"What a genuinely, thoroughly good person. He even gifted me an entire deck again."
Yusaku strolled over to the opponent lying unconscious on the ground, bent down, and deftly picked up the scattered deck. He tapped the cards lightly in his palm; the crisp clack of the deck case cutting through the silence rang especially clear across the arena.
"Keh-heh-heh! I finally get it! The rare cards Yusaku sells to us… they're all hard-won off these poor bastards!"
"Win more! The more decks he takes, the more insane pulls we can dig up!"
"…"
The players' barrage of bullet-chat heckling was lively as ever. In stark contrast, the dojo students who had come specifically to watch from the stands fell into a bizarre dead silence. They glanced at one another, and with the genius academy leadership present, nobody dared to clap first. Only their eyes traded shock and complicated emotions in place of applause.
At the front row, the middle-aged man in gold-rim sunglasses watched the one-sided outcome. His face flickered between green and red as his lips compressed into a taut line.
After a long silence, he snorted heavily, stood up, and left without looking back.
With the big shot gone, the referee visibly relaxed, as if spared from execution, and hurried over to lead away the loosened bell.
Before Yusaku could say anything, the referee suddenly raised his voice, declaring with ringing authority, "Duel over! Contestant Yusaku wins! 'One-Turn Break' special achievement cleared, promoted two floors in a row, directly to the Ninth Floor!"
After announcing it, the referee looked at Yusaku with unconcealed awe. "Your name is Yusaku, right? Honestly, you're an incredible Duelist. For so many years, no one has ever touched the Ninth Floor's threshold. You're the first person to reach it. One more step and you'll be at the top. The Ninth Floor's rules are extremely special, so don't let your guard down!"
"I'm looking forward to the day you stand on the top floor!!!"
"Thanks," Yusaku said, waving a hand in acknowledgment of the goodwill, then turning and striding straight toward the entrance to the higher level.
The metal door—engraved with intricate Duel-patterns—slid open slowly. Beyond it wasn't a narrow passageway, but a far more spacious domed chamber, the air saturated with faint energy fluctuations.
At the center of the space floated a circular Duel platform. Its surface was paved with deep,幽-blue energy crystals, with no visible support beneath—like a brilliant star suspended in midair.
To the east, south, west, and north of the platform, four smaller circular stages connected outward. Each stage was set before an image of the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise.
The Ninth Floor's ring-shaped stands were already packed. Unlike the lower floors, every spectator here wore the genius academy's uniform, their presence steady and composed.
The moment Yusaku stepped in, the entire audience's gaze snapped onto him in unison—evaluative, curious.
Almost at the same second, two figures emerged from the opposite corridor. Recognizing those familiar faces, Yusaku raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Should I say… long time no see?"
They were his old rival Kazuki Uehara, the Duelist known for a Red Dragon Archfiend deck, and Miki—the one who'd left his Drytron deck to Yusaku after getting double-swept.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it. Spare me," Yusaku said, raising a hand to cut him off. "Back on the Sixth Floor, you got first pick. On the Ninth Floor, what's the new rule?"
Kazuki let out a cold laugh, his tone deliberately mysterious. "The Ninth Floor's rules have never been fixed."
Yusaku frowned slightly. "What do you mean? You built the tower, and you're telling me you don't know the rules?"
"Because the Ninth Floor's rules have never been fixed," Miki said, sweeping his gaze across the four small stages at the center as he explained slowly. "See those four platforms? Each one has a completely different rule set."
"Oh?" Yusaku lifted his brow. "Don't tell me you still get to choose who goes first."
Miki snapped his fingers sharply. "Correct. As gatekeepers, we still have the right to choose the first turn."
As he spoke, Miki stepped forward. "Then please step onto the White Tiger platform."
Yusaku walked up onto the platform. A faint vibration immediately traveled up through the floor beneath his feet.
The next instant, in the pupils of the White Tiger image, two numbers appeared: [8000] and [3].
Miki smiled. "Today's rule for this platform is: you must defeat your opponent within three turns, and you must keep your LP at 8000 or higher until the duel ends. Fail either condition, and it counts as a loss."
The spectators' expressions shifted in an instant.
"Can't say that for sure. What if the other guy's running a full-on stall-and-survive deck? This rule is legitimately disgusting."
"…"
On the field, Yusaku rubbed his chin and looked down at the numbers under his feet. "Full LP plus a three-turn limit? Your genius academy's dueling skill isn't much, but your talent for torture is something else. Fine. Which one of you is up first, or are you two jumping me together?"
Kazuki stepped forward. "Senpai, why use an ox-cleaver to kill a chicken? I just built a new deck that fits the White Tiger rule perfectly. Leave this one to me."
Miki nodded. "Then it's yours, kohai."
Kazuki snorted, flipped his wrist to unfold his Duel Disk, and slotted his deck into place.
Yusaku raised his arm as well, unfolding his own Duel Disk.
"Duel!"
"Duel!"
As the two shouts fell, both Duel Disks hummed and expanded a pale-blue light screen. Data streams raced across the surfaces, and the life point displays manifested.
[Yusaku, LP 8000]
[Kazuki Uehara, LP 8000]
Yusaku folded his arms and looked at him. "So, are you taking first or second?"
Kazuki folded his arms back, meeting Yusaku's gaze calmly. "This time I'll let you go first. That way, when you lose, the people watching the livestream can't say we only won because we were afraid of playing fair."
"Then I'll take first."
Yusaku placed his hand on his deck, fingers sliding along the card edges, and cleanly drew his opening five.
Kazuki sneered. "You don't actually think we were bluffing about the rules, do you? This Duel Tower was built using technology excavated from ancient ruins—an overlapping reconstruction system. The number on your Duel Disk is the turn countdown. If you don't finish me within three turns, or if you finish me but your LP drops below 8000, then as the challenger, you lose."
"Come on." Kazuki kept his arms folded, brimming with confidence. "I want to see how you plan to win without losing a single point of LP. I'll tell you in advance—I brought plenty of cards that work from the hand. If you think you can end this in three turns, you're dreaming."
Yusaku smiled faintly. "Interesting. Looks like I'll have to switch Duel platforms for the next match."
Kazuki: "?"
Yusaku quickly scanned the cards in his hand. After a brief pause, he selected one and slapped it onto his Duel Disk.
"Normal Summon! Internal Combustion Thunderfire Boil-Drive!"
As his words landed, a machine-bodied monster formed from blue flames, crackling electricity, and mechanical plating erupted onto the field, radiating a sharp pressure.
Internal Combustion Thunderfire Boil-Drive
Level 4 / Pyro / Effect
ATK 1700
What…?!
The instant they heard the monster's name, the players who had been debating what deck Yusaku would use froze. To make sure they hadn't misheard, they all snapped their eyes toward the field.
When they saw the Level 4 monster standing there—its oppressive aura unmistakable—eyes widened, mouths hanging open.
"Holy—! Holy—!"
"Holy—! It's Thunderfire!"
"Serious question, Thunderfire's strong, sure, but aren't the new monsters capped out? Can you really end it in three turns?"
"That's a rookie take! How could Thunderfire not end it in three turns? There's no banlist here! Outer Entity stuff, the 'Color Ruler' nonsense—ending the game is easy!"
Meanwhile, the genius academy spectators were baffled. They genuinely didn't understand why these people were acting like they'd seen a ghost over what looked like a perfectly ordinary Level 4 monster.
Kazuki glanced down at his own hand—and then lowered his head even more.
A Battlin' Boxer card. A copy of The Lady in Wight. A Lava Golem. A Pot of Greed.
With a hand like that, he couldn't even picture a scenario where his own LP would drop.
"What?" Kazuki glanced at Yusaku, his tone dripping with mockery. "—"
Yusaku replied evenly, "There are too many ways to deal with you. I was debating which one to use. Then I decided I'll use the fastest, most time-saving method. Start the countdown. Three minutes from now, the duel is over."
Kazuki: "???"
In the stands, one genius academy student couldn't help blurting out, "If you can end the duel in three minutes, I'll write my name backwards!"
"That bet's meaningless," Yusaku said, turning his gaze toward the student. "Want to raise the stakes? If I end it in three minutes, you hand me your deck. If I can't, I'll hand you mine. You in?"
The student didn't want to agree. But the audience wasn't just genius academy—there were plenty of upper-city duelists present, and the entire scene was being broadcast through the overhead cameras, with a full 360-degree view to Duel plazas everywhere.
Not wanting to lose face, he clenched his teeth. "Fine. I accept! I don't believe you can really end it in three minutes!"
Yusaku swept his eyes across the stands. "Anyone else want in? I've still got plenty of decks here—generous donations from the genius academy. Their power level isn't low."
Kazuki: "???"
After a quick scan, with no one else daring to answer, Yusaku clicked his tongue. "Guess no one else has the nerve. Then start timing. Kohai, help me watch it too—time it from both sides so it's accurate."
Miki: "???"
The players immediately patted their chests. "No problem, senpai! Leave it to us. You just focus on building your board!"
"Then I'll be counting on you," Yusaku said.
He immediately called out in a low, forceful voice. "Activate Internal Combustion Thunderfire Boil-Drive's effect! If this card is successfully Summoned: Special Summon 1 'Thunderfire Boil-Drive' monster from your Deck, except this card!"
He pulled a card from his Deck, revealed it briefly, and slapped it onto the Duel Disk. "I Special Summon External Combustion Thunderfire Boil-Drive from my Deck!"
The moment his words fell, another mechanized monster—formed from cyan flames, electricity, and metal—appeared. It gripped a massive lance shaped like a giant electric drill.
External Combustion Thunderfire Boil-Drive
Level 4 / Pyro / Effect
ATK 500
The Constellar Knight's Instant Verdict.
"External Combustion Thunderfire Boil-Drive's effect!" Yusaku shouted.
"If this card is Summoned or Special Summoned, and you control no Level 4 or Rank 4 monsters: you can add 1 Thunder-Attribute Thunder monster to your hand."
"My field meets the condition, so I add Sword-Form Cathode Thunderfire Boil-Drive from my Deck to my hand!"
After adding the searched card, Yusaku simply swept his arm outward.
"Xyz Summon! Rank 4 — Thunderfire Boil-Drive Twin Motors!"
Two monsters turned into golden light and shot into a swirling Xyz vortex in the sky.
In the next instant, a gigantic mech—fused from their energy—tore through the vortex and descended. Molten-orange patterns flowed across its armor, and golden electric arcs cracked and popped at its joints. The heatwave it released on arrival distorted the air.
Thunderfire Boil-Drive Twin Motors
Rank 4 / Thunder / Xyz / Effect
Materials: 2
ATK 2500
Kazuki narrowed his eyes. "Yusaku, that's already twenty seconds. And you still haven't—"
Yusaku smiled slightly. "There's still over two minutes, isn't there? What's the rush?"
He lifted his hand. "I activate this effect!"
Thunderfire Boil-Drive Twin Motors
Materials: 2 → 1
"I add the Quick-Play Spell Thunderfire Boil-Drive Plug-In, and the monster Node-Form Anode Thunderfire Boil-Drive, from my Deck to my hand!"
With the searched cards in hand, Yusaku shouted again:
"Xyz Summon! Rank 5 — Xyz Armor: Fortress Form!"
Thunderfire Boil-Drive Twin Motors became golden light and flew into a new Xyz vortex.
A thick, heavy mech carrying torpedo cannons descended from the vortex. Diamond-shaped silver defense plates overlaid its black armor, and a幽-blue energy glow gathered at its cannon muzzle. When it landed, its weighty footsteps made the entire arena tremble slightly.
Xyz Armor: Fortress Form
Rank 5 / Machine / Effect
Materials: 1
ATK 2500
"Activate Xyz Armor: Fortress Form's effect!" Yusaku called out.
"Once per turn, you can detach up to 2 materials from this card. Add 'Armored Xyz' cards from your Deck to your hand equal to the number detached."
"I detach this card's material!"
Materials: 1 → 0
"I add the Spell Armored Xyz from my Deck to my hand!"
With the searched card added, Yusaku shouted again—
(End of Chapter)
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