Phila stood in place, her fingers gripping the hem of her skirt. She looked at the examiner in the red cap across from her, her eyes already beginning to well up.
"My turn, draw." The red-capped examiner's voice was steady and powerful, the professional tone unique to Kaiba Corporation employees honed through countless repetitions.
He slammed a card onto his Duel Disk.
"I activate the Continuous Spell, Ancient Gear Castle."
As his words fell, the lighting in the arena dimmed. The grinding of massive gears echoed through the field as the phantom image of a rust-covered mechanical fortress, formed by countless interlocking gears, rose from the ground, completely suppressing Phila's already faint presence.
Aleister floated beside the mechanical fortress, tapping the illusory gears with his finger.
"Steam-driven? It looks more like a magical construct than a machine."
Raku ignored him, his gaze fixed on the red-capped examiner.
The examiner paid no attention to the surroundings. His movements did not pause for even a moment.
"Then I Normal Summon Ancient Gear. Due to the second effect of Ancient Gear Castle: while this card is in the Spell & Trap Zone, each time a monster is Normal Summoned, place one counter on this card."
A gear-shaped counter lit up on the fortress.
"Next, I activate the effect of Ancient Gear in my hand. If you control a face-up 'Ancient Gear,' this card can be Special Summoned from the hand in Attack Position."
Two gear-assembled monsters appeared on the field, their grinding noises making Phila instinctively cover her ears.
Raku raised an eyebrow. In his previous world, this would've been more of a casual combo, but in this world, being able to execute something like this meant the examiner was indeed quite skilled.
But the examiner wasn't finished.
"Then I activate the Spell Card, Double Summon." He slid a green card into the slot. "First effect: This turn, I can conduct up to two Normal Summons."
"I Tribute the two Ancient Gears on my field."
The two gear monsters shattered in a flash of light.
"Tribute Summon—Ancient Gear Dark Golem."
A massive metal giant slammed onto the field, cracking the ground with virtual fractures. The overwhelming pressure made Phila involuntarily take a step back, nearly stumbling.
Raku sighed inwardly. Looking at Ancient Gear Dark Golem and considering Phila's current hand, he had no idea how she could possibly win.
"I activate its second effect." The red-capped examiner spoke rapidly, pure muscle memory at work. "When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: you can add up to two 'Ancient Gear' cards, except 'Ancient Gear Dark Golem,' or 'Geartown,' from your Deck to your hand. Then discard one card."
Two cards popped out from the Deck.
"I add Ancient Gear Box and Geartown to my hand. Then I discard Ancient Gear Dragon to the Graveyard."
He sent a card to the Graveyard slot and immediately continued.
"Chain resolving: Ancient Gear Box effect."
Raku nodded. The explanation, the timing… this examiner clearly believed Phila was a strong opponent and was going all out.
Was this indirectly his fault for putting her in this situation?
"You can only use this effect of 'Ancient Gear Box' once per turn. If this card is added from the Deck or Graveyard to your hand, except by drawing: you can add one EARTH Machine monster with 500 Attack or Defense from your Deck to your hand, except 'Ancient Gear Box.'"
Another card was added to his hand.
"I add Ancient Gear Commander with 500 Attack to my hand."
The entire sequence flowed seamlessly; searching, sending to the Graveyard, then searching again.
Phila stared at the ever-growing hand on the opponent's side and the massive mechanical monster on the field, her mind going completely blank.
"Th-this… why is it still going?"
Her voice was small, tinged with obvious tears, like a child watching a magic trick she couldn't understand at all.
The red-capped examiner didn't catch her words clearly, but he sharply noticed the movement of her slightly parted lips.
This was a newcomer with a measured Soul Power of 3800; if she spoke at a time like this, she must be waiting for something.
His fingers hovered above the Duel Disk.
"Do you have a Spell/Trap effect to activate?" The examiner's gaze grew sharper, his tone even carrying a hint of vigilance.
"N-no! I don't!" Phila shook her head frantically, waving her hands in panic.
Why did they assign her such a strong examiner??? She only set a Skull Servant with 200 Defense!
This was just an academy placement test, not some life-or-death duel!
Regardless, the examiner evidently didn't think so.
After confirming that Phila had no Chain to activate, he drew another card from his hand, his movements still uninterrupted.
"Then I activate the Field Spell, Geartown. After that, I activate the Spell Card, Heavy Storm. Destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on the field."
A violent gale suddenly swept through the semicircular arena. The simulated wind pressure made Phila's skirt flutter wildly.
"Eh?! But won't that destroy your own cards too?" Phila exclaimed in shock.
The massive storm engulfed the entire field. The Geartown on the examiner's side and the two set cards on Phila's side were torn apart at the same time.
When the storm subsided, the red-capped examiner glanced at the Duel Disk's log. He frowned slightly, his gaze stopping on the two cards Phila had sent to the Graveyard.
Graceful Revival.
Vampire Takeover.
Two cards that couldn't even catch proper timing… there wasn't a single trap to disrupt his plays. This wasn't the setup of a skilled player waiting for the right moment; it was just a pile of junk.
The red-capped examiner froze for a long moment. He raised his head, and beneath the brim of his red cap, his eyes shifted from earlier vigilance to pure confusion.
"Your Soul Power is 3800?"
Phila clutched the inverted pyramid pendant at her chest, her palms drenched in sweat.
"Y-yes… I think?" she answered hesitantly, her voice pitifully small.
"Was it really a machine error?"
That single question struck Phila like a needle piercing her already fragile nerves.
Was it really a machine error? She had heard too many variations of that same doubt before.
She couldn't help but recall her past duels at school. Because she couldn't bear to send her monsters to the Graveyard, her deckbuilding was always full of compromises and hesitation.
Her classmates mocked her as a novice who didn't understand Zombies, a coward who didn't even dare to send cards to the Graveyard. No one tried to understand her, and no one accepted her stubborn belief that monsters were like family.
However, the red-capped examiner did not pause because of her unusual behavior. If she was just a stray case caused by a machine error, then she was merely a passerby here to experience Kaiba Corporation's facilities; he would simply clear her in no time.
He tapped the panel of his Duel Disk.
"Next, since my Geartown was destroyed, I activate its second effect. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: I can Special Summon one 'Ancient Gear' monster from my hand, Deck, or Graveyard."
"I Special Summon from my Deck—Ancient Gear Hunting Hound!"
A mechanical beast resembling a hunting hound leapt onto the field, emitting a piercing metallic screech.
"Afterward, I activate the third effect of Ancient Gear Hunting Hound. Once per turn, during my Main Phase: I can use monsters from my hand or field as Fusion Materials to Fusion Summon an 'Ancient Gear' Fusion Monster."
The red-capped examiner sent three cards into the Graveyard slot.
"I use Ancient Gear Hunting Hound and Ancient Gear Dark Golem on the field, along with Ancient Gear Commander from my hand, as Fusion Materials and send them to the Graveyard. Ancient Gear Dark Golem is treated as Ancient Gear Golem while on the field or in the Graveyard."
The mechanical monsters on the field began to disassemble, gears and metal reassembling midair.
"Fusion Summon—Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem!"
A burst of light flashed, and an enormous gear giant appeared, its lower body like heavy tank treads and its upper body resembling a centaur-like construct. The oppressive force made even the air seem to solidify.
Phila raised her head, looking at the monster that nearly reached the ceiling of the arena. She was too terrified to move. The fragile courage she had mustered in front of the mirror that morning vanished completely, and the painful memories of being mocked flooded her mind all at once.
"Enter Battle Phase," the red-capped examiner swung his arm down. "Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem, attack the set monster!"
The giant metallic foot lifted high and then stomped down heavily onto the lone set card on Phila's field.
With a deafening crash, the monster card flipped.
It was a frail Skull Servant.
The tiny skeleton didn't even have time to scream before it was crushed under the immense mechanical pressure, breaking apart into particles of light.
Phila closed her eyes as tears streamed down her cheeks. Her child had been crushed just like that.
"Ultimate Golem's second effect: when this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict battle damage equal to the difference between its Attack and that monster's Defense."
The emotionless mechanical announcement echoed through the arena.
"4400 minus 200 equals 4200," the examiner stated the calculation.
A violent shockwave slammed into Phila. Her frail body slid back two steps, and the value on her Duel Disk dropped rapidly.
[Phila, LP: 8000 → 3800]
...
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