Chapter 33

Somewhere in the city.

At the end of a narrow and gloomy alley, although it is in the city area, it is as if it is isolated from the world.

This is an area that only those who know the right path can enter.

A bar.

Soft lights cast mottled shadows all around, the air is mixed with the smell of alcohol and tobacco, and a more turbid and heavy breath. An old-fashioned phonograph plays a strange melody, and each note seems to melt into the ubiquitous shadows.

Just like invisible darkness shrouding the entire space.

This is a gathering place for dark duelists.

But it is not the only one. Although dark duels are still rumors among the general public today—just like student Judai in the first season of the GX anime once believed in science and refused to accept the fact that dark duels existed—in fact, many years have passed since the DM era, and underground networks for dark duels have already been established all over the world.

And dark duelists are scattered all over the place like assassins who cannot see the light.

Among them, there are many individual practitioners who accept commissions through the underground network and do things for money. There are also some related organizations.

The emergence of this situation is actually an inevitable trend of development. After all, dark duels are too convenient and too omnipotent, throwing various traditional assassination and espionage methods eight streets away.

By playing cards, you can eliminate targets without firing a shot or leaving any traces. If necessary, when starting a dark duel, adding additional restrictions can also destroy the bones and ashes, literally breaking the ashes into particles, leaving no trace at all.

And what they can do is more than just assassination. As long as you win a life-betting card game against certain people in key positions or holding heavy power, you can easily pry open anyone's mouth to obtain any confidential information, or directly brainwash the other party to obey you, thereby influencing some major events in the business or even political world.

Of course, where there is a spear, there will be a shield. The rise of this dark profession naturally attracted the attention of the upper class to the threat in this regard. So these days, important people either have superb card skills themselves or have dueling bodyguards with them.

This bar named "Blood Moon" is just such an organization where dark duelists gather.

The bartender is a woman with scarlet pupils, with amazing curves that have MAX-level eye-catching ability, and she does not hesitate to generously show her natural talent to her colleagues.

This is why colleagues spend 90% of their time looking at her during meetings—even though she almost says nothing.

A man in a suit in front of the bar slowly drinks a glass of wine, puts down the glass, and says leisurely: "One of our colleagues has left us."

"Oh."

"Regrettable."

"A pity."

The colleagues express their regret one after another, but their eyes have never moved away from the beginning to the end. The beautiful bartender shakes the wine glass in her hand, her movements elegant and skillful. The wine rotates in the glass, and the movement of her arms causes the rest of her body to shake, causing a sound of "oh" from the audience.

The man in the suit is a bit displeased: "We sacrificed a compatriot; can't you at least pretend to care a little?"

Someone suggests: "But haven't you been looking over there while talking?"

The man in the suit ponders for two seconds and says righteously: "I can't help it."

It immediately causes a burst of laughter, and the bar is full of a happy atmosphere.

"But seriously, Onizuka is my good brother," the man in the suit says in a deep voice. "We knew each other before we came to the organization. I can't pretend nothing happened."

A middle-parted man on the side advises: "Everyone is in the business, and everyone knows the rules. Winning is life, losing is death, so many duels, so much life and death...

Sometimes you win, sometimes you die, that's how it is. Onizuka also knew this long ago."

"Besides," another person on the side says, "do you know who did it? Who in our business doesn't have ten or eight enemies..."

"Before Onizuka left the headquarters this time, he was still drinking with me the night before, saying he heard rumors that the legendary duelist Ryuzaki was preparing to reappear in the world."

The man in the suit says in a deep voice.

"Onizuka is very interested in this. As a fellow dinosaur user, he often said he wanted to find that Ryuzaki and bump into him..."

"Good guy, that's a legendary duelist," the middle-parted man says. "Are you sure you've thought it through, Fujimoto? And Onizuka's dueling strength is not bad; if even he can't win..."

"Onizuka has never won against me either."

The man in the suit called Fujimoto smiles slightly, extinguishes his cigarette in the ashtray, and then looks at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle under the curling smoke.

"A man always has times when he has to go. Besides, as duelists, if we are always content with the status quo and dare not challenge the strong, how can we make further progress?"

The middle-parted man squints at him: "Since you are so motivated, why don't you go challenge Wu Teng Yugi?"

Fujimoto, who is pretending to be cool, is immediately choked, and it takes him several seconds to speak in a muffled voice.

"... Wu Teng Yugi is too strong."

After all, he means challenging the strong to cross the peak and gain progress, not going to die.

Knowing that the winning rate is 0 and still going, isn't that purely giving it away...

Fujimoto sighs softly and begins to reminisce about the past.

"Onizuka and I were both abandoned by the dueling world. We met through underground duels... At the beginning, I made a promise to him that if he had any accidents, I would take care of his wife and children for him.

But I never expected him to leave so hurriedly, without even leaving any offspring, leaving only a gentle and beautiful girlfriend waiting for me to take care of..."

In this way, wouldn't the matter of children only be something I have to find a way to solve for my brother myself?

With this thought in mind, he cannot help but shake his head repeatedly, sighing that life is not easy.

A big guy on the side pats him on the shoulder: "Big brother, don't be sad. If Brother Onizuka knows in heaven that he has such a reliable brother as you, he should be able to leave with peace of mind."

"You are right," Fujimoto pats his hand and nods.

Then he suddenly feels a chill for no reason.

"Hmm? Did you suddenly feel a gust of cold wind just now?"

The big guy blinks blankly: "No."

"Strange... Could it be that Brother Onizuka is urging me to avenge him?"

Fujimoto looks up at the sky and says solemnly.

"Brother Onizuka, don't worry, I will soon find that bastard Dinosaur Ryuzaki, drag his soul into the darkness, and avenge you!"

Elsewhere.

After a crushing defeat at the Moon Flower Cup, Dinosaur Ryuzaki's comeback failed, so he returned to seclusion and once again seriously studied his deck.

He was originally full of confidence, thinking that this time he would do something big, but he never expected that he would end up doing something big. The King failed to return, but instead sent a head to a rookie who had just started.

Especially since that rookie's resume was completely blank before this tournament, so it is conceivable that in the future, whenever that guy appears, everyone's first reaction will definitely be: Damn, isn't that the guy who beat Ryuzaki?

In other words, the further that newcomer goes and the more he appears, the more he will be whipped...

It's one thing to fail to take off after so many years of seclusion, but to become a background board after failing, who can endure this?

"Fujiki You Xuan... Very good, I have remembered you."

Ryuzaki mutters coldly.

He has no choice but to find an opportunity to play another match.

If he doesn't find that kid and win back, he will have to continue to bear this stain until this joke is spread wider and wider.

Just as he was thinking about this, his nose suddenly itched for no reason, and he sneezed "Achoo."

"Strange, why do I suddenly feel a bit cold behind my back?"

Ryuzaki rubs his nose inexplicably.

Why does he feel like he is being missed by someone?

(End of chapter)