Chapter 2: At The Cusp Of Defeat
National Scholarship Duel Arena…
Hours had passed since the tournament began, and many duels came and went until the sun set over the horizon. Having just finished his latest duel, Kolt walked back up into the duelist waiting area and sat on the nearest chair, exhausted.
After his initial duel with Chris, it took an hour before he got his next one. The wait for duels afterward became shorter and shorter until he jumped from one duel to another, and now he had just won the semi-final duel.
His heart was beating out of his chest in both excitement and nervousness as the next duel was going to decide it all. If he lost this next duel, then that was it. He wouldn't get the scholarship, and he'll never get into Duel Academy.
Sure, that was the same stake he had with every other duel, but it felt all the more real now that he was at the last step. Especially since his next opponent was going to be the strongest yet. While most of his opponents throughout the tournament were very strong, his next opponent was Sloane.
The very same duelist he had seen win his first match without taking a point of damage. But it wasn't just the first duel. In most of the duels he played, Sloane took fairly minimal damage from his opponents and won in only a few turns.
There were many rumors about what kind of strategy Sloane was using to win his duels. One of the most outrageous rumors was that he had Exodia. But as they were unable or allowed to spectate other applicants' duels, no one present knew about his deck.
It was only fair, obviously, as they didn't want people getting words on their opponent's decks beforehand. That didn't stop the rumors, of course, which made Ryder nervous. Because if he didn't end the duel quick, he'd be defeated in no time at all.
"At the same time, I'm really excited to see what kind of deck this guy uses." Kolt thought as he looked up at the spectator seating.
Normally to calm his nerves, he'd call his brother and talk it out, but he wasn't allowed to make calls since spectators could give inside information to contestants. This was especially the case since his brother was filming the entire event for work.
"At least I can watch the other duels from the tournament when I get home," Kolt smirked as he let out a long sigh.
Taking out his deck Kolt made sure everything was in order before laughing at himself for doing what he'd seen other contestants do in line earlier that very day. But he could understand it now as he was anxious for his duel to start.
"I can do this!" Kolt thought as he put his deck back.
"Mr. Knight." A Judge called, snapping Kolt out of his thoughts.
"If you are ready, please follow me to the duel arena." The Judge insisted as Kolt nodded.
After taking a quick breath, Kolt sat up and followed the judge down the path until they reached the duel field. It looked just like the others, with walls high enough to block the view of other duelists but no ceiling to allow the spectators and duel analysts to watch.
It seemed that he was first to arrive, so Kolt took the far end of the ring, waiting for his opponent to arrive. The judge walked over and stood to Kolt's left, waiting for another judge to bring Sloane.
Looking around to pass the time, Kolt managed to spot his brother above him on the right and gave him a quick wave which Joshua returned. It was then that his opponent arrived, walking in with another judge who exited the field as there was no need for two judges.
Sloane himself dressed in an oversized black coat that covered both of his arms and extended down his legs. It looked as if he was dressed up to look cool, but it wasn't something uncommon in the dueling world.
"Let's have a good duel!" Kolt smiled as he held out his hand to shake Sloane's, only for his opponent to ignore his hand.
"I want that side," Sloane stated, confusing Kolt.
"Uhhh…what?" Kolt questioned, confused at what Sloane meant.
"I want to duel on that side of the field." Sloane elaborated, pointing at where Kolt was just standing at.
Turning around, Kolt raised a brow. This sudden request was confusing as Kolt couldn't understand why Sloane had made the request. But it didn't really matter to him which side he dueled on, so he didn't mind it.
"Oh…well, okay," Kolt replied as Sloane pushed past him.
"That's a first," Kolt noted as he walked over to the other side of the field.
"Are both duelists ready?" The Judge inquired as Kolt and Sloane nodded, placing their decks into their duel disks.
"Good." The Judge nodded as he raised his hand in the air.
"Then let the duel begin!" The Judge declared as both duelists drew their hands.
Kolt: 4000 LP / Sloane: 4000 LP
"I'll go first." Sloane insisted as his hand hovered over his deck.
Turn 1: Sloane
"Draw!" Sloane announced as he flung his hand out faster than Kolt could register and placed the card he drew into his hand.
"I place one card face down, then place one monster face down in defense position and end my turn," Sloane stated, leaving four cards in his hand and shocking Kolt.
"That's it?" Kolt questioned, wondering if Sloane had a bricked hand.
"I don't need anything else," Sloane stated as Kolt scratched his head.
"Oh well." Kolt thought as he placed his hand on his deck.
Turn 2: Kolt
"My move!" Kolt declared as he drew a card.
"First up, I'll summon Gemini Scorpion in attack mode!" Kolt began as he slapped his monster onto his duel disk.
Gemini Scorpion (ATK: 1600 / DEF: 400) -Warrior/Effect- (EARTH) (LV: 4)
"Thanks to his effect, I can now special summon one level four or lower Gemini monster from my hand! So come forth, Blazewing Butterfly!" Kolt shouted as he brought out a second monster.
Blazewing Butterfly (ATK: 1500 / DEF: 1500) -Insect/Gemini/Effect- (FIRE) (LV: 4)
With two monsters on his field, Kolt paused and thought out what his next move should be. Looking at Sloane's face-down card Kolt knew it had to be bad. Otherwise, why else would Sloane place only that card face down?
Unfortunately, Kolt didn't have anything to deal with that card in his hand, which meant he'd have to wing it. But that was fine by him because stuff like this is what made dueling so much fun!
"Blazewing Butterfly, attack and destroy his face-down monster!" Kolt ordered as his monster spread its firey wings and shot toward the face-down monster.
"I activate my trap! Magical Thorn!" Sloane countered as his face-down card flipped up, causing several thorns to grow out of Kolt's duel disk and wrap around his arm.
"What's this?!" Kolt questioned, confused at this card's effects.
"It's simple every time you discard a card, you take five hundred points of damage," Sloane explained, confusing Kolt
"But why is it the only card you…." Kolt wondered before stopping short when he looked at Sloane's face-down monster.
"Don't tell me that's…." Kolt muttered as the monster flipped up to reveal Morphing Jar.
Morphing Jar (ATK: 700 / DEF: 600) -Rock/Flip/Effect- (EARTH) (LV: 2)
"Damn, fell right for it!" Kolt cursed as Morphing Jar's effect activated.
Its face shot out from its body and grabbed onto the four cards in Kolt's hand, along with the four cards in Sloane's hand, and tossed them into the respective graveyards. This, in turn, activated Magical Thorn, causing the thorns on Kolt's duel disk to rip up his arm.
"Ahhh!" Kolt howled as the phantom pain ran through his arm.
Kolt: 4000 LP
- 2000 LP
Kolt: 2000 LP
Taking a quick breath, he drew five more cards as Sloane did the same though he did so with his odd drawing method. Looking at his hand Kolt was happy that he didn't lose much. But what was better is now Sloane was entirely open since Blazewing Butterfly destroyed Morphing Jar.
"Well, eye for an eye! Go, Gemini Scorpion, attack him directly!" Kolt ordered as Gemini Scorpion lept forward and cut into Sloane.
Sloane: 4000 LP
- 1600 LP
Sloane: 2400 LP
As his monster returned to his side of the field, Kolt couldn't help but wonder if Sloane's entire strategy revolved around Magical Thorn. This whole setup was in favor of the card and seeing how his other duels ended fairly fast, it would make sense if it was.
Clearly, Sloane's strategy was whittling away his opponent's life points by the use of that trap, and he most likely has more cards that force Kolt to draw and discard. Which meant he needed to keep his hand free of as many cards as he could.
"I place three cards face down and end my turn," Kolt stated, finishing his turn with two cards in his hand.
Turn 3: Sloane
"Draw!" Sloane declared as he drew another card making six cards in his hand.
"I place two cards face down and summon my Bistro Butcher in attack mode." Sloane began as his monster appeared on the field.
The Bistro Butcher (ATK: 1800 / DEF: 1000) -Fiend/Effect- (DARK) (LV: 4)
"Now, my Butcher will attack and destroy your Blazewing Butterfly!" Sloane announced as his fiendish monster attacked Kolt's butterfly.
"Not so fast! I activate my trap card! Covering Fire!" Kolt countered as his trap flipped up.
"Thanks to this card, my Blazewing Butterfly gains attack points equal to that of any monster I choose on my field. Since I only have one, I choose Gemini Scorpion!" Kolt explained as his two monsters glowed.
Blazewing Butterfly (ATK: 3100 / DEF: 1500) -Insect/Gemini/Effect- (FIRE) (LV: 4)
Just as Bistro Butcher's large blade was going to hit Blazewing, it shattered in two, allowing Blazewing to incinerate the monster. With Bistro gone and the damage step over, Blazewing Butterfly's attack points returned to normal.
Blazewing Butterfly (ATK: 1500 / DEF: 1500) -Insect/Gemini/Effect- (FIRE) (LV: 4)
Sloane: 2400 LP
- 1300 LP
Sloane: 1100 LP
Above the field, Joshua watched as his little brother dueled. He was happy for him, especially as he dealt significant damage to Sloane. Joshua had filmed a few of Sloane's other duels, and each time he used the same strategy to beat his opponents.
But Joshua couldn't shake this nagging feeling. Something about the way Sloane dueled was off, especially with the cards he played. From the duels he's seen Sloane play, he played a lot of the same exact cards.
So either he was stacking his deck full of as many copies as he needed for this strategy, or Sloane had incredible luck. Either way, Kolt was going to have a difficult time beating Sloane. If he didn't do anything, then Sloane would beat him on his next turn.
But one other thing stuck out to Joshua, and that was the weird way Sloane drew his cards. He did it so swiftly that it was hard to see him draw the actual card. It wasn't anything he hadn't seen before, as many duelists liked to be very dramatic when they drew. However, Joshua was going to keep a close eye on it.
"I wasn't expecting that. But a trick like that won't work again." Sloane stated as he ended his turn, leaving three cards in his hand.
Turn 4: Kolt
"Good, because it's my turn!" Kolt replied as he drew a card.
Taking a quick look at his hand, he had nothing that could use to destroy Magical Thorn. His face-downs were no help either, as he only had Gemini Trap Hole and Unleash Your Power down there.
While he would normally keep cards like those in hand until they were useful, he couldn't risk them being there. In the end, neither could help him even at the moment. Even his hand wasn't helpful, meaning he had to risk another attack.
"Before you go any further, I activate my trap!" Sloane announced, shocking Kolt.
"I activate the trap Dark Scheme! This forces both of us to discard two cards and then draw two new ones. That is unless you discard one card to negate it." Sloane explained as Kolt cursed inwardly.
"Fine, but I can use this." Kolt thought as he looked at the card he just drew.
"Fine, I discard one card to negate your trap's effect!" Kolt stated as he discarded the card he just drew.
"That's fine because it still triggers the effect of my Magical Thorn!" Sloane reminded as the thorns covering Kolt's arm began to cut him once more.
Kolt: 2000 LP
- 500 LP
Kolt: 1500 LP
Taking a little breather, Kolt began to think about his next move. He had enough attack power to end this duel here and now, but Sloane still had another face down and several cards in his hand. Kolt wouldn't put it past Sloane to have a card like Kuriboh.
"But I have to risk it." Kolt thought, knowing that it was better to get rid of those cards now so that Sloane couldn't stack them up.
"Alright, Gemini Scorpion, attack him directly!" Kolt ordered as the scorpion-armored warrior attacked Sloane.
"I think not! I activate the spell Book of Eclipse!" Sloane countered as his second face-down flipped up.
"Thanks to this spell, all monsters are forced into face-down defense position, and at the end of your turn, you must draw cards equal to the number of monsters face down on your field," Sloane explained as Kolt cursed.
Above Sloane, a large red book with green borders appeared and began shining a light on both of Kolt's monsters. This light halted Gemini Scorpion's attack before forcing him and Blazewing Butterfly face down.
"You've got to be kidding me," Kolt muttered as he looked at his face-down monsters.
"He's forcing me to draw more cards now so he can deal even more damage." Kolt realized as he looked back at his hand.
The sole cards in his hand at the moment were De-Fusion and Hidden Armory, which were utterly unhelpful at the moment. No doubt that the cards he'll be forced to draw won't last in his hand for long, but he did have a plan to make their loss helpful.
"I place one card face down and end my turn," Kolt muttered, placing down his Hidden Armory before drawing two cards.
"Man, I've never seen such a dueling strategy before. Where'd you learn it?" Kolt inquired as he placed the cards in his hand.
"It doesn't matter. I'm going to win this turn anyway." Sloane stated, refusing to answer Kolt's question.
"Talk about confident." Kolt thought as Sloane placed his fingers on his deck.
Turn 5: Sloane
"Draw!" Sloane declared, drawing another card from his deck though Kolt noted that it was a little slower than usual.
"I activate the spell card Card Destruction forcing us both to discard our hands. With three cards in your hand, that means you take fifteen hundred points of damage." Sloane explained, causing Kolt to grimace.
"Meaning you lose." Sloane pointed out as Magical Thorn began to glow and the thorns around Kolt's to move.
"Not yet! I activate the effect of Damage Eater from my graveyard!" Kolt countered, taking Sloane aback as Kolt's graveyard glowed, stopping the thorns in their tracks.
"Thanks to his nifty ability by banishing him, instead of taking damage from your trap, I gain life points instead!" Kolt explained as a little yellow demon popped out of Kolt's graveyard and circled around him.
Kolt: 1500 LP
+ 1500 LP
Kolt: 3000 LP
Kolt breathed a sigh of relief before giving Damage Eater a thumbs up as it disappeared with a smile. Afterward, he drew three new cards to replace his hand as Sloane did the same, giving both duelists an equal amount of cards in their hands.
As Kolt looked back at Sloane, he could see clear irritation on the boy's face. It seemed he really wanted to end the duel there, and the fact that Kolt managed to survive his move must have angered him. Yet it seemed like there was something else to it.
"I place two cards face down and end my turn," Sloane muttered, leaving one card in his hand.
Turn 6: Kolt
"My turn!" Kolt stated as he drew a fourth card.
"Finally, time to turn this duel around," Kolt smirked as he grabbed onto one of his cards.
"I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Magical Thorn!" Kolt began as a large twister appeared on the field and destroyed Sloane's trap.
"I'm not that easy. I activate my face down a second, Magical Thorn!" Sloane declared, causing Kolt to curse under his breath.
"You really are dedicated to this strategy, aren't you?" Kolt questioned as Sloane remained silent.
"Talk about a pain," Kolt murmured, annoyed that he was back to square one.
"Then next, I'll flip my Blazewing back into attack mode, then I'll sacrifice my face-down Gemini Scorpion to summon Divine Knight Ishzark!" Kolt continued as his white-clad knight appeared.
Divine Knight Ishzark (ATK: 2300 / DEF: 1800) -Warrior/Effect- (LIGHT) (LV: 6)
"Next, I'll equip my knight with the spell Lightning Blade giving him an extra eight hundred attack points!" Kolt explained as Ishzark replaced his divine blade with Lightning Blade.
Divine Knight Ishzark (ATK: 3100 / DEF: 1800) -Warrior/Effect- (LIGHT) (LV: 6)
Thirty-one hundred attack points. It's an amount that rivals some of the strongest monsters in Duel Monsters. However, that meant nothing in this situation if Kolt couldn't land an attack on Sloane's life points. But it was still good to get cards out of his hand.
"Now, my knight shall attack you directly!" Kolt declared as Ishzark jumped forward, ready to swing his sword down on Sloane.
"I activate my trap Negate Attack!" Sloane countered as a multicolored barrier blocked Ishzark's attack and ended Kolt's battle phase.
"And now I hate it. I hate everything about this deck." Kolt thought as Ishzark returned to his side of the field.
Back above, Joshua thought over Sloane's strategy and how he built his deck. A deck that only stalls the opponent to deal effect damage through the effects of Magical Thorn wasn't a terrible idea in of itself.
But the odds of getting all the cards needed to keep up this strategy were fairly slim, especially at the rate Sloane was getting them. He kept getting the exact cards he needed whenever he needed them. It wasn't impossible, but it also happened in his other duels.
"Thomas, have you recorded this kid duel before?" Joshua inquired as he turned to face one of his work colleagues.
"Yeah, a few times. Why?" Thomas asked as Joshua looked at his camera
"I need to confirm something," Joshua responded as he took a look at Sloane's previous duels.
"Well, since I can't attack, I'll end my turn." Kolt sighed, knowing he couldn't use the Release Restraint spell in his hand.
Turn 7: Sloane
"Draw!" Sloane announced as he drew another card, this time in the same way as usual.
"I place one monster face down in defense mode and one card face down. Your move." Sloane stated, finishing his turn in only a few moves.
"Same as your first move," Kurt murmured as he placed his hand on his deck.
Turn 8: Kolt
"Draw!" Kolt declared as he drew a card.
"Symbols of Duty. Doesn't help me right now." Kolt noted as he placed the card in his hand.
Looking over at Sloane's side of the field, Kolt felt like he was being baited into another trap, just like with Morphing Jar. No doubt this new face-down monster had an effect that would be harmful to him should he attack, and at the moment, he didn't have a way to stop it.
Sure, he could just simply choose not to attack but come next turn Sloane would just flip it anyway, and the same outcome would occur. So the question running through Kolt's head was should he attack now or just let Sloane play out his next turn?
It was then that he remembered the other card on the field. Sloane's newest face down. Kolt couldn't say whether it was another card to prevent him from attacking or a card to force him to discard more cards.
"This sucks! I'm really in a corner right now, aren't I?" Kolt thought as he inwardly sighed.
He had no outs at the moment, as the only cards in his hand were Hidden Armory and Symbols of Duty. If he had drawn something like Gemini Spark or his second copy of Mystical Space Typhoon, perhaps he could do something this turn, but as it stands.
"There's not a whole lot I can do. While I would like to attack that face down could be dangerous." Kolt thought as he ran through his options.
"My other duels throughout this tournament haven't been this hard. Sure, I've been in tough spots, but this…it's like all I can do is just wait it out!" Kolt sighed as he rubbed his head.
"I guess I should just keep playing safe for now." Kolt determined as he lowered his duel disk.
"I end my turn," Kolt stated as above him Joshua left from the spectator area.
Turn 9: Sloane
"I draw!" Sloane announced as he drew a new card.
"First, I activate my trap, Reckless Greed allowing me to draw two cards at the cost of skipping my next two draw phases." Sloane began as he drew two more cards.
"Next, I activate The Shallow Grave! Thanks to this card, both of us choose one card in our grave to bring back in face-down defense mode." Sloane continued as his grave glowed.
"I'll be bringing back my Morphing Jar," Sloane stated as Morphing Jar was placed face down.
"Then I'll choose my Gemini Scorpion," Kolt replied as his monster returned face down.
"Very well. Then I'll flip my other face-down monster, Absorbing Jar! Thanks to this monster, all face-down spells and traps are destroyed, and for each one destroyed that you control, you must draw a card." Sloane began as his new jar monster appeared.
Absorbing Jar (ATK: 600 / DEF: 500) -Rock/Flip/Effect- (EARTH) (LV: 3)
"You're kidding?!" Kolt gasped as his three face-down cards were destroyed, forcing him to draw three more cards, all of which didn't help him.
"I'm not. This duel is as good as mine." Sloane goaded as he grabbed onto one of the two cards in his hand.
"I place one card face down and end my turn," Sloane stated, finishing his turn.
As Kolt went to begin his next turn, he hesitated. At this point, he didn't know if he could win this duel. Without the right card, he wouldn't last another turn. The cards he drew wouldn't help, especially if Sloane's face down stopped him from attacking again.
He was essentially backed into a corner several times during this duel, and each time he gained some advantage, Sloane easily took it back. It seemed that Sloane couldn't draw a single bad card, while Kolt had a normal mix.
If nothing was done, then he'll lose by Sloane's next turn, thanks to Morphing Jar and Magical Thorn. His dream of going to Duel Academy was on the brink of being crushed, and it felt like there was nothing he could do.
But perhaps it was okay. After all, this was a scholarship tournament where duelists had to compete for the scholarship. Sloane had dueled just as many duelists as Kolt to get to this point and won. He worked just as hard to get here, so there wasn't any shame in losing here.
Kolt just wished it didn't have to end here. He wanted to keep going, but perhaps this was as far as he was meant to go. Before his thoughts could go any further, the judge overseeing the duel received a message over the comms.
"The duel is halted!" The Judge declared, shocking both Kolt and Sloane.
"The duelist Sloane Shin has been accused of cheating and will now be investigated!" The Judge announced as Kolt turned his attention toward a scared Sloane.
"CHEATING?! Could he really be cheating?" Kolt questioned as one of the entrances to the duel field opened, and Joshua entered.
"Joshua?" Kolt murmured as his brother approached the judge and whispered something into his ear.
The judge nodded as he approached Sloane, who slinked back from him but was unable to avoid the judge, who grabbed onto his right arm. He then pulled the arm toward him, causing several cards to spill out of his sleeves and hit the ground.
"N-No way," Kolt muttered as he heard many spectators above gasp.
"He's been faking most of his draws the entire duel," Joshua stated, getting his brother's attention.
"That weird flourish draw he constantly did was used to hide him sliding one of those cards into his hand. He pretended to draw almost every time." Joshua explained as he picked up one of the cards showing it off as another copy of Magical Thorn.
"He must be good at card tricks which allowed him to make sure he never got a bad draw." Joshua continued as he held up his camera.
"He did the same thing in all of his duels. I suspect he chose to duel on that side of the field because it gave him a blind spot to exploit. He probably didn't want to shuffle in front of a judge because he'd get caught," Joshua added as Kolt tightened his right hand into a fist.
"He's been cheating this whole duel! So that's why he always had just the right card he needed! The reason he took that side!" Kolt thought as he glared at Sloane, who was still being held by the judge.
"Because of him, all those duelists lost their only chances at getting into schools!" Kolt realized as more judges entered.
"Because of his rule violations. Sloane Shin is now disqualified from the tournament, and the winner is Kolt Knight!" The Judge declared as they began to lead Sloane away.
"Wait!" Kolt called, stopping everyone.
"Not like this! I want to continue the duel!" Kolt stated, shocking everyone.
"Kolt, you don't need to do this. He's already been disqualified." Joshua pointed out as Kolt shook his head.
"No, I want to. Because of him, so many duelists were cheated out of a chance at this scholarship, and that's something I can't forgive." Kolt replied, staring daggers into Sloane.
"So let's continue the duel. I'm going to win." Kolt insisted as the judges talked it out.
"Very well." The Judge said as he pushed Sloane back to where he was as the others picked up his fallen cards and confiscated them.
"The duel shall continue, but another judge will be placed opposite of me to ensure Mr. Shin will not cheat!" The Judge declared as the others left, leaving two judges in the room.
Joshua himself also didn't leave, opting to stand by the other judge to make sure that Sloane didn't cheat anymore. Raising his duel disk back up, Kolt got ready for his turn. He was determined to beat Sloane.
Turn 10: Kolt
"It's my turn. Draw!" Kolt declared as he drew a card.
"Perfect," Kolt smiled as he looked at the card he drew.
"Guess my luck isn't out just yet. Time to use his own trap against him." Kolt thought as he placed the card into his duel disk.
"I place one card face down. Your move." Kolt finished leaving five cards in his hand, shocking everyone who watched.
"Was that wise? With so many cards in your hand, you'll be allowing me to win this." Sloane questioned as Kolt remained calm.
"Can you? If you had to resort to cheating just to get here, I sincerely doubt you could win fairly." Kolt pointed out, angering Sloane.
"It was my only way to get here!" Sloane shouted, clearly blinded by some desperate need to win. Since he couldn't draw a card, he had to work with the only card in his hand as he began his turn.
Turn 11: Sloane
"First, I activate the spell Cup Of Ace! Thanks to this card, I flip a coin and depending on the outcome, you or I get to draw two cards." Sloane began as a giant coin appeared on the field.
It jumped into the air and twirled several times before falling down and landing back on the ground. The coin landed on tails meaning Kolt would have to draw two more cards giving him seven in his hand. More than enough to wipe out his life points.
"Now I have everything I need to beat you here and now! I flip summon my Morphing Jar!" Sloane continued as Morphing Jar flipped into attack position.
Morphing Jar (ATK: 700 / DEF: 600) -Rock/Flip/Effect- (EARTH) (LV: 2)
"Thanks to his effect, we both discard our hands and draw five cards. Seven cards in your hand make thirty-five hundred points of damage!" Sloane explained as Morphing Jar shot out and forced both players to discard, activating Magical Thorn activated.
"So you lose!" Sloane stated as Kolt smirked.
"Not this time!" Kolt shouted, shocking Sloane.
"I activate my trap! Behold, Barrel Behind The Door!" Kolt declared as his trap revealed itself.
The thorns around Kolt's duel disk and arms soon removed themselves as they flung behind him and attached to a large door that appeared behind Kolt. The door soon opened, and the thorns wrapped around the gun that was hidden on the other side, reaching for the trigger.
"W-What's happening?!" Sloane questioned, confused at what Kolt's trap was doing.
"You see, this little card turns your own trap against you! Meaning that thirty-five hundred points of damage are dealt to you instead of me!" Kolt explained, shocking Sloane.
"No, you can't!" Sloane shouted as the thorns wrapped around the trigger.
"I just did! Now fire!" Kolt ordered as the thorns pulled the trigger, causing the gun to fire and shoot into Sloane.
"NOOOO!" Sloane cried as he fell to his knees.
Sloane: 1100 LP
- 3500 LP
Sloane: 0 LP
Duel End
Winner: Kolt
"That was for all the duelists you cheated," Kolt stated as he deactivated his duel disk, and the holograms disappeared.
Sloane didn't meet Kolt's eyes as one of the judges lifted him up and escorted the cheat off the field. With a sigh of relief, Kolt relaxed, having finally beaten Sloane. He knew that it was mostly luck that got him that card, but he had other options in his deck.
"The winner is Kolt Knight!" The Judge declared as everyone above applauded Kolt's victory against Sloane.
Joshua walked over and placed his hand on Kolt's shoulder before giving him a thumbs up. It was then that it hit Kolt. He did it. He won the scholarship. Which meant that he was able to apply for Duel Academy this year.
"I did it!" Kolt exclaimed as he hugged his brother.
"But wait. What about the duelist's Sloane beat? Shouldn't they be brought back?" Kolt questioned as he felt guilty if those cheated got nothing.
"We'll make an exception and offer them to attend one of the other tournaments. They'll get another chance there. As for you, Mr. Knight." The Judge explained as he walked up.
"You're position is secure. Congratulations." The Judge congratulated as he fished out an envelope from his pocket and handed it to Kolt.
"Thanks." Kolt thanked as he took the envelope.
"Alright, Mr. Pro Duelist. Let's get going. I'm going to need your help loading my equipment into the car." Joshua insisted as he and Kolt began to leave the field.
"I want to get home quick, so we can celebrate!" Joshua smirked as Kolt nodded.
"Then tomorrow, you hit the books," Joshua stated, causing Kolt to stop.
"Why tomorrow?" Kolt questioned, shocked at the sudden statement.
"Because you still haven't gotten into Duel Academy yet. The entrance exams are tough, and you're going to need all the preparation you need." Joshua explained as Kolt sighed.
"Could we at least wait a few days?" Kolt murmured as he followed his brother off the field.
Author's Note:
A shorter chapter for today but an exciting one nonetheless. I had real fun writing this, and though it is a little shorter than I would have liked, I didn't want to have two duels like last chapter. The only reason I did that was to show off Kolt's deck a little and give a feel for how he duels.
Plus, I wanted to get the beginning of the tournament done. While I could have shown other duels in the tournament, I didn't really want to make it drag on too much. I wanted to get more into the actual GX story soon, and an entire tournament arc prior would be a little much.
Though I do now kinda wish I made the first duel of the tournament its own chapter, but hindsight is 20/20. That being said, the whole scholarship is important for Kolt's story, and it will be brought up later on. Either way, next chapter will be the Duel Academy entrance exams, where we'll finally meet some cannon characters.
I don't have much else to say, so onto the reviews:
yann0406 – Yeah, I had the same thoughts. In the real world, Gemini isn't that good, which is why there are so few cards, but I thought that back in the GX era, it would be fun to use. Plus, there's more to Kolt's deck than just Gemini's, like we saw in this chapter.
Rainy-Day-Writer-234 – Kolt will receive Immortal Phoenix Gearfried; however, that won't be for some time. For now, his ace remains normal, Phoenix Gearfried.
martin ng649 – No, I won't pair Kolt with Alexis. I don't really think it'll add much to the story, and in cannon, she's not really one to focus on romance. The only thing she had was her crush on Jaden, but she decided not to pursue it. Either way, I like to focus more on story than pairing.
HunterHQ – This story will follow the anime as it lasts longer, and the story is more interesting to work with. However, that being said, some manga characters will appear in this story later on.
Also, yeah, fusions and rituals from the future can definitely work though I don't want to use ones that need or have effects related to other extra deck monsters like synchro or XYZ. In fact, Kolt does have some fusion monsters in his deck, which is my he has De-Fusion. As for what they are, you'll have to wait and see.
Lion Assaulter – Hope you enjoyed the chapter :)
Wyvernium – Yeah, honestly, looking back, I probably should have made at least the tournament duel its own chapter, but I wanted at least two to show off Kolt's deck. From now on, I'm going to try to keep it as one duel per chapter unless a duel is short.
Also, yeah, I felt Masked HEROES were used a lot, and I didn't want to depend on those cards that have fairly little support and use cards Jaden uses. I definitely agree with you on decks that don't get spotlights in fics, as it took me a while to build one that many probably wouldn't think to use.
But yeah, Kolt's deck isn't just Gemini monsters but various warriors and a few other monsters too. I wanted to focus on a few Gemini monsters that fit with Phoenix Gearfried, and the same goes for other monsters. Though I don't think I'll use monsters from other archetypes since it'll feel off in the deck.
That's all I have for today, so I'll see you guys next time!