Chapter 115: The Goddess of Fortune is Smiling
Ending his turn, Ptah outwardly wore a furious expression for failing to finish off Joey, but inwardly, he was sneering.
'One of my Set Cards in the Back Row is the Trap Hole I just placed. As long as a Monster with 1000 or more Attack Points is Summoned, it will instantly fall into my Trap and be Destroyed.'
'And my other card, Substitute of Darkness, protects my Monster from being Destroyed by cards like Time Wizard or Lightning Vortex. My Monster is now invincible!'
As for Sasuke Samurai? A Monster with a mere 500 Attack Points wasn't even worth his concern.
Joey, unaware of Ptah's thoughts at that moment, placed his fingers on his Deck, hesitating.
He had already exhausted all his available resources. Both his Back Row and his Hand were empty, and the only Monster left on his Field was Sasuke Samurai, with just 500 Attack Points.
'Is my journey in the Duelist Kingdom... going to end here?'
Joey racked his brains but couldn't think of any way to defeat Ptah's Sealed Beast. His fingers, resting on his Deck, couldn't help but tremble, delaying his Draw.
If he couldn't defeat Ptah, he wouldn't be able to continue in the Top 8 Match. If he was out of the Top 8 Qualifier, he wouldn't win the Duelist Kingdom's Prize Money, and Serenity Wheeler wouldn't be able to afford her surgery.
The thought of his sister losing her sight forever struck fear into the heart of the usually bold Joey.
That was the one thing he absolutely couldn't let happen.
"My Turn, Draw!" Joey drew a Card with great vigor. He looked at it; it was Angel's Dice, the counterpart to the Skull Dice he had used earlier. On the Card's art, Joey, in a daze, saw the angel's face transform into that of his sister—Serenity Wheeler.
'I want to see you, big brother~'
His sister's words seemed to echo right in his ear. Joey's head shot up, and he looked at Ptah Garlem across the Field. "Hey, you, Ptah Garlem! Sorry to keep you waiting!"
"Now, I'm going to take you down!"
Ptah scoffed disdainfully. "Heh, are you going to use that Fodder Monster again? It's useless! No matter what Card you've drawn, you can't defeat my Sealed Beast!"
But Joey didn't answer Ptah. Instead, he looked at the Angel's Dice in his Hand and said to himself, "I have a sister. I might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, and I can be reckless, but she... she's always looked at me like I'm a hero."
"She has an eye condition that requires surgery, but my family doesn't have the money. The Prize Money from Duelist Kingdom is our last and only hope."
"What are you trying to say?" Ptah's eyes narrowed.
Joey smiled, playing the Angel's Dice from his Hand. "My sister, she needs me. She needs a hero to help her."
"So, how could a hero run away from a fight?"
"I Activate the Spell Card, Angel's Dice!"
Watching a chibi-style angel holding a Dice appear on the Field, Joey's Mind was flooded with thoughts.
His parents were divorced, the root cause being his father's alcoholism, gambling addiction, and domestic abuse, which led to conflict between them. Because of this, he had disliked gambling since he was a child, as it always reminded him of his father, who was like a savage demon when drunk.
If he could, he would rather not use these Gambling Cards in his Deck. Due to their high-risk, high-reward nature, Gambling Cards were among the cheapest on the market, and Joey only used them because he was short on cash.
'I hate my old man so much, yet here I am, entrusting the outcome of this match to the fickle fate of a dice roll. How ironic.'
'But, if it's for Serenity Wheeler...'
'Please, Lady Luck, help me defeat the enemy before me!'
"The Effect of Angel's Dice can only be Activated on a Monster with 500 or less Attack Points. That Monster's Attack Points will be multiplied by the result of the Dice roll." The only Monster on Joey's Field was Sasuke Samurai, which perfectly met the conditions for Angel's Dice. "Roll the Dice!"
At his command, the angel tossed the Dice it was holding. It landed in the center of the Field and began to roll.
A 5...
A 3...
A 4...
A 2...
The numbers on the Dice flashed by. Ptah, Joey, and everyone watching the Match stared intently as the Dice began to slow.
The angel didn't have much strength, and the Dice soon came to a stop. It rolled past a 1, making Joey's heart nearly leap out of his chest, and the face that finally landed up on the Dice showed a 6!
"N-No way!"
"The max, a six! Alright!" The moment Joey saw the final result, he was so happy he almost jumped for joy. "Because of the Effect, Sasuke Samurai's Attack Points will increase!"
"500 points will be multiplied by 6, making it 3000 points!"
"Attack Sealed Beast - Baolong, Sasuke Samurai!"
"Swift Draw!"
Empowered by the angel's strength, the weak Sasuke Samurai erupted with astonishing power. With a flash of its drawn blade, it vanished from its spot.
By the time their eyes caught it again, it had already appeared behind Sealed Beast - Baolong, slowly sheathing its katana.
"So slow," the samurai uttered coolly in English as its katana slid perfectly back into its sheath. A massive gash suddenly appeared across the tough body of Sealed Beast - Baolong, slicing it cleanly in two from head to tail.
"Even though Kaiba treats him as a Common Bone, he worked hard and shone with a light equal to Blue-Eyes. Just as I thought, Joey, like Red-Eyes Black Dragon, is full of possibilities," Chumley said from the Audience Seating, a sincere smile on his face.
[Ptah: 300 LP -> 0]
"I declare the winner of the first Top 8 Qualifier Match is Joey Wheeler!" As soon as Ptah Garlem's Life Points hit zero, Croquet appeared on time beside the Duel Arena and announced the result of the Match. "Although the Top 8 matches will eliminate contestants, unlike the Duelist Kingdom qualifiers, losers may still remain in the castle to watch the subsequent—"
"That won't be necessary!" It was the loser of the Match, Ptah, who interrupted Croquet.
He gripped the rails on both sides of the Duel Arena, his eyes bloodshot as he stared daggers at Joey. "I'll remember you, Joey Wheeler. Cherish the victory you stole from me, because one day, I'll take it back!"
With that, he didn't wait for the automatic elevator behind him to extend. He jumped directly from the Duel Arena, ran into the corridor, and disappeared. In the Audience Seating, Ptah Garlem's secretary saw this and quickly got up from her seat, hurrying off to find her young master.
However, Ptah was ultimately the loser. Everyone's attention was now focused on Joey.
Having won the match, he let out a deep breath, as if a great weight had been lifted. Turning back to look at his friends in the Audience Seating, he broke into a smile. "Hahaha, I told ya, didn't I? The great Joey was gonna be the winner!"
"Don't get too cocky, Joey," Tristan replied, then said with a smile, "Congratulations."
"Congrats," Téa also said, smiling and clapping.
Yugi: "Congratulations, Joey."
Bakura: "Joey, congratulations."
"Congratulations, Joey," Chumley said, also smiling and applauding.
But just as he was about to say more, he suddenly felt an uncomfortable gaze upon him.
Turning his head, he saw that person called Camula looking in his direction, still wearing that same inscrutable smile.
(end of chapter)