"Haha, this time I edged out a win," Luya said with a smile to Diluc.
Hearing this, Diluc returned the smile. "You're very strong. In our next duel, I'll become even stronger!"
The overwhelming might of Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman filled the eyes of the onlookers with awe and longing. The moment it descended from the sky, it was like a god of wind touching down upon the mortal world—solemn and majestic.
The instant Luya secured victory, thunderous cheers erupted across Mondstadt Plaza. People shouted in excitement, their voices bubbling with surprise and joy.
"These Duel Monsters are just way too fun!"
"I saw them in the newspaper before and thought it was a joke… I never expected to actually see them today!"
Someone exclaimed, eyes shining with enthusiasm, "Yeah, watching these Duel Monsters fight in person is an absolutely spectacular visual feast." Another person sighed, still lost in the intensity of the previous battle.
"If only I could summon a powerful monster like Master Diluc… That's it, I'm going to Liyue right away to buy some cards!" a young adventurer declared, his eyes full of a yearning for adventure.
"But Liyue is so far…"
"And besides…"
"I heard summoning monsters requires spending a lot of money and effort." The ordinary person beside the adventurer shook his head helplessly.
...
Luya listened to the lively discussions around him and felt that the people of Mondstadt were gradually accepting Duel Monsters.
And—
their enthusiasm was quite high.
After this duel between Luya and Diluc, most of Mondstadt had already learned about Duel Monsters.
Mondstadt City wasn't as expansive as Liyue—it was merely a city-state. Word spread quickly, and before long the entire city knew.
However, unlike the people of Liyue, the people of Mondstadt generally weren't as wealthy.
Liyue was the commercial center of Teyvat, a place overflowing with Mora. Its prosperity came from geography, commerce, and the guidance of Morax, with the Liyue Qixing managing law, economic development, and construction with clear direction.
However, Mondstadt… with the Anemo Archon being a carefree wanderer, the city was left to freedom. Most people simply lived day by day.
Although the people of Mondstadt weren't as wealthy, they held just as much passion and love for Duel Monsters.
So—
Luya opened a shop here.
Mondstadt had nobles and commoners—only some had the coin to spare.
Therefore, Luya felt that promoting Duel Monsters in Mondstadt would be somewhat difficult. Business likely wouldn't flourish, but he had no intention of lowering card pack prices just to sell cheaply.
Although people might not buy many packs, Luya wasn't planning to earn much Mora from pack sales in Mondstadt anyway.
Because Luya planned to make money with game machines.
And he also intended to transform Mondstadt—to cultivate a strong dueling atmosphere.
He could begin implementing these changes immediately.
Mondstadt's economic foundation was simply too weak compared to Liyue's. That said, a new economic route suited to Mondstadt City could be built.
There were many adventurers in Mondstadt.
These people could become Luya's workers.
They could help him collect materials from around Mondstadt City and then, using the card-making machine, turn those materials into cards.
Then, within Mondstadt City, they could establish a system for duelists.
And use dueling to generate economic income for Mondstadt.
Creating a Duelist Academy, a Duelist Guild, and so on—allowing duelists to continuously emerge.
Then, have the duelists of Mondstadt travel across all of Teyvat to duel.
This way, Mondstadt's adventurers could spread dueling throughout Teyvat.
Just like missionaries.
If successful, Mondstadt would become the starting point from which Luya spread duelists across the world—
like the wind dispersing dandelion seeds.
Luya planned to establish a Duelist Guild. Members of the Duelist Guild could receive Mora every month… but only if they passed examinations. The higher a duelist's rank, the more Mora they would receive.
This way, duelists would have enough Mora to travel throughout Teyvat.
...
There were too many people now, and the noise was overwhelming.
So—
Luya used a copy of [Megamorph]
and enlarged his body to the size of the Statue of the Anemo Archon.
Luya's body instantly grew gigantic.
The surrounding citizens of Mondstadt were stunned.
"Oh my gosh!"
"What's happening!?"
"How can a person suddenly become so big!?"
"Could he be the Anemo Archon…?"
"There's no way a human could have such power, right!?"
"It might actually be possible! The monsters he summons almost all have wings!"
Seeing Luya grow to such a size, the people in the plaza erupted into frantic discussion.
The Knights of Favonius rushed to maintain order.
"Kaeya, Eula, Amber—help evacuate the crowd!"
"And… don't let Klee cause trouble!" Acting Grand Master Jean commanded, assigning tasks quickly.
The three called by name immediately sprang into action.
"Wow! So cool! Klee wants to be like that big brother too! Then I could blow up all the fish in Cider Lake!" Klee exclaimed, staring up at Luya in awe.
After enlarging himself, Luya raised his voice to make an announcement.
"Everyone, don't panic!"
"I have good news to share with you all!"
"My Duelist Guild is now recruiting. Anyone interested can head to the shop between the Good Hunter restaurant and the Adventurers' Guild to sign up."
...
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