"Magical Armory"
This was not one of the initial cards provided by the system. It had been among the cards Shadi had given him, and Yu Ming guessed that the Millennium Scale had pieced this card together from those miscellaneous monster heads and hides.
But regardless of its origin, it was quite useful for Yu Ming's current deck.
"By paying 800 LP, I can reveal the top four cards of my deck and Special Summon any Normal Monsters among them that are Level 3 or lower."
Yu Ming LP: 4000→3200
There was no soul-draining pain, no lingering weakness, and of course, no additional special effects.
It was just like playing with someone at a card shop in the past. After slapping down the Spell Card, Yu Ming picked up his deck.
Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle.
He flipped over four cards in succession and took out two of them.
"I Special Summon the Level 1 'Bone' and Level 2 'Spirit of the Books' in Defense Position, then return the remaining cards to the deck and shuffle it."
"Bone (Lv1)" "Attribute/DARK" "Type/Undead" "ATK/300 DEF/200" ... "Spirit of the Books (Lv2)" "Attribute/DARK" "Type/Fiend" "ATK/550 DEF/400"
"They have no effects, and both their attack and defense are extremely low."
Seeing the cards Yu Ming had revealed, Noah Kaiba could not help frowning.
In the world of the anime, no matter the era or the person watching, there was basically one thing everyone would say:
"You spent precious LP just to summon two weaklings?"
Yu Ming merely shrugged.
Not to mention that Life Points were cheap to him...
"They are the foundation of my strategy."
"I see."
Noah nodded.
"Although I do not know what you are planning, they will also be affected by 'Machine Drive Night,' so both their attack and defense will decrease."
"Bone (Lv1)" "Type/Undead→Machine" "DEF/200→0" ... "Attic Monster" "Type/Fiend→Machine" "ATK/400→0"
Their already pitiful stats had been completely reduced to zero. At that moment, Yu Ming felt as though he could even hear that same pitiful sound Kuriboh made.
"Kurii..."
But it did not matter. As long as they remained on the field, that was enough.
Yu Ming's gaze slowly lifted. Above Noah's seemingly solid defense line, there was not the slightest shadow of concern.
"Because there is a monster on your field, and a Normal Monster on mine, I can activate this card."
Under the lights, a flash of green symbolizing magic appeared.
"'Soul Release'—I can choose five Normal Monsters from my deck..."
He picked up his deck again.
"'Crescent Dragon,' 'Warrior of Darkworld - Dark Blade,' 'Demon Soldier,' 'Summoned Skull.'"
Yu Ming carefully searched through the cards, but when he reached one particular card, he hesitated for a moment.
That brief silence naturally did not escape Noah's notice.
"What is it?"
"Nothing."
After shaking his head, Yu Ming gently covered the "Red-Eyes" card within his deck.
No matter what, this was not the time to choose that card. Its stats were awkward enough on their own, and using it in the context of this "script" would be rather delicate.
Though he knew perfectly well that his cards had all been provided by the system as part of a starter deck, letting others see them would inevitably lead to unnecessary speculation.
So...
"For my final choice, I select 'Tri-Horn Dragon.'"
After choosing five cards, Yu Ming laid them out on the table.
"Through the effect of 'Soul Release,' I can add one of them to my hand."
"Is it 'Tri-Horn Dragon'?"
Noah asked.
"So those two weaklings on the field really are tributes..."
"I add 'Summoned Skull' to my hand and banish the other monsters."
"You chose something other than the higher-attack 'Tri-Horn Dragon'?"
Facing Noah's astonished gaze, Yu Ming picked up the Fiend-Type card.
"Also, I have not performed my Normal Summon this turn, so I tribute 'Bone' to summon the Level 6 'Summoned Skull.'"
"Summoned Skull (Lv6)" "Attribute/DARK" "Type/Fiend" "ATK/2500 DEF/1200"
As a Level 6 monster, 2500 attack was enough to stand above the rest. Even many Level 7 monsters requiring two tributes had lower attack than it.
It truly deserved to be called the king of single-tribute DARK monsters!
"But the effect of 'Machine Drive Night' will still apply. Its type, attack, and defense will all be affected."
Recovering from his surprise, Noah offered a reminder.
"Summoned Skull" "Type/Fiend→Machine" "ATK/2500→2000"
"Even if you summoned a high-level monster, you still cannot attack me."
But Yu Ming was not worried about that.
"It is fine. My setup is complete."
He slowly set down his final card.
"...So your focus is those three Set Cards in your back row?"
Meeting Yu Ming's calm expression, Noah looked toward his back row.
"You could say that. The moment you draw, I will activate my Set Cards."
"Is that so? Then I look forward to seeing how you attack my defense line."
Nodding with a smile, Noah placed his hand on his deck.
"My turn. Draw."
"The first Set Card, a Quick-Play Spell."
Before Noah Kaiba had even finished speaking, Yu Ming flipped over his first Set Card.
"'Tribute to the Doomed'—at the cost of skipping my next turn's draw, I can target one monster on the field and destroy it."
"But none of the monsters on my field other than 'Commander of the Ignition' can be targeted by effects."
"Correct. So I choose to destroy 'Commander of the Ignition.'"
At those words, Noah could not help frowning.
"But 'Commander of the Ignition' cannot be destroyed by effects right now. You read that card's effect earlier."
"Yes, so I am not finished yet. If you have no response..."
Yu Ming sent one monster from his field to the Graveyard.
"I tribute the DARK monster with less than 1000 attack on my field, 'Spirit of the Books,' and chain this card."
A flash of red emerged, and it was an exceptionally classic one.
"Trap Card—'Crush Card Virus.'"
"A Virus Card?!"
After a brief moment of shock, Noah's brow did not relax in the slightest. Instead, it furrowed even deeper.
"If I remember correctly, the activation condition for that Virus Card should be being attacked and making contact."
Naturally, those were the activation conditions in the original work.
"The card in my hand has somewhat different conditions. It only requires tributing a monster to take effect."
Yu Ming explained.
"However, its effect is also somewhat different in return."
The one purchased through the system was that thing which had once stirred up a storm, loved and fought Chaos, and ultimately went to prison with it—the uncensored, errata-free "Crush Card Virus."
"My virus will not completely destroy your deck, but after destroying the qualifying cards on your field and in your hand, it will also inspect every card you draw afterward and destroy any that meet the requirements."
He casually handed over the card from his Spell and Trap Zone, while Noah stared at its effect text for a while.
That serious expression reminded Yu Ming of the opponents he had encountered at card shops in the past.
"In other words, my defense line has been dismantled."
"Yes. Crush Card Virus sends your boosted 'Geargia Commander' and 'Geargia Red' on the field to the Graveyard. And because 'Geargia Commander' is sent to the Graveyard, the equipped 'Geargia Soldier' and 'Geargia Green' will not escape either."
"Then, because there will no longer be any Geargia monsters on the field, 'Commander of the Ignition' will no longer have its protection against destruction..."
Noah pressed his lips together. He looked at Yu Ming, only to see him smile faintly.
"Once the effect of 'Crush Card Virus' finishes resolving, 'Tribute to the Doomed' will continue resolving."
"And at that point, 'Commander of the Ignition' will also be destroyed, leaving me with no monsters on the field..."
After a moment of silence, Noah raised his head.
"Truly splendid."
He revealed the two cards in his hand.
"Other than the 'Geargia Yellow' I searched earlier, the card I just drew was 'Geargia Soldier.' It has 1600 attack, so it will be destroyed as well."
Noah placed that card in the Graveyard, then removed the monsters from his field and back row.
For a time, only two supporting Spell Cards remained in his back row.
"However, it is not over yet."
Noah narrowed his eyes.
"You know that 'Geargia Army's Defense Perimeter' recovers the remains of Machine-Type monsters when they are destroyed by battle or card effects."
In plain terms, when a Machine-Type monster was destroyed, he could target one Machine-Type monster in his Graveyard and add it to his hand.
"I add 'Gear Commander Blaster Spinner' back to my hand..."
"Then you will summon 'Geargia Yellow,' search your deck for a second 'Geargia Green,' and Special Summon 'Commander of the Ignition' again. That way, you will once more have a 3000-attack powerhouse with a destruction effect."
As Noah reached toward the card in the Graveyard that seemed as though it was still warm, Yu Ming calmly described the sequence Noah was bound to make next.
And because of that...
"I cannot let you do that—when you activate the effect of 'Defense Zone,' I tribute 'Summoned Skull' on my field and chain my third Set Card."
He removed the monster card from the field, then flipped over his final Set Card.
"Trap Card—'Magic Deck Devastation Virus.'"
"Another Virus Card?"
"Yes, so the effect text is similar. This card tributes a DARK monster with 2000 or more attack to destroy your monsters with 1500 or less attack."
Frowning, Noah tossed the Geargia card he had failed to summon into the Graveyard. The only card left in his hand was a high-level monster that had lost its Special Summoning condition.
"I have no more plays I can make this turn. And because of the virus's lingering effect, every Monster Card I draw over the next three turns will be destroyed."
And that was not all...
"What is that card in your hand?"
After a brief silence, Yu Ming saw Noah shift his gaze toward him.
There was none of Keith's hysteria, nor any furious frustration. Faced with that seemingly casual question, Yu Ming revealed his final card.
It was a Spell Card, something utterly ordinary in the anime, the kind even a random bystander could pull out.
But in Yu Ming's memory, it was also a Forbidden Card.
"Spell Card—'Dimension Fusion.'"
"I see. So that is why you banished your high-attack monsters..."
Staring at the card in Yu Ming's hand, Noah took a deep breath.
Though he looked somewhat powerless and disappointed, he still raised a hand over his deck.
"I lost."
Ah, he had been busy with contract matters earlier, so this chapter had been written a little slowly.
Before you continue