NOVEL NEXT Duel Brawl Prologue(1)
'Thoughts'
'Sign language'
"Speech"
In the early morning, Romach sat in front of his laptop. The screen is filled with streams of data, numbers and strange symbols. The wooden table where his laptop sat is covered with marked assignments and finished paperwork. Romach yawned as he rubbed his tired eyes before he leans back, staring at the ceiling. "-Sigh- I miss when I could just have other people worry about the paperwork, I don't think I can cut back on my sleep anymore. My lack of sleep is starting to affect my ability to work on the project." He leans back down and looks over the paperwork. "Well, at least I'm all caught up for now, so that should leave me plenty of time to focus on the project and get a decent amount of sleep."He sighs when he noticed the time on his laptop. His bones creak as he stood up, stretching his back as he did that. "I better get going, need to get some breakfast before my class begins."
As Romach ate his breakfast of egg and rice, he read over the data received from the companion cards. "Looks like the kids are treating them well so far, I need to wait to see if that continues or if they decide to be less friendly to them." He frowns when he looks over the data from the six golden-bordered cards. "Only two fully materialized? That's less than I predicted, well at least some of the kids have some decent potential for the project. Now which students fully formed a DS?" His frown slowly deepened as let checked the data. "I lost connection to the companion cards, it looks like the link gets cut a DS materialize. That complicates things, at least this shouldn't delay the project. Also now I know to keep an eye on these t-." He paused when he looked over whose card he lost connection to. "Ah! These two, maybe having been exposed early on caused them to materialize DS before the other four. Or maybe it's another aspect that I'm unaware of that makes them unique?" He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "No matter, I'll learn what makes them different from the rest in due time."
Finishing up his breakfast, Romach walked to his class. Once he entered the classroom a smile bloomed on his face as he was greeted with the sight of his students playing with their companions. A part of him wanted to let them continue playing, however, he can't afford to lose this job because he neglected his duties. So despite how happy he is to see people enjoying a new potential aspect of Duel Monsters, the project takes precedence. "GREETING STUDENTS! I'm happy to see you all getting along with your companions!" The students quiet down and nodded to his questions. "However despite how happy I am to see all the companions, I need you all to dismiss them for the duration of the lesson." Many students voiced their complaints. "We can't have any of you be distracted, the headmaster wouldn't be pleased if grades start dropping because of the companion cards."The students quickly dismissed their companions, having them return to the companion cards in a flash of light. Once he saw all the companions gone, Romach nodded before continuing.
"Before class starts, I have to inform you all that this year's first academy-wide Duel Brawl is starting soon." Seeing the confused look from many of his students, Romach elaborated. "For those of you who don't know, the academy Duel Brawl is a school event that has a big impact on all your ranking." The room exploded with noise, Romach continued once the class quite down. "As you all know, your ranking is dependent on your grades and duel history. Well, the academy Duel Brawl is when students' ranks change the most. Every year the academy host two Duel Brawls, where students duke it out for points. The amount of points you start with depends on your ranking before the event starts, and the amount of points you win from a duel depends on how many points your opponents have." Romach passed to allow those who are writing down what he is saying to catch up. "This incentivizes students to duel higher ranking opponents to earn more points. Some of the more confident students even challenge older students in hopes to win more points." He paused when a hand was raised. "Yes, Leo?"
"What happens when you lose?"
"Ah, great question, the loser of the duel does lose points. So make sure you don't bite off more than you can chew when challenging someone. However, that doesn't mean you can only target weaker opponents, as any duel made by stronger students become void when they challenge a weaker opponent. For example, if you have 100 points and you challenge someone with 10 points. The duel becomes void, and if you still lose, the points lost increase. Typically a duel becomes void if you challenge someone with points less than 25% of your own points. However, this doesn't occur if the opposite occurs, meaning if you are the one with 10 points and you challenge someone with 100. The number of points you lose does not change, so be careful about who you challenge." He paused when another hand was raised. "Yes, Kai?
"What if you lose all your points?"
"Nothing, however having zero points greatly affects your ranking. So I suggest making sure you don't lose all your points. As for those of you who don't care about your ranking, points at the end of the event are converted into DP. So more points you have at the end of the Duel Brawl, more DP you get." The classroom erupted in noise, which was quickly stopped by Romach. "So any other question?" A student raised their hand. "Yes, Zola?"
"Can you refuse a duel challenge?"
"That depends, if the amount of points you have is similar or if you are challenged by someone with quite fewer than you. Then no, during those times challenges can not be refused. However, if someone with way more points than you challenge you, you can refuse. However, I suggest not to, as during those cases the duel becomes void. This means the only thing you lose for attempting the duel is your time, so you might as well try. Also if you already had three duels prior to being challenged or if someone challenge you to duel on a certain day while you already have three duels scheduled. During these times you're allowed to refuse a duel, this also applies if you have prior things scheduled to occur during the same time as the duel. Yes, Flora?"
"What format are the duels going to be in?"
"That depends, the format of the duel is usually chosen by whoever was challenged. There are times when both parties can come together to choose the format of the duel. However, formats that at least one of the students can't participate in can't be chosen. For example, because all of you are first years, non of you can choose duel races for the duel format. While formats like best 2 out of 3 or 2 vs 2 can be chosen by any student. Ok, any other questions?" When no one raised their hand, Romach nodded. "Ok, now let's begin today's lesson."