Chancellor Sheppard personally escorted Hikaru Amagi and Dr. Crowler to the top floor of the Fusion Department, guided by one of the students. There, standing before the portal array, was none other than Professor Declan Akaba.
When he saw his direct superior approach with a friendly wave, Declan Akaba remained impassive, returning the greeting with a simple nod. Outwardly calm… but inwardly?
A storm was brewing.
Crowler?!That slippery old goat…
Akaba's expression didn't change, but his mind was whirring like a duel disk on overdrive.
He had come to Duel Academy with a grand plan, taking the position of Fusion Department head under direct invitation from the board of directors. He was confident in his success—this was a school full of naïve students, self-absorbed teachers obsessed with their pet philosophies, and a chancellor so generous and gullible he'd believe anything with a smile.
A place like this? His schemes should've been foolproof.
Should've.
And yet… Vellian Crowler.
Petty. Pompous. Stingy. Timid. Vain. A coward obsessed with appearances. Akaba had never considered him a threat.
A "legendary duelist"? Please. The man lost to a Slifer Red freshman using his own deck during entrance exams. He wasn't worth even a passing thought.
…Or so he'd believed.
But now, standing there sweating bullets and trembling at the knees, Crowler had personally intervened when Akaba tried to target his so-called protégé. And what's more—he'd brought the chancellor.
Declan Akaba narrowed his eyes slightly, studying the pathetic-looking old man.
Could it all have been an act?Could this fool really be a legendary duelist in disguise?
If so… he was dangerous.
Still, Akaba wasn't the type to panic. His mind spun through alternatives.
His original plan had been simple: send Hikaru into a chaotic dimension, leave him there for a few days, and retrieve him later as a "rescue." The lingering effects would've knocked Hikaru out for months—more than enough time to erase his influence from the Fusion Department.
But now?
Crowler had not only sniffed out his intentions… he'd called in the chancellor and come along himself.
That meant one thing—he was trying to uncover the secrets of the Fusion Department.
Not a chance.
Akaba turned his gaze to Hikaru Amagi.
No known family. No clear background. Entered with a slapdash Fusion deck, scored only average on entrance exams—and then suddenly became the academy's first-year representative?
Impossible without guidance.
Akaba's eyes scanned Hikaru head to toe as he said, in a deadpan voice,"Amagi-kun. Congratulations on your victory. The Fusion Department is proud of you."
He looked unassuming. Average height for a freshman—around 175cm. Good-looking, in a completely different dimension from Crowler. Perhaps that was deliberate—an attractive student wouldn't be linked to Crowler at first glance. His clothes were plain, nothing flashy… though there was something odd about the charm around his neck.
A translucent block—half a centimeter thick. Inside it… a card?
Akaba couldn't see what card it was, but it piqued his curiosity.
A boy who looks ordinary… but the more you observe him, the stranger he becomes.Almost fell for it, Akaba thought. But not anymore.
He turned and gave a subtle nod to the supervising teacher. That teacher stepped forward and gestured toward the portal equipment."Amagi-kun, Professor Crowler—this way. We're preparing the dimensional transfer now."
"V-very well…" Crowler stammered, visibly anxious. His legs shook as he walked, knees practically knocking together. Despite having authority nearly on par with the chancellor, he had never actually used a dimensional gate before. Now that he was about to step through it, he could barely keep his footing.
And to Akaba, that only deepened the mystery.What an incredible actor… even this nervous display must be a calculated deception.
Hikaru, meanwhile, remained calm.
He had prepared for the worst-case scenario—Akaba throwing him into a void dimension and sealing the gate behind him. Who knew when—or if—he'd return?
That was why he'd requested Crowler as his partner. From what the chancellor had implied, professors were issued a "hearthstone"-like emergency card capable of instantly warping them out of any dimension. If anything went wrong, they had a guaranteed escape route.
But standing here now, it seemed Akaba had no intention of making a move in front of the chancellor. Instead, he was all business—efficient, polite… even complimentary.
To the casual observer, he might've just looked like a cold but dutiful teacher.
The Fusion Department's dimensional gate was far more advanced than the aging device used in Slifer Red. Built by Akaba himself—a genius in both dueling and science—it had even earned a special commendation from KaibaCorp. It boasted precise coordinate targeting, extended transmission stability, and more efficient energy control. Even the dueling spirit resonance was stronger, making contact with entities in other dimensions easier and more consistent.
The supervising teacher took the card from Hikaru—the one containing North Academy's coordinates—and slotted it into the gate's console.
With a sharp whirr, the portal began to spin. The purple vortex in its core shimmered, gradually forming an image—dim, but clear enough to show a silhouette.
Compared to Red Dorm's ancient tech, this was light-years ahead.
From what the machine displayed, the target dimension housed a figure with a wizard's hat, a staff, a voluminous robe, and flickering flames around it.
A spellcaster-type monster?
"Yes, just as North Academy described," Sheppard nodded approvingly.
"Then, if you would—" the supervising teacher gestured forward.
Hikaru took a deep breath and stepped up without hesitation. Crowler gulped, then scrambled to follow, face-to-face with the portal.
The two of them glowed purple… and slowly vanished.
Akaba's lips curled into a sly grin.
Got you now, Crowler.
You thought I wouldn't act just because you brought the chancellor? Ha. I already slipped the card into the gate ahead of time.
Maybe I can't change the coordinates now.But just by injecting a piece of darkness from that dimension into this world…I'll throw your precious protégé into chaos.