"What an exciting duel."
After Max's Life Points dropped to zero, he dodged a virtual image's attack and sighed with amazement.
"Really? That Tenjo Hikari, even managed to defeat a Professional Duelist?!" A student from the Fusion Army covered his mouth with his hand, as if unable to believe the reality.
"What's so strange about that?" Gloria's eyes sparkled with aggressive interest, staring intently at Tenjo Hikari.
Her sister, the silver-haired Grace, also smiled elegantly, "A Professional Duelist is still a Duelist, and in dueling, there are always winners and losers."
"Besides, Max only came with us for a visit." Gloria withdrew her gaze, chuckled a few times, and fell silent.
On the other side, Max had already approached Tenjo Hikari while Judai and the others were still cheering for Tenjo Hikari's victory over a Professional Duelist. Max extended his hand, and Tenjo Hikari understood, extending his hand for a friendly handshake.
"It was always about Polymerization until the end... I once believed in it too." A trace of recollection crossed Max's face, "Unfortunately, in the professional arena, I was often targeted and in the end, had to abandon Polymerization for the sake of the company and constantly change strategies."
"It's human nature; I understand." Tenjo Hikari didn't criticize him. He had his own principles, but if others couldn't stick to theirs, as long as they weren't deceitful, it didn't matter.
Even though Max was a Professional Duelist from the Fusion Army, he indeed hadn't intended to use Polymerization from the start, which didn't seem like a big deal to Tenjo Hikari.
"Actually, recently I've been considering learning Xyz Summoning because Aliens have many Special Summoned Monsters and strategies to quickly gather monsters of the same Level." Max released his hand, glancing at the Fusion Army, "However, Xyz Summoning doesn't seem feasible in our world, so I had to give up on it in the end."
He actually wanted to learn Xyz?
Tenjo Hikari was even more surprised upon hearing this.
Max took a deep breath.
Tenjo Hikari's pursuit of fusion reminded him of his school days when he genuinely loved fusion, and at that time, the Fusion Department wasn't as odd as the current Integration Department.
At least at the beginning, the Fusion Department was just a very small interest club.
Until one day, Akaba Leo suddenly changed direction, applying for a Dimension Gate from Kaiba Company, which slowly turned it into the current Integration Department.
He wasn't sure if Professor Akuma had always planned it this way or if something later provoked this change. He only knew that afterward, Professor Akuma's "ambition" grew, and an entire academy's Fusion Army wasn't enough for him. He had started infiltrating other branches and seemed to be doing business with Other Dimensions.
However, these were not his concerns anymore.
Being a Professional Duelist was not as glamorous as it seemed, and he struggled just not to lose consecutively, having little time to study other matters.
Moreover, he hadn't seen Akaba Leo in a long time. He himself was a Professional Duelist promoted by the Fusion Army and enjoyed its resources, so he couldn't change the status quo willingly. Even today, he was just here to help the Tyler Sisters visit and to find Ed Phoenix by chance.
Originally, he intended to take Ed Phoenix directly to visit the Fusion Army per Akaba Leo's instructions, but he didn't expect things to turn out this way.
Strange, the Professor clearly told me to just take them straight away; why did it turn out like this?
Confused, he tried to have a word with Ed, but Ed coughed twice, saying he had heard of a formidable Fusion Club on the island and came to observe. However, he didn't expect Max not to use any Fusion Monsters, leaving him unsure of what to say.
Regrettably, Max knew his assignment had failed.
He definitely wasn't going to force Ed Phoenix; he wasn't qualified to. Truth be told, in the realm of Professional Duelists, he looked up to Ed Phoenix. And besides, just from Ed's demeanor, he knew, it wasn't a case of "not knowing what to say," it was clear Ed had already made up his mind.
Sigh—
If I had known, I would have brought a Fusion Deck.
"By the way, let me give you this."
"Non-Fusion Area? Sir, I won't be using this card..." Tenjo Hikari frowned at the card.
"Consider it a token of respect from an elder. Besides, you never know when it might come in handy." He handed the card to Tenjo Hikari.
Hmm... Tenjo Hikari looked at the card, unsure when it could be used, but since it had the word "fusion" on it, he thought he might as well keep it.
"Tenjo Hikari, you're quite interesting." Gloria came over with the other Fusion Army members after Max finished speaking, staring at Tenjo Hikari.
"We were thrilled by your duel, both my sister and I."
Tenjo Hikari watched as the armored sisters approached. They weren't aggressive nor claimed this duel didn't count, leaving him unsure of their intent, so he cautiously asked, "Who are you?"
"Gloria Tyler."
"Grace Tyler."
"The most excellent Tag Fusion Duelists."
"Before us, no opponent stands a chance."
One would say something, the other would finish, exuding confidence, if not arrogance.
"What? Tag Duelists? I'm in!" Upon hearing "tag," Judai immediately shouted, ready to duel. Facing a tag duel, it wouldn't make sense for Tenjo Hikari to go alone; otherwise, he would be at a huge disadvantage.
"Uh, I—" Mitsuzawa opened his mouth.
"Hahaha, Judai, there's no way you'll get to go; it's my turn!" Manjome confidently drew out his deck, "I just upgraded my deck and I'm itching for a challenge!"
"Uh... so, I..." Mitsuzawa Daichi tried to continue.
But the Tyler Sisters were already shaking their heads, "Today, we're just here to say hello."
Gloria Tyler gestured her thumb behind her, "We're students at Duel Academy United States Branch, yes, the Fusion Army. We're here to visit today. Next semester, we'll be transferring to this school."
"There will be plenty of opportunities then," Grace whispered with a smile, "to witness the prowess of the students who proclaim the name of 'Fusion'."
Then the sisters, one laughing heartily and the other lightly, turned with their entourage and walked away, with Max looking more like a "Guard" rather than a leader.
"Umi, next time something like this happens, I suggest jumping in to claim your spot right away," Tenjo Hikari turned to Mitsuzawa Daichi after the sisters mysteriously declared war and then left, "just like how I claimed my spot to duel the Vampires back then."
Mitsuzawa Daichi's forehead throbbed with frustration as he clenched his fists.
"Haha, yeah, Mitsuzawa, you really don't stand out," Manjome casually teased.
"Transfer students from the Branch!" Judai focused entirely on the word "transfer student," "This is great, the new semester will be even more fun!"
So then... in the end...
Tenjo Hikari looked at Ed.
"Ed, so what's the story?"
"Huh." Ed picked up his bag, not rejecting anything, "I've just witnessed a very unique duel... I think I'll definitely join the Fusion Department next semester, seniors."
"Well then, I'll be off, seniors."
He smiled and took his leave.
"Yes! Now we'll have members among the freshmen too!" Judai cheered, "And they're also Hero Deck users, fantastic! We can duel with Hero Decks to our hearts' content in the future!"
Also a Hero Deck?
Tenjo Hikari watched Ed's departing figure.
The storyline of the original Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, Stage One, was relatively lighthearted. But once Ed appeared, it shifted abruptly, launching into a "world destruction" level scenario!
Light of Destruction...
Tenjo Hikari silently muttered these words, feeling heavy-hearted.