So in Egypt, for the next few days, Youyu practically visited the Ishtar house every day.
Every time without much small talk, he would head straight to sister Ishizu's room and stay there the whole day. (referring to the workshop)
Alchemy, for Youyu, was a brand new subject. He had never encountered this knowledge before. Though he didn't have to start with the basic principles, he still needed to gradually understand some fundamental concepts and operations. So naturally, learning it would require spending some time.
... That's the theory.
However, in reality, Youyu had already mastered it on the first day he was here.
... What can you do, with overwhelming talent, you can afford to be capricious.
And not only had he just learned it, he was already applying what he learned in new ways. Although for now, he could only engrave the shapes he wanted on pendants under Ishizu's guidance, with continuous practice, crafting other spiritual artifacts of similar levels shouldn't be difficult.
A blessing for those playful players!
In his spare time, Youyu could craft a variety of trinkets to hang in his personal shop. With some fiddling, he might even craft some figurines or something, and they would surely sell well.
Like figurines from the Hero series, Dark Magician Girl dolls, or limited-edition Kuriboh Dragon... or something unique, like a supreme collector's edition of the Dark Magician Girl...
Especially the Dark Magician Girl, with a model ready and willing to pose in any stance as instructed, perfectly mimicking the original.
...Of course, the prerequisite is a lot of practice to raise the proficiency of this skill.
And since it requires practice, it will definitely require many specialized alchemy materials and tools. These are rather arcane items that are currently hard to find in the market.
But luckily, Youyu had plenty of these things at hand.
"Feel free to use the materials and tools, don't worry about them," Ishizu stated generously. "Our Gravekeeper Race has accumulated them for thousands of years. But with the passage of time, many alchemy raw materials have essentially become obsolete."
Back in Ancient Egypt, more than three thousand years ago, alchemy was a sophisticated subject that was given considerable importance. Yet, it somehow became forgotten over time. So the alchemy materials accumulated by the Gravekeeper Race have been gathering dust in the warehouse, almost untouched for years.
Seizing this opportunity, Youyu began practicing with the raw materials from the Ishtar's warehouse, starting with the pendants Ishizu taught him.
He repeatedly practiced day after day, crafting spiritual artifacts one after another.
At first, his creations were rough, with average quality and lesser luster compared to the samples Ishizu made for him. But as he became more proficient, the quality of his crafted pieces steadily improved.
Soon, he could start improvising on the base of the pendants. Like carving them into yin-yang fish, or a dog's head...
What? You ask why carve a dog's head on a spiritual artifact?
You just don't get it.
Look at Hatake Kakashi, the Sixth Hokage from the neighboring Konoha Village. His chakra pool is already shorter than others', yet every time a formidable enemy appears, or when he's under pressure, he never forgets to spend extra chakra to carve a dog's head on his "Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall"...
Isn't it because the dog's head is good for protection!
Shouldn't a protective talisman have a dog's head carved on it?
Seeing Youyu show such great interest in alchemy, crafting spiritual artifacts one after another every day with enthusiasm, Ishizu was pleased.
Since the Duel City battle, she had felt guilty towards Youyu—from a strict point of view, Marik gave Youyu more trouble during that time than he did Yugi.
Not to mention that Youyu later defeated Dark Marik and rescued her brother from the clutches of darkness.
Seeing Youyu so interested in alchemy was comforting for her as well.
Marik had no objections to teaching Youyu alchemy. However, after some time, he felt a bit puzzled —
— Isn't it just crafting a pendant? Why is it taking so long to learn?
What exactly were his sister and he learning in the room every day?
...Maybe this Duel King really doesn't have much talent for alchemy, Marik thought.
On reflection, that seems reasonable. After all, with such strength and good looks, if he were also a genius in alchemy, that would be too much.
Everyone needs some flaws, right?
...
Several days later, as scheduled earlier, Youyu's journey in Egypt was about to end.
But if nothing unexpected happens, it should only be temporary.
Judging by the looks of it, once Yugi resolves to return to Egypt to recover the Pharaoh's lost memories, Youyu would come back.
In these days, Youyu indeed received considerable care from the Ishtar siblings. And as the result of his "alchemy crash course" in just a few days, he already had dozens of flashy spiritual artifact pendants in hand.
He decided that on returning, he would engrave his name on this first batch of goods, as if signing them personally. Plus, this batch was handmade by him, only a limited run of a few dozen, they wouldn't have trouble selling for a good price.
The spiritual artifacts with a signature from a virtual idol, it's perfectly reasonable for them to be pricey!
Before leaving, he specially came to bid farewell to the Ishtar siblings.
Ishizu shook his hand, stating that the Ishtar Clan would always be his friend, and he could come to her if he needed anything in the future.
Meanwhile, Marik remained more reserved. Even while his sister was speaking to Youyu, he looked elsewhere, lost in thought.
Yet despite his outward aloofness, Marik's heart was anything but calm.
At this very moment, as the mere presence of the man who made him uncomfortable, arguably leaving a psychological shadow, was about to depart at last, Marik discovered he didn't feel as relieved as he thought he would be.
Surprisingly, deep down, there was a hint of... reluctance.
This realization led Mr. Marik to question his life choices.
What's wrong with me!?
Just before their departure, Ishizu glanced beside her at her brother, who seemed lost in thought with a peculiar expression. She contemplated for a moment, seemingly deciding on something.
Ishizu was unquestionably a caring sister and deeply thoughtful. Since the Duel City battle, she had long noticed that while her brother had finally escaped the darkness and eliminated his dark personality, he had gained some other hang-ups.
And at this moment, it might just be the best opportunity to resolve his inner conflict.
"...Wait a moment, Mr. Youyu."
She stopped Youyu, who was about to leave.
Youyu paused, turning around: "Is there anything else I can help you with?"
Ishizu closed her beautiful eyes for a moment, and when she opened them again, they were filled with determination.
"This might come as a surprise, but... if possible, could you duel with me again?"
This indeed caught Youyu off guard.
Huh?
Why do you want to duel me too? (Still referring to the card game)