Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth

by DivadX

Yuhiro Furutani, one of 8 children kidnapped 10 years ago by an unknown group, now works as Raguel, an agent in LINK VRAINS' Black Market. One day, he fights the Knights of Hanoi and encounters Playmaker, who becomes his newest assignment. Follow Yuhiro as he now must decide who he wants to become: as both a duelist and as an individual.

28. Chapter 28: Haunted Performance

Responses to Reviews

Thank you to Jason, HunterHQ, Guest, Anonymous, KingOtakuOverYou, Kingdom Hearts Guy, Donjusticia, ZeroMK7, E.T. 2000, Pikachu99, and Cosmic Cat for reviewing Chapter 27 of Obscured Truth.

Hello, everyone! From what I'm reading, it seems that you all enjoyed the previous chapter. I just want to thank everyone for the positive reviews, as it's a great way to end the Cyberse Hunt arc and begin the Tower of Hanoi arc.

Speaking of reviews, it's time to answer them:

Jason: Thank you very much, Jason. Glad to see you're looking forward to the Tower of Hanoi arc, as I'll tell you now: There will be a lot of surprises in store.

HunterHQ: Hopefully, Raguel learned his lesson from his loss against Infearno. Unfortunately, Raguel and Infearno are in something called a 'Mexican Stand-off', where if one reveals the identity of the opponent, then the opponent will do the same. As such, I don't see Raguel and Roxy taking action against Infearno anytime soon, lest they put Miyu's safety in jeopardy. I do have a plan in terms of network abilities for each of the Lost Incident children. As for what Dr. Kogami said at the end of Chapter 27, he's afraid of the unknown. Humans, by nature, are afraid of something they don't know about. If the Ignis pose a threat, what other enemies in the network could exist and threaten mankind? Oh, and it was fortunate that Aoi and Akira weren't present for the duel. Otherwise, Yuhiro and Roxy would definitely be screwed.

Guest: Infearno found an opening in the network and got into the vault once Hideki logged in. You could say that patience was a factor. As for your other question, Infearno will answer it to Raguel near the end of the Tower of Hanoi arc.

Anonymous: For the answer to your question, I encourage you to read this chapter.

KingOtakuOverYou: I'm happy to see you enjoyed the chapter. In terms of Windy's origin, I do plan on him making an actual appearance, meaning in the story, he isn't dead. I also have a deck for him planned out. As for the Arc V Fanfic, you don't have to read it if you don't want to. I'm really sorry if the announcement somehow disturbed you mentally, socially, and/or psychologically. I just hope you'll keep reading Obscured Truth. Ultimately, as someone who cares about health, I hope everything is okay wherever you are.

Kingdom Hearts Guy: Yes. Cyreath is an OC Cyberse archetype. I plan on introducing two more OC Cyberse archetypes in the future.

Donjusticia: Actually, if the main character loses in a serious duel, it helps with their character development. In this case, Yuhiro will grow as a duelist and person by learning from his mistakes and going to his friends for needed support.

ZeroMK7: Glad to see you're enjoying everything so far in the story, especially the events Chapter 27. Also, I wanted to thank you for your suggestion as well. What I'll tell you is this: I do intend on using Black Rose Dragon in the upcoming Arc V Fanfic, but she'll be wielded by someone else. You could say the person using Black Rose Dragon will be deadlier than Akiza would ever be.

E.T. 2000: Yes, you could say that Chapter 27 was filled with emotion. As it was the finale of the Cyberse Hunt arc, that was my intention. And you're correct. Raguel and Roxy are in no position to take action against Infearno, lest they risk Miyu's safety. As for the duels during the Tower of Hanoi arc, I can't tell you right now, but stay tuned for an announcement regarding them.

Pikachu99: Infearno's always been badass. The problem, back in Chapter 6, was that his arrogance led to his downfall. This time around, not only did he learn from his mistake, he also acquired knowledge that he used to practically defeat Raguel in Chapter 27. As for your theories... well, you'll have to read and find out for yourself.

Cosmic Cat: Thanks for the five stars. And to answer your question, Revolver purged the remaining grunts and sergeants so he could feed them to the Tower.

It's time to begin the Tower of Hanoi arc. Enjoy!

Chapter 28: Haunted Performance

At SOL Technologies...

"I was expecting to meet with Bishop, but to see you here instead Rook, this is a surprise indeed." Akira said, looking at a red-headed, muscular man who had a red, sleeveless shirt with baggy track pants and white boots. He just finished his 3rd set of bench pressing as he put the weightlifting bar beside him.

Right now, Akira was meeting with Rook, who took Bishop's place due to a last minute meeting with Knight and Queen. The area Akira was meeting Rook in was a digital recreation of an exercise gym and a weapons training range. Why, Akira would never ask. After all, his boss valued strength above all else.

"Is there a problem with that?" Rook asked, sitting up on the weight bench and turning his head to Akira. "One way or another, you are meeting with one of the higher-ups, am I not correct?"

"You are, sir. My apologies." Akira confirmed, trying to rectify the situation. "If I may, what exactly did you call me for?"

"A couple of things." Rook answered, standing up and stretching his upper back. "First, on behalf of the higher-ups, I want to thank you for taking action. While Kitamura had good intentions for the company, we didn't authorize the attack, and we're glad you stepped in to notify us."

"Thank you, sir." Akira said. "I really-."

"I'm not finished." Rook interrupted, turning around and walking over to a rack holding several weapons. "As much as we want you back as security chief, we have to prioritize SOL Technologies' integrity first. This means, for the time being, we have to keep Kitamura in his current position. Otherwise, the public will lose faith in us. But that doesn't mean he won't be reprimanded for his idiocy." He turned his head behind him to look at Akira. "I trust you understand this, yes?"

Akira nodded, knowing that whatever any of the higher-ups said was the final decision.

"Good." Rook grabbed two tomahawks, one on each hand, and walked over to the target range. He then threw one of them at the target, which hit its chest area. Dissatisfied with his throw, Rook threw the second one, hitting the circle with an 'X' in it. "Besides, SOL Technologies needs men like you. Men that work hard and relentlessly with understanding, especially during these difficult times." He walked over to Akira and placed his hand on his shoulder. "If you don't mind me asking, is there anything else that happened? Any information you want to pass on to us?"

Akira gulped as he locked eyes with the larger man, who was taller than him. He didn't know what to tell Rook. If he told him the truth, there's a good chance that Hideki would be summoned, and perhaps disciplined for having a daughter who formerly worked with the Hanoi. Worse, he could lose his job, leaving the Kinoshita family with no income whatsoever.

"No. At least not for now," Akira said, having decided on his answer. "After I dueled Kitamura and had him give up the consciousness data, I returned it to its rightful owner."

Rook narrowed his eyes and frowned. "I see." He released his hand from Akira's shoulder and walked back to the weapons rack. This time, he grabbed a bow and a quiver containing several arrows. "There's another reason why I called you today. But you must swear secrecy, Zaizen, as this matter is internal. Do you understand?"

"Of course." Akira nodded, now concerned with what Rook was about to say.

"Last night, we received word that someone hacked into the LINK VRAINS division of SOL Technologies. More importantly..." Rook grabbed an arrow and pulled it back using his bow before firing it, causing the arrow to hit the center. "The vault containing a very powerful Cyberse card called World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy." He then grabbed another arrow and fired it at the target, causing it to hit the center once again. "From the recordings available, we can only presume that a member of the Knights of Hanoi found an opening and infiltrated the vault once Hideki logged in." He lowered his bow and arrow before looking at Akira. "We assume that Hideki went into the vault to perform an inspection, but we want your opinion on this matter. Do you happen to know why Hideki was in the vault?"

"No, Rook." Akira immediately answered. "I was at home when this happened. Frankly, this is news for me."

Rook simply nodded as his thick, red-headed eyebrows narrowed. "Hmph. Alright then."

"If I may," Akira said, getting Rook's attention, "I wanted to bring up SengokuQueen, whom Kitamura tried to fire following the attack." But before Akira could continue, Rook stopped him with a hand.

"We'll take care of it." Rook assured Akira. "After all, it's not fair for someone as skilled as SengokuQueen to lose her job just for simply doing it. There's not many people who have skills like her, and in the coming battle against the Hanoi, we need as many people as possible to defeat them."

Akira nodded, agreeing with Rook's logic. "Thank you, sir. Do you require anything else from me?"

"No." Rook replied, putting away his bow and quiver. "As I'm meeting with the other higher-ups later today, I'll have to tell them what you told me. If you do find further information in the coming days, please forward it to us immediately."

"I will do that." Akira promised.

"Good. You're dismissed." Following that, the whole place vanished, revealing a plain old meeting room. Akira sighed as he adjusted his suit's collar. That was close, he thought, as he exited the meeting room and walked down the hallway to the elevator. I couldn't tell Rook about Raguel helping me, not after everything he did to help Aoi both in LINK VRAINS and in the real world. Although I have a feeling that the higher-ups will be keeping an eye on me from here on out.

"Mr. Zaizen, wait up!" Hayami said out of nowhere, snapping Akira out of his thoughts as she caught up to him.

"What is it, Hayami?" Akira asked her, as the two of them boarded the elevator. He pressed a button, causing it to go down a few floors.

"You remember when you wanted me to check the network for any anomalies?"

"Yes, I remember. What about it?"

"Well, you might want to look at this." Hayami then handed Akira her tablet, causing Akira to raise an eyebrow at what he was seeing. "You see these four red dots? They represent the areas where the anomalies are occurring repeatedly. My best guess is that they're surrounding something."

"Or someone." Akira theorized, as he and Hayami got out of the elevator and started walking in the hallway. "Do you mind sending this information to me, Hayami? I want to take a closer look at it later today."

Hayami nodded, as she pressed a few buttons on her tablet. "It's been sent, sir. Uh, Mr. Zaizen. There's something I wanted to ask you." But before she could, Akira spoke up.

"I have to make a couple of phone calls before leaving. Could you please tell my bosses I'll be going home within the hour?"

Hayami, seeing that her boss was busy, nodded in understanding, having missed her opportunity to try and court him. "I will." And with that, Akira went into his office.

Once he sat down at his desk, he immediately dialed a phone number on his phone, causing it to ring several times. By the fourth ring, Emma answered on the other end.

"Hello?"

"I apologize for interrupting your day, Emma." Akira said, getting straight to business. "But I was wondering if I could speak to you later today."

"What's the time and place?" Emma asked.

"3:00. Green Park." Akira immediately answered.

"All right, Hun. See ya then." Emma then hung up.

Once that was done, Akira then opened his laptop and started sending an email to Gekiryushi. As long as the Knights of Hanoi are looming around, he thought, they'll continue to be a threat. And as Rook said, we need as many people as possible to defeat them.

At the Uchida residence...

Emon was on his laptop, having decided to work at home for today. Right now, he was looking over the various recordings in Den City, for even after his victory against Yuhiro yesterday, he still wasn't satisfied. After all, a part of him knew that he would face him again.

Knowing about Miyu, the one person that Yuhiro cared for in the whole world was the first step. Now, the second step was to dive further into the psyche, and find ways to break the individual from within.

That's when Emon decided to do further research into the people Yuhiro hung out with. Knowing about them would give him the psychological advantage he needed. He made a mental note to thank Revolver for the information that he sent to him.

After ten minutes of scouring the recordings, he eventually hit the jackpot. Emon smiled as he looked at the screen. From what he could gather, following the Lost Incident, Yuhiro must have been put in the Den City Shelter by a man named Quinton Monell, whom Emon knew was Stregone. And from there, Yuhiro was eventually adopted by Roxy. This is excellent information, Emon thought, looking at the screen. But I'm sure I can do better than that.

He then continued looking through the records until something else caught his eye. Eventually, Emon found a recording of Yuhiro hanging out with a girl that was younger than him. I think I've met her before, Emon tried to recall, thinking to himself. Ah. That's right. He met that girl the same day he met Yuhiro, the real-life identity of Raguel. Rachel Miyake.

But something was on his mind. Why would a little girl like Rachel hang out with Yuhiro? Unless..

Emon then ran several algorithms and compared Rachel's face to the recordings of Numera in LINK VRAINS. Within minutes, the algorithms came back positive, indicating to him that Rachel and Numera were one and the same person. Perfect, he thought, smiling to himself. As of now, the weapons of pain, suffering, and loss were at his disposal. With this information, Emon will be able to overcome his adversary and either capture or destroy his Ignis.

Satisfied, he downloaded the information into his Duel Disk before standing up and stretching. Once the data transfer was complete, he put on his Duel Disk, put his deck in, and said, "Into the VRAINS!"

In LINK VRAINS...

Infearno walked out of a digital portal and onto a tall building that overlooked the entire network. He saw several duelists logging into the network to test their skills, and above them were the countless AI Duelist squads that were appearing everywhere. Following the 'Another' situation, Kitamura sent them to patrol the network, with the belief that they would be able to repel the Hanoi should they appear again.

What an idiot. No matter what Kitamura did, it would be all for naught, as not even he could withstand the reckoning that's to come.

"How wonderful, a witness! Just what I needed!"

Infearno turned his head around, only to sigh in annoyance upon seeing Lord Kazuma with his messenger droid behind him.

"The hell are you doing here?" Infearno asked, as Lord Kazuma walked to where he was. "And why did you bring your messenger droid?"

"Just watch!" Lord Kazuma stated, who couldn't contain his excitement. He then pointed to one of the AI Duelist Squads. "Okay, Gradius. Activate Instant-Kill mode on those AI Duelists!"

"Acknowledged," Gradius responded, as it leapt down from the building and challenged the AI Duelist Squad to a duel. Within eight explosive minutes, the entire squad was completely destroyed. Lord Kazuma smirked with glee as Gradius returned to its master.

"It worked!" Lord Kazuma cheered. "The project is a success!"

"Has Revolver approved of this?" Infearno asked, irritated with Lord Kazuma's antics. "Because if I recall correctly, he doesn't trust artificial intelligences."

"And I never will," Revolver affirmed, as he walked out of a portal and onto the tall building where the others were. "But due to the circumstances, I'm willing to let it slide just this once."

Infearno then glared at Lord Kazuma, who shrugged his shoulders and chuckled before turning back to Revolver. "What about Ace and Athaliah? Are they not available to assist us?"

"Athaliah is ensuring that World Gears is stabilized," Revolver explained, "and Ace is checking something for me. I thought I had to make adjustments to the schedule, but then Lord Kazuma suggested an idea that can not only provide time the Tower needs, but also take out our opponents should they get too curious for their liking. Tell him, Lord Kazuma."

Lord Kazuma grinned, as he went over and whispered it into Infearno's ear. By the time he was finished, Infearno smirked, actually impressed with Lord Kazuma for once.

"Very cunning of you. Not only does the plan eliminate meddling duelists, but it attacks the mind as well."

"Thank you very much." Lord Kazuma replied, stepping away from Infearno and giving a slight bow. "Gentlemen, please excuse me. I must prepare for my performance." He, along with Gradius, then logged out from where they were.

"Revolver," Infearno said, as Revolver walked up to where he was. "With the Tower's launch soon to come, I need to know: Do you honestly trust Ace and Athaliah?"

"I don't." Revolver answered, his arms crossed. "As much as I value their assistance, I have an unsettling feeling about them. It's as though they're both a part of this from the very beginning, one way or another."

"I can dispose of them, if you like." Infearno offered, but Revolver shook his head.

"No." He started walking away from Infearno. "Let Ace and Athaliah think they possess the element of surprise. Then, when they're not expecting it, we'll crush them." Revolver then dematerialized from the general area of LINK VRAINS, leaving Infearno alone to overlook the network.

"How would Ace and Athaliah be a part of all this?" Infearno muttered, pondering to himself.

At Green Park...

Akira looked at his watch as he stood near a field of flowers. 2:55. That was the time on his watch. And he requested Emma to meet him here within five minutes.

He also requested Gekiryushi to arrive at the same location as well. Based on her profile, Akira knew she would protest working with a treasure hunter like Emma. Unfortunately, in a time where the Hanoi was running rampant, everyone would have to work together despite their beliefs. God help me, Akira thought, sighing to himself.

Soon, he heard the sound of a motorcycle, and sure enough, it was Emma.

"Hey there, Hun." Emma said, taking off her helmet and putting it on her violet motorcycle. "Right on time."

"I appreciate you coming today, Emma." Akira replied, as Emma walked towards him.

"So, what exactly did you call me for anyway?"

Akira cleared his throat. "You see, right now, there aren't any traces of the Knights of Hanoi in LINK VRAINS..." But before he could continue, Emma crossed her arms.

"Oh, please. Did you call me here just to tell me that?"

"No. Not exactly," Akira answered. "Lately, every division at SOL Technologies has filed in a request for more programmers and operators. If the Hanoi were to strike back, they'd be more prepared. After all, with what Kitamura did, I couldn't blame them."

Emma knelt down to the nearby flowerbed and stroked a flower. "I can't blame them either. After all, in times like these, it doesn't hurt to be careful."

"Yeah..." Akira agreed, as he saw a taxi pull in to Green Park. "It doesn't hurt to be careful." The two of them saw Gekiryushi step out of the taxi and walk over to where they were. Sure enough, upon seeing Emma, Gekiryushi's expression changed from receptive to one of pure anger, as she walked over to where Akira was and grabbed him by the collar.

"What the hell, Zaizen!" Gekiryushi exclaimed. "You didn't tell me you invited a treasure hunter to this meeting!"

"Hey, get your hands off him!" Emma told her, standing up and trying to release Akira from Gekiryushi's grip. Unfortunately, Gekiryushi slapped her hand away while maintaining her grip on Akira.

"Don't give me orders, treasure hunter!" Gekiryushi warned Emma, sparks flying between both women. "Zaizen knows fully well that I don't work with dishonorable people, and yet he calls you in for a job?!" Suddenly, Akira released himself from the grip and got in-between both women.

"Oh for God's sake, enough!" Akira told them, now getting slightly irritated. "The reason why I didn't tell you was because I had a feeling this would happen. We have to work together if we're going to stop the Hanoi. So can you please tolerate each other just for a little while?"

Gekiryushi sighed. "Very well. I guess I can honor your request, Zaizen. After all, I do have to repent for what I've done."

"Thank you." Akira breathed a sigh of relief. He then showed both ladies his tablet. "I had my assistant Hayami search the network today for anomalies. These areas I'm pointing to are where they're occurring repeatedly. What's more, they're surrounding something, or someone."

"I see." Emma said, pursing her lips. "Something's happening when nothing is happening, which makes it the perfect opportunity for a treasure hunter."

"It's likely that the Hanoi remnants are hiding in that area." Gekiryushi added.

"That's why I want the both of you to investigate this matter as soon as possible." Akira explained. "Whatever you find, report back only to me."

"Of course, Hun." Emma agreed. "It'll be our little secret. After all, we don't want your bosses finding out, don't we?" Gekiryushi rolled her eyes. Seriously? A flirting technique? What did she get herself into?

At Café Matsuo...

Yuhiro returned to Café Matsuo from school, where Roxy greeted him with a smile on her face.

"How was school?"

"Apart from Progleo being mean to Aoi, same as usual." Yuhiro replied, frowning. Progleo then jumped out of the Duel Disk and onto the ground.

"What? I'm still mad with Aoi for telling her brother and that man about your identity." Progleo stated. "I just don't want you guys to get hurt."

"I know, little buddy." Yuhiro said, kneeling down to the cub's level and ruffling his fur. "But you were pretty mean ignoring her. At some point, you'll have to forgive her."

"Besides." Roxy added. "You can't stay mad at her forever."

"I suppose you make some valid points." Progleo conceded.

"Putting the matter of Progleo being mad at Aoi, were you able to contact Monty?" Yuhiro asked, to which Roxy shook her head.

"Not since he went to that gala thing. For some reason, he hasn't got back." She sighed. "Monty would really help us right now regarding Ace."

"We'll solve that mystery once he returns." Yuhiro assured her, standing up. "But in the meanwhile, are there any other news that came up?"

"Yup! Follow me! I have something to show you!" Roxy opened the door and motioned for Yuhiro and Progleo to come inside. She then led them to the backroom, where she fired up the monitors. Roxy quickly opened a file and showed the contents to Yuhiro, who raised an eyebrow.

"LVSS Support System?" Yuhiro asked.

"It stands for the LINK VRAINS Searching System." Roxy explained. "Kusanagi sent me a copy once we completed it. The system is designed to detect any anomaly, as well as track both it and people. In addition, it lets me follow you in real time."

"Interesting." Yuhiro said, impressed with what he was seeing. With this system, they'll be able to track down World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy.

"So you and Kusanagi spent time working on this system?" Herald asked, emerging out of Yuhiro's Duel Disk. "Does this mean you two had a virtual date or something?" Unfortunately for Herald, Roxy whacked him over the head. "Aw, come on!"

"Keep that up, Herald, and I'll erase your game account!" Roxy warned him.

"No, please!" Herald begged. "Anything but that!"

"Guys, break it up." Yuhiro told them. "Roxy, I'm sure there's something about Herald that you can tease-."

BA-BUMP!

Yuhiro suddenly fell off his chair and onto the floor, his anxiety having started to build up. Images of World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy in pain continuously flickered in his mind, sending him into shock. And that feeling. It sounded like... a heartbeat.

"Hey, Yuhiro! You alright?" Roxy asked, shaking his shoulder. Progleo went over to Yuhiro and licked his cheek, which contributed to bringing him back to reality.

"I think so." Yuhiro replied, trying to stand up before letting Roxy help him back onto his chair. "Although I have this uneasy feeling."

"Is it your Link Trigger?" Herald asked. "Do you think it may have somehow been activated in the real world?"

"Maybe." Yuhiro theorized. "But... I saw World Gears. In pain."

"What did you say?" Herald said. But before he could continue, the LVSS detected an anomaly at a junction between the 'A' Zones, causing him to turn to the monitors. "The LVSS has detected something!"

Soon, Yuhiro stood up, almost losing his balance once again. He then grabbed his Duel Disk and attached it to his left arm, making Herald almost lose his balance as well.

"I'm heading into LINK VRAINS," Yuhiro decided. "I feel that something bad is about to happen."

"A-Alright, Yuhiro." Roxy replied, nodding her head. "Just be careful."

Yuhiro then ran to the closed-off space, and nearly stumbled by the time he reached it. He then opened the door and went inside before closing it. Finally, he put his deck in his Duel Disk and said, "Deck set! Into the VRAINS!"

In LINK VRAINS...

Raguel emerged from the portal and landed on his duel board, riding on the Data Storm as he sped away from the portal. He then pressed a few buttons on his Duel Disk, causing several E.M.S. to come on out.

"Okay little guys, listen up." Raguel told them. "You see this signal. Help me find it." The flies saluted to Raguel and Herald before flying off in different directions. "Found anything yet so far, Roxy?"

"Not yet." Roxy answered over the earpiece. "But the E.M.S. does help in finding things." Soon, there was a beeping on the monitor. "Hey, Yuhiro. One of the E.M.S. has detected something."

"Already?" Raguel said, raising an eyebrow. Usually, E.M.S. would take a bit of time to find their target, but for one of the flies to find something this quickly? Something was up.

"Either my enhancements have helped," Herald theorized, "or something's not right."

BA-BUMP!

A shock ran through Raguel's body, as more images of World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy in pain continued to go through his head. As a result, he nearly swerved out of control.

"Oi, Yuhiro! Everything okay?" Roxy asked him. "Your icon kind of pulsed on the monitor, buddy."

"I'm... fine." Raguel replied, through gritted teeth.

"If you're not fine, you just have to say so." Herald pointed out, turning to face Raguel.

"I saw World Gears once again." Raguel stated, before Herald could continue. "It could mean we're getting closer." As if on cue, his Duel Disk started beeping. "One of the E.M.S. just sent me a trail to follow. Increasing speed."

"No, no. NOT AGAIN!" Herald shrieked, as Raguel's duel board sped up, causing the poor Ignis to hold onto the Duel Disk he was in for dear life. He then swerved right sharply, taking him to an alleyway that was dark and filthy. The lampposts kept flickering on and off, and there were no decorations on the buildings. In addition, there was yellow sap leaking off the buildings.

Raguel landed on the ground, as he approached the stairway at the end of the alley that went deep into the ground.

"Is this what you detected, E.M.S.?" Raguel asked the fly, to which it nodded. He then pressed a few buttons, retrieving all the other flies and returning them to his Duel Disk. "Roxy, I think I found something. An entrance to the underground sewer of LINK VRAINS."

"And its emitting energy." Herald added. "The energy of World Gears!"

"The underbelly of LINK VRAINS..." Roxy muttered over the earpiece. "You think that's where the remnants of the Hanoi are?"

"I'm positive." Raguel confirmed. "Whatever Revolver and Infearno are planning, I'm putting a stop to it today."

"That is something we can agree on."

Raguel turned his head, only to see SengokuQueen jump from her duel board and land beside him with incredible accuracy.

"SengokuQueen? What are you doing here?" Raguel asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I came to help." SengokuQueen responded, looking down at the entrance. "You could say I'm working with someone that's much more preferable than Kitamura. Though if he didn't make me team up with the treasure hunter, it would be a lot better." While Raguel was immediately able to deduce that she was working with Akira, a look of surprise registered on his face when she mentioned Ghost Girl.

"Hang on. So you're working with Ghost Girl?" Raguel inquired, causing SengokuQueen to nod her head. "And you two split up?"

"To cover more ground." SengokuQueen answered. "It's only logical, considering Ghost Girl has those fireflies of hers." She then gestured to the stairway. "Shall we?" The two of them then walked into the stairway and down to the underground sewer of LINK VRAINS.

As they ran through the sewer, they saw streams of data spilling out of openings and flowing downwards. Based on this, along with the steep ledges and cracks on the ground, the two of them knew they were going in the right direction.

"While we keep going, I have a question for you." Raguel said to SengokuQueen, breaking the silence.

"What is it?"

"What's your real reason for helping us?" Raguel asked. "I don't think it's for the money. Rather, I think it's about something else." SengokuQueen then suddenly stopped running, causing Raguel to do the same and turn to face her.

"The truth is, I'm doing this in order to repent." SengokuQueen admitted, looking at her reflection in the water. "All my life, I followed my goal, which was to bring the corrupt to justice. No matter who they were. Unfortunately, in the process, I didn't bother looking at things from their point of view. And as a result, I ended up nearly taking an innocent life." Dancho's words replayed in her head as she recalled all of this. "Will Rosetta... will she forgive me? I don't know what to do." Her shoulders then started shaking, as though she were on the verge of crying.

Raguel thought about it for a full minute before deciding on what to say. "You start by doing the hardest thing. You forgive yourself." He walked over and placed a hand on SengokuQueen's shoulder, as her eyes widened. "I believe you're a good person, and I know you'll find a way to put it right."

A look of surprise was on SengokuQueen's face as she processed what Raguel just told her. She then wiped the unshed tears off her face with her forearm.

"Thank you, Raguel. That makes me feel better." She then started walking before running again. "Let's keep going." Raguel then followed after her.

"That is really sweet of you, Raguel." Roxy commented over the earpiece.

"Definitely." Herald agreed with her. "It makes Raguel good boyfriend material for a special girl in his life, wouldn't you agree?" Raguel sighed in embarrassment as the both of them laughed.

"Just be quiet. Please." Raguel begged them. Soon, he stopped running, having noticed SengokuQueen do the same thing. "A wall? Seriously?"

"Perhaps the Hanoi may have tampered with it." SengokuQueen theorized, tracing it and trying to find its weakness.

Raguel then pulled out his sword and revved it up, causing it to heat up. "Or we can use my sword to cut through and find the source." He then proceed to do just that. Unfortunately, the wall started glowing, causing him to immediately pull it out. The next thing they knew, a wall rose up from behind them, preventing them from leaving.

Soon, all four walls started glowing bright yellow, making Raguel, Herald, and SengokuQueen shield their eyes as they were teleported from that area.

Several moments later, at a different part of the sewer...

Raguel and SengokuQueen fell to the ground, having clearly been teleported to a different part of the sewer.

"What the-?" was all Raguel could say, as he got up. "You alright, Herald?"

"Yup." Herald confirmed. "A bit dazzled, though."

"Exactly what is this place?" SengokuQueen asked, as she looked around. Based on her surroundings, it looked like a...

"At last! My star performers have arrived for their debut!"

Both Raguel and SengokuQueen turned upward upon hearing the voice. Emerging from underneath the stage in front of them was none other than Lord Kazuma, who held the dark blue rod of Dark Magician in his left hand.

"Debut? I think you got it wrong, Kazuma." Raguel stated. "If anything, you being here is proof that the Hanoi is planning something big."

Lord Kazuma nearly fell over in shock. "For goodness sake, Raguel. It's Lord Kazuma. I thought you would know that already!" He then composed himself. "Regardless, the show's about to start, and I need a volunteer." The dark blue rod in his hand glowed, causing two cages to appear out from above and trap Raguel and SengokuQueen before lifting them up high in the air.

"For my first trick," Lord Kazuma explained to the audience that somehow appeared out of nowhere, "I shall choose a captive and teleport them to the stage below. With my eyes closed!" He then pointed the dark blue rod to Raguel and SengokuQueen, moving it back and forth between them. "Eeny, Miney, Minie, Mo. Catch the tiger by the toe. If he hollers, let them go. Eeny, Miney, Minie, Mo!" And Lord Kazuma ended up pointing at SengokuQueen before firing a blast of magic at her, resulting in the cage disappearing from the air. As soon as that happened, the crowd gasped in shock.

Soon, the cage SengokuQueen was in reappeared on the stage, causing the crowd to clap in delight upon seeing her alright and well. As the door to SengokuQueen's cage opened and she got out, Lord Kazuma said to her, "Congratulations! You get to be part of my spectacular show!"

The next thing Raguel knew, the bottom of the cage opened up underneath him, causing him to fall to the ground. Luckily, he ended up landing with one knee on the ground, punching the ground in the process.

"And our other performer survives the fall!" Lord Kazuma proclaimed, clapping his hands. "With a superhero landing, I may add!"

"Enough with these tricks!" Raguel told him. "Shut this performance of yours down now, and tell me what you and the Hanoi are planning!"

"Oh, I think not." Lord Kazuma responded, a snicker on his face. A TV screen then emerged underneath the stage behind him. "After all, I got a little surprise to show you." In a true magician's fashion, he moonwalked to the left as the TV screen flickered several times. When the images stopped flickering, it then showed Playmaker in the sewer, running away from what looked like a reptilian humanoid composed of fizzling data.

"Playmaker!" Raguel cried out, upon seeing the image.

"Ai!" Herald added.

"What you're seeing on screen is the mighty Playmaker running for his life from a Cyberse monster I enslaved to my will." Lord Kazuma explained, to the fury of Herald.

"You dare subjugate the Cyberse for your twisted game?!" Herald seethed.

"I like to have fun, even if it's at the expense of others suffering in the process!" Lord Kazuma clarified with a smile. "But now it's time for you to make a choice." He twirled the dark blue rod above his head before slamming the butt of it to the ground, causing a gate with bright light to appear near the stage. "You can stay as a spectator of the show and duel me once I defeat your ally, or you can go and rescue Playmaker from the Cyberse monster. Oh, and just so you're aware: Once you enter the gate, you can't come back!"

It was evident that Raguel was torn with the choice Lord Kazuma gave him. He could stay and help SengokuQueen defeat Lord Kazuma, but Playmaker couldn't outrun the Cyberse monster forever. And while he didn't doubt SengokuQueen's skills as a duelist, he didn't want to leave her there alone against this madman. One way or the other, someone will get hurt, he realized.

"You need to go!" SengokuQueen told Raguel, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"But if I do..." Raguel began, but SengokuQueen interrupted him.

"We'll stand a better chance of defeating the Hanoi with you and Playmaker around." She readied her Duel Disk as she stared down at Lord Kazuma. "I'll be fine. Besides, I can start to atone for my mistakes by defeating him in a duel."

"Raguel, we also have to save Ai!" Herald included, backing up her statement. "There's no way I'm letting an Ignis nor a Cyberse monster get hurt in Lord Kazuma's wicked game of his!"

Raguel thought about it for a minute. "Alright. Good luck, SengokuQueen." He then ran for the gate, and as soon as he passed through, it vanished into particles.

"And there goes one of our main guests..." Lord Kazuma said, disappointment evident in his voice. "But I guess it works for me, as I get to pay you back in person for leading SOL's attack on our base." He pointed the dark blue rod in his hands at her. "And because of your little interference, it led to Rosetta leaving our side."

"The Knights of Hanoi weren't the people she needed to hang around with to heal!" SengokuQueen rebutted. "I may have made a critical mistake in hurting Rosetta, but at least I can start atoning for what I've done!"

Lord Kazuma snickered as the dark blue rod in his hands disappeared. "In that case, prepare for your defeat, also-ran!"

"Duel!" both duelists shouted.

Lord Kazuma: 4000 LP

SengokuQueen: 4000 LP

"Since I'm the host, it's only fair I begin the duel. My turn!" Lord Kazuma said, looking at the cards in his hand. "I summon Chocolate Magician Girl from my hand!" A teenage girl with light-crimson eyes leaped onto Lord Kazuma's field. She wore magician's clothing that covered most of her upper body, revealing her stomach. On each of her forearms was magician's gloves, along with a single golden choker. At her lower body, she wore a small, blue skirt, with long high-heeled blue boots. She also had long, light-turquoise hair, with a dark blue magician's hat that had a heart and rings encircling it. In her right hand, she carried a small wand.

Chocolate Magician Girl ATK: 1600 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"Once per turn, by discarding a Spellcaster monster, I can draw one card. I discard Apple Magician Girl!" After Lord Kazuma discarded Apple Magician Girl, he drew one card from his deck. "I activate the Continuous-Spell card, Dark Magical Circle! Now I can look at the top three cards of my deck for a 'Dark Magician' or a Spell or Trap card listing 'Dark Magician' specifically in its text. Then by revealing it to you, I get to add it to my hand." Lord Kazuma looked at the top three cards of his deck before choosing one. "I reveal to you the Spell card, Sage's Stone!" SengokuQueen narrowed her eyes upon looking at the card.

"Dark Magical Circle has a second effect!" Lord Kazuma continued. "I can place the remaining two cards on top of my deck in any order. Let's see here. This should work." He took the remaining two cards and placed them one on top of the other. "I think I'll end my turn here. It's time for you to wow the audience, SengokuQueen."

"What?!" SengokuQueen exclaimed, shocked upon seeing him just end his turn like that. No facedown cards and only monster, she thought. Does he dare underestimate me?

Whatever. As long as she got her combo started, she could get some damage in.

"My turn! I draw!" SengokuQueen said, drawing the top card of her deck. "I activate the Continuous-Spell card, Shien's Dojo. Each time I Normal or Special Summon a 'Six Samurai' monster, I can place a Bushido counter on this card. Next, I activate the Spell card, Shien's Smoke Signal! This card lets me add a Level 3 or lower 'Six Samurai' monster from my deck to my hand!" A card popped out of SengokuQueen's deck, letting her add it to her hand. "From there, I Special Summon Elder of the Six Samurai from my hand!" An old man wearing a white robe with a magenta turban and red glasses appeared on SengokuQueen's field. The old man was in a mechanical walking throne, which had four legs and a crossbow on either side.

Elder of the Six Samurai ATK: 400 DEF: 0 LV: 3

"I'm allowed to Special Summon this card from my hand if you control a monster and I don't," SengokuQueen explained. "But why stop there, for I'll also summon Kagemusha of the Six Samurai from my hand!" A samurai with dark brown armor and shin pads with yellow lines covering his entire body joined SengokuQueen's field. Unlike his brethren, this samurai's mask was a bit taller vertically, and its mask covered his face up to his eyes. Kagemusha cracked his whip, ready for battle.

Kagemusha of the Six Samurai ATK: 400 DEF: 1800 LV: 2

"The effect of Shien's Dojo activates twice, as I summoned two 'Six Samurai' monsters!"

Shien's Dojo BC: 0 + 1 + 1 = 2

"I tune the Level 2 Kagemusha of the Six Samurai to the Level 3 Elder of the Six Samurai!" SengokuQueen boldly declared. A bolt of crimson lightning struck her as the world greyed out and her two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, one brown and one green, appeared before turning blue and merging. Five blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "2 + 3" in front of them. The screen changed to "5" as light surged through the rings.

"The legendary samurai brings fear and death to all his enemies!" SengokuQueen chanted. "Soon, your death shall strengthen his power! Synchro Summon! Emerge from the battlefield, Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En!" A samurai with light crimson armor and golden lines covering his entire body emerged from the light and onto the right Extra Monster Zone. He had medium-sized wings with golden lines on his back. On each of his shoulders was a curved spike. His helmet had the Bushido symbol on the top, with the samurai mask having a golden outline. His eyes glowed red as he swung his katana, ready for battle.

Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En ATK: 2500 DEF: 1400 LV: 5

"Shien's Dojo's effect!"

Shien's Dojo BC: 2 + 1 = 3

I'm no fool, SengokuQueen thought. If this 'Lord Kazuma' is one of the Hanoi Remnants I'm facing, then he has to be stronger than what I'm seeing. I should therefore prepare my defenses. "I activate the Equip Spell card, Monk Halberd! Until the End Phase of this turn, the equipped monster gains 500 attack points. I equip this card onto Shi En!" A halberd appeared, which Shi En grabbed with his left hand.

Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

"Battle!" SengokuQueen declared. "Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En attacks your Chocolate Magician Girl! Crimson Slash of Death!" Shi En charged at Chocolate Magician Girl, intending to destroy her.

"Not so fast, my dear!" Lord Kazuma said. "Chocolate Magician Girl's effect! Since she was targeted for an attack, I can target one Spellcaster monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it to my field. Return, Apple Magician Girl!" A teenage girl with short, dark-purple hair and a red magician's hat leapt onto Lord Kazuma's field. Unlike her ally, she wore red magician's clothing that covered the entire upper portion of her body. She also wore long, high-heeled red boots that had heart symbols on them. On her back were angelic, medium-sized wings.

Apple Magician Girl ATK: 1200 DEF: 800 LV: 3

"Chocolate Magician Girl then changes the attack target to the monster that was Special Summoned, which was Apple Magician Girl." Lord Kazuma continued. "And by doing so, your monster's attack points are halved!"

"What?" SengokuQueen replied in shock, as Chocolate Magician Girl fired a blast of magic from her wand, zapping Shi En and temporarily stopping him in his tracks.

Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En ATK: 3000 / 2 = 1500

"That's not all!" Lord Kazuma said. "Apple Magician Girl's effect! Since she was targeted for an attack, I can Special Summon one Level 5 or lower Spellcaster monster from my hand and change the attack target to it. By doing this, I can cut your monster's attack points even more. I therefore Special Summon Lemon Magician Girl from my hand!" A teenage girl with shoulder-length blond hair and a yellow, curved magician's hat with rings encircling it also appeared on Lord Kazuma's field. She wore piece's of yellow magician's clothing that covered the upper portion of her body, along with a part of her shoulders. Below her waist was a green skirt, with tight silver and black pants, along with yellow shoes. Like Apple Magician Girl, she had angelic wings on her back. In her right hand, she carried a small scepter.

Lemon Magician Girl ATK: 800 DEF: 600 LV: 2

Once Lemon Magician Girl was Special Summoned, Apple Magician Girl fired a blast of magic from her wand, also zapping Shi En and further stopping him in his tracks.

Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En ATK: 1500 / 2 = 750

"Lemon Magician Girl's effect! Since she was targeted for an attack, I can Special Summon one Spellcaster monster from my hand with its effects negated, and change the attack target to it. And just like before, I can cut your monster's attack points. Come forth, Dark Magician Girl!" A teenage girl in blue robes with a pink skirt and small pink cape winked at SengokuQueen as she joined the other Magician Girls on the field. She had long, blond spiky hair that extended to the middle of her back. On top of her head was a blue wizard's hat with pink rings encircling it. She also wore high-heeled blue boots with pink rings as well. In her hands, she carried a scepter.

Dark Magician Girl ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700 LV: 6

You got to be kidding me, SengokuQueen thought, as Lemon Magician Girl fired a blast of magical energy at Shi En, draining him further of the remaining strength he had.

Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En ATK: 750 / 2 = 375

"Now strike back, Dark Magician Girl!" Lord Kazuma commanded. "Dark Burning Attack!" Dark Magician Girl fired a blazing, magical blast at Shi En, who couldn't move much because his strength was drained.

"I activate Monk Halberd's second effect!" SengokuQueen said. "If the equipped monster would be destroyed by battle, I can destroy this card instead!" The halberd vanished as Shi En withstood the attack. However, the same couldn't be said for SengokuQueen, as she had to shield herself from the blast.

Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En ATK: 375 – 500 = 0

SengokuQueen: 4000 – 2000 = 2000 LP

"And since Monk Halberd was destroyed by its own effect, I can inflict 500 points of damage to you!" The halberd from earlier hurled itself towards Lord Kazuma, pushing him back as he took damage.

Lord Kazuma: 4000 – 500 = 3500 LP

"I Set two cards face-down and end my turn." SengokuQueen concluded, furious that she just lost half her life points in a single turn. I have to be careful from now on, she thought. Or else this could be my last duel!

"My turn! I draw!" Lord Kazuma said, drawing the top card of his deck. "I activate the Spell card, Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two cards from my deck!" He then drew the top two cards of his deck. "I also activate the Spell card, Sage's Stone! Since Dark Magician Girl is on my field, I can Special Summon Dark Magician from my deck! Appear, my ace monster!" On Lord Kazuma's command, a spellcaster in dark blue armor with shiny, curved plates that had sharp edges and covered the torso and shoulder areas appeared on his field. On the edges of the plates were curved trimmings of contrasting shade. He had blue-colored skin and white hair, and in his right hand was a dark blue rod.

Dark Magician ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000 LV: 7

"Dark Magical Circle's effect! Whenever Dark Magician is Normal or Special Summoned, I can target one card you control and banish it!" Lord Kazuma snickered as he pondered over his options. "It isn't worth it to banish your monster, and I must ensure you can't throw anything I'm not prepared for. I know! I'll banish the face-down card on your left!"

"Oh no!" SengokuQueen said, as Dark Magical Circle fired a blast of energy at her face-down card, turning it into particles. Wall of Disruption would have really helped right now.

"It's sad to see this performance end so soon," Lord Kazuma said, "but I am on a schedule. Battle! Dark Magician attacks your ace monster, Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En! Dark Magic Attack!" Dark Magician fired a magical blast from his dark blue rod at Shi En, but...

"Quick-Play Spell, activate!" SengokuQueen interrupted. "Six Strike – Surprise Attack!" The card showed Legendary Six Samurai – Shinai and Legendary Six Samurai – Mizuho coming to Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En's aid, preventing Sword Hunter from killing him. "This card not only negates the attack and ends the Battle Phase, I can also Special Summon up to two 'Six Samurai' monsters from my Graveyard in defense position. Return, Kagemusha and Elder of the Six Samurai!" As Kagemusha and Elder of the Six Samurai reappeared on her field in defense position, a barrier formed around Shi En, protecting him from Dark Magician's attack.

Kagemusha of the Six Samurai ATK: 400 DEF: 1800 LV: 2

Elder of the Six Samurai ATK: 400 DEF: 0 LV: 3

"Shien's Dojo's effect activates!"

Shien's Dojo BC: 3 + 1 + 1 = 5

Lord Kazuma clapped his hands. "How splendid! You chose to keep on fighting. Which means... Wait, hold on just a sec." He checked the watch function on his Duel Disk. "Okay, good. I can entertain you for a little longer, my dear." He then took the remaining two cards on his field and Set them face-down on his field. "I Set two cards face-down and end my turn."

Meanwhile, at another area of the sewer...

The gate that Raguel went into spat him out, causing him to roll to the ground.

"Yuhiro? Can you hear me?" Roxy said over the earpiece. "Damn, even with the upgrades, there always seems to be some interference!"

"I hear you, Roxy." Raguel assured her, causing her to breath in relief as he got up and started walking forward.

"I'm guessing something bad has happened?" Roxy asked.

"Kazuma's antics again." Raguel answered. "Only this time, he-."

"He enslaved a Cyberse monster to his will, and is using it to kill Playmaker and Ai!" Herald interrupted. "As a result, Kazuma made us choose between aiding SengokuQueen or Playmaker."

"At SengokuQueen's urging, we left her to deal with Kazuma." Raguel finished for Herald. "Can you help us track down Playmaker?"

"Sure thing!" Roxy replied. "Just need an Ignis algorithm from Herald, and I can get to it."

"One Ignis algorithm, coming up!" Herald said, sending it to Roxy. Within moments, Raguel's Duel Disk started vibrating. "Looks like Roxy managed to create a path for us." Raguel then started running.

"Okay, you first want to keep running straight." Roxy instructed them. "Within one hundred and twenty steps, you'll want to take a left turn. Just keep an eye out for steep ledges."

As Raguel progressed through the sewer and continued to follow Roxy's instructions, he continued to see streams of data spilling out of openings and flowing downwards. It must lead to the end of the sewer, Raguel theorized. And perhaps where the other Hanoi members are.

Eventually, Roxy noticed something odd on the monitor.

"Uh, Yuhiro?"

"What is it?" Raguel asked.

"The path ends up showing two destinations." Roxy stated. "One where you turn right within thirty steps, and one that keeps increasing in terms of steps."

"Which should be where the data monster and Playmaker are." Raguel theorized.

"Hang on, Roxy." Herald interrupted, thinking. "You said there were two paths, correct?"

"Yup."

Herald kept pondering to himself until a revelation hit him. "Since Lord Kazuma said that he's enslaving the Cyberse monster, it could mean that nearby, there's a place that's controlling it. And if we were to destroy it..."

"We can free it from slavery and save Playmaker in the process!" Raguel realized. He then continued running straight, and within thirty steps, he turned right, entering a small area of the sewer.

"Whatever you find in there, be careful, Yuhiro." Roxy gently advised him. "And please try to not get injured like last time."

"Don't worry. I'll be careful." Raguel assured her. The next thing he knew, beams of red light were fired at him out of nowhere, making him roll to his left to avoid them. "Okay, who fired those laser beams?!"

"Unknown presence has entered the room," a mechanical voice said, as the room suddenly lit up, revealing Gradius. "Scanning. Presence recognized. Duelist known as Raguel identified. Duel threat: Five stars."

"Hang on a minute." Raguel said, recognizing Gradius as he stood up. "You're Lord Kazuma's messenger droid, aren't you?"

"Affirmative." Gradius confirmed, as suddenly, a wall rose behind Raguel, sealing him in the room with the droid. "I am Gradius, Lord Kazuma's messenger droid. He has tasked me to defeat you in a duel and acquire your Ignis."

"Yeah, that's not going to happen." Raguel stated. "I'm guessing Kazuma also tasked you to get rid of Playmaker as well?"

"Affirmative." Gradius once again confirmed, as a TV-screen rose behind it. "Right now, the Cyberse monster Lord Kazuma captured is being used to dispose of Playmaker. Eventually, the task will be fulfilled."

"And I'm presuming that if I beat you in a duel, I'll be able to free the Cyberse monster and save Playmaker?" Raguel asked, readying his Duel Disk.

"Affirmative." Gradius confirmed for a third time, readying its own Duel Disk. "As my masters are on a schedule, we should get started immediately."

"Kick its ass, Raguel!" Herald said.

"I couldn't agree more, Herald!" Raguel agreed with him.

"Duel!" Raguel and Gradius said at the same time.

Raguel: 4000 LP

Gradius: 4000 LP

"I shall go first," Gradius said, looking at its starting hand. "I activate the Field Spell card, B.E.F. Zelos. When this card is activated, I'm allowed to add a copy of 'Boss Rush' to my hand. In addition, all 'B.E.S.' monsters on my field gain 500 attack and defense points, and they can't be targeted nor destroyed by your card effects."

As Gradius added a card from his deck to his hand, the entire room transformed into a section of outer space, with spaceship debris floating around both duelists.

"Okay, I didn't know a Field Spell card like B.E.F. Zelos can do that." Herald said, marveling in the scenery. Meanwhile, Raguel narrowed his eyes as he looked around. B.E.S.? Wasn't that an old card archetype or something?

"B.E.F. Zelos' fourth effect!" Gradius said. "Once per turn, I'm allowed to Special Summon a 'B.E.S.' monster from my hand. Come, B.E.S. Big Core MK-3!" A massive spaceship with titanium coating and red and black lines all over its body hovered onto Gradius' field. On each side of the spaceship was a massive plasma cannon, with two small underbelly turrets accompanying it below the sides. At the front was a long barrel cannon, with two more turrets at each side. Finally, in the middle of the spaceship, there were three, bright blue cores.

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 ATK: 2700 DEF: 1900 LV: 8

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 ATK: 2700 + 500 = 3200 DEF: 1900 + 500 = 2400

"A monster over 3000 attack points on only the first turn?!" Herald exclaimed. Raguel grit his teeth. Something told him this duel was going to be a bit harder than he anticipated.

"When B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 is Normal or Special Summoned, I can place three counters on this card." Gradius explained. "Furthermore, the fifth effect of B.E.F. Zelos activates! When a 'B.E.S.' monster is Normal or Special Summoned, I can place one counter on it!"

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 C: 0 + 3 + 1 = 4

"I summon B.E.S. Assault Core from my hand." A medium-sized, saucer-like ship hovered onto Gradius' field. Unlike Big Core MK-3, this ship had murky edged armor surrounding the core, with a turret at the end of each armor plate. The ship was also surrounded by two small mines, which emitted a plasma field. At the middle of the ship was a single, plasma core.

B.E.S. Assault Core ATK: 1300 DEF: 2000 LV: 4

B.E.S. Assault Core ATK: 1300 + 500 = 1800 DEF: 2000 + 500 = 2500

"B.E.F. Zelos' effect!"

B.E.S. Assault Core C: 0 + 1 = 1

"I Set three cards face-down and end my turn." Gradius concluded.

"My turn! I draw!" Raguel said, drawing the top card of his deck. "Hey Roxy, are you familiar with the B.E.S. archetype by any chance?"

"Why yes, yes I am." Roxy answered over the earpiece. "The 'B.E.S.' deck focuses on swarming the field with high level monsters from the hand or deck. Also, as long as their Field Spell card is on the field, they basically have blanket protection to anything you can throw at them. Oh, and I have some info specifically for Herald."

"And what info would that be?" Herald asked, now curious about what Roxy's going to tell him.

"The entire 'B.E.S.' archetype is based on the bosses of the Gradius video game series." Roxy stated, causing Herald to widen his eyes in surprise.

"WWWWHHHHAAAATTTT?" Herald replied. "So you're saying that we're facing off against a video game deck? AWESOME!"

Raguel facepalmed himself upon witnessing Herald's reaction. Playmaker and Ai were in danger, and Herald was ecstatic to face off against a deck based off a video game series? You have got to be kidding me.

"Herald, may I inform you that Playmaker and Ai are in danger?" Raguel reminded the ecstatic Ignis, snapping him out of it. "The sooner we defeat this droid, the sooner we can save them."

"Right, right." Herald nodded. "But still, it's totally like we're the protagonists flying the Vic Viper spaceship into battle, where we must protect mankind from the Bacterian Empire!"

Raguel rolled his eyes. I have to start my turn, or I'll be arguing with an awestruck Herald, he thought. "I'll start by summoning Cyreath Beastmaster from my hand!" A short, armored creature wearing a horned helmet on its head and armor over its body jumped onto Raguel's field. It carried a short axe in its right hand. On its back, it carried a large horn.

Cyreath Beastmaster ATK: 0 DEF: 1500 LV: 4

"When Cyreath Beastmaster is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon one Level 4 or lower 'Cyreath' monster from my hand. Come, Cyreath Archer!" A female archer with pink hair and a light-green cloak also joined Raguel's field.

Cyreath Archer ATK: 1400 DEF: 1000 LV: 3

"Appear! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared in the sky above Raguel's head. "The summoning conditions are one monster! I'll set Cyreath Beastmaster into the Link Markers!" Beastmaster went into the top arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Pseudo!" A watery spirit with one eye, two long arms, and a tail appeared in the right Extra Monster Zone on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Pseudo ATK: 0 LINK-1 ⬆️

"Pseudo's effect! It gains attack points equal to the monster it points to!" Raguel continued. "And since Pseudo is pointing to Big Core MK-3, it gains 3200 attack points!" Pseudo morphed its body into a watery version of Big Core MK-3.

Cyreath Pseudo ATK: 0 + 3200 = 3200

"Enemy ship captured!" Herald cheered, much to Raguel's slight irritation.

"I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Cyreath Dispel from my hand!" Raguel continued. The card showed Cyreath Caster on top of a cliff, as she chanted a spell over the nearby land, draining it of its nutrients. "This card lets me target one Spell or Trap card you control and destroy it!" If I find and destroy Boss Rush, he thought, I'll be able to delay Gradius for one turn. "I choose the card on your right!" Cyreath Dispel fired a purple blast at the face-down card on the right, revealing itself to be the Trap card, Alert, before vanishing into yellow particles.

"Smart move, Yuhiro!" Roxy praised him over the earpiece. "That Trap card would have let it activate Boss Rush on your turn, so you should be able to get some damage in without any interruptions."

"Battle!" Raguel declared. "By cutting any battle damage Cyreath Archer inflicts this turn, she gets to attack you directly!" Archer pulled an arrow from her quiver farther back than she intended before releasing it at Gradius, but...

"Trap card, activate!" Gradius said. "Damage Diet! All damage I take is halved this turn!" The arrow that would have hit the droid shrunk, touching its armor briefly before falling to the ground.

Gradius: 4000 – ((1400 / 2) / 2) = 3650 LP

"Damn it." Raguel muttered to himself, slightly annoyed with what just happened. He then redirected his attention to the duel and thrusted out his right hand. "Now, Cyreath Pseudo! Attack B.E.S. Assault Core!" At Raguel's command, Pseudo fired several shots of water at Assault Core, short-circuiting the machine and destroying it completely.

Gradius: 3650 – (1400 / 2) = 2950 LP

"I Set three cards face-down and end my turn." Raguel concluded.

"We just scored one thousand and fifty points for us, Raguel!" Herald cheered, turning around and attempting to give Raguel a high-five, which he just ignored.

"Are you still awestruck about what Roxy told you?" Raguel asked him, getting his attention. "Get your head out of the clouds and back in the duel at hand!"

"My turn! I draw!" Gradius said, interrupting their conversation and drawing the top card of its deck. "Continuous-Spell card, activate! Boss Rush! During the End Phase of the turn that a 'B.E.S.' monster or 'Big Core' is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, I'm allowed to Special Summon one 'B.E.S.' monster or 'Big Core' from my deck."

"Boss Rush is the card that gets the deck moving, right Roxy?" Raguel asked her.

"Afraid so." Roxy confirmed. "But at least it didn't activate that card on your turn." Raguel couldn't help but agree with her.

"Continuous-Trap card, activate!" Gradius continued, gesturing to the other face-down card on its field. "Cyber Summon Blaster! Each time a Machine monster is Special Summoned, you take 300 points of damage!" Raguel frowned as a machine with treads and a cannon that looked like a light fixture emerged on the field.

"Using the fourth effect of B.E.F. Zelos, I Special Summon B.E.S. Tetran from my hand!" A large spaceship that was heavily covered in brown-coated armor hovered onto Gradius' field. Unlike most ships, Tetran only had a single plasma core, with four frontal cannons at the front of the ship. But what made it different from the others were the four, long tentacles it had at the underbelly.

B.E.S. Tetran ATK: 1800 DEF: 2300 LV: 6

B.E.S. Tetran ATK: 1800 + 500 = 2300 DEF: 2300 + 500 = 2800

"B.E.F. Zelos' effect!"

B.E.S. Tetran C: 0 + 1 = 1

"As a Machine monster was Special Summoned," Gradius added, "Cyber Summon Blaster inflicts 300 points of damage to you." Cyber Summon Blaster fired a burst of electricity at Raguel, slightly shocking him in the process.

Raguel: 4000 – 300 = 3700 LP

"Ouch!" Raguel shouted. "That stung!"

"If Lord Kazuma were here, he would say the following statement: Ha, ha, ha." Gradius commented. "Tetran's effect! Once per turn, I can remove one counter to destroy one Spell or Trap card on the field. I choose to destroy the card on your far left!" Two of Tetran's tentacles then fired blasts of energy at the designated card, turning it into yellow particles.

B.E.S. Tetran C: 1 – 1 = 0

Cyreath Launch would have helped in evading those massive spaceships, Raguel thought, having lost one way to win this duel.

"Circuit, open!" Gradius declared, its hands glowing blue as a Link Portal appeared above the droid. "The summoning conditions are one 'B.E.S.' monster! I'll Set B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 into the Link Markers!" Big Core MK-3 then went into the bottom-left arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! B.E.S. Gigas!" A large spaceship with silver coating and a purple and violet paintjob hovered in the right Extra Monster Zone on Gradius' field. It had two large ammunition cannons near the center, with a plasma cannon in front of the core. Near the plasma turret were two pieces of armor that were shaped like blades.

B.E.S. Gigas ATK: 0 LINK-1 ↙️

"When B.E.S. Gigas is Link Summoned, it gains attack points equal to the original attack points of the 'B.E.S.' monster used as Link Material!" Gigas' core glowed with energy as it powered up.

B.E.S. Gigas ATK: 0 + 2700 = 2700

"Cyber Summon Blaster's effect!" For a second time, Cyber Summon Blaster fired a burst of electricity at Raguel, giving him another small shock.

Raguel: 3700 – 300 = 3400 LP

"Also, since Big Core MK-3 is no longer on my field, Pseudo is no longer pointing to any monsters." Gradius pointed out.

"Which means that Pseudo loses all its attack points." Raguel finished for the droid, as Pseudo morphed back to its original form.

Cyreath Pseudo ATK: 3200 – 3200 = 0

"Battle!" Gradius declared. "B.E.S. Gigas attacks Cyreath Pseudo!" Gigas fired its cannons at Pseudo, but...

"Trap card, activate!" Raguel interrupted. "Cyreath Counter-Shuffle! Since you declared an attack with a Link Monster, I can negate the attack, and then return that monster right back to your Extra Deck!" Pseudo morphed its body to avoid the blasts, and counterattacked by firing a blast of water from its eye, returning it back to Gradius' Extra Deck.

"Conditions have been met. Gigas' second effect activates!" Gradius responded. "As it left the field, I can Special Summon one 'B.E.S' monster from my Graveyard. Return, B.E.S. Big Core MK-3!" The massive spaceship from earlier reappeared on the droid's field.

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 ATK: 2700 DEF: 1900 LV: 8

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 ATK: 2700 + 500 = 3200 DEF: 1900 + 500 = 2400

"The effects of B.E.F. Zelos, Big Core MK-3, and Cyber Summon Blaster activate at the same time!" Gradius stated. "Big Core MK-3 gains three counters upon being Normal or Special Summoned, while B.E.F. Zelos places a counter on it. You also take 300 more points of damage because a Machine monster was Special Summoned."

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 C: 0 + 3 + 1 = 4

Within moments, Cyber Summon Blaster fired a third burst of electricity at Raguel, giving him another slight shock.

Raguel: 3400 – 300 = 3100 LP

"The battle still continues. B.E.S. Tetran attacks Cyreath Pseudo!" Tetran charged its frontal cannons, ready to fire at Pseudo. However...

"I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Cyreath Providence!" Raguel said, gesturing to his remaining face-down card. "When this card is activated, immediately after this effect resolves, I can Link Summon one 'Cyreath' Link Monster by shuffling 'Cyreath' monsters from my Graveyard to my deck and/or Extra Deck!" He pointed to the sky. "Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared above Raguel's head. "The summoning conditions are two 'Cyreath' monsters. I'll shuffle Cyreath Pseudo, which is a Link 1 monster, and Cyreath Archer in my deck and Extra Deck to set them into the Link Markers!" One blast of energy went out of Raguel's Graveyard and into the top arrowhead, while the other one went into the bottom-arrowhead.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Ride into battle! Link 2! Cyreath Chariot Commander!" A ghostly skeletal figure whose entire body was made up of blue flames rode onto the field, in the right Extra Monster Zone. It wore a helmet with jagged, uneven horns, and had an outfit consisting of gauntlets, a pauldron over its left shoulder, a tattered gladiator's skirt, and broken-down metallic boots.

Cyreath Chariot Commander ATK: 2000 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️

"You going to resume your attack, piece of junk?" Raguel taunted the droid.

"Affirmative." Gradius confirmed. "B.E.S. Tetran will instead attack Cyreath Chariot Commander!" Tetran fired blasts of energy at Chariot Commander, destroying it completely.

Raguel: 3100 – 300 = 2800 LP

"At the end of the damage step, I must remove one counter from Tetran. However, as there's no counters, it's automatically destroyed." Tetran suddenly exploded, its usefulness having run out.

"I see..." Raguel muttered. Every time one of those B.E.S. monsters attack, the droid has to remove a counter from it, he thought. Otherwise, they're destroyed. However, with Boss Rush, the droid can simply replace the fallen machine with a new one.

"With that, I end my turn." Gradius concluded. "At it's my End Phase, the effect of Boss Rush activates. Since a 'B.E.S.' monster or 'Big Core' was destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, I'm allowed to Special Summon one 'B.E.S.' monster or 'Big Core' from my deck." A card popped out of its deck. "I Special Summon B.E.S. Blaster Cannon Core from my deck!" A second massive spaceship in the shape of a large, flying saucer hovered above the droid's field. It had four, huge plasma cannons, with two at the front of each side. Huge thrusters were at the back, letting it stay afloat. At the center was a large, plasma core.

B.E.S. Blaster Cannon Core ATK: 2500 DEF: 3000 LV: 9

B.E.S. Blaster Cannon Core ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000 DEF: 3000 + 500 = 3500

"The effects of B.E.F. Zelos, B.E.S. Blaster Cannon Core, and Cyber Summon Blaster simultaneously activate! Blaster Cannon Core gains three counters upon being Normal or Special Summoned, while B.E.F. Zelos places a counter on it. In addition, because a Machine monster was Special Summoned, you take 300 points of damage!"

B.E.S. Blaster Cannon Core C: 0 + 3 + 1 = 4

Soon, Cyber Summon Blaster fired a fourth burst of electricity at Raguel, giving him another shock in the process.

Raguel: 2800 – 300 = 2500 LP

"Damage even during the End Phase?" Raguel said, shaking the dust off himself. "This robot is actually doing a better job than Kitamura's AI Duelists."

"Who knew that an old archetype like B.E.S. would give you a hard time, huh Yuhiro?" Roxy commented.

"Chariot Commander should've done a barrel roll!" Herald said, a little upset. "There's no way I'm losing to that robot!"

"In a video game, or in an actual duel?" Raguel inquired.

"Why, both of course!" Herald immediately responded, much to Raguel's amusement.

Raguel then frowned. Hopefully, SengokuQueen is in a better position than I am, he thought.

Meanwhile, at Lord Kazuma and SengokuQueen's duel...

"It's my turn!" SengokuQueen said, drawing the top card of her deck. "I activate the Continuous-Spell card, Six Samurai United! Each time I Normal or Special Summon a 'Six Samurai' monster, I can place a Bushido counter on this card!"

She thrusted out her right hand. "Appear, the circuit of ancient honor!" A Link Portal soon appeared above her head. "The summoning conditions are two or more monsters, including a 'Six Samurai' monster! I'll set Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En, Kagemusha of the Six Samurai, and Elder of the Six Samurai into the Link Markers!" Shi En went into the top arrowhead, Kagemusha went into the bottom-right arrowhead, while Elder of the Six Samurai went into the bottom arrowhead.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Legendary Six Samurai – Ujisato!" A samurai with scarlet armor and a blazing wakibiki around his waist leapt onto SengokuQueen's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. While the upper portion of his body had less armor, the lower portion covered half of his legs. He wore his hair in a long ponytail, with a red, visor less samurai helmet to accompany it. In his right hand was a kunitomo, a long samurai gun. Whereas in his left hand, he carried a tanegashima, a short samurai gun.

Legendary Six Samurai – Ujisato ATK: 2500 LINK-3 ↙️⬆️↘️

"If Ujisato is Link Summoned, I'm allowed to place Bushido counters on this card equal to the number of 'Six Samurai' monsters used as Link Material!" SengokuQueen explained, as three Bushido symbols appeared on each of Ujisato's guns.

Legendary Six Samurai – Ujisato BC: 0 + 3 = 3

"The effects of Shien's Dojo and Six Samurai United activate!"

Shien's Dojo BC: 5 + 1 = 6

Six Samurai United BC: 0 + 1 = 1

"I activate the effect of Shien's Dojo! By sending it from my field to my Graveyard, I can Special Summon one 'Six Samurai' monster from my deck whose level is less than or equal to the number of Bushido counters Shien's Dojo had. Come, The Six Samurai – Yaichi!" A samurai wearing bronze armor with yellow glowing outlines appeared on SengokuQueen's field. The samurai had long, black hair, tied in a ponytail at the end. Unlike his comrades, his samurai helmet was tall, and had a scope on the right side. On his left side was a quiver, carrying arrows. He strung his bow and arrow at Lord Kazuma, ready for battle.

The Six Samurai – Yaichi ATK: 1300 DEF: 800 LV: 3

Shien's Dojo lets her Special Summon any 'Six Samurai' monster from her deck as long as its level is lower or equal, Lord Kazuma pondered. Why would she summon a monster that's only Level 3?

"Six Samurai United's effect!"

Six Samurai United BC: 1 + 1 = 2

"I activate the second effect of Six Samurai United!" SengokuQueen quickly added. "Since the maximum counters it can have is two, I will send it to the Graveyard, and by doing so, I can draw one card for each Bushido counter that was on it. As there were two Bushido counters, I get to draw two cards!" She drew the top two cards of her deck. These will definitely help, she realized, looking over the cards. "I summon Legendary Six Samurai – Kizan from my hand!" A samurai with dark blue armor appeared on her field. Unlike his brethren, this samurai's mask did not come with the helmet. His long black hair was on his sides, and he carried a katana in his hands.

Legendary Six Samurai – Kizan ATK: 1800 DEF: 500 LV: 4

"Kizan's effect! Since I have two or more other 'Six Samurai' monsters on my field, it gains 300 attack and defense points!"

Legendary Six Samurai – Kizan ATK: 1800 + 300 = 2100 DEF: 500 + 300 = 800

"I'll also activate Yaichi's effect!" SengokuQueen said. "Once per turn, if I control another 'Six Samurai' monster, I can target one Set Spell or Trap card on your field and destroy it! However, Yaichi can't attack. Say goodbye to the facedown card on your left!" Yaichi grabbed a glowing arrow from his quiver and fired it at the facedown card, turning it into particles, much to Lord Kazuma's irritation.

"If you think I'm done, you're mistaken! I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Six Scrolls of the Six Samurai! By tributing two 'Six Samurai' monsters, I can Special Summon Great Shogun Shien from my deck!" A card popped out of her deck, which she grabbed. "Emerge and aid me in this battle, Great Shogun Shien!" As Kizan and Yaichi disappeared from the field, a samurai with blood-red crimson armor and a long, magenta cape on his back joined SengokuQueen's field in one of the Main Monster Zones Ujisato is pointing to. His eyes glowed red, as he swung his katana, ready for battle.

Great Shogun Shien ATK: 2500 DEF: 2400 LV: 7

"Last but not least, I activate Ujisato's effect!" SengokuQueen continued. "Once per turn, if Ujisato is pointing to a 'Six Samurai' or 'Shien' monster, I can remove as many Bushido counters to destroy that many cards on your field! I remove all three Bushido counters to destroy Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl, and your face-down card!" As all three Bushido symbols disappeared from Ujisato's guns, he fired a debris of gunfire at the designated cards. However...

"Not so fast!" Lord Kazuma said. "Quick-Play Spell, activate! Secrets of Dark Magic! This card lets me activate one of two effects! I choose to activate the first effect, which lets me Fusion Summon using monsters from my hand or field, including Dark Magician or Dark Magician Girl as Fusion Material! In this case, I'll use both Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl as Fusion Materials to perform a Fusion Summon!" Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl disintegrated into blue and red particles of energy, which went into a Dark Magical Circle above them.

"The ultimate wizard and his apprentice shall unite to unlock their true strength together!" Lord Kazuma chanted. "Fusion Summon! Come forth! Level 8! The Dark Magicians!" Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl returned from the whirlwind and reappeared in the right Extra Monster Zone on his field. Only this time, their robes were both more ornate than before.

The Dark Magicians ATK: 2800 DEF: 2300 LV: 8

I can't believe he Fusion Summoned during my turn, SengokuQueen thought, upset with what Lord Kazuma just did. His monsters on the other hand can be destroyed through regular methods, so it's only a setback I'll have to deal with next turn. "Battle! Legendary Six Samurai – Ujisato attacks Lemon Magician Girl!" Ujisato fired a debris of gunfire at Lemon Magician Girl, turning her into particles. Lord Kazuma had to use his arms to shield his body from the bullets as his life points dropped.

Lord Kazuma: 3500 – 1700 = 1800 LP

"Great Shogun Shien now attacks Apple Magician Girl!" Great Shogun Shien charged forward and slashed Apple Magician Girl, destroying her and causing an explosion, causing Lord Kazuma to fall to the ground in the process.

Lord Kazuma: 1800 – 1300 = 500 LP

"I end my turn." SengokuQueen concluded. With Great Shogun Shien on the field, he can only activate one Spell or Trap card, she thought. On my next turn, he's finished!

"It looks like I need to get serious with you." Lord Kazuma said, a snicker on his face as he got up. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. "I activate the effect of the Trap card, Magicians' Surprise, from my Graveyard!"

"What?" SengokuQueen said, as it dawned on her. That must be the face-down card I destroyed with Yaichi, she realized. Soon, a silhouette of a card appeared on Lord Kazuma's field, which showed Dark Magician Girl exiting from Mystic Box, having escaped harm.

"By banishing this card, along with two Spellcaster monsters from my Graveyard," Lord Kazuma explained, "I can Special Summon a Dark Spellcaster monster from my hand, deck, or Graveyard! I banish this card, along with Apple Magician Girl and Lemon Magician Girl to bring back my Dark Magician!" At Lord Kazuma's command, Dark Magician reappeared on his field.

Dark Magician ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000 LV: 7

"The effect of The Dark Magicians' activates! Since a Spell, Trap, or monster effect was activated, I get to draw a card, and if it's a Spell or Trap card, I can Set it. In addition, if the card I draw is a Trap or Quick-Play Spell, I get to activate it this turn!" He then raised his hand into the air. "By the heart of the cards, I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck and smirked upon seeing what it was. "I'll Set the card I drew face-down on my field."

"Keep in mind that while Great Shogun Shien is on my field, you can only activate one Spell or Trap card per turn!" SengokuQueen reminded him.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Lord Kazuma replied. "But I'll easily rectify that little problem!" He thrusted out his right hand. "Battle! The Dark Magicians attacks Great Shogun Shien! Dark Burning Impact!" The powered up Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl joined forces as they fired a blast of magical energy from their respective weapons at Great Shogun Shien, destroying him completely.

SengokuQueen: 2000 – 300 = 1700 LP

"With Great Shogun Shien gone, I can now activate the Trap card, Destruct Potion! It lets me destroy a monster I control and gain life points equal to its attack points! I choose The Dark Magicians!" The crowd gasped as The Dark Magicians suddenly exploded, as they turned into yellow particles that touched Lord Kazuma, increasing his life points.

Lord Kazuma: 500 + 2800 = 3300 LP

"Don't worry, everyone. Because I have a surprise for all of you!" Lord Kazuma exclaimed. "When The Dark Magicians is destroyed, I can Special Summon a copy of Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl from my hand, deck, or Graveyard!" One card popped out of his Graveyard, while the other popped out of his deck. "Grace the field once more, Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl!" A second copy of Dark Magician appeared on Lord Kazuma's field, while Dark Magician Girl returned to the field at the same time, causing the crowd to go wild.

Dark Magician ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000 LV: 7

Dark Magician Girl ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700 LV: 6

"Now, appear! The network of dark magic!" Lord Kazuma declared, as his hand glowed yellow and a galaxy portal appeared in the sky above the duelists. "Materials confirmed! The summoning conditions are two Level 7 Spellcaster monsters! I overlay my two Level 7 Dark Magicians!" Both Dark Magicians turned into dark blue streams of energy that entered the portal, where a pillar of light soon erupted from its center.

"Xyz Summon! Magician from another dimension! Emerge, and unleash your magic on my enemies! Rank 7! Ebon High Magician!" A magician with dark blue and white clothing leapt from the portal and onto the right Extra Monster Zone on Lord Kazuma's field. The magician had spiky, brown hair, with a unique blur magician's hat that had gold outlines on it. Two red circles, one at his neck and one at his lower waist, were on his robes, along with golden outlines. On his arms, there was also white-armoured plating. In his left hand, he carried a long scepter that had a red circle in the middle.

Ebon High Magician ATK: 2300 DEF: 2800 RNK: 3 OU: 2

"And with that, I shall end my turn." Lord Kazuma concluded, giving a little bow.

Not only did he regain the life points he lost, SengokuQueen thought, but he also Xyz Summoned a monster with the opposite stats The Dark Magicians had. Ultimately, this question was on her mind: What was Lord Kazuma planning?

At Raguel and Gradius' duel...

"My turn! I draw!" Raguel said, drawing the top card of his deck. "I activate the Spell card, Pandora's Box. This card lets me draw until I have five cards in my hand. However, I must discard a 'Cyreath' monster from my hand at the end of my turn, or I'll take 2000 points of damage." He then drew the top five cards of his deck. "Next, I activate Link Reborn from my hand, which lets me Special Summon one Link Monster from my Graveyard! However, it can't attack for the rest of this turn! Come back, Chariot Commander!" Chariot Commander reappeared on Raguel's field, or more specifically, in the Main Monster Zone that pointed to the right Extra Monster Zone.

Cyreath Chariot Commander ATK: 2000 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️

"From my hand, I'll use Cyreath Doppelganger's effect! Since I control a 'Cyreath' monster, I can Special Summon this card from my hand!" A pale, shadowy man materialized itself on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

"Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared in the sky above Raguel's head. "The summoning conditions are one monster! I'll set Cyreath Doppelganger into the Link Markers!" Doppelganger went into the bottom-left arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Skull Wing!" A small skull with wings was summoned to the Extra Monster Zone Chariot Commander was pointing to.

Cyreath Skull Wing ATK: 300 LINK-1 ↙️

"Chariot Commander's effect!" Raguel continued. "When a monster is summoned to a zone this card points to, I can destroy one card you control! And I'll choose B.E.F. Zelos!" Chariot Commander threw a fireball right at B.E.F. Zelos, incinerating the card completely. "Without your Field Spell card, you know what that means, scrap-heap!"

B.E.S. Blaster Cannon Core ATK: 3000 - 500 = 3000 DEF: 3500 - 500 = 3000

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 ATK: 3200 - 500 = 2700 DEF: 2400 - 500 = 1900

"Appear, for the second time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A second Link Portal appeared above Raguel's head. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Cyreath' monsters! I'll set Cyreath Chariot Commander, which is a Link 2 monster, and Cyreath Skull Wing, which is a Link 1 monster, into the Link Markers!" Chariot Commander split into two and entered the left and right arrowheads, while Skull Wing went into the bottom arrowhead.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Heed the captain's call! Link 3! Cyreath Galactic Squid!" A red-skinned octopus with a white underbelly and four tentacles was summoned to the right Extra Monster Zone on Raguel's field. The squid had black eyes flashing yellow dots, and multiple rows of teeth within its maw.

Cyreath Galactic Squid ATK: 2300 LINK-3 ⬅️➡️⬆️

"Skull Wing's effect!" Raguel added. "Since it was used to Link Summon, you take 300 points of damage!" A silhouette of Skull Wing appeared and went through Gradius, who had no reaction whatsoever.

Gradius: 2950 – 300 = 2650 LP

"I'll then activate Galactic Squid's effect! When it's Link Summoned, I can target two Main Monster Zones on your side of the field, and you can't use them as long as this card is on the field! I choose the middle and far-left Main Monster Zones!" Galactic Squid fired two blasts of ink at those zones, turning them black and preventing the droid from using them. "But why stop with one effect, when I can use the other one as well! Since I control no other monsters, I can tribute this card to shuffle all other cards on the field back into their owner's decks! Bright Overload!" Galactic Squid's black eyes became very bright before firing a massive beam of light from its mouth at every card on Gradius' field, turning them into yellow particles as they returned to the droid's deck. Galactic Squid then vanished afterwards.

"Enemy defenses down!" Herald cheered.

"That's the spirit, Yuhiro!" Roxy cheered as well. "Although I do hope you have a plan on damaging this robot further."

"Don't worry. I definitely have a plan." Raguel told her. He then redirected his attention back to the duel. "I activate the second effect of Doppelganger from my Graveyard! Once per duel, by banishing one 'Cyreath' monster from my Graveyard, I get to Special Summon this card to my field in attack position. I banish Cyreath Beastmaster from my Graveyard to Special Summon Doppelganger back to my field!" Doppelganger, for a second time, materialized itself onto Raguel's field.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

"Appear, for the third time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A third Link Portal appeared above Raguel's head. "The summoning conditions are one 'Cyreath' monster! I'll set Cyreath Doppelganger into the Link Markers!" Doppelganger went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Come on out! Link 1! Cyreath Scorpius!" A huge scorpion, with large pincers and a long tail, joined Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.

Cyreath Scorpius ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

"Scorpius' effect!" Raguel said. "Once per turn, when I control no monsters in the Main Monster Zone, I can Special Summon one Level 4 or lower 'Cyreath' monster from my Graveyard to a zone this card points to. Return, Cyreath Archer!" The pink-haired, female archer from earlier reappeared onto Raguel's field in the Main Monster Zone Scorpius was pointing to.

Cyreath Archer ATK: 1400 DEF: 1000 LV: 3

"Time to battle! Cyreath Archer attacks you directly!" Archer grabbed an arrow from her quiver and fired it at Gradius. This time, the arrow pierced the droid's body, pushing it slightly back.

Gradius: 2650 – 1400 = 1250 LP

"Scorpius also attacks you directly!" Scorpius charged forward at Gradius and slashed Gradius with its claws, pushing it back a second time.

Gradius: 1250 – 1000 = 250 LP

"So close!" Herald exclaimed. "It has a few hit points to go, and then we win!"

"I Set two cards face-down and end my turn." Raguel concluded. "As my turn is over, I'll discard Cyreath Barbarian from my hand to avoid the 2000 penalty for activating Pandora's Box."

"My turn! I draw!" Gradius said, drawing the top card of its deck. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, B.E.S. Launch!" The card showed B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 flying out of a massive battle station. Accompanying it were several B.E.S. Armored Cores. "This card lets me Special Summon one 'B.E.S.' monster from my deck, with its effects negated. Emerge, B.E.S. Big Core MK-3!" A second copy of Big Core MK-3 materialized itself onto the droid's field.

B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 ATK: 2700 DEF: 1900 LV: 8

"Battle! B.E.S. Big Core MK-3 attacks Cyreath Scorpius!" Big Core MK-3 charged its plasma cannons before firing them at Scorpius, vanquishing the scorpion completely as Raguel shielded himself from the oncoming blaster fire.

Raguel: 2800 – 1700 = 1100 LP

"I activate the Trap card, Cyreath Succession!" Raguel said. "Since a 'Cyreath' monster I control left the field, I can Special Summon a 'Cyreath' monster, except a Link Monster, from my Graveyard. However, its effects are negated. Return, Cyreath Doppelganger!" For a third time, Doppelganger materialized itself onto Raguel's field.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

"I end my turn." Gradius concluded. "Chances of victory: 70%. As long as Raguel doesn't draw a Spell or Trap card, the odds are in my favor."

"You seriously believe the odds are in your favor due to that monster of yours?!" Raguel taunted Gradius. "I'll defy those odds and smash you to bits!"

"As Lord Kazuma would say: Prove it."

"My turn! I draw!" Raguel drew the top card of his deck. Just what I needed, he thought. "I summon Cyreath Icarus from my hand!" An angelic warrior wearing a white tunic and brown sandals flew onto Raguel's field.

Cyreath Icarus ATK: 1200 DEF: 1100 LV: 3

"When Icarus is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon one Level 4 or lower 'Cyreath' monster from my Graveyard. Cyreath Barbarian, you're up!" A man with spiked cuffs, close-cropped blond hair and mustache joined Raguel's field.

Cyreath Barbarian ATK: 1500 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared in the sky above Raguel's head. "The summoning conditions are two monsters, except tokens! I'll set Cyreath Barbarian and Cyreath Icarus into the Link Markers!" Barbarian went into the left arrowhead, while Icarus went into the right arrowhead.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Progleo!" A white-furred cub with orange eyes emerged from the Link Portal and was summoned to the right Extra Monster Zone. The cub had a satellite dish around its neck, as well as an old video recorder on his back. He also had a small brace on each of its claws, and a small coil attached to his tail.

Progleo ATK: 1000 LINK-2 ⬅️➡️

"Yeah!" Herald said. "Help us get the high score, Progleo!"

"I'm going to get experience points!" Progleo said, as he turned his head at Gradius and growled at it.

"Barbarian's effect!" Raguel continued, now tired with this duel. "Since it was used to Link Summon, the Link Summoned monster gains 500 attack points!"

Progleo ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"In addition, I activate the Spell card, Link Bypass!" The card showed Linkuriboh crossing a bridge over several Giant Orc's. "This card lets me target one Link Monster I control, and by doing so, it gets to attack directly this turn!"

"Malfunction... Malfunction..." Gradius said, having realized that it was screwed.

"Battle!" Raguel declared. "Progleo attacks you directly! Playful Pounce!" Progleo ran on top of a bridge generated by Link Bypass and then lunged at Gradius, mauling the droid to death as its life points dropped to zero.

Gradius: 250 – 1500 = 0

Even after the duel was done, Progleo still continued to rip Gradius apart for several minutes. By the time he was finished, the droid looked like it was completely damaged. Progleo then turned to Raguel and Herald before smiling at them.

"You did an excellent job, Progleo!" Raguel praised the cub, as he walked over to where he was and petted him on the head. "Good boy."

"And you got lots of experience points too!" Herald added, giving Progleo a thumbs up before the cub detected something with his nose. "Everything okay?"

"I found something!" Progleo replied, following the trail, the others walking behind him. Within moments, the cub found the source. In front of them was a large control panel.

"This must be how Lord Kazuma controlled the Cyberse monster..." Raguel muttered, as he touched the control panel. "You seeing this, Roxy?"

"Yup!" Roxy confirmed. "But enough dilly-dallying. The sooner we get started, the faster we can save Playmaker and Ai!"

"Got it!" Raguel then stretched his hands before turning on the system and getting started. For several minutes, he typed different elements of code into the system along with Roxy, trying to break the code. Soon, their efforts paid off, as the screen then showed 'Enact Freedom Protocol?'.

"Enacting Freedom Protocol NOW!" Raguel said, as he pressed the 'Enter' button on the large control panel, sending the code into the system and to the Cyberse monster. "Hope this works."

Elsewhere, in another part of the sewer...

"For goodness sake, Playmaker! Run. Faster!" Ai ordered him, as Playmaker continued running from the data monster.

"And I told you, Ai. I'm running as fast as I can!" Playmaker responded, eventually reaching a dead end. "A dead end?"

"Not good, Yusaku." Kusanagi said, seeing the pickle Playmaker was in due to the monitor. "But based on these readings, you're getting close to the anomaly, if you ask me."

"But we're as good as dead!" Ai panicked, as the data monster started approaching them, intending on eating them both. Suddenly, it experienced a splitting headache, causing the monster to hit both sides of the wall. As a result, a piece of the ceiling cracked, causing several large pieces of rubble to fall and create a hole in the ground. Right before it could step over the hole and get destroyed, the data monster fell onto its back, its suffering finally over as it breathed its last.

"We're saved!" Ai cheered, as the data monster started melting, revealing something at its core that surprised everyone.

"Yusaku! Are you seeing what I'm seeing?!" Kusanagi asked, clearly shocked.

"Yeah." Playmaker responded, jumping over the hole and to the data monster's remnants.

"A Cyberse monster was... going to kill us?!" Ai said in shock, looking at the Cyberse card. "No. That isn't possible. If anything, the Knights of Hanoi corrupted this card. Enslaved it for their wicked plans!"

"But it's now free, Ai. From its suffering." Playmaker told him, picking up the Cyberse card and reading it. "Zombie Prosaber." After looking at the card, he then inserted it into his Duel Disk. Soon after, Playmaker's Duel Disk started ringing, indicating that he got a call from Raguel.

"You guys alright?" Raguel asked on the other end.

"We're fine. Wait. How did you know we were in trouble?" Playmaker replied.

"A Knight of Hanoi named Kazuma made you a part of his twisted game." Herald answered. "We're about to leave and aid SengokuQueen in her duel against him. What about you?"

"That's simple!" Ai stated. "We're going to figure out what this anomaly is, and then pummel the Hanoi into tomorrow's breakfast!"

"I don't think AI's eat, Ai." Playmaker casually told the Ignis. "Regardless, finding out what the anomaly is takes high priority."

"Right." Raguel agreed. "We'll-." Suddenly, the feed began to cut out.

"Raguel? Herald?" Playmaker said.

"Someone's interfering with the call." Kusanagi stated, typing on the keypad back at Café Nagi. "I'll try and re-establish it, if you want."

"Raguel and Herald will be fine. I trust them." Playmaker stated, looking at the hole. "I'm going to investigate, Kusanagi."

"All right. Just be careful." With that, Playmaker leapt into the hole and to another section of the sewer.

At the room where Raguel was...

"Playmaker? Ai?" Raguel said, realizing that somebody was interfering with the call. And it was obvious who was responsible upon hearing laughter...

"Congratulations on defeating Gradius, Raguel," a video recording of Lord Kazuma said, as it appeared on the screen. "I apologize for not being here in person, but I'd like to inform you of some details."

"And what details would that be?" Raguel demanded.

"Why, for starters, you can't get out of this room yet because my duel with SengokuQueen isn't over." Lord Kazuma answered. Another window then appeared beside the recording, which showed live footage of the duel between the real Lord Kazuma and SengokuQueen. "And you can't leave until it's over."

"We'll see about that!" And Lord Kazuma laughed in response as the recording ended.

"Raguel, this isn't the time to get angry." Herald advised him. "You remember the last time it happened, right?"

"I'm well aware, Herald." Raguel answered, walking over to the sealed door and trying to smash his way through with his sword and gun. "Damn. Even with my artillery, I can't use force. Can you do something on your end, Roxy?"

"I'll try." Roxy replied, now beginning to type. "But who knows what security Kazuma put in for the sewers?"

"Just do your best, Roxy." Raguel said, in between deep breaths. "I'll see if I can do anything on my end in the meanwhile." He then walked back to the large control panel and began typing a series of code into it. If I hurry, perhaps I can create a backdoor program, he theorized in his mind. Just hope I'm not too late.

At Lord Kazuma and SengokuQueen's duel...

"My turn! I draw!" SengokuQueen said, drawing the top card of her deck. If I attack his monster, he'll activate its effect, she realized. Which means I'll have to end this duel with a direct attack. "I'll start by activating the Spell card, Enduring Draw!" The card showed a duelist with Marauding Captain and Trident Warrior drawing cards from their deck. "Once per duel, by banishing up to three Warrior monsters from my Graveyard, I can draw up to three cards from my deck! I banish The Six Samurai - Yaichi, Kagemusha of the Six Samurai, and Elder of the Six Samurai!" She then drew the top three cards of her deck. "From there, I summon The Six Samurai – Yariza!" A samurai with dark-blue armor and neon-lines on it leapt onto SengokuQueen's field. His helmet covered not only his head, but his face as well. In his right hand, he carried a long whip.

The Six Samurai – Yariza ATK: 1000 DEF: 500 LV: 3

"Last but not least, I activate the Spell card, Essence of the Six Samurai!" The card showed Legendary Six Samurai – Shi En's body decaying, as his spirit went into Legendary Six Samurai – Enishi. "By tributing a 'Six Samurai' monster I control, I can target one 'Six Samurai' monster I control and have it gain both the tributed monster's effects and attack points until the End Phase! I target Ujisato and tribute Yariza!" Yariza then exploded into yellow particles, which went into Ujisato.

Legendary Six Samurai – Ujisato ATK: 2500 + 1000 = 3500

"That's nice and all, but doesn't your monster have requirements to use its effect?" Lord Kazuma inquired.

"Then it's good that I can answer your question." SengokuQueen answered. "Grandmaster of the Six Samurai's effect! Since I control a 'Six Samurai' monster on my field, I can Special Summon him from my hand!" An old samurai with a mechanical eyepatch on his face where his right eye should have been and a scar on the right side of his face also joined the field. He had long, white hair and a long beard to go with it. The robes he wore were an odd mix of silver-grey in the chest area with dark brown at the shoulders. Grandmaster also had mechanical arms with white lines and wrapped yellow rope at the joints. He swung his katana, ready for battle.

Grandmaster of the Six Samurai ATK: 2100 DEF: 800 LV: 5

"Ujisato's newest effect! Since I control a 'Six Samurai' monster, he can now attack directly!" SengokuQueen thrusted out her right hand. "Battle! Legendary Six Samurai – Ujisato attacks you directly!"

"OH NO!" Lord Kazuma panicked, as Ujisato prepared to fire his guns. "I'M DONE FOR!" He then realized something. "Oh, wait! I still got tricks up my sleeve! Like Ebon High Magician's effect! By detaching an Overlay Unit from this card, I can activate a Quick-Play Spell or a Trap card from my hand this turn!"

"What?!" SengokuQueen exclaimed, as one of the Overlay Units behind Ebon High Magician went into his scepter.

Ebon High Magician OU: 2 – 1 – 1

"I now activate the Trap card, Magic Cylinder from my hand!" Lord Kazuma said with glee. "When your monster declares an attack, not only can I negate it, I can also inflict damage equal to your attacking monster's attack points!" As Ujisato fired his guns, two massive red cylinders appeared in front of Lord Kazuma. The bullet fire went into one of the cylinders before refiring them from the other, which were headed straight for SengokuQueen!

"GAAAAAAH!" SengokuQueen screamed, as she was decimated by bullet fire from her own monster. By the time this was finished, she fell on her knees, having lost the duel.

SengokuQueen: 1700 – 3500 = 0

"And it looks like the victory goes to me!" Lord Kazuma said, as the crowd cheered for him. He then pressed a button on his duel disk, causing the screen behind him to activate again.

At the room where Raguel was...

"Something's happening, Roxy." Raguel said, having realized the screen on the control panel changing. Unfortunately, he soon heard gleeful laughter.

"Hello there, Raguel." Lord Kazuma said. "Just for the record, this is the real me. I want to personally let you know that SengokuQueen has lost her duel against me!"

"You're lying!" Raguel snarled. "There's no way she could have lost to you!"

"Don't believe me? See what happens when someone loses a duel from here on out." Lord Kazuma then stepped aside so Raguel could see SengokuQueen, who had a terrified expression on her face as she looked at her hands. He gasped upon seeing her glow red.

"What did you do?" SengokuQueen demanded from Lord Kazuma, now scared at what's to come. "WHAT DID YOU DO?"

"Do you fear... death?" Lord Kazuma asked, walking to where SengokuQueen was before going around her. "Do you fear that dark abyss? All your deeds laid bare, all your sins punished?" He laughed as he went back to face the screen. "Because that's where you're headed. That's where everyone will go to if they get involved with the Hanoi's greatest performance!"

Soon, SengokuQueen's avatar started breaking apart from her fingers, causing her eyes to widen in shock for a brief moment. However, she quickly regained her resolve and looked at the screen on the other end.

"Listen, Raguel!" SengokuQueen said, her voice starting to break as well. "You have to stop the Hanoi. If you band with the others, you'll have a fighting chance. Bring them to-!" Her avatar then disintegrated completely.

"SengokuQueen!" Raguel shouted, his eyes widened having witnessed what just happened.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I guess she couldn't finish her sentence." Lord Kazuma stated, laughing to himself.

"Once I find you, expect no mercy from me!" Raguel declared, narrowing his eyes in fury as he looked at the screen. "Because you're finished, Kazuma!"

"Seriously, it's Lord Kazuma. Get it right already." Lord Kazuma responded, rolling his eyes. "But I do look forward to dueling you again." The live footage then cut off afterwards.

"What the Hanoi did to her... was horrible." Herald said, rattled with what he just saw. Suddenly, the entire ground started shaking.

"Yuhiro! I don't know what's going on, but it's something very bad!" Roxy exclaimed. "You have to log out. We can inform Playmaker and Kusanagi of what happened on your end once you come back."

"Okay." Raguel decided. "I'm logging out." Kneeling down to Progleo's level, the cub immediately went into his Duel Disk, having understood the situation. Once that was done, Raguel immediately logged out.

At Café Matsuo's backroom...

"Roxy!" Yuhiro said, immediately emerging from the closed-off space.

"Good to see you're still in one piece!" Roxy stated. "Come on." She motioned for him to quickly follow her to the other side of the backroom.

As soon as Yuhiro and Roxy went to the monitors and sat down in their respective chairs, the energy readings started blaring up again.

"Shit!" Roxy cursed. As soon as she finished typing on the keyboard, she covered her mouth.

"The hell is this?!" Yuhiro exclaimed.

The two watched as, in LINK VRAINS, a massive beam of light emerged from the ground. Tendrils of purple energy wrapped themselves around the beam and formed some kind of support structure. Shockwaves radiated out of the tower as a golden ball of energy travelled upwards. Once it hit the top, it exploded outwards.

"What have the Hanoi done?!"

Card Gallery

Link Bypass (Normal Spell card)

Effect: Target 1 Link monster your control; this turn, it can attack your opponent directly. You can only use this effect of 'Link Bypass' once per turn.

Essence of the Six Samurai (Normal Spell card)

Effect: Tribute 1 'Six Samurai' monster on your field, then target 1 other 'Six Samurai' monster you control; until the End Phase, that monster gains ATK equal to the tributed monsters ATK, as well as its effects

Enduring Draw (Normal Spell card)

Effect: Once per duel: You can banish up to three Warrior monsters from your GY; draw cards equal to the number of monsters banished by this effect. During the End Phase of the turn you activate this card: You take 500 points of damage for each Warrior monster on your field.

Cyreath Dispel (Quick-Play Spell card)

Effect: If you control a 'Cyreath' monster: You can target 1 Spell or Trap card your opponent controls; destroy it.

Six Strike – Surprise Attack (Quick-Play Spell card)

Effect: When a monster your opponent controls attacks a 'Six Samurai' monster you control: Negate the attack and end the Battle Phase, then you can Special Summon up to 2 'Six Samurai' monsters from your Graveyard in defense position. You can only activate 1 'Six Strike – Surprise Attack' per turn.

B.E.S. Launch (Quick-Play Spell card)

Effect: Special Summon 1 'B.E.S.' monster from your deck. Its effects are negated while its on the field.

Magician's Surprise (Normal Trap card)

Effect: When your opponent activates a card effect that targets a DARK Spellcaster monster on your field: You can negate that effect. If this card is in your GY: You can banish this card and 2 Spellcaster monsters from your GY; Special Summon 1 DARK Spellcaster monster from your hand, deck, or GY to your field. You can only use 1 'Magician's Surprise' effect per turn, and only one that turn.

B.E.S. Gigas (LR: 1/Machine/Earth/ATK: 0/↙️)

Effect: 1 'B.E.S.' monster. When this card is Link Summoned: You can have this card gain ATK equal to the 'B.E.S.' monster used as Link Material. If this card leaves the field: You can target 1 'B.E.S.' monster in your GY; Special Summon it.

Legendary Six Samurai – Ujisato (LR: 3/Warrior/Fire/ATK: 2500/↙️️⬆️↘️)

Effect: 2 or more monsters, including a 'Six Samurai' monster. When this card is Link Summoned: You can place Bushido counters on this card equal to the number of 'Six Samurai' monsters used as Link Material. Once per turn: You can remove as many Bushido counters from this card; destroy cards your opponent controls equal to the number of Bushido counters removed by this effect.

QOTC

With the Tower having risen, what duels are you looking forward to seeing in the coming chapters?

Chapter Preview

Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth. Chapter 29: The Tower Cometh. The Knights of Hanoi have launched their ultimate weapon: The Tower of Hanoi. Raguel, Playmaker, and their allies log into LINK VRAINS to unite and stop the Hanoi's plan. With guidance from Watchman, they split up to reach the Tower and eliminate any remaining members of the Hanoi. As Rosetta makes her way on foot, she's caught off guard by someone she thought was killed a while ago...

Author's Notes

Whew, this was a long chapter! While there's a lot to cover in this chapter, I'll only be covering the main events that occurred.

The two main events that occurred were the duels between Raguel and Gradius, the name of Lord Kazuma's messenger droid, and the duel between SengokuQueen and Lord Kazuma. Both these duels kick off the Tower of Hanoi arc, and I'll talk about each of them separately.

First, there's SengokuQueen vs Lord Kazuma. This duel allowed SengokuQueen to duel against one of the remaining Hanoi members and use her full strength against them. Sadly, due to Lord Kazuma's strategies, she lost in the end. Luckily, this duel will be one of the reasons she upgrades her deck later on in the story. I also wanted to give Lord Kazuma a chance to show off some more tricks from his deck, such as Xyz Summoning. What else do you think he can do, you may wonder? You'll have to read on and find out.

Next, there's the Raguel vs. Gradius duel. In terms of opposing archetype, I chose the B.E.S. archetype because it fits with the grunts and sergeants using Machine monsters. That, and I wanted Herald to go gaga over dueling against a video-game archetype. Please note: This is the only time that Gradius will duel, as due to Progleo practically mauling it at the end, it probably won't be able to utilize its duel function again. If Gradius does return, it will be to serve its primary function, which is deliver messages.

The other event that occurred was the data monster chasing Playmaker. In the anime, some of you might be wondering what a data monster would be doing in the sewers of LINK VRAINS. To answer your question, I decided to have Lord Kazuma capture a Cyberse monster (which is revealed to be Zombie Prosaber) and enslave it to his will, which set off the two duels that occurred. Let me know your thoughts on this.

Lastly, I wanted to make an announcement in terms of the duels that will appear in the upcoming duels. All the duels that occurred in the anime during the Tower of Hanoi arc will happen one way or another. This is because there was not only some great character moments, but there was also character exposition as well. Although I won't tell you who's dueling who, I do encourage you to guess as to what you think will happen.

Thanks for reading Chapter 28 of Obscured Truth. Please 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. If you know of anyone who would be interested in reading the story, don't hesitate in showing them.

What did you enjoy the most about this chapter? The duels? The shocking truth about the data monster? Lord Kazuma's epic performance? Or are you looking forward to what's to come?

Stay tuned for what's to come, as next time, the race against time begins!