Yu-Gi-Oh!: This isn't a duel!

"This guy... changing his hair and using special effects, what's he doing trying to look cool by himself!"

"He's clearly just a bandit leader!"

In contrast, Lila beside him remained absolutely calm, her heterochromatic eyes constantly analyzing the situation on the field.

Andre Anfo, as his teammate, remained like an emotionless statue, silently observing everything.

Faced with Kisskill's sarcastic remarks, Lucien merely smiled faintly, a smile exuding an elegant control over the entire situation. He flicked his sleeve, pointing to the constantly flashing figure in the center of the arena:

"Next, the main event."

"I activate the effect of [Time Stalker - Clockwork Restorer] on the field!"

"You can activate this effect during your or your opponent's turn. Detach up to 3 types of Xyz Materials from this card (Monster, Spell, Trap). Then, depending on the types of Xyz Materials detached, apply the following effect!"

Lucien held up three fingers, his voice like a devil's whisper, proclaiming one by one the despair-inducing laws:

"If it's a monster: This card is banished until the End Phase!"

"If it's magic: Draw one for yourself."

"If it's a trap: Return 1 face-up card on your opponent's field to the top of their deck."

Lucien snapped his fingers gracefully, his voice carrying an air of complete control:

"I have removed the only overcharge material for [Time Stalker - Clock Restorer] - [Time Stalker Attendance Machine Butterfly]!"

"At this cost, the follow-up effects of [Time Stalker - Clockwork Restorer] are activated!"

"Until the end of the phase, I will banish this card!"

As soon as the command was given, the previously stable spacetime force field surrounding the [Time Stalker - Watch Dial Repairer] instantly became disordered.

His retro-futuristic trench coat moved without wind, and the void in front of him seemed to be sliced ​​open by an invisible scalpel, revealing a "gate of time" that shimmered with eerie light.

Without the slightest hesitation, the phantom thief of time simply raised his hand, made a graceful gesture with two fingers joined together at his temple, and then stepped into the crack.

"Om-"

As his figure completely disappeared from the current timeline, the rift quickly closed, as if he had never existed.

However, Lucien's story has only just begun.

"At that very moment, the effect of the [Time Stalker Attendance Machine Butterfly], which was sent to the graveyard as material, activated!"

Lucien points to the data vortex of the graveyard:

"If this card is in the Graveyard and an Xyz Monster you control leaves the field due to an effect—you can reverse time and Special Summon it!"

"Although the price is that it will be excluded after leaving the field, its mission is not over yet."

"Come back, [Time Stalker Attendance Machine Butterfly]!"

In the gloomy graveyard, countless fragments of shattered data rapidly reassembled in the air.

With the roar of the mechanical engine, the mechanical butterfly, its wings shimmering with holographic neon light and trailing a dazzling tail flame, once again danced in this cyberspace.

[Time Stalker - Attendance Machine Butterfly] [★4]

[Dark/Mechanical Race] [Attack: 1000 / Defense: 1000]

Looking at the two four-star monsters that had reunited on the field, Lucien's lips curled into a smile that was both aristocratic and subtly mocking.

"Although it's a very basic tactic, it's exceptionally effective, isn't it?"

His slender fingers gracefully traced a line in the air, and two dark purple nebula-like rays of light converged and spiraled before him.

The two monsters transformed into streaks of light and entered the vortex, eventually forming a bottomless, seemingly timeless gravitational vortex.

"I'll stack the [Time Stalker Attendance Machine Butterfly] and the [Time Stalker Wristwatch Adjuster] on the field!"

"Build a hypersonic network!"

Within that dazzling vortex of stars, Lucien sang aloud:

Let the shackles of time extend infinitely, and capture that one and only truth!

"Xyz Summon! From this moment onward—descend, [Time Stalker - Perpetual Chain Operator]!!"

"Click, click..."

With the sound of precision gears turning, a beautiful and mysterious figure gracefully emerged from the explosion's brilliance.

She was a girl who looked like she had stepped out of an old-fashioned magazine.

She wore an exquisitely tailored black and white striped short dress, her long golden hair flying wildly in the energy storm.

Behind her, a huge red mechanical gear is turning endlessly, symbolizing the "constant motion" of time.

She hovered in front of Lucien, the hands of her pocket watch ticking gently, exuding a reassuring yet deadly tranquility.

[Time Stalker - Constant Motion On-Chain Member]

[Tier 4] [Dark/Psychic/Xyz/Effect] [ATK: 1900 / DEF: 2500]

Lucien executed this series of smooth and effortless maneuvers with remarkable ease.

He took the last two cards from his hand and gently inserted them into the back slot of the Duel Disk.

"I'll place two cards face down in my hand."

As two enormous virtual card backs materialized on the field, Lucien bowed slightly, giving a standard curtain call:

My turn is over.

Seeing that the imposter on the other side had finally finished his operation, Kisskill, who was already disdainful, couldn't help but let out a soft sneer.

"Hmph, all that fancy stuff and all that, and this is it?"

Kisskill crossed her arms, her pink eyes filled with disdain.

Her gaze swept over Lucien's field—the empty front field contained only an Xyz Monster with less than 2000 ATK, the Phantom Thief who had disappeared to some unknown place, and two face-down cards of unknown origin.

"Is this all the final showdown is? Not even a decent monster."

Kisskill's lips curled into a provocative, wicked smile, her small canine tooth gleaming under the neon lights:

"Looks like your 'time' isn't worth much!"

"What a complete disappointment! It's a fake!"

"Don't be too quick to draw conclusions, Your Excellency."

Faced with Kisskill's mockery, Lucien was not angered. Instead, he elegantly raised a finger and gently shook it:

"The real show often only begins after the curtain falls—at the very moment my turn ends!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the previously closed spatial rift tore open again without warning.

"Return from the end of time! — [Time Stalker, Watch Dial Restorer]!"

"Om-"

With a low, spatial tremor, the phantom thief, dressed in a high-tech trench coat, calmly stepped out of the crack and returned to his original position.

"Now that the main character has returned to his position, the support from the supporting characters must also follow."

Lucien's eyes narrowed, and he quickly pointed to the blonde girl on the sidelines:

"The very instant [Time Stalker - Watch Restorer] returned to the field!"

"Due to the time refresh, I activate the effect of [Time Stalker - Perpetual Chain Keeper] on the field!"

"Target 1 Xyz Monster you control other than this card. Select 1 'Time Stalker' card from your Deck and overlay it as Xyz Material under the targeted monster!"

"This effect can be activated even during the opponent's turn!"

"Click, click!"

The huge red gear behind the [Time Stalker - Constant Motion Chain Operator] began to spin faster, emitting a precise meshing sound.

She seemed to be weaving the spindle of destiny, her delicate hand gracefully sweeping across the void.

"I choose [Time Stalker - Watch Dial Restorer]!"

"Assign him the monster from the deck—[Time Stalker Crown Operator]—to become new material that powers him!"

A golden streak of light flew out from Lucien's deck, transforming into a sophisticated mechanical core that precisely embedded itself into the halo behind the elixir thief.

"Alright, all the springs are wound up."

Having done all this, Lucien gave a slight bow, a perfect gentleman's salute, and looked at the Gemini opposite him with a flawless smile:

"Now, my turn is officially over. Please."

"Tch, even after it's over, he still insists on adding more scenes. What a show-off."

Kisskill pouted unhappily, then stretched lazily and unceremoniously, displaying her alluring figure encased in her bodysuit:

"Finally finished with all that rambling! Now, it's my turn!"

Her eyes instantly sharpened, her fingers resting on the deck:

"Draw a card!!"

However, the instant Kissgil touched the card with her fingertips and completed the draw, a sharp glint, like that of a falcon, flashed in Lucien's eyes behind his glasses.

This is the moment he's been waiting for!

"Sorry, your time is now under my control!"

Lucien's voice suddenly rose in pitch:

"During your preparation phase after you finish drawing cards!"

"The effect of [Time Stalker - Clockwork Restorer] is activated!"

"This effect can only be activated during either player's Standby Phase. Forcibly steal the top card of your opponent's Deck and use it as Xyz Material for this card!"

"I won't hold back—hand over the top card of your deck!"

Chapter 240 Show Yourself, Red Raiders of the Night! Evil★Twin Giskillers: The Deal!

"What?!" Kisskill's pupils contracted slightly.

Suddenly, the phantom thief on the field raised his wrist and quickly flicked the hands on the dial. An invisible gravitational wave instantly locked onto Kiskill's deck.