Seto Kaiba folded his arms again and slowly shifted his gaze to the last remaining Ryosuke Yamaguchi.
Ryosuke Yamaguchi shuddered under that look, as if death itself had fixed its eyes on him. He stumbled back half a step. "C-calm down. My 'Marauding Captain' still has its effect even though its ATK is zero. As long as two 'Marauding Captain' maintain the Enemy Controller, you still can't."
"Boring," Seto Kaiba said calmly, flipping over the final facedown card he had set the previous turn.
"Trap Card 'Break Skill.'" His voice was cold. "Negate the effect of one effect monster on the opponent's field. I choose one of your 'Marauding Captain'. (ANIME EFFECT)"
"Damn it?!"
Ryosuke Yamaguchi's face went deathly pale.
"Therefore, the attack restriction is released," Seto Kaiba continued. "You only have one 'Marauding Captain' left with a taunt effect. That makes things simple."
He raised his hand.
"Ultimate Burst, third strike. Attack 'Marauding Captain'!"
The ultimate white dragon opened its jaws once more, endless white light pouring out. The captain with zero ATK was erased in the brilliance, reduced to particles that vanished completely.
"Aaaargh!"
Ryosuke Yamaguchi, LP 4000 to LP 0.
The last three also fell, and the entire bar was completely torn apart by the president. Standing at the doorway, Ken Fujimoto looked at the shocking scene and could not stop trembling, thinking it was lucky he had defected fast enough to stand on this side. Facing three of the strongest members of the Blood Moon Four Heavenly Kings at once and killing all three in a single turn was a level of crushing power far beyond what they had imagined as the peak of the Duel world.
Seto Kaiba had not played cards publicly for many years, and outside opinions about his strength had been all over the place. There were even rumors that he was obsessed with business and money, that his skills had rusted, and that he was no longer impressive in the current environment. Only now did Ken Fujimoto truly realize how ridiculous those claims were.
The Duel environment had evolved over the years, but that did not mean the gap between people and the very top had shrunk. On the contrary, the gap was even more exaggerated than it had been in the past. This man was not playing the same game as the rest of them, not even the same Yugi Muto game.
Yugen was relatively calm throughout it all. At least the Blue-Eyes White Dragon variants the president used were still recognizable to him, and none were pulled out that he had never seen even in his previous life. Their strength was clearly overwhelming in the modern average Duelist environment, but they had not yet reached the absolute peak of Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
After watching these two duels, Yugen became more aware that in this world, true powerhouses could really do whatever they wanted under the pressure of destiny. He also understood more clearly that having money and a team to research and print cards only made that freedom greater. It seemed that in the future, he would need to look for ways to improve destiny power and also seriously learn about research and development.
Once the president finished the duel, the accompanying personnel from Kaiba Corporation entered to clean up the battlefield. Seto Kaiba walked up to the trio who had been beaten down last. One of the Heavenly Kings, Ryosuke Yamaguchi, spoke weakly, "You win. We are convinced, Seto Kaiba. Our Blood Moon is yours to deal with."
Although Seto Kaiba had adjusted the output of the Duel Disk to spare their lives, the overwhelming defeat still left them badly injured. "I have no interest in trash organizations," Seto Kaiba said coldly. "From the beginning, the only thing I cared about was 'The Arbiter.'"
At the mention of that name, all the battered Shadow Duelists in the room shuddered, as if they had heard a whisper from a demon. Aikawa knelt on the ground and stammered with effort, "How do you know that lord's name?" Seto Kaiba replied flatly, "Of course I know. I also know that your so-called organization is nothing but cheap cannon fodder."
The faces of the Shadow Duelists immediately turned grim. The female bartender steadied her breathing and said, "Our understanding of that lord is limited to that name. We usually do not even dare to mention it. If you really know how terrifying that lord is, you should understand that even if we knew something, we could never tell you."
"That is not necessarily true," Seto Kaiba said icily. "I have ways to make you talk." He turned away and left the rest to his subordinates, who cleared the scene and escorted the captured dark duelists out one by one, clearly intending to question them later.
When everything was settled, Seto Kaiba finally turned and walked toward the entrance. Ken Fujimoto, who had fully switched sides, hurried up with a flattering smile and said, "President, that was amazing. A one-turn triple kill, I never expected that, too strong." Before he could get any closer, there was a sharp click, and his smile froze as he looked down to see a cold silver pair of handcuffs locked onto his wrist by a soldier in a Kaiba Corporation uniform.
"Huh?" Ken Fujimoto raised his head blankly. "Boss, is this a mistake? I am on your side." No one answered, and two soldiers dragged him outside as he continued shouting that he was loyal and had led the way for the president, his voice fading beyond the door.
Ignoring the extra noise, Seto Kaiba walked straight up to Yugen. "Yugen, is it?" "Hello, President," Yugen said as he shook his hand. Seto Kaiba nodded and said, "I have heard what happened, and I thank you on behalf of Kaiba Corporation. Mokuba Kaiba told me about his plan, and I have no objections. The bonus and cards he arranged will be delivered to you as payment."
After a brief pause, he narrowed his eyes. "However, I have an additional condition." Holding a piece of paper between two fingers, he flicked his arm lightly, and it floated straight toward Yugen. To be honest, Yugen admired the president's card-throwing skill, since cards shot from his fingers like darts and seemed dangerous enough to make one suspect special training.
Yugen took it and saw that it was a card, but not a Duel card. It was a strange card printed with a five-pointed star. "What is this?" "An entry card," Seto Kaiba said with his arms crossed and a slight smile. "Half a year from now, in Domino City, Kaiba Corporation will host 'Duel City GX.'"
Yugen seemed to understand. "You want me to compete?" The Duel City tournament had been held more than once, but after the first one, the overall quality declined and Seto Kaiba himself never participated again, so public interest had faded. As if seeing his thoughts, Seto Kaiba said calmly, "This one will be different. I will personally participate, and I will invite the top duelists."
So the president was returning. Genshin Yu felt a bit surprised. Rumors said that after Yugi Muto left the game, Seto Kaiba had lost interest in dueling, since defeating everyone else meant nothing without that one opponent.
Now, it seemed he had found a reason to step back onto the stage. It was also possible that years of suppressed card addiction had simply become unbearable. After all, when Duel Academy was founded, it claimed to exist to cultivate a new generation of Duel King, a thought that had already inspired wild speculation in Yugen's mind.
"Alright," Yugen said, accepting the entry card. If the president himself was competing, the prize money alone would be worth it. Back then, when Maximillion Pegasus hosted the Duelist Kingdom tournament, he even offered sixty percent of his company shares to the champion, a single win guaranteeing lifelong wealth.