Cardfight!! Vanguard: Zerø Chronicles

Turn 01 / Phase 01: Premonition

"...And he checked a critical trigger, winning him the game!" the commentator shouted, standing up in the midst of the excitement that the cardfight had produced. In the background, thousands of people were cheering, screaming, and whistling; smiles could be seen on everyone's faces.

And then... there was darkness.

"That was to be expected. The Genesis player could have kept the odds in his favor, but he got too cocky and attacked sooner than he should have," Kanade said with a sigh of boredom, placing the TV remote down on the counter.

"Now now, there's no need to be so critical! The figbt was still fun to watch. And turn the TV back on—some of the customers actually want to watch whatever comes on," Shinon remarked. He carried two boxes filled with Trial Decks and Booster sets over to the display cases and proceeded to place the new products in their respective places, which were already labeled with their names and prices.

Shinon had already known Kanade for a year, meeting her soon after he opened his shop. He used to be a cardfighter with a respectable reputation, however has since stopped playing in order to focus on his business.

Kanade is a girl of short stature with short blue hair, and was a second-year student at Udagawa High School. While looking for a place to work part-time at to save up for post-secondary studies, she came across Shinon's shop. Seeing as he had no one else helping him at the time, she applied and soon began working at C4P1TAL. Despite her position as a cashier (and sometimes instructor for first-time players coming into the shop), she always kept her montone, robotic demeanor, waiting for something to truly pique her interest.

"Tsk, fine. Let me help you with those," Kanade said as she turned the TV back on. She stood up and sighed before walking to the display cases to help Shinon stock the products.

——————————

On the other side of town, a young man in a black apron with a logo featuring the words "Lotus Café" took some money out of a cash register in front of him.

"...Your change is ¥25, and here is your receipt! Your drink will be ready in no time; we'll call your name as soon as it is done!" the boy said cheerfully, smiling at all times.

"It never ceases to amaze me how you keep up that attitude Jin," a female in the same work uniform as him had teased as ahe made a drink for another customer.

"Well I've been told that this smile helps attract customers, so I'm just doing the best I can to help with your business," the boy turned his head to the woman and played along with her remark.

Jin had recently moved to Japan from China to continue the later stages of his education and get to know his family living in the country. He helps out his aunt with her café, splitting time between taking orders and producing them. Jin checked the time on his wristwatch; the time read 4:30 PM.

"Hey Aunt Lin," Jin started, turning all the way around to face his aunt. "I'll be going on break now. Do you need—"

"Don't worry about me, Jin! I'll be fine. Now go—you should spend your break how you want to." she interrupted with a reassuring smile before turning back to make another drink.

Jin walked through the door to the right of the counter and walked up the stairs to his room, taking off his work-apron in the process. He changed into his usual casual attire: a white long-sleeved shirt coupled with a black jacket with a blue hood and sleeves, as well as black pants. He turned to his desk, eyeing a deck of Cardfight!! Vanguard cards and a small paper map. He put the deck in his right jacket-pocket and picked up the map, heading out into the town.

——————————

"Zzz...ngh- huh?" Hikaru mumbled as he regained consciousness. He sat up in his bed, grabbing his phone that was next to him; he checked what notifications he missed during his nap and then took notice to the time. "WUAAAAAAAGH!!" he yelled, his voice echoing throughout the house.

Hikaru grabbed his jacket and deck before rushing to the bathroom, frantically trying to fix what bed-head he had gotten. He rushed down the stairs and managed to get to the door until . . .

"Now where do you think you're going, acting like that?" a stern voice inquired from behind Hikaru.

He turned around slowly, knowing who the voice belonged to. "Oh... Hi mom..! I didn't mean to yell, but I was about to—"

"And why were you yelling, young man?" she stepped forward, placing her hands on her hips.

"Well I uh... after lunch, I fell asleep and it took longer than expected to wake back up," Hikaru said, laughing nervously to try and ease the atmosphere of the situation.

"Oh, well that definitely sounds like you, hehe!" his mother's demeanor changed from a predator on the hunt to a loving, caring mother. "Just make sure you don't get lost and you come back home before dinner, ok?"

"You got it mom! Love you!" Hikaru exclaimed as he ran out the door. "Today will finally be the day . . . ! My heart is just racing and I can't wait . . . !"