Saito Ryuya is the leader of the town's gang, the "Shadow Dragon Group."
The Shadow Dragon Group is an organization that makes its living from the railways, controlling the town's railways for smuggling. They are one of the three major underworld forces along the railway lines.
At this moment, Saito Ryuya is enthusiastically drinking and bragging with his subordinates.
"...And then? Then I just punched that cop right in the face. His front tooth flew out, and he looked at me in disbelief."
Saito Ryuya, spitting as he spoke, said proudly.
"Then I told him to stay away from me in the future if he's smart. Ha, you guys should have seen the look on that guy's face then..."
The subordinates chimed in with praise.
After a round of toasting, a subordinate said, "Our Shadow Dragon Group is developing rapidly now, with our jurisdiction over nearby railway territories constantly expanding. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before Extreme Night and Ghost Wolf are annexed.
The day our Shadow Dragon Group unites the railway lines is just around the corner. Long live Boss Ryuya!"
Ryuya laughed heartily upon hearing this.
The railway lines have always been jointly managed by three gangs, each overseeing their respective sections of the railway. Among them, Extreme Night's power is the greatest, known for their brutality and ferocity, and the other two have always had to give way to them.
But those days are over.
"It's all thanks to this gentleman."
Ryuya toasted a man beside him with a smile.
The man had blonde hair, styled in an explosive manner, clearly the look of someone good at card games. He only sat there quietly at the table, nodding to Ryuya without saying a word.
This person had a Duel Disc on their hand.
Not long ago, this individual appeared in the town and showcased incredible abilities before the Shadow Dragon Group. It was the first time the local hooligans realized that the card game Duel Monsters involved such astonishing extraordinary power.
It was thanks to this person's abilities that the Shadow Dragon Group had developed so rapidly in recent days, even showing a subtle intention of annexing the other two major gangs.
"But I still don't understand, why is the gentleman so concerned about a dead person in that villa?"
The blonde man just smiled.
"Some things, the less you know, the better." he said calmly.
Just as he finished speaking, there was a dull thud, like something heavy falling to the ground. Then all the lights suddenly went out, and the room was instantly plunged into darkness.
The hooligans were stunned.
"What the hell? A blackout?"
But then a voice abruptly sounded behind them.
"I'm also curious about why the top card professor under Pegasus Nightwalker is so interested in someone who died three months ago."
The sudden voice shocked everyone in the room.
"Who is it!?"
As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, they turned to see Yugen standing in the room with them, though no one had noticed him before.
Yugen stood at the other end of the table, calmly looking at the blonde man across the table.
"If I'm not mistaken, you're the card professor, Ted Banias?"
Ryuya slammed the table to stand up: "Who are you? Do you know where you are?"
But before he could step forward, the blonde man named Ted raised his hand and waved it slightly.
"You're not his match."
Ryuya was taken aback. He quickly noticed that Yugen also had a Duel Disc, and suddenly he seemed to understand something.
This person and the blonde man were similar.
These duelists possessed incredible power, beyond common understanding. These weren't people from the same world as them.
"Duel King, Fujiki Yugen, I doubt I'm mistaken?"
Ted sneered.
"Interesting. I once had a chance to challenge the Duel King, but it slipped away. This time I'll make up for that regret and see what the so-called Duel King is truly worth."
This card professor made his debut in a side story comic, originally dispatched by Pegasus Nightwalker to stop the game. But that duel was intercepted by Nightwalker's brother, Moonwalker, who fought in the game's place and defeated this individual.
Back then, all the buddies of the card professor received the title "Legendary Duelist who dueled the Duel King," but his match was intercepted, so it's easy to understand why he's always felt regret in his heart.
"Why don't you stay under Nightwalker's command and throw yourself into this mess?" Yugen frowned, "Or is Pegasus Nightwalker trying to stir up trouble with the Kaiba Group again?"
"Heh, that...you'll naturally understand if you defeat me."
Ted sneered and activated his Duel Disc.
"Alright then."
Yugen also activated his Duel Disc. He was already used to this and mentally prepared. Everything had to be resolved through card duels.
"Duel!"x2
[Yugen, LP 4000]
[Ted, LP 4000]
"I'll go first, draw."
Yugen glanced at the card he drew, then immediately displayed it.
"Summon 'Amazonian Swordsmen.'"
[Amazon Swordsman, Attack Power 1500]
"Amazon?"
Ted frowned slightly.
"Not the deck you used in the Duel City recordings...heh, do you think you don't need to take me seriously?"
"Well...who knows? Maybe I just happen to be in the mood to use this deck today?"
Yugen chuckled, then drew four cards from his hand in one swift motion.
"Four face-down cards in the backfield, end of turn."
Front swordsman, rear four covers. Any duelist who's experienced Yugen's signature Amazon Card Deck would probably be breaking out in a sweat by now.
But card professor Ted Banias apparently lacked that particular experience.
"Then my turn, draw!"
Ted declared.
"Normal Summon 'Plant Lion' from my hand!"
A monster with a lion's face appeared on Ted's field, but despite its fierce appearance as the king of beasts, its head was surrounded by vibrant petals, and its four legs were plant stems.
[Plant Lion, Attack Power 1600]
"Plant Lion's effect: for each face-up plant-type monster on my field, this card's attack power increases by 300." Ted said, "Plant Lion itself is a plant-type, hence the attack power increases."
[Plant Lion, Attack Power 1600→Attack Power 1900]
"Use 'Plant Lion' to attack 'Amazon Swordsman!'"
"Activate face-down card, Trap Card 'Zero Guard.'
Yugen waved his hand, and the face-down card flipped up.
"By reducing the attack power of a monster on your field to 0 until the end of the turn, that monster cannot be destroyed by battle during this turn." (Original Card)
Ted was greatly surprised.
"Actively reducing attack power to protect a monster?"
Isn't that just a duelist sacrificing their own life points to shield a monster?
And the opposing field only has a 4-star, 1500 attack warrior-type, a rather mediocre monster. Is it worth preserving?
But in the next moment, he would understand why.
"By Zero Guard's effect, reduce Amazon Swordsman's attack power to 0."
[Amazon Swordsman, Attack Power 1500→Attack Power 0]
Yugen: "And then the Amazon Swordsman's effect. All battle damage inflicted by this card in battle is absorbed by the opponent instead of myself."
Ted: "!!!"