The tournament ended, and the title of Duel King was confirmed.
After the match, everyone left the island, and for some inexplicable reason, President Kaiba suddenly activated the bombs that had long been set up. The whole Demon Island was instantly ablaze with flames, a long string of soaring fire erupted from the iron-forged ground, illuminating the sky with scorching brightness.
According to President Kaiba, such an action might signify his complete farewell to the past. He personally blew up Demon Island, destroying the remnants of Gozaburo's ambitions.
From now on, there would be no trace of Gozaburo in the Kaiba Group, and Kaiba Seto had also completely shaken off the shadow of the first half of his life, officially taking a new step forward.
And on this wreckage, he planned to build a brand new paradise.
Of course, none of this had anything to do with Youyu... well... at least that's what he hoped.
Leaving Demon Island and flying back to Domino City, it was already late at night.
In the past two days, with continuous high-intensity card games, first the Darkness Game and then the Virtual World, battling Egyptian Gods and dueling with the Pharaoh, Youyu was indeed a bit exhausted.
This journey had finally come to an end. Now, all Youyu wanted was to quickly go back and take a comfortable bath, and sleep for an entire day in a soft and comfortable bed.
By the time he returned to the Dream Card Shop, it was already the early morning. But when he parted with Yugi and the others and reached the entrance, Youyu unexpectedly found the shop's door still open.
White light shone through the glass cabinet, standing out particularly on the entire slumbering dark street, like a guiding lighthouse on the endless black sea.
A silver-haired girl sat behind the counter, a magazine seemingly worn and tattered in front of her, stretching her neck to look outside through the window.
The moment Youyu appeared at the other end of the street, she immediately stood up eagerly. She looked like she wanted to go out to meet him but was somewhat hesitant for some reason, making her appear a bit adorably clumsy.
Youyu walked in: "Haven't gone to sleep yet?"
"Mm... Mm."
Chinai lowered her head, her snow-white face showing a bit of redness. But perhaps due to her facial nerves being too deficient, she still didn't seem to have much expression...
She bit her lip: "...You're back."
"Why wait up so late? It's not like I wouldn't find my way back." Youyu smiled, gently patting her lowered head, "Alright, go to bed early."
At this moment, Chinai noticed the large bouquet of flowers in his arms, and the girl suddenly tensed up as if receiving a signal of enemy attack.
What's this?
Wasn't he just attending the match? Where did the flowers come from?
The foremost threat that popped into Chinai's mind was Ms. Yue Hua, who always liked to hang around Youyu, seemingly ordinary...
Then she thought of Xue Lang...
...This was even more dangerous, even being a guy was a high-risk target not to be underestimated!
"Oh, these." Youyu casually shook the bouquet in his hand, "President Kaiba gave them."
Chinai's eyes widened.
What? Even President Kaiba...
"The prize for the tournament. Yugi took the trophy back; Kaiba said he'd send me a new one once it's ready." Youyu explained casually, handing the award bouquet to Chinai.
"I have no particular use for the trophy or bouquet. If you like them, you can have them. They're yours now."
Give... give them to me!?
Chinai stood there in a daze, holding the large bouquet.
Did he just... give me flowers??
Yet, Youyu didn't notice anything amiss (partly due to the lack of facial expression from the girl) and continued talking to himself: "This trip was really exhausting. You can't imagine, we ended up playing cards under the sea and even ran into a crazy computer AI...
...Hey? Chinai, are you okay? Why are you fainting?"
...
After a long ordeal, Youyu finally returned to his warm bed.
Before this, he had never considered that playing cards could be such a demanding activity. Playing cards made him feel drained, with every cell in his body exhausted and ready to go on strike.
He almost fell into a deep sleep the instant his head hit the pillow.
When he opened his eyes again, it was already the next morning.
Upon waking up, at first glance, Youyu thought he had dreamed some strange dreams again.
Because he saw his own magician spirit sleeping by his side, breathing evenly, long eyelashes fluttering...
Being a man, sometimes it's hard to stop oneself from dreaming about weird things, which is inevitable. But during these times, usually all one needs to do is close their eyes and then reopen them to find out...
...Damn, it seems real!?
"...Dark Magician Girl?"
"...Ah?" The girl sat up, rubbed her eyes, and the wide magician's hat slipped off her small head and fell to the side, "Good morning, Master... huh!?"
The girl was surprised to find herself materialized again without knowing when...
This was already the second time; the first was on the airship during the Duel City qualification matches.
"I... I'm sorry, Master!" Dark Magician Girl hurriedly picked up her magician hat and put it back on her head. But in her haste, she seemed to have put it on crookedly, looking a bit funny yet somewhat cute.
Youyu coughed: "It's fine, not a big deal."
Sharing a bed with one's own spirit, isn't that the duty of an excellent Master?
Youyu, as a generous and magnanimous Duelist, wouldn't mind these trifles.
But the key issue is not here...
"Are you feeling unwell?" Youyu asked curiously.
"No." Dark Magician Girl shook her head, then hesitated a bit, "But if I have to say, maybe... maybe this is the reason?"
Youyu: "?"
"I feel... perhaps it's because you, Master, have become stronger," Dark Magician Girl said seriously, "This is something only I, as your spirit, can clearly and intuitively sense."
Youyu: "???"
Wait, say it clearly so it doesn't cause misunderstanding... what's this got to do with me? I haven't done anything!
Girl, don't talk nonsense, careless words might get the Master directly escorted away...
"As I mentioned before, from our spirits' perspective, Duelists possess something called 'force'," Dark Magician Girl explained, "The 'force' we spirits have can strengthen our Master, but it's the same the other way around."
Youyu understood: "So you're saying that the reason you occasionally materialize unconsciously is because... I've gotten stronger?"
"Exactly." Dark Magician Girl stuck out her tongue, embarrassed, "I've been feeling your 'force' constantly flowing in lately. But I'm still a bit unaccustomed, which is why accidents occur...
...But don't worry, Master! I'll adjust and adapt soon! After all, since Master is always improving, I can't fall behind..."
Just then, Chinai's voice came from outside the room.
"Youyu, are you up? Grandpa told me to get you for breakfast..."
Her voice stopped abruptly.
The door creaked open inch by inch, and the girl was frozen outside, seeing Youyu... and the Magician Girl sitting in a duck-like position on the bed.
"Ah." Dark Magician Girl turned her head, adjusted her hat and smiled, waving at her, "Hello~"
Chinai: Σ(°△°|||)︴