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Chapter 27: The First Round
🕑 Added 2025-06-30 13:22:44 +0000 UTCThe match between Metro University Prep and Evergrove First High ended in a flash.
Next up, it was New Metro First High versus Southridge High.
"Liam and I can handle the start," Nancy whispered to Russell. "If you go in first, we might not get a chance to fight at all."
Russell saw her point and gave a simple nod.
Up in the stands, Principal Shepherd frowned as he watched Liam Blake take the stage. "Why isn't Russell starting? Are they trying to hide his abilities?" He figured it had to be a strategy. If Russell could keep his full strength under wraps, he might stand a chance against Jansen Crowe tomorrow.
Liam's Minotaur materialized on the field just as his opponent summoned a large Tiger. A Tiger card wasn't something to be dismissed outright; low-level versions could evolve into demonic variants, and high-level ones could even form the basis for powerful [Mountain God] type creatures.
From his vantage point, however, Russell could tell this was just a standard Iron-level blue card, nothing special. Much like Liam's Minotaur, it was likely a foundational card for a future path.
The bull and tiger clashed in a brutal fight, but in the end, Liam, with the help of a well-timed prop card, emerged the victor. His Minotaur, however, was heavily wounded.
As expected, in the next one-on-one matchup, the battered Minotaur didn't last long, falling quickly to the opponent's hellhound.
Liam walked back to his teammates, his face etched with guilt. "Sorry, Russell… Nancy. I lost."
"Don't worry about it," Russell said, patting him on the shoulder. "Nancy will get 'em for you."
He reflected that Liam and Darren were polar opposites. One was loyal and earnest, the other selfish and arrogant. Teaming up with someone like Liam was infinitely better than dealing with a clown like Darren.
Nancy walked gracefully onto the stage, her Three-Tailed Fox appearing beside her. Russell immediately noticed something new: the fox was wearing a set of small, intricately crafted armor.
So she's also working on a way to solve its weaknesses, he thought. The fox's low-level illusions were often useless against mindless monsters, and its physical attacks lacked the punch of other purple-rarity cards. The armor was clearly meant to compensate. While the fox's illusions were devastating in open-field battles where they could target the cardmaker directly, such tactics were strictly forbidden in official duels. The best long-term solution was another creature card focused on pure offense, but it seemed Nancy hadn't had time to create one yet.
Her current strategy worked perfectly. The hellhound, confused by the fox's illusion, was quickly dispatched.
The final student from Southridge High stepped forward and summoned his card: a bare-chested, heavily muscled man appeared on the field.
Nancy frowned. "This aura… it's another purple card."
While she was analyzing the situation, her Three-Tailed Fox launched an attack. The illusion washed over the muscular man, who only paused for a second before shaking it off.
A flash of excitement went through Nancy. Finally, a card that can resist the illusion! After a couple of recent failures, she was starting to doubt her card's signature ability.
The Three-Tailed Fox didn't hesitate, lunging forward on all fours. Shing! Its gleaming claws raked across the man's throat. Blood sprayed through the air.
Just as Nancy thought the battle was over, she saw the calm, confident expression on the opposing cardmaker's face. A sense of dread washed over her. "Three-Tails, watch out!"
But the warning came too late. "ROAR!" The muscular man roared, his body warping and twisting before Nancy's shocked eyes until he stood transformed into a massive werewolf. BANG! A powerful werewolf claw swatted the Three-Tailed Fox out of mid-air, slamming it into the ground. The armor absorbed the fatal blow, but visible cracks spread across its surface. It wouldn't survive another hit like that.
The werewolf, seeing its chance, pressed the attack, its claws descending in a furious barrage. SCREEE! Sparks flew as the claws scraped against the enchanted armor. The defensive prop held for a few precious seconds, buying the fox enough time to inflict several deep, bone-visible wounds on the werewolf. But it wasn't enough. The armor shattered into points of light, and a moment later, the now-defenseless fox was torn to pieces.
Nancy sighed. She had failed to secure the win and protect Russell's strength for the final match. With a heavy heart, she walked off the stage. "I'm sorry, I—"
"It's okay," Russell interrupted, his voice calm and steady. "Leave it to me."
Nancy thought his ace was Yoriichi Tsugikuni. She had no idea his real trump card was Kaneki Ken. The only person who knew the full extent of Russell's power was likely her father, Jonathan Whitemore, and he clearly hadn't shared that secret, not even with his own daughter.
Russell stepped up to the line and summoned Yoriichi Tsugikuni, whispering, "Don't hold anything back."
The moment the referee's whistle blew, Yoriichi burst forward.
"So fast!" The Southridge cardmaker's eyes widened in panic.
Before he could even complete the thought, Yoriichi was already in front of the werewolf. The beast was still panting, bleeding from the wounds the fox had given it. A flaming katana slashed towards its neck.
The werewolf forced itself into motion, twisting its body to dodge the blade while swiping its claws straight at Yoriichi's head.
A triumphant grin spread across the Southridge student's face. He had been terrified by the card's speed, but it looked like his werewolf could still take it down. The claws made contact with Yoriichi's face.
But nothing happened.
It was the Three Treasures. Before the match, Russell had already activated the prop card for Yoriichi. One of the three golden beads orbiting his neck dimmed, its power expended to nullify the attack.
In that same instant, Yoriichi fluidly changed his downward chop into a horizontal slash. The flaming blade sliced clean through the werewolf's neck.
"What!?" the Southridge student stared in disbelief, his sure-fire victory vanishing in a split second.
As the werewolf card dissipated, the referee waited three seconds. Seeing no new card summoned, he declared the result.
"New Metro First High wins!"
In the stands, Principal Hawthorne's jaw nearly hit the floor. He thought his old friend Shepherd had been bluffing about his "good seedlings," but they were the real deal. "Well, Shepherd," he said, his voice dripping with envy, "looks like your luck has finally turned. You really found a couple of gems this year."
It was one thing to see his old rival suffer, but seeing him succeed was almost worse. He quickly changed his tune, a familiar taunting smile returning to his face. "What a shame, though! Any other year, you'd be sitting pretty. Just terrible luck running into Jansen Crowe this time."
Principal Shepherd knew exactly what Hawthorne was thinking. He shot him an annoyed look but inwardly sighed.
If I had managed to keep Russell's Yoriichi card a secret, we might have had a chance to surprise Jansen, he thought. Now… now it seems impossible.
(End of Chapter)
