Yu-Gi-Oh! Reborn As a Dark Signer!

Prima Ballerina: What an impressive duel! I'm still trying to wrap my head around this Synchro Summoning, but even with what little experience I can tell that it's powerful. Plus, the way she summoned such a powerful monster using only one card… I didn't know a plant deck could be so strong!

I just grinned at Alexis's words, savouring the praise. It had been a pretty basic duel, but it was enough to impress the others for now. I'd sent the video to the group chat on the way back to my dorm room.

Black Sun (Admin): Ah, it's not that hard to figure out. You just need to remember about the Tuner and have consistent ways to get them to your hand. And I wouldn't say it's Plant Decks specifically that are so strong, it all depends on how you build it. But Akiza is a hell of a duellist with a lot of potential.

God's Tongue: I'll say. I didn't quite understand everything going on, but I do appreciate how you both kept describing how your cards worked since it made it easier to keep up. I think Hisako and I will better be able to play the game from now on thanks to this duel!

Ashen Demon: It seems interesting… I might like to try it at some point, maybe.

Black Sun (Admin): Well, that was my day today. What's going on with the rest of you?

Prima Ballerina: Oh, not much really. Just focusing on classes, and fine tuning my deck in the meantime. I was able to use my points from missions to buy some fairly good cards for my deck. But I actually had a small question for you?

Black Sun (Admin): Go ahead.

Prima Ballerina: Why was it you had that Black Rose monster in your Extra Deck? It didn't seem like a really fitting card for your deck theme to me, and I'm still confused on why you would put it in there.

I blinked… And then I realised, Alexis probably wasn't used to the idea of 'staple' cards, they hadn't come up in our discussions after all since it was very normal for me for others to already know about staples.

Black Sun (Admin): It's because it's an easy card to summon out, a 'Staple' if you will. Staples are basically cards that can go in most decks and be used. Pot of Greed is a good example, you can put that card in almost any deck, and it will be good. There's also Mirror Force, Magic Cylinder, Graceful Charity, Monster Reborn… In this instance, Level 7 Synchro Monsters with miscellaneous materials- that is to say, the material requirements are just a Tuner and a non-tuner rather than a specific type of monster- are considered exceptionally good since you only need a Level 3 and a Level 4 monster- including a tuner among them- at minimum. Honestly, Black Rose Dragon is considered a much better staple over Moonlight, but I don't have Black Rose Dragon.

Prima Ballerina: Oh, I see! That makes sense, I'll have to remember that.

Goth Thunder: Getting back to the question, I can kind of hear voices outside of my tree now? I think I heard Annabeth the other day, but I'm not entirely sure.

God's Tongue: I'm sure you're making progress, Thalia-san. You'll get there eventually.

Goth Thunder: I sure hope so…

God's Tongue: I got to sample a Five Star Restaurant run by an Alumni of Totsuki Academy the other day. It was magnificent, even my God's Tongue couldn't find any flaws in the dish.

Goth Thunder: Ugh, now you're making me hungry, Erina… You'd better send me something to eat to make up for this.

God's Tongue: Well, I did want to try making some new dishes, so I suppose I can make a few and send them to everyone.

Ashen Demon: Ah… Great. I've been training a lot more recently… My birthday is coming up, and my father is going to let me have my first mead.

Goth Thunder: Oh right, you're the oldest one here and can legally drink… Wait, why didn't your dad let you have one sooner?

Ashen Demon: I don't really care for drinking, and my father is rather overprotective of me. He made it clear that I wasn't allowed to drink until I was twenty, and I had no reason to disagree with him.

Prima Ballerina: Talk about an overprotective father.

God's Tongue: Must be nice…

Goth Thunder: Must be nice…

Sea Diva: Must be nice…

Prima Ballerina: Er… Did I just… Step on a Trap Card?

I snorted in amusement… Yes, Alexis had definitely stepped on a Trap Card. Erina, Thalia, and Uta all had terrible fathers… Well, Uta didn't have a bad father. Shanks had just let Uta believe that he had been the one to destroy Elegia and had left her in the care of someone else so as to make sure she never learned the truth if possible. She just thought he was a bad father and an evil person.

Deviluke Princess: Hi, hi! Sorry for taking so long to get here, but I'm happy to announce that I've finally figured out the Duel Disk Technology and I'm going to start introducing Duel Monsters and Duel Disks to my planet, Deviluke!

Prima Ballerina: Wow, it's barely even been a week since Yuno sent it to you! Excellent job Lala!

Deviluke Princess: Hehe~! It was a little tough, but I was able to figure it out! My thanks goes to Yuno, not only for sending me the Duel Disk, but he even sent me a card encyclopaedia of all the existing cards in his timeline! I'll have to make sure to modify some things since we aren't from Earth, and I'll make a super powerful card based on daddy so that he'll be happy with it too, but I'm sure things will turn out great!

Prima Ballerina: Any chance you can send me a high tech Duel Disk when you start production? From what I know about you, you'll probably go all out modifying it, and I'd like a new Duel Disk. The KMC Mass Production Disk is nice and all, but it's a bit heavy on my arms and it can sometimes dig in a little too harshly.

Deviluke Princess: No problem! I noticed that too, so I plan to make a more compact version with Solid Hologram Technology and some extra features to lighten the load! By the time I'm done, the final product shouldn't be any bigger than one of those 'Tablet' thingies that Erina showed us, though a fair bit thicker since it has to hold a deck.

I blinked in surprise, as I could see what Lala was describing was the Duel Disk from Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V… To think her technology and thought process were that far along… Very impressive.

Prima Ballerina: That sounds amazing, thank you so much!

Deviluke Princess: Hehe~! This is nothing for my friends!

Sea Diva: There's nothing much going on with me… Still on this island, still making songs, but I've really expanded my repertoire and song list thanks to everyone sending me music and helping inspire me! I'm saving up points right now in order to travel to one of your worlds and try to be an idol there first before I do it back in my own world! After all, if I do it there once, then I can definitely do it back home!

God's Tongue: Ah, so like a trial run? You're very exotic and beautiful in appearance, you would definitely be a top class idol in my world.

Deviluke Princess: Mine too! Plus, we could broadcast you to the entire Galaxy- no, the Universe! We'll make you a Universe Level Idol!

Sea Diva: That sounds amazing!

Tez snorted in amusement. "Looks like she's not coming here, aren't you sad?"

"Hey, I have plenty of time," I retorted in amusement. "Besides, slow and steady wins the race as they say."

"Those hussies better stay way from Master," Pandora huffed, crossing her arms under her bust.

"No yanderes, Pandora," I warned her again. She just looked away and pouted. "Honestly, what am I going to do with you?"

"Breed me?" She asked hopefully.

"Only when you stop being a yandere."

"Tch…"

Black Sun (Admin): By the by, has anyone cleared some of the 'permanent' missions?

Prima Ballerina: No, though I'm confused by mine? It says that I need to defeat someone called Jaden Yuki in a duel… I looked him up, but all I'm seeing is a series of reports about patients falling into comas for shorts amounts of time after duelling him.

God's Tongue: What!? That's horrible!

Black Sun (Admin): Do the reports stop?

Prima Ballerina: Er, yes… It looks like they stop around the time of the Kaiba Corp competition for a card design which… Jaden seems to have won with his design for 'Elemental Hero Neos.' Anyway, the reports seem to stop shortly after. I wonder why?

Black Sun (Admin): Hm… It might be the doing of a Duel Spirit.

God's Tongue: Duel Spirit? What's a Duel Spirit?

Prima Ballerina: Those are just rumours. Supposedly Duel monster cards aren't just cards, they supposedly contain spirits within them that exist in a different plane of reality known as the Spirit World. But those are just legends and rumours, there's no way they actually exist.

Tez frowned. "Don't exist? I knew that people were sceptical, but to think spirits have been reduced to mere rumours and hearsay… How annoying."

"Hey, don't get mad Tez," I told him. "Remember, only a few people can see- let alone interact- with Duel Spirits. Duellists may be able to communicate with their hearts through emotion, but only a few can actually communicate with their spirits."

"Hmph… I'm still annoyed."

I just rolled my eyes… Sensitive little cat.

Black Sun (Admin): Duel Spirits are very real, Alexis. In fact, I can see and interact with my Duel Spirits. Why don't you buy Duel Spirit Communication Talent from the shop if you don't believe me? It's only about 5,000 Points.

I'd been surprised that the ability to communicate with Duel Spirits had been reduced to a mere 5,000 points… Though, at the same time, I understood why. In the grand scheme of the Multiverse, being able to talk with your cards was probably valued pretty damned low.

Prima Ballerina: … It is in the shop… Oh my god, Duel Spirits are real!?

Black Sun (Admin): Yep. My Duel Spirit reads the chat with me all the time.

"Tell them I will devour their souls," Tez told me jokingly.

Black Sun (Admin): Tez says hi.

"Close enough."

Deviluke Princess: Hi Tez! Is that short for something?

Black Sun (Admin): It's short for Earthbound God Tezcatlipoca. As you might expect, Tezcatlipoca is a very long name. So, I just call him Tez for short.

Ashen Demon: … So, you talk to ghosts?

Black Sun (Admin): Spirits, not ghosts. There is a difference. Ghosts are people who have died but their spirits linger. Spirits are created that way, and don't have lingering grudges or regrets that bind them to the world in the way that ghosts do.

God's Tongue: … That… Is actually a very good distinction that I've never heard described that way before. Are you sure that you're only a first year in high school?

Black Sun (Admin): I'm very sure, I'm only fifteen.

God's Tongue: I see… Oh, by the way, I did a bit more reading on World Travel. It turns out that, when we world travel, time will be frozen in our original world unless we set a 'timer' for our return. So, if you don't set a timer, then you could be in another world for even a decade, and then return to no time having passed at all!

Sea Diva: Is that so? Interesting…

Black Sun (Admin): That is, indeed, good to know. But I should get going, I do have a bit of homework to do today.

Everyone bid me farewell as I closed the screen and fell back onto my bed, humming in thought.

"Why did you lie?" Tez asked. "You don't have homework at all."

"To think," I told Tez. "And I do have homework, just not the kind you're thinking of. We're getting ever closer to 'canon' in the timeline. Akiza is a second year in the high school division, she turned sixteen about two months ago even. When Season One of 5Ds started, Akiza was already sixteen years old… That means I need to start keeping an eye on the news to see if there are any news reports of a large red dragon surging from the stadium."

"Ah, of course… When that shows up, you will know for sure where we are in the timeline. Particularly as the Fortune Cup approaches…"

"Exactly," I nodded. "And there's one more thing… Remember that notification I got when I got the chat? It said I changed Akiza Destiny. If canon played out, then Akiza- I think- would be leaving the school in the next few months and then feel abandoned by her parents before she starts to live on the streets and duel in the underground to live as the Black Rose Witch, before being picked up by the head of the Arcadia Movement- Sayer… Or Divine. I'll call him Divine, sounds better. Anyway, if I changed her Destiny then that means she might not be leaving Duel Academy. Which means…"

"That you have the opportunity to become her support system, which will lead her further down to path of Darkness to becoming a Dark Signer…" Tez grinned. "You're quite devious… You don't even plan to do anything evil; you're just converting her to your side because you know you can. Wicked little bastard… Do you think a suppressor for her powers would go a long way?"

"A very long way."

Both of us looked at Pandora.

She huffed and glared before she sighed. "Fine, fine… I'll get on it… You want it styled like a hair curler with drill-like shapes on either side, just like how it was in the anime as you described and showed us through your memories, right?"

"You know me so well."

"No other girl would do this for you, dumb master…" She huffed and vanished.

I just chuckled as I moved over to my computer and took a seat… I had a lot of work to do…~