"Elemental HERO Liquid Soldier!" Professor White nodded approvingly at the blue-green warrior of water before him. "Very good. According to the grading standard, for this Summoning Test, I'll give you forty points. I hope you'll keep up the effort in the upcoming Duel Test!"
"Alright! Thank you, Professor White!" Alicia responded with a cheerful, energetic nod.
The reason for only forty points was that the monthly assessment was split evenly: fifty points for the Summoning Test, fifty for the Duel Test. Earning forty in the summoning portion was already the highest score in her class. Even Chuck, the next best performer, had only scored thirty-seven.
After appearing, Liquid Soldier at once grasped the situation—then, upon meeting his old friend Stratos, he was willing to become one of Alicia's Duel Monster Spirits.
Alicia then picked up the Elemental HERO Liquid Soldier card and examined it carefully.
[Elemental HERO Liquid Soldier] Level 4│WATER│Warrior│1400 ATK / 1300 DEF
Effect: Each of this card's (1) and (2) effects can only be used once per turn.
(1) When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 4 or lower "HERO" monster in your Graveyard, except Elemental HERO Liquid Soldier; Special Summon it.
(2) If this card is used as Fusion Material for a "HERO" Fusion Monster, and is sent to the Graveyard or banished: You can draw 2 cards, then discard 1 card.
Possessing both a special summoning effect and a draw effect, even though only one could be used per turn, this card would greatly enhance the consistency and efficiency of Alicia's Deck.
And so, all the first-year students completed their Summoning Tests. Next came the Duel Test.
Just as Professor White was about to begin calling out the prearranged match pairings, the homeroom teacher of Class B—a blond man with gold-rimmed glasses and an obviously insincere smile—walked up to him.
"White!"
Hearing his name, Professor White looked up. When he saw who it was, his brows lifted slightly, and his polite smile faded a bit.
"Professor Richards, what can I do for you?"
"Heh, White, don't be so cold!" The man, Richards, stepped forward as if to throw an arm around White's shoulder—abruptly, White stepped back before he could, letting the gesture hang awkwardly in midair.
Richards's smile twitched; however, he immediately recovered. "White, I have a little proposal. Want to hear it?"
White frowned a bit. "What kind of proposal?"
"It's been a month since the term began," Richards began, feigning thoughtfulness. "By now, your students have probably all dueled one another already. The weaker ones can still find stronger partners to challenge… but for the stronger students, finding a worthy opponent is much harder, wouldn't you agree?"
White's expression remained calm. "So, what exactly are you getting at?"
Truth be told, though he already had a good idea where this was going, he wanted to hear it outright. Something about Richards always rubbed him the wrong way.
"Heh, White, you really don't need to treat me like some villain," Richards said, still smiling, eyes narrowing. "My proposal is simple… why don't we let the strongest students from our two classes face off in a duel? No matter who wins or loses, it'll be a great experience for both sides. They'll see new Decks, new tactics! It's good for their growth!"
White's frown deepened. It wasn't a bad idea, really. Alicia had long since run out of opponents in Class E; no one wanted to face her anymore, and only Carl still sparred with her. Therefore, always dueling the same person wasn't helping either of them improve. On the surface, Richards's suggestion made sense.
And yet… something about it still felt off. He couldn't say why… just intuition, perhaps.
After a brief pause, White finally nodded. It would be good for Alicia's progress, after all.
Richards's smile widened at once, a flicker of triumph flashing in his eyes.
He soon called over a girl from his class—their own class representative, and, apparently, their strongest duelist.
She was a beautiful young girl with long, chestnut-brown hair. Her violet school uniform emphasized her well-proportioned figure, and her round, delicate face carried a soft trace of youthful charm. Yet her eyes were cold and distant, like a princess looking down from a throne.
"This is our Class B representative and strongest duelist," Richards said proudly, patting the girl's shoulder. "Lily, introduce yourself to everyone from Class E."
"Yes, Professor Richards!" The girl—Lily—nodded and stepped forward, placing her hands neatly before her as she addressed Class E in a calm but firm voice. "My name is Lily Hilt, the class representative of Class B. I'm here today to challenge your strongest duelist! Who among you dares face me?"
"Huh?"
"Huh??"
"Huh???"
The students of Class E were all dumbfounded. Wasn't this supposed to be just a duel? How had it turned into a direct challenge!?
Professor White turned to Richards with an exasperated look. Richards gave a sheepish chuckle. "Heh, she's just a little competitive. And maybe a bit sharp-tongued! No big deal, no big deal… same thing either way!"
"Haaah…" White exhaled deeply, then turned to his class. "Alright, who wants to take her on?"
Without any debate, all eyes turned to Alicia. The message in their stares was clear: She's here for you.
Though many of her classmates still had mixed feelings toward Alicia, none doubted her strength. Everyone had dueled Carl before and lost… and Carl himself had never once beaten Alicia.
Alicia was, without question, the strongest in Class E.
Feeling all those eyes on her, Alicia sighed inwardly. Why did surprises like this keep finding her? She had wanted to duel students from other classes eventually, sure… but this sort of sudden, dramatic challenge wasn't really her style.
Still, now that someone had thrown down the gauntlet, she couldn't just ignore it. Activating the Duel Bracelet on her wrist, she stepped forward, ready to face this so-called Lily Hilt.
Just then, Yuui's voice spoke up.
"Alicia, let me take this duel."
Alicia: "?"
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going!
[Patreon.com/RedZTL]