Chapter 574: Meeting the Young Lady Again (4k)

The Vampire Empire.

One of the first dimensional coordinates Tenjou Hikari had obtained, back during the Seven Stars period, when Professor Professor Dadesi had dispatched the "Seven Stars" duelists he controlled to duel Tenjou Hikari and his friends.

At that time, as one of the Seven Stars, the "Vampire Lady" had engaged in a tag duel against Tenjou Hikari and Maruto Ryō.

Although Tenjou Hikari and his partner won that duel, the process had been quite arduous. If it had been a one-on-one duel, it was unlikely that Tenjou Hikari or Maruto Ryō could have defeated the Vampire Lady so easily back then.

Regardless, a win was a win. The students had ultimately defeated the Seven Stars, leaving the vampires with no room to refute them.

In the end, Tenjou Hikari obtained the powerful "Vampire Lady," who had helped and "saved" him many times since.

Regardless, the Vampire Lady, Vampire Sorceress, combined with Fusion Dragon or Underworld Dragon tactics, had performed well for Tenjou Hikari. The Vampire Lady, in particular, had been a life-saving measure in many duels.

Although Tenjou Hikari now possessed the broader-range protection of "Arcana Force XIV - Temperance," it did not mean the Vampire Lady had lost her value. After all, who knew when he might suddenly need her?

You never know.

Regardless, Tenjou Hikari still had relatively few "Undead" monsters in his possession. If possible, he liked letting the Underworld Dragon out for a stroll; Tenjou Hikari could feel that those spirits brought from the S-Dimension generally enjoyed being summoned.

It wasn't because they were bellicose; they simply wanted to catch some fresh air.

Tenjou Hikari stood before the castle gate, looking at the dim, towering structure, and knocked gently.

There appeared to be no guards.

Perhaps at this hour, the spirits of this dimension were mostly away?

Tenjou Hikari had no way of knowing.

After knocking, Tenjou Hikari stood to the side, reflecting on his past experiences.

After the Vampire Lady lost to them, she had handed over the card of her "true self," but because she was the current administrator of the Vampire Empire, she had to remain to protect it and could not follow Tenjou Hikari.

At that time, the vampires had mentioned one thing.

The shattering of the Spirit Dimension.

Before Professor Professor Dadesi had told them about it, the vampires had already issued a warning.

For some reason, some entity had shattered the Spirit Dimension. No one knew the reason or purpose behind that mastermind's actions, nor had anyone discovered them.

Regardless, because of that event, some "high-ranking" spirits in the Spirit Dimension had begun investigations.

Some were gathering strength to seek revenge, while others, fearing that this entity threatened their lives, were searching for the root cause.

The true master of the Vampire Empire, the "Dragon Blood Duke" whom the vampire spirits referred to as the "Grand Duke," had gone missing under such circumstances.

At that time, the vampires had warned Tenjou Hikari and his friends that dimensional travel was extremely dangerous and that humanity was not prepared, and that one day, they would pay the price.

A year had passed. While Tenjou Hikari hadn't felt any "price," he increasingly felt that the human world he inhabited was becoming more and more different from the "GX" he remembered.

It wasn't just because this world was a mix of "Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V," but also because of something rooted in the "foundation" of this world.

That is, the Spirit Dimension.

It was as if both spirits and humans tacitly agreed that dimensional travel would inevitably bring a "price."

All top-tier spirits and top-tier human duelists seemed to know that some kind of entity had torn apart the Spirit World and was eyeing all "life," attempting to annihilate everything.

But what exactly was it?

No one knew.

Even the Three Sages and Professor Professor Dadesi were investigating, searching for traces.

They didn't even know what that mastermind was.

Was it a single entity?

Or some terrifying force?

They didn't know.

According to the Vampire Lady, the true ruler of the Vampire Empire, the "Dragon Blood Duke," was one of the spirits who had left their world to seek answers.

But clearly—

The Dragon Blood Duke had been silent ever since and was essentially completely missing.

The castle gate opened slowly. Bats flew out, circled in the air, and then hovered around Tenjou Hikari. After circling for a while, they landed in the center of the gate. Soon, a group of "people" gradually revealed their forms.

There were those wearing wizard hats, those in noble attire, and those holding blood-red scepters. A large group of vampire spirits appeared before Tenjou Hikari, scrutinizing him as if trying to see through him.

Vampire Sorcerer, Vampire Duke, and Vampire Red Baron—quite a few had come.

After these vampires landed, a familiar figure slowly emerged and scanned Tenjou Hikari a few times.

"It's you, little purple cutie—wait, why did you change into a blue uniform?" The last bat transformed into a languid noblewoman, looking like some sheltered young lady.

Camula.

The last vampire from the human world who had acted alongside the Vampire Lady.

Tenjou Hikari shook his head: "Long time no see, Ms. Camula.

I've been promoted from the Yellow Dorm to the Blue Dorm. To prove my identity, I usually wear the Academy Chief's uniform."

"Eh—"

She examined Tenjou Hikari's clothes; it was indeed the uniform of the blue-haired handsome guy he had dueled against the Princess.

The other spirits, seeing that Camula recognized Tenjou Hikari, stopped treating him with such severity and transformed into shadows, hiding in the corners to observe him silently.

Camula led the way for Tenjou Hikari, and they walked toward the castle together.

Inside the Vampire Empire, it was deathly silent. There were no spirits to be seen on the road; only the occasional flash of red light reminded Tenjou Hikari that many vampires were secretly peeking at him from the shadows.

Tenjou Hikari followed Camula to a massive castle. The castle was much the same as the one seen during the Seven Stars duel, but even more imposing.

It wasn't a projection, but the true castle of the Vampire Empire, filled with classical and artistic flair.

Tenjou Hikari walked into the castle. Countless bats flew in from all directions. On the second floor, a massive coffin suddenly moved without wind, making a clattering sound. Then, the lid slowly rose.

A dark-gold-haired girl with her hands crossed over her chest slowly stood up. Then, under the moonlight, she gradually opened her eyes, revealing blood-red irises.

"Ah-eh-oh——————"

After rising, the girl floated in the air. After the initial "majesty," she couldn't help but stretch vigorously and let out a yawn.

Then, she lazily spread her wings, lifted her hand, and a parasol inside the castle flew out automatically and landed in her hand.

She yawned and walked to the window, gently pulling the curtain. With her soft movements, countless bats flew to the curtain to help her pull it shut, blocking the moonlight.

"Whew—slept so well." She yawned and said happily.

Tenjou Hikari was silent for a moment.

Then, the Vampire Lady looked at Tenjou Hikari and said: "Long time no see, human duelist, Hikari."

Tenjou Hikari nodded.

The Vampire Lady gently flapped her wings, beckoning the maids to have the bats bring over a square table and black tea, inviting Tenjou Hikari to sit and rest first.

In short, there was no rush.

The Vampire Lady was not surprised by Tenjou Hikari's arrival.

After handing her card to Tenjou Hikari, she had fallen into a deep sleep. Unless there was a special task, she would remain asleep in the castle as the "defeated" party until Tenjou Hikari came looking for her.

Originally, according to her expectations, she should have slept for several years to enjoy a good rest.

She hadn't expected Tenjou Hikari to arrive in just one year.

She was quite surprised.

She hadn't expected it to be so soon.

"Is... is that so?" Tenjou Hikari responded awkwardly.

He actually had many opportunities and time to visit the Vampire Empire to see the Vampire Lady, but due to various reasons, he had forgotten about it.

He hadn't expected the Vampire Lady, true to her nature as a vampire-type spirit, to be completely indifferent to the passage of a year or two. In fact, judging by her tone, she even felt a bit of regret, as she had wanted to enjoy a longer sleep.

The Vampire Lady gently picked up a cup of black tea, took a small sip, and then asked: "So, Hikari, what brings you here?

Although I am quite interested in adventure and dueling, unfortunately, until the Grand Duke returns, I cannot leave this dimension. If you wish to conduct a monster trial, I can help you test it. There are still many subjects and nobles in the Empire who want to go out and see the world."

Although she mostly just slept, she was still the temporary administrator of this dimension and could not leave at will; she had to remain here.

Tenjou Hikari had no objections to this.

He already had many spirits cooperating with him, and with Tiera to assist with spirit power, he wasn't particularly desperate for spirit help.

He was more curious about where the Dragon Blood Duke had gone.

Were there any clues about that "red light"?

"..." The Vampire Lady set down her teacup and scrutinized Tenjou Hikari. "It seems, Hikari, that you have investigated and grown quite a bit in the year I was asleep.

However—I regret to inform you that, in fact, I did not... see the shattering of the dimension with my own eyes, or rather, it was far from as clear as it was for the Grand Duke."

She tilted her head, seemingly recalling: "In fact, until now, the shattering of the Spirit Dimension has been quite magical and eerie to me. The only clue I can provide you is... that power is definitely not something a 'spirit' could achieve."

Definitely not a spirit?

Tenjou Hikari frowned and nodded.

Then, the Vampire Lady brought up another matter: "As for the Grand Duke... I can tell you which dimension he headed to. If you are truly interested and not afraid of danger, you can try to go and see."

The Vampire Lady shook her hand gently, and a bat carrying a card placed it before Tenjou Hikari.

Tenjou Hikari nodded and accepted the coordinates.

With a new lead, Tenjou Hikari felt quite good. Thinking back, he remembered another question—since he was already here, he shouldn't leave empty-handed.

So, he asked the Vampire Lady if there were any spirits on the "path of fusion" or spirits willing to acknowledge "fusion," as he really wanted to conduct trials and duels with such spirits.

The vampires had dueled Tenjou Hikari once and knew of his dueling style and beliefs, so they weren't too surprised.

Camula shook her head on the side, saying that vampires generally relied on their own wisdom and strength, and not many spirits were interested in fusion.

But on the other side, the Vampire Lady gently tapped her head with her parasol and said: "You shouldn't have forgotten, after the Spirit Dimension shattered, countless spirit factions, relying on their own strength, either built temporary dimensions or actively isolated their dimensions to maintain the stability of their worlds."

Tenjou Hikari nodded.

"But in reality, this kind of cutting is not 'perfect.' It's not as if you can precisely cut all factions into one dimension just because you want to. Sometimes, in many dimensions, there are actually some extra existences."

"You mean, in your dimension, there are still a batch of such spirits?" Tenjou Hikari's eyes lit up as he asked.

The Vampire Lady nodded gently: "Yes, Hikari..."

She deliberated and formulated her words: "When the dimension shattered, there were some spirits on the edge of our Empire who were affected and became our neighbors. During this time, we have always lived in peace."

"But, the collapsing dimension is slowly shrinking. Without the Grand Duke, our dimension is actually slowly shrinking.

Although the speed of this shrinking is not fast, perhaps it will take a hundred years for a significant further collapse to occur, but..."

Her implication was very clear.

If possible, she certainly hoped that her neighbors, who had minded their own business, could live in a more stable place.

"I see—then how can I visit them?"

The Vampire Lady couldn't help but slightly curl her lips and said: "You don't need to do that. As a human warrior who defeated me, since it's your first time visiting our dimension, it is only natural that I help you prepare everything...

Please rest in the castle for a while. I will write a letter immediately to contact the Duke and the Princess."

The Duke and the Princess?

"Could it be... the Undead?" Tenjou Hikari guessed a possibility.

"You actually know?" The Vampire Lady was surprised, then said, "That's right, it is...

The Duke of the Undead and the Spirit Princess Yūri."

(End of Chapter)