Was this what true genius looked like?
"You might truly have talent in alchemy."
"You flatter me, Sensei. I only followed your teaching and treated the card with care," Yugen replied with a grin.
In truth, it helped that he knew which direction to pursue. With countless Card in this world, no one else knew which ones still held untapped potential.
"By the way, Sensei, I tried making a few other cards as well."
Yugen quietly took out several more.
"Take a look. These two are also a little different from the usual versions."
Daidouji fell into complete Silence.
There are more?
Even someone as experienced as Daidouji was stunned.
After a long pause, he finally looked up and spoke slowly.
"Yugen."
"Yes, Sensei?"
"Have you ever considered becoming a professor?"
"?"
Yugen took out another card, Carbon Dragon. It was a cheap card to begin with, and he had been reminded of it when Daichi Misawa used it in a Duel before, so he chose it for testing.
In the original anime version, Carbon Dragon could activate while it was in the Graveyard and at least ten cards were stacked above it. By banishing it from the field, you could Special Summon Diamond Dragon from your hand or the Graveyard. However, Diamond Dragon was only a 2100 ATK Normal Monster, and the condition was troublesome while the summoning range was limited, making it awkward to use.
After upgrading it to its real card effect, the requirement of stacking ten cards in the Graveyard was removed. Now, simply banishing it from the Graveyard would activate the effect. The Summon target was no longer limited to Diamond Dragon but any Level 7 or lower Dragon Normal Monster, and it could even be Special Summoned from the Deck, which was a huge improvement.
The other card he presented was the Ritual Spell Machine Angel Ritual. Its first effect was standard, allowing you to perform a Ritual Summon by tributing monsters from your hand or field until their total Levels met or exceeded the Ritual Monster's Level, just like in the original work.
After a period of experimentation, he successfully added a hidden second effect to this Ritual Spell Card. If a LIGHT monster on his field would be Destroy by battle or card effect, he could instead banish this card from the Graveyard. That extra layer of protection against Destroy was a strong boost for the Cyber Angel Deck used by Asuka Tenjoin.
When the idea of strengthening Anime-Original Card first came to him, the first thing Yugen thought of was Cyber Angel. The Deck was sold in the Academy Department, and compared to its anime version, the real card route showed some of the most obvious upgrades. If developed along the real card path, the entire Deck had the potential to leap forward by a whole generation.
Naturally, his first attempt had been Cyber Angel-Cyber Angel Benten. In the real card version, Cyber Angel Benten could search any LIGHT Fairy monster from the Deck when it was used as a tribute, making it an extremely powerful core card. After only a few trials, he realized that researching this monster was far more difficult than expected.
He quickly concluded that, in general, Monster Cards were harder to develop than Spell and Trap Cards. The higher the Level and the stronger the monster, the more difficult the research became. In the end, he only managed to successfully upgrade this Ritual Spell Card.
Even so, it was enough to shock Daidouji-sensei. He adjusted his glasses and returned to his usual smiling expression.
"I didn't expect that Yugen is not only talented in Duel but also a genius in research," Daidouji said as he stroked the cat. "With just these results, you could already publish several solid papers. I am honestly jealous. I have been at Duel Academy for so long and still have not produced any results."
Yugen smiled. Here it was again, the expert pretending to be a beginner.
He did not expose him and simply said, "It is thanks to your guidance, Sensei. Actually, I have another idea. Do you think it would be possible for me to apply for my own laboratory at Duel Academy and maybe form a research team?"
Daidouji raised an eyebrow and tilted his head in thought. After a moment, he smiled again.
"No student has ever done that before. Someone like you is truly one of a kind at Duel Academy. But if you show the results you have already achieved, even the research division would be shocked. I see no reason they would refuse."
Duel Academy did have postgraduate programs. After graduating from the higher division of Duel Academy, students could continue their studies and possibly stay on as faculty members. Research and development required resources, funding, and often manpower.
Although Yugen could predict the potential of many cards thanks to his prior knowledge, he was still new to card creation and had limited personal energy. If he had his own laboratory with funding and resources from Duel Academy, he could save money and effort while greatly increasing efficiency.
When Yugen left the alchemy lab, Daidouji continued stroking the cat and watched his back for a long time until he disappeared from sight. Only then did he smile faintly.
"The younger generation is truly impressive. Don't you think so, Pharaoh Atem?"
Pharaoh Atem replied with a soft meow.
It was not until two days before the team Duel that Yugen finally synchronized Deck lists with Judai Yuki. He handed over a card.
"Judai Yuki, put this in."
Judai Yuki looked at it and immediately showed a puzzled expression. The card made no obvious sense to him.
"But this does not seem to work well with my Heros," Judai Yuki said hesitantly.
Yugen narrowed his eyes. As if you would ever brick anyway.
Seeing that Judai Yuki was reluctant, he patiently explained his tactical setup and reasoning. At first, Judai Yuki nodded with a confused look, but as he listened further, his expression grew more excited and his eyes began to shine.
"Wait, you can Duel like that?" Judai Yuki said eagerly. "That sounds really fun!"
"Right?" Yugen replied with a grin.
As expected, Judai Yuki was the type who thought in terms of playing cards. As long as he could feel the joy of Duel, especially in a new way he had never tried before, he would gladly cooperate.
"Got it!" Judai Yuki happily accepted the card. "Then when the time comes, let's work together perfectly and shock them all. Just imagining their stunned faces sounds great."
"Exactly," Yugen said with a smile. "Oh, and one more thing. After the Duel, do not forget that."
"Forget what?"
"Your catchphrase," Yugen said. "'That was a really fun Duel.' I am sure after it is over, they will also understand the joy of Duel."
"Oh, that," Judai Yuki laughed. "Of course I will not forget."
"Yes," Yugen nodded. "You should always play Duel with a smile."
"Exactly."
Judai Yuki looked at him with growing approval. "I always thought we might get along better than expected. My intuition is usually spot on."
"Seems like it."
The setting sun painted the sky in deep orange and red, like flames dancing along the horizon. The two of them sat side by side on the hillside, their shadows stretched long by the fading light.