Wanna Duel? I've Got the Pharaoh's Deck! [7]

“What?!”

Hearing Yuuhi describe the card’s effect, Mai didn’t even have time to react before—

“Wait, what?! That effect’s insane!”

“Is he serious? That can’t be real, right?!”

Shock, disbelief, outrage, suspicion—like a stone dropped into a still lake, the ripple of voices burst from the crowd with force.

And honestly? Their reactions were fair.

This effect—if you weren’t blind or brain-dead—was clearly beyond broken.

Sure, you had to shuffle all your cards back into the Deck, but drawing five cards afterward more than made up for it. At worst, it reset the duel. At best, it was pure profit.

So naturally, Yuuhi had expected the backlash.

After all, he had nearly fallen out of his chair when he first checked his Deck and saw what [Monster Reincarnation] had become.

It wasn’t the OCG version—no, this was the rare, fleeting anime version of [Monster Reincarnation] that had only ever appeared in the show.

Apparently, whatever mysterious force had brought him into this world had also transformed his cards. Not only was their physical quality absurdly high, but now [Monster Reincarnation] had turned into a full-blown anime-tier cheat card.

And it wasn’t just this one.

Several other cards in his Deck had undergone similar changes—like [Soul Rope] and [King’s Knight[, which had both behaved like their original series versions rather than their OCG counterparts.

He just hadn’t had a chance to show that side of them yet.

To be honest, Yuuhi had worried whether these modified cards would even be allowed. But since Hoshino Mai had already confirmed that cards with altered effects could still be used, he’d chosen to trust her—and trust the Duel Disk’s system.

And sure enough, it hadn’t triggered any errors or alarms.

So no matter how loudly the audience reacted, everything he was doing was valid.

“I see… so that’s what the card does,” Mai murmured, recovering from her surprise. “No wonder you pinned all your hopes on it.”

Then, turning to Yuuhi with a calm expression, she added, “Still… it’s a gamble, isn’t it? If the cards you draw aren’t playable, your turn’s basically over. And you’ve already used your normal summon this turn.”

Unlike Special Summons, which could be done multiple times with the right effects, Duelists were allowed only one Normal Summon per turn unless something said otherwise.

And from what she’d seen of Yuuhi’s Deck so far, she didn’t think it was some kind of combo-heavy, summon-spamming archetype.

“That’s fine. I’m betting everything on this card’s potential. I return my three monsters to the Deck, then—draw!”

Yuuhi showed no hesitation.

At his command, [King’s Knight], [Jack’s Knight], and the freshly summoned [Breaker the Magical Warrior] turned into light and dissolved, returning to his Deck.

The Duel Disk auto-shuffled, and Yuuhi took a deep breath.

Then—he drew five cards.

The fate of the duel now rested entirely on these five.

Even though he’d braced himself mentally, even though he believed his luck wasn’t too bad, Yuuhi still felt his heart race.

Maybe it was the fact that this was his first real holographic duel—it reminded him of his first time ever playing, when he’d felt this exact kind of pressure and excitement.

And just like back then, when his cards had responded at his most desperate moment—that surge of emotion rose again now, etched deep into memory, never forgotten.

And now… it returned.

They’re here.

He flicked his thumb and index finger.

The cards spread before him—each one lit with potential.

The moment he saw them, it was like a bolt of lightning cracked through his mind.

The pieces connected.

A clear path revealed itself.

This will work.

I can make it work.

“Let’s go, Miss Mai!”

Yuuhi looked up, calling out.

Mai smiled. “Whenever you’re ready. I’m good to go, Yuuhi-kun—bring it on.”

“I activate the Spell Card—[Monster Reborn]! I target one monster in either Graveyard and Special Summon it. I revive [Witch of the Black Forest]!”

A glowing green cross rose from the field.

The three-eyed witch appeared in silence, arms folded across her chest, eyes closed as if offering a solemn prayer.

“Next, I activate the Quick-Play Spell—[Magical Dimension]!”

Following immediately behind [Monster Reborn], Yuuhi played another card.

“If I control a Spellcaster monster, I can target it, Tribute it, and Special Summon another Spellcaster from my hand. I Tribute [Witch of the Black Forest] and summon—”

“[Dark Magician]!!”

[Dark Magician]
Level 7 / DARK / Spellcaster
ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2100

[Witch of the Black Forest] vanished into swirling energy, transformed into pure, dark magic. A pitch-black magic circle unfolded across the field, spinning in place.

From its center, a man in violet robes and a cold, regal expression emerged, emerald staff in hand, rising into the air like a silent guardian of the arcane.

“[Dark Magician]?”

Mai’s expression sharpened.

She could feel it—that card wasn’t just any boss monster. “So this is your ace, Yuuhi-kun?”

He nodded. “Yeah. This is the soul of my deck.”

The heart—and the key to turning things around.

“[Magical Dimension] has one more effect. After Special Summoning, I can destroy one monster on the field. This doesn’t target. I destroy—[Harpie’s Pet Phantasmal Dragon]!”

“Huh?!”

Mai’s eyes widened. She looked toward her Xyz monster—just in time to see a coffin seal shut around it.

With a thunderous blast, the dragon was obliterated on the spot, shattering into fragments midair.

“With [Phantasmal Dragon] gone, my monsters are free to attack your Harpies again.”

“…Impressive,” Mai admitted, smiling. “To think you actually turned things around like that…”

Her ace hadn’t even survived a full turn.

Which made this duel… far from over.

“No. It’s already over, Miss Mai.”

Yuuhi raised another card between his fingers.

“Next, I activate [Witch of the Black Forest]’s effect. When she’s sent from the field to the GY, I can add a monster with 1500 DEF or less from my Deck to my hand. I choose—[Curse of Dragon]. And now, I activate the Spell Card—[Polymerization]!”

“What?! Fusion?!”

Mai’s eyes widened as a familiar card lit up on Yuuhi’s field.

It wasn’t the presence of [Polymerization] itself that startled her—but the fact Yuuhi was using it.

She hadn’t sensed any hint of Fusion in his deck until now.

“I fuse the two monsters in my hand—[Curse of Dragon] and [Gaia the Fierce Knight]! Fusion Summon!”

“[Gaia the Dragon Champion]!!”

[Gaia the Dragon Champion]
Level 7 / WIND / Dragon / Fusion
ATK: 2600 / DEF: 2100

A burst of energy unlike any seen before exploded across the field—not the swirling Xyz vortex, but the arcing spiral of classic Fusion.

The two monsters materialized briefly—then merged into one.

In their place stood a lone rider in skeletal armor, dual spears in hand, mounted on the back of the writhing, winged [Curse of Dragon].

The final piece was in place.

“I enter the Battle Phase.”

Without delay, Yuuhi’s voice rang out with clarity and strength, snapping Mai back to attention.

“Looks like… I really lost control of the board, huh.”

But she had no counter left.

“I attack [Harpie Lady 1] with [Gaia the Dragon Champion]!”

The cursed dragon beat its wings, diving toward its prey. [Harpie Lady 1] tried to flee, but before she could react, the rider drove his lance through her chest.

She vanished with a shriek—shattered into shards of light.

—[Harpie Lady 1] is destroyed.

[Mai LP: 3500 → 2500]

Last turn, Mai had summoned both [Phantasmal Dragon] and [Harpie Lady 1]. Now, both were gone.

Her field was empty.

Only one thing remained.

“Go, [Dark Magician]—direct attack!”

The mage of legends raised his staff, pointing it at the defenseless opponent.

Dark energy crackled at its tip before erupting into a roaring wave of arcane lightning.

“Dark Magic Attack!!”

“Aaaaahhhhhhhhh!!”

[Mai LP: 2500 → 0]

Exact damage. Just enough.

As the afternoon sun beamed down and the crowd held its breath, Yuuhi’s very first duel came to a triumphant end.

From the card case tucked in his jacket pocket, a faint glimmer of light pulsed—flashing softly, flickering like a heartbeat.

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This is a fan translation of 打牌吗？ 我王样卡组！by 夏日戏言 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!