Chapter 11: Ally of Justice (Certainty)

The few people gathered around the table turned their heads upon hearing Sugoroku-ji-chan’s voice.

Sugoroku-ji-chan, who had been in the back room for quite a while, pulled back the curtain and stepped out, holding a small, dust-covered box in his hands. As he walked, he kept brushing the dust off the box: "Oh my, although it’s a precious collection, I usually can't bear to take it out, so it’s actually quite hard to find on short notice."

"Oh, Ji-chan, is that a rare card inside?" Jonouchi was the first to run over excitedly. Honda and Anzu, who had become somewhat interested in the game "Duel Monsters" after watching Hayato and Yugi’s match, followed behind him.

Seeing the others crowding toward the counter where Sugoroku-ji-chan stood, Yugi quickly said to Hayato, "Hayato, let's go over too. That card of Grandpa's is su~per rare."

"Tch, you really know how to deflect. Fine, I'll let it slide." Since Yugi had taken the initiative to change the subject, Hayato temporarily dropped the issue of him "holding back in the duel" and followed Yugi toward the counter.

Still, he felt a bit of regret in his heart. Although his own deck was just the system's starter deck, the deck Yugi used wasn't the complete version he would build later on either. While there was a gap in the quality of their decks, it wasn't absurdly large. In other words, this was likely the best chance Hayato would ever have to defeat Yugi.

Despite the regret, he wasn't discouraged. With Duelist Kingdom, Battle City, and more ahead, there would be plenty of opportunities to face Yugi. Next time, he would definitely win!

Sugoroku-ji-chan was busy cleaning the small box. There was quite a bit of dust accumulated on the leather casing, and to avoid damaging the card he was about to take out, he cleaned it carefully, over and over again. It was clear that he held that card in high regard.

"Ji-chan, while you were in the back, we just finished watching a duel between Yugi and Hayato." Anzu and Honda were slightly choked by the dust and moved a bit further from the counter, but Jonouchi, acting as if he had no nose and wasn't afraid of the dust at all, crowded the closest, wanting to be the first to see the card inside. While waiting, he gave Sugoroku, who hadn't seen the duel, a play-by-play recap.

"Eh? 4000 attack points! Yugi, you're really something; you truly are my grandson." While praising Yugi, Sugoroku didn't forget to pat himself on the back, though he didn't forget Hayato either. "Of course, Hayato, you're quite impressive too. A monster with 3000 attack points isn't something you see just anywhere."

"That's right, if you ask me, that's about as high as attack power gets in Duel Monsters." With Jonouchi’s confident expression, someone who didn't know better would think he was the one who had summoned that 3000-attack monster. "Unless you use magic cards, I doubt any monster could possess such terrifying power."

"Ho ho, that’s not necessarily true." Hearing Jonouchi’s words, Sugoroku shook his head and handed over the box, now mostly free of dust.

"Inside here is my treasure. Today, I’ll let you kids see what the real deal is."

"Oh! What is it, what is it!" Now, not only Jonouchi but even Honda and Anzu crowded around, with Yugi and Hayato standing in the outermost circle.

Carefully opening the box, Muto Sugoroku put on a pair of white gloves with a serious expression, drew out a card, and displayed it before everyone: "Look, it's this one."

"Blue-Eyes White Dragon"!

"So, so amazing! Not just the attack and defense, but the pressure coming from the card art!" Jonouchi’s eyes were practically popping out of his head. He had just said no monster could reach 3000 attack points, and Muto Sugoroku had pulled out exactly such a card. Furthermore, its defense was as high as 2500, a level that even "Gaia the Fierce Knight" would struggle to overcome.

"This card is called 'Blue-Eyes White Dragon,' and it counts as a super rare card among all Duel Monsters." Jonouchi’s flattery made Sugoroku very comfortable, and he continued his introduction with a smug face. "Both its attack and defense are top-tier, and there are only four 'Blue-Eyes White Dragons' issued worldwide. This is one of those rare four."

"It’s practically priceless." Unlike his previous ignorance, Honda didn't recklessly try to grab the "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" that Sugoroku-ji-chan was displaying. Having learned a bit about Duel Monsters, he understood the value hidden behind the "Blue-Eyes White Dragon's" luxurious stats, not to mention that it was a super limited edition with only four in existence.

And as everyone knew, "limited" generally meant "expensive." In these days of Duel Monsters' growing popularity, if this "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" were put up for trade, there would likely be plenty of people willing to trade a house for it.

"Ji-chan, bring it closer so we can see it better." Jonouchi wanted to get a closer look, but with the counter in the way and Sugoroku-ji-chan keeping his distance, he couldn't get any closer and had to ask Sugoroku-ji-chan.

However, Sugoroku guarded the card behind his back like a precious treasure. Jonouchi’s gaze was too hungry, as if he were about to eat the card. "No way. This card is not for sale; letting you see it is already an exception."

"Ahaha, actually, even if I wanted to buy it, I couldn't afford it." Jonouchi realized he might have been a bit too direct, making Sugoroku-ji-chan misunderstand that he wanted to buy the card. "But come to think of it, I do want to buy some powerful monster cards. Ji-chan, find me some card packs that contain powerful monsters."

"Well, I can do that."

Honda hesitated for a moment before speaking up as well: "Um, Ji-chan, I want a few packs too. Can you recommend some that are good for beginners?"

"Oh, Honda, you want to play Duel Monsters too?" Jonouchi turned his head to look at Honda with a smile, but it quickly turned into a strange, exaggerated facial expression. "In that case, I can teach you a lesson to my heart's content, so you'll stop calling me an idiot every time I lose."

"Hmph, that's hard to say. Maybe it'll be me, the beginner, teaching you a lesson instead." Honda didn't back down, returning the exaggerated expression, though his level of facial contortion wasn't quite as high as Jonouchi's.

"Ji-chan, I want to buy two cards as well." Hayato pulled out the wallet he had swiped from the director and his crew; the money inside totaled about 30,000 yen.

Hayato didn't feel guilty. If the original plot had continued, that director would have been punished by Yugi’s dark personality—the soul of the Pharaoh—with a Shadow Game, causing him to see everything as mosaics for the rest of his life. Now, he had only been beaten up and lost a bit of face and money.

Hayato felt he was truly a partner of justice.