“This is a unit.”
Katsumi and Aika were seated inside Card Capital after Aika had developed an interest in Vanguard.
The lively atmosphere of the card shop surrounded them from all sides as the sounds of shuffling decks, animated discussions, and the occasional declaration of attacks blended together into a familiar rhythm.
Around them, cardfighters occupied nearly every table, their attention focused on cardboard battlefields where imaginary armies clashed for supremacy.
“His name is Flugel,” Katsumi explained while placing the card onto the playmat.
“You can call him onto one of these circles as a rear-guard, or have him stand here as your Vanguard.”
Aika leaned forward slightly, her attention fixed upon the card.
Katsumi was currently teaching her the fundamentals of the game after she had expressed a desire to learn it.
Her reason had been surprisingly straightforward.
She wanted to understand something he enjoyed.
Okay, he had thought.
Saving Shin the trouble of finding beginner decks, Katsumi had simply brought out several decks he had assembled during his spare time and allowed Aika to choose whichever one caught her interest.
Robots?
Too exaggerated.
Dragons?
Too edgy.
Knights?
Sounds honourable.
And thus, the Royal Paladin deck had been chosen.
Though, if Katsumi were being completely honest, the dogs had probably contributed more to the decision than the knights themselves.
“After your turn ends, your opponent gets a turn,” Katsumi continued while moving cards around the mat.
“Then, when your turn comes around again, you ride.”
As he spoke, he placed another card onto the playmat before flipping it over.
“Knight of Silence, Gallatin.”
The silver-armoured knight stared back from the card illustration, sword raised and ready for battle.
“Every card has a Grade, along with different abilities, strengths, and purposes.”
Pulling several more cards from the deck, Katsumi arranged them neatly in front of her before pointing at each one in turn.
“Because of the ride system, you can’t simply summon whatever you want.
Higher-grade cards can’t be called until you’ve met the requirements, and they also can’t be used for certain defensive plays.”
His finger tapped against a Grade 3 unit before moving toward a Grade 0 and Grade 1.
“Thankfully, most defending is handled by Grade 0s and Grade 1s, so that’s not something you need to worry about too much right now.”
Aika quietly absorbed the information being presented to her.
Although the rules sounded somewhat complicated at first, they weren’t impossible to understand.
In fact, there was a certain structure to them that she found oddly satisfying.
Carefully picking up Flugel, she held the card between her fingers and examined the artwork.
The small angel stared back at her.
Its design was simple.
Yet strangely charming.
Her gaze slowly wandered toward the nearby tables where other players were engaged in their own matches.
Some were celebrating victories.
Others were groaning over bad luck.
A few were passionately arguing over probabilities, triggers, and card effects as though the fate of the world depended on the outcome.
Despite being nothing more than pieces of cardboard, the cards somehow seemed capable of drawing out genuine emotions from the people who played them.
Aika lowered her eyes back to Flugel.
Is Vanguard really that fun?
For a moment, genuine curiosity surfaced within her.
After all, Katsumi had spent years collecting cards, travelling between hobby shops, and occasionally disappearing for entire afternoons whenever rumours of rare cards began circulating.
There had to be a reason for that.
Jingle…
Jingle…
The faint sound of metal interrupted her thoughts.
Katsumi was casually shaking the keychain attached to his bag.
“Don’t lose focus.”
Adjusting his glasses, he lightly tapped the table.
“Now, we’ll learn about triggers.”
He pulled out another card.
“This is Epona.”
The card slid onto the playmat.
“See this symbol here?”
He pointed toward the trigger icon.
“When you attack or take damage, cards with these symbols can activate and perform special actions.
Some strengthen your units.
Some heal damage.
Others give additional effects.”
Another card appeared beside it.
“Elaine.”
Katsumi placed the two cards side by side.
“Epona is a Critical Trigger.”
His finger tapped the card.
“It adds an additional critical, meaning your attack deals more damage if it gets through.” Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
Then he shifted toward Elaine.
“Meanwhile, Elaine is a Heal Trigger.
If you have equal or more damage than your opponent when it activates, you can recover one point of damage.”
Aika nodded slowly.
The mechanic seemed straightforward enough.
Triggers were essentially lucky bonuses.
Though judging by the arguments occurring at nearby tables, they were probably much more important than that.
Katsumi gathered the cards before placing them back into the deck.
Then, after a brief moment of searching, he pulled out one final card.
“This…”
He placed it dramatically onto the playmat.
“…is a Grade 3.”
Gigantech Charger.
The large machine-like warrior dominated the artwork.
“The final stage of your Vanguard.”
His expression suddenly became more serious.
“Whenever cards like this start dropping onto the field…”
Katsumi leaned closer.
Aika instinctively did the same.
Their heads moved toward one another over the table until they were only a short distance apart.
The bustling sounds of Card Capital faded into the background.
Then Katsumi lowered his voice.
“…understand one thing.”
His glasses reflected the overhead lights.
“The end is near.”
He whispered the words near her ear as though revealing some great secret.
Aika blinked.
Then glanced around.
Few people nearby were staring.
One cardfighter had even paused mid-shuffle.
“…Do we have to talk like this?”
Aika whispered back.
“I think people are looking at us strangely.”
For the first time since the lesson began, Katsumi looked around.
Only then did he realize that, from an outside perspective, the two of them probably looked less like a teacher and student discussing card games and more like two close friends gossiping intimately.
Cough…
“…Fair point.”
“Thank you.”
And somewhere inside his mind, Blue laughed hysterically.
‘Humans truly are strange creatures!!
Jajaja!!’
While the human duo and the self-proclaimed Dragon King were occupied at one of the tables, a few familiar faces arrived at Card Capital.
Ding!
The glass door swung open, allowing a gust of afternoon air to briefly enter the shop before being replaced by the familiar scent of cardboard, sleeves, and freshly opened booster packs.
Among the newcomers was Yuta Izaki.
“First things first, you should be running Critical Triggers for maximum pressure,” one of Izaki’s companions argued as soon as he stepped through the doorway.
His hands moved animatedly while he spoke, as though he were still replaying the match in his head.
“Those Stand Triggers kept getting in your way during the fight against that Seiren Middle School player.”
The other boy immediately frowned.
“My deck is that of Nova Grappler.”
He folded his arms before continuing.
“Nova Grapplers are literally built around standing units again.
Of course I’m using Stand Triggers.”
Rather than backing down, he became even more determined.
“It is you who needs to change.
Half the Grade 3s in your deck just sit in your hand doing nothing.”
The first boy clicked his tongue.
“Because they’re strong.”
“They’re dead weights, use the lesser grades for defense.
De-Fense!”
“I won’t need them if I finish the match beforehand.”
“Oh My God!”
The argument, which had probably begun several streets away, showed no signs of ending anytime soon.
“Guys…”
Izaki sighed heavily before stepping between them.
“Can we not start another deck debate the moment we walk into the shop?”
The two turned toward him.
Neither looked convinced.
“Let’s focus on today’s adventure first.”
Izaki pointed toward the interior of Card Capital.
The pair exchanged one final glare before reluctantly falling silent.
Not because they agreed.
Merely because they intended to continue the discussion at a later date.
Seeing that temporary peace had finally been achieved, Izaki led the group further inside.
Several tables were occupied by cardfighters engaged in matches, while spectators gathered behind them and occasionally reacted to particularly lucky trigger checks.
The familiar atmosphere immediately relaxed the three boys.
At least until…
“Oh, new customers.”
Shin suddenly appeared from behind the counter.
Whether he had been organizing products, reading a magazine, or simply hiding there remained a mystery known only to himself.
Resting one arm atop the counter, he offered the group a casual smile.
“How can I help?”
Before any of them could answer, Izaki’s gaze drifted across the shop.
Then he froze.
“…Morikawa?”
A few tables away, Katsumi sat opposite Aika with cards spread across the table between them.
For a moment, Izaki simply stared.
Then his eyes moved from Katsumi.
To Aika.
Then back to Katsumi.
A dangerous misunderstanding immediately began forming inside his head.
“Oh.”
A grin slowly appeared on his face.
“OH.”
Not far away, Katsumi suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
“…”
‘Father.’
‘What?’
‘I sense trouble.’
Katsumi felt goosebumps all over his body.
‘This feeling…’
Katsumi snapped his head toward the entrance, and the moment his eyes landed on the newcomers, he immediately discovered the source of his discomfort.
Yuta Izaki.
Standing near the entrance, Izaki had completely locked his gaze onto Katsumi while wearing a grin so wide that it resembled a monkey that had just stumbled upon the greatest revelation of its life.
Or perhaps the wrong revelation.
‘It’s going to be good.’
‘What!?’
‘Nothing.’
Although Blue answered immediately, the dragon’s tone sounded far too pleased for Katsumi’s liking, and his obvious excitement over a misunderstanding involving two teenagers only made the situation feel worse.
Before Katsumi could think of a solution, however, another voice interrupted his thoughts.
“Is something wrong, Katsumi?”
Turning around, he found Aika staring directly into his eyes.
Her expression remained calm and composed as always, yet the curiosity written across her face was impossible to miss.
If her thoughts could be translated into words, they would probably be saying:
What’s over there?
“Uh…”
For a brief moment, Katsumi found himself caught between two equally troublesome choices.
On one side sat Aika, whose curiosity had already been awakened and who would undoubtedly investigate the moment she noticed something unusual.
On the other stood Yuta Izaki, a walking disaster wrapped in human skin, whose imagination had most likely already produced several conclusions that were miles apart from reality.
Katsumi looked at Aika.
Then he looked at Izaki.
Then he looked back at Aika.
The situation somehow seemed to worsen every time he repeated the process.
Meanwhile, Izaki’s grin continued expanding with frightening determination, while the two boys beside him were beginning to follow his line of sight and slowly piece together the scene for themselves.
This was bad.
Very bad for his reputation and peace.
“Pluck my life.”
The words slipped from Katsumi’s mouth before he could stop them.
Aika blinked.
“…What?”
“Nothing.”
“It didn’t sound like nothing.”
“It was…um..a mantra.”
“I don’t think mantras are one worded.”
And somewhere inside his mind, Blue finally lost control and burst into laughter.
‘Hahahaha!
Father, your enemies approach!’
‘…’
Katsumi remained silent.
Unfortunately, today.
Blue was right.