"What do you think about the current Duel Monsters game?" Kaiba sat behind his desk, fingers interlocked, supporting his chin.
Youyu swaggered in, dragged the chair clearly meant for him in front of the desk, and sat down.
"That's right." He said, "Just a personal insight into the game."
"Is it about the flaws in the current rules? Let me guess," Kaiba squinted, "You want to talk about the timing for Magic Cards...and also the attack restriction issue with Fusion Monsters, right?"
Youyu was a bit surprised.
Apparently, Kaiba truly lives up to his reputation as President Haima, he really has foresight. If Pegasus were in front of him now, Youyu might have started wondering if he was using Mind Scanning.
Kaiba saw his surprised expression and was quite satisfied, couldn't help but chuckle: "A top Duelist can understand their opponent's mind after just one duel. I have roughly grasped what you want to say through dueling."
Youyu vaguely felt he had heard this somewhere before, seemingly from a certain well-known 'second pillar' next door...
Talking to smart people saves time and effort, doesn't even need him to speak, Kaiba already understood his meaning.
"Tell me your thoughts, I want to hear them in detail, and the reasons why you think so." Kaiba leaned back into his chair, looking like an examiner conducting an interview.
Youyu, of course, had already prepared answers, nearly wrote a speech ahead of time.
He briefly talked about his views on Fusion Summon's attack restriction, timing for Magic Card activation, and provided various prepared practical examples to support his points.
He placed emphasis on the usage of Normal Magic Cards because that's one of the aspects he found most inconvenient in the current rules.
According to the current rules, Magic Cards can be activated from your hand, set on the field for immediate activation, and can also be activated during the opponent's turn, even during the Battle Phase or during Damage Calculation steps when both players' Monsters are already engaged in combat.
As a result, Trap Cards become very redundant, unable to be activated the turn they're set, can't be activated directly from the hand, need to be delayed by one turn after drawing before use, making Trap Cards seem useless.
Indeed, that's how it was in the early days of Yu-Gi-Oh! DM, mostly Magic Cards were used, and Trap Cards appeared far less frequently than Magic Cards.
Youyu clearly stated his viewpoint. He said Magic and Trap should each have distinct characteristics, and neither should replace the other.
The advantage of Magic Cards should be their immediate use from the hand, but conversely, they shouldn't be used during the Battle Phase and during the opponent's turn.
Trap Cards, on the other hand, should be usable during battle steps and at any point during the opponent's turn, but the limitation is they can't be activated the turn they're set, and must be delayed by one turn to be effective.
These are just the basics. In Youyu's view, under the current rule system, the speed of activation for Monster Effects, Magic Card and Trap Card Effects, Quick Effects, and Counter Trap Effects is a complete mess.
Although Effect Chains and timing issues are inherently the most complex part of the Yu-Gi-Oh! duel rule system, Youyu didn't expect the rules to get perfected immediately to that extent.
After all, most Duelists are still overwhelmed by the new rule of "Tribute Summon requires sacrifices", forcing them to understand timing as a high-tech concept would indeed be asking too much.
On this part, he didn't spend much effort trying to persuade President Haima because he quickly found that the President seemed to have reflected on this part of the rules as well.
However, on certain aspects, the President was still unwilling to completely relent.
"What you said about the distinction needed between Magic Cards and Trap Cards, and that they shouldn't replace each other, that's indeed reasonable." Kaiba said, "You said Magic Cards can't be activated during the opponent's turn, that's fairly reasonable. But saying they can't be used even during your own Battle Phase, that's absurd."
Youyu raised an eyebrow.
Absurd?
I mean, don't you find it more outrageous to activate Monster Reborn from the set card during an opponent's attack declaration to trap the attacking Monster?
And about the "Fusion Summon's attack restriction", Youyu tried hard but ultimately couldn't make President Haima budge...
Kaiba's reason was simple: "If Fusion Summon can attack in the same turn, then if I, going second, can fuse and summon the invincible 'Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon' and immediately attack, wouldn't the duel end in an instant?
That's outrageous! It greatly affects balance, stop mentioning it."
Youyu couldn't help but be speechless.
Mind you... going second with Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon... how outrageous is it to think everyone uses glue to stick three White and one Fusion together?
And three Blue-Eyes and one Fusion... four cards for an attack power 4500 plain vanilla, what's there to be proud of?
Let alone others, when you duel with the King, if you play like this, and step into a Holy Barrier - Mirror Force or Magic Cylinder trap, wouldn't you explode on the spot?
This made Youyu look up to Kaiba, at least he seems like a conscientious President trying hard for game balance.
It's his first time seeing someone add limitations with the reasoning "this rule makes me too strong", forming a stark contrast with the former game director who crossed over who kept saying "So Cooooool" and whose game balance was hard to talk about...
Still, Youyu didn't give up. He tried to explain to Kaiba, the high-risk nature of starting with Fusion to summon "Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon" should naturally come with high rewards.
In fact, using four cards in one go to trade for an Ultimate Dragon, yet unable to attack in that turn just to wait for the opponent to deal with it in the next turn, is what truly feels unbalanced...
Kaiba rolled his eyes: "Humph! Defeat my 'Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon' in one turn? That's impossible!"
Youyu: "..."
"No need to continue this discussion." Kaiba waved his hand, "If Fusion Summon can immediately attack, wouldn't that mean I could first attack with three Blue-Eyes White Dragons, then during the Battle Phase use Fusion to combine them into Ultimate Dragon and continue attacking? Do you think that's reasonable?"
Reasonable? Of course not.
... So, why don't you delete the "Magic Cards can be activated during the Battle Phase" rule for me, you wretch!
Youyu discovered that even a super genius and top Duelist like Kaiba Seto had long been accustomed to the existing framework of Duel Monsters rules.
It's already quite a feat that he's willing to listen to his opinions and make so many changes. However, due to some long-standing inertia in thinking, Kaiba often wasn't on the same wavelength as Youyu, and talking to him could be like talking to a wall...
Lastly, Youyu specifically proposed the concept of "Battle Recall."
This concept did indeed pique Kaiba's interest.
"During the battle step, if the number of monsters on the field changes, can we reconfirm whether to attack?"
Kaiba pondered for a moment, his eyes gleaming.
"...Interesting, truly interesting." He nodded and said, "This might indeed be feasible, but putting it into actual operation would require considering more situations and running some tests."
Youyu nodded to show his understanding.
Such an important change would definitely require testing before implementation. But judging from Kaiba's interested reaction, it seemed promising.
However, Youyu immediately thought... Wouldn't the concept of Battle Recall potentially backfire on Kaiba himself?
For instance, the iconic scene he had imagined from the anime...
...
Dark Yugi: "I attack your 'XYZ-Dragon Cannon' on the field with 'Slifer the Sky Dragon'!"
Kaiba: "Hahaha, at this moment, I activate 'Interdimensional Matter Transporter,' banishing my monster! With no target, your attack is nullified!"
Dark Yugi: "Kaiba, didn't you read your own rules? Your monster's banishment triggered a 'Battle Recall,' so I attack directly with Slifer. You lose, Kaiba!"
Kaiba: "What? I forgot! Damn you, Yugi, argh..."
...
Hmm... Maybe not?
"Many of your ideas are quite interesting." Kaiba said, leaning back in his chair, "I can see your understanding of Duel Monsters cards is extraordinary... unlike some talentless normal Duelists."
(Jonouchi bangs the table: Are we not getting past this?)
Though Kaiba Seto often came off as arrogant and dismissive, he was actually quite approachable when facing someone he acknowledged.
Such as his self-proclaimed number one rival, Muto Yugi.
Although Kaiba frequently greeted Yugi with sarcasm, dismissing Yugi's emphasis on friendship, whenever Yugi was in trouble, the CEO showed up most proactively. Meanwhile, he would mutter things like, "Don't misunderstand, I'm doing this for XXX reason, not intentionally helping."
"Your suggestions have given me a lot of inspiration. Before the tournament begins, there will likely be another round of rule adjustments."
Kaiba paused as he spoke, his blue eyes flashing sharply.
"...Originally, I hoped to invite you to work at Kaiba Company, responsible for planning adjustments in the Duel Monsters department... but never mind." He chuckled, "I know Duelists like you aren't moved by money, nor would you wish to be tied down in the Kaiba Group."
Youyu: "?"
What? Why not?
Dang! CEO, tempt me with filthy money, could you? How can you just give up without even trying?
Are you a real Duelist or what?
"However," Kaiba shifted his tone, "The rules you mentioned will require extensive testing. Time is tight; I can delay the Duel City tournament by only a week, in which all testing and adjustments must be completed."
So if you're interested, I'd like to invite you as a special consultant for the Duel Monsters department to oversee these adjustments and ensure the new rules are airtight.
This job doesn't require constant presence at the Kaiba Group or daily reporting. I need your expertise, your deep understanding of the game."
I do not trust so-called professional designers to make the Duel Monsters game what it should be. I need a true Duelist to take on this task."
Youyu roughly understood.
Essentially, Kaiba wanted him to be a name in the department, adjusting the rules of Duel Monsters in real-time. After all, new cards would keep emerging, the game environment would continuously change, and the rules would need adjustments accordingly.
Moreover, by being a consultant, he would essentially become the liaison between Nightwalker World and the Kaiba Group. The task assigned by President Tosawa Mukuro would be accomplished, killing two birds with one stone...
As he was contemplating this, Kaiba continued, "As for the salary, since this is a special consultant position, naturally it will be relatively lower. If you don't mind, the first month's pay will be this amount..."
The CEO pushed a pre-prepared check across the table.
"No problem!" Youyu glanced briefly at the check and immediately agreed.
Salary and benefits? Haha, such things don't concern Youyu at all.
He accepted this job not for the expectations of President Mukuro, but for the future of the Duel Monsters card game!
...But truth be told, Kaiba's offer was indeed quite generous...