The noise and laughter of the party gradually faded, leaving only the warm afterglow amid the mess of plates and glasses.
As everyone helped clean up and prepared to head home, a blinding flash of lightning tore through the night sky outside the shop!
A deafening crack of thunder followed, and rain poured down like a bursting river, pounding violently against the glass windows of the game shop with a furious rhythm.
"Whoa! That rain came out of nowhere!"
Joey pressed against the window, shouting in surprise.
"Yeah, even with an umbrella, you'd be soaked."
Just then, a car pulled up in front of the store—it was Professor Arthur Hawkins, who had come back out of concern for Rebecca.
At his gentle yet firm insistence, Rebecca left with her grandfather.
With the storm worsening, Yugi invited his friends to stay the night at the shop.
As for Solomon Muto, he would be spending the evening deep in conversation with Professor Hawkins.
Joey, Tristan, Téa, and Yuto all gladly accepted the offer—it was a perfect chance for a second "duel party."
Just as they were heading downstairs to lock the door and start round two, Joey's sharp eyes caught sight of something outside.
"Hey! Look over there!"
He pointed toward the shop entrance—through the sheets of pouring rain, a small figure lay collapsed on the ground, drenched from head to toe.
"Mokuba? That's Mokuba!"
Yugi instantly recognized him by his hair and clothes.
Without hesitation, Joey dashed out into the rain, scooping up the unconscious boy and rushing him back inside.
"Mokuba! Wake up!"
Yugi called urgently, drying his soaked hair and face with a towel.
Mokuba was covered in bruises, as if he had fallen hard outside the store.
His eyelids fluttered, and finally he opened his eyes—dazed, terrified.
"Yu… Yuto…"
His voice was weak, his gaze darting among them, desperate.
"Is… he here?"
"I'm here!"
Yuto immediately stepped forward.
Seeing him, Mokuba finally relaxed.
"What happened? Why are you in such a hurry?"
"My brother… my brother—"
Mokuba coughed violently, then spoke in broken, trembling words.
After their return from Duelist Kingdom, the traitors hidden within KaibaCorp had finally revealed themselves.
To eliminate them completely and reclaim control of the company, Seto Kaiba had accepted a dangerous "game duel" proposed by the conspirators.
However, Kaiba's consciousness had been trapped deep within a virtual world of pure data—a nightmare he couldn't escape without outside help!
With no other choice, Mokuba had come seeking Yuto's aid to rescue his brother.
"I understand!"
A sharp light flashed in Yuto's eyes as he rose to his feet.
If he remembered correctly, this was the arc where monsters could manifest physically! Even in a virtual world—he could launch his Mobile Suits!
"The situation's urgent. We move now! First, I need to return home and grab something important—it might be the key to saving Kaiba!"
His tone carried undeniable urgency.
Mokuba nodded weakly. "I-it's fine… they won't hurt my brother yet… the company's master physical access key… it's still with me…"
"Come on! Take my bike!"
Without hesitation, Joey rushed to the back of the store and wheeled out his bicycle.
"Go as fast as you can, Yuto!"
"Got it!"
Yuto hopped onto the bike.
"We'll head to Kaiba Land and prepare! Meet us there!" Mokuba said, giving the location.
"Understood!"
Yuto sped off into the storm, rain whipping against his face as the chain clattered under the furious pedaling.
Cold water lashed at him, yet he didn't care. His mind burned with urgency and frustration. If only he'd opened those booster packs earlier that morning! Every second mattered now!
Cursing himself, he burst into his home, leaving wet footprints across the entryway.
He rushed straight into his room and called out clearly:
"Keyword—One Year War!"
Six booster packs materialized instantly on his desk.
Time was short! He tore them open, scanning through the cards, quickly removing several from his Deck and replacing them with thirty new additions.
The process was seamless—done in under a minute!
He bolted back outside, jumped on the bike, and sped through the rain toward Kaiba Land.
By the time Yuto, soaked and gasping, reached the massive yet locked gates of Kaiba Land, the others were already there.
"Yuto! Over here!" Mokuba called, hope flaring in his eyes.
"I'm here!"
Yuto's voice cut through the rain.
Agile as a cat, Mokuba scaled the gate and unlocked it from within.
"Come on!"
The group filed in behind him.
Kaiba Land, under the storm and darkness, felt vast and eerily empty, illuminated only by the dim glow of emergency lights.
Mokuba led them swiftly through a maze of corridors and stairways until they reached a hidden door requiring clearance. Beyond it lay a secret facility.
The room was dim, lit only by the cold blue glow of a flickering control screen.
At the center stood four sleek, futuristic "Full-Dive Virtual Reality Pods," their metallic shells gleaming faintly in the low light. Coils of thick cables sprawled across the floor like serpents.
Mokuba hurried to the control terminal, his fingers flying across the keyboard as streams of data cascaded down the screen.
"Good… it's all working!"
He exhaled, voice trembling with excitement.
"The system's stable! These pods are linked to the same network my brother's trapped in—we can use them to enter the virtual world!"
"Four pods… Yuto, Yugi, Joey…" Tristan counted aloud.
"The last one's mine!" Mokuba shouted, turning to face them, eyes blazing.
"If my brother doesn't come back… then my life has no meaning!"
The conviction in his voice struck everyone silent.
"Alright." Yuto nodded firmly, meeting Yugi and Joey's eyes. All three shared the same unspoken resolve.
"Then it's us four. Mokuba, start the system!"
"Right!"
Mokuba slammed the activation key. The pod doors hissed open with a soft hydraulic sound.
"Be careful, everyone!" Téa called anxiously.
Taking deep breaths, Yuto, Yugi, Joey, and Mokuba each lay back into the cold, ergonomic metal pods.
The hatches sealed above them, cutting off the outside world.
They inserted their Decks into the side slots. Tristan gave one last look, then gripped the main control lever—and pulled.
The indicator lights inside each pod flickered to life, pulsing rhythmically.
A strange, soothing electric current coursed through their bodies.
Their consciousnesses sank—plunging into an endless, azure sea of data.
In the next instant, Yuto and his friends were drawn away from the real world, diving headlong toward the unknown virtual realm where Seto Kaiba awaited—trapped and alone.
...
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