"Competitive or entertainment rules?"
Endo stood across from him, his finger sliding along the edge of the Duel Disk. The machine produced a faint mechanical clicking sound.
"Entertainment," Raku answered.
The Life Points of both duelists projected into the air, settling at 4000.
"Cyber Dragon letting me go first?"
Raku glanced at the opponent's face that practically screamed, "I'm strong" and asked casually.
Based on his experience in the previous world, Cyber Dragon players usually preferred going second to unleash explosive plays. But even if Endo took the first turn, Raku wouldn't have been unhappy either; his opponent would most likely summon some indestructible Cyber-style boss monster.
The Duel Disk hummed as it automatically shuffled and cut the Deck. Cards jumped within their slots before finally settling.
Raku reached out, his fingertips sliding across the top of the Deck as he drew five cards in succession.
The corner of his mouth twitched.
[Jar of Greed], [Jar of Greed], [Jar of Greed], [Heavy Slump], [The Gift of Greed].
With a hand like this, in his original world, he would probably go find a quiet corner and start questioning his life choices.
None of the core burn pieces were here… only draw cards and hand-disruption tools.
Raku sighed inwardly. As expected, the Deck he had just built seemed to have a bit of an attitude.
Meanwhile, Endo looked at his own hand, and his eyes instantly sharpened.
[Cyber Dragon], [Cyber Dragon], [Cyber Dragon], [Photon Generator Unit], [Attack Reflector Unit].
Cyber Dragon roared.
The metallic vibration seemed to spread through his entire body from his fingertips. As long as he drew [Polymerization] next turn, the legendary Cyber End Dragon could crush everything in its path.
"Perfect opening hand."
Both of them spoke almost at the same time.
Raku glanced up at his opponent. Even though his hand was bricked beyond belief, he couldn't lose in terms of presence. He took cards from his hand and placed them one after another into his Spell/Trap Zone.
"My turn." He placed the remaining three as well. "I Set five cards. End turn."
Five red rectangular projections lined up neatly in front of him.
The surrounding air instantly fell silent.
The Cyber-style students looked at each other. In this world that worshiped monster brawls and clashes of willpower, setting five backrow cards without summoning a single monster was like throwing quicklime onto the sacred floor of a dojo; dull, suffocating, and deeply unsettling.
"That's it?"
Endo paused before letting out a cold snort.
"That kind of soft defense can't stop Cyber Style. My turn—draw!"
He drew a card sharply from the Deck.
It was—[Polymerization].
"Your Draw Phase." Raku pressed a button on his Duel Disk. The leftmost Set card flipped open. "Trap Card activated—[The Gift of Greed]. In exchange, please draw two cards."
"Oh? Thanks."
Without thinking much about it, Endo drew two more cards.
"Idiot!"
The instructor suddenly roared from the sidelines, his thick eyebrows twisting together.
"Can't you see? That's your opponent's trap!"
"Next, your Standby Phase." Raku continued in the same calm tone, pointing to another flipped card. "Trap Card—[Heavy Slump]. Its activation condition is when the opponent has eight or more cards in their hand. Now return your entire hand to the Deck, shuffle, and draw two cards."
"You…!!!"
The confidence on Endo's face collapsed instantly.
He stared at the carefully assembled combo pieces in his hand, his fingers stiffening from the force of his grip.
In the end, he had no choice but to shove them back into the Duel Disk, listening as the machine mercilessly swallowed away his hopes.
The two cards he redrew were [Proto-Cyber Dragon] and another [Cyber Dragon].
Without [Polymerization], there was no chance for an explosive play.
"Well, believe me, I don't enjoy using tactics like this either," Raku said with a smile that looked extremely punchable in Endo's eyes. "But I dislike losing even more."
"I Set one monster. My turn ends."
Grinding his teeth, Endo placed a card sideways on the field. It was [Proto-Cyber Dragon] in Defense Position.
"At the end of your turn, I activate the rest of my Set cards."
Red lights flared across Raku's backrow.
"Three copies of [Jar of Greed], activating in sequence. Chain 1, Chain 2, Chain 3."
"So what? You just draw three cards," Endo said while staring at the three cards popping out of the Deck.
"There is a difference."
Raku spoke calmly.
He drew three cards.
[The Paths of Destiny], [Bad Reaction to Simochi], [Gift Card].
The core pieces were complete.
Raku glanced at the confused teenager across from him, who had just had his entire hand shuffled away, and then at the surrounding Cyber-style trainees.
"You…"
The instructor spoke from the side with a dark expression, his voice low.
"This isn't dueling. You're manipulating your opponent's psychology. Where are your monsters? Are you really going to call hiding behind traps 'willpower'?"
Raku didn't turn his head.
"My turn—draw!"
He glanced at the card between his fingers.
[One Day of Peace].
It had originally been the most reliable survival tool in his Deck. But in this situation, it no longer had any reason to appear on stage. He casually slid the card into his Spell/Trap Zone, his movement steady and without the slightest hesitation.
"I Set three cards. My turn, end."
Five bright red Set card zones lined up in front of Raku like a row of silent warning lights.
"Hey." The Cyber Style instructor stood not far away, the heavy flesh on his body shaking slightly as he spoke. "This is your duel? Hiding in a hole like a rat, without even the courage to face your opponent head-on?"
Raku raised his head. There was little emotion in his deep black eyes.
"Don't say that to me."
He adjusted the strap of his shoulder bag, his voice unusually clear in the open corner of the park.
"If we're going to say things like that, I could also say you're hiding behind Monster Cards. Wouldn't that make you cowards, too?"
A murmur spread through the surrounding trainees. Endo's brows twisted together, almost colliding.
"If you say you're fighting side by side with your monsters, then I'm fighting side by side with Trap Cards. To be honest, I don't like the Deck I'm using right now."
Raku paused, his gaze sweeping across the projections of the cards.
"But since they appeared before me and chose me, no matter what cards they are, I'll take them and try my best to win with them. Isn't that what a good duelist does?"
Endo let out a cold laugh, the hand gripping his Duel Disk trembling from the force.
"What a joke. You're just stalling for time. Without a single monster, how are you supposed to win?"
He suddenly drew a card from the top of his Deck, the motion so large it stirred the air.
"My turn—draw! I change [Proto-Cyber Dragon] on the field to Attack Position, then activate the Spell Card in my hand—[Power Bond]!"
This was Cyber Style's signature brutal Fusion. If it succeeded, the steel beast with doubled Attack would descend.
Endo stared at the heating fusion light, his heart pounding against his chest.
I can win.
As long as that strike lands, that guy who has nothing but a sharp tongue will shatter along with those despicable traps.
The roar of steel is the true essence of dueling. Traps are nothing more than roadside weeds.
"Then I chain to your [Power Bond]."
Raku's voice was like a bucket of ice water poured over the blazing metal flame.
"Activating my backrow Traps: Chain 2 [The Paths of Destiny], Chain 3 [Gift Card], Chain 4 [Bad Reaction to Simochi]."
Three bright red Trap Cards flipped simultaneously. Unlike the proud roar of monsters, this light carried a suffocating malice.
"Chains resolve backwards. First, we resolve Chain 4."
Raku pointed to the rightmost card.
"Effect of [Bad Reaction to Simochi]: effects that would make the opponent gain Life Points instead inflict damage to them."
"W-what?"
Endo's pupils shrank sharply as the originally gentle fusion light twisted into dark purple lightning before him.
"And the effect of [Gift Card] is: the opponent gains 3000 Life Points."
Raku pointed forward.
"Since [Bad Reaction to Simochi] is already active, and it's a Continuous Trap, that effect is rewritten as: you take 3000 damage."
BOOM!!
Endo cried out as if struck by an invisible hammer. The force made him stagger back two steps, and the Life Points displayed by the Duel Disk projection fluctuated wildly, dropping from 4000 straight down to a dangerously low 1000.
Although it wasn't a Shadow Game, the simulated electric shock still left cold sweat pouring down his body.
"Finally, Chain 2 resolves—[The Paths of Destiny]."
Raku took a coin from his pocket and flicked it upward with practiced ease.
"Both players flip a coin. Heads: gain 2000 Life Points. Tails: take 2000 damage."
The coin flashed in the sunlight, tracing a golden arc before landing on the back of his hand with a crisp tap. He covered it with his other hand.
"Tails."
Raku opened his hand. His eyebrow twitched from the sudden shock as he felt the damage.
"I take 2000 damage."
He gritted his teeth and watched his Life Points drop, yet his body didn't sway at all.
"Now it's your coin flip."
Raku pointed at Endo, his gaze calm to the point of cruelty.
"If you call it wrong, you take 2000 damage—that's the original effect. If you call it right, you'd gain 2000 Life Points. But because of Simochi, that still becomes 2000 damage."
Since Endo only had 1000 Life Points remaining, the duel was already decided regardless of the result.
"Sorry. I hate gambling."
...
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