Jaden lowered his arm after delivering the final blow, then pointed two fingers toward the girls' boat with his usual bright grin, striking that familiar, confident pose of his like a hero finishing a flashy move.
"Gotcha!" he called out cheerfully. "That was a fun duel, Alexis! Jasmine!"
Before anyone could even respond, Syrus practically launched himself across the deck.
"All right, Jaden!" he cheered, wrapping the him in an enthusiastic hug that nearly knocked Jaden off the boat.
Jaden laughed as he steadied himself, then glanced over toward Mash and Lovely Labrynth. His eyes were shining with excitement, the adrenaline of victory still clearly coursing through him.
Mash met his gaze and raised a thumb with a lazy grin.
[That's my boy.]
Jaden returned the gesture with a wide smile before turning fully toward him.
"So..." he asked eagerly, scratching the back of his head but unable to hide the excitement in his voice, "what'd you think of that combo, Mash?"
Mash stood with his arms crossed, watching him for a moment before his smirk widened into something a little more genuine.
"It was great, really." Mash said honestly. "You've got the instincts to adapt to new cards on the fly, and you didn't just shove them into the deck and hope they worked. You actually built a clean combo around them."
"Seriously, man." he added with a low chuckle. "Color me impressed."
Jaden immediately puffed up like an overexcited puppy being praised by its owner, his grin stretching from ear to ear as if he'd just won a championship.
Unfortunately for him, Lovely Labrynth leaned closer at that exact moment, one hand covering her mouth as though she were about to reveal a juicy secret.
"Pfft~!" she giggled, eyes gleaming mischievously. "Let's not rewrite history here, Jay-Jay~ If it weren't for my Darling's intervention earlier, those girls would've survived with exactly one hundred Life Points left~"
She waved her hand dismissively, her tone dripping with playful mockery.
"You may did combo well~ But let's not pretend you didn't need my Darling's help at the very end, LMAO~!"
Jaden's proud expression collapsed instantly. His shoulders slumped as if someone had popped an invisible balloon over his head, and he let out a defeated sigh.
Syrus awkwardly patted his back. "Uh… hey, it was still really cool though…"
Mash slowly turned his head toward Lovely with a pointed look.
"Cut it out, Lovely..." Mash said flatly before he reached over and pinched her cheek.
"Uweee~!" she squeaked, squirming slightly under his grip. "Darlingg~ You meanie~!"
Meanwhile, Jaden scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Yeah..." he admitted with a sheepish chuckle. "You're right, Miss Labrynth."
Mash, Syrus, and Lovely all blinked at the same time and turned toward him.
Jaden looked down at the deck in his hands for a moment before glancing back up, still rubbing the back of his head.
"Even when I'm trying to prove myself," he said with a small, honest laugh, "I still needed help all the way to the end… from you, Mash."
Mash's expression softened slightly.
"Jaden…"
However, Jaden clenched his fists at his sides.
And when he looked up again, the light in his eyes had changed. The playful grin was still there, but now it carried a spark of determination that burned much deeper.
"I've still got a long chasm to cross before I ever reach your level..." he admitted. "But that's what makes it exciting!"
"Because maybe, just maybe...! Someday I'll be able to beat you, Mash!" He pointed toward Mash dramatically.
Mash stared at him for a moment.
Then he chuckled under his breath, shaking his head.
[Typical shonen protagonist. Always ridiculously optimistic.]
"Fufufu…" Mash snorted. "The only place you're pulling that off is inside your dreams, little bro."
Jaden's eyes lit up instantly.
He raised his own hand.
The two of them met in the cleanest, most synchronized dab Duel Academy had probably ever witnessed, both of them grinning like idiots.
Syrus watched the moment with wide, awestruck eyes.
"Do you think..." he murmured quietly to himself, "I could ever be like them someday…?"
A silky voice suddenly answered beside him.
"Maybe~" Lovely Labrynth chimed sweetly as she leaned down near his ear, "if you weren't such a freakin' pussy, Syrus-chan~"
"WAH!" Syrus yelped, nearly jumping out of the boat. "Miss Labrynth!? Why are you still here!?"
Lovely tilted her head with an innocent smile that fooled absolutely nobody.
"What do you mean by that~?" she asked sweetly, her voice dripping with playful mock confusion.
"But the duel's over!" Syrus insisted, pointing nervously toward the field. "All the monsters should've- OUCH!!!"
Before he could finish the sentence, Lovely casually pinched his nose and began wagging his head side to side like he was a squeaky toy.
"Aw aw AW! M-Miss Labrynth…!" Syrus squeaked helplessly.
She only grinned wider. "Hohoho~ You ask far too many questions, boy~"
Mash and Jaden burst out laughing at the sight.
Still, as the laughter settled, Mash felt a small thought lingering in the back of his mind.
But just as he thought about it, something lightly tapped his shoulder.
Mash and the others turned around.
Standing just outside their boat were Alexis, Jasmine, and Mindy. The three girls stood atop the shimmering surface of the silver ocean created by Lovely's power, the metallic water glowing faintly beneath their feet.
Alexis had her arms crossed, clearly still annoyed about the loss but doing her best to keep her composure intact.
Jasmine looked far less composed. Her fists were clenched and her jaw was tight, as though she was one sarcastic comment away from committing a felony.
Mindy stood beside her, gently holding her arm as if trying to keep her from launching herself across the water, especially towards Mash.
Mash smirked the moment he saw them.
"Well well, well..." he said lazily. "If it isn't the losers dropping by to celebrate our glorious victory."
Lovely Labrynth placed a hand to her lips and laughed dramatically beside him.
"Ho ho ho ho~"
All three girls immediately shot the same irritated glare at both of them.
"Knock it off, dude." Jaden muttered, elbowing Mash in the arm before turning to the girls. "So… a deal's a deal, right? Me and Mash won. Which means… we get off scot-free, right?"
Alexis let out a long sigh.
"Fine... It's you guys win after all." she said reluctantly. "I won't go back on my word. We'll keep quiet about what happened tonight."
Jasmine huffed loudly.
"Well if you ask me," she snapped, "we should turn them in right now!"
"No one asked you." Alexis replied instantly without even looking at her.
"Alexis!"
"Look," she continued calmly, turning her gaze toward Mash and Jaden. "These two beat us fair and square, we should hold onto our promise."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Even if Mash and his… talking girlfriend card were very obviously holding back for most of the duel and making it the most miserable duel I've probably experience." She glanced toward Jaden. "Because of someone..."
"Sorry…" Jaden mumbled.
Mash snorted. "Yeah, don't do that again, Shmaden."
Jaden blinked. "…Why are you calling me Shmaden?"
"Because I have an idea." Mash pointed dramatically at him.
"From now on," he declared, "whenever you say or do something stupid like that, I'm going to be calling you Shmaden Shmuki."
"What!?"
Alexis covered her mouth slightly as a smirk slipped out. "Hm… I actually like the sound of that."
She looked straight at Jaden with a teasing look. "Shmaden."
"Hey…"
Jasmine immediately jumped in.
"You really did great in the early and mid parts of the duel, Shmaden!" she said enthusiastically.
"Not you too…"
Lovely Labrynth burst into delighted laughter.
"Ho ho ho ho~! What a perfect idea from my Darling~! Isn't it right~? Shmaden, Shmaden, Shmaden, Shmaden, Shmaden, Shmaden, Shmaden—"
"ARGH! CUT IT OUT ALREADY, I GET IT!" Jaden shouted, his face bright red with embarrassment.
Everyone else completely lost it as now the boat was filled with laughter.
Everyone… except Jaden, who folded his arms and pouted like a thoroughly humiliated puppy.
Syrus, who had been watching the entire exchange with nervous amusement, hesitantly raised a hand like a student asking permission to speak.
"So, uhm…" he began carefully, glancing between the two boats and the surrounding water. "Shouldn't we… maybe head back now?"
"Great idea, Syrus!" Mindy replied brightly. "Let's see..."
Then she glanced down at the shimmering silver field beneath their feet, the metallic ocean created by Lovely Labrynth spirit power created a solid surface above the ocean that basically trapped both of their boats from moving.
Mindy smile flattened into pure sarcasm.
"Huh," she said slowly. "I wonder why we can't head back?"
Noticing the problem, everyone turned around to look at Lovely.
Lovely Labrynth let out a dramatic sigh, rolling her eyes as if the entire situation had become terribly inconvenient for her royal schedule.
"Alright, alright..." she said lazily, waving a hand. "I'll get rid of the field."
But just as she was about to cancel her power.
She paused.
Then her lips curled into a mischievous smile.
"But~"
Before anyone could ask what she meant.
Lovely suddenly leapt gracefully from her position and landed lightly on top of Mash's boat right beside Syrus and Jaden. The sudden movement made the wooden vessel rock slightly as she straightened up and turned toward the three girls still standing on the silver surface.
Her smile widened into something dangerously playful.
"Please stay exactly where you are, girls~"
The girls blinked, confused. "Huh!?"
The next moment-
CRACK.
A sharp sound echoed beneath the water.
The shimmering silver field vanished instantly, plunging downward into the ocean like a stage trapdoor dropping out from under an actor.
And the three girls standing on top of it?
"KYAAAH!"
They dropped straight into the freezing water with an enormous splash.
Jaden and Syrus gasped in pure shock.
Their jaws practically hit the deck.
Meanwhile, Mash leaned over the side of the boat, pointing dramatically at the splash zone.
"GYA HO HO HO!" he howled. "Nice one, dear!"
Lovely Labrynth placed a hand on her chest and gave a smug little bow like a stage performer receiving applause. "Of course, my Darling~"
The two of them looked at each other.
And immediately burst into synchronized villain laughter.
"HO HO HO HO HO—"
BONK!
Jaden smacked both of them square on the head at the same time.
Mash and Lovely collapsed onto the wooden deck with identical groans.
"Shut up, you two!" Jaden snapped angrily. "That wasn't funny!"
"Uuugh…" Mash groaned, his cheek pressed against the floorboards.
"Uwaaa…" Lovely whimpered beside him, equally flattened.
Jaden's fist came down on both their heads at the same time, knocking them flat onto the deck in perfect synchronization.
"Shut up, you two! That wasn't funny!" he snapped.
"Uugh…" Mash groaned, his face smushed against the wooden floor.
Lovely groaned beside him in the same miserable tone.
A moment later, three dripping heads rose from the ocean.
Alexis.
Jasmine.
Mindy.
"Ah! Are you guys alright—" Syrus started.
Then he stopped.
Because the murderous aura radiating from the three soaked girls could've boiled the sea.
"WE SHOULD JUST STRANGLE HIM AND DROWN HIM IN THE OCEAN!" Jasmine screamed, pointing straight at Mash. "FLIP YOU, MASH AND YOUR SHIPPY GIRLFRIEND!!!"
"Waah! Our Duel Disk is soaked now…!" Mindy wailed, staring at the dripping device strapped to Alexis and Jasmine's arm. "Do you know how much it costs to replace this!? That's like five sets of lipstick from Garchie Rey…! We're broke now…! WE'RE BROKE!!!"
Alexis said nothing.
She simply stared at Mash and Lovely with the kind of glare that suggested several violent thoughts were currently being considered.
A few seconds later, the three soaked girls climbed up and sat heavily at the back of the boys' wooden boat, dripping seawater everywhere.
Jaden and Syrus stared at them while Mash and Lovely still have their heads kissing the wooden floor.
Trying to ease the tension, Jaden cleared his throat. "Uhh… Alexis, are you—"
He froze mid-sentence.
The girls looked like dripping demons. Their hair clung to their faces, their uniforms plastered tightly against their skin from the water, so tight the outline of their bras was clearly visible beneath the fabric. The sheer hostility radiating from them felt heavy enough to sink the entire boat.
Syrus instantly looked away, his face turning bright red.
Noticing his reaction, Alexis quickly wrapped her arms around herself, both to keep warm and to cover what the soaked uniform was now revealing.
"Don't. Say. Anything…" she said with calm, terrifying fury as she glared at the two boys.
"Row!"
"Y-yes, ma'am…!" Syrus and Jaden squeaked in unison, immediately grabbing the oars and rowing toward the dock with the urgency of two men escorting three extremely angry sea demons.
A few minutes later…
Back at the Obelisk dock, the girls stood shivering in their soaked uniforms, arms wrapped tightly around themselves for warmth and perhaps restraint. Their eyes burned with enough fury to make it clear the cold ocean water was the least of Mash's problems tonight.
Meanwhile down in the boat, Jaden and Syrus tried not to breathe too loudly while Mash and Lovely Labrynth quietly giggled to themselves.
Mash leaned back against the seat with a satisfied grin.
[Worth it.]
Mindy shot him a murderous glare before turning toward Alexis and Jasmine. "Maybe we should just report Mash for trespassing."
Both girls answered instantly.
"Agreed."
"Wait, wait, wait!" Mash blurted, raising both hands in panic. "Didn't you all promise to stay quiet after what happened tonight?"
"Shut up, Mash!" Jasmine snapped, stomping her foot. "Because of you we'll have to wash ourselves twice tonight! Twice! And it's all because of that BLITCH!"
Lovely Labrynth gasped theatrically, clutching her chest with one hand while the other draped across her forehead like a fainting noblewoman. "Oh~ such heart-quenching words…!"
"Hey! Don't call my Lovely that!" Mash growled, stepping protectively in front of her. "She might be a bitch, but…"
He turned toward her with a smirk, sliding an arm around her waist as his other hand gently lifted her chin and pulled her face closer. Lovely's silver eyes widened and her cheeks flushed bright red.
"…she's my bitch. Isn't that right?"
"Ahh~ Darling~!" Lovely squealed happily, nuzzling into him. "You're such a smooth criminal for stealing my heart like that~!"
"Everything for you, my lovely dear…"
While the two of them flirted like they were starring in some ridiculous soap opera, the others stared at them with increasing levels of secondhand embarrassment.
"Yeah…" Jaden muttered while rubbing his temple. "You can go ahead and report them, Alexis."
"Agreed," Syrus added flatly.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Mash said quickly, spinning around with one finger raised like a man proposing a last-minute business deal. "How about a deal instead? Alexis, how about I give you an extremely powerful card?"
Alexis's brows slowly furrowed. "An extremely powerful card…?"
"Yup. Just give me a second!"
Mash opened his System window, heading straight for the shop to the shop bundle menu and buying a certain bundle for 750 credits. After rapidly skipping the gacha animation, he snatched a card from his inventory and held it up with a grin.
"Here."
Mash flicked the card toward Alexis with a casual toss. She caught it on instinct, barely glancing down at first, but the moment her eyes scanned the text, the color drained from her face as if someone had pulled the plug on it.
Jasmine and Mindy immediately leaned in from both sides, practically hanging over her shoulders to see what had caused that reaction. A second later they both gasped.
Alexis's hands began to tremble slightly. "What on earth…"
"Is this..." Jasmine started.
"CARD!??" Mindy blurted out, eyes bulging.
Mash leaned back against the boat railing with a satisfied grin spreading across his face. "So… is it good enough to keep your mouth shut, Alexis?"
Alexis continued staring at the card for another long moment as if trying to confirm her eyes weren't lying to her. Then she carefully slipped it into her pocket like it was some priceless artifact.
"Yes…" she admitted slowly. Then she lifted her gaze toward him, still clearly stunned. "But are you sure you want to give me this?"
Mash shrugged lazily. "Will that keep you quiet?"
She nodded once. "Yes… but—"
"Well then!" Mash clapped his hands together loudly, cutting her off before the sentence could finish. He turned toward Jaden with a grin. "Looks like we're done here. Let's head back and get some Z's."
Jaden groaned and slumped against the side of the boat. "Will you at least row the boat too?"
Mash gave him a slow, smug smile.
"Ha. Ha. Ha." He spread his hands. "No."
Jaden sighed deeply before turning to the last possible source of help. "How about you, Miss Labrynth?"
Lovely Labrynth immediately struck a dramatic pose, lifting one elegant hand to her cheek as if the very suggestion had offended her noble sensibilities.
"With these delicate hands?" she declared with theatrical disbelief. "How could I possibly row a boat!?"
Syrus blinked. "But… weren't you able to lift Chazz almost effortlessly yester—"
"Oh no~" Lovely cut him off with a cheerful wave of her hand. "It seems the duel is over, so I shall simply vanish like the rest of the monsters. Bye bye~!"
With a sparkle of light and a ripple of holographic energy, her form dissolved into shimmering particles that scattered into the night air.
Silence fell over the boat.
Syrus slowly turned toward Jaden.
Jaden slowly turned toward Syrus.
The two of them sighed in perfect synchronization and picked up the paddles.
The boat began drifting away from the Obelisk pier, the quiet sound of water lapping against the wood echoing in the night. Back on the dock, three soggy, scowling girls stood dripping seawater while Mash sat comfortably in the boat looking completely pleased with himself.
As the boat glided across the calm water, Jaden leaned closer, curiosity burning in his eyes.
"So, Mash…" he said slowly. "What card did you give Alexis?"
Mash smirked. "A Spell Card."
"What Spell Card?"
Mash crossed his arms like he was about to reveal the punchline of a joke. "The name of that Spell Card… is Lightning Storm. Ever heard of it?"
Jaden and Syrus both shook their heads.
Mash sighed internally.
[Well of course they've never heard of it. That card came out in like… 2020 in my world. Ignition Assault pack. God bless my inner card nerd for remembering all these random booster names and release dates out of thousands of cards.]
[Honestly, memorizing this stuff is way easier than the damn periodic table.]
"Then surely you guys know about Raigeki and Harpie's Feather Duster, right?" Mash asked.
Jaden scratched his head. "Uhm… what are those again?"
Syrus immediately perked up, happy to explain. "Oh! Those are two of the rarest and most broken cards out there, Jaden! Raigeki wipes out every monster your opponent controls."
Jaden let out an impressed whistle. "Sweet."
"And Harpie's Feather Duster basically does the same thing," Syrus continued excitedly, "except it wipes out all your opponent's Spell and Trap cards. It's ridiculously powerful."
Jaden's eyes widened slightly. "Dang… okay. So what does that have to do with Lightning Storm?"
Mash's grin widened.
"Well you see, Sy… Lightning Storm is basically both of those effects slapped onto one card."
"WHAT!?" Jaden and Syrus shouted in perfect sync, nearly dropping their paddles.
"Yup," Mash said smugly. "Lightning Storm lets you choose between two effects. The first one is a slightly nerfed Raigeki—it destroys all face-up Attack Position monsters your opponent controls. The second one?" He lifted a finger. "That's just a straight-up Harpie's Feather Duster. No strings attached."
Jaden gawked at him. "Whoa! That's insane, dude!"
Syrus nodded rapidly while still rowing. "No wonder Alexis went quiet the second she read it. A card like that is crazy powerful!"
"Fu fu fu…" Mash chuckled smugly, resting his chin against his hand like a cartoon villain halfway through a grand monologue.
[Although I might be hyping this card up a little too much.]
[There is one tiny line of text keeping it from being completely broken.]
[Lightning Storm can only be activated if you control no face-up cards on your field.]
[That one sentence changes everything. It basically makes it a going-second card. If you already have monsters or face-up Spells and Traps on the board, you can't use it.]
Mash leaned back in his seat.
[Still… if your opponent wipes your field on their turn?]
[Drop Lightning Storm and boom—wipe their monsters or their backrow clean.]
[So yeah… it's also a pretty nasty comeback tool.]
Syrus leaned forward again, still puzzled. "But where did you even get a card like that? I've never heard of it before. Wouldn't something that powerful be super famous?"
Mash pointed lazily toward the paddle in Syrus's hands.
"You ask too many questions, Syrus."
He smirked.
"Now row the boat."
Syrus sighed in defeat and kept paddling while Jaden chuckled beside him, the small wooden boat drifting quietly across the dark water under the night sky.
A few moments later…
Mash lay sprawled across his dorm bed, one arm hanging off the side while he stared blankly at the ceiling. The room was quiet, the kind of late-night silence that only existed in dormitories after everyone had finally collapsed from the day's chaos. Unfortunately for him, that silence came paired with a mild but persistent boredom.
With a tired sigh, he lifted a hand and flicked open the familiar system window.
[It's a shame I wasted 750 credits just to give it away…] he thought, staring at the number displayed in the corner of the interface.
[Credits are limited, apparently. I really need to start saving more. Who knows what kind of broken cards I'll need to pull or craft later.]
The transparent blue interface blinked to life in front of him.
{Missions:}
Survive all 4 seasons of GX: 0/4reward: 100,000 credits
Help Jaden save Syrus!: COMPLETEreward: 2000 credits
[SECRET MISSION] Duel against Jasmine and win: COMPLETEreward: 500 credits
[SECRET MISSION] Duel against Alexis and win: COMPLETEreward: 500 credits
[SECRET MISSION] Do a tag duel and win: COMPLETEreward: 1000 credits
[CLAIM ALL] — more missions are coming soon!}
Mash's eyes gleamed slightly.
[Now this… this is one of the most satisfying parts of any gacha game.]
He lazily reached out and tapped the glowing button.
{Credits: 2250 → 6250}
Mash suddenly jolted upright so fast the mattress creaked beneath him.
"Nice…!" he hissed under his breath, a grin spreading across his face.
[Around six thousand credits! That's like sixty packs or more!]
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
[Though… I'll save them for later. I'm way too tired to fall into a gacha spiral tonight.]
Satisfied, he let himself collapse back onto the bed, his head sinking into the pillow as the exhaustion of the day slowly caught up to him. His eyelids began to droop.
But just as sleep started creeping in, a lingering thought surfaced again—one that had been nagging at the back of his mind for a while now.
Mash opened one eye and stared toward the ceiling.
"Hey, Lovely." he called lazily into the quiet room. "Can you appear for a second?"
A faint shimmer of silver light rippled through the air beside the bed.
Lovely Labrynth materialized gracefully in spirit form, her silver hair glimmering softly as if reflecting moonlight. She rested one hand on her hip while leaning slightly over the bed, her lips already curling into a teasing smile.
"Well, well~" she purred. "Darling, are you perhaps feeling a little pent up and want me to relieve it~?"
Mash didn't even hesitate.
"Yes," he replied with a shameless smirk. "But later. First I need you to explain something."
"Oooh~?" Lovely leaned closer, clearly intrigued now. Her silver eyes sparkled with curiosity as she tilted her head slightly. "Something important? You're making me curious, Darling. What is it you need from me, my love?"
Mash's playful expression faded a little as he turned his head toward her more seriously.
"I don't know why," he said slowly, "but you seem to know more about my system than even I do."
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Why is that?"
Lovely blinked once.
Then she smiled a knowing, mischievous smile.
"Because I was personally created by GOD, silly," she said cheerfully, placing a hand against her chest. "Not just to be your partner, your lover, and your occasional 'toy'~" she punctuated the word with a playful wink
"but also to serve as your system's guide~!"
Mash slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position on the bed, his interest immediately sharpening.
"Alright then, Lovely…" he said, leaning forward slightly.
His gaze locked onto her.
"I want you to explain everything about my system."
He pointed a finger toward the glowing interface still floating beside him.
"Right now."
Lovely Labrynth's lips curled upward into a sly, amused smirk as silver mischief danced in her eyes.
"Hmmm…" she hummed thoughtfully, tapping a finger against her cheek.
Her smile widened.
"Now where should I begin~?"