The last bit of sunlight was gradually vanishing on the horizon when Alucard arrived back at the store. He grabbed a bite at the counter, contemplating which monster cards to summon first. Currently at Tier E, he could barely summon 5 to 6 star monsters. It made more sense to opt for a few level 4 or below monsters with solid ATK and/or DEF. As for monster effects, spells, and trap cards, he would need to summon each effect monster to see what kind of effect they would have in the real world.
Monsters like Kuriboh have straight-forward effects that would apply in the real world, as he confirmed with the system, but cards like Toll, which is a continuous spell card that forces each player to pay 500 LP every time a player declares an attack, are a bit more tricky, and their real-life effects need to be tested first before using them in a practical or dangerous situation. He also needed to confirm the combat capabilities of monsters based on their stats and effects.
But first, let's pull some cards, Alucard thought as he tore open cases for each of the three sets.
It took him 6 hours, but he finally finished the last pack. Each case had 30 booster boxes, totaling a whopping 24,300 cards. He felt fortunate to have obtained every single card in the current sets, as it would stink if he missed any card after opening an insane number of packs. He organized cards from each set into separate boxes, reserving one for rare and above-average pulls.
He decided to sort the commons another day. Right now, he needed to double-check all his rare pulls since he had quickly sorted them without examining each one. He opened each pack in a flow-like state, where any card that had a glimmer aside from the bottom right authenticity foil stamp was immediately placed in the rare pulls box. When he counted the pulls, he was satisfied to have gathered 1112 rare and above pulls from Legend of Blue Eyes White Dragon, 1121 from Metal Raiders, and 1117 from Spell Ruler.
The newly improved and streamlined rarities that the current cards boasted were:
Common: The common cards had a basic glossy finish, simple yet still elegant. Some common cards are short-printed, making them rarer than the other common cards.
Rare: Rare cards have a clean silver border frame and card name text. Although you're guaranteed to get one in a pack, they are still quite a luxury.
Super Rare: Sporting gold border frames and card name text with a prismatic holo for the card art. Super-rare cards are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to luxury.
Ultra Rare: The second most coveted rarity, these cards appeared in two varieties: regular art and full-art. Both had embossed textures, yet the card weight remains the same since it is made of synthetic ether. The regular Ultra Rare featured a dazzling array of gold foil, an adorning name, border, star level, and type icon. It has a distinctive cross-foil framing the card, easily distinguishing its rarity from the previous grades. Meanwhile, the Ultra Rare Full Art is now unbound without its card frame, its uncropped artwork sprawling across the entirety of the card, a breathtaking tapestry of color and form.
Secret Illustration Rare: Only cards that are available in Ultra Rare can have this rarity and are always in full art. They have a 3D holo effect, which makes the card art really come to life. Collaborative masterpieces by various and specially selected artists revealed drastically altered artwork; each one is a unique piece that showcases its creator. Their foils and textures are varied to highlight the specific card art. These cards are identified by their icons as well. For monster cards, the star level is now made with black circles adorned with golden stars instead of the usual yellow stars in red circles. For spells and traps, the type icon bore a black circle and golden lettering, with the secondary effect icon inverted to have black lettering in a platinum circle.
The only card he snagged two copies of was Gaia the Fierce Knight, an Ultra Rare Level 7 Earth Warrior Monster with 2300 ATK and 2100 DEF. One was your regular version, and the other was in full art. Unfortunately, neither were Secret Illustration Rares. Everything else he pulled was 5 or above.
Alucard struck gold by acquiring the complete set of Exodia: The Forbidden One in every available rarity. The full-art rendition magnified each component of Exodia, heightening its menace with enhanced artwork details. Conversely, the secret illustration variant offered a somewhat twist, considering the artist was Jorm-san, who was famous for artwork showcasing girls in pantyhoses and office ladies, a gender-bent Exodia. Retaining its iconic golden Egyptian-themed headdress adorned with royal purple stripes, along with its hefty golden pauldrons and shackled limbs, this version took on a distinctly feminine form.
This revamped Exodia had a whole new vibe to it, ditching the bulky muscles for a more voluptuous and captivating figure. She adorns an Ankh necklace akin to the one featured in the Monster Reborn spell card, emitting a sleek and feminine aura. Clad in silk-gold stockings hugging her thick thighs, a chic short cloth skirt with a delicate gold belt, and a motherly bosom veiled by a soft, flowing fabric with peeking curves underneath. She wore a smug yet teasing smile, her lips coated in a delicate shade of dark blue lipstick. Her captivating magenta eyes, framed by intricately drawn Egyptian-inspired eyeliner, exuded an irresistible allure, drawing you into their enchanting gaze. This Exodia draws you in with its teasing allure, stepping away from its usual armored and oppressive appearance.
"Damn, they really went all out on this one!" Alucard exclaimed. He finally believes that the system has revamped the rarities and overall look of the card because, back in his world, YGO cards never had full-art variations, much less artwork that was done with collaborating artists. He also got some Secret Illustration rares for Dark Magician, Monster Reborn, Red Eyes Black Dragon, Solemn Judgement, Summoned Skull, Serpent Night Dragon, Relinquish, and Snatch Steal, all of which had different artists as well.
While he was sorting out and appreciating his pulls, some unsavory figures were lingering in front of his shop in the dead of night.
~
"Big bro, why are we checking out this shop? Though it looks shiny, it doesn't seem to be a competitor to our kind of 'business' right?" A tall, lanky man with a downcast face and sly mug said as he crouched down and tried to peek at the store, which had its glass walls covered by stainless steel rolling shutters. He tried knocking on it but was smacked in the head by a burly arm.
"Shush! It's the boss's orders, he's been tense lately due to all of the 'business' we've been doing. Lots of dogs have been sniffing around traces of our activities, and this shop in particular was visited by the captain of the city guards and a few high profile mercenaries. This might be a gathering of some sort for a sting operation." A deep voice replied, it was a muscular bald man with a snake tattoo coiling his neck, the tail slithering towards his left shoulder and down his arm. He had a full beard and a fierce set of eyes.
"Why do you always ask questions, Chico? Just follow orders, and everything else is up to the boss! He never fails to let us eat our fill, and we eat well, so just shut up and do what your told!" A short but muscular guy snarkily added. He had short brown hair and a stern face.
"Hehe, there's nothing wrong with asking questions when I want to know more about what we do and how we do it. I've been in the 'business' for less than half a year, so I'm really eager to prove my worth to the boss. Hmph, you wouldn't know that since all you do is eat, shit, and occasionally rough a few weak people up, Rufus." Chico replied with a hateful glint in his eyes, which wasn't missed by Rufus and the bald muscular man.
"Heh, anyway, since you want to prove your worth so much, then break open the door so we can rough up this place." The bald, muscular man snorted and gestured to Chico to attempt a break-in.
"You got it, big bro!" Chico said as he turned towards the store's door, Inwardly, he was amazed by how clear the glass door and walls were, but he was surprised because, while it does a good job in showcasing whatever products are in store, it seemed to invite the eyes of nasty people, much like the ones in his gang. He shook the thought off his head and focused on the door. He glanced near the handle, where the key hole usually is, but only found a handle. He grabbed it and tried to pull the door open, but it just wouldn't budge. He tried to push it too, but that didn't work.
He turned his head over to the two who stared at him in contempt, mocking him for not being able to open a door that doesn't even have a lock. Rufus pushed him away and tried to pull the door, then push it. Even with all his might and his muscles already bulging, the door did not move in the slightest. The bald man frowned and commanded Rufus and Chico to step back. He went into a stance, and his fists glowed with a light red aura.
As he was about to punch the glass door, he heard a few thuds behind him. He turned around and found two tall and muscular figures standing menacingly. One had deep blue skin and wore nothing but a golden helmet with a face plate that only allowed its fierce red eyes and spiked leather briefs, which showcased his thunderous thighs. He had two horns that protruded from his head; one of them was cut clean in half. He also held a thick, heavy lance over his shoulders and was ready to strike at a moment's notice.
The other one had bright red skin, he wore a differently styled helmet that still covered his face, golden chest armor, and golden faulds that were just above his knees. His horns were different from the first figure and were protruding from his forehead and back of his head. He also had a horn that pierced towards the sky on his right shoulder guard. His weapon was a long, curved blade that he held forward, he looked solemn compared to his partner.
The bald, muscular man was shocked and wary, it took him a few seconds to notice his underlings grimacing in pain on the ground. The blue skinned warrior was stepping on Rufus and Chico, both seemed to be out of consciousness. He felt pressure from the gaze of the warriors and was sweating bullets, the red aura on his fists intensified as he assumed a defensive stance.
All of this was being observed by Alucard on his CCTV system.
~~
"Alert! 3 burglars are trying to break into the store, please deal with it host." The sudden warning from the system woke Alucard from his stupor. He put down the cards that he was admiring and had a tense expression.
"Are they just normal thugs? If they're way above my grade, I can't really deal with them with my strength, you know?" He asked the system.
"One of them is in Tier D. Host, it is the perfect time for you to use the summoning feature of the store and see the true power of summoned monsters. Because it is an emergency, I'll allow you to use the feature, and you can summon them anywhere as long as it is inside the territory of the store." the system suggested.
"Great! I was thinking of testing normies anyway, let's see... I'll use these two guys, they look like the perfect bouncers. Let's summon them behind those burglars, Go M-Warrior #1! M-Warrior #2!" Alucard enthusiastically held the two cards, but before he did anything, he asked the system.
"What's this going to cost me? I'm pretty sure this ain't free based on your personality." he said to the system in contempt.
"Now now, we're doing this to test it right? How about 1000 Magicoins per level 3 monster? I'm bypassing the requirements for you here! Normally one couldn't normal summon 2 monsters, but with the store's summoning feature, as long as you pay the magicoins, you can summon monsters as many times as he wants. Two level 3 normal monsters will deplete your energy, but I assure you, this will be all worth it!" Alucard could almost see the system like a wide-grinned salesman exaggerating whatever crap he's selling.
"Okay fine, summon these two for me." As he agreed, he handed over a black crystal card. The card showed the amount it carried, as 2000 magicoins were deducted from it, he felt like he received 2000 LP in damage instead, even though the cards still had a bunch of zeroes.
"Ding! Summoning Two Lvl 3 Normal Monsters: M-Warrior #1 and M-Warrior #2! Where do you want to summon them host?"
"Summon them behind the burglars." He focused on the CCTV screen, now he'll observe how these summoned monsters would fair against the thugs and the Tier D individual.