After hours of long-distance travel.
The train from Heilong City slowly pulled into the station.
Exiting the train station, the group hailed a taxi and headed for the airport hotel, awaiting their 10 am flight the next morning.
"Xiaoxue, you should give this child a bath later."
After checking into the hotel, You Yang said to Lu Xiaoxue.
"Eh? Me?" Lu Xiaoxue blinked, "But, but..."
"She's a girl."
Leaving this statement behind, You Yang grabbed his luggage and walked toward the second floor of the hotel.
"Eh eh eh?"
Hearing You Yang's words, Lu Xiaoxue turned to look at the child who was reviewing Duel knowledge, her face filled with shock.
Girl?
Looking at the child, disheveled, dirty from head to toe, with a gender completely indistinguishable, Lu Xiaoxue's jaw almost hit the ground.
No, no, no, no matter how you look at it, there's no way to tell she's a girl...
Just when Lu Xiaoxue was baffled.
The child silently walked over, her heterochromatic eyes fixed on Lu Xiaoxue.
As if asking who she would be sleeping with tonight.
"Cough, anyway, come with me first."
Lu Xiaoxue could only take the child to the hotel room first.
Turning on the water heater.
Watching the child shed her filthy clothes, looking like a dirty mop, Lu Xiaoxue's initial doubts gradually solidified.
Though seemingly unremarkable, lacking any standout features.
She really was a girl...
However.
You Yang hadn't even personally confirmed it. How did he know she was a girl...
Although puzzled, Lu Xiaoxue still took off her clothes, leading the girl into the bathroom.
In the other room.
You Yang stepped out of the bathroom, changed into fresh clothes, and lay down on the big bed.
Having sat on the train for hours, even You Yang was tired.
Especially since he had been constantly explaining the basic rules of Yu-Gi-Oh! along the way.
Fortunately, as You Yang had expected.
The child possessed extraordinary Dueling talent.
Almost regardless of the Duel knowledge, the child grasped it instantly.
Compared to Lu Xiaoxue, this child was truly a genius among geniuses...
However.
Recalling the child's eyes.
You Yang couldn't help but feel a sense of curiosity.
Who was this child, and what was the story behind her eyes?
Could it be true, as in the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX setting.
Did this child possess some kind of soul?
You Yang pondered for a moment, finally deciding to take things one step at a time.
At least for now, he didn't sense any threat from this child.
He walked to the window, attaching his Duel Disk to his arm.
Then, You Yang took two cards from his Deck and placed them on the Duel Disk.
The next moment.
The cards transformed into the Duel Monsters 【Assault Wyvern - Mockingbird】 and 【Assault Wyvern - Banishing Mockingbird】, their cries echoing as they soared into the sky.
Since that day, when the mysterious Dark Duelist disappeared before You Yang's eyes.
You Yang immediately realized that the other party may have escaped using their Duel Monster cards.
So, during this time, You Yang started researching this method.
Sure enough, You Yang discovered that he could materialize cards placed on his Duel Disk by imbuing them with Duel Power.
In simpler terms, it's like turning the 'virtual spirits' summoned by the cards into real beings.
This method wasn't just for summoning monsters.
Even Magic Cards and Trap Cards could be made real using Duel Power.
Of course, for something as mysterious and ethereal as 'Duel Power'.
You Yang had spent considerable effort to fully master it.
Although the Dark Duelist hadn't shown up in a long time.
You Yang's inherently cautious nature still compelled him to err on the side of caution.
The two Assault Wyvern Duel Monsters he summoned would remain circling above the hotel, sensing nearby dark powers.
If they detected the Dark Duelist's approach, the two Assault Wyvern Duel Monsters would immediately alert You Yang.
"Anyway, it would be better if we could safely reach East China Duel Academy."
Having completed all his preparations.
You Yang stretched, lay down on the bed, and drifted off to sleep.
...
On the other side.
Lu Xiaoxue and the girl also emerged from the bathroom.
Looking at the girl with her back turned, using a towel to dry her long hair, Lu Xiaoxue couldn't help but feel a bit surprised.
Perhaps it was because her hair was so dirty and oily before.
The girl's long hair was almost clumped together on her head, pitch black, making it seem like she had black hair.
Now, after washing, Lu Xiaoxue realized that the girl's hair was actually a rare brown color.
Combined with her freshly washed appearance, revealing a remarkably cute and beautiful face.
Lu Xiaoxue felt curious about the girl's identity.
Was this girl really from the slums...
"Speaking of which, that... are you hungry? The little bit you ate on the train isn't enough, right?"
Lu Xiaoxue asked cautiously.
"...Enough."
The girl dried her hair and turned to look at Lu Xiaoxue.
Her heterochromatic eyes held a calm, almost unsettling emotion.
"That, I'm called Lu Xiaoxue, cough, You Yang-gege told you before, right?"
Though a little afraid of this girl, Lu Xiaoxue still tried to get closer to her.
"...啾."
"Ah?" Lu Xiaoxue was slightly taken aback, hearing the girl suddenly utter a word, thinking she had misheard something.
"I don't have any memories from before, I don't know what my real name is..."
The girl looked up at Lu Xiaoxue, "But I really like the sounds of the card spirits in You Yang-sensei's Deck."
"So, you can call me 'Xiao-啾'..."
The sounds of card spirits?
Could this child hear the voices of card spirits?
Lu Xiaoxue looked at this girl in surprise.
"I can hear the voice of your card spirit too."
"Its personality doesn't match yours at all, you're not suited for your current Deck." Xiao-啾 looked at Lu Xiaoxue and calmly stated.
"Eh? You, you mean... Red-Eyes Black Dragon?"
Lu Xiaoxue's heart skipped a beat.
This child... what was going on...
Just when Lu Xiaoxue was puzzled.
A long, drawn-out bird call echoed from the sky above the hotel.
Lu Xiaoxue was slightly stunned, walking to the window and seeing a flurry of startled birds in the sky.
"Is that a bird call... there are so many birds here..."
"Eh? Xiao-啾, what's wrong?"
Turning her head, Lu Xiaoxue saw Xiao-啾 staring at the hotel room door with a serious expression.
Her heterochromatic eyes, a blend of green and gold.
Now flickered with a dazzling light in the dimness!
Xiao-啾 fixed her gaze on the room door.
On her small face, an unsettling look emerged!
"There's a..."
"Really disgusting feeling."
"Right... at the door..."
...