"Duel!" x2
[Youyu, LP 4000]
[Jonouchi, LP 4000]
Youyu versus Jonouchi, the second round of their duel begins!
This time, Youyu is wagering the two Puzzle Cards he currently holds; if he wins, the number of Puzzle Cards will reach six, directly meeting the advancement criteria.
And if Jonouchi wins...
...there's really no benefit.
Well, that's not exactly true. If he wins, he can choose any Rare Card from Youyu's deck. But if he loses, it means he'll have to continue looking for his next target instead of advancing as he could have originally.
The random order of the Duel Disc decides that Jonouchi will draw five cards first: "I'll go first, draw!"
He glanced at his hand, cautiously eyeing the opponent Youyu, deep in thought.
He knows that this opponent is strong, possibly stronger than most of the people he's faced. Although he might have been a bit careless last time, he ultimately lost to him.
This time, he needs to be a bit more cautious.
"I activate Magic Card - Graceful Charity. Draw three cards from the deck, then discard two." Jonouchi began by drawing three cards, "Then I summon 'Alligator's Sword' in defense position, ending my turn."
[Alligator's Sword, Defense 1200]
Recalling the animation, where Gambler Jonouchi even attacked with a Normal Monster of 500 attack in the first round, this time, starting with defense really shows he's more cautious.
At this moment, cheering for Jonouchi, Anzu shouted, "Go Jonouchi!"
Next to her, the friendly-looking short old man with a hairstyle that just screams Duel King potential, whose iconic hairstyle clearly relates to Yugi.
This is Muto Sugoroku, Yugi's grandpa and the reincarnation of an Ancient Egyptian Priest.
"My turn, draw card." Now it's Youyu's move, "I special summon Illusionist at the cost of discarding one card from my hand!"
The holographic card appeared, and the cloaked Magician soared out of the card face. Behind him was a broad black cloak, with a large question mark stamped on his chest and face.
[Illusionist, Attack 2000]
Jonouchi was shocked, "An attack power 2000 Monster right from the start!?"
"Although Illusionist is a five-star Monster, his special ability allows him to be special summoned by discarding a card," Youyu said calmly, "And the card I discarded is, Dark Street Summoner Peter."
As Youyu spoke, the card just sent to the graveyard had already bounced back out.
"When Dark Street Summoner Peter is sent to the grave, he can be removed from play to special summon another Dark Street Summoner Peter from the deck."
Youyu pulled out another Peter from the deck, placing it in the Monster Zone horizontally. Wearing a red brimmed hat and funny attire, the Dark Street Summoner appeared in a crouching posture on the field.
[Dark Street Summoner Peter, Defense 1200]
Youyu waved his arm, "Then use 'Dark Street Summoner Peter' as a tribute...come forth, Dark Magician Girl!"
The funny Dark Street Summoner vanished in a blue glow, and the dazzling Magician Girl made a grand entrance. The lively elf gracefully flew into the air, leaving a stardust trail with her Magic Staff.
As usual, the crowd of players burst into another wave of cheers, akin to fans enthusiastically greeting their idol at a concert.
Dark Magician Girl has grown accustomed to their reactions. Though her small mind still couldn't comprehend why this group goes so crazy at the sight of her, she still returned a bright smile, waving at them.
"The goddess waved at me!"
"P You get out of the way, she was clearly waving at me!"
"You damn well know if you weren't blocking me... wouldn't it be a wave to me?"
"Ah Wei still needs to come out and play..."
Jonouchi had an incredulous expression, "Summoned two High-Level Monsters in just the first turn?"
"Battle!" Youyu declared, "Illusionist, attack Alligator's Sword!"
It was a one-sided battle. The lower-level Alligator's Sword wasn't a match for Illusionist, and in one collision, Alligator's Sword's body shattered into pieces.
"Dark Magician Girl, direct attack!"
The girl followed the order, soaring high.
With nothing on the field to protect him, Jonouchi watched helplessly as the girl flew high into the air, aiming her Magic Staff at him, gritting his teeth and raising his arms to shield himself.
Explosion!
The magical beam exploded in Jonouchi's face, instantly taking away a large chunk of LP.
[Jonouchi, LP 4000 → LP 2000]
Youyu said, "My turn ends."
Dark Magician Girl gently landed back on the field, blinking her emerald green eyes at her master, as if to hint, "Aren't I amazing? Praise me quickly!"
"Really, what's Jonouchi doing?" The clueless Cloud Player Anzu said with a worried face, "He lost more than half his life points in just the first turn?"
Grandpa Sugoroku stroked his chin, "No, the opponent is too strong. They managed to bring such an arrangement in the first turn..."
"Damn, he's really strong." Jonouchi gritted his teeth, "But I won't give up! My turn, draw!"
He glanced at the drawn card, then examined his hand again.
Good, with this, I can fight back!
"I special summon from my hand, The Fiend Megacyber!"
Clad in golden metal armor, the gigantic, powerful mechanical giant appeared on Jonouchi's field.
[The Fiend Megacyber, Attack 2200]
"Although The Fiend Megacyber is a level 6 Monster, its special ability allows it to be special summoned when the opponent has two more Monsters than you!"
Youyu understood, "A Monster with a quick counter-ability, I see."
"It's not over yet!" Jonouchi shouted, "Next up is my trump card! I Normal Summon—
—Time Wizard!"
A cluster of players erupted.
"Here it comes, here it comes!"
"Time Wizard! The Gambler's Soul Card!"
A cute little magician, shaped like a small clock, appeared out of nowhere, holding a roulette shaped like a clock.
[Time Wizard, Attack 500]
"Time Wizard effect activates!" Jonouchi said, "Time Wheel!"
The spin in the little magician's hand began to turn, with the pointer rapidly whirling like it was out of control.
"The Time Wheel is an all-destroy effect with equal odds for both players!" Jonouchi explained, "If the pointer stops in the skull area, my Monsters will be destroyed. But if it stops outside the skull area, all opponent Monsters are destroyed.
The chances of it stopping in either area are equal, both are fifty-fifty!"
A purely gambling game, relying solely on luck.
Yet, as everyone knows, Jonouchi has been dubbed the Gambler, with remarkably few losses across the whole Yu-Gi-Oh! DM series.
And Youyu... well...
...Luck E, let's not go there.
So naturally, there was nothing much to expect from the outcome.
"Yosh, yes!" Jonouchi exclaimed happily upon seeing the pointer stop, "It stopped outside the skull area, Time Wheel effect activates! From now, the time on the field will roll forward a thousand years, causing all your Monsters to perish!"
"Not necessarily." Youyu chuckled softly.
"What!?"
"Jonouchi," Youyu leisurely said, "Do you remember what happened when you used the Time Wheel against Yugi during Duelist Kingdom?"
Jonouchi plunged into reminiscence, "Back then, Yugi's field had a 'Dark Magician', the Time Wheel effect accelerated time by a thousand years, and as a result...the Dark Magician didn't perish after a thousand years, but instead evolved into 'Dark Sage'!"
Jonouchi suddenly realized something, casting his eyes at the Dark Magician Girl on the enemy's field.
"Ma... Masaka (Could it be)!?"
Dark Magician Girl is a disciple of Dark Magician, he remembers hearing that from Yugi. Could it be, after a thousand years, Dark Magician Girl would also grow?
For example, evolving into... Dark Magician Lady?
Bang! Bang!
Two crisp sounds echoed as both Illusionist and Dark Magician Girl's images shattered and vanished, effectively destroyed by the effect of the Time Wheel.
Jonouchi: "?"
What happened?
Where's the Dark Magician Lady?
"Ahem." Youyu cleared his throat, "Alright, now that my Monsters are all destroyed by the Time Wheel effect, continue your turn."
"Oh... okay." Jonouchi was still bewildered, continuing the duel while feeling that something seemed off.
Even the players faintly sensed trouble.
Youyu-san just now... wasn't he trying to bluff in vain?