Chapter 45: A Three-on-One Advantage is Huge
Chapter 45: A Three-on-One Advantage is Huge
Boom!
Bystander A: "Ahhhh!"
Kaiba: "Hahahaha—"
Boom!
Bystander B: "Ahhhh!"
Kaiba: "Hahahaha—"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
...
You Xuan stood outside the door, speechless as he witnessed the Dark Duelists inside the bar, who were now lying on the ground in disarray after just a few moments.
Well, to be fair, he had expected Kaiba to crush these guys without breaking a sweat, but he never imagined it would be this exaggerated.
It reminded him of the time Manjoume first arrived at the Northern Branch of Duel Academy in the anime and took down one opponent after another in a matter of minutes.
This was usually how the protagonists in the anime took down nameless extras—a style that once led the young You Xuan, watching eagerly from in front of the TV, to believe that dueling didn't require shuffling. He then enthusiastically shared this "astonishing discovery" with his friends, after which he confidently dueled his peers without shuffling his Exodia set.
And then... none of his friends wanted to play with him anymore.
But it wasn't really his fault; the duels in the anime genuinely looked like they didn't involve shuffling. Especially when the main characters were taking down random opponents, their hands seemed ridiculously overpowered.
Just like how Kaiba was massacring these guys now.
"Tough! Invincible! The Strongest!"
Kaiba stood amidst the fallen duelists.
"Who else is left?"
On the opposite side of the room, only three people remained standing.
Yamagishi Ryousuke, with his center-parted hair, scowled, "Damn, I knew it was the legendary Kaiba Seto, but I never imagined it would be this bad. In the blink of an eye, only the three of us 'Blood Moon Four Heavenly Kings' are left."
The beautiful bartender, Inoue Kazumi, corrected him, "Actually, it's the Three Heavenly Kings. One of the Four Heavenly Kings, Fujimoto, has already defected."
Ryousuke: "..."
Fujimoto, with good intentions, said, "Come on, brothers, don't struggle anymore. Kaiba-san asked me to give you a message: surrender and you'll be treated well."
One of the Four Heavenly Kings, the tall and burly Takaya, suddenly burst out, "I'll strangle you, you traitor!"
Fujimoto quickly hid behind Kaiba, showing his allegiance.
"Hmph," Kaiba smirked as he crossed his arms, "So, you're the remaining three of those so-called Four Heavenly Kings? You should be a bit stronger than the rest of the trash, at least.
So, who wants to go first? Or do you want to come at me all at once?"
The three of them brightened at his words.
Could it be that they had a chance?
They had no chance in a one-on-one duel, but if it was three against one... Could Kaiba Seto possibly take on the three of them at once and win?
"Alright, then," they said, "A fair three-on-one duel it is!"
You Xuan felt like retorting, "What's so fair about three against one?"
He had to admit, Kaiba's confidence was admirable. In the real-world Yu-Gi-Oh! game, there were single duels and team duels, but duels with multiple opponents against a single player were unheard of. The game simply wasn't designed that way; the normal differences in card quality, field advantage, and even turn order made it practically impossible.
But in the anime, the protagonists often took on multiple opponents at once and usually came out on top.
According to a theory You Xuan had come across online, the characters in the anime possessed something called "Destiny Power," an innate ability that allowed duelists to influence fate and determine the outcome of their duels.
However, this power was relative within a duel; if one duelist had stronger Destiny Power, it would suppress the opponent's ability to some extent. This was why the important characters in the anime always seemed to have the perfect hand when dueling extras, allowing them to defeat their opponents in one turn, but when it came to duels between skilled duelists, their starting hands seemed much more average.
So, in this environment, You Xuan was more concerned about his opponents' Destiny Power than their monster cards or deck strategies. After all, the powerful monsters revered by duelists in this ancient era were nothing compared to the ridiculously overpowered cards he knew from the modern game.
However, Destiny Power could turn a haphazard deck into a force to be reckoned with.
To give a simple example: in the later mainstream Yu-Gi-Oh! meta, a good starting hand would be one that could consistently disrupt the opponent's plays during their turn by destroying their cards or negating their effects. This often required a long and intricate play that could be interrupted by the opponent's countermeasures.
But in this world, when there was a significant gap in Destiny Power between duelists, the stronger duelist could simply start with a few trap cards similar to "Solemn Judgment" to negate the opponent's actions, along with a high-attack monster, and they would have a field that was just as oppressive as the meta decks of the future.
Although he figured Kaiba would most likely lose, You Xuan was still curious to see how Kaiba would win, facing triple the resources.
One against three—this was a perfect opportunity to observe a powerful Duelist's Destiny Power up close.
"Duel!" x4
[Ryousuke, LP 4000]
[Kazumi, LP 4000]
[Aikawa, LP 4000]
[Kaiba, LP 4000]
"I'll go first. Draw." Kaiba declared calmly, "In a free-for-all, the first player's turn prevents anyone from attacking. I'll set two cards and end my turn."
The three opponents inhaled sharply, taken aback by Kaiba's bold move.
So arrogant! In a one-versus-three duel, he didn't even summon a monster and simply ended his turn?
"Hmph, such confidence will be your downfall, Kaiba Seto. My turn, draw!"
First up was Ryousuke, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, with his distinctive center-parted hair.
"I summon 'Captain of the Enemy-Cutting Squad'!" Ryousuke declared, "Effect of 'Captain of the Enemy-Cutting Squad'! When this card is successfully summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower monster from my hand."
A smirk played on his lips as he revealed another card from his hand.
"The monster I'll summon is also 'Captain of the Enemy-Cutting Squad'!"
[Captain of the Enemy-Cutting Squad, ATK 1200] x2
"I see. So, you're blocking my attacks?" Kaiba said nonchalantly.
"That's right!" Ryousuke boasted, "As long as 'Captain of the Enemy-Cutting Squad' is on the field, you can't attack any other Warrior-Type monsters. And with two of them on the field..."
"...their effects will protect each other, resulting in neither of them being able to attack." Kaiba finished, "Effectively blocking all my attacks."
"Exactly." Ryousuke grinned, "Then, I'll set a card in the backrow and end my turn!"
"My turn!" The beautiful bartender, Kazumi, stepped forward, "I Normal Summon 'Variable Machine Beast - Cannon Dragon' from my hand!"
A thick metal tank-like tread appeared, with a long spear and cannon on each side, and a metallic dragon head protruding from the center.
"'Variable Machine Beast - Cannon Dragon' is a Level 7 monster, but it can be Normal Summoned without any Tributes. However, when summoned this way, its attack power is halved."
[Variable Machine Beast - Cannon Dragon, ATK 2800 → ATK 1400]
"Hehe, but now I activate the Equip Spell, 'Dull Axe' from my hand!" Kazumi giggled, "Increase the equipped monster's ATK by 1000, but its effect will be negated. So, I'll equip 'Dull Axe' to 'Variable Machine Beast - Cannon Dragon,' boosting its attack power while negating its effect!"
Her two companions cheered.
Ryousuke: "Due to its inherent drawback, 'Variable Machine Beast - Cannon Dragon' has its attack halved when summoned without Tributes. But by negating its effect, its attack returns to the original value!"
Aikawa: "Not only that, but it also gains an additional 1000 ATK boost from the effect of 'Dull Axe,' making use of both the positive and negative effects of the Equip Spell!"
[Variable Machine Beast - Cannon Dragon, ATK 1400 → ATK 3800]
"Well, that's to be expected from one of the Four Heavenly Kings." Kazumi smiled confidently, "End of my turn."
"My turn!" Aikawa declared, "I activate the Magic Card, Polymerization!
Fusing 'Aibatt' and 'Baatt' from my hand! From the ancient forest, a beast is summoned, and its power intertwines with this moment! Fusion Summon—
—Level 6, Aibatt Baatt!"
A towering storm erupted from the fusion vortex, and a massive, ashen beast stepped out, landing on the field with a stern presence.
[Aibatt Baatt, ATK 2800]
"I set a card on the field and end my turn!" Aikawa said confidently.
The trio was pleased with their strong opening.
In a three-on-one duel, they had managed to establish such a formidable field right from the start. It seemed like turning the tables would be incredibly challenging.
There probably won't be any appearances of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon for a while, so let's give Kaiba another boost.
No matter how many words there are, I guarantee that this duel will be finished within tomorrow's chapter.
As always, I seek your monthly votes and following! :)
(End of Chapter)
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