Chapter 10:

After the large group of students had left the arena, many of them made their way over to the cafeteria to celebrate. With basically the whole first year Slifer students and a good handful of Ra students in tow, Blake and Jaden bought themselves some sandwiches and dealt with the congratulations while searching them out from the big sandwich wagon. There was much praise about how great they performed and how they got out of sticky situations easily, but the two quickly backed off from the crowd once they got their food. Instead of sitting with the crowd, they took their seats at a table to the side, where Syrus, Chumley and Bastion, as well as Bright and Yuma promptly filled the rest of the seats.

Clinking the soda cans Bastion got for them, the two boys both devoured one of their sandwiches faster then the eye could see, before Jaden talked about his duel. "- and all of a sudden, he had completely different cards than last time. But he didn't expect my furry little friend to beat him like this." A soft cooing could be heard between the general noise, though only Jaden and Blake seemed to have heard it, with Jaden looking over his shoulder with a grin.

Blake, who knew where all these new cards came from, nodded. "Same here. I've duelled that Shinji guy probably about a dozen times up until now, and that was the first time he pulled out something like this too. He never got anywhere close to winning as he did today." 'And he won't ever again', he added with fierce determination in his mind.

"Well, at least now the question of 'Who took all the new rare cards?' is answered", Bastion stated, arms crossed. "After your duels today, they could've just as well promoted you to straight to Blue if you ask me."

Amused, almost chocking on his drink, Blake coughed out. "Totally. But not even you were promoted to Blue, right? And you probably aced your written exams in addition to the practical one." The other boy did his best to hide his embarrassment, but nodded. "I believe with how things are now, getting promoted to the Obelisk dorm will require more connections and money than knowledge and skill."

"Perhaps I'll have to perform as well as I did today a few times in a row, but alas, something to think about in the future", Bastion mused, more interested in another matter. "That dragon you played to win the duel; was that the card Jaden gave you before you entered the arena?"

Hearing his name, Jaden swallowed a way too big chunk of his sandwich and struggled to breath for a moment, before interjecting. "Yeah man, that new card of yours was sick! No wonder you collected all those DP to get it."

Bright, who had been cleaning her glasses once they started talking, rose her eyebrows at Blake. "All those DP? Just how much did that card cost you?"

"I had to order it first, so instead of 10k it did cost me 12k DP, why?", Blake answered nonchalantly, taking a big bite out of his next sandwich. Hearing that sum, anyone besides him and Jaden almost fell out of their chairs.

"12k? That's more than the Obelisk students get in two months! It'd take us Slifers a whole year to save up for that!", Syrus shouted with a horrified look. "How did you manage to make that much in just a month?!"

With a roll of his eyes, Blake pulled out his PDA and opened his profile in the student ranking before sliding it into the middle of the table so everyone could see. "By dueling. You know, the thing everyone is here for? Make that 2 to 3 Obelisk students a day and I could not only afford that card, but another 2 for 5k each", he snarked at the smaller boy, who quickly averted his eyes.

The ranking for the first-year students was clear as day; Blake was leading the grade with about 80 duels and only wins, Jaden came in second with about 50 duels and only one that ended without conclusion, while other students were further behind. Familiar faces such as Bastion, Chazz, and Alexis were also in the top ten of their grade. On a schoolwide scale, Blake ranked second only to Zane, who had dueled over 100 times by now, also with a perfect win rate.

"That's insane-", Syrus mumbled with a startled look, but Yuma talked over him. "That's absolutely amazing! As far as I have heard, the last student that managed to have such a long win streak in the first year was the Kaiser himself!"

"Something I'm sure we can help you out with, isn't that right Jaden?", Bastion stated with a confident smirk. "We waited long enough for you to duel us, Blake, and I believe you should have more free time now."

Finishing his meal, Blake nodded. "Sure thing. Those guys from Obelisk Blue might even be too scared to approach after today, and with the exam over I can fit you in my schedule nicely. Any other takers?" He challenged the rest of them with a similar smirk.

Chumley and Syrus backed off immediately, the girls however … "Oh yeah, I'm in!" "Someone has to end your win streak after all", both agreed, seemingly all fired up.

"Great, then how about I take on one of you each day after the weekend? I'm not doing any more duels today, I gotta sleep after all of this.", he turned to Bastion with a knowing look. "I believe you got enough time and live footage of me dueling to prepare, so how about you go first?"

With a satisfied look, Bastion nodded. "I'm fine with that, although I will have to do some last-minute fine tuning against that new boss-monster of yours."

"Oh, oh, I'll go after Bastion!", Jaden added with a happy grin. It seemed like he had more to say to Blake, but he didn't say anything else.

"Normally its 'ladies first', but I'm fine with going third", Bright said, looking at her seat neighbour.

"And the best comes last!", Yuma finished.

Chuckling, Blake got up from his seat as messages from Professor Banner and Satyr came in. He looked down at his jacked and sighed. "Looks like my transfer is already processed. I'm gonna miss this colour, hopefully I can find a way around wearing that awful yellow jacket."

"Man, I'm gonna miss you back at the dorm", Jaden outed, which caused everyone to look at him confused.

"What do you mean, Jaden? You're getting promoted as well", Bastion asked with a perplexed look.

Scratching the back of his head, the boy gave them a sheepish smile. "Nah, man. I turned it down. I'm already comfortable in the Slifer dorm, and that's where my roommates are. Isn't that right, Sy?"

While the other boys started talking about Jadens' questionable decision, Bright nudged Blake. "Sounds to me like you can use a guide at your new dorm. There are a few things we'll have to go over once we get there."

"I'm warning you; I couldn't cook if my life depended on it. Just because Jaden ate it doesn't mean it was good", Blake told her with a snort, remembering how awful the food at the Slifer dorm truly was with the students having to prepare it, but she shook her head.

"No need to worry about that, Professor Satyr and his cooking club take care of that. But you have to do your chores like all of us."

He nodded at her as he wondered about another message he got. 'Kami Umino? Isn't that the girl with blue hair from the Obelisk dorm? What does she want …'

Sitting comfortably on a chair in a small counselling room located in the main building, Kami poured herself a fresh cup of coffee. Going over the plethora of messages on her PDA, she noticed that she hadn't yet received an answer from the person she was currently waiting for. She added some milk and sugar to her coffee, all the while answering messages from admirers and potential allies in her usual business-like manner.

'Urgh, if only any of these guys was more than a hot air balloon. They talk and talk and give out compliments like candy on Halloween, but do they ever mention something interesting? Most of them aren't even good at studying nor dueling!', she thought in frustration as she took a testing sip from her cup, only to put it down again just before she burned her tongue. "Hey Kami, you're really cute! Wanna hang out together?" "I saw your dad in the news lately, you don't think you could put in a good word for me?" "The other guys say Alexis is the hottest in the academy, but I think you are!", and the list went on. She was fine with the attention; it was what she deserved after all. Of course she looked great, she made sure she does every morning. Of course she got good grades; she's actually putting in effort, even if she's only ranked third in their grade. Every day she made sure to be the best she could be, as was expected off her.

After her drink had cooled down a bit, she took another sip, taking a moment to savour the flavour. 'I might not achieve better grades than that absolute Ra nerd, but I certainly won't be second to that Rhodes girl' she thought, a new message popping up. Apparently, her target had finally decided to make its way over here – that's what one of her informants told her anyway.

Satisfied with the news, she went over her notes once again. As with any potential business partner, or opponent, she had taken the time to gather information about the person in question, which left her with quite a bit to work with for this one. 'Orphaned and adopted not long before entering the academy, troublemaker at school, raised in a poor neighbourhood. Probably acting the way he does to get recognition. Most likely got a problem with rich folk, not surprising with his circumstances. Definitely challenged our dorm for getting promoted out of the Slifer dump asap. Nothing about what he did in the year between finishing school and getting into the academy, but with what I overheard Professor Fontaine say today I'm pretty sure what he was doing. No wonder he duels like a pro if my guess is correct, and even better material to use against him if I need to. Perfect.'

She took another sip of her coffee. 'Should be easy enough to string him along with promises of money and help to get promoted to Blue. We both benefit from my plans, and judging by his performance today, he will get where I need him soon enough.'

Without a knock, the door to the room opened. In came the freshly promoted Blake, the pale-yellow jacket of the Ra dorm wrapped around his waist by its sleeves. Other than that, he wore a black button-shirt with its top button undone and grey jeans, along with his regular cap. 'Not fond of the colour, and who can blame him. Honestly, who came up with that shade? If someone ever tried to sell me something like that, I'd have them booted.'

"Hello Blake, I see you got my message. How about you take a seat?", she invited him with a sweet tone, gesturing to the chair in front of the desk she was sitting behind. He made his way over, but kept standing behind the chair.

"Alright, what do you want?"

The tired, and more importantly annoyed tone of that question made her brow twitch. "Straight to business, is it? Maybe you should work a bit on your manners, others may think of you as a brutish good-for-nothing, you know. What if I just wanted to get to know you better, perhaps even congratulate you on your promotion?"

He rolled his eyes and leaned over the chair; his arms crossed. "Oh, I didn't know you called me here to confess your undying love to me without your stuck-up friends noticing", Blake snorted in amusement, his eyes wandering. "Try the rooftop next time, it got a better view."

'If you weren't checking me out, maybe I'd believe you.' "Getting a bit over your head, aren't you? I didn't know that the conditions in the Slifer dorm were as bad as making its inhabitants get delusions", she countered in a mocking tone. She was used to being ogled by boys, sometimes even those that were way older than her, so she wasn't bothered as much. At least he kept it brief.

"Shame, nothing better to boast about than getting confessed to by the prettiest girl in school", Blake replied as he turned the chair in front of him around, sitting down on it and leaning over its backrest towards her. "So, what did you call me here for, princess?", he asked with obvious amusement.

Caught just slightly of-guard by his statement, she quietly coughed into her hand. "It's heiress, and I got a mutual beneficial proposition for you." The look he gave her made her continue. "Judging by your actions these past weeks, I got the impression that you intend to get promoted to the Obelisk Blue dorm quickly, correct?" He nodded. "Well, I'm sure you saw from your friend in the Ra dorm that it isn't quite that easy. Without the necessary support, you can keep dueling and bettering your grades for months, but the system in place won't just let students from prestigious families be kicked out of the dorm they paid to be in. The merit-based system had been quietly replaced ever since Seto Kaiba took a backseat regarding the academy, especially after the new chairman took over."

She cautiously laid out the information necessary to make him see that he needed assistance. One that she'd provide. "Even with outstanding grades and an equally great duel-ranking, one needs help from inside off the Blue dorm to get into it. And with how you have presented yourself up until now, I don't think you have many options there."

Listening intently to what she said, the boy in front of her grimaced. "Great, even worse than I thought. So, you want to support me in getting promoted in exchange for what? Getting rid of annoying admirers? Do the dirty work for personal grudges? Political rivals, maybe?" The last one caused her eyes to widen, so he elaborated with a smirk. "I asked around before coming here, I'm no fool. Though I wonder why you don't just throw money at the problem."

"As weird as it may sound, money can't always solve the problem. Not with what I have in mind, at least." Taking a moment to gather herself again, she emptied her cup. "The things you mentioned aren't exactly what I had in mind, but I guess I can add those to the list." Now more serious, she continued. "No, I want something much bigger. I doubt you know much about the titles one can be awarded at the academy?"

Once again, he surprised her. "I got a tldr from someone who does. The King's open, the Kaiser held by Zane Truesdale, the Queen by some girl in third-year, and the Jack hasn't been given out yet. Getting a title means having a say in what happens at the academy. What about it?"

'If only everyone I had to deal with came as prepared …', she caught herself thinking, mentally shacking her head. "I want the title of Queen, but to get it, someone with a title has to endorse me to, or I'll have to be named the current Queens successor for next year."

"And you can't wait for next year. So what, do you want me to make Zane endorse you?", he laughed.

"If you could actually achieve that you'd probably take his title right with it, but no. As you said, the title of Jack is still available, and it always goes to a first-year student."

He looked at her intrigued, motioning her to continue. "Alright, I'll bite; what's your plan?"

"You'll continue your performance and get the title, then you endorse me to challenge the current Queen. In exchange, I'll get you promoted to the Obelisk dorm", she proposed.

"I've got a feeling that's not all, princess."

'Stop calling me that!' "It's the most important part. Aside from that, I'd like you to be an available asset to me until we reach our respective goals. So, you'd be ready to duel whenever and against whoever I need you to. Aside from the current Queens supporters, there are a few other students that need to be dealt with. And since the challenge for the title will involve quite a bit of dueling, you'll help me out on that front as well."

Blake leaned back, his eyes looking at the roof. "That's a bit much work on my side. Just getting your help to be promoted doesn't quite cut it, if you ask me."

Already prepared, Kami extended the offer. "Well, since you're now a Ra student you earn less from defeating other students. I can pay you in full as if you were still a Slifer, and many targets I need you to duel against are not only Obelisk Blue students, but third-years."

"A bigger pay-out for what I'd be doing anyway then, I see. Where would you get the DP for that, though?", he asked, his eyes now on her again.

"Real money and DP can be exchanged, didn't you know?", she told him with a smirk. "If you make lots of DP, you can get money for it to use outside the academy instead. And if you have a lot of money…"

"- you can just buy everything on the island. By Ra this is stupid", Blake groaned in disbelief. He bobbed from left to right in his chair for a few seconds, staring at the ceiling once again. "Okay, yeah, doesn't sound all that bad." He looked back at her with a serious face. "Add in monthly payment so that I get as much DP as if I was already in Blue and I'm in. But don't expect me to get up in the middle of the night to chase away some guy or worse, make you coffee."

She wasn't quite pleased by the amount he wanted, but it would be a small price to pay in the long run. 'And in case you act up, I still have something to blackmail you with. I guess I can indulge you for now.' "Glad to see we could come to an agreement. Now in order for you to hopefully get that title as soon as possible there are a few people you'll have to duel according to my knowledge …"

"-and that's about it. From what I can tell, it's my best bet and once I have all the cards I need, its money I can transfer to you", the sound of Blakes tired voice finished reporting over the phone.

Playing with the half-filled wineglass in her hand, Katherine let the report of her ward sink in. Blake didn't continue, only the soft sound of his breath was occasionally loud enough to hear. She wondered what got him this exhausted; did he have nightmares again? While not ideal for his performance, nor his mental health, the thought of him needing her around in order not to suffer them anymore did put a smile on her face. What better to assure her most valuable assets loyalty than its dependence on her? 'He said something about the schools nurse prescribing him some medicine, I wonder if its just for his scars …'

She laid the phone on the table in front of her and put it on speaker as to not miss anything he might've left out. A wave of her hand neatly secured her long black hair behind her ear as she grabbed her nearby pen so she could finish up her scribbled down notes about everything he had told her. While a good chunk of it wasn't of importance for now, it could come in handy later, once her boss set his plans in motion. What was of immediate interest, however, was the connection to one of Japan's wealthiest families.

"You should've called before you agreed to her offer", she told him as she put further notes under the name of the little Umino heiress. "While you got more out of her than she initially offered, we could've squeezed out even more if you had informed me beforehand." Her voice was perfectly neutral, a business-tone she had adopted years ago, but the message was clear. Not that she had anticipated more, if anything his performance on that front was well inside the capabilities she expected from him, but what he achieved amounted to nothing more than pocket money. No, they'd get more out of this connection, she'd make sure of it.

A knowing sigh came through the phone. "I'm sorry. I will do better next time", Blakes weary voice answered and she could almost see him hang his head in front of her.

"I'm sure you will. While I draft up some ideas on how to best benefit from your new acquaintance, it'll be your job to find out more about her", she said, tapping the pen against her lips in thought. "There won't be any trouble on my side to dig up information about her public appearances, but you can get some on a personal level."

"I doubt she will, I'm nothing more than hired muscle at this point. Is this really nece-", he questioned back.

"Yes", she ordered, his voice stopping immediately. "Make yourself useful, try to get as much info out of her agenda as possible, and perform as well as always." There was no doubt about him failing in his physical labour, he'd proven himself enough that even her boss wanted her to keep him around, but while he excelled with prowess in dueling he suffered with his inability to socialize by himself. Honestly, she wondered how he managed to get a group of close acquaintances, if not even friends. That's not what he was there for in the first place, but … an idea popped up in her head, making her smirk in delight as she visualized him trying.

"If all else fails, you can just seduce her", she told him in a playful voice and she didn't need to see him to know how shocked he was. There was no reaction on his part, aside from a sharp breath-in, so she continued. "What? You told me about two girls that want to hang out with you already, and from what you told me you didn't do much for that. Isn't one of them into you as well? I'm sure you can manage."

She had made sure to make him look presentable over the years, and she was quite satisfied with the result. No longer a scrawny, malnourished kid, he now was taller than even her, with a lean physique and style to boot. When she'd been doing her own training anyway, investing in him had been practically free. While it had taken some time to find a good hairstyle for his weirdly coloured hair, and she so wanted to dye them away at first, her stylist made him look more than presentable, handsome even.

"That's what you'll do on that front for now. You've got your targets to achieve that silly title and when that's done, I expect a report. Moving on, you mentioned a valuable proposition made by your former dorm head. I'll have to look this 'Lyman Banner' up first, but you seem quite sure about the deal being worth it. How?"

"I overheard one of his calls last week and from what I heard he's close to the academies chairman Kagemaru", he told her, his voice a bit dry. "Something about ancient ruins on the island and some spooky artifacts, but since they're affiliated, I'm sure the pay-out won't only be secure but big. But before I accept whatever he offers I'll call you."

If she didn't know him better, she'd have accepted his explanation with that, but she noticed a slight quiver in his tone that had only ever came up when he wasn't telling her everything. When she first noticed this little tell and the implications of it, she was furious. But she knew better than to chastise him. Her ward always seemed to pick up information somehow, and she had no idea how he did it. The only thing she did know was that whenever he did, he was right. And while impressively useful, it unnerved her not to understand how he did it.

"Keep me updated about that. The last thing I've got for you is a notice from the Abyss Arena. You've got to defend your title during your break", she informed him with casual disinterest. "Some former pro has started making a name for himself in the underworld and he's out for all the titles here in Domino." Honestly, she didn't know if she even wanted Blake to keep the title. Sure, the monthly payments weren't small but everything associated with them were a pain to deal with. Especially now that she couldn't bet on him anymore; his wins were assured and no sane person would bet against him, though they might with this challenge. It would take another three years to have him go pro, but once that happened money wouldn't be an issue anymore. Not that it was now, but she could never have enough of it. Maybe loaning him out as a dueling mercenary would be more profitable, there had been a notice about someone needing capable ones on the underworlds black board shortly before Blakes schoolyear started.

Blake snorted in amusement, his voice radiating the same confidence he always portrayed when he was dueling, "If it's nothing else. Not the first and certainly not the last who'll fail at that."

'If his looks won't be enough for that little rich girl, the sheer confidence of his will be for sure', Katherine mused, aware of how he looked the last time he had been standing in that arena with shaky hands. It didn't cost much if they lost that income, and it could make her grasp on him even tighter if she did so willingly. Decisions, decisions. "Maybe. I'm not sure how long I want to keep this connection up, but we'll see. Anything else you'd like to tell me?"

"… no", he sighed with a hint of relief.

"Good, you know what you're supposed to do and I expect nothing but success from you. Understood?"

"Yes ma'am", he answered.

"You're dismissed," she told him and cut the call.

With a sip of her wine, as she leaned back onto the couch. Sending Blake to the academy wasn't what she had planned; underworld duels and tournaments were way more profitable after all. It was no secret that influential people would be attending the academy, but making use of them wasn't that easy, not without her being there as well, anyway. Yet somehow her ward had managed to get enough recognition that even these people noticed him. Her boss wouldn't be happy if she managed to make a foothold for herself in the most prestigious of the academies, but that was fine. There's no way she would have played second fiddle forever anyway. All thanks to her ward. Her little puppy.

"And how my puppy has grown …"

And I'm back with another chapter, only took a bit longer this time cause I wasn't quite satisfied with the dialoge. Hope everyone enjoyed it. A bit of a slower chapter this time, but with quite a bit shown whats to come. I wonder if you guys can guess who my inspiration for Kamis character is, since she got her first real appearance this chapter. And isn't she a sneaky one?

But Kami wasn't the only one who got her initial characterisation, the ever looming handler of Blake got some time to shine as well, with quite the ambitions to boot. How that relationship will continue and how others might react to it is something for the future.

As for the reviews, there's been the question regarding the stories title and if the MC will use cards associated with "The Hound". He won't, there aren't nearly enough good cards for that and the Ancient Gear cards will stay exclusive with Crowler. Considering the cards I'm limiting myself to here the only Hound-card would be the "Mechanical Hound" and boy is that one bad. The title has another meaning though, one you might've picked up and can see where it might lead to. I'm glad that the DAD was received as well as I hoped. It'll take a bit before more with him happens, but if you liked him last chapter I'm sure you'll love him going forward. Speaking of going forward; there are some big duels up ahead, so the next few chapters will be a bit intense on that front. Makes me wonder if Blake will lose, and if to whom.

To finish this up I'm not only happy but overwhelmed to see that this story got over 100 followers, like, holy Ra. I fully expected to just write this for myself and maybe a handful of insane enough viewers, but you guys are awesome. So, thank all of you for reading and I hope you're around for the next chapter.