Note: I will Try to update everyday so I hope you support the story on Patreon.com/flokixy
The day of the tag team duel arrived.
Although it was called a penalty duel, word spread throughout the academy, and quite a few people were interested. Many idle students specifically rushed to watch, and the academy's teachers and leaders also gathered. Judai and You Xuan were already somewhat well-known among the new students this year, especially among those who had personally been defeated by them. Whether out of a desire to learn or simply to enjoy the spectacle, there was no reason to miss today's duel.
Only Professor Chronos, who had initially proposed this card game activity, had a very grim expression. This was because Marufuji Sho, the perennial underdog whom he had designated to be packed up and sent away with Yuuki Judai, had been replaced.
Chronos watched You Xuan and Judai walk onto the stage, his face etched with bitterness throughout. Given this unexpected turn of events, even if they lost, it seemed unlikely that the failing student could be expelled. In that case, why had he bothered to go to such trouble organizing this duel and specially inviting important figures?
On the viewing stand, Manjoume watched the two walk onto the stage, unconsciously clenching his fists, veins throbbing on his forehead. Damn it, his number one and number two opponents he had to defeat were both on stage at once!
"Damn you, Chronos! This is clearly my duel!" Manjoume gritted his teeth. "This one and that one, they're all opponents I should be defeating!"
His henchman B looked confused. "Huh? But you can't even beat one of them, big brother. If both of them team up, won't you just get hammered... Mmmph." Before he could finish, his henchman A quickly slapped a hand over his mouth. But it was a step too late. Manjoume, stung, glared fiercely at both of them.
"Hmph!" He scowled.
Just you wait. One day, I, Manjoume, will put them all under my heel. At that time, I will become the new king of this academy!
"..."
"Alright, I see the students are all ready." Principal Samejima rubbed his hands expectantly. "Professor Chronos, quickly call forth the duelists you invited."
"Ahem, of course." Chronos took the microphone. "This time, I've specially invited experts who are very experienced in tag team duels. Watch!"
As soon as his voice fell, two bald men appeared among the crowd! The two, one on the left and one on the right, swiftly flipped onto the stage, performing several consecutive somersaults like acrobats, then stood back-to-back. One bald man had the character Maze written on his forehead, and the other had Palace.
"We are the wandering guardians, the Paradox Brothers!" The two bald men crossed their arms, their faces radiating confidence. "We bear no grudge against you, but we will duel with all our might!"
"As long as you defeat us, the path ahead will open!"
The entire venue immediately erupted in an uproar.
"Are those... the legendary duelists!?" Some students gasped in surprise, rising to their feet.
"That's right, the Paradox Brothers are legendary duelists who have battled the King of Games, Mutou Yuugi." Chronos introduced them. "Experts in tag team duels!"
The entire stadium of students was stunned. Although it was a penalty duel, their opponents were actually legendary duelists! Isn't that too outrageous?
"I've heard of them," Asuka said. "They're said to be opponents that even the King of Games struggled against in a tough battle."
"Indeed, to arrange such opponents..." Misawa paused, frowning as he looked at You Xuan and Judai in the arena. That being said, he had also gathered information and knew that You Xuan had a precedent of winning against legendary duelists before coming to the academy.
"If one can surpass legends, then let us witness it," Misawa muttered to himself.
"..."
Judai's eyes, however, sparkled. "It's them! It's really them! We actually get to duel against legends! Isn't that amazing?"
"Haha, well, it's alright." You Xuan chuckled. The "battled the King of Games" pedigree of the Paradox Brothers was debatable, and they encountered Yuugi back in Duelist Kingdom, where playing cards involved navigating a maze, which was completely different from the current rules. So, it might not have much reference value.
"Don't get too excited. Remember our strategy," You Xuan reminded him.
Judai smiled, nodding repeatedly. "I remember, I remember."
The four duelists stood ready. Chronos, holding the microphone, came to the center of the arena.
"Both teams will share 8000 Life Points, and the field and Graveyard are shared. Neither team can attack on the first turn. Now, if you are all ready..."
Chronos swung his arm down.
"Tag Team Duel, commence!"
After saying that, he quickly jumped off the stage to get out of the way.
"Duel!" x4
[You Xuan x Judai, LP 8000]
[Paradox Brothers, LP 8000]
"I'll take the first turn. Draw!"
The elder Paradox Brother took the first turn.
"I Summon 'Giga-Tech Wolf'. Turn End."
[Giga-Tech Wolf, ATK 2200]
The exact same opening as the Paradox Brothers in the anime.
Judai: "Oh, a monster with 2200 ATK right off the bat!"
On the viewing stand, Misawa raised an eyebrow.
"Giga-Tech Wolf, although it has high ATK for a 4-star monster, it must flip a coin and call heads or tails when attacking. If you call it wrong, you have to halve your own Life Points before continuing the attack. It has a very risky drawback. As a monster to hold the field on the first turn, it's quite suitable, but..."
Asuka: "But what?"
"Uh, nothing. It's just that the next turn is You Xuan's." Misawa frowned. "They passed their first turn so simply. They might not have such an easy opportunity again later."
Asuka immediately understood what he was referring to and couldn't help but nod. "Indeed." Only by personally dueling You Xuan could one understand what a luxurious blessing it was to go first against him and operate freely without obstruction. And these legendary duelists had just summoned a monster and wasted such a turn. Perhaps they would soon realize what a tremendous waste it was...
You Xuan: "My turn, Draw! I activate the Spell Card 'Pot of Greed'! I draw two cards from my Deck."
Then he revealed a Monster Card.
"I Summon 'Ojama Yellow' in Defense Position."
The thick-lipped, golden-yellow little monster hopped onto the field, wearing vibrant red briefs. The Paradox Brothers couldn't help but frown at the sight of it. What kind of meaningless trash monster was this?
"Ojama, Ojama?" Even students in the stands who knew You Xuan were momentarily stunned. The Ojama series was so common that everyone knew it, but it was generally considered to be utterly useless. However, based on experience, since it appeared in You Xuan's hand, no one dared to underestimate it. What kind of strange new strategy would it be this time?
You Xuan drew three more cards.
"I Set three cards in the back row. Turn End."
Three Set cards to show friendliness. Asuka and Misawa both showed expressions of "See? I told you so," and the students in the Yellow Dormitory also couldn't help but look expectant.
However, the two foreign Paradox Brothers hadn't yet realized the seriousness of the situation.
Younger Paradox Brother: "Then it's my turn, Draw! First, I'll use this card!"
He revealed a card from his hand, and the projection of the Spell Card appeared on the field with a golden shimmer.
"Spell Card - Tribute Doll! Tribute one monster on your field to Special Summon a Level 7 monster from your hand that can be Normal Summoned, but that monster cannot attack this turn."
The younger Paradox Brother paused, then smiled at his elder brother: "Brother, I'll be borrowing your monster for a bit."
The elder Paradox Brother laughed heartily: "What's with the politeness between brothers? Just take it and use it."
"Good, then I tribute my brother's 'Giga-Tech Wolf'! From my hand, I Special Summon one of our brothers' ace monsters! Guardian of the Wind, appear now—
— 'Sanga of the Thunder'!!!"
A green whirlwind swept up, and a green fiend with a clear, large "Wind" character on its chest appeared on the field, its arms strong and powerful.
[Sanga of the Thunder, ATK 2400]
The younger Paradox Brother crossed his arms triumphantly, saying, "Sanga of the Thunder! This is one of our brothers' three great Archfiends, possessing unparalleled..."
"Activate Set Card! Trap Card - Bottomless Trap Hole!" You Xuan opened his back row. "When your opponent summons a monster with 1500 or more ATK, destroy it and banish it from the game."
The trap hole opened, and Sanga of the Thunder, one of the three great Archfiends, roared as it descended, then roared as it was gone, vanishing into the giant pit without a trace.
The younger Paradox Brother, still in his pose and mid-sentence, was left awkwardly on the field.
"..."
"Uh, heh heh, quite a move."
A few seconds later, he calmly cleared his throat, trying to maintain the image of a legendary duelist.
"Then I activate the Spell Card 'Dark Grepher'! I declare the name of a Monster Card. If the declared monster card exists in my opponent's Deck, that card is added to my opponent's hand!"
Judai was startled. "Huh? Declare your opponent's card?"
"No," You Xuan prompted him. "In a tag team duel, a teammate can also be considered an opponent."
"Is that so?"
The elder Paradox Brother laughed heartily: "Excellent! Therefore, the name of the monster I will declare..."
He fiercely pointed a hand at his elder brother.
"'Kazejin'!"
The elder brother, who had been standing calmly with crossed arms, chuckled lowly for a moment and said, "Hoh, how rare. My Deck happens to have 'Kazejin'. Thank you, little brother."
"Then, according to the effect of 'Dark Grepher', I add 'Kazejin' to my hand."
He smiled as he drew the searched card from his Deck, briefly revealed it, and added it to his hand.
Outside the field, the gold-medal commentator Misawa frowned. "They're skillfully utilizing the rule in tag team duels that a 'teammate can also be considered an opponent'."
"Achieving precise, arbitrary searches from the Deck through a teammate's card—this is truly a deck built for tag duels." Asuka also looked worried. "These two are indeed quite formidable. I wonder if Judai and You Xuan will be okay."
Having completed their search, the Paradox Brothers simultaneously raised their arms arrogantly.
Elder Paradox Brother: "We will!"
Younger Paradox Brother: "Tell you!"
Brothers in unison: "The true meaning of tag team dueling!"
"How impressive! To skillfully use the tag duel rules to search for cards is truly powerful." You Xuan praised. "Then I will activate the Trap Card 'Mind Crush'!"
"Declare one card name. If the declared card exists in your opponent's hand, your opponent must discard that card. If it doesn't exist, I must randomly discard one card from my hand."
The Paradox Brothers' faces simultaneously changed. "Nani!?"
Mind Crush, a highly versatile card that once wreaked havoc in the real card environment. Although this card was not initially favored by early-era duelists when it first came out, as the Yu-Gi-Oh! meta gradually accelerated and card search effects became increasingly common in later stages, the potential of this ancient trap slowly began to be discovered by duelists.
In You Xuan's memory of playing cards back then, this card's treatment during its peak was somewhat akin to the modern Yu-Gi-Oh!'s "Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring," serving as an essential search counter-artifact for everyone in the competitive environment. Especially early combo decks often lacked the resilience of modern Yu-Gi-Oh!'s mainstream decks, which can still recover even after facing several interruptions. Back then, even many crucial mainstream searches could be completely halted by a single Mind Crush, leaving players with a helpless expression, forced to hand over their right to play Yu-Gi-Oh! to their opponent.
Therefore, the card's name is actually quite apt: "Mind Crush." Back then, getting hit by this thing really could cause one's mentality to collapse on the spot.
You Xuan: "What to declare... Of course, it has to be this one. I declare 'Kazejin'."
The two Paradox Brothers exchanged glances, then gritted their teeth.
"Tch."
The younger Paradox Brother, his face grim, revealed the "Kazejin" that had just been searched into his hand, still warm, and threw it into the Graveyard on the Duel Disk.
"Hoh, how rare. You just happened to have 'Kazejin' in your hand."
You Xuan chuckled, sounding as if he were mimicking the irritating tone of the elder Paradox Brother when he had performed his search moments ago.
"What good luck."
A "well" symbol appeared on each of the Paradox Brothers' bald heads.
Rage meter: accumulating.
🚨 Note : Consider to Support this Story on Patreon.com/Flokixy to access +200 advance Chapters and To Support The Daily Update