The next day, in front of the castle at the center of Duelist Kingdom Island.
"Welcome to my Duelist Kingdom, duelists from all over the world!"
Pegasus, the tall, silver-haired, one-eyed, humorous man, stood on the castle's terrace, looking down at the duelists gathered before the castle gates. His single eye quickly scanned the crowd, and he soon found the few individuals he was most interested in: Rex Raptor, who hadn't slept well, Weevil Underwood, whose eyes were still dark, Mako, the streaker wearing only shorts, and Yugi, who glared at him with hatred.
'We finally meet, Yugi-boy.'
"Pegasus-sama!"
"Oh—!"
Pegasus had only spoken a single sentence, yet he received an enthusiastic response from countless duelists below. At least eight out of ten people who made a name for themselves in the realm of Duel Monsters were passionate about the game, and consequently, Pegasus, who invented Duel Monsters, was also beloved by them.
"This 'Duel Monsters' Match will not require any specific Field, as the Duel Arena will be the entire island. All Duels will be conducted using Duel Monster Cards. The losing party must hand over their Star Chips to the Opponent, and the Ante Rule will be permitted."
He paused, and a smile appeared on Pegasus's lips as he saw the many duelists below listening intently.
"More Rules are simply too hard to remember through words alone, so me has prepared an Exhibition Match demonstrating the official Rules for all of you."
"Step forward, Weevil-boy~"
Under the gaze of the many duelists, two Men in Black who had been standing behind Weevil gave him a push, and only then did he reluctantly step out from the crowd to the front.
"Hey, isn't that the Duel Monsters Japan Tournament Champion?"
"That's Weevil Underwood, the Insect user. I heard he's very good at using Spell Cards to Enhance his Insect Monsters."
"But why are his eyes so dark? Like a panda."
Looking at Weevil below, Pegasus revealed a mysterious smile. Without turning around, he whispered to someone behind him, "Hayato-boy, I've already fulfilled your request~"
"Don't act like you gained nothing, Pegasus." Hayato's voice came from behind the terrace where Pegasus stood. "Whether it's a more balanced set of Duel Monsters Rules or inspiration for more Card designs, my Mind has been completely emptied."
"Although your Mind, as seen by the [Millennium Eye], truly is as you say, but me always feels you're holding something back." Pegasus offered a genial smile, but neither the surrounding black-clad security guards nor Hayato would consider Pegasus an easy person to get along with because of it. "But never mind, Hayato-boy, enjoy your Duel with Weevil-boy to the fullest. Duel Monsters truly is the best Game in the world~"
Although the castle where Pegasus resided looked like a rather classical Western European castle, Pegasus was, after all, the head of Industrial Illusions and a Genius Game Designer, not an outdated relic who failed to keep up with the times. It might have seemed like an ordinary old castle, but the technological content within it was anything but low.
Under everyone's gaze, the paving stones in the open area in front of the old castle split apart, revealing a large rectangular void. From beneath the castle, a massive piece of equipment rapidly rose, revealing itself to be a Duel Stage equipped with KaibaCorp's Solid Vision system!
The Duel Stage's Field was painted with two different colors. The Field on the left side simulated a lush, verdant forest, while the Field on the right side was a plain covered in dense pasture grass. The left side of the Duel Stage was empty, clearly prepared for Weevil, while on the right side, Hayato was already standing on the stage, just waiting for Weevil to appear.
"The participants in this Exhibition Match are Weevil-boy, the Champion of the Japan National Tournament, and Hayato-boy, this Duelist Kingdom tournament's special guest. Although he may not be famous, in me's opinion, Hayato-boy is also a skilled Duel Monsters player~" Pegasus, temporarily acting as a referee, introduced the two contestants from the terrace.
But neither Hayato nor Weevil paid any attention to their surroundings once they stepped onto the Duel Stage. "Hey, you Insect bastard, betting two Star Chips won't be a problem, right? This time, I'm going to kick you right out of Duelist Kingdom!"
"You damn Hayato! I haven't forgotten what happened yesterday. It's too early to be dreaming, you're the one who's going to be kicked out!" Weevil touched his eye socket with one hand, still feeling a pang of pain at the touch. "No, kicking you out of Duelist Kingdom isn't enough. If you lose this Match, from now on, you won't be allowed to touch anything related to Duel Monsters ever again!"
"Suit yourself, but our conditions are equal. Betting our Decks, chips, and futures, I'm going to teach you a good lesson!"
Pegasus naturally overheard Hayato and Weevil exchanging threats. Seeing that the two contestants had "amicably" concluded their exchange, he waved his hand, "Then me announces, the Duelist Kingdom tournament's Exhibition Match, and indeed the official first Match, officially begins!"
"Duel!" *2
[Hayato: 4000 LP, Hand 5]
[Weevil: 4000 LP, Hand 5]
"I'll take the First Turn!" Weevil moved faster than Hayato, drawing five Cards first and seizing the advantage of the first move. Looking at the Cards in his Hand, Weevil revealed a sinister smile. "Hayato, the pain you caused me won't be erased until I properly torture you."
"I Set a Monster in Defense Position, then Set three Set Cards. My Turn ends!"
[Weevil: Hand 5→6→2]
"If you can do it, then by all means try. You'd best use your dominant hand, as it's only fun to crush you in the field you're best at."
"My Turn, Draw!"
Hayato looked at the six Cards in his Hand and nodded in satisfaction. A uniform set of green and deep red, without a single Monster Card. Hmm, a per☆fect☆ Hand.jpg
"First, I Activate the Spell Card, [Unexpected Dai]! It can only be Activated when I control no Monsters on my Field. I Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Monster from my Deck."
"O pitch-black Darkness, descend from the deepest abyss, my Soul!"
"[Skull Stalker], Skull Stalker!"
[Skull Stalker][Level 3/DARK][Warrior-Type/Normal Monster][900/800]
The armored Scorpion Warrior appeared amidst the lightning that erupted from the Spell Card. Just as it rejoiced at becoming the vanguard once more, Weevil's Card joined his Summoning Chain, following immediately after.
(To be honest, the plot in the previous chapter was indeed a little forced. The protagonist couldn't possibly just stand by like Tachibana-san, OMOing, after knowing what Weevil was going to do. But if Weevil had been stopped directly, then Yami Yugi wouldn't have had his inexplicably powerful comebacks later with cards, and that would be boring.)
(So, let's just make Weevil take the blame. In short, everything is Weevil's fault. And if Weevil hadn't succeeded, he wouldn't have been able to confront Yami Yugi and his group, wouldn't have accumulated hatred, and wouldn't have lost so miserably in Battle City. He wouldn't have fallen so low as to join Doma, and he wouldn't have been able to give everyone the classic performance of "Fall! Monster Card!" See how bad that would be? (Mainly, it would be a shame to miss that last iconic scene).)
(Now Weevil has already been physically attacked by the protagonist like Zhen Guanxi. Starting a Duel now will make him leave the field directly.)
(I'm such a kind soul, I can't bear to see people suffer.jpg)
(So, that's all. Please don't bash the forced plot, and weakly begging for votes, *whine*)
(End of Chapter)
end of chapter