Tania was in a state of self-isolation.
She rarely activated her Soul Card, "Amazonian Death Arena," and never in her life had she desired so much to use its effect as she did today.
Just once, even just once would be fine.
She didn't even care about the result of the duel. As long as she could activate the Death Arena, give her just one chance to punch that infuriating face.
There was a moment when she even felt that winning or losing didn't matter. As long as she could land a punch, this duel, her life, would feel complete.
But this guy wouldn't even give her the chance for a single punch.
The audience in the stands loved the spectacle, and many Duelists who had been hammered by Tania before tonight were now cheering as they watched her eat humble pie.
But some also felt sympathy for her.
Trying to see things from Tania's perspective a little, one couldn't help but feel their fists clenching.
Most of those present were Dark Duelists from the Underworld. Imagine if in a life-and-death Dark Duel you faced such an opponent, where neither side's Monsters ever even touched each other, only to be bounced back endlessly by the opponent before you were inexplicably defeated.
To have all that strength go unused even in death; surely even one's soul going to Hell wouldn't be able to rest in peace?
Yugen put away his Duel Disc and walked forward leisurely.
He didn't feel anything excessive about it, only thinking that this Seven-Star Officer was just so-so.
Is this how you play Amazon?
This isn't how you duel.
Such a card deck that should bring joy was forcibly played like a hot-blooded slugfest card deck seeking to trade punches. You can't expect all your opponents to be as cooperative as Yuki Judai, exchanging summoned fists with you, right?
Honestly, Yugen even felt like he hadn't exerted any effort.
The Royal Guardian's last field-wide bounce hadn't even been used, and there were other hidden effects yet to be deployed—the Royal Guardian, when destroyed by an opponent, could bring out a face-down Defense Position 5-star Rock Monster from the Card Deck.
A 5-star Rock Race, needless to say, it's naturally the original "Guardian Sphinx."
So even if the opponent worked hard to finally deal with this Royal Guardian, they'd only find, wide-eyed, that after taking one down, there's still another, unable to escape the fate of a field-wide bounce next turn, plunging them into deep doubt about their life...
Well, it seems Tania couldn't hold out until that point and was already finished.
So, as mentioned earlier, Yugen felt he hadn't even exerted effort, and the opponent was already down.
"Looks like I won."
Yugen glanced around, looking at the spectators outside the ring.
"About the duel bet mentioned earlier... shall we discuss it somewhere private?"
Tania propped herself up on her knees and nodded heavily.
The two jumped off the stage, left the venue to avoid prying ears, and came to a secluded spot.
The white-furred Amazon tiger followed the two and remained by their side.
"Your friend?"
Yugen glanced at the tiger.
The tiger grinned, growled at him as if in a display of threat.
But a white light spread out, and a wave of Magic Power was released from Yugen's body. The Silent Magician didn't appear in person, but its aura was released through Yugen as a medium, casting an invisible pressure onto the tiger.
Knowing to avoid immediate danger, the white-furred tiger seemed to realize it was no match, lowered its head, and growled softly.
As if saying, it's just a greeting, why so fierce?
At worst, I'll just lie down.
"Quiet."
Tania ordered the white-furred tiger. The tiger grunted, closed its eyes in feigned sleep, and temporarily stopped making noise.
"You won, I concede."
Tania glared coldly at Yugen.
"But I thought about it, marrying you is off the table. I admit you're a strong Duelist, but if I have to duel with a guy like you every day, I'm afraid I'll shave years off my life."
It's quite strange. Tania had been deeply troubled by her card addiction for years, her cravings for dueling ever-present, as if her whole being was born for cards. Yet, she didn't have a strong man by her side, fueling her desire for dueling like a flame with no outlet.
This is why she left her Elf Dimension to come to this world, the Dimension of Duelists.
The organization called "Seven-Star" sought her out and discovered her potential. The Master of Seven-Star offered a very straightforward deal. Join them, fight for them, and she would encounter strong Duelists as she dreamed of.
Dueling defined her life's meaning, so battling was the best reward for her.
Strangely, Tania now felt she seemed to have found the strong man she had been searching for all along.
She found him, yet she suddenly didn't feel like dueling anymore.
The craving for cards that had troubled her and been so hard to express through the years seemed now to have been cured.
Therefore, Tania's expression toward the man before her was complex.
Whether to resent or thank him...
"The Master of Seven-Star?"
Tania frowned.
"If you're looking for him, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. I might not be much help."
"Oh?" Yugen asked, "How so?"
"The Master of Seven-Star never shows up in person."
Tania shook her head.
"Even the other Seven-Star members are not very familiar with each other.
We're usually each busy with our own things, and even when we receive tasks from the organization, we often act alone.
Only when the Master of Seven-Star calls a meeting do we occasionally meet. But there's no significant interaction among us, and we don't really know each other well."
"So have you seen this Master of Seven-Star?"
"I've seen him... but also not seen him," Tania replied.
"How so?"
"He never shows up in person."
Tania said.
"Even during occasional gatherings, the leader usually participates only in holographic form." She said, "But he seems... strange. Always a large outline, like with dark red eyes, always appearing as if speaking behind a shimmering water screen.
We've all guessed he might not even be human."
Yugen understood.
He knew that most likely referred to the life support equipment of Kagemaru.
In the early stages, every time Kagemaru appeared, his outline seemed shrouded by a layer of hazy water screen, just a terrifying silhouette. It seemed mysterious and pretentious, but eventually, one would find it's not.
Actually, it was because the old man was close to death, quickly perishing upon leaving his Life Support Pod.
"So if you're looking for him, sorry. I might not be much help... but I might have some clues about other Seven-Star members.
I know a guy who claims to be the Pharaoh... whether it's true or not, he's always shrouded in mystery. I might know where you could find him."