A moment later, Youyu had already arrived at the duel arena specially set up at the headquarters of the "Nightwalker World".
A dense crowd had already gathered on both sides of the arena. A group of burly men shoulder to shoulder, surrounded the arena in an unbroken ring, three layers inside and three layers outside.
It looked just like an underground illegal boxing match.
Standing opposite Youyu was another well-built man—Youyu started to wonder why everyone in the "Nightwalker World" seemed to be a macho man.
Looking around below the arena, it was really like a "full Han banquet" (figuratively), not a single girl could be found, and it seemed as if the air was thick with the unique robust scent of manliness.
This gave Youyu the illusion that he had walked into some kind of strange film set.
"Ha, I didn't expect a kid like you wants to join our 'Nightwalker World'." The man opposite sneered, "Let me show you a bit. The world of the Dark Duelist is brutal, not just anyone can join."
Youyu smiled, "Then please enlighten me, Senior Kuroda."
He didn't know the duelist opposite him, he only heard the name Kuroda from the audience's discussion nearby.
The crowd was still chattering wildly.
"Do you think Kuroda could lose to this kid?"
"Who can say for sure? A duel is about brains, not muscles. Someone like Kuroda, who has muscles all over his brain, might not make it..."
"How about a bet? On the outcome of Kuroda versus this kid?"
"Sure thing!"
The mention of a bet perked up the crowd instantly. Even among the Dark Duelists, when sparring daily, they'd often place bets among friends, though not necessarily using anything life-threatening.
The stakes could be anything.
For example, the loser must, as previously agreed, chug a couple of ounces of white wine, then a glass of red, and finish with a beer gargle, or something like that.
"I'll bet on Kuroda."
"Me too, Kuroda."
"I'll go with him as well..."
Even though they claimed to not trust him, even the guy who snarked that Kuroda had "muscles in his brain" chose to place their bet on him.
After all, they were all members of the same guild, and were familiar with each other's levels. They didn't believe this random slick-faced guy could beat Kuroda.
Just then, President Tosawa Mukuro appeared: "What's this? A bet?"
Everyone was startled into silence. Someone hurriedly said, "No... no, we were just joking, President..."
"It's alright, as long as we're not betting cards, it's okay to play occasionally." The president expressed that his management policy was very open and did not prohibit gambling, saying, "Let me join in. Let's see... I'll also bet on Kuroda."
"..."
An awkward silence loomed.
A moment later, someone took the lead: "Then I'll... I'll bet on this new kid."
"... after thinking it over, I'll bet on the newcomer as well."
There was an unspoken but widely known ironclad rule in the Nightwalker World.
That was, in any bet, never, never... stand on the same side as the president.
Because incomplete statistics indicate that at least within the knowledge of all members, the president has never won a single bet, no matter how big or small, in his life...
A guy nearby was eager to follow suit: "Then I'll also bet..."
"Hmm?" President Tosawa cast a questioning glance, as if asking, so what's the deal, you all side against me once I arrive? Looking down on me, Mukuro?
The guy shuddered at the implication, quickly changing his tune: "I... I'll still bet on Kuroda."
At this point, the brothers who had just said they would bet on Kuroda, but hadn't changed their minds in time, felt embarrassed. They wanted to switch to betting on Youyu but were afraid of offending the boss. However, since the boss had already bet on Kuroda, this money going in was a sure loss...
It was really a no-win situation for them!
At that moment, Kuroda, up on the stage, had no idea that he had been jinxed by a mysterious force, and was still boasting with a grin: "Since you know what this place is, no need to say more, right? This duel will be a Dark Duel.
But don't worry, although it's a Dark Duel, we won't take your life. If the stakes are too small, though, it wouldn't be interesting, so let me think... how about this!"
Kuroda sneered, "The loser must perform a striptease in this arena, how's that?"
Youyu inserted his well-shuffled card deck into the slot and unfolded his Duel Disc: "That suits me just fine."
The spirit of the Dark Magician Girl manifested behind him, covering her mouth in surprise: "Master, it turns out you have such interests..."
Her cute little face wore a shocked expression, as if to say, I didn't expect the master, who looks so handsome, to have such peculiar tastes...
Youyu's expression froze: "...No, that's not what I mean... Don't worry, there's no way I could lose to this kind of opponent."
"Ah! So you're wanting to see the other guy perform..."
"Not that either!"
Youyu felt awkward. Why take my words so seriously?
Kuroda was confused: "What are you muttering about?"
In the Yu-Gi-Oh World, only a select few could see the existence of monster spirits, famous ones like the protagonists Yuki Judai and Manjome Jun in Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.
When spirits appear in spirit form, most humans cannot see them.
"No matter, let's get started!" Youyu said.