Main Lord Space—
"Sorry, but you're already dead."
"Oh..."
"Huh? That's a pretty calm reaction. How rare."
"Getting run over by a truck at that speed, it'd be weird if I weren't dead."
After leaving the card shop, You Ling encountered a car accident. When he opened his eyes again, even though he found himself standing in an endless pure white space, with a child who was hard to tell if they were a boy or a girl telling him, "You're already dead," it didn't seem all that surprising. Staying optimistic no matter the situation was You Ling's motto.
"Well, dead is dead. I don't have too many regrets in life," You Ling said calmly.
Actually, it wasn't like he had no regrets at all. If he had to name them, there were two.
First, he was worried about his older sister, who had been relying on him.
Second, he was just one step away from achieving his goal of dominating all collectible card games.
Over the years, in numerous collectible card game competitions, including Magic: The Gathering, You Ling had won multiple international championships thanks to his calm mind, solid skills, and most importantly, his seemingly heaven-blessed luck.
However, just as You Ling was about to challenge his final goal—Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, the highest-selling collectible card game in the world—an accident happened.
Perhaps he had exhausted all his luck in previous competitions. Just as his journey into Duel Monsters was beginning, You Ling, after leaving the card shop, met a swift end to his life.
"It's such a shame for a talented card player like you, who's also a bit handsome, to die like this."
Although the little loli (or shota) was surprised by You Ling's overly calm reaction to death, they didn't dwell on it too much. After all, as one of the Main Gods of the space—the God of Entertainment—they couldn't possibly be fazed by such a small matter.
"Wealth and power are temporary, but entertainment lasts forever. For a rare talent like you, there's a very good place for you to go. Would you like to go there? Of course, if you choose to reincarnate as a leech, I won't stop you either."
"I'll go," You Ling blurted out without hesitation.
It wasn't even a question worth thinking about. Choosing between transmigration or reincarnating as a leech? Even a leech would know which option to pick.
"Hehe, I've received your determination!" The loli Main God grinned, revealing a sharp little fang.
"Then off to that continent you go. To achieve the final goal of your life, on that continent filled with Duel Monsters. Your goal—become the King of Games!"
As the loli Main God waved their hand, You Ling felt a sense of weightlessness envelop him, as if his entire body was falling.
At the same time, basic knowledge and language about the otherworldly Elven Continent flooded into You Ling's mind like water released from a dam.
—A continent where Duel Monsters held absolute dominance.
A completely different world from the scientific one You Ling had lived in, a Western fantasy world driven by swords and magic.
And most importantly, the three Duel Academies located on the continent:
Fusion Academy, Synchron Academy, and XYZ Academy.
These represented the three most mainstream summoning methods in the current Duel Monsters system of the continent.
"Not a bad world. It's perfect for me."
Within minutes of his death, a smile returned to You Ling's lips. This optimistic mindset was one of the key factors that had allowed him to dominate so many card game competitions.
"Oh, by the way, there's one thing I forgot to tell you."
Just as You Ling was about to complete his transmigration, the loli Main God's crisp voice echoed in his ears once more, effortlessly wiping away his smile.
"Since your original body was completely crushed, you can only exist in a soul state, attaching yourself to either a person or an object~"
"Wait! Soul state? What do you mean..."
Before he could finish asking, the moment he crossed the boundary of space, You Ling's vision went completely dark.
"But don't worry, I've already found a very suitable host for you. Plus, since magic exists in this world, if you want a body, you'll have to figure out how to summon one yourself."
Fusion Academy, First-Year Classroom—
Whoosh~!
"Huh? Did the eye on this puzzle just light up?"
After the morning's midterm summoning test, Aisha Yuna Carlos, who was in a daze, couldn't focus on the class. Most of her time was spent fiddling with and studying the strange accessory in her hands... the mysterious magical artifact that had successfully brought her to the brink of expulsion, scoring the lowest in the midterm exam.
However, no matter how Aisha fiddled with it, she couldn't activate it, let alone figure out its function. After an afternoon of research, the only thing Aisha gained was the realization that the pyramid-like accessory, with its interlocking seams, was probably a puzzle toy that had been assembled.
So, when You Ling completed his transmigration, the flash of golden light from the Millennium Puzzle's eye startled Aisha.
"Little Ai, you still have the energy to worry about that puzzle?" Sitting next to Aisha, the girl with striking red hair, Ilin, tilted her head and asked with concern.
Ilin Austin, the fourth daughter of the Austin family.
Since the territories of the Austin and Carlos families were adjacent, and Ilin and Aisha were of similar age, they had known each other since childhood and became close friends.
"Didn't Teacher Erin give you an ultimatum at noon? If you lose the next practical test, Little Ai, you'll really be expelled."
Naturally, Ilin cared more about Aisha, her childhood friend, than anyone else.
"I know, Little Lin," Aisha sighed helplessly. "But right now, I don't know what else I can do. There's a saying, 'Do your best and leave the rest to fate.' After trying so hard, I think I've come to understand that this is just my fate..."
Ilin grew anxious and quickly said, "Hey, hey, hey, I don't want you to get expelled, Little Ai. If you're gone, half the fun of my academy life will disappear!"
Although she said this, Ilin was well aware of the pile of 1-star weak monsters in Aisha's deck. Winning the practical test with such a deck was almost an impossible task.
However, Ilin Austin, known as the "Social Butterfly" of the first year at Fusion Academy due to her lively and outgoing personality, still had one last card up her sleeve to prevent Aisha's expulsion.
"But don't worry too much, Little Ai. I've already quietly talked to most of our classmates. If they face you in the practical test, they'll pretend to have a bad hand and intentionally lose the duel."
When she said "most of the class," it was important to note that due to the rarity of Duelists, each grade at Fusion Academy only had around 30 to 40 students. The entire academy had just over 100 students in total. Therefore, each grade only had one class.
What Ilin, the Social Butterfly, meant was that she had already communicated with the entire grade, and most of the classmates had agreed. After all, although Aisha Yuna Carlos wasn't particularly strong in dueling, her diligent and helpful nature had endeared her to many. Several classmates had received her help with their studies and homework.
"Thank you, Lin-chan," Aisha replied with a smile.
But Aisha couldn't feel happy.
Even if this time, she might be able to avoid the crisis of expulsion through connections, what about next time? And the time after that?
If she truly had no talent for dueling, wouldn't it be better to go home and sell sweet potatoes than to shamelessly cling to Fusion Duel Academy using such methods?
"...Hey, can you hear me?"
"Huh?"
In a daze, it was as if a voice had come from inside her head, making Aisha look around in confusion.
"It seems you can hear me. As expected, that loli Main God wasn't lying. I really did transmigrate in a soul state."
"Excuse me..." Aisha cautiously moved her lips, trying to ask.
"What's wrong, Little Ai?" Even though Aisha's voice was soft, Ilin, who was right next to her, heard it.
"Ah, it's nothing," Aisha quickly shook her head.
"Calm down, you don't need to speak out loud. I can apparently read your thoughts," You Ling suggested. "Try communicating through your thoughts?"
"R-read my thoughts?" A blush crept onto Aisha's fair cheeks.
You Ling's voice clearly sounded like a man's. The idea of a stranger reading her thoughts was too embarrassing to think about. Or was her current feeling of embarrassment also being read by this strange man?
"Who are you, and why are you doing this?" Aisha tried her best to stop her mind from wandering and attempted to communicate with You Ling. "And why can only I hear your voice?"
"The situation might be a bit complicated, so please listen patiently."
You Ling, in his soul-bound state, seemed to be able to share Aisha's vision. So, the first thing he noticed was the Millennium Puzzle in Aisha's hands.
Even though You Ling was a newcomer to Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, he was familiar with the famous Millennium Puzzle and the anime's protagonist, Yugi Muto.
Combined with the loli Main God's earlier remarks, You Ling quickly came to a conclusion after some brief thinking.
Although this world was different from the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime, based on the same rules of Duel Monsters as the absolute authority, the Millennium Puzzle had somehow ended up in Aisha's hands.
And You Ling's soul had been stuffed into the Millennium Puzzle by the loli Main God.
"This is... quite the place to end up," You Ling thought, recalling the loli Main God's smile before he left. He wasn't sure whether to be angry or happy.
Having his soul reside in the Millennium Puzzle was definitely the treatment of the anime's protagonist, the Pharaoh.
But if You Ling remembered correctly, in the anime, the Pharaoh was more like a spirit that resided within Yugi. He would only take over during duels (card games) by swapping souls with Yugi.
In other words, You Ling had now become the spirit residing within this girl, Aisha Yuna Carlos.
And if You Ling wanted to personally participate in duels, he would have to borrow Aisha's body to do so.
"I hope being a woman doesn't affect my card-playing speed."