Chapter 162: Welcome to the family

Jinzo felt as though he had just had a terrifying nightmare.

In the dream, he was only one step away from resurrection. But just as he reached that final step, a demon suddenly appeared before him.

A certain immensely powerful duelist. The duel against him not only made Jinzo realize what a chasm of strength truly was, but also made him recognize the malice of the world.

Spirits really must learn to protect themselves when out in the world. Otherwise, while you're busy dueling, you end up being NTR'd by your opponent, and then you have to be disgusted by your own lockdown effect—it's simply a disaster.

The nightmare, of course, ended with his defeat, and he even died by his own signature move. His Life Points hit zero, and a violent pain tore through his entire body. In an instant, he felt as if he were sinking into the deep sea, drifting aimlessly in a pitch-black vortex.

Cold seawater, as if from the Underworld, swallowed him whole, dragging him into a dark, bottomless abyss. He struggled with all his might, yet remained powerless, only able to feel his consciousness, which had only just half-resurrected, being swallowed by the darkness once more.

And then, he woke up with a start.

That was close, that was close—thank goodness it was just a dream.

The Jinzo spirit let out a long breath, finally regaining his composure.

Even though it was a nightmare, it had been a bit too terrifying. It took him quite a while to recover his senses, and he began to look around at his surroundings.

Hmm? Where is this?

Jinzo paused, realizing he seemed to be in some sort of special space.

As a Duel Monster spirit, he could recognize that this was some kind of sub-space—a special domain that only spirits possessed by duelists could inhabit, a barracks for warriors waiting to be deployed.

Hmm, commonly known as a "Deck."

However, he, Jinzo, was a half-dead spirit summoned by three idiots; he was a wandering ghost without a master, so where would he get a Deck space?

With a bit of bewilderment, Jinzo tried to drill out of this space, poking his head out to take a look.

And then, he shuddered instinctively, his whole body feeling as if it had fallen into an ice cellar.

It's him!

The demon from the dream!

"You're awake."

Fujiki You Xuan, who was busy researching a build based on the new cards he had just acquired, noticed the peeking Jinzo. He temporarily set aside his work, turned around, and said with a smile.

He considered it a sunny, gentle smile, and thought he was a kind and friendly leader. But he didn't expect the spirit's reaction to be as if he'd seen a ghost, shrinking back violently: "What... what did you do to me!?"

"Why say it so strangely? It makes people think I did something excessive to you."

Fujiki You Xuan muttered.

"Have you forgotten? The contract of the Shadow Duel?"

Jinzo froze.

Then, the conversation between the two sides before that card game surfaced in his mind.

"If you lose, you will become my card."

He didn't remember the exact words, but in his imagination, Fujiki You Xuan was like a demon with an evil grin, shaking that "Jinzo" card in his hand as he said it.

Jinzo's body couldn't help but tremble uncontrollably.

So the nightmare was real.

If there is anything more terrifying than the nightmare itself, it might be waking up to find you are still in the middle of it.

He had agreed to a Shadow Duel, wagering his own body. And clearly, he had lost.

The Jinzo spirit was very depressed.

In the nightmare, at least it was only his clone that got NTR'd to the other side, but waking up, he realized the traitor was actually himself. It's hard to say which is more terrifying, the dream or reality.

Forget it, forget it—what's done is done.

Actually, once his emotions calmed down, Jinzo thought carefully about the game he played last night and felt he hadn't really lost out.

If one sets aside certain actions this person took during the duel that were prone to causing personal grudges, objectively speaking, Jinzo felt this person was quite strong among duelists.

As a Duel Monster spirit, encountering a powerful master isn't necessarily a bad thing.

It's just that the game last night was played so stiflingly; the more he thought about it, the angrier he got.

No, he had to at least win back some minimal face.

So, accepting reality, Jinzo crossed his arms and nodded slightly.

"Hmm, I acknowledge your strength, duelist." He put on the posture of a superior being. "But I am a High-Level spirit. To command my power, you must pay a corresponding price."

"How about this: I won't ask for three Offerings. One Offering, and I shall pledge my loyalty."

*Shing. *

The sound of a sword being drawn.

Two other spirit phantoms appeared in the room out of nowhere.

Silent Magician and Black Luster Soldier, one with a staff and the other with a blade of light and darkness, pointed at Jinzo's head from left and right.

Jinzo looked at the staff and sword pointed at his forehead and fell into deep thought.

It didn't take long, though; his thinking took about one second.

Then he changed his tune.

"No Offering needed, I pledge my loyalty."

His voice was much quieter, too.

Damn it, he couldn't afford to provoke either of these two.

Only now did Jinzo truly realize his situation—or rather, his status within the team.

A second ago, he still felt he was a noble Level 6, a High-Level spirit. It turned out he was actually the weakest one on the whole team.

A Silent Magician, who usually looked harmless, could change size at will. She could raise or lower her level, be big or small, cute or regal. At a glance, she looked like only Level 4, but when she got serious, she could clearly beat him, Jinzo, twice over with one hand.

And the one next to her goes without saying.

The legendary Black Luster Soldier!

Who the hell could provoke that?

"Don't be like that." Fujiki You Xuan said with a chuckle. "We're all partners from now on; isn't it bad to be drawing weapons? Put them away."

Black Luster Soldier and Silent Magician looked at each other, put away their longsword and staff as instructed, and retreated to the side.

"That's more like it. Everyone should get along from now on, and you can't bully the new teammate."

That's right, that's right—did you hear the master? No bullying the new teammate.

Jinzo had already subconsciously retreated behind Fujiki You Xuan, secretly sizing up the two expressionless spirits opposite him.

Black Luster Soldier and Silent Magician looked at each other again and nodded.

"Then, let's duel happily together from now on~"

The Jinzo spirit also hurriedly nodded along, indicating that he would be of one mind with everyone from now on.

The dormitory was suddenly filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

"By the way, your Deck from last night was very impressive." Fujiki You Xuan said.

The Jinzo spirit waved his hand, indicating it wasn't worth mentioning. Didn't he still get crushed by the master?

"No, no, it was quite impressive. And I hadn't even seen those several cards exclusive to the Jinzo Deck before; they are rare cards in our world, very impressive."

Fujiki You Xuan expressed his admiration.

Actually, after the duel ended last night, his first thought was to go "loot the corpse," but he discovered that Jinzo's Deck, just like in the anime, was conjured out of thin air. After Jinzo was knocked unconscious, the Deck disappeared entirely.

But that didn't matter.

Anyway, now that Jinzo had joined their family, they were all one. What belonged to the spirit was equivalent to his own; there was no difference.

The Jinzo spirit froze for two seconds, then immediately reacted.

He flipped his palm, a burst of electricity surged, and flying light spots quickly materialized into a Deck in his hand, which he handed to Fujiki You Xuan.

"I have it! I have it, it's right here!"

(End of chapter)