Yu-Gi-Oh! The Pitfall Hero

Falling from the pinnacle of dueling to the depths of hell, and then rising again from hell, this name... embodies his beliefs and his hopes.

"This is... an underground duel. Although it doesn't have the same strong performative element as the dark duels I've experienced before, the duel itself is the same."

As he observed the whispers that began around him upon his arrival, Ryo Marufuji's mind started racing.

Just as Marufuji Ryo was pondering this, a group of men in black immediately put multiple black iron collars on the limbs and neck of Inukai, who was opposite him.

After that, Ryo Marufuji himself was also surrounded by men in black and forced to wear the same type of gadgets.

"This is……?"

Feeling intense discomfort in his body, Marufuji Ryo instinctively asked a question.

"Impact amplification device... After wearing this, even a minor injury will cause pain all over the body."

After disappearing for a moment, Monkey Saruyama reappeared outside the cage that served as the dueling arena.

He explained the function of the device to Marufuji Ryo, who looked puzzled.

Every time the duelist takes damage, the device amplifies the damage and simultaneously feeds it back to the duelist.

If the earlier collapse after suffering significant damage was an exaggeration, then this current state is a genuine instinctive reaction.

"What...?!?!"

“Don’t be too surprised, this is what’s called a dark duel!” With a smirk, Montgaru continued, “By the way, neither of them can leave this cage until the duel is decided.”

Montgomery Aruyama: "Hehehe... However, even if a winner is decided, there's no guarantee you'll all get out safely~"

Ryo Marufuji: "..."

"Let's get started... you stray dogs of the professional league!"

Seemingly recognizing Marufuji Ryo's identity, Inukai, who had struck a provocative pose, immediately raised his arm and beckoned in Marufuji Ryo's direction with his finger: "Here... no one cares about your identity. Let me teach you the rules of dueling in this underworld!"

"...It's show time!" Upon seeing both contestants arrive, the host, positioned in a safe location, immediately announced the start of the duel.

"Ughhhhhh...!!! Duel!" Inukai roared like a wild beast, his emotions running high, and immediately unfolded his Duel Disk, fully prepared for the duel.

"Is this the only option?" Gritting his teeth in frustration, still trapped in the vicious cycle of defeat, Marufuji Ryo looked at the amplification device, feeling quite nervous, and simultaneously raised his arm: "...Duel!"

(Dog feed LP: 4000)

(Ryo Marufuji LP: 4000)

"First turn is mine, draw a card!" With a bloodthirsty smile, Inukai snatched the first turn and drew a brand new card from his deck.

%【!*

"I summon [Acidic Slime] (DEF: 1000) in Defense Position, set one card to Trap, and end my turn."

At its core was a row of round, sharp teeth, and four tentacles extended from its exterior. As Inukai moved, the blue slime coiled around his body and appeared in front of him.

The effect of [Acidic Slime] is to deal 800 damage to the opponent's base stats when destroyed in battle.

In stark contrast to his muscular appearance, Inukai opted for a more conservative defensive strategy, avoiding any explosive attacks.

"...My turn, draw a card."

Looking at his hand, Ryo Marufuji buried one of his cards in his back row, then drew another card and activated it: "First, I buried a card, then... I activated the Spell Card - [Time Capsule], banished a card from my deck, and added it to my hand during my second Standby Phase after this activation."

He took the deck out of the Duel Disk, spread it out in his palm, selected one card and put it into the Time Capsule. Then, Ryo Marufuji put the cleaned deck back into the Duel Disk.

“If there is a monster on your opponent’s field, I can Special Summon this card from my hand.” Revealing Cyberdragon (Cyber ​​Dragon) from his hand to his opponent, Ryo Marufuji placed it on the Duel Disk deck: “Come on! Cyber ​​Dragon (ATK: 2100)!”

A colossal steel dragon coiled up behind Ryo Marufuji, who had his arms crossed, and let out a menacing roar towards Inukai.

"It's here! An electric dragon!"

Seeing the iconic monster appear on Marufuji Ryo's stage, Inukai's lips curled into a knowing smile.

Not only did he show no sign of tension, but he also seemed... somewhat smug.

“If I use the [Cyber ​​Dragon] to attack the [Acidic Slime]... it will deal 800 points of damage to me…” Marufuji Ryosuke hesitated, pondering the pros and cons.

Attacking a monster in Defense Position will not cause Inukai any damage. The only monster whose Life Points will be reduced is Inukai itself, which will be damaged by the effect of Acidic Slime.

800 points of damage would normally be nothing to worry about, but under these circumstances, with the amplification device in effect…

"What's wrong? Are you scared? You're making a confused comeback!" Seeing that Marufuji Ryo was not making any moves, Inukai urged him impatiently.

"Since you're not going to take the initiative, then I'll do it!"

As Inukai said this, he decisively opened his back row face-down card: "Trap Card [Acid Rust - Machine Virus] activated! Tribute 1 WATER monster you control. Check all the monsters your opponent controls, cards in their hand, and cards drawn within 3 turns after this effect (counting your opponent's turn), and destroy any Machine-Type monsters. For each Machine-Type monster destroyed by this effect, inflict 500 damage to your opponent."

"...What?! A machine race?"

"Hehehe... I'll release my WATER-type Acid Slime to activate the effect of my Trap Card and destroy your Cyber ​​Dragon!!!"

With a smug smile on his face, Inukai did not hesitate to use his monster as a tribute to activate a trap card.

Then, enveloped by the red acidic light, the electronic dragon's silver-white steel body immediately turned into yellow sand, collapsed and disintegrated, disappearing from the field.

488 Desperate Situation (6K)

Under the effect of Inukai's trap card, "Acid Rust - Machine Virus," which was specifically designed to target Machine-Type monsters, Marufuji Ryo's Cyber ​​Dragon deck suffered a severe blow.

Any Machine-Type monster that appears in your hand, on the field, or in any cards you draw within the last three turns will be destroyed and sent to the Graveyard.

As the Machine-type Cyber ​​Dragon on the field was destroyed by the effect of a Trap Card, Ryo Marufuji himself also suffered 500 points of effect damage.

(Ryo Marufuji LP: 4000→3500)

"Ughhhhhh...!!!"

"What... this inexplicable pain... what is it?"

From all parts of the amplification device, accompanied by red and black flashes, came an immense pain unlike any other. Although he had only suffered 500 points of damage, Marufuji Ryo felt as if he had been electrocuted all over his body, and it was unbearable.

Under the impact, he subconsciously lowered his body, and his brows furrowed tightly due to the intense pain.

"Hehehe... In this underground duel, every time a duelist's life points are reduced, they will suffer actual damage of the corresponding amount. Just as it's said, the duelist's life points are linked to their life. When their life points reach zero and they are unable to get up, the duelist... naturally can no longer stand up."

As if it were none of his business, Montgomery, cloaked in black and standing outside the cage, calmly explained the current situation in the tone of an observer.

Although it wasn't a dark duel where the loser would die, in a sense, this duel was still a life-or-death battle.

The loser in the duel will also have their life end along with their health points due to the amplification device.

"This...this isn't a duel at all! You're lying to me!!!"

As if he had found an outlet, Marufuji Ryo, feeling the pain that kept coming from his body, vented all his anger on Monkey Saruyama.

He stared intently at Montgomery, hoping to get a satisfactory answer from the other party.

"Hehehehe... Lie to you? What are you talking about? Marufuji Ryo... Isn't this duel exactly what you've been craving?"

Montgiruyama, already used to Marufuji Ryo's angry accusations and his current attitude, showed no surprise. He raised his arm and pointed around the dueling arena: "Look at those guests in the stands, they've been watching your every move!"

As Montgomery said, Marufuji Ryo's previous actions had become topics of conversation for these viewers.

Each time he was hurt, it brought these people a sense of pleasure from the inside out.

"...Nothing is more interesting than a life-or-death duel; for them, that's the best entertainment! Hahahaha!!!"

With a mad flame burning in his eyes, Meng Qiyuanshan spread his arms and began to laugh loudly, oblivious to everyone around him.

The laughter was laced with undisguised mockery and contempt.

Ryo Marufuji, if you want to live, then become the real Kaiser Ryo of Hell and be reborn on the corpse of your opponent!

"...Gu!"

Clenching his fists, unable to refute these words, Ryo Marufuji's face showed an extremely obvious expression of resentment.

Although he was unwilling to admit it, he could not deny that the current situation was indeed the result of his own choices.

If anyone's to blame, it's only themselves for trusting others so easily...

"Professional leagues are nothing compared to this life-or-death duel; they're like children playing games... Come on, let's continue the duel, Hell Caesar Ryo!"

With his hands raised high, Montaguta Saruyama urged Marufuji Ryo, who was standing still.

As if in response to his voice, from all corners of the audience, people simultaneously criticized Marufuji Ryo for attempting to break the rules.

"What the hell is going on?! Get the hell out of here!"

"Stop dawdling! Don't make me watch this slow-paced duel anymore!"

"...Boring, I want to see rivers of blood!"

"If you want to die, just lose it and stop dawdling!"

……

Enveloped by familiar taunts and feeling the sudden pressure, Marufuji Ryo had no choice but to abandon his plan to accuse others and continue this life-or-death duel: "Ugh... End of round..."

With no monster cards in his hand and his Cyber ​​Dragon destroyed by a trap card, Ryo Marufuji could only leave his front row empty as he ended his turn.

"Hehehe~~~ My turn, draw a card!"

Inukai drew a new card from his deck and placed it directly into the back row of his Duel Disk, activating it: "I activate the Spell Card [Success Reward] from my hand. Depending on the effect of this card, you can draw up to six cards in your hand. For each card you draw, I will recover 1000 Life Points."

Judging from the first half of its effect, this magic card that sends cards to the opponent is obviously a useless card, similar to "Pot of Humility" which sends cards back to the deck.

Even with the added effect of restoring health based on the number of cards drawn, this card's effect still seems rather ridiculous.

Compared to the life points that are usually negligible as long as they are not zero, the act of letting the opponent draw cards is obviously much more dangerous.

Who knows, the opponent might use this to get key cards into their hand, then unleash a massive board flood, completely overwhelming you.

In this state, even having tens of thousands of health points is meaningless.

“Then… I’ll draw three cards.” Looking at Inukai across from him, Marufuji Ryo, unsure of his strategy, hesitated for a moment before replenishing his hand to six cards.

As he draws three cards from his deck, Inukai's life points will increase by 3000.

(Dog feed LP: 4000→7000)

"……snort!"

Feeling the comfort of his health points being restored, Inukai beckoned to Marufuji Ryo with his finger: "Based on the effect of [Acid Corrosion - Mechanical Virus], let me check the card you just drew."