A week ago, at Kame Game Shop—
Taking a sip of the tea brewed by Grandpa Sugoroku, Pegasus sighed in satisfaction.
"A refreshing fragrance hidden within its bitterness... Different from black tea, yet just as soothing. Thank you very much~"
Hoshino cut straight to the point.
"Enough with the nonsense! You've had your tea—now hurry up and give me my money!"
"Oh-hohoho~ If only I had some sweets to go with this. They pair well with tea," Pegasus mused, taking another slow sip.
Hoshino twitched at the blatant stalling. Grinding her teeth, she warned,
"I don't see any 'payout progress bar,' but I do see your 'death progress bar' filling up fast..."
"Hahaha, Hoshino-girl, you really don't have a sense of humor!" Pegasus laughed awkwardly. He knew full well she had the ability to max out that progress bar for real.
"Now, back to the real issue. Do you know why I haven't handed you your money yet?"
"Because you're stingy and just want revenge for losing to me?" Hoshino shot back.
Pegasus chuckled and shook his head.
"I held onto the Duel King's prize money not out of spite, but out of concern. I was worried that if a young girl like you suddenly came into a fortune, you'd indulge in a life of luxury and waste your exceptional dueling talent."
"Uh..." Hoshino froze for a moment. Pegasus was annoyingly perceptive.
If she'd gotten that money at the time, she absolutely would have wasted no time jumping into a carefree, lazy life.
"But now, Hoshino-girl, you've proven yourself," Pegasus continued.
"You've shown the world—and me—what it means to be the Duel King. Your strength will become the goal that duelists worldwide strive to reach. And to elevate Duel Monsters to the next level globally, such a figure is exactly what's needed!"
His relentless praise made Hoshino a little embarrassed. Becoming a figure revered worldwide? A year ago, she wouldn't have even dared to dream of something like that.
"So, does that mean I finally qualify to get my money now?"
This was an unexpected windfall for Hoshino.
Even if she couldn't return to her original world, she could still live a comfortable, carefree life with this money.
Work? Yeah, that wasn't happening.
"Of course! This money was always yours, Hoshino-girl. I was merely holding onto it for safekeeping."
Pegasus nodded with satisfaction before adding—
"However, during this safekeeping period, I helpfully made an investment with your money, using my sharp business acumen!"
"Oh? What kind of investment? Something profitable?"
Now that she was sure she'd get her money, Hoshino relaxed and took a sip of Grandpa Sugoroku's green tea.
Pegasus's investment instincts weren't entirely trustworthy, but they certainly weren't bad.
The man had built the Industrial Illusions empire from scratch, after all.
"I converted your entire prize money into shares of Kaiba Corporation."
"Pfft—!"
Tea sprayed from Hoshino's mouth, giving Pegasus an impromptu green tea facial.
"Cough, cough! You used all my money to buy Kaiba Corp stock? Why!?"
Calmly dabbing his face with a handkerchief, Pegasus explained,
"Just a few days ago, due to an economic attack and takeover by the Doma, Kaiba-boy's control over his company weakened, putting Kaiba Corp on the verge of bankruptcy."
Hoshino recalled hearing about that. When Kaiba Corp collapsed, Kaiba himself had even died in a plane crash.
"But after you, Yugi-boy, and Kaiba-boy defeated Dartz, the organization fell apart. A massive amount of Kaiba Corp stock flooded the market, and Industrial Illusions helped buy it up, ensuring Kaiba-boy could reclaim his CEO position. Naturally, most of the funds used for that stock acquisition... came from the money of the Duel Kingdom Champion—you, Hoshino-girl~!"
Now it all made sense.
Pegasus's so-called "investment" was really just using her money to do Kaiba a favor.
She'd fought so many duels to finally win that money, and now?
First, a portion of it had gone to treating Jounouchi's sister's eyes.
Now, the rest had been used to buy back Kaiba's company for him.
In the end, all her hard work had gone into helping other people.
"You should calm down, Hoshino-girl..." Pegasus quickly tried to soothe her, seeing the storm brewing on her face.
"As I said, this was an investment! If handled properly, you could even double your money!"
"Oh? And how exactly do I double it? Don't tell me I need to go ask Kaiba for a share of his company's profits?"
Seeing Hoshino's anger ease slightly, Pegasus secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"At the time, Kaiba Corp's stock price was extremely low due to the crisis. With our large-scale acquisition, once the company stabilized, the stock price should have naturally rebounded, ensuring a profit. However..."
Pegasus hesitated. Clearly, he'd miscalculated something.
"However, Kaiba Corp's stock hasn't recovered. In fact, it's currently even lower than when we bought it."
"Why? With projects like Kaiba Land opening, the stock should be skyrocketing!"
Hoshino was baffled. She didn't know much about finance, but even she understood that much.
"My investigations suggest that Kaiba Corp is being targeted by a rival company. Zigfried von Schroeder—once considered Kaiba-boy's equal in genius—had also pitched a 'holographic dueling system' to Industrial Illusions back in the day. But he was just a little too late, as Kaiba-boy had already secured the deal first."
"Zigfried, huh..." The name sounded familiar, but Hoshino didn't have much of a connection to him.
"And it seems Zigfried's company never gave up on the holographic dueling market. They released a cheaper alternative system in Europe and the U.S. through unofficial channels. At the same time, they've been collaborating with various organizations to run illegal gambling operations centered around Duel Monsters."
"Wait, underground gambling using Duel Monsters?"
Hoshino tapped her chin, imagining the scenario.
"Oh, I get it! It's basically like underground fighting rings. A crowd gathers to bet on two fighters in a ring—except now they've swapped fistfights for card battles. It's basically an underground duel!"
Pegasus nodded gravely.
"Hoshino-girl, you grasp things quickly. When Industrial Illusions first released Duel Monsters, we strictly prohibited gambling-related activities. But where there's money, there's darkness. These wealthy people and business tycoons will pay handsomely to watch duelists they 'own' win match after match in grimy, illegal arenas."
"Even worse, some reports suggest that duelists in these underground matches are forced to wear special shock devices. As their Life Points drop, they're subjected to increasingly stronger electric shocks—until they're either paralyzed or dead."
Hearing this, Hoshino slammed her hands on the table in anger.
"That's disgusting! Dying because of a duel... This is basically a Shadow Game! No, worse—they're using people's lives as entertainment to fuel their gambling addiction!"
"Exactly, Hoshino-girl!" Pegasus shared her outrage.
Not just out of justice, but because his beloved Duel Monsters was being corrupted.
"That's why I want to ask you... Hoshino-girl, will you enter these underground tournaments—"
"I refuse!"
"You refused so quickly! But you were clearly angry just now too, weren't you, Hoshino-girl?"
Hoshino waved her hand dismissively. "That's a completely different matter. And what's the point of me entering that kind of tournament? Are you expecting me to win my own money back or something?"
"Of course it's to stop Zigfried's organization and the forces working with them underground! We can't let tragedies caused by Duel Monsters continue!"
Despite his righteous words, the expression partially hidden behind Pegasus's hair clearly showed hesitation.
"But gathering evidence isn't easy. Acting rashly without sufficient proof will only alert them and put them on guard. We might delay them slightly, but we won't do any real damage.
If we want to reach the true upper echelons of underground dueling—and see Zigfried himself, the real organizer—we can only do that by posing as one of those wealthy buyers who spend big money to hire strong duelists and win their way up.
That's why I want you, Hoshino-girl, to hide your identity and participate in the underground dueling. With your strength, no one will be able to stop your win streak. Then, as the strongest underground duelist, you'll get to meet Zigfried, and we'll finally have enough evidence to take them all down in one fell swoop!"
"You sure have a nice plan, Pegasus." Hoshino raised an eyebrow at his sincere-looking face. "But why should I take the risk to do something like this? I'm just an ordinary high school student~ That kind of underground tournament sounds dangerous no matter how you look at it."
"Hahaha, you're being too modest. With all the Duel Spirits protecting you, how could you be an ordinary high school student? Besides, Hoshino-girl, you have a reason to do it..."
Pegasus suddenly revealed his sly old fox grin—the kind he'd perfected over years of dominating the business world.
"Only after Zigfried is officially caught and Kaiba Corp is no longer targeted in the market will the stock prices start to rebound. And then, Hoshino-girl, you'll be able to truly receive the money that's rightfully yours~"
(***)
[Duelist Level Evaluation Complete. Rating for "Scumbag Duo": D. Victory Reward: 15 Saint Quartz. Current Total: 15 Saint Quartz.]
"At this level, I guess this reward is barely acceptable~"
[Special Summon Shop (1/1)]
[SSR Ereshkigal – 100 Saint Quartz Required for Exchange]
"Hey, I'm talking to you guys!" Hoshino, who had swapped back with White Hoshino, glared fiercely at the two pathetic brothers trembling in the corner.
"Do you know where in this city I can find the underground dueling arena?"
"An underground duel...?"
The two exchanged a glance and suddenly seemed to understand something.
"Don't tell me, Miss, you're thinking of entering that kind of life-or-death tournament? Even we wouldn't dare go near—"
SMACK—
Hoshino kicked a metal can straight at the scumbag's head. "Too much yapping. Just answer my question honestly! And stop calling me Miss, you noobs."
"Yes, Boss!" The two immediately stood up straight, showing the utmost respect. "About the underground dueling arena, we only know a little."
From their mouths, Hoshino learned that there was a place called the "Valkyrie Mansion." On the surface, it looked like a regular entertainment venue offering holographic dueling systems for rent.
But after midnight, once it closed, the real operation began. Only the privileged few who paid a massive entry fee and had a representative duelist could enter the underground deathmatch arena hidden below.
Back at the hotel room arranged by Industrial Illusions, Hoshino finally took a deep breath and threw off her suffocating cloak. That level of disguise was necessary to avoid exposing her identity.
"How did it go, Hoshino-nee? Did you find any useful intel?"
Akasha, playing with her deck on the bed, greeted her cheerfully as she returned.
Last time they were in America, it was due to the Dartz incident, and they didn't have time to meet up. This time, hearing that Hoshino was coming again, Akasha had basically nagged her dad to death until he finally let her tag along.
After all, Hoshino was about to carry out a task that could be considered... "dangerous." Of course, that danger was relative to others—now that she had King Hassan as a bodyguard, she was basically ready to steamroll the underground arena.
"I got a lot of good info~ That trip to such a sketchy part of town wasn't for nothing."
Satisfied, Hoshino nodded. With the key information in hand, now all she had to do was wait until midnight.
"Oh right, Akasha-chan. Did you bring any money? I heard the tournament entry fee is pretty steep..."
This woman... has finally fallen far enough to ask a girl for cash.
(*****)
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