Chapter 2: The Shop's Treasure
[Priestess Who Receives the Star Chalice] - a 2-star Normal Monster with zero attack power but a massive 2100 defense points.
Currently the tankiest monster in Amano's deck. A steel wall in every sense of the word.
In every sense... including the girl depicted on the card, who was distinctly flat-chested.
"Your gaze is extremely rude, Amano Rei!"
Right on cue, Amano heard the complaint he'd grown accustomed to.
"Are you thinking something incredibly disrespectful about the beautiful maiden Eva?"
Emerging from the card in semi-transparent spirit form, floating beside Amano with puffed cheeks, was the self-proclaimed 'Eva' - the priestess herself.
This was another difference Amano discovered between his reincarnated world and the original one.
Card spirits existed in this world.
Just like in the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime.
Of course, not every card contained a spirit. Out of all the monster cards Amano had scavenged so far, only Eva would pop out from time to time.
Initially, Amano had been shocked.
But after the brief surprise passed, he quickly accepted this reality.
He'd already been reincarnated. The world had already been destroyed once. What was one more card spirit to deal with?
Besides, card spirits existed as ethereal beings and couldn't interfere with reality at will, meaning they couldn't actually harm him.
Case in point: the furious Eva was currently muttering complaints while repeatedly kicking Amano's butt with her small, white-stockinged feet.
"Damn you! That's what you get for calling me flat! Take that!"
Unfortunately, even with a spirit girl's kicks landing on his rear, Amano felt absolutely nothing.
If you're gonna reward me, at least make it count!
Since Kikawayu was walking beside him, Amano couldn't keep teasing Eva.
Based on his observations, duel spirits seemed visible only to their card holders.
Kikawayu's complete lack of reaction was the best evidence.
Ignoring Eva's existence, Amano made casual small talk with his best friend the entire way.
They crossed the junk-filled, dilapidated streets until they reached District 32's only card shop.
[The Tsundere Duelist]
Anyone brave enough to open a card shop in District 32—where duelists barely existed—clearly had other income streams, or they'd have closed down long ago.
The shop name was a bit weird though. Was it written backwards by mistake?
Pushing the door open, the cheerful bell chime woke the drowsy shop clerk from her noon nap behind the counter.
That's right—this card shop's owner not only dared to operate in the slums, but also specifically hired a cute female clerk as the shopkeeper.
"Yui, slacking off again?"
Hastily wiping away the drool from her nap, Yui relaxed when she spotted Amano, patting her chest with relief.
"Scared me! Oh, it's just you, Amano. I thought an actual customer came in."
"Am I not a customer?"
"Boss says only people who can pay are customers."
The girl wore her pink hair in twin tails, dressed in youthful, energetic fashion, with delicate facial features. Yui was definitely one of District 32's most famous beauties.
Having grown up together, the group was fairly close.
Except Yui seemed to harbor some inexplicable hostility toward Amano... No, more accurately, the hostility didn't actually originate from Amano himself.
"Pardon the intrusion~" Kikawayu followed Amano through the door.
"Of course you came too." The instant Yui saw Kikawayu, the hostility in her eyes intensified.
I'm a beautiful shopkeeper! The sunflower blooming in the slums! I should be the cutest, most eye-catching girl on this entire street!
So what's your deal?
How is a guy cuter than me?
Maybe I should hire you as the shopkeeper instead!
The source of the girl's inner fury: nameless jealousy toward Kikawayu's appearance.
And because Kikawayu was constantly paired with Amano, Yui's hostility extended slightly to his best friend as well.
Amano Rei: "Too bad for you—I'm actually here to spend money today. The customer is king, and if your attitude sucks, I can file a complaint!"
"You're here to spend money?" Yui looked utterly incredulous. "What cards are you planning to buy?"
"First, I need the shopkeeper's smile. Remember, I'm the king, and I have complaint privileges."
"Uh..." Yui's lips twitched stiffly as she forced out a customer-service smile. "What kind of cards would this customer like to purchase?"
"These ones. Take them out and show me." Amano pointed toward the corner of the counter, where a box of jumbled cards sat collecting dust.
Yui's service smile vanished instantly, as if maintaining it one second longer was wasteful. "Heh. That's it?"
The box contained the cheapest magic and trap cards—outdated cards with almost no strategic value that had been phased out of competitive play.
Even though they were obsolete, magic and trap cards still sold for a bit more than worthless monster cards in Eden Tower's lower districts.
"1,000 Eva Points each. Pick whatever you want." Yui waved dismissively.
[Eva Points] - the universal currency within Eden Tower.
You could use them to purchase anything, including cards of course.
Amano glanced at his right wrist, checking the balance displayed on his mechanical terminal—similar to a digital watch.
Eva Terminal - the essential device that every person in Eden Tower was forced to wear from birth. It stored each person's Eva Points.
Since yesterday was payday, his balance showed exactly 1,000 points.
"So expensive." A single card that almost nobody used cost an entire month's wages for a normal slum resident.
Amano couldn't figure out if cards were too expensive or if the lower levels were too poor. Was card pricing weird, or was this entire world weird?
"I get it now, Rei." Kikawayu behind him suddenly slapped his palm in realization. "You specifically called me here to help you pick cards, right? Don't worry, I've got great taste!"
"Nope." Amano denied it.
"Then why'd you drag me along?"
"To borrow money."
"..."
His current garbage deck contained 37 cards. Even spending an entire month's salary on one magic or trap card would only bring him to 38.
Amano didn't want to wait another month.
Besides, Kikawayu had parents supporting him, unlike Amano who lived alone while covering his sister's expenses too.
He should have at least a bit more money.
"How many points do you have?"
Kikawayu checked the terminal on his wrist. "1,001 points."
Just one extra point!
Amano let out a heavy sigh.
"You've got some nerve sighing at me!"
Even for best friends who grew up naked together, Kikawayu couldn't hold back anymore.
"Rei, you bought a card last month too, remember? You do realize that this month, you and little Shio have been eating on my dime!"
Oh right, that did happen, didn't it?
Can't be too heartless.
"Sorry, my bad, Yu."
"Good that you know."
"So, hand it over."
Amano activated the moral trap card [Just Take It], appropriating Kikawayu's last 1,001 Eva Points for himself.
Kikawayu: QwQ
Conscience? Sure, he had one. Just not much of one.
Nothing was more important than completing a full deck.
Inside Eden, having a complete deck in hand meant you had at least some ways to make money.
Buying two cards at once would bring Amano's deck to 39 cards.
Plus, today was the long-awaited upper district garbage processing day. High probability he'd find one more unwanted monster card.
That would complete the basic 40-card deck. Mission accomplished.
"Let me see." Yui curiously leaned over the counter, peeking at the first trap card Amano selected.
[D2 Shield] [Trap Card: Activate by targeting 1 face-up Defense Position monster you control. That monster's DEF becomes double its original DEF.]
"Oh, surprisingly good choice." Yui sounded impressed.
Honestly, among this pile of unused magic and trap cards, this one had pretty decent utility.
Well, barely usable at best. Compared to expensive, versatile magic and trap cards, the gap was still enormous.
Warm afternoon sunlight streamed into the shop. Yui adopted a lazy posture, elbow propped on the counter, palm supporting her fair cheek, chatting idly while watching Amano select cards.
"Amano, listen. Instead of wasting money on this garbage, why not save up more points and buy our shop's treasure? That way I'd get a bigger commission!"
"Shop's treasure?" First time Amano heard about this. His interest piqued. "What is it?"
"There." Yui jutted her chin toward the highest shelf in the back, where a single trap card sat.
Judging by the card border, it was the rarest UR tier. The owner had even protected it with a fancy card sleeve—treatment clearly different from the other cheap cards.
Listed at 10,000 Eva Points. Definitely beyond what Amano could afford. Yui was purely making casual conversation, joking around.
[Trap Card - Mirror Force]
Amano Rei: "Even dogs wouldn't use it."
Yui: "Huh?"
Because [Mirror Force] had never successfully activated once throughout nearly a thousand episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! anime, it became crowned as the cursed failure card of cosmic will itself.