The Security officers raised their Duel Disks, forming a half-circle around Hikaru. From their posture and smirks, it was clear, they were planning a three-on-one.
It was Hikaru's first time facing such odds, but he didn't panic.
Instead, his eyes quietly swept the scene.
Thin, malnourished civilians were hiding behind doorways and in narrow alleys, watching in fear. A few children wanted to shout something in his defense, but their parents quickly covered their mouths, shaking their heads in silent terror.
Most of the people wore expressions devoid of life, eyes empty, as if hope itself had long since died.
Hikaru's gaze shifted to one of the outdoor screens nearby. The broadcast replayed not only Jack Atlas's loss to Yusei Fudo, but also his earlier defeat against Seto Kaiba, accompanied by taunting captions like "The Fallen King" and "Unworthy."
"Tch. What's wrong, trash? Still waiting for your hero to come save you?"
"Ha! The 'Former King' can't even protect himself. You think he'll protect the likes of you?"
"Hmph. Once you're rotting in jail, you'll have plenty of time to watch his repentance speech."
These Security officers were clearly part of the extremist faction, men drunk on power and class hatred.
"You plan to gang up three against one?" Hikaru asked calmly.
One officer blinked, perhaps thinking it sounded unfair. "Heh, don't flatter yourself. We don't need..."
"I don't mind," Hikaru interrupted lightly. "Three against one it is. But since it's three of you sharing the field, I'll take the first turn, and every time one of you ends your turn, it'll pass to me. You three share one field. Deal?"
"Don't...!" A child's voice rang out before being muffled again.
Even the bystanders knew that was suicide. Who would ask for a disadvantage like that?
The officers exchanged glances, then burst out laughing. "Hahaha! Fine! Since you're so eager to die, don't blame us when you lose!"
"We'll even give you a little handicap, 12,000 Life Points sound fair?"
"Fine by me." Hikaru smirked faintly.
"DUEL!"
Hikaru Amagi — LP: 12,000
Security Officers (Team) — LP: 4,000 each
"My turn. Draw."
Hikaru drew his opening card, glanced at his hand, and exhaled quietly through his nose.
Perfect hand.
He tilted his head slightly, eyes flicking across the area. The duel field projection shimmered to life on the cracked street of the Undercity. But something felt off.
He glanced again at the mark on his left hand.
He had been pulled into this dimension by the Red Dragon, but almost immediately after arriving, this geoglyph had appeared on his skin.
The pattern wasn't fully visible yet, still forming, as if the entity behind it was sleeping, but there was no mistaking the style of the sigil.
Last time he'd visited the S Dimension, he hadn't been free to move around much, but he'd talked extensively with Yusei Fudo. From him, Hikaru learned that this world's greatest problem was the unbridgeable gap between the nobles of the Upper City and the impoverished masses of the Lower City.
Some nobles even treated the Undercity as a dumping ground, throwing away half-eaten food and broken machines.
Back then, when Hikaru first learned about this world, he had thought it was nothing more than a combination of 5D's and ARC-V, two universes overlapping in theme and tone. He hadn't looked deeper.
But now… things were different.
He truly possessed a Duel Dragon, had truly been summoned by the Red Dragon, and was now truly marked by the power of an Earthbound Immortal geoglyph.
That meant the rift between the Upper City and the Undercity ran far deeper than mere class division; something sinister, spiritual, was festering underneath.
Once, the gap between rich and poor had at least been bridged by Jack Atlas, the "King," who had risen from the slums. His existence had given both sides the illusion of unity, a shared hope.
But now, Jack had fallen, and the Upper City was openly broadcasting his defeats as propaganda.
"Tch. What's wrong, trash? Haven't even started yet, and you've already surrendered?" sneered one of the Security officers.
Hikaru glanced back at them coolly.
"Fine," he said. "Let's duel first, and see where this world really stands."
He drew a card and declared,
"I activate the Spell Card Shaddoll Fusion!"
The officers froze.
"This card lets me perform a Fusion Summon using monsters from my hand or field," Hikaru continued. "I send Shaddoll Beast and Shaddoll Hedgehog from my hand to the Graveyard to Fusion Summon!"
"Fusion?"
"Who even uses Fusion these days?"
"Ha! Figures a slum rat wouldn't know how to Synchro."
The three Security officers laughed openly, without the slightest hint of concern.
Hikaru didn't bother replying. He simply brought his hands together, eyes narrowing, and spoke solemnly, his voice carrying through the tense air:
"Hear me, O voice of the gods; O tongue of the divine; O decree of fate!
Fusion Summon! Descend!
Level 5! El Shaddoll Winda!"
Violet puppet strings burst outward from the ground, encircling the entire street in a web of magical light. A green-haired sorceress slowly descended from a rift in the sky, her eyes gleaming with eerie calm as she took her place before Hikaru.
El Shaddoll Winda — Level 5 / DARK / Spellcaster / ATK 2200 / DEF 800
"Only 2200 attack points?" scoffed one officer.
"Hah! You think that's enough to stand against the might of Sector Security?"
"Looks like I can handle this one alone."
They smirked, brimming with arrogance.
Hikaru ignored them.
"I activate the effects of the two monsters I sent to the Graveyard, Shaddoll Beast and Shaddoll Hedgehog! When they're sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, Beast lets me draw one card, and Hedgehog adds one 'Shaddoll' monster from my Deck to my hand."
He drew one card and searched another. "I add Shaddoll Lizard to my hand, then draw one card."
Glancing at the card he'd just drawn, Hikaru gave a faint, knowing smile.
"I set one card face down. Turn end."
"Hmph. Nothing special," sneered the first officer. "My turn! Draw!"
The Security duelist's grin widened. "Even twelve thousand Life Points won't save you. I Normal Summon, Level 4, Ten-Hand King!"
A stocky warrior appeared beside him, gripping twin iron tonfas.
Hikaru raised an eyebrow.
'Ten-Hand King… that's from ARC-V's early draft pool, isn't it? Didn't even exist as a real card before I crossed worlds.'
Jutte King — Level 4 / EARTH / Warrior / ATK 1600 / DEF 1000
"When this card is Normal Summoned," the officer continued, "I can Special Summon one Level 2 or lower Warrior-Type Tuner monster from my hand. I Special Summon, Ten-Hand Samurai!"
Jutte Fighter, Level 2, EARTH Attribute, Warrior-Type, ATK 700.
"I tune my two monsters together...haha...ha… huh?"
The officer slid the cards into his Duel Disk, but suddenly froze. He couldn't Synchro Summon.
When he looked down, he realized with horror that thick purple puppet strings had coiled around his Duel Disk, crawling up his arm like living veins.
"Wh-what is this?!" He tried to yank his arm free, but the strings clung tighter, pulsing faintly with light, as if they were linked directly to his life force.
Hikaru raised a finger and waggled it casually. "While El Shaddoll Winda is on the field, both players can only Special Summon once per turn."
"W-what?!"
"That means… I can't Synchro Summon?!"
From the shadows of the alleys, the watching civilians gasped aloud.
"Unbelievable!"
"He stopped a Synchro user with a Fusion card?!"
"Damn you…" The officer's face twisted in anger. But he wasn't about to give up. "A filthy slum rat actually dares to block Synchros? Fine, Jutte Fighter's effect activates! Once per turn, it can change one of your Attack Position monsters to Defense Position!"
El Shaddoll Winda — ATK 2200 → DEF 800
"Hah! Nice one," another officer shouted. "Now we can destroy that thing in battle! Jutte King, attack Winda!"
The first officer grinned maniacally, thrusting his Duel Disk forward as his monster charged. "Jutte King, crush that puppet!"
Just as the blow was about to land;
"At this moment, I activate my Quick-Play Spell, El Shaddoll Fusion." Hikaru flipped his face-down card. "This card is a Shaddoll-exclusive Fusion Spell. I fuse materials from my hand and field according to the requirements of a 'Shaddoll' Fusion Monster. I fuse Shaddoll Lizard from my hand with Winda on the field!"
"Wh...what?!"
"Fusion Summon!" Hikaru's voice rang through the dust and smoke. "Descend once more, Level 5, El Shaddoll Winda!"
The puppet strings recoiled, then snapped forward again, and from the swirl of dark magic emerged another Winda, standing tall in Attack Position, cloaked in violet aura.
"Then I activate the effect of Shaddoll Lizard! When sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, it can send one Shaddoll card from my Deck to the Graveyard. I send Shaddoll Core.
Now, the Winda I just used as Fusion Material was sent to the Graveyard, so I activate its effect as well. When sent to the Graveyard, it lets me add one 'Shaddoll' Spell or Trap from my Graveyard to my hand. I retrieve El Shaddoll Fusion!
Next, Shaddoll Core's effect activates! When it's sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, I can add one 'Shaddoll' Spell or Trap other than Core from my Graveyard to my hand. I take Shaddoll Fusion!"
The officer's smirk faltered. "You've got to be kidding…"
Another officer gritted his teeth. "Don't panic! We can still Synchro during Main Phase 2!"
"Yeah! Let's show this rat what real dueling looks like!"
"Right!" The first officer barked a command, thrusting his arm forward again.
"End Battle Phase! During Main Phase 2, I tune my two monsters, Level 4 Jutte King and Level 2 Jutte Fighter!
Synchro Summon!"
"Come forth, Goyo Guardian!"
A towering warrior clad in crimson armor spun his tri-pronged staff with deadly precision, sneering as he materialized on the field.
Goyo Guardian — Level 6 / EARTH / Warrior / ATK 2800 / DEF 2000
...
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