Yugioh [706-709] (Patreon)

Chapter 706: Chaos Annihilation

Sartorius narrowed his eyes.

The Chaos Core—who would've thought it would cough up a monster related to the Sacred Beasts? And judging from its effect, this monster was indeed a pretty powerful shield.

After sending three Sacred Beasts to the Graveyard, it can have up to three destructions negated, and all battle damage becomes 0. Its protection applies to both battle and effect destruction—definitely not easy to break through.

But that's fine. He had more than enough attack counts on his side—and not to mention the World's turn-skip trump card. That was more than enough to strip all three destruction shields and finish the kill in the same breath.

Thinking of that, the corner of his mouth curled up again.

"It's just delaying the inevitable," Sartorius barked. "Arcana Force XV - The Fiend, attack 'Chaos Core' again!"

He paused, then added:

"The Fiend's effect—upon declaring an attack, destroy one monster on the field! Destroy 'Chaos Core'!"

The Fiend's effect would cancel one destruction shield. The Fiend's attack would knock off another. That way all three of Chaos Core's extra lives would be spent.

Then he'd activate The World's time leap, jump to his next turn, all monsters would have their attack counts reset, he'd launch a full assault and win.

The more Sartorius thought, the more excited he became, his grin stretching wider.

But before he could put any of it into action—

"Activate set card," Kira snapped his fingers. "Trap Card: 'Malevolent Catastrophe.' Activate when the opponent declares an attack; destroy all monsters on the field." (Anime effect)

Sartorius: "!"

Another trap?

"Of course. Chaos Core's effect—remove a Sacred Beast Counter to prevent that destruction," Kira said coolly. "So the only thing leaving the field is your Arcana Force."

As if the power of an evil god erupted, a vortex of destruction swallowed the entire field. The World, The Light Ruler, and The Fiend on Sartorius's field were all shredded to bits in that maelstrom, vanishing without a trace.

Only The Fool—that firmest Fool—stood unaffected amidst the vortex, untouched by any effects from the opponent's cards.

"Ahhhhh I'll kill you!"

Sartorius—or rather, the Light of Destruction—continued rampaging.

"Feel free to try," Kira only chuckled.

Sartorius calmed himself, scowling as he continued: "Ugh… Then I activate the Equip Spell 'Reverse Reborn,' which can revive an Arcana Force monster from the Graveyard. But the revived monster only gains the Tails effect." (Anime card)

"Tails, huh," Kira said. "Not many options then."

Most Arcana Force cards have drawbacks on their Tails sides.

But there are exceptions.

"Revive, incarnation of fate, the ultimate Arcana—

—Arcana Force EX - The Light Ruler!"

[Arcana Force EX - The Light Ruler, ATK 4000]

The card overhead spun and landed on Tails.

"The Light Ruler's Tails effect: when a monster effect, Spell, or Trap that targets this card is activated, negate and destroy it. But each time an effect is negated, this card's ATK decreases by 1000."

Sarina: "It gains effect resistance by losing ATK—whether Heads or Tails, it's still positive. Is this the power of the ultimate Arcana of an evil persona…"

Kira: "My turn, draw."

He also retrieved a card that had left the Graveyard.

"During the Standby Phase, the effect of 'Treeborn Frog' in the Graveyard activates again. I have no Spells/Traps in my back row, so Special Summon 'Treeborn Frog.'"

[Treeborn Frog, DEF 100]

"Next, I activate the Spell Card 'Cost Down.' Discard a card; this turn, all monsters in my hand have their Levels reduced by 2."

Kira discarded a card to the Graveyard.

"But the card I discarded was the Spell 'Card of Compensation.' When this card is sent from the hand to the Graveyard, draw two cards from the Deck."

"Then I activate the Spell 'Card of Burial Magic,' banish three Spells from my Graveyard; draw two cards from the Deck."

Kira then placed a monster.

"The original Level 5 'Dark Summoning Beast' becomes Level 3 due to Cost Down, so I can Normal Summon it directly.

Therefore I Normal Summon 'Dark Summoning Beast.'"

[Dark Summoning Beast, ATK 0]

Sartorius frowned.

Another ATK 0 monster…
For some reason, seeing a 0-ATK monster made him uneasy.

"Then tribute Dark Summoning Beast; activate its effect!"

Kira raised his arm.

"By tributing Dark Summoning Beast, ignoring Summoning conditions and revival restrictions, Special Summon from the Graveyard: 'Uria, Lord of Searing Flames,' 'Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder,' and 'Raviel, Lord of Phantasms!'" (anime effect)

Sartorius: "!?"

All three Sacred Beasts at once???

Red, gold, and blue energies surged from Kira's Duel Disk, erupting in a tidal wave. The energy manifested into the three Sacred Beasts, baring fangs and claws, looking down with contempt upon the small figure of the man of light.

Uria, Hamon, Raviel—summoned!
Of course, the anime's ignore-revival-restrictions is unfit for real cards, so in the TCG this card was changed to pull a Sacred Beast from the Deck instead of the Graveyard. The range is broader, but it only summons one instead of three.

"But the turn I use Dark Summoning Beast's effect, I can't enter the Battle Phase," Kira said.

Before Sartorius could even relax, Kira continued:

"But I can still use this card—

—Spell Card 'Dimension Fusion Destruction!'
Banish one each of the three Sacred Beasts I control to conduct their ultimate fusion!" (Anime effect)

In the TCG, you can fuse from hand/field/Graveyard; in the anime, all three had to be on-field.

"Across endless eras, unleash the forgotten power of chaos—

—Summon Chaos Phantasm Armityle!!!"

Thunder roared; the three Sacred Beasts merged in a blaze of lightning into a towering form. Before the fused phantasm, even the massive Light Ruler looked tiny; the so-called embodiment of light, ultimate Arcana—suddenly seemed insignificant.

[Chaos Phantasm Armityle, ATK 0]

"So this is the ultimate Sacred Beast…"

Sarina stared blankly at the looming shadow, a shiver seizing her body.

Her ability could also sense the ominous, powerful force within that giant being—far stronger than the Light Ruler opposite, and much more saturated with chaos and evil.

If one didn't know the backstory and just looked at the current standoff, by comparison the evil aura on Armityle's side seemed even stronger than the other.

Even Kira himself, who commanded the demon, seemed to blend with the overwhelming pressure of that godlike fiend, as if he had become part of the chaotic darkness itself.

You couldn't even tell who was the villain.

"So this is the final form of the Sacred Beasts of human legend."

Sartorius gritted his teeth, still being stubborn.

"But its ATK is only 0…"

"Chaos Phantasm Armityle—once per turn, deal 10,000 battle damage to a single opposing monster," Kira said.

Sartorius's expression shifted; even he was shocked by this ridiculous effect.

A monster that can deal damage without a Battle Phase?

That meant even if Kira couldn't enter the Battle Phase due to Dark Summoning Beast's restriction, Armityle didn't need it anyway. Dealing battle damage in Main Phase—this was already breaking the rules; incredibly unscientific.

But he quickly steadied himself.

"Even so, I still have The Fool and 'Spirit Barrier.' As long as I control a monster, all battle damage I would take becomes 0."

Sartorius declared.

"Even if Armityle can deal damage without battling, as long as it's battle damage, Spirit Barrier negates it…"

"True."

Kira nodded.

"In that case, I'll activate the Spell 'Monster Reborn,' to revive a monster from the Graveyard. The one I'll revive is… that guy of yours."

Kira pointed at Sartorius.

"Revive 'Arcana Force XXI - The World' from your Graveyard!"

A muscle on Sartorius's face twitched.

Stealing my World again?

How obsessed are you with my World?
[Arcana Force XXI - The World, ATK 3100]

"Of course, due to 'Arcana Force 0 - The Fool.' When The Fool is on the field, whenever the opponent activates a coin flip effect, they can freely choose heads or tails."

Kira said.

"So I won't even spin the card; I'll directly take The World's Heads effect. At the end of the turn, by sending two monsters to the Graveyard, skip your next turn."

Sartorius gritted his teeth: "Skip as many turns as you want, the result won't change. The Fool is invincible—absolutely impossible to defeat!"

"Is that so?"

Kira smiled faintly.

"If I remember, The Fool's effect is… if Heads, it can't be targeted by your own card effects, and isn't affected by your own effects.

If Tails, it can't be targeted by opponent's effects, and isn't affected by opponent's effects."

"What are you trying to say?" Sartorius frowned.

"Nothing much."

Kira smiled.

"Why not look at your field."

"My field… Nani!???"

Seeing "Chaos Phantasm Armityle" somehow standing on his own field, Sartorius's eyes nearly popped out.

Yes, that's right.

Armityle—the ultimate Sacred Beast—was now, for some reason, on Sartorius's field.

"To make Armityle use this hidden power—you should feel honored," Kira said cheerfully.

"What?" Sartorius was dumbfounded.

A hidden ability? Sending itself to the opponent? What kind of nonsense is that?

Is it born a double agent?

"Chaos Phantasm Armityle—once per turn during the Main Phase, you can give control of this card to your opponent," Kira explained with a smile. "And during the End Phase of the turn this effect is activated, banish all monsters on the controller's field except this card!"

Sartorius: "?????"

Huh?
What the heck is that?

Kira snapped his fingers.

"Oblivion Roaring Life!"

Then Sartorius watched, aghast, as Armityle, now on his field, opened its jaws wide and unleashed a terrifying energy that engulfed his Light Ruler—and even The Fool—sucking them into an interdimensional vortex, gone reduced to atoms.

Yes, even the invincible Fool.

The Fool cannot be destroyed by battle; when Tails, it cannot be targeted by the opponent's effects nor affected by them. At first glance, it's invincible.

But Armityle's effect is to first give control to the opponent, then "banish all monsters on the controller's field."

When this resolves, Armityle is under Sartorius's control. So from The Fool's perspective, this is a friendly effect, not an opponent's effect.

The Fool only resists friendly effects when Heads, so even The Fool can't withstand Armityle's finisher and is banished into the void, gone.

This ridiculously unscientific effect was naturally removed when Armityle became a real card. But years later, the official game printed a new variant: "Armityle the Chaos Phantasm - Phantom of Fury" - reproducing the anime's broken effect one-to-one.

That real card really can hand itself to the opponent and then banish all monsters on its controller's field.

This infiltrate-then-friendly-fire tactic is extremely insidious; many "unaffected by opponent's effects" towers like The Fool can't handle it. In the anime, Adrian Gecko's "unaffected by opponent's effects" boss and even "Exodia the Forbidden One" got cheesed by this, dying with grievances.

Just like Sartorius now.

He looked about to go insane.

"Impossible! Impossible!"

Sartorius raged on.

"My Light Ruler commands all the light of the universe!"

"My Fool is the strongest, invincible shield!"

"My destiny is absolute!"

"This is impossible! It's all fake! All fake…"

Sarina: "…"

"Of course, Armityle only returns at the end of the turn, and I also can't deal you battle damage this turn… but that's fine. There's still your The World."

Kira went on, beaming.

"End Phase—first resolve the effect of 'Samsara Lotus' in the Graveyard, Special Summon 'Samsara Lotus' from the Graveyard."

[Samsara Lotus, ATK 0]

"Then resolve 'Chaos Phantasm Armityle.' During the End Phase, control returns to the original owner.

Come back, Armityle."

Armityle grunted, having eaten its fill clearing the opponent's field, then patted its butt and flew back to Kira's side.

Sartorius: "…"

"Lastly, your monster—'Arcana Force XXI - The World.' Tribute 'Treeborn Frog' and 'Samsara Lotus' to skip your next turn."

Kira swung his arm.

"Za Warudo!"

Time froze; dials spun, and in an instant, it was Kira's turn again.

"Alright, your turn is skipped—still my turn.

My turn, draw."

Kira waved a hand.

"A good duel, but this is about where it ends.

Chaos Phantasm Armityle's effect—once per turn, if the opponent controls no monsters, inflict 10,000 battle damage directly to the opponent!

Chaos Annihilation!"

The final blow of the Chaos Phantasm descended like a demon god's world-ending strike.

Sartorius looked up at Armityle's blast and seemed to feel a power capable of destroying the universe itself.

As if in that moment, his universe, his destiny, were shattered by the phantasm's strike.

[Sartorius, LP 900 → LP 0]

Chapter 707: A Good Horse Meets Its Bole

Sarina stared wide-eyed at the field, hardly able to believe it.

He actually won?

It felt a bit unreal.

She'd always sensed that whatever possessed her brother was something immensely powerful. Today, witnessing the way it toyed with fate in the palm of its hand, she was chilled.

But that being—so overwhelmingly strong—actually seemed truly defeated now…
No, perhaps the truly terrifying one was Kira on the other side.

Forcing the opponent's Deck to summon The Fool straight from their own Deck—that kind of outlandish tactic already strained Sarina's imagination.

Even more outrageous, he used The Fool's effect to take the Heads ability of The World, and in a duel against Sartorius, stole The World to create an infinite turn-skip "World lock"…
Though she had no affection for the evil force that hijacked her brother's body, and certainly no sympathy, she had to admit—putting herself in the other's shoes—she too might have gone insane.

Even so, she had to acknowledge the strength. Even faced with such a dire situation, even against the infinite loop of The World, he survived. His dueling skill was formidable.

But so what? The invincible Sacred Beast awaited him afterward.

Truth be told, even she was stunned when it appeared.

The Three Sacred Beasts are legendary—though not as famous as the Egyptian Gods, still a legend. But like the Gods, for most duelists they're a backdrop—rarely seen in person.

In everyone's imagination, such godlike monsters should have massive ATK, crushing all with pure force, like Kaiba's invincible Neo Ultimate Blue-Eyes or Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon—paragons of raw power.

Yet this Ultimate Sacred Beast looked ferocious and imposing, but weirdly had 0 ATK. That already clashed with the expected "god-card" aesthetic.

Even more unexpected was its unorthodox effect.

A famed Level 12 godlike demon with a hidden ability—to betray you by switching sides to your opponent's field?
What kind of bizarre effect is that?
Shameful, but effective. Sartorius's The Fool really was the strongest shield in Sarina's view. She couldn't think of a single answer in her entire Deck that could deal with it.

But the Chaos Phantasm did it easily—as if banishing a common grunt…
Sarina looked at Kira with mixed feelings.

Come to think of it, this Chaos Phantasm really does suit this Duel King. But if the Phantasm found its master, the opponent suffers. Sure enough, look at the evil-persona Sartorius—he'd been plenty expressive during the duel; now his expression was even more exaggerated, looking completely unhinged.

Treasure your life—stay away from card games. Look at Sartorius: handsome before cards, abstract art after.

"You!"

Sartorius roared in fury.

"This is impossible! Destiny is on my side—my destiny is absolute! The world should be full of light—everything should be pure white! Why are you…!?"

Perhaps for the first time since arriving on Earth, he felt despair.

The light was snuffed out. What he'd believed in, the radiant future his power foresaw, had all been violently shattered in an instant.

And now, staring at the man before him—though he wore a human face—it felt like he'd abstracted into some vast monster far beyond himself. From him emanated boundless darkness, like a shoreless river, swallowing all things and dyeing them pitch black like himself.

For the first time on Earth, the Light of Destruction felt the future was so dark.

But why?
He had divined it countless times. No matter how he read the future, the result was always his victory.

His path of light was unimpeded; Jaden, Aster, Kaiba, the Duel King—none should have been a problem.

So why could this man surpass his prophecy?

And those previous failed predictions—Jaden, Zane Truesdale, Aster—each duel that rewrote his destined visions—were they all influenced by this man?

He suddenly thought of a possibility, eyes widening at Kira.

"You—you're… the Wave of Darkness!?"

The more he thought, the more likely it seemed.

The cosmic darkness opposing the Light of Destruction—the Wave of Darkness.

This man's heart and dueling were so dark—wasn't he exactly that?

"The Wave of Darkness? Me?"

Kira blinked. Wasn't that from Ultraman?

Then he couldn't help laughing.

"If you say so."

He stepped forward and pulled off Sartorius's Duel Disk.

"Your Arcana Force is interesting—cards manifested from your power of light, right? A one-of-a-kind Arcana Force Deck. Not bad, not bad."

As he spoke, he slid out the Deck and stuffed it into his pocket.

He didn't finish the sentence, but the rest was clear: Not bad—but it's mine now.

Sartorius spat blood.

"You—you—you—arghhh!!!"

Unable to bear it anymore, the power erupted from his body. A mighty light—filled with savagery and rage—like a formless beast, roared straight at Kira.

It was the Light of Destruction's true self within Sartorius.

Though weakened by losing the duel, it still had frightening power. Sarina instinctively stepped back at the sight, shocked by the force—so this was the terrible being inside her brother.

But facing this terrifying beast of light, Kira remained expressionless.

Armityle, still lingering post-duel, swatted down with a single palm.

Smack.

No technique, no flourish—just a casual slap like killing a mosquito—but it crashed down like Mount Everest and pinned the Light of Destruction beneath its palm.

Light of Destruction, deceased.

Chapter 708: Acting

"Brother!"

Sarina hurried to prop up her brother.

The Light of Destruction that had possessed his body finally departed, and the real Sartorius finally returned.

He slowly came to, tried to stand, but having not controlled his body for so long, his movements were clumsy. After a few failed attempts to push himself up, he gave up for now.

"I'm fine."

He gestured to Sarina to indicate he was alright, exhaled, and then looked to Kira.

"Duel King, thank you."

Sarina also stood and bowed deeply to Kira.

"It's nothing."

Kira said, taking out the confiscated Deck and handing it to Sarina.

Sarina blinked.

"This is your brother's Deck… the original Deck," Kira said. "The new Arcana born under the Light of Destruction's influence—I took those. They're dangerous. The rest—the originals—should go back to their owner."

Sarina hesitated for a while before accepting it, a bit at a loss.

"We don't know how to repay such a debt…"

Kira waved with a smile, about to speak, when he suddenly sensed something, frowning slightly.

All three looked up; a white light appeared midair. The light condensed into a rectangular screen. A figure appeared within.

"Beautiful. Spectacular."

A man in a white suit, seated in a room flooded with white light so bright it was almost dazzling, elegantly held a glass of red wine.

He swirled it.

"I watched the duel. Impressive. As expected of the Duel King—both at dueling and at tilting people."

He smiled.

Sartorius suddenly spoke: "This man is Mello—or rather, that's his human name. His true nature, like the one who possessed me, is a persona of the Light of Destruction.

Not long ago he attacked the Industrail Illusion's headquarters in Europe and took the Deck called 'Gladiator Beast.'"

The man in the image frowned slightly.

"Oh? You know quite a lot."

He turned his head slowly to look at Sartorius.

"I see. Even though that guy was erased, you retained his memories. Looks like he was not only useless as a teammate, but left us lots of trouble."

Everyone knew the "guy" he spoke of was the Light of Destruction persona just erased from Sartorius.

Though Sartorius's body had been occupied, his consciousness was never fully erased. In the anime, he even stole two of the "SORA" satellite keys that had reached the evil persona's hands and gave them to Jaden and Aster.

The evil persona hated him but couldn't fully erase him. So while Sartorius couldn't usually interfere, he watched as a bystander and knew a lot.

"Correct, I represent the faction of light from a distant universe."

Mello said solemnly.

"And the reason I appear now is for you, Fujiki Kira."

"Oh?"

"You're strong. In fact, you're the strongest duelist we've seen on this planet to date. The spirits you command and your dueling ability are both top tier."

Mello said.

"Such talent shouldn't be wasted on a tiny planet among a mundane human species. You can have more—achieve more—go to a broader world."

Kira mused: "This opening sounds familiar…"

Mello extended a hand through the screen.

"Join us."

Kira frowned: "You mean, join the Light of Destruction?"

"Correct," Mello said. "Our faction of light needs a representative on Earth—a chosen one.

In the past, that was Sartorius. But as you see, he failed, and we believe we've found a better replacement."

The siblings exchanged glances, worry in both their eyes.

One plot failed; now the Light of Destruction was targeting Kira.

And Kira actually looked like he was considering it.

"Actually… not impossible."

The siblings were shocked, staring at him.

Kira looked up, seriously meeting Mello's gaze in the screen.

"What are the benefits?"

Everyone was stunned.

Mello couldn't help but laugh.

"As the Light of Destruction's representative, you'll have the best resources," Mello said. "I don't mean the level of our embarrassing former companion—I mean literally the best.

Cards, money, manpower, even authority—all top-tier. The entire world will bow to you; eventually everyone on this planet will receive the light's baptism and embrace its faith.

And you will stand at the top, the representative above all. The entire planet will revolve around you."

He paused, then emphasized:

"You will be the number one in Earth's history. Reigning above all with absolute dominance—the true master of this world!"

Kira's eyes lit up as he listened.

"That does sound interesting."

He nodded, admitting it.

"Unifying the world, reigning over it all—indeed, a feat no one on this planet has achieved," Kira said with a laugh. "Good, you have my interest.

Let's talk specifics—sooner the better.

Shall I come to you, or will you come to me?"

He looked eager, as if he couldn't wait for that blueprint of world domination.

"Kira…"

Sartorius struggled to rise, trying to dissuade him, but his limbs were weak. Sarina hurried to support him.

Kira completely ignored them.

But Mello, seeing Kira seemingly convinced, fell silent.

After a while, he spoke slowly.

"Alright. If you've no intention, you don't need to put on this act for me, Duel King."

Mello said blandly, expressionless.

"If you wanted to use this chance to approach me, no need. We will meet—but not today, not here, not now."

Kira: "…"

Mello finished his wine, set the glass down, and stood.

"I'll come find you."

He raised his black cane and gave a light wave.

The projected image vanished as if it had never existed.

Kira looked up at where it had vanished, pondered a moment, then frowned and asked the Sartorius siblings:

"Is my acting really that bad?"

The siblings: "…"

Chapter 709: A New Mission for the Society

Unknown location.

A grand hall, vast enough to hold an army. A towering ceiling pierced the heavens; white light poured from every direction, drenching the hall in dazzling brilliance.

Men and women in white uniforms gathered in the hall facing a high dais, upon which stood a man in a long white coat, handsome, with a little handlebar mustache.

This was the headquarters of the Society of Light.

In truth, the Society was loosely organized; members of different branches rarely gathered—there was no need.

Most served their own divisions and seldom met others. But they all knew whom they served—or even believed in.

Sartorius, the founder—like a god to them. Everyone who joined believed, unwaveringly, that Lord Sartorius represented the universe's ultimate truth; he made them believe that destiny had a right and wrong path.

And joining the Society of Light, following Sartorius, was the right destiny.

But now, they had received bad news.

Lord Sartorius had fallen.

"Impossible—that's absolutely impossible!"

Someone shouted.

"Lord Sartorius's destiny is absolute; his existence is the justice of the universe. I don't believe it—his destiny cannot end, must not end!"

"Agreed!"

"Nonsense—it must be rumors spread by ill-intentioned people!"

Their words drew a chorus of support. Many shouted it was a conspiracy—Sartorius could not be harmed.

Then another voice piped up.

"But I heard it was the Duel King himself," he said. "He set a trap at Duel Academy; Lord Sartorius was caught off guard and ambushed."

Someone immediately retorted: "Nonsense. I sent people to check—Lord Sartorius is in the hospital recuperating. He only suffered minor injuries."

The hall buzzed with conflicting claims, when a voice came from the entrance.

"Sartorius will not return. The one you saw in the hospital is but an empty shell devoid of a soul."

Everyone started, turning together. Some hotheads barked:

"Who are you?!"

But when they saw the man, they fell silent.

A man in a white suit, leaning on a black cane, walking unhurriedly. His movements were slow but exuded a confidence and superior air that defied words.

As he approached, everyone he met felt their words die in their throats. By the time they realized, their bodies had already moved aside for him.

The crowd parted like the Red Sea before Moses. The man in the white suit walked straight to the dais, ascended, turned gracefully, and faced the crowd.

"Regrettably, the news is true," he said evenly. "Sartorius was indeed ambushed by the Duel King and has fallen. But you are also right.

Even if Sartorius falls, the universe's destiny will not end."

From his mouth, the words carried a persuasive power none could match. The hall fell silent; no one dared question, none dared object.

Everyone felt it.

This man felt the same as Sartorius—something that made their souls tremble, that compelled submission.

The mustached man beside the dais asked carefully, "Then… you are…?"

"My name is Mello. From today, I will take over the Society of Light. I will lead you to complete what Sartoriuscould not; the world's destiny remains on its rightful track.

And first, your task is this."

He flicked his fingers; something flew toward the mustached man.

The man caught it— a silver Medallion with "GX" engraved.

"This is…"

"The GX Tournament—location: Duel Academy. Registration closes today."

Mello said coolly.

"I want all of you to enter."

…

Meanwhile—

["Link system matched. Both players entering the online arena…"]

Kira's opponent appeared with the virtual ID "Pro League Season 2 Rank 121"—likely the real pro.

He came in cocky: "Off-season for pros, so I'm online to keep my hands warm. I hear duelists here are decent… not expecting pro level, but don't disappoint me too much."

"Oh, a professional," Kira replied respectfully. "I'll tread carefully then."

"…"

Three minutes later.

"Activate Power Bond, fuse two 'Cyber Dragons'—Fusion Summon 'Chimeratech Rampage Dragon!'"

"Power Bond doubles the ATK of the summoned Machine—Rampage goes to 3200."

"Then Quick-Play 'Limiter Removal'—Machine monsters' ATK doubles again—Rampage goes to 6400."

"Go, bicycle—direct attack!"

And Pro League Season 2 Rank 121 screamed off-screen, still yelling about "Cyber Dragon turned into a bicycle" as the system whisked him away.

Another one driven mad.

After finishing his daily warm-up, Kira glanced at his record: 64 straight wins—he'd only played that many. His "JoyfulDuelist" ID had become somewhat famous in the Link system; forums had posts like "Beware 'JoyfulDuelist'," "Link's No.1 Troll," and so on.

He was used to it, even seeing it as praise for his skill.

Leaving the system and returning to his dorm, he heard a knock.

He opened the door; a long-legged beauty in a white coat with a generous figure—the school nurse—walked right in.

A closer look: Dark Scorpion - Meanae the Thorn.

"Meanae?"

Kira asked, puzzled.

"Why aren't you at the infirmary on duty, coming to me instead?"

"Of course I have something to report to the boss."

Meanae closed the door, lowered her voice conspiratorially.

"Boss, have you heard of… the one-turn-kill Reaper?"