Chapter 3: The Mystery Duelist

A new day came for Amitie and co. Of course, they were having a good time while trying to find a way to look for their friends. And speaking of their friends… Arle, Raffina, Sig, and Lemres have all appeared in the Xyz Dimension, and they landed in some rubble that was once a part of a place called Heartland City. To the four, this place just seemed to be an abandoned city that was left to rot. However, this city wasn't actually worn down by natural causes… someone attacked its buildings and people. In any case, the four got up from where they landed and they were in a bit of pain.

Arle: "Well, that was a bit of a rough ride..."

Raffina: "I'll say... Geez, why couldn't we have just landed on some soft grass or something? … Hey, this place looks all crappy and whatnot."

Sig: "Yeah, like a dump."

Lemres: "Hmm... What could've happened here? I know that none of us have ever been here before... but I think this is a question worth asking. It seems this place was a city at one point, judging from the size of it."

Raffina: "Well, duh! I think we can see that this was once a city, Lemres..."

Arle: "A-anyway, shouldn't we figure out where we are right now? I wanna find Amitie and Ringo as soon as possible."

Lemres: "That's prolly for the best, Arle. Who knows what we'll have to deal with out here... And something tells me we won't be able to use the power of Puyos to help us. After all, I don't see a single Puyo here…"

Raffina: "Ugh, what a pain... Why did I have to end up in this whole thing where we need to find a way to reconnect with Amitie of all people? I didn't want to end up in a place like this."

Arle: "I don't think any of us wanted to end up here…"

Lemres: "Kind of a given, considering that we were forcefully taken from Primp Town and sent here. And who knows where the others ended up... They might not even be in the same world as us; that wormhole was pretty big, after all."

Raffina: "Tch. What a load of crap…"

Lemres: "...? Wait, I hear something coming. We should hide."

Raffina: "Hide? Why? We can just fight whatever-"

Lemres: "Raffina, there's no time; now hide."

Raffina: "Urgh, fine... Sig, get over here."

Sig: "Okay."

And so, the four hid within the rubble and didn't make a peep. As for what was coming to where they once were... it was actually a young man. He had dark blue hair and clothes, and looked pretty serious. It seemed like he was looking around for something in silence until he decided to talk to himself.

?: "I saw a group of four people drop from the sky. And judging from where they fell from, they should be around here somewhere... Were they those soldiers? If so, then we might get attacked again."

When the young man said that, Raffina whispered something…

Raffina: "Soldiers? Lemres, what could that guy mean by that?"

Lemres: "I dunno. But soldiers would imply that some war happened here, and maybe that's how this city got into the condition that it's in now."

Arle: "Something tells me I'm not gonna like what happened here…"

After Arle said that, the group watched the young man from within the rubble in silence.

?: "... I don't see anyone here whatsoever, and I don't know if I should call that a good or bad thing. If those soldiers are here… then I'll need to get the others, so that we can eliminate them."

The young man then walked away from the scene. Once Arle and co. knew for sure that he was gone, they came out of the rubble.

Raffina: "Seriously, what was that about?"

Lemres: "I wish I knew, Raffina, but we have to find a better place to hide for the time being. Until we know how things are around here, I don't think we should let anything or anyone see us. Now, guys… I should tell you that since we don't seem to have the power of Puyos: Not only are we unable to protect ourselves from anything that threatens us, but we also can't go back home. So in other words, we're unarmed and stuck here."

Arle and Raffina: "W-we're stuck?!"

Raffina: "I just want to go back home! Is that too much to ask for?!"

Arle: "I-if we're stuck here, then... what do we do?"

Lemres: "Like I said before: We should find a good place to hide and figure out how this place works. Stay together, everyone."

Lemres started walking off in a random direction, which made the others follow behind.

Arle: "Hey! Wait for me, Lemres!"

Raffina: "Tch. If we have to hide for now, so be it... ... Come on, Sig, don't just stand there."

Sig: "Oh, okay."

The four began to wander around the ruined city in hopes of finding a suitable place to hide. Meanwhile, in the Leo Institute of dueling... Sylvio was dueling against one of his buddies and he had one monster putting itself up against another monster. Sylvio himself was about to win the duel by attacking his buddy's monster with his own.

Sylvio: "And so, any chance you had at winning this duel just went down the drain. Mobius the Frost Monarch, put the freeze on Power Dart Striker!"

Mobius destroyed Power Dart Striker and Sylvio won the duel.

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "Nice play."

Sylvio's Buddy 2: "It's not fair! Your cards are so much better than-"

Sylvio: "Nope. Incorrect… You weren't defeated by the cards in my deck. You were defeated by... Get ready…"

Sylvio's Buddies (All 3): "Sylvio!"

Sylvio: "That's me! Not to say that I don't have sweet cards… I do, but what's even sweeter are my skills! Skills that pay the bills, and skills that give the thrills… So let's give it up for…"

Sylvio's Buddies (All 3): "Sylvio!"

Sylvio: "That's me! … Now, some might say that I have a pretty big ego… Well…"

Sylvio's Buddies (All 3): "He sure does!"

Sylvio: "It's true… but my dueling talents are even bigger. So, with one more time, with feeling…! Go."

Sylvio's Buddies (All 3): "Sylvio!"

Sylvio: "Yeah, you got that right. And is there anyone out there that can beat me?"

Sylvio's Buddy 3: "Maguro Sasaki…"

When that guy said that, Sylvio got angry.

Sylvio: "Whaddaya mean Maguro Sasaki?!"

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "All we mean, Sylvio, is that he DID beat you in your last duel…"

Sylvio: "That's just because he somehow had better cards than me! I don't know how, but he had cards like that annoying Submarineroid… And then he had the audacity to finish me off with the EXACT amount of damage that he needed to win! That ridiculous B.E.S. Big Core and Limiter Removal combo was something that I came to loathe… The next time that I duel Maguro, he's going to suffer at the hands of my new strategies! No one, and I repeat: NO ONE upstages me and gets away with it. Maguro is the reason why I don't have those Pendulum cards on me anymore; he took them back!"

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "Well, what are we gonna do?"

Sylvio: "Oh, I'll tell you what we're gonna do. Come over here; I have a plan."

Sylvio urged his buddies to huddle around him, and then… he told them about his plan. Meanwhile… Amitie and co., as well as Yuya and Zuzu, were all washing their faces to prepare for something. Once they were done, they kind of split off for the time being to do some stuff to get that thing ready. The sky had already started to look somewhat orange as Amitie and Zuzu just got some ice cream. The ice cream in question was in a bag and Zuzu was holding it. Amitie was excited about being able to eat some ice cream with the others.

Amitie: "Oooh, I can't wait to have that ice cream, Zuzu!"

Zuzu: "Same, Amitie. … Say, why did you decide on rainbow ice as your flavor of choice?"

Amitie: "Oh, that's because I usually have trouble picking stuff. Ehehehehe… So, I thought: Why not get the flavor that kind of has more than one?"

Zuzu: "*giggle* Good point. Sometimes it's hard to choose what you want to have… As for me, I decided to get strawberry."

Amitie: "And what did you get for the others?"

Zuzu: "Let's keep that a surprise for later, okay?"

Amitie: "Okay!"

After Amitie said that, Zuzu heard some talking from a couple of guys up ahead.

Zuzu: "Hm?"

Amitie: "Huh? Zuzu, what's wrong?"

Zuzu: "Shh!"

Amitie: "...?"

The two girls looked at the guys talking and they just so happen to be two of Sylvio's buddies.

Sylvio's Buddy 3: "I mean, losing like that to a nobody such as Maguro isn't something you get over too easily. I've never seen Sylvio so fired up before."

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "You know it. When he gets his hands on Maguro, it's not gonna be pretty."

Sylvio's Buddy 3: "Oh, it's gonna be pretty, alright… pretty devastating for Maguro, that is!"

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "And speaking of devastating, we should hurry up and get to Sylvio before we're late with delivering him his food."

Then, the two buddies ran off in a hurry. Amitie and Zuzu couldn't believe what they just heard.

Amitie: "It's those meanies again!"

Zuzu: "And Sylvio's trying to get his hands on Maguro?! This is bad!"

Zuzu then started running in the direction where Sylvio's buddies went.

Amitie: "W-wait for me, Zuzu!"

Amitie went after Zuzu and they two eventually came to a series of warehouses that were on a port. Off in the distance, the Leo Institute can be seen. And in the shadows... lurked an individual of seemingly unknown origin. They couldn't be seen from outside the shadows as they seemed to wait for something to happen. In one of the warehouses, two of Sylvio's buddies entered and met up with the young man himself, as well as the remaining buddy. Sylvio was sitting on a couch that was brought into the warehouse, and the last buddy sat on a wooden crate.

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "Hey, we're here with the food, Sylvio. Sorry we're late; it won't happen again."

Sylvio: "Better not."

Sylvio's Buddy 3: "Let us make it up to you. How about we feed you personally, or perhaps chew your food for-"

Sylvio's: "That won't be necessary. Just make sure not to be late again when doing something for me."

Sylvio's Buddies 1 and 3: "O-okay!"

And outside, Amitie and Zuzu were hiding behind a big crate that was off to the side of the warehouse that Sylvio was in.

Amitie: "What are we doing here, Zuzu? Shouldn't we go and warn Maguro and the others?"

Zuzu: (In his duel with Sylvio, Maguro gave it his all to save me and the other girls… Now's my chance to return the favor.)

Zuzu then suddenly handed the bag over to Amitie and said…

Zuzu: "Things could get dicey, Amitie. Head on back to the You Show Duel School."

Amitie: "W-wait, but you don't have a duel disk and deck on-"

Zuzu: "I do, Amitie. I have them on me. Please, just go back to the others and tell them to come here with you. And do so as fast as you can."

Amitie: "O-okay!"

Amitie then started running back to You Show Duel School. This left Zuzu all alone as she breathed in… and out. And then, she opened the door to the warehouse. But, not before being seen by the figure that was lurking in the shadows. The figure was surprised by Zuzu's appearance, as if they recognized her.

?: "...? What is she doing here?"

Inside the warehouse, Sylvio was eating a slice of pie. He had the piece in his mouth when Zuzu opened the door and…

Zuzu: "How about you chew on this, Sylvio. I heard what you were planning from those two!"

Sylvio: "Mmpfh?!"

Sylvio then choked on his pie slice and one of his buddies handed him a bottle of water, which he proceeded to drink from.

Zuzu: "How you're looking to get some payback on Maguro… Well, I'm not gonna let you."

Sylvio: "*cough cough* Can you at least let me eat my pie?"

Zuzu: "Seriously, Sylvio? You call THAT eating? Maybe you should try getting some in your mouth."

Sylvio: "Huh?"

As it turned out, a bit of the pie was stuck to Sylvio's face and one of his buddies handed him a napkin. Sylvio took it and…

Sylvio: "... All right, so… What is it you were having such a hissy fit about?"

Zuzu: "You can forget your plans with Maguro!"

Sylvio: "...?! You're in no position to give-"

Zuzu: "Duel me right here and now instead!"

Sylvio: "Tch. You can't be seri-"

Zuzu: "What's wrong? Afraid that you'll rack up another loss?"

Sylvio: "Will you let me speak, dammit?!"

Zuzu: "Sylvio, actions speak louder than words! So what's it gonna be, huh? We on? Or are you too chicken?"

That last bit Zuzu said made Sylvio's eyebrow twitch.

Sylvio: "I'm not chicken…"

When Sylvio said that, Zuzu shook her head and went…

Zuzu: "Mmm-mmm. No, you're right, you're not. Wanna know why? Because that… would be insulting to a chicken! *chicken sounds*"

Zuzu mocking Sylvio like that made him furious. His fists shook as his head slumped, and then, he raised it and said…

Sylvio: "You asked for it, Zuzu… You're on."

Then, Sylvio silently ordered his buddies to close the warehouse's door. From there, he spoke…

Sylvio: "Aw, what's wrong? You look scared. Now which one of us is chicken?"

Zuzu: "Can it, Sylvio; I'm not scared. If we're going strictly by appearances, then it's still you, 'cause I've seen your bird-brain abilities in action against Maguro."

Sylvio: "*grumble* We'll see who's really crying fowl when this is over. Now, let's get du-!"

Before Sylvio could finish saying that, one of his buddies was knocked to the ground.

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "Ack-! *groan*"

This made Zuzu look back at the door and she saw that it was open. And standing in the doorway, was a figure cloaked in dusky sunlight. This figure was male, and he was wearing a red scarf, mask, and a pair of goggles. He walked through the doorway and went past Zuzu.

Zuzu: "Huh?"

Sylvio: "Who in the- Can't you see that me and her were about to duel?"

?: "Apologies for interrupting…"

Zuzu: "And you are?"

?: "Someone who's on a special mission of sorts… A mission that will be completed no matter what."

Sylvio: "Mission? What the hell are you on about?"

?: "I'm under no obligation to tell you that."

Sylvio: "Then get out of the way! I was going to duel her!"

?: "Sorry, but you'll have to change up your plans."

The mysterious figure took out an unusual-looking duel disk and activated it.

Sylvio: "...? Never seen a duel disk like that one before... Okay, so I assume you'll be dueling for Zuzu here, masked stranger?"

Zuzu: "What? He most certainly will not be! This is my fight, you got that?"

Zuzu started to put her duel disk on her arm, but the figure stopped her and said.

?: "No. Let me handle this guy for you. Okay? I've already put you through enough as is."

As the figure said that, Zuzu got a strange feeling as she stood in confusion.

Zuzu: "Huh?"

Sylvio: "Whatever. It doesn't matter which one of you two duel me here. Let's do this, Mr. Mystery. However, let me say something before we start."

?: "... What is it?"

Sylvio: "Once I win: You have to remove that mask of yours and show us your face."

?: "..."

Sylvio: "... I'll just go ahead and take your brooding silence as a yes. Now then, ready or not…"

? and Sylvio: "Let's duel."

?'s LP: 4000 - Sylvio's LP: 4000

?'s Hand Size Before DP: 5 - Sylvio's Hand Size Before DP: 5

?: "I'll go first."

Sylvio: "By all means. I was hoping that you would take the first move."

?: "...? Whatever. I draw. … I place these five cards face-down."

Sylvio: "Wait, five cards…?"

?: "Yes. With that, I end my turn."

Sylvio had a confused look on his face at first, but then he began to chuckle.

Sylvio: "... *chuckle* If that's all that you had to show for yourself, then this will be easy."

?: "Think of my move as you wish, but it won't matter in the end. I will be the one who wins."

Sylvio: "We'll see about that."

Meanwhile… Amitie had just returned to the duel school and she ran up to her friends.

Amitie: "*pant pant* Everyone, come quick!"

Yuya: "A-Amitie? What is it?"

Amitie: "Yuya, I had to get to you guys fast because there's big trouble!"

Sora: "Is the ice cream okay at least?"

Amitie: "I-I think so…"

Sora: "Okay, I'll just put these tubs in the freezer, then."

Sora took the bag from Amitie and ran off to put the ice cream in the duel school's freezer.

Maguro: "Now, Amitie… Calm down, and tell us what's going on."

Amitie: "*breathes in* *sigh* Okay. It's Zuzu, she went after Sylvio when we found out that he was going to do something to Maguro. So she went to duel Sylvio to protect you..."

Lidelle and Draco: "...?!"

Maguro and Yuya: "Sylvio?!"

Maguro: "He was gonna do something to me?!"

Yuya: "And Zuzu went after him?!"

Maguro: "... Where are they, Amitie?"

Amitie: "I'll show you! Come on!"

Amitie urged them to follow her, and Sora only just got back from his trip to the freezer.

Draco: "Ah-! Sora, we hafta go! Now!"

Sora: "Huh?! Go where?!"

Draco: "Dunno, but we're gonna follow Amitie. Maguro, can you explain it to Sora while we run?"

Maguro: "Yeah, of course!"

And so, Amitie and the others began making their way to the warehouse with haste. Meanwhile… the duel between the mystery duelist and Sylvio continued right where it left off.

?'s LP: 4000 - Sylvio's LP: 4000

?'s Hand Size Before DP: 1 - Sylvio's Hand Size Before DP: 5

Sylvio: "It's time for me to show you how it's done… My turn. Draw! ... First, I think I'll take advantage of your face-down cards. After all, since you have two or more cards in your spell and trap card zone: I can summon this chill villain straight from my hand. Introducing… Escher the Frost Vassal!"

Zuzu: (Huh? Is Sylvio using a new deck? I didn't see that monster when he dueled against Maguro...)

?: "..."

Sylvio: "But I'm not done… Now I'll sacrifice Escher for this cool customer. Make way as I Tribute Summon: Mobius the Frost Monarch!"

Sylvio's Buddy 2: "Aw yeah! The duel just started and Sylvio's already got a big time monster out!"

Sylvio: "And with a big time ability to boot! You see, when Mobius is successfully Tribute Summoned, I can choose up to two spell and trap cards on the field and freeze them out. Let's see you deal with losing the two face-downs you have on my far left!"

Mobius destroyed the two face-downs and Zuzu was shocked. As for the mystery duelist, this didn't seem to faze him whatsoever.

Sylvio: "And unfortunately for you, I'm still just getting started. Next… I activate the spell: Tribute Carnival! Now, since I've successfully executed a Tribute Summon: I can Tribute Summon a second time."

Zuzu: "A second time?! And here I always thought that carnivals were supposed to be fun… I have a bad feeling about whatever's coming next."

Sylvio: "And you ought to. But please, don't take my word for it... See for yourself! I sacrifice Mobius the Frost Monarch… and Tribute Summon his more powerful form: Mobius the Mega Monarch!"

Mobius the Mega Monarch appeared and it towered above everyone. The mystery duelist merely stood in silence as he looked at this monster.

?: "..."

Sylvio: "Now, I know what you're thinking... Don't I need to sacrifice two monsters to Tribute Summon this guy? Nope, because since my Frost Monarch was Tribute Summoned himself, he was able to serve as the whole sacrifice for Mega Monarch all by his lonesome."

Sylvio's Buddies (All 3): "Uh-oh~!"

Sylvio: "And it's only going to get worse for you, Mr. Mystery, because now Mobius the Mega Monarch's special ability activates! When he's successfully Tribute Summoned, I get to choose up to three spell and trap cards on the field and put them under permafrost!"

Sylvio's Buddy 2: "Nice! Hurry up, though! Those face-down cards you're gonna destroy… they can still be activated."

Sylvio: "Actually, that's the best part. You see, since I sacrificed a water attribute monster to Tribute Summon Mega Monarch: Those cards on the field… can't do anything! That is, except get snowed in!"

And so, the rest of the mystery duelist's spells and traps were destroyed from the blizzard-like force of Mobius the Mega Monarch's special ability. Zuzu really had to shield herself from the snow and ice. Even the mystery duelist himself had to shield himself from the cold wind.

Zuzu: "... Wait a minute… I actually felt that. But that can't be… Unless the action in this duel is a lot more real than I thought."

Sylvio: "So… having second thoughts about this duel now, Mr. Mystery? You no longer have any face-downs on your side of the field. And since you have no monsters to protect your precious life points… I can attack you directly without any resistance! Mobius the Mega Monarch, attack Mr. Mystery directly!"

Zuzu: "*gasp* Watch out, you'll get seriously hurt from this!"

?: "... I activate three The Phantom Knights of Shadow Veil spell cards from my graveyard."

Sylvio: "What?"

Sylvio's Buddies (All 3): "Say what?!"

Sylvio: "Mr. Mystery... how can you activate a spell card, let alone three, from your- *gasp* Unless…!"

?: "Unless you triggered their effects, like you just did by declaring a direct attack. So now, I can take the three The Phantom Knights' of Shadow Veil spell cards… and summon them as level four monsters, in defense mode."

Three The Phantom Knights' of Shadow Veils appeared on the mystery duelist's side of the field.

Sylvio's Buddy 3: "I think we might've underestimated this guy a bit…"

Zuzu: (I don't know what's more mysterious here… Who the man behind the mask is, or the way he duels.)

Sylvio: "Fine. So you now have monsters on your field… but that doesn't change a single thing. And you wanna know why? Because… They're not going to be there for long! Mobius the Mega Monarch: Attack and destroy one of the Shadow Veils, with Sleet Spike Smash!"

Mobius the Mega Monarch destroyed the Shadow Veil, and then…

?: "When Shadow Veil is destroyed as a monster, it's banished instead of being sent to the graveyard."

Sylvio: "And that's what's gonna happen to all of them… In due time, of course. But for now, I'll just set this card face-down and end my turn. You survived this round, but rest assured: You won't survive the next one…"

Sylvio's Buddy 2: "That's right, you tell him, Sylvio!"

?: "I won't need to survive your next turn… because I'm ending this duel now."

Sylvio: "Oh, sure you will… Though, I must admit… I'm curious to see how you might get out of this AND win."

?: "Then stand there and watch! And watch closely, because there are better ways to learn the truth about someone than by simply seeing their face. You can learn quite a bit more… by seeing the passion of their play."

Sylvio: "The passion of their play? Don't be ridiculous…"

Sylvio's Buddy 3: "What a complete loser."

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "Seriously, who even talks like that?"

?: "Someone who understands dueling in a way none of you ever will… Someone who duels for more than just themselves… That's what being a true duelist is all about."

Zuzu: "Huh…?"

Sylvio: "Whatever, just take your turn already."

?: "Oh, I will…"

?'s LP: 4000 - Sylvio's LP: 4000

?'s Hand Size Before DP: 1 - Sylvio's Hand Size Before DP: 2

?: "I draw! … I overlay my two level four Shadow Veils in order to build the Overlay Network!"

When Sylvio saw this happening, he lost his cool for a bit.

Sylvio: "Ah-! It can't be…!"

Zuzu: "What is it?"

?: "It's like me... Cloaked in shadows and relentless in its objective. Only, its objective is to destroy… I Xyz Summon… Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!"

Sylvio: "...?! Hrgh! What is this that I'm feeling right now…?!"

As Sylvio said that, the mystery duelist's dragon appeared on the field… and it was jet black. It roared in absolute ferocity and stared at Sylvio with an intimidating look.

Zuzu: "I can't believe what I'm seeing…"

And then, Sylvio started clapping… as if he was actually impressed.

Sylvio: "Very impressive, Mr. Mystery… but this still changes nothing. Your dragon only has 2500 attack points, compared to my Mega Monarch's 2800 attack points."

?: "You think I don't know that? Why would I bother summoning Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon if I didn't have a plan in mind?"

Sylvio: "Fair enough. So, tell me: What IS your plan?"

?: "Using Dark Rebellion's special ability, that's my plan. An Xyz monster's true power comes from the monsters that are used to summon it; its Overlay Units. And, by using one of Dark Rebellion's Overlay Units… until the end of this turn, the attack points of one level five or above monster on your field are cut in half. And then, Dark Rebellion takes those attack points… and adds them to its own attack points!"

Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon used up one of its Overlay Units and Sylvio panicked sightly.

Sylvio: "...! What?! *growl* I don't think so! I won't be upstaged by a nobody duelist for a second time! I activate my face-down: The Monarchs Erupt!"

?: "...?"

Zuzu: "What does that do?"

Sylvio: "Why, I'm quite glad you asked, Zuzu… This powerful trap will make sure that Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon doesn't do anything. See, I can only activate this trap if I don't have any cards in my Extra Deck. Also, I need to have a Tribute Summoned monster on my field. However, once I fulfill those two conditions… The Monarchs Erupt negates the special abilities of all monsters on the field, except those that were Tribute Summoned!"

This play of Sylvio's took the mystery duelist by surprise, and…

?: "What…?!"

Sylvio: "So in other words… your Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon's ability has just been shut down!"

Dark Rebellion's special ability was stopped and the attack points of both monsters remained the same.

Zuzu: "Oh no!"

?: "Damn!"

Sylvio: "If you thought that you could pull the rug out from under me with that parlor trick, then you're sorely mistaken!"

?: "... Hmph. I have no choice but to set this card face-down and end my turn."

Sylvio: "Good."

After Sylvio said that, the mystery duelist spoke to himself in his mind.

?: (The card that I just set, Negate Attack, will put a stop to Mobius the Mega Monarch's attack. And that will buy me some time until I can find a way to destroy the Monarchs Erupt. I just have to hang on for a little longer...)

Sylvio: "And now it's my turn again!"

?'s LP: 4000 - Sylvio's LP: 4000

?'s Hand Size Before DP: 1 - Sylvio's Hand Size Before DP: 2

Sylvio: "I draw! … *chuckle*"

Zuzu: "Huh?"

?: "What's so funny?"

Sylvio: "Oh, nothing… Well, I guess it isn't nothing. See, I just drew the card that will allow me to win this duel. I activate the quick-play spell: The Monarchs Stormforth! Now, once during this turn, if I were to Tribute Summon a Monarch monster, I can use one of your monsters as a sacrifice!"

?: "...?! You can't be serious..."

Sylvio: "Oh, but I am… Hahahahaha! Let's see you deal with the loss of your Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon, because I now sacrifice it to Tribute Summon a monster that's MADE of shadows! Manifest... Caius the Shadow Monarch! And now, Caius' special ability creeps in. Since he was Tribute Summoned, I can choose one card on the field and banish it. And I'm personally looking to get rid of your face-down card!"

Zuzu: "Ah-!"

?: "No…!"

Sylvio: "Oh yes! Caius, do you work!"

Caius banished the mystery duelist's lone face-down card and Sylvio's buddies cheered.

Sylvio's Buddies (All 3): "YEAH!"

Sylvio's Buddy 2: "Right on, Sylvio! Now end this duel!"

Syvio: "Of course. Mobius the Mega Monarch and Caius the Shadow Monarch…!"

Before Sylvio could have his monsters deal a collective lethal blow to the mystery duelist's life points, two other unknown figures appeared. One of them was the guy that Arle and co. saw back in the ruined Heartland City. And as for the other one, he had a blue cloak covering most of his face. He had white hair, and a sword was strapped to the back of his cloak…

Unknown Figure 1: "You won't be finishing him off like that."

Zuzu: "Huh?! Who are they?!"

Sylvio: "Ugh, what now? How many things can go wrong for me today? Who are you two?"

Unknown Figure 2: "We refuse to tell you, fool."

Sylvio: "Fool…?! How dare you... I was the one who was making this masked guy look like a fool! Don't you dare interfere now of all times! I was just about to win!"

Unknown Figure 1: "Sorry, but this duel will have to be cut just short enough for it to be a tie."

Sylvio: "As if I would let that happen! Guys, show those two the door and kick them out!"

Sylvio's Buddies: "Yeah, of course!"

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "We won't let you strangers ruin Sylvio's moment of glory!"

Unknown Figure 2: "Hmph. Trash."

The second unknown figure quickly dispatched Sylvio's buddies by punching them, and he didn't have any issues while doing that.

Zuzu: "*gasp*"

Sylvio: "*growl* Damn it!"

The masked man then looked at other unknown figures, as if he was happy to see them.

?: "Thanks, guys."

Zuzu: (Huh? Are they that masked man's friends?)

Unknown Figure 1: "Save the thanks for when we get out of here."

?: "Wait, I still have questions to ask this Sylvio guy here."

Unknown Figure 2: "Tch. Sure... waste our time, why don't you?"

?: "I'm not going to waste our time with these questions; they are important."

Unknown Figure 2: "... Fine, but make it quick."

?: "I know. … Sylvio."

Sylvio: "*grumble* Yeah? What is it, Mr. Mystery?"

?: "I just have a couple of questions for you…"

The mystery duelist showed a badge to Syvlio, one that was exactly like the latter's.

?: "This badge is from the Leo Institute, is it not? What's your connection to Duel Academy?"

Sylvio: "Duel Academy? Sorry, but I think you lost me there."

?: "Don't play dumb! You are wearing this exact badge on your uniform!"

Sylvio: "But I'm not playing dumb, Mr. Mystery! Everyone who enrolls in the Leo Institute has a badge like it. As for Duel Academy: I have no idea what you're talking about! Is it a place? A thing? Like, what is it?!"

?: "Son of a…! You're useless to me."

The mystery duelist began to walk away from Sylvio, but then…

Sylvio: "W-wait! Don't leave on- Hrgh-!"

Zuzu: "Aaah! What the heck is this?!"

A gust of wind suddenly erupted, which made Syvio and Zuzu shield their faces with their arms. And the next thing those two knew… the mysterious duelist and the unknown figures were gone.

Sylvio: "...! I was so close to winning that duel… DAMN IT!"

Sylvios Buddy 1: "Uh, Sylvio?"

Sylvio: "What?! What is it?"

Sylvio's Buddy 1: "I think I see Maguro, Yuya, and their friends running over here…"

Sylvio: "Oh, for crying out loud! … You got lucky, Zuzu… If it weren't for Mr. Mystery suddenly appearing and trying to hold down the fort for you, I would've given you a swift defeat. And it seems as though me and my buddies have to make a tactical retreat for now. Make no mistake, though: You'll pay for sniffing out my plan! Let's get out of here, guys."

And then, Sylvio and his buddies began to run away by heading over to a normal-sized door at the back end of the warehouse. Zuzu saw this and yelled…

Zuzu: "Hey, get back here, you cowards!"

Sylvio: "You would run away too if you were greatly outnumbered like we're about to be. And rest assured, Zuzu… I'll have my revenge!"

And so… Sylvio and his buddies left the scene and Zuzu was now all alone in the warehouse. Not for long though, because Amitie and co came running through the open front door of the warehouse and they saw Zuzu standing there.

Yuya: "...! Zuzu!"

Zuzu: "Yuya!"

Yuya: "Are you okay?"

Zuzu: "Yeah, I'll be fine…"

Maguro: "What the heck happened here? A lot of stuff is covered in ice and I don't see Sylvio anywhere…"

Zuzu: "That's because he decided to run away after one of his buddies saw you guys coming. A-anyway, I was gonna duel Sylvio, but then… some strange man in a mask came in here to try and help me, and he dueled Sylvio himself."

Amitie: "A strange man in a mask came in and dueled Sylvio?"

Zuzu: "Uh-huh. He seemed to be pretty good... but Sylvio had this new deck and he almost defeated the man. And then there was all this other stuff that happened, which I didn't understand at all."

Maguro: "Hmm… Maybe you should tell us more about what happened while we all walk back to You Show Duel School."

Zuzu: "Yeah, that's probably for the best."

So with that, everyone exited the warehouse and Zuzu told them the rest of what happened. This involved the unusual real feeling of the duel, the masked man, his Xyz monster, the questions he asked Sylvio, his escape before Sylvio could defeat him… and the two unknown figures that the masked man seemed to know. By the time that Zuzu finished describing the events of what happened, everyone made it back to the duel school. From there, they all ate their ice cream… but none of them were happy.

Yuya: "Sylvio has a new deck… and it sounds powerful from what you told us."

Maguro: "I still can't believe he tried to get back at me… And I wanna think he was gonna use that new deck to crush me. Why else would he change decks?"

Draco: "Nevermind that jerkwad. What about the masked guy? Y'know, the one that summoned the black dragon?"

Maguro: "Yeah… Where did he come from?"

Yuya: "And why did he seem to know you, Zuzu?"

Lidelle: "A-and where did he go?"

Zuzu: "I-I don't know… I've never seen him before, but… I wanna go and find him at some point. I need to know what his deal was with trying to save me. And I also wanna find out why he was asking those questions to Sylvio..."

Maguro: "But you said he disappeared, along with those other guys you mentioned… Where would we even look for him?"

The group wasn't sure what to do at this point… That was, until Sora spoke up.

Sora: "Well, if this masked man had an Xyz dragon that was pitch black, like shadows… then if one of us can see something like that, we might be able to find the masked man in question."

Zuzu: "That sounds like a good way to find him."

Yuya: "But we would have to be lucky enough to see his dragon from somewhere... And what if we don't see it at all?"

Sora: "Then we'll simply have a mystery that can't be solved at all. Until we can find this guy… I think it might be best to try and relax after what happened today."

Maguro: "... I think that's for the best. We don't have time to look around the city today, and Yuya and Zuzu will be at prep school again tomorrow. Honestly, we should just focus on doing what we were doing before that whole mess started. And if Sylvio tries to do something to me again, then I'll duel him to make sure that he learns his lesson."

Everyone nodded to Maguro's words and they all finished eating their ice cream. From there, they decided to leave the duel school and separate for the night. Meanwhile, at the Leo Corporation… Declan was in his office, using every resource he had to find things out about Maguro. However, he was unable to find anything on the boy. He soon sat on his chair in slight frustration.

Declan: "I've used everything I had at my disposal, however… I still couldn't find any information surrounding Maguro Sasaki. It's almost as if he's not from this world... But there's no way that can be true. … What if I were to make an arrangement? Maguro was recently added in as a student of You Show Duel School... So perhaps I should send some students from the Leo Institute there, along with myself, in order to gather data. ... It also seems as though some of Maguro Sasaki's friends are not from around here, either... I'll need to look into them as well, since they were all added as students to You Show at the same time as him. I may not know what's going on with these four children, or where they come from… but I will get to the bottom of this mystery."

After he said that to himself, Declan walked out of his office and met up with his mother, Henrietta. Declan's mother also happened to be the chairwoman of the Leo institute. When Declan told her about the lack of information surrounding the group of four recently added students of You Show… she was just as perplexed as he was. And then, Declan brought up his possible plan for getting some information out of those kids.

Declan: "So, what do you think, Mother?"

Henrietta: "Hmm… I would say it's a good idea… Though, it's your call whether you want to execute that plan or not. After all, you are this corporation's CEO."

Declan: "... I'll go through with it. I need to know where those four children came from as soon as possible. And, speaking of them: I'm particularly interested in Maguro Sasaki. This will also be a good chance to see more of how Yuya Sakaki's Pendulum cards work."

Henrietta: "Then I'll make sure that this plan goes through. I'll have everything ready to go before tomorrow."

Declan: "Thank you. That's all I had to say... so I shall leave you to do your duties, Mother."

Declan excused himself and he made his way back to his office, waiting for his plan to come together and prepare itself…

Author's Note: Well, THAT was certainly different from the anime… Sylvio was about to win that duel against the mysterious duelist. Not to mention, there were a LOT of smaller differences from the show... too many to list off. However, safe to say: Sylvio wasn't messing around. So here's the thing, guys… I decided that I wanted to make Sylvio not a joke rival in this. Why? Well, he's SUPPOSED to be one the top student's of the Leo Institute. So naturally, he shouldn't be a pushover, even if he's kind of goofy. And since he's a student of the Leo Institute, he should also have access to cards that are ACTUALLY good.

And because Sylvio used Mobius the Frost Monarch and Mobius the Mega Monarch against "Mr. Mystery" in the anime, I decided that his deck for now should be Monarch. By Monarch, I mean that he'll have access to ANY of the Monarch monsters. From the OGs, to the Domain Monarch monsters. Now, I know what a lot of you guys are going to say: "Are you crazy?! That'll make Sylvio too strong early on!". Don't worry, everyone… I have a bit of a rebuttal here. See, Monarch decks are only really good if they have Domain, Stormforth, as well as three copies of Pantheism (Pantheism is the draw spell of the archetype). But since characters in the anime almost always play only one copy of each card in their decks, Sylvio's Monarch deck shouldn't be too powerful. Besides, the Monarchs are COOL and they can represent the under-utilized Tribute Summoning method.

I mean, I love the Monarchs as a whole. Caius is my favorite, and Mobius is my second favorite. I also like Raiza and Erebus quite a bit. As for most of the rest of the Monarchs, they're all right… I don't like Thestalos, but I recognize that it was at least a good card in old-school Yu-Gi-Oh!. I'm getting off-track here, though. Point is: I thought Monarch would be a great deck for Sylvio to use here for the time being. You guys will get to see him summon other Monarchs later on. Will Monarch be his signature deck in this crossover story? Maybe? Truth be told, even I don't know for sure at this point. In the actual anime, Sylvio's signature deck eventually came in the form of Abyss Actor. I might have him go back and forth between the two decks once he gets his hands on the Abyss Actor cards. So until then, Sylvio will have Monarch as his personal deck.

Aside from all that, we got a bit of what's happened to Arle, Raffina, Sig, and Lemres. They're now looking around for a place to hide in the ruined city of Heartland. But… what about that guy that supposedly saw the four fall from the sky? And what about the figures that got the masked man out of the warehouse? Well, you guys will get answers to those questions in due time. However, for now… it seems Arle and co. are okay. As for Amitie and co., though… they have quite a bit on their plates. And guess what? They'll have even more on their plates when Declan's plan comes to fruition. With that said… how will this plan be done? What will Declan have up his sleeve to get information from Amitie, Lidelle, Maguro, and Draco? Next chapter, Chapter 4: You Show Vs. Leo (Part 1).