"The fact that you were able to defeat Rebecca, has opened my eyes."
After scrutinizing Hoshino, Arthur stroked his white beard and started laughing, "Hahaha, it's true—since ancient times, heroes have come from young. It seems that old relics like us, Sugoroku, really need to exit the stage."
"I already retired long ago. Only you, Arthur, with your stubbornness, are still fighting on," Sugoroku replied.
"Maybe it's because I once lost to you, Sugoroku. It made me more and more unwilling to just give up."
Arthur glanced around the room and sighed, "To think that the once-mighty Sugoroku has now contented himself with this small, unremarkable toy shop."
"Un... unremarkable... (○´･д･)"
Suddenly, Arthur's eyes sharpened, his once casual gaze now intensely focused on Akasha.
"Old man?" Akasha, noticing the gaze fixed on her, felt a little uneasy. "Is… is something wrong?"
"You resemble... you look so much like..."
"Like what? What nonsense is this old man talking about?" Seeing Akasha's uneasiness, Hoshino stepped forward to shield her.
Arthur's words immediately drew everyone's attention to Akasha.
"By the way, Hoshino, I've been curious about this for a while now," Jonouchi spoke up, "Who is this kid?"
"Yeah, I've never seen her before. She's not one of the kids who regularly come to Kame Game," Sugoroku chimed in, studying Akasha.
"She's really cute, and her blonde hair... is she a foreigner?" Anzu, now with a moment to observe, was instantly charmed by Akasha's adorable appearance.
"Ah, right! I haven't introduced her yet!" Hoshino finally realized, slapping her forehead in acknowledgment.
She then patted Akasha's golden head, "Her name is Akasha-chan, and she's..."
"Mommy!" Perhaps feeling overwhelmed by all the stares, Akasha suddenly clung tightly to Hoshino.
"Wait... she's your daughter?!" Everyone was shocked, including Hoshino herself.
"Akasha-chan, what nonsense are you saying?" Hoshino pinched Akasha's cheeks and pulled her off of her.
"Ouch! That hurts! QxQ" Akasha's tender, delicate face quickly turned red where Hoshino had pinched her.
"Hoshino, we know you don't like to talk about your past, but who would've thought you'd already have a daughter," Sugoroku remarked, unsure how to react.
"So that's how it is, Hoshino," Yami Yugi, wearing the same shocked expression as Sugoroku, chimed in.
"No! How could I possibly have a daughter this old!" Hoshino immediately protested, letting go of Akasha's face.
"Yeah, I just heard Akasha calling Hoshino-nee so she must be joking, right?" Jonouchi added, trying to reason it out.
Hoshino gave Jonouchi a touched look, "I never thought Jonouchi, who usually seems the idiot, would be the only one making sense right now."
"I was to call Hoshino 'big sister' to avoid misunderstandings, but Akasha knows very well that Hoshino-nee is her mom!" Akasha declared seriously as if what she was saying was the absolute truth.
"Oh, so that's how it is!" Jonouchi suddenly understood.
Hoshino let out a long, weary sigh. "Why did I ever think you'd make sense, Jonouchi? Clearly, I was being too optimistic."
.
..
...
"A Rare Hunter?!" After Hoshino's thorough explanation, the group finally understood Akasha's true identity.
Although being part of the Rare Hunters was surprising, it didn't shock them quite as much as when they mistakenly thought Akasha was Hoshino's daughter. Compared to that, Akasha being a Rare Hunter seemed more plausible and easier to accept.
This made Hoshino wonder whether this little troublemaker had staged the earlier act on purpose, so the group would more readily accept her.
"A kid is part of the Rare Hunters?" Yami furrowed his brow, unsure how to respond to Akasha.
Throughout the Battle City tournament, the Yami had dueled several Rare Hunters. Known for using counterfeit cards, were often like religious fanatics, crazily devoted to their leader, Marik. Some had even been brainwashed by the Millennium Rod, their personalities destroyed.
"But Hoshino, isn't it dangerous to have a member of Rare Hunters with you?" Jonouchi asked with concern.
"Akasha-chan is different. Even though she's part of rare hunters, she's just a kid."
Hoshino admitted that her initial reason for keeping Akasha around was simply because she found her too cute to leave wandering alone in Domino City at night. However, after spending some time with her, Hoshino could sense that Akasha was fundamentally different from the other crazed rare hunters. In fact, with proper guidance, Akasha could become a righteous and powerful duelist.
"I agree with Hoshino," Anzu added in support. As a girl, she couldn't help but feel a maternal instinct toward someone as cute as Akasha. After hearing Hoshino's account, she, too, wasn't willing to leave such a young child alone.
"You girls..." Jonouchi still felt uneasy.
"It's alright, Jonouchi," Sugoroku spoke up, "If it's just for one night, there shouldn't be any problem. I also wouldn't want to see a little girl like her left on the streets."
"And besides, I heard Akasha doesn't want to use the counterfeit cards from rare hunters. She wants to have her deck, isn't that right? Our little Kame Game may not be much, but we'd never turn away a duelist who wants to improve themselves, especially a young one full of potential."
"Grandpa..." Hoshino felt a wave of emotion wash over her.
"Oh hohoho～(￣▽￣～)" Sugoroku flashed a cunning merchant's grin.
"You crafty old man!"
"Her appearance… her name… even her age… No, this can't be a coincidence," Arthur, who had been muttering to himself since earlier, seemed to be deep in thought.
"What is it, Arthur? Is there something wrong?" Sugoroku asked, noticing that Arthur seemed distracted.
"Sorry, Sugoroku, I have something urgent to attend to. I'll come back to see you in a few days!" Arthur said, putting his hat back on and heading straight out the door.
"Let's go, Rebecca. Stop causing trouble for everyone!"
"But Grandpa, I still want to play with Yugi..." Rebecca glanced back at Yugi reluctantly, waving her hand at him as Arthur walked away. "I guess I'll see you next time, Yugi."
"Leaving in a hurry after not seeing me for over ten years," Sugoroku sighed lightly.
"A little girl from Rare Hunters... Could it be..?" Yami, who had locked his gaze on Akasha, felt an indescribable unease, sensing something strange through the dark power of the Millennium Puzzle.
(***)
"Report to President Kaiba, the second satellite launch is a success!"
"Good!" Kaiba showed a satisfied smile. With its enormous wealth, the Kaiba Corporation had once again launched a supercomputer into space via satellite, something that ordinary people could barely dream of achieving in a lifetime, all in less than an afternoon.
"Test the full power compatibility of the supercomputer. If there are no issues, we can reactivate the Duel Disk's holographic functions by tonight." Expertly directing his employees, Kaiba sat at the helm of Kaiba Corporation as its president, a true king ruling over countless people.
"Big brother!" Mokuba, who had been operating the Kaiba Corporation's main control equipment, spoke up, "The fake card data added by Yako into the Duel Disk database has mostly been cleared."
Indeed, the reason why the Rare Hunters could brazenly use fake cards was that Yako had hacked into the Kaiba Corporation's systems and altered the Duel Disk data.
"I never thought that Yako would stoop so low as to cooperate with Rare Hunters." Kaiba clicked his tongue in irritation and continued questioning Mokuba, "You said 'mostly'—does that mean some still haven't been cleared?"
"That's right." Mokuba nodded while staring at the screen. "There are a few cards that have never appeared in the database. We can't tell which ones are real and which ones are fake. Even the card descriptions are written in a language I can't understand."
"A language you can't understand?" Kaiba furrowed his brows, immediately thinking of...
"Could there even be counterfeit versions of the God Cards?"
(***)
Kame Game Shop—
"Akasha-chan, trust me, this pack is sure to have a super rare card!"
Akasha tugged at Hoshino's sleeve helplessly. "Hoshino-nee, why not give up? Let Jonouchi-nii try opening it."
"No way, this is a battle of pride! I promised to help you build a deck, so there's no way I'm letting Jonouchi steal the glory." Hoshino stubbornly insisted.
"I'm not trying to steal your glory. How is that stealing?" Jonouchi sighed, having been banned from touching any more packs after he pulled two Magic Cylinders in one go from a single pack.
To build a deck for Akasha, Hoshino borrowed a month's salary in advance from Grandpa Sugoroku. However, assembling a decent deck wasn't as easy as it seemed. Crucial cards such as Monster Reborn, Graceful Charity, and Pot of Greed were rare enough, and collecting support Spell and Trap cards for a Silent Magician-themed Spellcaster deck was proving just as difficult.
"Go for it, Hoshino!" Yugi cheered from the sidelines, clearly interested in any conversation involving Duel Monsters, even though he was a bit clueless when it came to romance.
"Could you let me see the remaining cards you don't need?" Yugi asked as he picked up the cards Hoshino handed him. "Even if they're not particularly powerful rare cards, they can still be incredibly useful if they fit well in the deck. Take this card you just gave me, [Lightforce Sword], for example. It's very practical!"
[Lightforce Sword Trap Card Effect: Banish 1 random card from your opponent's hand, face-down. During your opponent's 4th Standby Phase after this card's activation, return that card to their hand.]
Hoshino waved her hand dismissively. "This kind of card with random effects and no card advantage? Yugi, if you want it, just take it."
"Really?" Yugi seemed a little happy as he quickly added Lightforce Sword to his deck.
"This is the last pack, Hoshino." Sugoroku handed it over with a twinkle in his eye, a grin spreading across his face like a cat watching a trapped mouse. "Of course, if this pack doesn't have what you're looking for… I'd be more than happy to give your next month's salary in advance."
"No, thank you!" Hoshino rejected Sugoroku's 'kind offer,' snapping her partially constructed deck shut as her deep red eyes began to swirl with thoughts.
"I just realized... Why am I wasting my money in a small shop that sells cheap, low-quality cards? If I want rare cards now..."
"A small shop that sells... low-quality cards (°ー°〃)?"
"Hoshino, you're not thinking of...?" Yugi's expression became complex as he grasped what Hoshino was planning.
"Tomorrow, when Battle City resumes, I'm going to hunt for rare cards too!"
"Is that okay...?" Though it seemed somewhat reckless, Yugi couldn't find a reason to object.
"Anyone brave enough to enter the Battle City tournament must have already prepared themselves for the possibility of losing their rare cards, right?" With her target in sight, Hoshino's determination only grew.
"If anyone's going to claim those rare cards, it should be me—not those Rare Hunter fanatics." Hoshino's eyes sparkled with fierce determination. "I'll make sure those rare cards end up in the right hands… mine."
"Hoshino-nee, you're amazing! Only you could spin greed into something so… noble," Akasha teased, her eyes gleaming with mischief.
[Hoshino Chiyuki—class change: Rare Card Hunter]
(***)
Evening—
"I'm revived!" Hoshino patted her content stomach, wearing a blissful expression.
"Grandpa Sugoroku's cooking is delicious~" Akasha chimed in, smiling.
Watching Hoshino, who had just devoured three bowls of rice, Sugoroku smiled meaningfully. "It's good for a growing child to eat more. But it seems like we'll need to prepare extra food from now on."
"Hey, Hoshino..." Yugi glanced awkwardly at Hoshino's stomach and asked, "Have you lost weight?"
"Lost weight? Really? I didn't notice."
Yugi nodded confidently. "It feels like you've gotten slimmer since the first time we met."
"The first time we met..." Hoshino tilted her head as she tried to recall.
When Yugi first met her, she had been a shut-in who did nothing but stay home and play games all day. But ever since coming to this world, her physical activity had multiplied several times, and she often went without meals...
"Yeah~ it's hard not to lose weight." Sighing, Hoshino looked down and smiled bitterly. "I just hope I don't lose weight in the wrong places."
"Hoshino-nee, when are we going to your room?" Akasha tugged on Hoshino's arm impatiently. "I want to see what Hoshino-nee's room looks like."
"Oh? Does Akasha-chan want me to smother her in bed?" With a mischievous grin, Hoshino stood up, waved to Sugoroku and Yugi, and left.
"Smother... smother?" Caught in his imagination, Yugi's face flushed bright red. Wow, Yugi, your face sure is turning red easily today.
"Well then, Grandpa, Yugi, I'm going to take Akasha-chan back now. After dueling all day, I'm a bit tired, and I need to go to bed early to prepare for tomorrow's rare card hunt."
"Hoshino-nee, you're acting just like a member of Rare Hunters now. They, too, are always eager to hunt for rare cards every day!" Surprisingly, Hoshino, the amateur rare card hunter, had received approval from Akasha, the professional.
"That's great to hear! But before that..."
[System activated]
[Duelist level evaluation complete. Duelist Tenma Gekko, Duelist Rank A, duplicate level rewards deducted, victory reward: 60 Saint Quartz, remaining Saint Quartz: 122.]
"Not bad, as expected of a perfect duelist. But I still haven't met Gekko... Could it be that he's already going to the afterlife?"
[Duelist level evaluation complete. Duelist Labyrinth Brothers, Duelist Rank C+, duplicate level rewards deducted, victory reward: 0 Saint Quartz, remaining Saint Quartz: 122.]
"Useless..."
[Duelist level evaluation complete. Duelist Tenma Yako, Duelist Rank B, victory reward: 45 Saint Quartz, remaining Saint Quartz: 167.]
"A little bit lower than Gekko, huh? Must be because he relied too much on the Wicked God Cards."
[Detected victory in a Shadow Game against Duelist ID 001 Hoshino Chiyuki. Awarding SSR-exclusive Summon Ticket.]
"This... I sense the presence of a new waifu!"
(*****)
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