Looking at the suddenly appearing Yugen, Kaiba frowned slightly. Though he didn't speak, he couldn't help but wonder in his heart.
Is that Cheating Snake actually afraid of him?
Not afraid of me, Seto Kaiba, but afraid of this kid?
Thinking of this, Kaiba crossed his arms and pulled a cryptic cold smile.
Interesting...
Yugen didn't know what had just happened, so naturally, he didn't know what the President was thinking either. He just saw President Kaiba staring straight at him, and after a moment, revealed a smile with unclear intentions, which generally felt a bit ominous...
"Ahem, what just happened?"
Yugen asked.
"Suddenly it felt like Doomsday broke out, what's going on?"
"People from New Doma," Keihei said, "It turns out this Duel City competition isn't all that simple. Those guys at the local branch we had you investigate might just be cannon fodder or vanguard.
The real enemy has probably already infiltrated this Duel City."
"The real enemy... experts from New Doma Headquarters?"
This matched the information Yugen had heard before.
"We've just encountered one of the Three Musketeers of New Doma... Honestly, quite formidable," Keihei said, "That guy uses the 'Alien Insect' card deck, with endless twists, and more and more Alien Insects appearing as the battle drags on.
And there was that 'Alien Insect Zero' that didn't fully appear, which seems to be an incredible monster..."
Alien Insects...
Of course, Yugen knew about this kind of card deck. He even had two or three such cards in his possession, but he had never seen a complete system deck before.
If specialized in that direction, this deck could definitely mess with the opponent's mindset effectively. Hearing this, Yugen quickly took note.
If there's a chance to meet this Swordsman, perhaps they should spar, and exchange notes on card decks afterward...
"That person is called Luca, and he hasn't really participated in many competitions before. So our data on him is limited."
Keihei continued.
"But I'll send you the known information and details about his card deck, be careful if you encounter him."
"Thanks," Yugen nodded.
Many top-tier experts don't really participate in competitions or make public appearances. The Three Musketeers of Old Doma are the same, all three are top-notch in skill, yet they suddenly appear with no prior fame.
Kaiba still said nothing, just frowned in thought, perhaps pondering the duel that was just left incomplete.
The three of them walked along the dock towards the outside. Returning to the city streets, the disastrous storm had already gone, but the atmosphere remained heavy. The air was filled with the moist scent of soil, mixed with the decaying smell of fallen branches and leaves, weighing on people's hearts.
The windows of tall buildings were still marked with sand and rain carried by the wind, leaving mottled trails. The trees lining the streets leaned with broken branches and exposed roots. Streetlights flickered in the gloom, casting mottled shadows.
"I've already contacted the committee to pause the competition,"
Keihei sighed.
"With such damage, there's no way to continue for now, we'll have to stop for two days..."
He looked up at the sky. Although the crack in the sky had healed, Keihei still felt a lingering fear when he looked there again.
"But it really was frightening. That thing only showed its face, and such terrible damage has occurred..."
"Was it the Evil God Orichalcos?" Yugen asked.
"Probably. It seems like the head of New Doma is it, or rather its avatar, calling itself the 'Judge'," Keihei said.
Yugen nodded in understanding.
Indeed, just now that ominous power, that Hurricane and thunder, was all caused by that Cheating Snake.
"Things could have been worse," Keihei said as if talking to himself, "Originally it was going to clash with my brother's Blue-Eyes, if they fought here, the city would have suffered even more damage.
But strangely, it changed its mind for unknown reasons, saying something about leaving the outcome to the finals of Duel City, I wonder what that means...
...but in any case, it's a good thing. Solving it through a duel means we at least don't have to worry about the city being leveled."
The Cheating Snake suddenly changed its mind?
Yugen connected this with the way Kaiba had just scrutinized him and came up with a bold guess.
Could it be afraid of me?
If it were before, Yugen would certainly think he was just an unremarkable student from Duel Academy, and this Snake God was supposedly an apocalyptic Great Demon King, not even regarding President Kaiba, so what made himself deserving to be feared?
But after the last conflict in the Elf Realm, he had a rough idea.
That being wasn't afraid of him, but of his "Sealing Artifact", the Millennium Puzzle Derivative.
After all, even during its most triumphant period, the Cheating Snake was subdued by the Pharaoh's Three Phantom Gods, presumably leaving some psychological shadow. So smelling the Phantom God's scent approaching, it probably spouted a few harsh words and hurriedly ran away.
But despite all the saying, he didn't actually have any Phantom God cards...
What flew out from the Lego Derivative was merely remnants of pure power, without a card as a medium he couldn't wield it... No, even before that, it was unknown whether, even if he actually had cards, the Phantom Gods would acknowledge him.
Phantom God Cards aren't to be trifled with. Those without the qualification to use them would get struck by lightning if they attempted to summon a Phantom God during a duel... in the literal sense.
Following Keihei back to the Kaiba Company Building, on the way, Kaiba personally ordered the competition temporarily halted. The reason given was "extremely dangerous extreme weather," forced to be delayed for safety considerations.
Although that's the official reason, many of the duelists participating are relatively high-level experts. The sudden and eerie Hurricane and the phenomena in the sky give them some inkling that the matter might be related to higher-level supernatural forces.
"The committee has issued the notice already, we are monitoring the situation of duelists across the city. The results of duels during the suspension period will not be recognized by the competition."
Keihei came over and handed Yugen a bottle of water.
Yugen was indeed feeling a bit thirsty at this point, he accepted the water with thanks and took a big gulp.
"But Yugen, sure is efficient, just starting for a little while and you've already collected six Puzzle Cards and advanced." Keihei sat down beside him, "We've compiled the data, and currently, only three participants have advanced by collecting all the Puzzle Cards."
"Oh? Which three?" Yugen asked casually.
"One is you, and of course, the other one is my brother."
Keihei laughed.
The President naturally wouldn't allow himself to be disqualified.
"And the other one?"
"That too was quite a strong seed player, long renowned."
Keihei said.
"The world's recognized strongest 'Elemental Hero' user, last year's duelist who won the annual world championship in the United States... Hibiki Momiji."