Yugioh [331-335] (Patreon)

Chapter 331: Abandoning the Light for Darkness

The Demon King was on the verge of tears.

My yokai, my deck…

He was called the Demon King precisely because of his mastery of the Yokai deck. It was like his soul—his lifelong companion through countless duels. But it looked like this was the end of the road.

Without his yokai, could he still be called the Demon King?

He pondered. If he survived today, maybe he really would have to retire.

Or maybe he should just become a monk.

But before that…

He took a deep breath and pulled out the communicator that New Doma's emissary had given him.

Looking at the device, a twisted, sinister smile appeared on his pained face.

Heh, no way I'm suffering through this alone.

Since we're allies, we should share blessings and hardships.

Those bastards from New Doma tricked him into fighting this demon. Fine, let them taste the terror of the Yellow-robed Devil themselves.

Thinking this, the Demon King cackled.

Don't blame me, brothers. I was forced into this…

"..."

He connected the call.

"Demon King." A low voice answered, "How did it go?"

"Hmph, what do you think?"

The Demon King put his legs up, regaining his former swagger.

"Haha, my apologies. If the Demon King takes action, of course it's a sure thing. So I can assume that kid is finished?"

"I took care of both of them. They had some skills, and gave me a bit of trouble, but it's nothing major." The Demon King said confidently. "They're at the club now. You'll find what you want there."

"If you want it, come verify in person."

"Alright. Wait for us. We'll be right there."

The call ended.

As soon as he hung up, the Demon King returned to his servile self, bowing and grinning. "They said they'll be right over. Please wait, sirs!"

"No rush, no rush." Kira waved him off with a smile.

"..."

Perhaps afraid they'd get bored waiting, the Demon King soon brought in a group of hostesses—some with slim waists and long legs, some plump and curvy, some pure and alluring, some in office attire.

But Kira just waved them away.

Some cars look brand new with big headlights, but you can never tell the real mileage—and the cylinders might be totally worn out.

Jadenn was even less interested, yawning boredly at the lack of dueling.

Kira had stolen the last duel so naturally that he never even got a chance to interrupt.

"Oh, right."

Kira had no interest in the Demon King's usual entertainments, but this did remind him of something.

"You've been running this place for years. Surely you have more than just one main deck? I bet you've got a collection of spares, right?"

Demon King: "..."

"Since we're waiting, why not share them with us for appraisal?" Kira smiled.

"Great idea," the Demon King replied mournfully.

After today, I really will have to become a monk.

Jaden watched Kira silently.

"Kira is amazing, commanding such a terrifying guy so easily…"

No, for a moment, he felt that maybe Kira was the real scary one.

…

It seemed New Doma was desperate for the "Sealing Device" in Kira's possession. In no time, two black-robed men rushed in.

They burst into the room, stunned to find Kira and Jaden calmly drinking tea.

They saw the Demon King, once so imposing, now serving tea and bowing obsequiously.

The moment he saw them, he leaped up and pointed, "They're here! That's them! Lord, don't let them escape!"

He seemed even more eager to capture his allies than Kira himself.

The two men froze for half a second before cursing the Demon King's utter lack of loyalty and tried to run.

But it was too late.

They turned and dashed for the door, but everything blurred—and suddenly, they were back in the room.

The yellow-robed youth sat smiling on the sofa, not even bothering to stop them.

The Demon King grinned beside him—lecherously happy to see his former allies suffer.

The eerie scene made the two men shudder. They tried to run again, but as soon as they stepped outside, the world spun, and they were back in the room—just like the first time.

No matter how slow-witted, they now understood their predicament—

—they couldn't escape.

It was as if they were trapped in a haunted movie set, this room their eternal prison—unable to leave.

They were caught in a shadow game barrier.

"Alright, Option A."

Kira stood up slowly, revealing his duel disk.

"We duel. You can use the 'Seal of Orichalcos' if you want. But if you lose, you'll be stuck accompanying your serpent god for eternity, never able to reincarnate.

Of course, I won't be able to ask you questions. But that's fine, I'll think of something else.

Or Option B, the loser must obey any command. My conditions are clear: I don't want your lives, just take me to your base and answer my questions."

Hearing this, the Demon King realized Kira had forgotten something and quickly added, "Don't forget, sir! Their decks! You have to confiscate their decks too!"

"Oh, right." Kira slapped his forehead. "Thanks for the reminder. For the sake of justice and a healthy dueling environment, I can't let you use Duel Monsters for evil anymore.

So yes, I want your decks as well. There, that should cover everything."

The New Doma duo glared at the Demon King.

Whose side are you on!?

But the traitor just puffed out his chest and declared, "Lord Kira is upholding justice! Your decks are murder tools stained with blood and must be confiscated for the good of all! Can't let mine be the only one taken—uh, I mean, for justice, of course!"

The New Doma duo almost laughed in rage.

Did you just blurt out what you really meant?

Chapter 332: One by One

"Elemental HERO Stratos, direct attack!"

"Uwah!"

At Jaden's command, Stratos's blaster exploded in the face of one of the New Doma duo, who screamed and collapsed as his LP hit zero.

"We won!"

Jaden flashed a victory gesture.

"That was such a fun duel!"

"Ugh…"

Though Kira's shadow game didn't gamble with lives, it still dealt a certain amount of real damage. Getting blasted point-blank by an Elemental HERO was no joke.

"Damn…"

The black-robed man gritted his teeth. No wonder Yemo, their boss Necromancer, and even the now-Demon King—all got taken down by these two students.

They were just too strong. With Jaden's continuous HERO fusions and combos, he was suppressed from start to finish, completely outclassed.

Even when it looked like they'd emptied their hand in one turn, Jaden would just topdeck Bubbleman, special summon, draw two cards, then Pot of Greed for two more—like alchemy, conjuring cards out of thin air, with no regard for equivalent exchange.

But when he looked at his teammate—

"..."

"Continuous Trap: Rivalry of Warlords. While it's on the field, we can each only control one monster type," Kira said with a smile.

"You have three 'Ojama Tokens' on your field, so you can't summon any other monsters."

"Then I'll attack directly with 'Submarineroid'."

"After attacking directly, Submarineroid goes into defense mode, so sorry, you can't even crash your tokens into me."

"..."

Watching his teammate rage at the useless tokens while Kira calmly sipped tea, he suddenly didn't feel so bad about losing.

Compared to his teammate, his own loss wasn't so bad—a fun duel, at least.

"Alright, as promised."

Kira clapped his hands and approached.

"Lead the way. Where's your base?"

The two black-robed men exchanged a look of pain.

In the end, they gave in.

"Alright, let's go."

They didn't want to betray their allies, but the rules of a shadow game were absolute—there was nothing they could do.

That's just how it is.

If you can't fight back, just go along.

As they left the Dark Star Club, a cold glint flashed in their eyes.

All their brothers would share the pain.

….

Meanwhile, at the New Doma branch...

"Now that the boss is down and we have no orders from HQ, things aren't looking good," said the member codenamed Black Flame, glancing around.

"So, until HQ gives new orders, I'll take over as acting leader. Anyone object?"

Candlelight flickered strangely, shadows dancing on faces and walls. No one spoke.

"Good, then it's settled." Black Flame paused. "The Demon King says he's taken care of Kira. That's good news. Venom Fang is already on his way and should bring the item soon.

I've contacted HQ and am waiting for a reply. Getting the 'Sealing Device' should earn us major credit—"

Before he finished, someone entered.

"I'm back."

"Oh? Venom Fang, you took a while," Black Flame said, turning. "Did the Demon King try to haggle?"

"No, things… got a bit complicated," Venom Fang said awkwardly.

"What happened?"

Black Flame frowned.

"Don't tell me he failed the mission?"

Venom Fang hesitated, then nodded.

"Kira's still alive?" Black Flame frowned. "What's with the Demon King? He botched the job and lied about it?"

"But I've led him to the designated place," Venom Fang whispered.

"Hm, that's fine too."

Black Flame nodded, opening a map of Duel City.

"Tell me, where is he now? What's your plan?"

"Actually… we might not need the map," Venom Fang said even more quietly.

"He's waiting outside the door."

"..."

A few seconds of silence.

Black Flame's face twisted in rage. "You led him here!?"

"I had no choice. It's a shadow game—lose and you're at their mercy. What could I do?"

A black-robed man at the table slammed his fist down. "Let's strangle this traitor first—"

Venom Fang jumped back in panic. "Calm down, guys! I'm just relaying a message for the Yellow-robed One. If you touch me, think twice—"

Black Flame was furious. "You're bragging now?"

"..."

Amid the chaos, the door opened. Two figures in red and yellow uniforms appeared.

"So many duelists!" cried Jaden, excitedly fingering his duel disk. "So many new decks to try!"

Kira smiled.

"No rush. We'll go one by one. Who's first?"

The room went silent.

Black Flame gritted his teeth.

"Don't get cocky. Think just because you beat Necromancer that our branch is helpless?"

Another at the table slammed the table. "That's right! Don't get cocky!"

Black Flame turned to him. "Alright! Gale, you go first. Show him our power!"

Gale: "?"

Before he could respond, Kira nodded. "You first? Fine, let's duel."

Gale glared at Black Flame.

You set me up!?

"Who cares! Let's just duel already!" Jaden grabbed a random opponent.

"Duel!" x4

The four began dueling. The room filled with light and shadow, monsters flying, screams and howls echoing endlessly.

Black Flame watched Gale get tormented by Submarineroid and gulped, glad he hadn't jumped in himself.

But this was an opportunity.

No matter how strong Kira was, taking everyone down would take time. Now was his chance to slip away—

But as soon as he stepped out, the world spun and he found himself back in the room.

Just like before.

Stunned, he looked over to see Kira smiling at him from the duel.

"Don't rush. The duels aren't over yet—where are you going?

I said, it's one by one. Everyone gets a turn—no need to run."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Unless you all defeat me, or I fall, no one's leaving this room."

Black Flame trembled all over, stumbling back and collapsing on the floor.

He had never felt such despair in his life.

Chapter 333: The Academy’s Kaiser

"Seriously, this is supposed to be a major Doma base, and this is all they had?"

Kira walked out of the dimly lit base, stepping back into the sunlight as he counted the loot he'd confiscated from this raid.

To be honest, he wasn't too impressed.

It wasn't that there weren't any rare cards, but most of the rare cards these people had were the kind that were considered powerful and valuable among the local natives, but to him, they were pretty much useless.

Take, for example, the "Chainsaw Insect"—a four-star monster with an impressive 2400 attack points, but its minor drawback was that whenever it battled, the opponent drew a card.

Well, at least it could fetch a good price.

With this, the Doma forces stationed here in Domino City were basically wiped out.

"But… is this really okay?" Jaden sounded a bit worried.

He'd been so caught up in the duel just now that he hadn't thought much of it, but now that it was over and he recalled the intel they'd overheard, he couldn't help but feel uneasy.

"They just said something about headquarters having already arrived in Duel City or something, right?" Jaden glanced at Kira. "Sounds like some pretty tough people are coming?"

He was reminded of Shell—one of the New Doma Three Swordsmen. Back then, it took both of them together to defeat him.

If it was someone like that, the threat level would be on a whole different scale compared to the grunts they'd just faced.

"Who knows, maybe." Kira shrugged. "Anyway, we've done what we could for now. Whatever comes next, we'll deal with it as it comes. How's your puzzle card collection?"

"Oh."

Jaden fished out a handful of puzzle cards from his back pocket.

"Four pieces," he said. "Still missing two."

"Hah, I've already got five." Kira pulled out five pieces.

This raid on New Doma not only cleared out the threat and grabbed some cards, but both of them also won quite a few puzzle cards. After all, there were only a handful of qualified duelists in such a huge base; the rest of the cannon fodder didn't even have puzzle cards.

"All right, time to find the last opponent," Kira waved his hand and smiled. "See you at the finals—though we'd better hurry. It'd be a joke if we didn't even qualify for the playoffs in the end."

The two bumped fists and then split up.

"So it's just the last match left…"

Kira wandered the streets, glancing around.

Honestly, with duelists scattered throughout such a large city, it wasn't that easy to bump into one.

Especially since most duelists made an effort to hide themselves. If you walked around Duel City during the tournament blatantly wearing a duel disk, it was like declaring yourself open prey. Anyone could instantly tell if you were a participant and decide whether to challenge you.

But if you hid and observed from the shadows, you became the hunter. You could watch for easy prey to make your move—or keep hiding if you thought you'd lose against someone.

So, Kira and Jaden managing to farm five puzzle cards each at a duelist hotspot was already pretty fast. For others, just wandering the streets wasn't likely to net them opponents quickly.

Not to mention, 90% of duelists—even if they got the chance—would have a hard time winning all their matches. The higher-ranked and more famous the duelist, the more likely they were to face opponents just as strong or even stronger. Others who recognized them would avoid them entirely.

So even though it seemed like he only needed one more win, finding that last opponent might not be so easy.

After walking down another street without seeing any duelists, Kira realized he was getting a bit hungry after a morning's activity, so he decided to grab a bite to eat.

And as luck would have it, just as he pushed open the door to a restaurant, he bumped right into someone.

It was Duel Academy's Kaiser, Zane Truesdale.

Both of them froze in surprise.

Their eyes met—yes, it was the right person.

Half a second later, Kira smiled. "What a coincidence. You here for lunch too?"

"Yeah." Zane smiled and casually asked, "How many pieces do you have?"

"Five."

Kira showed his puzzle cards.

"Missing just one."

"What a coincidence."

Zane smiled as well, pulling out his own pile.

He also had five pieces.

Kira figured it probably had something to do with his school uniform. Although Zane Truesdale—Kaiser—was one of the strongest characters in GX, his reputation as Kaiser was mostly within the Academy. Before graduation, he wasn't famous in the outside world.

Many Duel City participants probably hadn't heard of his name, and seeing his school uniform, figured he was just some student experiencing the tournament—an easy target. That's probably how he managed to win five matches so quickly.

"So, we're both at match point," Kira grinned.

"Yeah." Zane's eyes sparked with fighting spirit. "Looks like one of us will qualify for the finals right here."

"Oh, right here?"

"Well, if both our goals are to keep advancing, we'd run into each other eventually. Besides, we never had a chance to duel in the Academy, but sooner or later, we had to face off, didn't we?"

"True."

Kira smiled.

"Yeah, since we're both here, we might as well take the chance."

Zane nodded, took two steps back, and prepared his duel disk.

But Kira raised a hand in a "stop" gesture.

"Wait."

He said very seriously,

"I need to eat first."

Zane: "…"

…

So, a few minutes later, Kira was sitting inside the restaurant, digging into his meal. Zane sat across from him, arms folded, patiently waiting. (He's watching Mukbang. xD)

"The food here's so-so, beef's a bit tough. Want to order something?"

Zane waved it off. "I just ate."

"No worries, you can always order more. My treat," Kira offered.

"Really, I'm fine."

Zane smiled.

"By the way, I'm surprised you already managed to win five pieces so quickly. Impressive."

"Haha, just lucky," Zane laughed. "I just give every duel my all and fight with everything I have."

Kira nodded. "I understand."

He knew Zane's philosophy—one of the defining traits of his early character: Respecting your opponent's dueling.

Zane was the classic idealistic duelist—always positive, placing great value on the honor of duelists, even more than his desire to win.

The bonds with his deck, respect for his opponent and the duel itself—that was what he pursued, as shown in the anime when he reflected on himself after turning dark in the underground duels. He used to think that respecting his opponent was enough, and victory didn't matter.

This conviction made him strong but also became his weakness.

In the Academy, he was the invincible Kaiser, not even losing to protagonist-tier duelists like Jaden. He'd never lost before, so he didn't crave victory—since it was always within reach.

But once he entered the professional circuit, and was utterly defeated by the genius Aster Phoenix, he felt, for the first time, a genuine desire to win.

But his habitual way of thinking made him suppress that desire. He kept reminding himself to stick to his ideals and tried not to let himself want to win at any cost. This inner conflict ultimately broke his spirit as a duelist.

It was a clear demonstration of a rule in anime: when a duelist loses their nerve, their cards lose their power too. Even someone as strong as Kaiser—after his defeat to Aster and subsequent collapse—kept losing in the pro circuit, never winning another match, even against lower-ranked pros.

It wasn't until he fought in underground do-or-die duels that his long-suppressed desire finally exploded. He abandoned his old philosophy and began to pursue victory by any means necessary.

But in Kira's view—even though he knew this opinion might seem heretical in the eyes of most duelists in this world—he preferred the path of the "Hell Kaiser" after he turned dark, compared to the idealistic early version.

Because dueling is cruel. There can be only one winner. The "respect your opponent, winning or losing doesn't matter" talk never sat right with him—because in this world, victory and defeat decide everything, and the loser loses it all.

Kira narrowed his eyes as he regarded Zane.

Zane was among the strongest characters in GX. It was a shame that he later crashed and burned, his body ruined, becoming one of the few still-competent allies during the fallen era of GX.

If he could use this duel to give him a wake-up call—to make him realize the harshness of the dueling world—maybe he wouldn't have to wait until the pro circuit to get crushed and traumatized, and wouldn't have to fight in the underground. Maybe their side would gain a huge power-up in the later stages.

Having made up his mind, Kira wiped his mouth and stood up. "Thanks for waiting. Let's do this."

Chapter 334: Battle of the Academy Kings?

"Duel!" ×2

[Kira, LP 4000]

[Zane, LP 4000]

"I'll go first. Draw."

Kira declared.

"I set a monster in face-down defense position, then set a card face-down. Turn end."

Zane: "My turn. Draw!"

He glanced at his hand, then promptly played a card.

"Spell Card: 'Different Dimension Capsule.' I choose one card from my deck, banish it face-down. During my second Standby Phase after activation, that card is added to my hand."

Cards like Gold Sarcophagus and Different Dimension Capsule are considered obsolete due to their slow speed nowadays, but back in the early days, they were incredibly strong and restricted. Although you have to wait two turns, it acts as a universal search—hugely popular among players back then.

Unlike modern Yu-Gi-Oh!, where duels are often decided in one turn, back then it was normal to have empty turns and little to no OTKs. Waiting two turns for a search was no problem.

Zane searched his deck, selected a card, and placed it face-down in the Different Dimension Capsule. The capsule closed, glowed gold, and sank into the ground, disappearing.

While Kira couldn't see what card was chosen, he could easily guess it was the Spell Card "Power Bond."

A Machine-Type Fusion Spell that doubles the attack of the fused monster.

In the anime, Zane always opens with Different Dimension Capsule—and always picks Power Bond.

"…Hey, isn't that guy over there Kaiser?"

"Looks like it! And his opponent—wait, isn't that the guy, Fujiki Kira, the Yellow Big Villain?"

A few students happened to be passing by—probably Duel Academy students visiting Duel City during their break. Running into the two school legends dueling in Duel City was a huge surprise.

The Master of Yellow versus Academy's Kaiser!

A battle for the Academy's crown?

"Record this! Hurry up!"

The students quickly crowded around with their phones.

Everyone knew that no matter who won, this duel would be viral back at school—guaranteed to draw attention.

"Then, Spell Card: 'Pot of Greed.'" Zane continued. "Draw two cards."

After drawing, he paused and glanced at Kira's set card.

He'd never dueled Kira before, but he'd watched plenty of his duels. He knew Kira was a master of trap setups—his back row couldn't be underestimated.

"Quick-Play Spell, 'Mystical Space Typhoon,'" Zane said. "Destroy one Spell or Trap Card on the field. I'll destroy your set card."

A black whirlwind wrapped around Kira's set card, and a bolt of lightning struck it, shattering the trap.

Kira smiled faintly. "The card you destroyed was the Trap Card 'Dummy Marker.' When this card is destroyed by a card effect, I draw one card. If it's destroyed by your Spell Card, I can draw two cards from my deck."

Zane nodded. "So I walked right into your trap."

"Since your 'Mystical Space Typhoon' destroyed it, I'll draw two cards."

Kira drew two cards from his deck.

Zane: "Now, I Special Summon 'Cyber Dragon.'"

The legendary monster—the core of the Cyber deck—a mechanical dragon appeared on his field, electricity arcing around its steel body as it protected Zane.

[Cyber Dragon, ATK 2100]

"Cyber Dragon is a Level 5 monster, but if my opponent controls a monster and I don't, I can Special Summon it from my hand."

Zane swept his hand.

"Cyber Dragon attacks the face-down monster."

Cyber Dragon opened its mouth, unleashing a golden spiral of energy, obliterating the set monster—a tiny frog with a halo above its head.

[Treeborn Frog, DEF 100]

"Treeborn Frog… a monster that can revive itself."

Zane frowned and pulled a card from his hand.

"I set a card face-down. Turn end."

The nearby students, recording the duel, were already gushing: "As expected of Kaiser, immediately summoning a high-level monster, clearing the back row, and solidifying his own back row too."

Another nodded. "That was a perfect first turn—both offense and defense."

Kira: "…"

Honestly, Zane's opening was identical to his first appearance against Jaden in the anime—even the in-show commentary said the same thing.

"Cyber Dragon, a high-level monster that can hit the field so easily—pretty impressive, huh?" Kira smiled.

Zane smiled too, glancing at Cyber Dragon.

"It's my friend."

And as if it understood, Cyber Dragon actually lowered its head in acknowledgement.

But that was nothing unusual; it was well-known that Kaiser's Cyber Dragon was a spirit.

"I've seen your duels—your style as 'Kaiser.'" Kira smiled. "You respect every possibility your opponent has, showcase the strong bonds between yourself and your monsters through dueling, and use Cyber Dragon's ultimate forms to give your opponent an honorable finish.

That's your style—and the source of your strength."

He paused, narrowing his eyes meaningfully.

"Well, as long as you can keep winning like this, that's great."

Zane was momentarily confused but replied,

"As long as I can stick to my own dueling, and walk my own path, there's nothing to regret even if I lose to a strong opponent."

"That's true."

Kira smiled mysteriously, saying no more.

"My turn, draw," Kira declared. "During my Standby Phase, Treeborn Frog's effect in the graveyard:

If I have no Treeborn Frog on the field, I can Special Summon this card from the graveyard.

So I revive Treeborn Frog."

A holy light descended, and the little angelic frog with wings and a halo hopped back onto the field.

[Treeborn Frog, ATK 100]

"Now, I tribute Treeborn Frog for a Tribute Summon!"

Kira raised his hand, and a green storm whipped up, blades of wind swirling as if an army of wind was welcoming its general.

"Raiza the Storm Monarch—Summon!"

[Raiza the Storm Monarch, ATK 2400]

"When Raiza is Tribute Summoned, I can return one card on the field to the top of its owner's deck," Kira said. "'Cyber Dragon' goes back to the top of your deck."

A green storm engulfed Cyber Dragon, and its metallic body vanished in a flash of light, returning to the top of Zane's deck.

"Then Raiza attacks directly!"

A storm of wind blades ripped through the battlefield, even the ground was torn apart by the air currents. The storm swept over Zane, making him stagger.

[Zane, LP 4000 → 1600]

The crowd buzzed.

"Kira takes the first point!"

One guy sounded like he was streaming.

"He actually pushed back even Kaiser…"

But Zane wasn't discouraged. After the storm, he straightened up and smiled. "No wonder the Monarchs are such a rare and powerful series—that was impressive."

"Spell Card: 'Card of Heaven and Earth.'" Kira said. "If I performed a Tribute Summon this turn, I draw two cards from my deck. But the cards I draw can't be used this turn—if possible, I must set at least one." (Manga Card)

Kira drew two cards.

"I set two cards face-down. Turn end."

Chapter 335: Good Thing My Skills Are Better

"My turn, draw!"

Zane drew a card.

Of course, everyone knew it was the Cyber Dragon that just got bounced to the top of his deck. While Cyber Dragon was once the strongest beater, it couldn't get past Raiza.

"Spell Card: 'Graceful Charity!'" Zane declared. "Draw three cards, then discard two."

He quickly drew three, then discarded two.

"One of the cards I discard is the Spell Card 'Card of Compensation.' I draw two cards from my deck." (Manga Card)

Glancing at his new draws, Zane quickly formulated a plan.

"When my opponent controls a monster and I don't, I can Special Summon 'Cyber Dragon' again!"

[Cyber Dragon, ATK 2100]

"Then I activate my face-down—Continuous Trap 'Limit Reverse!' Special Summon a monster with 1000 or less ATK from my graveyard in Attack Position.

I'll revive the monster I just discarded…"

He pulled a card from his graveyard slot.

"Special Summon 'The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion'!"

[The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion, ATK 1000]

"Now, activate Fusion Substitute Monster's effect. By tributing itself and other monsters on the field as Fusion Materials, I can use it as a substitute for a named material to Fusion Summon a LIGHT Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck!"

He indicated the monsters on his field.

"I tribute 'The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion' and 'Cyber Dragon,' using the substitute as the second 'Cyber Dragon' for Fusion! Appear—

—Cyber Twin Dragon!"

The Fusion Substitute Monster released a surge of light, forming a vortex. Its body transformed into Cyber Dragon's form, and together with the other Cyber Dragon, they vanished into the light.

A steel-white body, forged like armor, gleamed with a metallic sheen.

Twin dragon heads, electricity crackling like silver snakes across its body.

[Cyber Twin Dragon, ATK 2800]

The crowd was excited: "There it is! Kaiser's strongest monster, just below Cyber End Dragon—Cyber Twin Dragon!"

Though the anime called it "second only to Cyber End Dragon," in early tournaments, Twin Dragon was actually considered stronger and more frequently used.

"And I'm not done!" Zane shouted, "Spell Card: 'Monster Reborn!' Special Summon a monster from the graveyard!

I revive 'The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion' that was just used as Fusion material!"

[The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion, DEF 1600]

"Then, I Normal Summon 'Proto-Cyber Dragon' from my hand!"

[Proto-Cyber Dragon, ATK 1100]

A Level 3 downsized version of Cyber Dragon—basically the prototype. For a long time, it was the only card that could substitute for Cyber Dragon, but as the Cyber Dragon archetype got more support, it eventually became obsolete.

"'Proto-Cyber Dragon' effect: While this card is on the field, it is treated as 'Cyber Dragon.' Now I activate 'The Light - Hex-Sealed Fusion' again!

I tribute the substitute and Proto-Cyber Dragon (as Cyber Dragon) to Fusion Summon another LIGHT Fusion Monster!"

The substitute morphed into Cyber Dragon's form, and two Cyber Dragons merged in a whirl of light. Lightning flashed, and another twin-headed metal dragon roared onto the field.

"Cyber Twin Dragon #2—Summon!"

[Cyber Twin Dragon, ATK 2800]

Kira mused, "You even have a second one…"

But in the anime, Kaiser had two Cyber End Dragons, so having two Cyber Twins wasn't strange.

The crowd was already fired up, and they hadn't even started the battle phase.

"As expected of Kaiser—he instantly summoned two Twin Dragons! Two of them!"

The blue-uniformed student was especially excited.

"Cyber Twin Dragon can attack twice per turn—if he's got two…"

"That's four attacks in one turn!" another student chimed in.

2800 ATK, four times—what a concept!

One turn KO, and then some.

"Your Monarch, and my Cyber Dragons—let's see which is truly the strongest power of Duel Academy!"

Zane declared.

"Battle! First, the first Cyber Twin Dragon attacks Raiza!"

Both dragon mouths charged with fire and lightning, the left head unleashing a beam at Raiza!

Kira snapped his fingers. "Activate the Trap Card 'Spiritual Wind Art – Miyabi.' Tribute a WIND monster I control, then return one of your cards on the field to the bottom of your deck.

I tribute 'Raiza the Storm Monarch' and send your Cyber Twin Dragon to the bottom of your deck."

Raiza spread its arms as if burning itself out, releasing a final storm. The power of wind erupted, engulfing the Twin Dragon in a green tornado until it vanished.

"Ugh, sent back to the deck…"

After going to all that trouble to summon it, having it blown away so easily made even Zane frown.

But it was fine.

What about the second one?

"Then Cyber Twin Dragon #2 attacks directly!"

With Raiza and Twin Dragon #1 gone, Kira's field was empty. Twin Dragon #2's double strike could easily secure victory!

"Activate the Trap Card 'Phoenix Wing Wind Blast.'"

Kira flipped a back row card and discarded a card from his hand.

"I discard one card, then return a card on your field to the top of your deck. I discard a card to send your Cyber Twin Dragon #2 to the top of your deck."

The spirit of Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys appeared, spreading its wings. A fiery storm swept up and swallowed the second Twin Dragon, its metallic body vanishing in the flames.

Zane: "…"

The crowd: "…"

So now both sides were left with empty fields.

"That was close—really close. As expected of Kaiser," Kira grinned. "If I hadn't been careful, your Twin Dragons would've finished me off in one turn."

Zane: "…"

He suddenly felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

It was like playing a competitive online game, using a high-difficulty, flashy hero with insane hand speed and fancy footwork. You pull off all your tricks—maximum style, all skills used.

And then your opponent, playing some boring stats monster, just presses one button, deals 999 damage, and you get instantly KO'd.

Afterward, that guy even wipes his brow and says, "Phew, that was close. Good thing my skills are better…"