A bolt of black lightning split the sky, scattering sparks through the rolling fog. Out of the haze, a towering silhouette emerged—
Massive black bat-like wings spread wide behind him; a long blade nearly as tall as his own body gleamed in his hand. Jagged black armor covered him head to toe, and wherever he walked, the darkness itself seemed to shrink away.
Dark Magician the Dragon Knight – Red-Eyes Dragoon
[Spellcaster / Fusion / Effect / DARK / Level 8]
ATK 3000 DEF 2500
"It really is that monster…" The green glow in the black-robed man's eyes flickered with dread—beneath that dread lurked raw fear.
Red-Eyes Dragoon was known as the monster that could elevate a duelist to Heaven-tier with a single card. Nothing described its power more clearly than that simple truth.
And to run into Yu Ye, who could summon it so casually—what terrible luck!
Worse still, he'd done it with just two random monsters — without even suffering the normal Red-Eyes Fusion summoning restriction. Unheard of. Impossible.
In other words, as long as Yu Ye didn't draw Red-Eyes Fusion itself, he could bring out Dragoon with his eyes closed.
What kind of devilish joke was this?
"Why? Why can you obtain it? Why can you summon him?" An Chong shouted, instantly recognizing the dragon knight before him—any duelist worth his salt knew that card.
"Because I'm strong." Yu Ye replied simply, five calm words cutting through the air. Then he gave his monster an order.
An Chong froze in place, his mind going blank. The black-robed man fell silent too; the green in his eyes dimmed, then flickered again, as though even he couldn't process it.
What could they say to that? Yu Ye was strong—so strong there was no room for argument.
Call him weak? Ridiculous. This was a duelist whose skill easily reached Grandmaster—possibly even King-tier!
They hadn't sent An Chong because Hang City lacked an Earth-tier duelist.
No—after careful calculation by their higher-ups, he had the highest theoretical chance of victory. Anyone stronger would have only lost faster.
Yu Ye sighed softly at their silence. He could understand their shock, but unfortunately for them, victory today belonged to him.
"Red-Eyes Dragoon's first effect activates!" he declared.
"Since I used two Normal Monsters as Fusion Materials, during my Main Phase, I can—twice per turn—destroy one monster on your field and inflict damage equal to its ATK. I target your Naturia Beast!"
A surge of black lightning erupted from Dragoon's blade, cleaving the beast cleanly in two.
An Chong LP: 8000 → 5800
Deep slashes opened across An Chong's body, crimson blood dripping down onto the stone.
He stared at his ruined Naturia Beast, then at himself—bleeding, broken, disbelieving.
Why hadn't Yu Ye taken damage?
How was he so strong?
At last, his trembling hand lowered, the cards in his grip sagging. He said nothing. Only despair remained.
Red-Eyes Dragoon wasn't some simple "tricolor negate" monster. It couldn't be targeted or destroyed by card effects. Even Ring of Destruction, Mirror Force, or Dark Hole were useless.
His entire deck had no way to deal with that monster.
Win? How?
Yu Ye, having activated Red-Eyes Fusion, skipped his Battle Phase. In his End Phase, Little Knight and Verte Anaconda returned to the field.
An Chong's next draw was Kuriboh.
He Normal Summoned it, muttered something about "one last dignified strike," and ended his turn.
Yu Ye, not one to drag things out, simply ordered:
"Red-Eyes Dragoon, finish it."
One blast of dark flame later—
An Chong LP : 0
As his Life Points hit zero, the surrounding black mist dissolved. A card case materialized before Yu Ye — An Chong's original Naturia Field card and his personal assets.
Yu Ye grinned from ear to ear. Another prize in the bag.
With Naturia Field secured, plus the extra Coral Dragon and Charge Warrior he'd earned from the Duel Association, his Runick deck could now run a full Naturia Runick hybrid—no longer just "Sticker Runick."
Not that "Sticker Runick" was weak, but options mattered. Once opponents grew familiar with a single strategy, counters would appear. And with only one copy of Runick Fountain, if it were banished, he'd be forced to rely on Little Knight, Red Daddy, and Baronne to survive.
Sure, he could still win—but why risk it when smarter play meant steady profit?
When Yu Ye looked up again, the spirit blocking Muning's path had vanished. Only the black-robed man remained, standing quietly in the corner.
"As expected of someone at least Grandmaster-tier… no, perhaps even King-tier."
The man finally spoke, his tone now respectful. "The organization truly underestimated you when it sent An Chong and me."
"You're not continuing?" Yu Ye asked, catching the meaning behind the man's words. His disappointment was obvious.
He'd even brought Ash Blossom, ready to farm more Dark Duelists for coins—and now they were just leaving?
"Please, Senior, don't joke." The man's tone stiffened. "We were foolish before. Now that we've witnessed your strength, none of us would dare challenge you again."
Beneath his hood, his face darkened. Other duelists trembled before the Dark Duelists.
Yu Ye, on the other hand, treated them like walking ATMs.
The man sighed, producing a palm-sized tablet and a single golden card.
"This card is your reward," he said. "And this list lets you choose any five Original Cards as compensation for our mistake."
Behind his robe, his expression twisted in silent misery.
Those cards were his personal stash—the ones he'd planned to offer after An Chong's victory, hoping to hire Yu Ye to improve his deck and maybe forge a connection.
Now? An Chong was gone. His cards were gone. Everything gone.
Maybe he should have challenged Yu Ye himself—it might've been cheaper!
"Good," Yu Ye said cheerfully, taking the rewards without hesitation.
He hadn't initiated the Dark Duel himself—first, because he didn't yet know how; second, because life was about tact, not mindless fighting.
And honestly? He hadn't even taken damage. The black-robed man probably wouldn't drop much gold. Better to squeeze value from him later—maybe through his higher-ups.
Still, if more arrogant Dark Duelists came knocking, Yu Ye certainly wouldn't mind collecting their "assets" too.
He flipped the golden card over and smiled wider.
No. 60 – Dugares the Timeless
Another strong Extra Deck card—perfect for his Tearlaments Wheelchair Build.
As for the five cards he selected from the list:Rainbow LizardMagic Shell GashaponDroll & Lock BirdTrishula, Dragon of the Ice BarrierTrishula, Zero Dragon of the Ice BarrierThe first three were for the future; the last two were immediate powerhouses.
"The cards you requested will be delivered to your shop within a day," the black-robed man said, bowing deeply. "Once again, Senior, we apologize for disturbing you today."
"No problem," Yu Ye replied with a grin. "But if your Dark Duelist buddies plan to challenge me again, tell them to hurry up. I can't wait to be recruited!
The black-robed man had no words.
Was Yu Ye really eager to be recruited—Or just impatient for them to come drop more gold?