"...How the heck am I gonna prepare in one day for an entire tournament?!" Lilith asked.

"Well, it sure seems like a screwed situation, but the guy gave you some new cards, so why not try reading them? You...do know the cards have text, right?" Matt commented.

"...Oh, right." Lilith said, blinking, and looking through the deck. "Holy crap, how much did he change?" she thought out loud as she was flipping through cards.

"Well, you've got about a day to find that out, huh?" Matt commented. "I know reading can be hard, but maybe you'll get the hang of it as you go."

"Of course...well what about you? Are you in the senior cup with that jerk? You've got all those wins as is." Lilith asked.

"Oh, no, I'm in the same cup as you. No way I'm fighting the guy who doesn't lose right now, and they wanted to screen me too." Matt answered.

"Neat...so my competition is already someone who's got more than double my pathetic winrate, how am I supposed to avoid giving that guy the satisfaction of seeing me bite it round one?" Lilith asked.

"Oh don't worry, the Red Gang leader entered too, since she was promised strong fighters." Matt said.

"Oh, of course, because that makes it SO MUCH BETTER!" Lilith sarcastically remarked.

"...You don't have to take it out on me, you know. I'm just a Matt." Matt commented.

"I...You're right, sorry. I just already keep getting knocked down by this town, and now the same girl from that gang being in the tournament makes it even worse- Wait a minute." Lilith then realized. "That guy already tried offering me a deal to try and get even with Aria...and now he's having me in this stupid cup..." she started.

"Yikes. Sounds like he played you like a fiddle to get back at the red gang." Matt noted. "No wonder he had to have someone else do it, he's in the Senior cup."

"THAT SON OF A-!" Lilith started yelling.

Meanwhile, Felix and Aoi had been walking through a nearby park, as Aoi seemed to look at all the plant and animal life with wonder, while the small mechanical bug on Mitt's head was equally as enthusiastic.

...Oh, my. There's two of them at this rate... Felix thought to himself, before noticing Aoi come up to him, before awkwardly reaching for her bag. "Uh, I don't need reimbursement for the petting zoo, I wanted to see it too as is-" He started, before seeing her hold out a ticket. "Huh?"

"U-Um...You're a vanguard fighter, right?" Aoi asked. "I was told to...um...give this to a vanguard fighter I thought would be perfect for an event..." She awkwardly said.

"An event? Well, I've been looking to test my mettle against bigger and better, but...Are you sure? You just met me." Felix said.

"I-I know, but..!" Aoi started. "You...were willing to be friends with someone like me, and even not run away the first moment I looked away after I talked about myself..." she said. "So...I figured you'd be perfect for the event..."

"I...I see." Felix said, before internally sweatdropping.

Why is this girl so depressing?! He couldn't help but think to himself, but accepted the ticket. "Huh...the Vanguard Junior Youth Cup. Sounds interesting, are you in it?" Felix decided to ask, Aoi nodding in response.

"Y-Yeah...Me and my coworker at my job are." Aoi said. "If you have time, it starts tomorrow..."

"Then of course I'll be there." Felix said with a grin. "After all, I got a recommendation from a friend, there's no way I'd let them down and not show up." he told her, as she seemed to smile at that.

"Wow. I thought I knew all the swear words in the world, but I guess now me and several innocent bystander's ears know otherwise." Matt commented.

"...Well can you blame me after he tricked me into this mess?" Lilith asked.

"For being upset? No, for turning into a sailor in a public place? Absolutely." Matt answered.

"Fair point...Still, I need help to train for this thing if all I've got is a day!" Lilith told him.

"Well, good thing you've got a new friend in me, I can go a few rounds and try to give you some pointers, if you want...but you've also gotta remember I'm in the tournament too." Matt said.

"And giving tips about my deck to the opponent might be a bad idea, I get the picture." Lilith said.

"Yeah, giving that kind of trust without thoughts gets your card thrown into water or a new card "suddenly" inserted into the deck, if you've been watching television." Matt told her. "On the other hand, nothing says I can't give you some general help." Matt said.

"Really? Well in that case, tell me everything you can." Lilith said.

"Sure thing. In that case, the first thing you might want to keep in mind is..." Matt started.

"Oi, boss! Are you really entering that tournament?" Tuff asked, as Aria looked up at the sky.

"Of course I am. I ain't banned from it if I got an invitation directly." She said, holding it out. "And if it's about fighters that got sought out...It means I'll definitely have an interesting time." She added, grinning. "More importantly, I'll finally get to use my new weapons...and hopefully there'll be someone there who can take it." She said.

"R-Right..." Tuff said, walking off.

"...And yeah, in that situation, you might want to just swallow your pride and ditch the card if it means getting another turn." Matt finished.

"Huh...There's a lot of strategy involved, more than I thought." Lilith admitted.

"Maybe, but sometimes a simple approach can also be good for you." Matt told her. "Oh, and this is less important, but still fun to do. You should really think of some ride chants for your favorite ace cards." he added.

Oh yeah...Aria had one of those, didn't she. Then I'll spend tonight thinking of one! Lilith thought to herself, before noticing the time. "Ack! It's so late now..! I'd better get home before- ...Wait, my parents aren't looking after me anymore, they aren't gonna care...and my aunt and uncle are pretty hands-off...Eh. I should still go back, though." She said.

"Alright cool, see you at the event at 10, then." Matt told her, as she started walking off.

"See ya, Matt!" Lilith called out, before eventually running all the way back to her home.