Yugen yawned, leaning against the jeep's bumpy window, casually flipping through the cards in his hand.
These were new cards he picked up from the ground during the Duel City competition over the past couple of days, quite a number indeed. He was now roughly categorizing them, separating the useful ones, those to be decided, and those to be sold, while pondering which of them might help construct some new strategies.
It was just reaching dusk, yet the night was already as thick as dense ink, seemingly without moonlight. The forest felt like a silent ancient Divine Hall.
The distorted, extending branches around them were like numerous withered arms reaching out in the darkness. The leaves rustled in the wind, like whispering phantoms.
The jeep bumped along the forest path, its headlights weak as fireflies. The wheels crunched over dead branches and leaves, making creaky noises.
The man in the front passenger seat turned around and leaned over: "Are you a Duelist?"
He was the guide from a nearby city, appointed along with the driver by Kaiba Group to wait for Yugen at the station. After arriving in the city, Yugen switched to this jeep, heading straight to Qingshui Town.
"Yep," Yugen replied.
"Amazing... I always admire you card players because I can't play them." The guide said.
The driver teased, "With your brain, forget dueling. Play memory match first and then talk."
"What's wrong with memory match?" The guide said, puffing his chest out, "Memory match is quite difficult too."
The driver chuckled and said no more. As he drove, he casually asked: "I don't quite understand dueling, but I know that there's a Monster called... Black Mage Girl, right?
I recognize her; she's really something."
Yugen: "..."
Never heard of Final Fantasy, but you recognize Jerusalem, huh?
"Hmph, what's the use of being big." The guide shook his head side to side, "I still prefer the diligent and capable ones."
The driver squinted at him: "If you broaden the conditions, then diligence can be removed, right?"
"Ha, brother understands me..."
"..."
The two joked for a bit, noticing Yugen's silent disinterest in joining the conversation, they found it boring and quieted down for a while.
After driving a bit more, the guide couldn't help but turn again to ask: "Speaking of which, what does a Duelist from a big city come to such a remote place for?"
"If it weren't for your company's substantial offer, I wouldn't want to come." The driver added, "In the past two weeks, a few people went missing here."
"Oh?"
This topic slightly piqued Yugen's interest.
"Isn't it true? Last week, I came with the security bureau, looking for a missing traveler, but eventually didn't find them, and it just faded away." The guide continued.
Yugen pondered for a moment.
This suggests Kaiba Company's assumptions might be correct; there might indeed be some issues in this place.
The trees grew denser, the jeep followed the roadside path and slowly came to a stop.
"Let's take a short break, get out to stretch, and rest a bit. Sitting for so long makes one stiff."
The guide got out, stretched, and retrieved a cigarette.
"I need a smoke."
He offered one to Yugen, gesturing.
"Want one?"
"No thanks, I don't smoke," Yugen declined.
"Ah, not smoking is good; a healthy habit."
The guide praised him, then hummed a tune while smoking off to the side.
Yugen didn't get out of the car, continuing to sort the cards in his hand.
Not sure if it was an illusion, but the night seemed to grow denser. Even the wind held its breath, each tree eerily stood in the darkness, their twisted branches like claws reaching out.
Ten minutes passed.
"Strange... still hasn't returned?"
The driver muttered curiously, preparing to get out.
"I'll go check."
"Let me do it."
Yugen opened the door and got out.
The atmosphere felt off. Yet he wasn't particularly worried, since he had many Elves at his disposal; there's little in this world that could pose a threat to him.
After all, no matter what monsters they are, wouldn't they challenge him to a card game here?
Yugen walked in the direction the guide went, soon noticing something.
A half-burnt cigarette.
It hadn't extinguished, lying silently on the damp ground, the scent mingling moist soil and tobacco, a peculiar smell.
A few more steps forward, in the shrubs and grass, there seemed to be signs of dragging and pulling, faintly visible in the darkness.
Was this guy attacked?
But it was clearly close to the car, yet there wasn't a sound.
Moreover, moving forward a few steps, the traces abruptly vanished, as if the person was dragged here and suddenly evaporated into thin air, leaving no trail to follow.
Yugen decided to head back toward the car. But upon returning, he found the vehicle was completely empty.
Again without a sound, just a few steps distance, yet during a mere turnover, the driver was gone too. This time, there were no signs of a struggle either.
The dense darkness seemed to press from the forest, surrounding the car completely. The headlights became the sole light in the overwhelming dark, so weak like a flickering candle in the wind, easily snuffed out in the endless night.
No, it wasn't an illusion; the darkness was truly closing in.
Figures emerged.
Shuffling steps, eerie postures swaying toward him, instinctively raising their arms in his direction.
From their attire, they might be local residents, but each had hollow, void eyes akin to deep swirling black vortices. Under the jeep's headlights, their heavy dark circles were like pieces of black charcoal.
Their posture and demeanor instantly reminded one of zombies.
Yet they weren't typical zombies, but more akin to the "duelist zombies" infected during GX's Other Dimension Chapter, when the whole Academy was transported by Sister Yubel to the Other Dimension.
All that's left in their minds is dueling, card-focused zombies...
...Hiss, this description strangely sounds a bit like Judai.
Despite the bizarre scene, Yugen remained unworried.
"Silent." He whispered.
White light erupted from him, a Magic Array opened beneath his feet. Silent Magician emerged, rotating the Magic Staff in hand, a circle of Magic Burst light bullets exploded in quick succession.
The explosion scattered mud stars everywhere, flipping the zombies upside down.
But when the smoke cleared, in the back of the zombie crowd, a figure still stood.
It seemed like a leader-type among the zombies, although equally hollow-eyed and swaying, its momentum was distinctly stronger.
He staggered among his skewed teammates, squinting to gaze at Yugen.
Then slowly raised the Duel Disc, a moaning, muddled sound emerging from his mouth.
"Duel~"
Yugen felt reassured.
See, indeed, there's nothing to fear.
Even zombies must play cards.