The enormous Thunder Dragonlord glared down at Hikaru and Atticus, its massive body casting a shadow over several mountains.
Atticus coughed awkwardly, trying to speak, but was immediately struck by a bolt of lightning from the Thunder Dragonlord. He let out a shocked cry, swaying in mid-air as his spirit companion hastily shielded him with its wings.
Seeing this, Hikaru hurriedly shouted, "O dragon! Please calm your fury! We did not come to disturb the young spirits on purpose!"
The Thunder Dragonlord heard his voice and lowered its massive head—a head so large it dwarfed Hikaru and his demon mount several times over. The intense electrical currents crackling nearby added both physical discomfort and psychological pressure, making it impossible for Hikaru to even consider lying.
"Humans, state your purpose."
The Thunder Dragonlord, though intimidating, wasn't unreasonable. After punishing Atticus a bit, it addressed Hikaru directly.
Hikaru exhaled a breath of relief. He didn't know what rank this spirit was, but given its size and power, it had undoubtedly reached a high level of cultivation. Avoiding conflict was certainly preferable.
He gave a simple explanation of their intentions.
"Warriors in pursuit of cards and rites, are you..."
The Thunder Dragonlord translated Hikaru's words—about students, duels, seeking spirits—into terms more palatable to spirits.
"Then, human warriors, you've clearly come to the wrong place."
"This is a sanctuary for young spirits to train and grow."
As it spoke, a bird-beast and a dragon spirit, each about the size of Phoenix Beast Gairuda, flew over. They saluted the Thunder Dragonlord and landed before the two duelists to explain the story of the [Mountain].
Long ago…
The spirit world was simple: mountain, sea, wilderness, grasslands. But as spirits evolved and more cards awakened, the world expanded, creating factional realms like Skyscraper or the Village of Spellcasters.
That was fine—many ancient spirits simply stayed in their original lands.
Until one day, violent upheavals struck the spirit realm. Rifts and fractures split it apart. Many factions searched for the cause but found nothing. Eventually, the world splintered into smaller dimensions.
To prevent further collapse and to protect the young, the Dragon, Thunder, and Winged-Beast Tribes allied. They enclosed the [Mountain] dimension with their own realms, keeping only fledgling spirits and rotating guardians inside. All other grown spirits and ritual duelists set out to uncover the truth.
This year, the Thunder Dragonlord served as [Mountain]'s warden.
Hence, spirits here able to conduct "Ritual Duels" were all guardians. They could not leave their post just to enter other dimensions.
Unless next year, when the rotation shifts—but then, they'd be gone from [Mountain].
'Awkward...' Hikaru scratched his head.
'...So this trip was pointless?'
"Hahaha! Thunder Dragonlord! There is one more possibility, right?!" Atticus, seeing the two guardians finish their tale and no more lightning coming his way, resumed his confidence with a loud laugh.
"One more possibility?" the dragon asked.
'Please no, Senpai…' Hikaru could already guess what Atticus was about to say.
"It's simple! Guardians! Let us duel you in front of the young spirits. If any spirit becomes interested and wants to see the human world or explore other realms, they can choose to come with us!"
Hikaru covered his face. 'You're targeting the kids now, seriously?!'
Atticus flashed a sparkling grin and a thumbs-up, like he was posing for a Funglow promo. "I don't need strong spirits—I just want fabulous ones!"
He pointed to Hikaru. "As for my companion—he's incredible!
He's a Fusion Duelist who seeks ultimate perfection! He dreams of spirits who believe in fusion, spirits filled with hope and vision for the future. Surely such spirits dwell within this mountain!"
You had to admit it—Atticus really knew how to spin a speech.
Even the Thunder Dragonlord paused to think.
"Don't judge me! I sometimes perform at kindergartens—Ah, that's like your world's [Mountain] but for children," Atticus added. "It's important to inspire them early, right?"
Even the lightning eased.
…The Thunder Dragonlord was actually thinking it over.
Hikaru, beside him, couldn't help but nod.
Coming to this dimension with Atticus had been the right call.
If he had brought Jaden, they'd probably have bailed the moment things got hard.
"Interesting… human. I accept your proposal," the Thunder Dragonlord finally said. "Call the children."
As it lowered its massive form, guards from all directions flew in—notifying or carrying young spirits to the gathering.
Hikaru and Atticus slowly descended as well.
Eventually, they reached a high ledge just above the ground.
By now, the Thunder Dragonlord had fully landed. Its enormous body coiled around mountains, vanishing into clouds.
In that moment, the entire [Mountain] seemed to flatten. Countless young spirits landed on its body—some ran, some flew, some slept, some even climbed its horns and tugged its whiskers. Yet the dragon only smiled affectionately.
Click, clickclickclick!
Atticus spammed the shutter button.
"Wowwwww!" He grinned at the photos. "I'm totally winning a photography award."
Meanwhile, a dragon and a bird warrior—strong and majestic—flew down to stand before Hikaru and Atticus.
The Thunder Dragonlord's voice echoed through the clouds:
"The rules of the Ritual Duel: a proper 2v2 tag duel. Both sides share a field, a graveyard, and a banished zone. Attacks may begin on the second turn."
"We are elite warriors of the [Mountain]. Human warriors, show our children your true duelist spirit."
The two guardians lit up their spirit duel disks.
"DUEL!"
[Guardians of the Mountain, LP: 8000]
[Duel Academy Students, LP: 8000]
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