Chapter 409: Subordinate gets!

[TL/N: Read my new work - Detective Conan: I'm a Succubus?!] 

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Half-reclined on the sofa in a fast-food restaurant, Nami took a sip of her milk tea and sighed, gazing through the window at the clear sky in the distance.

Originally, she had planned to collect enough points to leave this world as quickly as possible and move on to the next, where she could continue her trade. After all, commerce was difficult here, and time was precious.

But after just two days, she found herself unexpectedly captivated by this world.

You see…

The cards Nami exchanged didn't truly disappear.

What she traded for wasn't the actual card but rather the power of the Duel Monster that resided within it.

Though this process inflicted considerable damage on the dueling monster, they would eventually recover over time.

By her calculations, a card monster like [Perfectly Ultimate Great Moth] would take roughly half a year to fully heal.

In other words…

Given enough time, this world could provide her with an endless supply of points!

The realization sent a surge of excitement through her.

She had made up her mind—this world was more than just a temporary stop. It was qualified to become one of the primary worlds under her dimensional merchant enterprise!

But if that were the case, she needed to abandon her previous carefree attitude.

"Hmm..."

Nami absentmindedly sipped her milk tea, lost in thought.

To truly cultivate this world, she couldn't do it alone.

According to this world's rules, the only way to obtain an opponent's cards was to defeat them in a duel, based on the agreed-upon stakes.

No matter how skilled she was, there was no way she could challenge every duelist in the world on her own.

She needed to establish a force of her own.

More importantly, the members of this force needed to have their own "destinies."

Only then would the cards they won be acknowledged by the world's rules, allowing her to exchange them for points.

But assigning a destiny? That was another costly endeavor.

Had Obelisk not unexpectedly added 15,000 points to her reserves, she wouldn't have considered such a move.

"Oh... What a hassle." Nami sighed.

Having worked with the Revolutionary Army before, she knew just how difficult it was to establish an organization in a civilian world.

Strength alone wasn't enough.

Besides, since her goal was card hunting, her selection criteria for members had to be exceptionally strict.

If they couldn't even win duels, how could they possibly help her collect cards?

"Speaking of which… most of the strongest duelists in this world should be gathered in this city right now, right?"

"That makes things a little easier."

"Hi~ Miss Nami!"

As she stared out the window, deep in thought, a light, pleasant fragrance wafted toward her from behind.

A moment later, a graceful figure approached, carrying a tray of food.

"Mind if I sit here?"

"Hm?"

Noticing the familiar blonde hair, Nami's eyes brightened. Then, she smirked and pursed her lips.

"Of course, Miss Valentine."

An hour later.

On the now-empty streets…

Mai Valentine stood frozen, staring at the enormous butterfly hovering before her.

Its radiant white wings shimmered with an eerie glow, casting shadows over several buildings.

The sky itself seemed darker, as if storm clouds had suddenly gathered overhead.

Who am I?

Where am I?

Why am I even dueling?

A whirlwind of questions flooded Mai's mind, yet she found herself unable to answer any of them.

Meanwhile, across from her, Nami wore a cheerful smile, clearly enjoying the duel. Slowly, she raised two spell cards in her hand…

[Marine 6 Form] and [Armament Haki].

At that moment, the attack power of [Gigantamax Butterfree] behind Nami surged dramatically.

[Gigantamax Butterfree – ATK 2000 → 10,000]

"I activate Marine 6 Form!"

"And the effect I choose is..."

"Moon Walk!"

"This allows the equipped Pokémon to attack the opponent directly!"

"Giganta Max Butterfree-sensei, use Ultimate Destruction!"

BOOM!!!

A blinding energy beam erupted forth.

In an instant, the entire world seemed to dissolve into a vast expanse of white, as though a bomb had detonated in the heart of Domino City. A small mushroom cloud slowly ascended into the sky.

For a moment, it was impossible to tell whether this was merely a duel projection or a real explosion.

"I... lost."

With a dull thud, Mai collapsed onto the ground, exhausted.

Her body felt limp, as if all her strength had been drained in an instant.

Luckily, she managed to brace herself in time, catching her fall with her arms before she completely collapsed.

Then, she saw Nami approaching.

Mai couldn't comprehend how Nami's strength had grown to such an overwhelming level in less than a month!

Just a short while ago, she had been evenly matched, controlling her Amazoness Fighter to battle against a mere Caterpie and Metapod.

But the moment that Metapod evolved into a giant butterfly…

Everything changed.

The entire duel had transformed before her eyes.

For a fleeting moment, Mai even questioned whether she had just encountered the gods of this world.

Snap.

A slender hand suddenly rested on her shoulder.

Nami smiled sweetly.

"Well then, Miss Mai Valentine, according to our agreement… you're now my subordinate."

"This…"

Mai looked up.

At first, when Nami had proposed a duel without any cards or puzzle pieces at stake, she had assumed it was just a friendly match.

But now, recalling the ruthless expression Nami had worn during the battle…

She finally understood.

Nami had been completely serious about their bet—"The loser becomes the winner's subordinate."

"Miss Nami, I…"

Mai hesitated, attempting to speak.

But before she could finish, Nami gently placed a finger against her lips.

"Shh, don't worry, Mai."

Her voice was soft, almost hypnotic.

"We have plenty of time. We can talk things over slowly…"

"When you see the power I can grant you, it won't be too late to make your decision then."

Her voice rang like a silver bell, smooth and alluring, whispering in Mai's ears like a siren's call.

For some reason, a strange calmness washed over Mai.

It was as if she were being seduced by that voice—drawn in, her resistance fading.

Slowly, she nodded.

"…Alright."

A few hours later.

As the preliminary stage of the duel tournament neared its final moments, a blonde-haired duelist, now reborn with newfound confidence, strode into the duel center with high spirits.

At this time, a large crowd had gathered—duelists who had failed to collect enough puzzle cards to qualify for the next stage.

Desperate and unwilling to accept defeat, they prowled the area like wild beasts, ready to seize any last opportunity to prove their worth.

And when they saw Mai Valentine arrive, her hands overflowing with puzzle cards, they swarmed her instantly.

However…

Fantasy is beautiful. Reality is cruel.

Despite their desperate struggles, they were nothing more than helpless prey before Mai's newfound strength.

One after another, the duelists fell like harvested wheat.

Meanwhile, across the city, an orange-haired girl was doing the exact same thing.

The day passed quickly.

According to the tournament rules, the first duelists to collect six puzzle cards and reach the designated final location would advance to the next round.

With that in mind, Nami had no choice but to abandon her "harvesting field" and head for the duel venue with Mai.

"Hey! Mai!"

Just as they arrived at the venue's center, an energetic voice called out from behind.

"Hm?"

Both Nami and Mai turned around.

Behind them, a group of people was waving and rushing toward them.

Three men and one woman.

A buzz-cut man, a blonde man, a spiky-haired man, and a preppy-looking girl with an air of youthful energy.

"Your friends?" Nami asked, tilting her head with a playful smile.

"…Yeah."

Mai hesitated for a moment before nodding slightly.

But her gaze was locked on the blonde man.

Katsuya Jonouchi.

The strongest "rookie" duelist in this city. A rising gambler.

And, without a doubt, the ones standing beside him were the true protagonists of this world—Yugi Muto, and his two loyal companions, Honda and Anzu.

"Mai, did you collect all six puzzle cards?"

As soon as they reached Nami and Mai, Jonouchi eagerly bombarded Mai with questions.

"Uh… yeah."

Mai responded, but her voice carried a hint of hesitation.

After all, now that she was under Nami's command, she would have to take all her opponents' rare cards in future duels.

But if she took Jonouchi's rare card…

Wouldn't that destroy her image in his eyes?

Even though she had never openly admitted it, Mai had secretly fallen for Jonouchi back during the Duelist Kingdom tournament.

But Jonouchi was… well, completely oblivious.

So, she had never confessed.

For now, their relationship remained nothing more than pure friendship.

"This is…?"

Sensing Nami's immense power, Yugi, who had been standing quietly beside Jonouchi, suddenly spoke up, interrupting his friend's excited rambling.

"Uh…"

Mai turned around, suddenly unsure of how to introduce Nami to Yugi and the others.

Was she a friend? A boss? A master?

None of those labels felt quite right…

But before she could decide, Nami stepped forward with a friendly smile and shook Yugi's hand.

"I'm Mai's friend," she said casually.

"Judging by your expressions, I assume you've all collected six puzzle cards as well?"

"We shouldn't stand around here chatting. If we don't register soon, someone might take our spots in the finals."

"Ah! Y-Yeah!!!"

Jonouchi instantly snapped out of his excitement at Nami's reminder.

Clutching his hard-earned six puzzle cards, he quickly panicked and urged the group forward.

After all, he had fought tooth and nail to collect them.

If he missed the next round because he was late—he'd be in tears!

The group quickly entered the venue.

Since the location was only revealed to those who had collected six puzzle cards, the massive stadium—capable of holding tens of thousands—was eerily silent.

Only the center of the venue was illuminated, bathed in the stark glow of searchlights.

There, in the spotlight, stood a tall, imposing man clad in a silver trench coat.

Seto Kaiba—the organizer of this tournament.

"This is the place," Nami remarked casually, taking the lead.

With a polite yet knowing smile, she displayed her six puzzle cards to a man in black standing nearby. Moments later, she was granted entry into the next stage.

"Long time no see, Mr. Kaiba."

She turned her attention to the man who had arrived just that morning—the very same man who had unwillingly contributed a great number of points to her.

"It seems you made good use of the puzzle card I left for you after losing to me."

"..."

Kaiba twitched slightly at her words.

He had been prepared with a sharp retort—something cold, powerful, and cutting.

But in that instant, all those carefully crafted words died in his throat.

That morning, when Nami took his Obelisk the Tormentor, she had done something unthinkable—she didn't take his puzzle card.

It was the same strategy she had used with other top duelists, and it left Kaiba with a bitter truth:

The only reason he was still in this competition… was because Nami had allowed it.

Even though he had managed to collect six puzzle cards afterward, the reality remained unchanged—his qualification was nothing more than an act of charity from her.

A humiliation that would haunt him for a lifetime.

Silent, Kaiba turned away, his expression carved from stone.

His entire presence radiated a singular determination: Until he defeats Nami, he has no intention of acknowledging her existence.

Seeing how unresponsive Kaiba was, Nami smirked, stuck out her tongue teasingly, then shrugged and found a place to sit.

Now, all that remained was to wait for the other duelists to arrive.

Before long, three more duelists appeared.

One was Rishid Ishtar, disguised as Marik.

Another was Marik Ishtar, pretending to be "Namu."

[Note: They are siblings.]

And the last… was a Wicked God's clone, concealed behind the harmless face of Ryo Bakura.

——

Seriously.

Surviving in this era without multiple secret identities seemed impossible.

Eventually, all eight duelists had gathered.

At Kaiba's command, a massive airship descended, docking at the center of the venue.

Its name: The Duel Airship.

As the name implied, the next stage would be a battle aboard this airship, where the eight contestants would duel in an elimination format.

The final four would advance to Duel Island, where the ultimate battle for the title of "King of Games" would take place.

Of course…

Among these eight, only one was here purely for the thrill of dueling.

Maybe Mai Valentine had once been the second.

But now, as Nami's subordinate, her goal had shifted—to hunt down and collect the rarest cards in the hands of the other contestants.

Each duelist had their own agenda:

Dark Bakura sought the Millennium Items and planned to eliminate anyone in his way.Yugi Muto aimed to gather the three Egyptian God Cards to unlock Yami Yugilost memories.Marik wanted the three God Cards for himself and sought to destroy Pharaoh's dark persona.Rishid was merely here to support Marik. Why? Love, probably.Kaiba wanted the three God Cards as a symbol of power—something fitting for a man of his status.

Ironically, the one God Card Kaiba had once owned was already in Nami's possession.

Transformed into pure, raw energy through the trade system, it was now permanently beyond his reach.

…

One had to wonder…

When they finally realized that it was impossible for them to complete the set of three God Cards…

Would they break?

Would they shatter under the weight of that truth?

The airship lifted off, slowly departing from Domino City.

Ten minutes later.

Back at the now-empty venue, a woman with an elegant, curvaceous figure strode in, radiating an almost regal presence.

Atop her head gleamed an ornate piece of pure gold jewelry.

But—

As she stepped into the silent, dimly lit stadium, she suddenly froze.

"…Huh!?"

Her expression shifted from composed to bewildered.

"This isn't right!"

"The future I saw—"

"Wasn't there supposed to be a massive airship here!?"

She spun around, her golden accessory gleaming under the dim light.

"How does an airship that big just vanish!?"