"Who knows… In short, Satellite Area is completely wrecked now."
…
Meanwhile, at the Obelisk Blue dormitory—
"Game! Look, another duelist from Domino City made it onto the list!"
Jounouchi (Joey) leaned in with excitement, his voice loud enough to echo out of the room.
"None of these duelists from Domino are familiar," Jounouchi said, narrowing his eyes.
"It seems like we still don't know enough about this world."
Yugi Mutou blinked thoughtfully, but smiled. Seeing strong duelists from Domino climbing the Duel King Gold List pleased him—it was proof of his hometown's strength.
"Hehe! But you know who I'm really curious about?" Jounouchi smirked.
"You Feng! Where do you think he's ranked?"
"Wanna bet?"
As soon as Honda opened his mouth, the ever-gambling Jounouchi lit up.
"I'll go first! I bet he's at Rank 20!" he declared.
"Hmmm… I'd guess around fifteen," Yugi said after a moment of thought.
"I agree with Yugi," Anzu (Téa) chimed in, nodding.
---
PS: There are still 50,000 words to reach the shelf milestone! Before shelving: 50,000 flowers, 4,000 evaluation votes, 200,000 words! After: 60,000 flowers, 5,000 votes, 300,000 words! Consistency guaranteed! Let's go, brothers—pre-shelf explosion incoming!
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---
Shashima Principal's Office—
"As expected, Domino City and Duel Academy are pulling in an overwhelming number of powerful duelists."
"Almost every single entry on the list these past three days has come from one of those two areas."
"It's clear now: Domino City must become our focus of strategic promotion," said Principal Shashima, hands behind his back as he gazed out the tall windows of his office.
"If Duel City begins again, then surely it'll become the battleground for these two great regions."
"Hmph, the Satellite Area can't even compare—nothing notable," Professor Chronos said with a dismissive snort, hand daintily covering his grin.
"That's not necessarily true," Shashima countered, shaking his head. "Not even half the rankings have been announced."
---
Meanwhile, in the Satellite Area—
Crow Hogan walked into Yusei Fudo's repair garage.
"Yusei! Seems like we made the right decision."
"Today, the Satellite mourns again. Just one name from our area showed up on the list."
Crow shook his head, arms spread wide in disbelief.
"The Duel King Gold List… this is only the beginning."
"Let's go. To Domino City," Yusei said, already strapping on his Duel Disk and helmet as he jumped onto his D-Wheel.
The Duel King Gold List—gleaming in the skies—shone down like the gaze of fate.
"So many powerful duelists... this is getting exciting," Yusei murmured.
---
Meanwhile, in Domino City—
"Another Domino duelist joins the Gold List!"
"Mai Valentine…"
"Hmph, so it's true—the powerhouses are all concentrated in Domino and Duel Academy."
"The Satellite area's not even worth scouting," said Kaiba Seto coldly, eyes fixed on the tablet Isono handed him, data streaming in real-time.
---
Elsewhere, inside a luxury shopping mall—
A tall, stunning figure stepped out, her tight outfit turning heads. She casually removed her new black sunglasses and ran fingers through her long blonde hair.
Bright eyes stared at the horizon, a sly smile spreading on her face.
"Thirty-sixth place… Not bad. About what I expected."
"But this month's shopping binge... oof."
Mai sighed. "Guess it's time to duel again. Earn some prize money."
"This new 'Harpie's Feather Storm'—yeah, it'll be the turning point for my Harpie deck."
---
"Mai Valentine... her strength is decent," You Feng said, examining the rankings.
"But that Harpie card... it's quite broken."
He remembered that card well—one of the most iconic in Mai's deck.
"What now? You know her too?" asked Tenjoin Asuka (Alexis Rhodes), genuinely surprised.
"Yeah," You Feng nodded. "She doesn't know me, though."
"A secret crush?" Asuka blinked in surprise.
"…No," You Feng deadpanned. "Women just slow down card play speed. Why would I chase after someone like that?"
"What, are you saying I'm ugly?" Asuka snapped instinctively.
You Feng turned and gave her a very deliberate stare.
"???" Asuka froze, wide-eyed.
---
Suddenly—
The Duel King Gold List shimmered again, light rippling across the sky.
A brilliant, multicolored beam burst forth as duelists everywhere gasped.
[Now announcing the top five duelists on the Duel King Gold List!]
[Rank 5: The World Creator!]
[+1 to all stats! Reward: Royal Magical Library ×3!]
[Rank 4: Devil's Gear!]
[+1 to all stats! Reward: Any 3 Demon-type support cards!]
[Rank 3: Monarch of Memories!]
[+1 to all stats! Reward: 4 Dark World cards of choice!]
[Rank 2: Screwbolt!]
[+1 to all stats! Reward: Meteor B. Dragon ×1!]
[Rank 1: The Pharaoh!]
[+2 to all stats! Reward: Dark Paladin, Dragon Knight Dark Magician Girl, and Fusion Materials Set!]
A wave of awe spread through the dueling world.
Such top-tier rewards—the kind that instantly power up any deck—would reshape dueling for months.
"Insane! Look at these prizes—they're even more broken than the ones announced previously!"
"With rewards like these, the top five duelists will become gods in the card world!"
"At this rate, they could sweep through the rest of the rankings unchecked!"
"The Age of the Duel Gods has begun!"
The entire world of duelists roared with energy.
And You Feng?
He was left speechless by his own reward.
"…Is it time for me to build an Exodia deck?"
"These duelists at the top... once they're revealed, they'll be terrifying. Their power will shake the world."
Asuka's heart trembled. Even she, a top Duel Academy student, was stunned by the scale of these prizes.
"After the rankings are revealed," You Feng said calmly, "they'll become targets. The stronger they are, the more challengers they'll face."
"Many will fear them… but even more egotistical duelists will come for their titles."
"And when they do? High-stakes matches—maybe even rare card wagers—will light up the scene."
He chuckled.
"You're not worried you'll be left off the list?" Asuka asked suspiciously.
"…Could it be that you're in the top five?"
You Feng blinked—caught off guard.
"Actually…" he was about to say something—
"Pfft—" Asuka burst out laughing.