7. Yu-Gi-Oh ARC-V A New Story of Pendulum (Synchro Arc)

Chapter 35 Unyielding Resolve

Roget's office trembles as his fist slams down on the mahogany desk, the sharp crack echoing through the room. "We were supposed to have Serena win at all costs! Why?!" His voice reverberates off the walls, raw with fury. The staff flinch, exchanging uneasy glances but daring not to move.

Roget's glare shifts to the monitor showing the aftermath of the duel—Serena's defeat broadcast across the city. His jaw tightens. "Now that she's been beaten in front of the crowd... making her a star is no longer possible." The words drip with venom and resignation. For a moment, his expression hardens into something colder, more calculating. "Notify every member of Security on duty at the Duel Palace," he orders, his tone sharp enough to slice through the room's tension. "No mistakes this time."

Elsewhere, the wind roars across the elevated highway as a transport truck barrels through the night. Standing atop its roof, Rin grips the metal frame for balance, her turquoise hair whipping wildly behind her. Her eyes are distant, shadowed by thoughts darker than the storm clouds overhead.

"Now that Yugo has also won..." she murmurs to herself, her voice nearly lost in the wind. "Yuya, Yuni, and Risu are next... and there's still the Duel Crusher—the one who made me like this..."

She raises her sleeve, revealing the eerie mark etched into her skin—a whale-shaped insignia that pulses faintly with a sinister glow. Her gaze hardens. "Of all people... why choose me as a Dark Signer? And why do I have to fight them..." Why must I be their enemy...?

A sudden voice cuts through the night. "Wait! Rin!"

Her heart skips a beat. She knows that voice—its tone, its desperation. She turns, eyes widening to see Yugo racing toward her on his D-Wheel, engines roaring as the blue glow of his Acceleration Mode lights up the road.

"Yugo..." she mutters, clicking her tongue in frustration. Damn it... I'm not ready to face him yet.

Without hesitation, Rin steps to the truck's edge, the wind howling like a warning. Then, with a swift motion, she leaps—off the highway and down toward the river below. The splash of water is swallowed by the sound of the passing traffic as she lands onto a moving boat, her cloak whipping behind her as she regains her footing.

"Rin! Wait!" Yugo's voice echoes from above, strained with emotion. He swerves to the side, braking hard near the guardrail, watching helplessly as the boat speeds away into the misty darkness of the waterway.

But Rin doesn't look back. The glow of her Dark Signer mark flickers once more across her arm, a silent reminder of the curse that now binds her fate—and the growing distance between her and the one she once loved.

The metallic echo of boots striking concrete filled the dim corridor as Serena was marched forward between two stern Security guards. The air grew colder with each step, and the faint hum of machinery beneath the ground only added to the oppressive silence. After what felt like an eternity, they stopped in front of a massive elevator door—its steel surface marked with warning stripes and faint scorch marks from duels long past.

Serena narrowed her eyes. "So this is it... the so-called entrance to hell?" she muttered bitterly, her voice echoing faintly through the empty hall.

Before either guard could respond, two sharp blasts shattered the quiet. Goyo Catapults—summoned from hidden duel disks—fired rounds that knocked both guards off their feet. They collapsed instantly, smoke rising from the impact. Serena's reflexes kicked in; she reached for her Duel Disk, snapping it open with precision, her stance sharp and ready.