Nobunaga: "Alright! The Fire Chicken has been defeated! This victory is all thanks to my amazing performance! You people should never underestimate the power of comic relief characters!"
Okita, who sheathed her sword coolly, rebutted,
"It was clearly my achievement, though. Pfft...!"
[Weakness 1]
[Okita ATK 9500 → 9400]
"Not even close! This is nothing! In my super mode, this level of physical strain is like a drop in the ocean!"
Using the searing flames on her blade to vaporize the blood at the corner of her mouth, Okita pretended nothing had happened.
"But there is something strange... This Winged Dragon of Ra didn't feel as hard as I expected. It was like... slicing into cotton."
Hoshino suddenly realized something was wrong.
"That sensation... don't tell me—it's that tactic used by the fused Ra?!"
"Exactly, Hoshino~"
Yugi had already activated De-Fusion beneath his feet, severing the link between himself and The Winged Dragon of Ra before Okita's slash could land.
"By activating the Quick-Play Spell Card De-Fusion, I separate myself from Ra and, at the same time, transfer its full ATK to my Life Points."
[Yugi LP 8300]
"But wait! When De-Fusion is used, The Winged Dragon of Ra's ATK becomes 0! That means the 9500-point attack from Souji is effectively a direct attack!"
According to that logic, the duel should've ended right there.
"Heh... Beyond the Aeons—gaining ATK through the number of divine monsters—certainly caught me off guard, but…"
Discarding a card from his hand, Yugi smirked.
"Just like you, Hoshino, I have trusted monster companions who support me in duels. I discard Kuriboh from my hand! Thanks to its effect, I negate the battle damage!"
A fluffy Kuriboh floated across the field, looking as if it had been lightly roasted by flames—extra fluffy.
"Damn... I totally forgot about Kuriboh..."
Hoshino frowned. The monster often called a "second life" had saved Yugi from countless crises. But this time, it didn't just save him—it also caused a massive LP gain.
"My full-power strike... stopped by that fuzzy-looking, zero-offense monster!?"
Looking at the scorched battlefield and Yugi's LP skyrocketing, Okita grew concerned.
"His starfish head's Life Points are back over 8000… Are we really okay, Master?"
"No worries, Okita! Without board presence, no amount of LP matters—it's just paper shielding."
On Hoshino's field stood Okita, unaffected by the opponent's card effects and boasting nearly 10,000 ATK. In addition, there was another option—not crucial, but better than nothing. Yugi had wiped his own field clean with Ra's effect, giving Hoshino the clear upper hand.
"I set two cards and end my turn!"
[Hoshino's: 0 Hand Cards | 2 Set Cards]
"My turn! Draw! I activate the effect of the monster card Magicians' Souls in my hand!"
Two ghostly magicians appeared on Yugi's field—easily recognizable as Dark Magicians.
"By discarding Magicians' Souls, I send 1 Level 6 or higher Spellcaster from my Deck to the GY, then Special Summon 1 Dark Magician or Dark Magician Girl from my GY!"
As magical power surged into the souls, they took on physical form.
"I send Dark Magician of Chaos to the Graveyard! Rise again, Dark Magician Girl!"
[Dark Magician Girl ATK 2000 → 2600]
The adorable Dark Magician Girl twirled her wand as she reappeared on the field. Since both Dark Magician and Dark Magician of Chaos were in the GY, her ATK increased, surpassing even her teacher.
"But even with that ATK, she's still no threat to Okita. And you've only got one card left in your hand, Yugi…"
"I activate the Spell Card—Card of Sanctity!"
Before Hoshino could finish her sentence, Yugi confidently played the notorious draw spell.
"You're out of cards, right, Hoshino? To make this duel more thrilling, let me replenish our hands!"
Hoshino twitched and forced a smile.
"How kind of you. But I'd prefer neither of us got new cards... hehe…"
Right now, Hoshino clearly had the upper hand. If Yugi didn't draw new cards, he'd be stuck. But drawing new cards? That could change everything.
Grumbling or not, cards had to be drawn. Even Hoshino had to admit it:
"...God, that's so busted, but also... so good."
With a replenished hand, Yugi's confident smile returned.
"Okita, wielder of the Sword that slays gods—truly a powerful ace monster."
"This starfish-head actually gets it! Yes! Praise me more! Louder!"
Nose in the air, Okita was brimming with pride, her hard work and training in the Graveyard finally acknowledged.
[Okita Souji gains title: The Ace Recognized by Starfish-Head.]
"Now that we've settled the gods' battle, it's time for an Ace vs. Ace showdown! I'll respond to your sword with my own—by using Chaos Form! Ritual Spell, activate!"
Light and darkness swirled into a ritual of Chaos—a ritual magic forming a swirling black-and-white vortex on Yugi's field.
"With Chaos Form, I banish Dark Magician from the GY instead of tributing, and Ritual Summon 1 'Chaos' Ritual Monster from my hand!"
No need for extra tributes—only the strength of the Dark Magician's legacy was needed to awaken this being of chaos.
"In the name of the Dark Magician, I forge the chains of chaos!
Come forth—my ultimate servant in a new form: Magician of Chaos!!"
[Magician of Chaos ★★★★★★★ (Level 7)] [DARK] [Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect] [ATK 2500 / DEF 2100]"While this card is on the field or in the GY, it is treated as Dark Magician."
Though his stats were the same as before, the aura of this Magician of Chaos rivaled even that of Okita with Beyond the Aeons.
[Dark Magician Girl ATK 2600 → 2300]
(Her ATK decreases due to "Dark Magician" being banished from the Graveyard.)
"Next, I activate the Spell Card—Dark Magic Twin Burst! This turn, Magician of Chaos gains ATK equal to the current ATK of Dark Magician Girl!"
[Magician of Chaos ATK 2500 → 4800]
Dark magic surged violently, flooding the entire field with a storm of magical blasts. With it, Magician of Chaos's power spiked—surpassing even Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon.
"Battle! Magician of Chaos, let's stake everything on this ace vs. ace showdown! — Roar, Chaos Black Magic that transcends the gods!"
A dense surge of black magical energy. In any normal duel, this one strike would annihilate even Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon.
[Okita ATK 9400]
But this wasn't an ordinary duel. This was a deathmatch carried over from battles between gods.
"It's pointless. Even if your attack lands, I have twice that attack power! Counterattack, Okita!"
Kaiba's expression darkened. Not only had their ace monsters clashed, but his Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon had become mere cannon fodder. Worse still, Hoshino acted like one reference wasn't enough—she had to use two.
"At the moment Magician of Chaos attacks — I activate my Trap Card: Prideful Roar!"[Prideful Roar – Trap Card Effect: During damage calculation, if your monster battles an opponent's monster with a higher ATK: Pay LP equal to the difference in ATK; your monster gains ATK equal to that difference +300, during damage calculation only.]
"The difference in ATK between Magician of Chaos and Okita is 4600. Thanks to Prideful Roar, I pay LP to close the gap!"
[Yugi LP 8300 → 3700]
"OOOOOOOOHHHHH!!!"
A prideful roar—Yugi paid 4600 LP in one go, pushing Magician of Chaos to its ultimate strength and flipping the tide of this ace duel.
[Magician of Chaos ATK 4800 → 9700]
"—Go! Chaos Maximum Black Magic!!"
The powered-up Magician of Chaos, unfazed by card effects, struck head-on with overwhelming force.
As she was engulfed by the spell, Okita sighed:
"So this is the ace of black magic... That's too cool to be fair. I want a Chaos form too..."
[Okita destroyed]
[Hoshino LP 2300 → 2000]
"It's not over yet! Magician of Chaos's effect activates — Once per turn, when a Spell or Trap is activated, destroy 1 card on the field!"
Raising his hand, Yugi unleashed the second strike of chaos. His target: the face-down Nursery Rhyme.
"Explode — Chaos Realm Black Magic!!"
[Nursery Rhyme destroyed]
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Even the scattered toys on the field were blown away with her, vanishing into the distant sky.
With all of Hoshino's monsters wiped out in one blow, Yugi readied the final strike:
"You no longer have any monsters to block with, Hoshino! Dark Magician Girl — direct attack!"
The stylish, twirling wand of the enchanting Dark Magician Girl was cute—but Hoshino didn't have time to admire it. That wand now looked more like the scythe of Death.
"But due to my Continuous Spell Spell Sanctuary, Spell Cards can be activated as Quick-Play Spells! I activate the set Normal Spell — Heaven's Feel!"
A radiant Heroic Spirit descended to the field, shielding Hoshino from destruction.
"Heaven's Feel returns 2 'Artoria' monsters from the banished zone to the Graveyard, then lets me Special Summon 1 'Heroic Spirit' monster from my Deck in Defense Position whose Level equals the number returned!
Come forth—Heroic Spirit – Formal Dress Sherlock Holmes!"
[Heroic Spirit – Formal Dress Sherlock Holmes★★ (Level 2)] [LIGHT] [Spellcaster/Effect] [ATK 0 / DEF 1900]
Summoned purely as a wall, Holmes raised a brow:
"You're having me, a detective, block that spell? Honestly, I think Mr. Cu Chulainn would be more suited for this kind of thing~"
But Hoshino had little choice. Her deck lacked other Level 2 monsters. She had intended to wait until more monsters were banished before activating Heaven's Feel to summon a higher-level Servant. Now, she was forced into early defense.
"Holmes's effect activates! When Special Summoned, I can add 1 Spell/Trap that mentions 'Sherlock Holmes' from my Deck to my hand!"
But just as Hoshino reached to search her Deck, her Duel Disk didn't respond.
"Heh. I knew it," Yugi laughed.
"You wouldn't summon a monster just for defense. You were after that effect. But this time — you've walked into my trap! I activate my face-down Counter Trap — Chivalry!"[Chivalry – Counter Trap Effect: Activate only during the Battle Phase, when the effect of an opponent's Effect Monster is activated. Negate the activation and destroy that card.]
A surge of pressure swept across the field. Holmes was negated and shattered, leaving Hoshino wide open once more.
[Formal Dress Sherlock Holmes destroyed]
"When I negate an opponent's monster effect with a Counter Trap, I can Special Summon Van'Dalgyon the Dark Dragon Lord from my hand!"
[Van'Dalgyon the Dark Dragon Lord ★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)] [DARK] [Dragon/Effect] [ATK 2800 / DEF 2500][If your opponent's card is negated by a Counter Trap, Special Summon this card from your hand.
If successful, apply the following based on the negated card type:
● Effect Monster: Special Summon 1 monster from your GY.]
"Since I negated a monster effect, I activate Van'Dalgyon the Dark Dragon Lord's effect to Special Summon from my Graveyard—come back to me, Slifer the Sky Dragon!"
[Slifer the Sky Dragon ATK: 2000]
Thunder crashed as the red Sky Dragon descended again onto the field. Now, with both Van'Dalgyon the Dark Dragon Lord and Slifer the Sky Dragon roaring above, Yugi's field control reached its peak.
"It's over, Hoshino. I win this Duel!"
An empty field. Four terrifying monsters. One of them a god. Everyone was sure—the duel was finished.
Even Kaiba huffed coldly:
"So it's Yugi again. To command a god with such mastery... there probably isn't a second person on Earth who can do that."
"ROOOOAAAARRRR——!!"
Just as even Kaiba admitted Yugi's win, metal chains suddenly erupted from nowhere—binding both dragons tightly, halting their movements entirely.
Even Dark Magician Girl, who had just launched the finishing blow, was suspended midair, tied up in magical shackles.
Hoshino grinned. The smile she'd hidden all this time finally emerged.
"Slifer? Dark Dragon? Sorry, but from here on... Gods are not permitted to pass."
(*****)
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