Ah? Kaiba?

Years ago, a black dragon plummeted into the Underworld. Its Red-Eyes, a symbol of possibility, held immense power, causing turmoil across all factions.

The ultimate victor in this struggle was the immortal king—the Necromancer King.

No one knew where he truly came from, only that when he swept through the Underworld, he already possessed the crimson dragon eye that held legendary power.

And so, the balance was broken.

The once stable Underworld became an arena of slaughter.

Some rejoiced and chose to join, while others suffered greatly and chose to resist.

But those small ripples couldn't stop the Necromancer King's domineering power.

Over long years, the unified survivors became too weak to fight, able only to place their hopes in a legend that had mysteriously begun to spread.

"One day, the Red-Eyes will reappear in the world. It will achieve a balance between light and darkness, awaken the sleeping king, and bring peace back to the Underworld."

"Grrroaah!!"

Yu Ming took a deep breath, staring at the roaring monster before him.

"Zera, Dark Blade, direct attack."

Roar roar roar roar

The ferocious Demon Soldier and the warrior of the demon world lunged forward.

One spewed corrosive smoke, the other raised its twin blades and darted swiftly.

LP: 1800→0

LP: 2800→0

Congratulations, Host, for defeating the Duelists 'Slaughtering Giant' and 'Demon Soldier'. You have gained 30 points from this Duel. You will receive an additional 150 points for your first victory each day.

In an instant, the obstructing demons were stripped of everything before they could even let out a scream.

Their bodies gradually turned into wisps of white smoke, and from the piled bones and rotting flesh, two cards fell:

Slaughtering Giant

Demon Soldier

After picking up the two cards, Yu Ming's expression gradually became subtle.

"As expected, it still feels a bit strange when I think about it carefully."

Is this still Yu-Gi-Oh!?

Observing the boundless miasma around him and listening to the constantly echoing, never-fading howls, Yu Ming felt like he might have brought the wrong thing.

With this world-setting and bizarre beginning, he felt he shouldn't be using a Duel Disk and cards.

Perhaps carrying a straight sword and a shield would be more fitting.

Casually flipping through the equip spell cards in his deck, Yu Ming couldn't help but let his thoughts wander.

But, there was nothing he could do about it.

"We rested twice on the way, and it feels like two days have passed in total."

Putting away his Duel Disk and deck, Yu Ming looked at the other person traveling with him.

"When can we reach this stronghold you mentioned?"

This was the final decision he made—to go with Keith to the so-called rebel stronghold.

After all, being completely unfamiliar with the place, having a temporary base and a faction he could rely on for a while was good.

But, They had been walking through a landscape of mountains of corpses and seas of blood that barely changed, and on the way, they had to deal with the rotting zombies that would occasionally pop out to assert their presence.

Two days, 48 hours.

During this time, what Yu Ming felt most wasn't a sense of danger, but a growing irritation from deep within.

"Honestly, I'm tired of this color and scenery."

Fortunately, this situation was almost over.

"Yeah, we're here."

Under Yu Ming's gaze, Keith simply lit a cigarette and began puffing smoke.

"One of the entrances is right here."

However, although Keith said so, Yu Ming looked around but didn't see anything special.

Various corpses and flesh were piled into small hills, and beside them flowed either rivers of blood or high-temperature magma. The air was also filled with a smell of decay.

"So, where is it?"

"Just wait a moment. There's something I need to confirm with you."

"What?"

He looked at Keith, who was already manipulating the mechanical wristband on his arm that could be assembled with the short gun to form a Duel Disk.

As he worked, he mentioned a name Yu Ming hadn't expected.

"Seto Kaiba..."

"What?"

"You're not related to Seto Kaiba, are you?"

"Huh?"

"Never mind. It doesn't matter if you are or not; it has nothing to do with me. Anyway, I just picked you up on the road and tested your dueling skills. I don't know anything else about you."

"..."

Yu Ming didn't speak. He vaguely sensed something.

In the strange silence, only mechanical sounds echoed:

"Identity authentication: Duelist Keith Howard."

"You have been away for 121 hours. Welcome back."

Rumble

A tremor came from the dark, bone-strewn ground.

Then, a perfectly straight, high-tech crack appeared in the previously harsh yet natural fantasy landscape.

A section of the ground slowly rose, revealing a metallic cylindrical object beneath the rock.

And this was something Yu Ming, theoretically speaking, was very familiar with. There was even a specific word for it:

"Alright, the elevator's here."

Keith said, closing the device on his wristband.

Yu Ming stared at the nameplate on the elevator for a long time. It wasn't because of its exquisite design, but simply because it bore the simplest of markings: KC.

In this world, only one organization would use such a mark:

"Kaiba Corporation."

Saying the name, Yu Ming suddenly felt a bit absurd.

"When did Kaiba Corp expand its business to this godforsaken place?"

He did have a fixation on it, but the timing was completely off!

Bro, I still have the Millennium Scale. Could it be that even Dark Side of Dimensions has passed in the outside world, and Shadi stole this thing back from me?

"Surprised, aren't you? I was shocked when I first saw it too."

As Yu Ming reined in his restless thoughts, Keith's malicious grin came into view.

"I never imagined that an arms company, so famous on Earth, would have a base in a place like this..."

"So, what's the reason?"

Hearing Yu Ming's question, Keith instinctively started to speak.

But in the end, his expression became a little subtle.

"Since you're already here, I don't think I need to say much more, do I?"

Finally, he stepped into the elevator.

"Seeing is believing. The rest is for you to judge."

Hearing Keith say that, Yu Ming unconsciously raised an eyebrow.

He followed, stepping into the elevator with him.

The metal doors slowly closed, leaving behind the annoying mountains of corpses and bringing a pleasant sense of descent.

Honestly, he had never missed the beauty of technology so much.

However...

"As the host, shouldn't you be a bit more hospitable?"

He looked at Keith, who was standing beside him, but Keith took two steps back.

"Let's skip that. I'm just doing a job for money."

He waved his hand, his movements somewhat exaggerated.

"Just don't misjudge anything and then blame me."

These words clearly had a tone of shirking responsibility, but on second thought, it was normal.

After all, he and Keith weren't really familiar with each other.

But it didn't matter. His unwillingness to speak didn't mean Yu Ming couldn't make a judgment.

"Underworld, Kaiba Corp, arms..."

To put it plainly, aside from the fact that a pathway between the living world and the Underworld had been opened, anyone who could appear here would simply be a deceased person connected to Kaiba Corp.

Was there anyone like that in the original story?

There really was!

"Gozaburo."

Almost simultaneously, the name, perfectly aligned with his thoughts, echoed in his ears.

Looking up, he saw Keith taking a final drag from the cigarette in his hand.

Then, he clenched the stub tightly.

"Gozaburo Kaiba, I'm sure that name is even more familiar to you."

"...Indeed."

"He's now one of the leaders of the resistance. You can figure out the rest for yourself."

So, was this like a Resurrection Tournament for a free-for-all among the dead?