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The Chapter get Retranslated
"It's finally begun! The highly anticipated hero showdown!"
"Prodigy Jaden Yuki, against the long-renowned dueling genius, Aster Phoenix!"
"Both players are users of [HERO] decks! Who will claim victory in this HERO vs. HERO duel?!"
"Who will ultimately reach the end of this final match?!"
"Next, please welcome our two players!"
The host shouted with arms raised.
Amidst thunderous cheers,
The elevator slowly rose to the center of the dueling arena.
At that moment, all cameras in the stadium focused on Jaden Yuki and Aster's faces.
The appearance of these two youths, one in white and one in red, instantly thrilled everyone.
"There he is! Jaden Yuki!"
"Wow! It's been so long, and Jaden-kun is still so handsome!"
"That player named Aster is also super handsome, Kyaaahhh!"
Inside the stadium, numerous girls watching the match excitedly shrieked.
"Are these the two strongest HERO deck users in the world today?"
"Amazing, just watching them meet makes my blood boil!"
"Hiss, I, I want to be a hero too! Give me Jaden Yuki's Elemental HERO Stratos, and I'll be a hero too!"
The boys' focus was completely opposite to the girls',
But they were all equally enthusiastic and passionate.
"Jaden Yuki."
Alexis's expression was serious as she watched the familiar profile on the screen, her fists unconsciously clenched.
Since you've already made it this far, you must win, Jaden Yuki!
Seeing Alexis's tense expression,
Junko and Momoe exchanged glances, revealing an understanding look.
Turns out.
Even the coldest ice lotus would slowly melt after a long time of following the sun's path.
"Has it started already?"
Top floor of KaibaCorp.
In the CEO's office.
Seto Kaiba stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at Domino City sparkling under the night sky, arms crossed, and spoke coldly.
"Well, Jaden boy's momentum is quite good."
Pegasus stood not far behind him, under the giant screen, watching the live broadcast.
"However, Aster Phoenix is no ordinary player either."
Hearing Pegasus's evaluation,
Seto Kaiba sneered and turned his head,
"I heard that Aster Phoenix is the duelist you consider second only to Katsuya Jonouchi?"
"Hmm... that was before I met Jaden boy."
Pegasus didn't deny his past words.
Aster Phoenix.
He was indeed the fourth strongest duelist he knew, after Yugi, Kaiba, and Katsuya Jonouchi.
But Jaden Yuki's appearance began to break that ranking.
"Perhaps Jaden boy's position will be before yours, or even Yugi boy's." Pegasus said, hands behind his back, looking at Seto Kaiba.
"Are you saying his strength is above mine?"
Seto Kaiba's expression froze, seemingly somewhat disbelieving.
"Is there anything impossible about it?" Pegasus smiled faintly.
"Jaden boy is only thirteen years old now; no one can say how much he will grow in the future."
"I believe."
"One day, he will surpass all previous duelists, stand at the pinnacle of this world, and become the new king."
Standing at the pinnacle of the world...
Becoming the new king...
The image of that person flashed through Seto Kaiba's mind.
Pegasus.
Are you trying to say,
Jaden Yuki is a duelist who can even surpass that person?
"...Absurd."
After a long silence, Seto Kaiba painstakingly squeezed out two words from between his teeth.
It was clear that he, too, was somewhat swayed.
Because he could see in Jaden Yuki the shadow of that person.
It was the shadow of the King.
The unique figure of the King.
"Jaden Yuki."
Looking at the red-clad youth standing before him.
Complex emotions flickered in Aster's eyes.
He wanted to win.
He wanted to prove to the world that heroes burdened by fate were the strongest heroes.
But he didn't know why.
The moment his gaze met Jaden Yuki's,
Aster's heart felt pressure.
After his father's death, he followed DD into the professional arena.
Since his first duel, Aster had met countless opponents.
Some were incredibly powerful, to the point of being despair-inducing.
However, facing them, Aster's heart always remained calm.
Because he believed in the heroes his father left him, and he believed in destiny.
But now...
Looking at the deck silently sleeping in his duel disk,
Aster realized the source of the pressure in his heart.
Confidence.
His confidence was being suppressed by the person in front of him.
"Hoo..."
Taking a deep breath,
Aster lifted his head and deployed the duel disk on his left arm.
Jaden Yuki followed suit, deploying his duel disk.
The surrounding visuals rippled.
All dueling facilities on the field activated at this moment.
"It's started!"
"The battle between two [HEROes]!"
The host shouted loudly.
"DUEL!"
[Jaden Yuki: LP4000]
[Aster Phoenix: LP4000]
"According to the coin toss, Jaden Yuki will go first!"
The host immediately announced upon seeing the prompt on the electronic screen.
"My turn."
Jaden Yuki spread out the five cards in his hand.
But his gaze rested on Aster's serious, almost grim, face.
"Aster, are you alright? You look a bit off."
Jaden Yuki didn't want to take advantage of the situation.
For him, winning was certainly necessary.
But as a duelist, to win just for the sake of winning would be too boring.
A duelist's goal is to enjoy the process of victory.
Not just the result of victory.
"Hmph... just make your move."
Aster frowned, a hint of anger in his eyes.
This pitying tone...
Jaden Yuki, do you really think you're invincible?
"Glad you're okay then."
Jaden Yuki didn't realize the internal pressure Aster was feeling.
For Jaden Yuki, this battle was just another normal game for him to acquire the "Destiny HEROes."
But for Aster,
This was the fate he carried.
This was the pressure of "Destiny."
"I activate the effect of [Phantom HERO - Malicious] from my hand."
Jaden Yuki glanced at his hand, immediately thinking of the best opening move.
"By discarding [Phantom HERO - Incremental Man] from my hand to the Graveyard, I Special Summon this card in Defense Position!"
As he spoke,
A summoning circle immediately appeared before Jaden Yuki.
A pink figure leaped from it.
Then, it crouched before Jaden Yuki, arms crossed over its chest, assuming a defensive stance.
[Phantom HERO - Malicious]
[Level: 5]
[ATK: 1600, DEF: 1800]
"Phantom HERO?"
Aster frowned deeply.
"When Malicious is Normal or Special Summoned, I can Set one [Phantom HERO] as a Continuous Trap from my Deck in my Spell & Trap Zone."
"I Set [Phantom HERO - Ray] in my Spell & Trap Zone!"
Jaden Yuki drew a card from his deck and placed it in the Spell & Trap Zone on his duel disk.
A green figure vaguely appeared in front of Jaden Yuki's Spell & Trap Zone, then transformed into a phantom and concealed itself.
"Then, I Set one card, and end my turn."
Setting a card in his Spell & Trap Zone, Jaden Yuki declared the end of his turn.
"A very conservative opening, huh."
Seeing Jaden Yuki's rather unremarkable opening, the students of Duel Academy were somewhat surprised.
Especially Alexis; she seemed a bit astonished that Jaden Yuki could have such a normal opening.
"This, perhaps, is the limit of a hero."
The Headmaster smiled as he looked at the screen, "Although the ability to OTK going second is powerful, going first is always a disadvantage compared to other decks."
"However, with Jaden's character, he will surely compensate for the disadvantages of a HERO deck going first in some way."
That's for sure.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be Jaden Yuki.
The teachers around him gave wry smiles.
"My turn... Draw!"
Aster drew a card from the top of his deck.
In his mind, he was already frantically searching for a countermeasure.
"Jaden Yuki's deck is primarily [HEROes], supplemented by some special [Traps], a specific deck designed to compensate for the HEROes' lack of opening disruption."
"This means that Jaden Yuki's face-down card is very dangerous and could be something that interferes with my plays."
For example, [Mystical Space Typhoon] or [Skill Drain] type cards.
"But..."
"Activate Quick-Play Spell! [Mystical Space Typhoon]!"
"Destroy one Spell/Trap Card on the field!"
Aster looked at Jaden Yuki, revealing the card in his hand.
"Oh, I was hoping to save that for a bit longer."
Jaden Yuki scratched his cheek, and could only immediately flip his face-down card.
"Open face-down! Quick-Play Spell, [Mask Change]!"
"Send one HERO on my field to the Graveyard, and Special Summon one [Masked HERO] with the same Attribute from my Extra Deck!"
Saying this, Jaden Yuki, with a smile, pulled a card from his Extra Deck, holding it between his fingers.
"I'm sure you'll like this HERO, Aster."
"Come forth, [Masked HERO Dark Law]!"
"Masked Hero - Dark Law!"
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