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.

46. Chapter 46: Delusional Heartbeat

Response to Reviews

Thank you to ZeroMK7, HunterHQ, Noobmaster, Unknown, Unnamed, Guest, ZarcEternal, Anonymous, Ambiguous, Electriuser, Kingdom Hearts Guy, Guest, Guest, Guest, E.T. 2000, Yuman28, Guest, and Decode Talker for reviewing Chapter 45 of Obscured Truth.

Hi, everyone! Based on your reviews, I can tell you definitely enjoyed the chapter, as they're filled with lots of information. Rest assured: I'll do my best to answer them all to the best of my ability.

So without further ado, let's get to answering them:

ZeroMK7: I'm very sorry to hear you've been experiencing difficulties for the past few weeks. I hope you're doing well. That being said, I'm glad you enjoyed both Chapter 44 and 45. Don't forget to take care of yourself during these times.

HunterHQ: While Wraith knew that Herald was with Raguel, he needed to hear it from Ai to be one hundred percent certain. Also, while Wraith trusts his Origin, he doesn't trust humans, as they did attack the Cyberse World. This will be explored later on in the story, as there is another side to it. And when Wraith touched Ai's palm, in a way, it was like he was wire tapping him. Also, you expected Miyu to kiss Yuhiro awake? Wouldn't that be rushing their relationship a bit? I'll tell you now: There will be no shipping between Tsubaki and Miles. Happy you enjoyed both duels and seeing all the Charisma Duelists together in one place. Just to inform you: Rosetta only has one copy of Queen Angel of Roses. But if she had Evil Thorn on her field, then she could use Inferno Reckless Summon to bring out two more copies. Good point there, too. Yuhiro will have to risk more than previously to get Miyu back, and the costs and sacrifices may end up changing him forever too.

Noobmaster: It took Ai a long time to find the Cyberse World because he had to search throughout the entire network. Also, Ai did tell Wraith that he and Herald teamed up with their Origins to stop the Hanoi. If Herald had been the one to give Aoi romantic advice, he probably would have actually said those things. If Aoi went to Roxy, though... that would result in her getting embarrassed big time. Akira couldn't quit because he needed the money to support himself and Aoi. Since Rook and Pawn were shown, its very likely you'll see them down the line. All of them will eventually duel in the later seasons as well. And yes, Kitamura has a bounty on his head for what he did. For the penguin scene, I just had to mention Club Penguin. If you're looking for the answer to that question on Malf and the penguin, read this chapter. To point something out: Azrael used his abilities in LINK VRAINS to break Ace and Athaliah out of the prison transport back in Chapter 39. And yes, Yuhiro will grow increasingly unstable over the next few weeks (I got something major planned for when that happens, hehehe)...

Unknown: Good observations you've made. Don't worry, the higher SOL executives will have a larger role to play, especially in Season 4. Also, rest assured: I got something planned so the other Charisma Duelists can get some action. While I understand your point regarding Azrael's tactics, he had to get Yuhiro's attention somehow.

Unnamed: Azrael actually cares for Wraith because he is his Ignis. If Lightning even tried to reprogram Wraith like he did to Windy, oh boy. That wouldn't end well for Lightning. Regarding your idea on recreating a scene similar to that of IT, I'll consider it for the future. As for your question on the Charisma Duelists, the answer's yes. I've included a list of the Top 10 Charisma Duelists at the end of Chapter 45, as well as what decks they use. Lastly, I'll tell you now: Azrael doesn't have the data on Project: VIII yet.

Guest: Oh, now I get it. A gauntlet based off of one of Revolver's Borrel monsters. Since SengokuQueen was undercover at the time, she had to kill those men to not only maintain her cover, but also enable Raguel and Ghost Girl to reach the database. While the Knights of Hanoi aim to destroy the Ignis, they wouldn't go to attacking someone in the real world. Whatever business they have with their enemies is usually done in the network. Yes, Windy's origin will be having his debut duel this chapter. Hope you enjoy that along with Raguel vs. Malf. I can't answer your last question because its spoiler-related, so keep on reading to find out.

ZarcEternal: What better way to motivate someone into action than go after the person they care about the most? Whether Azrael did this by his own accord or under Lightning's orders will be addressed in Chapter 47. Happy you enjoyed both duels, especially the Rosetta vs. Astro one. I was actually going for that goal when writing it, believe it or not.

Anonymous: Wraith didn't expect Linkuriboh of all people to tackle him to the ground. If Lightning had the chance, would he? And how would it go? Those are questions that will be addressed later on. Ai would definitely get bragging rights for surprising Wraith, much to his embarrassment of course. I'll ensure the branches each get their fair amount of screen time (if you're curious, refer to the Turf Wars DLC from the PS4 Spiderman game). As for your question on Tsubaki, she received a pardon from SOL Technologies for her role in the fight against the Hanoi. Why didn't they call SengokuQueen for the job? That will be addressed as well later on. As for your final question now that Miyu is unconscious once again, you'll just have to read on and see for yourself.

Ambiguous: If you used an X-Ray on a Duel Monster, you'd see both organs and bones. If SOL Technologies got their hands on what makes Progleo tick, it'd be Pokémon within a matter of time. Yuhiro and the others will eventually put two and two together, don't worry. Lastly, I'm glad you enjoyed Miles' first duel.

Electriuser: Just because Brion's LINK VRAINS name is Electrolyzer doesn't mean he has Thunder-type monsters. His deck will be revealed in Chapter 48 along with Drachen's. Happy you liked Pawn's surprise appearance, as he definitely is the pain in Queen's butt. Also, of course Aoi likes Yusaku. I practically ship them together. Happy you liked both duels. While it may appear like Blue Angel was restraining herself, she wasn't. Instead, she used the duel to try out some of the new cards in her deck, so I can understand what you mean. What is Herald's favorite Pokémon, you ask? Honestly, not sure.

Kingdom Hearts Guy: Of course its not good. Raguel's definitely not going to like the situation that's now occurred.

Guest: Don't worry. Bohman and Haru will return following Season 2. How, I will not say. As for your question, allow me to explain it in different parts. If Azrael was dueling Bohman in his first form, then Azrael would easily wipe the floor with him. If Azrael was dueling Bohman in his second form, then Azrael would defeat him, but not without a small amount of difficulty. If Azrael was dueling Bohman in his third form when he didn't absorb any of the Ignis, then Azrael will face a medium amount of difficulty, and it can be anyone's victory. Lastly, if Azrael dueled Bohman when he absorbed five of the Ignis, then he'll definitely have difficulty against Bohman, as well as a fifty percent chance of winning. Hope this helps.

Guest: Solfachord carries a musical theme for an archetype that uses Pendulum Summoning. There will be a whole chapter on Windy's Origin's backstory, but it won't be until later on in the story. His debut duel is actually in this chapter, so you'll have to see what deck he uses. And remember: The deck is symbolic to the character, and is a part of their story. I can go into further insight for characters the anime didn't touch on. A reminder: Watchman exiled himself into the network following the Lost Incident.

Guest: Its definitely an example of human nature, that's for sure. Revolver and Infearno didn't reveal Yusaku and Yuhiro's identities because the Knights of Hanoi prefer to settle any issues in the network only. They wouldn't attack someone in the real world. I can't answer your other questions because of spoilers, but I will encourage you to read on if you wish to get answers.

E.T. 2000: Glad you enjoyed the chapter. The Charisma Duelists who appeared in this chapter did not appear during the time when the Knights of Hanoi unleashed the Tower of Hanoi. Good ideas you have regarding Akairo's deck. Lastly, I'm happy you like Raguel's new avatar, and I like your ideas on what Miyu's avatar in the network can be (I'll look both of them up, so thank you very much).

Yuman28: Happy you enjoyed the chapter. And of course Yuhiro's reckless; it's a part of his personality. You're right on that; new avatar changes bring fresh life to current characters, as it symbolizes their character development. I'll do what I can for Season 1, so don't be disappointed if its too long.

Guest: There are a total of three Kings, if you've forgotten. For Project: Apotheosis, there were dozens of kidnapped victims. And no, Medusa will not duel.

Decode Talker: Happy that you liked the chapter. Look, I get what you mean. How is smiles going to stop an Interdimensional War? While I welcome other people's opinions, when it becomes a rant, its where I draw the line. I hope you understand.

One last thing before we begin: The Season 1 Opening is uploaded onto Roxy's Reports, so give it a read if you want. Now that reviews are done, its time for the chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 46: Delusional Heartbeat

The sky appears, full of clouds. Playmaker races through the clouds on his duel board, followed by Raguel, Soulburner, and then a male individual wearing a black outfit with green accents and a gold, bird-like mask over his eyes. The individual had dark green hair, which was spiked upwards before a medium sized portion of it went over the right side of his mask. Two swords then slice the clouds completely to reveal NEW LINK VRAINS. One of the swords, a katana with symbols inscribed on the blade, crosses downwards to the left. Crossing downwards to the right was a typical western sword, with a golden rain-guard and a blue grip. The sword also had symbols inscribed on the blade as well. The two swords made a shining X, causing the Yu-Gi-Oh VRAINS! logo to appear, and underneath it, the words "OBSCURED TRUTH" ominously appear.

Yuhiro and Yusaku are walking down the street to school. Naoki runs past them, a large smile on his face. Aoi walks past them on the other side, smiling lightly and blushing at Yusaku. Then Takeru walks up behind them and wraps one arm around Yusaku. He then wraps the other arm around Yuhiro, surprising him for a few moments before being pulled to the side by Rachel, who's clearly happy to see him. Yuhiro smiles back at her.

Tsubaki and Hideki are shown boarding an airplane as they head to their destination. After sitting down next to each other in their respective seats, Tsubaki looks out in the window, which shows a reflection of Rosetta, while Hideki picks up the airplane guide and reads it. In the sky above them is Ace, a malicious sneer on his face.

Go Onizuka is shown wearing a hoodie as he leaves the waterfront for the last time. Outside of his home, he encounters Kenmochi and Yoroizaka, who are waiting for him. Smirking, the three of them raise their left arms into the air and enter NEW LINK VRAINS, with Go in his new avatar riding beside his new allies. Stregone crosses his arms as he looks down at them, a look of shock and disappointment on his face.

Kusanagi is then shown with Roxy at a nearby picnic table, both enjoying food and laughter while talking about technology. Flame and Ai are shown arguing in Café Nagi, while Herald ends up getting annoyed with their bickering. As a result, he snaps his fingers, causing Progleo to jump onto the desk and startle Ai and Flame.

At SOL Technologies, Akira Zaizen and Hayami are shown in Queen's office, with Queen handing them a signed order regarding Playmaker and Raguel. A look of hesitation appears on Akira's face, but he hides it just in time.

Azrael and Wraith are then shown with Ace and Athaliah standing behind them, shrouded in shadow along with their ace monsters Zerrziel, Ruler of the Evil Eyed and El Shaddoll Construct. Standing behind Azrael and Wraith though, is a black, bipedal dragon with red sclera, white irises, and black pupils obscured in shadow. The dragon roars before disappearing with Zerrziel and El Shaddoll Construct. Jumping above Azrael and Wraith is Malf, sporting a demonic expression on his face. He then extends his right arm forward towards the screen, darkening it completely.

When the screen becomes clear, Playmaker and Raguel are shown riding their duel boards next to each other, with Cyberse Witch and Cyberse Magician in front of Playmaker, and Cyreath Hercules and Cyreath Medusa in front of Raguel. The two are chased by Blood Shepherd, who directs two copies of Battledrone Sergeant to fire at them. Although the two of them are hit by the explosions the missiles caused, they escape unharmed. Suddenly, a young man wearing an elaborate purplish coat with black inner lining and cuffs intricately decorated by red-coloured motifs, as well as grey shirt with crimson leather pants orders a red-eyed dragon with black skin to fire at them. In response, Playmaker and Raguel are shown swerving left and right to avoid the consecutive blasts. Joining the young man in the hunt is another man, with red hair spiked backwards and dark purple eyes, as well as wearing a stylish white coat with yellow lines and a black shirt underneath it. Draped around his lower body is a white waist cape with yellow lines as well. The man orders a male, humanoid monster wearing several components of futuristic armor pieces to attack Playmaker, but Raguel turns his duel board around and activates a card, causing Hercules to glow a bright light before transforming into a colossal, statue-like man with long, shaggy black hair and elbow protrusions. His eyes glowing red, Hercules charged forward with his axe sword and clashed with the male humanoid.

The screen then shifts to the male individual from the opening's beginning watching the duel between Playmaker and an obscured Bohman, while Raguel duels the spiked red-haired man with a white coat and a white waist cape. Noticing Haru, who's also watching the duel between Playmaker and an obscured Bohman, the individual takes a card and summons a white and black dragon covered in white, blue, and black armor, who roared at the boy. The dragon had neon green crystals attached to her body, which acted like wings that shone with bright light. Haru, in response, takes a card and summons Hydradrive Nagini, who hissed at the dragon in the process.

Blue Angel and Rosetta are shown in NEW LINK VRAINS at a picnic table, laughing and enjoying each other's company. The two of them then turn their heads towards the duels going on in the sky, a look of concern on each of their faces.

Watchman's group is then shown, with Percival standing slightly apart from them as he makes a fist with his left hand. Simorgh, Bird of Sovereignty and Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon appear before a massive, red-skinned demonic looking monster with golden elements, several eyeballs embedded on its body and four tentacles with bladed claws rises from behind them.

The Knights of Hanoi are shown summoning their monsters. Motor Worm Spread Queen, Helixx Necro Darwin, and Dark Mummy Surgical Forceps first appear before fading into the background. Next is Dark Magician, Berserker of the Tenyi, and Lucifer, Condemner of the Burning Abyss, with Sunavalon Dryanome behind them. Borreload Savage Dragon then rises from behind the four monsters and roars loudly.

Akira is shown at Green Park with Emma, Gekiryushi, and Aoi, giving them details on finding the Ignis. Emma proceeds to make a flirtatious gesture at Akira, making Gekiryushi facepalm and comment on how flirting can be useful at a time like this. The two women then begin to argue, with Akira and Aoi trying to break up the argument.

Yuhiro and Progleo are shown with Miyu at the Den City Hospital, trying to help her walk. Miyu, who's using the parallel bars, ends up slipping, only for Yuhiro to immediately catch her from behind and help her stand up. Roxy then runs out of nowhere and starts pummeling Yuhiro, causing Miyu to almost fall backwards again to their shock. Catching her this time though is Medusa, who appears behind her and smiles, much to everyone's relief. Miyu smiles back, grateful for Medusa's help. The screen then flips around before showing Yuhiro on his knees, clasping an unconscious Miyu's hand in sadness and rage.

Cyreaths Hercules, Medusa, Hades, Poseidon and Zeus are then shown in the air, with Turboblaze Dragon racing past them. The five of them prepare to attack alongside Turboblaze Dragon, who unleashes his Desolation Flare attack as well.

Raguel and Herald are then shown on top of a tower, facing off against Azrael and Wraith in a duel. Behind Raguel and Herald is Turboblaze Dragon, while behind Azrael and Wraith is the black, bipedal dragon from earlier in the opening. Both dragons roar at each other. Raguel reeves up his sword, while Azrael unsheathes his katana before the two of them and their dragons charge at each other.

Yuhiro, Roxy, Miyu, Kusanagi, Takeru, and Yusaku are all shown sitting outdoors at a picnic table near the Den City Hospital, all of them eating hot dogs, and Takeru, Kusanagi, and Roxy are laughing. Three duel disks are shown on the table, with Flame lecturing Ai while Herald plays a game on Yuhiro's tablet.

Yuhiro, Roxy, and Miyu are sitting down on a bench outside the Den City Hospital, with Medusa standing nearby them and Progleo on Roxy's lap. Miyu proceeds to rest her head on Yuhiro's shoulder, causing him to blush as she smiles. Yuhiro smiles back at her, while Roxy and Medusa both smile at them, happy they're able to find happiness with each other. The scene then switches to NEW LINK VRAINS, with Raguel, Playmaker, and Soulburner standing on a building and looking out into the radiant sky.

In LINK VRAINS...

Raguel emerged into LINK VRAINS and landed on his duel board. He looked at his new avatar, pleased with the results. "I already said it once and I'll say it again. I'm impressed, Herald."

"Well, I'm glad you like it." Herald said, remaining an eye in Raguel's duel disk. He rotated around and ended up finding someone nearby. "You're not going to believe this, but Playmaker's here as well!"

Raguel turned in the direction Herald was looking. Sure enough, there was Playmaker on his new duel board. He was looking around, ignoring the people that were staring at him.

"Wonder what he's doing here..." Raguel muttered, as he sped his duel board to catch up with Playmaker. "Hey. Playmaker."

Playmaker looked over as he saw Raguel reach him.

"That ID... Is that you, Raguel?"

"Yeah. I changed my avatar earlier today." Raguel answered. "What are you doing here, Playmaker? Did Roxy call you about what happened?"

"What are you-."

"Found you, Playmaker and Raguel." Blood Shepherd interrupted from behind the duo, causing Playmaker to gasp and look behind them. Raguel did the same and grit his teeth.

"Oh Hell no," he muttered. From what they were seeing, both of them were currently being chased by Blood Shepherd of all people. How great.

"The both of you have got guts showing up in the network with bounties on your heads." Blood Shepherd said as he pulled up closer to them. "But regardless, you two will be captured very soon."

"Screw off, Blood Shepherd." Raguel told him. "Not sure if you got the situation, but I'm on a serious rescue mission here."

"A rescue mission?" Playmaker repeated, turning to Raguel. "Raguel, what do you mean?"

"Long story short, a dark-blue figure attacked Miyu in the real world and is escaping in the network." Raguel summarized, as Playmaker's eyes widened in surprise. "What's your story, Playmaker?"

"A golden man attacked Kusanagi's brother Jin and took his consciousness data..." Playmaker replied, shocking Raguel as Playmaker motioned to the golden man up ahead. "We need to-." Unfortunately, Blood Shepherd fired energy blasts from his prosthetic arm, causing the duo to evade them.

"Enough!" Blood Shepherd said, lowering his prosthetic arm and attempting to chase down Playmaker and Raguel. "I don't know why SOL Technologies wants the both of you so bad, but then again, I don't care."

"They're after us because they think we have Ignis's." Playmaker stated. "While Raguel still has his Ignis, mine left a long time ago."

"Oh, yeah? Then what's that?" Blood Shepherd inquired, gesturing to Playmaker's duel disk. The other duelists did as Blood Shepherd said, and sure enough, Ai was there.

"What up, meatbag?" Ai popped up along with Linkuriboh before waving to Raguel and Herald. "Raguel! Herald! Nice to see you both again!"

"You as well, Ai." Herald replied, waving back. "Is that Linkuriboh?"

"Linkuriboh?" Progleo said, his head appearing underneath Herald and surprising him. "Hi, Linkuriboh!"

"Kuri, Kuri, Ku!" Linkuriboh happily responded, filled with joy upon seeing Progleo once again.

"Ai! Why are you here?" Playmaker asked him.

"Well. You want to hear a not-so funny story?" Ai asked in return.

"Not right now."

"Yup! I remember these feelings!" Ai said, looking very happy.

"Playmaker!" Raguel said, glancing upwards. Playmaker gasped on seeing the golden man in front of them. And to the upper right was... the dark-blue figure!

"There they are!" Playmaker said, a determined expression on his face.

"Huh? What are you both talking about?" Ai asked.

"We'd tell you, but we have a pain in the ass to deal with first." Herald replied before turning to Blood Shepherd.

"Then you're lucky that I'm here with full upgrades!" Ai declared, turning to Blood Shepherd as he held a hand to his eye before pointing it at him. "Firing my Data Storm!"

A tornado of data suddenly appeared next to Blood Shepherd, releasing powerful winds. "What the-?" Blood Shepherd said, having been caught off guard by this new development.

"Danger. Duel board unstable," Blood Shepherd's AI informed him. "Emergency logout initiated." Blood Shepherd then broke down into blue data and logged out.

"Later, escalator!" Ai said. "Now lets go get our runaways!" Both Playmaker and Raguel sped up, intent on catching up to their targets. "Okay, could someone fill me in on what I missed?"

"Someone attacked Jin and stole his consciousness data." Playmaker explained, going first.

"What?!" Ai exclaimed. "The golden man attacked Kusanagi's baby brother Jin? Why? And how did he do it?"

"I don't know how." Playmaker looked up ahead. "But if I defeat him in a duel, I can extract his avatar data to not only learn his identity, but find out why he did what he did."

"Under the new LINK VRAINS' rules, winners can make trades." Raguel added. "And if I kick the dark-blue figure's ass in a duel, I can get the needed answers to save Miyu."

"Miyu?" Ai turned to Raguel. "What happened to her?"

"The dark-blue figure did something to Miyu and knocked her out cold." Raguel answered, a cold glare on his face. "That's why I'm here."

"Okay, then. Guess I'm caught up now." All of them noticed the golden man make a fist in Playmaker's direction, while the dark-blue figure beckoned Raguel to come at him.

"The golden man wants to duel you, Playmaker." Herald said before turning to the dark-blue figure. "And apparently, he's not the only one." Raguel looked up at the dark-blue figure and glared at him, as if answering his challenge.

"Oh, yeah?" Ai turned back to face Playmaker. "Then it's a good thing I brought my buddy from the Cyberse World. He ain't as cute as me, but who is?" He gestured to the monster he was sitting on. "Say hi to Playmaker, Linky."

"Kuri, Kuri, Ku!" Linkuriboh greeted Playmaker before going into his duel disk.

"Interesting. He will help me during this duel." Playmaker said, grateful for the assist.

"Yup!" Ai agreed.

"Here goes!" Playmaker said, as he activated his duel disk.

"Speed Duel!" he and the golden man shouted in unison.

Suddenly, Raguel noticed two more silhouettes that were heading in their direction. "Damn it. Playmaker, more bounty hunters are coming. I'll take care of them and the dark-blue figure. You take care of the golden man and get Jin back." Playmaker nodded and turned to face the golden man, while Raguel sped away from their duel. "Herald. Initiate High Speed mode!"

"Leave this to me!" Herald said, transforming into his Hydra form before disappearing into his board. He then reappeared from the duel board as a shield. The back thrusters on Raguel's duel board then emitted orange energy and increased speed. Eventually, Raguel was able to catch up with the dark-blue figure.

"You!" Raguel snarled, chasing the dark-blue figure. "What did you do to Miyu? Answer me!"

"Even if I did, I wouldn't expect you of all people to understand," the dark-blue figure coldly replied, suddenly hitting Raguel in the face with his scabbard and knocking him back. Several blue-mirage blades appeared at the dark-blue figure's sides before he fired them at Raguel, causing him to evade each one.

Summoning his sword, Raguel revved it up before speeding forward and attempting to strike the dark-blue figure, who evaded all of his attacks and struck him once again with his scabbard, only at the stomach. After doing so, the dark-blue figure suddenly stopped his duel board before he slid back and slashed so quickly that he appeared to be unsheathing and sheathing his katana.

"Raguel, look out!" Herald said, forming a shield as several black and blue distortion ripples appeared before various slashes went through. Raguel would have suffered worse damage had it not been for Herald's shield, which not only mitigated the impact, but also pushed his duel board back. "There's something familiar about him."

"Yeah." Raguel agreed, formulating a strategy. He took out his double-barreled revolver and fired several shots out of it, causing the dark-blue figure to unsheathe his katana and quickly block them. Seizing the opportunity, Raguel sped forward and struck the dark-blue figure once again, who parried all of his attacks. However, on the last attack, Raguel hit him at the face with the hilt of his sword, pushing him back. As a result, the light on the dark-blue figure's face peeled away until it revealed Azrael, causing Raguel and Herald to gasp in shock. "I know you! You're the azure-overcoated man!"

Before he could continue speaking though, several fire blasts fired from behind him and the azure-overcoated man, interrupting their fight. The both of them evaded the shots fired, with the azure-overcoated man slicing one of them in half in the process.

"How troublesome," Azrael commented, as the rest of the light peeled away, fully revealing him in the process. He then released two slashes from his katana in an X-like formation, creating a portal large enough ahead for him to travel through. He then motioned to his duel disk briefly, and whispered as if giving an order. "They're all yours, Malf." After doing so, Azrael increased the speed on his duel board, intent on reaching the portal.

"You're not getting away!" Raguel cried out, doing the same in the hopes of reaching Azrael. Unfortunately, more fire blasts fired from behind him, making the task easier said than done. He was close to Azrael when a fire blast suddenly hit his duel board's engine, causing him to miss as Azrael entered the portal and escaped. "No. Come back! MIYU!" He focused on regaining control of his duel board, although he had an expression on his face resembling sorrow and anger.

"Raguel, I know you're upset right now..." Herald began. "But we got company!"

Sure enough, when Raguel briefly turned around, Herald was right. They indeed have company. One of the people pursuing Raguel was a young man wearing an elaborate purplish coat with black inner lining and cuffs intricately decorated by red-coloured motifs, as well as grey shirt with crimson leather pants. Beside him was a large, black dragon with red-colored eyes. The other person was a tall, male adult with red hair spiked backwards and purple eyes. He wore a stylish white coat with yellow lines and a black shirt underneath it. Draped around his lower body is a white waist cape with yellow lines as well.

"Excellent shot, Red-Eyes," the younger man praised his monster, who roared before returning to his master's duel disk. "We've been hired to retrieve your Ignis, Raguel. So prepare to-!"

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Raguel snapped as he fully turned around, causing everyone present to widen their eyes in surprise. "Couldn't you see I was busy trying to save someone? I bet you were so focused on your mission you weren't able to! For your interference, I'll defeat you first, and then your ally's next!"

"Bring it on!" the younger man declared. He was about to activate his duel disk, only for him to be stopped by the older man.

"Stand down, Drachen," the older man ordered the younger man before turning to Raguel. "I am Electrolyzer, but in the real world, I go by another name. One that's well-known in Central Japan."

"Central Japan?" Herald repeated, mulling it over as he looked at Electrolyzer. "What name would-?" Herald's eyes widened as he put two and two together. "You're Brion Miyahara, the last Prince of the Miyahara family in Central Japan itself!"

"Indeed I am, Ignis." Electrolyzer confirmed. "Raguel, on behalf of my honor as a prince and my cohort here, I would like to apologize for what you went through. Let us make it right." He held out his right hand in front of him. "If you surrender your Ignis, we'll do everything we can to help you rescue your friend."

"Not. A. Chance." Raguel spat back, rejecting Electrolyzer's offer. "I won't let either of you capture Herald for SOL Technologies. Besides, he's important to me, and after everything we went through together, I'm not abandoning him."

"Raguel..." Herald muttered, a look of concern on his face. It made sense for Raguel to act this way, as due to Azrael, he lost the chance to save Miyu.

"Your idea didn't work, Electrolyzer." Drachen told him, as he sped up to where Raguel was. "I'll take on Raguel first. This will be a piece of-GAH!"

Before Drachen could finish his sentence, he was pierced in the stomach by a purple arm that shapeshifted into a blade. Both Raguel and Electrolyzer gasped as the arm-blade came out of Drachen, causing him to disintegrate into blue data due to the shock. Raguel spotted the culprit first: a short creature with deep purple skin, red sclera, white irises, and pointed tentacles sprouting above his head. The creature also wore black baggy pants with a golden horned buckle, which looked very familiar.

"HAHAHA!" the creature exclaimed, happy with the kill as its left arm then morphed into a blade as well. "Me got the first kill, me got the first kill! The both of you are next!" He swung his arm-blades at Raguel and Electrolyzer, causing the both of them to evade the strikes.

"Okay, there is no creature who can do that!" Herald exclaimed, as Raguel continued to evade the strikes.

"I won't let a creature like yourself get involved!" Electrolyzer declared, taking a card and summoning it to his field. "Come, PSY-Framegear Alpha!" A silver and black exoskeleton with arms then appeared beside him. It had a helmet with green eyes, as well as spikes on the sides, arms, and knuckles. Its chest portion was connected to the harness through wires, with a reactor core in the middle. At the back was a series of multi-layered belts, which was shaped like a spine. Alpha then attached itself to Electrolyzer, turning itself on in the process. "Take this!" Electrolyzer fired green, electrical blasts from Alpha's palms, causing Malf to stretch and contort his body to avoid them.

"You annoying." Malf muttered, turning his right arm into a giant fist and catching Electrolyzer off guard before punching him in the face, causing the bounty hunter to fall off his duel board and land on a nearby island area. Alpha then turned into particles, returning to Electrolyzer's duel disk as he turned into blue data and logged out. "There. All done."

"Just what the hell are you?" Raguel demanded, as Malf sped up to ride parallel to him. And why is that creature wearing Monty's pants, he wondered. His eyes widened as he recalled the information SengokuQueen told him. Its not just your old boss Monty who died. Lately, I heard that many people have been killed in these areas. As a result, the people in the various branches have been accusing one another of killing valued members. Had it not been for the Overseer, it would have escalated into a full-out turf war.

"Raguel, is everything okay?" Herald asked, turning to face him.

"That creature is the one who killed Monty... and all the others..." Raguel realized, causing Herald to widen his eyes as well.

"You got it!" Malf said, a sadistic sneer on his face. "You can call me Malf. And one of me masters was the azure-overcoated man you just fought. He wants me to defeat a duelist with an Ignis to increase me strength!"

Raguel grit his teeth and glared at Malf. He just admitted to working with the azure-overcoated man, he thought. But who else would this Malf be working for? Regardless, his sudden appearance also presented an opportunity for Raguel. If he managed to defeat Malf in a duel, he could get information on saving Miyu. "Is that what you think? I'll have you know that, when I win, you'll tell me where to find your masters, as well as how to save Miyu!"

"That was just the response me expected!" Malf responded, activating his own duel disk. Unlike regular duel disks, this one grew on his left arm. It had a purple and red energy blade shaped like a demented wing, as well as a tray with his deck inside it. The Graveyard portion of it was shaped like a sharp-toothed mouth. "Do make me try, as all the other duelists me have defeated were weaklings."

"You'll eat those words!" Herald shouted back.

"Speed Duel!" Raguel and Malf declared at the same time.

Raguel: 4000 LP

Malf: 4000 LP

"Me go first! Me go first!" Malf immediately said, going over the cards in his hand. "Me summon Darkscourge Star Core!" A medium-sized violet orb with a black star emblem displayed on the front appeared on Malf's field. The orb has large spikes that rotate around it, giving it a sun-like appearance. It also has red eyes in the center of the star emblem.

Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"When Star Core is Normal or Special Summoned, it gains 'Darkscourge' counters equal to the number of cards in me hand. Since me have three cards, Star Core gains three 'Darkscourge' counters!" Three purple orbs soon orbited around Star Core.

Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 0 + 3 = 3

BA-BUMP!

Raguel grit his teeth, while Herald narrowed his eyes as the both of them looked at Star Core.

"That monster..." Raguel muttered. "Could it be-?"

"Unfortunately, as an Ignis, I can confirm your suspicions." Herald said. "That monster in front of us is a Cyberse monster."

"Appear! The circuit of the rampant plague!" Malf declared, as a Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are normally two or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. However, if me would Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, Star Core lets me remove 'Darkscourge' counters from it equal to that Link monster's Link rating instead, and treat it as a Link Summon!"

"What?!" Raguel gasped. No duelist had ever used counters to Link Summon a Link monster before. This meant that Malf was no ordinary duelist, and as such, Raguel had to be careful against him. Otherwise, what happened to Drachen and Electrolyzer would pale in comparison to what Malf had planned for him and Herald.

"Me remove all three of Star Core's Darkscourge counters and set them into the Link Markers!" The three purple orbs orbiting around Star Core then went straight into the bottom-left, bottom, and bottom-right arrowheads, turning each of them red.

Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 3 – 3 = 0

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Come forth! Link 3! Darkscourge Black Bull!" A creature resembling that of a cacodemon appeared on Malf's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. It had a large black and gray blubbery body, with black and red wings protruding out of it. Various spikes were present around the creature's body and wings. Its face, which had a black star on it, was colored red. It also surrounded the singular green eye the creature had, as well as its fangs. Black Bull also had hands with pointy white claws next to its mouth.

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 2800 LINK-3 ↙️⬇️↘️

"Star Core's third effect!" Malf continued. "While me control a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, you cannot target any of them with card effects, nor can you target Star Core for attacks." Raguel grit his teeth, which delighted Malf. "Next, me activate the Field Spell card, Darkscourge Comet!" The card showed a massive black techno-organic asteroid with red veins traveling through the solar system. It had tentacles, organs, and throat-like halls as well. "Now all 'Darkscourge' monsters on me field gain 300 attack and defense points. Also, the effects of 'Darkscourge' Link monsters on my field cannot be negated!" Raguel's eyes narrowed as Star Core and Black Bull were surrounded in a purple aura, increasing their strength.

Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 0 + 300 = 300 DEF: 0 + 300 = 300

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 2800 + 300 = 3100

"Me then Set one card face-down and end me turn!" Malf then outstretched his right hand at Raguel before bending it back and forth. "Come get me, little boy! Because you are me feast once you lose!"

"Getting cocky, aren't we?" Raguel replied. "I'll make you eat those words! My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck.

"Hold on, Raguel!" Herald told him. "Whatever this creature is, he managed to set up a strong defense on his first turn. If you don't analyze the field, you'll end up charging like a bull wearing a blindfold!"

Raguel sighed and took a deep breath, knowing Herald was right. The last time he let his rage take over, it cost him the duel against Infearno. He needed to make sound decisions if he wanted to have any chance of winning the duel and get a lead on the azure-overcoated man's whereabouts. "I know," he said. "Sorry for worrying you, Herald."

"Hey. Its alright." Herald assured him. "I'm aware you're upset with what happened with Miyu, but you mustn't let your emotions cloud your judgment. Not when you're in a serious duel like this."

"Right." Raguel nodded and took another deep breath, looking over Malf's field. Since this creature has Darkscourge Black Bull on his field, Star Core can no longer be targeted for attacks, nor can I target Black Bull and other Darkscourge Link monsters with card effects, he thought. On top of that, Darkscourge Comet has increased the strength of all his monsters by 300, as well as prevented me from negating the effects of his Darkscourge Link monsters. He looked at the cards in his hand. If I play this right, I may be able to deal massive damage and set up a strong field for later on. Out loud, he said, "I activate the Spell card, Cyreath Treasure. By discarding a 'Cyreath' monster from my hand, I can draw two cards from my deck." Raguel took a card in his hand and sent it to the Graveyard before drawing two cards from his deck. "I activate the effect of Wandering Soul in my Graveyard. By banishing it, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath Wanderer' token to my field." A small ball of mist in the form of a ghost appeared on Raguel's field in defense position.

Cyreath Wanderer Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"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. "The summoning conditions are two 'Cyreath' monsters. I'll set the Cyreath Wanderer token and Cyreath Doppelganger into the Link Markers!" The Wanderer token went into the bottom arrowhead, while Doppelganger went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning both of them red in the process.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Emerge! Link 2! Cyreath Laelaps!" A white-colored dog with orange spots throughout his body appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.

Cyreath Laelaps ATK: 1000 LINK-2 ⬇️↘️

"I summon Cyreath Shade from my hand." Raguel continued, as a grey-armored warrior from head to toe jumped onto Raguel's field, wisps of smoke emitting from his armor in the process. His helmet looked like that of an eerie ghost.

Cyreath Shade ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"When Shade is Normal Summoned, I can target one face-up Spell or Trap card you control and Set it. You're not allowed to activate it in response until the End Phase. I target Darkscourge Comet!" Shade pointed his finger at Darkscourge Comet, causing the wisps of smoke to obscure Darkscourge Comet completely, causing Malf to grit his teeth as Black Bull and Star Core's attack points returned to normal.

Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 300 – 300 = 0 DEF: 300 – 300 = 0

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 3100 – 300 = 2800

"Appear, once more! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" Raguel said, as a second Link Portal appeared in the sky above him. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Cyreath' monsters with different names. I'll set Cyreath Shade and Cyreath Laelaps, which is a Link 2 monster, into the Link Markers!" Shade went into the top arrowhead, while Laelaps split into two tornadoes of energy that went into the left and bottom arrowheads respectively.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Go wild and smash everything in your way! Link 3! Cyreath Erymanthian Boar!" A bulky, massively built suidae with short and relatively thin legs jumped onto Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. It had brown fur with light green elements all over its body, along with a mane of dark fur. It also had four tusks at the front of its head. While the two biggest ones were long and curved inward, the two small ones were hooked slightly forward.

Cyreath Erymanthian Boar ATK: 2500 LINK-3 ⬅️⬆️⬇️

"Laelaps' effect!" Raguel continued. "Since it was used to Link Summon a 'Cyreath' Link Monster, all monsters you control lose 1000 attack points until the End Phase!" A silhouette of Laelaps appeared as it howled, making Black Bull lose more attack points, as Star Core originally had no attack points to begin with.

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 2800 – 1000 = 1800

"Erymanthian Boar's effect! Once per turn, I can target one 'Cyreath' monster in my Graveyard, except a Link monster, and Special Summon it to a Main Monster Zone Erymanthian Boar points to. Return to the field, Doppelganger!" At Raguel's command, Doppelganger materialized onto his field once more.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

"Appear, for a third time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A third Link Portal appeared in the sky above him. "The summoning conditions are one monster. I'll set Cyreath Doppelganger into the Link Markers!" Doppelganger 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 Main Monster Zone Erymanthian Boar was pointing to, resulting in both monsters being co-linked with one another.

Cyreath Pseudo ATK: 0 LINK-1 ⬆️

"The effects of Pseudo and Erymanthian Boar both activate!" Raguel added. "First, Pseudo gains attack points equal to the monster it points to. As it points to Erymanthian Boar, it gains 2500 attack points!" Pseudo then morphed its body into a watery version of Erymanthian Boar as its strength increased.

Cyreath Pseudo ATK: 0 + 2500 = 2500

"Second, while Erymanthian Boar is co-linked, both it and the monsters it's co-linked with gain 500 attack points. They also can't be targeted by card effects either!" Malf's eyes narrowed as Erymanthian Boar snorted, powering itself and Pseudo up in the process.

Cyreath Erymanthian Boar ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

Cyreath Pseudo ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

"Great thinking, Raguel!" Herald praised him. "Not only did you weaken this creature's field, you also solidified a strong defense through Erymanthian Boar and Pseudo. That is definitely using your head."

"I appreciate the compliment, Herald." Raguel replied, before turning his attention back to the duel. "I Set two cards face down." He then gestured to his field. "Battle! Cyreath Pseudo attacks Darkscourge Black Bull!" Pseudo charged at Black Bull, intent on scalding the creature in its attack. However, things were never that easy.

"Me activate the effect of Darkscourge Wall from me hand!" Malf said, showing the card in his hand. The card showed a massive, dark-purple wall made up of a fluffy substance. At the center was a black star emblem, which had red eyes on it. "By sending this card from me hand to the Graveyard, 'Darkscourge' monsters me control can no longer be destroyed in battle this turn."

"You'll still take battle damage, though." Raguel reminded Malf, as Pseudo hit Black Bull, causing it to be pushed back momentarily. However, it still remained on the field as Malf's life points dropped.

Malf: 4000 – 1200 = 2800 LP

"The battle still continues. Cyreath Erymanthian Boar attacks Darkscourge Black Bull!" Erymanthian Boar charged forward and pointed its tusks at Black Bull, stabbing them into Black Bull's body and making the creature squeal in pain as Malf's life points dropped once again.

Malf: 2800 – 1200 = 1600 LP

"That ends my turn." Raguel concluded. "Which means the effect of Laelaps ends, and your Black Bull regains the attack points lost." Black Bull roared as its lost strength was regained.

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 1800 + 1000 = 2800

"And since your turn is over, the second effect of Darkscourge Wall activates, which lets me draw one card from me deck." Malf informed Raguel, as he drew the top card of his deck. "Me turn! Me draw!" Malf drew another card from the top of his deck, for his turn had begun. "Once again, me activate the Field Spell card, Darkscourge Comet. Now all 'Darkscourge' monsters on me field gain 300 attack and defense points. Also, the effects of 'Darkscourge' Link monsters on my field cannot be negated!" For a second time, Star Core and Black Bull were surrounded in a purple aura, increasing their strength.

Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 0 + 300 = 300 DEF: 0 + 300 = 300

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 2800 + 300 = 3100

"Next, me summon Darkscourge Leech from me hand!" A pulsating purple blob with horns and a black star on its body, as well as a single eye, appeared on Malf's field.

Darkscourge Leech ATK: 800 DEF: 800 LV: 3

Darkscourge Leech ATK: 800 + 300 = 1100 DEF: 800 + 300 = 1100

"When Darkscourge Leech is Normal Summoned, me get to add a copy of it from me deck to me hand." Malf explained, as he took a card from his deck and added it to his hand. "Appear! The circuit of the rampant plague!" A Link Portal soon appeared above Malf. "The summoning conditions are one 'Darkscourge' monster, and just like before, me can also remove 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core equal to that Link monster's Link rating instead, and treat it as a Link Summon. But this time, me will set Darkscourge Leech into the Link Markers!" Leech went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Darkscourge Warrior!" A humanoid creature with red and black skin, as well as a black star emblem on its chest with red eyes, appeared on Malf's field in the Main Monster Zone Black Bull pointed to. Red spores were on its arms, legs, and the back of its neck. The creature also had large, yellow eyes, which eyed Raguel as it growled at him.

Darkscourge Warrior ATK: 1200 LINK-1 ⬇️

Darkscourge Warrior ATK: 1200 + 300 = 1500

"Leech's second effect!" Malf continued. "Since it was used to Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, the Link Summoned monster that used it as Link material gains 800 attack points. In addition, me can place one 'Darkscourge' counter on a 'Darkscourge Star Core' or 'Darkscourge Generator' on me field. Me place the 'Darkscourge' counter on Star Core!" Raguel narrowed his eyes as Warrior's strength increased. Meanwhile, a purple orb orbited around Star Core.

Darkscourge Warrior ATK: 1500 + 800 = 2300

Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 0 + 1 = 1

"Last but not least, me activate Black Bull's effect! Once per turn, me can target one 'Darkscourge' Link monster on me field and reduce its attack points to zero until the end of me turn. By doing this, the attack and defense points of all monsters you control become zero until the End Phase!"

"Oh, that is not good at all!" Herald panicked, while Raguel gasped as well.

"Me target Warrior!" Malf decided. "Go! Smog Infection!" A purple aura surrounded Warrior, decreasing its attack points until they dropped to zero. When they did, purple particles surrounded Black Bull before it fired a cloud of poisonous gas that obscured Erymanthian Boar and Pseudo, draining the both of them of their strength.

Darkscourge Warrior ATK: 2300 – 2300 = 0

Cyreath Erymanthian Boar ATK: 3000 – 3000 = 0

Cyreath Pseudo ATK: 3000 – 3000 = 0

"Damn..." Raguel muttered. One attack from Black Bull, and his life points would be in the red zone. Luckily, this is why he had a contingency plan in place.

"Me Set one card face-down." Malf said, taking one of the two cards in his hand and Setting it in his Spell & Trap card zone. He then gestured to his field. "Battle! Darkscourge Black Bull attacks Cyreath Erymanthian Boar! Corrosive Drench!" Black Bull charged up poisonous, gunky energy in its maw before firing it at Erymanthian Boar.

"Not so fast, I activate the Trap card, Link Showdown!" Raguel interjected. "When a Link Monster I control battles a monster my opponent controls with higher attack points, my monster gains attack points equal to its Link rating times 500! Since Erymanthian Boar's Link rating is three, it gains 1500 attack points!" Although Erymanthian Boar was weakened, it snorted as its strength went up.

Cyreath Erymanthian Boar ATK: 0 + (500 X 3) = 1500

"Not good enough!" Malf taunted Raguel, as the poisonous, gunky energy acidified Erymanthian Boar and destroying it in the process. The explosion that came soon after made Raguel nearly lose balance on his duel board.

Raguel: 4000 – 1600 = 2400 LP

"Since Pseudo is no longer pointing to any monsters, it loses its attack boost." Raguel informed Malf, as Pseudo morphed back to its original shape. "But that doesn't mean I don't have anymore countermeasures in place! I activate my other Trap card, Cyreath Succession. When a 'Cyreath' monster leaves the field for any reason, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath' monster, except a Link monster, from my Graveyard to my field. However, I have to negate its effects. I Special Summon Shade to my field!" The grey-armored warrior with wisps of smoke from before appeared once again on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Shade ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"Not too shabby..." Malf mockingly praised Raguel. "You survived, just as me and me masters expected. Me end my turn here, which means Warrior's attack points return to normal." Warrior was surrounded in a purple aura as its strength increased to its prior state.

Darkscourge Warrior ATK: 0 + 2300 = 2300

Raguel increased his speed so he could ride parallel with Malf. "Why are you working with the azure-overcoated man? And why did he hurt Miyu?"

"Questions, questions, so many questions!" Malf laughed. "Me masters had to draw you out somehow." He turned and looked out ahead of him, where he saw Playmaker duel against the golden man. "And one way or another, you would have been involved too."

"That still doesn't answer my questions!" Raguel told Malf, who laughed once again at him.

"You want to know why me masters hurt your precious Miyu?" Malf asked, mocking Raguel before laughing at him. "It's a secret. One you'll have to find out for yourself!"

"Tch..." Raguel grit his teeth. Looks like he'll have to continue with his plan of defeating Malf in a duel to get answers. Hopefully, Playmaker's faring better than I am right now, he thought.

Meanwhile, at another area of LINK VRAINS...

Haru frowned after witnessing his older brother Bohman, disguised as the golden man, take 2600 points of battle damage in his duel. Playmaker may think he has the lead, he thought, but this is all part of Bohman's plan. After all, he and I have the same deck, even though there are a few differences to it.

"Coming through!" a voice said out of nowhere, as its owner sped past Haru, making him nearly lose balance on his duel board. The voice belonged to a male individual wearing a black outfit with green accents and a gold, bird-like mask over his eyes. The individual had dark green hair, which was spiked upwards before a medium sized portion of it went over the right side of his mask. "Sorry, but I'm getting a front-row seat of this duel!"

"Is that so?" Haru replied, now ticked off by this random person in front of him. "Well, whoever you are, leave! This does not concern you!"

"First of all, you can call me Slipstream," the male individual introduced himself, turning to face Haru. "Second, there's no way a kid like you will tell me what to do."

Haru grit his teeth as he sped up his duel board in order to ride parallel with Slipstream. As per the Light Ignis's orders, it was his responsibility to eliminate any people who could potentially get involved in the mission to retrieve Jin Kusanagi's consciousness data. That, and he couldn't let this Slipstream interfere in Bohman's duel against Playmaker. His memories were on the line here after all! "Fine, then. If that's your response, the only way I'll remove you is through a duel."

Slipstream smirked. "A duel, you say? Alright, kid. I accept your challenge." The two duelists then activated their duel disks, ready to clash against one another. While Haru's duel disk was green and black with an orange band and a red light, Slipstream's duel disk was a blue hexagonal model, which had a grey wristband with a light-green stripe on it. The blade that emitted from it was a double, angular, and symmetrical green blade.

"Speed Duel!" Haru and Slipstream said in unison.

Haru: 4000 LP

Slipstream: 4000 LP

"I call going first!" Slipstream said, looking at the cards in his hand. Haru made no objections to this, as he wanted to see what his opponent could do. His Hydradrive deck had counters towards four out of the six attributes, and if Slipstream used one of them, then victory would practically be his. What's more, in the event he didn't, Haru had cards to change the attributes of his opponents monsters and seize the advantage. "Since I control no monsters, I can Special Summon Speedroid Terrortop from my hand." A chain of red tops with blades attached to them appeared on Slipstream's field.

Speedroid Terrortop ATK: 1200 DEF: 600 LV: 3

That monster is a Wind monster, Haru thought, checking it through the screen on his duel disk. Perfect. I'll get rid of this guy and keep an eye on Bohman in case something comes up.

"Next, I summon Speedroid Tri-Eyed Dice!" A purple dice shaped like a three-shaped pyramid with a red eye appeared on Slipstream's field. Three orbs orbited around the object.

Speedroid Tri-Eyed Dice ATK: 300 DEF: 1500 LV: 3

"Its time to rev it up! I tune the Level 3 Tri-Eyed Dice with the Level 3 Terrortop!" A bolt of green lightning struck Slipstream as the world greyed out and his two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, one red and one purple appeared before turning blue and merging. Six blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "3 + 3" in front of them. The screen changed to "6" as light surged through the rings.

"Magical sword with the form of a cross! Use your power to rend all enemies!" Slipstream chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 6! Hi-Speedroid Kendama!" A dark blue machine resembling a cross with a large sword attached to its center appeared on Slipstream's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.

Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2200 DEF: 1600 LV: 6

"You Synchro Summoned on your first turn?!" Haru exclaimed, having been caught off guard by what his opponent just did.

"Yup!" Slipstream confirmed. "And I can do this as well! Kendama's effect! Once per turn, I can banish a 'Speedroid' monster from my Graveyard to inflict 500 points of damage to you! I banish Terrortop!" Kendama blasted Haru with a bolt of blue energy, making him slightly wobble before regaining balance on his duel board.

Haru: 4000 – 500 = 3500 LP

"I Set one card face-down and end my turn." Slipstream then turned his attention at Haru. "Okay. Show me what you got!"

"My turn! I draw!" Haru said, drawing the top card of his deck. I didn't expect to take damage on the first turn, he admitted in his mind. But regardless, its all going according to plan. "I Special Summon Hydradrive Booster from my hand." A mechanical monster that resembled a gold and silver dragonfly appeared on Haru's field.

Hydradrive Booster ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"I can Special Summon this card when neither of us have any monsters in our Main Monster Zones." Haru explained, before pointing his right hand high above his head. "Appear, my circuit!" A Link Portal soon appeared above Haru. "The summoning conditions are one 'Hydradrive' monster. I'll set Hydradrive Booster into the Link Markers!" Hydradrive Booster went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Flow Hydradrive!" A bipedal green and dark blue dragon emerged from the portal and landed on Haru's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Its face had a green visor on it, while at the center of its body was the Hydradrive sigil.

Flow Hydradrive ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

"Next, I activate the Spell card, Hydradrive Rebuild. This card lets me target and destroy a 'Hydradrive' monster on my field. I target and destroy Flow Hydradrive!" Flow Hydradrive exploded into particles. "Flow Hydradrive's effect! When its destroyed, I can Special Summon one 'Hydradrive' token to my field." A small mechanical bug with the Hydradrive sigil appeared on Haru's field in defense position.

Hydradrive Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"Hydradrive Rebuild's second effect!" Haru continued. "If the 'Hydradrive' monster destroyed by this effect activates its own effect in the Graveyard, I can Special Summon one 'Hydradrive' monster from my Graveyard. However, it can't attack, its effects are negated, and is destroyed at my End Phase. Return to the field, Flow Hydradrive!" At Haru's command, Flow Hydradrive reappeared on his field in the middle Main Monster Zone.

Flow Hydradrive ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

"I now activate my Skill! Marker's Portal!" The red star on Haru's collar, along with his tie glowed red as he placed his arms in front of him, one crossed on top of the other. "Once per duel, when my life points are less than my original amount, I can activate a Link Spell card from my deck!"

"A Link Spell card?" Slipstream repeated. He definitely hadn't heard of that card before. Whoever Haru was, he wasn't like the other people here, that's for sure.

"Exactly!" Haru confirmed. "And just so we're clear, the Link Spell card that was activated through Marker's Portal can no longer be negated or destroyed by your card effects!" Slipstream's eyes widened as a card popped out of Haru's deck, which he took and added to his hand. "I activate the Link Spell card, Judgment Arrows!" The Spell card appeared in the middle Spell & Trap card zone and glowed at Flow Hydradrive's Link Marker.

Judgment Arrows ↖️⬆️↗️

"Appear, for a second time! My circuit!" A second Link Portal soon appeared above Haru. "The summoning conditions are one 'Hydradrive' monster. I'll set the Hydradrive token into the Link Markers!" The Hydradrive token went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Burn Hydradrive!" A red and orange segmented mechanical dragon appeared on Haru's field in the Main Monster Zone at Judgment Arrows' top-right marker. Like Flow Hydradrive, it had a visor on its face, as well as a Hydradrive sigil on its chest.

Burn Hydradrive ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

"Appear, for a third time! My circuit!" Haru declared, as a third Link Portal soon appeared above him, far from being done with his turn. "The summoning conditions are two 'Hydradrive' Link monsters! I'll set Flow Hydradrive and Burn Hydradrive, which are both Link 1 monsters, into the Link Markers!" Flow Hydradrive went into the top arrowhead, while Burn Hydradrive went into the bottom arrowhead, resulting in both arrows turning red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Hydradrive Nagini!" A large, thick green snake with the Hydradrive sigil wrapped around her neck slithered to Haru's field in the Main Monster Zone at Judgment Arrows' top-right marker.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 2000 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️

"Nagini's effect! When she's Link Summoned, her attributes become the same as her Link materials, in addition to Earth." Haru added. "So her attributes become Fire and Wind along with Earth." Soon, Nagini's skin briefly glowed red and green.

"A Link monster that has multiple attributes..." Slipstream muttered. That was something he didn't see every day.

"I Set two cards face-down." Haru said before pointing his index finger. "Its time to battle! Hydradrive Nagini attacks Hi-Speedroid Kendama! And when a Link monster Judgment Arrows points to battles, its attack points are doubled!"

"Hang on, what?!" Slipstream said in surprise, as Nagini was surrounded by a golden aura, which powered her up.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 2000 X 2 = 4000

"I also activate Nagini's second effect!" Haru said. "If she battles a monster whose attribute is the same as hers, your monster loses 1000 attack points until the End Phase! Since Kendama and Nagini share the same attribute, your monster loses 1000 attack points! Venom Shot!" Nagini fired a burst of venom at Kendama, making it rust as its strength decreased.

Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2200 – 1000 = 1200

"Venom Lash!" Nagini lunged forward, intent on constricting Kendama and acidifying it with her poison.

"Sorry, but I'm not going down quite yet!" Slipstream told Haru. "I activate the effect of Tri-Eyed Dice from my Graveyard. By banishing it from my Graveyard, I can negate the attack!" A silhouette of Red-Eyed Dice appeared before spinning and forming a barrier, forcing Nagini to retreat back to her master's side.

"Tch..." Haru grit his teeth. Whoever Slipstream was, he was starting to be a pain in the butt. "I'll end my turn, which means both Nagini and Kendama's attack points return to normal."

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 4000 / 2 = 2000

Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 1200 + 1000 = 2200

"About time. My turn! I draw!" Slipstream said, drawing the top card of his deck and looking at it. Alright, he thought. This'll do. "I activate the Spell card, Speedroid Summon Dice!" The card showed a small Chibi figure playing a gambling game with Speedroid Ohajikid and Den-Den Daiko Duke. In the small Chibi's hands was a green dice, with each of the dots on it glowing red and yellow, as if to signify a monster's level. "This card lets me roll a six-sided dice and then Special Summon a 'Speedroid' monster from my deck whose level is exactly equal to the result of the dice roll."

Haru let out a chuckle. "Heh. So you're relying on luck to defeat me?"

"Hey, when Lady Luck is involved in a duel, anything can happen." Slipstream told Haru. Soon, a green dice appeared in front of Slipstream. "Go, Dice Roll!" The dice then flung itself into the air and landed on the field. When it finished rolling, the dice landed on a five. "And the dice lands on a five, which means I get to Special Summon a Level 5 'Speedroid' monster from my deck!" A card popped out of Slipstream's deck, which he took before playing it. "So say hello to Speedroid Rubberband Plane!" A red plane with a rotor extended from its back by rubber bands flew onto Slipstream's field. It had two claws, one on each side. It also had a face, which composed of eyes and a nasty grin.

Speedroid Rubberband Plane ATK: 1800 DEF: 0 LV: 5

"Rubberband Plane's effect! When its Special Summoned, one monster on the field loses 600 attack points!" Haru's eyes widened in surprise. "I choose your Nagini!" Rubberband Plane then charged at Nagini and scratched her, decreasing her strength in the process.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 2000 – 600 = 1400

"I then activate the Trap card, Skull Dice!" Slipstream continued, as he gestured to his face-down card. "This card lets me roll a six-sided dice, and all monsters you control lose attack and defense points equal to the result times 100 until the End Phase."

"Another dice-related card?" Haru questioned. "You may have gotten lucky once, but there's no way you'll get the desired result."

"We'll let the dice decide." Slipstream replied, as a small demon carrying a red dice appeared near him. "Go, Dice Roll!" The small demon threw the dice into the air, which landed on the field. When it finished rolling, it landed on a six, making Haru open his mouth in shock. "Yahoo! It landed on a six, which means your Nagini loses 600 attack points!" Nagini was then surrounded in a red aura, which further decreased her strength.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 1400 – 600 = 800

"Battle! Hi-Speedroid Kendama attacks Hydradrive Nagini!" Slipstream thrusted his right hand out in front of him as Kendama charged at Nagini, intent on destroying her.

"You're forgetting that when a Link monster Judgment Arrows points to battles, its attack points are doubled!" Haru reminded him, as Nagini was surrounded by a golden aura once again, which powered her up.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 800 X 2 = 1600

"Regardless, you're taking battle damage." Slipstream countered, undeterred by Haru's comment. The large cross generated energy before piercing Nagini, turning her into particles as Haru gritted his teeth, now annoyed.

Haru: 3500 – 600 = 2900 LP

"You'll regret that!" Haru told him. "I activate the Trap card, Hydradrive Retaliation! When a 'Hydradrive' Link monster is destroyed by battle or card effect, not only can I Special Summon that monster back to my field, you take damage equal to its original attack points. As Nagini has 2000 attack points, you'll be taking that much damage!"

"Say what?!" Slipstream exclaimed out of surprise. Within moments, a blast of energy erupted from Hydradrive Retribution and hit Slipstream, causing him to nearly lose balance as he was pushed back.

Slipstream: 4000 – 2000 = 2000 LP

Then Nagini reappeared on Haru's field in the Main Monster Zone at Judgment Arrows' top marker.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 2000 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️

"If you think that's bad, I'll also activate my Quick-Play Spell card, Hydradrive Constriction!" Haru gestured to his other face-down card on his field. The card showed Hydradrive Nagini constricting Balancer Lord and restricting its movements before preparing to bite on her prey. "I can target one 'Hydradrive' Link monster on my field and inflict damage to you equal to its Link rating times 500. I target Nagini, which is a Link 2 monster. That means you take 1000 points of damage!" Nagini then lunged forward and wrapped herself around Slipstream, making him cry out in pain as his life points dropped. Once that was done, she returned back to Haru's side of the field.

Slipstream: 2000 – (500 X 2) = 1000 LP

"Take that!" Haru taunted. However, he raised an eyebrow upon noticing Slipstream smirking. "What's so funny?"

"You fell right into my trap." Slipstream stated, causing Haru to raise an eyebrow. "I activate the effect of Speedroid Gum Prize from my hand! Since I took battle or effect damage during the Battle Phase, I get to Special Summon this card from my hand." A white gum box appeared on Slipstream's field before transforming into a small, robotic warrior.

Speedroid Gum Prize ATK: 0 DEF: 800 LV: 1

"Heh, big deal." Haru scoffed. "All you got was a monster with practically no attack points. Not threatening if you ask me."

"Who said I was done?" Slipstream responded, getting Haru's attention. "Gum Prize's second effect! The turn it was Special Summoned, I can immediately Synchro Summon one Synchro monster from my Extra Deck!"

"A Synchro Summon during your Battle Phase?!" Haru exclaimed. Now it was his turn to be shocked.

"Its time to rev it up! I tune the Level 1 Speedroid Gum Prize with the Level 6 Hi-Speedroid Kendama!" A bolt of green lightning struck Slipstream as the world greyed out and his two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, one blue and one white, appeared before turning blue and merging. Seven blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "6 + 1" in front of them. The screen changed to "7" as light surged through the rings.

"Spread those wondrous wings, and strike down your enemies at the speed of light!" Slipstream chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 7! Clear Wing Synchro Dragon!" A white and black dragon covered in white, blue, and black armor appeared on Slipstream's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. She had neon green crystals attached to her body, which acted like wings that shone with bright light.

Clear Wing Synchro Dragon ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000 LV: 7

"Gum Prize's third and final effect! As it was sent to the Graveyard as Synchro material, I can draw one card from my deck and reveal it before sending it to the Graveyard. If it's a 'Speedroid' monster, the Synchro monster that used this card as Synchro material gains attack points equal to that 'Speedroid' monster's attack points."

Haru narrowed his eyes and grit his teeth. If he draws a high level monster, his new monster will be able to destroy Nagini for real this time, he realized in his mind. If he doesn't, then I'll get another chance to defeat him. And I better do it soon, as Bohman will probably need my help.

"I draw!" Slipstream drew the top card of his deck, looked at it briefly, and gasped before slumping over out of shock. Judging from his reaction, he definitely didn't get the card he needed. "I reveal the Level 2 Speedroid Scarecrow to you and send it to the Graveyard, which only has 500 attack points." Clear Wing roared as her strength increased.

Clear Wing Synchro Dragon ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

Whew, Haru thought, relieved with the result. He now can't attack, which means I can end this duel on my turn.

"I end my turn." Slipstream concluded, knowing there was nothing more he could do this turn. "You're up."

"And your luck has run out!" Haru replied, putting his hand on the top card of his duel disk. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Hydradrive Scabbard. This card lets me Special Summon one 'Hydradrive' token to my field in defense position." A second, small mechanical bug with the Hydradrive sigil appeared on Haru's field in defense position.

Hydradrive Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"Appear, my circuit!" A Link Portal appeared in the sky above Haru. "The summoning conditions are one 'Hydradrive' monster. I'll set the Hydradrive token into the Link Markers!" The Hydradrive token went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Hydradrive Conjurer!" A fiend wearing sleeveless dark-green robes with orange lines and a small skirt appeared on Haru's field in the Main Monster Zone at Judgment Arrows' top-left marker. It had bushy red hair, as well as a headdress on its head that had the Hydradrive sigil at the top. It also wore arm-length gloves on each of its arms, which had the Hydradrive sigil at the hand portion of the glove. In its right hand, it carried a scepter, with four orbs at the top.

Hydradrive Conjurer ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

"When Hydradrive Conjurer is Link Summoned, I can Special Summon one 'Hydradrive' token to my field in defense position." Haru explained, as another small mechanical bug with the Hydradrive sigil appeared on Haru's field in defense position.

Hydradrive Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"Appear, for a second time! My circuit!" A second Link Portal appeared in the sky above Haru. "The summoning conditions are one 'Hydradrive' monster. I'll set the Hydradrive token into the Link Markers!" The Hydradrive token went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Coolant Hydradrive!" A light-blue and grey segmented mechanical dragon appeared on Haru's field in the Main Monster Zone at Judgment Arrows' top-right marker. It had a visor on its face, as well as a Hydradrive sigil on its chest.

Coolant Hydradrive ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

"I activate Conjurer's second effect." Haru added. "Once per turn, by destroying one 'Hydradrive' monster on my field, I can target one other 'Hydradrive' monster on my field and increase its attack points by 1000 until the End Phase! I destroy Coolant Hydradrive and increase Nagini's attack points by 1000!" Conjurer raised its scepter above its head, causing the four orbs to glow blue, brown, red, and green respectively. Coolant Hydradrive was then turned into particles that went into Conjurer's scepter, which was fired at Nagini, enveloping her with a rainbow-colored aura.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 2000 + 1000 = 3000

"Coolant Hydradrive's effect! When its destroyed, I can Special Summon one 'Hydradrive' token to my field." Another small mechanical bug with the Hydradrive sigil appeared on Haru's field in defense position.

Hydradrive Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"I'm guessing you're going to do another Link Summon?" Slipstream asked, knowing what was coming next. How many Link Summons was Haru going to do? It was starting to get boring.

"Hey, it worked out for me so far, so why change it?" Haru responded, gesturing upward in the sky. "Appear, for a third time! My circuit!" A third Link Portal appeared in the sky above him. "The summoning conditions are one 'Hydradrive' monster. I'll set the Hydradrive token into the Link Markers!" The Hydradrive token went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Flow Hydradrive!" A second copy of Flow Hydradrive appeared on Haru's field in the Main Monster Zone at Judgment Arrows' top-right marker.

Flow Hydradrive ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

"Battle!" Haru declared. "Flow Hydradrive attacks you directly!"

"Hold on a minute! Your monster needs to attack my monster if you want to attack directly!" Slipstream protested. "That's obviously the rules! Everyone knows that!"

"Not with Flow Hydradrive." Haru retorted. "For if you control a Wind monster , it can attack you directly!" Slipstream grit his teeth, unable to reply back. "Since you now understand Flow Hydradrive's effect, I'll move on to Judgement Arrows' effect, which doubles the attack points of any Link monster it points to." Flow Hydradrive was surrounded in a green aura as it powered up.

Flow Hydradrive ATK: 1000 X 2 = 2000

After doing so, Flow Hydradrive generated a gust of wind near the center of its body and prepared to fire it at Slipstream.

"Not so fast!" Slipstream interrupted. "I activate the effect of Speedroid Scarecrow in my Graveyard! By returning one 'Speedroid' monster on my field back to my hand, I can Special Summon this card to my field in defense position, and change the attack target to it instead! I return Rubberband Plane back to my hand!" Rubberband Plane turned into particles as it returned to Slipstream's hand. Then a scarecrow resembling that of a motorsport marshal appeared on Slipstream's field in defense position. In its right hand, it carried a green flag, while it carried a red flag in the left hand.

Speedroid Scarecrow ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 2

"Rubberband Plane's effect! When a monster is Special Summoned to my field, I can Special Summon this card to my field!" Rubberband Plane soon reappeared on Slipstream's field.

Speedroid Rubberband Plane ATK: 1800 DEF: 0 LV: 5

"I activate Rubberband Plane's other effect!" Slipstream continued. "When its Special Summoned, one monster on the field loses 600 attack points!" He gestured to Clear Wing. "I also activate Clear Wing's effect. If a Level 5 or higher monster activates its effect on the field, or a monster effect is activated that targets a Level 5 or higher monster on the field, I can target that monster and negate its effects, as well as destroy it. By doing so, Clear Wing gains its attack points until the End Phase. I target Rubberband Plane. Dichroic Mirror!" The neon green crystals attached to Clear Wing shined as she blasted the glow at Rubberband Plane, destroying it and gaining its strength.

Clear Wing Synchro Dragon: 3000 + 1800 = 4800

"If that's how you want to play it, so be it." Haru complied. "Flow Hydradrive attacks Speedroid Scarecrow!" Flow Hydradrive fired the gust of wind near the center of its body at Scarecrow, turning it to particles.

"The turn Scarecrow is Special Summoned using its effect, its banished instead of going to the Graveyard." Slipstream told Haru.

"That won't matter. Because you're still finished this turn!" Haru declared. "Hydradrive Nagini attacks Clear Wing Synchro Dragon! And Judgment Arrows will double her attack points, just like before!" Nagini was surrounded by a golden aura, which powered her up.

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: 3000 X 2 = 6000

"Venom Lash!" Nagini lunged forward, intent on constricting Clear Wing and acidifying her with her poison.

"I activate my Skill! Speedy Drift!" Slipstream said, as the green accents on his outfit glowed bright. "During either player's turn, when my Wind Synchro monster battles, the attack is negated!"

"What?!" Haru exclaimed, as Clear Wing moved to the side and evaded Nagini's attack, causing the snake to return to her master's side in disappointment.

"In addition, I get to roll a dice, and my Wind Synchro monster gains attack points equal to the result times 100." Slipstream added, as a green dice appeared in front of Slipstream. "Go, Dice Roll!" The dice then flung itself into the air and landed on the field. When it finished rolling, the dice landed on a three. "The dice lands on a three, which means Clear Wing gains 300 attack points." Clear Wing roared as her strength increased once again.

Clear Wing Synchro Dragon ATK: 4800 + 300 = 5100

"Tch... I end my turn, which means the effects of Judgment Arrows and Conjurer end." Haru concluded, annoyed with how the turn went as the attack points of Nagini, Flow Hydradrive, and Clear Wing returned to their original amounts.

Flow Hydradrive ATK: 2000 / 2 = 1000

Hydradrive Nagini ATK: (6000 / 2) – 1000 = 2000

Clear Wing Synchro Dragon ATK: 5100 – 1800 = 3300

Its alright, he assured himself, calming down. Clear Wing can't attack Nagini, as her strength outmatches hers thanks to Judgment Arrows. And even if he does inflict damage by attacking either Conjurer or Flow Hydradrive, I'll still have enough life points to survive to the next turn.

"My turn! I draw!" Slipstream 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 drew the top two cards of his deck. "Next, I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Speedroid Roulette. This card lets me discard a card to roll a six-sided dice and then Special Summon up to two 'Speedroid' monsters from my hand and/or my deck whose total levels equal the result, but I have to negate their effects. However, here's the catch. If I do not Special Summon this turn, I lose life points equal to the result times 500."

"So you're betting it all on a single dice roll?" Haru questioned, an eyebrow raised. Regardless of what he thought, this card would decide whether the duel would end or keep going.

"Pretty much." Slipstream confirmed, as a green dice appeared in front of him. "I discard Card of Compensation to roll the dice in front of me!" The dice then flung itself into the air and landed on the field. When it finished rolling, the dice landed on a five. "All right! Since the dice landed on a five, I Special Summon Speedroid Razorang and Speedroid Red-Eyed Dice straight from my deck!" Slipstream took two cards from his deck and placed them on his field, causing two new monsters to appear on his field.

The first monster was a blue, three-wheeled go-kart whose wheels were that of marbles. Two of them were medium-sized and extended at the front, while the third one was large and at the back. At the center of its body, which connected the wheels together, was a hole that could fire coins.

The second monster was a yellow dice with a single red eye and six red electrodes orbiting around it.

Speedroid Pachingo-Kart ATK: 1800 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

Speedroid Red-Eyed Dice ATK: 100 DEF: 100 LV: 1

"Card of Compensation's effect! As I sent it from my hand to the Graveyard, I get to draw two cards from my deck." Slipstream drew the top two cards of his deck, then said, "I activate the Spell card, Speed Recovery. This card lets me Special Summon one 'Speedroid' monster in my Graveyard, in exchange for not Normal Summoning or Setting any other monsters for the rest of this turn. Return, Kendama!" Kendama reappeared on Slipstream's field, only in the last Main Monster Zone on his field, as the other two were occupied by Razorang and Red-Eyed Dice respectively.

Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2200 DEF: 1600 LV: 6

"Kendama's effect!" Slipstream stated. "Once per turn, I can banish a 'Speedroid' monster from my Graveyard to inflict 500 points of damage to you! I banish Gum Prize." Kendama blasted Haru with a bolt of blue energy, making him slightly wobble before regaining balance on his duel board.

Haru: 2900 – 500 = 2400 LP

"Last but not least, I activate the Spell card, Synchro Cracker! I can target one Synchro monster I control and return it to destroy all monsters you control with attack points less than the returned monster's." Haru's eyes widened in shock upon hearing this information. "I target and return Kendama to destroy all your monsters!" Kendama turned into particles that went into Synchro Cracker, which fired out three Synchro rings that hit each of Haru's monsters on the field, destroying them all in the process.

"Flow Hydradrive's effect activates!" Haru responded. "When its destroyed by battle or card effect, I can Special Summon one 'Hydradrive' token to my field." Another small mechanical bug with the Hydradrive sigil appeared on Haru's field in defense position.

Hydradrive Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"That won't save you!" Slipstream said, thrusting out his right hand. "Battle! Speedroid Red-Eyed Dice attacks your Hydradrive token!" Red Eyed Dice then charged forward and hit the Hydradrive token, turning it into yellow particles.

"You're up, Pachingo-Kart! Attack Haru directly!" Pachingo-Kart fired several red coins at Haru, making him wobble as his life points dropped.

Haru: 2400 – 1800 = 600 LP

"Here comes the final attack!" Slipstream declared. "Clear Wing Synchro Dragon attacks you directly! Spinstorm Sky Strike!" Clear Wing rose high into the sky before roaring and diving downwards, green winds whipping around her in the process.

No, Haru thought, realizing he was about to lose. I can't let it end this way. His duel disk suddenly started beeping, which could only mean one thing.

Bohman will need his help soon.

"If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me!" Haru told Slipstream. "I activate the second effect of Hydradrive Scabbard from my Graveyard!"

"Second effect?" Slipstream repeated.

"If you attack me directly and there are Water, Wind, Earth, and Fire 'Hydradrive' Link monsters in my Graveyard, I can banish Hydradrive Scabbard to halve the battle damage from your attack and inflict it to you as well!" Haru explained.

Slipstream gasped. "What?"

"Clear Wing Synchro Dragon's attack points are 3300! That means we both take 1650 points of damage!" Clear Wing divebombed Haru, making him cry out in pain. At the same time, a blast of energy struck Slipstream, pushing him back as both duelist's life points dropped to zero.

Haru: 600 – (3300 / 2) = 0

Slipstream: 1000 – (3300 / 2) = 0

By the time the duel was over, Slipstream could do nothing but watch as Haru sped away from him and head on over to Playmaker and Bohman's duel. He opened up a screen on his duel disk, allowing him to look at two different types of data. It isn't the same as the one I recovered a long time ago, he concluded in his mind, much to his dismay. Suddenly, his duel board's engine malfunctioned, causing him to momentarily drop out of the sky before it started up again. Okay, new plan, he thought. First, fix duel board. Second, seek out Raguel and Playmaker for help. Having formed a plan in his mind, Slipstream then logged out afterwards.

Elsewhere, at Raguel and Malf's duel...

"My turn! I draw!" Raguel said, drawing the top card of his deck. This could work, he realized, looking at his field and the cards in his hand. "Appear! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared in the sky above him. "The summoning conditions are two 'Cyreath' monsters with different names. I'll set Cyreath Shade and Cyreath Pseudo, which is a Link 1 monster, into the Link Markers!" Shade went into the bottom-left arrowhead, while Pseudo went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning them red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Cyreath Paris! A young boy wearing ornate white and black robes appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. He had neck-long, moss-colored hair, as well as sheep horns on each side of his head. He also had long, elf-like shoes on his feet. Lastly, Paris had orange eyes, which twinkled for a brief moment before dimming down.

Cyreath Paris ATK: 1000 LINK-2 ↙️↘️

"I activate Paris's effect!" Raguel continued. "When he's Link Summoned using a 'Cyreath' Link monster as Link material, I can add one 'Cyreath' Ritual Spell card and one 'Cyreath' Ritual monster from my deck to my hand."

"A Ritual monster?" Malf repeated out of curiosity, as Raguel took two cards from his deck and added them to his hand. Me masters didn't show me this, he thought.

"I'll now activate the Ritual Spell card, Cyreath Ceremony!" Raguel declared, as the orange lines on his white tunics glowed a bright blue. The card showed a group of people in a temple praying to a statue of Zeus. In each of Zeus's hands, he carried a thunderbolt that was energized with electricity. "This card lets me tribute 'Cyreath' monsters on my field or hand whose total levels equal or exceed the Level of the 'Cyreath' Ritual monster I'm summoning from my hand. However, if I control a 'Cyreath' Link monster, I can also use 'Cyreath' monsters in my deck by sending them from my deck to my Graveyard!"

"What?!" Malf exclaimed, caught off guard by what he just heard.

"I send the Level 3 Cyreath Archer and the Level 4 Cyreath Valkyrie from my deck to the Graveyard!" Soon, a white and orange magical circle with seven flames appeared on Raguel's field, along with Archer and Valkyrie. Both monsters disintegrated into light and entered into the center of the circle, which emitted a pillar of bright light.

"The contract has been made!" Raguel chanted. "With the blessing of Zeus, the twins shall accept this offering and go into battle! Ritual Summon! Appear, Cyreath Castor & Pollux!" A set of siblings, which were a brother and a sister, emerged from the portal and appeared on Raguel's field in the Main Monster Zone Paris pointed to. Both siblings wore white and black clothing along with sandals, as well as a wreath on their heads. However, there were a few differences. The brother named Castor had a long, two-pieced white cape, and his weapon was a discus. The sister named Pollux had a golden emblem on her upper chest, and also carried a sword in her right hand.

Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 2200 DEF: 2200 LV: 7

"I then activate Paris's second effect! Once per turn, when a 'Cyreath' monster is Normal or Special Summoned to a Main Monster Zone he points to, that monster gains 500 attack and defense points, and is unaffected by your card effects until the End Phase!" Malf's eyes widened in shock as Paris turned around and shined light from his hands onto Castor & Pollux, enveloping them in a golden aura and increasing their strength.

Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 2200 + 500 = 2700 DEF: 2200 + 500 = 2700

If me activate Black Bull's effect, only his Link monster will lose attack points, Malf realized, gritting his teeth. "Go ahead and increase the strength of your Ritual monster all you want! Its nothing compared to me Black Bull! And because of Star Core's effect, the most you can inflict is 400 points of damage!"

"He thinks he's safe from Castor & Pollux." Herald said to Raguel. "Lets show this creature how wrong he is."

"Right!" Raguel agreed, before going back to the duel. "I Set one card face-down." He gestured to his field. "Battle! Cyreath Castor & Pollux attacks Darkscourge Warrior! Hymn of the Twin Gods!" Castor & Pollux charged at Warrior, slicing it with the discus and sword respectively before finishing it off with a combined attack that caused a massive explosion, making Malf slightly grunt in pain.

Malf: 1600 – 400 = 1200 LP

"You see! Me told you!" Malf said. "That was nothing!"

"Is it now?" Raguel retorted, causing Malf to raise an eyebrow. "I activate Castor & Pollux's effect! Once per turn, when they destroy a monster in battle, I can activate one of two effects. I choose the first effect, which lets me banish one card you control until the End Phase."

Malf, upon hearing this, laughed. "You fool. You can't target Black Bull for card effects while Star Core is on me field."

Raguel, however, smirked as he turned to Herald. "Should I tell him or do you want to do the honors?"

"I'd like to tell him, Raguel." Herald replied, before pointing at Malf. "You see, Castor & Pollux's effect doesn't specifically say we have to target a card before banishing it. That means we can get rid of Black Bull with ease!"

"WHAT?!" Malf exclaimed, a look of dread now registered on his face.

"I banish your Black Bull!" Raguel immediately decided. "Oblivion Correction!" The discus Castor had began to open up into a massive portal, which sucked Black Bull in for the time being, infuriating Malf. "The battle still continues! Cyreath Paris attacks Star Core!" Paris gathered solar energy in his hands as he prepared to fire it at Star Core.

"Me activate the Counter-Trap card, Darkscourge Hallucination!" Malf interrupted. The card showed people suffering from the symptoms of the toxic gas. One of those symptoms was hallucinations, causing people to see quintuple of Darkscourge Star Core. "When a monster you control declares an attack while me control a 'Darkscourge' monster, not only can me negate the attack, me can also target the attacking monster and banish it!" Raguel gasped as Malf chuckled maliciously before pointing to Paris. "Me target and banish your Paris!" As Paris fired his attack, Star Core was replaced with an illusion at the last minute, causing it to miss. Then several copies of Star Core surrounded the boy before firing poisonous energy from its eyes, making him suffer before he faded away, much to Malf's delight.

"Crap..." Raguel muttered, having not seen that coming.

"Paris, why?" Herald lamented. "You may have been a two-star Servant, but you didn't deserve a fate like this."

"I end my turn." Raguel concluded. "With that, the effects of Paris and Castor & Pollux end, which means you get Black Bull back, and Castor & Pollux's attack points returned to normal." A red aura enveloped Castor & Pollux, indicating that their strength returned to normal.

Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 2700 – 500 = 2200 DEF: 2700 – 500 = 2200

Black Bull then reappeared on Malf's field, only in the middle Main Monster Zone.

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 2800 LINK-3 ↙️⬇️↘️

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 2800 + 300 = 3100

"Me turn! Me draw!" Malf said, drawing the top card of his deck and looking at it before chuckling. "Me admit you were fun. That's why me will end you this turn!" Malf smirked, which gave Raguel a sense of danger before he suddenly jumped off his duel board, his right arm glowing red. "Me activate me Skill! Delusional Heartbeat!" He then launched his right arm like a weapon towards Castor & Pollux, touching each of their chests before returning to its owner. As a result, a transparent, bloody damp mark appeared on Caster & Pollux's chests momentarily before disappearing. When Malf landed back on his duel board, he opened his right palm, which showed two mirror images of Castor & Pollux's hearts. "Once per duel, when me have 2000 life points or less, me can target one monster you control and place one 'Malady' counter on it. If a 'Darkscourge' monster on me field destroys it by battle..." His eyes widened as he sadistically smiled. "YOU LOSE!"

Cyreath Caster & Pollux MC: 0 + 1 = 1

Both Raguel and Herald gasped in pure horror at what they just heard. There was no Skill in existence can bring an Instant-Win condition like that for a duelist. If you tried, it was very likely that SOL Technologies would instantly delete it in violation of the Speed Duel rules. But for Malf to do what he just did meant only one thing.

He definitely was no ordinary opponent.

"Herald..." Raguel began, a sense of dread in him.

"I know exactly what you're thinking, Raguel." Herald responded. "We can't focus on how this creature acquired and used a Duel-Winner Skill like that. If we don't focus on surviving this turn, its over for the both of us!" Malf laughed loudly at their misery, angering Raguel.

"Me like the situation of helplessness the both of you are in!" Malf stated, letting out another laugh before gesturing to his field. "Now me will ensure everything is set for the kill! First, me summon Darkscourge Leech from me hand!" A second pulsating purple blob with horns and a black star on its body, as well as a single eye, appeared on Malf's field.

Darkscourge Leech ATK: 800 DEF: 800 LV: 3

Darkscourge Leech ATK: 800 + 300 = 1100 DEF: 800 + 300 = 1100

"Just like before, Leech's effect lets me add a copy of it from me deck to me hand." He took a card from his deck and added it to his hand. "Appear! The circuit of the rampant plague!" A Link Portal soon appeared above Malf. ""The summoning conditions are one 'Darkscourge' monster, and just like before, me can also remove 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core equal to that Link monster's Link rating instead, and treat it as a Link Summon. But this time, me will set Darkscourge Leech into the Link Markers!" Leech went into the bottom-left arrowhead, turning it red.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Emerge! Link 1! Darkscourge Necromancer!" A humanoid creature resembling that of a wizard appeared on Malf's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Its attire consisted of robes with a red tint, a pointy hat and cape that had the black star emblem with red eyes on them, and alien-like symbols. The only parts on its body that were shown were its yellow eyes and a portion of its face. In its right hand, it carried a red, hook-shaped staff with a flame-shaped head and a glowing center.

Darkscourge Necromancer ATK: 600 LINK-1 ↙️

Darkscourge Necromancer ATK: 600 + 300 = 900

"Leech's second effect!" Malf continued. "Since it was used to Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, the Link Summoned monster that used it as Link material gains 800 attack points. In addition, me can place one 'Darkscourge' counter on a 'Darkscourge Star Core' or 'Darkscourge Generator' on me field. Me place the 'Darkscourge' counter on Star Core!" A second purple orb then orbited around Star Core.

Darkscourge Necromancer ATK: 900 + 800 = 1700

Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 1 + 1 = 2

"Next, me activate Black Bull's effect! Once per turn, me can target one 'Darkscourge' Link monster on me field and reduce its attack points to zero until the end of the turn. By doing this, the attack and defense points of all monsters you control become zero until the End Phase!" Raguel grit his teeth upon hearing this information. Although Malf could simply finish him off now if he wanted, he was making sure that Raguel couldn't defend himself before delivering the killing blow. "This time, me target Necromancer! Smog Infection!" A purple aura surrounded Necromancer, decreasing its attack points until they dropped to zero. When they did, purple particles surrounded Black Bull before it fired a cloud of poisonous gas that obscured Castor & Pollux, draining the both of them of their strength.

Darkscourge Necromancer ATK: 1700 – 1700 = 0

Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 2200 – 2200 = 0 DEF: 2200 – 2200 = 0

"Battle!" Malf declared, pointing his left arm at Raguel. "Darkscourge Black Bull attacks Cyreath Castor & Pollux!" Black Bull charged up poisonous, gunky energy in its maw, intent on firing it at Castor & Pollux.

"Do something Raguel, or the both of us are done for!" Herald panicked.

"I'm way ahead of you, Herald!" Raguel replied, gesturing to his field. "I activate the Trap card, Cyreath Counter-Shuffle! Since you declared an attack with a Link monster, I can-!"

"Not do a thing!" Malf interrupted. "Me activate Necromancer's effect! Once per turn, when you activate a card effect, me can remove one 'Darkscourge' counter from Star Core or Generator to negate the effect and send it to the Graveyard. Me remove one 'Darkscourge' counter from Star Core and negate Counter-Shuffle!" One of the purple orbs orbiting around Star Core went into Necromancer's staff, who proceeded to incinerate Counter-Shuffle before sending it to the Graveyard.

Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 2 – 1 = 1

"Resume your attack, Black Bull! Corrosive Drench!" Black Bull then fired it at Castor & Pollux, enveloping them in a poisonous cloud before a massive explosion occurred. Seizing his chance, Malf squeezed his right palm, intent on crushing the mirror images of Castor & Pollux's hearts. At the last second, though, they disappeared before he could do so. "That's checkmate, Raguel! HOPE YOU SAID YOUR GOODBYES!" But when he saw Raguel escape from the poison cloud with Castor & Pollux moments after, his jaw dropped. Somehow, Castor & Pollux were still on his field. And what's more, Raguel had life points remaining!

Raguel: 2400 – (3100 / 2) = 850 LP

"Impossible! You bastard! How did you survive me Skill?!" Malf demanded, angry that Raguel was able to somehow stay in the duel.

"Simple. I activated the effect of Cyreath Guardian from my hand." Raguel explained, showing him a monster card that resembled a giant, vertically-wide octagonal shield composed of solid onyx. On the face of the shield was Zeus. "By sending this card from my hand to my Graveyard, not only can I prevent my monster from being destroyed by battle or card effects this turn, any battle damage I take is halved as well."

"Stubborn little..." Malf seethed under his breath. "Fine. Me end me turn, which means the attack points of me Necromancer, as well as your Castor & Pollux's attack and defense points, return to normal." Soon, a red aura surrounded Necromancer and Castor & Pollux, returning them back to their original strength.

Darkscourge Necromancer ATK: 0 + 1700 = 1700

Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 0 + 2200 = 2200 DEF: 0 + 2200 = 2200

"And just as a head's up..." Malf pointed to Castor & Pollux using his right index finger. "Me Skill is still active while your monster has that 'Malady' counter."

"That means if we don't finish you off this turn, you'll win the duel once you destroy Castor & Pollux with your 'Darkscourge' monster." Herald deduced, his eyes narrowing. Raguel also grit his teeth, having come to the same conclusion Herald came to.

"Correct!" Malf confirmed. "So lets see what you do Raguel when the cards are stacked against you!"

"My turn! I draw!" Raguel said, drawing the top card of his deck. He turned to Herald. "That creature is right about one thing. This turn will be our last chance to defeat him."

"Which is why we must make it count!" Herald told him, voicing his support. "I trust you have a plan?"

"After going over the upgrades you've made to the 'Cyreath' deck, I think so." Raguel responded, before he gestured to his field. "I activate the second effect of Doppelganger in 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 Archer from my Graveyard to Special Summon Doppelganger back to my field!" Doppelganger, for a third time, materialized itself onto Raguel's field.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

"Next, I summon Cyreath Miner from my hand." Soon, a small, male miner wearing mining gear and carrying mining equipment appeared on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Miner ATK: 0 DEF: 2000 LV: 3

"Appear! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" Raguel declared, as a Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two 'Cyreath' monsters. I'll set Cyreath Doppelganger and Cyreath Miner into the Link Markers!" Doppelganger went into the left arrowhead, while Miner went into the bottom-left arrowhead.

"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Cyreath Stheno!" A young woman with mid-length light-purple hair tied in two straight pigtails, as well as light-purple eyes, appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. She wore a short, white dress with a flowery design in the upper chest area, along with clear ribbons around her arms. On the top of her head was a white and black headband decorated with an elaborate design.

Cyreath Stheno ATK: 1400 LINK-2 ⬅️↙️

"Miner's effect!" Raguel continued. "Since it was used to Link Summon, I can add any card from my Graveyard to my hand!" A card popped out of Raguel's Graveyard, which he took and added to his hand. "Next, I activate Stheno's effect! Once per turn-."

"Like I'll let that happen!" Malf interrupted. "Me activate Necromancer's effect! Once per turn, when you activate a card effect, me can remove one 'Darkscourge' counter from Star Core or Generator to negate the effect and send it to the Graveyard. Me remove one 'Darkscourge' counter from Star Core and negate Stheno!" The remaining purple orb that orbited around Star Core went into Necromancer's staff, who proceeded to incinerate Stheno before sending her to the Graveyard.

Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 1 – 1 = 0

"Damn it..." Raguel cursed, angry with what Malf just did. He could attack Necromancer with Castor & Pollux, but the battle damage inflicted to Malf would only be 800, which wasn't enough to win the duel. Raguel also knew that Playmaker would need his help soon, as he may have difficulties himself and could require the assist. But was there any other way to win?

"I can tell you're getting frustrated, Raguel." Herald stated, turning to Raguel. "That's why I created a new Skill along with your avatar for situations like this. You could say they're gifts from me." A screen then appeared in front of Raguel, as he read the information on it.

"Godly Grandeur..." Raguel muttered, looking at the information on the screen. This could work, given the description of the Skill. After all, it was an improvement on Call of Olympus, as the chance to get what he needed was increased to one out of three from one out of twenty. "This is awesome, Herald!"

"Happy you like it, Raguel." Herald replied, a smile on his face. "Now go kick this creature's ass!"

Raguel nodded. "Will do." He turned to Malf and said, "You think you cornered me? Think again! I activate my Skill! Godly Grandeur!" The silver armor on Raguel's body then began to shine, causing Malf to shield his eyes. "By returning one 'Cyreath' Link monster in my Graveyard back to my Extra Deck, I can draw the top card of my deck and reveal it to you before activating one of three effects. I return Stheno back to my Extra Deck!" Alright deck, Raguel thought, placing the right hand on top of it. Work with me so we can win this duel. If not for my sake, then for the people I care about. "I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck before looking at it briefly. "The card I drew is Cyreath P.H.A.N.T.O.M, a Monster card. Since I drew a Monster card using Godly Grandeur, one monster on your field loses attack points equal to the revealed monster's attack points. And the monster I choose is Black Bull!" A silhouette of P.H.A.N.T.O.M briefly appeared on Raguel's field before it charged forward and slashed Black Bull with its swords, making the creature scream in pain.

Darkscourge Black Bull ATK: 3100 – 2800 = 300

"Battle!" Raguel gestured to his field. "Cyreath Castor & Pollux attacks Darkscourge Black Bull!" Castor & Pollux charged at Black Bull, intent on eliminating the creature once and for all. "This duel ends now!"

"Oh, its over, but for you!" Malf replied, a gleam of madness in his eyes as he gestured to his field. "Me activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Darkscourge Detonation!" The card showed a trio of Darkscourge Necromancers surrounding Star Core, which was restrained and fastened to a device that caused it to begin glowing on and off, as if it became a bomb. "By tributing one 'Darkscourge' Link monster on me field, all monsters on your field are destroyed!"

"What?!" Herald exclaimed, his eyes widened. "But we only have one monster on our field!"

"That's the point!" Malf told both Raguel and Herald. "Me tribute Necromancer for Detonation's effect!" Necromancer turned into purple particles that went into Detonation, causing the card to fire a purple blast at Castor & Pollux.

"Not so fast!" Raguel suddenly said. "I activate the effect of Cyreath Guardian from my hand! By sending this card from my hand to my Graveyard, not only can I prevent my monster from being destroyed by battle or card effects this turn, any battle damage I take is halved as well!"

"Guardian?" Malf repeated. "When did you-?" It then dawned on him. That was the card Raguel added to his hand with Miner's effect! "You little-!"

Soon, Guardian appeared in front of Castor & Pollux, protecting them from the blast before turning into particles.

"This is the end!" Raguel informed Malf. "Hymn of the Twin Gods!" Castor & Pollux sliced Black Bull with the discus and sword respectively before finishing it off with a combined attack that caused a massive explosion, making Malf fall off his duel board and land on a nearby island.

Malf: 1200 – 1900 = 0

"We did it! We won!" Herald breathed a sigh of relief.

"Barely." Raguel pointed out, as he landed a few feet away from Malf. The creature had landed on his back but had gotten up on a kneeling position. "Where's your master, creature?" He grabbed him by the shoulders, getting his attention.

Malf, however, simply laughed. "Gone," he answered. "Into another area of the network." His body started glowing red on and off, something Raguel didn't notice. "He wanted to give you a message."

"What message?!" Raguel shook Malf once again, who only chuckled in response.

"He said, 'Please tell Raguel that when you gotta go, you gotta go.'" The glow on Malf's body began spreading, as if it were in tune of a bomb. "And you're coming with me." Raguel could do nothing but widen his eyes as the glow fully enveloped Malf's body, having realized what he planned to do.

"Raguel, look out!" Herald said, forming a shield to protect himself and Raguel as Malf blew up, pushing him off his feet and landing on the ground.

"...Ugh." When Raguel opened his eyes, he found he was on his back. Getting himself to a sitting position, he quickly looked over the area that Malf blew up. The land that once had green grass on it was now reduced to rubble, and there were several pieces of purple skin all over it. He turned to his duel disk. "Can't believe that creature would... HERALD!"

"Raguel, I don't feel so good..." Herald groaned. Both his arms had been disintegrated, as had parts of his chest, his protrusions, and his left cheek. His creamy-pearl eyes were scrunched up in pain.

"We have to get you fixed up!" Raguel immediately decided, getting up on his feet. Hopefully, you've got better luck than I did, Playmaker, he thought, as he logged out of the network. What he failed to notice though, was the pieces of purple skin coming back together, forming into Malf.

"Whew. That was a doozy." Malf said, scratching the back of his head. Looking at his duel disk, he chuckled. "Me masters have completed the mission. Time for me to go!" He turned, ran to the edge, and jumped off, landing on his duel board as he sped away to a place unknown.

Elsewhere, at another area in the network...

"There they are!" Ai told Playmaker, as he increased his speed to reach Haru. Following his duel against Bohman, Playmaker went to interrogate him and get Jin's data back. When that didn't work, Ai attempted to eat Bohman piece by piece, only for him to writhe back in agony. Seizing the chance, Haru swept down and hoisted Bohman's arm over his shoulder before putting him on his duel board, speeding away from Playmaker in the process. That led to an ongoing chase between the both of them, with Haru summoning Bit and Boot to try and get rid of Playmaker. However, someone else appeared to aid Playmaker by challenging Bit and Boot instead, thus resuming the chase. As evident by his previous duel against Slipstream and the ridiculous chase that was going on, it clearly was not Haru's day.

"Seriously?" Haru complained, annoyed with Playmaker's relentless pursuit. Beside him, Bohman put a hand to his head and grumbled in pain. "Just hang on, Bohman. We're almost there." The chase kept going for a minute or so, with Playmaker still on Haru's tail. Eventually, the boy smirked and turned to Playmaker, having realized they reached their destination. "So sorry to tell you, Playmaker. But you won't be getting Jin's data back."

"You're wrong! You won't get away with this!" Playmaker angrily replied, continuing the pursuit.

"Oh, but I'm sure we definitely will." Haru responded. "So you can drop the dream." Haru's duel board eventually reached the restricted area.

"Warning: This area is restricted. All trespassers will be deleted," an automated voice announced.

"There's nowhere to escape." Playmaker said, as Haru's duel board stopped. Haru gestured to the red field, causing it to open and allow him and Bohman to pass through. Playmaker grit his teeth as the gate closed, ending his pursuit. He reached down into the gate, but his hand started to glitch out, forcing him to retract it.

"Hey, Playmaker!" a voice said, causing Playmaker to turn to a young man with golden eyes on a duel board, who had just appeared behind him. The man's hair was in shades of red and blue, with his attire consisting of a red, orange, and gray jumpsuit. Around his neck was an unusual, linear red scarf that flickered with energy. "Looks like the two of them got away. How'd they pull off getting through-?"

Suddenly, the both of them heard an alert, which said, "Restricted area has been breached. All avatars in proximity will be deleted."

"Well, then. That's my cue to log out," the young man said, as the voice repeated itself. "You should get out of here too, Playmaker."

"Before you go," Playmaker said to the duelist, getting his attention, "who are you?"

The duelist grinned and pointed to himself with his thumb. "The name is Soulburner. See you around."

"Soulburner, huh?" Playmaker muttered, looking up into the sky. "I'll see you around as well." He then logged out, knowing there was nothing else he could do for now.

A light shines and the letters spelling out VRAINS light up the screen before a network is formed and several cards are drawn in towards a pillar of light. Playmaker, Raguel, and Soulburner are shown with their respective Ignis and stats, along with real-life forms that across the backgrounds that match their Ignis' colors. The screen then shows each of them being shocked while wearing VR sets as kids, along with a kid with light-green hair that flowed backwards and curled at the back. The kid also had dark-green hair spikes on the sides of his head, with light-green spikes at the back of his head as well.

The screen gets swallowed with darkness at it reveals a young Yukage huddled up and crying, his shadow shrinking behind him before taking the form of Wraith and comforting him. Yukage looks up with a menacing and soul piercing glare before the darkness consumes him and he's replaced with an older version of himself. Azrael and Wraith are then shown in NEW LINK VRAINS, as they look out into the digital sky. The scene then shifts to Bohman standing tall above NEW LINK VRAINS and holding the earth in his hands with Haru by his side. Malf grins in the shadows behind them, his red eyes shining bright in the process.

A drop of light falls down, and as it explodes, it reveals Playmaker, Raguel, and Soulburner, standing on buildings watching over the network, along with Slipstream as well. Blood Shepherd is shown commanding a trio of Battledrone Sergeants before the screen shifts to Drachen, who is shown commanding Red-Eyes Black Dragon. The screen then shifts a third time to Electrolyzer, where above him was a male, humanoid monster wearing a black and white suit that had electricity emitting from his wrists and head, as well as several other monsters that resembled futuristic armor parts. The screen then shows Go Onizuka, Kenmochi, and Yoroizaka with Dinowrestler King T Wrextle, Gouki the Blade Ogre, and Gouki the Solid Ogre behind them ready for battle.

Blue Angel, Ghost Girl, Numera and SengokuQueen are then featured together riding their duel boards across the night sky with shooting stars flying across them. Trickstar Holly Angel was with Blue Angel, while Numera was with Geomathmech Final Sigma. Ghost Girl was with Altergeist Dragvirion, while SengokuQueen was with a male shinobi wearing grey robes and armor pads with neon-yellow lines running over them. The man had a red scarf around his neck, along with a face-mask and face visor on his head. He also had spiked-brown hair and a ponytail as well. In his right hand, he carried a Sai, while the brass knuckle on his left hand emitted four translucent blades.

The screen then changes to Raguel, Playmaker, and Soulburner riding on their duel boards with Cyreath Medusa and Cyreath Hercules in his new form, Cyberse Magician, Cyberse Witch, and Salamangreat Heatleo behind them. Following the trio is Slipstream and Clear Wing Synchro Dragon. The four of them join together with a fist bump and smile in the real world as the wind blows, with Kusanagi, Roxy, and Greg watching them from Kusanagi's truck. Rachel then runs toward the quartet, and more specifically, Yuhiro, a look of joy clearly on her face. Unbeknownst to everyone, they're watched from the shadows by a cloaked person who glares at them, biding his time.

Card Gallery

Malf:

Darkscourge Star Core (LV: 1/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 0/DEF: 0)

Effect: When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can place 'Darkscourge' counters on this card equal to the number of cards in your hand. If you would Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' Link Monster: You can remove 'Darkscourge' counters from this card equal to that monster's Link Rating instead (This is treated as a Link Summon). While you control a 'Darkscourge' Link Monster, your opponent cannot target this card for attacks, nor can they target 'Darkscourge' Link Monsters you control for card effects.

Darkscourge Leech (LV: 3/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 800/DEF: 800)

Effect: When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 'Darkscourge Leech' from your deck to your hand. If this card is used for the Link Summon of a 'Darkscourge' Link Monster: The Link Monster that used this card as material gains 800 ATK; also, place 1 'Darkscourge' counter on a 'Darkscourge Star Core' or 'Darkscourge Generator' you control. You can only use each effect of 'Darkscourge Leech' once per turn.

Darkscourge Wall (LV: 4/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 1000/1000)

Effect: When your opponent's monster declares an attacks on a 'Darkscourge' monster you control: You can send this card from your hand to your GY; 'Darkscourge' monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn. During your next turn, if this card was sent to the GY by its own effect, you can draw 1 card from the top of your deck.

Darkscourge Comet (Field Spell card)

Effect: 'Darkscourge' monsters you control gain 300 ATK/DEF; also, the effects of all 'Darkscourge' Link Monsters you control cannot be negated. If this card is destroyed by a card effect: Destroy all of your opponent's Attack Position monsters.

Darkscourge Detonation (Quick-Play Spell card)

Effect: Tribute 1 'Darkscourge' Link Monster you control; destroy all monsters your opponent controls. You can only attack with 1 'Darkscourge' Link Monster you control the turn you activate this effect.

Darkscourge Hallucination (Counter-Trap card)

Effect: When your opponent's monster declares an attack on a 'Darkscourge' monster you control: Negate the attack, then target the attacking monster; banish it.

Darkscourge Warrior (LR: 1/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 1200/⬇️)

Effect: 1 'Darkscourge' monster. When this card destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the GY, except a 'Darkscourge' monster: Inflict 500 damage to your opponent. You can tribute this card, and if you do, place 1 'Darkscourge' counter on a 'Darkscourge Star Core' or 'Darkscourge Generator' you control. You can only this each effect of 'Darkscourge Warrior' once per turn.

Darkscourge Necromancer (LR: 1/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 600/↙️)

Effect: 1 'Darkscourge' monster. When your opponent activates a card effect (Quick Effect): You can remove 1 'Darkscourge' counter from a 'Darkscourge Star Core' or 'Darkscourge Generator' you control; negate the effect, and if you do, send it to the Graveyard. You can only use this effect of 'Darkscourge Necromancer' once per turn.

Darkscourge Black Bull (LR: 3/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 2800/↙️⬇️↘️)

Effect: 2 or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. Once per turn: You can target 1 'Darkscourge' Link monster on your field; reduce its ATK to 0 until the End Phase, and if you do, the ATK and DEF of all monsters your opponent controls becomes 0 until the End Phase. If this card is in your GY, except the turn it was sent to your GY: You can remove 3 'Darkscourge' counters from a 'Darkscourge Star Core' or 'Darkscourge Generator' you control; return this card to your Extra Deck. This effect of 'Darkscourge Black Bull' can only be used once while it is in your GY.

Raguel:

Cyreath Guardian (LV: 3/Cyberse/Earth/ATK: 0/DEF: 0)

Effect: During either player's turn (Quick Effect): You can send this card from your hand to your GY; 'Cyreath' monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn; also any damage you take is halved. You can only use this effect of 'Cyreath Guardian' once per turn.

Cyreath Castor & Pollux (LV: 7/Cyberse/Ritual/Light/ATK: 2200/DEF: 2200)

Effect: You can Ritual Summon this card with 'Cyreath Ceremony'. If this card in your possession is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can Special Summon 1 'Cyreath' monster from your GY. Once per turn, when this card destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the GY: You can activate one of two effects:

Banish 1 card your opponent controls until the End Phase.

Set one 'Cyreath' Spell or Trap card from your deck to your Spell & Trap card zone.

Cyreath Ceremony (Ritual Spell card)

Effect: This card can be used to Ritual Summon any 'Cyreath' Ritual monster. You must also tribute 'Cyreath' monsters from your field or hand whose total Levels equal or exceed the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. If you control a 'Cyreath' Link Monster: You can also use monsters in your deck, by sending them to your GY. When this card is in your GY, except the turn it was sent to the GY: You can banish this card and 1 'Cyreath' Ritual Monster from your GY; add 1 'Cyreath' Spell or Trap card from your deck to your hand.

Cyreath Paris (LR: 2/Cyberse/Light/ATK: 1000/↙️↘️)

Effect: 2 'Cyreath' monsters. If this card is Link Summoned using a 'Cyreath' Link Monster: You can add 1 'Cyreath' Ritual Spell card and one 'Cyreath' Ritual Monster from your deck to your hand. When a 'Cyreath' monster is Normal or Special Summoned to a Main Monster Zone this card points to: You can have that monster gain 500 ATK/DEF; also, it is unaffected by your opponent's card effects until the End Phase (even if this card leaves the field). You can only use this effect of 'Cyreath Paris' once per turn.

Cyreath Stheno (LR: 2/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 1400/⬅️↙️)️

Effect: 2 'Cyreath' monsters. Once per turn: You can target 1 'Cyreath' monster this card points to and one monster on your opponent's field; the ATK of the second target is halved, and if you do, add that lost ATK to the other monster until the End Phase.

Haru:

Hydradrive Constriction (Quick-Play Spell card)

Effect: Target 1 'Hydradrive' Link Monster on your field; inflict damage to your opponent equal to its Link Rating x 500. You can only activate 1 'Hydradrive Constriction' per turn.

Hydradrive Conjurer (LR: 1/Cyberse/Earth/ATK: 1000/↙️️)

Effect: 1 'Hydradrive' monster. When this card is Link Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 'Hydradrive' token to your field in defense position (LV: 1/Cyberse/Earth/ATK: 0/DEF: 0). Once per turn: You can destroy 1 'Hydradrive' monster on your field, and if you do, you can target 1 other 'Hydradrive' monster on your field; it gains 1000 ATK until the End Phase.

Slipstream:

Speedroid Scarecrow (LV: 2/Wind/Machine/ATK: 500/DEF: 500)

Effect: If this card is in your GY and your opponent targeted a monster you control for an attack: You can return 1 'Speedroid' monster on your field to your hand; Special Summon this card to your field in defense position, then change the attack target to it instead. The turn this Special Summoned card leaves the field: Banish it.

Speedroid Summon Dice (Normal Spell card)

Effect: Roll a six-sided die, then Special Summon 1 'Speedroid' monster from your deck whose level is exactly equal to the result of the dice roll. You can only activate 1 'Speedroid Summon Dice' per turn.

QOTC

What are your thoughts on Raguel's new Skill: Godly Grandeur? What are your thoughts on Malf's Darkscourge deck, as well as his Skill: Delusional Heartbeat?

Chapter Preview

Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth. Chapter 47: Strategy Meeting. Yuhiro and Yusaku meet up at Den Academy the next day to discuss what happened in the network. There, the two of them meet Takeru Homura, one of the new transfers at the school, as well as his Ignis, Flame. After getting acquainted, they tell them about the destruction of the Cyberse World, and its possible connections with yesterday's events...

Chapter 48: Speed of Sound. Upon entering into the network, Raguel, Playmaker, and Soulburner are immediately chased by SOL Technologies' bounty hunters. While Soulburner and Playmaker prepare for their duels against Go and Blood Shepherd, Slipstream unexpectedly appears before Raguel to aid him against Drachen and Electrolyzer...

Author's Notes

Okay, now that was a chapter! For those of you who are wondering about the timeline of events, this chapter occurs from the end of Episode 47 to the end of Episode 49 in Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS. Since there isn't too much that happens in this chapter, I'll do a recap of the main events:

The two main events that occur in this chapter are the two duels, which I'll say took some time to complete. The first duel is between Raguel and Malf, where we got the see a lot of new stuff, so I will break it down separately. First, there's Malf's deck called Darkscourge, a Dark Cyberse archetype that focuses on using 'Darkscourge' counters for a variety of effects, including Link Summoning. That's right. I said Link Summoning. Several cards in the deck have effects that allow Malf to place 'Darkscourge' counters on either Darkscourge Star Core or Darkscourge Generator (the latter will be shown in a later duel), where he can then use them for the effects of his 'Darkscourge' Link monsters and other 'Darkscourge' cards. Then there's Malf's Skill called Delusional Heartbeat, which I believe is the first Duel Winner Skill ever to be created. By giving him this type of Skill, it would make him a threat as Season 2 continues, even though he's small in stature at the moment. What are your thoughts on this? What do you want to see from Malf moving forward?

On Raguel's side, we have two new 'Cyreath' Link monsters, as well as Raguel's first 'Cyreath' Ritual monster: Castor & Pollux. The design for them was based off of the Dioscuri from Fate/Grand Order. Why didn't I use the one from God of War: Ascension? Because I found the design to be ridiculous. Although Castor & Pollux are weak in terms of attack, they do have strong effects to back Raguel up in a duel. Lastly, we have Raguel's new Skill that came along with his new avatar: Godly Grandeur. Whereas Call of Olympus gives Raguel a five percent chance to get the monster he needs, Godly Grandeur gives him a thirty-three percent chance to get the effect that will turn the duel around. One of the three effects (where Raguel drew a Monster card through his Skill) was activated, which involves decreasing a monster's attack points equal to the revealed monster's attack points. What do you think are the effects for Raguel if he drew a Spell card using his Skill? A Trap card? Put down your theories below in your reviews!

For the second duel, it was between Haru and Slipstream, which ended in a draw. By doing this, I wanted to show that Haru was no pushover, and that he had the potential to evolve as a duelist. Will he win a duel in the future? You'll have to read on and see for yourself. What I will promise for Haru, along with the other promises I made for him in Chapter 39 is that he'll have the character development he deserves.

As for Slipstream, this chapter was his debut duel! His avatar in LINK VRAINS is based off of Sync the Tempest from Tales of the Abyss for those interested in looking it up. As for his deck, it is the Speedroid deck, which focus on fast Synchro Summons. When some of you saw his ace monster Clear Wing Synchro Dragon in the opening, some of you guessed that he'd use that deck. There were also others who wanted me to use a different deck, such as Dragunity or Yosenju. Why didn't I use those archetypes? Its primarily because the Speedroid deck actually plays a role into his backstory, as well as regarding who he is. I mean, who would expect you to use a deck that was based off of toys and games? It adds a layer of unpredictability to it, if you know what I mean. When will Slipstream reveal himself in the real world to Raguel and the others, you may ask? Not until later in the story. I can promise you that I got something good planned for their meeting, that's for sure.

Lastly, there was Drachen and Electrolyzer's first appearances in LINK VRAINS, whose real selves we saw in the previous chapter. Again, Drachen is an OC of ZeroMK7, while Electrolyzer is an OC of my own making. As shown in the chapter, Drachen uses the Red-Eyes deck, while Electrolyzer uses the PSY-Frame deck. Originally, I had planned for Electrolyzer to duel Raguel before Raguel dueled against Malf, but it would have dragged the chapter on. So instead, I changed it to Malf pummeling the both of them in a surprise attack to show how deadly he can be when not in a duel. Don't worry: Both Drachen and Electrolyzer will have their debut duels in Chapter 48, which is shown in the Chapter Preview above.

Thank you everyone for reading Chapter 46 of Obscured Truth. As always, please let me know your thoughts about the chapters below in your reviews. Also, constructive criticism is appreciated, as your tips and advice helps make the story better. In addition, don't forget to favorite and follow the story. That way, you will get a notification once the next chapter is released.

What did you enjoy the most about this chapter? Was it the duels? The interactions between the characters? A moment that stuck out with you? Or something else?

Before I sign off for now, just wanted to give you a heads-up: The next chapter is primarily a breather chapter. What does that mean, you may ask? Well, it will focus more on the aftermath of this chapter's events through character interactions. This means it should take a little less time than usual to complete the chapter (remember: During the summer, it takes about an average of two weeks to finish a well-written chapter).

That's all for now. See you next chapter!