Yu-Gi-Oh LUCKS

Chapter 8: The Monji Royale

Valz sat at the hospital bedside and watched Yuu's reaction. Yuu was holding Valz's Cyclops Portable Duel Disk in his lap, staring down at the LCD display. The footage from inside the tunnel was grainy and adjusted for low-light visibility, but the shape of Otaro's knee-length coat was clear. Valz had had to explain a few parts of the duel to Yuu (his and Otaro's lack of narration at the time had really hurt the watchability), but the tape clearly ended on Otaro turning tail and fleeing as his life points hit zero.

"So, what do you think?" he asked as the video ended playback.

Yuu put on a pensive face for a second, but a smile quickly spread through it. "My man," he said, high-fiving Valz and shaking his hand violently. "You beat him?"

Valz tried to look humble. "I beat him."

"Yeah, you beat him!"

"I beat him!"

The high-fiving soon brought Yuu to his feet, and he slapped palms so hard it looked like his IV would come out. Everyone who saw him these days called it a miraculous recovery. He had been taken in for starvation and extreme dehydration, but other than that he was unscathed from his ordeal in the mines. So much so that it had raised Valz's suspicions.

There was very little chance that Yuu had previously been involved in the Unlock Project that had claimed Valz's father's life, but Valz couldn't be sure that things would stay that way. Already, Heart would have a medical record of Yuu's bizarre return from a duradine vein. Once they'd put two and two together, they'd come for him. He already suspected that Otaro would, but the champion hadn't been seen around town since the collapse. To be cautious, Valz had redacted some of the audio from his duel. The less Yuu knew about Unlock, the easier it was going to be for Valz to seek out information targets. Plus, he figured Yuu would run away if he knew what was coming for him.

And so the humble reporter danced and high-fived the man who was quickly becoming the talk of the Atrium.

Eventually, Yuu got tired and sat down, pulling his IV bag stand back to the bed. "They said they'd clear me in a few days," he said. "But the Atrium Royale is tomorrow!"

"I mean, it sounds like they're only keeping you here because something should be wrong," Valz said. "But I don't think anything actually is."

"Exactly! I gained, like, a million life points with Solemn Wishes. I think it even straightened my teeth."

There it was again: a mention of the ghost in the tunnel. Valz had never heard of this 'Zekara,' but the name could correspond to any number of aliases and filenames in Heart's database. Yuu's description bordered on the insane and psychosomatic, but there was a small chance that this creature had indeed sought out the miner. If it had, then it was Valz's best lead yet.

Valz's eyes darted to the door. "Okay, well, maybe your head's still a little messed up. I seriously wouldn't go advertising that 'Duel Spirit' you saw, even if they do let you out of here. Besides, if Heart hears about it, they might make you turn in your new cards."

Yuu nodded. It seemed he accepted that the story was hard to believe, so Valz shouldn't have to worry about random people finding out. "Anyway, I'm pretty sure I can just waive the health insurance and leave if I want to."

"Okay." Valz took the absurdity of Yuu's words head-on and tried to keep an upbeat demeanor. "So, what time do you wanna leave tomorrow?"

"I was thinking in the morning-" Yuu cut off suddenly as a knock came at the door. The two of them looked at each other. Yuu shrugged. He had been taking all sorts of visitors lately. None of them had been Clavis.

Valz opened the door. Matsu Monji had put on an overshirt just for this occasion. His hair was combed into little wings at the sides, like a biker on picture day at school. His face fell when he saw Valz.