Shell looked at Judai Yuki one last time and gave a faint smile.
"You have good partners," he said. "I hope your future... will be different from mine."
When he finished speaking, his soul left his body. It rose with the green beam of light and shot into the sky, disappearing beyond sight.
It was probably the first time Judai Yuki had seen someone lose their soul after being defeated in a Duel. The sight left a clear mark on him.
His expression grew complicated. Yugen, however, remained calm as always. He walked forward, bent down, and picked up the Deck.
"There was nothing else we could do," Yugen said solemnly as he placed the Deck into an empty card case inside his jacket. "All we can do is inherit his will and keep moving forward."
Including inheriting his Deck.
Judai Yuki fell into silence for a moment.
".Yeah."
"It should be dawn at Duel Academy by now. Let's head back."
They had only spent a single night in Spirit World, but the gains were not small. A bone themed Deck, an insect Deck, and the cards of Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys and Demise, King of Armageddon.
Strictly speaking, the latter two could hardly be called full Decks. There were only a few cards in total. Even Shell's own Deck had been a messy pile, mixing unrelated strategies together and stuffing in random Spells and Traps to support them.
It was a style only a strong Duelist could make work.
With the support of his Spirit and his training at Duel Academy, Yugen was no longer a complete outsider to lucky draws. He could afford to be a little bold in building his Deck, but even his boldness only meant adding a few unusual cards to raise the ceiling.
Seeing such a free form construction still impressed him.
The remaining power in the card of Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys had just been exhausted. It could still be used, but it had become an ordinary card again. After witnessing the vision it showed, holding it now gave him the strange feeling of picking up a hidden quest item in an RPG starring Yugi Muto.
As for Demise, King of Armageddon, it was harder to judge. In his hands, "Demise, King of Armageddon" looked normal and showed no sign of a residing Spirit. Yet during the Duel, it had clearly been unusual.
To be safe, Yugen decided not to use a card with such an unclear background for now. He would study and test it after returning.
Some cards in the world of Yu-Gi-Oh! were dangerous. Certain evil cards required a price to control and could even harm the Duelist. "Demise, King of Armageddon" looked like that kind.
Yugen used Summon to call out Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning, who slashed open space with a single stroke.
Just before stepping into the Rift, Judai Yuki suddenly paused.
Yugen glanced at him. "What is it?"
"Oh, nothing. Just..."
Judai Yuki thought for a few seconds, then looked up and returned to his usual bright smile.
"I still don't understand everything that guy said. But I suddenly feel that coming to Duel Academy and meeting someone like you, Yugen, was really a great thing."
Yugen smiled faintly.
"Yeah. I think so too."
He turned around. "Let's go. We shouldn't keep them waiting."
"Okay!"
The two stepped inside. After the same dizzy spinning as before, they soon landed back on solid ground.
It was the same place they had left, inside Abandoned Dorm at Duel Academy, in that room carved with ancient text and Millennium Item symbols.
But when they opened their eyes, the first person they saw was unexpected.
It was Kei Kaiba.
Mokuba Kaiba turned his head and lit up when he saw them land. "Ah, you're back already?"
As Yugen had expected, not long after they left, Hayato Maeda and Sho Marufuji contacted Duel Academy. A student disappearing from the Abandoned Dorm was a serious matter, so the report quickly reached the Duel Academy Board of Directors. Kaiba Corporation sent a team to investigate, and Mokuba Kaiba, who happened to hear about it, came along as well.
Yugen briefly explained their trip to the Spirit World and what they had witnessed. After giving his statement, he moved aside and started chatting with Mokuba Kaiba.
"So the Dark God from Shin Doma has already invaded multiple Dimensions of different Spirits," Mokuba Kaiba said thoughtfully. "And you even ran into one of the new Three Swords? I heard none of them are easy to deal with."
"Pure luck," Yugen replied, still looking shaken. "The situation was extremely dangerous. Even with Judai Yuki and me fighting two against one, we had a hard time and barely won in the end."
Before he could continue, Mokuba Kaiba cut him off with a knowing nod. "Right, right. You should strengthen your Deck as much as possible. You need some Rare Cards, don't you?"
Yugen smiled. It was always easier to deal with someone familiar, and he and Mokuba Kaiba already understood each other without saying much.
"I figured you might say that before I came," Mokuba Kaiba said with a grin. "As it happens, I heard the Research Division working on Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning has made progress recently, thanks to the information you provided earlier. I expect they will contact you soon."
He paused before adding, "When that happens, come by the Headquarters. I will see what we have that you can use."
Yugen's eyes lit up at the mention of Kaiba Corporation Headquarters. That was definitely worth a visit, and he was already curious about what he might find there.
Over the past few days, he had listed many ideas for different Decks. Sometimes he analyzed the weaknesses of his current builds in various matchups and came up with new structures to cover those gaps. Other times, a newly acquired card inspired an entirely new strategy, like the Abyss Control Deck he had just completed.
That Deck was relatively easy to assemble since most of its components were generic. However, many of his other concepts still lacked key pieces, and his list of missing Cards had grown quite long. After obtaining Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys, he felt that even his main Deck could be upgraded further.
It was the world championship build from back then, the Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys Deck. Its core was obvious from the name: Metamorphosis, Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning, and Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys.
Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning was the primary attacker, one of the strongest finishers in the environment. With 2400 ATK, Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys was also impressive for its time. It had resistance to common board clearing Spells and Traps, could revive itself, and even carried a built in effect similar to Heavy Storm to wipe out Spells and Traps.
As for Metamorphosis, it allowed his monsters to transform into Fusion Monsters depending on the situation. It could easily bring out powerful Fusion threats to answer almost any board, making the Deck strong both offensively and defensively.
The problem was that he still lacked many pieces. In particular, Fusion Monsters were expensive in this era. Perhaps because GX was known as the age of Fusion, even the most basic Fusion Monsters cost a small fortune and were hard to find.
The ones currently available did not impress him, and even if he bought them, the price would feel unreasonable. Most of the Fusion Monsters on his wish list were simply not on the market.
That made Mokuba Kaiba's offer a perfect opportunity. Kaiba Corporation Headquarters would not be short on such resources, and he was already looking forward to a major shopping trip.
Meanwhile, specialists from Kaiba Corporation had surrounded the old dorm room. Equipment was set up everywhere as technicians moved in and out, scanning and recording data. Yugen and Mokuba Kaiba stood at the edge, chatting casually while also discussing the progress of the investigation into Shin Doma.
Mokuba Kaiba shook his head. "We have made some progress. We destroyed many of their bases and eliminated several Shadow Duelist forces connected to them. It should have disrupted their operations, but it is hard to say we have damaged their core."