With the question put aside, the room fell into a longer silence than before.
No one volunteered to go for the glory.
The last person who did that was Yemo, who went straight to their Serpent God.
The rest, if given a choice, would rather keep their lives.
At first, hearing their target was just a Duel Academy student, they'd underestimated him. Now, that was completely gone.
He'd beaten Yemo in just a few turns, using nothing but comedy-relief Dark Scorpions. Clearly, he hadn't even tried his hardest.
The duel recording was hardly useful—Kira's true strength remained unknown.
Who knew if they'd be the next Yemo?
"No takers…? Well, it can't be helped."
The hooded leader slowly stood up.
Everyone looked over in surprise.
Was the leader going to act personally?
They'd heard stories about this branch's leader.
Before joining New Doma, he'd been a rising star in the pro circuit—winning streak after streak, highly regarded by all.
But praise and expectation had made him arrogant, convinced he was unbeatable—thinking that even legends like Yugi or Kaiba were nothing special. If only he'd been born earlier, he'd have been King of Games, with the three Egyptian Gods as his own.
This lasted until he got a chance to privately challenge Seto Kaiba.
Ace against ace, legend versus new star—an epic showdown.
Or so he thought.
Once they started, he quickly realized how naive he was.
There was no such thing as ace versus ace. If anything, it was like an egg against a rock.
He never even got to see the Blue-Eyes White Dragon—he was crushed by XYZ-Dragon Cannon.
After that, his career plummeted, and he eventually quit the pro circuit in despair.
Until he joined New Doma, regaining and even surpassing his former strength.
Now, in the underworld, he was revered as "Necromancer," his real name forgotten. Each of his duels claimed a powerful soul.
Everyone held their breath.
Was the Necromancer really going to take action himself?
"I have a plan," someone suddenly spoke up.
Everyone turned to look.
It was the member codenamed Black Flame.
"You've all heard of the legend, the Dark Duelist Marik," Black Flame said gravely. "He once sent Joey Wheeler to fight Yugi, nearly taking down the King of Games. You know about that, right?"
Everyone nodded.
"Of course. But what about it?"
"Heh… Since this Kira is so tricky, why not copy that method?" The hooded man sneered smugly.
"Oh?"
The Necromancer frowned. "You mean…?"
"I've already investigated. Kira didn't come to the tournament alone."
The man said confidently.
"He brought a classmate from Duel Academy, someone he's very close to. My informant says Kira specifically requested a spot for this student from KaibaCorp's committee."
"So they must be close friends," Necromancer nodded. "If we control this person, maybe we can repeat Marik's tactic."
Marik used the Millennium Rod to brainwash Joey and forced him to duel Yugi for his life. Joey could never beat Yugi, but Yugi also couldn't bear to hurt his friend.
If you can't beat someone, make them give up victory themselves. Not a bad idea.
As for whether this was dishonorable…
Well, all their work was in the shadows anyway. Serving the cult's goals justified any means.
"But will Kira's friend be easier to deal with?" Necromancer asked.
"Relax, I checked. His name is Jaden Yuki, and he's in Slifer Red at Duel Academy."
"Slifer Red, huh." Necromancer nodded.
He'd heard that was the academy's infamous loser dorm.
"That's right. I even checked his grades—he's at the bottom of even Red. No threat at all."
Black Flame was full of confidence, patting his chest to assure success.
"Capturing him will be a breeze. We'll take him, brainwash him, grant him the Orichalcos power, and make him duel Kira."
"Good idea."
Several others applauded.
"If he's brainwashed, he'll attack without mercy, and Kira, unwilling to harm a friend, will be easy prey."
"Exactly." Black Flame sneered, "And even if the plan fails, if Kira is forced to defeat his own friend, he'll be left with deep darkness in his heart. And then…"
"Our cult specializes in exploiting that darkness and breaking down opponents."
Necromancer nodded.
"Even if he survives, his mental state will be shattered—he'll be a fraction of his former self. At that point, taking him down will be easy."
"Not a bad plan. But I'd like to make a small change."
Necromancer spoke.
"You all know that Marik's plan with Joey failed, right?"
Black Flame thought. "Not sure of the details. I heard maybe the Millennium Puzzle broke the mind control?"
"Not clear. But in any case, I think brainwashing isn't the safest method—there's always a risk the duelist regains control, as Joey reportedly did."
"So…?"
"Simple. We'll use a duel to steal his soul, then control his body for the duel." Necromancer sneered. "That way, there's absolutely no risk of mishap."
"Brilliant, sir!"
"And, just to be safe…"
Necromancer paused, his eyes flashing green.
"I'll handle it myself."
…
…
"Elemental HERO Avian, direct attack!" Judai shouted.
"Aaagh!!!"
[Pro Duelist NPC, LP 0]
Some random pro duelist dropped to his knees, looking utterly defeated.
He lost.
Even as a lower-tier pro, he never expected to lose to a Duel Academy student—especially a Slifer Red.
He looked up at Jaden in confusion.
Was pro-level play not even enough to graduate from Duel Academy now?
But even after defeating him, Jaden kept going.
"Victory! That was an awesome duel!"
Jaden struck his classic pose.
The pro clutched his chest, feeling his heart twist in pain.
"Hah, dueling is the best! Tournaments are the best!"
Jaen stretched happily and walked out.
"I wonder how Kira and Zane are doing…"
He shook his head, and slapped his cheeks.
"Alright, can't let myself fall behind. Gotta find my next opponent! Where are you, duelists…?"
At that moment, a cold voice came from behind.
"So, you're Jaden Yuki, aren't you?"
PS: Bonus Chapter at 500 PS.