Link system, logging off.
Returning to reality and removing the device, You Xuan saw it was already past ten in the evening. A day on the weekend always seemed to fly by. It went even faster when one spent the entire day online grinding instance dungeons for gear.
Fortunately, the grind had paid off. A quick trip around had yielded several masterless decks, including a top-tier one. This haul was quite significant; he could spend the next few days taking inventory, selling what needed to be sold, and keeping the useful ones to brainstorm new deck constructions.
While he was grinding, he hadn't noticed, but after resting for a while, a sudden wave of hunger hit him.
If he were in Slifer Red, the cafeteria would certainly be closed by this hour, and the shop would have ended its business for the day. However, the considerate Ra Yellow dorm had specifically accounted for students' needs for late-night snacks, maintaining a window that never closed twenty-four hours a day.
You Xuan pulled out his student terminal, navigated to the cafeteria interface, and scanned the menu.
Curry fried rice, curry beef noodles, curry mashed potatoes...
He silently closed it. He suddenly didn't want to eat anymore.
Ra Yellow was great in almost every way, except that under the influence of Professor Sartyr, the "curry concentration" was simply too high. To be fair, the dorm leader's mastery of curry cooking was indeed extraordinary, but no one could stand eating it every single day.
He didn't know about others, but You Xuan certainly had no desire to touch curry lately.
Usually, the cafeteria offered a rich variety of dishes, with plenty of options besides curry. But in the middle of the night, most windows were closed, and there didn't seem to be many choices.
A tactical error; he should have kept some snacks in his room.
Just as You Xuan was considering whether to just call it a day and go to bed early, he noticed an unread message notification at the top of his terminal. Opening it, he saw it was from Jaden, sent an hour ago.
"We're having a BBQ outdoors, it smells amazing. Want to come?"
The message was followed by a hand-drawn, Q-version Jaden with a giant head, flashing a V-sign.
Though the drawing was abstract, it had to be said that Jaden was a "soul artist." Through those simple lines, one could practically see that jellyfish head smiling brightly while gesturing a peace sign.
You Xuan smiled and replied, "Still there?"
Jaden replied almost instantly.
"You bet! Get over here, fast."
You Xuan stood up and headed toward the location Jaden had marked on the outskirts of the Slifer Red dorms.
Night had fallen, and the sky was dotted with stars. Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the trees, drenching the winding path in a silver glow, like a silken ribbon laid across the earth.
As he approached the area, before he even saw anyone, he heard the sounds of play and laughter, accompanied by the rich, mellow aroma of roasted meat.
"Oh! You Xuan is here!"
Jaden was the first to notice him. He stood up happily and handed over a skewer that had been rotating over the fire.
"I saved this one specially for you."
"Thanks. I was just hungry and wondering what to eat." You Xuan didn't stand on ceremony and took the roasting fork.
He sat down by the campfire and joined the group.
Indeed, the early period of GX was entirely a lighthearted campus story. The current Jaden seemed so carefree, his days mostly repeating a cycle of skipping class, playing cards, fishing, and going on outdoor adventures.
The viewers back when GX first aired probably couldn't have imagined how drastically the art style and tone would shift in the later stages...
"Whoa! A rabbit!" Syrus cried out.
"Hmm?" Chumley followed the direction of his finger. "Where? You must be seeing things."
"Absolutely not! I swear on my honor, it's really there!"
You Xuan silently ate his meat, thinking to himself that Syrus's honor wasn't worth much anyway.
"Look! Right there!" Syrus rolled up his sleeves. "Don't run!"
Then he dragged Chumley along to go catch the rabbit.
"You two, don't wander off and get lost!" Jaden shouted toward them.
An indistinct response from Syrus drifted back from the forest.
"Really, there's no helping them."
Jaden chuckled, continuing to turn the roasting fork in his hand. The meat sizzled over the fire, grease dripping onto the charcoal and sending up puffs of smoke, the air filled with the scent of roasted meat mixed with burning wood.
"Man, I'm really glad you could come," Jaden said with a smile while grilling. "To be honest, when you didn't reply for so long, I was a bit disappointed."
"Weren't your roommates with you?"
You Xuan took a bite of the meat and found that Jaden's timing was actually quite good; it was charred on the outside and tender on the inside with an excellent texture. He likely had plenty of experience with cookouts.
"Yeah, they were. But how should I put it..."
Jaden stared at the flickering flames, looking a bit lost in thought.
"Remember that time we accidentally ended up in the Spirit World? That guy named Shell said that I was a lot like him. He said that I've never actually let anyone truly understand me..."
"Oh, that. Don't take it to heart."
But Jaden shook his head. "I can't help but think about what he said. And the more I think about it, the more I feel that maybe he was right."
He paused, seemingly sinking into a memory.
"Have I ever told you? My memories of some things from when I was little are very blurry. Sometimes I feel like there's something very important I should remember. Occasionally, I'll wake up from a dream in a cold sweat, but no matter how hard I try, I can't remember what it was."
You Xuan remained silent.
He, of course, knew what was going on. It was Yubel, Jaden's first spirit. Ever since Yubel was launched into space by KaibaCorp in a rocket, Jaden had often suffered from terrible nightmares.
Later, his parents, worried about him, used KaibaCorp's technology to delete his related memories and sever his connection with Yubel. After that, he had completely forgotten the ordeal.
"Of course, I know it's normal not to remember stuff from when you were a kid," Jaden smiled. "It's just... thinking back on it now, there was a period of time where I was really lonely. My parents were always busy and rarely at home. And for some reason, I never had many friends growing up. It felt like everyone was avoiding me.
"I always felt different from everyone else. No matter how hard I tried, no matter how enthusiastic I was, it was hard to find a friend who could truly understand me, someone I could really talk to."
This was the first You Xuan had heard of this, but he could more or less guess why.
It was still Yubel's fault. Anyone who played cards with a young Jaden and lost ended up being targeted by Yubel. The children and parents in his neighborhood had certainly heard about it, so naturally, everyone stayed as far away from him as possible.
"Later we moved, and things got a bit better as I grew up. I've always had many companions and enthusiastic classmates around me. But looking back now, maybe it's just as Shell saidin the end, I still didn't have anyone I could truly call a 'friend.' Maybe it's always been that way and never changed; I just slowly got used to it."
Jaden stopped his movements and gave a small smile.
"But it's strange. Ever since we came back from the Spirit World, talking with you, You Xuan... and especially Dueling with you, I've had this thought for the first time. Is this what it means to have a 'friend'?"
You Xuan: "..."
"I heard it from Syrus's brother, that Kaiser," Jaden said. "This very week, the Duel to decide the representative for this year's match against North Academy is going to begin. Kaiser said he's going to nominate me. If nothing unexpected happens, it'll probably be the two of us fighting for the spot."
He paused and looked seriously at You Xuan.
"So, when the time comes, please make sure to give it your all. I really want to see you going at full power, You Xuan."
You Xuan closed his eyes slightly and gave a thin smile.
"I understand."
He shook the roasting fork in his hand.
"Then consider it my repayment for the BBQ you've treated me to."
Jaden smiled happily and nodded vigorously.
"In that case, let's have the best Duel in history!"
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