Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

These are [Escort], [Great Storm], [Pot of Greed], [Ancient Mechanical City], and [Ancient Mechanical Beast].

Four of the five cards in my hand were magic cards, a huge green expanse, making me wonder if I had encountered a hand accident.

Just after Chronos drew his card, Jaden said, "Then, during your preparation phase, because of the effect of the Continuous Spell Card [Nightmare Mirage], I will draw cards from my deck until I have four cards in my hand."

“Because I have no cards in my hand, I can draw four cards.” As he spoke, Jaden drew four cards from his deck. “However, powerful cards often come with great risks. When my preparation phase arrives, I need to discard the same number of cards I drew.”

As Chronos looked at the cards drawn by the Tenth Generation, his gaze couldn't help but fall on [Nightmare of the Mirage] and the two face-down cards next to it.

'Even though I clearly saw [Great Storm] in my hand, I still set two cards face-down on my back row. Did I encounter some [E·Hero] combo card that can't function in the current situation, so I set them face-down to try and draw as many cards as possible using the effect of [Nightmare Mirage]?'

Chronos, guessing at Jaden's thoughts, smirked. 'As expected of a poor student? How naive! Most people would indeed choose to eliminate face-down cards as quickly as possible to ensure their attack isn't hindered, but the [Ancient Gear] monster I'm using is different!'

"First, I activate the spell card, 'Pot of Greed.' I draw two cards from my deck." Professor Chronos activated a 'Pot of Greed'... cough cough, it was Professor Chronos who activated a 'Pot of Greed.' After glancing at the two cards he drew, he played another card from his hand.

“Next, I pay 1000 Life Points to activate the Spell Card [Deposit]. The effect of this card is to check the opponent’s hand and choose one card to discard.” Following Jaden, Chronos also paid 1000 Life Points and said to Jaden, “An eye for an eye, I’ll use the same method on you now.”

[Kronos: 4000→3000LP]

Compared to [Slide], [Deposit] requires paying 1000 Life Points, but it does not restrict the number of cards in the opponent's hand, and the cards discarded are not limited to monster cards, but can even be normal spell cards that can be used directly without being set.

After paying the Life Points, Chronos saw a projection of Jaden's hand. However, Chronos, who was eager to throw Jaden's powerful monsters and even his ace into the graveyard, noticed that something seemed off about the cards in Jaden's hand.

The deck includes the trap cards [Magic Cylinder], [Divine Shield - Mirror Power -], [Bottomless Pitfall], and a quick-play spell card [Kuriboh's Calling Flute]. Excluding the last spell card whose purpose is unclear, what's with the other three cards? Does having so many trap cards make this deck seem like a hero deck?

Good heavens! This is nothing like the [E·hero] deck I remember! This is clearly a malevolent deck!

Chronos, who had initially dismissed Jaden's face-down cards, no longer believed that most of Jaden's face-down cards were combo cards for monsters he hadn't drawn after seeing Jaden's hand. He immediately began to associate them with the vicious trap cards in Jaden's hand.

Most of the Ancient Gear monsters do indeed have the ability to block the activation of magic traps when they attack, but if Jaden activated the trap when Chronos summoned the monster, the Ancient Gear monster at that time would have no means of defense.

It seems that [Great Storm] has no choice but to activate it. However, even so, it doesn't mean that Chronos is forced by the threat of Jaden's "Hero" deck with its high concentration of trap cards. On the contrary, this is the prelude to his attack and development!

"I choose to discard the 'Bottomless Trap Hole' card from your hand to the graveyard." Compared to traps activated during an attack declaration, Chronos is more wary of traps triggered by summons, namely the 'Bottomless Trap Hole' type. After watching Jaden send the card in his hand to the graveyard, he set two more cards to his back row. "Then, I set two more cards to my back row."

"And activate the spell card, [Great Storm], to destroy all Spell & Trap Cards on both players' fields!"

As Chronos raised the card in his hand, a storm that swept across the entire field indiscriminately instantly formed from his position. In an instant, both Jaden's [Nightmare Mirage] and the two face-down cards on his field, as well as the two face-down cards Chronos had just placed on his back field, all trembled violently due to the violent blast, and shattered completely within a few breaths!

Although Chronos couldn't fully see what cards Jaden had set up due to the dust effect from the airflow, it didn't matter. Whatever those cards were, they were all sent to the graveyard, so what was there to care about?

"It's a magic card that destroys all the cards on the field? Haha, but you're so clumsy, teacher, you even got your own card caught in it." After the storm subsided slightly, Jaden lowered his arm that had been blocking his eyes and said to Chronos with a smile.

This made veins pop on Chronos's forehead. He had actually been called an idiot by a bad student?

"NO, NO, NO, so a bad student is a bad student. Don't you even know that there are cards that can take effect after being destroyed? This was the combo I planned." Chronos shook his finger and said, "The cards I destroyed were the trap cards [Wild Tornado] and [Golden Evil God Idol]. The latter's effect is that when this face-down card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon one [Evil God Token] to my field."

As they were talking, darkness enveloped Chronos's field. One of the cards that had been shattered in the previous "Great Storm" card reassembled and transformed into a golden, worm-like monster, which was in Defense Position on Chronos's field.

[Derivative of an Evil God] [4☆/Dark]

[Demon Race/Derivatives]

[1000/1000]

"A monster with 1000 attack and 1000 defense? I seem to remember encountering this card somewhere before, but I can't recall where." Jaden scratched his head, unable to recall where the déjà vu in front of him came from. "But teacher, a monster with that level of attack power can't break through my [E·hero Mudball] with 3000 defense on the field."

"Hmph~, didn't you notice that I Special Summoned [Evil God Token] in Defense Position? I never intended to use it against your Wall Monster. The real killing move was the other Trap Card Kananone that I destroyed."

Chronos showed Jaden another card he had destroyed himself—[Wild Tornado]—"[Wild Tornado] can be used to destroy a face-up card in the Spell & Trap Zone, but if this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard while it is set, I can target a face-up card on the field and activate its second effect to destroy that face-up card!"

"I've chosen the monster that stands in your way—[E·hero Mudball Man] Nanone, so get swept up into the sky by this giant tornado!"

"What?!"

The storm that had subsided returned, focusing precisely on the [E·hero Mudball Man] on the field, tearing apart his Hulkbuster armor and even spinning the [E·hero Foam Man] inside, forcing him to retreat to the graveyard to rest.

"In Duel Monsters, powerful cards certainly come with great risks, but true duelists can even utilize the negative effects of cards. This is why Duel Academy exists—to teach more students this skill. However, as a poor student, you probably don't have that ability."

Chronos watched as Jaden's only remaining monster on the field was destroyed, and said smugly, "Although you drew four cards in one go with [Nightmare Mirage], unfortunately, only cards that can actually be used in your hand can be considered resources, no way. Even if you don't have to discard cards because I destroyed [Nightmare Mirage], how can your meager 2000 Life Points stop me from what follows..."

At this point, Chronos froze, rubbing his eyes as he looked at Jaden.

[Yujo Judai: 3000LP, 4 cards in hand]

"Wait a minute, Judai, why is your base score back to 3000 instead of the 2000 you had before? And I clearly remember discarding one of your cards using the effect of [Capture], so you should have three cards in your hand now!"

Hearing Chronos's words, Jaden chuckled and said, "After all, I just used the effect of [Gutter] to find out that you have [Great Storm] in your hand, so if I put enough cards in my back row, you definitely won't be able to resist activating [Great Storm] to destroy the cards in my back row, right? The cards in my back row that were destroyed by [Great Storm], besides [Nightmare Mirage], were the trap card [Hero's Medal] and the quick-play spell card [Extraordinary Food]."

"When [Great Storm] was activated, I had already chained it to activate my Set Quick-Play Spell Card [Extraordinary Food], which sent my [Nightmare Mirage] in the back row to the graveyard and restored 1000 Life Points to me. Then came the effect of [Hero Medal]. When the effect of a card controlled by my opponent caused this Set card to be destroyed and sent to the graveyard, this card returned to the deck and was shuffled. After that, I drew a card from my deck."

After explaining, Jaden wiped the tip of his nose with his finger. "Your card isn't the only one that can activate its effect after being destroyed."

"Tch, don't get too cocky, candidate number 110." Seeing Jaden's Life Points increase by 1000, Chronos felt a pang of regret, knowing he'd have to waste even more time on this underachiever. Glancing at the two cards remaining in his hand, he inserted one into the Spell & Trap Zone, saying, "Activate the Continuous Spell Card 'Ancient Gear Castle,' increasing the ATK of all 'Ancient Gear' monsters on the field by 300."

"Then, I will unleash the [Evil God Token], and in Attack Position, I will summon the [Ancient Machine Beast]!"

As Chronos spoke, the [Evil God Token] on his field vanished in golden light, followed by the sound of gears turning. On Chronos's field, a mechanical beast driven by gears appeared; judging from its design, it was a killing weapon created to mimic a top hunter like a saber-toothed tiger.

[Ancient Mechanical Beast] [6☆/Land]

[Mechanical Race/Effect]

【2000/2000→2300/2000】

"As long as [Ancient Mechanical City] is in the Spell & Trap Zone, place one counter on this card each time a monster is Normal Summoned."

[Ancient Mechanical City] (Indicator 0→1)

Seeing the indicator on the [Ancient Mechanical City] increase, Chronos immediately ordered: "Enter the battle phase! Use the [Ancient Mechanical Beast] to directly attack the opponent's duelist! Gaoga, hunt him down!"

The steel beast moved as if it were alive, opening its huge mouth to pounce on Jaden and bite him. The monster turned into a phantom and passed through Jaden's body, but under the simulation of the virtual projection system on the Duel Disk, it still caused Jaden a minimum impact, causing him to take half a step back and his Life Points to drop sharply.

[Tenth Generation: 3000 → 700 LP]

"It's pitiful. That kid is no match for Professor Chronos at all. In the blink of an eye, his base score has dwindled to a mere 700 points." In the audience, Asuka sighed, looking at Judai with some disappointment.

I thought the duelist who could get Professor Chronos to personally participate must be some kind of super strong being, perhaps someone who could help me find clues related to my missing brother. It turns out I had too much hope. "I think I heard the sound of the Duel Academy's gates closing."

"Hmph, you're sorely mistaken if you think that way, Tenjōin." Asuka's words had barely faded when the person who spoke to her was not the silent Marufuji Ryō, but Jun Manjō, who had appeared at some point.

"Manjoume? What are you doing here? Aren't you with your crew?" Asuka frowned slightly and teased. As the top boy and girl in the same year at Duel Academy's middle school, Manjoume and Asuka naturally knew each other and had fought many times. However, Manjoume usually won, while Asuka could only be the second-best among the freshmen who directly entered the high school.

"I have never actively recruited any subordinates. Wild beasts always roam alone, while cattle and sheep travel in herds. I heard that this was said by a guy named Lu Shuren who has said many famous sayings," Wan Zhangmu said arrogantly. "To ascend to the throne of the strongest, only one person is enough."

"Just like I said, there's only one person needed on the throne of the strongest. 'Caesar' Ryo, I heard you were No. 1 in the senior division? Unfortunately, that probably won't be the case after this semester starts, because I came, I saw, and I conquered!"

Hearing Manjoume deliberately use the famous quote of the Roman consul referred to by his nickname "Caesar" to provoke him, Marufuji Ryo remained calm and instead asked Manjoume, "What did you mean when you said that Tenjouin was completely wrong?"

"Hmph, it means exactly what it says. I don't know how much of Professor Chronos's true strength he used in this duel, but from what I can see so far, he hasn't been using his full strength at all and has been underestimating the guy opposite him. And coincidentally, the jellyfish-headed guy opposite him hasn't been using his full strength either."

With his arms crossed, Manjoume said, "They're almost here? That guy's partner? Tsk, I wish my guys were that obedient."

"Huh? You, all you do is sleep during the day and cause trouble at night, and you still have the nerve to talk back to me? When you control your uncontrollable behavior, you can stop hurting my feelings with my words."

Talking to himself inexplicably into thin air, the uninvited Manjoume left again amidst the puzzled gazes of Asuka and Marufuji Ryo.

On the field, Judai showed no concern about his life points being reduced to a dangerous 700 points. Instead, he smiled excitedly and said, "Wow, teacher! If it weren't for [Very Food] restoring 1000 life points to me before, I would have been defeated by you in one turn."

"The combination of [Extraordinary Food] and [Nightmare Mirage] is so well-known, it's practically a household name, because the Duel King especially loves using this combo," Chronos said, looking at Jaden's joyful smile. He frowned, making Jaden look even older. "You can still smile now? Your Element Points are only 700 points."

"But aren't the basic points infinite as long as they don't reach zero?"

'Hmph, you really know how to talk big, don't you?' Upon hearing Jaden's words, Chronos sneered disdainfully and said, 'My turn is over. I'd like to see how you can continue this duel.'

[Kronos: 3000LP, 0 cards in hand]

[Ancient Mechanical Beast] [ATK2300]

[Ancient Mechanical City]

Chapter 1060 Difficult Heaven?

"My turn, draw a card."

Upon seeing the card he had drawn, Jaden thought for a moment and activated it, saying, "During my Main Phase, I activate the Spell Card [Mega Hammer], return this card and any number of cards from my hand to the Deck, shuffle, and then draw the number of cards returned to my hand."

Because of the departure of [Nightmare Mirage] and the destruction of [Hero's Medal] by [Great Storm], Jaden, whose hand was empty at the end of the previous turn, had a total of five cards at the start of his main phase. However, since three of them were trap cards that needed to be set to activate and were not suitable for this turn, Jaden decisively activated the newly drawn [Treasure Hammer] to return all his cards to the deck and shuffle them.

After the automatic shuffling was completed, Jaden drew five more cards from his hand and nodded in satisfaction. He then activated a card in his hand and said, "I activate the Normal Spell Card, 'Warrior Survival,' which adds a Warrior-Type monster from my Graveyard to my hand. I chose 'E. Hero Bubble Man,' and I Normal Summon it to the field."

Jaden draws a card from the graveyard and places it horizontally on the Duel Disk, shouting, "Lend me your power one more time, [E·hero Bubble Man]!"

[Ancient Mechanical City] (Indicator 1→2)

“When a monster is Normal Summoned, the counters on [Ancient Mechanical Castle] increase.” Chronos said, glancing at [E·Hero Bubble Man] which had reappeared on the Jaden field. “What ‘Bubble Man’? Every time it appears, you can draw two cards. You might as well call it ‘Greed Man’.”

As Chronos said, after summoning [E·hero Bubble Man], Jaden drew two more cards from his deck: "When [E·hero Bubble Man] is successfully summoned, and I only have one of his cards on the field, the effect activates again, and I draw two more cards from my deck."

Instead of decreasing, Jaden's hand grew to six cards. He glanced at the cards he had drawn, clenched his fist, and exclaimed, "Yay! Now I'll activate the Spell Card [Fusion], using [E-Hero Bubble Man] on my field and [E-Hero Burst Girl] in my hand as Fusion Material. When the elemental powers of water and fire converge, a new hero will be born!"

"When raging flames and towering waves combine, they will coalesce into—water vapor!"

Hearing Jaden speak so confidently, Chronos was almost fooled by him and actually thought that water and fire would turn into something terrible. He couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his forehead.

Jaden then sent the cards to the Graveyard, took out a Fusion Monster card with a purple border, placed it on the Duel Disk, and shouted, "Fusion Summon! [E-Hero Steam Healer]!"

The weak but wealthy Bubble Man once again used his superpowers to create a brand new suit of armor, using the fire elemental power borrowed from Burst Girl.

Compared to the earth element armor from last time, this purple metal armor, a mixture of red and blue, is significantly more refined. It perfectly blends the power of fire element with the water element power it carries, releasing it through the nozzles on its back and a pair of thick mechanical arms, emitting large amounts of steam.

【E·hero Steam Healer】【5☆/Water】

[Warrior Race/Fusion/Effect]

[1800/1000]

Looking at the [E·hero Steam Healer] on the field, Chronos became even more disdainful: "I thought it would be some powerful monster, but isn't it even weaker than the previous [E·hero Mudball Man] in terms of attack power? It also doesn't have any decent defense. It's really a meaningless monster."

“It’s not some meaningless monster. Every hero, regardless of their ability, has their own suitable time to be useful, like now.” Jaden argued with Chronos, “When the monster destroyed in battle is sent to the graveyard by [E·hero Steam Healer], it can restore my Life Points to the original ATK value of the destroyed monster.”

"However, the attack power of my Ancient Gear Beast is 2300!" Chronos emphasized, wanting Jaden to understand that his monster currently has the higher attack power.

Judai smiled and said, "That's true, but teacher, that only applies to my [E·hero] when I'm unarmed."

"I activate the Equip Spell Card 'Unity Power' to equip 'E-Hero Steam Healer', increasing its ATK by 800 times the number of monsters I control." Jaden inserted the card into the Spell & Trap Zone, pointing to 'Ancient Gear Beast' on Chronos's field. "Now the ATK difference is reversed, the balance of offense and defense is reversed!"

【E·hero Steam Healer】(Power of Unity)【ATK1800→2600】

"Then I'll enter the battle phase and use [E·hero Steam Healer] to attack [Ancient Mechanical Beast], Steam Fury!"

Empowered by magic, the [E·hero Steam Healer], clad in purple steel armor, glowed and soared into the sky propelled by surging steam. In mid-air, it executed a flying kick, instantly destroying Chronos's [Ancient Mechanical Beast]. Not only were the wires shattered, but even the gears and components that made up the mechanical beast scattered wildly.

However, the fact that there is only one monster yet it is called the "Power of Unity" makes it unclear what exactly is being united, which is a bit puzzling.

[Kronos: 3000→2700]