Responses to Reviews
Thank you to HunterHQ, Noobmaster, Guest, ZeroMK7, Electriuser, E.T. 2000, Portal, Decode Talker, and Guest for reviewing Chapter 20 of Obscured Truth.
Hello, everyone! Before I get to answering reviews, I want to thank everyone for the positive reviews. I'm glad that everyone is excited for the Cyberse Hunt arc, which will lead right into the Tower of Hanoi arc. Also, if you're interested, I want to let you know that I recently updated Roxy's Reports, which contain the duelists from Chapter 20.
And with that, let's answer some reviews:
HunterHQ: It's obvious that Ai can fly, but remember, he's locked inside of Yusaku's Duel Disk, so he can't fly by himself. And to answer your question regarding the tower, it doesn't have enough energy yet. There also are other things that the Tower needs before it can be launched (think of it like a new building if you're confused). As for your theory, you never know.
Noobmaster: Anything can happen. As for your idea, I might actually implement it.
Guest: If you want the answer to your question, then I encourage you to keep reading.
ZeroMK7: You'll see more Charisma Duelists in the future.
Electriuser: I'm glad you liked the chapter. And I also appreciate your feedback for Jeanne. I'll do a better job next time she duels. After all, it was the first time I wrote a Mekk-Knight duel.
E.T. 2000: I'm glad you not only liked the chapter, but that you understood what I said to you from your review back in Chapter 19. Yes. Each deck symbolizes the user, whether it's their personality, past, behavior, traits, or their ideals. As for the Crisis, while I won't dive into specifics, I will say that the Ignis War has a role in setting it up (if you're confused, picture it like a puzzle coming together). And thanks for pointing out that error.
Portal: What I will confirm with you is that the Playmaker vs. Revolver duel will still happen (after all, that duel is actually important for the series). I've also established back in Chapter 5 that Infearno will be Raguel's main rival for Season 1. And yes, Dancho will learn how to Synchro Summon in Season 2. As for your other theories, all I'll say is that anything can happen.
Decode Talker: There won't be an opening for the Tower of Hanoi arc, but there will be one starting from Season 2.
Guest: Yes.
All right, everyone. With reviews out of the way, I hope you enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 21: Casino Royale
On the way to Den Academy, in the morning...
"What exactly are you doing, Herald?" Yuhiro asked Herald. Right now, he was walking to school along with Progleo. Herald, on the other hand...
"It's this crazy game." Herald replied, his hands on Yuhiro's tablet. "Who knew such a simple game can be so hard?"
"Are you saying that the game called Piano Tiles is hard for you?"
"Of course not!" Herald immediately answered, turning to Yuhiro. "It's just that I'm on Level 100, and at some point, when I go through the level-."
"Let me." Yuhiro said, taking back his tablet from Herald. As he started up the level and began playing it, three thoughts formed in his mind.
One: Reidrith and Jeanne Azaria. Yesterday, Herald theorized that SOL may have manufactured Cyberse cards back when Cyberse World was under their management and they had Data Material to make LINK VRAINS grow. If that was the case, then the both of them were in deep trouble, as it was likely the Hanoi saw their duels as well as the public.
Two: Project VIII. Before the duels yesterday, Yusaku told him about Project VIII, as well as a possible lead they may have. The FBI, he thought. It was very likely that they had answers because when they had the opportunity to tell the public, they only could disclose what was allowed. The question was: What exactly did the FBI not want to tell the public?
Three: Percival and Demeter. From what Yusaku told Yuhiro, Percival was a research intern, who was there along with the other scientists during the Lost Incident. Yuhiro, just like Yusaku, had every right to be angry at Percival. However, it was what Yusaku said next that surprised him. He knew one of the kidnapped children, and couldn't do anything to save them. Exactly which child did Percival know?
As for Demeter, she was a complete mystery. Was she also among the researchers ten years ago? Why was she helping Watchman? While Yuhiro wanted answers to those questions, it was probably best to set them aside until later. After all, the Hanoi are currently the main threat, not Watchman and his crew.
"And done." Yuhiro said, completing the 100th level of Piano Tiles for Herald.
"WHAT?" Herald said in shock. "But how?"
"Don't know." Yuhiro answered, shrugging his shoulders. "I think that's enough gaming for now." Herald groaned as he put his tablet in his backpack. That was the other thing that recently developed.
A few hours after dinner yesterday, Yuhiro went upstairs to finish his homework for the day. Unfortunately, Herald, who was curious, ended up opening the Piano Tiles app on his tablet and started playing the game for several hours on end. As a result, Yuhiro had to move his Duel Disk to the living room in order to finish his work. Who knew that Herald would be into video games, he thought, chuckling to himself.
Yuhiro snapped out of his thoughts when Progleo started pulling him to an intersection. When he looked ahead, he understood why. There was a person at the intersection that Progleo liked.
"Oh, good morning Progleo." Aoi said in surprise, smiling as she bent down to pet the cub.
"Good morning, Aoi!" Progleo responded, happy to see Aoi again.
When Aoi looked up, she saw Yuhiro looking at her. She immediately changed her facial expression to her usual one as she stood up. "Good morning as well, Furutani."
Yuhiro nodded in greeting. "Good morning, Zaizen." The two of them, along with a very happy Progleo, crossed the sidewalk. After a few minutes, Aoi broke the silence.
"Can I ask you a question, Furutani?"
Yuhiro's face turned pale immediately upon hearing that. Sensing that he was disturbed, Progleo turned to Aoi and growled at her. However, Yuhiro was able to regain control of himself at the last second.
"It's okay, little buddy. I'm okay now." Yuhiro assured Progleo, kneeling down and petting the cub. He then turned to Aoi. "The last time you asked me a question, it resulted in me having an anxiety attack. If it weren't for the healing stim Rachel gave me, who knows how much longer I would have went through that."
"I wasn't going to ask you about the you-know-what." Aoi clarified, crossing her arms. "I was actually going to ask what motivated you to become Raguel."
"Oh," was all Yuhiro said as he stood up. "I'll tell you, but in exchange, you have to answer one of my questions. Deal?"
Aoi nodded. "Deal. So what motivated you exactly to become Raguel in the first place?"
The two of them resumed walking while Yuhiro thought over Aoi's question before responding. "You remember after our duel, when I said that I had a friend who wanted me to accept your challenge?"
"Yeah?"
"Roxy was that friend." Yuhiro continued. "But I also did it for her niece as well."
"Her niece?" Aoi repeated. "What does Roxy's niece have to do with you becoming Raguel?"
Apparently, Aoi's question struck a nerve with Yuhiro, as it caused him to grit his teeth.
"It has a lot actually to do with her," Yuhiro spat out. "Three years ago, Roxy took me to visit her niece in the hospital, who I learned was involved in the Lost Incident, just like Playmaker and I."
Aoi covered her mouth in shock upon hearing this. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know."
"Well, better to know now than never." Yuhiro pointed out. "Where was I? Anyway, when I met her, I felt that I owed Roxy for putting up with me all those years. I wanted them to experience happiness with each other again, after many years of suffering."
"I see," was all Aoi said, as she processed this information. "Roxy and her niece must be lucky that you're in both of their lives."
"And I'm lucky to be a part of theirs." Yuhiro replied, a small smile on his face. "After all, if I weren't, who knows what would have happened to me?" Noticing that he was smiling, Yuhiro changed his facial expression back to his usual one.
"Hold on a minute!" Aoi suddenly said, getting Yuhiro's attention. "I have another question for you. How did you know about Baira's location that day when I went to confront her?"
Yuhiro sighed, while Herald chuckled. Busted. "I'll admit, I listened in on your conversation with Ghost Girl. And I have to say, I'm surprised she approached you in real life and gave the information for free."
"I'm surprised she even approached me at all." Aoi commented. "I'm not sure why she did it, but if it weren't for her, I probably wouldn't have logged back into LINK VRAINS at all."
"And you wouldn't have been able to help end the 'Another' threat as well, Zaizen." Herald added. "It's weird. How the people we hate end up helping us grow."
"Hate?" Aoi repeated, raising an eyebrow and looking at Yuhiro. "Did something happen between you and Ghost Girl?"
Yuhiro groaned. He did not want to talk about what happened between him and Ghost Girl with Aoi of all people. She would never understand what betrayal feels like. But considering that he'd have to tell someone eventually, it was better that he told her than anyone else. "Alright, fine. I'll tell you. What is it you want to know?"
Aoi thought for a bit, then said, "When did the two of you meet? Was it in the real world or in LINK VRAINS?"
"It was first in LINK VRAINS, two years ago. However, Roxy got the chance to meet her real-world identity, Emma, in the real world first." Yuhiro answered. "You see, while I was at school, Monty contacted her to meet his newest worker on the black market, who ended up being Ghost Girl. After Roxy played her part in the arrest of an abusive asshole named Travis, Ghost Girl ended up being impressed with her skills. And the two became best friends not long after."
"That must have been very nice. But I'm not sure how that relates to you."
"Well, once I got back from school," Yuhiro continued, "Monty paired Ghost Girl and I up immediately for an assignment. He called it Operation: Track and Retrieve because of a rare commodity that appeared in the underworld of LINK VRAINS. In other words, Ghost Girl and I were told to retrieve said commodity from the client if he wasn't willing to bargain for it."
"What happened? And what exactly was this 'commodity'?"
"Ghost Girl and I learned that the commodity was an avatar enhancer, which gave your avatar in LINK VRAINS artificial abilities. Unfortunately, it turned out there were two avatar enhancers in existence, and they were in possession of some delinquents who aspired to be crime lords. So after bargaining didn't work, Ghost Girl and I dueled the delinquents for the avatar enhancers and won." Yuhiro took a breath as he recalled the events. "Long story short, Monty was happy with our success, and gave us half more each than what he promised. I'll admit I was impressed with Ghost Girl's skills as a hacker and as a duelist." And the only other person I'm impressed with is Playmaker, he thought.
"We met a few more times in LINK VRAINS after that. We also did several jobs together, usually for Monty. I helped her improve on her hacking and fighting skills, and she taught me how I can improve on stealth and reconnaissance. What I liked about working for the black market is that jobs tend to be fair. If it's necessary, then a boss will hire more people, and will ensure to tell anyone that's already been hired. After all, it's better to cooperate and get the job done than fight amongst yourselves."
"So what caused your friendship to fall apart?"
Yuhiro scowled as he recalled the memory. "A year ago, Monty paired Ghost Girl and I up for an urgent assignment called Operation: Extraction. A crime syndicate called the Landios Confederation kidnapped a well-known man on the black market named Hector Marino, who had control over a weapons business. If they succeeded in making Hector relinquish his control over it, they'd be able to take over the black market by force. Therefore, Ghost Girl and I were assigned a hefty sum to rescue him. Unfortunately, we weren't the only ones given the assignment." He narrowed his eyes further and growled as the image of that man appeared in his mind. Damn you, Blood Shepherd, Yuhiro thought.
"What do you mean? Who else was assigned?" Aoi soon noticed that Yuhiro stopped talking. "Is everything alright Furutani?"
Yuhiro opened his mouth, but then closed it upon looking ahead. "I'll continue later," he said. "Not at school." Aoi looked up ahead, and was surprised that they made it to Den Academy.
Making sure that he was a safe distance away from school, Yuhiro knelt down to Progleo's level. "Alright, little buddy. Time to get back into the Duel Disk."
Progleo's ears went down upon hearing that. "But can't I go inside with you?"
"No. And you know why." Yuhiro told the cub. And Progleo crawled right back into Yuhiro's Duel Disk.
"Do you think Playmaker has a sentient Cyberse creature like you, Furutani?" Aoi asked, as Yuhiro stood up.
"Who knows?" Yuhiro replied. "Anyway, I'll see you in class."
"Same here." The two teenagers headed into the main building, but unbeknownst to them, Yusaku was watching them.
"Do you think we should talk to Furutani and Herald about what we saw yesterday?" Ai asked, emerging from Yusaku's backpack.
"At lunch." Yusaku responded. "And stay in the backpack. You don't want to get spotted, do you?"
"I suppose you make a good point," Ai said, returning to the backpack.
As Yusaku walked into Den Academy, his frown deepened.
How did Jeanne Azaria and Reidrith get Cyberse monsters? he wondered. Hopefully, Furutani and Herald know some information about this. Suddenly, another thought appeared in Yusaku's mind. The Hanoi will most likely target them as they have Cyberse cards. Which meant that Yusaku had another chance of finding, and hopefully defeating Revolver for good.
A few hours later, in the afternoon...
Yuhiro was looking over his Introduction to Design homework for the weekend on his tablet as he took a bite from his lunch (much to Herald's misery, as he was itching to beat the 100th level of Piano Tiles on his own). The teacher gave the class the remainder of class time to get started on it, which involved identifying different design elements that were involved in the construction of buildings. Although Yuhiro knew this wouldn't help in his work as Raguel, that didn't mean it couldn't be useful later.
"Furutani."
Yuhiro turned his head, and saw Yusaku take the empty seat across from him. "Good afternoon, Fujiki."
"Did I disturb you?"
He shook his head. "I was just looking over my homework. What's up?"
"How do you think Reidrith and Jeanne Azaria got their Cyberse cards?" Yusaku immediately asked, getting straight to the point.
Yuhiro thought it over before responding. "Herald has this theory that SOL may have manufactured Cyberse cards back when Cyberse World was under their management and they had Data Material to make LINK VRAINS grow."
"Which would have likely occurred before the Hanoi attacked the Cyberse World..." Yusaku muttered. "And since they have Cyberse cards, it's likely that the Hanoi will mostly target them."
"So you're saying there's a good chance they'll appear?" Yuhiro asked, to which Yusaku nodded. "While I do hope that's the case, it just doesn't add up."
"Whatever it may be, we should both be vigilant about this." Yusaku said. Even if it were a small chance the Hanoi could appear, it was better that than nothing.
"Agreed." Yusaku was about to get up from his seat when Yuhiro spoke up.
"Hold on, Fujiki." Yuhiro pulled out a slip of paper and gave it to Yusaku.
"What's this?"
"Encrypted chat coordinates." Yuhiro answered. "For later today. Roxy hopes to interview you, Kusanagi, and Ai if possible."
Yusaku gave a small chuckle. "I see. Tell her that we'll be there after school today."
"Will do." Yusaku got up from his seat and walked away from it. Yuhiro, meanwhile, fired off a quick text to Roxy saying that Yusaku got the coordinates. Seconds later, he got a reply from her.
Glad to see he's looking forward to the interview, the text read. Hopefully, I should be able to interview them. Otherwise, you'll have to do it for me. Okay?
After texting Roxy that he's flexible with doing the interview in case she wasn't available, he put his phone back in his backpack. Yuhiro frowned to himself as he replayed the conversation he had with Yusaku in his mind. Just what was the Hanoi's plan with the Cyberse cards? Will they risk appearing again just to destroy them? Or did they have another plan for them?
Crap, he thought, as he looked at the clock, which showed that there was five minutes until the next class. Knowing he could try and solve the questions in his mind later, Yuhiro got up from his seat and headed to his next class.
Elsewhere, at Uchida Industries...
"Mr. Uchida! Mr. Uchida!"
Emon was at a press conference, where he was to announce the newest building project from Uchida Industries. And to everyone's surprise, he announced that the building would first be revealed to the citizens of LINK VRAINS. By doing this, the company hoped to achieve three objectives. One: To gain the attention of young duelists who use LINK VRAINS. Two: To demonstrate other uses for Data Material, thus bringing a cleaner, more efficient LINK VRAINS. Three: To help not only pave the way for humanity's future, but, in the words of the company's slogan, "make the impossible possible".
"Yes?" Emon said, pointing to a female reporter.
"Mr. Uchida," the female reporter said, "what exactly will be used for this building project?"
"I'm glad you asked." Emon replied. "This tower will be built using Uchida Industries' newest metal: the Dascium metal. By applying the metal to the tower, it will reinforce its construction, thus preventing it from being damaged or destroyed." He then noticed a male reporter with freckles and orange hair raise a hand. "Yes?"
"Mr. Uchida," the male reporter said, "in your opinion, how do you think the people in LINK VRAINS, as well as SOL Technologies, will respond to these news?"
"If I'm being honest, I expect several different reactions." Emon answered. "For the young duelists in LINK VRAINS, I want to get their attention. I want them to learn about Uchida Industries and what the company is doing. And ultimately, I want them to choose this company for their careers in the future. After all, we're living in a world where networking matters, correct?" He got some murmurs and chuckles from the audience in response. "As for SOL Technologies, we're business rivals. They may try to get your attention away from us, but I promise we will work tirelessly to meet your needs. Next question?" He then noticed a female reporter with short, light brown hair raise a hand. "Yes?"
"Mr. Uchida," the female reporter said, "with the emergence of the Knights of Hanoi, how will they impact the development of the tower? Do you think they'll plan to use it for their nefarious methods?" And several reporters suddenly started asking the same question, causing friction in the air.
"Everyone, please listen!" Emon said, silencing everyone. "As the head of Uchida Industries, I have faith in Playmaker and the others to stop the Hanoi, just like you do. And to ease your worries, I will personally oversee security efforts for the tower." He looked at his watch. This press conference was eating up too much of his time, and he had to get important work done. "No more questions."
Emon then turned around and entered Uchida Industries, with many reporters and photographers attempting to follow him. However, they were immediately blocked by agents.
"What is with people these days?" Emon muttered to himself, as he walked to the elevators. But before he could reach them, his phone started vibrating, causing him to pull it out of his pocket.
"Yes?"
"My apologies, sir," a young man said on the other end, "but you have an unexpected visitor. He urgently wants to see you."
"Tell him to wait outside of my office." Emon told the young man before hanging up. The last thing I need is an unexpected visitor, he thought, as he went into the elevator and used it to go up to the sixth floor.
Once he got there, he immediately headed straight to his office. However, it turned out that there was no one near the door. Raising an eyebrow, he opened the door and went in slowly into his office before closing the door behind him. Upon looking around, Emon let out a breath of relief as he went to sit in his office chair, knowing that he wouldn't have any unexpected meetings to deal with. Unfortunately, he couldn't have been anymore wrong.
"My, you're anxious, aren't you Emon?"
Emon got a heart attack upon hearing that. He immediately turned around, and saw the same fair skinned man with blue eyes he previously saw in the Hanoi Stronghold. The only difference was that he was wearing a gray coat, with a white shirt, black vest, gray pants, and brown shoes.
"You definitely live up to being a specter, don't you, Youta Itsuki?" Emon asked, identifying the individual.
"Of course I live up to being a specter." Youta answered, extending his right hand to Emon. "After all, its what I do best."
Emon smirked as he shook Youta's hand. "I expected Ryoken to visit at some point today. I'm guessing you're here because he's busy?"
"That's precisely correct." Youta confirmed, as he headed to the chair near Emon's desk and sat in it. "Ryoken wanted to know the construction progress regarding the Tower, and if you were able to find any information regarding our Cyberse problem."
"The Tower's construction is going according to schedule, and the public doesn't suspect a thing." Emon said. "I've also found something interesting recently as well."
"Oh? And what that may be?"
"This." Emon turned his laptop over to Youta, which showed coordinates. "I've identified the location of the Cyberse card called World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy. Turns out it's secretly guarded by SOL Technologies."
"Is that so?" Youta said, smirking. "In that case, perhaps we should-."
"A frontal assault, while intriguing, won't do it." Emon interrupted, surprising Youta. "And when I tried to hack into the vault, I was somehow kicked out. Which leads to an interesting theory. Perhaps, like my 'Burning Abyss' monsters, World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy is a sentient creature that somehow detected my presence and kicked me out. After all, SOL Technologies' security system is usually easy to get into, wouldn't you agree?"
"It is something to consider." Youta agreed, putting a hand on his chin. "What if we were to find the individual who designed the vault?"
"While that would take some time, if that were the case, we'll be able to access the vault." Emon answered.
"And therefore, start the tower ahead of schedule." Youta finished, standing up. "Thank you for the information, Emon. I will inform Master Ryoken right away." He was about to head for the door and leave when Emon spoke up.
"How exactly did you get into Uchida Industries? You know you need a pass, right?"
Youta held up an ID as he turned his body to look at Emon. "You can thank the world of hacking for that. If I were you, I'd tighten your cyber security systems." And Youta left the office without saying another word.
After ensuring that there were no more meetings in his schedule, Emon resumed his work on his laptop. Youta, he thought. You think that callous attitude will help you in your service towards the Hanoi, don't you? If I were you, I'd be careful. Because one misstep, and it can lead to your undoing.
A few hours later, on the way home after school...
As Yuhiro walked home with Progleo, he noticed Aoi approach him. "Do you need something?" he asked. As he kept walking, she fell in step beside him.
"I wanted to continue our conversation from earlier," Aoi replied. "About what caused your friendship with Ghost Girl to fall apart."
"You did promise her, remember?" Herald pointed out, emerging from Yuhiro's Duel Disk. "And can I please play the Piano Tiles game on your tablet now?"
"No. Not until we get home." Yuhiro told Herald, causing him to groan in disappointment. He turned his head to face Aoi. "You remember how I said that Ghost Girl and I weren't the only ones given the assignment?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, it turned out that Monty had to hire one of the most dangerous bounty hunters for the job as well." Yuhiro continued. "In LINK VRAINS, everyone called him Blood Shepherd, and he's known for being relentless in his hunts, as well as being very intelligent in hacking and dueling. There's also rumors that he worked in the military, where he interrogated rogue AI's. Ultimately, if there's one thing we agreed on, it's this: Blood Shepherd is someone who's willing to do anything to complete his goal, no matter how horrible it was." Aoi slightly gasped upon hearing that.
"I can't believe that, other than the Hanoi, there's someone out there who has no morals." Aoi said, processing the information. "But how does this 'Blood Shepherd' fit in to your history with you and Ghost Girl?"
"Zaizen, until that assignment, I didn't know that Ghost Girl worked with Blood Shepherd before, and knowing about him beforehand would have saved me a headache." Yuhiro replied. "By the time the three of us got into the Landios Confederation, things went straight to hell."
"What happened?"
Yuhiro grit his teeth as the memory came back to him. "In the midst of a firefight to save Hector, I learned from him that Ghost Girl was hired by someone else to steal the data from Landios, as well as destroy the headquarters to shut their operations down. I also realized that she was responsible for screwing the entire operation up." He chuckled to himself. "I thought she had some honor, but I guess I was wrong in the end."
"You couldn't have known, Furutani." Aoi gently said, hoping to cheer him up.
"As soon as I escaped from Landios," Yuhiro continued, ignoring what Aoi said, "I told Roxy everything that happened. She said that we'd talk about it once I returned to the real world. Unfortunately, things went further downhill."
"What do you mean?"
"A few days after the fiasco, Roxy went to confront Emma about what happened. It soon turned into an argument, which led to them breaking off their friendship." Yuhiro clarified. "The thing is, I didn't want Roxy to lose her friendship with Emma over me. I was actually happy that she had a friend, and I think her being friends with Emma made life for her easier."
"...Roxy must really care a lot about you to do that, wouldn't you agree?"
"Yup." Yuhiro agreed. "And luckily for us, I managed to get payback on Emma for her betrayal by beating her in a duel."
"The best part," Progleo added, "was that I got to pounce on the mean lady, like she was-." Suddenly, something got his attention. "A SQUIRREL!" And the cub started running at the squirrel, causing Yuhiro to lose his grip on the leash.
"Progleo!" Yuhiro said, running after the cub. "What did I tell you about squirrels? WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT SQUIRRELS?"
Aoi stopped walking upon seeing the predicament. Yuhiro Furutani, Aoi thought. You may appear indifferent, but deep down, I can see that you have a big heart, and that you care. Her thoughts then turned to that of a blue and pink haired young man, a small smile forming on her lips. If only you were like that, Fujiki...
Elsewhere, in the evening...
"We should be there soon, Ryoken." Emon said to the male individual in the backseat.
"Thank you, Emon," Ryoken said. Ryoken wore a pink V-neck shirt underneath a light grey suit jacket, with black trousers that ended above his ankles, along with white shoes. He also had a tattoo of a red triangle on his right hand.
"Ugh," the male individual in the passenger seat said. "Why can't I drive? You know that I'm the Hanoi's Secretary, correct? And as Secretary, shouldn't one of my responsibilities be to drive the Hanoi members to real-life locations?" This individual was of medium height, with brown eyes, and yellow hair with bangs at the front. He wore business casual clothing.
"It's because Emon arranged the meeting, Takuya." Youta answered, who was sitting in the back beside Ryoken. "Besides, one look at you, and the people will assume that you're too young to be in the Den City Casino."
"Young?" Takuya repeated. "Says you. You're a year younger than Ryoken and I. If anything, only Emon is legally allowed entry into the Den City Casino."
"Will the both of you please stop?" Ryoken asked. "The three of us may not be old enough to enter a casino, but I have faith that Emon took care of that problem, correct?"
"I did, Ryoken." Emon confirmed. "I hacked into the passes so that the three of you are the age required to gain entry."
"My apologies for that disturbance, Master Ryoken." Youta said. "I was simply answering Takuya's question."
"It's of no concern, Youta." Ryoken responded. "Now isn't the time to be fighting amongst ourselves. If tonight is successful, we'll have more allies to launch our plan."
The others nodded in agreement.
"It appears that we've arrived." Emon announced, as they made their way to the entrance. A guard wearing a tuxedo approached his car.
"Your ID please?" the man asked.
"Of course." Emon handed the man his ID, and upon seeing it, he widened his eyes in surprise.
"Oh. Mr. Uchida. We didn't expect you to arrive early. Please, allow me." He opened the door so Emon could step out.
"I've brought three others with me." Emon reminded the man.
"Oh, yes. My apologies." The man then went and opened the doors for Takuya, Ryoken, and Youta. "Shall I park the car for you, sir?"
"If you please." Emon then pressed a few buttons on his phone. When the guard checked his phone, he learned that he got an e-transfer. "This should be enough to keep the car secure and ready for us to go, I hope?"
"It is," the man confirmed. "I hope you and your friends have a good time." The man then drove the car to the parking lot nearby the casino.
"Did you just bribe that guard?" Takuya asked Emon, who nodded. "Huh. I didn't expect you to do that."
"You never know what someone is capable of, Takuya." Emon replied. "Remember that." The four men then approached a clerk at a kiosk, who was checking several ID's. The clerk was also accompanied by two men in black suits.
"Your ID's please," the clerk said to Emon, Ryoken, Takuya, and Youta. After Emon collected the ID's, he handed them over to the clerk, who looked at the three young men with an eyebrow raised. "Aren't you three a bit too young to go into a casino?"
"I assure you, it's no big deal." Emon told the clerk, as he handed him four tickets. "Rather, the four of us have an appointment, and it would be rude of you to keep us from it, don't you agree?"
Upon looking at the tickets, the clerk's eyes widened. "Oh, y-yes. You're absolutely correct." The clerk turned to one of the men in a black suit. "Enzo! Escort them to see the boss."
Enzo nodded as he went to the door and opened it. "Right this way, gentleman."
"I can't you got us inside a casino, Emon." Youta said, as he and the others went inside the casino.
The casino on the inside was lit up quite brightly with many lights. On one side of the casino, there were several slot machines, along with a few tables for card games. On the other, there were seats where people could place bets on horse races that were going on at another section of the world. There were also roulette and coin games as well.
And at the center was a large dome, which contained an elevator. That was where Enzo was leading them.
"Emon's many years of expertise in the field of business have helped us." Ryoken pointed out, as they were walking. "Not only has he provided the funds for our operations, but his skills with communication are very good as well. Especially if you're the head of a multi-million dollar corporation."
"Thank you, Ryoken." Emon said. "I appreciate it very much."
The four men and Enzo went into the elevator, which went down a floor before stopping. Once they got out, Enzo started talking.
"Now a word of advice: The boss, who you're about to meet, is sophisticated with impeccable taste. As long as you're all on your best manners, then it will all go well. Otherwise... Well, you'll probably figure it out before you're dead." He opened the door for the others. "Good luck."
There were three men inside the room that Emon and the others went into, which had a poker table. While two of them wore black suits, the other, who looked like a young, male adult, sat on a red, velvet chair. He had relatively pale skin, with blood red eyes and platinum blond hair that was styled over his left eye, hiding it from view. He wore a black-hooded jacket with golden trims and a navy blue t-shirt with the symbols from the four suits of playing cards on each corner. He also wore silver jeans that were held up by a black belt with a golden buckle, along with grey combat boots. Suddenly, a blue and black serpent with a big red eye on its head slithered into the room, as though it were guarding him.
"Easy, Basilius," the young man said to the serpent. "They are our guests, and guests aren't food. At least for now."
"He kind of looks like a vampire." Takuya whispered to Emon.
"Be quiet." Emon harshly whispered back. He then approached the man in the red, velvet chair and offered him his hand. "You must be Akihiko Akutagawa. I'm glad we can meet on this fabulous evening."
"Same here." Akihiko replied, getting up from his chair and shaking Emon's hand. "I do apologize for Basilius's behavior. He's rather tense with new people at first."
"It's a duel monster, isn't it?" Emon asked, surprising Akihiko for a brief moment. "Rest assured, I have several of them myself." He then gestured to the other men behind him. "This is Ryoken Kogami, Youta Itsuki, and Takuya Naegi."
"So you're Dr. Kogami's son..." Akihiko said, as he stepped forward and offered his hand to Ryoken. "I'm truly sorry for your loss. The fact that someone with a great mind as his, who died from a coma, must have been a shock to you."
Ryoken, who was tense at the comment, shook Akihiko's hand at that comment. "Thank you for your kind words. He truly was someone who can change the world."
Emon, sensing that Ryoken was off, started talking. "Uh, Akihiko? You do recall why we wanted to meet with you, correct?"
Akihiko turned around, his hands behind his back. "Of course. You seek my help for something grand, something spectacular, something that will rock the world forever."
"We seek a partnership with you," Ryoken clarified, getting straight to the point as Akihiko walked to the poker table. "If you help us, we will pay you handsomely for your assistance."
"That does sound tempting." Akihiko pondered over the offer as four cards suddenly appeared in his right hand. "Let's say these four cards I hold in your hand represent each of you." Almost immediately, eight cards appeared in the other hand. "However, from what I heard and saw in LINK VRAINS, you have a bunch of pests that keep getting in your way, which represents these eight cards in case you didn't know. The cards in my left hand outnumber the ones in my right hand. Which leads to a conclusion: Are you truly strong enough to get rid of those pests?"
"You dare question the Hanoi's strength?" Ryoken growled, but Youta put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"What exactly are you saying, Akihiko?" Youta asked.
"I'm saying I doubt your strength and intelligence." Akihiko stated. "All I ask for is reassurance that you have them. Which is why..." He gestured to the poker table behind him. "I challenge one of you to a game of poker. Beat me, and I'll agree to partner with you."
"Leave this to me!" Takuya immediately said. "I will gladly accept the challenge." He walked over to one of the seats at the poker table, while Akihiko sat in the other.
One of the men in a black suit went over to the poker table and pulled out a deck of cards. As he shuffled the deck in various ways, he slightly turned his head to Akihiko and nodded at him before finishing. "Gentlemen. Here are your five cards." The man dealt five cards each to Takuya and Akihiko. He then gave each of them a series of poker chips.
After Takuya looked at his hand, he decided to put a small amount of his poker chips at the middle of the table.
"How come you aren't playing poker?" Youta asked Emon.
"It's because Takuya, while obnoxious, has proven himself a superior poker player compared to me." Emon admitted. "I trust that he'll pull through."
"Boy, you're ambitious." Akihiko commented, as he put a small amount of his poker chips at the middle of the table. "But the cards ultimately determine the fate of the player, don't you agree?" Akihiko then put down a two pair.
"Yes. But..." Takuya put down a three of a kind, "I think that mastery of cards helps with your luck, right?" Akihiko smirked as he, along with Takuya, returned the cards to the deck. While the dealer shuffled the cards and handed both players five cards, Takuya collected his winnings.
"So Takuya won round one..." Youta muttered.
"But that was just the first round," Ryoken commented, as he crossed his arms. "Anything can happen in a game of poker."
"Let's see what we got here..." Takuya muttered to himself, looking at his hand. He then placed his bet at the middle of the poker table.
"Oh, great hand!" Akihiko said to himself, placing his bet at the middle of the poker table. He then took a drink before throwing down his hand. "I bet you can't beat my flush."
"Ah, nuts. You're right!" Takuya said, his eyes widened in surprise. "All I got is this straight hand. Guess you win this round." Akihiko then proceeded to collect his winnings as both men returned their hands back to the deck.
The dealer then proceeded to shuffle the deck for a third time before dealing five cards for each person. However, the dealer winked to Akihiko as he dealt the cards to him. Takuya pretended not to notice as he looked at his hand. He thinks he's beat me, but we will see very soon, Takuya thought, as he quickly exchanged the card in his hand with one in his sleeve.
"I don't like that look in Akihiko's eye." Youta whispered to Emon. "Something's not right."
"I bet that Takuya has everything under control." Emon whispered back.
"All right, my friend. The game is about to end." Akihiko said, as he placed his bet. "And to ensure this, I'm betting everything for this final round."
"Everything? Oh, you must be daring." Takuya responded. "I'd be a poor sport indeed if I didn't accept your fair wager." He proceeded to put his bet at the middle of the poker table.
"Well, at least you're a fair sport about it." Akihiko then threw down his hand, which was a full house. "Read them and weep!"
Takuya looked at the cards that were thrown down for a brief moment. "An impressive play. But..." He then smirked as he played his hand of cards. "I got four of a kind."
Akihiko looked at the hand as a mix of confusion and anger appeared on his face. "YOU CHEATED!" He then flipped the poker table over, causing Takuya to jump to the ground for safety.
"Technically, we both cheated. I just did it better." Takuya said, putting a hand on his head. Ryoken ran over to him to see if he was alright. He then turned his head at Youta and nodded at him, who nodded back.
"I'll rip your bloody-!" But before Akihiko could finish what he was saying, Youta suddenly appeared beside him and grabbed his right arm, surprising him. "How did you... You were just-?"
"Over there with Ryoken?" Youta finished, keeping his grip on Akihiko's arm. "Let's just say we each have our own unique abilities. Now I'm sure there's a more gentlemanly way to settle this little dispute, correct?" He smirked as he said this.
Akihiko looked at Youta for a full five seconds before smirking back. "Indeed there is." He turned to the two men in black suits. "Don't just stand there! Take us to the dueling arena already."
The two men in black suits then led everyone else downstairs to an empty area that was overlooked by an observation booth. While Ryoken, Emon, and Takuya went with the two men to the observation booth, Akihiko and Youta went to the empty room.
One of the two men in black suits flipped a few switches while Ryoken, Emon, and Takuya sat down in chairs on their right. Ryoken glanced at the men before glancing back at Youta. Within moments, the men finished turning on the systems.
"Everything's set," one of the men said. "Are you both ready?" Both Akihiko and Youta nodded. "Then go ahead."
Youta and Akihiko raised their Duel Disks. "Into the VRAINS!" they declared, as their Duel Disks shined with blue light.
Everyone watched as the room they were watching was digitized. While Youta's appearance changed to that of Specter's, Akihiko's appearance changed completely. He now wore a long, silver jacket that had black trims towards the end of it, along with silver gloves on his hands, with each glove containing two of the four suits symbols for playing cards. He also wore black trousers and silver boots. In addition, his hair changed from blond to green, only it was shorter, and slicked back with one strand falling down the middle of his face. One of the most noticeable features of his attire was the deep blue scarf draped across his shoulders, as though it were a cape. Buckled to his left hand was a diamond shaped green duel disk that had a black wrist band.
"In LINK VRAINS, I'm known as Ace." Ace explained, introducing himself. "This area right here is separate from the rest of LINK VRAINS, so need not worry. You won't get exposed at all."
"And I'm known as Specter," Specter responded, giving Ace a slight bow as he introduced himself. "I trust that you'll honor our deal if I win?"
"Of course." Ace responded. "After all, you may have proven your intelligence through your friend, but you still need to show me your strength."
"Says the man who got pissed when I won," Lord Kazuma commented under his breath. Unfortunately, both Emon and Ryoken heard him.
"Well, you did cheat." Emon reminded Takuya.
"And again, I did it better." Takuya stated.
"Regardless of what happened, it would be a good idea to put it to rest." Ryoken firmly stated, putting the discussion to an end. "The both of you should pay attention to this duel, as the odds are now in our favor. Specter will demonstrate the Hanoi's strength to Akihiko, and if this duel is a success, then we'll acquire a new ally in our fight against the Ignis."
Both Emon and Takuya nodded in agreement as they turned their heads to look at the duel.
After Ace and Specter raised their Duel Disks, they shouted, "Duel!"
Specter: 4000 LP
Ace: 4000 LP
"As it's your turf, I think it would be fair for me to go first." Specter said, looking at his hand before touching one of his cards. "First I summon Sunseed Genius Loci from my hand!" A golden statue with a green base holding a brown seed appeared on Specter's field.
Sunseed Genius Loci ATK: 0 DEF: 600 LV: 1
"Appear! The future circuit that lights up our path!" Specter raised his hand as a massive Link Portal appeared on the ground behind him. "The summoning conditions are one Plant Normal monster! I'll set Sunseed Genius Loci into the Link Markers!" Genius Loci turned into an orange whirlwind as it went into the bottom Link Marker behind Specter.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Sunavalon Dryas!" Soon, the ground broke apart, before something rose out of it. The monster that emerged in the right Extra Monster Zone was a giant tree with a few bulbs hanging from the branches and what appeared to be a face in the center.
Sunavalon Dryas ATK: 0 LINK-1 ⬇️
"I Set two cards face-down and end my turn." Specter concluded.
"My turn! I draw!" Ace said, drawing the top card of his deck before looking at it, along with his hand. "I activate the Field Spell card, Evil Eye Domain – Pareidolia!" Behind Ace, a massive black castle with golden elements arose. "When I activate this Field Spell, it lets me add one 'Evil Eye' monster from my deck to my hand!" A card popped out of Ace's deck, which let him add Serziel, Watcher of the Evil Eye to his hand by using Evil Eye Domain – Pareidolia's effect.
"I summon Serziel, Watcher of the Evil Eye from my hand!" A fair-skinned, white-haired man wearing red and purple robes with several yellow eyes on his body appeared on Ace's field.
Serziel, Watcher of the Evil Eye ATK: 1600 DEF: 1400 LV: 4
"Serziel's effect!" Ace continued. "When it's Normal Summoned, I'm allowed to add an 'Evil Eye' card from my deck to my hand!" With the effect of Serziel, Watcher of the Evil Eye, Ace added Evil Eye of Selene to his hand.
"Next, I activate the effect of Basilius, Familiar of the Evil Eye! As I control an 'Evil Eye' monster, I'm allowed to Special Summon this card from my hand to my field!" The blue and black serpent with a big red eye on its head from before appeared on Ace's field and hissed at Specter.
Basilius, Familiar of the Evil Eye ATK: 400 DEF: 2000 LV: 3
"Basilius's effect! Once per turn, I'm allowed to send an 'Evil Eye' Spell or Trap card from my deck to my Graveyard. I think I'll send Evil Eye of Gorgoneio to my Graveyard." A card popped out of Ace's deck, which he sent to the Graveyard.
"Appear! The circuit of the all-consuming Evil Eye!" Ace declared, as a Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two monsters, one of which must be an 'Evil Eye' monster! I'll set Serziel, Watcher of the Evil Eye, and Basilius, Familiar of the Evil Eye into the Link Markers!" Serziel went into the top arrowhead, while Basilius went into the bottom arrowhead.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed!" A white-haired woman wearing a black and purple dress covered by white and red armor emerged from the Link Portal and landed on Ace's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Covering her left eye was a white mechanical device with a red lens.
Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed ATK: 1900 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️
"Gorgon gains 100 additional attack points for each 'Evil Eye' card in my Graveyard with a different name." Ace explained. "As there's three 'Evil Eye' cards with different names, Gorgon therefore gains 300 attack points." A red aura enveloped Gorgon as she powered up.
Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed ATK: 1900 + 300 = 2200
"I activate the Equip Spell card, Evil Eye of Selene, and equip it to Gorgon." Another mechanical device, this one red and silver, covered Gorgon's right eye. "As long as Gorgon is equipped with Evil Eye of Selene, she can't be destroyed by battle or card effects, nor can she be targeted by card effects!" Specter frowned upon hearing that.
"I then activate Gorgon's effect!" Ace added. "Once per turn, I can target one effect monster you control and negate its effects until the end of the turn. I target your Sunavalon Dryas!" Gorgon fired a mesmeric blast of energy from her hands at Dryas, but...
"I activate Sunvine Maiden's effect from my hand!" Specter suddenly said. "When you activate a card effect that targets one Plant monster I control, I can Special Summon this card from my hand, and by doing so, I can negate the activation!" A little elven girl with bright blue eyes, long purple hair, and wearing a dress created from vines appeared on Specter's field. She raised her hands and created a barrier to protect Dryas from Gorgon's blast.
Sunvine Maiden ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
"Not bad," Ace said, "but it's a good thing I can respond to that move! Evil Eye of Selene's effect now activates! Whenever the equipped monster activates its effect, or I activate the effect of another 'Evil Eye' Spell or Trap card, it gains 500 attack points and I lose 500 life points." As Gorgon powered up, Ace clutched his heart, as though he felt pain. The creepy thing, though, was that he smirked as he went through the experience.
Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed ATK: 2200 + 500 = 2700
Ace: 4000 – 500 = 3500 LP
"Ah, so that must be Ace's strategy." Ryoken theorized.
"What do you mean?" Emon asked, turning his head at Ryoken.
"The deck revolves around the Equip Spell card, Evil Eye of Selene." Ryoken explained, narrowing his eyes at the field. "Not only does it provide attack boosts whenever the equipped monster activates its effects or another 'Evil Eye' Spell or Trap card is activated, it also makes them immune to destruction and targeting."
"But with such great power, there's always a cost." Takuya pointed out. "In this case, it's the user's life points that pays the price."
"It's time to battle!" Ace declared. "Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed attacks Sunvine Maiden!" Gorgon's two lenses lit up before firing a beam of red energy at Specter's Maiden, blasting a hole inside her before turning into particles. Specter's entire body fizzled as he took damage.
Specter: 4000 – 2700 = 1300 LP
"I activate the effect of Sunavalon Dryas!" Specter said. "Once during each of our turns, when I take damage, I get to Special Summon a 'Sunvine' Link Monster from my Extra Deck to a zone a 'Sunavalon' Link Monster points to. Come, Sunvine Healer!" One of the pods hanging from Dryas glowed and burst as purple fluid came out of it. The fluid solidified into a teenage elven girl with orange hair that went down to her neck as she was summoned to the Main Monster Zone Dryas was pointing to. She wore a red dress, with a botanical design that went upwards, causing it to look like a rose. She also had vines wrapped around her feet, and wore ruby red shoes.
Sunvine Healer ATK: 600 LINK-1 ⬆️
"That's not all." Specter continued. "I regain life points equal to the damage I took this turn!" Pink vines emerged from Dryas and wrapped around Specter. He breathed in relief as his life points went right back to 4000.
Specter: 1300 + 2700 = 4000 LP
"I then activate Sunvine Healer's effect! As she was Special Summoned, I can target one 'Sunavalon' Link Monster that is pointing to this card, and then gain life points equal to its Link Rating times 300! I target Sunavalon Dryas!" Healer then turned around and gave Specter some of her energy, further increasing his life points.
Specter: 4000 + 300 = 4300 LP
"Interesting..." was all Ace could say in response. Specter found a way to not only bring out another Link Monster, but reset and gain more life points. This is going to be fun, he thought. Especially once I begin using my little tricks with him. "I Set two cards face-down and end my turn."
"The final effect of Sunvine Healer activates." Specter said. "Since it's the End Phase and she was Special Summoned, I'm allowed to add one 'Sunvine' or 'Sunavalon' Spell or Trap card from my deck to my hand." With Healer's effect, a card popped out of Specter's deck, letting him add Sunvine Shrine from his deck to his hand. "My turn! I draw!" After drawing and looking at the card he drew, he smirked.
"Appear! The future circuit that lights up our path!" A Link Portal appeared beneath Dryas. "The summoning conditions are two Plant monsters! I'll set Sunavalon Dryas and Sunvine Healer, which are both Link 1 monsters, into the Link Markers!" Healer went into the bottom-right arrowhead, while Dryas sent vines into the bottom-left arrowhead.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Sunavalon Dryades!" The tree grew and changed as it was summoned to the right Extra Monster Zone. It was now much larger, with a lot more bulbs hanging from its branches than before. There was also a pink-skinned woman growing at the center of the tree.
Sunavalon Dryades ATK: 0 LINK-2 ↙️↘️
"I activate my Continuous-Trap card, Aegis of Gaia!" Specter said. "Upon activation, I immediately gain 3000 life points. However, should this card leave the field, I take 3000 points of damage." A green aura surrounded Specter as he gained life points.
Specter: 4300 + 3000 = 7300 LP
I could use my Evil Eye Retribution, Ace thought, but I want to see what he intends to do first.
"Next, I activate my Spell card, Magic Planter! By destroying a Continuous-Trap card on my field, I get to draw two cards. I therefore destroy Aegis of Gaia!" Aegis of Gaia then exploded into particles, which let Specter draw two cards. "However, as Aegis of Gaia left the field, I take 3000 points of damage." He winced as his life points dropped.
Specter: 7300 – 3000 = 4300 LP
"I know I'm a risk-taker," Takuya said, raising an eyebrow, "but I don't see the point in doing that."
"Pay attention, Takuya." Ryoken told him. "Who knows, you may learn something."
"I activate the effect of Sunavalon Dryades!" Specter said. "Up to two times per turn, whenever I take damage, I'm allowed to Special Summon one 'Sunvine' Link Monster from my Extra Deck to a zone a 'Sunavalon' Link Monster points to."
"Not so fast!" Ace suddenly said. "Gorgon's effect activates! Once per turn, I can target one effect monster you control and negate its effects until the end of the turn. I target your Sunavalon Dryades!" Gorgon prepared to fire a second mesmeric blast of energy from her hands at Dryades, but...
"Continuous-Trap, activate!" Specter interjected. "Sunavalon Force! This card-."
"Will not help you!" Ace interrupted. He then moved his left hand to his left side as a sneer formed on his face. "Counter-Trap, activate! Evil Eye Retribution! If you activate a Spell or Trap card while I control an 'Evil Eye' monster, I can negate the activation and then destroy it. However, if 'Evil Eye of Selene' is in my Spell & Trap card zone, this card's activation and effect cannot be negated!"
"What?"
"Take this!" Evil Eye Retribution fired a blast of energy at Sunavalon Force, destroying it. "You're free to use your effect on that tree, Gorgon!" At Ace's command, Gorgon fired a mesmeric blast of energy from her hands at Dryades, shutting down her effects. "And all that trouble for two cards. What a shame."
Damn it, Specter thought, gritting his teeth in annoyance as he looked at what Ace did to his beloved mother tree. He outplayed me. But only for now.
"The effects of Gorgon and Evil Eye of Selene now activate!" Ace added. "First, because there is another 'Evil Eye' card with a different name in my Graveyard, Gorgon gains another 100 attack points. Also, because I activated the effect of the equipped monster, Evil Eye of Selene gives Gorgon 500 attack points while I lose 500 life points." As Gorgon powered up for a second time, Ace clutched his heart, as though he felt pain. Additionally, he smirked, as though he enjoyed the pain.
Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed ATK: 2700 + 100 + 500 = 3300
Ace: 3500 – 500 = 3000 LP
"Ace managed to find a way to temporarily stop Specter's combo." Emon commented. "And power up his monster at the same time."
"But that's obviously not going to stop Specter, though." Takuya said, crossing his arms.
"Indeed." Ryoken confirmed. "I have faith that Specter will pull through."
"You may have delayed me," Specter said, "but you haven't defeated me yet. I summon Sunseed Twin from my hand!" Two little elven twins, one boy and one girl, which were wrapped up in vines, appeared on Specter's field.
Sunseed Twin ATK: 0 DEF: 800 LV: 2
"Sunseed Twin's effect! Since it was Normal Summoned, and I control a 'Sunavalon' monster, I can target one Plant Normal monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it. Return, Sunseed Genius Loci!" The golden statue with a green base holding a brown seed from before reappeared on Specter's field.
Sunseed Genius Loci ATK: 0 DEF: 600 LV: 1
"I activate the Continuous-Spell card, Sunvine Shrine, by discarding one card from my hand!" Specter continued. "I then Set one card face-down and end my turn. At this point, I'm allowed to activate the second effect of Sunvine Shrine." He thrusted his right hand out. "By sending it to the Graveyard, I can target one Trap card in my Graveyard and Set it in my Spell & Trap card zone." A card then rematerialized on Specter's Spell & Trap card zone. With my two face-down cards, Specter thought, I should be able to get past Ace's next turn.
"My turn! I draw!" Ace said, drawing the top card of his deck. "I can't help but notice how shocked you were Specter when I used Gorgon's effect on your precious tree. Why oh why?" He put a hand on his chin. "Is it because it had such an important part of your life? What exactly could a tree do for you other than just sit there?"
Specter closed his eyes as he frowned. "Is this your attempt to manipulate me by any chance? Because I'm definitely no fool." He smirked as he reopened them. "However, let's just say that tree did something for me in my youth more than what humans can ever do. If you wish to find out what exactly that was, then you'll have to beat me."
"Is this a challenge?" Ace asked. "Then I'll be glad to accept it! I summon Catopleas, Familiar of the Evil Eye from my hand!" A buffalo with grey and purple skin wearing cyan armor appeared on Ace's field. On its forehead was a red eyeball, just like the one Basilius had.
Catopleas, Familiar of the Evil Eye ATK: 600 DEF: 1900 LV: 3
"Next, I play my Quick-Play Spell card, Evil Eye Confrontation! As I control an 'Evil Eye' monster, I can target one Spell or Trap card you control and destroy it. However, if 'Evil Eye of Selene' is in my Spell & Trap card zone, I can then banish it!" His eyes widened into slits. "I choose the one on your right!" A purple blast of energy came out of Evil Eye Confrontation and hit the face-down card, which revealed itself as Sunavalon Force before disappearing from the field.
"My Sunavalon Force!" Specter cried out in shock. He luckily didn't get my other card, Specter thought, as he turned back to Ace.
"And now the effects of both Gorgon and Evil Eye of Selene activate!" Ace continued. "Since there is another 'Evil Eye' card with a different name, Gorgon gains an additional 100 attack points. And because I activated an 'Evil Eye' Spell or Trap card, Gorgon will gain 500 more attack points, while I lose 500 life points!" Gorgon powered up for a third time, while Ace clutched his heart in pain as his life points dropped. And just like before, he had a smile on his face.
Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed ATK: 3300 + 100 + 500 = 3800
Ace: 3000 – 500 = 2500 LP
"Appear! The circuit of the all-consuming Evil Eye!" A Link Portal appeared above Ace. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Evil Eye' monsters. I'll set Gorgon, Empress of the Evil Eyed, which is a Link 2 monster, and Catopleas, Familiar of the Evil Eye, into the Link Markers!" Gorgon split into two red tornadoes of energy that went into the bottom-left and bottom-right arrowheads, while Catopleas went into the top arrowhead, causing them all to turn red.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! With the power the Evil Eye has given you, unleash your hatred and destruction onto this world in a gleeful manner! Link 3! Zerrziel, Ruler of the Evil Eyed!" A red-and-gray armored man with large wings emerged from the portal and onto the right Extra Monster Zone. Giant yellow eyes opened at his knees, right arm, left shoulder, and chest. A red lens covered his right eye as well.
Zerrziel, Ruler of the Evil Eyed ATK: 2600 LINK-3 ↙️⬆️↘️
"That must be Ace's main monster." Emon said. "For a Link 3, it has quite the attack points."
"True," Ryoken agreed, "but attack points are not everything."
"I activate the effect of Zerrziel!" Ace said. "Since it was Link Summoned using a monster whose attack points were 2600 or higher, it can attack an additional time during each Battle Phase!"
Specter's eyes widened in shock upon hearing that. With Zerrziel attacking twice, he'll be able to defeat me this turn...if it weren't for my face-down card, that is.
It's time for a little trick, Ace thought, as a copy of Evil Eye of Selene slipped out of his sleeve and went into his right hand. "I activate the Equip Spell card, Evil Eye of Selene and equip it onto Zerrziel." A red and silver mechanical device appeared, which Zerrziel grabbed and put on his left eye. "Zerrziel's second effect activates! Once per turn, when he's equipped with Evil Eye of Selene, I can target one card you control and destroy it. Say goodbye to your other face-down card!" Zerrziel fired an optic blast from both red lens at Specter's face-down card, resulting in the card to turn into particles.
"Well, Specter's screwed." Takuya stated.
"I wouldn't count him out yet, Takuya." Ryoken firmly said, narrowing his eyes briefly at the Secretary before turning them back to the duel field.
"The effect of Evil Eye of Selene now activates!" Ace said. "Because I activated the effect of the equipped monster, it gains 500 attack points and I lose 500 life points." As Zerrziel powered up, Ace clutched his heart for a fourth time. However, a sadistic smile was on his face as he experienced it.
Zerrziel, Ruler of the Evil Eyed ATK: 2600 + 500 = 3100
Ace: 2500 – 500 = 2000 LP
He then thrusted out his right hand while smiling. "It's time to end this! Zerrziel, Ruler of the Evil Eyed attacks your Sunavalon Dryades! Disdainful Vision!" The giant, yellow eyes on Zerrziel glowed as he charged energy at the center. He then fired a beam of energy from the eye at the center of his body, which headed straight for Dryades!
"I activate the effect of Sunavalon Aegis from my Graveyard!" Specter suddenly said, as a silhouette of a card appeared on his field. The card showed Sunavalon Dryatrentiay protecting Sunvine Thrasher, Healer, and Gardna from an attack that was launched from Volcanic Doomfire. "If a 'Sunavalon' or 'Sunvine' monster would be destroyed by battle, I can banish this card to prevent its destruction, and in addition, all battle damage I take for the rest of this turn is halved!" A glowing green barrier surrounded Specter's monsters, protecting them from Zerrziel's attack. However, Specter still had to cover his eyes from the attack.
Specter: 4300 – (3100 / 2) = 2450 LP
"You may have survived, but remember: Zerrziel can attack twice thanks to his effect." Ace reminded him. "Attack Sunavalon Dryades once again, Zerrziel! Disdainful Vision!" The giant, yellow eyes on Zerrziel glowed once again as he charged energy at the center. He then fired a beam of energy from the eye at the center of his body right at Dryades. However, a glowing green barrier surrounded Specter's monsters, protecting them from Zerrziel's attack for a second time.
Specter: 2450 – (3100 / 2) = 900 LP
"If it weren't for Gorgon negating Dryades' effect, Specter would have got his life points back." Takuya said, looking at the field. "And now Specter only has 900 life points left."
"It's an interesting and rare situation, one for Specter indeed." Emon added. "In other words, this next turn will ultimately decide this duel."
"I end my turn here." Ace concluded. "I am impressed, Specter. You are the first to survive Zerrziel's Disdainful Vision attack. I congratulate you." And if you do somehow try to make a comeback, he thought, my Evil Eye Mesmerism will steal your beloved tree and turn it against you!
"And you are among the few to push me to my limits." Specter responded. "Whenever I spar with my allies in a duel, they usually push me to my limits so I can adapt to the situation."
Ace smiled at that comment. "I see. So by training with your allies, you can hone your skills to adapt in a duel against strong opponents. Like Playmaker and Raguel, for instance."
"Exactly!" Specter confirmed, a big smirk on his face. "And as a reward for pushing me to my limits, allow me to show you the full strength of MOTHER NATURE ITSELF!"
"Then what are you waiting for? Show me what you got!"
"My turn! I draw!" Specter said, drawing the top card of his deck and looking at it. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Sunvine Cleansing!" The card showed Sunavalon Dryatrentiay dragging several machines deep into the ground using her roots, as the poor construction workers fled the scene in terror. "This card lets me target one 'Sunavalon' or 'Sunvine' Link Monster I control and destroy Spell and Trap cards you control equal to its Link Rating! I target Sunavalon Dryades, which means I'll destroy your face-down card and Evil Eye of Selene!" Soon, two roots emerged from Sunvine Cleansing and grabbed both cards, squeezing and destroying them.
"Your card can do that?" Ace asked, a look of surprise on his face. He definitely wasn't expecting that.
"Of course it can!" Specter answered. "Appear! The future circuit that lights up our path!" A Link Portal appeared beneath Dryades. "The summoning conditions are two or more Plant monsters! I'll set Sunavalon Dryades, which is a Link 2 monster, and Sunseed Twin, into the Link Markers!" Twin went into the bottom arrowhead, while Dryades sent vines into the bottom-left and bottom-right arrowheads. All three arrows turned red as a result.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Sunavalon Dryanome!" The tree grew even bigger and changed. The pink-skinned woman from before was now slightly more visible, even though she was still covered by the rose around her. There were now more bushes around the base with more branches surrounding it. Red pods swung from it as it was summoned to the right Extra Monster Zone.
Sunavalon Dryanome ATK: 0 LINK-3 ↙️⬇️↘️
"I activate the effect of Link Supply from my Graveyard!" Specter added, as a silhouette of a card showing I:P Masquerena going through a treasure chest briefly appeared on his field. "If I Link Summon a Link Monster this turn, I can banish this card and draw one card from the top of my deck!" He then proceeded to draw the top card of his deck.
"Appear, for a second time! The future circuit that lights up our path!" A second Link Portal appeared underneath Dryanome. "The summoning conditions are one Plant Normal monster. I'll set Sunseed Genius Loci into the Link Markers!" Genius Loci went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Sunvine Thrasher!" A blue-skinned warrior wearing a green coat and cloak appeared in one of the Main Monster Zones Dryanome was pointing to. It swung the large sword in its hand, ready for battle.
Sunvine Thrasher ATK: 800 LINK-1 ⬇️
"Thrasher's effect activates!" Specter continued. "Since Thrasher is linked to a 'Sunavalon' monster, it gains 800 attack points equal to that 'Sunavalon' Link Monster's Link rating times 800! As Dryanome is a Link 3 monster, Thrasher therefore gains 2400 attack points!" Thrasher held a hand to its chest as a wind surrounded it, powering the warrior up.
Sunvine Thrasher ATK: 800 + (800 X 3) = 3200
"Last but not least, I activate the Equip Spell card, Sunavalon Malice, and equip it to Thrasher." The card showed Sunvine Thrasher glowing with a dark aura. "When the equipped monster destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, I can target one 'Sunavalon' Link Monster I control and inflict damage equal to its Link Rating times 800!"
"This can't be..." Ace muttered, a look of surprise on his face.
"Oh, but it is." Specter replied, a sadistic grin on his face. "Battle! Sunvine Thrasher attacks Zerrziel, Ruler of the Evil Eyed!" Thrasher charged at Zerrziel and slashed him in two horizontally, destroying him. The following explosion caused Ace to slightly wince.
Ace: 2000 – 100 = 1900 LP
"And since Thrasher destroyed your monster, I can target Dryades using Malice's effect! As Dryades is a Link 3 monster, you take 2400 points of damage!" A blast of energy came out of Sunavalon Malice and went straight towards Ace.
"So it's over then, huh?" Ace muttered to himself, as he started laughing. He continued to laugh, even after the blast knocked him off his feet and onto the ground.
Ace: 1900 – 2400 = 0
"Well done, Specter." Ryoken said, standing up along with Emon and Takuya as the virtual reality faded and Youta and Akihiko returned to their real-world appearances. The two men then ran down to the empty area to see if Akihiko was alright.
"Are you okay, sir?" one of the men asked, helping Akihiko up.
"Get off me!" Akihiko said, shoving the man's arm off of him. He then turned to Youta. "You people are interesting."
"So," Emon said, as he walked with Ryoken and Takuya to where Youta was, "are you satisfied with the Hanoi's strength and intelligence?
"I sure am!" Akihiko affirmed, walking over to where Emon was and offering a hand. "To the point where I'll honor our deal and partner with the Hanoi!"
"A wise decision." Emon replied, shaking Akihiko's friend. "And as Ryoken stated earlier, we'll gladly pay you for your assistance."
"I look forward to helping in anyway I can." Akihiko said. He then turned back to the two men in suits. "Okay, boys. Let's go back upstairs, shall we?" As the two men led everyone upstairs, Ryoken walked beside Youta.
"An excellent job today, Youta." Ryoken told him. "You did the Hanoi proud."
"Thank you, Master Ryoken." Youta responded. "May I ask a question though?"
"What is it?"
"I'm not sure about partnering up with Akihiko." Youta stated. "While I understand the situation at hand, I sense that something is not right about him. It's as though there's this darkness around him that no one knows about."
"I understand your concern." Ryoken said. "But we need allies if we're to get the Tower ready."
"Understood, Master Ryoken."
Once everyone went upstairs (and stood the table up), Akihiko had the two men get chairs for his 'new partners'.
"So." Akihiko said, sitting down on his red, velvet chair along with everyone else, who sat down in their respective chairs. "What exactly are you planning, and how can I help?"
"Before I begin," Ryoken said, "I want to know if you're aware of Cyberse monsters."
"Yes, yes. I'm aware of them." Akihiko verified. "Such mysterious beauties like them changed the world when SOL Technologies used them, along with data streams, for LINK VRAINS. And I understand that you're after something that originated from the Cyberse, rrrrriiiiggghhhttt?"
Ryoken nodded. "We have a weapon that we're preparing that will destroy our target. However, it will take time to prepare it."
"And on top of that," Emon continued, "there have been sightings of new Cyberse monsters in LINK VRAINS, held by these two Charisma Duelists." Emon pulled out a holo-device, which showed pictures of Reidrith and Jeanne Azaria. "We need their Cyberse cards for the weapon. In addition, we are also looking for a way to acquire this Cyberse card." After Emon pushed a button, the device showed a picture of World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy.
"Ah. So that's what you need." But before Akihiko could continue, his phone rang. "Excuse me," he said, as he went off to the side to take the call.
"Do you think he understands what exactly our target is?" Takuya asked, raising an eyebrow.
"He's one of the most cunning men both in the real world and in LINK VRAINS." Emon answered, turning to face Takuya. "He'll eventually figure it out." Just then, Akihiko returned to the table and sat down in his chair.
"Gentleman. I have very good news. Two associates have just got back from their missions and are on our way here."
"Associates?" Ryoken repeated, crossing these arms. "How exactly will they help us?"
"Wwweeelllll," Akihiko replied. "Are you familiar with 'The Graceful Assassin'?"
Everyone's eyes widened in response to that question. However, Emon was the first to get his bearings together before asking, "Are you saying that 'The Graceful Assassin'-?"
"Is under my employment? Correct!" Akihiko answered, clapping his arms together. "She always gets the job done, and is a strong duelist too."
Just then, the door opened, revealing two women. The first was a middle-aged woman who had long, dirty blonde hair messily tied up by several large purple clips in the back, and is left to fall across her face at the front right. She wore heavy makeup consisting of heavy eye shadow and purple lipstick. Her attire consisted of a white turtleneck shirt and long white coat resembling a lab coat, as well as a dark purple pencil shirt that is heavily torn over the top of torn black stockings. She also wore simple black slip-on shoes decorated with two red triangles.
The second was a young woman who looked like she was in the middle of her teenage years. She had fair skin with grey eyes and neck-length black hair with red tips. She also wore a red tartan skirt, consisting of a white blouse with maroon trim and thin red bow, a brown vest with gold buttons and a maroon blazer with gold trim, alongside full-length black stockings and brown shoes.
"In fact, she's perfect for the job. Wouldn't you agree," Akihiko said, turning to the younger woman, "Tsubaki?"
Card Gallery
Sunavalon Aegis (Normal Trap Card)
Effect: When your opponent declares an attack: You can negate that attack. If this card is in your Graveyard and a 'Sunavalon' or 'Sunvine' monster you control would be destroyed by battle: You can banish this card from your GY; this turn 'Sunavalon' and 'Sunvine' monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle, and any battle damage you take is halved. You can only use 1 'Sunavalon Aegis' effect per turn, and only once that turn.
Sunvine Cleansing (Quick-Play Spell Card)
Effect: Target 1 'Sunvine' or 'Sunavalon' Link Monster you control; destroy Spell and Trap cards your opponent controls equal to its Link Rating. You can only activate 1 'Sunvine Cleansing' per turn.
Sunavalon Malice (Equip Spell Card)
Effect: Equip only to a 'Sunvine' or 'Sunavalon' Link Monster you control. When the equipped monster destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the GY: You can target 1 'Sunavalon' Link Monster you control; inflict damage to your opponent equal to its Link Rating x 800.
Link Supply (Normal Spell Card)
Effect: When this card is activated while you control a Link Monster: You can add 1 monster from your GY to your hand. If you Link Summon a Link Monster: You can banish this card from your GY; draw 1 card. You can only use each effect of 'Link Supply' once per turn.
QOTC
If Yuri and Specter dueled (with the new Master Rules of course), who do you think would win?
Chapter Preview
Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth. Chapter 22: The Graceful Assassin. Having received a message from Watchman regarding the emergence of the Cyberse monsters, Yuhiro logs into LINK VRAINS to hear him out. Meanwhile, the Hanoi test their newest ally with a dangerous task...
Author's Notes
Wow, what a chapter! I do hope you enjoyed reading it, just as much as I enjoyed writing it. Anyhow, to the recap!
The first event that happened in this chapter was the conversation Yuhiro had with Aoi about Ghost Girl. I decided for him to tell her in this chapter to show his willingness to be around her, as well as to develop their friendship. Also, as indicated in this chapter, Herald has started to develop an interest in video games (starting with mobile games, of course). Eventually, Herald will play console games, but right now, he'll be playing mobile games. So if you have any recommendations in terms of mobile games you want to see him playing, don't hesitate to put them in your reviews.
The second event that happened was the Hanoi speaking to, and eventually recruiting Emon Uchida's client. As this occurred in the real world, it was important to give Specter his real-life identity, and I ultimately settled on Youta Itsuki (big thanks to HunterHQ for the help). One of the issues I had with Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS is that they didn't give us Specter's real-life identity, so with help, I created one for the story. Let me know what you think of this in your reviews.
The client that the Hanoi met is an OC created by And Then The Sky, who actually helped me early on in the story with some great advice. The client's name is Akihiko Akutagawa, a professional poker player at the Den City Casino. He uses an Evil Eye deck, which revolves around Evil Eye of Selene to provide additional attack points, destruction immunity, and target immunity.
As for who he'll be dueling against this chapter, I ultimately decided on him dueling Specter. Why? Because another thing that I did not like was Specter getting his butt kicked for a majority of his duels. I wanted to give Specter a win to show his prowess against a deck as unique as Evil Eye.
Finally, as a result of Specter's victory, the Hanoi were able to recruit Akihiko to their side. Also, before the chapter ends, two more characters show up. Who are they? How exactly will they help the Hanoi? And how do they ultimately impact the story in general?
Thank you for reading Chapter 21 of Obscured Truth. And rest assured, these questions will be answered in due time. As always, let me know what you thought about this chapter in your reviews below. In addition, constructive criticism is always welcome, as it helps make the story even better.
What was your favorite moment this chapter? Did you enjoy the duel? Are you excited for what's to come?
Have a good day everyone, and I will see you next time!