When Camula mentioned that "unknown force invading the Spirit World," Hikaru Amagi honestly had no clue what she was talking about.
After all, in the Yu-Gi-Oh! universe, there weren't that many entities capable of pulling something like that off… but the few that could were all incomprehensibly terrifying.
What if that "unknown invader" she spoke of… was Yubel?
Because in this world, Jaden hadn't launched his cards into space—he'd sent them into another dimension.
Who's to say Yubel didn't receive some twisted upgrade and was now running wild in the Spirit World, all to reunite with Jaden ?
Hikaru absolutely believed Yubel was capable of that kind of chaos.
But the problem was…
"I literally cannot imagine winning against Yubel.jpg"
Before he got isekai'd, the image of Yubel the Phantom, a Fusion Monster that didn't even need Polymerization—just showing Yubel and a 0 ATK/0 DEF Demon returning to the Deck—had scarred him for life.
Say what you will, Fusion was the most noble form of summoning.
But if he had to duel that version of Yubel in real life? He'd rather just slap down Super Polymerization and pray.
In the anime, even Jaden was on the back foot against Yubel, and he only survived by fusing with her, forcibly resolving the conflict by becoming one.
Sure, the cards in this world weren't that broken yet. But still, the scheming, the mind games—Yubel was a top-tier manipulator in GX lore. A final boss mentally and tactically.
After the duel with the Vampire Heiress, the students rushed Hikaru and Zane to the infirmary. Zane hadn't gone all out, but he was still injured. Proper treatment was a must.
Hikaru, on the other hand, had performed three kamikaze-style attacks. He wasn't as bad as when Darkness messed him up, but still—bruises, lacerations, minor fractures. He needed rest.
On the way, Hikaru dropped by to check on Professor Crowler. The man looked good—completely recovered and grinning ear to ear as students praised his valiant efforts. Occasionally, he'd slip in some humblebrags, trying to sound modest while flexing how cool he was.
Seeing him act so proud and ridiculous again was oddly comforting.
Later, Hikaru checked over his deck.
In the original story, after Chazz defeated the Dark Scorpions, their spirits joined him. But in this world, no way the vampires would let their second-in-command tag along with a human duelist. So all Hikaru got were the cards for the Vampire Enchantress and the Heiress—no spirits.
Zane wasn't interested in them, so he just gave them to Hikaru.
Worth noting—one of the Vampire Heiress's cards had a weird three-dimensional pattern. Hikaru guessed it might be the coordinate marker of the Vampire Dimension.
Honestly? Even with the life point costs, the Vampire Heiress would be a great card in this era.
But considering how few Fusion monsters exist for Zombies, he couldn't justify running her right now. Maybe someday—when he was stronger and had more confidence—he'd pay a visit to that dimension.
He wasn't into spirit girls or anything. He just really didn't want to see the Heiress turned into some gross skeletal dragon or undead berserker.
He carefully sorted through his deck—then blinked.
"…Uh. Seven Cities of the Golden Land?"
Apparently, his deck had changed.
He understood the logic of Super Polymerization. It always adapted to what kind of opponent he faced. So it wasn't too surprising that he'd gotten a "Zombie-specific Fusion" card.
Still…
There were only like seven Zombie Fusion Monsters in his timeline!
Even weirder—he didn't have any Eldlich cards.
But still—more backrow removal wasn't a bad thing. He could make use of it later.
"Whoa! Master! The guy on this card is hot!" The Alchemist Spirit leapt out of the card he lived in, pointing at the artwork of Eldlich the Golden Lord, eyes shining.
"If you ever manage to transmute real gold, maybe you'll meet him. Get to work." Hikaru answered without missing a beat.
Eldlich the Mad Golden Lord was a strong Fusion Monster. If he could use it, he definitely would.
As Hikaru flipped through cards, feeling their textures and planning upgrades, elsewhere, people were talking about him.
"Two Seven Stars... defeated already?"
Inside the Fusion Department's top office, Reiji Akaba sat behind a massive desk, video conferencing with two figures.
The left screen showed a massive incubation chamber. An elderly man floated inside, hooked to wires, oxygen mask covering his face, bubbles rising with each breath.
The right screen showed a cloaked man in a mask—eyes glowing with eerie golden light.
If Hikaru had seen this… he'd immediately recognize the man.
It was Professor Banner—Amnael himself.
"Apologies," said the masked man with a respectful bow. "It seems the two candidates I chose weren't up to your expectations. I didn't anticipate how much they'd grown."
"Armnile, it's not your fault," croaked the old man through the machine. His voice rasped through static and wires. "The mysterious Darkness was one thing, but that vampire girl? A powerful spirit from another dimension—and she lost. Even I was shocked."
"More concerning," he added, eyes narrowing behind his mask, "is that both times, the same duelist was involved."
Truthfully, he didn't care about win or loss.
What annoyed him was this—every Seven Star Duel so far had involved the same person.
"I'd like to offer a theory," Akaba said calmly, hands folded on the desk.
"Oh? Dr. Akaba, what's your insight?" Banner tilted his head.
"In both Seven Star encounters, one duelist appeared in both—Hikaru Amagi," Akaba continued. "And besides him, the other participant—Zane Truesdale—is also suspicious."
"Explain," the old man rasped.
"They're both disciples of Dr. Crowler."
"??????????" Banner tilted his head so far it practically unscrewed.
"Zane Truesdale is the pride of the Blue Dorm. Hikaru Amagi is a master of the Ancient Gear archetype—one of the few with access to Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem. In truth, both are hand-picked by Crowler."
"Wait, is… is that true?" Banner blinked.
Why didn't I know that?
"Armnile, you haven't interacted with Crowler enough to notice," Akaba said. "He plays the meek fool, but in reality, he's full of cunning."
"HUH?!" Banner nearly fell out of his seat.
What? He'd known Crowler for years! He could slap ten of him around without breaking a sweat!
And besides—Hikaru was his student! His!!
"In short," Akaba concluded, "Crowler must've realized something. So he deployed his own students into these duels—preventing anyone else from interfering."
"I can't believe it…" the old man muttered, bubbles erupting in his tank. "So even Crowler turned out to be that capable of a professor? Then… what are you suggesting?"
"Simple," Akaba replied, gaze sharp.
"We'll create an event—something they must attend. An official, public reason to remove them from interfering with the Seven Stars."
Privately, Akaba had his own reasons—but he didn't voice them.
"Hmm… I see. As expected of you, Dr. Akaba. My most trusted scientist." The old man nodded, bubbles fizzling with satisfaction.
An alchemist like Armnile.
A genius scientist like Akaba Reiji.
With the two of them, immortality was within reach.
"Very well. I'll set it up.
The Dimensional Exchange Duel, restricted to only the academy's most elite students."