He took another deep breath and straightened. "And one more thing. So far, Duel Dojo has not had a single student successfully enter Duel Academy. This time, there can be no failure. Do you understand?"
"Alright," Yugen answered.
It was just an exam. How hard could it be?
After returning home from Duel Dojo, Yugen took out the treasured card the hall master had just entrusted to him, the so-called Silent Magician, and set it on the table to examine it from every angle. He looked carefully, turning it left and right, focusing as if he might find something hidden on the surface. This was not because of the artwork itself, but because he wanted to confirm whether the rumors about a Spirit were real.
He tried to recall the original story as best he could. Back in GX, after Judai Yuki obtained a Spirit card tied to Winged Kuriboh from Yugi, nothing much seemed to happen, and in the very first episode Kuriboh floated out on its own and chatted with Judai Yuki. Yet the card in front of him showed no sign of movement at all.
"Hello?" "Are you there?" "."
There was no response, exactly as expected. With a thought, he came up with another idea and immediately pulled out his Duel Disk and unfolded it.
He had heard that not everyone could see a Spirit, and that only certain people possessed something like Spirit affinity. It was possible that the Spirit was already present, but he simply could not perceive it. If that was the case, there was still one more method to try.
By using the holographic system of the Duel Disk to perform a summon, and relying on the technology of Kaiba Corporation to give the Spirit a visible form, he might at least be able to communicate. The projection system activated, and amid a brilliant magic circle, a graceful mage stepped forward. She wore a spotless white robe that swayed gently with her movements, revealing long, slender legs as the hem fluttered like falling snow.
Silent Magician, summoned. She stood there without expression, calm and cold like a crystal tree made of ice. Her pale face looked rigid and distant, as if carved from frozen stone.
Yugen stared at the tall mage and studied her closely. He let out a low sound as he examined the texture of her skin and the chill in her eyes, which looked almost too real. Still, her unblinking gaze and unmoving expression made her seem like nothing more than a hologram.
As he circled to her left, Yugen suddenly stepped back and looked straight into her eyes. They were still fixed forward, unchanged and calm. Yet for an instant, he thought he saw her eyes move, as if she had glanced at him and then immediately looked away.
The moment was so brief that he could not be sure he had not imagined it. After that, no matter how he walked around the projection, there was no further reaction. With no other options, he shut off the Duel Disk and placed the card back on the table.
He planned to take a shower, go out for a walk to find dinner, then come back to review materials for the upcoming exam and go to bed early. Just as he was about to start, another idea occurred to him. He remembered hearing that music was a common language across species and cultures, and that many living things responded to it.
Acting on a whim, he turned on his music player and filled the room with energetic background music suited for dueling. Heavy metal rhythms pounded through the air, loud and forceful, the kind that made a player feel ready to change the world with the next draw. Satisfied, Yugen set it to loop and went into the bathroom.
The fatigue of the day washed away quickly under the water. While drying his hair, he returned to his room and immediately paused, noticing something was wrong. The music was gone.
He walked over to the table and saw that the player had somehow stopped. After a moment of thought, he pressed play again, then turned and pretended to leave the room. He quickly came back and peeked through the door crack, watching patiently.
Less than a minute passed before he saw it. A faint ripple spread from the card on the table, and a half-transparent figure appeared out of nowhere. The white-robed mage floated there, her skin almost translucent under the moonlight from the window, giving her an oddly sacred look.
Yugen took a quiet breath. It seemed the hall master had not been exaggerating after all. There really was a Spirit.
The mage drifted silently, glowing faintly, but her movements were cautious and furtive as she looked around. She reached out carefully and pressed a button on the music player. The music stopped.
Yugen:"."
He reflected for a moment and realized his consideration had been lacking. Given her name, it was probably no surprise that the Silent Magician did not appreciate loud music. Still, by sheer coincidence, his strange musical ritual had actually summoned the Spirit.
He suddenly pushed the door open and stepped into the room. Silent Magician:"!!"
The silver-haired mage jumped in shock, covering her mouth and stepping back, a faint blush appearing on her usually cold face. It was like being caught doing something secret at home when a parent suddenly walked in. In the next instant, she turned into a streak of white light and flew back into the card.
Yugen:"."
Now he was sure of it. His Spirit had definitely been pretending nothing was happening. He wondered if it was because he did not look trustworthy, then dismissed the thought after glancing in the mirror.
That could not be it. Maybe it was simply that this Spirit was shy. Encounters like this were rare, and everyone said that the bond between a Duelist and their cards was the key to victory, so he decided he should make the most of it.
He sat back down at the table. "Hey, are you there?"
Silence:"."
"I already know you are here."
Silence:"."
Yugen felt stuck. Every Duel King in the anime talked about bonds, but no one ever explained how to build one. You could not train her or feed her, and she rarely came out of the card on her own.
After some thought, he asked carefully, "How about we try another song?"
Silence:"!"
A faint ripple spread across the card again. A few seconds later, the Silent Magician floated out, holding her staff with both hands and keeping her head lowered, her expression awkward. She still said nothing, but her reaction made her meaning clear.
As long as he did not open his mouth, everything else could be discussed.
Yugen walked along in search of food and reflected on himself, feeling that his approach might be a little wrong. Other schools, like the animated Cyber Style style, relied on steady training and progress, practicing Card Draw day and night until effort paid off and they finally moved Cyber End Dragon to gain a Spirit's recognition. By contrast, Silent Magician was probably wondering how she ended up with such a strange master, since his method of summoning a Spirit was to annoy her until she begged him to stop.
Still, looking only at the result, he had summoned her. From that angle, it did work. It seemed he would need to think more carefully about the proper way to build a bond in the future.
Lost in thought as he walked, Yugen suddenly sensed something off. A small alley lay hidden behind the bright lights of the city, a shortcut to the commercial district of only six or seven hundred meters, with food stalls lining the street beyond it. The air was damp and mixed with an unknown smell, while the stone pavement looked uneven under weak lights and the wind rustled through an old tree at the entrance.
After only a few steps, the dim light revealed a wall blocking the way. It was a dead end. Yugen frowned, because according to the previous owner's memories this path should have gone through.