episode_0386

***

Where do the first memories in life begin?

5 years old. Her answer will always be the same.

“Hello~ You are Bloni. I am the lady who moved in next door today.”

“Hello.”

When the woman gave a belly greeting with an awkward pronunciation, the woman burst into laughter.

“Okay, nice to meet you. Now…and this is the lady’s son!”

The woman pointed to holding her hand tightly. He was a boy with flawless skin and large, impressive eyes.

“Hello. Nice to meet you!”

Spring fell on Bloney’s face as he was greeted by a boy who smiled bravely and showed his teeth.

“Ah, hello. I’m a blondie.”

Bloney twisted his fingers through his shoulder-length blue hair.

Where do the first memories in life begin?

5 years old. Her first memory was from meeting him.

The two walked around holding hands wherever they went, and didn’t pay any attention to the teasing from the neighborhood kids.

On the contrary, the two of them seemed to have been stimulated by the teasing and started playing house together.

He was always the husband and Bloney was the wife.

When Bloney placed the round clay on an old plastic plate and shouted that it was a delicious cookie, he held it up and pretended to eat it deliciously.

“Honey. You will always be by my side, right?”

If a boy imitates words he heard somewhere without knowing the weight of words,

“Yes, I will always be by your side and protect you.”

The girl smiled brightly and answered the words.

Bloney’s heart was pounding even in this game where she only imitated her mother and father.

It was after her childhood that she realized the true nature of her heartbeat.

***

Their relationship started as friends next door and developed into school friends.

She and he went to the same middle school and went to school together every day.

Although we didn’t hold hands like we used to when walking around the neighborhood, Bloney wasn’t particularly disappointed.

Because he was always by her side.

“Where are you going after school today?”

Since our classes are different, we part ways and ask.

“Ah, the kids decided to stay and duel together today.”

Dual. It was a game that appeared a few years ago and gained sensational popularity.

At one point she thought this would end up being a seasonal fad. However, her expectations were spectacularly wrong.

It began to spread at a rapid pace, regardless of generation or gender.

“Okay, then have fun. I’ll go home first.”

All club activities have been suspended due to duels. With nothing to do, she went straight home after school.

“Now, how about dueling with Blonny too?”

He opened his eyes brightly and brought his face closer, and Bloney blushed and averted his gaze.

“I don’t know much about dueling yet. A little later.”

“I can teach you… Anyway, I understand. Then let’s go home and see you.”

In the past, he would have prioritized himself over other commitments… but Blonny felt pushed out by Duel.

“This trend needs to pass quickly… but it doesn’t seem to be cooling down.”

I thought as I watched his back moving away.

***

[At the Infinite Development Party convention held today, Rep. Jeong Do-ple was elected as the party representative. Meanwhile, Rep. Laburin, the leader of the Hamtteok Party, argued that dueling should be made more part of daily life and proposed a constitutional amendment to give voting rights only to citizens with certified decks.]

The world is going crazy.

[This is urgent breaking news. A terrible crime has occurred in downtown Doremish where a passerby was attacked and attempted to steal a deck and run away. The criminal is on the run, and the police are tracking him to arrest him.]

Duel is ruining the world.

[Conflicts surrounding marriage predictions have been intensifying recently. There is an increasing number of cases where the rare cards brought by the bride’s family are actually Ghouls (counterfeit) cards that cannot be used in official duels.]

Common sense breaks down.

In a rapidly changing world, Bloney’s spirit gradually became impoverished.

The duel craze did not stop. It spread out into the world and began to dominate the universe.

Everything begins to change to a dual focus.

A store that sold cute fancy goods began selling dueling supplies, and a school that taught various subjects was transformed into a dueling academy.

Robbers steal cards more than money, and people carry decks instead of ID cards.

“This is not normal.”

It was Bloney’s habit.

Everything around her goes crazy.

“Bloni, it’s me.”

And ‘him’ was included in all of that.

It’s been a week since I was locked in my room. He came to see her.

“What’s going on?”

A man and a woman face each other on a doorstep.

“The lady called me and I came. You haven’t come out of your room lately… What’s going on?”

“Nothing. Just go back. Go have a duel with your friends.”

Bloney spit out sharp words and closed his eyes.

She didn’t want to say anything that would hurt him, but she was at her limit.

“Is it because of me…?”

Her childhood friend, who seemed to be about to leave shouting for a duel, asked her.

“…What?”

Bloney’s voice was gruff.

“Well… last time we ‘fused’… I was wondering if I had offended you…”

“Don’t call it fusion!!!!”

“Blony?”

“Don’t say fusion!!!! Don’t even bring up Duel’s Duza in front of me! I’m sick of it! This world is crazy! Is it a duel, is it a card, is it deploying, is it a trap, is it not, is it in the graveyard, is it not, is it a side deck, is it a gold zeny? please! please! please! In front of me!! Don’t talk about dueling!!!”

A muffled voice rang through the house.

Her childhood friend left home with the promise of the next time.

As Bloney watched her lover walking away from the window, she burst into tears.

It was that night that a voice came to her.

***

After crying a lot and falling asleep repeatedly, she ended up greeting a guest at dawn when everyone else was asleep.

It came in through the window, as faint as morning fog.

It spoke to the wary Bloney about the truth of the world, and for a moment she had to seriously consider whether she was crazy.

“So that ‘dual’ thing is ruining this world?”

“That’s right. Do you really think this world is normal right now?”

The sound of an animal purring was heard.

“No. This world is crazy.”

“Then, accept me. I am a being that was sealed a long time ago.”

“How did it get sealed?”

“Dual, who was afraid of my power, tricked me and sealed me. Thanks to this, its power is growing without restrictions.”

It’s like a kind of faith. said the voice.

“How can I trust you?”

“Instead of believing in myself, I should believe in my purpose.”

“Your purpose?”

“My goal is to get revenge on ‘Dual’. If I risk my existence and use power, it will surely disappear.”

“If Duel disappears, will this world return to its original state?”

“Yes.”

“…….”

Bloney hesitated. Appear out of nowhere and fight the world with him. Who can readily claim to know?

“Blony. Shouldn’t you get back the things you cherish?”

A voice spoke to her as she worried.

[honey. You will always be by my side, right?]

[Yes, I will always be by your side and protect you.]

Precious memories of old times come to mind. Bloney looked up at the floating entity in the room.

“…Okay. So what should I do now?”

“Play the ‘Game of Death’ against people with the deck I created and win. All you have to do is build up your strength and beat the guy with the strongest dueling power.”

“It’s simple.”

“The simpler the theory, the more difficult it is to realize.”

The voice spoke calmly.

“…I understand. I will be your sword.”

Bloney held out his hand. A whitish figure moved and took her hand.

A strange sensation began to creep over her.

“But, I didn’t ask for your name.”

Bloney asked, feeling his vision getting blurry.

“Although it has been erased from my records, I have been called many names.”

A voice spoke, recalling the past.

“I am a provocation that blocks the enemy,

It’s a rush that hits the center,

It’s an agile quick attack,

A protective shield from the sky,

It is a shout announcing war,

The end will be an echo.

I am right, I am created,

It’s someone’s 12 o’clock,

I am prayer.”

Call me stone game.

After the voice finished speaking, Bloney closed his eyes.