Wanna Duel? I've Got the Pharaoh's Deck! [21]

In a world where card dueling dominated mainstream culture, every industry connected to dueling naturally flourished.

Yuuhi had only transmigrated here for a bit over a day, so he wasn't entirely familiar with other areas yet. But even without direct observation, he could confidently guess:

Even ordinary high schools without dedicated dueling curricula would have thriving Duel Clubs—far more bustling than the handful of characters typically shown in the anime.

Kiyosumi High would surely be no exception.

Yet now, the Duel Club was experiencing something rather unbelievable—a mass exodus of members. Well, maybe "unbelievable" wasn't quite right, since neither Izayoi Yuki nor Hoshino Mai appeared particularly shocked.

"Yu-chan, Totetsu-kun, Kashi-senpai... Wow, they're really all gone, huh?"

Going through the documents one by one, Mai confirmed what Yuki had said.

Every remaining first- and second-year member had chosen to leave the club.

"Aww… that's too bad. I was finally starting to get close with everyone recently, too. Now even the third-years are gone, huh, Yuki?"

"And you're still smiling about this?"

Yuki glanced at the blonde girl who seemed rather unconcerned despite her words.

"Haha! Well, that's because we have Yuuhi-kun here, of course."

Mai grinned easily. "Besides, the Stardust Cup only requires three participants anyway. Now that Yuuhi-kun has joined, we meet the requirement exactly, so there's no real reason to panic."

"So, congratulations, Yuuhi-kun! You're automatically on the official team. Normally, you'd have to compete with the others, but that's no longer necessary."

"Smooth sailing is nice, sure—but this whole situation is pretty suspicious, isn't it?"

Yuuhi's reaction was far more reasonable by comparison.

Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible for so many members to suddenly leave at once. In other words, something had clearly triggered this abnormal event.

Considering the most likely explanation—

"Is someone intentionally targeting the Duel Club?"

"Ohh! Your intuition is spot-on, Yuuhi-kun. That's probably exactly what's happening. To be honest... aside from that guy, I can't imagine anyone else would do this."

"'That guy'?"

Yuuhi keenly noticed a rare expression of disgust and loathing appear on Mai’s usually cheerful face.

Yuki wore a similar look—one that resembled seeing something utterly repulsive.

She turned to Mai. "You haven't explained it to Izumi-kun yet?"

"Nope."

Mai shook her head. "I was planning to tell Yuuhi-kun everything after he passed your little test. Didn't expect this would happen first. But since we've gotten this far, I might as well—"

Mai didn't get to finish her sentence, as a loud voice suddenly boomed through the clubroom, drowning out her words.

"Oh, there you two are~"

A frivolous voice drifted in from the door.

Yuuhi glanced up to see a boy standing in the doorway, his hair meticulously styled, wearing flashy, expensive clothes rather than Kiyosumi’s uniform. Behind him stood two lackeys—one with red hair, the other with yellow—clearly positioned as followers.

"Ugh… speak of the devil."

Mai muttered with a scowl, leaning toward Yuuhi and whispering, "Yuuhi-kun, that's the troublemaker himself. His name is—"

"Satomi Shou. What are you doing here?"

Yuki was already standing the moment they intruded.

When they'd first met, Yuki's attitude had been neutral enough compared to Mai’s enthusiastic friendliness. Now, however, she openly radiated cold hostility, intent on driving these unwanted guests away.

Yet Shou remained completely unfazed, smiling widely as he slicked back his gelled hair.

"Obviously, I'm here for club activities. I'm still a member of the Duel Club, after all, my dear Yuki-chan."

"Don't call me 'Yuki-chan.' We're not that close."

Unfortunately, Yuki had no intention of accepting Shou’s faux politeness.

She replied icily, "If you actually considered yourself a club member, you wouldn't be arriving now. The official club activities started a while ago—do you even know how late you are?"

"Does it really matter? After all, the Duel Club is practically empty now anyway. Who cares if I'm early or late? It won't ruin our private time together, isn't that right?"

"Exactly!"

"Boss and the Missus are clearly made for each other! Only monsters would disagree. On days like these, you two should be out dating, not worrying about some lame club."

Shou looked back smugly at his followers, earning immediate flattery that instinctively made Yuuhi frown.

He was starting to understand why Yuki and Mai acted the way they did.

"This guy is the son of Kiyosumi Academy's board chairman—a textbook spoiled rich kid."

At the same time, Mai swiftly filled in the blanks in a hushed voice, taking advantage of the distraction provided by Yuki’s confrontation.

"He was supposed to go to the Duel Academy, but he somehow found out about Yuki and insisted on transferring here instead, joining the Duel Club. If he'd only done that, he'd just be annoying, but the problem is… his personality is seriously rotten."

"So basically, he's the classic spoiled heir from urban novels?"

Combining Mai’s explanation with his own observations, Yuuhi quickly grasped the situation.

Or rather, he could easily predict how this would develop.

"Exactly! Just as you imagine, Yuuhi-kun. That playboy’s notorious for his womanizing ways. No telling how many girls he's hurt, though he hasn’t dared cross the line with us. Still, he pesters us relentlessly."

Mai’s voice dripped with disgust, clearly showing her disdain.

"When chasing us directly didn’t work, he decided to pressure us into joining his team for the Stardust Cup. And that's why the Duel Club ended up this way."

By leveraging his money and influence, Shou had driven away the key second- and third-year members, bullying and pressuring the weaker students until they withdrew, leaving him alone in a "dream club" scenario with the girls…

"Hasn't anyone tried stopping him?"

"We've tried, but it's exhausting. Plus, his background makes things complicated. Without concrete evidence, we can't force him out of the club or school."

Mai shrugged, indicating their helplessness.

"Fortunately, club rules state the strongest duelist is club president. Yuki secured that position early, and the principal and Logan-san back her up. Otherwise, it would've been even worse."

"So... I arrived just in time?"

"Exactly! You're our savior, Yuuhi-kun! Truthfully, Yuki and I were ready to compete as a duo. But with three of us together, it'll be easier and much more fun."

Mai paused briefly, then continued, "Of course, that's just my wishful thinking. How about you, Yuuhi-kun? It's not too late to back out."

"I…"

"Hey, you two over there! What are you whispering about?!"

Just as Yuuhi began answering Mai, an aggressive male voice interrupted.

Turning, Yuuhi saw it was one of Shou’s lackeys glaring at him and Mai, openly hostile.

Without realizing it, their conversation had drawn attention, distracting Shou and Yuki from their standoff.

"This person here looks unfamiliar."

Shou narrowed his eyes, observing Yuuhi and turning to Mai beside him. "Mai-chan, you two seem close. Why don’t you introduce me to your new friend?"

"That's none of your business."

Yuki immediately stepped forward, blocking Shou’s view.

"If you have no other business, then get out."

"How can it be none of my business? I’m still a club member, after all. Shouldn't I care about my clubmates?"

Ignoring Yuki’s rejection entirely, Shou leaned around her easily, using his taller height to look directly at Yuuhi.

"Don't you agree, classmate?"

"You're right—it is important we introduce ourselves."

Mai looked over in surprise. "Yuuhi-kun…"

But Yuuhi didn't glance at her. Instead, he stepped forward calmly, past Yuki, directly confronting Shou.

He was about Yuki's height, which left him looking slightly upward as their gazes locked in silent confrontation.

"Nice to meet you, Satomi-senpai. I'm a newcomer who just joined the Duel Club today—and also the third official team member competing alongside President Izayoi in the Stardust Cup. If I've caused you any inconvenience, please do forgive me."

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This is a fan translation of 打牌吗？ 我王样卡组！by 夏日戏言 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!