"Lose...Lost?"
Ryuzaki fell to his knees like a suspect whose conspiracy was exposed in a crime drama, his hands on the ground, his expression confused.
It seemed unreal.
He had spent years training, immersed in solitude, finally determined to make a grand comeback as a king...
...only to kneel at the tutorial stage?
He couldn't accept it!
The applause, delayed by several seconds, shattered his fantasy and dragged him back to a brutal reality. Initially sparse and scattered sounds, as if waking from the shock of the duel. Then, following someone's lead, it evolved into a resounding cheer, mixed with shoutouts for the participant's name.
Clearly, it wasn't Ryuzaki they were cheering for, but the newcomer who had ground him into the dust.
The legendary duelist Ryuzaki, who failed in his kingly return, ended up being a stepping stone for a rising new star.
"Congratulations to Fujiki Yugen, who has successfully defeated Ryuzaki Kyoryu and won the championship of this year's Moonlight Cup!"
Announcer Xiaodu shouted excitedly.
"What an incredible duel this is! A newcomer appearing for the first time, winning against the returning Ryuzaki, and maintaining a dominant position throughout the duel...
...no, not only that, but even his Life Points were still at the untouched four thousand until the end! It was literally an unscathed clear!"
Ryuzaki: Stop talking, stop talking.
"Yes, and from my years of commentary experience, I would say this might not even be this duelist's limit," announcer Sasaki also remarked, "'Card Shooter' has another effect. When it gets destroyed, the duelist holding it can draw a card from their deck.
After accepting the 'Restriction Removal' effect, the Mechanical Race monster will self-destruct, so Yugen could draw three more cards thanks to Card Shooter's self-destruction.
On Ryuzaki's side, the front and back fields are empty because the 'Thoughtless Greed' he activated last turn requires skipping two draw phases. So..."
He didn't continue, but the implication was clear.
Even if Ryuzaki had an extra hand to fend off this turn's total attack from Card Shooter, his chances of winning were slim.
Not to mention that Yugen still had two Mecha Fortresses in the graveyard, ready to be revived any time he has Mechanical Race resources in hand.
The gap between both parties had become too great at this point.
Ryuzaki: "......"
"The younger generation is truly formidable," announcer Xiaodu couldn't help but admire this newcomer even more, "But anyway, let's first congratulate Yugen for winning the championship..."
He had a feeling.
This wouldn't be the last time he sees this duelist on the arena...no.
Or maybe, for Yugen, this was just the beginning.
...
...
"He really won..."
Sato Koji, already seated in the audience, blinked in bewilderment at this development. Then he pinched himself hard.
Ow~ It really hurt.
No dream.
His junior really defeated the legendary duelist...
Suddenly, the rage and frustration he felt in past defeats by his junior evaporated, replaced by a sense of pride.
Such a badass junior, and I've actually been defeated by him!
He instinctively straightened his back a bit.
With Yugen winning the championship, the Dueling Dojo consequently celebrated. Knowing that this event would undoubtedly headline the "Duelist Times" tomorrow gave the apprentices a sense of pride, enhancing their prestige whenever they mentioned their dojo.
And the most excited of all? That had to be Master Takeuchi.
When the champion was announced, Master Takeuchi nearly fainted from excitement, his eyes rolling back...
Yet, when his apprentices hastily propped him up, he waved it off, indicating he was fine, just a bit too excited.
Afterward, when none of the excited apprentices noticed, Master Takeuchi stood up, heading toward the depths of the dojo. He extended his hand, his palm resting lightly on a seemingly ordinary wall.
It appeared casual, but his fingertips followed a certain secret rhythm. Shortly after, the wall seemed to come alive, shivering slightly before splitting from the center, opening a secret door.
No one besides him was aware of this door's existence in the dojo.
He entered the passageway, the secret door automatically closing behind him. At the end of the tunnel, the only light was concentrated in the center.
A transparent display case housed a single card.
The master murmured to himself.
"Is the one who can inherit it...finally about to appear?"
...
...
"You really are the champion! You even took down Ryuzaki, the Great Demon King — junior, you're just amazing!"
Sato Koji, brother of the dojo and a completely changed person upon exiting the venue, eagerly approached to carry his luggage.
"Hey junior, why are you still carrying it by yourself? Let brother handle it..."
Yugen tried to refuse, but couldn't resist his brother's excessive enthusiasm.
"Oh, I heard that knowledge shouldn't be hindered by age. From today, you should be the master brother, and I'll be the junior brother..."
Yugen: "..."
"Your composure is truly impressive, how did you win the championship without showing any reaction?" Sato Koji said, "If it were me, I would definitely be floating right now..."
In reality, Yugen was indeed happy, but he had anticipated this result from the start, so it wasn't too surprising.
What concerned him more was when the prize money would be transferred.
The more he understood this world, the more he realized that money might not be everything in the Yu-Gi-Oh! realm, but without money, everything is impossible.
Take Chazz Kaiba with his financial prowess, or Yuki Judai, a second-gen fortune from the protagonist's family, involved in the card selling business.
Even Crabbro, born in poverty, turned out to be a heavyweight veteran who crafted a Perpetual Motion Machine, refining a top-tier deck from trash, and even had a Red Dragon card printer that printed cards...
As the anime protagonists progress through the storyline, their decks are continually upgraded, supplemented with new cards.
Thus, card dueling truly becomes a bottomless pit, aside from those few with a gift for card creation, ordinary people can only keep burning money.
This highlighted that Duel Academy, sponsored heavily by Kaiba, truly remains a great place.
"..."
The two walked out of the venue, one behind the other.
In the shadows, a figure cloaked in black stood in a corner, watching Yugen's distant back.
Beneath the black hood, a dangerous smile curled on his lips.
Then, a green shimmer flashed beneath his hood, and those pupils briefly radiated, resembling ghostly fire burning within.