"It's not... I didn't! Boss, you have to believe me!"
Titan glared angrily.
He was just momentarily confused.
No, who is that person you're talking about? Do I know them?
Why haven't I heard about any of the things you're talking about?
The most crucial thing was that all teammates on site were speaking with unwavering certainty, as if utterly convinced. Even Titan almost believed it himself—
—could it be I'm really the traitor?
The breath of the old man on the screen became heavy.
The temperature in the room seemed to start dropping. Outside the window, darkness surged as if the night had devoured all light sources, leaving not even the faintest starlight visible.
All present were at least Dark Duelists, somewhat sensitive to Extraordinary Power. At this moment, they sensed the atmospheric change and realized what was happening.
Dark Game.
The boss, through the screen, transcended spatial limitations to initiate the Dark Game.
This was not an unfathomable event. During the Duel Kingdom's inauguration, Beckas had sent videotapes to invite Game, applying the Millennium Eyes' dark powers to start a Dark Duel.
Kagemaru's ability certainly couldn't compare to Beckas, who held the Millennium Eyes, but initiating a Dark Duel via real-time video was easier than Beckas's tapes back then. Just like how Caesar and John could duel across dimensions in GX.
"Damn it... alright, let's duel then."
Titan said in a deep voice.
"I'm no longer the outsider you brought into the organization."
As he spoke, the Duel Disc on his chest was activated, and the shuffled deck automatically ejected five cards that he drew into his hand.
Titan squinted: "Win this battle, and I'll take the seat of Leader of the Seven-Star, hehe... that wouldn't be bad."
Meanwhile, Kagemaru seemed to have also activated his Duel Disc. The blurred outline on the screen was still unclear, replaced by mechanical sounds and metal friction. Yet, only Daitokuji on site knew it was the sound of Kagemaru's Life Support Pod's mechanical arm at work.
In the pod, Kagemaru's limbs were immobile, even in a duel he used a mechanical arm to operate the Duel Disc, substituting his actual hands and feet.
This development was outside Yugen's plan.
Kagemaru had previously said he didn't know about the disappearance of live alchemy materials but speculated it might be Daitokuji. However, the present group, having reached a consensus earlier, pushed Titan, the one outsider on site, to take the blame together.
But this presented a decent opportunity to watch how Kagemaru would duel.
In the animation, Kagemaru debuted by snatching the Three Phantom Demons. His only battle was with a specialized deck for the Phantom Demons, leaving what he used prior a mystery.
Now is a chance to observe.
"I'll go first, draw a card."
Kagemaru's voice was murky.
"Magic Card 'Pot of Greed', draw two cards from the deck."
Then came the metallic sound of the mechanical arm drawing cards, making Titan uneasy.
"Set a monster in face-down defense position."
Kagemaru said.
"Then set two cards facedown, the end of the turn."
With the face-down monster and cover cards, it's still unclear what deck or tactics he's using.
"My turn, draw a card!"
Titan glanced at the drawn card, smirked coldly.
"I haven't been idle since joining Seven-Star. Let's show you how my Demon Card Deck has strengthened!
I summon 'Demon Cavalry'!"
[Demon Cavalry, Attack Power 1900]
"Use 'Demon Cavalry' to attack the face-down monster!"
The eerie steed beneath the cavalry let out a shriek, charging forward, the cavalry's lance piercing ahead. The covered monster was pierced, flipped to reveal its appearance.
Something Yugen found unexpectedly contrary to his impression.
A small, somewhat cute bird beast, with short wings tucked under a transparent shield formed by the air currents.
[Air Hummingbird, Defense Power 300]
Air Circle Card Deck?
The deck used by King Fubuki in the manga—the manga's Fubuki and the animation's Invincible Myth are essentially two different people. Manga Fubuki truly matched the King's title, standing alongside Caesar at the top of the Academy's power.
In the manga, Judai and Chazz never matched these two's strength, even at the conclusion. Chazz nearly annihilated against Caesar, and Judai suffered the same fate against Fubuki—though at that time Fubuki was controlled by Tragodia.
As for the Air Circle Card Deck used by Fubuki, it did get physically carded, though only three of its cards—most still unreleased.
That Kagemaru would use this deck was indeed surprising, entirely different from Yugen's impression of Kagemaru. But then he recalled, Daitokuji aforementioned, Kagemaru today was unlike the one he knew before.
Yugen's understanding of Kagemaru came from the animation's boss character, knowing little of his earlier self.
"Activate trap," Kagemaru coldly said, "'Compensatory Wind Pressure.' When a monster is destroyed in battle, the destroying monster is turned to defense position." (Original Card)
The wind rose, blowing across Titan's field, forcing Demon Cavalry into defense.
[Demon Cavalry, Attack Power 1900→Defense Power 0]
"Tch, aiming for the low Defense Power weakness of my demon?"
Titan snorted, squinting toward one of the cards in his hand.
Though, breaching his defenses wouldn't be simple either.
"Then I'll set a card facedown, ending my turn."
"My turn, draw a card."
Kagemaru's mechanical arm played another card. The card image surfaced on the screen's other side of the field.
"Magic Card 'Angel's Charity,' draw three cards, then discard two."
He proficiently drew and discarded cards, his movements matching human speed.
"Then summon 'Changeable Air Hummingbird'!"
[Changeable Air Hummingbird, Attack Power 100]
This card was one of only three from the Air Circle series physically carded.
"Changeable Air Hummingbird by discarding a card, selects a defense position monster from the opponent's field," Kagemaru said, "and equips it to Changeable Air Hummingbird as an Equipment Card!"
Titan: "!"
Absorbing defense position monsters... just now, that trap?
"I see, it lures opponents to attack, using the trap to switch to defense, then pairs with Changeable Air Hummingbird's effect to absorb the opponent's monster," Tania voluntarily took the commentator's role.
"What a terrifying combo."
At this point, Demon Cavalry was absorbed by that hummingbird, squeezed into a transparent bubble, trapped under the hummingbird, unable to move.
"Changeable Air Hummingbird gains the Attack Power value of the absorbed monster."
[Changeable Air Hummingbird, Attack Power 100→Attack Power 2000]
"Changeable Air Hummingbird's direct attack!"