RECAP OF VOLUME 3
Flashback to two days ago, Utage Inouye found (Reader) Sekiguchi's unconscious, beaten body. He was about to call Security on her until he discovered that she kept a silver, heart-shaped locket necklace which had a photo of her and Riyuka Domen. He was left with an ultimatum, which resulted in him taking (Reader) to his apartment for shelter.
Flash-forward to two days later, Utage was in his apartment to recover his left knee from the incident at the duel fields within the Daimon Area. During his recovery, he was called by Riona, but he refused and texted her that he needed space. To relieve his stress, he left his apartment to go outside. Outside Saiga's apartment, the lavender-eyed male was found by (Reader) and the two bantered. When they returned, Yusei Fudo became jealous again of the male Inouye for his closeness with their female companion.
Once Utage left, (Reader) and Yusei left, so they would go to the Duel Stadium for the Duel of the Fortune Cup. There, they met up with Jin Himuro, Tenzen Yanagi, Lua who was in disguise as Luca, the mentioned twin sister who wore different clothes, and Tenpei. After the protagonist left with the disguised male pre-teen, the outlander hinted the teal-haired man about the tournament being a setup.
After the opening ceremony came the first matchup of the first round. Despite being able to land a hit on his opponent's monster, Lua lost to Bommer, one of Rex Godwin's duelist assassins to hunt down possible Signers. Before the second matchup started, (Reader), Yusei, Tenpei, and the pre-teen twin siblings (who changed back to their usual clothes) met Aki Izayoi, a spiteful duelist who did not look anyone's way, except for the protagonist.
In the second match, Aki overpowered the arrogant duelist assassin Jill deLauncebeaux and defeated him. During the duel, she summoned Black Rose Dragon, the same dragon monster who attacked the Daimon Area. Thus, she revealed herself to be the Black Rose Witch.
Before the third match, Jin spoke his suspicions about (Reader) to the woman herself. She did not deny them; not only that, she told him the truth of the tournament. At the same time, Yeager tasked Shira, another duelist assassin of Godwin's, to defeat Yusei. Unfortunately, the said duelist assassin was ambushed by Mukuro Enjo, who desired to fight his way to face the King Jack Atlas.
In the third match, Yusei managed to win against Mukuro Enjo, despite being at a disadvantage. After that, (Reader) and Jin told Yanagi the truth. The outlander decided that she wouldn't tell the protagonist about the tournament being a setup, for she wanted him to find out himself.
Onward to the fourth match, the reluctant Luca faced Professor Frank, a duelist assassin who gave ominous vibes toward the young girl and her twin brother. The latter hypnotized the former into the Duel Monsters Spirit World. At the same time, Lua was lost in a trance, resulting him to become unconscious. As the duel progressed, Professor Frank was dragged into the Spirit World due to Luca's Mark of the Dragon. Yusei rushed to her aid after the duel was over, and Lua woke up in the infirmary.
When (Reader) saw the protagonist carry Luca to safety, the outlander was reminded of a memory with Riyuka, intensifying the female's homesickness. Yanagi became worried of the outlander female's sudden change in demeanor and early departure from the Duel Stadium.
With Utage, he relaxed at home to recover his knee. That was until he was called by Keito, Riona's paramour. The silver-haired man and the flower shop employee discuss about Utage's eventual divorce with his wife and the fact that their marriage was arranged. After, he gave the money to the side-guy, so that the latter male and the cheating wife would head back to the City. Keito dropped off Riona and broke up with her, for he had realized that he took Utage's position of his wife's mental and emotional abuse. Heartbroken, she returned to her husband and begged for forgiveness toward her infidelity.
With Lua, he decided to sneak into Bommer's garage to find the duelist assassin's D-Wheel, so he would help Yusei gain the upper hand, much to the protagonist's ignorance and dismay. When the boy found the vehicle, he fainted due to its striking appearance. Bommer found Lua asleep and picked him up.
As for the young adult hero, he and Luca returned to the Tops to wait for Lua, so the three would eat dinner. However, due to his long absence, the two chose to look for the missing boy. In the midst of their search, Saiga contacted the hero and informed the situation at Satellite. According to the broker, there was no one at the hero's hideout in Satellite; plus, Rally, Nerve, Taka, and Blitz were not there, astonishing Yusei.
When Yusei and Luca were unable to find Lua, they returned to the Tops, only to be greeted by Bommer. The duelist assassin and the protagonist conversed, discussing about Lua's infiltration in Bommer's garage and what the two men were fighting for, which were their hometowns. The conversation ended with the two unable to see eye to eye, for Boomer believed in that Rex Godwin would restore the assassin's hometown; on the other hand, Yusei voiced his doubts and warned the assassin about the director.
(Reader), in her lonesome, attempted to not look at anyone who had a family. After crossing the crosswalk, she bumped her shoulder into someone. She turned to meet Ryo, a businessman with formal speech and a patient disposition. The two believed that they have met before their encounter, yet they had no memory of each other. The two went on a date to get to know each other. Regardless of the awkward start, it eventually went well. At the end of the date, (Reader) was offered to stay at Ryo's apartment at Sundown Apartments until she was able to make a living on her own.
In the night, Yusei was hesitant to go to sleep, for he felt like something was missing. Had no clue of what it was missing, he decided to fall asleep anyway. Simultaneously, (Reader) was unable to sleep, so she went outside. She lamented over the fact that she was far away from home. No matter how much she begged to go back, nothing happened, shattering her hopes. She accepted the inevitability of staying in the anime world and live as a background character once the Fortune Cup was over.
The next day, Yusei met Utage at the Tops' parking lot. The silver-haired man recognized the hero being on edge, confusing the latter. With Jin and Yanagi, the elder voiced his worries about (Reader)'s change in disposition. The teal-haired man, not surprised of her secretive side, decided to believe in the outlander and help her, inspiring the cheerful elder to do the same.
When (Reader) and Ryo arrived at the Duel Stadium's main lobby, the two confessed their truths behind their respective lies. The outlander female yearned to see Riyuka again and leave Yusei after the tournament would be over. The slender man wore a mask of an innocent bystander to withstand the ignorance and narrow-mindedness of the City's society. Before Ryo left, (Reader) wished to know from the hazel-eyed male whether they met before. Sadly, he does not remember, yet he shared the similar feelings when the two met.
(Reader) was found by Yusei, who already arrived in the stadium. The two talked as they headed toward the entrance that led to the stands. When they got there, the female outlander admitted that whatever she was missing was far away from her, dampening her mood further in the inside.
Once (Reader) left to the stands, Yusei became concerned toward her change in behavior, including her jaded eyes. He wondered of what caused that said change.
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CAST INFORMATION
***NOTE 1: A character profile is formatted like this:
NAME - AGE, AFFILIATION; OCCUPATION,
or
NAME - AGE, HOMETOWN.***
***NOTE 2: If there is an asterisk within a character's profile, it means a part of their profile is subject to change.***
SEKIGUCHI, (Reader) - 20, Guren Enterprises; Office Worker
About Yusei Fudo: He's the main character of the show. I got to admit. For the protagonist of the anime I watched when I was in middle school, Yusei is still fairly attractive. He has a great personality and amazing skills to match. However, he's not my type, nor I will ever be romantically interested in him. There's someone else who will love him better. If I continue to get involved with him, I'd only be holding him back, and the story would be ruined.
About Yusei Fudo - Stubbornness: That guy's stubbornness reaches no bounds. It's sometimes admirable, but it's annoying too. How far he goes to being stubborn... Anyone would be surprised that he isn't easy to break.
About Jack Atlas - First Encounter: He is Yusei's rival and an old friend of his. Good-looking as he is, his excessive ego is over 9000, just when I first saw him from the anime. Thus, no further comments whatsoever.
About The Black Rose Witch: The Black Rose Witch. She is a masked person who has the ability to make the effects of the cards she uses comes to life. I know who she is, but... Nope! That's spoiler territory.
About Aki Izayoi - First Encounter: She is a fearsome duelist amongst the Signers. She scared the heck out of me when I first saw her, and she still does. I don't have anything else to say besides the fact that she really isn't pulling any punches.
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FUDO, Yusei - 18, Satellite*
About (Reader) Sekiguchi - Strangers: That woman is somehow nice to me and Grandpa. She even picked up the deck for him. She wanted no part of Himuro's ranking system, yet she was willing to hit one of his followers. She wasn't bothered by the other men mocking her. ...She's a strange person.
About (Reader) Sekiguchi - Acquaintances: Sekiguchi-san is a nice woman who is willing to listen to others and places them first before herself. She has as much energy as Grandpa does. I recall that she gave me a nickname, which was "Satellite-kun". She is also capable to fend for herself, but... I only hope that she doesn't get herself killed.
About (Reader) Sekiguchi - Friends: She got her hand hurt and was mocked for her injury; however, she only cared about grandpa's feelings. Himuro hurt her; even so, she forgave him and believed in him. She lied to Himuro and grandpa, but she did that to not worry them. She got beaten by Takasu; she did it to save Himuro. To top it all off, she hated being stuck in the Detention Center, yet she was happy to have met me. Sekiguchi is strange, but she is the kindest friend I've ever met.
About (Reader) Sekiguchi - Before Arrest: (Reader) had mentioned that something happened related to her illegal trespassing. According to her, it was something that left an emotional scar, causing her to almost lose her way. That unknown event haunted her. When she mentioned told me about it, her eyes were full of fear. Her voice sounded softer and sad. She looked like a lost child, trying to find their way back home. It's my first time seeing (Reader) act that way. ...For some reason, it breaks my heart.
About Utage Inouye - Friends?: This Utage guy is a very honest person. He doesn't seem to hold back his tongue. He's also observant. He almost figured out that I infiltrated his workplace. Despite that, he's a nice person. I am thankful that he looked after (Reader) and let her stay at his place to recover. She is even nice to him and completely trusts him. It's good that she made a new friend. Though, I don't understand one thing. ...I don't know why, but how he refers to her by her name and how (Reader) thinks highly of him... It bothers me.
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ATLAS, Jack - 19, Neo Domino City*
About (Reader) Sekiguchi - Strangers: That woman called me a random stranger. She also stared at me as if she saw right through me. Hmph. No matter. She's only a waste of my time.
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IZAYOI, Aki - 16, ???
N/A
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SAGIRI, Mikage - 20, ???
N/A
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NAGISA, Carly - 18, ???
N/A
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LOLA, Misty - 21, ???
N/A
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KYOSUKE, Kiryu - 19, ???
N/A
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DIVINE - 23, ???
N/A
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CHANGES TO THE ANIME
ADDITIONAL CHARACTERS?: Yes
NAME(S) OF ADDITIONAL CHARACTER(S): Ryo
CHARACTER PROFILE: Ryo makes his debut in episode 16. He is a bank receptionist. He is formal and understanding. He had lived in Neo Domino for a long time. He wore the face of an innocent bystander to survive the City's society's ignorance and narrow-mindedness. He is an enigmatic man whom (Reader) met through a fateful encounter. Whilst the two did not remember each other, they share the mutual feeling that they have met before.
EDITED SCRIPTS?: Yes
LIST OF EPISODES: 15, 19, 20
EPISODE 15: In the original episode, Jin Himuro was unaware that the Duel of the Fortune Cup was a setup. In the modified episode, (Reader) Sekiguchi read Jin's thoughts and hinted that he was right about the truth behind the tournament. In response, the teal-haired man wanted to know what the outlander knew. She told him and Yanagi the truth in episode 17, but she decided to not tell Yusei until he would discover it for himself.
EPISODE 19: In the original episode, Lua was taken to the infirmary by Jin, Tenzen Yanagi, and Tenpei when they found him unconscious. In the modified episode, (Reader) commanded Jin and the other to take the unconscious boy to the infirmary quickly. Yanagi noticed the change in (Reader)'s mood after Lua woke up.
EPISODE 20: In the original episode, Yusei and Luca found Bommer with Lua. After, the group went back to the Tops, so Lua and Luca would rest in their rooms. In the edited episode, (Reader) and Ryo found Bommer and Lua. The outlander escorted the duelist assassin and the young duelist back to the young twins' apartment. When Yusei and Luca returned, they found the assassin and the missing boy. After the conversation between the two men, the protagonist was hesitant to go to sleep, for (Reader) was not beside him like back in the events prior to the tournament. Even so, he tried to fall back asleep. The next day, the criminal duo found each other at the main lobby of the Duel Stadium.
A CHANGE IN PROTAGONIST'S GOALS?: No.
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END OF VOLUME 3!
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STAY TUNED FOR VOLUME 4!