[Yumi, LP 4000]
[Sartorius, LP 2800]
"Draw!" Yumi pulled his card, his eyes briefly scanning it before the field reacted again.
"The effect of Tour of Doom activates!" Sartorius said immediately.
The Continuous Trap began spinning once more above the field, the faint glow reflecting across both Duel Disks before it slowed and stopped.
"Upright," Sartorius declared, a small smile returning to his face. "You cannot Summon monsters this turn."
Yumi didn't respond to that, his attention already back on his hand as if he had expected it.
"I banish the two copies of Take Over 5 in my deck and the one in my graveyard to draw three cards."
The three cards appeared behind him in transparent form before breaking apart into golden particles, and he drew three more cards smoothly, adding them to his hand without hesitation.
"I activate the Spell Card, Hidden Armory."
He placed the card down, and a faint metallic sound echoed as if something ancient had been uncovered.
"I send the top card of my deck to the graveyard and add one Equip Spell from my deck to my hand. After this, I can't Normal Summon or Set monsters this turn."
He slid the top card off his deck and sent it to the graveyard slot, revealing it briefly.
Sky Striker Ace - Raye.
Another card rose from his deck, and he added it to his hand.
"I add Power of the Guardians, and I equip it to Dark Law."
The moment the card was activated, several ancient weapons materialized around Dark Law, floating in a slow orbit as a faint aura began to build around him.
Yumi didn't pause.
"Battle. Dark Law, attack The World. Rider Kick."
Dark Law lowered his stance and shot forward, closing the distance quickly as the massive construct reacted, raising both arms and gathering another sphere of white energy.
"Power of the Guardians activates," Yumi continued. "When a battle involves the equipped monster, I place a Spell Counter on it, and Dark Law gains 500 ATK and DEF."
A faint glow pulsed from the equip spell as a counter formed.
[Masked HERO Dark Law, 2400 -> 2900 ATK]
"I chain this with the Quick-Play Spell, Half Shut!" Yumi added, placing another card down. "I target your The World. It can't be destroyed by battle this turn, but its ATK is halved."
Sartorius's eyes widened slightly as the effect took hold.
[Arcana Force XXI - The World, 3100 -> 1550 ATK]
The World fired its beam of white energy forward, but Dark Law shifted to the side, skidding across the ground before leaping up. He twisted mid-air and drove a clean kick straight into the construct's core.
The impact sent the massive body crashing backward again, slamming into the wall as cracks spread further across the surface.
[Sartorius, LP 2800 -> 1450]
Dark Law landed lightly back on Yumi's field, the weapons around him still hovering as The World slowly forced itself upright again, visibly damaged but still standing due to Half Shut's effect.
For a brief moment, things seemed to settle, but then Sartorius moved.
His expression tightened as he suddenly raised his hand, firing a beam of white energy directly at Yumi.
Dark Law reacted instantly, stepping in front of him and pulling him back just in time, the beam grazing past where Yumi had been standing.
Using that opening, Sartorius rushed forward and grabbed one of the floating tarot cards.
"I activate Justice!" he said, flipping it over. "I make my Life Points equal to yours, and I draw until the number of cards in my hand and on my field matches yours."
[Sartorius, LP 1450 -> 4000]
Yumi had two cards on the field and three in hand, while Sartorius had three on the field and one in hand. So he drew one card.
"So much for not needing them," Yumi said flatly, watching him without much reaction.
He raised his hand slightly.
"Dark Law's effect."
Dark Law stepped forward again, lifting his arm and firing another precise shot of dark energy. One of cards in Sartorius's hand vanished instantly.
Sartorius's jaw tightened, but he didn't say anything this time.
"I set one card."
Yumi placed a card face-down, and it materialized behind Dark Law, joining the rest of his field.
"Turn end."
"My turn..." Sartorius placed his fingers on top of his deck, exhaling slowly as the white light around his body intensified, spreading faint pressure across the field.
"Draw!"
He pulled the card sharply, leaving a pale arc in the air before bringing it down in front of him. His eyes locked onto it for a second, and then his lips curled into a wider smile.
"I set one card."
A face-down card appeared behind him, and without pausing, he continued.
"Then I activate the Spell Card, Card of Demise. I draw until I have five cards in my hand, but during my fifth turn, I must discard everything."
Cards slid into his hand one by one.
"Dark Law's effect," Yumi said immediately.
Dark Law raised his hand and fired another precise beam of dark energy, cutting one of the newly drawn cards out of Sartorius's hand before it could even settle.
Yet for some reason, Yumi could saw Sartorius's face twisting through multiple stages of rage and anger, meaning Dark Law must have shot down one of his key card.
After a few moment, Sartorius was able to calm down and continue.
"I activate One for One. By discarding one monster, I Special Summon a Level 1 monster from my deck."
A faint light formed on his field, and a strange, thin creature appeared, its long, hair-like tendrils drifting behind it.
[Arcana Force 0 - The Fool, 0 ATK]
"I predict the reversed position," Sartorius said without hesitation. "The Fool is now unaffected by your card effects."
Yumi watched without reacting, his expression unchanged.
"Now I tribute The Fool to Normal Summon Arcana Force XII - The Hangman!"
The small creature vanished, replaced by a larger, alien-like figure that twisted upward into a crescent shape, a glowing cocoon hanging at its core.
[Arcana Force XII - The Hangman, 2200 ATK]
The card above it spun briefly before stopping.
"Reversed position," Sartorius continued. "Once per turn, I can destroy one monster you control and inflict damage to you equal to its ATK."
He pointed directly at Dark Law. "Say goodbye to your Dark Law."
The Hangman released a wave of purple energy toward him.
"Power of the Guardians activates," Yumi said calmly. "If the equipped monster would be destroyed, I remove a Spell Counter instead."
One of the counters on the card faded.
[Masked HERO Dark Law, 2900 -> 2400 ATK]
Seeing the Dark Law has survived Sartorius unleash another beam of white light toward Yumi.
Dark Law stepped in again without hesitation, blocking the attack and pulling Yumi back slightly.
Using that brief opening, Sartorius rushed toward another floating tarot card and grabbed it.
Before he could even flip it, the phantom image of Raye appear, then her body solidified thanks to the effect of the Shadow Charm Eyepatch on Yumi's body.
Now with a physical body, she swung her blade, and cut the tarot card clean in half. She glanced at him with a small, almost playful smile before her body faded back into light and returned to the graveyard.
Sartorius froze for a split second, then his expression twisted.
"You!" He hissed, the veins on his forehead seem to about to pop any moment now.
"Battle! Arcana Force XXI - The World, attack Dark Law!"
He thrust his hand forward, and the massive construct raised its arms again, gathering a dense sphere of light.
"During the Battle Phase," Yumi said, waving his hand, "I can activate the Quick-Play Spell, Instant Mask Change."
His face-down card flipped open.
"I send a HERO from my hand to the graveyard and Special Summon a Level 8 Masked HERO from my Extra Deck."
He discarded Masked HERO Fountain, and a white glove formed on the field before reshaping into a humanoid figure. The light broke apart, revealing a blue-armored warrior holding a sleek gun-like weapon.
"Cho Henshin! Masked HERO Acid!"
[Masked HERO Acid, 2600 ATK]
"Acid's effect activates. When Acid is summoned, all your Spell and Trap cards are destroyed, and your monsters lose 300 ATK."
The masked hero raised his weapon and fired several glowing shots into the air. They burst above the field and rained down like a steady storm.
"Acid Rain!"
Sartorius's back row vanished instantly as the rain fell, and his monsters weakened under the effect.
[Arcana Force XXI - The World, 3100 -> 2800 ATK]
[Arcana Force XII - The Hangman, 2200 -> 1900 ATK]
Sartorius's eyelid twitched, but he didn't stop.
"Since Fountain was sent to the graveyard by a card effect, I can set a Change Quick-Play Spell from my deck to my field."
A card slid out from Yumi's deck and was placed face-down on his field.
"Since the number of monsters changed, a battle replay occur. The World, attack Acid!"
He adjusted immediately, avoiding Dark Law this time. The World fired its beam straight at Acid.
"I banished the Necro Gardna, sent to my grave from Take Over 5!" Yumi swung his left hand forward as a phantom figure step out from his grave.
The phantom warrior appeared in front of Acid taking the hit for him.
"I can banish this card and negate a attack from your monster." Yumi said holding the card up before putting it away.
After seeing this, Sartorius suddenly felt it's really hard to breathe, his right hand move to clung to his chest. He felt like he was going crazy.
The previous user of the Gentle Darkness was a tyrant, powerful but he only manage to get a draw against the Light of Destruction, successfully pushing the Light of Destruction back with the help of fiend named Yubel.
This generation doesn't even have Yubel, how come he is even more annoying to deal with!?
"Turn end..." Sartorius finally muster out reluctantly.
"Draw!" Yumi pulled his card, his gaze settling on it for a brief moment before a small smile formed on his face.
Sartorius's eyes immediately darted around the field, instinctively searching for any remaining floating tarot cards, but there were none left. The earlier acid rain had cleared everything, not just his back row, but the strange advantage he had been relying on the entire duel.
"Let's end this." Yumi said with a smile before placing the drawn card down.
"I activate the Spell, Sky Striker Maneuver - Scissors Cross. I add a Level 4 Sky Striker Ace from my graveyard to my hand, and since I have three or more spells in my graveyard, I can Special Summon her instead."
A stream of blue digital data gathered on his field, forming into a familiar figure. Raye appeared by his side, landing lightly with her katana in hand, her long blonde hair swaying behind her.
[Sky Striker Ace - Raye, 1500 ATK]
"Battle! Acid attack The Hangman! Acid Shot!"
Masked HERO Acid raised his weapon and fired a concentrated shot of glowing blue liquid. It struck The Hangman directly, the impact forcing it back as its form destabilized before shattering into fragments.
[Sartorius, LP 4000 -> 3300]
"Dark Law attack The World! Rider Kick!"
The ancient weapons circling Dark Law emitted a faint glow as a counter formed.
[Masked HERO Dark Law, 2400 -> 2900 ATK]
Dark Law dashed forward, closing the distance in an instant before leaping into the air and driving a clean kick into The World's core. The massive construct was pushed back again, its already damaged frame cracking further from the impact before shattering completely.
[Sartorius, LP 3300 -> 3200]
"Raye player direct attack! Ace Striker!"
Raye pushed off the ground and rushed forward, her movement sharp and direct. She closed the distance quickly and slashed downward, sending Sartorius stumbling back across the ground.
[Sartorius, LP 3200 -> 1700]
Yumi snapped his fingers, and his face-down card flipped open.
"Quick-Play Spell, Form Change."
Acid's body was engulfed in golden light, the glow intensifying before breaking apart to reveal a new form. A heavily armored warrior stepped forward, orange and blue plating covering his body while mechanical wings extended from his back. A steady blue light shone from his chest, eyes, and cannon arm.
"Cast Off! Masked HERO Atomic!"
[Masked HERO Atomic, 2600 ATK]
"Atomic's effect. When this card is summoned, I can Special Summon a Masked HERO from my graveyard or banished zone in Defense Position."
A water vortex formed beside Dark Law, and another figure emerged.
[Masked HERO Fountain, 1400 DEF]
"Atomic player direct attack! Repulsor Blast!"
Atomic raised his arm cannon and fired a concentrated blast of energy straight at Sartorius.
Sartorius, still trying to push himself back up, reacted immediately.
"I activate Arcana Force XIV - Temperance from my hand!" he said, discarding the card quickly. "I make the battle damage I take this battle become zero!"
A faint image appeared in front of him, absorbing the blast before fading away.
"Huh, you even have a knock-off Kuriboh." Yumi couldn't help but said, somewhat amused.
Sartorius didn't respond, still trying to steady himself.
"Still, it doesn't change anything," Yumi continued, his tone calm. "You're out of cards anyway."
"Against absolute power all your struggle are meaningless." He snapped his fingers again.
Raye's body began to glow, her form shifting as light wrapped around her. The glow shattered, revealing her in a new form, clad in an orange high-tech armor with six mechanical wings extending from her back. Flames flickered behind her as she held her tachi with both hands.
"Henshin! Sky Striker Ace - Kagari!"
[Sky Striker Ace - Kagari, 1500 -> 3400 ATK]
Yumi glanced at her for a moment.
"Huh, this really come full circle." He muttered.
Realizing he start the duel with the spell Afterburner, and now...
"Kagari player direct attack! Afterburner!"
The six mechanical wings unfolded fully, releasing a burst of flame as Kagari lifted off the ground. She shot forward like a streak of fire, closing the distance in a straight line.
Sartorius barely had time to react before she reached him.
Her blade came down cleanly, and the impact sent him falling onto his back.
[Sartorius, LP 1700 -> 0]
For a moment, everything went quiet.
Then the white light surrounding Sartorius's body began to peel away, separating from him like something being forced out. It gathered above him, forming into a distorted, monstrous face that stared down at Yumi and his monsters.
Yumi didn't move, just looked back at it.
After a few seconds, the light flickered, then scattered into nothing, disappearing completely.
...
After finishing his duel with Sartorius, Yumi stepped out of the Society of Light dorm, the tension from the battle finally settling down. Beside him, Sartorius walked quietly, the oppressive white aura that once surrounded him now completely gone. His expression was clearer, like someone who had just woken up from a long, unpleasant dream.
The moment they stepped outside, the sound of rotor blades cut through the air.
A helicopter descended slowly above them, wind kicking up dust and fabric as it hovered in place. Sartorius looked up, his eyes widening slightly as he recognized a person sitting inside it looking down at him with a smile.
"…Sarina." he murmured.
Yumi glanced up once, then looked away almost immediately. He wasn't interested.
To him, the Sartorius he had just dueled wasn't even the real Sartorius. That was just a puppet being controlled by the Light of Destruction. Now that the control was gone and the real Sartorius was back, whatever came next wasn't his concern.
If anything, this outcome was already better than expected.
In the original timeline, things dragged out longer. Things escalated, the satellite became a threat, and everything had to be stopped at the last moment. Here, everything ended before it even reached that stage. Yumi moving early, going straight for Sartorius instead of slowly clearing everything step by step, he had cut off that entire chain of events before it could even begin.
Jaden had taken the long route.
Yumi just skipped to the end.
Without saying anything else, Yumi turned and started walking back toward the academy, leaving Sartorius behind to deal with his own situation.
The path back was quiet for a bit, the sounds of the earlier chaos now mostly gone.
Then he heard fast footsteps approaching him.
"Onii-san!!"
Yumi looked up just in time to see a familiar figure rushing straight toward him.
Amber eyes, long red hair tied into a ponytail, and way too much energy for someone who just ran across half the island.
"Kazuko?" he said, slightly surprised.
She didn't slow down.
Kazuko jumped. Her legs wrapped around his torso as she latched onto him, both arms hugging his face tightly, pressing his face to her chest, like she was afraid he might disappear if she let go.
"Onii-san!! I missed you so much! Did you miss me? Did you? Did you?" she fired off questions one after another, not even pausing to breathe as she leaned back just enough to look at him.
Yumi didn't even hesitate.
"No."
Kazuko blinked once. Then she laughed. She let go just enough for him to properly hold her, clearly not taking his answer seriously in the slightest. She already knew her big brother was a liar.
"Onii-san is such a liar."
Once she dropped back onto the ground, Yumi looked down at her, still a bit puzzled.
"How did you even get here?" he asked. "Your school year shouldn't even start yet."
"The Genex tournament!" Kazuko said immediately, puffing up her chest proudly. "I came here to enroll early! So I can spend more years with Onii-san!"
Yumi let out a small breath, then reached out and patted her head.
"Of course you did," he said.
"Oh? That's not very nice, Wanko. Having a sibling reunion without inviting your Nee-san."
A voice called out from a distance, causing the two to turn toward it.
Momoyo was already charging toward them at full speed, her jacket flaring behind her, a wide grin on her face like she had just found something fun to smash.
"Ahhhh!" Kazuko immediately panicked, ducking behind Yumi and grabbing onto his shirt like a shield. "Onii-san help!"
Yumi sighed, crossing his hands.
"The Earth."
Elemental HERO The Earth appeared right in front of him, arms crossed just in time.
Momoyo dropkick landed squarely.
"KONO POWA!"
The impact cause the hero's arms to have a few cracks as The Earth and Yumi were launched backward together, sliding across the ground before finally stopping.