[The World Chalice Priestess], a Level 2 Normal Monster. She had no attack power but possessed a high defense of 2100. She was the "tankiest" monster in Zero's current deck, as solid as a steel plate.
In every sense... including the girl's figure on the card; her chest was also very much a "steel plate."
"Your gaze is very unfriendly, Amano Zero!"
Whenever this happened, a habitual grumble would drift into Zero's ears.
"Are you thinking about something very rude regarding the beautiful girl, Eve?"
Emerging from the card face and floating beside Zero in a semi-transparent spiritual state was the "Priestess" who called herself 'Eve,' pouting and complaining.
This was another difference Zero had discovered between this reincarnated world and his original one. In this world, Duel Spirits existed. Just like in the anime.
Of course, not every card had a spirit. So far, among all the monster cards Zero had found, only Eve would pop out from time to time.
Initially, Zero was shocked. But after the brief surprise, he quickly accepted the fact. He had already been reincarnated, and the world had already been destroyed once. What was there to be resistant to regarding a card spirit?
Furthermore, because she was a spirit, she didn't seem to be able to interfere with reality at will and couldn't cause any actual harm.
For example, right now, an angry Eve was muttering while using her small, pale feet—clad in stirrup leggings—to kick Zero's butt repeatedly.
"Darn you! That's for calling me flat! That's for calling me flat!"
Unfortunately, even if a beautiful spirit's jade-like feet kicked his butt, Zero felt nothing.
If you're going to reward me, do it properly!
However, because Yuu was beside him, Zero couldn't continue teasing Eve. According to Zero's observations, card spirits seemed to be visible only to the owner. The fact that Yuu had no reaction right now was the best proof.
Ignoring Eve's presence, Zero chatted idly with his best friend along the way. They crossed the dilapidated streets piled with scrap until they reached the only card shop in Sector 32.
[The Tsundere Duelist]
The owner must have some other way of making money to dare open a card shop in Sector 32, where there were almost no Duelists. Otherwise, it would have gone bankrupt long ago.
The name of the shop was a bit strange; was it written backwards?
Pushing the door open, a crisp bell rang, waking the shop assistant who was dozing behind the counter at noon.
That's right—the owner of this shop not only dared to open a card shop in a slum, but they also hired a cute girl as a "poster girl."
"Jie Yi, slacking off again?"
Quickly wiping the drool from her mouth after waking up, Jie Yi breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Zero, patting her chest.
"Scared me to death. Oh, it's just Amano. I thought a customer had come in."
"Am I not a customer?"
"The boss said only those who can pay are called customers."
The girl had pink twin-tails and a youthful, energetic outfit with delicate features. Jie Yi was definitely a well-known beauty in Sector 32. Having grown up together as peers, the three of them were quite familiar with each other.
However, Jie Yi seemed to have some mysterious hostility toward Zero... No, to be precise, the source of the hostility wasn't Zero.
"Excuse me~" Yuu followed Zero into the shop.
"As expected, you came too." The moment she saw Yuu, the hostility in Jie Yi's eyes intensified.
She was a beautiful poster girl, the "Sunlight Flower" blooming in the slums; she was supposed to be the cutest and most noticed girl on the whole street.
But what's up with you? How can a man be cuter than me? Why don't they just hire you as the poster girl instead!
This was the nameless fire of jealousy burning in the girl's heart regarding Yuu's appearance. And because Yuu was often glued to Zero, Jie Yi's hostility slightly extended to his best friend.
Zero: "A pity, but I'm here to spend money today. The customer is God; if your attitude is bad, I'll file a complaint!"
"You're here to spend?" Jie Yi looked incredulous. "What cards are you planning to buy?"
"First, I need a smile from the poster girl. Remember, I am God, and I have the right to complain."
"Er..." Jie Yi's lips twitched as she forced out a professional, "customer service" smile. "May I ask, dear customer, what kind of cards are you looking for?"
"Those. Bring them out for me to see." Zero pointed to a box in the corner of the counter filled with a jumble of cards.
Jie Yi's professional smile vanished instantly; it seemed even one extra second of it was a waste. "Heh, just those?"
The box contained the cheapest Spell and Trap cards—outdated cards with almost no strategic value. But even though they were obsolete, because they were Spell/Trap cards, they still carried a price in the bottom sectors of Eden compared to worthless monster cards.
"1,000 Eva points each. Take your pick," Jie Yi said dismissively.
[Eva Points]—the universal currency in the Eden Tower. You could use them to buy anything, including cards.
Zero glanced at the mechanical terminal on his right wrist, which resembled an electronic watch, showing his balance. The Eva Terminal—a key device everyone was forced to wear from birth. It stored everyone's Eva points.
Because he had just received his monthly salary yesterday, he had exactly 1,000 points.
"Really expensive." A card that almost no one used would cost an entire month's salary for a normal person in the slums. Zero couldn't figure out if the cards were too expensive or the people at the bottom were too poor. He didn't know if the card prices were weird or if this whole world was weird.
"I get it, Zero." Yuu, who was standing behind him, slapped his palm in realization. "You specifically asked me to come along to help you choose cards, right? Don't worry, I have a great eye!"
"No," Zero denied.
"Then why did you call me?"
"To borrow money."
"..."
Currently, his "trash deck" had 37 cards. Even if he spent a month's salary to buy one Spell or Trap card, he'd only have 38. Zero didn't want to wait another month. Besides, Yuu had his parents to support him, unlike Zero, who was alone and had to cover his sister's expenses. Yuu should have at least some money.
"How many points do you have left?"
Yuu glanced at his terminal display. "1,001 points."
It really is just 'some' points!
Zero sighed heavily.
"You have the nerve to sigh?" Even as a lifelong best friend, Yuu couldn't hold it in anymore. "Zero, you bought a card last month too. You know that you and Shio lived off my money this month, right?"
Wait, did that happen?
One shouldn't be too heartless.
"Sorry, I misunderstood you, Yuu."
"Glad you know."
"So, hand it over."
Zero activated the moral card [Take-ism], seizing Yuu's last 1,001 Eva points for himself.
Yuu: QwQ
He had a conscience, but not much. Nothing was more important than completing a deck. In Eden, as long as you held a deck in your hand, you could find some way to make money.
By purchasing two cards at once, Zero's deck would reach 39 cards. Plus, today was the long-awaited day for processing trash from the upper levels; there was a high probability of finding one more unwanted monster card.
That would finish his basic 40-card deck.
"Let me see." Jie Yi leaned her head over curiously, glancing at the first Trap card Zero had selected.
[D2 Shield] [Trap Card: Select 1 face-up Defense Position monster you control. Its DEF becomes double its original DEF.]
"Oh, an unexpectedly good choice," Jie Yi said in surprise.
To be honest, among this pile of useless Spell and Trap cards, this one had a decent effect. Well, it was only "barely usable." Compared to expensive and versatile Spells and Traps, the gap was still too large.
The warm afternoon sun shone into the shop. Jie Yi sat lazily, her elbow on the counter and her cheek resting in her hand, chatting as she watched Zero pick his cards.
"Amano, I'm telling you, instead of wasting money on this junk, why not save up and buy our shop's treasure? That way, I could get a nice commission!"
"Shop treasure?" Zero heard this for the first time and became interested. "What is it?"
"There." Jie Yi nudged her chin toward a Trap card placed on the highest shelf in the back.
Looking at the card border, it was the rarest UR (Ultra Rare) rank. The owner had even protected it with an exquisite card brick; its treatment was clearly different from the other cheap cards. The price tag was 10,000 Eva points—definitely not something Zero could afford. Jie Yi was purely joking.
[Trap Card - Sakuretsu Armor]
Zero: "Even a dog wouldn't use that."
Jie Yi: "Woof?"
(Translator's note: Because Sakuretsu Armor never successfully activated in nearly a thousand episodes of the Yu-Gi-Oh anime, it is crowned the "Loser Card of the Universal Will.")
────────────────────────────────────────
My : https://[email protected]/AuAuMon
Yu-ki-oh:King of the Scraps (52Chapters – Ongoing)
────────────────────────────────────────