Duels should be played with a smile.

He himself was at 400, a candle flickering in the wind, but Leyou's 200 was even more so.

The simplest way to defeat a dying candle is to be even more crippled than your opponent!

This is the ultimate secret to becoming a card master!

"You didn't expect that, did you? Everything went according to my plan!"

Although it's only a pseudo-all-resistance and will benefit from the effects of perpetuity, the protocol's conservatism is not considered perpetuity and cannot affect the executioner.

However, because the sixteen witches were sent to their graves by the agreement, and their targets were lost, the five formations were still preserved, which was truly beyond Leyou's expectations.

All I can say is that duels are truly wondrous.

"Now, you have neither monsters on your field nor backcourt."

"It's time to take my final blow!"

As Leyou was about to call for the Terminator to attack, a card suddenly popped up in front of him, swaying left and right.

Upon closer inspection, it was indeed a anaconda.

"Alright... Executioner, let the Five Array Magician go... What a petty fellow."

Because of the 200 LP difference between the two sides, the Executioner had an extra 200 attack points, but at the strong request of the Anaconda, the Five Magicians cleared Darkness's last LP.

"I...lost?"

Darkness is somewhat unbelievable.

"if not?"

Leyou still has a card that can counter the situation just now. Even if Darkness hadn't fallen for the trap, he would still have been killed.

A moment of silence.

“You are different from all the people I’ve met,” Darkness said slowly, recalling her past experiences with mixed feelings.

"What's the difference? Aren't they just ordinary duelists?"

The duel was over. No matter what Darkness wanted to do, under the watchful eye of the will of the universe, he couldn't cause any trouble. Leyou was happy to chat with him casually, and experience what it was like to talk to the forces of darkness.

There wasn't much to talk about with that guy who hammered Dartz; he was no different from any other ordinary villain. But Darkness, after his defeat, managed to put on a reflective act, which was actually quite interesting.

After a long silence, and just as his body was about to dissipate, Darkness finally spoke: "You... are stronger than them, but I feel that your strength lies not in the duel."

"I'm not saying your dueling skills are inferior to theirs, but while you excel in dueling, there are many things outside of dueling that I can learn from you."

"Studying? You're quite interesting."

This was the first time Leyou had ever seen a boss who, when faced with imminent death, didn't utter threats or beg for mercy, but instead focused on learning how to improve.

He's practically a role model for bosses.

Leyou caught the smug anaconda that had just escaped from the Extra Deck and was now flying right into Darkness's face, stuffing it back into the deck. With a hint of curiosity, he asked, "But you're about to die anyway, so what's the point of learning this?"

If you don't kill this kind of big boss in one go, Leyou doesn't mind going for another round to finish it off completely, so as not to cause any unforeseen problems.

Although it may have nothing to do with him, a card player who was just passing by, card players would never refuse an opportunity to play cards.

"I... am immortal, or rather, as long as there is a possibility of humanity's future destruction, I will be reborn after the period of silence."

Before he could finish speaking, the dark, canopy-like barrier began to dissipate, and the sunlight fell around Leyou, dispelling the last remnants of Darkness.

Leave only one sentence.

"At that time, I will become even stronger."

"Tsk tsk tsk." After glancing at the spot where Darkness had dissipated, Leyou called to Ella and turned to leave.

"I don't know when you will be reborn, but it probably has nothing to do with me anymore."

"When that time comes, there will naturally be duelists stronger than me who will take care of someone like you."

……

[System Task Released]

Searching for the Lost Dimension

The path is now clear, yet shrouded in mystery. Go forth and find the dimension where countless traces have been left, and discover what is indispensable to you within that dimension!

"What?! I actually have another system?"

While shopping with Ella, a few lines of text suddenly appeared in front of Leyou's eyes, making him think that Philvo had returned. But upon closer inspection, he realized that it was actually the system he had almost forgotten about.

"That really... startled me. I thought I was going to get punched in the face."

"Hmm... Let's go sit over there first, and I'll take a look at this unexpected situation."

Leyou casually picked a shop on the street, ordered a milk tea for Ella, and watched her obediently sip the milk tea, admiring Ella's rather rare "adorable" appearance. Then, Leyou turned around and went to study the system.

"Wait a minute, did I forget about the Snow Woman? Oh well, it's not a big deal. I'll just order another drink to get rid of her when she comes looking for me... That should do the trick, right? She doesn't know any speech-based punches anyway."

Putting the Snow Woman out of his mind, the perfect gentleman, Mr. Leyou, opened the system's light screen.

"System, translate this for me. You've been missing for so long, have you gone to play with someone else's system?"

"Your system is a bit subpar. If you don't regularly come out and give me some benefits, it's easy for you to become invisible and be forgotten!"

【I see】

But none of that matters.

"uh-huh?"

I am a spectator, a guide.

When you are unsure of your path ahead, I will show you the way.

When there are no obstacles in your path, I will observe with a calm mind.

"...My assessment is that among all the systems I've seen, you are in a class of pure and refined elegance."

To put it literally, this system is just for fun most of the time; it only comes out to find something fun when there's nothing else to watch.

Based on this, it can be inferred that the tasks issued by the system are probably quite entertaining.

I flipped directly to the side quests section of the system page, and sure enough, I found something quite interesting.

Most of the side quests released when Duel City opened have either been completed or marked as failed due to missed opportunities.

However, the missions involving the game, Kaiba, and Jonouchi are still available—in a world where these legendary duelists have vanished, they can still be completed, which undoubtedly means that they are still active in the lost foundational dimension.

Furthermore, there is another point worth noting: my current goal is very clear, which is to find all the fragments of rationality. However, considering this task, I estimate that even after finding all the fragments of rationality, I will still be missing some very important things.

What could that thing be?

Chapter Twenty-Three: You Might Be Into the Table

"Come, explain in detail."

"Hmm? Are you calling me?"

"Who else could it be but you? I did save your life, to say the least. You should at least reveal some necessary information, right?"

Because of some of Leyou's actions, Yuki-onna is very unhappy now. After making many promises, he finally managed to appease Yuki-onna, who was pouting and sulking.

After rubbing his waist, Leyou tossed the Snow Woman over to Ella, leaving her to "keep an eye on" for the time being. Only then did he have the mind to catch the silent, feigning-death anaconda and ask it some questions.

Because they had been randomly teleported earlier, Leyou and the others were no longer in the academy. After all this commotion, it got dark, and the three of them, who didn't have a place to stay for the time being, randomly found a high-end hotel to check in.

As for payment methods... in the world of cards, of course, it's by card. Just one of the cards I got from Darkness is enough for Leyou to book the most luxurious room in this hotel for a month.

So, after paying with a card that was not very useful but was indeed rare, under the subtle gaze of the receptionist, Leyou, along with Xue Nu and Ella, temporarily stayed at the hotel.

The first thing Leyou did after entering the suite was to take out his Ethereal Spirit deck and have the Ethereal Spirit check all the equipment in the hotel. Only after confirming that there were no problems and that the Ethereal Spirit had monitored the entire hotel and the surrounding area did Leyou have time to deal with the Anaconda.

When you're navigating the world, it's perfectly reasonable to be cautious.

"Still playing dumb? Do you want me to pull out a deck of cards like Crimson Lotus Lightning Slide, Trap Hollow, Golden Country, Silver Castle and have a few intense duels with you, like Yata no Uchiha, before you'll confess honestly?"

As he spoke, Leyou simply put the Anaconda card aside, then took out a Skill Draw card from his deck, preparing to attach it to his card.

"No, no, no, there's no need for that. Such a duel won't bring smiles, so let's skip it."

Before the draw counter could even be applied, the entire Anaconda card bounced up on its own, avoiding the utterly detestable card art before the draw counter could land.

"How could that be?" Le You raised an eyebrow, then slapped out a large arrest warrant, caught the anaconda, and pressed it down.

Want to run?

"Why can't it bring a smile to my face? I always drive with a smile on my face when I drive!"

I don’t know if it’s my fault, but whether it’s the anaconda or the yatau, they don’t behave themselves when they see me. Compared to these two, Philvo, who is also a whispering elf, is much better. He can help me in all aspects and is also very capable.

On the other hand, these two look like the kind of guys who could turn into traitors at any moment.

"Alright, stop with the nonsense. I'll ask you questions and you answer them, or I'll just send you to the void and the universe to keep you company."

This time, Leyou's tone became even more forceful, and the effect was particularly good. The python immediately stopped jumping around and stood there obediently, even conjuring some branches to support itself so that it wouldn't be blown away by Leyou's breath. However, it was all due to the deterrent power of the void space and the universe.

It seems... they're quite aware of the situation, but they won't behave unless you take drastic measures.

It evokes a feeling of...my former self.

Why the past? Because this is a world of card games, where you can always be assertive when playing cards!

"I surrender!"

Raising its two phantom limbs high, the anaconda's French military salute was impeccable.

"I will resolutely follow the leader! I will support all of the leader's actions!"

"Speak frankly and without reservation! Tell me everything! If you tell me to go east, I will never go west! If you tell me to catch a dog, I will never chase a chicken!"

His series of movements were so fluid and graceful that Leyou exclaimed in amazement, "So you're doing stand-up comedy now, huh?"

"Speaking of which, including you, that makes two. Isn't that a bit too fast? I haven't even been here for a full day."

After the anaconda stated its position, and no one knew how it was judged, Leyou suddenly felt like "mission progress +1".

At the same time, many strange and unfamiliar pieces of knowledge and memories, which I didn't know if I would ever need, surfaced in my mind.

"I'm thinking, at this rate, could I travel through all the dimensions within a week and collect all seven Dragon Balls to make a wish?"

"After collecting all the fragments of rationality, and then performing a trinity, can I fast-forward to turning myself into a Gundam? Playing cards while piloting a Gundam, that wouldn't be a bad kind of high-speed duel!"