A Crushing Defeat for Ushio
"Nani?!"
The moment his attack was stopped, Ushio's face dramatically changed. His entire strategy was predicated on Cufflinks Dragon's self-destruction, but the sudden appearance of Necro Gardna had rendered everything futile! Without Cufflinks Dragon's support, Goyo Guardian couldn't destroy Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier! Even with only a hundred points of ATK difference between their two monsters, Yugi's ace had completely overpowered Ushio's ace!
"But... this guy has no hand cards left..." A sliver of hope remained in Ushio's heart.
"That Ice Dragon needs to discard cards to activate its effect. Next turn, at most, he can return one of my monsters to my hand. There should still be a chance..."
Unable to make any further moves, Ushio was forced to end his turn.
Yugi drew a card from his Deck, and this one card was the perfect finisher for this battle!
"Beep! ——"
The SPC value on the dashboard jumped. At this moment, his Speed Counters had accumulated to two!
"It's over!" Yugi declared the result loudly.
"My turn! I activate Speed Spell – SP: Synchro Removal!"
"When you have two or more Speed Counters, gain control of one of your opponent's Synchro Monsters until the End Phase of this turn!"
"Your ace monster is mine now!!"
"Whoosh! ——"
As the card was played, Goyo Guardian on Ushio's field began to glow with starlight across its entire body. Finally, this demonic rider transformed into five shining Level Stars, flying over to Yugi's field and reforming into its monster shape.
"Tsk!!"
"This is bad..."
"I'm going to be wiped out!!"
At that moment, large beads of sweat trickled down Ushio's face. He hadn't expected to lose to Satellite Sector trash, especially trash who even had to adjust his Deck on the fly! For a moment, despair and humiliation filled Ushio's heart. He angrily slammed his fist onto his Duel Runner, able only to watch as Yugi launched his final counterattack!!
"Enter Battle Phase!!" Yugi declared. "Goyo Guardian! Attack Cufflinks Dragon!!"
"Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier!! Direct Attack!!"
"As for having no Set cards in the backrow, I'm returning that exact sentiment to you now!"
"I win this Duel!!!"
"Boom! ——"
An explosive red light burst from Goyo Guardian's headlights. Resonating blasts caused sonic booms in the strong wind! The powerful cannon fire instantly shattered Cufflinks Dragon into smithereens. But the next second, those fragments reformed, transforming into a giant handcuff that tightly locked onto Goyo Guardian!!
"Beep! Beep! Beep! ——"
[Ushio, LP: 2300 → 1900]
[Goyo Guardian, ATK: 2200 → 1200]
A mere four hundred points of battle
damage didn't deduct Ushio's Speed Counters, only causing his Duel Runner to shake violently. On the Speed Duel track, Ushio was still in the lead.
But with Yugi's next attack, this situation was completely broken!!
The intensely cold ice-crystal dragon's breath swept out in a long wave, from behind Ushio all the way to the front of his Duel Runner. Large chunks of shattered ice crystals permeated Ushio's entire body, the biting cold immediately eliciting a fierce scream from him. At the same time, affected by the powerful impact, the Duel Runner with zero Life Points instantly lost all power!!
A harsh screech of brakes echoed on the dilapidated road. The out-of-control vehicle spun several times before crashing head-first into the junkyard by the roadside!!
"Crash! Bang! Clatter! ————"
Mountains of trash fell, showering the trash-talking officer Ushio. If not for the cushioning provided by the refuse, he would likely be severely injured and unconscious from that speed.
The moment of Duel victory, the space Yugi was in returned to its original state. The blue light that had rendered everything in a grid pattern rapidly receded, and Yugi, successfully freed from Ushio's entanglement, felt much lighter, embracing the refreshing breeze.
Recalling the constant taunts from that guy during the Duel, Yugi, as he drove his Duel Runner past Ushio, deliberately performed his most practiced, signature move: he extended his arm out of the vehicle, pointing his index finger forty-five degrees forward into the rushing wind.
That was "One"—the "One" for "First Place"!!
"Damn it!!!"
An enraged Ushio furiously slammed a nearby cardboard box. Watching the swaggering "explosion maker" make a mocking gesture as he sped away, as a Security officer, Ushio felt immense humiliation!!
Just then, white Security Duel Runners arrived from behind. The officers, seeing their superior's disheveled state, immediately stopped their bikes and ran over.
"Officer Ushio!!"
"I'm fine! Get lost, all of you!!" Ushio roared furiously, swatting away the cardboard box on his head.
One officer cautiously asked, "If the suspect got away... how are we going to explain this to command...?"
"Heh!" Ushio scoffed. "What are you scared of?! Do you think I'm despicable enough to make you lot take the blame for me?!"
"Today's incident is entirely Officer Ushio's responsibility!!"
"The next time I see that guy, this officer will personally throw him in jail!!"
With that, Ushio angrily stomped his foot, crushing a discarded can on the ground.
The Security officers turned off the police lights on their Duel Runners and reluctantly followed the disheveled Ushio back to Security Headquarters.
A New Beginning in the Satellite Sector
Starry night.
Scattered dog barks echoed from the dark alleys.
Yugi slowly walked through the night alley, pushing the Duel Runner that had saved his life. After a short period of practice, he had become much more proficient at controlling the Duel Runner. He wasn't riding it now because the Satellite Sector was always restless; conspicuously riding a Duel Runner through the streets wasn't a wise move.
In his spare time, Yugi examined his body. There were no external injuries, not even bruises. While he didn't dare to rashly rule out the risk of internal injuries, for now, he didn't even know where the hospital was, nor did he have money for examinations.
"This is really bad..."
"If my racing suit and card necklace came with me, then I must have physically transmigrated, right?"
Yugi, who had some understanding of these fantasy tropes, thought to himself. But soon, he realized something else.
"Wait, my racing suit has protective features. Under normal circumstances, the racing suit would take the impact first!"
"But now, the clothes on my body are completely intact, just like before the race."
"If that's the case, I'm most likely completely fine."
Thinking this, Yugi finally breathed a sigh of relief. But quickly, a new problem presented itself. As a physical transmigrator, he had no personal connections or identity in this world. How was he supposed to survive in a place like this?
If possible, how would he even return to his original world?
Looking up at the distant factories from which black smoke continuously rose, Yugi pondered for a moment, then quickened his pace towards them.