Chapter 38: 5000!

After a while, Yuyu had arrived at the duel arena specifically set up by the Nightcrawler World organization.

The audience had already densely surrounded both sides of the ring. Big, burly men stood shoulder to shoulder, enclosing the ring in three layers.

It resembled an underground scene of illegal boxing matches.

Standing across from Yuyu was another muscular man. He couldn't help but wonder why the members of the Nightcrawler World all seemed to be brawny.

Looking at the crowd below the ring, it felt like a testosterone-filled gathering. Not a single woman could be seen, and even the air seemed to be filled with the distinct aroma of brotherhood.

This gave Yuyu the illusion that he had stepped into some strange setting.

"Heh, I didn't expect a kid like you to want to join our 'Nightcrawler World'," said the man opposite. "Let me show you how cruel the world of Dark Duelists can be. Not everyone can just join as they please."

Yuyu smiled and replied, "Then I would like to ask you for some guidance."

He didn't recognize the opponent in the duel, but the name Kuroda was known by the nearby audience.

The onlookers continued to chatter.

"You think Kuroda can beat this kid?"

"Who knows? A duel is more about brains than brawn. Someone like Kuroda, with muscles instead of a brain, might not be able to do it..."

"How about a bet? Let's bet on the outcome between Kuroda and this kid!"

"Yeah!"

When they heard the mention of betting, a group of people suddenly became interested. Even though it was a dark duel, it was unlikely that they would risk their lives in a fight. The internal members of the organization often engaged in friendly duels among them.

The bet didn't necessarily have to involve money; it could be anything of value.

For example, according to the agreement, the loser might have to drink two glasses of white wine, followed by a glass of red wine, and finish it off with a mouthful of beer. Kind of a weird combination, but yeah.

"I'll bet on Kuroda."

"I'll bet on Kuroda too."

"I'll also bet on him..."

Although they were skeptical, even the person who criticized Kuroda for having "muscles in his head" chose to bet on him.

After all, everyone was part of the same group, and they were aware of each other's skills. They didn't think that this newcomer, who appeared out of nowhere, stood a chance against Kuroda.

At that moment, President Tan appeared and asked, "Are you placing bets?"

Everyone immediately became alert. Someone hastily replied, "No...no, we were just discussing it, Mr. President..."

"It's alright, occasional gambling is fine," the president said. His management policy was open and didn't prohibit gambling. He added, "I'll join in too. Let me see... I'll bet on Kuroda as well."

Silence filled the air.

After a moment, someone took the lead and said, "In that case... I'll bet on the new kid."

"...After thinking it over, I will better bet on this newcomer," another person chimed in.

There was an unwritten rule in the Nightcrawler World that no one dared to state explicitly, but everyone knew it.

As long as any activity involved "gambling," absolutely no one would side with the president.

Because according to statistics, at least as far as all the members knew, the president had never won a bet in his life.

A guy next to President Tan hurriedly tried to say,

"Then I'll also bet..."

President Tan gave him a skeptical look..

The guy grew nervous, his body trembling, and quickly changed his words, "I... I will go with Kuroda on second thoughts.."

At this time, the people who initially bet on Kuroda but hadn't had a chance to change their words suddenly felt a pang of regret. They wanted to switch to betting on Yuyu, but they were afraid of offending the boss. Since the boss was betting on Kuroda, it was almost certain that the odds would be against them.

It truly was a tricky situation.

Meanwhile, Kuroda on the stage remained oblivious to the fact that he had been debuffed by a mysterious force and continued to smirk, saying, "Since you know where you are, there's no need for further talk, right? This will be a dark duel."

"But rest assured, even though it's a dark duel, we won't kill each other. However, if the stakes are too low, it's boring. So, let me think... How about this!" Kuroda sneered. "How about the loser has to perform a public striptease on this very ring?"

Yuyu inserted his deck into the slot and activated the duel plate. He replied, "That suits me just fine."

Mana's spirt form appeared behind Yuyu, covering her mouth in surprise. "Master, I never knew you had such peculiar interests..."

Her cute little face expressed astonishment, as if saying, "My master is so cool, but I didn't expect his tastes to be so peculiar..."

Yuyu's expression froze. "No, that's not what I meant... Don't worry, I won't lose to an opponent like him."

"Ah! Master, are you looking forward to seeing the other side strip..."

"No, that's not what I mean!"

Yuyu winced. He had only said it in passing. Why was it being taken so seriously?

Kuroda looked puzzled. "Are you talking to yourself?"

In the world of Yu-Gi-Oh, only a few people could see the existence of monsters and spirits. The most well-known examples were protagonists like Yugi Moutou and Jaden Yuki in Yu-Gi-Oh GX.

When spirits appeared in their spiritual form, most humans couldn't see them.

"It's nothing. Let's get started!" Yuyu said.

"Duel!" x2

[Yuyu, LP4000]

[Kuroda, LP4000]

"Since you're the challenger, according to the rules, I'll make the first move. Draw a card!" Kuroda glanced at his hand, seemingly satisfied with his cards, and couldn't help but smile.

"I summon 'Giant Red Seasnake'!"

Splashes appeared on the field as a red-bodied snake emerged from the water. It twisted its body and extended a deep purple snake tongue.

[Giant Red Seasnake, ATK 1800]

"Then I'll set a card face-down and end my turn!"

The crowd below started to buzz.

"Kuroda is lucky to have such a powerful monster."

"My turn." Yuyu maintained a calm smile. "I draw a card."

Although he didn't know what cards his opponent held, Yuyu had a feeling that his hand was quite humiliating.

"I summon 'Elemental Hero Blaze Man' from my hand!" Yuyu began his move.

A storm of flames erupted from the ground, revealing a brand-new Elemental Hero card that he had recently obtained from the system card pool.

[Elemental Hero Blazeman, ATK 1200]

"When Blazeman is successfully summoned, I can add a 'Fusion' spell card from my deck to my hand!" Yuyu retrieved a fusion card from his deck. "And now, I activate the 'Fusion' spell card!"

He combined the "Elemental Hero BlazeMan" on the field with the "Elemental Hero Avian" in his hand to perform a fusion summon. The earth split open, and a three-dimensional image mixed with dark energy emerged, causing the entire ring to shake.

A massive metal figure, dark and imposing, rose from the ground, as if an impenetrable mountain had burst forth. It stood on Yuyu's side of the field, scattering rubble in all directions.

[Elemental Hero Gaia, ATK 2200]

Gaia was a new card that had just been released yesterday. The fusion condition required a card with the name "Elemental Hero" and a card with the Earth attribute. "Elemental Hero Avain" had the Earth attribute, so it could be used as a fusion material for Gaia.

The bystanders were surprised by the turn of events. "A monster with 2200 ATK! This kid is quite impressive!" Kuroda was momentarily taken aback by the strength of Giaia, but he quickly regained his composure.

Calm down and don't panic. Fusion monsters can't attack during the turn they are summoned. And even if there's an exception, his facedown card is strong, which can destroy the opponent's card with the highest ATK on the field when the opponent launches an attack.

The situation was still in his favor, or so he thought.

"The effect of Gaia activates," Yuyu says. "During the turn of its Fusion Summon, 'Elemental Hero Gaia' can halve the ATK of one card on the opponent's field. The halved ATK is then added to Gaia's ATK until the end of this turn."

"What!?"

[Giant Red Seasnake, ATK 1800 → ATK 900]

[Elemental Hero Gaia, ATK 2200 → ATK 3100]

"3100 ATK!?"

"Then I activate a Spell card from my hand!" Yuyu continued his move. "I retrieve a 'Fusion' Spell card from the graveyard and a monster that was sent to the graveyard as fusion material. I return the cards 'Fusion' and 'Elemental Hero Avian' to my hand."

The graveyard in Yuyu's side glowed with golden light, and the two cards were automatically returned to his hand.

"Then I activate the Spell card 'Fusion' once again!"

The bystanders were shocked once more. "Two fusions in one turn!?"

"The 'Elemental Hero Wildheart' in my hand combines with the just-retrieved 'Elemental Hero Avain' to perform a fusion summon! 'Elemental Hero Wild Wingman'!"

A strong gust of wind swept across the ring, causing the surrounding audience to instinctively raise their hands to shield themselves. A visible whirlwind swept through the field as the heroic figure with white wings descended from the sky.

[Elemental Hero Wild Wingman, ATK 1900]

This was also a new Elemental Hero card that Yuyu had obtained. However, Wild Wingman was only an R rarity in the system card pool, so its value wasn't high. As a three-material fusion monster, its ATK was only 1900, making it less formidable. "The effect of Wild Wingman allows me to discard a card from my hand," Yuyu explained, sending a card to the graveyard, "and destroy a Spell or Trap card on the field. The target for destruction is your facedown card!"

"So that's the plan!" Kuroda exclaimed.

Wild Wingman let out a cry, flapping its wings as feathers shot towards Kuroda's back row like arrows.

Kuroda's back row, which was protecting the facedown card, was instantly riddled with holes as the feathers pierced through it. After flipping it over for confirmation, the cover was shattered into countless fragments. It wasn't even revealed yet destroyed.

"The one you had was a dangerous card," Yuyu chuckled. "That was close. If I had attacked directly, the 3100 ATK Gaia on my field would have been destroyed."

Kuroda clenched his teeth and snorted, "However, a fusion monster cannot attack during the turn it is summoned. Your Gaia's ATK will return to 2200 at the end of the turn. What a shame."

"Is that really the case?" Yuyu asked with a smile.

Kuroda's expression suddenly changed. "Could it be that you..."

"Yes, this turn will decide the winner," Yuyu declared, playing his final card.

"Now, let me show you the strength of of pl-!"

Yuyu activated a Spell card called "Quick Attack." "This card allows fusion monsters on the field to attack during the turn they are summoned. Gaia! Wild Wingman! Attack! Inflict a total of 5000 ATK damage!"

The two cards launched their attack simultaneously. The ground shattered, and a storm swept across the field, engulfing it in an elemental tempest.

The "Giant Red Seasnake" on Kuroda's field, with its ATK reduced to 900, was instantly wiped out, and the remaining impact surged towards Kuroda's body.

"Ahhhhh!!!"

[Kuroda, LP4000 → LP0]

What a overkill…

Note: I know the card I call fusion is actually called polymerization but I already have called it fusion so much, and is not much of a difference so gonna keep it this way probably.

Also I lost half of my vision…not really but my right eye is very blurry and hurts a ton, took so long and was so hard doing this chapter oof.

You guys don't care, but just saying if I don't post tomorrow this is probably why!