Various forms of Kuriboh had always been a staple in the decks of Yu-Gi-Oh! protagonists, at least in Miles's memory.
Don't let their weak appearance fool you—"When in doubt, trust Kuriboh" wasn't just an empty phrase.
Even if they were considered fodder, they were survivable fodder. Fodder... with effects.
For Aisha, this breakthrough summon was worthy of a full score. Both Miles and Miss Erin agreed. A historic best-improvement award—well deserved.
"Feels... complicated to get full marks this way."
Hugging the Kuriboh and converting it into a card for her Deck, Aisha finished the final summon, marking the end of the morning's Summoning Class.
Finally, lighting the long-awaited cigarette, Miss Erin didn't rush back to the teacher's office but instead walked over to Aisha.
"No secondhand smoke, Miss Erin. Stay back."
The closer Miss Erin got, the further Aisha backed away.
"Stop running. I just have one thing to say."
Tilting her head and exhaling a puff of smoke, Miss Erin eventually sighed and pulled the cigarette from her lips.
"Seems you and Luca Slint got along pretty well in class. Makes this easier. Take her back to your dorm."
"Huh? Back to my dorm? What do you mean?!"
Triple question mark. Aisha's ahoge curled and split into three.
At that moment, Luca was surrounded by a crowd of classmates.
Fueled by their obsession with the adorable transfer student, they bombarded her with questions—just shy of breaking out her family register for inspection.
"Aisha, you don't have a roommate, right? You've always had a solo dorm since you're last on the student roll. Luca's new, so she's moving in with you."
"Hold it!" Irene protested. "Aisha's roommate... isn't that me?!"
"Ren, if you say that, poor Rose will cry," Miss Erin deadpanned.
Rose Dale—quiet, mild-mannered, with grades and Duel skills around average. Irene's actual roommate.
She'd already been frequently left alone at night ever since Miles arrived, as Irene spent most evenings glued to Aisha's side.
And now? Even the title of roommate was being stripped away.
"Ah—please don't tell Rose..."
Irene stuck out her tongue apologetically. Despite her antics, she did like her roommate—after all, they'd lived together for half a year.
But ever since Miles arrived, Irene has barely returned to the dorm. A creeping guilt had started to form.
'I swear, I'm not out there hooking up with random guys... I'm just protecting Aisha.'
"Anyway, Luca's yours now, Aisha. The Slint family's a big deal—even outside the Empire. Getting on her good side isn't a bad idea."
Everyone at Fusion Academy knew the Carlos family's dire situation.
Building connections with powerful foreign families was... honestly, not a bad plan.
Of course, as a teacher, Miss Erin preferred her students to focus on their studies rather than political alliances. Regardless, the reality of noble society made that impossible. Most students here were nobles—no escaping that.
"You want me to take care of Luca..."
Aisha glanced toward the mob surrounding Luca.
Right then, Luca turned to meet her gaze.
Their eyes locked—and Luca instantly put on the most pitiful "save me" face ever.
Aisha nodded, then squeezed through the crowd to rescue the "damsel in distress" by claiming she was taking Luca back to the dorm.
"Phew! Saved." Luca sighed in relief, hugging Aisha's arm. "Everyone's so enthusiastic... Without you, Aisha, I'd have no idea how to escape."
Aisha smiled. "It's rare to have a transfer student at Fusion Academy. Everyone probably just wants to get to know you."
"I get it. Just like how I want to get to know you, Aisha."
Luca immediately latched onto Aisha's arm, cuddling it.
"But the best surprise is that we're roommates! I'm starting to believe this must be fate!"
An angelic face. A pure smile. Within seconds, she transitioned from "transfer student" to "clingy little sister." Even Aisha was dangerously close to falling for it.
'No no no... I can't betray Miles-san!'
Aisha frantically shook her head to snap out of it.
'Miles always says... women only slow down your card plays…'
"I'm just a totally average person. Nothing special to know."
Luca narrowed her sapphire eyes slightly. Her gaze... drifted—not so subtly—toward the Millennium Puzzle on Aisha's chest.
"I want to know Aisha's secret. How does someone beat the year's number one—Kevin Seth? What's your Duel style really like?"
And that... was 100% pure sincerity.
After witnessing Aisha's very questionable monster summoning and the class's absurd overreaction to Kuriboh, Luca's curiosity skyrocketed.
Just what kind of Duelist was Aisha Yuna Carlos? Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn ɴoᴠel Fɪre.nᴇt
She was almost regretting killing Dekul so fast that night. Dekul was the only person besides Megan who knew the truth about Aisha.
"I think... you'll find out at tomorrow's practical test," Aisha said with a nervous smile. "It's not flashy... You might be disappointed."
Aisha's self-doubt came from a change in training philosophy.
While Miles could easily Duel in her place, after the Pharaoh's advice, he decided that for official academy practicals... Aisha should fight on her own.
"Ah, practical test tomorrow. Different from XyzAcademy, then."
At Xyz Academy, they had practicals three times a week—Monday through Wednesday.
Fusion Academy only had them once a week.
"So... Aisha... do you believe in destiny?"
"Yep. That certain kinds of people are drawn to each other—by fate."
Luca smiled mysteriously.
Just like the Pharaoh had said—those tied to the Millennium Items are inevitably drawn together.
And so, on Thursday afternoon, as the practical test matchups were announced for Friday...
...Destiny brought Aisha and Luca—two holders of the Millennium Items—face-to-face on the Duel Field, barely a day after meeting!
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