Yugioh [678-683] (Patreon)

Chapter 678: Satellite

"Save the world?"

Kira asked.

Sarina nodded.

"My brother… I don't know when it started, but he became very strange," Sarina said. "He's a man with two faces now.

"One gentle face, and one demonic face that gets pleasure from steering the world toward destruction."

"I knew it," Kira nodded. "So you noticed too."

Sarina lowered her head.

"My brother and I… we were born with the power to see through others' destinies. That power manifested when we were very young, but it was never a blessing—it was a curse."

She let out a long breath.

"Yes, a curse. Because of it, everyone who noticed shunned us. Almost everyone we knew felt uneasy, and eventually no one interacted with us at all.

"That's why the bond between my brother and me became deeper than that of ordinary siblings.

"But that very brother suddenly changed one day. Thinking back, it must've been around that time—"

Sarina stood, and with a light wave of her hand, the surroundings shifted.

Flickering yellow candlelight, a sinister manor. A slightly younger Sartorius sat at a table; opposite him was a man in black with a scarf concealing his face.

This was a scene Sarina had programmed and constructed in the virtual world, a reconstruction of that day.

"At my brother's fortune-telling parlor, someone came. He brought a card and asked my brother to read it. I sensed a baleful power from that card immediately."

Sarina spoke.

"I told my brother that night to throw it away, but—"

The image shifted. Sartorius stood in a gloomy room, raising a card high, his expression twisted with ferocity. Light spilling from the card formed a cage that trapped him within.

"My brother had already been taken over by that card," Sarina said. "It's a terrifying Hero card, born to guide the universe to ruin—one that awakened the being called the Source of Destruction."

Kira nodded. He knew what it was: the very card Aster had been searching for—the ultimate Destiny Hero, Destiny Hero - Plasma.

The person who brought that card to Sartorius back then was none other than Aster's current guardian—the true culprit who killed his father and stole Destiny Hero - Plasma at the time—the pro duelist known as The D.

By leveraging Destiny Hero - Plasma and the power residing in it, he even claimed a world champion title for a time. But the Light of Destruction was no longer in Destiny Hero - Plasma; only the remnant power once possessed by evil remained in that card.

Even so, that residue was enough for The D. to thrive in the pro scene.

The Light of Destruction that once inhabited Destiny Hero - Plasma, upon encountering Sartorius at the parlor, quickly judged him a superior vessel. Coveting Sartorius's talent, it transferred from the card into Sartorius's body—and has remained there to this day.

"With my current strength, there's nothing more I can do. My brother was always stronger than me to begin with, and now with that evil power he's even stronger.

"So there's only one thing left for me."

Sarina stood, resolute.

"I'll log into the Digital World, and I've no intention of coming back out. I'll digitize my soul and guard my brother forever—"

"No need."

Kira cut her off.

Sarina froze.

"Because I'll act."

Kira suddenly smiled.

"Don't worry; I understand what you've told me. The evil power dwelling in Sartorius—I might know a thing or two about it."

Sarina hesitated.

"I know you're very strong," she said. "But the evil power in my brother's body is not to be underestimated. And he has an evil plan. If I don't digitize—"

"The satellite plan, right?" Kira said.

Sarina's eyes widened as she looked up at him in shock.

As if to say, how do you even know that?

That was exactly Sartorius's plan—or rather, the plan of the Light of Destruction.

It involved a prince of a small nation named Prince Ojin. Though from a minor country, they had developed a world-class satellite codenamed "SORA," said to have the ability to burn all life on Earth to ash.

Of course, it was odd that a small nation would have such exaggerated tech, and even stranger that the key to unlocking such a dangerous system would be carried around by the nation's prince.

Especially in a world where you can get anything by dueling—this was like letting a three-year-old parade around with the equivalent of an entire vault in his arms.

So unsurprisingly, in the original story, Sartorius beat Prince Ojin in a duel, took the key, and tried to use "SORA" to "purify" the world.

But if we go by Yu-Gi-Oh logic, perhaps that nation felt the key was safest only at the prince's side—because the prince was the strongest duelist in the country.

After all, in this world, no treasure is safer in any vault or under any army's guard than on the person of a top duelist.

Prince Ojin debuted with supreme confidence in his dueling, famed for his OTK tactics.

In his duel with Sartorius, he indeed showed the prowess of a top duelist—or more precisely, draw power. A perfect opening hand, going first, he fielded a 4000 ATK Satellite Cannon on turn one and then top-decked a Mischief of the Time Goddess, going for a first-turn FTK that almost deleted Sartorius on the spot.

Who could've guessed Sartorius "printed" two cards on the fly—hand traps that bricked Ojin to death before Sartorius's turn even started. This became the only recorded ZTK in Yu-Gi-Oh history: Zero Turn Kill.

Judging from that OTK destiny-power performance, Prince Ojin might really be someone. If not for Sartorius's reality-bending hand traps, most duelists wouldn't even get a chance to play before getting instantly wiped.

Sarina looked at Kira, eyes shimmering.

Even she didn't know the whole plan; since falling under evil control, Sartorius no longer fully trusted her and wouldn't share important details.

So she decided to digitize her soul and dig up the truth herself. In the anime, just before Satellite "SORA" launched, a digitized Sarina—manifesting as a cyber ghost—hacked "SORA" and forced it to pause, buying crucial time for Jaden sent to blow "SORA" up.

"You even know about 'SORA'…"

Kira smiled. "I know more than you think. Don't worry, I can save your brother. Though I might need a little cooperation from you later—are you willing?"

Sarina, you don't want your brother to remain under the Light of Destruction forever, do you?

Sarina pondered for a few seconds, then nodded.

"Okay."

Chapter 679: Excavation

Industrial Illusions, Headquarters.

The helicopter descended as if riding a gale. KaibaCorp veteran Roland jumped out first, standing like a guardian.

Seto Kaiba's brother Mokuba, dressed in a white suit, followed down.

"Sorry, sorry, kept you waiting. Got held up on the way."

Mokuba smiled as he shook hands with Yako Tenma.

"No worries, I just got here myself," Yako smiled lightly and made small talk. "President Kaiba is truly a busy man. I suppose you're working on some new important card design again?"

"Uh, not really."

Mokuba scratched his head.

In truth, recently his brother seemed to be researching something about dimensional crossing again. Mokuba figured maybe his brother felt the current realm had gotten too grim under the influence of a certain new Duel King, and thought the underworld duels were actually brighter, so his itch to duel flared up and he wanted to go down to find his old rival again…

"Shall we go in and talk?" Yako gestured politely.

"No, let's wait a moment. The Duel King is on his way—he told me he's almost here," Mokuba said.

"Oh?" Yako grew interested. "He's coming too? How long?"

"About… ten seconds?"

As the words fell, everyone looked up to see a burning tail-flame in the sky.

A wingsuit glider—the dazzling fire traced a blazing arc. Kira dove, adjusted his angle, dropped straight down, landed in a crouch on the helipad, stirring up a transparent whirlwind.

"Kira!"

Mokuba greeted him first, grinning.

"You've been busy too—haven't seen you in a while."

"Had some things going on… but it should be handled soon."

Kira smiled, then shook hands with Yako as well.

"I heard KaibaCorp and Industrial Illusions are collaborating on an important series deck study?"

Walking into the building with them, Kira asked.

"Yes, several projects," Mokuba smiled. "There are a few in-development decks you might find interesting—Yako, why not show him?"

Yako smiled, took a tablet from his assistant, and handed it to Kira.

Kira flipped through casually. There were indeed some decks he hadn't seen on the market. Compared to his past-life memories, most were half-finished—only a few cards existed; most weren't there yet.

Still, some caught his interest.

One surprising example: a "Genex" archetype.

In his memory, that should be a 5D's-era deck because it focused on Synchro. No spells or traps—the entire deck was monsters, with Synchro at the core, gaining effects based on the attributes of Synchro materials.

Unsurprisingly, only a handful of cards existed—no Synchros yet. Because of that, the internal evaluation wasn't high; the dev team didn't see great potential.

Kira figured while research had begun now, full realization would have to wait for the Synchro era. Even he couldn't unlock its full potential in the current format.

But a few of those cards still interested him.

"Could my lab apply for sets of these in-development decks?" Kira looked up. "I'm interested."

"Knew you'd say that."

Mokuba chuckled.

"So I've already talked to Yako and had sets prepared just for you. You can take them when you leave."

Kira couldn't help but sigh again—Mokuba knows me best; reliable as ever.

"Also, we're considering reorganizing a new project team, and we hope your lab can join," Yako said.

"It's a special project on Duel King Yugi Muto."

Kira was puzzled. "Wasn't research on Mr. Yugi always a priority?"

"Yes. Outsiders don't know, but strictly speaking, the Duel King Yugi Muto back then was two people: the present-day Yugi Muto, and the Pharaoh from three thousand years ago," Mokuba said.

"In recent years, most research focused on the Pharaoh who's no longer with us—well, pushed largely by my brother," Mokuba added wryly.

"But what many don't realize is that present-day Yugi's dueling style and card choices differ quite a bit from the Pharaoh's. This project will study the cards Mr. Yugi himself used and the potential of those related series."

Kira understood. The reference was to "Atem-less" Yugi.

"Mr. Yugi reportedly hasn't dueled in many years—at least not publicly. But his tactical style is unique; it would be a shame to let it fade away with his retirement."

Yako said, then gave Kira a curious smile.

"Mokuba says you've shown unique insight into many of Yugi's used cards, and that your style… well, let's just say it aligns with Mr. Yugi's in some ways.

"So if anyone were to lead the project, you'd be the most natural choice."

Kira: "…"

Sounds about right.

He did know there was plenty to develop in the "Atem-less" Yugi's pool. He'd even dropped hints to a few KaibaCorp teams before, just pointing them in some directions, not diving deep. Taking over himself wouldn't be bad.

The cards Yugi used cover so many themes—several promising avenues came to mind at once.

"But that's not the main event today," Yako said, leading them into a conference room and taking a seat.

"KaibaCorp seems to have heard something," Mokuba asked from the side, taking a seat too.

"Is it true Industrial Illusions made an important discovery at an overseas ruin recently?"

KaibaCorp and Industrial Illusions had excavation teams worldwide. It used to be widely believed that Duel Monsters originated in ancient Egypt, but that view had been shaken in academia.

Many now think Egypt was just one of the regions where Duel Monsters flourished, not necessarily the origin. Archaeology shows traces of Duel Monsters worldwide—huge finds could be anywhere underground.

"Yes. One of our European teams, after six years, finally found what we'd been searching for," Yako said, then smiled. "Have you heard of 'Gladiator Beasts'?"

Chapter 680: Stone Tablets of Ancient Rome

"Gladiator Beasts?"

Kira's eyes lit up.

Had he heard of that deck? Of course he had. What kind of veteran Yu-Gi-Oh player wouldn't?

For Kira it was especially memorable.

The sudden rise of Gladiator Beasts was a landmark in the game's meta evolution. For players like Kira who lived through that era, there was a name that evokes trauma: Gyzarus.

Not Cyber Dragon from GX, but the ace that singlehandedly elevated the deck's power tier—Gladiator Beast Gyzarus.

Fusion requirement: Gladiator Beast Bestiari plus any "Gladiator Beast" monster. It could be special summoned from the Extra Deck by returning monsters on your field to the Deck—no Polymerization required. Similar to Neo-Spacian contact fusion.

On special summon, it could destroy up to two cards on the field. After it battled, at the end of the Battle Phase, it returned to the Extra Deck and special summoned any two Gladiator Beasts from the Deck except Bestiari.

Blowing up two cards on entry was considered overtuned at release. But that wasn't the key.

The key was: it's a Fusion monster.

Gladiator Beasts continually search and tag in new monsters as battles proceed. Every Gladiator Beast shares the effect: after it battles, at the end of the Battle Phase, it returns to the Deck and special summons any Gladiator Beast from the Deck.

Thus, the deck's core is to leverage battle plus search—a system ahead of its time—to build advantage, which also makes assembling Gyzarus's materials trivial.

Gyzarus pops two on entry, and being in the Extra means you don't have to draw it—it's always online. Now that seems normal, but in that era it was a huge edge over other "boss" win-cons.

Back then, top decks like Dark Armed Dragon and Monarchs still needed you to draw into your boss first.

But Gyzarus didn't. As long as you had any two Gladiator Beasts in Deck and could establish "successful battle" to trigger GB tagging, you could easily fetch Bestiari and fuse into Gyzarus.

Oh, and by the way, Bestiari itself, when special summoned by a GB effect, pops a spell/trap. So summoning into Gyzarus often meant effectively removing three cards.

Add that Gyzarus, upon leaving, summoned any two GBs from Deck, and the deck effortlessly opened a card-advantage gap.

It naturally took the world championship. Gladiator Beasts were the last world champions before the Synchro era—arguably the apex of pre-Master Rule old-school decks.

"There's such a deck?"

Kira was tempted. But he then recalled he'd tracked early top decks, especially world champions—yet he'd never heard of Gladiator Beasts here.

"It's normal you haven't," Yako smiled.

"Until now, we only found mentions in documents, enough to confirm their existence. Our teams spent many years tracking more clues."

"And now you've found them?" Kira asked.

"Indeed," Yako said. "At a European ruin, after all these years, we finally found the tablets that house those ancient, powerful warriors."

He slid a stack of files across the table to Kira and Mokuba.

"These compile what we dug up from the site and what we retrieved from various historical texts."

They took them and skimmed.

"Ancient Roman Empire," Mokuba raised a brow. "The Romans dueled too?"

Kira flipped in silence, thinking: why am I not surprised?

In this world, how could ancient Rome have ruled without dueling?

Or rather, so Gladiator Beasts were theirs. No wonder the empire was that strong.

Conquering the world with a champion deck—who could compete?

"The texts don't say it explicitly, but our researchers speculate Gladiator Beasts might have been the emperor's exclusive deck, its imagery mirroring Roman arenas.

"Low-level monsters are gladiators and enslaved beasts; higher-ups and fusions are famed rulers of the empire.

"The tablets seal the strongest warriors of the Colosseum at its zenith—born for battle. As the empire declined, the gladiator games faded.

"And the warriors of former glory were sealed along with their beloved arena."

Kira flipped quickly and asked, "Where are these tablets now?"

"I knew you'd be interested," Yako smiled.

"They're still in Europe, stored at our branch, undergoing further testing.

"You know many unearthed items are dangerous—sometimes ancient demons, sometimes malevolent spirits, sometimes grudges millennia old, or each object carrying a curse…"

"I understand," Kira nodded.

The world of cards is vast, and so are its dangers—especially archaeology, a party-wipe engine if there ever was one.

"Don't worry—once initial tests clear, we'll ship them to HQ in two days," Yako said.

"We've signed a joint development agreement with KaibaCorp on the Gladiator tablets. If you're willing to advise, all the better."

"Alright," Kira agreed readily.

At last, another champion deck.

No way he'd miss it.

…

…

Sartorius slowly flipped another tarot card.

He saw it, pondered for two seconds, then suddenly roared and flipped the table.

"Why… won't you docilely accept your fate!?"

One after another, the same thing. All at once, it felt like every piece on his board had grown a will of its own.

He'd worked so long, felt the key moment approaching—yet things were derailing like a runaway train, slipping out of his control.

At that moment—

"Who!?"

Sartorius frowned and spun around.

Then froze.

His pupils shrank—as if he saw… light.

"You're…!?"

Chapter 681: A Coveted Deck

Europe, Industrial Illusions branch.

A man in a tailored white suit, black tie. He carried a cane, walked with calm, steady steps—just walking exuded the self-assurance of a winner.

He stopped at the base of the I.I. building, looked out over the sea of people, and smiled faintly.

Industrial Illusions had reportedly dug up something incredible—an archetype of tablets the industry believed had immense potential. It might become another rare deck and cause a stir in the dueling world.

Even if it weren't powerful, unearthing a complete system as tablets was rare on its own.

Local duelists, hearing the news, had gathered since early morning to catch a glimpse, flooding the plaza.

"Please step back—step back…"

Security struggled to keep order.

The white suit threaded through the noisy, eager crowd and flashed a card to the guard. It looked like a Duel Monster card, but it was actually an I.I.-issue access pass.

The guard nodded respectfully and stepped aside. At the turnstile, the man lightly swiped his card.

I.I. security is notoriously tight, doubly so when valuable items are stored in the building.

The turnstile system reboots periodically; each official pass is coded to its holder—cracking it isn't easy, even for a world-class expert.

But the card in the white suit's hand wasn't any I.I. pass—it was his own design.

And it could do more than just open doors. He had fully understood the lobby security's workings and memorized each reboot cycle.

He had swiped at the exact instant of a system reboot—the moment a weakness appears. In that instant, he injected a virus through the pass.

He stepped off the elevator on the 13th floor. Seconds later, every elevator in the building shut down.

By now they should sense something amiss. Security would try to trigger the alarm, only to find it dead. Their comms would be jammed, unable to alert the rest.

Boom!

A heavy door was blasted inward by an immense external impact.

The cane tip probed through the smoke first; the white suit strolled in unhurriedly.

"Stop! Hold it right there!"

Security inside aimed their guns.

"No need to be nervous, everyone."

The white suit ignored them, kept walking, and spoke with a smile.

His voice was rich and magnetic, almost magical. The moment they heard it, the guards froze like someone pressed pause.

A faint white light flickered in their eyes, and their gazes went vacant.

One by one, they holstered their weapons and said mechanically:

"Yeah, just a drill."

"Nothing to fuss about."

The white suit slipped past them. "That's better."

He raised his hand slightly, and the heavy black cane tapped a reinforced alloy door at the far end.

That gentle tap carried a crushing force; the door groaned and blew inward, the warped slab crashing to the floor.

The white suit strode in and glanced around, quickly taking in the stone tablets lining the room. Ancient and weighty, as if dug from dust long forgotten by history.

Sealed within were domineering emperors and fearless arena fighters. From the simple etched figures, cold, sharp stares seemed to shoot out.

"So these are a king's cards."

He smiled.

"Interesting. Then let me personally verify this power."

He slowly raised the black cane.

White light flowed from the cane, rippling outward and being drawn into the slumbering tablets.

The tablets seemed to awaken.

Ancient warriors, emperors who rode roughshod over the world—manifesting as Duel Monsters—stirred from the abstract pictures. Half-transparent like ghosts, they floated in midair, a royal army awakened across the gulf of ages.

Every gaze focused on the man in the room's center.

He lowered the cane and lifted his empty left hand.

He clenched a strong fist.

In an instant, a silent command went out in the sealed room.

All the images vanished. The kings and warriors were swallowed in white light and decomposed, turning into a sky of white motes.

The motes swirled, forming a miniature galactic vortex in the dark room. The man's raised hand was the eye of the whirlpool. The lights converged on his palm and solidified.

Card after card took physical form, stacking in his hand into a deck.

Just then, voices came from outside.

"Stop!"

The man in white slowly turned and narrowed his eyes.

A woman stood there. Blonde hair, long black dress, black headband, skin so pale it was almost unnatural.

Tilla Mook—Industrial Illusions' top enforcer, one of Yako' Card Professors, the manga's Cursed Vampire user, and one of the professors who tried to block Yugi Muto back then.

She was also the dueling mainstay of this European excavation team.

"I don't know who you are," Tilla Mook said. "But do you realize whose turf you're robbing on?"

She paused, glanced at the blasted alloy door, then at the guards standing around like they'd been brainwashed, and chuckled.

"Or rather, instead of stealing, perhaps we should call this a daylight robbery."

The white suit showed no ripples at being caught in the act—and when he spotted the duel disk on Tilla Mook's arm, he even seemed pleased.

"Finally, at least someone decent."

"What?" Tilla Mook frowned.

The cane twirled lightly in his hand, then transformed—somehow reshaping into a duel disk on his forearm.

He slid the freshly formed deck into the disk.

"Then let's have you verify just how capable this deck truly is."

Chapter 682: Challenge to the King

The Gladiator Beast deck was stolen.

It happened suddenly. On the very day Kira heard about it, the incident occurred: Industrial Illusions' European branch was attacked, and an unknown duelist took the deck.

But that's not exactly accurate—the "deck" didn't exist yet. What I.I. unearthed were only stone tablets; the deck still needed development.

Yet intel from over there insisted the thief took an actual deck.

There's only one explanation.

He released the tablets' power on site and hand-crafted the deck himself.

That's not impossible. Converting tablets into cards via R&D is just the most common method. But in this world, some people—those strong enough—don't need tech, research, or even understanding the principles. If the vibe is right, they can hand-sculpt a deck on the spot.

Such examples abound across every Yu-Gi-Oh era, typically among those top-tier, "plot-armored" monsters of duelists. Legend says top alchemists can turn stone into gold—but at least they need a stone. These plot monsters need nothing; they can conjure new cards from thin air. Completely unreasonable.

If the culprit's power is high enough, hand-crafting a Gladiator Beast deck is plausible.

Yako flew to Europe that night. Mokuba wanted to go too, but with his brother away he already had mountains of company work, and figured he wouldn't be of much use there anyway. So he stayed, and sent Kira to take a look.

…

Early the next morning, they visited the professor who'd been on-site.

Tilla Mook was alive—barely. Her expression was vacant, and her beautiful blond hair had turned snow-white overnight. Pure, without a trace of other color.

"Too strong…"

"That guy… that deck called Gladiator Beasts—it's beyond ordinary strength…"

When Yako and Kira entered, Tilla Mook slowly raised her head and spoke, dazed.

"He said he was only testing the deck, verifying his own power—otherwise he wouldn't even deign to duel me… Now I believe him. He was telling the truth. We're not even in the same dimension.

"I think that's why he spared me. He left me alive… to deliver a message."

"For whom?" Yako asked.

Tilla Mook stared straight at Kira.

"Me?" Kira asked.

She nodded sluggishly.

"Duel King, Fujiki Kira. He knew you'd come. And he said he's looking forward to it."

Kira narrowed his eyes.

So what kind of demon is it this time?

Well, the tall tree catches the wind. With the "Duel King" title on him, there are countless people worldwide itching to challenge him; finding a specific suspect is near impossible.

Just then, a staffer in a black suit entered the ward and bowed to both of them.

"What is it?" Yako asked.

"We've found something," the man in black said. "Our informant reports someone using Gladiator Beast monsters at an underground illegal duel arena."

Yako raised a brow.

"That brazen?"

Steals a deck and immediately goes to play black-market duels locally? He clearly doesn't care about their intel network.

"Deploy a team at once," Yako said gravely. "I want to see for myself."

Since the message explicitly called out Kira by name, he couldn't skip it; he joined Yako's team.

But at the address, what they saw surprised them.

The underground facility was lit, systems seemingly running. Yet inside, the large halls were empty.

They found no one—not a shadow—until they reached the lowest level: the underground duel arena.

A burly man with a skull pendant sat cross-legged at the center of the ring, bathed in a spotlight.

He slowly opened his eyes, a smile tugging at his lips, and let his gaze sweep over the entire party.

"At last. I was getting bored."

"Who are you?" Yako asked.

"Me? The name's Battle Beast—but that's not important," Battle Beast said. "I'm a nobody. But even nobodies can aspire to challenge the pinnacle."

He narrowed his eyes and set his sights on Kira.

"Duel King, Fujiki Kira."

All eyes turned to Kira.

Yako frowned and spoke to Kira. "You don't have to respond. We don't necessarily—"

"It's fine," Kira smiled slightly.

"If he's waiting here for us, even if he didn't steal the deck, he's likely connected. A duel suits me. If I win, he'll talk."

"That's true…"

Yako nodded.

He opened his mouth to warn Kira this person seemed strange—be careful. But then he thought: telling the Duel King to be careful? That's a bit much—and laughable. So he held his tongue.

"Let's do it."

Kira hopped onto the ring.

Battle Beast stood.

"Finally—the Duel King. A worthy opponent. I've been looking forward to this, heh…"

"Duel!" x2
"Then I'll take the first turn."

The indicator on Battle Beast's disk lit first—he had turn choice. Facing the King, he wouldn't get cocky; he took first without hesitation.

"My turn, draw!"

He placed a card from his hand onto the disk.

"First, I set a monster in face-down defense."

He slid out two more cards.

"Then I set two to the back row. Turn end!"

Kira watched calmly.

Set monster, set backrow—a very standard opener. You can't glean much from it.

Even Gladiator Beasts can open like this.

But his instincts said no.

At I.I., witnesses described the attacker as a well-dressed man in a white suit, elegant—and showy.

The guy before him was big and rough, a bit savage—didn't give off the same vibe.

Well, either way, he'd know once they fought. If it was really Gladiator Beasts, Kira actually looked forward to facing a former world champion deck.

"Then I'll start by activating this card from my hand…"

Kira swept his hand, and a spell card surfaced.

"Spell: Power Bond!"

Chapter 683: Style Shift?

"Power Bond!?"

Battle Beast's thoughts raced.

That's a Machine-specific card…

"Power Bond is a Machine-only Fusion spell that fuses Machine Fusion monsters using materials from hand and field."

Kira revealed two cards in his hand.

"I fuse two Cyber Dragons in my hand to Fusion Summon—

—Cyber Twin Dragon!!!"

Two metal dragons shot out from the revealed cards. Sleek steel bodies clad in cold silver plating. An invisible force merged them, like a powerful electromagnetic field erupting.

Armor plates clicked crisply. The dragons snapped together and morphed, ultimately becoming a two-headed steel behemoth. Its massive frame swept its tail, tearing the air, and its twin maws crackled with serpents of electricity.

[Cyber Twin Dragon, ATK 2800]

"Power Bond's effect: the Fusion Monster's attack is doubled."

[2800 → 5600 ATK]

"And Twin Dragon can attack twice each Battle Phase."

The onlooking I.I. staff beside Yako blanched.

A 5600-ATK monster with two swings on turn one? If they were on the other end, what could they even do?
That's a flick-of-the-wrist OTK!

Battle Beast's face tightened—not only because of the 5600 double-striker.

"Cyber style?"

He wondered.

Has the Duel King used this before?

"Twin Dragon, first attack," Kira said. "Attack the face-down monster."

One of the twin maws gaped, belching a surge of scorching flame.

The set card flipped—not a Gladiator Beast, but a golden rock. Its face was a grotesque mask with dark red eyes and a gaping mouth glowing like molten lava.

[Koa'ki Meiru Boulder, DEF 1000]

"Koa'ki…?"

Kira's eyes flickered.

He vaguely remembered this deck: Rock and Beast-Warrior focused, with many high stats and strong effects—but most require a spell called "Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru" as a cost. That card is the core of the deck.

Sure enough: "When Koa'ki Meiru Boulder is destroyed by battle and sent to the GY, I add 1 'Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru' or a Level 4 or lower 'Koa'ki Meiru' monster from Deck to hand.

"So from my Deck, I add—"

He fanned his Deck, pushed out a card, revealed it, then added it to hand.

"Spell: Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru."

The key spell of Koa'ki Meiru. Most of their monsters need it to activate effects—or even to remain on the field.

"Destroy-to-search—so that set was to set up his follow-up," Yako said. "But Twin Dragon can attack twice. If the second lands, he might not even see next turn…"

"Activate set card," Battle Beast said. "Trap: Time Machine.

"When a monster is destroyed by battle and sent to the GY, its controller special summons it with the same battle position!"

Golden light flared from his GY and reconstructed that grotesque rock on the field.

[Koa'ki Meiru Boulder, DEF 1000]

"Then Twin Dragon, attack again," Kira said. "Attack Koa'ki Meiru Boulder."

Battle Beast frowned slightly.

He's pushing through even knowing it gives me another search?
That implies he has more follow-up damage in hand—likely lethal this turn, given how Cyber decks operate.

So Battle Beast didn't hesitate.

"Then I'll activate another set card: Trap—Waboku. This turn, my monsters can't be destroyed by battle, and all battle damage I take becomes 0!"

A robed envoy appeared, chanting softly. A transparent barrier domed over Battle Beast's field, nullifying Twin Dragon's blast.

"I see. So you let the first attack through purely to fetch Iron Core," Kira smiled. "At this turn's end, Power Bond's drawback would make me take damage equal to the fused monster's original ATK—2800.

"But that only applies if the Fusion Monster summoned by Power Bond is still face-up on my field."

He calmly drew a card from his hand.

"So I activate Quick-Play Spell: De-Fusion, to undo Cyber Twin Dragon."

The twin-headed dragon roared low and split apart, reverting into two Cyber Dragons.

[Cyber Dragon, ATK 2100] x2

"Nice," Yako said. "That avoids Power Bond's recoil."

Of course, that won't fly with the real cards. In the TCG/OCG, Power Bond burns you regardless of whether the Fusion is still there at end phase. But with 8000 LP, the burn is less lethal than in anime. In real play, you avoid it with things like Waboku or other damage-negation.

Battle Beast exhaled.

His read was right. Without Waboku, Kira would have De-Fused in Battle Phase, swung with two Cyber Dragons for 4200 across two hits—and that would've been game.

With Waboku preemptively up, further attacks are pointless. Plus, he keeps Koa'ki Meiru Boulder to tribute next turn.

"I set one and end," Kira said.

"So it's Cyber style—gotta tread carefully," Battle Beast chuckled.

It did surprise him. He'd heard the King's decks rotate often, but his personal preference skewed trap-heavy or quirky, turtling strategies.

Cyber Dragons are a bad fit for that profile. They're famed for aggressive OTKs—the opposite of his usual style.

And now he suddenly brings out Cyber Dragons?

What, experimenting with a new route?

Using me as his lab rat?

Battle Beast sneered inwardly.

Duelists have their styles, especially established aces. Forcing a style shift can backfire.

Let this arrogant king learn the price of underestimating me.

"My turn, draw.

I activate Pot of Greed to draw two."

He drew, then immediately revealed another card.

"I tribute Koa'ki Meiru Boulder to Advance Summon!
The infernal Koa'ki Meiru demon—now descend—

—Level 8, Koa'ki Meiru Valafar, summon!"