Chapter 103 – The Grand Prix is Approaching

The second edition of the Duel Monsters Grand Prix was now only a month away.

Alexander was taking his flight back to Los Angeles with Roland and Elizabeth after his successful meeting with ESPN's executives, meanwhile across the country, hundreds of qualified Duelists were preparing themselves for the biggest tournament of the year.

Some were practising, some were studying their cards, some were simply looking forward to the trip, and some had no idea just how much the game had already changed their lives.

In San Francisco, California, the small bell above the door of the small hobby store named Lucky Games chimed as another customer entered.

"Welcome!"

The voice belonged to the owner, an elderly man in his late fifties who immediately returned his attention to the group of children gathered around one of the tables.

The store was relatively small, but practically every available space had been dedicated to Duel Monsters.

Booster packs lined the shelves. Deck boxes and card sleeves occupied the counters. Posters of famous cards decorated the walls. And, most importantly, tables had been arranged throughout the store so customers could actually play.

The owner couldn't have been happier with the arrangement.

After all, Duel Monsters wasn't merely his business, but it had become his favourite hobby.

Dante Venturi leaned against the counter, watching another duel unfold before a little boy standing nearby held up a card and asked, "Mister, what does this card do?"

Dante took a quick look at the card and smiled before he replied, "Ah, Shift? Its effect activates when your opponent targets exactly 1 monster you control for an attack, or with a Spell/Trap effect; then you can target another monster you control that would be an appropriate target and make that attack/Spell/Trap now target the new target. Basically, this card is good if you have more monsters on the field and want to protect one of them."

After he patiently explained the card, the child nodded, thanked him, and returned to the table to play with his friends.

Shortly after that, another child soon asked another question, then another one.

Dante answered every one of them with the patience of someone who genuinely enjoyed sharing what he knew.

It was hard to believe that barely more than a year ago, his life had been almost completely different.

Then the bell above the door rang again.

This time, a much more familiar voice echoed through the store.

"Grandpa! I'm back!"

Dante's smile immediately grew as he greeted the young girl, "Lucia!"

A young girl rushed toward him, and Dante stepped out from behind the counter and embraced her before he said, "Welcome home."

Lucia was around twelve years old.

She had pale, almost pure-white skin, straight black hair and striking blue eyes, but the most unusual feature of her appearance, however, was the black circular marking covering her left eye and extending partially across that side of her face.

It gave the impression of a dark domino piece resting against her skin.

It was certainly an unusual appearance, and unfortunately, unusual appearances could sometimes attract unwanted attention. Lucia had experienced her fair share of that, but she had learned not to let it bother her, and right now, she had more important things to worry about.

She smiled brightly and asked, "Can I play?"

Dante laughed and said, "Of course."

Lucia immediately ran toward the other children.

Within moments, she had joined one of the tables, shuffled her deck and began preparing for a duel. Her face was bright with excitement.

Dante watched her for a moment, then smiled warmly.

There had been a time when he couldn't have imagined seeing something like this.

A happy child. A thriving store. A family. A life. A year ago, he had barely had any of those things.

Dante had been a gambler.

A very good one, perhaps too good, as he rarely lost, and casinos had eventually stopped welcoming him, while some had outright banned him, but by then, gambling had ceased to be a game and it had become an addiction.

After losing his wife, Dante had thrown himself into gambling and drinking, using both to drown the pain and his daughter, Beatrice, had suffered because of it.

He had become increasingly distant from her until eventually there had barely been a relationship left to preserve.

The worst part was that Dante had known what he was doing, but he simply hadn't cared enough to stop, as he had been too busy drowning in his own grief.

After the casinos stopped accepting him, he drifted. For years, he lived in San Francisco using the money he'd accumulated during his gambling days; then, about a year ago, something unexpectedly changed his life.

Duel Monsters.

He remembered the first time he'd seen it. He was walking through a park when he stumbled upon a group of children who had been playing the game.

At first, he'd only been curious, then he'd watched.

The cards, the strategies, the tension, the excitement when someone drew exactly what they needed.

There was something familiar about it.

That same faint spark he'd once felt while gambling, but this was different.

There was no money changing hands.

No desperation, no need to destroy yourself to feel alive.

The children were simply having fun, and somehow, watching them reminded Dante of someone: his daughter.

For the first time in years, he looked at his own life and realised what he'd done.

The regret had been overwhelming, so Dante made a decision that he would change.

He stopped drinking. He stopped gambling. He bought this little store, and he dedicated it to Duel Monsters.

The more he learned about the game, the more he loved it.

It wasn't merely gambling with cards; there was strategy, planning, risk, adaptation, and most importantly, there was competition without the destructive obsession that had consumed him.

He even tried contacting Beatrice.

He apologised; he asked her to forgive him, but he received no response.

For a while, Dante assumed that was simply how things would remain, but then, about a month later, Beatrice appeared outside his store with a child, Lucia.

Dante still remembered that day clearly.

Beatrice had explained that Lucia was her biological daughter, but Lucia's existence was far more complicated than that.

She had been born as part of a top-secret government breeding program, a project intended to create the perfect weapon.

Lucia had been the only surviving test subject, and even then, she had been considered a failure, so the people behind the project wanted her eliminated.

Beatrice couldn't allow that.

She had participated in the project; she was already too deeply involved to simply walk away, but she could still save her daughter, so she broke Lucia out, and then she brought her to Dante, and she asked him to take care of her.

Dante had accepted immediately.

He had also apologised to Beatrice, properly this time. He told her that he couldn't undo the past, but if she ever needed him, he would be there.

For the first time in years, father and daughter began rebuilding their relationship, then Beatrice left.

The beginning hadn't been easy.

Dante and Lucia had been strangers. He was an old man trying to figure out how to raise a twelve-year-old girl, and she was a child who had spent most of her life under circumstances no child should ever have experienced, but Duel Monsters had given them something they could share.

Dante taught Lucia. Lucia taught Dante.

They played together; they watched and participated in local tournaments, even organised a few; they discussed cards, and eventually, without either of them noticing exactly when it happened, they became family.

Lucia had even encouraged Dante to participate in the first Grand Prix, and he did, and somehow, the old gambler who had spent years destroying his own life had made it all the way to the semifinals.

Now the second Grand Prix was approaching, and this time, Lucia would participate as well.

Dante looked toward the table where his granddaughter was playing while thinking, 'I can't wait for it... But not because I expect either of us to win. Well... I certainly won't complain if we do. But because I'm going to Los Angeles with my granddaughter, spending more time and having fun with her. Hopefully giving her a childhood that she can look back on with a satisfied and happy smile in future. That alone is enough.'

~~~▽~~~

In a suburban house in Glenville, a small town on Long Island, New York, a pair of siblings are casually talking with each other.

The older one is a pretty, slender 16-year-old girl with long blonde hair and clear blue eyes. She has a naturally composed, thoughtful air about her, though there's still plenty of teenage warmth and curiosity beneath it.

She is dressed casually in everyday clothes: a pair of jeans and a white, comfy T-shirt.

The younger one is a lively, energetic 10-year-old boy with tousled blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He's small for his age, with an unmistakably mischievous expression and the restless energy of a kid who is always looking for something interesting to do.

The girl sighed before she asked, "Do you really have to go, Johnny?"

Across from her, her younger brother barely looked up from his deck as he replied, "Yes."

"I mean, do we really have to come too?"

Johnny shrugged, "I can't go on my own... Come on, It's only for the weekend, Sue."

He carefully checked another card before placing it back into his deck, then added, "And Industrial Illusions is covering all the expenses."

Sue folded her arms and said, "That doesn't make it less boring."

"It could be a small vacation."

"You're going to spend the entire time playing cards."

"Yeah." Johnny grinned and said, "It sounds like a good vacation to me. And maybe you can find some other handsome guy to swoon over instead of that annoying dude at Aunt's boarding house."

Suddenly, Johnny grin became even wider as he added, "In fact, I heard that the creator of the game is quite handsome himself, and he is your age too. Maybe you should try it; if it works, I could have unlimited booster packs."

In response, Sue simply rolled her eyes and huffed while thinking, 'Johnny is 10, and somehow, he has managed to become completely obsessed with Duel Monsters. I still don't understand the appeal of that game. They are simple cards. You summon monsters. You attack. You play another card. Then somebody wins. What exactly is supposed to be so fascinating about it?'

She then looked at her little brother once again, focusing on his deck and thought, 'Johnny, however, can talk about Duel Monsters for hours. He is currently preparing for the second Duel Monsters Grand Prix after qualifying through the New York Duel Monsters Cup. Technically, he hasn't won. He hasn't even reached the final. He had just made the Top 8.'

Johnny didn't seem particularly bothered when she told him that, "You never know how a duel is going to end."

Sue raised an eyebrow and asked, "You're seriously expecting to win?"

"Why not?"

"Because you didn't win New York."

"So?"

Johnny shrugged and said, "I still made Top 8."

Sue couldn't help sighing once more, "Haa... You're impossible."

Johnny grinned, "Maybe."

He put his deck away, "Besides, the game isn't just luck."

"I thought you just said you need luck."

"You need both." He held up one finger. "Strategy..."

Then another, "...And luck."

He smiled, "But you never know which one is going to matter more."

Sue shook her head, "You've been playing too much."

Johnny ignored her.

After all, there was something else worth thinking about: the prize money.

Their parents were gone, and Aunt Marygay had been taking care of them ever since.

She had done everything she could, and she didn't make them miss anything, but if Johnny somehow managed to win, the prize would help. That alone made the trip worthwhile.

Sue also knew that, which was probably why she finally sighed one last time and said, "Fine."

Johnny smiled and asked, "Really?"

"Yes."

She pointed at him, "But I'm not becoming one of your Duel Monsters friends."

Johnny laughed, "Hehehe... We'll see..."

~~~▽~~~

Elsewhere in a park in Chicago, Illinois, two men were jogging through a park.

One was a fit Caucasian young man in his mid-twenties with short, neatly styled brown hair and an approachable, clean-cut appearance. He has an athletic build suited to regular exercise, though he carries himself with more understated confidence than swagger.

While jogging through the park, he's dressed in practical running clothes: lightweight, grey athletic shorts, a breathable white T-shirt, and running shoes.

Even while exercising, there's something composed and attentive about him, as though he's always quietly taking in his surroundings.

The other was a tall, muscular Black man with a closely cropped haircut and a naturally imposing presence. Slightly older than his friend, he has the confident, disciplined bearing of someone who takes both his physical fitness and his abilities seriously.

He's dressed in simple athletic gear for their run: black running shorts, a fitted black T-shirt, and sturdy running shoes, but his most notable attire was, without doubt, the eyepatch over his left eye. Compared with his friend's more restrained demeanour, the man tended to project greater physical confidence and intensity, though he still appeared to be rather relaxed.

The man with the eyepatch kept looking ahead as he commented, "I still can't believe you're wasting your leave for that, Cheese."

His brother-in-arms ignored the use of his old callsign and kept his pace as he casually asked, "What do you mean, Marcus? For what?"

"A card game tournament." He snorted, "That's a kid's game, motherfucker."

The other man laughed, "Come on, it's not a kid's game."

"That's exactly what a guy playing a kid's game would say."

"It actually has a lot of strategic depth."

"Uh-huh."

"And it's fun."

The bald man glanced at him, "You've been trying to convince me for weeks."

"And I'm still right."

"No."

"Have you even tried it?"

"No."

"Then how do you know?"

"Because they're motherfucking fantasy cards!"

Cheese laughed, "You're impossible."

Marcus shrugged, "I have better things to do with my free time."

"Such as?"

"Anything else."

They continued jogging.

For a moment, neither said anything, then the Cheese smiled and said, "Still, you should try it."

"No."

"One duel."

"No."

"Just one."

"Absolutely not."

"Come on, you enjoyed Star Wars..."

"Those movies about space nazis missing every freaking shot!?"

"See... You remember it!"

Seeing Marcus glaring at him with his one eye, Cheese laughed and said, "Fine."

Then he increased his pace slightly and added, "Your loss."

Marcus followed and quipped back, "You're the one wasting his leave on a card game tournament."

"Maybe... The boss thought it was a good idea."

Hearing that, Marcus frowned a bit before he said, "Is that so... Now, this is interesting..."

The two continued running through the park, their conversation gradually shifting toward other matters but still careful about keeping it vague enough that whoever may be listening wouldn't be able to gather anything significant from it.

At the same time, across America, hundreds of Duelists were preparing for the second edition of the Duel Monsters Grand Prix.

Some wanted glory, some wanted money, some wanted to have fun, some simply wanted to test themselves against the best, and some had no idea that participating in this tournament would eventually change the course of their lives.

The Grand Prix was approaching, and this time, the whole country would be watching.