighed in defeat. "Fine, but stay near me, ok?"

"Ok!" she nodded in agreement.

Luka and I waited in an alleyway for Yusei to show up with his D-Wheel. We didn't have much success in locating Lua after an hour of searching, and I hoped that Yusei had more luck.

I heard the sound of a D-Wheel coming to a halt, and I looked up, walking towards it. Yusei pulled his helmet off, and judging by the look on his face, he didn't have much success either.

"Did you find him?" he asked once we had gotten close.

"There's no sign of him anywhere," I told him, shaking my head slightly.

"Same here," Yusei muttered. "I searched from the venue all the way here, but…"

"It's like he's vanished," I said as I looked down. "I hope he's ok…"

Yusei looked like he was about to say something, but a beeping sound coming from his D-Wheel interrupted him. He leaned forward and pressed a button, while I walked over to see what he was doing. The screen shifted, and I was shocked to see it reveal Saiga's face underneath a large cowboy hat.

"Yusei, I just got to your hideout in Satellite," the brunette reported.

"Is everyone alright?" Yusei asked, with a slightly frantic tone in his voice. While I wasn't exactly sure what was going on, I could understand Yusei's emotions. After all, I was going through the same thing at the moment.

Saiga shook his head grimly. "I hate to break it to you, but they're not here."

"What did you say?" Yusei gasped. "Did something happen?"

"I don't know, but I broke into their network, and there's no record of them being caught by Security so far. I'll keep up my search for them on this side," Saiga told him, before the screen fizzed and displaced, cutting him off. "Uh-oh. Can't keep contact for much longer. I'll contact you as soon as I learn anything."

"Yeah, please do," Yusei answered, before static consumed the picture. I looked down guiltily, Yusei's friends were missing too, and here I was having him help me look for Lua when he had other things to worry about. All because I wasn't able to catch Lua before he vanished. I clenched my fist.

"Your friends are missing too, Yusei?" I heard Luka ask.

"Yeah," he replied as he looked down. He seemed to be doing the same thing that I was; blaming himself, though for an entirely different reason.

"I hope they're alright. It seems somewhat suspicious though, having them disappear while you're in a tournament…" I trailed off.

Yusei looked like he was going to say something, but he was interrupted again by the sound of something approaching us. I stepped in front of Luka protectively as I saw a figure appear from the shadows, even though I knew that I wouldn't be able to do much.

Once the figure stepped out of the shadows, I gasped when I saw it was Bommer, and he had Lua over his shoulder. It looked like the boy was asleep, but I was still worried.

"Lua!" both Luka and I cried out in unison. I started to make my way towards them, but I stopped when Bommer looked towards me.

"How did you…" I heard Yusei start to ask, but Bommer shifted his sight away from me and interrupted him.

"I'll explain later," he answered. "He's not injured. He's just sleeping, it seems."

"We should take him home," I said quietly, but considering there was no other sound, everyone heard.

"I agree," Yusei commented, not taking his eyes off of Bommer.

I draped the covers over Luka and smiled softly. I had barely managed to get her into her room before she fell asleep, and I had somehow gotten her into her bed. I had a feeling that the day's events had worn her out. They certainly had for me, at least.

I made my way out of the room quietly, as I didn't want to wake her up, before I shut the door and headed over to Lua's room to check on him. Yusei had decided to stay in the living room while Bommer and I took the twins up to their rooms. While I wasn't exactly comfortable with that, I knew that there was no way that I could carry both the twins.

I opened Lua's door slightly, and I was immediately greeted with the sound of him snoring. When I looked inside, I saw that Bommer had pulled the covers over him, and a smile formed on my face as I shut the door. I would have to thank him for finding Lua.

A slight frown made its way onto my face as I walked down the stairs to the living room. Where had Lua gone, and how exactly did Bommer find him, I wondered.

When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I noted that Bommer had gotten down here before me, and it looked like he and Yusei had gone somewhere. I felt a slight breeze, and I heard voices coming from the pool area as I turned to face the door. I saw that it was open, and I walked over there, stepping outside into the night air. I shivered slightly at the temperature difference as I made my way over to the two males standing at the edge of the pool.

"How did you find him?" Yusei asked.

"He was sleeping inside my garage," Bommer answered, and I looked at his back in surprise. "It appears the security system was enabled and he was locked inside. I'd guess he came to find my D-Wheel."

I sighed loudly when I heard that, and the two turned back towards me. "Of course he would do that…" I muttered, before I spoke up. "He probably wanted to help Yusei because he looks up to him. What he tried to do was wrong, though." I gave Bommer a small smile. "Thanks for bringing him back, by the way."

"It was no problem," Bommer told me, before he turned back and faced the city skyline. "I can't blame him. When I look at those two, I remember my little brother and sister back in my hometown; they're about the same age." He took a few steps forward and looked up at the sky. "There are no stars in the sky in this city, huh. Yusei, Sora, what are you fighting for?"

I was surprised by this question, but I guess Yusei wasn't. "My hometown," he aswered.

"I don't really know, to be honest," I said softly. "Probably for those I care for."

"I see," Bommer said as he turned around to face us. "Then it would appear that we're cut from the same cloth. I come from the other side of the world. My tribe are descendants of those who served the People of the Stars, whose tale is known amongst the Inca's."

"People of the Stars?" I asked quietly, as I was unfamiliar with the term.

"Then, you know the story behind the Crimson Dragon?" Yusei inquired.

"I do," Bommer nodded. "Much time has passed, and now the Crimson Dragon is attempting to resurface. Director Goodwin is planning to use that power to lead the world in the right direction."

Lead the world in the right direction? I thought. That doesn't sound right to me, at least in this context.

"And you believe that?" Yusei asked blandly.

"Yusei, I know how poor your hometown is," Bommer said, and I noticed that he ignored the question Yusei had presented to him. "My village has been plighted with poverty and discrimination. But the Director promised… he said that he would restore my home-village if I were to lend my assistance."

Something about that seemed off to me, and it looked like I wasn't alone in that thought. "Bommer, don't trust him," Yusei protested.

I nodded in agreement. "Something about this entire thing seems off," I added.

Bommer either didn't hear me, or just ignored what I had said. "We're from the same cloth, but it seems we're in different positions. Neither of us can compromise our beliefs. We'll settle this match between us."

He strode past the two of us, and as soon as he entered the elevator, I sighed. I wasn't entirely sure what to make of what I had just learned about Bommer, but I could at least tell that he wasn't a cruel person.

"Well, it looks like you have an interesting duel tomorrow," I said to Yusei, and he nodded.

"You do as well, Sora. You are going up against Izayoi," he replied.

I frowned at that reminder. "I probably should go through my deck one more time and change around my cards," I said thoughtfully, before I was interrupted by my stomach growling.

I blushed slightly, before I turned so that I could head back inside. "But first, we should probably eat." I commented as I walked inside.

I heard Yusei start walking behind me as we entered the house, and I shut the door behind us before I went to the kitchen so that I could reheat the food. I could have eaten it cold, but it tasted better when it was warm.

We started eating soon after, and as soon as we were done, I brought the dishes into the kitchen before I headed over to a couch and sat down. Yusei sat down nearby and turned to face me.

"Do you know what happened during Luka's duel?" he asked in a normal tone, but I could tell that he was worried about her.

I hesitated, because all that I knew was what Luka told me, but I didn't want to share it without her permission. "No, I don't. I was really worried during the entire thing, though," I said. It wasn't a total lie, but I still felt bad about it. I took a quick glance at the clock as a yawn escaped my mouth.

"It's getting rather late, and we both have duels tomorrow, so I think we should call it a night," I told him as I stood up and made my way over to the stairs. "There's an extra bedroom you can use, if you'd like to stay here tonight." I pointed to another door near the bottom of the stairs.

"Thanks for the offer," he said as he stood up and walked over to the door. "Good night, Sora."

"Good night, Yusei," I replied as he shut the door and I headed up to my room.

I had the small light on my bedside table on as I looked through my deck. While I had already changed into my pyjamas, I just wanted to make sure that my deck was in good order for my duel against Aki. I felt that it was a good idea, especially because I didn't know how I was going to do with her as my opponent, and I wanted to try to get through to her in some way.

I removed Luster Dragon #2 and replaced it with Spear Dragon, as I felt that it might be useful, even if it had no defence whatsoever. As I put my deck back together, I pulled out Clear Wing's card and looked at it. As much as I didn't want to use it, I had a feeling that Clear Wing would probably help because of its effect.

I slid Clear Wing into my deck and put it on my bedside table before I reached up to turn off the light. If I even had a chance at beating Aki, it certainly would help to have a good night's sleep.

I really hope that no one gets hurt tomorrow, was my last thought before sleep took me.

And that's the end~

I will try to start and finish the next chapter this month, but that might not happen because I'm working on a few other story ideas that I may or may not publish here.

I also just realized that this is the longest chapter I've ever written for this story, with over 6,000 words...

See you next chapter,

Akane~