The lunch break passed surprisingly quickly, and before long, participants and spectators began flowing back into the conference hall.
Almost immediately, conversations erupted throughout the room because the hall looked completely different from before.
The dozens of tables that had filled the room during the preliminary rounds were gone, and only sixteen remained.
Above them stood metal trusses supporting cameras and equipment.
Large CRT televisions had been positioned all around the hall, and thick bundles of cable stretched neatly across the floor.
Various electronic devices emitted a constant low hum.
The entire setup looked far more professional than anyone had expected.
"Whoa..."
"Are those cameras?"
"They are."
"What's all this for?"
"Maybe they're recording the finals?"
"There's no way."
Even some of the remaining competitors looked impressed.
The atmosphere carried a sense of anticipation and gave the vibe that something important was happening.
Alexander smiled from the podium as that was exactly the reaction he had hoped for.
Once everyone had settled down, he tapped the microphone to gather everyone's attention, making several hundred faces turn toward him.
The room gradually quieted, and shortly after, he said, "Welcome back, everyone."
Alexander gestured toward the equipment and continued, "As you may have surely noticed, we've made a few changes."
That earned a laugh.
"Starting from the Top 32 onward, every featured duel will be broadcast on the screens throughout the hall."
A wave of surprised murmurs spread through the crowd.
At the same time, Alexander continued, "This will allow everyone to follow the matches closely without disturbing the competitors or crowding around the tables."
Several spectators immediately nodded while a few judges looked relieved, as the previous rounds had required constant intervention to prevent people from clustering around exciting matches, but this solution solved that problem perfectly.
Alexander allowed the reactions to settle before continuing, "Now then."
His smile widened as he announced, "Let's continue the Duel Monsters Grand Prix."
The applause returned immediately.
Then the judges began announcing pairings while the players gathered around the posting boards.
Some looked excited, others looked nervous, a few visibly paled, especially after realising who they would be facing.
The Top 32 began.
The first elimination rounds moved quickly as the remaining competitors were all skilled, and because of that, mistakes became less frequent.
Every victory had to be earned.
Chuck's match drew attention almost immediately, but mostly because Chuck refused to play quietly, "Since I have Lord of D on the field, I activate The Flute of Summoning Dragon that allows me to Special Summon two Dragon monsters from my hand!"
His energetic voice echoed across half the conference hall, making several spectators laugh.
Others immediately turned toward the nearest monitor.
On screen, the card Lord of D. stood proudly on Chuck's field and moments later two more Dragon monsters followed.
The crowd reacted enthusiastically because, as always, Dragons were quite popular thanks to their power and cool designs.
Chuck knew it, and he shamelessly exploited that fact to use the audience to put even more pressure on his opponent, making it more likely for him to make a mistake.
His opponent fought back admirably, but unfortunately for him, Chuck's offensive pressure never stopped.
One attack led to another, one dragon became two, two became three and before long, the match was over with Chuck decisively winning two duels in a row.
Chuck advanced.
Nearby, Ginny's match generated a very different reaction.
At first, spectators seemed uninterested because nothing flashy happened.
No giant attacks, no dramatic swings, just careful plays with measured decisions and small advantages accumulating over time.
Five turns later, her opponent looked frustrated, eight turns later he looked worried, ten turns later he looked doomed.
The spectators slowly began understanding what was happening.
Every exchange somehow favoured Ginny, every trade somehow benefited Ginny, and every attempt to recover somehow failed.
The match ended without fanfare, yet when the result appeared on screen, several experienced players nodded respectfully as they had recognised the skill involved.
Ginny also advanced.
Dante's match quickly became one of the most talked-about matches of the round.
The old man looked completely relaxed while his opponent did not.
"Come on, kid." Dante chuckled while drawing, "Hehe. Don't make that face."
The teenager across from him blinked and asked, "What face?"
"The one that says you're worried."
"I'm not worried."
Dante immediately grinned and said, "Now you're definitely worried."
Several spectators laughed as the young player turned red.
At the same time, Alexander watched from a distance and commented, "Poor kid... He's doing it on purpose."
Roland nodded and agreed, "He is."
The old gambler wasn't merely playing cards; he was playing people, and judging from the results, he was very good at it.
When Barrel Dragon successfully destroyed the opponent's strongest monster, the crowd erupted.
Dante merely smiled as if the outcome had been obvious all along.
He advanced.
Victor Von Doom's match was different from all of them.
It wasn't exciting, dramatic, or flashy, just efficient, almost disturbingly efficient.
Alexander found himself watching the monitor longer than intended.
Victor barely spoke to his opponent, just the bare minimum to announce his moves.
Every movement appeared deliberate, every card placement precise.
His opponent was strong, like all the other Top 32, even one of the favourites in advancing and reaching at least the Semi-Finals.
A local favourite, someone who had won multiple tournaments, yet somehow the duel never felt close.
Victor constantly seemed at least two turns ahead, sometimes three.
The spectators reacted to obvious plays, but Victor reacted to possibilities that had not happened yet.
When the duel ended, his opponent looked less defeated and more confused, as though he still wasn't entirely sure how he had lost and what he did wrong.
On the other hand, Victor calmly collected his cards and then left without celebration, without boasting, without even smiling.
Seeing that, Alexander felt a shiver run down his spine as he could already see the faint shadow of the future Dr Doom in him.
The Top 32 became the Top 16, then the Top 8.
The atmosphere inside the conference hall changed as at this point every remaining player had supporters and every match attracted attention.
The televisions proved to be an enormous success as spectators and defeated participants gathered around screens debating plays, predicting outcomes and arguing over strategies.
The tournament felt alive.
By the quarterfinals, everyone had favourites.
Some supported Chuck because dragons were awesome and cool and his hot-blooded attitude and aggressive playstyle seemed to match them perfectly.
Some supported Virginia because watching her methodically dismantle opponents was strangely satisfying.
Many supported Dante as the charismatic old gambler had become the tournament's unexpected star.
And then there was Victor.
Nobody knew much about him; not many understood exactly why he kept winning, yet he did, again and again and again and despite his cold and almost detached attitude, his absolute confidence was still able to earn him many fans.
Chuck's quarterfinal proved to be his hardest match yet.
For the first time all tournament, he genuinely struggled as his opponent repeatedly disrupted his strategy, forced difficult decisions and punished any mistakes he made.
The duel went to a third game, and the crowd loved every second.
In the end, Chuck's dragons prevailed, barely.
The conference hall erupted into applause as Chuck pumped his fist triumphantly and let out a victorious shout.
He had reached the semifinals.
Ginny's quarterfinal, on the other hand, was completely different.
It was slow, technical and methodical.
The kind of duel that casual spectators found boring but also the kind that experienced players found fascinating.
Because every card mattered, every decision mattered, every move had a reason.
Both duelists carefully managed their resources, and neither gave an inch willingly.
In the end, Ginny emerged victorious through superior planning.
Alexander and Roland weren't surprised by that, but her opponent certainly was.
Dante's quarterfinal became the most entertaining duel of the day.
At one point he activated Jirai Gumo and several spectators immediately groaned while others cheered.
Coin flips always attracted attention because of their high-risk, high-reward mechanics that are incredibly entertaining for the viewers but highly tense for the participants.
When he won the toss, the crowd erupted and when he later succeeded with Barrel Dragon, the room practically exploded.
The old man simply laughed as though probability itself was an old friend.
He too advanced to the semifinals, much to the delight of his supporters.
Then came Victor.
The final quarterfinal attracted significant attention, not because people knew Victor but because they didn't.
He had become the tournament's mystery.
His opponent was Daniel Harper, a respected local champion, another one of the favourites entering the tournament.
The duel should have been competitive, but instead it became a lesson.
Victor seemed to know exactly what Daniel wanted to do.
Every attempt at establishing control failed, every offensive push was answered, every recovery was anticipated.
Three separate times, spectators believed Daniel had found an opening and three separate times, Victor punished it.
Alexander frowned; the strange feeling was becoming familiar as he asked himself, 'Why did he do that now?'
But two turns later the answer appeared, making him realise, 'Oh... That's why... How eerie...'
A few turns passed, and Victor made another unusual decision that almost made Alexander question himself again, but then the trap he laid closed, making Alexander realise what he was aiming for.
By the end of the duel, Alexander had stopped asking because every strange decision eventually revealed itself to be correct.
In the end, Alexander understood that Victor wasn't reacting to the game; he was controlling it.
Before long, the match ended, and Victor advanced.
Silence lingered briefly, then applause spread throughout the conference hall; even the defeated Daniel joined in as he was professional enough to acknowledge superior play.
The judges quickly gathered, the results were confirmed, the standings updated, then the announcement finally came.
"Ladies and gentlemen."
The room gradually quieted.
"The semifinalists have been determined."
Applause filled the hall as the remaining players stood.
Virginia Potts.
Charles Irving Zane.
Dante Venturi.
Victor Von Doom.
Four names, four contenders and only one possible champion.
As the spectators celebrated, Alexander found himself looking toward Victor, and almost immediately, Victor looked back.
Their eyes met briefly, only for a second, yet Alexander immediately felt something unsettling.
Victor's gaze was calm, observant and intelligent, far too intelligent, as though he had noticed Alexander studying him long ago.
Then Victor simply looked away, returning his attention to his deck while Alexander remained silent.
Of the four semifinalists, three surprised him, but the fourth genuinely worried him.
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