The tall one was Daihara and the short one was Kohara. They were roommates from the same dorm.
Yugen remembered as well. the recent rumor circulating in Duel Academy about the mysterious giant Duelist, a terrifying figure said to look like a giant spider monster, seemed to refer to these two.
Daihara had entered the academy aiming to focus on research and designing Card, so he was not good at Duel. Kohara, on the other hand, was rated by Daichi Misawa as top tier within Yellow Dormitory, but he had a weak will and was easily overwhelmed by an opponent's presence during a Duel.
Because he did not have to face opponents directly, he could avoid being crushed by their pressure and make correct decisions. Daihara would wear a mask and stand in front to Duel, while Kohara hid nearby, giving instructions through an earpiece like a ghostly Duelist.
So far, every Obelisk Blue Dorm student they had cornered had lost a Rare Card.
Kohara looked up at Yugen for a moment, then let out a soft sigh. "Yugen... you are really something."
He looked away as if speaking to himself. "We are both from Yellow Dormitory, yet you are so strong. Even those arrogant students from Obelisk Blue Dorm are terrified when they see you."
Daichi Misawa seemed about to say something, then decided against it. If he had to describe it accurately, infamous might be a better word.
Yugen smiled. "You flatter me," he said. "Speaking of which, you two are quite famous among the Obelisk Blue Dorm students lately, are you not?"
He lowered his voice.
"The giant spider who hunts Rare Card?"
Both of them stiffened.
"I do not know what you are talking about," Kohara said quickly, tugging Daihara's sleeve. "Let us go."
They hurried away.
After watching them disappear into the Dead End of the corridor, Daichi Misawa could not help asking, "Are you saying they are the mysterious giant Duelist from the rumors? The one who appears at night and uses forbidden wager rules to hunt Rare Card?"
"Yes."
"That cannot be," Daichi Misawa said in confusion. "Daihara is unusually tall and fits the description, but he focuses on Card design and hardly participates in Duel. Yet that giant Duelist has defeated many students from Obelisk Blue Dorm."
"Who knows?" Yugen replied with a faint smile and continued walking.
That night, darkness covered the forest near the academy. The wind moved through the trees, and only faint starlight filtered through the clouds.
It was a perfect night for certain activities.
A massive figure stepped out from between the trees. He wore a mask and dark glasses that reflected the dim light. Layers of Obelisk Blue Dorm uniforms hung from his body, sleeves spread outward like spider legs, making him look like a giant spider over two meters tall.
He moved silently, slowly approaching tonight's prey.
Under the moonlight stood two lone students in Obelisk Blue Dorm uniforms.
But just as he drew closer, one of them suddenly turned around.
"So you finally showed up, mysterious giant Duelist."
Wearing a Obelisk Blue Dorm uniform, Yugen smiled as he lifted his Duel Disk. "Same rules, wagered cards, right? I understand. Why do we skip the warm up and start?"
The spider giant let out a low cry. "Damn it! It is him! That guy!"
He turned and ran for his life.
Yugen said nothing.
Beside him, Daichi Misawa spoke calmly. "See? Even a weirdo like that runs when he sees you."
"Phew... phew... we finally got away."
In the darkness, the "spider freak" crouched behind a rock and cautiously peeked out, still trembling. They probably had not been followed this far, right?
Kohara's voice came through the headset. "Looks like we shook him off."
"Y-Yeah, that scared me half to death," Daihara said between gasps.
"Damn it, it really was Yugen in an Obelisk Blue uniform," Kohara said through the earpiece, grinding his teeth. Using a trap like that to lure them out was just shameless.
Fortunately, Daihara had run fast enough. But before they could relax, a voice as chilling as a Fiend suddenly sounded by their ears again.
"So you're hiding in a place like this."
Both of them jolted, and a cold shiver ran down their backs. It was him.
They turned their heads stiffly and looked over. The Fiend of Ra Yellow had caught up before they realized it and was now standing behind them, wearing an easy smile that made their skin crawl.
"Just so you know, running is useless," Yugen said with a smile.
Neither of them seemed to have much talent in Spirit Affinity. Because of that, they had failed to notice that Silent Magician was already standing on top of the rock above their hiding place, tilting her head as she watched them.
Yugen had only been following at an unhurried pace from behind, but once they were marked by a Spirit, there was no way they could escape. A dead end lay ahead, and there was nowhere left to retreat.
"What do we do?" Daihara asked nervously through the headset.
"Uh, then we fight," Kohara said through the earpiece, forcing the words out. "It's fine, Daihara. Our teamwork is unbeatable. By now, we've even beaten students from Obelisk Blue.
This is perfect. Today we'll test our limit."
Daihara took a deep breath and stood up. "All right, then let's do this. We'll show you how strong our team is."
"Duel!" x2
Yugen, LP 4000
Daihara, LP 4000
The indicator lights on the Duel Disk lit up, showing that the right to choose turn order had gone to Yugen. Yugen did not bother with courtesy.
"Then I'll go first. Card Draw."
He set one Monster face-down on the field, then set one more card. "My turn ends."
Daihara said, "My Turn!, Card Draw!"
Kohara's instructions immediately came through the earpiece. "Summon 'Battle Ox'!"
Daihara followed the order at once. "Summon 'Battle Ox'!"
A huge Beast-Warrior holding a bone club appeared on the field. Its massive body looked like hard rock and steel forged into muscle, while its blazing red eyes and sharp fangs gave it a savage appearance.
Battle Ox, ATK 2200
Daihara was not very good in actual combat, so he was basically just a puppet. The one truly Dueling was Kohara behind the scenes.
"Then I Special Summon 'Gilasaurus'!"
This time, a sleek dinosaur appeared, its scales smooth and its body built for speed. Its broad feet and long limbs looked strong and agile.
Gilasaurus, ATK 1400
"Gilasaurus's special ability lets it be Special Summoned directly from the hand. But when it is Summoned this way, the opponent can also choose a Monster from their Graveyard and Special Summon it."
Yugen shrugged. "There isn't any Monster in my Graveyard."
The effect of Gilasaurus that let the opponent Summon a monster from the Graveyard was a mandatory trigger, but when it resolved, the choice of whether to use that effect still belonged to the opponent. Even if the opponent chose not to Summon a Monster, it would not affect its own Special Summon.
"I'll go straight to battle," Daihara said. "First, 'Gilasaurus' attacks the face-down monster!"