When Yuuma woke up the next day, he was alone in Vector's room. He took notice of the light coming from the direction of the door, and he wondered what time it was. It didn't matter because it was saturday, but Yuuma figured that Akari would call him later, if only to check if he was alright.

He turned over, unsure whether he wanted to get up or not. Then he noticed that something was missing. To be exact, his usual feeling of worry was missing. Almost as if part of his current burden had been lifted. He hadn't dreamt of Astral - the thought of Astral made him wince - either that night.

Maybe things were finally getting better... or so he thought, until he realized that the cause of his improved emotional condition was the fact that the Emperor's Key was gone.

Within a few seconds, Yuuma was on his feet and rushed to the kitchen, still wearing Vector's black pajamas.

"The Key is gone!", he shouted, not bothering to greet anyone.

The others were in the process of having breakfast at the time - or at least some of them were. Yuuma quickly noticed that Gilag, Rio, Shark and Durbe were missing, but he quickly figured they had something to do.

"Oy, good morning, Yuuma!"" Alit greeted. He was currently occupied with his scrambled eggs and it was clear that he was far from being done eating.

Mizael didn't say anything as he was busy eating his miso soup, but his expression gave away that he wasn't a morning person at all. And if Yuuma had paid a bit more attention, he would have been able to notice the fact that Mizael glared at Vector every now and then.

And then Yuuma realized where the Emperor's Key was. "Vector, why do you have the Key?"

Vector looked up. He'd been staring at the Key for a while now and his rice stood untouched in front of him. "I thought it's for the best." It wasn't quite the friendly tone in which he said that - in fact, it was almost mocking -, but everyone in the room was quite aware of what he meant by that. Even Yuuma was. The Key did nothing good for him.

"I know you just mean well, but... I feel better when I have the Key with me," Yuuma said, sighing as he sat down at the table. He held out his hand. "Give it back."

Vector didn't object, returning the Key to Yuuma. Then he yawned. Sure, he did have the intention to help Yuuma, but if the boy didn't want to get help, Vector wouldn't insist. He did care about Yuuma - a weakness he could not deny -, but definitely not enough to be that invested in those emotional matters. He quickly finished his bowl of rice, eating at a speed that was even faster than Yuuma's.

Yuuma was looking at the Key, feeling worse again. He was aware of the fact that the Key was not helping him at all currently, but he just couldn't bring himself to abandon the last symbol of his bond with Astral.

He looked up to see a bowl of rice in front of him.

"There, eat," Alit said, grinning at Yuuma. He was the most easygoing of all the former Barians about the situation as he felt that pressuring Yuuma did no good. While Vector agreed with that, the ginger-haired Barian occasionally still did things that Yuuma did not approve of whenever he considered them necessary. "Oy, if you don't wanna duel anymore, how about we work out together?"

Working out. Yuuma definitely wasn't the type of person for that, although he would have liked some distraction. He ended up declining with an apologetic smile and ate up his rice, and so did Vector.

Mizael sighed and soundly dropped his dishes in the kitchen sink, making Yuuma flinch. Mizael had thought about holding back, he really had. But from what he'd heard from Kaito about Yuuma, he knew it was time to do something about the situation. And no matter how much he couldn't stand Vector, he also didn't approve of Vector not behaving like himself, either.

So he looked at Yuuma. "Stop being so pathetic, Yuuma." It was the first time he'd said something ever since Yuuma had entered the room. "And you, too, Vector." He narrowed his eyes.

Yuuma's eyes widened at being called pathetic, but he lacked a reason to deny it.

"What?" Vector asked, surprised by Mizael's sudden outburst.

"You two behave like insects lately. Yuuma grieves over things that can't be changed, and you - you, of all people - go along with it, Vector!" It was rare for Mizael to start an argument with Vector nowadays. Mainly because they could not solve any arguments properly, anymore - none of their decks were in a playable condition due to the lack of the Numbers, and that realization had made them lose the mood to duel. Alit had it easier than them - he still had two of his XYZ monsters left.

Surely they could fight with swords (as all of the Barians knew how to wield swords - even Rio, who had learnt the basics from Ryouga and got increasingly better at it with every day that passed), and both Mizael and Vector heavily considered doing exactly that. But since it usually ended with one or both of the participants of the fight being incapacitated, it would take more aggression for them to take that step.

Today was strangely different from the daily life of the Barians, and Vector couldn't help but to silently think that it was due to Yuuma's presence.

"Do you think you're the right person to say that?" Vector laughed in a way that made Yuuma shiver at the memories of the other times he'd heard that laugh. "You're the one who obsesses over a dragon."

Mizael didn't bother holding back on insults. "You bastard..."

"Wanna duel?" Vector asked with a grin, a grin that widened when he saw Mizael's angry expression. "Oh wait, you can't. Mustn't it be hard? You lost your dear Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon, but your new friend Kaito still has his Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon. Isn't that sad?"

"In a fair duel, you would not stand a chance against me," Mizael said, outright ignoring that bit about Kaito and Galaxy-Eyes. "In a fair sword fight, you'd lose as well. But you resort to cheap tricks there, just as you do everywhere."

"I'm pretty sure I won last time," Vector said. He'd always been the kind of person who'd kick dirt into his opponent's face if it gave him an advantage - something that Mizael did not approve of, yet Vector considered it completely legitimate.

While Yuuma did not understand anything of what was currently going on (Vector did tease Yuuma on a regular basis and was never the friendliest, but never had he been this antagonistic following his revival), Alit was used to it. Vector was surprisingly easy to get along with when he was in a good mood nowadays, and Alit would even say that it was possible to be friends with him. However in situations like these, it was different.

Vector tended to quickly revert to his old ways, for a lifetime of madness could not be changed just by the smile of Yuuma and none of the former Barian Emperors had forgotten what Vector had done.

Things were getting better lately though, and Alit didn't like seeing them get worse again. Usually, Durbe would be the one to solve these problems, but as he and the other remaining Barians were busy with work, Alit took it upon himself to solve this argument.

"Both of you, stop this right now. If you want to fight, then do it, but don't argue," Alit said. He found that a sword fight was a better solution to an argument rather than pointlessly provoking each other. Even with the whole fairness matter, a fight would be a better means of solving a conflict.

Yuuma shook his head. "Alit! I don't want them to fight."

But Alit simply grinned. "Last time Mizael and I had a disagreement, we've fought as well and everything was fine afterwards."

"Last time Mizael and I fought," Vector said, grinning. "He ended up in the hospital."

"You did, too, though," Alit replied with a shrug.

"If you have time to talk, then come and get your sword and we'll fight," Mizael hissed, leaving the kitchen, quickly being followed by Vector.

Yuuma was visibly unhappy with this. "Alit, why do you let them do that?"

"It's just like dueling," Alit simply replied with a grin. "You take all of your force and smash it into your enemy. That's how we do things. Wanna learn how to do it, too?"

Yuuma considered it. It was a great opportunity to use the whole energy that he just couldn't get rid off because he didn't duel as often as he did before. "I might take you up on that offer, but first I want to watch their fight."

"Then come, we usually fight in the backyard."

It took a while to set everything up because Mizael and Vector had to change clothes before fighting, but when they were ready, the tension was clearly there.

Yuuma was taken aback by the size of the Barian mansion's backyard. And there stood Vector and Mizael, ignoring the beauty of the flowers and trees around them, only focusing on each other.

Both had taken a fighting stance and Yuuma could feel how concentrated they were. Both of them were using swords that looked identical and - Yuuma had to admit that - plain.

"Those are training swords, they aren't sharp," Alit explained at Yuuma's gaze. "If they used their actual swords, their lives would be in danger. Let's say that much." He laughed a little, not bothered much by it.

"So why did they end up in the hospital last time?" Yuuma asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Isn't that obvious? The swords are still made of metal, you know," Alit said, moving towards Vector and Mizael. "I assume you guys want to skip the formalities?"

"Not like someone like him would even take part in any formalities," Mizael said, glaring at Vector.

"Then you can fight now," Alit said, stepping aside swiftly.

Just fast enough anyway, as Mizael immediately lunged at Vector.

Apparently the smaller boy had been prepared as he quickly evaded the attack, Mizael's sword missing his face by a hairbreadth.

It quickly became clear that Vector made use of his small physique. While his swordsmanship was decent, it was clearly not as precise as Mizael's. However, Vector's footwork offered no openings.

"Woah! It isn't anything like Kendo at all!" Yuuma exclaimed, surprised by that. On second thought, it was very obvious though - the only Barian Emperor who had lived in a Japanese culture was Gilag, after all. And somehow, although Yuuma had been against the idea of Mizael and Vector fighting, he couldn't help but to admire what they did.

A heated fight, pouring one's heart into every move, almost like... dueling. Yuuma couldn't help but to feel that this was it. The way out. A way to live without constant thoughts of Astral, to step forward and to reach for the future.

Wasn't that what he'd always asked for?

He could see why the Barians did that instead of dueling (and he realized that the only reason why Rio and Durbe didn't quit dueling was in case another supernatural threat was to come upon them). He smiled to himself as he watched Vector duck down in an attempt to dodge Mizael's attack.

This whole fight, Vector had avoided actually crossing blades with Mizael. He'd just spent his time evading Mizael's attacks while observing his opponent's movements. The only time he'd been driven into a corner was when he had been forced to parry Mizael's hit for real.

Right then, Yuuma had seen Vector's hand tremble.

Suddenly, Yuuma realized that Vector's aim had not been to just dodge Mizael's last attack at all. Right when Mizael was about to strike again, Vector grabbed a strand of Mizael's hair and pulled his head downwards. Mizael's eyes widened because he knew what Vector was gonna do, but there was no way to prevent the impact of Vector's knee in his stomach region.

"I'm not gonna break your nose this time," Vector said, using Mizael's moment of distraction to kick the blonde Barian's leg. Footwork had always been his forte and Mizael's weakness. So it didn't surprise Vector at all when Mizael lost his balance, finding Vector's sword at his throat a split-second later.

"I win," Vector stated the obvious as he smirked. Alit silently sighed and Yuuma was just stunned by what he'd seen. "You can't beat me, Mizael."

"You bastard..." Mizael hissed, waiting until Vector removed his sword before getting up again. "I told you, you can't win in a fair fight."

"I considered that pretty fair," Vector said, smiling innocently. "I didn't break your nose. It would be for the worst if poor Kaito showed up here again, after all." His expression darkened for a moment.

"Kaito?" Yuuma gave Alit a questioning look, for he somehow knew Alit would have the most accurate answer if he asked what the matter with Kaito was.

"Last time when Mizael and Vector returned from the hospital and Mizael's nose was still broken, Kaito was pretty mad and caused a lot of trouble here with his challenge," Alit explaining, laughing. He didn't seem bothered by it. "Anyway, Kaito is a great opponent because he is talented, but he has no experience. Yet."

"Wait, Kaito does that sword fighting thing, too?" Yuuma was surprised, but he felt a little sad over the fact that nobody had told him of the new hobby everyone had.

Mizael was the one who nodded, despite still glaring at Vector. "Kaito learnt most of his techniques from V. The Arclights are really good at this - honorable opponents, unlike a certain other person here."

Vector just giggled in response.

"So, why did I not know any of this?" Yuuma decided to ask what was bothering him.

"We wanted to see if you can recover first," Alit explained, crossing his arms behind his head.

And Mizael continued, "Ultimately Vector was the one who didn't want to watch you in this state anymore. We didn't think a guy like him would be the first one to make a move, though." He didn't hide his disgust when he said Vector's name.

"Not counting Nasch's futile attempts anyway." Vector added for clarification.

"Shark..." Yuuma muttered. He had known that Ryouga had tried to help him, but hearing it from the others made it all the more real. Then he smiled a little. "Thank you, all of you."

At that very moment, Yuuma's D-Gazer buzzed. "Akari...?" He assumed, but he was surprised when he saw that it was someone else. "Whose number is this...?" He took the call to see V and Kaito appear on the screen.

"Kaito! And... V!" Yuuma exclaimed, surprised and what he was seeing. Mizael walked over to Yuuma, glancing at Vector every now and then to see if the ginger would try anything.

"Oh, Mizael is with him, just as I said," Kaito observed, earning a slightly surprised gaze from V.

"Why did you call me?" Yuuma asked, as V had never called him before.

"We wanted to ask Mizael how the situation concerning you is, not that I understand why Kaito-sama would-" Yuuma saw Orbital 7 move into the picture, only to be shut up by Kaito.

Yuuma couldn't help but to chuckle. It made him happy that everyone thought like this about his well-being.

Kaito sighed visibly. "Well now you've heard it. The reason why we called you... Mizael never even looks at his D-Gazer because he isn't used to having one."

That was a problem for Mizael and most of the Barians, as they did not require D-Gazers for the biggest part of their lives.

But in the end, Yuuma couldn't suppress the urge to ask that one question. "How does the work on the dimensional transporter go?"

V shook his head a little. "We lack the resources. And there are no distortions, currently, so that makes the probability of a successful transport lower." He gave Yuuma an apologetic gaze. "Sorry."

Yuuma offered a weak smile in response. "No problem." Then he realized that there was someone he'd wanted to see for a while now. "Is III there?" While he could've asked Alit to teach him, he somehow felt like this was the perfect opportunity to move forward and get in contact with everyone again. That's why he'd been wanting to see III. Yuuma very vividly remembered that time where III had thrown a sword at Mr. Heartland.

"Why don't you guys come over here?" V asked in return. "Mizael was going to visit Kaito anyway, so you and whoever else is there can come over."

Yuuma expression lightened up. "That would be awesome! Alright, we'll come over soon!"

"Alright, bye," Kaito said, the usual cold expression.

With the call ending, Yuuma turned his attention back to the Barians.

Mizael and Vector did not argue anymore, as Vector's victory was undeniable and Mizael felt like he'd disgrace himself if he continued to argue after a fight. No matter how unfair that fight may have felt to him.

"Why do you want to meet that III guy?" Alit asked, honestly curious.

"I need someone who teaches me how to use a sword, don't I?" Yuuma responded with a wide grin, and he failed to notice that just for a second, all of the three Barians were smiling a little.

"Kattobingu da, ore!"