The next day, Yugen woke up early.
He brought his already packed luggage, various types of dueling mats, several completed decks, and a backup super-extended side deck of nearly a hundred cards that he carried with him.
He boarded the special charter plane for new students dispatched by Duel Academy, flying towards the legendary new student sanctuary, where Duel Academy was located.
One couldn't deny that President Kaiba's investment in the academy was lavish. The island's area was quite large. In the second year of the Anime, when Judai returned after wandering with his new Elemental Hero deck, he literally got lost on the island for many days, unable to find the school. Moreover, throughout the series, this island also concealed ancient ruins, secret research facilities, and other structures.
So, although it was a school, it seemed to be at least the size of a small town.
As the plane approached, Yugen peered through the airplane window at the island's environment. From above, he observed the shape of the entire small island, its lush green forests, and the huge volcano behind it. He couldn't shake the feeling that he had seen it somewhere else.
A light flashed in Yugen's mind, and he suddenly remembered something.
Wait a minute, this aerial view... Why does it look so much like "Fire King's Island"?
[Fire King's Island] is a core Field Spell card for the [Fire King] archetype, but there shouldn't be such a thing in the GX Anime.
Previously, Yugen hadn't noticed at all. It was only now, as he personally flew over Duel Academy, that he first realized the Duel Academy island looked ten-tenths, perhaps even nine-tenths, similar to that card's artwork.
It must be a coincidence. Right?
At nine in the morning, the new students gathered in the auditorium to attend the opening ceremony and listen to Principal Samejima's welcoming speech.
"Welcome, all dueling elites."
Principal Samejima stood on the podium, smiling into the microphone.
"All of you have, by your strength, opened the narrow door to arrive here."
"Snore snore snore~ snore snore snore~"
The snoring from the front row drew glances from the surrounding students.
Yugen didn't even need to look to guess it was his classmate, Yuki Judai. He had fallen asleep the moment the principal uttered his second sentence.
But to be fair, Yugen truly admired Judai's talent. Because during the new student orientation, everyone stood in front of the podium, and Judai was standing quite close to the front.
Not to mention facing the pressure from the school leaders, and being able to ignore the loud noise from the huge speakers, the mere fact that he could sleep while standing was already Judai's unique skill.
Thud.
It seemed Judai was a bit off his game, as he directly tilted and fell, causing quite a commotion.
Professor Cronos behind him couldn't bear it: "The principal is giving a speech, anone (hello)! Bad student, are you lacking calcium, anone (hello)!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Judai sat up, rubbing his head with a laugh. "Just a minor mistake."
Cronos was so furious that his old face turned from a Pot of Greed into a Jar of Greed—instantly swelling red.
What the hell, a minor mistake? You sleep during the principal's speech, and after getting caught, your first reaction isn't to apologize and regret, but to reflect on how you shouldn't have made the mistake of getting caught, right?
But just as he was about to erupt, he heard Principal Samejima laugh heartily again: "Oh, don't be angry on the first day, Teacher Cronos. The students are tired from their journey; a little fatigue is understandable."
So Cronos had to temporarily swallow his anger.
After Judai stood up, he started dozing off again, but for the rest of the ceremony, Cronos's gaze barely left him.
Yugen suddenly understood why the professor disliked Judai so much in the early stages.
He was personally uninvolved, didn't pay attention in class, didn't do homework, and yet was exceptionally good at dueling, easily making other students look up to him.
Cronos's methods were somewhat extreme, but his motivations were not entirely incomprehensible.
The opening ceremony concluded, and the new students, guided by the academy, received their respective uniforms, student IDs, and other items. Senior students volunteering as escorts were responsible for guiding the new students through a series of procedural steps, then leading them to their dormitories.
Yugen was unsurprised to receive the Ra Yellow uniform and student ID.
In fact, before going to the island, he had wondered if President Kaiba would be petty enough to exile him to the Red Dorm just because he dueled his Blue-Eyes AI. After all, the President was narrow-minded; Jonouchi had once defeated the President's Blue-Eyes White Dragon in Battle City, and the President had been calling him "Commoner, commoner" ever since.
However, reality proved that President Kaiba wasn't that petty, not to the extent of bothering with such trivial matters.
Yugen, who entered the academy with the top score, was naturally assigned to the Ra Yellow dormitory and became a promising candidate for the fastest promotion to Obelisk Blue.
If dorm levels were just a title, Yugen wouldn't mind; even being last wouldn't matter. But higher-ranked dorms not only offered priority in buying cards but also had better dining halls, better chefs, and top-notch single rooms. The hardware and facilities were undoubtedly more comfortable.
In contrast, the Red Dorm was small and old, and its cafeteria was despised by almost everyone except the surprisingly bony Judai. Living there would truly be a pain in the ass.
While the Yellow Dorm wasn't as luxurious as Obelisk Blue, at least it had single rooms, and the facilities were decent. At least Yugen was quite satisfied when he saw his single room.
After moving his luggage into the room, the first day quickly passed with simple cleaning and organizing.
The first evening's dinner was the new students' meeting time for their respective dorms, and also the time for new students to meet their dorm leaders.
Yugen recalled vaguely that in the original work, the Osiris Red dorm leader was Professor Daitokuji, who appeared to be a clueless and incompetent fool but was actually a hidden dark duelist, the strongest in the academy.
The Obelisk Blue dorm leader was greedy. Oh, no, it was Professor Cronos, whose presence was always very strong.
But the Ra Yellow dorm leader... Who was it?
"..."
"WAAAH HAHAHAHAHAHA—"
At the new student dinner, all the students stared dumbfounded at the man with a paper bag on his head and the character "Curry" written on his chest, striking a pose extremely similar to the energetic superhero in Shin-chan, laughing loudly.
"I am the Curry Demon, your dorm leader!"
"Subdue yourselves under the power of Curry!"
New students: "???"
This thing is our dorm leader?
The new students exchanged bewildered glances, and couldn't help but see the confusion in each other's eyes, along with deep concern for the future of their assigned dorm.
Yugen: "..."
Now he remembered.
The Yellow Dorm leader was Professor Kabayama, a fervent curry enthusiast.
He even used a Curry deck – an Anime-exclusive deck, not a single card of which has ever been made into a real card.
"Ahem, my name is Kabayama, and I am your dorm leader. First, on behalf of Ra Yellow Dorm, I welcome each and every one of you. As new students assigned to the Yellow Dorm, each of you is an elite among elites.
Normally, we would have each new student introduce themselves or perform a small talent.
But! This is Duel Academy, and everything is decided by duels! So, this is what I'm about to say, and it also serves as your first test after enrollment—"
He swung his hand, and his Curry cape fluttered.
"Duel!"