Ten minutes later, the on-site investigation team from the Kaiba Group had already entered the villa.
"It is indeed Kiku Lloyd himself, no doubt about it."
A team member walked outside, holding a laptop, and approached Keihei. The smell inside the house was overpowering, a stench of decay, so Yugen and Keihei had already come outside.
"Is he dead?" Keihei asked, "Because of a Dark Duel?"
"No, I think he died from illness."
The team member reported.
"Moreover, it's not a recent occurrence. Due to the passage of time, it's hard to determine precisely, but judging by the condition of the body, he has been dead for at least three months."
Keihei was stunned.
Three months?
But they had clearly seen Kiku Lloyd just moments ago and had spoken with him; they even played a card game.
If the real Kiku Lloyd had died three months ago, whom did they see?
Who played cards with them?
Thinking of this, Keihei suddenly felt cold sweat running down. He instinctively turned back, looking towards the villa, feeling the building was becoming increasingly sinister.
The unwillingness of Kiku before death, the hideous expression, and that face pale as a corpse resurfaced in his mind, sending shivers down his spine.
It felt as if the resentful spirit had yet to dissipate, glaring at them angrily from the darkness nearby.
"Yugen..."
Keihei couldn't help but look at Yugen.
"Did we just..."
"See a ghost? Probably." Yugen said.
Keihei: "..."
Must you say such a terrifying thing in such a calm tone?
"What's wrong?" Yugen asked casually, "Didn't we just discuss ghosts being not that unusual?"
Keihei had nothing to say.
Indeed. Before the card game, they were discussing how the former Duel King was a ghost wandering for three thousand years...
So, obviously, Yugen meant that ghosts are ghosts; after all, didn't they already defeat it? It wasn't that scary.
"But I'm curious why." Yugen pondered, resting his chin on his hand, "Why did he become like this?"
In this world, people have souls, but it's not easy for them to become wandering spirits after death. Normally, the deceased return to the Netherworld, and situations like Ousama, who can wander the mortal world for three thousand years, are abnormal, often related to Extraordinary Power.
Though Kiku Lloyd was once a genius and a capitalist, he had nothing to do with the Extraordinary Side. Considering his behavior and words during the recent duel, it's easy to associate someone having helped him.
Someone gave him the ability to maintain his obsession in a soul form after death, granting him the power to initiate a Dark Duel, allowing him to complete the recent duel with Yugen.
Yugen has now read many classics, and among the Alchemy Book Collection stored at Daishiji Temple, there's much knowledge related to dark forces. Therefore, Yugen understands that maintaining spirits and even granting them the power of Dark Duels isn't something any Dark Duelist can achieve.
The one who can achieve this must not be weak.
Anyway, it is foreseeable that resolving Kiku is only the first step. The real power behind Kiku hasn't revealed itself, likely won't end here.
It seems there are plenty of troubles waiting for Kaiba to handle.
But that's Kaiba's problem.
Yugen had received a hefty payment from the president, including a warehouse of cards and even a plane, so he didn't mind running errands when the president was absent or when he happened to be free.
Sometimes there's a chance to earn extra cash.
Like today, with Kiku's Valkyrie Card Deck.
Though Valkyries are of moderate strength, their rarity is globally top-tier. The reason is simple; it's widely known that Kiku printed this deck himself, and it's his exclusive deck, so naturally, there's only one in the world.
Moreover, even if its strength is average, the advantages of the Valkyries aren't just about their scanty attire and alluring forms. The two fake Divine Cards Kiku just pulled out, the violent draw five that also silences an opponent's monster on the field, the Nibelungen Treasure, and the Time Goddess's prank, allowing for unconditional skipping of a turn, are rule-breaking fake cards.
Now Kiku is dead, and the poor Valkyries have no master to serve, so Yugen reluctantly took them to give them a new home.
"What are your plans next?" Yugen asked Keihei.
Keihei has also realized there's more behind the Kiku incident, and there's likely someone else behind the scenes causing trouble.
He thought for a moment and said, "Well, I guess I'll find Rein and see if he knows anything."
"Rein?" Yugen momentarily forgot the name.
"Oh, Rein Wilson, in full Reinhart von Schreder."
Hearing the surname, Yugen remembered. Kiku's biological younger brother, who uses a fairy tale story card deck in the original KC chapter, duels with Game in the KC Cup finals, and was recognized as a Duelist by Game. According to Kiku, his brother's dueling talent and strength far surpassed his own.
Back then, Rein was still young, just a child, yet managed to reach the finals to face Game. Now, years later, Rein has grown into a professional, active in the European professional circle. He has long been at the top of the points table in European leagues and has multiple championship wins, earning him the title of Europe's top duelist.
Despite the Schreder family business failing and Kiku's downfall post-KC Cup, his brother's incredible talent helped him thrive in the Dueling Realm, becoming a prominent figure today.
This character only had a brief appearance in the KC chapter, yet he became the patron of countless gentlemen—especially those with a foot fetish—due to an unprecedented and unparalleled act during the duel with Game.
That is removing the little boots of the Black Mage Girl... (crossed out)
"Well, good luck with your investigation; if there's nothing else, I'll head back to the Academy."
Yugen said, remotely calling his plane through the Duel Disc's system. The jet obtained from the president had the function to automatically navigate to the coordinates he specified.
"Contact me anytime if you need anything."
"Alright." Keihei nodded, "Thanks again, Yugen, I'll also tell my brother..."
As he said this, another subordinate hurried over.
"Sorry to interrupt, sir, but we've discovered some clues," he said, "The surveillance system in front of the residence is unexpectedly still operational. We extracted footage showing that someone visited this villa five days ago."
"Oh? Who?" Keihei asked.
Kiku had been dead for three months without being discovered, yet someone visited during this period. Naturally, this person is a suspect.
"Facial recognition results; this person's name seems to be... Saito Ryuya?" said the subordinate, "Seems to be just a local thug from a nearby town."
"A thug?" Keihei asked curiously, "A Dark Duelist?"
"No, just an ordinary thug."
"That's really strange." Keihei mumbled.
"Alright, looks like I'll be visiting my dorm later today." Yugen said, "Do you have an address? I can go have a look and politely ask this Mr. Saito what he knows."