Chapter 72

In the sunlight, the Dimensional Squad marched in orderly formation, steadily advancing toward Whitebone City.

General Fried: "Since the Ghost Princess defeated Hades and took the Throne of the Underworld, all matters concerning Whitebone City and the capture of elves have been entrusted to the Whitebone King."

"The princess herself is constantly elusive, appearing and disappearing without warning."

"So, our primary target this time is 【Whitebone King】."

You Tian, who had been tricked by General Fried into accepting the deck and temporarily becoming leader of the Dimensional Squad, stared at Fried with a blank expression.

"You mean, before I even face the Ghost Princess, I have to fight that 【Whitebone King】 first?"

General Fried let out an awkward laugh.

"Ah, Lord You Tian, it's unavoidable!"

"It's said the Ghost Princess is utterly unpredictable. We can only force her out by defeating her subordinates—only then can we deal with her."

"Otherwise, even if we reach Whitebone City, we'll be like headless flies, scrambling everywhere just to find any trace of her." Find good books on Tiantian Novels, ttks. tw, super convenient

You Tian's eyelid twitched.

I knew it—this old bastard isn't trustworthy.

"Spill it. What else are you hiding from me?"

General Fried stiffened slightly.

"Hide anything? How could I possibly hide anything from you, Lord You Tian?"

"Lord You Tian, you're overthinking it."

You Tian eyed Fried with suspicion, and Fried immediately returned a smile dripping with sincerity.

"Oh, by the way, Lord You Tian." Fried suddenly seemed to remember something.

"I notice your attire is rather thin."

"Now that you're our Dimensional Squad's leader, you ought to dress like a true warrior."

Clap! Clap! General Fried snapped his hands.

From within the squad, the New Recruit Female Warrior timidly ran forward, holding two sets of armor in her hands.

Is this what a human looks like? Sister said Lord You Tian was ugly and sleazy, but up close, he doesn't seem nearly as repulsive as she described?

"Look, I've prepared everything for you," General Fried took the two sets of armor from the New Recruit Female Warrior.

"This one is called 【Rare Golden Armor】, noble and elegant—once worn, it radiates royal majesty!"

"This other one is 【Metal Silver Armor】, utterly imposing—once worn, it crushes all petty foes underfoot."

"Which one do you choose?"

You Tian's odd gaze shifted back and forth between the two armors and General Fried.

I recognize these two things!

One's effect is 【Opponent cannot target monsters other than equipped monsters】; the other's effect is 【Opponent cannot target any monsters on the field, in the Graveyard, or banished, except equipped monsters】.

In other words, both are maximum taunt armors!

You Tian: "Do you have anything else?"

"Huh?" General Fried blinked in surprise.

Lord You Tian doesn't like flashy stuff?

"Yes, yes!"

General Fried signaled with his eyes; the New Recruit Female Warrior hurried back to the squad's rear. Moments later, she returned with another armor, covered in spikes.

"This one was forged from the armor of our squad's 【Warrior Greif】, who once wandered into Ten Thousand Demon Caves and was corrupted into a demon."

You Tian stared in astonishment at the armor in the girl's hands.

"May I ask, General, what is the name of this armor?"

General Fried stroked his beard.

"This armor is called 【Explosive Armor】!"

You Tian: …

Six! I never saw the invincible Explosive Armor in Tomi-no-Machi—I found it here in the Elven Realm.

If I put this on, won't I just get instantly negated and destroyed by the opponent?

(PS: In all past Yu-Gi-Oh! anime adaptations, 【Explosive Armor】 has never successfully activated, so card enthusiasts have dubbed it "The Invincible Explosive Armor.")

You Tian gave General Fried a look of utter constipation.

Honestly, I suspect this old bastard still holds a grudge over how I outplayed his squad yesterday.

"Nope, I'm not wearing it," You Tian firmly refused.

General Fried froze again.

Huh? That's not right—these three armors are all my prized, long-collected treasures. Why doesn't Lord You Tian even want them?

Oh! I get it!

General Fried glanced at the 【Necro Offering Demon】 beside him, who wore revealing attire, and suddenly seemed to understand.

He leaned close to the New Recruit Female Warrior's ear and whispered a few words. Instantly, the girl's cheeks flushed bright red.

The girl looked from You Tian to General Fried.

General Fried nodded to her. "Go ahead."

The girl reluctantly nodded and hurried back to the rear of the squad again.

When she returned, she was holding yet another armor in her hands.

This time, the armor on her hands was extremely simple and revealing.

Its metallic texture exuded an indescribable nobility; its bold design embodied postmodern art's interpretation of beauty.

But…

"This one is called the 【E-Suit】. It's something this general collected… uh, no, that's not right — it's a very rare armor that this general confiscated back in his younger days."

You Tian's eyelid twitched as he looked at General Fried.

Isn't this that damn Falcon Lady's fetish armor!?

Setting aside the fact that this is women's armor, I don't even have headlights big enough to hold it up. Why the hell would you think I'd like this thing??

Seeing the very strange look in You Tian's eyes, General Fried was a bit baffled.

"Sir You Tian, you don't even like this one? This general actually quite likes to wear it in private from time to time. I thought I'd finally found a kindred spirit today."

"Let me ask you first — what's your purpose in being so eager to get me to put on a piece of armor?"

You Tian finally cut straight to the point and asked General Fried this question.

"Uh…" General Fried was slightly embarrassed.

"Still can't hide it from Sir You Tian!"

General Fried rubbed his hands together, his old face full of awkwardness.

"In fact, besides our Dimensional Squad, there's another squad also heading toward Whitebone City."

"That squad is called Flame Team."

"Their captain, 【Swordsman of Flame】, is an old acquaintance of mine."

"It's just that, because of certain matters, the relationship between us isn't too great."

You Tian: "Get to the point!"

General Fried's old face once again showed an embarrassed expression.

"Ahem~ The two of us made a bet before."

"Between the Dimensional Squad and Flame Team, whichever side enters Whitebone City first and defeats 【Whitebone King】 will receive a reward."

"So~ Sir You Tian, could you put on a suit of warrior armor, disguise yourself as a warrior, and not let them know you're the reinforcement this general brought in? Then~"

You Tian's eyelid twitched again.

This old bastard! He's using me as his gladiator, is that it?

Using public resources for private ends — you've really mastered that game.

"What's the reward?" You Tian asked, none too pleased.

"Uh, the r-reward, it's nothing much, just some things our elves like, ahahaha." General Fried's gaze wandered.

When it came to this part, the warriors around them all started wearing strange expressions too.

General Fried: "Hey! Sir You Tian, there's no time to lose — hurry up and pick an armor to put on!"

You Tian's eyes narrowed slightly.

He looked at General Fried, then at the warriors around them.

In the end, his gaze locked onto the 【Rookie Female Warrior】 with clear, innocent eyes.

"Alright then, General. Go bring back those three pieces of armor from earlier — I'll try the one she's wearing first."

Seeing that You Tian was finally acting according to his plan, General Fried immediately showed a delighted expression.

"Yes! Sir You Tian. Wait just a moment, I'll be right back!"

Then General Fried ran off like an old mischievous child.

"Hehehe~ lass."

The moment General Fried left, You Tian sidled up to me with a lecherous look on his face.

The 【Offering Demon】 beside us saw this and rolled his eyes at You Tian in annoyance.

"How long have you been in the squad?"

The 【Rookie Female Warrior】 shyly lowered her head and answered timidly, "Not long, just three days."

"Oh~" You Tian understood in his heart.

Basically a fresh college graduate who just started working, right?

"Hey lass, you know I just became this squad's leader, so I don't really know everyone yet."

"Do you know what that reward the general mentioned is?"

Hearing You Tian ask this, the other warriors around them all subtly drifted a bit farther away.

The young girl lightly pressed a finger to her lips.

"I'm not too sure either."

"But I did hear that the general and the captain both fell in love with the same elf woman."

"Maybe the reward has something to do with that elf woman."

You Tian: Holy shit! That old thing!

This isn't just using public resources for private ends — this is clearly treating me as their plaything!