"When your luck runs out, huh..."
Joey slowly closed his eyes.
Then he chuckled twice, the laugh a bit weird, even a little creepy.
"Oh? What's so funny?" Beckas narrowed his eyes and asked.
"No, nothing." Joey smiled lightly. "I just suddenly realized, you, Beckas..."
He lifted his head, a hint of contempt in his gaze.
"Now that you've lost the Thousand-Year Eye, you're really nothing but second-rate."
"What did you say?"
Anger flashed across Beckas's face in an instant.
But he controlled himself well and immediately returned to normal.
"Is that so, Joey Boy, looks like you really have some bite now. Then let me see whether your strength matches that confidence.
I set two Covering Cards."
He drew two cards from his hand and with a wave of his hand set them.
"Turn end."
"As you wish, I'll show you the power of yours truly.
My turn, draw!"
Joey drew, but his hand paused slightly as he glanced at the opponent's back row.
Three Cover Cards, one of which was the "Divine Protective Shield - Reflective Mirror Force" that had failed to activate last turn.
Beckas might think that Joey had already forgotten about that, but unfortunately for him, Joey's memory was very good.
No matter what, he had to find a way to deal with Reflection Mirror Power first. Now that he'd lost the Dark Evil Dragon, he no longer had the swagger to ignore Traps and had to attack carefully.
"I activate the Magic Card 'Angel's Charity'."
Joey slid the Magic Card into his Duel Disc.
"Draw three cards from my Card Deck, then choose two cards in my hand and discard them."
Right now he didn't yet have a way in hand to bypass Traps.
"I'm counting on you, my Card Deck, give me something here..."
Joey drew.
"I set three cards to my back row," Joey said, "then activate the Magic Card 'Handwriting Erasure'! Both players discard all cards in their hands, then draw the same number from their Card Deck!"
Joey's back row gained three new Cover Cards. Then he discarded his hand and drew again from his Card Deck.
Beckas also drew, letting out a chuckle at the same time. "Trying to fish for a breakthrough with draws, are you?"
"Not done yet. Handwriting Erasure discarded the Magic Card 'Card of Compensation'," Joey said. "I can draw two more cards from my Card Deck."
After a flurry of draws, Joey's face lit up with joy.
"So Gramps was right. As long as you believe, the Card Deck will always answer you."
Of course, Joey's "Gramps" was not his own grandfather, but Game's grandfather, the famous Thousand-Year Hostage Solomon Muto, also the Master who first led Joey into Dueling.
"Normal Summon 'True Red-Eyed Iron Knight - Jiafried'!"
The Iron Knight Kia was a popular Monster Joey used a lot in his early days, and with its quite solid Four-Star 1800 Attack Power plus a cool design, it was once very popular back then.
And this True Red-Eyed Iron Knight is the Iron Knight Kia in new armor. In these years the Iron Knight has also caught a ride on the True Red Eye train, obtaining the noble True Red Eye name and becoming part of the series Card Deck.
[True Red-Eyed Iron Knight - Jiafried, Attack Power 1800]
"Then, there's the effect of 'Black Steel Dragon' in my hand," Joey said. "During my Main Phase, I can choose one 'True Red Eye' Monster on my field and equip Black Steel Dragon from my hand or field to that Monster as an Equipment Card."
"Equipped to a True Red Eye Monster..." Beckas said. "I see, so Iron Knight Kia has already evolved into a member of the True Red Eye as well."
"That's right, so Black Steel Dragon equips to True Red-Eyed Iron Knight! The Monster equipped with Black Steel Dragon gains 600 Attack Power!"
Joey smiled.
"But the Iron Knight's original effect, President Beckas, you haven't forgotten that, have you?"
"Iron Knight Kia is a Monster that cannot be equipped with any cards." As the Father of Duel Monsters, Beckas at least had that level of knowledge. "Any Equipment Card equipped to Iron Knight will be destroyed."
"Correct, and True Red-Eyed Iron Knight inherits a similar effect, only even stronger!
Once per turn, when it has an Equipment Card equipped, True Red-Eyed Iron Knight can activate its effect. Destroy that Equipment Card, then choose one Magic or Trap in your opponent's back row and destroy it!"
Joey pointed at the Trap that had been set on Beckas's field since last turn but had never managed to activate.
"Destroy your previous Covering Card, the Trap Card 'Divine Protective Shield - Reflective Mirror Force'!"
Black Steel Dragon had barely finished equipping to the Iron Knight when it blew itself apart with a boom. The Iron Knight swung his blade, the Sword Qi bursting from the sword edge slicing straight through the Cover Card in Beckas's back row, cutting it clean in two—sure enough, Reflection Mirror Power.
"Tsk."
Beckas curled his lip.
What a pity. In the end, the strongest shield still never got to make its appearance...
"And, the 'Black Steel Dragon' that was destroyed by the Iron Knight's effect also has something to say." Joey grinned. "When Black Steel Dragon is sent from the field to the Graveyard, I can add one 'True Red Eye' from my Card Deck to my hand."
Joey searched his Card Deck, pulled out a True Red Eye and showed it.
"I add 'True Red-Eyed Sub-Dragon' from my Card Deck to my hand!"
"The combo of Iron Knight and Black Steel Dragon destroyed my Reflection Mirror Power and broke my defense, and at the same time that destruction triggers a search to keep your engine running." Beckas's face grew grave.
Though he verbally dismissed Joey as just a lucky scrub, part of that was trash talk, just a normal bit of psychological warfare during a Duel. In his heart, he absolutely did not dare underestimate the strength Joey had displayed in this match.
"True Red-Eyed Sub-Dragon cannot be Normal Summoned. It can only be Special Summoned by Tributing True Red Eye Monsters from my hand or field."
Joey continued.
"So I Tribute 'True Red-Eyed Iron Knight'—
—True Red-Eyed Sub-Dragon, Summon!!!"
Pillars of fire shot skyward, swallowing the knight of steel. From within the endless flames came a dragon's roar that sounded as if it pierced the Ninth Heaven.
The hall was shrouded in thick black smoke, mottled firelight dancing as if leaping across the sky. The Lava River churned as though stirred by an invisible giant hand; with the roar, a pitch-black giant dragon rose from it. Every scale looked like it had been tempered in lava, its dark red eyes filled with omen and wildness, its furious bellow shaking the mountains and forests.
[True Red-Eyed Sub-Dragon, Attack Power 2400]
"A new True Red Eye... a subspecies?" Beckas said. "But with Attack Power only 2400, that level can't defeat the Sacrificial Demon that has obtained the Dark Evil Dragon's power."
"Tch, you stole someone else's Monster and you're still that cocky..."
Joey snorted disdainfully.
"Then open your eyes and watch closely—the strongest evolution of my True Red Eye!
Battle! 'True Red-Eyed Sub-Dragon', attack 'Sacrificial Demon'!"
Beckas's heart jolted.
Attacking with the weaker Monster to suicide...
There's a catch!
By now, dragon breath was already spewing from the Sub-Dragon's mouth, coalescing into a surging Fireball that blasted straight toward Beckas.
The Sacrificial Demon opened its huge green eyes, black fog rolling from its maw, and from that mist it released the Black Evil Dragon it had NTR'd to intercept.
Sub-Dragon naturally wasn't its match; in a single clash it was beaten back and exploded in the flames.
[Joey, LP2800→LP2000]
Joey raised an arm to shield himself, but let out a low chuckle.
"Just as planned."
Beckas: "What?"
"The effect of True Red-Eyed Sub-Dragon. When this card is destroyed by battle or by an opponent's card effect, I can Special Summon a Level 7 or lower True Red Eye Monster from my Graveyard.
The one I'm going to Special Summon is this card that I sent back to the Graveyard at the start of this turn with 'Angel's Charity'."
He pushed a card out from his Graveyard and showed it to Beckas.
"True Red-Eyed Black Dragon!" Joey declared. "And, when the Monster Special Summoned by True Red-Eyed Sub-Dragon's effect is 'True Red-Eyed Black Dragon', its original Attack Power... becomes double!"
Beckas: "!"