"Number 99: Utopia Dragonar's effect—activate!"
Yusaku's voice carried like thunder on the wind.
"During either player's turn, detach 2 Xyz Materials from this card, and you can Special Summon any 'Number' monster from No.1 to No.100 from your Extra Deck, treating it as an Xyz Summon!"
"T-That range is that wide?!" Johannes' pupils shrank hard, the color draining from his face. "From No.1 to No.100—you can summon any 'Number' monster?!"
"Yeah. You heard me right." Yusaku gave a calm nod, then snapped his arm forward, his voice echoing through the arena. "I activate that effect. I detach two materials!"
Number 99: Utopia Dragonar
Xyz Materials: 2 → 0
"Appear—Rank 8! Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo!!"
The instant the words left his mouth, a massive golden bolt—thick enough to split the sky—came crashing down from beyond the ceiling, slamming into the vortex above the Duel Disk.
From inside the vortex came a low, regal laugh—heavy enough to pierce the soul and make everyone present feel their hearts clench.
Then, a colossal throne descended.
Its surface was carved with intricate, ancient patterns that shimmered in dark-gold light, as if forged from countless stars. Upon that throne sat a gigantic lion clad in dark-gold armor, radiating tyrannical majesty.
Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo
Rank 8 / Machine / Xyz / Effect
ATK 3200
"And I Xyz Summoned again—Galaxy Wave's effect activates! You take 500 damage!"
Golden beams tore the air for the fourth time, and Johannes' Life Points dropped again.
Johannes, LP 5500 → 5000
The spectators froze for a beat—then realization hit, and shocked voices erupted one after another.
"Holy—Gimmick Puppet of Leo! And he's still holding Rank-Up-Magic Argent Chaos Force—now I get it!"
"Insane! Once he confirmed there was no interruption, he straight-up gave up building a board and pivoted into the alternate win line—there's no way I'd think of something that clean!"
"Is this how top-tier duelists see the game? That's ridiculous!"
"…"
Johannes' face sank as he stared at the monster on the field. He remembered what it did.
Now he understood why Yusaku hadn't bothered with Forbidden Droplet earlier.
"So it's… Number 88…!"
The commentator's voice shot up, trembling with raw excitement, filling the entire arena.
"Legend says Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo can seize control of a duelist's destiny! When it accumulates three Destiny Counters, it can win the Duel outright! I always thought this card was nothing but a myth—yet today, we're seeing it with our own eyes!"
Then his tone flipped, confusion creeping in.
"B-But… I remember its win condition is extremely harsh. It needs three Destiny Counters, and it can only use its effect once per turn. Right now, it doesn't even have a single Xyz Material. It can't activate anything at all… Th-This shouldn't be possible. There's no way to reach a special victory like this!"
On the field, hearing that, Johannes' taut nerves loosened—just a little. He let out a cold laugh, looking at Yusaku with open mockery.
"He's right. Gimmick Puppet of Leo needs three Destiny Counters to win, and right now it doesn't even have one Xyz Material. At this moment, it's nothing more than a lion with its fangs ripped out!"
Yusaku slowly lifted his gaze. A faint, meaningful curve rose at the corner of his lips—calm, but suffocating.
"Oh? You think I summoned it just to stand here as decoration?"
Johannes' pupils snapped wide, his smile stiffening in place. "Y-You… what are you implying?"
The crowd fell silent, brows knitting as everyone thought the same thing.
Right—there was no way Yusaku brought it out just to have it sit there.
And as they were still trying to figure out his angle, Yusaku's voice rang out across the stadium.
"I activate Rank-Up-Magic Argent Chaos Force!"
In the same moment, he hurled the dark-gold card skyward. It exploded in midair, bursting into a golden radiance too intense to stare at.
The clear sky above the field was swallowed in an instant by pitch-black storm clouds.
They churned like a colossal beast, violet lightning crawling through the depths and detonating with deafening cracks of thunder.
A violent gale surged across the arena, wailing like a chorus of ghosts, whipping Yusaku's sleeves and hair into a fierce frenzy.
Facing the wind, he raised his arm and pointed straight at Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo, his voice carrying absolute dominion through thunder and storm, reaching every ear in the building.
"I overlay my Rank 8 Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo. Using that monster as material, I construct a new Overlay Network!"
"Roar! Surging soul sleeping deep within the Deck—awaken the fury and power that can destroy everything!"
"Chaos Xyz Evolution—descend! Number C88: Gimmick Puppet Disaster Leo!!"
The instant the final syllable fell, the black storm ceiling split open—ripping into a gigantic golden vortex that dwarfed anything before it, like a throne tearing its way down from the sky.
Inside the vortex, the shriek of grinding gears mixed with the roar of erupting energy, shaking the entire arena as if the end of the world had arrived.
Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo became a streak of light and shot into the vortex.
And then—
An oppressive pressure, terrifying beyond words, flooded outward.
It was so heavy it felt physical, slamming into everyone's chest. People couldn't breathe. Some couldn't even move their fingers.
A massive throne descended again.
But unlike before, this one was forged of darker gold metal, bristling with spikes and savage patterns, like it had been welded together from shattered war machines.
Upon it sat a monster far larger than Leo.
Dark-gold armor covered its body, cracked in countless places—each fissure glowing a blood-red light like living veins. Its crimson eyes burned like twin blood moons, brimming with madness and slaughter.
Its mane blazed like golden fire, thrashing violently. And behind it, enormous wings unfurled like ripped pieces of night sky—each beat of them stirring gales strong enough to tear space itself.
Number C88: Gimmick Puppet Disaster Leo
Rank 9 / Machine / Xyz / Effect
ATK 3500
"D-Disaster Leo…?!"
Johannes stared at the field, pupils blown wide, his face drained to bone-white.
He staggered back half a step, trembling as his mind frantically searched for information—
And found nothing.
He had never heard of a Gimmick Puppet monster like this.
The entire audience surged to their feet, jaws hanging open like they'd forgotten how to breathe.
The commentator went rigid. The microphone slipped from his hand and clattered to the floor, but he didn't even notice—his eyes were filled with stunned emptiness.
"T-This monster… since when did the Gimmick Puppet archetype have something like this?! Why have I never even heard of it?!"
Unlike the general audience's blank shock, the player section detonated into chaos—cheers shaking the building, people jumping in place.
"No way, no way, NO WAY!!!"
"Hahaha! It's Disaster Leo! It's over—this is completely over!"
"Cough—hold on, isn't Yusaku supposed to drop that classic line—'Next challenger, step up'? …Wait, never mind, he's still got another Duel after this!"
"You're still thinking about the Egyptian Gods? Be serious—look at that guy, he's not getting a chance to summon anything!"
"…"
On the field, Yusaku spoke again—his tone carrying unquestionable authority.
"I activate Number C88: Gimmick Puppet Disaster Leo's effect! Once per turn, detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; inflict 4000 damage to you at random—as double damage!" (Anime effect!)
"Four thousand… damage?!" Johannes' pupils snapped tight, his face turning deathly pale.
He stumbled backward, shaking like a leaf, his voice filled with raw terror and despair.
"Correct." Yusaku nodded once, then cut his arm downward like a judge delivering sentence. "I detach 1 material!"
Number C88: Gimmick Puppet Disaster Leo
Xyz Materials: 1 → 0
"Endless Plague!!"
Disaster Leo slowly raised its head. Within its blood-red eyes, a terrifying golden glare burst to life.
A dark-gold torrent of energy erupted from its maw—carrying a force that could erase everything. The air along its path burned and warped, twisting under the heat of annihilation.
The beam slammed into Johannes' side of the field and exploded.
"BOOM—!!!"
A pillar of fire shot into the sky. The blinding flash lit the whole arena.
A savage shockwave blasted outward, hurling Johannes back. His body flew in a miserable arc, hit the ground hard, and rolled several times before stopping.
Life Points on the Duel Disk plummeted, then locked onto a cold number.
Johannes, LP 5000 → 1000
Johannes dragged himself up, every bone in his body feeling shattered.
He glared up and roared, voice cracking.
"Dropping 4000 Life Points in one blow… sure, that's impressive. But you're still one step short! Your Extra Deck is basically spent—even if you have something left, you don't have enough material to go any higher!"
He licked the corner of his mouth, forcing a vicious grin. "Next turn is my counterattack! I'll—"
"There is no next turn."
Yusaku's flat voice cut him off—calm, yet suffocating.
Johannes' grin froze. His pupils jumped. "W-What did you say?"
"At the End Phase, if Number C88: Gimmick Puppet Disaster Leo has no Xyz Materials, its controller wins the Duel."
Yusaku's words landed one by one like sledgehammers, smashing into Johannes' heart. (Anime effect.)
"W-What…?!" Johannes' eyes bulged, every last trace of color vanishing from his face.
He staggered back, trembling uncontrollably, his mouth opening and closing—yet no sound came out.
The arena went dead silent.
Then the meaning hit—
And the silence shattered into pure disbelief.
The commentator stood there like a statue, eyes hollow, whispering to himself.
"End Phase… no materials… instant victory… h-how is that even possible…"
"No—!!! That can't be real!!!"
Johannes finally snapped out of it. He threw his head back and screamed, hysterical, voice soaked in rage and despair.
"How can a card have an effect this broken?! This doesn't follow the rules of Dueling! I don't believe it! I refuse to believe it!"
But no matter how hard he screamed—
Rules were rules.
Yusaku raised his arm and pointed to the center of the Duel Disk. His voice was calm, but carried the weight of final judgment, echoing into every corner of the arena.
"End my turn."
"Final Judgment!!"
Disaster Leo rose from its throne.
A brilliance exploded from its crimson eyes—brighter than ever before. Dark-gold aura roared around it, surging violently as its massive wings spread wide, like curtains blotting out the sky.
Golden patterns flared across its body—holy and domineering, radiant with authority. A pair of wings made of pure golden light unfolded behind it, as if woven from starlight itself.
Then it moved.
Step by step, it charged straight at Johannes.
Each footfall made the arena floor tremble, as though the earth itself was bowing to its wrath.
As the colossal monster filled his entire vision, Johannes' face twisted in absolute terror. He tried to step back—tried to run—
But his body wouldn't move, as if nailed in place.
"H-How… is this possible…" he whispered, voice breaking. "I don't believe it… I refuse to believe it… AAAAAAAH—!!!"
His scream was swallowed by golden light.
Johannes, LP 1000 → 0
"Duel over! The winner—Yusaku!!"
The referee's voice rang out, shaking slightly.
For half a heartbeat, there was stunned silence—
Then the entire stadium erupted into a roar so loud it felt like it could tear the roof off.
(End of Chapter)
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