Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

"Huh? But my name is Maeda Hayato." Hearing Manjoume's words, Maeda scratched his cheek, feeling somewhat amazed at how arrogant this year's freshmen were. They were completely different from last year's top freshman, one too leisurely and the other too arrogant.

However, since Manjoume was also there to cheer on Judai, he said with a smile, "Judai couldn't make a decision either, so he let Sho choose."

As he spoke, Maeda glanced at the indoor audience seats. Although the students sitting in the audience seats were sparse and did not fill all the seats, making it seem like there were very few people, considering that this large dueling arena was designed for large-scale events and the audience seats could actually accommodate thousands of people, there were actually quite a lot of audience members.

After all, since the start of the semester, Jaden's duel was the first major event in the academy. In addition, Jaden's reputation in the academy has gradually changed from "the monster of the Red Dormitory" who accidentally defeated Professor Chronos to "the god of unspeakable draws". Although they still don't really admit that his strength actually exceeds the dormitory level, they at least regard him as a duelist with some strength.

Some people came to join in the fun, others to see if Judai's strength was as legendary as they were said to be. There were quite a few people watching. The most important reason was because of Judai's match-fixing. I didn't have any classes this afternoon, so I figured I might as well watch a match since I was free anyway.

"He calls it a choice, but he just pointed randomly. He doesn't want to take any responsibility." Asuka sat alone in the front row of the group. "However, considering that he is indeed the dueling partner that Jaden could find who could help him win the final duel, there's not much to say."

Momoe and Junko had originally planned to join Asuka for the fun, but they "accidentally" ate too many desserts yesterday. This morning, they realized they hadn't controlled their weight, so they went to the gym together this afternoon to work out and lose weight. They were more concerned about their figures than joining in the fun.

However, besides those who came to join in the fun, some well-informed people also found out who Jaden's duel partner was. Even those who weren't interested in Jaden, a first-year student from the Red Dorm, still came to watch the duel because of his duel partner.

“But I never expected Marufuji to choose that person,” Misawa said from the back row. “It’s a bit of a shame that I can’t prove my presence and strength in this kind of situation, but I can also gather information about that person along the way.”

Hearing that their conversation had involved him, Xiang scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly. He wanted attention but also disliked being the center of attention, so he spoke up to divert the others' attention, saying, "Ah, Big Brother is coming up."

Emerging from the passage, Jaden walked onto the dueling platform under the watchful eyes of hundreds of people. No signs of nervousness appeared on him; instead, he exuded an excited, expectant look: "Wow, so many people are here! I'm totally excited!"

The referee for this duel was Kira Aoki, the dormitory head of the Yellow dormitory who had returned to school after a business trip. Facing Judai, whose personality was clearly incompatible with his own, he remained calm and expressionless, and said, "Student Yuki Judai, right?"

"Hi! It's me, teacher!" The energetic Jaden responded enthusiastically to the lifeless Aoki. "My dream is to become the Duel King, and my current short-term goal is to make friends with all the students in the school!"

"No, no, nobody asked you what your dream is. I'm not interested in that either. They only asked because it's a necessary procedure. After all, once you know who your duel opponent is, just like me, no one will try to impersonate you." Aoki said weakly, glancing at the audience in the arena, and then said, "Now, please welcome the legendary duelists specially invited by the Duel Academy Board of Directors, who have special experience in two-person duels!"

"They are—"

As Kira Aoki finished speaking, Jaden saw two figures suddenly leap onto the stage opposite him. One was yellow and the other was green, and they were doing somersaults on the stage, with reflections constantly appearing.

After a series of acrobatic movements, the two figures came together and stood side by side, allowing Judai to see clearly that the two were actually two muscular bald men wearing cheongsams. Apart from the different colors of their cheongsams, they were almost identical in appearance, except that they each had the characters "迷" (mi, meaning maze) and "宫" (gong, meaning palace) tattooed on their foreheads, which allowed others to distinguish who was who.

Their striking physical features made them instantly recognizable, even to Jaden. At that moment, Jaden's voice, along with those of the students in the audience who also recognized them, and Kira Aoki's voice, rang out simultaneously—

"The Labyrinth Brothers!?"

The two are none other than the Labyrinth Brothers, a dueling duo that was already active during the Duel Kingdom era!

"We are the guardians of the wandering world—" "Maze Brothers!"

The older brother, Mi, and the younger brother, Gong, struck martial arts poses in unison: "Style, Labyrinth! Please enlighten us!"

"The legendary duelists, the Labyrinth Brothers?!" Asuka exclaimed in surprise. "The Labyrinth Brothers, the experts in dueling who once fought against the Duel King, Hayato Kobayashi, and even gave other legendary duelists like Katsuya Jonouchi and Yugi Muto a tough fight!?"

"Not only that, they were originally hired by Mr. Pegasus, the father of Duel Monsters, to duel with Principal Hayato and others. To this day, they are still professional duelists under the International Illusion Society, and they are the strongest in the world-class professional duelist circle, especially in the doubles arena." Compared to Asuka, Misawa knew more about the Labyrinth Brothers. "It's no exaggeration to say that they are simply 'Duel Kings' limited to the doubles arena!"

"Hey, although I had a feeling the council was specifically targeting that jellyfish-headed guy, this is way too much! Not only have they brought in professional duelists, but they've also brought in top-tier powerhouses like the Labyrinth Brothers!" Manjoume was excited and even a little angry. "Damn it, that jellyfish-headed guy should have been defeated by me!"

"Hey, Judai Yuki! You're not allowed to lose!"

Seeing Manjoume making a scene in the audience opposite him, Samejima Iemitsu, who was sitting in the front row, looked away and looked at Aoki seriously, saying, "Aoki-sensei, why did the council arrange for the Labyrinth Brothers to be that child's opponent?"

"I don't know, I've never thought about the answer to that question." Aoki shook his head. "Or rather, even Principal Samejima doesn't know?"

"In the end, I'm just the vice principal. How could I possibly understand what the council members are thinking?" After a pause, Samejima frowned. "All I know is that these past two days, when I was contacting the council on behalf of Hayato, the atmosphere within the council seemed a bit off. It became somewhat targeted at the academy's management, as if someone was trying to interfere with the school."

"Forget it, I don't need to worry about that. Everything will be fine when Hayato comes back." Looking at the Labyrinth Brothers, Samejima was a little worried, but he also felt a little confident. He said, "I originally thought it was a bit unbalanced for him to be that kid's duel partner, but since our opponent has already sent out an opponent of the Labyrinth Brothers' caliber, our combination seems quite reasonable."

"Tap, tap, tap..." Jaden, who was watching the Labyrinth Brothers strike various poses and couldn't help but applaud their cool moves, suddenly heard footsteps coming from the steps leading up to the dueling platform behind him. Kira Aoki, the referee, had already left the arena, and no one else would be joining the dueling platform except for his dueling partner.

Turning around and looking at the other person, Jaden smiled: "Oh, you're here too, Caesar! This time our opponents are the legendary Labyrinth Brothers. I'm really looking forward to this duel!"

To the surprise of those unaware, Jaden's partner, who had stepped onto the dueling stage, stepped forward to stand beside him. It was none other than Ryo Marufuji, known as "Kaiser" and the strongest in Duel Academy!

"The Labyrinth Brothers? They are indeed quite formidable opponents, perfect for testing my mettle." With a calm expression, Caesar said to Jaden, "I must thank you for giving me this opportunity to duel with a professional duelist, Jaden."

"Hehe, I should be the one thanking you for agreeing to be my duel partner. To be honest, if it weren't for Sho helping me, I really wouldn't have been able to make a decision among Manjoume and the others." After a pause, Jaden looked at Caesar and said casually, "Besides, I don't think you're the kind of person who needs to duel with others to know your own limitations."

"No, that's the main reason I'm helping you. You're overthinking it." Caesar's expression remained unchanged. He couldn't very well tell Judai that he had agreed to be Judai's duel partner after being pointed at by Sho in the cafeteria that day because he wanted to thank Judai and rescue his younger brother Sho from the kidnappers who had kidnapped Asuka.

However, he wasn't lying about wanting to duel the Labyrinth Brothers. He actually really wanted to have a match with a professional duelist, since he was graduating this year and would be entering the professional duelist circle. This would be a way for him to get a feel for the true level of professional duelists beforehand.

In addition to this, there is another reason, namely Judai himself. He had noticed Judai's special abilities since he enrolled in school. Caesar had a premonition that he, whom Principal Samejima considered "approaching perfection," might be able to gain nourishment for growth through this team duel with Judai.

Thinking of this, Caesar glanced at Jaden and saw that his face was full of anticipation, showing no fear of the duel with the Labyrinth Brothers.

From below the stage, Aoki announced, "Both sides are ready, so the duel between the two sides officially begins. Take your positions!"

“Although we have no grudge against each other,” the Labyrinth Brothers said, turning to face Jaden and Caesar, “we will fight with all our might.” “If you defeat us,” “the path will open.”

Each extended their hand and intertwined it between them. The Labyrinth Brothers said in unison, "Alright, let the duel begin!"

[Maze Brothers: 8000LP, 5 cards in hand]

"It's so exciting to be taken seriously by such a legendary duelist!" Jaden said to Caesar. "Let's go, Caesar!"

"Go ahead and go, Jaden!" Caesar nodded to Jaden, and the two of them simultaneously raised their Duel Disks and connected them to the Labyrinth Brothers' Duel Disk signal.

[Jūdai & Caesar: 8000 LP, 5 cards in hand]

“I’ll take the first turn, draw a card!” The first to take the first turn was the older brother, Mi, from the Maze Brothers. He drew a card from his deck and said, “In team duels, the battle phase can only begin after everyone has taken their turn. That means that for now, both sides can only set up their respective fields like setting up a maze.”

"I discard 'Ghoul of the Labyrinth' from my hand to activate its effect, and add a 'Labyrinth Wall' card from my deck to my hand." Sending a monster card to the graveyard, Mimi retrieved a card from her deck and showed it to Jaden, saying, "The card I retrieved is this one, 'Shadow of the Labyrinth Wall'."

"Then activate the Field Spell Card, [Dark Wall Shadow]!"

A large rock wall suddenly rose from the flat ground, and the winding maze wall turned the entire area between the two sides into a complex labyrinth. At the end of that fork in the road, in the darkness, Jaden noticed something that seemed to be moving, and a scarlet eye flashed by.

"The Field Spell Card [Shadow of the Labyrinth] is the perfect stage for us brothers. Its first effect is to restrict the movement of lower-level monsters in this labyrinth. Except for monsters whose original level is 5 or higher, other monsters cannot attack during the turn they are Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned."

As he spoke, Mi waved his hand and said, "In addition, its second effect can only be activated once per turn during my Main Phase. It allows me to place one of my 'Three Demons' cards from my Deck, hand, or banished zone as a Continuous Spell Card in the Spell & Trap Zone."

"I've chosen [Thunder Demon God - Sanga] from the deck!"

As the card was inserted into the magic trap area, a coffin bound by ropes rose from his back field outside the maze wall, bearing a brightly engraved "Thunder".

Jaden, who could see it clearly, was taken aback: "The card inserted into the Spell & Trap Zone is a Monster Card, right? Why can Monster Cards be placed in the Spell & Trap Zone?"

"Could these two be the 'Infernal Players' that Mr. Hayato mentioned needing to check the back row face-down cards?"

“No, monster cards can be placed in the Spell & Trap Zone under certain circumstances, such as being equipped by monster cards like [Revenge Monster],” Kaiser replied to Jaden. “There are also cards like Principal Hayato’s [Rainbow Kuriboh], and the current [Thunder Demon - Sanga] appears as a Continuous Spell Card with the effect of [Labyrinth Wall Shadow].

"However, I remember that [Thunder God - Sanga] itself should not have any effect when it is a continuous spell card."

"Hmph, maintaining mystery is part of the fun of exploring the labyrinth." Without answering Jaden and Caesar's questions, Miku activated the effect of the Field Spell Card and placed three more cards on the field. "I summon a monster in face-down Defense Position, then bury two cards. My turn ends."

[Mystery: 8000LP, 2 cards in hand]

[Inner Side Guardian Monster]

[GaiKa] x2 [Thunder God - Sanga]

Location: [Shadow of the Maze Wall]

Chapter 1099: Starting with Hero Arrival in Doubles will get you beaten.

"My turn, draw a card." After Mi's turn, it was Jaden's turn. He drew a card from his deck and looked at the cards on Mi's field, saying, "I don't know what's going on, but as expected of a legendary duelist, he seems pretty formidable."

"In that case, I'll have to give it my all too!" With that, Jaden played a card from his hand. "If I have no monsters on my field, pay me half of my Life Points to activate the Spell Card, 'Hero Arrives'!"

As soon as Jaden played his card, he noticed that the Labyrinth Brothers opposite him all had contemptuous smiles on their faces, and even Caesar, who usually had a calm and composed expression, had a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth.

"It's obvious this is your first time teaming up for a duel. You have absolutely no idea how to play doubles, buddy," said the guy with his arms crossed, speaking in a condescending tone.

Gong echoed his brother's words, "There's no problem using regular cards that pay out Life Points in doubles, because the Life Points are increased to 8000, which basically reduces the original cost by half. But using cards that 'pay out half Life Points' is a big no-no."

"We haven't even entered the battle phase yet, and you've already caused your team to lose a whopping 4000 base points!"

"Not only are they not cooperating, but they're also harming their own interests. It's hilarious, hahaha!"

The duet between the Labyrinth Brothers made Jaden realize his mistake, and he looked at Caesar with some embarrassment, saying, "Sorry, Caesar, I think I made a fatal mistake."

"Don't worry about it, it's just a small loss of basic points, you can continue as you wish."

Caesar shook his head, signaling Jaden not to take it too seriously; he had seen through the Labyrinth Brothers' intentions at a glance. It was true that Jaden's actions were off, but they were also deliberately trying to sabotage their team's coordination with their words, just like when Ryuga had mocked him for lacking a desire to win.

—Even now, Caesar still stubbornly believes that what Dragon Fang said back then was just pure trash talk.

Trash talk is an important part of the duel, just like having a loud and aggressive teammate in esports is a huge boost. However, if esports is standardized and each team is assigned an independent battle zone, this tactic can be effectively countered. Caesar's choice is to ignore all trash talk.

"Moreover, our principal has a favorite saying: 'As long as the basic score doesn't drop to zero, it's infinite.'"

"Is that so? Hahaha, that really has Hayato-san's style." Jaden turned around and looked at Mi again. "Since the card has already been activated, there's no point in regretting it. All I can do is give it my all!"

[Tenth Generation: 8000 → 4000 LP]

Jaden paid off half of his Life Points, then drew a card from his deck and showed it to the Labyrinth Brothers: "With the effect of [Hero's Arrival], I Special Summon one [E-Hero] monster from my deck—this [E-Hero Bubble Man]—to my field!"

Mi's expression was somewhat displeased. Caesar's idea was indeed correct. When they learned about the dormitory divisions within the Duel Academy and saw that Jaden and Caesar were wearing different uniforms, they had the idea of ​​using the "provoke conflict" tactic. After all, trash talk can usually affect the dueling level of an opponent, not to mention doubles, a dueling style that requires cooperation.

However, the opposing team was surprisingly peaceful and harmonious, so my trash talk didn't work at all...

However, when he saw Jaden place the card "E·hero Bubble Man" on the field, Mi's eyes lit up and he pressed the button to activate the face-down card.

"When [E·hero Bubble Man] is successfully Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned, and I have no other cards on my field, I draw two cards from my Deck."

As Jaden was speaking, he had just drawn two cards from his deck when he saw that as soon as his [E·hero Bubble Man] stepped on the ground, a giant spider suddenly appeared from the ground and attacked the unsuspecting [E·hero Bubble Man].

Caught completely off guard, [E·hero Bubble Man] had just replenished Jaden's hand when it was destroyed by the giant spider in the next moment!

"Hmph, the labyrinth is full of dangerous traps. One careless move and you'll fall into a deadly trap." After pulling out the face-down card in the back row and showing it to Jaden, Mi continued, "I chained the Special Summon of [E·Hero Bubble Man] to activate this face-down card in the back row, [Landmine Spider's Prey].

"After this card is activated, it becomes a Normal Monster and is Special Summoned to my Monster Zone in the same column. After that, you can target and destroy one more opponent's Monster Card in the same column!"

As Mi placed a trap card in the front field's monster zone, the giant spider that had previously attacked Jaden, "E. Hero Bubble Man," returned to Mi's field through a tunnel.

[Landmine Spider] [5 stars/landmine]

[Insects/Trap]

[2100/100]

"Using monster cards as continuous spell cards, and then turning continuous trap cards into monster cards?" Jaden was a little stunned. "As expected of a legendary duelist, he seems pretty amazing."

"However, before [E·Hero Bubble Man] was destroyed, it sent new hope back to my hand. Don't think that just because it's a trap, it can stop the hero's progress. I will definitely show you how to get through this labyrinth!" As he spoke, Jaden drew a card from his hand and said, "The Spell Card [Warrior Survival] is activated. I return one Warrior-Type monster from my Graveyard to my hand. I chose [E·Hero Bubble Man] and Normal Summoned it!"

"And the effect of [E·hero Bubble Man] is not limited to once per turn, so I use its effect again and draw two cards!"

【E·hero Bubble Man】【4☆/Water】

[Warrior Race/Effect]

[800/1200]

Just like Batman who always has a backup plan, [E·hero Bubble Man] suddenly reappeared on Jaden's field. It was as if he had deliberately used a fake body to step into the trap of [Landmine Spider's Prey] to trick the opponent. When he reappeared, he scattered a cloud of bubbles like throwing money at Jaden's hand.