NOVEL WEB Chapter 19: DSMW [19]
Friday's practical Duel test unfolded like fate itself had arranged it: Aisha versus Irene.
Albeit before that, there was a small interlude.
Every Thursday, Fusion Academy held its regular Monster Summoning class.
Because it shared a similar format, last week's class had been replaced by the midterm summoning exam. This week, however, it resumed as normal.
Of course, this time there was no luxurious magical enhancement provided by the Academy.
Students had to rely on basic summoning arrays and their own magic to summon Duel Monsters from cards.
It was just a routine class, yet Aisha was brimming with confidence.
The reason was simple: Miles.
Having him by her side gave her the courage to face what had once terrified her the most—summoning Duel Monsters.
"This time, I won't just summon a single weakling monster. Watch me, Mr. Miles!"
Aisha's rare, upright ahoge said it all: she was serious.
And in the end... she really did it.
Just as she said, she didn't summon only one Mokey Mokey.
Two beams of summoning light flared and faded, and two floating tofu-like [Mokey Mokey]s appeared before her, then materialized as cards.
Miles said, "Congratulations, you summoned two weaklings. The good news is you've got three Mokey Mokeys now. The bad news? I have no clue what having three of these even accomplishes."
Per Duel Monster rules, a Deck can include up to three copies of the same card.
If she wanted, Aisha could indeed max out her Mokey Mokeys.
What good that would do... was Miles's problem to solve.
"Sorry..." Aisha's ahoge drooped.
Perhaps because they no longer had the midterm's magical amplification, most students failed to break through in this week's class.
Miss Erin, unsurprised, calmly puffed her cigarette as she graded everyone.
Surprisingly, the top score didn't go to Kevin Seth. And of course, it didn't go to Aisha, summoner of two tofu blocks.
Instead, it was Irene Austin, likely thanks to a mental shift, who summoned a monster even stronger than what she had during the midterm.
[Elemental HERO Sparkman] Level 4│LIGHT│Warrior│ATK 1600
A balanced card for a Level 4 (at least for first-years).
But more than its stats, the name Elemental HERO caught Miles's attention.
Hero Decks were one of the most enduring meta archetypes. In fact, when Miles first got into the game, he wanted to start with Heroes.
"So they have Hero Cards on the Continent of Elves, too, huh?"
He sighed as he glanced at Aisha, now bonking her two Mokey Mokey cards together.
"Hehe~ Tofu Smash!"
"Haa..."
"Why the sigh, Mr. Miles?"
"That wasn't a sigh. I hiccuped."
"Souls can hiccup?"
"Because you're too good a side dish."
"—?"
If he could, who wouldn't want to be the Hero?
…
The next day.
Because of last week's shocking results, this week's first-year Duel test attracted a crowd of curious second-years.
As for who they came to see? It was obvious.
Was Aisha Yuna Carlos, the former bottom-ranker who defeated Kevin Seth, truly skilled—or just lucky?
Most couldn't resist their curiosity. They wanted to see another Duel.
Interestingly, Irena had even opened a secret betting pool on Aisha's match.
Because most second-years bet on her losing, the odds for her victory soared.
Which showed that most believed Aisha's win over Kevin had been a fluke.
After all, she was dominated the whole match, then turned it around with [Exchange] and Red-Eyes Black Dragon.
If that was strategy and not luck... that would be terrifying.
Nah, it was just luck.
Denialism's law of psychology: People tend to deny facts beyond their understanding.
"Little Aisha's gotten popular lately. You've got a lot of fans now."
In the Duel field, Irene glanced around the bustling crowd and teased.
"Ren-chan, you sure they're not here to watch me flop?"
"Even if you're a clown, popularity is popularity. Maybe this is your idol debut chance."
"Yada!" Aisha rejected immediately. "Let's just focus on the Duel, Ren-chan."
"Oh? A serious Duel, is it..."
Hearing that, Irene's grin faded, and her eyes grew sharp.
"Aisha, you don't actually think you can beat me, do you? Getting cocky, huh? You've never beaten me once since we were kids, pfft!"
"Clinging to past glory is a coward's move. You won't know the outcome until it's over."
Totally out of character for Aisha. Unsurprisingly, in that moment, Miles had already taken over her body through the Millennium Puzzle.
Irene thought, 'There it is again. It's like she's a different person when she Duels... Now that I'm the one Dueling her, this is my chance. I need to confirm something.'
While deep in thought, she lifted her skirt and drew her Deck from a card case strapped to her thigh.
Miles still found this thigh-holster trend... incredibly suggestive.
Especially watching a girl like Irene do it up close. It felt very different from when he used Aisha's body.
Aisha said, "Mr. Miles, the Duel's about to start... Can you move your eyes off Ren-chan's thighs now?"
"Cough, cough!"
He nearly forgot—their field of vision was still shared, even if body control shifted.
"Elves' Eyes, Deck equipped!"
[Aisha Yuna Carlos, LP: 2000]
[Irene Austin, LP: 2000]
"Duel!"
Aisha's Elves' Eyes lit up first—she had first turn.
"I Set one monster in face-down Defense Position, then Set one Spell or Trap card. Turn end."
Using the usual defensive opener, Miles was now fully adapted to the Elven card-throwing Duel style and wrapped up the first turn in five seconds.
"After beating Kevin, you must have added some new Spells, right? I'm excited to see them. My turn, draw!"
Irene began her turn and flicked her finger, flinging a Hero card to the field.
"I summon in Attack Position—Elemental HERO Knospe!"
...
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