Perhaps… not returning to his own world would be better?
At some unknown point, such a thought had emerged in Youmi's heart.
His life in his original world had been neither good nor bad—simply ordinary. Though he had always acted like the kind-hearted person who couldn't leave others alone, whatever achievements those he helped eventually made had little to do with him.
His personality had grown increasingly passive and accommodating, yet deep down he longed for something—anything—that could shatter the mundane reality he lived in.
That's why [Ten Thousand Dragon] chose him. Not just because he could duel, not just because he was in mortal danger, but because, more than anything, he himself no longer wanted to stay in his own world.
No matter how much he complained aloud, no matter how many times he recalled his past, deep inside, Youmi felt that he held more meaning in the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!—and wanted to remain there.
When he used [Time Thief Bezel Ship] to return to Battle City's finals…
Still in his [Time Thief Redoer] state, Youmi hugged his card case, using the short moment to build his Deck. He looked at the [Sphere Kuriboh] that housed [Ten Thousand Dragon] and asked, "Um… if I said I don't want to go back to my own world… would that be allowed?"
[Ten Thousand Dragon] froze for a moment, then replied in confusion, "Why the sudden change? I thought at the very least you'd come looking for me on your own after returning."
"I guess… I just can't leave things alone? Whether it's what Jaden will go through later… or what Yusei is going to face. Maybe it's just an excuse I'm giving myself, but even if I did go back to my world… what then?
"Yuki isn't at the age where he clings to me anymore. He's showing more and more of his own talents. I'm an outsider, and it'd be inappropriate for me to keep living with them. So I wonder… maybe the future that suits me best… is actually here?"
Youmi picked up his Deck's ace card—[Lovely Labrynth]—and stared at its artwork.
"I'm a pretty useless person. All I'm good for is taking care of kids or being someone's assistant.
"But here… I feel like I can do so much more. Like, I can contribute so much more. And if that's the case…" His voice grew more impassioned, then gradually calmed. "Maybe this is only temporary enthusiasm… but how many years has it been since I last felt something like this for myself…?"
His left hand slowly touched his right wrist as he spoke, a faint melancholy in his tone.
"Although we did make that bet—that if you failed to become Duel King, you'd duel me for the rest of your life—that was based on the fact that you held no real attachment to your own world. It sounds sad, but I'm glad you've found a new goal now."
Using the body of [Sphere Kuriboh], [Ten Thousand Dragon] floated onto Youmi's shoulder and added, "If this is truly your wish, then let me give you some motivation. Back in Noah's fortress, you asked me whether another duelist had come to this world, right? My conclusion now is—yes. And if you're interested, I'd like you to help me catch him."
Though emotionally tangled at the moment, Youmi still caught the important detail immediately. "Catch him? What, did that duelist slip out of your control?"
"Whether I should say my blessing was too strong or that child was simply too gifted… he is now capable of leaping through different timelines on his own and brewing some plan of his own.
"The plan won't affect me, but I would still like you to pursue him. After all, you also need a reason to convince yourself, don't you? Helping the Creator God maintain world peace—doesn't that sound grand enough?"
Having his thoughts exposed so directly, Youmi didn't feel embarrassed. He simply asked, "…What timeline is he in now?"
"It's one you're very familiar with—Yu-Gi-Oh GX. If you want to take this part-time job, leave after Duel City ends. Otherwise, who knows what world that child will wander into next?"
······
"Youmi, you…"
The Duel Disk displayed the word "DRAW." The duel ended. The projections faded. The sky returned to normal. Yami Yugi walked toward Youmi. He hadn't expected her final setup to force a draw with [Last Turn].
"I couldn't help it… I originally planned to clear the field first so I could guarantee victory through [Last Turn], but in the end, it didn't work out. And I couldn't even activate [Exchange of the Spirit] successfully… it's so embarrassing…"
Youmi fiddled with her hair and turned her head away shyly. "Though I guess… this is still an ending. Nobody lost, but nobody won. As the endpoint of my journey in this world… maybe this is already good enough."
While Youmi explained, flustered, Kaiba stepped forward. "No. If anything, because both of you were the strongest duelists in Duel City, a draw means you're tied for first place.
"And in that case, it seems there will be two wielders of the God Cards. You'd better be ready, woman named Youmi—I'll reclaim one of the Gods with the Blue-Eyes' azure rage in my duel against Yugi."
"No… the Gods don't suit me. I think they should belong to someone who truly needs them."
Youmi shook her head, rejecting Kaiba's claim. "Marik once said that to awaken the Pharaoh's memories, all the Millennium Items and all three God Cards are required. So now… I will lend you [The Winged Dragon of Ra], Yugi. Until you recall everything about yourself, you may use it as you wish."
Yami Yugi understood the power and significance of the Egyptian Gods. As Youmi extended [The Winged Dragon of Ra] toward him, he immediately raised a hand to refuse. "But this is a God Card… if you lend it to me, then you—"
Youmi ignored his refusal and firmly pushed [The Winged Dragon of Ra] into his hand.
"My Deck was never meant to hold [The Winged Dragon of Ra] to begin with. And besides… I have something more important I want to do now.
"Meeting new cards, creating new stories—those are things this God Card cannot give me. I'm giving it to you because I don't want it buried away. I want you to let it shine with its fullest brilliance. And also—"
Youmi removed her left glove, revealing lines of garbled, displaced code beneath. Worried she might frighten the others, she at once put the glove back on.
"I've shown far too much power that doesn't belong to this world. It remembers the Links and Xyz Summons I used… and even recorded my future Synchro Summons. Perhaps because of that… this world has begun rejecting me as an outsider."
She looked toward Noah.
"Noah, your guess wasn't wrong. I truly don't belong to this timeline. Because I punched that eldritch scriptwriter and messed with the plot, this world has some complaints about me now.
"But don't worry—this won't be our last meeting. Once I return with a different form… I'm sure we'll see each other again."
As she spoke, the garbled code spread from her hand, crawling up her entire arm.
"Youmi…"
"Youmi!"
"Youmi-san!"
"Youmi-nee…"
Hearing so many people call out to her with concern, Youmi couldn't help blushing. She touched her cheek. "Ahh~ I didn't expect to be so popular. Don't worry… this parting isn't forever. One day, we'll meet again. When that happens, I hope you'll all prepare a welcome party for me."
She tried to hide the tears forming at the corners of her eyes with a shy smile, but as her body slowly faded, she couldn't stop herself from adding a few final words:
"Before I come back…
"Yugi… and the other you. Even though you're not truly twins, you will always be lifelong friends and the best of partners. In the days to come, be sure to treasure each other.
"Joey, I'm glad your Deck-building is becoming more complete. You've got the potential to reach the level of a first‑rate duelist. But please, remember the card effects and activation conditions more carefully. Don't misplay just because you get excited. You're the kind of duelist who should be able to think more clearly the hotter the battle becomes.
"Marik, now that you're no longer bound by destiny, when you're riding your D‑Wheel in the future, you must pay attention to traffic safety. At the very least, make sure your sister supervises you until you get your license. Who knows—maybe someday you'll be dueling on a motorcycle.
"Ishizu, even though we haven't known each other long, I can tell—you've got plenty of potential~ Keep developing yourself, whether it's your Gravekeeper skills… or in other areas~
"Tristan, Téa, Duke, Serenity—you all take care too.
"And… even though we haven't talked much, Mai—when the time comes, go for it. There aren't many men with both talent and the ability to catch your eye, you know~
"Everyone… someday in the future, let's meet again."
Unknowingly, Youmi smiled as two clear tears slipped from the corners of her eyes. She would be heading into the world of Yu-Gi-Oh GX afterward, but to everyone here, this was a long parting—one that would last for years.
As her body was gradually overtaken by the spreading garbled code, Youmi gave everyone present what she believed to be her most perfect smile—and then vanished from the Duel Arena.
…
That same day, KaibaCorp issued an official statement.
The results of Duel City were finalized:
Champion: Yugi Muto & Youmi
Top 4: Seto Kaiba, Joey Wheeler
Top 8: Marik Ishtar, Ishizu Ishtar, Mai Valentine, Bakura
Although not everyone knew the details about Youmi, KaibaCorp's extensive publicity ensured that the mysterious duelist who shone only briefly—Youmi—became one of the two Duel Kings admired by duelists across the world.
···········
The End of Volume 1 (MIGHT CONTAIN LIGHT SPOILERS)
Several years later.
In Domino City, a dark‑skinned, white‑haired boy dressed in what could only be described as eccentric clothing ran through the streets, complaining as he went:
"Why didn't you wake me up, [Sphere Kuriboh]?! Even if I aced the written portion, if I'm late to the practical exam, it'll be all pointless!"
Beside him floated a Duel Spirit flying at equal speed, chirping cutely, "Kuri kuri!"
"What? You like red? Come on, I at least care about the cafeteria food, okay?—If I don't hurry, my future lunches are doomed—charge!!!"
A youth with white hair streaked with red highlights abruptly stopped in his tracks, nearly stumbling.
"Eh? It ends here? What about my exam?"
Now in the form of [Fallen of Albaz], Youmi scratched the back of his head with his left hand, his heterochromatic red‑and‑white eyes staring at the person who appeared beside him holding a clapperboard.
"Relax, the intermission doesn't count toward anything. For now, let's do a short wrap‑up for Volume 1." Tossing the clapperboard aside, the author took out a notebook, sat down on a chair, and spoke to Youmi. "All right, it's afterword time. The tone's gonna shift a bit."
———
Youmi: How do I say this… it feels like we've suddenly switched to a talk‑show format?
(Youmi sits beside the author, pressing both hands on [Sphere Kuriboh].)
Author: Because it is a talk‑show format. Isn't it nice to have something lighter for the intermission?
—Why end the DM arc right after Duel City?—
Author: Ah, because I never planned for Youmi to stay here long‑term. There are various complicated reasons—too many original cards, too few complete Deck archetypes… dumping too many new cards early on would weaken the narrative impact in the later arcs.
Youmi: That's true… but is it really okay to leave for the GX era right after Duel City? There's still Doma, KC Grand Prix, Dawn of the Duel… Aren't we losing so many interesting storylines? I mean, my initial plan was just to mess around in Duel City until Duel King, but still…
Author: It's a trade‑off. If you stick to one route too rigidly, you lose a lot of potential fun.
Author: Besides, Youmi, you've started wanting to integrate into this world, right? Isn't that great? Getting to relive your student years starting from GX, and maybe save the world along the way—that's both romantic and hot‑blooded!"
—Why [Fallen of Albaz]?—
Youmi: So… why Albaz? If we were going by your twisted tastes and some readers' suggestions, wouldn't I have been turned into some 'Gluttonous Saint Girl' or 'Miss Social Boss' monster girl card or something?
Author: That? Well, it's simply because he's the protagonist of the Branded lore, right? Sure, [Kitt] or the 'Glutton' cards are also nice, but if we want something that fits into basically any Deck archetype… then in the GX world, the one who can blend in with everyone is definitely [Fallen of Albaz].
Youmi: This is starting to sound like some very suspicious XP keywords.
Author: You're overthinking it.
Youmi: Really? You look like you're desperately holding back a laugh.
Author: You're overthinking it. I've received professional training. I definitely won't laugh. See? As long as I don't add any more…
(The author's mouth slowly curls upward.)
Author: …descriptive lines like that, who would know how hard I'm trying not to laugh right now?
Youmi: You literally wrote out what you were thinking!! So it is your twisted taste after all! Some parent you are… setting up your own kid like this!
Author: It's not just that. Even though the GX duels are more complicated than DM, I'm not going to hand you a full [Branded] Deck and let you bulldoze everyone from Professor Crowler to Nightshroud. Your Deck will still be a mixed build centered on [Fallen of Albaz], plus various cards with "Albaz" in their lore and Fusion pieces.
Author: And with that in mind… Albaz really is the most suitable choice, right?
Youmi: Hard to argue with that.
—What about the Labrynth girls?—
Ten Thousand Dragon: I'll hold onto them for now. They can keep me company with daily duels while I observe Youmi's journey. Consider it my way of passing time.
Lovely Labrynth: Not appearing as the main force in the next arc… I'm burning with jealousy over here, you know? And it's not like I hogged all the spotlight this time either! Even though Youmi used me, they kept adjusting the Deck and chasing new ideas!
(Growing more and more worked up, [Lovely Labrynth] even presses her double-headed axe to the author's neck.)
Youmi: Because we were dealing with an early-era card pool—pre-errata effects, anime-only interactions—I wanted to try all kinds of things. In that sense, I really did put Labrynth through a lot. But judging by the upcoming script, even in the GX arc I'll still get to use the Labrynth Deck. So it looks like our bond isn't ending here~
(Flustered by Youmi's words, [Lovely Labrynth] tosses the axe aside and tackles Youmi in a full-body hug.)
Lovely Labrynth: Even if you turned into a man, which is not quite my preference, Youmi, you're getting better and better at sweet‑talking~ Though what really threatens me… is that [Arahime]. Where did that woman even come from?
Author: That's something fun we'll get into later. And Ten Thousand Dragon—no spoilers.
Ten Thousand Dragon: I wouldn't spoil things. Not my habit.
—A Note from the Author on Volume 2—
Author: This is the author, writing after finishing Volume 2, coming back to add clarification. In the next book—"Volume 2: The Dragon Boy at Duel Academy"—a few things will happen. First, another transmigrator will appear besides Youmi. Strictly speaking, this novel is not a group‑transmigration story; only part of Volume 2 features Youmi's younger brother, Yuki. Since some readers skipped Volume 2, I'm clarifying now. Youmi traveled to GX in the first place because he promised Ten Thousand Dragon to help him track down a transmigrator who slipped out of divine control.
Author: Next: at the time, due to the pandemic, I wasn't very satisfied with what I wrote regarding Youmi's personal plotline. But Volume 2 is 500,000 words long—rewriting it would be a huge project. I know some people liked it, some didn't, and I'm aware of that.
Author: Also, some readers said Volume 2 felt like a "family drama." Well, I won't deny it—that was part of the content. And here's something important: GX's narrative structure resets almost every episode. Therefore, within the GX arc, the story involving Youmi and his younger brother Yuki—mentioned back in Volume 1—was always intended to become a new narrative thread connecting the plot. This was decided from the very beginning. So if readers skip chapters or even entire volumes and later complain about unfamiliar characters appearing—sorry, that's not on me. You skipped; of course the plot won't connect.
Author: Lastly: yes, parts of Volume 2 might feel "pretentiously literary"? But that's not what the term really means.
Maybe people meant "literary syndrome" or "youth‑trauma literature," but it's not that either. Literary syndrome is when the author moralizes or lectures readers, thinking their writing can teach people something. Youth‑trauma literature focuses on evoking sadness from the protagonist's pain.
So let me be clear; I never intended to teach anyone anything.
We authors are just passersby, and Youmi is simply a traveler. If none of this is within your acceptable range, feel free to drop the book or move straight to Volume 3.
Youmi's growth arc is completed by then, and characters exclusive to Volume 2 won't appear in Volume 3.
From there onward, it's purely Youmi's journey.
That said, if I warned everyone in the description, gave reminders in Volume 1's afterword, and people still say I "set traps" in Volume 2… well, I can only say I've been wronged. I literally handed you the minefield map.
—He's going to be late for the exam—
Author: "All right, that's enough chatting for now." The author stood up, checked the time, and smiled at Youmi. "Time has resumed. If you wait any longer, you won't catch the last train. Well… that train runs late anyway."
Shoving the clinging [Lovely Labrynth] off of him, Youmi panicked. "Ah?! Then I really need to hurry! Worst case, I'll have to fly there in dragon form… I'm heading out! Labrynth, see you later!"
He fixed the cloak Labrynth had knocked askew, checked that his Duel Disk and Deck were secured, then nodded to both Labrynth and the author before running toward the train.
Author: "Do your best out there, Youmi."
Hands in pockets, the author glanced toward [Lovely Labrynth].
Author: "Now then… shall we discuss your screentime next?"
Volume Divider: Volume 2 – The Dragon Boy at Duel Academy
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