Who Let Him Play Yu-Gi-Oh!

"Before you end your Battle Phase, I activate a set card."

Kira snapped his fingers.

"Continuous Trap, 'Ultimate Offering'!"

The set card flipped face-up, and what looked like blood flowed from the dark card art.

"Ultimate Offering's effect can be activated during my Main Phase or your Battle Phase."

Kira slowly drew a card from his hand.

"So, I'll use its effect now. Pay 500 LP to Tribute Summon a monster from my hand.

I Tribute 'Magician of Faith' to Tribute Summon a monster in face-down Defense Position."

[Kira, LP 4000 → LP 3500]

Magician of Faith vanished in a shower of golden sparks, replaced by a mysterious face-down card.

Zombie Morita stared intently at the set card, letting out ambiguous groans.

The Battle Phase ended, and it was now Main Phase 2.

He squinted, laboring over his hand for a while, thick fingers brushing over each card as if doing eeny-meeny-miny-moe, before finally picking one.

"Set... end."

A gold light appeared in his back row as he set a card.

"My turn, draw."

"And first, of course, is the card I retrieved with 'Magician of Faith.'"

He immediately played a Spell.

"Spell Card, 'Pot of Greed'—draw two more cards."

He quickly drew two, then revealed another card.

"Spell Card, 'Spider Web'—I can add a card sent to the Graveyard last turn to my hand." (Anime card)

He pointed at Morita's Graveyard.

"I'll take your 'Graceful Charity.'"

White threads shot from Kira's Duel Disk, snatching the Spell Card from his opponent's Graveyard and returning it to Kira's hand.

"Now, activate 'Graceful Charity'—draw three, discard two."

Kira drew three and discarded two.

"But one of the discarded cards is 'Learning Elf.' When this monster is sent to the Graveyard, I draw one card." (Manga card)

He glanced at his draw, added it to his hand, then looked at the zombie.

Zombie Morita stared back with hollow eyes.

"So, you still have a clear grasp of the rules, but to what extent is your intelligence intact... let's check."

Kira flipped his face-down monster.

"Flip Summon the set monster. And it's..."

A massive monster, like a mountain made of stone, appeared on Kira's field, its sphinx-like visage exuding an imposing presence.

"Guardian Sphinx!"

[Guardian Sphinx, ATK 1700]

"Guardian Sphinx's effect: when this card is Flip Summoned, return all monsters your opponent controls to their owner's hand!"

For a split second, Morita's zombie eyes seemed to twitch, maybe even glaring at Kira.

Full-field, non-targeting, AOE bounce!

The massive Sphinx invoked its power. The Blue Thunder Fighter was helpless before it, forced to retreat back to Morita's hand under the statue's stern gaze.

Back row bounced, front row bounced...

Even though the zombie's face remained lifeless, his eyes now seemed a bit... resentful.

Or maybe it was just Kira's imagination.

Kira rested his chin on his hand.

Still needs more confirmation.

"Then, I Normal Summon 'Sentry Soldier of Stone.'"

[Sentry Soldier of Stone, ATK 1300]

Sentry Soldier of Stone, used in the movie by Yugi, is a new version of the classic "Giant Soldier of Stone."

And the original was famous not for power, but for its legendary hidden effect: it could attack the moon and cause the sea to recede...

"Battle Phase," Kira said. "Guardian Sphinx attacks directly."

The mountain-sized creature advanced, ready to crush with its sheer, overwhelming presence.

But the zombie had a counter, shakily raising his head: "Set card... Trap."

The set card flipped open—a Trap Card stood before him.

Trap Card: "Pinpoint Guard."

When an opponent's monster declares an attack, Special Summon one Level 4 or lower monster from your Graveyard in face-up Defense Position.

A golden light appeared in Morita's Graveyard, and a monster card sent there last turn emerged.

"UFO Turtle, Defense."

[UFO Turtle, DEF 1200]

The Sphinx's attack crashed down, but the little UFO Turtle stubbornly endured, not destroyed or sent away.

"Pinpoint Guard... cannot be destroyed."

The zombie croaked.

A monster Special Summoned by Pinpoint Guard cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn—a literal iron wall.

"Can't be destroyed, huh? Alright, I won't attack."

Kira shrugged, then smiled politely at the zombie.

"Main Phase 2, Guardian Sphinx's effect activates.

Once per turn, I can flip it face-down again."

He waved his hand over his monster.

"Good job out there—take a break."

The Sphinx's massive body quickly shrank back into a face-down card.

It rested quietly on Kira's field, but somehow emanated a chilling aura, like a hunter lying in wait.

Zombie: "!"

"Oh, you figured it out that fast?" Kira laughed.

Guardian Sphinx, thanks to its effect, could flip itself face-down once per turn.

And every time it was Flip Summoned, it could bounce all opposing monsters to the hand, no matter how many or in what position.

With Catapult Zone in play, even if you summoned a strong monster to attack, it was hard to beat. And attacking could trigger Catapult Zone's effect, sending a Rock from the deck to the Graveyard to replace a destroyed monster.

And those Rocks could have effects—like Tackle Crusader Crusader, which could remove back row or flip monsters face-down.

The whole setup was built around one idea—

—You're not really allowed to play Yu-Gi-Oh today.

The zombie's face remained blank, but his free hand had unconsciously clenched into a fist...

"Hmm, pretty smart, really."

Kira continued observing.

"See? You even know how to get mad."

Zombie: "..."

"As expected of a pro duelist turned zombie—your dueling instincts are top-notch."

Kira grinned, starting to look forward to the match.

"Let's hope you're smart enough to answer my questions after the duel—tell me what happened here, how you became like this, and where the person I'm looking for is.

So, Mr. Zombie, give it your all. Don't let me down."

Zombie: "..."

Kira drew two more cards.

"I set two cards and end my turn."