In the world of nobility, there were nurous manners an adult male nobleman was expected to follow.
For example, it was acceptable to borrow a cigarette, but borrowing a cutter or matches was seen as extrely rude.
Recently, however, another unwritten rule had beco a must among noblen.
"What? You’re asking to borrow my deck? You’re soone I could never associate with."
The new rule was to never ask to borrow soone else’s deck.
"Well… I just forgot to bring my own deck. Don’t you always have an extra?"
"Don’t pretend to be casual about it. How can you call yourself a duelist if you forgot your deck?"
The indignant nobleman opened the inside of his jacket, instantly drawing the attention of those around him.
"That’s…!"
"Isn’t that the exclusive pocket awarded only to the Sorset Goods Store Duel Tournant champion?"
"To have that… you truly are a worthy duelist!"
The man basked in the admiration of onlookers as he pulled his deck from a pocket sewn inside his jacket.
Lifting the top card, he added with a smirk, "How can you even think of asking to borrow a deck, sothing as precious as one’s own life?"
"I just thought I’d have a quick ga at the Duel Tavern…."
At this point, the man who had asked to borrow a deck felt like a criminal on trial.
He had only wanted to enjoy the trending card ga with a drink at the pub.
But the gazes around him had already grown icy.
"Those who sneak banned cards into their decks usually act this way."
"Isn’t he a reseller? Lately, people have been hoarding cards to make a quick profit."
"Regardless, he’s certainly lacking in etiquette."
Hearing the murmurs, the embarrassed man could do nothing but leave in a hasty retreat.
"I’m not usually one to say this."
"Please, feel free to speak openly, Sir Yustaf."
Since the academy had resud, Rupert had been teaching students as usual until he was abruptly called to the headmaster’s office by Yustaf.
Despite being summoned, Yustaf spent most of the ti chatting idly over tea before finally getting to the point.
"Do you think you could get the Dark Sorcerer Ultimate Rare card?"
"Pardon?"
Thud!
"Honestly, isn’t the pricing sche by you—or rather, by Urien Trading Company—too extre? I opened over a hundred card packs! How could I not find even a single Dark Sorcerer Ultimate Rare card?"
"Please, calm down, Sir Yustaf!"
"You think I’d act this way if I weren’t at my wit’s end?"
Rupert was taken aback; he had never seen Yustaf so agitated before. Even during the Cult of the Abyss incident, he had remained composed, and yet here he was, practically throwing a tantrum over a card.
And that it was simply an Ultimate Rare card he desired was even harder to believe.
Or was it really that simple?
Since the end of White Wasteland and the start of The King of Cards, rchandise had been planned from the beginning, so the products had been released quickly.
"The surface material of the cards must reflect their rarity."
The technology developed for animation had been instruntal in this process.
Rupert’s card classification system divided cards into Normal, Rare, Super Rare, and Ultimate Rare. Even cards with the sa na varied greatly in value based on their rarity.
Normal cards had no special treatnt and looked rather plain, while Rare cards had a subtle silver sheen to their nas, barely noticeable.
Starting from Super Rare, the difference was clear. The na and illustration glead, making it obvious that these cards were precious.
Then there was the Ultimate Rare card that Yustaf so desperately wanted.
"It seems you already possess the Super Rare Dark Sorcerer?"
"That’s not enough! Harun brags about his Ultimate Rare card to every day, and it’s driving mad."
"Sir Harun, you say?"
"Yes! How on earth did he manage to get an Ultimate Rare card?"
Yustaf began a lengthy explanation of how Harun had tornted him.
‘Sir Yustaf, do you play The King of Cards as well?’
‘Indeed. Not to boast, but I haven’t lost a match against any of the academy professors.’
‘Impressive. Shall we have a ga?’
‘Gladly.’
Yustaf had his own confidence in his abilities. Though so dismissed card gas as child’s play, he saw things differently.
"You can’t just bring out your strongest card from the start. The first few turns are critical for building a strong foundation."
The strongest cards had strict summoning conditions, so he believed the best strategy was to start defensively, setting up his winning move.
However,
"Trap card activated! I choose a card from your hand and send it to the graveyard!"
"Spell card activated! All demon-type monsters on your field are frozen for three turns."
"Harpy Feather Duster activated! I destroy all magic and trap cards on your field."
Harun’s deck was different. All of Yustaf’s plans to draw his cherished Super Rare Dark Sorcerer were shattered by Harun’s relentless use of special effect cards from the start.
Any card Yustaf tried to play was quickly nullified by Harun.
"For the final move, I sacrifice three monsters on my field to summon the Dark Sorcerer!"
The last card Harun used to finish him off was none other than Yustaf’s beloved Dark Sorcerer.
Yustaf wanted to rub his eyes, to deny the reality before him.
"This… this can’t be!"
"Ah, you recognize it? Yes, this isn’t just any Dark Sorcerer—it’s an Ultimate Rare Dark Sorcerer!"
Even possessing the Super Rare Dark Sorcerer had made Yustaf the envy of others. But the Ultimate Rare Dark Sorcerer was sothing he had only heard about—he’d never seen it with his own eyes.
"How on earth did you get it?"
"I just got lucky. You know the saying, don’t you?"
"The card chooses the duelist!"
This was a famous line from The King of Cards, delivered by the protagonist after losing to a rival.
At that mont, Yustaf’s final shred of pride crumbled.
Had he not been a person of patience and self-control, Harun would likely have found himself the subject of one of Yustaf’s magical experints that very day.
After that humiliating defeat, Yustaf had searched his mind for the reason behind his loss.
"The Ultimate Rare cards even have the effect descriptions coated!"
"Yes, indeed…."
"Surely, if I had the Ultimate Rare Dark Sorcerer, I wouldn’t have lost to Harun!"
Yustaf was adamant that his loss was purely due to the difference in card rarity.
To Rupert, though, it sounded like nothing but an absurd excuse.
"Ultimate rarity has no effect on performance!"
"So na your price and sell the Ultimate Rare Dark Sorcerer!"
Yustaf was now clutching Rupert’s shoulders, pleading—and nearly threatening—for the card.
"Stop right there!"
"Gah!"
"You’re aware that touching the products is a cri, aren’t you?"
"Please, just this once, let it go!"
"Take him away!"
Even the vast grounds of the Sorset estate were beginning to feel cramped as new buildings sprang up.
The latest addition was a factory dedicated to producing a single item: cards.
"Sigh… was it a mistake to hire new staff due to the shortage of hands?"
Returning ho, Rupert grumbled to Esteban in the sitting room.
"We had no choice. The earlier hires were all loyal Sorset landfolk, trustworthy. Now…"
Sorset’s workshop had no choice but to hire extra hands to keep up with the demand for card production.
Most employees worked diligently, but the booming popularity of The King of Cards ant so employees tried to smuggle valuable cards for resale, causing headaches.
"I knew kids would love it, but I didn’t expect adults to beco so obsessed with the ga."
"In truth, adults enjoy these things too—they just hide it and pretend otherwise."
Seeing Esteban regret not being better prepared from the start, Rupert replied.
‘At least it’s good that manga is no longer dismissed as sothing only for children here.’
Rupert rembered Korea, where manga had long been scorned, viewed critically as “harmful” and “just for kids.”
In this world, however, manga had secured a proud place as a cultural force.
Not only children but people of all ages now enjoyed manga.
Perhaps this was Rupert’s greatest achievent—transforming an entire society’s view of manga.
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