[System Update Progress: 100%. System is now starting.]
"Finally, it's done!" Hoshino groaned, slumping back as the interface loaded. "I just wanted to pull some cards during my break, but this whole thing feels like I'm updating a mobile game. What's Da Vinci scheming now?"
Anytime Hoshino thought of Da Vinci's smile in relation to Saint Quartz, it sent a chill down her spine. That sly grin carried the unmistakable energy of a seasoned con artist—a charming merchant who knew exactly how to make wallets cry in despair.
"What even is this 'special summoning system'? It already sounds shady as hell."
[Would you like to open the Special Summoning Shop?]
"Sure, why not? Let's see what kind of scam you've cooked up this time." Hoshino tapped [Yes].
[It's your first time using the special summoning feature. Would you like to view the tutorial?]
"A tutorial?" Hoshino's eyebrow twitched. "Why does pulling a card need a tutorial?"
Despite her complaints, she let out a sigh and hit [Yes] "Fine. Might as well see what nonsense you've prepared."
Boom! Cheap sparkles exploded across the screen in a low-budget fireworks display, and then...
"Ta-daaa! Say hello to your assistant, the super cute genius chibi Da Vinci-chan!"
From the sparkles popped a pint-sized, chibi-fied version of Da Vinci, complete with a massive head, tiny body, and way too much smug energy.
Hoshino stared blankly. "Da Vinci...chan?"
"No, no, no! I'm not Da Vinci; I'm the super cute genius, chibi Da Vinci-chan~" The chibi figure wagged a tiny finger, puffing up her chest with exaggerated confidence.
"Uh-huh... sure." Hoshino pinched the bridge of her nose, resigning herself to Da Vinci's antics. There was no point arguing with her; it would only prolong this. "Okay, fine. Chibi Da Vinci-chan, explain this 'Special Summoning' thing."
"Hehehe, great question!" Chibi Da Vinci beamed, sparkling with smugness. "This is the most generous gacha system, specially designed to help Hoshino-chan summon more efficiently!"
Hoshino immediately squinted. "Did you just say 'generous' and 'gacha' in the same sentence? That's sus."
Chibi Da Vinci ignored the comment, continuing cheerfully, "So, I've noticed that Hoshino-chan has been working super hard to collect Saint Quartz and summon Servants. However..."
Her tiny hands conjured a pair of glasses from nowhere, which she pushed up dramatically. Her face turned dead serious. "However, Hoshino-chan, you are horrendously unlucky."
Hoshino recoiled as if struck. ""E-excuse me?! What do you mean 'unlucky'? My pulls have been decent lately! I've been getting SSRs every four or five ten-rolls. Compared to before, that's amazing!"
Chibi Da Vinci leaned in closer, her tiny face just inches from Hoshino's. "That's a probability issue, Hoshino-chan! The pull rates in this world are three times higher than in your previous one!"
"Wait, wait, wait—three times?!" Hoshino's jaw dropped. She'd thought her luck had finally turned around. "So if the rate was 1% before, that means..."
"Exactly! Here, you should be getting an SSR on average every three ten-rolls. But you? You're way below the average rate."
"How could this happen?!" Hoshino slumped forward dramatically, practically sliding off her chair. "I thought... I thought I finally escaped the land of bad luck!"
Chibi Da Vinci grinned, her smugness dialed up to maximum. "Don't worry, Hoshino-chan. That's why I'm here—to save you!"
"Save me? How?"
"Hehehe! Introducing—the Special Summoning Shop! (Cue dramatic TV-ad voiceover!)"
Chibi Da Vinci waved her arms, conjuring a glittery banner that read Special Summoning Shop in bold, exaggerated letters.
"In this shop, you can find Heroic Spirits that aren't available in the regular gacha pool. And here's the best part: no RNG! No pull rates! Everything is guaranteed!"
Hoshino blinked. "Wait... no RNG? Is this just... a trade shop?"
"Kind of!" Da Vinci replied with a cheeky grin. "It's based on the Rare Prism Exchange, but adjusted for this world's rules. Since you can't get duplicates here, there's no need for Rare Prisms. Instead..." She smirked. "You use Saint Quartz directly to 'purchase' Heroic Spirits!"
Hoshino crossed her arms, eyeing the tiny Da Vinci warily. "Sounds too good to be true. What's the catch?"
"No catch! Why don't you take a look?" Chibi Da Vinci hopped up and tapped the interface with her tiny hand.
[Entering Special Summoning.]
[Special Summoning Shop: 3/3 Heroic Spirits available. Next refresh: 24 hours.]
[SSR Zhuge Liang (Waver)—Exchange cost: 100 Saint Quartz]
[SSR Iskandar—Exchange cost: 100 Saint Quartz]
[SR Lancelot—Exchange cost: 50 Saint Quartz]
"You can... actually buy Heroic Spirits with Saint Quartz?!" Hoshino's eyes widened as she stared at the list.
But after a moment, her expression hardened. "Da Vinci, this is robbery. You're putting a price tag on Servants just to drain my Quartz! I refuse to support this money-grabbing scheme!"
"Because it's too expensive!"
If Da Vinci's claims were true, 100 Saint Quartz for one SSR was a rip-off. Even with her bad luck, regular gacha pulls still gave her SRs or magic/trap cards. The trade-off didn't seem worth it.
Chibi Da Vinci smirked. "Think carefully, Hoshino-chan~ The Heroic Spirits in the Special Summoning Shop are limited edition. Once the shop refreshes, they're gone! This is your only chance to summon them."
"Scammer!" Hoshino pointed an accusing finger at the chibi figure. "You're just trying to empty my quartz!"
"Hoshino-chan," Da Vinci pressed on, her chibi face leaning in closer, "if you want to reunite all the Servants from Chaldea, this is a step you have to take eventually."
"But it's just... so expensive," Hoshino muttered, her resolve weakening.
"And!" Da Vinci raised a tiny finger, her eyes sparkling. "If you buy all three Servants in a bundle, you get a 30% discount!"
"How much?" Hoshino asked weakly.
"250 Quartz, discounted to 175 Quartz—a perfect match for your current balance!" Da Vinci's smile practically glowed with triumph.
Planned. The prices were too perfectly calculated to be a coincidence. Da Vinci must've designed this system specifically to drain every last bit of Hoshino's Saint Quartz.
"This..." Hoshino hesitated, her hand trembling over the confirmation button.
"Just think, Hoshino-chan," Da Vinci whispered, her tiny hand brushing against Hoshino's cheek. "The King of Conquerors, Zhuge Liang(Waver), and Sir Lancelot—all yours for the taking. Don't you want them?"
"I want..." Hoshino's voice cracked, her resistance slipping.
"Say it out loud," Da Vinci purred, her tone dripping with smug victory. "Your words may protest, but your body says otherwise~"
"I want it QAQ!" Hoshino finally broke, throwing up her hands in defeat.
"Thank you for your purchase!" Chibi Da Vinci announced gleefully as a confirmation screen popped up.
[175 Saint Quartz deducted. Remaining balance: 20.]
[SSR Zhuge Liang, SSR Iskandar, SR Lancelot successfully added to your roster.]
"Congrats, Hoshino-chan! You've made a very smart investment!" Da Vinci chirped, her smugness dialed up to 11.
Hoshino slumped back, clutching her head. "Da Vinci... you're a menace. The ultimate scammer."
"And the cutest!" Chibi Da Vinci winked before vanishing in a cloud of sparkles.
.
..
...
"Hahaha! No face-down cards? This one's in the bag!" Jonouchi's grin stretched ear to ear, a rare look of triumph on his face after losing so many times. Finally, a chance to prove himself.
"Someone's coming!" Yugi's voice cut through the moment like a sharp blade. His gaze locked on the entrance, his body tense.
"Huh? Someone's coming? Guess that makes this round a tie~ (≧∇≦)ﾉ," Akasha chimed in, scooping up the cards off the table like a sneaky squirrel. "Let's call it even, shall we?"
"Wha—HEY!" Jonouchi practically threw himself onto the table. "You can't just call it a tie! I was about to crush you!"
"Hehe!" Akasha with a teasing grin, flicking one of the cards at him like a playful jab.
But as the air around them shifted and the atmosphere grew heavier, Jonouchi quickly caught on. This wasn't the time to argue about their little duel.
Hoshino's eyes narrowed, laser-focused on the two figures striding through the door. Her fists clenched as the realization hit. "Finally... it's him—Marik."
To be honest, most of them hadn't seen the real Marik before, except Akasha. But Hoshino recognized Odion immediately—the tall, stoic man in the black Rare Hunters cloak. And the dark-skinned young man walking next to him? There was no mistaking it—this was Marik.
"Marik, huh…" Kaiba muttered under his breath, his cold eyes trailing the two as they approached. Without missing a beat, he turned to one of his suited staff standing nearby.
"That makes seven participants. Open the blimp's doors. Let everyone board. We leave in ten minutes."
"But, Mr. Kaiba," the staff member stammered, clearly hesitant, "we're still missing the eighth participant—"
"Doesn't matter," Kaiba snapped, his voice sharp enough to cut steel. "The final prey has already taken the bait. We're not wasting time waiting around."
It was crystal clear—Kaiba didn't give a damn about the other duelists. His only goal in hosting Battle City was to collect the God Cards. Everyone else? Is extra.
"The owner of the strongest God Card... the Winged Dragon of Ra," Kaiba muttered to himself, his gaze briefly flicking toward Hoshino. A competitive fire burned in his voice as he spoke, almost as if to himself. "Whether it's Egyptian Gods or Evil Gods, I'll defeat them all."
"Let's go, Chiyuki. Time to board." Mai's voice pulled Hoshino back to the present. With a wave of her fingers, she gestured Hoshino to follow. "No matter how hard you glare at him, it won't do a thing to him."
"She's right," Yugi added, his tone calm but firm. "Since we're duelists, we settle things through duels—not staring contests."
"Hoshino-nee, come on!" Akasha tugged at her sleeve gently, her voice filled with concern. Hoshino had been unusually quiet since Marik's arrival, her unease obvious.
"You're right, let's go," Hoshino said, snapping out of it with a small, determined smile. The heavy weight in her chest wasn't gone, but her friends' encouragement helped her refocus. The Shadow Games had already put enough strain on everyone—she wasn't going to make them worry more than they already were.
Still, if Hoshino had her way, she'd march right up and punch Marik square in the face for everything he'd done to ruin Akasha's family. But, like Yugi said, this was a duel. She'd take him down fair and square first.
The punching? That could come after the duel.
"Wow! Hoshino-nee, look!" Akasha's mood instantly lifted as they stepped inside the blimp. "This place is crazy fancy!"
Jonouchi's jaw hit the floor as he stared at the pristine walls and high-tech interiors. "Whoa, this is nuts! So this is what rich people live like, huh?"
Mokuba popped out of nowhere, proudly puffing out his chest. "The fridge is stocked with self-serve drinks and snacks! Take whatever you want!" He then turned to Hoshino, a concerned look crossing his face. "Hey, Hoshino, you didn't eat anything earlier, did you? Want me to take you to the dining hall?"
Hoshino shook her head, offering him a small smile. "Thanks, Mokuba, but I'm not really hungry right now."
Mai raised an elegant brow as she glanced at Hoshino. "Chiyuki, you okay? You've been acting off ever since those people showed up."
Hoshino stretched, letting out a fake laugh. "I'm fine! Just tired from dueling all day. I think I'll go rest in my room for a bit."
Each of the eight duelists had their own private rooms to prepare for the finals. Typical Kaiba—everything had to be top-tier. Privacy and focus were key, after all.
"I'll come with you—" Akasha began, but Mai cut her off, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you come with me instead, Akasha-chan? Will eat something delicious~"
"Hmm, okay…." Akasha glanced at Hoshino, reluctant but willing. "I'll go hang with the beautiful onee-san for now."
"Ara~!" Mai chuckled, covering her mouth as she led Akasha away.
Once inside her room, Hoshino locked the door, taking a deep breath. Finally alone.
Or not.
"Not bad. You actually caught onto my hint," a familiar voice drawled.
Hoshino whipped around to see the Evil God sitting comfortably on the edge of her bed, the little gothic lolita swinging her legs casually. She had already slipped off her shoes, revealing her sock-clad feet, as if she owned the place.
"You're kidding me," Hoshino deadpanned. "You called me back here for this? So you could chill on my bed?"
The Evil God yawned dramatically, stretching like a cat. "What can I say? It's been ages since I moved in physical form. Gotta enjoy it, right?"
Hoshino rolled her eyes, exasperated. "So what's the deal? You drag me away from everyone just so you can lay on the bed?"
"As if." The Evil God leaned back, resting her head against the pillows. "I brought you here to warn you, obviously."
Boom—
The low rumble of the blimp's turbines roared to life, shaking the room slightly as they ascended into the skies.
The Evil God's expression shifted, her tone growing serious. "When that guy walked in, I felt it—an enormous power, equal to mine."
Hoshino frowned, her arms crossing. "The Winged Dragon of Ra, right? For you to say it's on your level… that's not exactly comforting."
The gothic girl gave her a sly smirk, her dark eyes glinting. "Oh, I never said it was comforting. I'm just here to make sure you're not underestimating them."
Hoshino leaned against the wall, her fingers drumming patiently. "What do you think? Can you beat it?"
The Evil God shrugged lazily, but the glint in her eyes betrayed her amusement. "That's all on you. It's your job to figure out how to use me."
Hoshino snorted. "Great. Thanks for the motivational speech."
The Evil God sat up, her expression suddenly turn serious. "That's not all. The power I felt wasn't just from one card."
(*****)
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