Nakamura Tsubasa finally left the stage with a wail.
Winning his opening match in the preliminaries, Kira was quite satisfied with his performance this round. Once again, he had taught someone firsthand what it truly meant to be a King of Games.
He believed that after reviewing the match, this opponent would surely gain valuable insights and, eventually, would come to thank him for it.
Kira played several matches on the first day, with a match density that was nothing to scoff at. The Moonlight Cup wasn't an event with high entry barriers, so there were plenty of participants. Preliminaries were held at multiple venues simultaneously, greatly saving time.
But nothing was out of his expectations. None of his preliminary opponents were notable figures, and based on the anime, most duelists outside the main cast were pretty average. He hadn't seen any deck builds that wowed him yet.
Of course, Kira didn't underestimate any opponent. After his matches, he took a quick look at other games to get a feel for who was advancing.
Though his odds of losing to most opponents were low, Kira thought it best to play it safe. As the saying goes, "If you know your enemy and yourself, you need not fear a hundred battles"—and that's even more true in Yu-Gi-Oh.
If you can learn your opponent's deck list and tactics in advance and make targeted adjustments before the match, your chances of winning improve significantly.
The dojo had already given him part of his tournament stipend, telling him to use it to upgrade his deck.
Kira accepted without hesitation. With this budget, he could tweak his original strategy and went on a shopping spree, trying to assemble a few more decks.
[Card Destruction] might have once been a world champion card, but in the anime world, relying on a single trick would get you nowhere. If your opponents know what's coming, it's too easy to counter—something Kira wanted to avoid.
So, before the tournament, Kira hit the card shops, and with what he could find, managed to cobble together two or three more fun and competitive decks.
He kept switching decks and builds based on his opponents' tactics, making his strategy unpredictable and flexible. This kept him at an advantage and made him harder to counter.
...
Teacher Takeuchi brewed a coffee, sat comfortably on a soft sofa in the afternoon sun, and casually picked up the latest issue of the Duelist Times.
The Duelist Times, a publication under the Kaiba Corporation, reported all sorts of strange and wild stories from the dueling world.
He'd been too busy at home to watch his students play, but he'd heard both had made it through the first day of prelims, which made him quite pleased.
Flipping open the paper, he saw coverage of the Moonlight Cup prelims.
["A malicious attack on an opponent almost occurred at the Moonlight Cup prelim site."]
["A contestant lost control during a duel and tried to physically attack his opponent, resulting in disqualification."]
"Hm?"
Takeuchi looked closer, curious.
Was this for real?
Duelists these days sure had no class—lashing out physically when they lost, with no basic dignity as duelists.
He skimmed the article. Real names were omitted for privacy, with aliases like "Kenjin" and "Tomoki."
He read on.
["On the third day of the Moonlight Cup, contestant Shota (alias) suffered a hemorrhagic stroke mid-duel with Kenjin (alias). Fortunately, he was saved in time and is no longer in mortal danger."]
A stroke from playing cards?
The teacher was shocked. Was this year's Moonlight Cup really that dangerous?
Wait, he noticed something odd.
Both incidents involved someone with the alias "Kenjin." Surely it couldn't be the same person?
If it was, one time might be a fluke, but twice in a row...
Maybe the problem was with this "Kenjin" guy?
Takeuchi recalled his duel a few days ago with Kira from the dojo when his blood pressure mysteriously climbed as the match went on.
A bad premonition crept in.
No way, right?
...
Three days later—
"So I've made Top 8 already?"
Getting his Top 8 ticket felt almost too easy; Kira didn't even feel satisfied.
As expected, this level of tournament wasn't much. Most opponents were local experts at best. Maybe the Top 8 would be a bit more challenging.
Watching Kira breeze into the Top 8 with a look of regret, Koji felt the urge to punch something.
Unlike Kira, who seemed to be cheating with how easily he advanced, Koji Sato was eliminated on the second day of prelims.
With no matches left, Koji could only come to support his dojo kouhai, albeit with a tinge of jealousy.
The good news was, at least he was eliminated before running into Kira, sparing him further public humiliation.
And now, at least he could enjoy seeing other duelists get wrecked.
It was funny—when he was the one getting stomped by his kouhai, his blood pressure soared, but seeing others suffer the same fate was oddly satisfying. Humans are such contradictory creatures.
"Hey, did you see your match-up list?" Koji asked. "Who's your Top 8 opponent?"
He was eager to see who the first victim would be.
"Oh, just a student from Duel Academy's Junior Division," Kira replied.
"His name is Chazz Princeton."
"Chazz Princeton is insanely strong!"
Chazz Princeton, from Duel Academy's affiliated junior division, was sitting cross-legged on a sofa, basking in the flattery of his two lackeys.
Chazz Princeton, third son of the famous Princeton Group, was top of the junior elite class, and this year had been granted direct admission to Duel Academy's Senior Division.
The family had trained him as a dueling prodigy from a young age. One brother was groomed for business, another for politics, and Chazz was meant to become King of Duels—the future pillar of the Princeton Group.
It might sound silly compared to his brothers' paths, but looking at Kaiba Seto, it was clear that being a top duelist was more promising than business or politics.
So, Chazz Princeton had entered all kinds of tournaments and won countless trophies.
This Moonlight Cup was his final test before starting at Duel Academy's Senior Division.
His brothers' instructions were clear: he was here to win, and anything less than first place was meaningless.
But this time, even Chazz felt some pressure.
Because among the competitors was Rex Raptor—a legendary national runner-up who had dueled the likes of Joey Wheeler!
Could he beat such a legend?
Chazz fidgeted, lost in thought.
"But I haven't heard of Princeton's Top 8 opponent—some Fujiki Kira. Is he a newbie?"
"Hm?"
Chazz snapped out of it and checked his opponent's info.
[Name: Fujiki Kira]
[Duelist Rank: 1 Star]
One star?
He wondered if he'd read it wrong.
One star—wasn't that like the king of rookies? How did a guy like this make the Top 8?
[Tournament experience and honors: blank.]
"He's a total nobody. How did someone like that get this far?" Lackey A sneered.
"Maybe just lucky?" Lackey B said.
"Still, luck alone doesn't get you this far. He must have some skill."
And after this tournament, he surely wouldn't stay a one-star.
"Maybe he's a dark horse—a talented first-timer. But up against Princeton, he's toast," Lackey B said.
"True."
Lackey A nodded, then laughed.
"Still, this Kira guy's got it rough, running into Princeton so soon. He'll have to settle for Top 8."
Chazz smiled slightly, trying to look cool, but the smirk and his instinctive lean back betrayed his pride.
He didn't say it, but he agreed—he'd never heard of Fujiki Kira.
Even if he was a dark horse, could a first-timer beat the junior division's No. 1?