Chapter 195: Intruder?

"Big, Big Brother, slow down..."

In a dense forest behind the academy, Marufuji Sho and Hayato were panting as they followed behind. In front was naturally the energetic Student Yugi.

"What are you saying? You can't explore if you're so slow, Sho!" Yugi said with a laugh.

"But even if you say that..."

Sho gasped for air.

"Why do we have to miss the school festival and run out to this wilderness..."

"There's a rumor recently that koalas that can duel appear in the forest here!"

Yugi was very excited.

Marufuji Sho: "Koalas that can duel... just thinking about it is impossible, right?"

"No, didn't we already encounter monkeys that can duel before?" Hayato pondered, "Koalas... it's not impossible."

Marufuji Sho looked at Hayato and thought for a moment.

"That's true. Besides, it's not like there aren't koalas that can duel in our dormitory..."

"That's rude!"

The three walked for a while longer, and the two stragglers in the back were completely exhausted.

"No, I really can't run anymore... Big Brother's energy is too strong." Marufuji Sho panted, "And we're almost at the seaside now. I think there shouldn't be anything in a place like this..."

"That's not necessarily true; there are many unexpected secrets hidden on this academy island." Yugi said, "Maybe some aquatic animals will suddenly jump out of the sea."

Hayato sweated: "I think it's absolutely impossible for there to be fish that can duel..."

Just as they were speaking, they suddenly heard a 'pop' sound nearby.

A palm wearing a black leather glove suddenly climbed onto the cliff from below, and a figure appeared after that.

"It, it really appeared!" Hayato and Marufuji Sho huddled together.

It looked like a person wearing black leather, with half their face masked. He climbed up from the cliff and seemed to frown when he saw the three of them.

"Damn it. To run into students just by coming up from a place like this..."

Hayato and Sho looked at each other.

"What is this person muttering about?"

"I don't get it. But he doesn't look like a good guy..."

Then, the folded mechanical components on the black-clad person's arm suddenly began to deform, forming the shape of a cannon barrel. A vortex of air fluctuation blasted out from it, heading straight toward the three of them.

Air Cannon!

"Kuriboh!"

Winged Kuriboh appeared just in time. Yugi instinctively raised his arm to protect his face, and the translucent spirit barrier blocked the air shockwave.

"Kuriboh Kuriboh!" Winged Kuriboh said.

Yugi nodded: "Ah, I understand, partner. This guy is an enemy, right?"

He immediately became vigilant and looked at the black-clad person who had fired at them: "Who are you? Why did you sneak onto this island, and why did you attack us?"

"Heh, as expected of Duel Academy. The students I randomly ran into actually have such capabilities. Then, in that case..."

As the black-clad person spoke, the mechanical components originally folded on his arm suddenly began to deform, and in just a moment, they assembled into the shape of a Duel Disk.

"You can call me 'Beta'. I have very important things to do at this academy, and since you just happened to block my way," the black-clad person said coldly, "then I'll just use the Duel Academy's way to duel my way in."

"What? You want to duel?"

Yugi also deployed his Duel Disk.

"Alright, if it's a duel, I'm ready anytime!"

Sho: "Um, Big Brother, we don't even know what the other side's purpose is. Wouldn't it be a bit... to suddenly duel like this?"

However, Yugi could no longer hear him.

"Duel!" x2

【Yugi, LP4000】

【Beta, LP4000】

"I'll start first, draw card."

Beta's voice was hoarse and turbid, sounding like a mechanical voice that had been processed.

"Summon 'Demon Dragon'."

【Demon Dragon, ATK 1500】

"Then set two cards in the back row, turn end."

Beta finished his simple first-turn operation, raised his head, and said coldly.

"The optimal formation is complete. Your hope of winning this duel is less than 1%."

"Oh? So confident?"

Yugi, upon hearing this, was not afraid but instead became expectant.

"Not bad." Beta said, "I have analyzed the essence of the tactics of the person who stands at the pinnacle of dueling in legend; you have no chance."

"The more you say that, the more expectant it makes me. Then let me see your essential tactics."

Yugi's morale soared even higher.

"Then first, I must borrow your power, Sparkman!

I summon 'Elemental HERO Sparkman'!"

The blue Elemental HERO, the Sparkman known by card players as one of the "Four Trash Heroes," jumped onto the field with azure lightning leaping all over his body.

【Elemental HERO Sparkman, ATK 1600】

"Sparkman, attack 'Demon Dragon'!" Yugi said.

Watching the current piercing from the ordinary hero opposite, Beta let out a low laugh of disdain from under his thick mask.

It seems that being wary of this kid because of spirit power was unnecessary; after all, he is just an Osiris Red student. He had heard that Osiris Red students are at the bottom of the Duel Academy.

He looks like he has no schemes at all, so he shouldn't be a difficult opponent.

"Then at this moment, activate Set Card!" Beta raised his hand, "Quick-Play Spell 'Shrink'!

You can halve the original ATK of one monster on the field!"

Yugi frowned: "Are you trying to halve Sparkman's ATK to counter-kill?"

"Hmph, I am not using that kind of low-level tactic. Watch closely, this is the tactic restored by analyzing the duel of the strongest duelist in legend.

I will halve the ATK of the 'Demon Dragon' on my own field!"

The spell effect bound the dark dragon on his own field, and the Demon Dragon's body size rapidly shrank under the shrinking magic power, until it was halved to a mini size that was only half of its original.

【Demon Dragon, ATK 1500 -> ATK 750】

"Lowering the ATK of your own monster!?" Hayato was shocked.

What kind of operation is this?

Immediately after, he saw Sparkman blast through the Demon Dragon's body with a palm lightning, and the radiated electric light wave exploded on Beta's face.

【Beta, LP4000 -> LP3150】

"What are you doing?" Yugi was bewildered.

"Hmph, at this moment you have already stepped into the bottomless abyss!" Beta sneered, "Take a good look at the monster on your own field."

He saw Sparkman stumbling backward, looking down at his own hands. A dark red energy tide radiated from his body, gradually swallowing his whole body, until the Elemental HERO dissipated as a phantom.

"What?" Yugi was surprised, "What is going on?"

"Hahahaha! Because the moment the battle was established just now, I activated this card!"

He pointed to the back row on his field that had already been flipped open.

"Trap Card 'Crush Card Virus'! When a Dark-attribute monster with 1000 or less ATK on your field is destroyed by battle, all monsters with 1500 or more ATK on the opponent's field, hand, and deck are destroyed!" (Original effect)

Actually, in the anime, Kaiba described it as "using a Dark-attribute monster with 1000 or less ATK as a medium for the virus," and it is easy to think it is used as an offering. But in the anime performance, he usually deliberately lures the opponent to attack, uses 'Shrink' to halve his own monster's ATK to 1000 or less, and after the Crush Card Virus is successfully activated, he still takes battle damage himself.

So the original version of Crush Card Virus should need to be mediated through battle, and can only be triggered when his own Dark-attribute monster with 1000 or less ATK is destroyed.

"Nani!? All monsters with 1500 or more ATK..." Yugi was shocked.

"That's right, not just on the field, all monsters with 1500 or more ATK in your hand and deck will also be destroyed for me!" Beta shouted.

"Is the goal actually to destroy my deck, which is like my soul?"

Yugi looked at the virus corroding into his deck with a heavy expression, and could only painfully draw three cards from it and send them to the Graveyard.

They were Elemental HERO Bladedge, Wildheart, and Necroshade.

Beta: "."

No.

Are these the only three monsters with 1500 or more ATK in your deck?

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 196 =====