Manjome took a deep breath, realizing: "Then, Brother Mokuba, please duel Marufuji! He definitely won't disappoint you!
If the result of the duel is impressive, surely you'll recognize and accept it—then, the government employees here won't say anything, right?"
Indeed.
In internal duels, an outstanding duelist being recognized and then competing is quite persuasive. Even the officials here wouldn't object.
Kaiba Mokuba didn't hesitate this time, and he also wanted to see if he could match up against students from the Professional Duel Academy.
Marufuji Shou's deck was still the hybrid deck of Roids and Integration Department cards he used before, while Kaiba Mokuba used a "Thunder Dragon" deck.
His Thunder Dragon deck wasn't a regular Thunder Dragon deck, but a deck replicated using Kaiba Company's technology after Tenjo Hikari created the "Thunder Dragon Colossus," featuring three copies of each Thunder Dragon-related card, overpowering Tenjo Hikari in sheer numbers. Additionally, he had seen other Thunder Dragons during Dimension Travel, making his deck quite formidable.
As they prepared to duel, time was flowing as well.
The next round of duels—
Pendulum Dimension Team, VS, 5DS Team!
The members of the Pendulum Dimension Team gradually calmed down after the initial shock of "meeting the 5DS Team!"
Isn't it just the 5DS Team? Isn't it just the "Champion Team" of this dimension? Isn't it just the team everyone in this world supports?
Watch them push this team back!
At this moment, the two teams were exchanging heated opinions at their respective preparation areas.
As mentioned before, before the grand duel, both sides of each round can discuss and decide the final duel format.
One is the regular "1v1" match mode, another is the standard "best-of-three" mode, and then there is the most traditional WRGP duel format—the relay duel!
Of course, because this duel involves the world and Multi-Dimensional Duelists, it wasn't fixed as a traditional relay duel like before, so the organizers were considering adopting the best-of-three mode for future tournaments.
As for the current issue…
The 5DS team wants to duel with their teammate "Sakaki Yuya!"
"That guy from 5DS!"
"This message must be sent by Light!"
A while ago, Light had personally come to their preparation area to chat, showing more than typical interest in Sakaki Yuya, as several guessed it must be the "Pendulum Summon" that caught his attention.
So a few members of the LDS discussed—specifically, Yaiba Todo and Shijima Hokuto thought it was a very good opportunity.
Let that guy who loves to spout nonsense know their strength!
Also, with so many rounds of duels in the WRGP, being aware of the 5DS team's cards and information in advance is somewhat beneficial.
"We won't let them know our world's secret tactics! Yaiba, this is a great opportunity!" Shijima Hokuto shouted to Yaiba Todo.
Yaiba Todo nodded.
As the Pendulum Dimension's Synchro Summon user, he was curious and eager to duel with genuine Synchro Duelists.
This is also a rare opportunity!
He directly asked the staff to inform the other side that Sakaki Yuya wouldn't be participating.
About ten seconds later, another message came through.
"In that case, how about the standard relay duel? This is a feature of the Synchro Dimension, and the future key rounds of the WRGP tournament might use it."
They exchanged confused glances, baffled by the reply.
After pondering for a while, Sakaki Yuya hesitantly said: "It's reasonable, right? Everyone. After all, we might have to participate in these duels later, so it's good to get accustomed to it."
Indeed—
"Then let's prepare; relay duels might take a lot of time."
"Their first duelist has been confirmed—it's Light."
"Then go, Yaiba!"
"Oh!"
The team readied their machinery while testing the D-wheels.
The City Government was quite generous, not only providing all Pendulum Team members with D-wheels based on the number of members but also customizing each one based on color and attire.
Yaiba Todo's D-wheel was styled full of various blade designs—not real blades, but decorations, making it look very cool.
The three from Yaiba's team left the track, then saw the duelist coming from the other side…
Light!
"Eh. Where's your teammate?" Yaiba Todo instinctively muttered.
Tenjo Hikari glanced at the three, then spoke: "You know, right? WRGP tournament, information is crucial. Given that, it's better to have fewer people competing."
"You jerk!" Yaiba Todo flushed with anger, rushing to grab Tenjo Hikari's shirt for an explanation.
Shijima Hokuto quickly held him back.
"Of course, more importantly…today is different."
What does today being different mean?
All three were confused.
But, the duel preparations had already started.
And at this time—
Marufuji Shou and Kaiba Mokuba's duel had ended, Kaiba Mokuba was quite surprised as he packed up his cards.
He lost!?
The cards he used were the latest researched Thunder Dragon series.
The strength of Thunder Dragon Colossus far exceeded regular monsters, paired with the Synchro Summon he'd learned, yet he was defeated by Marufuji Shou.
Since that's the case, he would naturally not refuse Marufuji Shou anymore.
After all, he was more like a manager as a substitute; if there was a stronger contestant, he'd be more than happy, saving him from missing anything later during duels.