001 A Long Journey Toward Becoming the "King of Games"

“So… does this mean I’ve transmigrated into the world of the anime called ‘Yu-Gi-Oh!’?”

Seated in a corner of the cruise ship’s grand hall, nibbling on pastries, he gazed absently toward a small group composed of three men and one woman huddled together nearby.

The sole female among them sported short, deep brown hair and wore a yellow-pink jacket, giving her an adorably charming appearance. Of the three men, two were tall—one with chestnut-colored, sharply pointed hair reminiscent of a certain heroine from another set, the other with golden locks and a face radiating youthful fervor and intensity. Their outfits were brown and green respectively, one in a brown coat, the other in a green jacket.

The last member stood out most: a boy whose stature resembled that of an elementary student, yet he was the most distinctive of the four. His hair was a star-shaped mass of black streaked with red, with golden bangs and a lightning-shaped fringe across his forehead. His eyes were a light, crimson purple, and his attire—a deep blue suit, western in style—completed his striking ensemble.

System: [Correct.]

He seemed not to hear the answer. Setting aside his now-empty plate, he brushed aside his jacket with his left hand and reached into an inner pocket with his right, eventually producing something resembling an envelope. Opening it, he tipped out several items, arranging them carefully.

From the white envelope emerged five cards, each bearing a unique illustration, their backs swirling in brown, yellow, and black—a little larger than standard playing cards—and two five-pointed stars made of copper.

The five cards—

The first depicted an island, surrounded on all sides by water, with a castle at its heart.

The second showed a grand white-sailed ship sailing across the sea.

The third was adorned with gold and silver jewelry, coins of gold and silver, and a sword with only its hilt visible.

The fourth, set against a white-dotted blue background, featured a red glove, seemingly for the right hand, surrounded by several copper five-pointed stars.

The final card, aside from seven bold letters at the top reading “Glory of the King’s Left Hand,” was blank.

“…”

He turned the two copper stars between his fingers, silent for a moment before murmuring to himself,

“I’m currently traveling aboard the International Illusions Society’s cruise ship, headed to Pegasus’s island, to participate in the so-called ‘Duelist Kingdom Battle’—which is actually a ‘Kingdom Survival Game,’ isn’t it?”

System: [Correct.]

“…”

He lapsed into silence once more.

Who’d have thought that, as an orphan, he would one day experience the protagonist’s journey from online novels—the legendary transmigration!

Not to a world of immortal cultivation, nor to a realm of martial arts, nor a city of supernatural powers, but to the world of a trading card dueling game he’d played since childhood, and its corresponding anime—‘Yu-Gi-Oh!’

“I’m holding the ‘Duelist Kingdom Invitation’ issued by Pegasus, sitting in the International Illusions Society’s cruise seat—clearly, I am one of the contestants in this ‘Pegasus Duelist Kingdom Tournament’! But where is my deck for the competition?!”

From the moment he regained consciousness in this world, to now, quietly conversing with the system in his corner, he had found nothing among his belongings resembling a tournament deck.

System: [Your tournament deck is placed within the ‘Duel Studio’; please retrieve it yourself.]

Following the system’s instructions, he pulled from his pocket a smartphone utterly out of place for this era. He unlocked it with a practiced fingerprint, finding the usual apps gone, replaced with a single app labeled “DL Duel System.”

He tapped the lone app, logged in, and on the game screen located a futuristic icon labeled “Duel Studio.” Entering, he was greeted by four bold icons: a shadowed avatar for “Characters,” a deck image for “Deck Editor,” icons for monster, spell, and trap cards labeled “Card List,” and a yellow cross and white star for “Skill List.”

He tapped “Characters,” revealing a colored “Unlocked” character image and several grayed-out “Locked” images.

“So, my starting ‘character’ is Judai Yuki from the second generation GX, the protagonist corresponding to this era’s Yugi Mutou?”

Brown-eyed, jellyfish-like hair, a streak of ochre atop his head, black round-neck shirt with a red jacket—yes, the GX protagonist, Judai Yuki.

“Then, I suppose my tournament deck must be ‘Elemental Heroes’…”

With this guess in mind, he exited the “Characters” tab and entered the “Deck Editor,” tapping the sole deck icon. Instantly, a spread of anime-styled duel monster cards appeared.

“As expected!”

The first card in his main deck was the balanced and formidable “Elemental Hero Sparkman,” dubbed by fans as one of the ‘Fantastic Four’ of the Elemental Hero series. Next was the high-defense “Elemental Hero Clayman,” and the fusion materials for Judai’s signature monster from early GX episodes, “Elemental Hero Flame Wingman”—Avian and Burstinatrix.

Four monsters, two of each, occupying a quarter of the forty-card deck. The remaining monster cards included two “Support Dogs”—support cards for the Elemental Heroes—while the rest were unrelated singles.

The main deck was forty cards; aside from the monsters, the rest were spell and trap cards. Among these, the first he saw were the core spell cards “Fusion” and “Fusion Recovery”—one to quickly summon powerful fusion monsters, the other to recycle graveyard resources. Both were essential.

He then checked the “Extra Deck” below. (Though fusion monsters at this point were custom-made, the protagonist here had a dedicated extra deck.)

“Thank goodness! If I didn’t have these, I could just forfeit right now!”

Seeing those extra deck cards, his heart eased. Playing Elemental Heroes without fusion monsters would be pointless.

“With cards like these, at the Duelist Kingdom timeline in Yu-Gi-Oh! DM, I’d be practically invincible!” (Note)

The thought stirred excitement—at this period, most duelists simply summoned high-level, high-attack monsters. Those who could skillfully use a few spell or trap cards were already extraordinary!

But he? He had crossed over from the era where Yu-Gi-Oh! had evolved to “Link Summoning”!

Granted, after the trilogy (DM, GX, 5D’s), he’d never fully watched the subsequent anime produced by Studio K, nor mastered the newer summoning methods beyond the four main ones (Tribute, Ritual, Fusion, Synchro).

Of course, he knew much, but at this point in time, most of his knowledge couldn’t be put to use. For example, the third part of the trilogy—5D’s, themed around Synchro Summoning—he couldn’t showcase such advanced techniques yet.

It wasn’t “impossible,” but rather, “shouldn’t be done.” Why?

Because—

System: [Reminder: At this era, summoning methods are limited to ‘Normal Summon,’ ‘Ritual Summon,’ and ‘Fusion Summon.’ Advanced summoning like Synchro is possible, but would attract the attention of the world’s will. At that point, even the system ‘cannot guarantee’ your safety.]

“…”

He wouldn’t attempt it anyway. If he used Synchro or other advanced methods, what would be the point of this transmigration? It would be like starting a simulation game with a max-level character—where’s the fun if there’s no growth?

“So, system, how do I get more Hero series cards? I recall that at this point, the president already had the idea of fusing the three Blue-Eyes, right?”

Looking at the system app, so similar to the mobile game ‘Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links,’ and thinking of the strongest fusion beast in the kingdom, he asked urgently.

System: [Main Mission 1 for ‘Duelist Kingdom’ issued: Reach the semifinals of the Duelist Kingdom tournament. Rewards: 500 gems, 50,000 coins, 50 R jewels, 50 all-attribute jewels, 1 R ticket.]

“I see…”

He nodded in understanding, then unlocked his phone again, accessed the app, tapped his avatar for “Personal Info,” and a pale blue projection appeared from the screen—visible only to him, futuristic and sleek.

[Personal Information]

Host: Yuyi (meaning ‘playing games or engaging in entertainment’)
Age: 16
Height: 1.75m
Weight: 55kg
Appearance: 96
Luck: 96
Deck: Elemental Hero Standard Edition
(Note: An ordinary duelist, as unremarkable as a typical Japanese high school student, striving to become a professional duelist!)