Even though the ancient style was abstract, everyone recognized it at a glance. Several trainees cried out in surprise. "Chaos Soldier!"
According to exaggerated myth records, he was the strongest warrior who split chaos with his sword, one side light and the other dark, opening heaven and earth. Because the story was so extreme, it was treated as background mythology. He was also one of the famous ace monsters once used by Yugi Muto.
"Yes, Chaos Soldier," Saito Ojisan said. "A legendary monster. Ever since the 'Envoy of the Beginning' appeared, it has been a major research topic for many teams. Unfortunately, that card also became a dead end for research."
"Many years have passed without breakthroughs," he continued. "Some expert teams even believe that the Envoy already represents all of Chaos Soldier's potential, with no further evolution possible."
That idea made sense. Chaos Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning had extremely simple summoning conditions, three thousand ATK, and powerful effects like banishing an opponent's monster or attacking twice in one turn. It was so strong that it was banned in 2005 in reality, and in this era it was still overwhelming.
Of course, as someone from the future, Yugen knew this was not the limit. There were many undeveloped LV Series cards related to Chaos Soldier. Just looking at the tablet made his thoughts start racing.
Even without later support, the Envoy had already been strong enough in the early days. In reality, after the Hand Destruction Deck he once used, the next two world champions both ran Chaos themes with the Envoy as a core card. Back then, Chaos decks crushed almost every other Deck in the environment.
Even after the Envoy was banned, the so-called lesser Envoy barely took its place, and that year's world champion was still a Chaos build. Yugen wondered if getting his hands on the real Envoy might let him try building a championship-level Deck himself.
"Then wouldn't uncovering related ruins help new research?" a trainee asked in confusion.
"I don't really understand the details," Saito Ojisan replied. "But I heard from the research team that it doesn't help. The tablet found here only corresponds to the ritual monster Chaos Soldier that was made into a card years ago."
"It seems there are no clues here about further evolution," he added. "That's what they said."
The ritual monster Chaos Soldier was the original version Yugi Muto summoned during the Duelist Kingdom arc. With three thousand ATK and no effects, it carried the title of a legendary monster but had long fallen behind the current era.
"Here."
Yugen paused. He felt like someone had spoken right beside his ear, but when he turned around, there was no one there.
The other trainees were gathered in the opposite direction, excitedly discussing Chaos Soldier and the former Duel King Yugi Muto. People moved around the hall, and no one stood where the voice came from. Was it just his imagination?
As he turned back, the voice sounded again. "Here."
Yugen looked once more, but the area was still empty. No one seemed capable of speaking to him like that. His gaze finally fixed on another excavated tablet nearby.
Unlike the Chaos Soldier tablet surrounded by people, this one was completely blank. A plain slab of stone stood there in silence. For some reason, it felt like it was calling to him.
Almost without thinking, he walked closer and slowly raised his arm. It was as if an invisible force was guiding him forward.
At the same time, someone in the research camp shouted, "Leader!" A man in a white lab coat with the KC logo hurried over.
"What is it?" the team leader asked.
"The readings," the researcher said urgently. "Duel energy levels are suddenly spiking!"
The leader looked at the instruments and froze. "Is this a Spirit reaction? But these numbers… that's impossible."
They had detected no monster Spirit activity here before. Yet in a single moment, the readings skyrocketed like they had gone mad. If this really was a manifestation, the energy level was absurd.
"Isn't this on the level of 'Blue-Eyes White Dragon'?" the leader said in shock.
Ruins were discovered every year across the world and were nothing special anymore. But a Spirit on the level of Blue-Eyes White Dragon was extremely rare.
The instant Yugen's fingers touched the stone tablet, he felt a powerful pull. His feet left the ground before he could react, and his whole body was drawn in as if into a massive whirlpool. In the blink of an eye, he was being dragged toward another world.
As his awareness slowly returned, Yugen felt warm sunlight on his face, a light breeze, and a faint scent in the air. He opened his eyes and was briefly dazzled by the brightness, raising an arm on instinct to shield himself. Beneath him, his body seemed to be resting on damp grass.
When he tried to sit up, a hand supported his arm and helped pull him to his feet. He let out a small sound of surprise as he steadied himself. The sensation was strange but reassuring, as if someone had been watching over him the whole time.
Yugen turned his head to look, then snapped his gaze back in shock. Standing beside him was Silent Magician, her white robe fluttering softly, concern clear in her eyes as she examined him. She probably thought her master had hit his head.
The moment their eyes met, the girl startled as if shocked, quickly letting go and retreating a few steps. She lowered her head and clutched her staff, looking restless and unsure. At least she did not immediately run back into the Deck, which made Yugen feel that their relationship had improved a little.
Then something felt off. Yugen frowned and stepped forward, his expression turning serious as he stopped in front of Silent Magician. He reached out and gently pinched her cheek, pale as fresh snow.
It felt soft and warm, vivid enough to seem completely real. There was nothing ghostly about it at all. That made no sense.
Silent Magician stared at him in confusion, gripping her staff and clearly not understanding what her master was trying to do. She froze in place, caught between embarrassment and panic.
"So that is how it is. Spirit can be touched as solid matter," Yugen muttered. He lifted his head and began to look around at his surroundings. The scene around him slowly came into focus.
Threads of golden sunlight filtered through dense forest canopy and fell across the ground in broken patterns. Tall trees stood thick and straight, their branches and leaves spreading wide like enormous green umbrellas. Everything looked vivid and alive.
Normally, even though a Spirit could take physical form, maintaining it in the real world through Release was difficult and could not last long. Yet his own Spirit was shy by nature, and now she was neither returning to spiritual form nor hiding in the Deck. That left only one possibility.
"Am I in the Spirit World?" Yugen guessed aloud. Silent Magician nodded in confirmation. It really was the case.