"Hey guys… it's me. Mash."
If anyone had asked him how his first morning at Duel Academy was going, he would have answered with exactly that level of enthusiasm—somewhere between dead inside and barely conscious.
Right now, Mash was trapped inside Professor Crowler's classroom.
"Trapped" was the correct word, because what Crowler called a lecture felt less like teaching and more like being held hostage by the Duel Monsters Guidebook. The man stood at the front of the class with theatrical flair, waving his hand dramatically as he explained concepts that were quite literally printed word-for-word in the academy's official manuals.
No, explaining wasn't the right word.
He was yapping.
And for some unfathomable reason, this class lasted for fucking three entire hours!
Mash sat in his chair like a man slowly withering away.
He had barely slept the night before. After everything that had happened yesterday, the duel, the explanations, and the new bond system nonsense... He hadn't crawled into bed until close to one in the morning. Then five hours later, at exactly six a.m., he had been forced out of bed to start the academy's morning ritual: standing in a painfully long line just to take a shower, eating an undercooked cheese sandwich at the cafeteria, packing the ungodly amount of textbook into your bag, and finally jogging across the island to get to the campus on time.
And now, after all that effort, Mash found himself sitting in a wooden chair while Professor Crowler spent thirty straight minutes passionately explaining the difference between Quick-Play Spell Cards and Continuous Spell Cards.
Mash stared blankly at the blackboard.
[I am so fucking tired and bored...]
Mash let out a loud yawn.
[Can I just sleep this one out...? Yeah. I probably can...]
Mash folded his arms on the desk and let his head sink down onto them, forming the most comfortable pillow he could manage. His eyelids grew heavier by the second as the professor's endless lecture faded into a distant murmur.
[It's a quick nap. Five minutes, maybe. Surely that wouldn't hurt at all...]
Just as Mash was already at the brink of unconsciousness, suddenly...
SMACK!
Something slammed into the middle of his back.
Mash jolted upright like he had just been struck by lightning. His head snapped around with an irritated glare, only to find Jaden leaning toward him with a bright, carefree grin plastered across his face.
Right...
Mash had completely forgotten to mention that he had somehow ended up seated in the very front row of the classroom like the fucking nerd he was alongside Jaden, Syrus, Chumley alongside the majority of Slifer Red students.
Jaden leaned closer and lowered his voice to a whisper.
"Hey, Mash," he murmured. "You don't wanna get in trouble on your first day at the Academy, right? Especially not in Crowler's class."
Mash stared at him.
Completely.
Utterly.
Flabbergasted.
[Jaden... you are the first person in this class who would be knocked out cold after thirty minutes of any lecture in this school...!] Mash eyes twitched. [How dare you fuckin lecture me!]
His eyes narrowed slightly as he leaned toward Jaden and whispered back. "Look, Jay… I'm not gonna sleep for long."
Jaden raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?"
"Of course...! Cause it's only going to take somewhere around… the length of this entire fucking class."
Before Jaden could respond, Mash calmly turned back toward his desk, folded his arms again, and dropped his head straight onto his makeshift arm pillow. Within seconds, he fully committed to the nap he believed he rightfully deserved.
Professor Crowler strolled around the classroom, as usual, waving his arms dramatically while yapping like a discord mod about the literal basics of Spell Cards that for some goddamn reason can be extended to half an hour of rambling.
Then, he suddenly stopped in his tracks, an arrogant smirk forming on his face as he turned to the class.
"Now, class! Can anyone here tell me the types of Duel Monster cards?"
Without hesitation, Alexis Rhodes raised her hand.
"Oh! Signora Alexis! As expected from an Obelisk Blue!" Crowler beamed, clearly favoring the elites. "Please stand up and enlighten the class!"
Alexis stood up from her seat and answered in a clear, confident tone. "Duel Monster cards can be categorized into Normal Monsters, Fusion Monsters, Ritual Monsters, Effect Monsters, Spell Cards, and Trap Cards. Trap Cards can be further divided into Normal Traps, Counter Traps, and Continuous Traps, while Spell Cards are separated into Normal Spells, Continuous Spells, Equip Spells, Quick-Play Spells, Ritual Spells, and Field Spells."
Mash, half-asleep at his desk, let out a quiet chuckle. [You forgot Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum, and Link Monsters, Alexis... Ups, I forgot that they aren't exist, yet.]
Crowler clapped his hands dramatically. "Perfect! Well done, Alexis! But of course, I wouldn't expect anything less from one of my distinguished Obelisk Blue students!"
Then, Crowler expression shifted into something more sinister as he scanned the classroom, clearly searching for a victim. His eyes landed on a certain nervous-looking blue-haired boy.
"You! Syrus Truesdale!" Crowler snapped.
Syrus jolted in his seat. "Y-Yes?!" He shot up from his chair, stiff as a board.
Crowler narrowed his eyes. "Explain to the class what a Field Spell is."
Syrus swallowed hard, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. "U-uhm… a Field Spell is… uh… it's a thing that… affects a…"
From the Obelisk Blue side of the room, a mocking voice cut through. "Even a grade schooler knows the answer to this, you Slifer Slacker!" sneered Taiyou.
The entire Obelisk Blue section erupted into laughter.
Syrus' face turned bright red from embarrassment. "No, I know this! It's a… it's a…"
Jaden leaned over with a reassuring grin. "Relax, Sy. I know you got this."
"I think NOT!" Crowler huffed. "Sit down!"
Syrus sank into his seat, defeated.
"Now, can someone competent please give me the answer?" Crowler sneered. "Preferably not from someone wearing red, thank you."
Once again, the classroom burst into laughter, with Slifer Red students rolling their eyes at Crowler's blatant favoritism.
Syrus sighed in shame. "Aw man… I blew it. I made us Slifers look bad—"
Jaden, however, wasn't having it. "You know something, teach? You really shouldn't go around making fun of us Slifers like that."
Crowler raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"
From his seat, Mash smirked. [Yeah! Go, protagonist! Roast that walking Pot of Greed!]
Jaden leaned back with his signature grin. "I mean, Mash and I are Slifers, and we both beat you. So if you're making fun of us Slifers, isn't that basically like making fun of yourself?"
The entire Slifer Red side exploded into laughter, while Jaden simply flashed a V-sign in victory.
Crowler's face twisted with rage. [That's it! I refuse to tolerate this slacker at my school for another second! But first, I need to regain my dignity!]
Then, his eyes landed on Mash, who was sleeping soundly. His rage doubled.
"YOU! MASH!" Crowler barked. "How DARE you sleep in my class?! Stand up and answer the question!"
Mash groggily rubbed his eyes and yawned. "Huh…? The question…? Oh, the Field Spell one?"
Crowler crossed his arms. "Yes! That very question the last Slifer Slacker couldn't answer! [Not that I expect you to do any better! After all, you placed dead last in the written exam! There's no way—]"
"A Field Spell is a type of Spell that affects the entire field, impacting both the user and the opponent." Mash answered lazily, stretching his arms. "for example, lets say a field spell have the effect of raising dragon monster attack by 300. If the user summoned a dragon monster, that monster will get 300 attack, but also, if the opponent summons a dragon monster, that monster will also get 300 attack. Does that answer suits you, Professor Crowler?"
The room fell silent.
Then, whispers erupted across the classroom.
"Wait… Isn't that the kid who placed last on the written exam?"
"I can't believe a Slifer Slacker answered that correctly!"
"Ohhh… that's the answer."
Mash turned around to see his classmates, and blinked at their reactions. [Bruh, it was a simple question. Y'all don't have to act so surprised.]
Crowler staggered back, stunned. [I-I can't believe it! This Slifer Slacker actually answered the question correctly! And even gave a detailed explanation!? Unacceptable!]
"Wait! Now that you've answered that, let's see how you handle this!" Crowler sneered.
"Explain what a Quick-Play Spell is!"
Mash sighed. [This motherfucker…]
"A Quick-Play Spell is a Spell Speed 2 card that can be activated either normally or in response to a Spell Speed 1 card played by the opponent."
The entire class gasped.
Jaden blinked. "Whoa, Mash! I didn't get a single thing you just said, but you sound pretty smart!"
Bastion, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes, intrigued. [You really are a surprising person, Mash. Maybe you being placed last at the written exam is just some error.]
Crowler's jaw dropped to the floor. [Impossible! This is third-year knowledge! How does this slacker already know about Spell Speeds?!]
Crowler, now desperate, glared at Mash. "T-Then! What's the difference between a Normal Monster and an Effect Monster?!"
Mash gave him a deadpan stare. [are you fucking fr rn?] Mash leaned forward with a
smirk. "Actually, Professor Crowler, how about I ask you a question? If you can't answer it, I'm going back to sleep."
Professor Crowler smirked confidently. "Fine! But if i am able to answer it, you will receive
the most boring homework you will ever done!" [Hmph! with my PhD in dueling, there is no question that I cannot answer in terms of duel monster!]
Bastion raised an eyebrow. [What question will he ask to sound so confident like that?]
"Alright then..." Mash then grinned confidently, "explain to me what a spell speed 4 is?"
Bastion's eyes widened as he nearly jumped from his seat. [Spell speed 4!? but that's-]
Crowler slammed his desk, flustered. "That's IMPOSSIBLE! There is no such thing as a Spell Speed 4!"
Mash's smirk widened. "But there is. Shouldn't Professor Signore Crowler know this question, since he have a PhD in dueling? or is it just decoration?"
Crowler his pride flared. "I know what a spell speed 4 is! a spell speed 4 is a... is a..."
Mash's grin widened with each passing second as Professor Crowler began sweating bullets.
Crowler clenched his fists, his patience wearing thin. "GAH! There is no such thing as a Spell Speed 4! Since you're grinning so much, how about you explain it!?"
Mash smirked. "Alright then, I'll explain. Spell Speed 4 refers to cards with the effect: 'Neither player can activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation.'"
The classroom fell silent for a moment. Then—
Bastion's eyes widened in shock.[What!? That exists?!]
Crowler's expression twisted in horror. "S-So… that means…!"
Mash leaned forward lazily. "It means that a Spell Speed 4 card cannot be responded to by anything. No Spell Speed 2 effects can negate it, and even Spell Speed 3 Counter Traps, normally only negated by another Spell Speed 3, won't work against it."
The entire class gasped again in unison.
Crowler staggered back, his face pale. "B-But I have never heard of such a thing!"
Mash gave him a smug look. "Well, that just means your PhD is just for decoration." With that, Mash yawned and slumped back in his chair. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll be getting my deserved shut-eye. Later, teach!" Then Mash head slammed down to his desk as he falls asleep.
The class erupted into whispers and murmurs, while Crowler trembled with uncontrollable rage.
Professor Crowler seems about to explode from anger. [ARGHHH!! FIRST JADEN, NOW MASH?! THESE SLIFER SLACKERS HUMILIATED ME YET AGAIN! I WILL MAKE SURE THEY LEAVE THIS ACADEMY ASAP!!!]
---
Jaden, now dressed in his Slifer Red tracksuit, glanced around with a slightly worried expression. His hands were on his hips as he muttered,
"Man... where is Syrus? It's unusual for him to be late."
I chuckled, stretching my arms behind my head as I smirked. "You worry too much, Jay! Sy's probably late because he got a love letter in his locker."
Jaden's eyes widened for a split second before he burst into laughter. "A love letter!? Ahahaha! Mash, you joke too much!"
I grinned. "Ahahaha! Maybe I am!"
We both laughed it off, but unfortunately...
[It's true.]
That class with Professor Crowler earlier? Yeah, it just confirmed that today is the start of Episode 3 of the anime the episode where Syrus gets sat on by three girls. No, I'm not kidding.
[Anyway, like I said, Syrus probably just found a love letter in his locker... which is actually a trap set up by Crowler to lure Jaden into the girls' dorm so he gets expelled.]
[But for some reason because of Crowler's stupidity, the letter ended up in Syrus's locker instead. And the dumbass didn't even bother reading it properly to realize that it was actually meant for Jaden. If I remember correctly, in the anime, Syrus stopped reading the moment he saw that it was from Alexis.]
As I was lost in thought, Syrus finally appeared, dressed in his Slifer Red Tracksuit, and wearing the widest, dumbest grin I had ever seen. He walked towards us in a weird, erratic way, like he was trying to suppress his excitement but failing miserably.
Jaden waved at him. "Hey, Sy! Why are you late?"
Syrus just shrugged, still grinning like an idiot. "Hehe... Oh, it's nothing, Jaden... Hehe..."
Jaden and I exchanged a glance, both staring at Syrus's peculiar behavior. Then, without taking his eyes off him, Jaden leaned toward my ear and whispered,
"I think you hit the mark, Mash."
I barely held back a snort.
Before I could say anything, our PE teacher, Fonda Fontaine, arrived, clapping her hands to get our attention.
"Alright, boys! Today's warm-up is ten laps around the entire field! Let's go! And then after that let's go for a 10 KM run around the field!"
I blinked.
[WHAT THE HELL DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH DUELING!?]
---
Boys locker room.
Mash dragged himself back into the boys' locker room like a soldier returning from war.
Every step felt like torture. His legs had completely given up on life, wobbling beneath him like two flimsy crabsticks that could snap at any moment. Ten meters. That was all he managed before he collapse to the floor all exhausted.
Meanwhile... Jaden Yuki over there strolled into the locker room looking… mildly sweaty.
That was it.
No heavy breathing, no trembling legs, not even the faintest hint of suffering after running ten whole kilometers around the academy field. He was just sweaty, just a bit sweaty.
Mash slowly lifted his head and stared at him.
Jaden was casually changing clothes at his locker, humming a tune to himself. From what Mash could see, the guy looked fit, but nothing outrageous. Just a lean, athletic build, and definitely not gay for a guy looking and analyzing of another guys body inside the locker room.
But still...
[SO HOW DID HE RUN THAT MUCH SO EASILY???]
[WHAT KIND OF STEROIDS IS THIS GUY PACKING!?]
Like, seriously!
Mash was just a normal city kid whose primary hobbies involved sitting at a desk and playing Master Duel until two in the morning. His exercise routine consisted of walking to the fridge. So Jaden should be too right!? So how the hell did Jaden make a 10-kilometer run look like a casual stroll!?
Mash groaned and pushed himself upright before staggering toward his locker. "Ugh… damn it…" He muttered curses under his breath with every step.
[I came here to learn how to duel… not to become fucking One Punch Man! Fonda Fontaine... You fucking demon...]
With what little strength Mash had left, he finally reached his locker and opened it. But as Mash bent down to grab his spare clothes, he noticed something sitting on top of his shoes-
A letter.
And right in the middle of it?
Abig, bright red kiss mark.
Mash eyes widened instantly.
[Wait a second... Don't tell me...!]
He quickly glanced around the locker room to make sure no one was watching before snatching the letter and unfolding it. His heart beat a little faster as his eyes scanned the contents.
[Alright, let's see… bla bla bla… I am in love with you… bla bla bla… Meet me at the Obelisk Girls' Dorm tonight…]
Wait.
WAIT.
WHAT!?
His eyes nearly popped out of his skull.
[HOLY SHIT! SO CROWLER IS TARGETING ME TOO!? SINCE WHEN!?]
Mash squinted suspiciously at the signature written at the bottom of the letter.
"From… Jasmine?"
"Who the hell is Jasmine?"
The name meant absolutely nothing to him.
He scratched his head, trying to remember if he'd heard it before. Maybe one of Alexis's friends? That would make sense. Syrus had gotten a letter from Alexis earlier, so maybe this was the "alternate route" version of the same trap.
But that didn't change the most important detail. Both letters were obviously written by that suspiciously flamboyant professor and just imagining Professor Crowler writing a love letter with a lipstick kiss mark from his mouth sent chills racing down Mash's spine.
He physically shuddered, as he now hold the envelope like he is holding the tail of a dead rat.
"Nope."
Mash immediately folded the letter and stuffed it deep into his bag.
"Not thinking about that."
Meanwhile, across the locker room, Syrus was sitting on a bench with the biggest grin Mash had ever seen on a human face. The kid looked like he had just won the lottery.
But Mash stared at him with deep pity.
[Syrus… you poor fool…]
He sighed quietly.
[I want to help you… but I'm sorry, little one.]
[It's a canon event.]
Mash shook his head as he finished changing his clothes.
---
6:09 PM – Slifer Red Dorm, Mash's Room
Mash pushed open the door to his room with a tired sigh, a towel draped lazily over his shoulder while droplets of water still clung to the tips of his damp hair. The warm steam from the dorm showers had long faded, but the lingering heat in his muscles left him feeling pleasantly relaxed.
The Slifer Red dorms looked like a run-down wooden cabin that had somehow survived three natural disasters and a budget cut, but at the very least, they had functioning water heaters. That alone elevated the place several ranks above what Mash had expected when he first saw the building.
He stepped inside and stretched his arms overhead, his joints popping faintly after the long day.
"Fuuuh…" he exhaled deeply.
"The bathroom isn't exactly five-star quality," he muttered to himself, rolling his shoulders as the tension slowly drained from his body, "but at least the water isn't freezing."
He rubbed the towel through his hair and snorted.
"And unlike certain internet basement dwellers, I actually enjoy taking regular baths."
With a satisfied sigh, Mash let himself fall backward onto his bed—the lowest bunk in the three-level Slifer Red setup. The mattress creaked under his weight as he spread his arms across the thin blanket, staring lazily up at the wooden planks of the ceiling.
For a brief moment, he allowed himself to relax.
His body sank comfortably into the bed.
Alright… now what…?
His thoughts drifted idly for a second before something suddenly clicked in his brain.
Mash's eyes snapped open.
"Oh right."
"The mission rewards."
He immediately raised his hand, summoning the familiar translucent system window in front of him. The glowing interface appeared in midair with a faint hum as he navigated directly to the mission tab.
{Missions}
• Survive all 4 seasons of GX: 0/4Reward: 100,000 Credits
• Shoo Away the Guards! — COMPLETEDInfo: Tonight, Jaden Yuki was challenged to a duel by Chazz Princeton. Unfortunately, in the anime, three guards interrupted the duel, leaving it unresolved. Please shoo them away!Reward: 1000 Credits
• [SECRET MISSION] Duel against Chazz and win — COMPLETEDReward: 500 Credits
[CLAIM ALL]More missions are coming soon!
Mash stared at the screen for half a second.
Then he practically launched himself off the bed.
"HOLY SHIT!"
His eyes locked onto the third entry on the list.
"Just by dueling Chazz and winning I got an extra five hundred credits!?"
Without hesitation, he slapped the CLAIM ALL button. The system chimed pleasantly as the rewards were processed, and the number in the corner of the screen immediately began to change.
{Credits: 1000 → 2500}
Mash froze for a moment as the realization sank in.
Then his entire body started trembling with excitement.
"Oh yeah…"
"I completely forgot to pull the gacha when I got that first thousand credits."
His eye twitched slightly as he remembered the previous night.
"Damn those Team-Rocket-from-Wish idiots for distracting me…"
But the irritation vanished just as quickly as it appeared.
Mash slowly raised both hands toward the ceiling like a man who had just discovered buried treasure.
"I…"
"…am rich."
A grin spread across his face.
"I AM RICH, BABY!"
"LET'S GOOOOOO!"
He immediately jumped to his feet and started dancing in the middle of the room like a complete lunatic, spinning in several enthusiastic victory twirls before finally collapsing back onto the bed with a manic grin.
But he wasn't done yet.
Not even close.
Mash raised his hand again and opened the Shop Menu, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
"Well now…" he muttered thoughtfully.
"Shouldn't we do a little gacha?"
With barely contained excitement, he pressed the 10× Pull button on the Master Pack.
The system lights flashed as the cards shuffled.
A moment later, the results appeared.
{Pull Results}
• 12 SR Cards• 29 R Cards• 39 N Cards
Mash slowly slid off the bed and dropped to his knees.
His palms touched the floor.
"I…"
"…got nothing?"
His shoulders slumped forward as despair washed over him.
"DAMN YOU, RNG GODS!"
"HOW COULD YOU FORSAKE ME!?"
"NOT A SINGLE UR!?"
As if responding to his dramatic meltdown, the system suddenly chimed again.
A new notification window appeared.
{Notification}Because you did not obtain a UR card in this 10× pull, your next 10× pull is guaranteed to contain a UR card.
Mash stared at the message.
His eyes began to glisten.
"…Yes."
He slowly clenched his fists.
"YES!"
"PRAISE BE TO THE MASTER DUEL SYSTEM!"
"I can still turn this around!"
With renewed enthusiasm, Mash spun dramatically on his heel, pointed at the gacha button like a duelist declaring his final move, and slammed his finger down.
"Another ten pull!"
The cards shuffled again.
This time, the results appeared almost immediately.
{Pull Results}
• 4 UR Cards• 9 SR Cards• 40 R Cards• 27 N Cards
Mash exploded with joy.
"LET'S FREAKING GOOOOOOOOO!!!"
He pumped his fist into the air and resumed his victory dance, laughing like a man who had just beaten the odds.
However, after a moment, his celebration slowly came to a halt.
Mash leaned closer to the results screen, squinting suspiciously.
"…Wait a second."
He tilted his head slightly.
"No foils?"
"No glossy cards?"
"No royal finish?"
His lips pursed thoughtfully.
"…Meh."
He waved a hand dismissively.
"Whatever. I don't even care anymore."
After his brief moment of celebration, Mash settled down and began dismantling the excess cards he had just pulled. The system processed them quickly, converting the duplicates into crafting materials.
A new status screen appeared shortly afterward.
{Materials}
N: 1030R: 1000SR: 220UR: 70
Mash nodded to himself with satisfaction.
"Not bad."
He stretched slightly before glancing back at the remaining credit balance.
"Now then… for the remaining five hundred credits—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
A thought suddenly struck him like a perfectly timed OTK combo.
"…Wait."
Mash slowly leaned forward.
"Instead of wasting five hundred credits on five miserable packs that'll probably give me trash…"
"…wouldn't it be better to do something else?"
A mischievous grin began spreading across his face as he quickly navigated to the Structure Deck Shop.
Structure Decks were a far better deal—fully functional decks for a single purchase of 500 credits. Compared to the chaos of random packs, it was practically a guaranteed investment.
And Mash already knew exactly which one he wanted.
Without hesitation, he pressed BUY.
The system confirmed the purchase, and the deck was immediately added to his inventory.
Mash leaned back slightly, his grin widening into something far more mischievous.
"Well now…"
"I'm sure you're wondering which structure deck I just bought."
He chuckled quietly to himself.
"Let's just say…"
"…it's a deck that Jaden would really, really, REALLY love."
Mash opened his deck inventory and dragged one specific card toward the edge of the system window.
With a small pop, the card materialized in his hand.
He held it up and carefully examined the glossy surface, his grin slowly turning into something downright sinister.
"Hehehe…"
"Get ready, world."
"I'm about to give Jaden a card that won't be printed until 2020."
Still chuckling like a mad scientist, Mash slipped the card into his pocket, stood up from the bed, and headed for the door.
Tonight…
was going to be interesting.
---
Knock. Knock. Knock.
A voice from inside immediately responded. "Coming—"
There was a brief shuffle of movement, followed by the soft click of the door unlocking. The door swung open, revealing the familiar figure of Jaden Yuki.
The moment Jaden saw who was standing outside, his face lit up like someone had just announced free food in the cafeteria.
"Mash!" he said with his usual bright grin.
Mash returned the enthusiasm with a crooked smirk and raised his hand forward in greeting. "Sup, Jay. Mind if I crash your place for a bit?"
Jaden didn't hesitate for even a second. His grin widened as he bumped Mash's fist with an easy, energetic motion.
"Dude, I already told you can crash here anytime!" he said cheerfully, stepping aside and gesturing toward the room. "Come on in!"
Mash stepped through the doorway and took a moment to scan the dorm room out of habit. For a room shared by three teenage boys, it was honestly better than he expected. The beds were stacked into the typical Slifer Red triple bunk arrangement, some scattered books and cards lying around, but overall it wasn't the disaster zone he had mentally prepared himself for.
From the middle bunk, Syrus was lying on his stomach with his chin propped up in his hands, kicking his legs in the air like an excited kid watching Saturday morning cartoons. When he noticed Mash entering the room, his face immediately brightened.
"Hey, Mash!" Syrus greeted happily.
Mash chuckled and returned the gesture with an easy wave. "Yo, Sy. What's poppin?"
Before the moment could get any warmer, however, another presence made itself known.
From the top bunk, a fat boy leaned over the bed. The boy was has a round face alongside the hair that looks like a koala's head, with a nose that looked oddly egg-shaped and an expression that could only be described as half-awake irritation. His droopy eyes locked onto Mash with an unmistakable glare.
Mash paused.
He raised an eyebrow and gave the guy a cautious grin. "Uh… what's up?"
The fatass didn't smile back. Instead, he squinted at Mash like he was personally responsible for ruining his evening. "You the guy who's been screaming in the other room?" he asked flatly.
Mash blinked once, then twice. "Ah..."
So the soundproofing in these dorms really was terrible.
"…Right," Mash said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I, uh—"
"Maybe next time," the boy interrupted with a grumble, already turning away, "learn some dorm manners."
With that, he rolled over dramatically and pulled his blanket over his head, completely shutting himself off from the conversation like a grumpy hibernating bear.
Mash stood there for a second with his veins bulging on his forehead.
[This fatass… What's his problem!?]
Before he could stew in his irritation any longer, an arm suddenly wrapped around his shoulders from the side in a friendly half-headlock. Mash didn't even need to look to know who it was.
Jaden leaned against him with his usual carefree grin.
"Don't worry about Chumley," Jaden said casually, nodding toward the top bunk. "He's always like that when he's someone interrupted his sleep. He'll warm up to you eventually."
Mash let out a slow breath and forced the irritation down.
"Yeah, yeah," he muttered, though a small smirk slowly returned to his face.
[I'll remember that name… Chumley. One day, you're getting Lovely Locked.]
Shaking the thought away, Mash turned back to Jaden with a grin that was noticeably wider than before. "Anyway, Jay… now that I've successfully invaded your room, how about we do something fun?"
Jaden immediately perked up at the suggestion, curiosity flashing in his eyes.
"Fun?" he repeated. "Like what?"
Mash gave him a knowing look. "Dueling, obviously. What else?"
That was all it took for Jaden to grin widely instantly, the spark of excitement in his eyes growing brighter. "Ohhh, now you're talking!"
Mash folded his arms casually and leaned against the nearby desk.
"But let's make it interesting," he continued, pointing a finger up. "Here's the deal. You and me, duel one-on-one. But! If you can survive at least three turns against me… I'll give you a special card."
Jaden tilted his head slightly. "A special card?"
Mash nodded, his grin turning slightly mischievous. "One that I'm pretty sure you'll really like."
The effect was immediate as Jaden's eyes sparkled. "For real!? And all I gotta do is last three turns?"
He laughed confidently and slapped his chest. "That's easy!"
From the middle bunk, Syrus suddenly shot upright like someone had fired a starting pistol.
"Jaden, are you serious!?" he squeaked in alarm, staring between the two of them. "You do realize you're dueling Mash, right?! You saw what his deck did yesterday! And with a condition like that, don't you think you're being a little too confident?"
Jaden waved him off without even looking back.
"Aw, c'mon, Sy," he said casually. "This is the future King of Games you're talking about."
He turned back to Mash, grinning with that same fearless enthusiasm that seemed to define his entire personality. "How hard could it possibly be?"
Mash didn't respond.
He didn't need to.
On the outside, his expression remained the same relaxed grin he always wore.
But deep inside his mind…
A quiet, wicked laughter echoed in the back of his thoughts.
[Oh, Jaden. You poor, poor soul...]
[Labrynth might not be a "meta" deck… but in this GX-era beatdown meta?]
[Let me show you the absolute horror of a modern control deck.]
[Let me show you what it's like... To not be able to play the game at all.]