Keith Howard, also known as Bandit Keith and Plunderer Keith.
A former American champion, a Duelist Kingdom semifinalist, and a stepping stone Joey Wheeler happily sent packing after he cheated.
While he did not have a legendary meme like Weevil Underwood's, one so enduring that even the protagonist got relentlessly memed alongside him, his freedom-symbolizing bandana and stereotypical characterization had still left a fairly deep impression on the Yu Ming who had once watched the anime.
Of course, that was all.
If possible, Yu Ming really did not want to deal with someone like this.
"Hey, hey, hey, kid, I'm talking to you. Did you go mute?"
Behind those black sunglasses, Yu Ming could practically see a trace of authentic old-school American flair.
"Crude, barbaric, arrogant."
"Didn't your parents teach you that keeping quiet isn't the right way to answer a question?"
Faced with that overbearing, contemptuous attitude, Yu Ming merely shook his head.
"I think before we discuss all this nonsense, don't you owe me an apology?"
Slowly removing "Absorb Shield" from his Duel Disk and returning it to his deck, he stood up.
"That explosion nearly dragged me in too."
"So what? You came to a place like this and still expected to find decent gentlemen here?"
Keith sneered.
"Anyway, are you going to hand over what's here yourself, or..."
He drew the handgun at his waist.
Yu Ming raised an eyebrow slightly as he looked at the pitch-black muzzle.
But before he could think of a countermeasure, the bandit directly inserted the pistol into the device on his left hand.
Click.
The device slowly unfolded, forming a metallic Duel Disk.
"Or do you need a little 'education' before you'll obediently listen to adults?"
Yeah, now this felt right.
Seeing Keith's expression of "disobey and we'll draw cards," Yu Ming desperately kept his face straight.
If you substituted a few things, this was basically the same as pulling out a high-powered weapon and threatening someone with force in any other setting.
Thinking about it that way, didn't this seem pretty dangerous?
But whatever. The original had been even worse.
Fighting, smashing, robbing, stealing.
In Duelist Kingdom, his introductory arc, Keith had done nothing normal from sneaking onto the island, to beating up his own underlings and taking their entry passes, all the way to reaching the semifinals.
Even compared to the way he practically pulled cards out of his pants, Arkana's card-cutting stunt might have been more in line with the rules.
From a certain perspective, the fact that he was now willing to pull out a Duel Disk and play cards properly might already count as progress.
Come to think of it, that was almost inspiring.
"What kind of look is that? Am I that funny?"
Perhaps the subtle emotions he had unconsciously revealed had stung the champion. When Yu Ming pulled himself out of his tangled thoughts, Keith was already glaring at him furiously.
Arrogant, selfish, yet possessed of intense pride.
Seto Kaiba, who shared those same traits and served as an early antagonist, had at least been repeatedly battered by various Shadow Games alongside his brother before the brotherly bond revealed during Duelist Kingdom and his dream of Kaiba Land gave him a true redemption.
As for Mr. Keith...
"Yes, you are."
Facing that completely undisguised, blazing fury, Yu Ming nodded with perfect honesty.
"A former American champion reduced to bullying an ordinary 'little boy' like me, trying to recover your lost self-respect through me—it really is rather funny."
He was not a masochist. He was not going to stupidly offer up his face while the other side was preparing to slap him.
"Who are you working for now? Ghouls? Or are you still wandering around, doing shady underground work and drowning yourself in booze at bars?"
Rather than that, he preferred slapping the other side right back.
Of course, elegantly!
"Or are you willing to work for Industrial Illusions now?"
He did not consider himself particularly skilled with words, but he was a transmigrator.
While many people placed greater importance on so-called foreknowledge, that identity was also an unparalleled tool when it came to digging up dirt.
"Enough!!"
See? Though Yu Ming had not used a single swear word, he could clearly see the former champion gasping for breath as though he were having trouble breathing after being struck right where it hurt.
The reason Keith had fallen into ruin in the first place was because, when he challenged Maximillion Pegasus, he had been defeated in a humiliating fashion. The Father of Duel Monsters had not even faced him directly, instead writing down tactics on slips of paper and having a child act as his enforcer to grind the then-rising American champion into the dirt.
If he could truly let go of that matter, he would not have fallen from champion to the bottom overnight and become a drifter.
"Enough talk. Let's settle this with our hands."
You have a new challenger!
He strode over in an imposing manner and... handed over his deck.
In response, Yu Ming handed over his cards as well.
There was no helping it.
The automatic shuffling function that many card players dreamed of would not appear until at least the 5Ds era, while checking the Graveyard and opponent's monster effects would not show up until ARC-V.
As the starting point, DM—and even the later GX—required players to shuffle and cut each other's decks.
And so, this awkward situation now arose.
"You sharp-tongued little brat, I swear you'll regret that filthy mouth of yours."
"Heh, if you can do it, then go ahead. I'm quite curious how much value the oath of someone like you still holds."
Despite their seemingly confrontational words, neither made any further moves. They merely kept shuffling their decks.
Only after cutting each other's cards did they pull apart again.
Only then did the sacred ritual truly begin:
"Duel!"
Yu Ming LP: 4000 Keith Howard LP: 4000
Four thousand Life Points. It was still different from the real card game rules, but compared to the early two-thousand-Life-Point format, Yu Ming was more familiar with this one.
"So, do you want to flip a coin or play rock-paper-scissors..."
"I'll take the first turn! Draw!"
"..."
While Yu Ming was asking, he saw that Keith already had six cards in his hand.
Referee, someone here isn't following the rules! Can't you just declare him the loser?
Of course, there was no referee here, nor would anyone care about Yu Ming's inner complaints.
And as his opponent, Keith certainly did not think there was anything wrong with what he had done.
"Hmph, looks like even the goddess of victory is on my side, kid!"
Looking at the other man's provocative, punchable expression, then at the assortment of red, green, and blue cards in his own hand, Yu Ming suddenly felt tired.
"Fine. That's just how anime is. It's all about who shouts louder."
As for whether taking the first turn while still drawing in the early format could actually provide an advantage, Yu Ming honestly was not too worried about that.
After all, this was anime. At most, Keith would Normal Summon a monster as a gesture of goodwill—perhaps even a four-star vanilla in the DM environment.
So...
"Spell Card—'Graceful Charity.' Draw three cards from the deck, then send two cards from my hand to the Graveyard."
"?"
When he came back to his senses, Yu Ming saw only a smiling angel appear before him.
Holy shit, a Forbidden Card that drew cards with no condition attached!
But before his surprise could settle, a massive hand had already begun drawing in the soul-light of the Graveyard.
"Next is the Spell Card—'Silent Doom'!"
Within that radiance, a massive war machine slowly emerged, the weapons around it gleaming with chilling light.
"One of the cards I discarded was the Normal Monster—'Machine Hunter.' Through this card's effect, I Special Summon 'Machine Hunter' from the Graveyard in Defense Position!"
"Machine Hunter (Lv. 4)" "Attribute/DARK" "Type/Machine" "ATK/1850 DEF/800"
Watching the mechanical monster draw in its weapons as if assuming a defensive stance, Yu Ming's heart skipped a beat.
This was bad. He was starting to make plays.
Before you continue