# The Underground Terminal
Barret LP: 4000
Ryo LP: 4000
"My turn," Ryo said, his voice entirely calm as he looked at the five cards in his hand. "I activate the Continuous Spell: Dark Contract with the Gate. I will pay 1000 of my Life Points during each of my standby phases from now on. I end my turn."
Barret gasped, his weathered features tightening. "What? Nothing?!"
Farther down the corridor, Celina's brow furrowed at the bizarre move. "...?"
"No set cards, no summon," Barret scoffed, his eyes narrowing. "Are you just here to play games? A pitiful boy like you challenging someone like me."
"Did you not hear me?" Ryo's gaze was unwavering. "I said I end my turn."
Without a single wasted motion, the veteran soldier drew his card, his eyes fixed on Ryo. "My turn. I activate the Spell card, Beastborg Fusion. I fuse Panther Warrior and Dark Sanctuary from my hand!"
A purple vortex tore open behind the veteran, colliding the two entities into its center.
"I Fusion Summon Beastborg Panther Predator!"
[ EARTH / Machine / Fusion / Effect / Level 6 / Attack: 1600 / Defense: 1200 ]
The massive mechanical hybrid dropped heavily onto the concrete floor.
"Panther Predator's effect," Barret continued evenly. "When summoned, I can Special Summon one Beastborg monster from my hand. Emerge, Beastborg Wolf Camp."
[ EARTH / Machine / Effect / Level 4 / Attack: 1400 / Defense: 1400 ]
A second metallic hound materialized beside the first, its optical sensors glowing a harsh red.
"Next, I activate the Continuous Spell card, Beastborg Medal of the Crimson Chain," Barret pointed a thick finger forward. "This locks the field into direct military confrontation. While active, your face-up monsters cannot change their battle positions, and my Beastborg monsters gain 500 Attack points. However, I can only attack with one monster this turn."
Beastborg Panther Predator — Attack: 1600 → 2100
Beastborg Wolf Camp — Attack: 1400 → 1900
A glowing red chain linked the two mechanical beasts, their power surging in tandem.
"Battle," Barret ordered. "Panther Predator, attack."
The machine lunged forward, its jaw opening to reveal a gathering whorl of kinetic energy. The wind pressure caused Ryo to whip violently around his frame, but he didn't flinch, absorbing the blunt force of the holographic impact.
The physical shockwave slammed into him, shattering the silence. "So the pain is real... Real Solid Vision. No simulations." Ryo's Life Points ticked down sharply, but his posture remained perfectly steady.
Ryo LP: 4000 → 1900
Barret narrowed his eyes. "...You didn't even brace. Either you're reckless or brave... or you wanted me to attack." He slotted a card face-down. "I end my turn."
"My turn," Ryo said.
His hand hovered over his deck, pausing for a fraction of a second. "The condition is fulfilled... Even if I know I have to do it, it still feels uneasy." He drew his card with a swift, definitive snap. Knowing pain is coming.
Dark smoke immediately seeped from his chest as his heart raced against his ribs, enforcing the penalty of his contract. It beat furiously against his rib cage, fully extracting the toll. It beat to it's fullest.
Ryo LP: 1900 → 900
"I activate the effect of Dark Contract with the Gate," Ryo commanded, a deep crimson magic circle uncoiling beneath his feet. "Once per turn, I add one D/D monster from my Deck to my hand. I choose D/D Berfomet."
Barret frowned. "Why didn't you activate Gate's effect on your first turn?"
"Because I wanted you to underestimate me," Ryo replied calmly.
Barret's gaze sharpened, his jaw tightening as the realization hit. "...You wanted me to attack."
Ryo didn't offer a confirmation, his expression remaining perfectly cold as he slotted the card into his hand. "From my hand, I activate the effect of D/D Swirl Slime, fusing it with the D/D Cerberus in my hand.
"Fusion Summon! Emerge, D/D/D Flame King Genghis."
[ FIRE / Fiend / Fusion / Effect / Level 6 / Attack: 2000 / Defense: 1500 ]
"Next, I Normal Summon D/D Berfomet."
[ DARK / Fiend / Effect / Level 4 / Attack: 1400 / Defense: 1800 ]
"Berfomet's effect. I targeta D/D/D Flame King Genghis and change its Level to 4."
D/D/D Flame King Genghis — Level: 6 → 4
Barret's eyes narrowed, seeing the level forced to a matching threshold.
"I use my two Level 4 monsters to Xyz Summon," Ryo declared. "Xyz Summon! Rank 4. D/D/D Wave King Caesar."
[ WATER / Fiend / Xyz / Effect / Rank 4 / OU: 2 / Attack: 2400 / Defense: 1200 ]
High above, in the LDS monitoring room, Nakajima leaned closer to the primary screen. "He reconstructed his levels on the fly, but a Caesar alone won't be enough for those monsters—"
Reiji remained entirely rigid. "No. Watch the material configuration."
Back in the terminal, Ryo's eyes locked onto Barret's massive monsters. "I use the Rank 4 D/D/D Wave King Caesar to open the Overlay Network. Every material attached to Caesar is transferred."
"An Xyz evolution?" Barret muttered.
Caesar dissolved into a dark orb, swirling upward into a massive, twisting galaxy of obsidian.
"From the depths of the frozen abyss, let your arrow pierce the heavens of strategy! Xyz Summon. Rank 5. D/D/D Marksman King Tell."
[ DARK / Fiend / Xyz / Effect / Rank 5 / OU: 3 / Attack: 2300 / Defense: 2000 ]
"King Tell's effect," Ryo spoke, his tone entirely emotionless. "During the turn I have taken effect damage, I can activate its effect. By detaching one Xyz Material, your monster loses 1000 Attack and Defense points, and its effects are neutralized. You cannot activate effects in response. Furthermore, you take 1000 points of damage."
Barret's eyes widened as the mechanics clicked into place. "...No. You never intended to defend. You needed me to attack."
Ryo met his gaze in complete silence.
"I activate this effect three times," Ryo said flatly.
D/D/D Marksman King Tell — OU: 3 → 0
Three arrows of gravity struck Panther Predator in rapid succession. The its optical sensors died, and the feedback tore through Barret's defensive line. The veteran scrambled to dodge the first two illusionary projectiles, but the rapid shifts caught him mid-air, the third arrow striking him directly.
Beastborg Panther Predator — Attack: 2100 → 1100 → 100 → 0 / Defense: 1200 → 0 / (Effects Negated)
Barret LP: 4000 → 3000 → 2000 → 1000
"Battle," Ryo commanded. "Marksman King Tell, destroy Panther Predator."
Barret lowered his arm, a grim, weary respect settling into his posture. "...I see. From the moment you ended your first turn... I had already walked into your strategy."
King Tell released a final arrow, piercing the central chassis of the beast and shattering it into a wave of golden light.
Barret LP: 1000 → 0
The blast of shockwave sent Barret flying backwards.
Silence reclaimed the underground terminal. Ryo stood exactly where he had started, his breathing completely normal.
Barret stared down at his heavy Duel Blade as the solid-light surface flickered out of existence.
Ryo took a slow step forward. "Your options are limited. You can cooperate voluntarily. Or I can hand you to LDS Intelligence."
Farther down the corridor, Celina stood near the maintenance junction, her emerald eyes wide with disbelief. "Barret..." she whispered, her jaw tightening. "...You lost."
"Every operation begins with an insertion point," Barret replied calmly, his face completely devoid of fear as he reached for his duel disk. "And ends with an extraction point. One of my objectives is complete, Celina-sama."
He looked up at Ryo.
"What is your name?"
"One should tell their name first before asking other's name."
"I am Barret."
"Ryoho."
Barret chuckled. He didn't laugh. He didn't say anything. He had simply realized something. "I accept defeat on this one. You made a good battle strategy... But this is war."
He pressed directly onto the device. His entire body transformed into pure, blinding light and vanished instantly, leaving nothing but the faint smell of ozone lingering in the empty corridor.
Celina watched the empty space, her fists clenching. "...Disgraceful," she muttered.
Before the air could clear, the heavy emergency security shutters at both ends of the terminal slammed open with a deafening metallic ring. The rapid rhythm of tactical boots flooded the concrete hallway as nearly twenty LDS Security guards poured into the intersection, forming a rigid containment wall around the cloaked girl.
"Don't move!" The lead captain barked. "Hands where we can see them!"
Celina's eyes flared with sudden fury. She took a sharp, predatory stance, her hands raised and ready to tear through the new eyesores. One more second, and the terminal would dissolve into a multi-targeted bloodbath.
"Stand down," Ryo commanded.
The authority in his voice cut through the tension instantly. He lowered his left arm, letting his Duel Disk power down into standby mode.
"Lower your weapons," Ryo repeated, looking directly at the security captain.
The captain blinked, completely caught off guard. "...Sir? She's clearly an active hostile affiliated with the infiltration signature—"
"I said lower them," Ryo stated.
Reluctantly, the security guards stepped back, lowering their weapons while maintaining a cautious circle.
Celina didn't lower her guard. Her emerald eyes remained fixed on Ryo, searching for the trap she couldn't find. "...You're halting your own enforcement?" she asked quietly. "A tactical error."
Ryo slid both hands into his pockets, looking at her with an even gaze. "I'm giving you a choice."
"...Choice?"
"Go."
Silence stretched between them. The security guards exchanged confused glances. Even Barret, moments earlier, had expected immediate imprisonment upon losing, yet the victor was openly clearing an escape route.
Celina frowned deeply. "...Why?"
"You already know why."
"No."
"You just refuse to consider it."
Her eyes narrowed sharply. "I am Academia."
"No," Ryo answered immediately. "You work for Academia."
She took one deliberate, aggressive step toward him. "I work for Professor. Everything I know came from him."
"And yet," Ryo replied, "you questioned my decision instead of following yours."
"..."
"If Leo Akaba truly created a perfect soldier..." Ryo looked directly into her eyes. "...why are you asking questions?"
For the first time, Celina had no immediate retort. She crossed her arms, anchoring her stance. "You think you've figured something out because Barret retreated."
"I think Barret revealed something."
"..."
"He abandoned the mission," Ryo said. "If defeating me had been the priority, he would've stayed. If escaping had been his only priority, he would've left immediately. He did neither."
Celina stayed silent, her jaw locked.
"He fought until you were cornered. He only withdrew once he knew you had an escape route," Ryo's gaze never left hers. "That means protecting you ranked above defeating me."
Celina's expression hardened into pure defiance. "You're wrong."
"Am I?"
"Professor needs no one."
"Then why send Barret? Why risk an experienced operative? Why not abandon you?"
For the briefest instant, something flickered across her face. Not doubt—memory. Barret placing himself physically between her and danger. Barret repeatedly ordering her to withdraw. Barret refusing to explain the absolute necessity of it.
The look vanished almost as fast as it appeared. "You're trying to deceive me."
"I'm trying to make you think."
"I don't need your help."
"You do and I am not pretending to know." Ryo's answer came instantly. "I understand people."
That answer made her pause again, a visible hitch in her hostility.
Ryo continued. "The louder someone defines themselves... the more afraid they are of questioning it."
For several long seconds, neither of them spoke. The ambient hum of the transit station felt impossibly distant. Celina finally pulled her gray hood low over her head. "...You're naive."
"Maybe."
"You think people can simply choose another path."
"They can."
"You know nothing about me."
"No," Ryo nodded once. "But you looked disappointed when Barret escaped."
Her eyes widened almost imperceptibly underneath the shadow of her hood.
"You weren't disappointed because he failed," Ryo concluded softly. "You were disappointed because he left."
Silence. The underground corridor felt vast and entirely hollow.
Finally, Celina turned away. Just before disappearing into the blackness of the transit tunnel, she spoke without looking back, her voice echoing off the walls. "...Professor needs no one. But we all need him."
Ryo answered in the same calm, unyielding voice. "If that were true... Barret wouldn't have abandoned the mission to protect you."
This time, she gave no response, but she didn't deny it either. Her footsteps simply faded away into the darkness.
For several seconds, no one spoke. Ryo finally turned toward the security captain. "Search the area. Don't pursue her."
"...Understood."
As the guards dispersed, Ryo looked toward one of the security cameras mounted on the ceiling. "You have any questions, Reiji?"
# LDS Command Room
The cameras in the terminal were broadcasting Ryo clearly. "Capturing her now would achieve very little."
Nakajima frowned, stepping toward the console. "...After everything that happened? Ryo-sama, she's an enemy infiltrator."
"Watching where she goes may reveal far more," Ryo's voice replied through the comms. "Leo Akaba doesn't waste resources. If Celina were just another soldier, Barret would've stayed to fight. He didn't. He escaped. And his final priority wasn't defeating me—it was making sure Celina could get away safely. Meaning she's more valuable than the mission itself."
"That's true," Reiji said. "But that's only if we maintain surveillance on her at all times. If she goes and disappears into the stadium crowd, we can't track her."
"Don't worry." Ryo said. "Even if she blends into crowd, she probably won't do anything to attract attention. And if she tries to escape to city, we can capture her. I highly doubt she came here to be teleported back to Fusion Dimension. She must have had a goal which she came to complete."
Nakajima slowly nodded, the pieces fitting together.
Reiji asked. "Nakajima, where was the last confirmed sighting of Shun Kurosaki?"
Nakajima freezes. "President?"
"Find and monitor him every time. If she is here to card Kurosaki, who is a Xyz Dimension refugee, she will reveal herself without knowing she's being watched." Reiji said.
Ryo said. "Remove an ordinary soldier, and Academia replaces them," Ryo's voice continued, cold and analytical. "Remove someone Leo can't replace... and the entire machine loses a gear. Every decision Leo has made points to the same conclusion. Celina is not expendable. If she remains free, Leo will eventually reveal how important she truly is."
Reiji adjusted his glasses, his eyes narrowing slightly as he stared at the screen. "Very well. We will test your hypothesis. Watching her trajectory might give us the validation we require."
Nakajima exhaled a long breath, looking at Ryo. "So the duel wasn't just about defeating Barret."
Ryo answered immediately. "No. It was about identifying the real objective. It's just my assumption, but if the surviving Academia operative returned safely, he has likely already been informed that Celina is in the Standard Dimension. Academia will surely send forces to take her back."
Ryo thought. "I also have to start moving the pieces."
The monitor went silent as Ryo started going from the terminal below.
Reiji clasped his hands behind his back, his gaze hardening as he stared into the empty display. "The opening move has been played." He closed his eyes, only to open. "The real war begins now."