Keith had chosen to destroy Jinzo first instead of Silent Magician. His gaze shifted toward the back row.
The reason was obvious. Without Jinzo, the troublesome Trap lockdown would disappear.
Sure enough, Bandit Keith laughed loudly again and said eagerly, "Now that Jinzo is gone, the Trap seal is gone too!"
"I activate my set card, Trap Card Forced Evacuation Device! Return one monster on the field to its owner's hand!"
Keith smiled coldly.
"'Silent Magician LV8' is an LV monster that can only be Summoned through leveling up. Once it returns to the hand, it's as good as destroyed. So get off the field!"
"Then I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Forbidden Lance!"
Yugen responded at once. Magical power condensed into a holy lance that fell into Silent Magician's hand, releasing a sacred pulse that pushed back the Trap's force.
"Forbidden Lance lowers the selected monster's ATK by 800 until the end of the turn, and grants it immunity to Spell and Trap Card effects."
"Therefore, Forced Evacuation Device is negated."
Silent Magician LV8 dropped from 3500 to 2700 ATK.
"Tch, what a stubborn guy," Bandit Keith grunted.
"I set one card and end my turn," Yugen said. "At this moment, Silent Magician's ATK returns to normal."
Its power rose back to 3500 ATK.
"My Turn!, Card Draw!" Bandit Keith declared. "I activate the Spell 'Trade-In'."
"I discard a Level 8 monster from my hand and draw two cards from my Deck. I discard the Level 8 'Metalzoa' and draw."
After drawing two cards, his cold gaze quickly returned to Silent Magician.
"If you won't go back, then be destroyed!"
"Desperado Barrel Dragon, effect activate!"
"During the Battle Phase, I flip three coins and destroy monsters based on the result!"
The revolver chambers began spinning again. Each had a fifty percent chance, and only one hit was needed to destroy Silent Magician.
"Flip my set card!" Yugen shouted. "Trap Card 'Fiendish Chain'!"
"When a face-up Attack Position monster on the opponent's field activates its effect, that activation is negated, and the monster is forced into Defense Position! (ANIME EFFECT)"
"I negate the effect of 'Desperado Barrel Dragon'!"
The spinning chambers jammed to a halt. Sparks jumped across the steel dragon as it wobbled, clutched its head, and dropped to one knee as if it had forgotten how to fire.
Desperado Barrel Dragon fell from 3300 ATK to 2200 DEF.
"You're like a cockroach," Bandit Keith said gloomily. "Fine then. I set two cards and end my turn."
Mystical Elf had been watching in silence, hardly daring to breathe.
The monsters standing on both sides were far beyond what a small Spirit like her could imagine. From her view, the dense exchanges felt so dangerous that one slip would mean being torn apart.
"So scary."
The world of a Duelist was truly terrifying.
"My Turn!, Card Draw!"
It was Yugen's turn.
"I activate the Spell Card 'Card of Demise'," Yugen said. "I draw from my Deck until I have five cards in my hand. During the Standby Phase five turns after this effect activates, I discard my entire hand. (ANIME EFFECT)"
Since obtaining this card, this was his first time using it in a real battle. Although Silent Magician LV8 had higher ATK than Desperado Barrel Dragon, once he entered the Battle Phase the opponent could use that quick destruction effect, making it impossible to push through by force.
"Then I set three cards to my field and end my turn," Yugen said.
"Hahaha, dodging 'Desperado Barrel Dragon' by skipping the Battle Phase, and in the end you can only build defenses?" Bandit Keith laughed harshly.
"Well, being helpless in front of my power is only natural. My Turn!, Card Draw!"
He slid the drawn card straight into his Duel Disk, and three streaks of golden light burst from the Graveyard.
"Spell Card 'Burial from a Different Dimension'! I banish three Spell Cards from the Graveyard of Yugi Muto, then draw two cards from my Deck! (ANIME EFFECT)"
The three beams of light took shape as Spell Cards before fading away. "I banish 'Trade-In', 'Fissure', and 'Pandemonium' from the Graveyard of Yugi Muto, then draw two cards!"
After drawing, he glanced at his hand and curled his lips into a grin. "Heh, I really did draw a good one. I Normal Summon 'BM-4 Blast Spider'!"
BM-4 Blast Spider appeared with ATK 1400. Yugen remembered this monster well, a troublesome card even back when he played with real cards. Once per turn, it could target one DARK Machine monster on its controller's field and one card on the opponent's field, then destroy both.
Combined with Desperado Barrel Dragon, which could Special Summon itself from the hand when a DARK Machine was destroyed, this allowed a simple chain to bring out the heavy hitter. On top of that, when a DARK Machine destroyed an opponent's monster, it inflicted damage equal to half that monster's ATK, making it a perfect partner for Desperado Barrel Dragon.
However.
"I flip my set card, Trap Card-Trap Hole!" Yugen raised his hand as one of his back-row cards flipped open. "When a monster with 1000 or more ATK is summoned, destroy it. Destroy 'BM-4 Blast Spider'!"
Before the spider could steady itself, the ground opened beneath it, swallowing it into a swirling pit before it exploded into a fireball.
"Another annoying trap," Bandit Keith said with a scowl. "Then I activate the Spell Card 'Monster Slots' from my hand!"
He continued, "I choose one face-up monster on my field, then banish from the Graveyard a monster with the same Level from Yugi Muto. I choose my Level 8 'Desperado Barrel Dragon'! (ANIME EFFECT)"
Golden light flared in his Graveyard, and a card shot upward. "I banish the Level 8 'Metalzoa' from the Graveyard of Yugi Muto! After that, I draw one card. If the drawn card is also a Level 8 monster, I can Special Summon it! (ANIME EFFECT)"
Yugen narrowed his eyes. With only a single draw, the chance of hitting a Level 8 monster should have been tiny. But he knew that in this world, effects like this almost never missed.
His gaze swept over the glowing The Seal of Orichalcos around them. Bandit Keith was already a mid-tier boss in the story, and with the fate-bending power of this seal, the result felt obvious.
"Watch this, my Card Draw!" Bandit Keith shouted, raising his right hand. The six-pointed star of Orichalcos on his forehead shone bright green, spinning as energy poured into his grasp.
"Card Draw!"
As expected, he burst into laughter and revealed the card. "I drew the Level 8 Machina Megaform! Therefore, Machina Megaform is Special Summoned!"
A towering Machina emerged, its body wrapped in crimson armor like scorched metal. Sharp lines defined its form, red light burning in its eyes as blades extended from its arms.
Machina Megaform stood with ATK 2800.
Yugen fell silent. Barrel Dragon from the LV Series line, Machina monsters from another series, and even Metalzoa, all crammed into a single Deck without clashing. Not only did the deck not jam, it even formed clean combos.
No wonder people said mixed decks ruled in the anime.
"Because of 'The Seal of Orichalcos', Machina Megaform's ATK increases!" Machina Megaform rose from ATK 2800 to ATK 3300.
"This time nothing will protect your magician!" Bandit Keith roared. "I change 'Desperado Barrel Dragon' back to Attack Position and enter the Battle Phase. 'Desperado Barrel Dragon' effect, flip three coins and destroy monsters based on the results!"
"I activate a set card," Yugen responded. "Continuous Trap, 'Safe Zone'! I choose one Attack Position monster I control. That monster cannot be targeted by effects, and cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects."
A transparent force field formed, shielding Silent Magician from the revolver's fire.
"Heh, is that so? And what good will that do?" Bandit Keith sneered. "'Desperado Barrel Dragon' effect, Desperado Trigger!"
Mystical Elf cried out in surprise, wondering why he would activate it even knowing it could not destroy anything. Yugen frowned, confident that Safe Zone would prevent Silent Magician from being harmed.
"Not so fast," Bandit Keith said. "Before resolving the coin toss, I activate the Continuous Spell, Second Coin Toss!"