Disclaimer: Yugi-Oh GX does not belong to me nor its characters or rights over the story.
Warn: This story may have heavy and uncomfortable themes/situations like use of drugs, violence, suicide, abuse, sexual harassment, intimate relations, rape, depression, trauma and bad language. If you do not like such, Do not read this.
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Chapter 26: Challenge
It's been a few weeks ever since Rie found out about Ryo's condition. She visited the hospital with him a couple times to be with him in the consultations and understand better his current health condition. The doctors are hopeful that if he avoids stress and takes some medications, it will help him recover. Today she came alone.
Her eyes are blank for a moment as she walks out of the hospital holding a bottle of pills and a sheet of paper, going back home, dazing off while looking at the screen of her device. Her mind is in stasis, putting the bottle and the folded paper inside her purse mechanically, dazzled during the whole trip back home until she's at the door of her apartment. A voice startles her, bringing her back to reality.
"Rie Kinomoto!"
That female voice is familiar, she's shocked to see a brown-haired middle aged woman tapping her feet impatiently. It's Yuzu Kinomoto, her stepmother. She crosses her arms, snorting and shaking her head at the sight of the pink-haired. The fancy coq adorned with a pearl hairpin matched the composed pastel tone dress, some thin strands of hair drapping down curling by the side of her face elegantly.
"What are you doing here, mother?"
"I came to talk. Won't you let me in?"
She sighs heavily, opening the door for the woman to enter. As soon as the click of the lock soars, the gaze of the older one looks around in a scrutinizing manner, showing displeasure.
"You sure are living well in a filthy apartment. Why didn't you accept the offer from your father? He wanted to give you better. You'd have something way better now had you gone to those family meetings!"
"I don't need a better apartment and I don't want to talk to you." She types averting her gaze in contempt.
"You have no choice. I won't leave until you listen to every word I and your father have to say!"
"Which words? You had nothing of importance to say in the past and you still don't. And my father is not even here, tell him to come in person next time if he has anything to say."
"We do have much to say! We're thinking about your future, you're not a teeny school girl anymore, you need to set your life straight."
"Sorry, it's a bit too late to be telling me this, I already decided about my future on my own while you were all busy with the company and thinking about how much shame I bring to the family!"
"Don't be childish now, Rie! You know we were very troubled and concerned, we had to talk a lot to the director of the academy to let you stay there and you also had good experiences. Now we just want you to help with this partnership, and you'll be happy with it too. It will be good for your future."
"You intend to sell me to the son of a company owner you want to get a partnership with and you call that making me happy?"
"Ah, please, we both know if they find out about your past, no one will ever want to marry you anyways, you can't even speak. That will be a bonus, you don't need to get involved in the company business and they will not demand you to do it! You can do whatever you want as long as it doesn't besmirch the image of the family, even if you have secrets it's fine, I'm sure you and your husband-to-be will negotiate well. You can even divorce after a year or so, think of the details later! It's all just a contract, you don't need to make a fuss about it as if it will ruin your life!"
"I see you're as awful as ever." She gasps in disbelief of how unsympathetic the other could be.
"Don't say that. Look, we want this partnership, you can help. Me and your father, we will leave you alone when you marry, really. I know you're pretty and young and probably believe you have the world under your feet, but we just don't want you causing trouble like in the school times."
"Causing trouble?"
"Yes, you were going out with boys in the forest with a bunch of them and ugh, whatever you did when you were younger. I don't even want to imagine."
"Do you even care about what happened back then? Do you understand the meaning of the terms rape, abuse, sexual harassment? Or is it a word too far from your fancy vocabulary?"
The older woman huffs in annoyance, turning her sight to the side in a haughty posture, folding her arms and calmly speaking again, ignoring the previous words of the girl.
"I heard you visited the hospital a couple of times in the last few weeks."
"What?! How? Are you spying on me now?"
"Don't underestimate how much effort me and your father have been putting into looking after you. We were deadly worried something else might happen to you after all that ruckus in your school. But what were you doing there at the hospital? Is it grave?"
"It doesn't matter to you! It never mattered, when I was sick you were the first ones to turn your backs to me! Why would it be different now? I can't believe you're pretending that spying on me and my life is 'taking care'. You have no idea how to take care of anyone! I've learned that the hard way!"
"You're being extremely immature, Rie! Do you think your mother wanted to marry your father?! Absolutely not! But if you could see the face she had when you were born! She was the happiest person I've met in my life! Sadly, she died of a sickness when you couldn't even remember her face, but that's not the point! What I want to say is even though she wasn't planning on marrying either, she was very happy and the company grew more after that."
"Now you're bringing my biological mother into this?" She scoffs. "It doesn't matter to you what you do to get things done. You have no sense of empathy, do you?"
"I have no empathy? I'm only thinking about you here! Why would you not want a good opportunity to be with someone?"
"Good opportunity? Being sold like I'm a piece of meat for a stupid business contract?! I'm very sorry, but I must refuse this great proposal. I'm not interested in any men you have to introduce to me."
"What? Are you by any chance going out with random men now? Is there any impediment to a marriage? Is that why you're not interested? Are you giving yourself to whoever appears first?!" The woman gasps, shaking her head in disapproval and narrowing her eyes in distrust. "Are you hooking or something?"
"None. of. your. concern!" She throws the words on the screen harshly.
Her stepmother jeers, shaking her head off in disgruntlement and a full disapproval gaze, looking at Rie from top to bottom as if she was the biggest disappointment she'd ever seen in her life.
"You think I don't know how you're spending your time? Or about that mysterious man you've been seeing on your nights? Is he the reason you're refusing this proposal that could bring prosperity to our family?!"
"What are you talking about? Just how much are you gonna pry in my life?! Are you stalking me?!"
"You can't hide things from me or your father, Rie! We've had someone check what you've been up to and I know everything about your shameless night adventures! That man you're seeing is a third rate duelist and the eldest son of the Marufuji family! Do you have any idea of what you're getting yourself into?! His father owns the Marufuji company and refused to join our conglomerate, resisting our persuasion. Not only that but they managed to get a contract with the Kaiba corp. instead of us! They lost the chance to become bigger just out of silly pride and stole our chance of a good contract! And you're having a love affair with the son of our enemies?! It can't get worse!"
"It's not an 'affair'! He's my boyfriend! And I don't care who you're enemies with, whichever companies you like or dislike, this has nothing to do with Ryo's or my life! Leave us alone!"
"You don't care? What is his professional name again… 'Hell Kaiser Ryo'? All cool, full of female fans that adore him, stupid girls like you that fall for this! You really think you're so special, don't you? But I know his type, he probably has ten other girls and you're just one of his favorite regular! You have to admit, you're doing yourself a big favor by ditching him!"
"Shut your mouth, your snake!"
The stepmother puts a hand to her chest, flabbergasted at those words and at the persistence of her daughter in defying their recommendations, her blood boiling and rage fuming out of her poisonous lips:
"You did it on purpose, didn't you? Choosing exactly him because you knew it would be an offense to our family! That you would wrong us this way! Just how far will you go to trample on us?! How much do you hate us? You did it just to not have to go through with the plans we had for you? For your life?! Now… Because of this man… I can't even believe… You're giving yourself just like in school, we didn't raise you to be such a whiny slut!"
"Don't you dare badmouth him! You don't know anything about me or him. "
"I guess I really don't. How you would approach the son of the Marufuji family when you can't even speak or do anything for our family is beyond me. Did you seduce him on purpose or did he approach you first? Was he also one of the boys you had in school? Or are you just one of his fangirls that sleeps with him casually? Tell me so I can understand. Enlighten me!"
"Who he is or isn't and what we do is none of your concern! You can't force me to marry now. And you won't!"
"You don't understand Rie, this will be better for your life… You and him, I'm not letting that happen!" She nibbles her nails desperately walking from one side of the room to the other in a frenzy.
"It was never about who he is, you will refuse anyone else if it's not whoever you want. Stop finding excuses and spouting lies about him!"
"Rie, you are being brash! You will regret this later! Does his family even know about you, huh?! I will make sure his family knows we're not joking! I wonder what they will think about your unbecoming trysts!" She mocks, her tongue distilling despise
"I'm done talking to you! How much more insulting can you be?!" She points at the exit and gestures furiously while also reinforcing the sentence with her mouth "Get Out!"
"I won't accept this, Rie! You'll come to your senses, sooner or later! We will see who was wrong in the end!"
"Come to my senses? Yes, I did that already, thank you! I came to my senses long ago when I overcame depression and noticed all my family ever wanted of me was to be a pretty doll they can put up for sale whenever it's convenient for them and I'm done with that! I'm done! I will not be a tool or whatever you consider me to be for the company, I'll lead my life and you can't stop me! I bet this candidate of yours can't even win a duel against me! And I doubt he is a tenth of the man Ryo is!"
"Ah right, I forgot that the duel academy hammered this sick mentality inside all of the students' heads, that everything is about dueling. Your time there must really have gotten into your brain…"
"Yes, thanks for letting me stay there, mom."
"I see. So you've been with this plan since back then? Because you were angry we wanted you to stay on that island? Isn't that pathetic duelist from the duel academy too? Is that how you're confident he likes you or what? Because you know him since school? Were you also giving yourself to him back then?"
"You're unbearable."
"I suppose I don't need an answer for that question. It seems letting you stay was really a mistake, not only you caused a ruckus and we had to hide it, but it seems it damaged your brain and you're even pretending to be a teen in love that doesn't know the consequences of having romantic affairs with those sub-celebrities. You're ruining your life."
"You don't know any of it, you were not there and nothing you say about him is true, I know him, you don't, stop trying this weak strategy of throwing your nonsense arguments to try me! I learned much more than just dueling in that academy! So much more than I could ever learn from you! Unfortunately you wouldn't know any of that, nor would my father! Stay away from me and from Ryo!"
"Yes, I really can't understand that. But I see all in your head is dueling and affairs with bad boys, you became a journalist focused on duels and even your choice of a man is a duelist, you're more of a disappointment than I initially thought."
She complains, but a devious smirk plays on her lips, as a business woman she sees an opportunity to seize her goals amidst the turmoil on Rie's temper. If her kid wants to play this game, she knows how to play it well.
"Fine. Then let's do it like this: you wanna fend for yourself? You want to be independent and make your own choice in this matter? I'll let you do that If you win a duel against the Kinomoto company. However, if you lose the duel against us, you will need to marry this business partner and you'll stop seeing this lover of yours, you'll listen to us and do exactly as we tell. How does that sound? You want to solve everything with dueling, but dueling is also just business for me, how about that?"
"What? You don't even understand anything about dueling! Why would you propose this?!"
"You don't need to worry. This is just how business goes, Rie, we negotiate things that include the interests of both sides, a pity you were too entranced by dueling to learn any of this."
"You can't be serious…" She frowns irritated. "You don't even like dueling or know anything about it. The conglomerate is just involved in dueling because it's profitable."
"Does it matter? Isn't that better for you if our family loses? You never thought about us either." Her blatant, but cynical tone just gets on the nerves of the daughter. "Do you accept it or not?"
"Fine! I accept it! If it will get rid of all this fake preoccupation you claim to have and make me free, I will take it!"
She nods confidently, not noticing the woman was up to something from the start, the derailed thoughts popping on her mind unheard to the pink-haired youngster that was too blinded by her annoyance.
"You just wait, Rie. We will see who has the final say in this matter."
She beckons deceitfully and leaves the place without any other word, a satisfied smirk on her face, saying her last words quickly:
"I'll inform you the details of the duel soon, opponent and time included. You better start preparing."
After she's gone, Rie's body trembles, she sits down on a chair, covering her face with both hands, a deep sigh of relief released into the air. With a bitter expression, her eyes squint slightly in sadness.
"I can't believe it… I did it this time! Why did I get myself entangled in that snake's schemes? But it can't be that bad, right? She doesn't even understand much about dueling… There is something iffy about her proposal… Why would she risk everything in a duel? She must be very convinced they can win, or that the business partner she wants to marry me with is a capable duelist… Regardless, now that I accepted it, I need to win somehow…"
She ponders confused with how the situation came to this, her fingers slowly typing a message to Ryo, unsure of how to even explain everything.
A few hours later
The black limousine waltz gracefully among other cars, Edo looks at the dazzling city flashing outside, he hears the button click from when Emeralda finishes a call.
"Edo, we have a last minute match arranged for you after tomorrow."
"So soon? How did you fit this in the schedule?"
"We squeezed this in, they're important business partners."
"Who is my opponent?"
"The daughter of the Kinomoto group, Rie Kinomoto."
"Is it another case of parents wanting me to duel their kids?" There is no begrudgement in his tone, but acceptance.
"She isn't a kid, but I suppose you can consider it like this." She shows her PDA with the info and a small picture.
"Hm… They want me to duel the young lady of the house?"
It was not uncommon they'd put him against someone unknown for publicity or simply because rich families hired his service, for him a job is a job.
"Well, not that it matters to me if that's the decision of the main board of my sponsors." He thinks, shrugging off his shoulders.
"Fine. I'll prepare as usual, then."
"Please do."
A brief smile occurs before she monotonously types a number and starts making calls again while the car takes him to his next appointment, his schedule is already tight as it is.
The next day
Rie is at work when a message suddenly blink on the screen of her phone. She checks it swiftly, a drop of sweat forming on her face.
"Meet me at 21 sharp, at the restaurant across our company's main building."
It's been long since the last time she attended an invitation from her family, her fingers numbing and freezing from sweat just at the thought of their stone cold faces, remembering the silent dinners they had after she came back from school and how she hurried to find an apartment and leave her house. She always had a tingling sensation she wasn't welcomed around her parents, it just took her long to notice the feeling was mutual.
She sends a message to Ryo, informing of the sudden meeting with her family, unsure of how to deal with the situation. Knowing Yuzu's personality, she wouldn't put it past it is all some sort of trap to get her to meet that business partner.
Her feet reluctantly stop in front of a fancy building, her eyes move up towards the higher floors, where the said restaurant should be located. Her orbs wavering for a second, fearing the outcome of that meeting. Unlike the last times she had seen her family, she has grown a considerable amount, with that in mind, she breathes in confidence before entering.
As expected of her mother, the restaurant is way above her paygrade, from the ceiling lights to the glass tables. An eerie sensation hovers in the air as she looks around anxiously, there is no one else in that restaurant besides her and her stepmother that is already settled at the table in the middle of the room. Did she rent the whole place again?
Her hazel eyes just spare a glance at the pink-haired girl, analyzing her work clothes with a shade of disbelief and a disapproving shake of head.
"I see you didn't put any effort into your appearance as usual. If this was a meeting with your future partner, you'd be losing the partnership already."
"I came directly from work, and I'm not here for an interview, you wanted to talk about that duel." She sits down with a soft plop. "Where is my father?"
"He can't come, you know how busy he is. It's fine, I am supposed to be dealing with you and your rebel phase anyways."
"Yes, I see he can't even bother to cross the street to see my face. That would be too much to ask of him."
"If you're feeling lonely with just the two of us, maybe I should call that future partner of yours for dinner with us, if you don't mind…"
"Wait! That was not what we agreed upon! You can't just do that!" She angrily texts. "I can't believe it! Was that your intention from the start?! Is this why you rented the whole restaurant?"
"You really don't understand a single thing about business."
Yuzu is already typing the number to make a call when a pair of black footsteps approaches, stunning both her and the daughter, the waiter stands in front of them blocking their way, Rie jumps out of her seat, rushing to the door and quickly typing.
"It's fine. I know him! He's a guest."
The waiter steps aside. Ryo walks quietly, a tiny smile sprouting on his lips as he comes closer, his arms bluntly coming around her in a hug. His smirk enlarging as he hears a gasp from the other two people in the precinct, he lets her go.
"Ryo, what are you doing here?" Her fingers linger on the keys of the communicator.
"I. Come. See. You."
He gestures in signs, surprising the older woman, even more as he puts a hand around his girlfriend's shoulders and walks with her towards the table, an aloof expression, she sits down quietly, her eyes never averting from him, as if bewitched by his presence there.
"Were you feeling lonely, Rie? I should've come a bit earlier." The dark figure pulls a chair from a random table and places it beside his girlfriend's chair, but he doesn't sit there yet.
Rie gulps in tension, his hands landing on her shoulders as he bends over reassuringly with a faint smile to look at her face, ignoring completely the third person there.
"Didn't we agree it's about time we meet each other's families?" He proclaims in a louder voice, making himself heard in the room.
That sketch of a smile disappears from his face, his eyes sharpening as he stares at the woman sitting across, he can see her almost leaping out of her seat under his rough glare.
"I'm very thrilled to finally be introduced to your parents, Rie. But it seems one of them is missing."
Yuzu snaps, standing up and slapping the table indignant, scowling at the duelist with an apathetic expression. She can't stand the sight, from the color of his hair and even the shape of his eyes, he resembles his father so much, a younger version of him and she is grossed out by that appearance.
"What is the meaning of this?! Did your parents not teach you any manners?! I wouldn't expect less of a Marufuji! How can you just barge into a family meeting like this? This is a private space!"
"I see you know me, I'm elated, we could skip introductions, but I'll say it anyways: I'm Ryo Marufuji, Rie's boyfriend, and she let me into this meeting. I just came to see my girlfriend and meet her mother."
"I don't agree with your presence here! I don't care who he is to you Rie, but this is unacceptable! I will call the security and have you removed immediately!" She swears in between her teeth, bending over the table to threaten him.
He straightens up his posture, his figure towering a bit too menacingly to her taste, bending over the table while supporting his hands, his voice not louder than a raspy whisper:
"Try. Make a scene here. Tomorrow, everyone will know that the great Kinomoto company vice-leader was cursing and expelling a famous duelist. Everyone will start wondering which sort of affairs the Kinomoto family has with me and eventually, they'll find out. Wouldn't that be great? The image of the Kinomoto company that is related to the duel industry treating duelists badly, even more one that happens to be in a relationship with their daughter, just for petty reasons like disliking his family."
"You think I'm afraid of you, brat?" She controls her voice. "You should be afraid of me! You are nothing! I could dismiss all your fake rumors with a snap of my fingers!"
"Is that so? The feeling is reciprocated. If you believe the media will not find out the truth when they see the daughter of the Kinomoto who has been incognito for some years finally making a debut again, even more related to someone like me. People will be all over digging through her past. Who knows, maybe they will find out about how her family neglected her mental health back when she was in school and attempted suicide while they only cared about not letting anyone know their daughter was sick and needed help even more after what happened... Hm… That wouldn't sound great for your image, I must say…"
"You…" She almost chokes with her own saliva, recoiling a step.
"You can try taking me out by force or we can all have a talk with me as part of this lovely reunion. So, please, don't mind me, I don't really care about you or whatever it is you have to say, I'm just here to spend some time with Rie, you can disregard my presence and speak as usual." He sits down, adjusting the chair, a fiery and defiant glint in his orbs.
Yuzu's mouth twitches at the callousness and the undertone of irony in his voice. The tension becomes palpable, Rie exchanges glances between the two, she sees the angered glare of her mother directed at Ryo as if she was holding back to not strangle him right there.
She would chuckle if she wasn't as nervous as everyone else in the room, admittedly, her heart fluttered a bit in happiness that he came all the way here. She can understand the true reason for him to be acting like this, underneath all this rude façade, he wants to protect her, at least his threats to the image of the company work against her mother.
"Fine, if this is how you both will be. You can participate in this reunion." Recomposing herself, she sits down on the chair, a victorious smile plays on her lips. "Rie, dear, your duel will be tomorrow at 7 AM. We will use a stage and all the equipment at one of our company test buildings, you know? The place where we put all the materials we produce to be tested, we have a stage for dueling there. No one else needs to know about this small experience. We have chosen your opponent, you should know him too, Ryo Marufuji." She smirks back at the duelist, as if provoking him. "It's Edo Phoenix. You lost one of your pro matches to him, didn't you? It seems you're not as much of a genius in dueling as him." Her eyes move up and down, a disdainful curve on the right corner of the mouth, a clear verbal assault to diminish his worth in her mind.
The unfazed glance he casts at the woman deeply aggravates her irritation. How can he be collected in front of her provocations? Her eyes squeezing as she makes a mental scan of him:
"This kid of Ryuu is really something else. Well, it doesn't matter, because the one who should be the most scared here is…"
Rie flinches at the declaration of her opponent, fear creeping inside her orbs, her fingers quickly forming a text, sliding on the keys from the sweat accumulating on the edges of her hands, her mother couldn't hide the satisfaction giving shape to a smile as she watches pleased with the reaction she expected to stir.
"He's a professional duelist! I thought you or that man you keep trying to push to me were going to duel!" Her brows furrow upwards.
"Aw, dear, you really don't know how business works, do you? I never said I or your future partner would be the one dueling, of course our family would choose someone capable, and you know how we are, we only accept the best representative."
She knows what's going on. They're doing everything they can to humiliate her and Ryo in every possible way, including bringing up his loss and forcing her to duel with the very same person who won a match against him before.
"You accepted the challenge, didn't you? You said no duelist we bring would be half as good as him." She points at him with mockery. "It just so happens we found someone perfect for the job of putting you into your place, Rie. It's time you-"
"Is that all?" Ryo interrupts without shame.
"Excuse me?"
"Isn't this all you wanted to talk about? The duel."
"What? Will you try to control which topics I discuss with my daughter now?" She almost spits the words with rancor, still not swallowing the fact he was there uninvited to begin with.
"But this is just business, right? The duel, this meeting, it's all just business or are you saying out of nowhere you decided that now, of all times, you'll listen to Rie and have a real talk with her? I don't think so. You don't look like someone who has time to spend talking about such trivial matters after all. Do you know her favorite color? Her favorite food? What makes her laugh? Basic things like this? Did you ever ask her the truth of what happened in the duel academy? Listen to her? Have you talked to her at least once ever since she moved from your family's house? I doubt you did, but you decided to come now because it's your big chance for business, isn't it? So, if you are done with the details of the duel and your business plan, there shouldn't be anything else to discuss here."
They can see her patience crumbling, if her eyes could catch fire, they'd be burning right now with the amount of rage and despise she was trying to shackle, to not lose her composure as a madam, her voice sounding hoarse, but strong:
"Yes. The place and opponent are set, I suppose that's all you need for those childish duels."
"If this is over, then…" He stands up without a second delay, stretching his hand towards the girl beside him. "How about we go somewhere else, Rie? You must be tired."
Yuzu was about to voice yet another complaint on his attempts of ruining her meeting with the daughter alone, but unexpectedly, Rie answers before that by taking his hand and standing up. She only had eyes for him.
"If you excuse me, I have to go now."
Those are the only words in the message she displays on the screen before she turns away and they walk off the restaurant, leaving her stepmother gawking at them, her eyes burning that image of the insufferable son of the Marufuji and her daughter holding hands.
The waiter comes to ask about her order and she shoves him away bitterly, an unsavory taste of frustration in her mouth.
Outside the building, Rie's fingers squeeze his palm, her eyes wavering restlessly in worry as she looks at him. He spins around, stopping on his tracks letting go of her to put his own hand atop her head, sliding it down gently in a gesture of comfort.
Her mind seems to be distant, she barely notices his touch, concentrating on frantically pressing the keys on the communicator to weave a message.
"Edo Phoenix… I didn't expect her to go this far… He's a famous pro duelist! Plus… He is the person who… I can't believe she is doing this out of spite, she even made the duel in a short notice so I don't have time to prepare and scheduled it as early as possible! I was dumb to react so hot headed, I just couldn't…" She types frantically, her eyes fixed on the sidewalk.
"Don't worry, Rie. It'll be alright."
"How can you be calm like this? If I lose, they'll sell me to the company they want a partnership with and I mean… They will…" Her stare becomes empty at the sole thought.
"Listen." He grabs both her shoulders, his voice not getting louder, but steady, startling her by requiring her full attention. "I came here because I knew you'd be uncomfortable meeting your parents. I know your judgement might have been clouded because you feel insecure… I was worried you'd let this anxiety steal away the best of you."
Her head lowers, her gaze getting lost on the black of his clothes as she ponders. True enough in front of her parents she couldn't help but feel like that young girl back then that couldn't even muster a word or choose her own fate.
"I know it must be hard on you, but you don't need to do it alone. I'm here too, just trust me, you can do it. And even if a failure happens, I'll not let them do to you as they please any longer, we're not in school anymore, not knowing how to deal with situations that arise in our lives, Rie. We're grown adults and there are ways for you to refuse their demands and make your own choices. Above all, you don't need to prove to them anything, but when they see you winning that duel, I'm sure the message will get through and they will stop bothering you. You don't need to feel like you are powerless, because you aren't."
"Ryo…"
"You've done so much on your own, for me too, I'm proud of you."
She's slightly shocked at his words, her eyes wavering while meeting his, not in sadness but in relief upon seeing the confidence she lacked right there and fondness in his eyes. With a swift movement, she pulls him in for an embrace and he promptly corresponds by enveloping her figure between his arms. Her head resting on his chest, his tranquil heartbeats lulling her.
"You can sleep at my place today." He ruffles her hair softly. "Your duel is tomorrow, right? I can let you watch some pro matches from the other duelist so you can analyse his deck and strategies. I can pay you a ride there too, it's a weekend after all."
She nods timidly, her heart calming down her hectic beats, giving place to a more assuring feeling of resolution. As soon as they arrive at his apartment, he allows her to enter in slowly, a faint smile playing on his lips, his steps ceasing right at the doorstep:
"Rie, I need to get some old records from your opponent's matches now, but they're stored somewhere else and it's a bit of a ride. You can make yourself comfortable in the meantime and order food."
Her brows curl up in concern, he's going out pretty late just to help her with the duel, but none of that seems to bother, while she's still collecting thoughts, unable to pronounce a word of goodbye, his lips plant a peck on her cheek, bringing her back to reality.
"Don't worry, just take your time to settle down, I'll be back before you know it."
His hand brushes on her face a last time before she closes the door. His expression hardens and changes to a dim glint as soon as it happens, no vestige of the gentleness he displayed in front of her.
At another part of the city
Edo steps out of the dark limousine along with his secretary, it's late and he had a day full of work. He takes a deep breath while walking to the entrance of the building, his mind processing his last duel and making notes on improvements from his deck.
He stops when a sound reaches his ears: small rocks crackling under a stranger's feet, someone steps ahead, blocking his path. Emeralda also stops, alarmed with the figure.
"Hell Kaiser Ryo?" He frowns, a part of him is perplexed. "What are you doing here?"
"We need to talk."
"I'm sorry, but if you don't have an appointment, I won't make exceptions." He shrugs off walking past the other with a smug smile. "If you want a rematch or something, we can arrange it at the pro league, just talk to Emeralda here, she will prepare it for you." He beckons in a dismissive way.
Emeralda awaits with tension, her shoulders stiff watching the presence both duelists had and how they seemed to dislike each other.
"This has nothing to do with the pro league."
Edo freezes on his tracks, turning around even more confused, there's something very odd in Ryo's expression that he can't fathom. First he waits near the entrance of his building at this late hour, then demands a talk and now he's saying it has nothing to do with the pro league. What is he up to?
"Emeralda, you can go up first. It seems the gentleman really needs to have a conversation with me."
She bows and steps aside, casting a last glance at the two. What exactly is happening? The Hell Kaiser has a bad reputation among all duelists, she knows Edo won a duel against him once, it was the talk of the week in all duel magazines, could he be wishing for a rematch? Or perhaps, was he trying to threaten Edo with something? She couldn't help but worry, nonetheless, she has been with him long enough to know he can defend himself.
The dark-blue eyes follow her silhouette until she's fully gone, then they flash towards the man in front, narrowing while considering all the possibilities of why he'd be visited.
"Hell Kaiser Ryo. I can't imagine any other reason for you to come here in front of my building besides requesting a duel. Though, I admit it's strange you'd come here in person instead of letting our agencies deal with it. Am I that high in your books?" He sneers at his own snarky last sentence.
They are interrupted by the bothersome chattering of some passerby couple which seemed to recognize them, Edo tilts the head to be followed until they come to some sort of less frequented alley by the side of the building.
The grey-haired buys an ice tea can from the machine, nonchalantly cracking it open while casually speaking, not feeling even a bit intimidated or bothered by the intense glare of the other.
"So, will you tell me what you're here for? You don't strike me as a person who'd want a sudden revenge… Or will you tell you're not over your loss yet?"
"I told you this has nothing to do with the pro league. I don't care what you think."
"Are you saying you don't want a rematch? Do you have a personal grudge against me now?" He raises a brow, trying to guess a plausible motive.
"Tomorrow you'll be dueling someone called Rie Kinomoto, won't you…?" The question was rhetorical. "I have a deal for you."
He flinches at the affirmation, his lips finally letting go of the can in a bewildered expression, caution arising inside him. How could the other know about a mundane duel against another rich lady?
"I don't know how you found this out, but I'm not interested in any fishy deals with you and I suggest you get away from the underworld of dueling too. Also, please don't come to my house like that, you'll get unnecessary attention and I'm tired of the reporters."
He waves his hand coldly while already going out of the alley, his steps halt abruptly when he hears the next words.
"Why are you running away? We're not done talking yet."
His overbearing, almost tyrannical voice brings a scowl to Edo's face, his fists clenching slightly as he looks over his shoulder, is the Hell Kaiser really trying to start a fight there? True enough, he hurt his own brother in a duel, but they both agreed to the terms before dueling. However, this is a completely different situation, would he go this far to hurt someone? It didn't look like he was only interested in prestige and victory in duels here.
"I'll be succinct: duel me."
There is no way to hide his astonishment, his brows angling down in a serious and puzzled way, along with his open lips.
"A duel? Hey, are you kidding me? You told me this had nothing to do with the pro league."
"And it doesn't. If you lose this duel, I want you to lose your duel against Rie Kinomoto tomorrow."
"This is absurd, are you trying to force me to fiddle up with the results of the duel? Why?! You should know, unlike you, I don't go over the underground spectrum of dueling and I'm not interested in shady deals."
"What? Are you afraid of the results of a duel against me now?"
A low grumble of displease coming out of his throat as he fully whirls around to look into the eyes of the Hell Kaiser. The provocation was surely enough to bring his attention back, but no matter how much he tries to extract from a glance, why does it look like it has nothing to do with a duel or with revenge?
He can't conclude why, but there is more than just a fierce gaze to his opponent and he has the hunch he will find out through their duel.
"Fine, if you want to duel me so much, we can arrange that, we will see who is afraid of the results in the end, Hell Kaiser…"
A smirk finally appears on Ryo's face, followed by a scoff just as his bait is taken, Edo is even more riled at the sight, but controls his inward annoyance and leads the way towards the storage building nearby in which he places all his extra cards.
"We will consider this as an extra-official practice match, no cameras and no underground dueling are allowed, regardless of the results, whatever happens, stays here. If you follow these conditions, I'll accept your challenge. Likewise, I'll accept your conditions after the outcome of this duel. But be advised I don't intend to lose."
"If you keep your word, It's fine by me. You have to lose the duel to her tomorrow."
His vague answer spurs impatience in the other, as they both ready their duel disks, Edo can't barricade the wild flux of thoughts.
"Why is he trying to fabricate the results of the duel? What is the problem? For a man like him to come all the way here this late and boldly challenge me imposing conditions… He's either gone mad or very confident he won't lose… But his eyes… It's different from before, he isn't only certain of victory, it's more like… He didn't consider loss even for a moment…"
"I hope it doesn't trigger bad memories on you. I was willing to see just how much you improved, if you improved at all. Or was all this appearance change just a phase?" He taunts stoically.
"Are you going to keep blabbering the whole night, or will we start this duel?"
His words sounded harsher than usual and the fact he wasn't willing to exchange more provocative words shows he's not joking.
He closes his mouth shut watching the cool, inexpressive face of the other duelist. It seems he's not the same man easily swayed by emotions like before.
"I don't know what this guy is planning, but he's very serious about this for some reason… Well, not that I mind, it's been a while since I had a good opponent, let's see if he lives up to the expectation this time!"
Smiling faintly in some sort of excitement for getting a duel against someone considered to be a strong duelist after his change, he sets his duel disk. He doesn't like all this complex scheme he was thrown into and he's going to find out what is happening.
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I know, a lot of talking in this chapter, this was important to introduce just which person Yuzu Kinomoto is and also, to build up a bit of Rie's family relations plus Ryo openly announcing their relationship, but next chapter we will finally have the awaited rematch of Hell Kaiser VS Edo Phoenix.