Chapter 152

"Avada Kedavra!"

Gravekeeper's Curse raised its rod in both hands, golden energy rippling up its arms once more as it began the chant again.

The Gravekeeper Elder felt the pain flare through his skull a second time.

His Life Points, 2300 LP, ticked down again, settling at 1800 LP.

But he already knew what was coming next.

The cannon.

Seeing the shape of things, the Gravekeeper Elder hastily threw up his hands in surrender, calling out to Rowan.

"Enough! I concede! I've lost this trial!"

Between Gravekeeper's Curse and the two other Gravekeeper monsters still sitting on the boy's field, Cannonholder alone could fire off three more blasts and wipe out every last one of his remaining 1800 LP.

Knowing the loss was already certain, the Elder had no desire to be tormented any further than he already had been...

"...Surrendering already? And here I still had one more surprise prepared. Never even got to open it."

Rowan, hearing this, let out a genuinely put-upon sigh.

He hadn't had nearly enough fun yet, thank you very much.

Then the Elder watched Rowan flip his last set card, and to his horror, it was the exact same Trap Card as before, the one that revived a Gravekeeper monster straight out of the Graveyard.

Rite of Spirit.

The Gravekeeper Elder's entire soul seemed to leave his body.

Another round of the double torment combo?!

So this kid hadn't been thinking about how to beat him faster at all.

He'd been thinking about how to drag the suffering out a little longer!

A whole string of curses rose up in the Elder's throat, though he wasn't entirely sure whether he should let them out.

He really, desperately wanted to ask Rowan one question. They were both Gravekeepers here.

So why did this kid have to be so much more sinister about it than any of them?

[Ding. Gravekeeper Elder's Emotion Points +1000!]

Hearing the chime, Rowan blinked in surprise.

This was the first time he'd seen Emotion Points still coming in after the duel's outcome had already been decided.

Was this one of the perks of Shadow Dueling against a Duel Spirit who could actually step onto the field in person?

For just a moment, it made Rowan a little reluctant to leave this world of Duel Monster spirits behind.

"Young man. You've passed the trial. That means your companion won't need to face me in a Shadow Duel after all."

By then the Gravekeeper Elder, leaning on a Spearman for support, had made his way down from the altar with Gravekeeper's Assailant and a handful of Foot Soldiers in tow, coming to a stop not far from where Rowan stood.

Alexis Rhodes, Professor Banner, and the others had already gathered around him.

"But as for a Shadow Charm capable of warding off the power of a Shadow Duel, the kind I gave young Jaden Yuki earlier... even as chief of the Gravekeepers, I don't have a second one to spare."

The Elder sounded genuinely apologetic.

By the ancient rules of the Gravekeeper clan, the reward for passing the trial had always been that disc-shaped pendant, the clan's one Shadow Charm.

He'd assumed the earlier Shadow Duelist, the one who'd already walked off with half of it, was a once-in-a-thousand exception.

He hadn't expected another one to show up so soon after.

It was absurd, frankly.

Especially since this boy hadn't even managed to land a single point of real damage on him.

"If there's genuinely nothing left, don't worry about it," Rowan said, waving a hand like it didn't matter to him either way.

He hadn't come out here chasing some reward in the first place.

And besides, he'd already made off with a considerable pile of Emotion Points from this Elder alone.

"No. This is a rule our clan has upheld for over a thousand years. A reward is still owed."

The Elder's face turned solemn, insistent.

"Though I can't say I understand the reason for it, since you happen to carry a Gravekeeper's Deck yourself... I wonder, would you consider staying here? Once you're a little older, you could succeed me as the next Gravekeeper Elder."

"And lead our clan toward a stronger, brighter future."

Rowan's eyelid twitched.

For a moment he genuinely had no idea how to respond to that.

Well. This was new.

Straight to heir apparent of an entire clan, was it?

"Absolutely not!"

Before Rowan could even open his mouth, Alexis blurted it out on reflex.

Even the perpetually squint-eyed Professor Banner and Jaden wore matching looks of open shock, and voiced the same objection a heartbeat later.

Alexis still had her hopes pinned on Rowan and Jaden being the ones to stop whoever was pulling the strings behind Seven Stars.

Jaden, for his part, was already thinking ahead to tuning his own deck, building up the confidence to properly duel Rowan himself someday.

If Rowan just stayed out here, wouldn't that mean neither of those things could ever happen?

Needless to say, Rowan wasn't agreeing to that. Not for a second. He shook his head flatly.

"Mister Gravekeeper, how about you swap that out for something a bit more reasonable."

"I'm really not interested in staying in the Duel Monster spirit world."

He had a perfectly good, comfortable dorm waiting for him back at Duel Academy.

Why would he trade that for guarding a temple out here with the Gravekeepers?

That sounded like a special kind of boredom.

And even as heir apparent, with some measure of authority handed to him, what would that actually be worth?

Especially with three suns baking down on this place. Rowan had zero interest in getting tanned as dark as the Elder and the rest of his people.

"I see. That's a shame, truly. Then let me offer you a different gift, one better suited to you."

The Elder let out a small, regretful sigh, then glanced toward the masked young woman standing nearby and gave her a nod.

He drew a single card from his Duel Disk's deck and held it out to Rowan.

On the card was a shadowed figure, wrapped head to toe in black robes and a masked hood, gripping a serpentine dagger.

A figure Rowan recognized immediately.

"This is...?!"

Rowan looked to the Elder, his expression turning strange, silently asking for confirmation.

"This is the card that houses Gravekeeper's Assailant. In the world you come from, she may not always be able to take physical form. But when you run into the power of a Shadow Duel, or find yourself in some kind of trouble, she may be able to offer you a warning, and some protection."

The Elder explained.

"Let her protection be your reward for passing the trial, and let her stay by your side as well, as a friendly envoy between you and our clan."