"Aaaargh!"
A miserable, piercing scream came from the other plane's communicator, echoing through the clouds.
It was the unwilling cry of someone whose ace monster, Greed Quasar, had been stolen and used to destroy him.
Honestly, Depre Scott shouldn't have been unfamiliar with the Relinquished series. Though he was a Card Professor and Pegasus's adopted son, Pegasus himself was still his mentor. Depre had encountered Pegasus more than once.
In fact, he'd been lucky enough to watch Pegasus duel in person—a rare event since Pegasus's retirement after Duelist Kingdom, only a few trusted staff ever witnessed it.
That duel had left a deep impression. Pegasus's cartoon deck, which bypassed monsters to strike directly, and his infamous Relinquished series, had shown what a true "Father of Duel Monsters" could do.
But today, Depre began to doubt—
—Was Relinquished really Pegasus's invention?
Why did Kira's Relinquished seem twice as smooth as Pegasus's ever was?
At first, it looked like a Spellcaster deck, but in reality, the whole thing revolved around Relinquished. With Magical Exemplar endlessly reviving Relinquished by removing Spell Counters, combined with Arcane Barrier to draw more cards, and Metamorphosis for surprise evolutions—
Compared to this, Pegasus's original Relinquished deck felt like junk!
Pegasus's Relinquished was hard to summon, Thousand-Eyes Restrict needed Fusions, and their effects were limited to absorbing only one monster per turn.
But Kira's Relinquished could be revived infinitely, morph on command, and devour three to five monsters in a single turn.
It even felt like Pegasus had never shown the true potential of the card!
So who's the real "Father of Duel Monsters"?
The wailing abruptly stopped.
But it wasn't that Depre had stopped—it was that communication had been cut.
Looking back, Kira saw the steel bird that had tailed him had lost its soul. The jet, like an abandoned toy, spun helplessly in the air, engines roaring as it tumbled downward.
Clouds tore open, moonlight dappling the twisted metal as the steel bird plummeted like a broken-winged angel.
Clearly, with Depre's defeat, his plane was no longer controllable—falling like Lucifer cast down from heaven.
From that altitude, even if Depre survived the crash, he'd be dead on landing.
"Silent," Kira said softly.
No further instructions were needed—the Silent Magician shot from the cockpit like an arrow.
She became a streak of white light, diving quickly to catch up to the falling plane.
She pointed her staff, drawing a circle. Milky white energy sliced open the fuselage like a hot knife through butter. The Silent Magician darted in, and moments later emerged, carrying the unconscious Depre.
She returned to Kira's jet, holding the half-dead Depre in one hand, and looked to Kira as if asking what to do.
Kira waved dismissively: "Just leave him here."
He could tell Depre was just being used, his mind rewritten by a powerful psychic force. Defeating him in a duel was enough—no need to take a skilled duelist's life.
"When we get back, Pegasus will owe me a few more favors," Kira muttered.
He opened a channel to Mokuba: "How's the foundation investigation?"
"I've already met with Pegasus," Mokuba replied. "He says the foundation was recently attacked, and several top Card Professors are missing.
Some disappeared at home, others were ambushed at night. Evidence at the scenes suggests duels occurred, and traces of dark power were detected..."
"Got it. Let me know if anything else comes up." Kira nodded.
Just as he suspected.
Zigfried Lloyd, the Card Professors—they were all actors invited by that mysterious mastermind. Their job was to create a confusing mystery, throw out clues for Kira to chase, and keep him busy away from the academy.
So when Kira decisively turned back to the academy, Depre Scott was sent to delay him.
But clearly, that mission didn't go smoothly.
["Estimated time to Duel Academy: five minutes,"] the AI announced.
"Alright."
Kira stood up from his seat.
"Prepare the glider—I'll parachute in."
…
Duel Academy, late at night.
The night was pitch black, the world silent. Only sparse starlight and the distant sound of waves lapping the shore filled the night.
The beams of two flashlights pierced the dark forest, the shadows of two patrolling guards flickering in the light.
"Hey, do we really need to patrol this place?"
One guard muttered.
"The most valuable things on this island are the three Sacred Beasts, right? But I heard the Duel King already took them—what's left to steal?"
"Ha, you don't get it," his partner replied sagely. "This island is special—there's plenty of valuable stuff here."
"Really?"
"Of course." The second guard paused, then grinned. "Besides, I don't mind night patrols. At least this way, I can go home late and have an excuse."
Guard A was curious: "Oh? Don't want to go home? Argued with your wife?"
"No, wish it was just that." Guard B sighed. "My wife's just getting clingier—she drains me every day, I can barely keep up. Night patrol is the only time I can catch a break...
You're young, you don't get it. When you're my age, you'll understand."
Guard A: "..."
Just then, they heard something behind them. They spun around.
"Who's there?!"
A white-robed figure had silently appeared behind them, hands clasped behind his back, wearing a cold, sinister smile.
"Who are you?" Guard A demanded. "This is a restricted area."
The man said nothing, just slowly raised his arm to reveal a Duel Disk.
His eyes glinted with murderous intent.
The two guards exchanged a glance.
"Alright—you asked for it."
They both activated their Duel Disks.
"..."
"AAAAAAHHHH!!" x2
A minute later, Professor McKenzie strolled calmly from the woods, licking his lips as if he'd just enjoyed a hearty meal.
"The white-feathered spirit, the feather of Ma'at awaits."
He spoke coldly.
"I'm here."