After my duel with Shark, the school day passed without much going on.
Whispers about the duel spread quickly, and by the time classes ended, almost everyone seemed to know my name. Some students looked at me with awe, others with curiosity, and a few with annoyance, likely Shark's friends.
That night, I sat at my desk in my room, shuffling through my deck. It was surreal seeing these cards coming with me to this new world.
I pulled out Ocean Dragon Lord – Kairyu-Shin, and hold it up. This card had always been my favorite "You've got my back, don't you ?" I muttered before chuckling "How would a card hear me ? I don't think this one has a spirit." Before putting it back in my deck.
The next day passed quietly. Shark avoided me entirely, though he grunted and occasionally glared my way.
The only thing that happened was that i was approached by Yuma, Tori and Bronk.
I was eating my lunch, sat under a tree when i heard a familiar voice "Hey, Shenlong !"
I looked up to see Yuma running toward me, he was accompanied by a green haired girl and a fat guy with a cap. I think it's the guy who lost against Shark yesterday. His name is Bronk if i remember correctly.
"Mind if we join you ?" Yuma asked, dropping onto the grass before I could answer.
I shrugged "Sure, why not ?"
The girl, who I guessed was Tori, gave Yuma an exasperated look "Yuma, you could at least wait for him to say yes !"
"Man, I still can't believe you beat Shark ! That was crazy. I barely lasted 3 turn against him and you beat him like it was nothing." Bronk adjusted his cap.
"Nothing's impossible when you have a well prepared deck. And Shark underestimated me so it was even easier." I said as i took out Kairyu-shin from my deck.
Bronk leaned forward to get a closer look at my card "Whoa ! Ocean Dragon Lord Kairyu-Shin ? That's a rare one ! It cost thousands ! How did you get it ?"
"A friend gave it to me. It was my first card." I replied, putting it back in my deck.
Tori raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms "But if the duel was so easy, then why didn't you get Bronk's deck back when you dueled him ?"
I shrugged "I only wanted to see Shark's skills for myself. That duel wasn't about Bronk's deck."
Bronk blinked in surprise "Wait, so you dueled Shark just to see how good he was ? But last year he competed in the National duel circuit and was a finalist ! Why would need to duel him to test his level ?"
"I also wanted to test my level. It was my first duel after all." I grinned.
"Your first duel ?" Tori repeated, looking incredulous "You're telling me that was your first time dueling ?"
'in this world.' i thought to myself "That's right. First duel."
"Well, whatever the reason. I'm glad you took Shark down a notch. That guy's been pushing people around for way too long." Bronk crossed his arms.
"So, Yuma. Are you gonna duel Shark Sunday ?" I turned to Yuma, wondering it it would be like in the anime.
"Huh..." But before he could reply, Bronk intterupted him, but i saw the sadness on his face. Having his key destroyed must have been a shock to him. If i remember correctly it was civen to him by his father.
"Don't even think about it ! Shark was a finalist at the National duel circuit last year. You won't be able to beat him. I know Shenlong did but look at his deck and how he play. Thank you but you're not on the same level."
"He was on the Circuit ? So what. Me too, one day i'll be in it ! Shark needs to understand that he can't push people around however he wants." Yuma yelled.
Bronk sighed heavily, shaking his head "Yuma, if you're not ready, you're just going to get stomped."
I leaned back against the tree, watching the exchange with interest "If you're serious about dueling Shark, you need to prepare for it. Your deck is like an extension of you. If you don't understand how it works, how can you expect to win against someone like Shark ?"
Bronk nodded in agreement "Shenlong's got a point. Shark's the type of guy who picks apart every mistake. If you don't have a solid plan, he'll tear through you."
"I just got lucky he got a bad hand and underestimated me, if not for that it would've been a tie or i would've needed more turn to win the duel."
Yuma's shoulders slumped for a moment before his grin returned, though it was tinged with a hint of nervousness "Well, I guess there's no harm in getting a little advice then. Shenlong, Bronk, will you help me prepare ?"
"Of course we will !" Me and Bronk replied together.
I stood up, brushing off the grass from my pants, and extended a hand toward Yuma "First things first, let me take a look at your deck. If we're going to help you, we need to know what we're working with."
Yuma hesitated, then pulled his deck out of his pocket and handed it to me. I flipped through the cards, quickly "Man you don't even have fusion monsters are you in Duelist kingdom era or something ?" I slipped out.
"Duelist..kingdom ?" Yuma, Tori and Bronk looked at me weirdly "What's that ?"
"Nothing just some rambling." I replied "Anyway. Yuma, your deck isn't bad but it could be greatly improved.
Yuma frowned, scratching the back of his head "Hey, I've won duels with that deck before !"
"I'm sure you have but you lack good battle trap and big monsters that's what we're going to start with. Let's go to a card shop to buy you more cards."
Bronk nodded enthusiastically "That's a great idea! There's a shop not too far from here. They've got everything you need."
Tori, who had been quiet until now, finally chimed in "You two sound way too excited about this. Yuma's going to blow all his money on cards he doesn't even know how to use."
"That's why we're going with him." I said confidently "To make sure he gets the right cards."
Yuma's grin returned "Alright ! Let's do it ! Maybe I'll even find a card that can take Shark down in one shot !"
"Don't count on that." Bronk rolled his eyes.