Disclaimer: Vanguard isn't mine. It would probably be more balanced if it was.
With hundreds of millions of people all over the world playing card games, they've naturally become a part of our everyday lives.
Cardfight! Vanguard. That's the game that's gotten the most attention right now. Among those cards are possibilities to make each deck create their own identity. Even in places where you least expect it…
Shion Kiba was looking at the big screen on the wall of Card Capital 2. He was intently inspecting everything via touchscreen controls at the bottom of the wall.
"Hey Shion!" came a friendly voice. Shion turned, and saw the part-time worker at the shop, Kamui Katsuragi, grinning at him. "Looking for a quest again?"
Since Vanguard had become so popular, the bigwigs behind it had set up an organisation that connected the various fighters together. It worked by doing 'quests', which were request from other fighters, for other fighters, to complete. Sometimes they were small odd-jobs, or bigger quests that needed others to pitch in and help, and even letters of challenge were posted on the network. And what quests you could take all depended on how competent you were, based on your 'Grade'. So no-one ever went in on a job that was over their head.
Shion nodded, and turned his attention back to the screen. Just then, he spotted one that seemed about right for the Grade he was on. It looked like a letter of challenge, and Shion, like most other fighters, preferred these quests best of all. No fuss, no muss, just a good old-fashioned fight.
"I'm looking for someone to give me a GREAT idea for a deck. Fight me and maybe you can inspire me!" read the description of the quest. Seemed simple enough. Like the others, it provided a meeting point and the name of the person who filed the quest. Someone called Yasuhara.
"Oh, he's put the quest back up again?" another voice said.
Shion turned around, and saw one of the recent shop regulars, Chrono Shindou. He had swirly red hair, and was wearing his usual school outfit; grey. He was a natural cardfighter, and had been progressing at a pace that left Shion a little jealous, to be honest. Sometimes, he wondered if he could get stronger as fast as Chrono seemed to be.
"Again?" Shion asked.
"I took that quest yesterday," Chrono explained. "Wonder why he's put it up again?"
"Well, a guy can never be inspired too much in Vanguard, right?" Kamui replied cheerfully. "Besides, the way you described it, I dunno if he could work with your deck. I mean, literally no-one else around here has your Gear Chronicle deck."
"True," Shion smiled.
Chrono scoffed. "Whatever. I'm not in a real hurry to see him again, anyway. He was crazy. He used the weirdest deck I ever saw!"
Shion looked confused, so Chrono started to explain. "It was some weird mix of…"
Just then, the blond boy raised his mouth towards Chrono. "Don't tell me. I'll fight him myself."
"Shion…" Chrono raised an eyebrow.
"No matter who it is, I don't want to give myself an unfair advantage by knowing his deck."
Chrono paused, and then finally shrugged. Shion knew that he wasn't the type to press for details, or make a lot of small talk. "Suit yourself."
Shion then turned his attention to the quest. He selected it on the touchscreen, and the system acknowledged his desire to complete it. "Let's see, he wants to fight at the local park…"
It was late in the afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set by the time Shion arrived at the park. There didn't appear to be anyone else there; most of the children seemed to have gone home, save for one or two, and they were carefully being watched by their parents. Just then, sitting on a park bench next to a Fighter's Table, was a young boy with messy black hair, and a plain-looking pair of glasses, looking down thoughtfully at the ground. He didn't look like he came here for the swings.
"Yasuhara-kun?" Shion asked the boy, uncertain.
The boy grinned, and looked up at him. "That's me. You accepted my quest, right?"
"I did."
"Well then, let's get started. Our fight." Yasuhara walked up to the table and took his place at one side, ready to battle. He then brought out his deck, placed one of the cards in the middle of the table face-down, and began to shuffle the rest of his cards.
Shion did the same. "So, what sort of idea are you looking for?" he asked.
"Anything!" he replied. "I like Cardfighting, but I love deck building even more. Nothing better. So what I want to see is a fresh look on something. Maybe…even an idea to bolster THIS deck here."
Shion remembered how Chrono described Yasuhara's deck as 'weird'. He wasn't sure how. He'd fought virtually every clan there was in Vanguard, even Chrono's rare Gear Chronicle, eventually. So he couldn't imagine how the opponent could surprise him. But he decided that it would be faster to get him to demonstrate first.
"Stand up, Vanguard!" both players declared, turning their Vanguards face-up.
Shion was starting with Shining Knight, Millius, and as soon as he turned his starting card up, he saw the simply-dressed knight materialise in front of him [Shining Knight, Millius – 5000 Power]. His opponent, in the meantime, had stood up what looked to be a small black robot, sporting a few red features here and there around the eyes. It was carrying quite the large sword for its size. [Extreme Battler, Runbhol – 5000 Power]
Extreme Battler, Runbhol, Shion thought. He still wasn't sure by what Chrono meant by a 'weird deck,' but he knew that he wouldn't let anything throw him off here.
"I'll start," Shion declared, drawing a card. He took a card from his hand, and placed it on top of Millius. "I ride Knight of Shield Bash!" [Knight of Shield Bash – 7000 Power]
Instantly, Milius disappeared in a flash of light, to be replaced with a white knight carrying a large shield on each of his two arms. Shion then took Milius's card from underneath the knight, and moved it behind. Millius reappeared, readying his lance.
"Turn end."
Yasuhara grinned. He drew a card, and threw one of his cards onto Runbhol quickly. "Ride! Clay-doll Mechanic!"
Runbhol was then transformed into what looked like a mud Dogu doll at first glance, but closer inspection betrayed several mechanical –looking parts, particularly around the arms [Clay-doll Mechanic – 7000 Power]. Like Shion, Yasuhara moved his first vanguard, but this time, to the bottom right part of the playing field. "And call! Final Wrench!"
Unlike his last two cards, the unit that materialised behind the Clay-doll was unmistakably human, sporting shining silver armour and a mechanical hammer in his arms [Final Wrench – 7000 Power]. Yasuhara quickly turned both cards sideways. "Final Wrench boosts, and I attack!"
Clay-doll Mechanic's slit-like eyes lit up, from them, it fired a red-hot laser at Knight of Shield Bash [7000 Power + 7000 Power = 14000 Power].
"No Guard," Shion stated calmly.
"Drive Check," Yasuhara turned over the top card of his deck. He then saw what it was, and he grin only got bigger.
Shion too had noticed the card, and his eyes went as wide as saucers. For it was clearly not Nova Grappler, as his last 3 cards were, but Great Nature, a completely different clan altogether.
[Drive Check – Famous Doctor, Big Belly – No Trigger]
The red laser struck, and Shion's knight was only just able to raise one of his shields to block in time. The sheer force of it however knocked it flat on his back, and it took a while for it to struggle back to his feet. Shion placed the top card of his deck into the Damage Zone.
[Damage Check – Lunar Crescent Knight, Felax – No Trigger]
"Great Nature…" Shion murmured. "Is this the unusual deck Chrono-kun was talking about…?"
He grimaced. Nonetheless, he still had to fight his way, and for now, he had to concentrate on the here and now. He could see that Yasuhara had nothing else to attack with, and so he took the next turn quickly.
Taking a Grade 2 unit from his hand, he placed it on top of Knight of Shield Bash. "I ride Elegant Knight, Benizel!"
Shion's knight vanished, and a brown-skinned man with flowing blue scarves and sporting blue pants appeared in his place [Elegant Knight, Benizel – 9000 Power].
Shion decided it was a good time to start taking initiative. He took two more cards from his hand, and placed them in a column beside Benizel. "I call Knight of Twin Sword, and Lunar Crescent Knight, Felax!"
Another brown-skinned warrior appeared, sporting a crescent shaped blade appeared next to Millius [Lunar Crescent Knight, Felax – 8000 Power], and right in front, a red-haired knight in white armour. [Knight of Twin Sword – 9000 Power].
"Felax boosts, and I attack your Vanguard!" Shion declared, resting the two units. [9000 Power + 8000 Power = 17000 Power].
Knight of Twin Sword shot forward, and slashed both of its two swords in a cross-shaped motion at Clay-doll Mechanic. It stumbled back, but remained on its feet.
Yasuhara sent the top card of his deck to damage, as Shion had done. [Damage Check – Super Extreme Battler, Viktor– No Trigger]
"Millius boosts, and Benizel attacks too!" Shion turned the two cards sideways.
"No guard," Yasuhara declared.
Shion flipped over his top card. It too, lacked a trigger to increase the power of his attack.
[Drive Check – Holy Knight Guardian – No Trigger]
Benizel twirled and spun, like a mesmerizing dancer, before suddenly slapping both of his blue scarves straight into the face of the Clay-doll. It managed to raise its arms to catch them in time.
As Yasuhara was about to take his second damage, his revealed card suddenly glowed green. Inspecting it, he saw it had a trigger icon this time, and he wasted no time using it. "Heal Trigger!"
The Viktor in his damage zone was instantly sent to the discard pile, or Drop Zone as it was called in Vanguard, and Yasuhara placed his new card straight after.
[Damage Check – Ring Girl, Ai – Heal Trigger]
Shion frowned. He was only able to deal one new damage, despite two attacks. It seemed he would need to make his next turn count if he wanted to maintain equal footing.
Yasuhara turned his cards on the field back upright, and drew a card to start his turn. He then placed a Grade 2 on top of his Vanguard, as Shion had done. "I ride Extreme Battler, Sazanda!"
A bright blue robot replaced the Clay-Doll, pumping its arms ready for battle [Extreme Battler, Sazanda – 9000 Power].
"Call!" Yasuhara placed two more cards down, one in front of Runbhol, and another to the empty column to his left. A blue skinned Alien sporting spiky orange hair materialised to Sazanda's side, and then…something that looked like a blue-skinned human carrying two oversized guns in each of his hands. [White Hank – 9000 Power], [Magnum Assault – 9000 Power].
"Magnum Assault!?" Shion exclaimed. That unit wasn't Nova Grappler either. "That's an Aqua Force unit!"
"I know!" Yasuhara said happily. "When I build decks, I think of these sorts of things all the time, and I'm itching to test this one out for real!"
"Impossible…" Shion grimaced. "There's no way he could just take a bunch of cards with completely different strategies and make it work!" Shion, like most other Vanguard players, had kept all the cards in his deck the same clan because they had the best synergy in strategy together. It was only natural to use cards that supported each other to the same ends, after all.
Either Shion was missing a trick, or his opponent wasn't serious…and never intended to be.
He was then snapped out of his thoughts by Yasuhara's voice. "White Hank attacks Knight of Twin Sword!"
Shion snapped alert, and placed a card from his hand sideways in front of his front-row. "Knight of Steel Wing! Guard!"
A warrior clad in silver armour and a bladed spear appeared, as White Hank rushed towards its target. But instead, its fist met not Knight of Twin Sword, but the new intruder, who was punched backwards before vanishing into particles. [9000 Power + 5000 Shield = 14000 Power]
"Final Wrench will boost, and Sazanda attacks the Vanguard!"
"No guard!" Shion declared.
Yasuhara flipped his deck's top card, and it glowed, like his last card, but this time, it was yellow. "Critical Trigger!"
[Drive Check – Extreme Battler, Zanbara – Critical Trigger]
Shion baulked. The attack about to hit was now going to hit for two damage now. He grimaced as he watched Magnum Assault receive a 5000 Power bonus from the revealed trigger as well.
Sazanda rocketed towards Benizel, raised its fist, and hit the blue dancer square in the jaw, sending him spinning to the floor.
Shion watched in shock as two cards form his deck were placed in the damage zone. [Damage Check – Knight of Fragment– No Trigger] [Damage Check – Holy Knight Guardian– No Trigger]
"Runbhol boosts, and Magnum Assault attacks the Vanguard!"
The cards in Shion's hand were down to three, and he knew he couldn't let his hand slip too low, if he wanted to keep his play options open. And with the trigger Yasuhara pulled, he knew blocking with a lot of cards was impractical. So Shion kept silent, and let the attack through.
Magnum Assault fired two shots each from his twin guns, and they smacked the enemy with two fierce explosions.
But as Shion flipped over his card, it glowed green. Shion smiled. "Heal Trigger! I give 5000 power to Benziel, and heal one damage!"
[Damage Check – Healing Pegasus– Heal Trigger]
He sighed in relief as he removed his Holy Knight Guardian to the Drop Zone; without Healing Pegasus, he would be at 4 damage to Yasuhara's 1, which was a lead he couldn't afford. And luckily, it seemed that he'd spent all his attacks for this turn. If ever there was a time to counter, it was now.
"Stand and Draw!" Shion decided to try and even the odds up by being just as aggressive. He raised a card in his hand up high, and chanted, "The heavens reside within your blade! Now, rally the soldiers under your banner!" He slammed the Grade 3 unit onto his Vanguard. "Ride! Blue Sky Knight, Altmile!"
In a flash of light, another white knight in wielding a curved sword in his right hand, and a shield of strong steel on his left arm, rose from the sigil on the floor, and raised his sword like a fencer, ready for battle. [Blue Sky Knight, Altmile – 11000 Power].
"Altimile…" Yasuhara murmured. He was staring at the card intently, and Shion could tell he was thinking quite hard about something. But he was free to think all he wanted. Right now, Shion had a fight to win.
"I call Archer of Heaven's Tower and Transmigration Blade, Brede!" He threw two more cards from his hand to the left, and a white archer and an axe-wielding white warrior materialised. [Archer of Heaven's Tower – 7000 Power] [Transmigration Blade, Brede – 9000 Power].
"Archer boosts, and Brede attacks your Vanguard!" Shion declared. [9000 Power + 7000 Power = 16000 Power]
"Zanbara will guard!" Yasuhara threw his Critical Trigger unit down, and his robotic unit clashed its sword against Brede's axe, before getting bluntly jabbed in the face and promptly smashed to the ground, shattering into motes. [9000 Power + 10000 Shield = 19000 Power]
"Millius boosts! Altmile! Rassemblez!" Shion cried out. On the command, Altmile readied his sword.
"En garde!" Altmile put a foot forward, ready to strike. "Prets!" He poised. "Allez!"
At that word, Altmile dashed forwards, sword pointed towards Sazanda. [11000 Power + 5000 Power = 16000 Power]
"No guard." Yasuhara didn't look fazed. And with good reason; his damage was at more than a manageable level.
"Twin Drive!" Shion was now allowed to Drive Check twice with a Grade 3 Vanguard like Altmile. His first card flashed green; it was another Healing Pegasus. "Heal Trigger!"
[Drive Check – Healing Pegasus– Heal Trigger]
Knight of Twin Sword was covered in a green aura, and his power rose from Healing Pegasus's blessings.
Shion then removed his Felax from damage, and began his second check. This time, the card glowed yellow.
[Drive Check – Burning Mane Lion– Critical Trigger]
Knight of Twin Sword bowed his head as he was covered in a yellow aura, empowering him still further. Altmile's blade began to glow a brilliant white, and it struck Sazanda square in the chest with an intense jab.
Yasuhara's eyes widened as he saw the tables suddenly turn. He revealed his two damage from Shion's Critical attack.
[Damage Check – Lady Cyclone – No Trigger] [Damage Check – Famous Doctor, Big Belly – No Trigger]
"Felax boosts, and Knight of Twin Sword attacks!"
Knight of Twin Sword slashed both his blades at Sazanda, and it was now struggling to stay up. [9000 Power+ 7000 Power + 5000 Power + 5000 Power = 26000 Power] Yasuhara checked his fourth damage.
[Damage Check – Extreme Battler, Arasheed – No Trigger]
Shion was now grinning rather more confidently now. "How's that? Now it's my 2 damage to your 4!"
Yasuhara said very little. He seemed to still be lost in thought about something, but he held his concentration enough to at least Stand and Draw for the turn.
He then broke into his usual big grin. "Nice, VERY nice! Now I'm getting even more excited at the thought of winning this fight!"
Shion raised an eyebrow. That seemed to be a tall order for a fighter on the verge of reaching his dreaded sixth damage. He was still wondering if the opponent in front of him could take two, no, three different concepts together and somehow give him the cards he needed to win.
"I'm doing this!" Yasuhara cried. "I ride Famous Doctor, Big Belly!"
The blue robot faded away, and in an explosion of light, a fat raccoon-like creature holding a book and wearing a scholar's robe materialised onto the battlefield. [Famous Doctor, Big Belly – 11000 Power]
"And now…" Yasuhara took another card from his hand…and slammed it into his Drop Zone. "Generation Zone…RELEASE!"
As the Super Extreme Battler, Viktor hit the discarded pile of cards, it glowed white, and Yasuhara imagined himself in the slipstream of time, looking towards the future that lay ahead of him. "Now, show it to me! EVERYONE'S future! Let's get this going! Stride Generation!"
Instantly, Big Belly vanished in a pillar of light, and from it, out sailed what Shion recognised as an Aqua Force unit from Yasuhara's G-Zone. He started to shake, having recognised it as a unit a famous fighter used…
[Marine General of the Sky and Earth, Lambros– 15000 Power + 11000 Power = 26000 Power]
"Lambros!" Shion cried.
"So you know this unit, huh?" Yasuhara smirked. "Awesome. Saves me some trouble. And now, I activate Big Belly's skill! Counterblast!"
He turned the Lady Cyclone card in his damage zone face-down. "I give two rear-guards 4000 power each, and a new skill as well!"
Runbhol and Magnum Assault were then surrounded by a yellow aura, and they both readied themselves, to use the new power their leader had granted them.
"I call Final Wrench!" Yasuhara played another copy of the hammer-using human behind White Hank from his hand.
"Runbhol will boost, and Magnum Assault attacks the Vanguard!" Yasuhara rested both units.
Infused with the power of Big Belly, Magnum Assault fired of two shots with more intensity than before towards Altmile. [9000 Power + 4000 power + 5000 power + 4000 Power = 22000 Power]
Shion looked down at his hand. It wasn't that big, so to save guard, he had to hope a revealed trigger would strengthen his vanguard to make guarding easier. And so, he watched as Magnum Assault's barrage struck with fierce force at Altmile's raised shield.
Shion checked the top card, but to his disappointment, it was blank.
[Damage Check – Knight of Great Spear – No Trigger]
"I'll be using the skill Big Berry gave my rear-guards, now!" Yasuhara declared. "Since my attack surpassed 20000 Power, I get to draw a card since my attack hit!" But then his grin widened. "Except both my rear-guards got the skill, so it's two extra cards for me!"
Shion gasped. Now he was starting to see exactly where the deck was now going. But it was now too late to respond except to stave of his attacks.
"Magnum Assault can also pay a cost…" Yasuhara turned his Arasheed card face-down, and turned Magnum Assault upright again. "And it stands, with 2000 more power!"
The blonde boy grimaced, as Yasuhara continued, "And when a unit in the same column as Runbhol stands, it stands as well! Magnum Assault, attack again!" [9000 Power + 4000 power + 5000 power + 4000 Power + 2000 Power = 24000 Power]
Again, Magnum Assault let fly two more shots from his cannons, and they struck Altmile dead on in the chest armour this time, sending him stumbling backwards.
[Damage Check – Knight of Twin Sword – No Trigger]
Two new cards were added to Yasuhara's hand once again. But Shion remembered Magnum couldn't use its skill again on the same turn. But even so, he knew that he still couldn't relax.
"Final Wrench boosts, and White Hank attacks the Vanguard! White Hank's Counterblast!" [9000 Power + 7000 Power = 16000 Power]
The Big Belly in Yasuhara's damage was turned face down…and Magnum Assault, along with Runbhol, stood back upright again. Magnum Assault's aura also grew more intense, as its power increased still further by 5000.
"WHAT!?" Shion yelled.
Yasuhara nodded. "I built this deck to hybridise two powerful strategies in perfect harmony. It's the ultimate in Aqua Force's combination attacks, strengthened by Nova Grappler's power to let fly the combination again! ...With some of Great Nature's benefits on the side."
Shion only had enough time to shake himself out of his shock, before throwing down Healing Pegasus to guard against White Hank. The Alien slammed his body into the winged horse, shattering it into motes.
[11000 Power + 10000 Shield = 21000 Power]
Shion was also keeping track of the number of attacks in the meantime, and he knew that it had been three. Aqua Force units depend on having a certain attack order, or having a certain number of attacks waged to activate, and he could tell Yasuhara was about to release his pent-up energy all at once.
Yasuhara showed no sign of taking it easy in the meantime, however. "Magnum Assault! Attack Altmile again!" [9000 Power + 4000 power + 5000 power + 4000 Power + 2000 Power + 5000 Power = 29000 Power]
Magnum Assault fired two more shots from his cannons, and after the dust had cleared from the explosions, Altmile was clearly on the verge of collapsing.
[Damage Check – Elegant Knight, Benizel – No Trigger]
Yasuhara drew two cards once again, increasing his hand count to seven cards. It was now Shion's fifth damage; one away from defeat. And it had been 4 attacks…
Yasuhara looked down at his Vanguard, Lambros. "Final Wrench boosts…" he declared, resting both his units, "and when Lambrose attacks, and I've attacked at least 3 other times before this turn, I can use his skill!"
He then turned another copy of Lambrose in his G-Zone face-up, and once again, Magnum Assault and Runbhol stood up again…as did White Hank. Yasuhara had chosen to stand his front row and let Runbhol's skill let it get back up too. "Final Wrench's skill. The unit in front of it receives 4000 power if it stands during my Battle Phase." White Hank was then infused with a red aura of fighting spirit, strengthening its body and mind.
"Holy Knight Guardian! Perfect Guard!" Shion placed the unit onto the Guardian circle, and discarded the last card in his hand. Now, Lambros's attack was completely nullified.
Using his G-Unit's ability to Drive Check three times, Yasuhara revealed them one at a time. Nothing happened, until the third card, which shone green; a Heal trigger.
[Drive Check – Extreme Battler, Arasheed – No Trigger] [Drive Check – Lady Cyclone – No Trigger] [Drive Check – Ring Girl, Ai – Heal Trigger]
White Hank's aura became more intense, and its power rose once again. Shion hung his head. He had barely any guard left. Unless he healed again, he had lost.
"White Hank attacks!" Yasuhara declared. On command, the white Alien dashed forward to deliver what it hoped was the last blow. [9000 Power + 4000 Power + 5000 Power = 18000 Power]
Deciding that he may as well block whatever he could, Shion moved Knight of Twin Sword and Transmigration Knight, Brede from his field to guard. "Intercept!"
The two knights dashed in front of Altmile to ambush White Hank, but it was able to swiftly dodge both of their blades, before grabbing both of them and pile-driving each one to the floor. [11000 Power + 5000 Shield + 5000 Shield = 21000 power]
"Magnum Assault…!" Magnum Assault picked up its two cannons, and like the three occasions before it, let rip two blasts towards Altmile, which landed with explosive force.
Shion flipped over the top card of his deck…and it shone, but not the green light he was hoping for. It was instead yellow. He had lost.
[Damage Check - Bringer of Good Luck, Epona – Critical Trigger]
"Whew…" Yasuhara looked visibly tired. He quietly gathered up his cards, and sat down on the bench next to the Fight Table. "I'm bushed…but now, I have a BRILLIANT idea thanks to your fight!"
"Really?" Shion looked perplexed. "But…I lost…"
"Doesn't matter!" Yasuhara grinned. "The quest was to give me an idea, not to win. And you did!"
"And that was…?"
"Altmile!" the black haired boy replied brightly. "It can summon new allies and power them up, right? With that, I wouldn't be dependent on setting my field up exactly right before I Stride. I can do that afterwards…!"
Shion watched Yasuhara toy with the idea out loud, before sighing. "You certainly are quite the character. But still, the way you hybridised those clans together was impressive!"
"Well, it was an idea," he replied. "That's all. That's how most decks start."
"I still don't know if there's anything new to do WITH mine, though…" Shion remarked. "I use a pure build because that's where the best support for my Winning Image lies."
"Do you really think like that?" Yasuhara asked, swinging his legs, looking down at the ground. "Me, I can't help but try and think of whatever cool new combinations could still be left. I mean, yeah, I wouldn't want to take an unproven idea to anything high-profile like a tournament or something, but…"
He looked up at Shion. "Look, maybe you don't wanna try a new clan or something. That's cool. But your Royal Paladin's got a huge card library, and it's only getting bigger. So you're not THAT strapped for ideas, surely?"
Shion nodded. He had a point; Royal Paladin was a clan that seemed to always be around since Vanguard began. But he hadn't really thought about how he could use older cards with his new ones to create something amazing.
"Who knows, it might give you the edge you need to really get stronger, if it works."
Shion was suddenly paying rapt attention. His thoughts turned back to Chrono Shindou, who was seemingly coming along in leaps and bounds at Vanguard, perhaps just one step away from surpassing him. Or perhaps, he already had…
"Yeah, you're right," Shion said. "And thanks for the advice, Yasuhara-kun."
"And thank YOU for the fight. Just lemme sign your FICA for ya."
As Shion watched Yasuhara pass his signature to show the quest was completed, he thought about his words. Where would he start? And would it give him the edge it needed to be on equal terms with Chrono again? He wasn't sure, and he knew he wouldn't be until he tried.
"Yo, Shion!" Kamui greeted him when Shion returned to Card Capital 2 the next afternoon. "How'd it go?"
"Very well, thank you," Shion said politely. Just then, he spotted what appeared to be 4 copies of a new G-Unit sitting on the edge of the counter, inside a glass display case, and he went up to inspect it.
His eyes widened. It was a G-Unit, and most importantly, it was for the Royal Paladin clan. Its name was Flash Flame Divine Knight, Samuil. He immediately started reading its attributes, looking for new information on it.
"Ah, that," Kamui said, noticing Shion's interest in it. "It's come out the new pack. A customer wants them sold via the shop. Thing is, they're a bit pricey for most of our regulars, so they've been sitting there for a while."
Shion stared at the cards, recalling Yasuhara's words from yesterday. He stared for a few seconds, before making up his mind.
"How much?"
Shion walked out of the store, now holding his new cards in his hand. As he walked back to the limousine parked outside waiting for him, he couldn't help but smile a little.
"New ideas, huh? Well, it couldn't hurt to look, right?"