Kaiba Company Headquarters.
"Military personnel?" Mokuba was surprised when he saw today's schedule, "Brother, why are we dealing with the military again?"
He could hardly remember the last time Kaiba Group had dealings with the military.
Back in the day before Kaiba Seto took over, this company was a major arms dealer. Under Gozaburo's leadership, Kaiba Group's connections with the military were very tight, as the company relied on them for business.
But that was all in the past.
When Kaiba Seto took charge, he stubbornly abandoned the group's deeply rooted arms trade and switched to the gaming business. It wasn't hard to imagine that relations with the military, who were long-term partners with some contracts not even expired yet, were strained.
For a long time afterward, there was no contact until today.
"Yes." Kaiba behind the desk did not deny it and said lightly, "The military has stated their wish to reconsider collaborations with Kaiba Company, so a high-level talk with a special department has been arranged today."
Mokuba wondered, "But we haven't been in the weapon business for a long time. They should know that..."
"Of course, they know." Kaiba snorted, "So they aren't here to discuss conventional weapons cooperation."
"Could it be... ah!" Mokuba understood, "They also want to enter the Duel Monsters field?"
It might not be known to the general public, but it's been an open secret in upper circles. Since the Doma incident ended, "Duel Monsters" has caught the attention of people at all levels.
"The military guys are claiming some new progress recently." Kaiba interlocked his fingers under his chin and said deeply, "They established a special department. I don't know the specifics, only heard the code name is 'D'.
It's said to be a special dueling unit formed by the military with all resources poured into it. The duelists in the department are the best of the best, trained elite with extraordinary skills."
Mokuba was surprised: "That awesome!?"
"Hmph, just rumors, who knows if they're true." Kaiba said as he curved a slight smile, "But whether the rumors are true or not, we might soon find out."
Those familiar with the President would know, he's now showing the "itching for a card duel" expression.
Mokuba: "Ah, do you think they plan to..."
"Most likely." Kaiba replied nonchalantly, "Since they're duelists, they should communicate through duels. Besides, they might want to test the so-called 'Special Duel Forces' strength."
Indeed, to test the troops' strength, a recognized top duelist like Kaiba Seto is undeniably the best benchmark.
Kaiba himself is also eager to meet these special force duelists to see how strong they really are.
However, there was a small issue that's not considered an issue...
Mokuba whispered a reminder: "But brother, aren't you in self-imposed seclusion?"
Unfortunately, Kaiba appeared not to hear or just deliberately ignored it.
He continued, "Also heard that the cards those guys use might be somewhat unusual."
Mokuba wondered, "Aren't they the cards available on the market?"
"Probably not, or at least not completely." Kaiba said lightly, "I hear that recently, multiple military labs have devoted all resources to projects related to Duel Monsters, trying to create new possibilities."
In simple terms, it's just printing cards...
But actually, there's nothing unusual about it; card printing isn't a patent owned solely by Pegasus's International Fantasy Society. Everyone's printing cards nowadays.
For example, Kaiba himself; cards like Blue-Eyes Twin Burst Dragon, Blue-Eyes Chaos Dragon, Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon were all self-produced, not from Fantasy Society.
Then there are "folk masters" like Muto Yugi, who seemingly have their own private card-printing channels, too. Cards like The Dark Magicians, Five Magicians have nothing to do with Pegasus either.
These days, if you haven't got a few self-printed cards, you wouldn't even dare say you play cards.
Mokuba reflected: "If they come for a duel, can we use the opportunity to win their self-developed rare cards through card stakes and study them…"
Midway through, Mokuba noticed his brother's odd look and instinctively paused.
"...What's wrong, brother?"
Kaiba frowned slightly.
The visitors haven't even arrived, nor is it certain whether they will duel, why jump directly to staking rare cards?
Although Kaiba isn't against card staking, having set such tournament rules back during Duel City. The question is...
...Who taught him this?
Kaiba pondered seriously for a while and suddenly realized Mokuba had been spending too much time with that Youyu guy?
Thinking back, a lot of the company's arrangements and plans were managed by Mokuba in communication and handover with Youyu.
The President suddenly thought, perhaps this cannot continue.
Somehow, Mokuba might be led astray by this passerby surnamed You...
Youyu wouldn't know the President's thoughts, but surely would cry injustice if he did.
What does this have to do with me!
You're slandering an innocent person! When have I ever staked cards?
Clearly, I've been pulling out Duel Discs directly...
...
An olive-green helicopter flew in from under the night sky and landed on the helipad at the Kaiba Company building, bringing with it a whirlwind.
An officer dressed in a fitting military uniform led the way off the helicopter, standing tall like a pine tree. Over his uniform, he wore an open coat, its tails fluttering like a cape in the propeller's windstorm.
One couldn't help but wonder if the coat was worn just for dramatic effect upon disembarking...
Two imposing warriors followed him, each well-built, carrying combat gear, uniformly equipped with...
...the gold-edition military-exclusive Duel Discs.
Yes, the weapons carried by the soldiers weren't guns or ammunition, but Duel Discs...
Kaiba was already waiting on the helipad. Arms crossed, staring unblinking at the roaring large vehicle before him, his white trench coat billowed in the storm from the rotors.
This was Kaiba Seto, not missing any chance to make a grand entrance.
The leading officer was a decent man, appearing quite young and fairly handsome.
But unlike the other soldiers behind him, this fellow had his hands behind his back, with an arrogant demeanor, enough to make his nose point skyward, speaking in tones dripping with disdain.
"President Kaiba." He walked up, sneering, "Seeing is believing, looking just so-so after all."
Kaiba didn't retreat a step, arms crossed as he glanced at the officer and his troops: "I heard D Department's duelists are the top elites, but to me, they don't look much different from Normal Monsters."
Their eyes met, clashing, sparks seemed to fly invisibly in the air.
Mokuba watched quietly from the side and couldn't help but think: "This guy... kind of resembles my brother!"