"...Then I activate the Spell Card Pot of Greed."
With his only monster destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, Jaden had no choice but to end his Battle Phase. During Main Phase 2, he used the card-drawing Spell Pot of Greed, which is most optimally played in Main Phase 1.
"Next, I activate a second Pot of Greed, and draw two more cards from my deck."
Yuuya: "..."
Good grief! I can't even—
He didn't use it during Main Phase 1, and now you're telling me he's got two Pot of Greeds back-to-back? Have you no shame?!
"The Flame Wingman I summoned earlier was Fusion Summoned, so now I can perform my Normal Summon and call out my AIBO—Winged Kuriboh, come forth!"
As Jaden slotted the card into his Duel Disk, a cute little monster with pure white angelic wings on its back appeared in front of him—Winged Kuriboh.
"Wow! Kawaii!!"
"Winged Kuriboh? What an adorable little guy!"
"Where can I get a card like that? I'd spend my life savings to buy one!"
"..."
Hearing the shrill cheers—mostly from the girls in the audience—Winged Kuriboh turned around and waved its tiny paws at the students, letting out a cheerful cry of "Kuri! Kuri!"
'As expected, this isn't just a regular Duel Monster card—it's a Duel Spirit with actual signs of life!'
Watching the Kuriboh interact with the crowd, Yuuya's eyebrows lifted slightly under the brim of his hat. He had his suspicions during the previous appearances of Winged Kuriboh, and now that it could respond to the students and greet them, this confirmed it—this wasn't just a monster card. It was a Duel Spirit, a creature with life force!
Jaden, you are an interesting guy!
"Then I'll Set one card and end my turn."
Out of his three cards, Jaden retained two in hand and placed one face-down as a Set card. It seemed like a simple setup before ending his turn, but it still made Yuuya's eyes narrow.
Seriously? This is practically an open hand for him!
"My turn! Draw!"
Without even glancing at the card he just drew, Yuuya pulled one from the three remaining in his hand and declared:
"I activate the Spell Card Localized Tornado! All Set Spell and Trap Cards on both sides of the field return to their owners' hands!"
"Nani?!"
Seeing the tornado Yuuya unleashed tearing across the field, Jaden's eyes widened in shock.
"Jaden! You summoned Winged Kuriboh in Defense Position, then Set a card behind it. Were you afraid I wouldn't realize that card is the Quick-Play Spell that evolves Winged Kuriboh?!"
"How did you know?!"
His Set card being seen through left Jaden stunned once more. But then, a memory surfaced—something Aunt Tomei had said when she gave him a new booster pack:
"Jaden-kun! I'm giving you the card packs I saved for you, and also the ones a kind person specifically asked me to pass along. Make sure to keep them safe!"
The "kind person" Aunt Tomei mentioned... could it have been this red-hatted Yuuya standing in front of me?!
Still, now wasn't the time to dwell on that—he had to focus on whether to activate his Quick-Play Spell Transcendent Wings, to evolve Winged Kuriboh into Winged Kuriboh LV10.
"If this card was prepared for me by You Ye… then that means he knows the effect of Winged Kuriboh LV10, right? If that's true…"
As he pondered this, Judai made a decision—not to chain an activation and instead allowed You Ye's Harpie's Feather Duster to return cards to his hand.
Winged Kuriboh's evolved form, Winged Kuriboh LV10, possesses a powerful effect: it can destroy all Attack Position monsters on the opponent's field and inflict damage equal to the total original ATK of those destroyed monsters. However, the catch is that this powerful effect can only be activated during the opponent's Battle Phase. At other times, it's less useful than its unevolved form.
So for now, Judai decided to rely on the base Winged Kuriboh's effect to scrape through this turn. As for the returned Wings of Evolution card—he'd wait and see whether he could draw a card that revives Winged Kuriboh or returns it from the Graveyard to hand before making a move.
"Spell Card—Pot of Greed! I draw two cards… and then another Pot of Greed! I draw two more cards!"
…Huh? I also drew back-to-back Pot of Greed. Well then! I take back all the insults I just made about Judai. Let's pretend that never happened.
"Spell Card—Spin Out! By discarding one card from my hand, I can return a monster on the field to the top of its owner's Deck."
"Crap!"
As soon as Judai heard the effect, he cursed inwardly. Winged Kuriboh's effect only triggers when it's destroyed. But now, it's being bounced to the top of his Deck instead… All he could do now was pray that You Ye wouldn't be able to wipe out all 4000 of his Life Points this turn.
"Spell Card—Polymerization! I fuse 'Elemental HERO Sparkman' on the field with 'Elemental HERO Blazeman' in my hand!"
The workhorse couple had been split. This time, Blazeman's fusion partner wasn't Avian but Sparkman—the big brother among the four heroes. Was this a betrayal of love or a corruption of virtue? Stay tuned for more—whoops, wrong show.
"Fusion Summon once more—the extraordinary Hero: Elemental HERO Grandmerge!"
Grandmerge—the MVP of the previous duel against Manjoume—was summoned once again to face Judai.
"Sparkman and Blazeman are both Normal-type HERO monsters, with Levels 4 and 3 respectively, so Grandmerge's power becomes—"
(Elemental HERO Grandmerge, Level 6, ATK/DEF: 0 → 2100)
"Battle Phase! Grandmerge, attack Judai directly! Elemental Burst!"
The elemental burst, with 2100 power, slammed directly into Judai's slim frame, sending him flying two to three meters. Fortunately, the dueling arena was wide enough—otherwise, he'd have hit the ground hard.
(Judai Yuki: 4000 LP → 1900 LP)
"Judai, watch carefully! This is the difference between you and me right now!"
Seeing Judai begin to rise, You Ye played his final card:
"Quick-Play Spell—De-Fusion! I return Grandmerge to the Extra Deck, and Special Summon Sparkman and Blazeman from the Graveyard! Now, both Heroes—attack Judai directly!"
Spark Flash!
Blazing Flame!
1600 + 1200 > 1900 LP
Winner: You Ye Sakaki! Achievement unlocked: 'OTK Judai Yuki'!
Scene Transition—
After putting away his Duel Disk, You Ye stood quietly, staring at the motionless Judai lying on the ground.
"…This might sound harsh, but I'll say it anyway. The Deck I used in this duel… it's just one I use for casual, everyday duels. My real Deck—the one that represents my full power—is still sealed away."
Judai: "..."
Onlooking Students: ?!!
"I'm not saying this to belittle you—but because I have expectations for you."
He said this as he knelt beside Judai, leaning close to whisper in his ear:
"I want you to grow stronger—strong enough to stand alongside 'those few people', strong enough to make me bring out my real Deck and duel without holding back. After all, you're someone my father personally told me to keep an eye on… and I've been observing you for a full month now."
Judai: "..."
Seeing no reply, You Ye sighed softly, stood up, and left the gym amidst the chatter of the freshmen.
As he felt You Ye's presence leave the room, Judai slightly opened his eyes, lips faintly moving as though whispering to himself.
"So… I was being watched…"
Closing his eyes once more, Judai finally and completely "blacked out."