Chapter 38: Hayato, and even little Pouf Alena, can all be taken

"Hayato, aren't you being a little too cautious?" Having been ushered inside from the doorway by Hayato, Jonouchi began complaining about the recording he had overheard while they were still at the entrance, before he had even taken off his shoes.

Hayato spread his hands helplessly. "After all, last time I encountered an armed home invasion robbery. Being a little vigilant isn't too much to ask, is it? The property security guards are just working for a fixed salary; if you want to ensure your own safety, you have to stay alert and take precautions in your daily life."

"Exactly. Hayato is just doing this for safety's sake. Encountering something like that once in a lifetime is bad enough luck," Anzu chimed in to support Hayato. She had changed into the indoor slippers Hayato had prepared and was holding a document in her hand. "Hayato-kun, these are the notes from today's class."

"Thanks, Anzu."

Hayato led the group into the living room and arranged for them to sit down and rest for a while, as the distance from the hospital to his home was quite significant. He then headed into the kitchen to prepare tea and snacks to welcome them.

"Hayato's place is really huge! The living room alone is nearly forty square meters, and the TV screen is actually this big!" Coming from a modest background, Jonouchi looked around Hayato's home like a wide-eyed tourist in a grand palace. Everything from the slim LCD TV and the high-intelligence voice-controlled smart home system to the robot vacuum on the floor filled him with wonder.

"Honda-kun's house is big too, right?" Yugi looked toward Honda. Among the group, aside from Hayato, Honda came from the best financial background.

Honda estimated, "My living room is only a little more than half the size of Hayato's. Although we have an LCD TV, it's not exaggeratedly large like a wall, let alone a robot vacuum or a voice assistant."

"Here come the snacks~ Please, don't be shy, help yourselves." Hayato emerged from the kitchen carrying a tray topped with three types of drinks—coconut milk, orange juice, and soda—along with a large platter of desserts and finger foods. After placing the tray on the table, Hayato prepared a cup for everyone. "What were you guys just talking about?"

"We were saying how big your house is, Hayato." Jonouchi poured himself a glass of orange juice and drained it in one gulp. After finishing, he asked, "Do you live alone?"

"No, I live with my parents. It's just that my father is a diplomat and is currently abroad in the UK." Hayato poured soda into a special device, filled his glass halfway, and spoke while eating a microwaved egg tart. "As for my mother, she works at a company. She's on annual leave recently, but aside from the first day, she flew to London to join my father on the second day."

"Ah, speaking of which, I almost forgot something." Yugi, holding a glass of coconut milk in one hand and a piece of chocolate cake in the other, suddenly remembered something and hurriedly began rummaging through his backpack.

In a few quick movements, Yugi pulled out a glittering golden box from his bag. The box was covered in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and featured the Eye of Wacatos on the front.

"Yugi, what is that?" Hayato asked, puzzled. If he remembered correctly, that should be the box originally used to hold the unfinished Millennium Puzzle. Why was Yugi carrying it around?

"Because I saw how you always keep your deck in that iron box for safekeeping, Hayato. I thought it would be a good way to protect my own deck, so I got a metal box too."

*You're quite something, Yugi-san. My iron box is light, and I usually just store it in the system's [Warehouse]. If I'm not mistaken, that thing of yours is pure gold, isn't it? I'll assume everyone here is a saint who won't get greedy seeing a massive hunk of gold, but seriously, aren't you tired of wearing the Millennium Puzzle around your neck? No wonder you haven't grown any taller.*

Hayato's inner monologue went unheard by Yugi. Yugi opened the golden box, took out his deck, searched through a few cards, and then drew one, handing it to Hayato with both hands. "Hayato-kun, I'm returning this card to you. Thanks to this powerful card of yours, I was able to defeat Kaiba."

It was the [Man-Eating Bug] that Hayato had lent to Yugi.

*Listen to that—now that's the art of conversation.* Hayato had been an onlooker during that duel; how could he not know what happened? Yes, [Man-Eating Bug] did indeed take out one of Kaiba's Blue-Eyes and slashed his Life Points by a full 1500, but Kaiba had revived a Blue-Eyes in a matter of minutes.

Furthermore, Yugi didn't win against Kaiba because of that card, but because of his god-tier draw of [Exodia]. Yet, in Yugi's words, Hayato was the greatest contributor to his victory. Hayato couldn't help but lament inwardly—*Yugi is such a smooth talker; the reason he has so few friends must be because his playstyle is too sinister.*

Thinking this, Hayato did not take the [Man-Eating Bug] Yugi offered, but instead pushed it back. "Keep this card, Yugi."

"Eh? Hayato-kun, why?" Yugi was confused.

"Hah, does giving a card need a reason? I'm just glad I could help, so don't be polite," Hayato said dismissively. But seeing Yugi's earnest expression, he told the truth. "Actually, I feel like this monster doesn't really fit in with my deck."

"But isn't [Man-Eating Bug] a very powerful card?" Jonouchi leaned in, looking at the card's simple and brutal effect with confusion. "If you summon this monster on the first turn, wouldn't the opponent be doomed after just one attack?"

"Think about what kind of monsters are in my deck," Hayato explained. "Dragons, Warriors, and a few Beasts, mostly Normal Monsters. This is to maximize the effect of my [Magic Sword of Soul-Eating]. But look, [Man-Eating Bug] is an Effect Monster, and it's an Insect-type, so it can't benefit from the enhancements of my magic cards."

"When you put it that way, it makes sense," Jonouchi said, somewhat convinced. Seeing this, Hayato immediately added, "Anyway, even if you give it back, I won't add it to my deck. You wouldn't want this card to go to waste, would you, Yugi? So, just keep it."

"Understood. I will make good use of this monster, Hayato-kun." Since Hayato had put it that way, Yugi couldn't refuse and accepted the [Man-Eating Bug].

"By the way, these pastries taste amazing! Hayato-kun, where did you buy them?" Anzu used a fork to pick up a cherry-shaped chocolate from a cake and popped it into her mouth, closing her eyes in bliss as the cream and chocolate melted.

"Some of it is just quick-prep food my mother made and froze in the freezer; you just heat it up when you want to eat it, like the egg tarts and cookies. These cakes and cream puffs were made by me alone this afternoon. I'm glad you like them. I have plenty left over, so if you want, you can take some home."

"Really? Thanks a lot, Hayato!" Jonouchi rarely got to eat such a sumptuous dessert feast, let alone take some home.

Time passed quickly, and after resting at Hayato's house for quite a while, Yugi and the others finally departed with Hayato seeing them off.

After closing the front door, Hayato heard the television in the living room suddenly turn on without anyone touching it. A strange-toned voice drifted from the speakers: "To give such a powerful card to *your friend*... *me* is truly moved by your friendship, Hayato boy~"

Looking at the silver-haired man appearing on the TV, Hayato showed no sign of surprise. Pulling up a chair to sit directly in front of the television, Hayato looked at the [Mission] tab lighting up on his system interface and said ambiguously, "Who knows if I gave it to him sincerely?"

*This Honda guy is just too weak~*

(End of Chapter)