A red D-Wheel tore through the white desert sand, leaving a long trail behind it as Yumi rode through the Spirit World.
His golden eyes remained fixed on the road ahead, but his mind was somewhere else entirely as he tried to figure out what he could do to help his hopeless academy schoolmates.
Honestly, if they hadn't started fighting among themselves, he probably wouldn't have decided to leave the academy just to clear his head and think of a solution.
It was frustrating.
He was literally risking his life to protect everyone, yet the first thing some of them decided to do when their food started running low wasn't to work together or look for a way to survive.
They started fighting each other over scraps of food.
Seriously, what was the point of him trying so hard to protect them if the first thing they did was turn against one another?
"If you people are just going to fight among yourselves, then why am I even bothering to protect you...?" Yumi muttered, his hands tightening slightly around the D-Wheel's controls.
If it weren't for people like Kazuko, Celina, Rio, Jaden, and the other people he actually cared about, Yumi probably wouldn't have put nearly as much effort into protecting everyone else.
They were the reason he was still willing to play hero.
"Now, what am I supposed to do about the food?"
Yumi sighed.
He could travel across dimensions and even through time now, so technically, getting supplies shouldn't have been impossible.
But that wasn't a realistic solution.
He could only carry so much food back with him, and revealing that he possessed abilities like that would create far more problems than it solved.
Besides, whoever had transported the academy into the Spirit World was still out there.
Until that big lobster was dealt with, simply returning everyone to the human world wouldn't solve anything. There was nothing stopping their enemy from dragging the academy back into another Spirit World the moment they returned.
If they wanted to go back, they had to transport the entire academy along with everyone too. At least by then he won't have to worry too much about the others and could try to come up with a counter.
Yumi let out another tired sigh as the cold night wind hit his face.
The long scarf he had taken from Roze fluttered wildly behind him as his D-Wheel continued racing across the endless white desert.
He was still lost in thought when another sound reached his ears. The roar of a motorcycle. Yumi's golden eyes shifted toward his left.
A humanoid demon with dark blue skin, two horns, and a skull-like mask was riding alongside him on a bizarre bone motorcycle.
Yumi stared at the monster for a moment.
He didn't recognize it.
The Duel Spirit, however, seemed perfectly confident. It grinned beneath its skull mask before raising its Duel Disk toward him.
Apparently, it wanted a duel.
Yumi blinked. Then he reached down and inserted a deck into his D-Wheel's Duel Disk before turning his attention toward the strange Duel Spirit.
"Fine. Let's duel."
The two motorcycles raced alongside each other as their Duel Disks activated.
"DUEL!"
[Yumi, LP 4000]
[Dokurorider, LP 4000]
"My turn. Draw!"
Dokurorider drew his card, glancing down at it before a wide grin appeared beneath his skull mask.
"I activate Skull Conductor from my hand!"
The monster card appeared between his fingers before he sent it straight to the Graveyard.
"By sending Skull Conductor from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon two Zombie monsters from my hand as long as their combined ATK is exactly 2000!"
Two cards appeared in his hand.
"I Special Summon Return Zombie and Reborn Zombie!"
Dark energy gathered around Dokurorider's D-Wheel as two figures emerged from the black mist.
The first was a hulking undead creature wearing a tattered black hood, its rotting body barely visible beneath the cloth. Beside it appeared a humanoid skeleton with long, flowing gray hair, its empty eye sockets glowing faintly as it looked toward Yumi.
[Return Zombie, 1000 ATK]
[Reborn Zombie, 1000 ATK]
The two Zombies rode alongside Dokurorider for a moment before fading into the Spirit World's strange battlefield, their bodies moving with the same unnatural rhythm as the monster controlling them.
Dokurorider raised his hand.
"Now I tribute my two monsters to Normal Summon..."
The two Zombies were surrounded by a dark vortex.
"...Invader of Darkness!"
The vortex exploded outward.
A tall, muscular monster emerged from the darkness, its body almost completely concealed beneath a massive black cloak. The creature's presence alone seemed to make the surrounding air heavier.
[Invader of Darkness, 2900 ATK]
Dokurorider's grin widened.
"I set one card face-down. Turn end."
Dokurorider placed a card onto his Duel Disk.
A large face-down card materialized behind Invader of Darkness, remaining in place as the two D-Wheels continued racing across the desert.
The white sand gradually gave way to darker soil beneath their tires. The endless desert was finally coming to an end.
Trees stretched high into the night sky, their branches twisting together into a thick canopy that blocked out most of the moonlight. Strange plants grew between the roots, some of them glowing faintly in the darkness.
The two Duelists didn't slow down. Their D-Wheels charged directly into the forest.
Branches snapped as they passed, leaves scattered into the air, and the sound of their engines echoed between the trees.
"Draw!"
Yumi drew his card as the two D-Wheels continued racing through the forest, their engines roaring loudly enough to scare away any smaller Duel Spirits hiding among the trees.
The narrow path ahead was filled with roots and uneven patches of dirt, but Yumi handled his D-Wheel without much difficulty, weaving around the trees while keeping his attention on the Duel Disk mounted beside him.
He glanced at the card he had drawn.
"Spell Card, Angel Baton! I draw two cards, then discard one card."
His Duel Disk flashed as two cards were drawn from his deck. Yumi quickly looked through them before sending one into his Graveyard.
"Now, I'll Normal Summon Artillery Catapult Turtle!"
A massive green-armored turtle appeared beside his D-Wheel, floating beside the speeding motorcycle. Its shell was fitted with a huge cannon, which rotated slightly as the turtle looked toward Dokurorider.
[Artillery Catapult Turtle, 1000 ATK]
"I activate Artillery Catapult Turtle's effect! By Tributing one monster, I can Special Summon a Gaia the Fierce Knight monster or a Level 5 Dragon monster from my hand or Deck."
The massive turtle disappeared in a burst of light.
"Come forth, Curse of Dragon, the Cursed Dragon!"
A loud roar shook the surrounding forest.
A massive yellow-scaled dragon suddenly appeared beside Yumi, its long body twisting through the air as its enormous wings spread wide. Its crimson eyes immediately locked onto Dokurorider, who instinctively leaned away from the dragon as it flew beside the two D-Wheels.
[Curse of Dragon, the Cursed Dragon, 2000 ATK]
However, Dokurorider's attention wasn't actually focused on the dragon.
It was focused on the two girls sitting behind Yumi.
Raye and Roze had somehow managed to climb onto the back of Yumi's D-Wheel during the duel, both of them holding onto him as the motorcycle raced through the forest.
Dokurorider: "!!?"
Dokurorider's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
His skeletal jaw opened in disbelief.
"You-!"
He accidentally bit his own tongue.
Damn it!
They were having a man-to-man duel on motorcycles!
A proper, respectable Duel on motorcycles!
And this guy decided to bring two beautiful girls along for the ride!?
Yumi glanced over his shoulder, clearly confused by the undead rider's reaction.
Raye simply wore a smug smile as she leaned slightly closer to Yumi, her pale blonde hair fluttering in the wind. Roze, meanwhile, seemed completely relaxed, resting her chin against Raye's shoulder while keeping her hands on Yumi's chest.
The three of them looked completely comfortable.
Dokurorider, on the other hand, looked like he was questioning every decision that had led him to this moment.
"What kind of unfair advantage is that!?" he shouted.
Yumi decided to ignore the strange reaction and continued with his turn.
"Curse of Dragon's effect! When it's Summoned, I can add a Spell or Trap Card from my Deck that mentions Gaia the Fierce Knight to my hand."
His Deck shuffled itself, and a card was ejected from it. Yumi caught the card without looking.
"Continuous Spell, Spiral Spear Strike!"
The card appeared on his Duel Disk, its effect spreading across the battlefield as a magical aura surrounded his monsters.
Yumi then leaned forward slightly and twisted the handle of his D-Wheel. The engine roared, and his motorcycle accelerated.
Raye tightened her grip around him while Roze calmly held on as the three of them raced toward the edge of the forest.
Several trees rushed toward them. Yumi swerved left; a tree passed only inches from his shoulder. Another one appeared ahead. He leaned the D-Wheel to the right, sliding around it before accelerating again.
Dokurorider followed behind, his bone motorcycle bouncing slightly over the uneven ground.
The two motorcycles finally burst out of the forest.
The trees disappeared behind them, replaced by a massive grassy plain stretching beneath the night sky. The open terrain gave both riders plenty of room to maneuver, and the wind immediately picked up as their D-Wheels accelerated across the grass.
Yumi glanced at his hand. "Spell Card, Spiral Fusion!"
A card appeared on his Duel Disk.
"I fuse Gaia the Fierce Knight in my hand with Curse of Dragon, the Cursed Dragon on my field!"
A warrior appeared beside Yumi. Gaia the Fierce Knight wore dark blue armor and carried a pair of red lances, his massive horse charging alongside the speeding D-Wheel.
The Curse of Dragon roared as it flew into the air.
A massive fusion vortex appeared between them.
Gaia and Curse of Dragon leaped into the vortex, their bodies breaking apart into streams of light before merging together.
"Fusion Summon!"
The vortex exploded.
"Gaia the Dragon Champion!"
Gaia emerged from the other side, now riding directly on top of the Cursed Dragon. The dragon spread its wings as the fusion monster raised his red lance toward the sky.
[Gaia the Dragon Champion, 2600 ATK]
"Since I Special Summoned Gaia the Dragon Champion using Spiral Fusion, his ATK is doubled!"
Yumi waved his hand forward. A powerful aura surrounded Gaia.
[Gaia the Dragon Champion, 2600 -> 5200 ATK]
Dokurorider's jaw dropped.
"Five thousand two hundred!?"
Yumi didn't even bother answering.
"Battle!"
Gaia lowered his lance.
"Gaia, attack Invader of Darkness!"
The dragon beneath him spread its wings and shot forward.
"Spiral Spear Strike!"
Gaia and the dragon soared across the field before diving toward the dark fiend. The tip of his crimson lance was aimed directly at Invader of Darkness.
Dokurorider's expression changed.
"Trap Card, open!" His face-down card flipped upward. "Soul Anchor!"
A strange spiritual anchor suddenly erupted from Invader of Darkness's back.
Gaia's lance pierced straight through the fiend, but instead of being destroyed, the monster was violently pulled backward as the spiritual anchor dug into the ground.
Pieces of its dark flesh were torn apart by the impact, only for the damaged body to rapidly regenerate. The torn pieces of flesh scattered across the grass before crawling back toward the monster.
Yumi's eyes widened slightly. Then an idea came to him.
"Soul Anchor can be equipped to Invader of Darkness, and while it's equipped, he cannot be destroyed by battle!"
"But you still take battle damage." Yumi said simply.
The force of the attack struck Dokurorider directly. His entire body jerked backward, and his bone motorcycle began swerving wildly across the grass.
He desperately grabbed the handlebars and tried to regain control. His motorcycle nearly flipped over before he managed to straighten it out.
[Dokurorider, LP 4000 -> 1700]
Yumi watched him recover before continuing.
"Since I inflicted battle damage with Spiral Spear Strike's effect, I draw two cards, then discard one."
The spell glowed; he drew two cards and quickly looked through them before sending one to the Graveyard.
Dokurorider gritted his teeth. "Such power..."
Yumi looked at the monster still standing on his opponent's field.
"Gaia." Gaia turned his head toward him. "Attack Invader of Darkness again."
Dokurorider's eyes widened.
"Again!?"
His entire skeletal face twisted in disbelief.
Impossible! Gaia the Dragon Champion is a Normal Fusion Monster! It doesn't have any effect! How can it attack twice in one turn!?
Ref! This man cheated!
This was the other effect from Spiral Fusion, allowing the fusion monster to attack twice, but Yumi didn't bother to explain it.
"Spiral Spear Strike!"
Gaia and his dragon charged across the field, the dragon's wings beating powerfully as they closed the distance.
Gaia thrust his lance forward. The crimson spear pierced directly through Invader of Darkness for the second time.
The dark fiend withstood the second attack, but its owner couldn't.
[Dokurorider, LP 1700 -> 0]
The impact sent Dokurorider's D-Wheel spinning violently out of control.
"WHAAAAAA!" The undead rider went flying.
His motorcycle crashed into the grass and rolled several times before finally coming to a stop. The weaker spirits quickly took advantage of this moment to close in and devour the undead rider's spirit energy.
Yumi, however, didn't slow down. His red D-Wheel continued forward, the engine roaring as he passed the wreckage without much concern.
Loud footsteps suddenly caught Yumi's attention. He tilted his head slightly and looked toward the source of the noise.
A massive, muscular beast was approaching through the desert. It had four thick legs, pinkish skin, and a body covered in dense purple fur. Every step it took caused the sand beneath its feet to shift.
Yumi narrowed his golden eyes. The large amount of Spirit Energy still lingering from his body had attracted it.
Yumi calmly reached for a card.
"Dragonmaid Sheou."
A burst of light appeared behind him.
A massive dragon with black and white scales emerged from the light, her enormous wings spreading wide as she hovered above the sand. Her presence alone caused the beast to stop in its tracks.
The massive creature slowly looked up. The beast seemed to realize that perhaps it had made a terrible mistake.
The beast immediately started running.
Yumi revved his D-Wheel and quickly turned the handlebars. The red motorcycle skidded across the sand, kicking up a cloud of white dust as Yumi performed a sharp U-turn and began chasing after the fleeing beast.
"Capture it."
Sheou let out a powerful roar. The sound echoed across the grassy field as the enormous dragon spread her wings and shot forward.
The beast glanced over its shoulder. Its eyes widened as Sheou was already above it.
Compared to the enormous dragon, the beast that had seemed so intimidating only moments ago suddenly looked rather small.
Sheou descended and brought one massive claw down. The beast was pinned against the sand before it could even react.
It struggled desperately, pushing against the dragon's claw with all four legs. Sheou didn't even seem to be putting much effort into holding it down.
Yumi brought his D-Wheel to a stop nearby and climbed off. He walked toward the struggling beast, looking down at it.
The beast growled.
Yumi ignored it and pulled another card from his Deck. The Spell activated; a strange aura surrounded the beast's body, binding itself to it.
"With this, you won't be destroyed by battle."
The beast stared at him in confusion. For some reason, Yumi almost felt like it understood what he had just said.
Its expression seemed to say: Why would you tell me that?
Yumi smiled. "I don't want you dying before I get some use out of you."
The beast's expression somehow became even more desperate.
Sheou suddenly began shrinking, her enormous dragon body transforming into her humanoid form. House Dragonmaid landed beside Yumi.
She calmly adjusted her glasses before reaching into her equipment and pulling out a pair of long white gloves.
Yumi glanced at her.
"Don't overdo it."
House Dragonmaid gave him a polite smile.
"I understand, Master."
The beast roared loudly in an attempt to frighten them. House Dragonmaid stared at it for a moment. Then she clenched her fists. The beast's confidence immediately disappeared. A few moments later, the desert was filled with the sounds of a very one-sided struggle.
Yumi, meanwhile, had already pulled out his Deck.
"Let's see..."
He searched through his cards while House Dragonmaid handled the beast.
A moment later, several familiar figures began appearing beside him.
Kitchen Dragonmaid appeared first, followed by Black Luster Soldier, Silent Magician LV8, Patisserie Couverture, and Poissonniere de Nouvelles.
Several minutes later, a large campfire burned beneath the night sky.
The beast, Behemoth the King of All Animals, sat nearby with a miserable expression. Despite its enormous size and frightening appearance, it had completely lost the will to resist.
Furious Max's Curse ensured that it couldn't be destroyed by battle, but that didn't mean it couldn't feel pain or exhaustion. Yumi had no intention of actually killing it. Instead, he had used it as a renewable source of food.
Even by Duel Monster standards, it was difficult to argue that this was particularly humane.
Behemoth let out a quiet, miserable whimper.
A large piece of meat was being cooked over the campfire.
Black Luster Soldier had prepared it with a few precise cuts, while Silent Magician LV8 used her magic to inspect the meat and remove anything that might have been harmful.
Kitchen Dragonmaid handled the cooking while Patisserie Couverture and Poissonniere de Nouvelles helped prepare the seasoning and ingredients.
It was probably one of the strangest cooking teams that had ever existed.
Yumi sat beside the fire, watching the meat slowly cook. He waited a little longer before Kitchen Dragonmaid handed him a cooked piece.
He took a bite, chewing for a moment before swallowing.
"It actually worked."
Yumi took another bite before thinking about it more carefully.
The taste was good, and the meat had enough Spirit Energy to make it feel somewhat filling. His body even seemed to regain some of the energy.
But something was missing.
Yumi examined the meat again.
It wasn't quite like normal food. There was spirit energy inside it, but almost nothing else. It carried no proper nutritional value, nor useful vitamins or minerals.
It could fill his stomach, but that was about it.
Yumi looked toward the large piece of meat cooking over the fire.
"If humans kept eating nothing but Duel Monster Spirit meat, they'd eventually start suffering from malnutrition." Yumi sighed. "This is way more annoying than it should be."
Behemoth gave another miserable whimper from nearby.
Yumi glanced at it, then ignored it, and looked toward the distant horizon.