Hello everyone. As you have noticed, I have been absent from the writing scene for quite a while (nearly a year since my last update) and as a result, I never got around to finishing that triple update I had planned prior to this unannounced hiatus (that being the remainder of Ruko's fight with a Miyako possessed Tokoha and the chapter after that). The reason primarily being was that I kept finding myself dissatisfied with the way I was writing Ruko's character for what happened after the fight's result. I wanted to set up some conflict between her and Kai regarding their respective stances on Miyako in a way that didn't seem forced, but I kept finding myself paranoid at the way this would carry over towards the end of the arc. Fortunately, I can confirm work on the latest chapter is almost finished and will be out during this weekend at some point from (expect it to go up during the UK Timezone).

Besides that, with WIXOSS finally being announced in English a long while ago and my desire to completely revamp the rest of the first and second arcs of the fic so their writing quality is brought up to the same standard as the rest of the fic, expect some elements to change over the course of those earliest chapters. The reasons primarily will be as a result of incorporating English game terminology for early WIXOSS, fixing up character dialogue and the pace of some WIXOSS battles as well as updating Mirurun and Urith's names to their current translations as well as those of pre-existing cards (of which I will immediately go back and revamp the first three chapters (yet again) to reflect this).

Other than that, I once again apologize for keeping you all waiting for this long (as I had wanted to get the current arc finished by mid-June at the latest) and hope you look forward to seeing what's to come in both upcoming new content and updates to old content. In the meantime to show my renewed dedication to getting this arc finished, I have decided to share an early preview of the Aoi Akira spinoff fic that I will write alongside the WIXOSS side of Arc 4. I had originally planned to show this at the end of the third chapter of the planned triple update to give people an early glance of what to expect, but now that we're all back up to speed, I figured it would be appropriate to show it here and now to not leave you entirely empty handed until this weekend. Keep in mind that elements may change depending on feedback and I otherwise hope you enjoy this small sneak preview of what is to come in the Stand Up, the LRIG! saga outside of the main fic.

For now, I hope you enjoy this sneak preview and look forward to receiving feedback to take into account when the spinoff fic officially starts.


Stand Up, the LRIG! Chronicles: Blazing Lustre

Exclusive Sneak Preview

In the southwest coast of India, the port were busy to the brim with massive cargo ships carrying giant containers and other valuable goods across the distant sea to and from their respective destinations. It was not unexpected to see many boats still waiting on the open sea several miles from the docks given how much time and effort was needed to transport such valuable items from the vessels to the shore and vice versa. In spite of this usual sight, the busy atmosphere of trade around these waters were not the only reason the docks were crowded moreso than usual.

Sometimes the country of India could be home to bustling tourists and holidaymakers during the summer and as such, regal ships such as the large cruise liner that had been docked into port not too long ago could be seen in addition. It was primarily white with some teal patterns coated across the outer hull and both sides of upper deck's structure had a Vanguard Circle mural that was etched into the frame itself. Many Vanguard fighters from both this region and beyond had come all this way just to see it in person for themselves, even if it was just for a mere glimpse of the event that would unfold in its halls without being a part of it.

Fortunately for that majority, the ship would be docked for some time allowing many who were yet to make it to the docks to bask in its appearance and majesty alone. However for those who had come here for what lay inside the ship itself, they were at a series of tents to register for what lay ahead, many excited having heard about what was to take place whilst others were curious. A teenage female approached the port, having travelled this far from the north after prior circumstances had led her to the continent. Short orange coloured bangs of her hair hung loosely as she gazed down at the items she held, pondering about the way she acquired them and why she had come to this place. It depicted the same ship with the following text:

Vanguard Battle Cruise.

The ferocity of the Asia Circuit is relived in luxury on the sea itself.

Ticket for one.

"A sold out event..." she muttered quietly to herself "How the heck did he even acquire these? Or are these even real?"

She stopped a little in front of the crowd that were observing the Battle Cruise, glancing around its features with her purple eyes. Noting how regal it was in appearance alone in deep thought, memories flooded her mind for a brief moment on how she would have originally behaved when brought in front of a sight such as this. Taking note of the area around her, she spotted four white coloured tent like structures with a few people holding tickets identical to hers in design. Seeing that was where she needed to go, she walked towards the one that was most vacant.

On her way over though, she felt a sensation at the back of her mind as if someone was wanting to talk to her this very instant, even without the means of her phone. She closed her eyes to mentally communicate with the one that was trying to get in touch with her.

It seems you've made it safely to the docks, a child like voice spoke I'm sorry the journey wasn't as comfortable over the last couple of days.

Always looking on the bright side aren't you Dran? the girl mentally replied.

Do not be complacent, the voice of a man interjected If there are people on this ship who have been aware of your past actions in Singapore alone and are unwilling to see the pursuit you've made to changing yourself, there is still a possibility this mission could come to naught.

Keh, she snorted, her expression forming a forced smile Even though I'm trying to better myself as a person, I'm still needing to hide behind a mask for your little request Rive.

In any case, keep an eye on Ryuzu if he is there, but do not draw his attention towards you, Rive continued It is not like him to have been that open to the public even after becoming the Vanguard Association's chairman all those years ago.

The girl said nothing more as she felt the mental connection between her and Chrono Dran fade, allowing her to continue on her journey unimpeded for the present. She approached a table where a male staff member among his colleagues were accepting applications for cardfighters and passengers alike to go aboard the ship for the duration of the event. She was clearly tired from the long journey she had taken to reach the docks by other means of transport, even visibly annoyed that she wasn't feeling her best as a result with the immense heat not helping her mood in the slightest.

"I believe you require this?"

"Y... Yes," the young man replied hastily as he gently received it "What is your name?"

"Akira. Aoi Akira."

The staff member in front of her took note of her features before turning his attention to the ticket she handed him. After inspecting it closely, he nodded to confirm he was holding the legitimate deal and was about to move on to handling a small and brief portion of paperwork when he grew curious about her expression.

"Are you tense?" he asked "I can't say I blame you. Ever since those attacks by those strange fighters who use these... cards I can't quite remember what they're called, everyone's worried that one of them may have slipped into the registration to crash the tournament that's about to take place."

"Is that so?" she commented in a casual manner, now having to be used to conversing in a manner that she usually wore as a mask once before "From what I have heard, their leader Urith is meant to be a mistress of deceptions. If this event was being kept under wraps until now, maybe she's unaware of it taking place."

"Well, at least you've seem to have done your research," he replied as he checked over the ticket before writing down on another item and some documents before handing said item along with her ticket back to her with a smile "Welcome aboard Akira-san. I hope the cruise will be to your liking at least."

"Thank you."

She put the necessary documents and ticket into her hoodie's pocket and began making her way towards the leftmost gantry that lead up towards the ship's main deck. It was strange when she thought about it. Given the way she had been until a few nights ago, even she found it unusual of herself to talk so casually outside her usual demeanor to anyone else, let alone saying "thank you". Nonetheless, she walked up the gantry with both her approved ticket along with her pass to the designated areas of the ship itself.


When Akira had finally boarded the cruise, she felt it would be best to immediately accommodate herself to the room that had been listed within the document the staff member had given her. Eventually after finding her way around the ship, she had eventually came to a hallway where her room, numbered 125, lay in wait for her. From what she could make out from the journey she had made to get here so far, it seemed as though when the tagline for her ticket mentioned that they were wanting to relive the Asia Circuit tournament experience in luxury, they weren't going to any expense to keep the luxury part limited to the exterior.

"If that were the old me here, I'd be revelling in this style," she said to herself "But whilst I can appreciate it, Rive certainly wouldn't want me here just to regress into a brat again."

Unlocking the door to her room using the key provided in the documents, she opened it up and entered inside. She could see that whilst what little she had been around on the Battle Cruise so far had been more glamorous than what was inside her cabin room, even she couldn't help but admit that it had style to it. A full scale view of the ocean through the stylized windows, a circular bed with a shutter that wrapped around as a column and a shower in a smaller compact bathroom through a door to the right. A small part of her wanted to take it all in, but she knew she wasn't here to just relax and cardfight to her leisure with her new deck and that she was also still tired from the long journey she had taken to get to the Battle Cruise itself. Closing the door behind her, she placed her bag down and landed on her bed, finally having a chance to rest her arms and legs.

"Sending me to investigate a fancy cruise ship's Vanguard tournament..." she muttered in her yawn "If Rive and Chrono Dran could somehow read my mind, let alone my old memories, I would've thought they sent me here to see how I would react to the life of luxury now compared to my old self."

Although she had finally managed to fall asleep following her entrance to her room, no more than half an hour had passed since reaching her cabin room did the loud sound of the horn blaring wake her back up immediately, much to her chagrin as she held her hands to her ears for what seemed like a long time as she felt the weight of the ship itself begin to shift. Eventually after a few more blares of the horn, the Battle Cruise had finally left the port and set sail across the Indian Ocean. Cheers of crowds of people could be heard from outside as the mighty ship disappeared over the horizon and onto its destination over its long trip.

Meanwhile inside the ship itself, Akira after exiting her room had found out her hasty decision to explore the interior so soon was not such a good idea. Her legs, still weary from the long journey to the docks, had been shaken up by the force of the Battle Cruise's heavy movement and was finding herself a little wobbly on her feet. After barely managing to keep herself upright by clinging to the nearby wall, she rubbed her head as she tried to right herself properly. Her efforts however had not gone unnoticed.

"Hey there, you got cold feet?"

She turned around to see that a young man with spiked light brown hair and a goatee along with pale purplish eyes had seen her recent dilemma. He wore a sleeveless white shirt with a short sleeved orange overshirt and a pair of dark blue coloured shorts in addition to a pair of red shoes. His necklace was comprised of strange looking teeth with his own being oddly spiked. He smiled warmly as he came over to help Akira back onto her feet to regain her proper bearings.

"Hardly..." she muttered in regards to his earlier query.

"I see, it must be your first time on a cruise of any kind," the young man replied "Don't worry about it. Even getting disoriented like that's to be expected."

"Right." Akira replied offhandedly as she removed his grip from her shoulder.

He didn't mind being brushed off by her attitude, knowing that it was something she did not want to be up in arms over as something as trivial. At the same time, he knew she wasn't acting hostile towards him, so it wasn't enough to deter him from her presence.

"Hey now, there's no need to be in such a mood here," her accomplice replied as he regained his smile and held out a hand to her "I'm Oyama Ryutarou."

The Selector then looked up at him, not certain of how to reply back to him given the circumstances that led her to boarding the Battle Cruise. Still, if she was to fulfill Rive's request and keep her memories of her encounter with him and Chrono Dran, she thought that perhaps blending in with the passengers of the ship would assist her in fulfilling his quota.

"Aoi Akira," she said, returning his handshake "It's good to meet you."

"Same to you," Ryutarou replied "You getting around to exploring this ship? I got on here previously when it docked for participants in Seoul so I can show you around before the big event starts tonight."

"That would actually be helpful," she remarked "The ship is so big, it took me a while to find the floor where my room was."

"Eh, it could be worse," he said with an embarrassed smile, leading the way as her temporary tour guide of the ship "I was so keen to take in this whole cruise when I first got on that I accidentally ended up in the engine room in my excitement."

How the hell do you even do that...? The Selector pondered in a exasperated manner as they walked down the hallway.


The first destination of their tour was a large corridor like room on one of the upper decks of the Battle Cruise, that appearing to resemble the interior of a card shop with a much longer room as evidenced by both the length and the numerous tables there. When the pair eventually arrived at the shop, Akira could see a large bright purple neon sign behind the counter spelling out the name "ESUKA" in plain english. She could not help but be confused at this, knowing that the event was bound to attract all kinds of cardfighters and that this space alone may not be enough to accommodate them all. Even then, she thought that whatever cards that they brought along to the event would be the only ones allowed to be used.

"A card shop on this level?" she said aloud.

"Yup!" the man replied "You wouldn't think they'd leave you on the cruise without any means to tune up your deck throughout the event. You did read the brochure saying you could make adjustments outside of rounds, right?"

"... That would make sense," the Selector admitted with partial embarrassment "I guess I didn't think of that idea."

"Hey, cheer up, at least you won't have to worry about only working with the cards you brought," said Ryutarou "Besides, I bet there's a lot of fighters here that thought the same thing as you. Plus the Esuka Corporation will be running shop tournaments and side events for those either not participating in the Battle Cruise event or have time between rounds of that event to spare a few cardfights here. Before we move on, anything here take your fancy?"

Akira glanced around the right side of the shop, noting the many Booster Sets, Trial Decks and single standout cards in the cabinets before her that everyone on this ship much like herself would likely be browsing to prepare themselves for the challenges ahead. Deciding not to waste much time in standing around, she decided that it would at least be worth browsing the cabinets for any notable Kagero units she could use herself if it came to that. The Selector was no stranger to card shops back in her own world, often trying to acquire Blue WIXOSS cards that she perceived as powerful whenever she could attempt to defeat her now former enemies.

It wasn't until after she had went over to browse the third cabinet to see if there was anything worth purchasing within her own set limit to the budget Rive had given her, did her eyes widen upon seeing a card that was very familiar to her. Her silent reaction had not gone unnoticed however as Ryutarou soon joined her, glancing out over to the cabinet and soon finding the reason for her surprise. One of the cards there was Dragonic Overlord, more specifically the version she had recognized from the deck she had once stolen from Kai when she had been ordered by Urith to merely kidnap Tama for her own ends.

"Got your sights set on Overlord eh?" he said with an intrigued glance.

"I... I thought that was..." she stuttered.

"Only a one-of-a-kind unit that the Q4 fighter Kai Toshiki has?" Ryutarou interjected, confirming her query "I mean, sure units like that and Blaster Blade are scarce in rarity to the point many people believe that he and Sendou Aichi are the only ones who even have copies, but you're likely going to find an unknown who might just have one of them, either by chance or because they don't have the skills for the recognition those two get. After all, just because it's rare doesn't mean it's unobtainable. You have a lot of people even sharing multiple Break Ride or Legion units for example in the decks they play and they're rare as they are themselves."

Akira blinked for a moment and stared back at the card, almost mesmerized by his explanation but also puzzled as a new question had now brewed itself in her mind. If Kai and another cardfighter who also happened to have an Overlord both entered a Selector Battle at the same time with the intention of using one, what exactly would transpire? She knew there was only one unit of that name who existed on Cray and that there was very much a lot of doubt that could allow a singular unit to be in two places at once. Still, it wasn't as if she had any personal desire to attain an Overlord of her own, that leading down the path to which she ended up taking and one of her aspects she promised to put behind her, seeking to better her own skills than take those of someone else's.

"A-Anyway," she coughed "Shall we continue our tour?"

"Sure!" Ryutarou called out "I shouldn't be keeping you holed up here at all, but at least you know where to go in future."

The Selector silently agreed with his sentiment and the pair continued across the ship, first passing by many other shopping establishments on the current deck for clothing and other items imported from across the globe. After following the man down a flight of stairs nearby, they reached a lower deck which was home to an entire fleet of standing fight tables and several others with unique shapes and sizes with different layouts. Akira could only assume that this was bound to be where the Battle Cruise's Challenges would take place or at the very least, a majority of them. As she followed her guide around the room, she took note of a man with dark purple hair and a metallic mask covering the lower half of his face manipulating his face down cards among one of the oddly shaped tables.

Sensing her curiosity, he merely glanced back at her for a brief moment before continuing with his 'work', leaving the girl bewildered at who exactly he was. Going down several decks home to several other cabins as well as other venues, shops and cafes, they finally reached a spacious bar like area in one of the lower decks, with numerous round tables spread across the room with several columns with crystals embedded into them littered across the room. It was mostly quiet save for a few people as the two eventually entered and took a seat, wanting to rest their legs after the long tour across the ship.

"Well, there you have it Akira," said Ryutarou as he outstretched his arms "That's pretty much what to expect on this ship before the tournament starts. The original Asia Circuit had several crazy special rules, so I can't wait to see how they mix them up here!"

"Special rules...?" Akira asked inquisitively "You mean that not every cardfight will be ordinary?"

"Yup!" he replied "For instance, some fights may have your units blindly attack appropriate targets, others may force you to partner up with someone for a tag fight, you never know what to expect!"

"Well, that would be one way to keep things from getting stale," she remarked as she brought out a purple coloured deck box "Besides, you could say I have an interest here too."

She then placed it onto the table and fanned the cards out, revealing her new avatar Dragonic Comet and several new cards out of her deck to herself and the young man in front of her. He observed them in surprise, recognizing the Kagero clan being listed on each of them, but nearly all of them were unfamiliar to him.

"Whoa, Mamoru never told me that Kagero was hiding some unknown units!" he gasped "How did you get these?!"

"I... honestly don't entirely know," the girl replied, resisting the urge to bite her lip to hide this deception, even if it wasn't entirely one "Let's just say when I started Vanguard with Kagero, I had a bit of an insatiable thirst for a unit that belonged to Kai and to pull my life out of the gutter no matter what. I did some bad things believing that's what other people above me did to get to where they were without thinking about the hard work and effort they put in to get to the top of their game and life."

"That's led to the point where you got this deck?" Ryutarou asked.

"Yeah, my original avatar was a black... rather a fake Dragonic Overlord," Akira answered "It wasn't until I met someone... who knew of the late Rive Shindou, that I was able to see the error of my ways and to start anew with this deck and rewritten avatar."

At first, she expected the young man in front of her to begin harbouring doubts about her character from what she had told him, perhaps even recognizing her from her eyes and face alone from her part played in the capture of many units under Mayu's troupe from numerous cardfighters until she set them all free upon learning where she had gone wrong during her confrontation with Kai. However, to her suprise, she could only watch him laugh.

"Hey! What's so funny?!" she demanded, clearly not seeing the humor in this scenario.

"Easy there," he said with a toothy grin "Let's just say that's a story you don't hear every day. I may not know how you got that unknown deck here, but it's just made me more excited to see it in action."

"Is that a challenge?" the girl replied with a partial smile.

"Yup!" Ryutarou replied as he brought out his own deck "We've got plenty of time before the opening ceremonies officially start, so why don't we both find out what your new deck is capable of?!"

"Fine by me."


Out on one of the open decks near the top of the ship, the sun was beginning to set over the horizon as Akira and Ryutarou stood opposite one another on a large table with the numerous zones for the game of Vanguard set up for both players. Both looked at one another with each other's decks being a mystery to one another with the Selector's thoughts now turning to wonder what kind of playstyle he would use now that she had partially revealed hers when she spread out her deck earlier. When both of them had drawn their starting hands, they gazed to one another, ready to begin.

"How about I let you start?" she asked, wanting to get a glimpse of what the ace of her opponent's deck was capable of.

"No problem," he said as they both reached out for their starting Vanguards and slowly turned them over.

"Stand Up, (the) Vanguard!" they both called out as they revealed two cards that were unfamiliar to each respective opponent.

"Ruby Gem Dracokid!" Akira called out, her card depicting a small red Dracokid with several of its scales adorned with ruby gems with crystals of that gemstone growing out of its head to form a horn like structure.

"Lizard Soldier, Saishin!" Ryutarou responded with his card depicting a short orange Dragonman covered in silver armour and wielding twin blades crackling with electricity.

The girl gazed at the starting Vanguard, having nearly not expected that clan with the appearance of her opponent prior, initially assuming Tachikaze from his bone necklace. Beginning his first turn, he drew his card and added it to his hand before choosing a different one to ride as his new Vanguard.

"I ride Thunder Shout Dragon!" he announced, dropping onto the Vanguard circle a Grade 1 card depicting a blue and white scaled Thunder Dragon unleashing a beam of electricity of azure blue from its jaws with similar streams forming wings. The appearance of the unit nearly caused his opponent to recoil when she noted the appearance of that unit was almost identical to a Narukami unit that had been used against her once in the Selector Battles.

"I move back Saishin and end my turn!" Ryutarou concluded, snapping her out of her daze.

"Right, here I come!" she replied as she drew her first card and looked at it along with the other cards in her hand intently, thinking of how to proceed.

"Aside from Comet, I haven't had time to properly test the rest of my deck on its own. Apart from learning what his deck can do, I need to get to grips with mine right away before the tournament starts. In that case...!"

"I ride Emerald Gem Dragon!" she called out as she placed down a Grade 1 unit which depicted a bipedal dragon with no wings, but wore heavy armour with several runes enscribed along with several emerald crystals jutting out of the shoulder and thigh plates. She then took Dracokid's card out of the soul and moved it to the circle behind her newly ridden Vanguard and rested them both "I attack Thunder Shout Dragon!"

"No guard!" her opponent replied as she revealed her drive check as Dragonic Comet whilst his first damage emerged as Mighty Bolt Dragoon "Now here I come!"

He then drew his next card and rode another new Narukami unit in the form of Wyvern Strike, Bargs, which true to its name was a giant large red heavily armoured Wyvern. He rested it to signal his attack with Akira choosing not to guard with the shake of her head, resulting in him revealing his drive check as Malevolent Djinn, causing the Selector to narrow her eyes briefly before performing her damage checks, revealing no triggers with the two cards named Diamond Gem Salamander and Calamity Tower Wyvern entered her damage zone. Had she been her old self, she would have loathed being behind at this moment even at this early stage of the game. However, even though a part of her still harboured some annoyance at a Critical Trigger showing up on his second turn already, there was a feeling within her that almost didn't seem to mind that, even with what was about to happen next.

"You don't seem to mind taking a Critical attack like that early on," Ryutarou commented as he turned over a card in his damage zone and moved Saishin's card to the soul "Conserving your forces for a Limit Break attack at four damage for Comet? Or is there other plans at play?"

"Who knows," Akira replied as she moved Ruby Gem Dracokid's card to her drop zone before beginning her next turn immediately "But you could say this is a learning experience for me for both of our decks before this big event starts."

"That's true," her opponent replied as he watched her ride a unit named Quartz Gem Dragon with the card showing a quadruped winged dragon whose scales were almost comprised of nothing but cracked quartz gemstones standing tall atop a rock outcrop "But it wouldn't be interesting otherwise."

"Mhm. I call another Quartz Gem Dragon!" she responded as she placed down another copy onto her rear-guard circle on the left "Quartz Gem Dragon's skill activates! During my turn, if my Vanguard has Gem or Comet in its name, all of my front row units get 1000 power for each card in your damage zone! Since I have two despite you having one damage, my front row this turn gets 2000 power!"

"Oh? So if I let your first attack through, the power of the front row will increase by another 2000?" the young man pondered before smiling "Well, that's one way to get around the base power of Bargs' 10000."

Neither said another word as Akira ran her options through her head, trying to determine which Quartz Gem Dragon would be more suited to attacking first, knowing her opponent had raised a very good observation and would likely attempt to reduce his damage count as much as possible this turn. Eventually, after taking the time to think about her course of action, she made a decision.

"My Vanguard Quartz Gem Dragon attacks!" she announced as she rested the one on the Vanguard circle.

"No guard!" Ryutarou replied with a toothy grin "Now let's see what you got, even if your rear-guard will get 2000 more power this turn!"

The Selector said nothing as she proceeded to her single drive check, her hand slowly turning over the card with the expectation of potentially not seeing a trigger until the late game show up in her favour. When she brought up the card to her eyes, her expression changed to a smile.

"Sorry about that," she said coolly "But it looks like my other Quartz Gem Dragon won't be just getting 2000 power for the next attack."

She then revealed the card to be Sapphire Gem Dragon, a Critical Trigger which was enough to earn a look of shock on Ryutarou's face as she fully revealed the card that depicted a large dragon with dark blue armoured scales and several sapphire gemstones embedded into its wings and helmet.

"My Vanguard takes the Critical and with the power from the damage you'll take along with the trigger effect... Quartz Gem rear-guard gets plus 9000 power!" she announced as within their imaginations, a gust of wind suddenly struck her opponent as his next two cards in his damage zone emerged as Lightning of Triumphant Return, Reseph which helped to power up Bargs along with Thunder Shout Dragon, revealing no further trigger effects.

"Not bad...!" he responded as he got back up to assess the situation "You decided to attack with the Vanguard first to see if I would guard or not in the event of pulling a lucky trigger and in case of my damage check revealing a trigger too. You're proving to be more technical than I thought!"

"I'll take that as a compliment," she remarked as she rested the other Quartz Gem Dragon, resulting in her opponent guarding with the Malevolent Djinn he had revealed on the previous turn "I used to crave about the power and extra Criticals back then, so it helps to find ways to not always be reliant on them. I end my turn."

"Then this is where we start getting serious," her opponent remarked as he started his turn and then took out a card from his hand and spun it high into the air "Wild lightning of excitement and passion, form a blitzkrieg that makes everyone tremble! Ride!"

He then snatched the card out of the air and threw it down onto the Vanguard circle revealing a red thunder dragon with whitish grey coloured hair flowing from its head and armour of the same colour as its scales with gold trims lined across the plating with the chest armour being black in particular with several green segments within it. On their imaged battlefield on one of the plains of Planet Cray, the unit that had been ridden descended from the heavens with thunder and lightning crackling all around, before it then let out a mighty roar to signal its arrival as it landed on the ground, with Ryutarou announcing its name.

"Dragonic Vanquisher!"

Dragonic Vanquisher/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/Narukami/Thunder Dragon/Dragon Empire

"So this is your ace...!" Akira remarked as she stared at the card "Narukami and Kagero both have specialities in retiring units, but I'm getting the feeling you're going to show the difference between those clans on that!"

"That would be right!" Ryutarou replied in excitement as he threw down two cards to the rear-guard, one of which was Eradicator, Egghelm Dracokid and another was Dragonic Deathscythe, with the girl having recognized those cards from previous fights "Counter Blast! Quartz Gem Dragon retires!"

She then moved her rear-guard to the drop zone and was about to take her hand off the card when suddenly...

"And now... LIMIT BREAK!" her opponent responded as within their imagination, a teal coloured Vanguard circle flashed briefly in front of Vanquisher "If my ability retires a rear-guard, you must bind that card from your drop zone and each time a card is bound, all front row units get 3000 power this turn!"

"What?!" the Selector exclaimed as she placed the card to the right in a blank space between her deck and drop zones "Bind?!"

"That's right! If you thought you had a trick like Legion to return that card to the deck, against Vanquisher, that won't be so easy!" he said "In addition, I call Demonic Dragon Berserker, Chatura and Thunder Shout Dragon! Add 3000 power to Chatura with his own skill!"

Akira clenched her teeth as she observed the board, now seeing that Chatura, depicted as an orange snake-like Dragonman wielding a spear with a large blade at the end, now being able to swing at her Vanguard for 21000 power every turn meaning even if she made it to Grade 3, that column would force her to guard with two or more cards every time it attacked. Then, she looked back at Ryutarou and was partially dumbfounded when she saw him with his arms outstretched, letting out a loud roar of his own before he eventually finished up and looked back at her.

"I'm excited!" he exclaimed, much to her bewilderment "Not just because of this fight, but because I have the chance to face a completely unknown deck like yours! Mamoru would certainly wanted to have seen this!"

"Right..." she muttered as she looked down to the cards in her hand, considering her options for the coming battles.

"Let's begin!" Ryutarou called out "With Shout's boost, Chatura attacks your Vanguard! If the attack hits, with Chatura's Counter Blast, I can bind a card from your drop zone and draw a card!"

"And if I let that happen..." she recounted, recalling Vanquisher's Limit Break before she grabbed the cards of her choice and threw them onto the guardian circle "Sapphire Gem Dragon and Emerald Gem Dragon guard!"

"Then how about this!" he responded "With Egghelm's boost, Vanquisher attacks your Vanguard!"

Within their imagination, Vanquisher manifested three purple coloured orbs of electricity and hurled them all towards Quartz Gem Dragon who growled as it stared at the oncoming projectiles. Akira looked at her damage zone and decided that it wasn't worth dropping more cards to guard, especially as she still had to account for any triggers that her opponent could give to Deathscythe.

"No guard!" she announced.

"Twin Drive!" the young man replied as her turned over the first card revealing Dragon Dancer, Anastasia followed by Deity of Love, Kama. "Heal Trigger! I give the power to Deathscythe and recover one damage! Eat this!"

All of Vanquisher's electric orbs made contact with Quartz Gem Dragon, detonating in large explosions as it roared in pain as Red Gem Carbuncle emerged into the Selector's damage zone, allowing her to draw another card and power it up. It then looked towards Dragonic Deathscythe who soared into the air before diving down towards the jewel armoured dragon and slashing it with the weapon of its namesake as Dragonic Comet emerged as the girl's fourth damage. She didn't mind the disadvantage she was now at, given that this was what she needed at minimum to go all out the next turn.

"So you decided to let that one through without guarding with 5000 shield due to the trigger," Ryutarou commented "I suppose that would be one way to come at me next turn whilst recouping your loss from guarding Chatura's attack."

"Maybe, but at least now, this is where it really starts!" she responded as she began her turn and held up a card into the air "From the blazing embers of a fallen star, a dark dragon has enlightened his destiny! Ride the Vanguard!"

The moment she placed the card onto the Vanguard circle, a column of violet coloured flames engulfed Quartz Gem Dragon as it left the imaged battlefield before a silhouette rose up from within and slashed the inferno away with the large blade encrusted with several ruby jewels in circular slots. The tall Flame Dragon had its black scales shimmer as if they were an onyx gemstone and its white armour with gold trims and encrusted diamond gemstones shone brightly in the battlefield's bright sunset as Akira called out its name.

"Dragonic Comet!"

Dragonic Comet/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/Kagero/Flame Dragon/Dragon Empire

"So that's your avatar," Ryutarou commented, his earlier curiosity of the card coming back to him when his opponent showed him her deck in the cruise's bar deck "Now then, what kind of other secrets does it have?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Akira replied as she took ahold of three cards from her hand "I...!"

Before she could call them to the rear-guard circles, a loud klaxon blared across the entirety of the ship, forcing the pair to shield their ears as it went on for a straight minute and finally ceased. Shortly afterwards, a voice echoed through the speakers across the Battle Cruise's designated areas where it was in earshot to everyone.

"All Battle Cruise participants, please make your way to the main hall on deck two. Chairman Ryuzu awaits all of you."

"Aw, right when it was getting good!" the Narukami user grumbled as he hurriedly gathered his cards back together "Sheesh! Sometimes those announcers can break the mood!"

"Ryuzu..."

Ryutarou blinked for moment as he saw the Selector absentmindedly mutter Ryuzu's name upon hearing it in the announcement. He could tell by her tone it was one of ponder, as if the person in question was unfamiliar to her.

"Hey, earth to Akira!" he called out, snapping her out of her daze and prompting her to gather her deck back together "You comin' or what?!"

"R-Right!" she replied as she gathered up her cards "I suppose this leaves our fight as a draw."

"Ah well, can't be helped," the Narukami user muttered as he regained his smile "Nevermind, we've still got time before we need to be there. The main hall's not far from here at all."

Akira nodded in agreement as she followed him down the stairs and the two of them walked on the path leading to the main hall. Seeing that they did not need to rush to be there, she decided to think of something else to pass the time, following the abrupt ending to their cardfight.

"Say Ryutarou... what do you know of Chairman Ryuzu?" she asked.

"Oh, you're curious about Ryuzu? Well, I don't know everything that goes on in the Association, but I imagine I'll be seeing him a lot when this event is done," he answered "Aside from being Chairman, I otherwise don't know much about him. Save for beliefs in Vanguard leading all of us to a Perfect Future where all of us can be happy."

That sounds a lot like what Rive and Dran told me... the Selector pondered to herself Guess I won't be getting much out of him, although...

"Why do you say you may be seeing him a lot of?"

"Oh that?" the Narukami user responded "Well in response to the fallout of the game since the Link Joker not so long ago and as a partial countermeasure to the recent attacks, Ryuzu and the Association have began setting up plans for places called branches across Japan where kids can enjoy the game outside of the usual competitive shop tournaments and other fun activities related to Vanguard. I've recently finished my application to become a Narukami clan leader at one of them."

"I see. I wish you luck then," Akira commented Not much of a start... but it'll do at least.

Eventually, the pair came to a stop outside a large pair of doors that they had not been permitted to bypass earlier in the day following their tour. Now that the roped barricades had been removed, they both knew what was bound to lie inside for them. A whole crowd of the world's top cardfighters, an audience that could make it to the cruise, the Vanguard Association and Ryuzu himself. With both of them out in the open, the Selector knew that the time to act on Rive's instructions wouldn't be for some time and that she would need to meet him face to face first.

"Well then, shall we see who's already here then?" Ryutarou asked, gesturing for her to enter first.

Akira said nothing, but kindly obliged to his gesture and swung the doors open with a gentle push.

End of Sneak Preview (Elements may be subject to change in the official release depending on feedback)


Story Original Cards of the Sneak Preview

Dragonic Vanquisher (Pre-G)
Grade 3
Twin Drive!
POW: 11000
Narukami
Thunder Dragon
Dragon Empire
[AUTO](VC)[Limit Break 4]: When your opponent's rear-guard is put into the drop zone from the ability of one of your cards, you may bind it face up. If you do, all of your front row units get [Power]+3000 until end of turn. Then if this ability was activated for the third time, this unit also gets [Critical]+1.
[AUTO](VC): When a card is bound from your opponent's drop zone due to the effect of your card except by this unit's [Limit Break 4] ability, all units in your front row get [Power]+3000 until end of turn.
[ACT](VC): {COST|Counter Blast (2)}, your opponent chooses one of his or her rear-guards and retires it.

Ruby Gem Dracokid
Grade 0
Boost
SLD: 10000
POW: 5000
Kagero
Flame Dragon
Dragon Empire
[AUTO]: Forerunner
[AUTO](RC): When the attack of your unit with "Dragonic Comet" or "Gem" in its original card name hits a Grade 2 or greater unit during the battle that this unit boosted, {COST|Put this card into your soul}, choose one of your opponent's rear-guards and retire it.

Emerald Gem Dragon
Grade 1
Boost
SLD: 5000
POW: 7000
Kagero
Flame Dragon
Dragon Empire
[AUTO](RC): When your Vanguard with "Dragonic Comet" or "Gem" in its original card name attacks an opponent's Vanguard, {COST|Counter Blast (1), Choose a card from your hand and discard it & retire this unit}, that unit gets [Power]+5000 until the end of the battle. Then if you have one or less face-up cards in your damage zone, the attacking unit also gets [Critical]+1 until end of turn.

Quartz Gem Dragon
Grade 2
Intercept
SLD: 5000
POW: 9000
Kagero
Flame Dragon
Dragon Empire
[CONT](VC/RC): During your turn, if your Vanguard has "Dragonic Comet" or "Gem" in its original card name, all your units in your front row get [Power]+1000 for each card in your opponent's damage zone.

Sapphire Gem Dragon
Critical Trigger+5000
Grade 0
Boost
SLD: 10000
POW: 5000
Kagero
Winged Dragon
Dragon Empire