Maybe it was just a coincidence.
Kai chose to lie to himself because otherwise, this would be far too absurd.
The skeleton on the other side stepped forward as well, lifting its arm as a grating bone-on-bone sound echoed.
The tall man gave a loud shout.
"Duel!"
He inserted his Deck into the Duel Disk.
[Duel Start!]
[Bone Graveyard Patrol, LP: 2000]
[The tall man, LP: 8000]
Seeing the opponent's revealed Life Points, both the tall man and Marina's group sighed in relief.
"Looks like it's just a low-level Trial. No need to worry."
"What difference does that make?"
Kai accepted it immediately. It wasn't exactly what he had imagined, but hey, he was already involved, what else could he do but go along with it?
Seeing that Kai genuinely didn't understand and that they had some time, Marina began to explain.
"Trial difficulty is ranked from low to high: Low, Medium, High, and Special."
"The easiest way to gauge it is by looking at the first monster you encounter."
"Basic monsters in Low Trials have 2000 LP, Medium ones have 4000, High goes up to 6000, and in Special Trials, even the small fry have 8000 LP."
"That doesn't sound so bad… Doesn't that mean we have the advantage?"
Their side started with 8000 LP, and even at best the other side had 8000. That was basically a fair fight. With four times the LP, even if they traded damage, they'd still win.
Hearing Kai's comment, Marina could only press her hand to her forehead, while the others facepalmed.
"You probably don't know this: in Trials, damage to your LP doesn't reset with each Duel. It carries through until the entire Trial is cleared."
"If your LP hits zero, you die."
Marina's tone was serious, her eyes locked onto Kai.
Hearing that, Kai frowned. So that's why the tall guy looked like he was charging into death.
That explained it. If you don't know the enemy or their level, it's not much different from marching to your doom.
As they spoke, the Duel officially began.
The skeleton took the first turn.
"I Set two cards, then Set one monster. I end my turn."
A harsh grinding of bone echoed out; regardless, the tall man remained fully focused.
"My turn! Draw!"
Kai watched the Duel from a distance, eyes narrowing thoughtfully.
'Three Set cards, huh?'
As expected of a Low Trial. Not that powerful. As long as your hand isn't terrible, breaking two backrow and dealing 2000 damage is doable for most decks. Nothing to worry about.
Seeing the smile on the tall man's face, Kai figured he probably had a good hand. Looked like this match would be over fast.
Sure enough, the man placed a card on his Duel Disk.
"I Normal Summon [Lancer Dragonute]!"
A green dragon wielding a spear flapped its dark wings as it appeared.
[Lancer Dragonute] Level 4│DARK│Dragon│1500 ATK
"Then I equip it with the Equip Spell [Dragon Treasure]!"
"Its effect boosts [Lancer Dragonute]'s Attack by 300!"
With a roar, the dragon's body bulked up.
[Lancer Dragonute, ATK: 1500 → 1800]
"Battle!"
Kai stared in disbelief. '...That was it?'
Did he time travel or something?
Was it the year 2000 again?
This strategy was so outdated. They were still bashing heads like old-school beaters.
"What is it?"
Marina noticed his strange expression and asked in confusion. She didn't see anything wrong with the tall man's plays.
"N-nothing."
Kai shook his head and forced himself to accept it again.
On the field, at the man's command, [Lancer Dragonute] drove its spear through the Set monster.
[Pyramid Turtle] Level 4│EARTH│Zombie│1400 DEF
A turtle carrying a pyramid shattered into particles.
"That's not all!"
"[Lancer Dragonute] has a special ability!"
"When it attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict the difference as battle damage!"
"Take the hit!"
[Bone Graveyard Patrol, LP: 2000 → 1600]
"Yeah!"
"Big bro is the best!"
"Looks like this will be easy!"
Marina also nodded with a faint smile, leaving Kai speechless. They were acting like this was a huge win, but it was just basic beater trades.
"However, my Set monster [Pyramid Turtle] also has a special effect."
[When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: Special Summon 1 Zombie with 2000 or less DEF from your Deck.]
"Using [Pyramid Turtle]'s effect, I Special Summon [Wightprince] from my Deck!"
A skeletal child in tattered royal robes emerged.
[Wightprince] Level 1│DARK│Zombie│0 ATK / 0 DEF
"Next, I activate the Trap Card [Needlebug Nest]!"
"Send the top 5 cards of my Deck to the Graveyard."
A chorus of insect chirps came from the skeleton's arm as five cards fell into the Graveyard.
Seeing this, Kai's expression darkened. Milling and searching? That was a red flag.
Even so, the others looked relieved.
"A monster with 0 ATK and DEF?"
"Hahaha, it's over."
Everyone cheered. The tall man's stern look also softened.
A monster with 0/0 meant no matter what the skeleton did next turn, as long as it stayed on the field, he could hit for 1800 and end it.
"I Set one card and end my turn."
The man ended confidently.
"My turn. Draw."
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell [Enemy Controller] from my hand!"
"I activate its second effect: I tribute [Wightprince] to take control of your [Lancer Dragonute]."
'That card actually showed up?'
The tall man's eyes narrowed—but he was prepared.
"I flip my Set card!"
"Trap Card activate: [Dragon's Rebirth]!"
"I Target 1 Dragon I control; banish it, then Special Summon 1 Dragon from my hand or Graveyard."
"I banish [Lancer Dragonute] from the field!"
"Then I Special Summon this monster from my hand!"
Both monsters vanished, and the Equip Spell was destroyed as well.
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going!
[Patreon.com/RedZTL]