The first of the quarterfinals ended, with Kira smoothly advancing.
Others weren't surprised at the result—just the process, especially those unfamiliar with Kira.
The Planet Series cards are unique, super-rare. For many, this was their first time seeing "Splendid Venus" in person.
So naturally, it was also the first time they discovered Venus's "your Spells/Traps can't be negated" effect could be used —
Indeed, with Venus present, all field-wide lockdowns become one-way. Once formed, your opponent basically can't play at all.
And during this duel, Venus truly showed her dominance as the core of the Planet Series, completely suppressing the opponent.
But the weird part was, Venus was supposed to be the opponent's ace, yet Kira turned her into the heart of his ultimate lockdown strategy.
Lockdown decks aren't unheard of, and stall decks are niche but exist.
But using the opponent's ace as the core? That's new.
The duel ended with the opponent left dazed, as Kira collected the "Splendid Venus" card and pocketed it.
Even the Arbiter, embodiment of Orichalcos, who'd lived for ages, had never seen something .
Most people didn't notice, but Kaiba and some others, with their supernatural experience, saw the mid-duel switch.
But that's not strange. Spirit possession in dueling is old news—even Yugi was once possessed by another soul.
But having the spirit rage-quit halfway? That's new.
To outsiders, it seemed that after Venus was taken and the lockdown formed, Tragoedia broke down and simply disconnected.
"That guy's called Tragoedia, right?"
Loren, one of Doma's Three Swordsmen, couldn't help but say.
"I remember he isn't an ordinary monster, right?"
"Mm," the Arbiter replied offhand.
Loren didn't speak further.
Tragoedia is a boss-tier monster—at least on par with Doma's Three Swordsmen, maybe even higher.
Even as a substitute, for such a being to rage-quit…
"Keep an eye on that kid," the Arbiter said suddenly, glancing at Kira as he left the stage.
"Mm," Loren nodded, eyeing Kira with a strange look.
At first, hearing that the "Sealing Device" fell into a student's hands, he thought it was just luck.
But now, that idea was fading.
Maybe it wasn't coincidence the artifact ended up with him. He seemed harmless, but who knew what he really was.
If he had to duel that guy, he'd be on full alert.
Zane watched the duel in silence.
He recalled his own match with Kira in the qualifiers—the feeling that no matter how hard he attacked, it was like his Cyber Dragons vanished into the void.
Since then, Zane had fallen into a bit of confusion.
For the first time, he began to doubt his path, considering other possibilities. The first thing that came to mind was Kira, whose dueling had deeply impressed him and, as far as he knew, was undefeated.
Kira's duels were the opposite of his. In this last match, he felt no respect for the opponent at all.
But—did he win or not?
And watching Kira high-five Jaden after jumping offstage, he seemed genuinely happy.
In the end, is winning more important than anything else?
At that moment, a KaibaCorp medical team was already on stage, surrounding the unconscious Reggie.
Such a tournament, of course, had world-class medical teams on standby, with standards higher than any sports event.
After all, dueling is the world's most dangerous sport, isn't it common sense?
Look, first match and someone's already unconscious.
The doctors quickly carried Reggie off on a stretcher, taking her to the infirmary.
"Well, there's been a small incident. Please wait for further instructions from the organizers," Roland briefly announced, following the medical team.
A doctor quietly asked, "Are you really going to continue the tournament?"
"Of course," Roland replied calmly.
"But… a player just fell unconscious…"
"What's the problem?"
"You may not realize how serious this is. This girl might never walk again… might never wake up."
"I know," Roland nodded.
How can you accept this so calmly?
"Don't worry, all competitors signed waivers," Roland said.
Doctor: "That's not the point—"
"You should've seen the first tournament." Original content can be found at NovєlFіre.net
Roland clapped his shoulder, speaking as a veteran.
He'd been a judge at the very first event too.
Compared to that, this was nothing.
In the first tournament, Yugi's Slifer sent Bakura to the ICU with a single attack. After that, in the gravekeeper's duel with Joey, fake cards summoned Winged Dragon of Ra only to be punished with divine retribution, ending up a vegetable.
Then Marik, somehow, ended up with hair like an explosion and a more spooky face, knocking Mai and Joey into the infirmary one after another.
Back then, divine phenomena and punishments descended every other match—almost every duel sent someone to the hospital. But the show went on.
Yet this doctor, apparently a newcomer, found it all incomprehensible.
So he went to Kaiba next.
"President, are you sure about continuing the tournament?"
Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"
"But a player just fell unconscious—"
"What's wrong with that?"
PS: Bonus chapters at 1000 PS