As the system reward notification chimed, You Feng suddenly understood.
So the daily check-in system was tied to the duel score!
"Interesting... That'll give me more of a reason to push harder," he muttered, a glint in his eye.
Turning calmly, You Feng walked over to Mazaki Anzu and returned the duel disk to her.
"Thanks for letting me borrow the Duel Disk, Anzu," he said with a light smile.
Anzu reached for it with both hands, her fingers brushing his briefly. Her face flushed lightly, her gaze flickering away.
She couldn't explain why, but she found it difficult to look him directly in the eye. Her heartbeat quickened. Maybe she was just nervous?
"No need to thank me. We're friends now, aren't we?" she said with a smile, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"Of course," You Feng replied, blinking in faint surprise. He hadn't expected her to acknowledge their friendship so soon. That was unexpected.
"Wait—how do you know my name, anyway?" Anzu asked softly.
"You guess!" he replied, grinning.
"Let's keep that a secret for now."
He smiled mysteriously. Any clever duelist knew when to hold their cards—and their words—close to the chest. The less you revealed, the greater your mystique.
That kind of mystery was often more powerful than a monster effect.
Anzu blinked, caught off guard by the answer. Still, she found it oddly charming.
"Then what's your name? You're not going to make me guess that too, are you?" she teased.
"You Feng. You as in 'Game', Feng as in 'Wind'. Like the breeze rustling the maple leaves."
After introducing himself, he turned away from her and walked toward Yugi Mutou.
"Yugi, I want you to have this," You Feng said.
He revealed a card held between his fingers—then flicked it with a practiced motion. The card spun in the air toward Yugi.
Startled, Yugi caught it carefully with both hands.
He turned it over slowly. His eyes widened.
The sealed right arm of the forbidden one—Exodia's piece.
"You Feng… this is my grandfather's card. Thank you!" Yugi said, visibly moved. "But… why are you giving this back to me?"
You Feng gave a casual shrug. "Think of it as letting you hold onto it for now. You need it more than I do."
Even though Exodia's pieces were powerful, a single card alone was useless. Without the full set, it was dead weight.
There were no real benefits to You Feng in holding onto it—especially since it rightfully belonged to Yugi.
Keeping it would only breed resentment. Better to earn goodwill than cling to something of little value.
And asking Yugi to trade away the remaining pieces? That was impossible—this set had belonged to Sugoroku Mutou, Yugi's grandfather. Even if Yugi were willing, it would feel wrong.
Besides, Exodia's synergy only worked in full. One or two parts in any deck just slowed you down.
"I still don't know how to repay you," Yugi said. "But thank you, truly."
Then, after a moment of thought: "Wait—are you from the Southern Duel Academy?"
Author Note (PS): New book officially launched! This is the fifth update today—please send flowers and tickets! More chapters coming soon! Feel free to gift and vote monthly! Thanks for all your support! Let's blow this up!
"Southern Duel Academy?" You Feng echoed. "No, not exactly."
"Huh? But you seem like someone trained there," Yugi said curiously.
You Feng blinked again, then smiled. "Why? Are you interested in it?"
"Well… yeah," Yugi nodded. "According to the Duel King Gold Rankings posted today, Southern Duel Academy has produced some really strong duelists. I was thinking of going there—maybe learn a few new techniques."
His voice was serious now, filled with determination.
"Yugi! I was thinking the same thing!" Jounouchi said, suddenly stepping in and throwing an arm around Yugi's shoulder.
"In three months, Duelist Kingdom is coming up again! We've got to train and sharpen our skills before that happens!"
You Feng paused, slightly amused.
In the original anime, Yugi and Jounouchi were already legends. People like Judai Yuki came from that Southern Academy era, far in the future. But in this crossover world where timelines seemed blurred… things were different.
Still, the idea of Yugi Mutou going to Southern Duel Academy? That was hilarious.
"Honestly, there's nothing too special about that place," You Feng said. "If you're interested, go for it. But me? I'd rather challenge the elite head-on—go gym to gym, test my skills against the best."
"Gym to gym?!" Jounouchi repeated, stunned.
This guy was too wild!
Southern Duel Academy was known to be a powerhouse, and this guy wanted to… invade it like a rogue duelist?
"You know what?" Anzu said, stepping forward with a smile. "Let's all sit down and talk about it over lunch. I'm buying!"
She was happy to see You Feng blending in with them so well.
Better to seize the moment now—who knew when they'd see him again?
"Sounds like a plan!" Jounouchi grinned. "School's on break for the summer anyway. Why don't we go to Southern Duel Academy together as a team?"
"Tomorrow, by plane!" he added, pumped.
"Leave the flight arrangements to me!" Honda said, puffing up with confidence.
You Feng blinked again. This timeline, this world… it was absurd. And somehow, completely his style.
---
The Next Day
At the head office of Southern Duel Academy, Principal Sheppard (Shashima) picked up a call.
"Yes, this is Principal Sheppard of Southern Duel Academy speaking."
"A private plane? Arriving today?"
"They plan to stay and study for a month?"
His eyes lit up. "Understood!"
He hung up and turned with a grin.
"Professor Chronos, guess what? A group of duelists from Domino City want to stay here for a month and train!"
"Oh-ho! That's splendid, Headmaster!" Chronos said, eyes gleaming. "Ever since the Duel King Gold Rankings came out, our academy's fame has skyrocketed!"
"I'm even considering holding another entrance exam to welcome duelists from other regions! Noney!"
"You're right," Sheppard agreed. "Right now, we and a few other branch campuses are the only structured duel academies out there. If we move fast, we can secure the top talent from Domino and the Satellite region!"
Chronos grinned. "Then let's get to work!"
And with that, the Duel World expanded even further.