Chapter 47: The Invitation

When the final three adversaries collapsed, the entire bar had been thoroughly cleared by the CEO himself. Standing by the entrance, Fujimoto looked upon the startling scene with a visible tremor, secretly relieved that he had switched sides quickly enough to be standing on the winning team.

Facing three of the strongest members of their organization's Blood Moon Four Heavenly Kings simultaneously, and eliminating all three in a single turn. This overwhelming display of power completely shattered any previous imagination they held of the so-called "peak of the dueling world."

Seto Kaiba had not openly engaged in a duel for many years, and public opinions on his true strength were varied. Rumors even suggested that he had become entirely consumed by business and profit, leaving his dueling skills rusted, and that his current prowess was likely mediocre at best.

Only now did Fujimoto truly realize how ridiculous those claims were.

The evolution of the dueling environment over the years did not mean the gap between others and the absolute elite had narrowed. On the contrary, the chasm was more exaggerated than it had been years ago.

This man was no longer playing the same game as them.

Yuxuan, however, remained quite calm.

Fortunately, he still recognized all the Blue-Eyes alternate artworks and variations the CEO had deployed so far; at least Kaiba hadn't pulled some obscure variant out of thin air that didn't even exist in his past life. While the sheer power level was undoubtedly "seal-clubbing" when measured against contemporary average duelists, it hadn't yet reached the absolute peak of the Blue-Eyes archetype.

Observing these two duels made Yuxuan increasingly realize that powerhouses in this world could indeed do whatever they pleased when backed by the sheer force of destiny. Secondly, it reinforced his conviction that having wealth, a dedicated research team, and the ability to invent and print new card variants meant one could do *even more* as they pleased.

It seemed that in the future, not only would he need to seek out ways to elevate his destiny force, but scientific research and development were also skills well worth studying thoroughly.

With the duels concluded, Kaiba Corporation's accompanying personnel moved inside to clean up the battlefield.

Kaiba walked up to the trio who had been knocked out last.

"You... won," Ryosuke, one of the Heavenly Kings, said weakly. "We accept defeat utterly and completely, Seto Kaiba. Do with the Blood Moon as you please."

Although Kaiba had adjusted the output power of the duel disk's imaging quality to spare their lives, experiencing such a brutal one-turn wipeout still left them severely injured.

"I have no interest in an organization of low-level scum," Kaiba stated coldly. "From the very beginning, the only thing that interested me was the 'Arbiter'."

At the mention of this title, all the dark duelists scattered across the room in disarray shuddered involuntarily, as if they had just heard the whisper of a demon.

Aikawa knelt on the ground, trembling and struggling to speak: "You... how do you know the moniker of that lord...!? "

"Of course I know. I also know that your so-called organization is nothing more than a bunch of worthless cannon fodder," Kaiba replied coldly.

The expressions of the dark duelists turned grim instantly.

"Our knowledge of that lord is limited solely to this moniker... We don't even dare to speak it aloud casually," the female bartender said, struggling to steady her erratic breathing.

"Besides, if you truly understood the terrifying nature of that lord, you would realize that even if we did know something, it is impossible for us to tell you."

"That remains to be seen," Kaiba said frostily. "I naturally have my own ways of making you talk."

He turned away, refusing to waste any more words on them, and left the remaining cleanup to his subordinates. The arrested dark practitioners were handcuffed and escorted out one by one, presumably to be interrogated leisurely once brought back.

Only after finishing this did Kaiba turn and walk toward the entrance.

Fujimoto, who had completely defected and allied himself with the winning side earlier, hurried over with a beaming, ingratiating smile: "The CEO is mighty! A triple-kill in one turn was beyond anything I could have imagined. You're simply too strong..."

Before he could even approach, however, a sharp *clack* echoed through the air. His smile stiffened. Lowering his gaze, he saw that a soldier clad in Kaiba Corporation uniform had ruthlessly slapped a pair of cold silver handcuffs onto his wrists.

"Eh?"

Fujimoto looked up in a daze.

"Boss, there's been some mistake, right? I'm one of you!"

No one paid him any mind as two guards escorted him straight toward the exit.

Even after stepping outside, his voice could still be heard echoing back: "I'm on your side! I rendered meritorious service to the CEO, I acted as the CEO's guide! I want to see the CEO..."

His voice faded away outside the door.

Turning a deaf ear to the extraneous noise, Kaiba walked straight up to Yuxuan.

"Yuxuan... is it?"

"Greetings, CEO." Yuxuan shook hands with him.

"I've been briefed on the situation, and I wish to express my gratitude on behalf of Kaiba Corporation," Kaiba nodded and said. "Mokuba has already informed me of his plan, and I have no objections to his arrangements.

The prize money and cards he arranged will be delivered to you as promised in compensation."

Pausing for a moment, he narrowed his eyes.

"However, I have one additional condition."

As he spoke, he pinched a piece of paper between two fingers and flicked his wrist lightly. The paper fluttered gracefully through the air, flying in a straight line directly toward Yuxuan.

To be honest, Yuxuan deeply admired the CEO's card-throwing prowess. In the anime, a flick of his fingertips could send a card spinning out like a dart with seemingly lethal force, making it hard not to suspect he had practiced some sort of secret martial art.

Yuxuan caught it and took a look. It was a card, but not a dueling card; rather, it was a strange pass emblazoned with a five-pointed star.

"This is?"

"An entry pass," Kaiba crossed his arms, the corner of his mouth curving upward. "Six months from now, right here in Domino City, Kaiba Corporation will host the 'Battle City GX'."

Yuxuan seemed to understand instantly: "You want me to participate?"

Battle City was not a one-time tournament; aside from the inaugural event during the DM era, it had continued to be held in subsequent years. However, Seto Kaiba himself had never competed in the later iterations, and the overall quality of the contestants could not compare to the beginning, leading to a decline in public attention.

Seeming to read his thoughts, Kaiba said indifferently: "This tournament will be different from previous years. I will personally participate, and we will invite the absolute top-tier duelists from all over to compete."

So the CEO was making a comeback? Yuxuan felt a mild sense of surprise.

Rumors on the street had long claimed that after Yugi's retirement, Kaiba had lost all enthusiasm for combat, entirely absent from tournaments of any scale or type in recent years.

Perhaps he felt that without the rival he *must* defeat, proving himself superior to every other duelist in the world proved nothing at all.

Yet now, it seemed he was showing signs of a return to the stage.

Of course, one couldn't completely rule out the simple possibility that his long-suppressed urge to duel had simply flared up past the point of endurance...

In fact, when Duel Academy was founded, its official motto was "nurturing the next generation of the King of Games." Upon seeing that promotional material, Yuxuan had once imagined this scenario: Atem had returned to the Underworld, Yugi had retired from the jianghu, and the CEO looked out across the world searching in vain for a single defeat. Yet his craving for duels kept flaring up with increasing intensity, driving him to invest massive fortunes into building a top-tier academy, hunting down the most talented prodigies across the land, and pouring in endless resources to cultivate the next King of Games—all simply to cure his long-standing dueling addiction.

"Very well."

Yuxuan nodded and accepted the entry pass.

Since it was a tournament where the CEO himself would personally step into the ring, the prize pool alone was guaranteed to be astronomical.

Thinking back to when Pegasus hosted the Duelist Kingdom tournament, he had grandly declared that the winner would receive a controlling sixty-percent stake in his industrial empire. Winning a competition of that caliber instantly secured lifelong financial freedom...

By this time, Kaiba had already stepped back outside and grasped the hanging rope ladder of a hovering helicopter.

Ascending with the aircraft, one hand gripping the ladder, his trench coat fluttered furiously in the gale-force winds of the rotor blades like a battle flag, while he let out a condescending chuckle from high above.

"If you are a true duelist, then smash through every thorn, conquer every wall and obstacle, and make your way to my side in the dog-eat-dog arena of Battle City!

I hope you won't disappoint me the way that commoner always does!"

Yuxuan: "......"

Seriously, CEO, whenever you talk, why do you always have to roast Joey Wheeler?