Kira returned to his routine of classes by day and Spirit-World exploration by night.
A week passed.
In that time, the lab produced more results, which were presented at international conferences hosted by the Industrial Illusions and KaibaCorp.
Now that Kira was the new Duel King, his name alone boosted the lab's profile. With former Duel King Yugi Muto retired for years, the title "the only active Duel King" carried serious weight.
Naturally, more sponsorships and partnership offers poured in.
Kira personally attended a couple of meetings to negotiate with world-famous enterprises and institutions. But after a few meals, he felt it was a waste of time. He contacted the chancellor and asked the academy's experts to handle negotiations. They were far more professional than he was anyway.
As funding grew and departments multiplied, management became a headache.
So Kira set his sights on his nominal superior in the student council—upperclassman Seika Kohinata.
From what he'd observed over the first half-year, while Seika's dueling wasn't exceptional, she was a two-time Miss Duel Academy and ran the student council like clockwork; her social and managerial skills were solid.
Having become a legend—Duel King in just half a year—Kira was an academy icon. Seika was flattered to receive his invitation, and over the next several days she hustled tirelessly, handling lab affairs with care. When she felt understaffed, she pulled trusted aides from the student council to help with errands and grunt work.
She truly had a knack for management. The lab's affairs, large and small, fell into orderly rhythm under her hand.
The way things were going, though, it felt like the student council might get swallowed up by Kira's lab.
….
On the weekend, Revolver returned to his loyal Knights of Hanoi.
"About the 'Master of the Shadow Riders,' we dug up something… though it may just be rumor," Kurozaki reported.
"There are claims that before the 'Shadow Riders' formed, he too was a dark duelist. In the underworld, he used the codename 'Charioteer of the Firmament.'"
"Charioteer of the Firmament?" Kira frowned.
That never came up in the anime…
"Yeah—supposedly tied to the deck he used back then. But who he really was? No clue…"
"And what about Chairman Kagemaru? The one I asked you to track?" Kira cut in.
"Oh, that old man? Still missing," Kurozaki said. "Word is he vanished due to a severe illness, some time ago. No family or heirs, and the board hasn't seen him in ages. They figure he's probably dead…"
Kurozaki glanced at his leader, then carefully asked, "Is this chairman connected to all this?"
Kira shook his head, lost in thought.
"Well, while there are claims that the Charioteer of the Firmament is the current Master of the Shadow Riders, there's no real evidence. But the man left a trail years ago," Kurozaki continued.
"For instance, seven years back, there's a record of a village overrun by an awakened ancient fiend. Dueling wasn't as advanced back then, the village was remote, and the fiend did as it pleased—treated the villagers like cattle and slaves.
The Charioteer and a close friend happened to pass by. After learning what was happening, they stepped up, fought the fiend to the death in a duel, and won by a hair, destroying the stone tablet buried beneath the village.
That's the last confirmed record we found."
Charioteer of the Firmament—sounded like a roving hero of the card world.
Didn't sound like the Kagemaru Kira knew—a scheming old man who'd do anything to survive.
"Oh, and one more thing. While we haven't pinned down the Master of the Shadow Riders, we might have a lead on one of the Seven."
"Oh?" Kira asked. "Which one?"
"Uh, a woman. Calls herself an Amazoness—and she looks the part. But honestly? She's not hard to find. Because, uh… she's hosting an event at Domino City's underground arena."
Kira blinked. "An event?"
…
That night, Kira went to Domino City himself.
Following the intel to the underground arena, he found a packed, roaring coliseum. Kurozaki was right—this Shadow Riders wasn't hard to find.
Because she was publicly seeking a husband by dueling.
Amazoness Tania.
Tania didn't fit the traditional notion of a beauty—gentle, soft, fair-skinned, graceful curves—none of that really applied.
Strapping was closer to the mark.
Chocolate skin, taller and more powerfully built than most men, and a bold, husky voice—she was born a warrior.
And yet, in the original, Misawa fell head over heels for her. When they reunited in another dimension, he thought he'd found true love. He stayed in that other world with her for a shamelessly lovey-dovey life, never returning to reality.
By the time Kira descended to the floor, Tania was in a fierce duel with a sunglasses-wearing guy on the stage.
"Amazoness Swords Woman—attack 'Zoa the Fiendish Beast'!"
[Amazoness Swords Woman, ATK 1500]
[Zoa the Fiendish Beast, ATK 2600]
Sunglasses Guy blanched. "Attacking with the lower ATK monster!?"
But the swordswoman was already thrusting forward, charging fearlessly at the azure demon. The fiend roared and swung a claw. With the huge gap in strength, the warrior's blade shattered with a metallic clang.
"Amazoness Swords Woman's effect," Tania said. "Any battle damage from this card's battles is inflicted to your opponent!"
"What!?" Sunglasses Guy's pupils shrank. "Damn, Zoa's got 2600—"
[Sunglasses Guy, LP 1000]
"Good—then you can eat this battle damage yourself! Take it!"
The broken longsword spun like a boomerang, whirled out, and pierced Sunglasses Guy through the chest.
"Gahhh!"
[Sunglasses Guy, LP 1000 → LP 0]
The match was decided, and the crowd roared. Tania raised her right fist high, a swaggering grin on her face: "Next!"
"Too weak—too weak!"
"How's a man like that supposed to satisfy me!?"
The cheers swelled.
Seeing no one step up for a moment, Kira walked up the steps onto the stage.
"Oh? You're next, challenger?"
Tania narrowed her eyes and sized him up.
"I only care about strong men. Only a man among men deserves to stand before me. Who are you? Are you confident in your strength?"
"Me? You can call me 'Revolver.' As for whether I'm confident…"
Kira slowly unfolded his Duel Disk and smiled.
"Why don't you come find out for yourself?"
PS: Bonus chapter at 500 PS