In the middle of a large plot of land, walled off by high walls and filled with bushes and hedges all carved into a variety of shapes, sits a massive mansion, and within that mansion, a young boy with blonde hair sits at the desk sorting through Vanguard cards in his very extravagant room with a canopy bed, two wardrobes, and large stain-glass windows. An older gentleman with the appearance of a butler, white hair and wearing a black suit, enters the room carrying a small plate with a teacup, and he sets the cup down on the boy's desk as he says in a calm and soothing voice, "I brewed some afternoon tea for you, young master."
"Thank you Iwakura." The boy replies as he continues to look through his cards.
"How are you liking things at your new school young master?" the butler asks.
"I'm really enjoying it. I've made a lot of friends so far." The boy replies.
"I'm pleased to hear that." The butler says with a smile and looks down at the boy's cards. He pauses for a moment before saying, "I also have a message from your parents. They are continuing to let you play that card game, but if it gets in the way of your family duties, they will take it from you."
Hearing this, the boy stops for a moment and smirks. "Tell them they have nothing to worry about," he says, "I won't let Vanguard get in the way of my duties as the heir of the Kiba foundation." He holds up a card depicting a muscular knight with green hair and white and blue armor as he says, "I will master them both."
Opening Theme – STORY (Luck & Logic OP)
TURN 4 – The Royal Knight, Shion Kiba
The next day at school before the first bell has rung, Chrono, Tokoha, and Kumi sit at a table in their club room. "Advertising?" Chrono questions Tokoha's proposition.
"Yeah," she replies with a nod, "After all, the Vanguard Club can't be considered official until we have at least seven members. So we need to find new ways of attracting people to this club. So…" she reaches down into her back on the floor and pulls out a heavy stack of pink papers and plops them on the table.
"Flyers?" Chrono asks seeing the stack.
"We're gonna be handing these out at specific areas around the school." Tokoha explains her plan to her friends.
"We're a school club, not a charity." Chrono states as he slumps on the table, putting his head into his hand.
Kumi claps her hands together and says, "That's a great idea Tokoha!" completely ignoring Chrono.
"Yeah, and it will get more people to look at it as opposed to the posters." Tokoha adds, also ignoring Chrono's complaints, and so Chrono just admits defeat as he isn't going to get through to either of them.
Later in the day, Chrono stands outside the lunch area trying to hand out flyers to students as they walk past. "Take one! Join the Vanguard Club!" he says to them in an unintentionally angry tone while making an unintentionally angry face, which, instead of attracting new members, scares them away instead. "Uggghhhhh…" Chrono sighs in frustration that he can't get anyone to take a flyer and questions the point of doing it. He looks at one of the flyers and gets lost in thought.
Meanwhile, on the nearby soccer field, the blonde boy from before is playing soccer with some other kids. "HAAAAAAAA!" the boy shouts as he kicks the ball past several other kids and straight into the goal. "Predictable." He says in a cool tone.
His team then cheers, and some girls who are watching from a bench in the back swoon over him. "Ahh… isn't Shion amazing?" one of them with long black hair asks.
"I know!" another with short brown hair says, "He's like, super dreamy!"
The next round of soccer begins and the boy navigates the ball through his opponents and one of his teammates shouts, "Shion! Pass it here!"
The boy proceeds to kick the ball in his teammate's direction with the intention of his teammate bouncing it off his head, but he ends up kicking it a little too high and so it goes over his teammates head, into the air, and over the fence. All the kids stare at the ball in the air as it begins to plummet at a high speed. The boy sees it heading straight for Chrono and shouts, "WATCH OUT!"
Hearing this, Chrono snaps out of his daze and looks in the air at the ball falling toward his face, but he isn't able to react fast enough and so, "ARGH!" it smacks him in the face and knocks him off his feet, and as a result, the flyers spill everywhere.
"Are you okay?" the boy asks as he and a few other kids run up to Chrono to check on him.
Chrono sits up holding his nose because it hurts and asks in a frustrated tone, "OKAY! Which of you threw that?!"
"It was me." The boy says as he bows, "My name is Shion Kiba, and I tried to pass the ball to my friend and I accidentally kicked it too high. I am deeply sorry." Meanwhile, Tokoha watches these events unfold from the other side of the school, unaware Chrono was actually hit.
"Ugh… whatever." Chrono says, trying to forgive him, but is too angry. He pulls his hand off his nose and notices the blood on it. "Ugh great… now my nose is bleeding." He stands up, continues to hold his nose, and looks straight up to try and stop the bleeding as much as possible.
"Here, I'll guide you to the nurse's office." Shion offers but Chrono turns away and says,
"I don't need your help!" Chrono then tries to walk into the school while looking up.
"But you can't see where you're going." Shion says right before Chrono walks straight into a pole he couldn't see. While Chrono struggles to see where he's going, Shion looks down and sees the flyers on the ground. He picks one up and reads, "Vanguard Club?" before he can continue reading it, he hears Chrono hit another pole and follows after him, and so despite Chrono saying he doesn't need help, Shion guides him to the nurse's office anyway.
Later, in the nurse's office, Chrono lies in the bed with two tissues plugged up his nose to help stop the bleeding while Shion sits on a stool next to the bed. Just then, the door opens and Tokoha comes running into the room, "I heard what happened. Are you okay Chrono?" she asks.
"He'll be fine," Shion tells her, "The nurse said nothing was broken, so he just needs to wait for the bleeding to stop."
"Oh thank goodness." Tokoha breathes a sigh of relief. Now that she knows Chrono will be fine, she realizes something, "Hey wait, I know you. You're Shion Kiba, you're in the same class as Kumi."
"You know Kumi?" Shion asks, "Then you must be Tokoha Anjou, of the Vanguard Club."
Tokoha is a little surprised when she asks, "How did you know about that?"
Shion reaches into his back pocket and pulls out the flyer he picked up earlier, "Chrono was handing these out and he spilled them everywhere when I hit him."
"I see." Tokoha mutters, "So does that mean you're interested in joining? I didn't even know you played Vanguard." Shion looks slightly confused while Chrono leaps from his bed in anger.
"No way! We don't need some spoiled rich kid like him in the club!" he says, pointing a finger at Shion.
"Chrono you need to lie down or the bleeding won't stop." Shion tells him as he tries to lay him back down.
"I don't need your help!" Chrono fights back, swatting Shion's hand away, "Why do you even care?"
"Because I just want to help, and you keep pushing it away." Shion tells him.
Tokoha stands up and gently lays Chrono back as she says, "Haha, don't worry about him. Chrono can be a bit feisty some times. So do you want to join the Vanguard Club?"
Shion puts on a weak smile and says, "Sorry, but I can't."
"Why not?" Tokoha asks and Chrono smirks a little, "Don't you have an interest in Vanguard?"
"That's not it," Shion tells her as she shakes his head, "I would love to join, but I have my duties as the family heir to uphold."
"Well why don't you come by when you're not busy?" Tokoha asks, and Shion holds his chin in thought. Just then, the bell rings for the next class period.
"Oh, I have to go, my class is starting." Shion says as he stands up.
"Okay." Tokoha says, "If you ever change your mind, just come by the club room after school." Shion looks back, smiles, and walks out into the hall.
Later after school, Shion walks out the front gate to see his butler, Iwakura, waiting for him by a limousine, "How was your day young master?" he asks.
"Great." Shion replies as Iwakura opens the car door for him, but just as he is about to step inside, he stops and looks down.
Taking note of his hesitation, Iwakura asks, "Is everything alright, young master?"
Shion is silent for a moment, but then asks his butler, "Is there anything on my schedule for after school today?"
"You have your English lessons*, and that's it."
"Would it be possible to reschedule my lesson for another day?" Shion asks and Iwakura seems quite confused.
"Do you have other plans, young master?" he asks.
"Well…" Shion hesitates for a second on how to respond and says, "There's this school club that I want to visit, if only just once."
Iwakura smiles, catching on to what Shion is implying. "Very well young master," he says, "I will call your teacher and reschedule your lesson."
Shion smiles back at his butler and says, "Thank you, Iwakura." and starts to walk back inside the school. "Pick be back up in about an hour." He adds as he waves goodbye to his butler.
Meanwhile, in the Vanguard Club room, Tokoha, Chrono, and Kumi are all sat around the center table waiting for Shion. Kumi sighs and says, "I'm starting to think he might not come."
"Who cares if he doesn't?" Chrono says, leaning on the table, "Let's just get on with the cardfights."
"Chrono," Tokoha calls him out, "this is the fifth time you've complained about Shion. Why don't you want him to join?"
"Because we don't need a spoiled rich kid like him in the club." He explains, "He's too, nice, and it makes my skin crawl."
"And what's wrong with being nice?" Tokoha asks, growing frustrated. "Honestly, you need to work on that attitude."
"I do not have an attitude!" Chrono exclaims as he slams his palm on the table.
"Wanna bet?" Tokoha asks with a death glare, causing Chrono to settle down.
"Regardless, we shouldn't have to wait for him," he says, "It's taking up time we could use to cardfight."
Just then, the club room door slides open, and they hear a voice saying, "Sorry I'm late." They look over and see Shion standing there.
"Shion!" Tokoha exclaims, "You came after all."
"I wasn't too busy today, so I thought it'd be a great opportunity to come and see what this club is like." He says as he walks inside, "So what do you do here?"
Tokoha stares at him blankly and says, in an awkward tone, "Uhhh… we just play Vanguard."
"That's it?" Shion asks and Tokoha nods back.
"That's it."
"I see." Shion replies, "Well I'd love to cardfight one of you. Who's going to be my opponent?"
"How about Chrono?" Kumi suggests.
"Hey! Wait a second!" Chrono pleads.
"Yeah," Tokoha agrees, "he may be new to the game, but he's actually strong!"
"Is that so?" Shion asks and turns to Chrono, "Well then Chrono, happy to be your opponent." He extends a hand with a cheerful smile.
Chrono looks at him and says, "Whatever…"
The two of them stand on opposite ends of a smaller table as Tokoha stands between them to judge. "I saw you at Card Capital one day," Shion says to Chrono, "but I never thought you'd end up being my opponent like this. So shall we get started?"
Chrono nods and says, "Yeah, I'm gonna wipe that smug look off your face!"
The two of them place their hands on their starters and say in unison, "Now Stand up… Vanguard!"
"Chrono Dran (G0/6000)!" Chrono declares.
"Shining Knight, Millius (G0/6000)." Shion declares, "I fight for the Royal Paladin clan, the knights of honor and justice. I ride! Laural Knight Sicilus (G1/8000). I draw a card and use Sicilus's skill. Look at the top five cards of the deck and add a grade 3 card to my hand (Hand 6-7), then I discard a card (Hand 7-6)."
"Ride! Bearing Rover (G1/8000). Draw a card and add a Quick Shield to my hand. I call Steam Fighter Memenne (G1/6000)! Attack the Vanguard (8000-14000)!" (Shion: []). Using Rover's skill, discard the quick shield and draw."
"Ride! Absolute Blade Knight, Livarot (G2/10000)! Activating Livarot's skill ([X]). I can call a grade 2 unit from the deck. I superior call another Livarot (G2/10000). I use Livarot's skill to once again, call another grade 2 unit."
"Don't you need a counterblast for that?" Chrono questions.
"Normally I would, but if there are no face up cards in my damage zone, the skill can be paid with a soul blast instead (Soul 2-1). I superior call Starlight Violinist (G2/10000). I also call Lunar Crescent Knight, Felax (G1/8000). With the skill of Starlight Violinist, if there are no face up cards in my damage zone, he gains boost."
"What?!" Chrono exclaims.
"That's the specialty of the Royal Paladin clan, maxing out their rear-guards and having no face up cards in the damage zone." Tokoha explains.
"Woooow…" Kumi says in amazement.
Board State
(XXXX) (G2/10000) (G2/10000)
(XXXX) (G2/10000) (G1/8000)
"Boosted by Violinist, the Vanguard Livarot attacks (10000-20000)! Drive check (Critical). I got a Critical Trigger! Power to the rear-guard Livarot (10000-20000), and Critical to the Vanguard!" (Chrono: [][]). "Boosted by Felax, Livarot attacks (20000-28000)!"
"Guard (15000+15000=30000)!"
"Drive check (Critical). Critical Trigger. All effects to the rear-guard Livarot (20000-30000/Crit 1-2). Boosted by Felax, Livarot attacks the Vanguard (30000-38000)!" Livarot's attack hits, slicing Bearing Rover in half (Chrono: [][][][]).
"AH!" Chrono exclaims, imagining this happen while holding his stomach in real life. "I'm not done yet! Ride! Lost Break Dragon (G2/10000)! Memenne's skill!" Chrono draws a card and discards a card. "Next I use Lost Break's skill (Hand: 5-4)(Bind: 0-1). Draw. I call Smokegear Dragon (G2/10000). Memenne boosts, and Lost Break attacks the Vanguard (10000-16000)!" (Shion: [X][]) "Smokegear attacks! With the skill, add 5000 power (10000-15000)!"
"I don't guard." Shion says as Smokegear takes a swipe at his Vanguard (Shion: [X][][]). "Now it's my turn." Shion draws a card, looks at it, and smiles, "Stand proud! My holy sword! Ride! Blue Sky Knight, Altmile (G3/13000)! Imaginary Gift: Force 2! I put it on the front left rear circle."
"Why would he put it there?" Chrono asks himself, "Wouldn't it be better to give it to the Vanguard?"
"I call another Blue Sky Knight Altmile (G3/13000). Due to the effects of Force 2, the rear-guard Altmile's critical becomes 2 (13000/Crit 1-2). I activate Vanguard Altmile's skill ([X][X][])(Hand 5-4), I add Counteroffensive Knight Suleiman and Absolute Blade Knight Livarot from my deck into my hand (Hand 4-6). Next, over the existing Livarot, I call Suleiman (G2/10000) and call Livarot over Felax (G2/10000). Using Livarot's skill ([X][X][X]), superior call Hopesong Angel (G2/10000)! Lastly, with the skills of both Altmiles, if there are no face up cards in the damage zone, add 15000 power to them both (13000-28000) (13000-28000)!"
Board State
(G3/28000/Crit 2) (G3/28000) (G2/10000)
(G2/10000) (G2/10000) (G2/10000)
"Starlight Violinist boosts, and I attack the Vanguard (28000-38000)!"
"Complete Guard!" Chrono declares.
"Twin Drive (none/Critical). Critical Trigger! I give the power to the rear-guard Altmile (28000-38000) and the critical to Suleiman (10000/Crit 1-2)."
"Great…" Chrono thinks to himself, "Now if either of them hit, I lose, and I don't have enough cards to block them both."
"Hopesong boosts and Altmile attacks the Vanguard (28000-38000/Crit 2)!"
"Guard (20000+10000=30000)!"
"Chrono's only got one card left in his hand…" Kumi mutters.
"Is he actually going to lose?" Tokoha wonders.
"Boosted by Livarot, Suleiman attacks (10000-20000/Crit 2)! Suleiman's skill (Soul 2-1). Return Hopesong to my hand and add 5000 power (20000-25000)!"
Chrono looks at the one card in his hand, which is Chronojet Dragon, and hesitantly declares "No guard…" Suleiman whips Lost Break with his chain, causing it to fall to the ground. "Damage check. First (none)." (Chrono: [][][][][]) seeing the fifth damage, everyone tenses up "Second…" Chrono grabs the top card and flips it over and sighs over what is revealed (none) (Chrono: [][][][][][]).
"Chrono… lost?" Tokoha mutters in shock.
"And he didn't even get to grade 3…" Kumi adds.
Chrono stares at the Chronojet card in his hand and grips it tightly in frustration. Meanwhile, Shion walks up to him with a scowl on his face and says, "Is that the best you can do?"
"What?!" Chrono says in anger as he grits his teeth at Shion.
"You couldn't even show me your true colors." He says, "My guess is you lack the imagination."
Chrono snarls at Shion then grabs him by the collar of his shirt and says, "Say that again you spoiled rich kid! I can't control what cards I draw!"
"Okay! That's enough!" Tokoha exclaims as she pulls Chrono off of the blonde, "Sorry about that… so are you going to join the club?"
"I'd like to, however…" Shion says with a sigh, "I have family matters to attend to, so I probably wouldn't be around most of them time. So I have to say no…"
Tokoha frowns and says, "Oh…" then quickly smiles again and says, "Well if you ever change your mind, you know where we'll be."
"Thank you." Shion says, then bows and says, "I have to go." Before grabbing his stuff and leaving the room, but Chrono stops him just before he walks out the door.
"Hey!" he exclaims. Shion turns back and looks directly at Chrono, who's smiling with determination, "Next time we fight, you'll see that I have imagination, and I'll be the winner!"
Shion smiles back and says, "I looking forward to it." And then leaves the room.
Later, after Shion was picked up by his butler, the butler looks at him in the rear-view mirror of the limousine and says, "You seem quite happy young master. Did you have fun with whatever you had planned?"
Shion nods and says, "Yes, I did." He then looks out the window at the bright orange sky and thinks to himself, "That Chrono kid… he sure is something."
Meanwhile, just under the highway, Chrono and Tokoha walk along the sidewalk on their way home and Chrono says, "I want to get stronger…" and Tokoha looks at him perplexed, "I want to get better at Vanguard! So I can play on the same level as you, Shion, or Yuji." He then jumps in front of Tokoha and grabs her by the shoulders, startling her, "Please Tokoha! Will you teach me more about Vanguard… and help me get stronger?"
Tokoha blushes, still flustered from the sudden shoulder grab, and then smiles and says, "Of course Chrono. There are even some things you could teach me." Tokoha then recalls a memory of her fighting her brother. She then recalls a memory of her fighting her brother, and then looks at Chrono in the eyes and says, "Let's help each other to get stronger, and run this club together!"
"Yeah!" Chrono exclaims. The two stare at each other in the eyes for a moment, before Tokoha suddenly gives Chrono a bear hug, surprising him, but he hugs back with a smile. From that moment, they pledged to help each other get stronger, so they can defeat the ones they want to defeat.
Ending Theme – Days of Dash (Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo ED)
[Next Time]
Chrono: Ugh! I'm so frustrated I couldn't ride Chronojet in that fight!
Tokoha: Don't feel too bad, I didn't expect Shion to be that strong, especially considering I didn't even know he played Vanguard.
Chrono: Well I'm still going to get stronger and beat him next time we fight! You'll help me right Tokoha?
Tokoha: Of course, Chrono. I'd do anything for you.
Chrono: Huh?
Tokoha: *Blushes* AH! I didn't mean that in a creepy way or anything! Of course I'll help you get stronger.
Chrono: Okay, then let's do this!
Tokoha: Ugh… how can you be so oblivious?
NEXT TIME on Vanguard GV: The Illusionary Crescent Moon, Luna Yumizuki! Don't miss it!
If you'd like to follow this series and see its development, or any of my fanfics, you can join me on my discard at:
discord . gg/ mFfHPMz
Just paste this link into your internet browser without spaces. I look forward to seeing you there!