The duel between Class B and Class E had ended, and Class A's students finally arrived at the Summoning Plaza.
At a glance, they could tell what had happened: the worried faces of Class B's students gathered around someone contrasted sharply with the barely contained joy on the faces of Class E. It was obvious—the match had ended in Class E's victory.
Right then, Class A's instructor, Janice Leo, stepped forward, arms crossed, and glared coldly at both groups. "Who authorized you to duel in front of the Book of Summoning!? Do you not understand the consequences if the duel's backlash were to damage it? If anything happened to the Book of Summoning, could any of you bear that responsibility!?"
Her sharp tone silenced the crowd instantly. Both Class B's instructor, Richards, and Class E's instructor, Professor White, winced. They knew what was coming—a scolding from Janice was inevitable.
Her temper had been especially bad lately. Rumor had it that yet another arranged marriage of hers had fallen through. Supposedly, the man in question had been caught having an affair with a certain marquis's daughter, canceling the engagement on the eve of the wedding.
At twenty-eight years old—an age when others' children might already be in school—Janice Leo remained single. Her colleagues, Richards and White, exchanged a look and silently agreed to share the brunt of her fury between them. After all, she was an excellent teacher and a dependable coworker; they could at least let her vent a bit.
And truth be told, they both knew they were in the wrong; after all, it had been their students dueling near the Book.
While the two instructors endured Janice's wrath, Alice from Class A dashed forward and threw her arms around Alicia. (The reason she hugged Alicia was simple—Alicia had already dismissed Yuui's spirit from her body the moment she saw Alice rushing over!)
"Ali! You won again, didn't you? You're amazing!" Alice giggled, breathing in the fuzzy mix of shampoo and smoke in Alicia's golden hair.
The sudden embrace made Alicia's face flush bright red; it was the first time she'd been hugged like this by another girl in public. In that moment, she decided something very important.
Alicia: 'When I'm around Alice, I must never let Yuui-san take control of my body (¯^¯)!'
Sensing her thoughts, Yuui's spirit floated nearby with a wry smile.
After the commotion had settled, Professors Richards and White returned to their respective classes, having endured Janice's full lecture. Soon after, both teachers led their students away from the Book of Summoning, leaving the area to Class A. The others were to continue their Duel Assessments elsewhere.
Before leaving, Alice whispered playfully into Alicia's ear, her breath warm against it. "Ali, watch me later, okay? I'm going to summon a Spirit that'll shock everyone."
The ticklish warmth made Alicia's ears twitch, her cheeks burning. "Alice, what kind of Spirit are you summoning? Is it really that strong?"
It was only then that Alicia realized—she had known Alice for nearly a month, but she still had no idea what kind of Deck Alice used.
Alice simply pressed a finger to her lips, smiling mysteriously. "That's a secret, Ali~ You'll find out soon enough."
Alicia's blush deepened.
Off to the side, Yuui watched Alice with a mix of admiration and curiosity. She truly had that natural charm—"born seductive," as people might say. Regardless, what intrigued him more was her aura; every time he looked at her, he sensed a murky darkness beneath her surface.
Still, darkness did not always mean evil. Darkness was simply darkness—what mattered was whether it carried malice. And Alice's aura, while shadowed, wasn't sinister.
Soon after, Class E left the area, moving to one of the ten Duel Platforms surrounding the Summoning Plaza to continue their assessments. Having already completed hers with a perfect score, Alicia received special permission from Professor White to freely observe other duels.
She was grateful—normally, a Class Representative wasn't allowed to wander off alone. Albeit now she could watch other duels, see what kinds of Spirits others summoned—and, of course, witness Alice's turn.
When Alicia returned to the area around the Book of Summoning, it happened to be the turn of a black-haired boy named Carl Owens. He placed his hand on the stone tablet and declared:
"Blessing of the divine, Book of Summoning that bears the planet's memories! Grant me the guardian of the Dragon Shrine—the wise elder of the Dragon Tribe—to guide my path! Spirit Summon!!"
Magical energy surged into the tablet, and one of the hieroglyphs upon it shone brightly. From the light emerged an elderly dragon-man with pale red scales and long, white-streaked hair and beard.
Before Alicia could even ask, Yuui identified it immediately. "That's Keeper of the Shrine—a Level 4 Dragon monster. Zero Attack, but 2100 Defense. Its effect's solid too: when used as Tribute for a Dragon monster's Tribute Summon, it counts as two. Plus, if a Dragon on your field is sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon it from your hand or Graveyard. And if the Dragon sent was a Normal Monster, you can return another Dragon from your Graveyard to your hand."
"What a great effect!" Alicia said admiringly, looking at the dragon elder and Carl Owens.
Sensing her gaze, Carl glanced back—and frowned a bit upon recognizing her. He said nothing, though. Observing other classes' Spirit Summons was common; it was part of intelligence gathering. Nonetheless, no one enjoyed being the one observed.
Should he tell her to leave? One glance at Instructor Janice and Prince Autrys nearby told him no—if even they said nothing, what right did he have?
He shot her one last glare and walked away toward the other students who had completed their summons.
Several more Class A students performed their Spirit Summons after him. Watching them, Alicia couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration.
Truth be told, the Spirits Class A's students summoned were clearly stronger—higher quality and level—than those of Class E. It showed that their skill and knowledge were above her class's overall.
Nevertheless, Alicia didn't let it bother her. Dueling was never just about raw card strength. Intelligence gathering, tactical analysis, psychological insight, field control, deck synergy, Spirit power, and even luck—all of these determined a Duelist's true strength.
Yuui had taught her those principles eight years ago, when she first dreamed of becoming a Duelist. That's why she never believed rarity or power alone decided victory.
"Ali!!" came a familiar voice.
Alicia looked up to see Alice already at the front—it was her turn to perform her Spirit Summon.
For her friend, Alicia raised her small fists in encouragement, cheering her on.
Alice's eyes curved into slits as she smiled, looking even more beautiful and alluring than before.
Moments later, after another student finished summoning a Level 5 Big Piece Golem, it was finally Alice's turn.
She stepped up to the stone tablet, placed her hand upon it, and took a deep breath.
In the next instant, a surge of magical energy far beyond that of any previous student erupted from her body—the power of a Great Magician.
Watching this, Instructor Janice nodded approvingly. "A little unrefined, but that's certainly Great Magician-level magic. It seems Alice Tutt recently broke through."
Autrys smiled as well; strong opponents always delighted him.
Outside the field, Alicia was surprised at first that Alice had advanced to Great Magician—though, on second thought, she realized it made perfect sense. When they'd first met, Alice's magic had already been on par with her own. If not for Alicia's earlier brush with dark power during Elina's attack, she might have reached that level even sooner.
On the field, the eruption of Great Magician-level energy drew gasps from Class A's students. But Alice ignored the noise, focusing her thoughts.
In her mind, she recalled the tale her family had found in the ruins of the White Forest—a forgotten story inscribed by witches of old.
The story of the two sisters, black and white, bound by love and hatred.
Then she cried out:
"Blessing of the divine, Book of Summoning that bears the planet's memories! Summon forth the orphaned witch of the White Forest—the white witch who bears the name of original sin, the sister opposed to darkness! Come forth and unveil the lost history of the ancients! Spirit Summon!!!"
A torrent of immense magical power poured into the Book. A high-set hieroglyph blazed with radiant light.
"Hehehe… hahaha… hihihihi!!"
A beautiful yet mad laughter filled the air as golden light exploded from the tablet. The aura that followed dwarfed that of every Spirit summoned before.
When the light faded, a translucent woman stood upon the field.
She lifted a gloved hand and tilted Alice's chin upward, violet eyes brimming with madness and mockery.
With a soft, deranged smile, she whispered, "So you're the one who wishes to be my master?"
...
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