After regaining his body, where should he go? Even for someone with a severe case of procrastination, he could no longer keep putting it off. Now, Miles had to sit down and think it through carefully.
Krista helped Miles analyze the situation fairly and objectively.
"Let me say something impartial. In my opinion, the Axet Republic is the most suitable place for Duelists to live."
"That 'impartial' statement of yours, are you sure it doesn't contain even a bit of personal bias?"
Ren bluntly exposed the ulterior motives of the Quasar Girl without giving her any face.
"Just a little…"
Although ninety-five percent of it was personal bias, what Krista said did make some sense.
When he first arrived in the Axet Republic, Miles had actually already had similar thoughts.
There was no need to get involved in the political wars between the various families of the other two great nations. Duelists here existed as the purest Duelists, producing energy for the city through Duels alone, earning SP Points, and living comfortably as a result.
Setting aside the single unstable factor—the magic stone that might explode again in the future—the Axet Republic really was more suitable for a pure card gamer like Miles.
But now, Miles' circumstances were no longer what they once were. With a vast sum of money at his disposal, financial concerns were no longer an issue. Axet, once the most convenient place to earn money, seemed to have lost its greatest appeal.
And how should one put it? Miles was the type of person who was somewhat nostalgic.
The very first place he had come into contact with after transmigrating was the Fusion Academy in Livorden. Subconsciously, Miles regarded it as the place he should return to.
Or perhaps it would be more accurate to call it a beginner's imprinting instinct?
In any case, Miles was the type of gamer who, no matter how high his level became, would still occasionally return to the beginner's village to take a look.
After traveling across countless mountains and rivers, no matter how prosperous the age, it could never compare to the sense of safety the beginner's village provided at the very beginning.
"I probably won't be staying in Axet," Miles declined tactfully. "Fusion Academy, the Kingdom of Livorden. There are still things I must go back and do."
"Things you must do? …Mr. Miles, you don't mean—!"
Even Aisha hadn't forgotten, so there was no way Miles would.
The promise he had made long ago with the Pharaoh Atem at the back mountain of Fusion Academy.
To prevent ill-intentioned individuals from using the power of the Millennium Items to disrupt the Spirit Continent.
Now, not even a year had passed, and due to the destiny that Millennium Item holders were inevitably drawn to one another, Miles had already come face to face with all of the holders of the Seven Millennium Items.
The Millennium Key's guardian spirit, Camille.
The holder of the Millennium Eye, Locke Slint.
The holder of the Millennium Rod, Reigun Seth.
The holder of the Millennium Ring, Luca Slint.
The holder of the Millennium Scale, Krista.
The holder of the Millennium Necklace, Korys Diane.
And together with the Millennium Puzzle on Aisha, that completed the full set of the Seven Millennium Items.
Of course, the first three Item holders had already passed away, and Luca's soul had been burned away.
Even so, Miles still occasionally felt uneasy.
He had met every Item holder and even fought them through Duels, yet there was no way to guarantee that no ill-intentioned individual would ever again use the power of the Items to disrupt the world.
The reason was that the three Millennium Items symbolizing the most malevolent darkness—the Millennium Eye, the Millennium Ring, and the Millennium Rod—had all gone missing after the Battle of the Royal Capital.
In addition, Krista's Millennium Scale, which measured the balance of light and darkness in the world, had also gone missing after the Earthbound Immortal battle.
Miles' intuition told him that none of this was a simple coincidence.
The fate of the Millennium Scale was still uncertain, but one thing Miles could be sure of was that the three dark Items taken away by Reigun Seth after the Battle of the Royal Capital were now definitely in the possession of the same person.
If someone had gathered the power of all four of the lost Millennium Items, then their level of danger would far surpass that of every enemy encountered so far.
And since this person had appeared in the Royal Capital at the end of the year, when all the great nobles had gathered, Miles inferred that there was a very high probability they were one of Livorden's nobles.
Within the borders of the Fusion Nation, an unimaginable darkness might be accumulating.
"So you're still going back to Livorden, Miles?" After some thought, Lost made her decision. "Alright then, I'll go pack my things right now!"
"What are you packing for?" Aoyao couldn't help but complain.
"Obviously, I'm going back together with Miles."
"Going back together to Livorden? Then what about the academy?"
"Compared to finally finding my destiny, something trivial like studying at the academy isn't worth mentioning at all!"
Abandoning her studies outright in order to pursue the happiness of an unknown fate.
For a delinquent, love-brained girl like Lost, this was indeed a choice that perfectly matched her style.
"No!" Krista immediately vetoed it. "There's only one month left before the Spirit Sanctuary's final ranking battle. At a crucial time like this, I can't let you act so willfully, Lost."
Even though her win rate in previous Turbo Duel tournaments had been miserable, Lost was still considered one of Synchron Academy's main forces.
Especially after mastering the dual Synchro form of the twelve-star Red Dragon Archfiend, Lost Vela was an indispensable combat asset for Synchron Academy in the third-year final ranking battle.
"Tch, dragging out the ranking battle at a time like this… no wonder you're the vice principal's model student, Krista."
She said that, but Lost's tone was filled with heavy sarcasm.
"You actually want to go too, don't you? You're just held back by other factors and can't say it out loud~ Right, model student?"
"Ugh."
Of course, Krista also wanted to go together with Miles.
However, Krista, who considered everything far too rigorously, clearly couldn't be as carefree as Lost when it came time to make a choice—leaving without a second thought.
Ever since her parents passed away, Krista had lived at Synchron Academy from a young age and been raised by Vice Principal Orcus. The one thing she absolutely could not do was abandon the academy.
"Alright, I get it."
Having been friends for so many years, even if she spoke with sarcasm, Lost still understood Krista's inner conflict better than anyone.
"Then let's wait until the Spirit Sanctuary ranking tournament is over. After graduation, I'll become the freest Duelist, chasing my destiny!"
Lost clenched her fist toward Miles.
"If you beat me, don't even think about running away, Miles! After graduation, we'll settle everything!"
Those words sounded more like a declaration of rivalry than a confession of love, almost making Miles' DNA stir again.
But with Krista and Lost's reminders, Miles also remembered that after the exchange program's warm-up period, the annual final ranking battles of the three great academies were about to begin.
At that time, all the third-year seniors would head collectively to the Spirit Sanctuary, launching a massive pre-graduation 'battle royale.'
Which meant that in one month, both Irena and Kaima would be leaving Fusion Academy as well.
"The Spirit Sanctuary?"
Miles suddenly remembered something Yusei Fudo had once said to him when he and Krista were blasted into the Stardust Space during the magic stone rampage incident.
"To understand the truth of this world, you need to personally go to the Spirit Sanctuary."
The truth of the world and the secrets hidden within the Spirit Sanctuary endlessly stirred Miles' curiosity.
However, according to the strict regulations of the Spirit Continent, only third-year academy students and the teachers leading them were permitted to enter the Spirit Sanctuary.
So if, as Yusei Fudo had said, Miles needed to personally go to the Spirit Sanctuary to seek the truth.
"Then does that mean… I have to enroll first?"
After obtaining a brand-new body and no longer being able to remain bound together with Aisha, Miles suddenly became an idle bystander, an unrelated outsider.
By then, it would probably be difficult for him to even step foot inside Fusion Academy, let alone Aisha's girls' dormitory.
After bidding farewell to Krista and the others and boarding the Seth family's private airship once more to fly back to Livorden, Miles shared his thoughts with Aisha and Ren along the way.
"Mr. Miles, you're planning to personally enroll in Fusion Academy?!" Aisha exclaimed in surprise.
"I think it's a great idea!" Ren raised both hands in approval. "If Miles joins Fusion Academy, then we'll be able to go to and from school together. How youthful!"
As for enrolling in Fusion Academy.
Even without the backing of a great noble family, given the scarcity and importance of Duelists on the Spirit Continent, as long as one successfully awakened the Spirit Eyes and became a Duelist, even a commoner Duelist could enroll in a Duel Academy dominated by nobles.
Arnold and Lishia from a small western village were the best examples.
But now, a more pressing problem lay before Miles.
That was the fact that the enrollment season had long since passed, and first-year classes had already been in session for quite some time.
As things stood, even if Miles applied to Fusion Academy as a commoner Duelist, there was a very high probability he would only be arranged to officially enroll next semester, during the next academic year's enrollment season.
Wasting an entire year for no reason just to formally enroll… by then, Aisha and the others would already be third-year students.
"That really is a troublesome problem," Ren said, stroking her smooth chin as she frowned in thought. "I absolutely cannot accept the fact that I'd be two years ahead of Miles."
Is that really the crux of the issue?
"I've got it!"
Aisha's white ahoge suddenly shot straight up, as if her forehead had been electrified, and a golden light flashed through her eyes.
"Let's use connections, Mr. Miles!"
"What you mean should be the proper kind of using connections, right?"
Even though the very act of using connections already had nothing to do with being proper.
"Mhm! If we rely on connections, then mid-term enrollment shouldn't be impossible, right? Just like Luca back then—she only enrolled temporarily after the midterm exams."
Rules were rigid, but people were flexible. Aisha wasn't wrong to think that way.
The key issue was how to use connections.
If Miles went with his original plan—applying as a commoner Duelist—the difficulty would likely be extremely high.
"Mr. Miles, you should know this too, right? The nobles of Livorden usually recruit non-noble commoner Duelists to strengthen their families' power and prestige."
"Yeah, that was covered in class."
Ren looked utterly shocked. "Huh? When was that covered? Miles, you actually listen in class?!"
While staying inside the Millennium Puzzle, whenever he was bored, Miles would naturally absorb some knowledge about the Spirit Continent.
And Miles clearly remembered that during that class, Ren had slept through the entire thing.
Aisha explained, "If you attach yourself under a family's banner, and then get introduced by the family head, the academy probably wouldn't have any objections if your enrollment were delayed by a month or two."
"That does make a lot of sense. Then, where should I go to find a family head willing to introduce me for enrollment?"
A family head was generally the leader of the entire family. Typically, only negotiations conducted by a family head with the academy carried enough credibility to convince a Duel Academy to make an exception for a mid-term transfer.
Clap, clap, clap!
Aisha patted her chest confidently three times, then gave Miles a thumbs-up.
"Of course, the Carlos family. Right now, Big Sister Alice is the acting head of the Carlos family. As long as I ask her, she'll definitely agree."
"Big Sister Alice, huh."
Given Alice's gentle personality and her usual doting attitude toward her younger sister, if Aisha personally asked, there probably wouldn't be much of a problem.
"But Aisha, have you thought about how you're going to introduce me to Alice?"
If Miles remembered correctly, the Carlos family had never recruited any Duelists.
After all, just a few months ago, the Carlos family had still been a declining family looked down upon by others.
The entire family had only Aisha as a single, lone Duelist seedling. Even if they wanted to recruit, normal Duelists wouldn't consider joining the Carlos family.
So if Aisha suddenly brought back a man who was extremely unfamiliar to Alice and said she wanted to introduce him to join the Carlos family, what would Alice think as an older sister?
"How to introduce you…"
A faint but obvious blush crept up Aisha's snow-white cheeks.
"Of course… as my boyfriend 0v0~"
"Rejected!"
Miles had asked in advance precisely because he had already guessed Aisha's answer.
If she really introduced him that way, it would only make things even more troublesome when facing Alice.
"Miles, have you considered the Austin family instead?!" Ren mustered her courage and interjected.
"I can talk to my dad—no, wait, it's Big Brother Ilon who's in charge now. I can introduce you to my big brother!"
Miles' face turned pale in horror. "Are you trying to get me killed?"
Alice might dote on her younger sister, but she was still within the bounds of a normal person.
But as the youngest sister of the Austin family, Ren's three older brothers—their bold figures waving cheering flags at the academy festival—were something Miles had personally witnessed.
A younger sister bringing a man home and introducing him to three siscon older brothers.
Miles could already imagine the tragic scene of himself being torn apart by three burly men.
"Let's put the family-joining plan on hold for now. We'll think about it later and see if there's a better method."
"Mm, alright." Both of them spoke with disappointment evident in their voices.
After returning to the Kingdom of Livorden, the Seth family's private airship carrying Miles and the others didn't land at the shared airship port, but instead flew directly back to the private airport specially constructed by the Seth family.
The moment the three of them stepped off, they saw Kaima deliberately standing against the wind, letting the silver-white trench coat behind her be blown up in a dramatic flourish.
In Kaima's hand was precisely the thing Miles had been worrying about the entire journey—how to obtain it: the "Fusion Academy Temporary Enrollment Application Form."
This woman had already seen straight through Miles' next move well in advance.
...
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