Counter Trap—Seven Tools of the Bandit!
An ancient Trap from the DM era, the card once used by the Pharaoh in the anime. Red light radiated from the Trap as an invisible restraint fell upon Lina's back-row Drowning Mirror Force.
[Kira, LP 4000 → LP 3000]
The water barrier in Lina's back row instantly shattered and disintegrated into fragments. Transparent ripples exploded outward in all directions, and the water shield vanished completely.
Despair appeared on Lina's face. Counter Traps… again and again, Counter Traps… Endless counters—she couldn't do anything at all.
She couldn't summon monsters, couldn't activate effects, and now she couldn't even get her Traps through. She couldn't do it. She couldn't do anything.
This deck was simply unplayable.
"Additionally, because a Counter Trap was activated once again," Kira said calmly, "first, the effect of 'Bountiful Artemis' activates. When a Counter Trap is activated, I draw one card from my Deck."
Kira drew a card. At the same time, divine light shone from Meltiel, who had just appeared earlier. Golden radiance poured onto Kira, and a warm current was absorbed into his body.
"The effect of Meltiel, Sage of the Sky," Kira explained. "As long as this card is on the field, each time you or your opponent activates a Counter Trap, you gain 1000 Life Points."
[Kira, LP 3000 → LP 4000]
Despair deepened in Lina's eyes. He even recovered the 1000 Life Points he had paid…
The only bit of damage she had managed to inflict with all her effort had been wiped out. Meltiel's presence had essentially nullified the cost of Seven Tools of the Bandit. No—in fact, earlier, Bountiful Artemis's draw effect had also offset the hand-discard cost of Divine Wrath from the previous turn.
"Attack continues," Kira declared. "Bountiful Artemis, Van'Dalgyon the Dark Dragon Lord—consecutive direct attacks!"
The Dark Dragon Lord's strike brought the first runner of Team Psychic to a complete close. Dark purple light churned in the dragon's throat, twisting the surrounding air with burning cracks. Its jet-black wings suddenly folded, and a column of dark purple flames roared forth, carrying endless chill as the flames swept across Lina's Duel Runner.
"Aaaaah—!"
[Lina, LP 3200 → LP 0]
The front of Lina's Duel Runner erupted with a large burst of steam, and the vehicle rapidly decelerated. Kira, who had been speeding behind her, accelerated and swiftly overtook her from the side.
The spectator stands had already exploded. Some people began shouting Kira's name.
The airplane-haired commentator was also emotional: "This is truly unexpected! Kira has cleared the first round completely unscathed—he took the first game without suffering any damage at all!
Could he really defeat three opponents single-handedly and advance all by himself!?"
The defeated Lina drove her Duel Runner back to the team's pit area and handed over to her teammate for the next leg.
With a look of shame on her face, she said, "I'm sorry… I couldn't…"
"It's fine," the next runner, Captain Black, patted her shoulder and said in a deep voice. "It's not your fault. We were completely unprepared. This new Director from the Sector Security is indeed strange."
By now, the three of them had completely dropped their initial contempt. They knew this person was far from an ordinary duelist.
Although the thought felt ridiculous, this Kira seemed serious—he really intended to participate alone and claim a spot on the world-stage WRGP, where stars from all over the globe were gathered!
It was madness!
Team Psychic had once been the North American champions, and they had come here aiming for the title. If they suffered a bad start in today's preliminary match—especially by being swept by a single person—the blow to their morale would be unprecedented.
So even though the outcome of the preliminaries wouldn't directly decide advancement or elimination, they absolutely did not want to lose this match!
The Duel Runner started up. Black shot onto the track like a silver meteor.
"Team Psychic sends out their second runner, Captain Black!" the airplane-haired commentator announced. "Can the captain, taking over from Lina, turn the situation around?"
"My turn, draw!" Black declared, taking a deep breath.
Although the opponent was only one person, Lina hadn't managed to take even a single point of Life Points from him. Even though they were still two against one, they couldn't afford to be careless.
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell 'Emergency Teleport'!"
Black opened with the Psychic deck's signature card right away.
"This card can only be activated if you control no monsters," Black explained. "Special Summon one Psychic-Type monster of Level 3 or lower from your Deck. However, the monster Special Summoned by this effect is banished during the End Phase."
A monster card automatically popped out of the Deck on his Duel Runner. Black drew it and slapped it onto the Duel Disk.
"Special Summon 'Mental Seeker'!"
A small Psychic who looked like a child wearing goggles was summoned to the field.
[Mental Seeker, ATK 800]
"Then I Tribute 'Mental Seeker'!" Black declared. "Tribute Summon! Appear— Level 6, Overdrive Teleporter!"
[Overdrive Teleporter, ATK 2100]
"Overdrive Teleporter's effect activates!" Black continued. "By paying 2000 Life Points, Special Summon two Level 3 Psychic-Type monsters from your Deck to your field."
[Black, LP 4000 → LP 2000]
The airplane-haired commentator: "Captain Black immediately pays 2000 Life Points right at the start! Is he willing to pay such a price just to launch an offensive?"
Off-field teammate Victor also looked serious. "That Black is actually taking it this seriously…"
Lina, who had already stepped down, said, "That Director Kira is indeed an opponent worthy of such treatment. He's not someone you can defeat just by being unwilling to pay the price."
At that moment, two cards automatically popped out of Black's Deck. He drew them and immediately slapped both onto the Duel Disk.
"I Special Summon these two cards! Appear! Psychic Commander! Hushed Psychic Cleric!"
The same Cleric Lina had used earlier stepped quietly onto the field in a defensive stance in front of the Duel Runner. Psychic Commander was a Psychic warrior in military uniform, his head hidden behind a steel mask, with the lower half of his body concealed inside a hovering tank.
[Psychic Commander, ATK 1400]
[Hushed Psychic Cleric, DEF 2100]
"The effect of Hushed Psychic Cleric: Once per turn, discard one card from your hand to banish one Psychic-Type monster from your Graveyard."
Black sent one card from his hand to the Graveyard. "I banish 'Mental Seeker' from my Graveyard!"
Black took a deep breath. Now, it was time for Team Psychic's counterattack!
…
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