Chapter 88: Designing Yu-Gi-Oh!
Despite his reluctance, Zhou Ning still had to attend classes from time to time in the new semester—at the very least, he couldn't skip the three weekly classes in alchemy and martial arts.
"This really feels like something out of a manga. Aren't students always the ones saving cities?"
He chuckled and shook his head, then stepped into the washroom next door to tidy himself up. After that, he took a black-and-white school uniform off the coat rack. The crisp white shirt and form-fitting black jacket looked quite sharp.
When he stepped out of the room fully dressed, John was already up. Unlike Zhou Ning, who had only failed martial arts last semester, John had flunked across the board. The only subject he passed was Theology, and that was an open-book exam. Truly the embodiment of a failing student.
At the moment, John was holding a thick stack of papers. He greeted Zhou Ning with a wave. "Morning, Wayne."
"Morning." Zhou Ning rubbed the head of John's dog, Bobby, then glanced curiously at the papers in his hand. "What's that?"
"My genius project proposal. Want to take a look?" John said, shaking the stack proudly.
"Later." Zhou Ning checked his pocket watch. 7:43 a.m. He grabbed the umbrella they had rented the night before from the hallway rack, then headed downstairs with John.
According to the weather forecast wand, it was supposed to rain all day. But as Zhou Ning stepped outside the dorm, it had begun to snow instead—huge, fluffy flakes blanketed the campus in white.
Zhou Ning was long accustomed to this fickle weather. He glanced up at the sky and didn't bother opening his umbrella, blending in with the crowd heading toward the classroom building.
The Alchemy Department was one of the largest at Vick University. The senior class alone had over 260 students, enough to fill an entire building. When Zhou Ning stepped into the lecture hall, he was taken aback by the sheer number of students packed inside.
The room was buzzing with activity. He spotted his other friend, the chubby Fred, playing a card game called Weather Cards. The buy-in was 1 Roshen. This was a unique card game in the Apocalypse World with rules similar to Texas Hold'em, but with weather-based suits. The jokers were Thunderstorm and Blizzard, which was absolutely ridiculous.
"Wayne! John! There are seats here!" Fred's eyes lit up when he saw them and eagerly waved them over.
Before long, John had joined the card game. Zhou Ning wasn't particularly interested in Weather Cards, so he sat down and picked up a nearby newspaper to read.
"Baron Kimberly's expedition team makes progress on the Puyun Plateau…"
"Bryston Kingdom's Legislative Committee considers repealing the Corn Act…"
As Zhou Ning flipped through the Darkland Post, a particular headline caught his eye.
"A string of murders occurred in the Trade District. Seven innocent victims, including Mitch Cumberland and Blake Mill, were brutally killed. The suspect, Richard Pessa, owner of the Golden Oak Herbal Shop, is currently at large. Sources say the suspect has a history of violence. Authorities believe justice will prevail and the killer will be brought to justice."
Zhou Ning read the passage word by word, over and over, a somber expression settling over him.
So in the end, Richard Pessa and his father hadn't taken his advice to seek help from the Sunwatchers. Most likely, they'd already undergone aberration.
What a shame. Richard had actually been a decent guy—one of Zhou Ning's few real friends in this world. Zhou Ning sighed, a wave of gloom washing over him.
Not long after, Professor Wesley strode into the room with his teaching materials, and the classroom instantly quieted down.
The morning class was Applied Alchemy, taught by Professor Wesley. It covered almost exclusively content aimed at mid-tier or lower-level alchemists. As an expert-level alchemist himself, Zhou Ning finally understood what it meant to be on pins and needles—restless, uncomfortable, and utterly out of place. He even heard Molly yawn inside his mind.
Bored out of his mind, Zhou Ning eventually picked up John's project proposal to flip through it.
After skimming it for a while, his brows lifted slightly.
Despite being a spoiled rich kid, John had some real substance. The proposal outlined the design of a board game.
It involved four players, each playing as a meteorologist with 20 initial health points. Players would take turns advancing based on dice rolls, collecting spell materials, weather cards, and companion cards from spaces on the board. When two players landed on the same space, they would battle using their cards, drawing to determine the outcome. Once a player's health dropped to zero, they would be eliminated.
My god… isn't this the prototype for Magic: The Gathering? Zhou Ning glanced at John in a new light. He nudged him and asked in surprise, "You came up with this?"
"As if," John scoffed and lowered his voice. "I paid for it. But it's mine now. Why? You think it's good too?"
So I did overestimate him… Zhou Ning's smile twitched. Still, after a moment's thought, he said, "It's actually not bad. But why make it a board game?"
"What else would it be?" John asked.
"You could turn it into a two-player collectible card game. Start with a basic set of cards, and the rare ones could only be obtained through booster packs. Like this one, for example."
A sudden idea struck Zhou Ning, and he changed his original plan. He pulled out a card sealed with a Mini Mechanical Warrior, placed it on the table, and wrote ATK/700, DEF/600 in the bottom-right corner with a pen.
"See this card? ATK stands for attack, DEF for defense. Let's say we're summoners, and we summon monsters like this to fight. Both players start with 8000 health, and every time you destroy an opponent's monster, they lose health equal to the difference. Drop to zero, and you're out."
He went on to explain the basic mechanics of Yu-Gi-Oh! and outlined the design direction.
John's expression shifted from confused to enlightened to downright ecstatic. He leaned in and whispered excitedly, "I think this could work… Write out the full rules, and I'll take care of the rest. You don't have to lift a finger. I'll give you 40% equity—how's that?"
Zhou Ning: …
He had mentally pegged his share at 15 to 20 percent, since he was only offering the concept and didn't need to invest money or effort. Writing up the rules wouldn't take long. He didn't remember everything perfectly, but he could always improvise.
And here John was, offering double that. Now Zhou Ning finally understood how John always managed to lose money in business…
"Deal." Zhou Ning accepted without hesitation. As long as John didn't screw things up, he was confident this would be a success.
Once the card game version of Yu-Gi-Oh! was completed, he could even work toward developing a real-life dueling experience.
Professor Wesley's class dragged on for two hours. When it finally ended, John couldn't wait to drag Zhou Ning back to the dorm to sign the contract. But just then, Professor Wesley walked over, folder in hand.
"Sturwell, come to my office for a moment."
Zhou Ning shot John an apologetic look and followed the professor.
Once they were inside, Professor Wesley set down his materials and looked at him. "Sturwell, if I recall correctly, you're still 12 credits short of graduation?"
"That's right," Zhou Ning nodded. After failing martial arts last semester, he only had 128 credits.
"Well then," Professor Wesley said after a brief pause, "the university will soon be hosting an academic exchange. The principal places great importance on this. Would you be interested in participating?"
(Support me and read ahead on Patreøn: patreøn.com/craxxtranslations.
Two new chapters are released daily—thank you for your support!
Powerstone Event: Every 100 powerstones unlocks 1 bonus chapter.)