Chapter 297: Valley of Kin's Eternal Sleep
After Summoning The Winged Dragon of Ra, Hayato continued, "I Set two cards from my Hand, then I Activate the Continuous Spell Card, Mirage of Nightmare."
"Since it's the first Turn, I cannot enter the Battle Phase, so I'll End my Turn for now."
[Hayato: 4000 LP, Hand 0]
[Ojama King DEF 3000]
[The Winged Dragon of Ra ATK 4800]
[Set Card] x2 [Mirage of Nightmare]
"Mirage of Nightmare, huh? That means, Hayato, you must have Emergency Provisions prepared among your Set Cards, right?" Ishizu said with a smile.
Hayato wore a helpless expression. "Sigh, I suddenly feel Mai Valentine was right. Dueling against familiar people has this one drawback. Your habitual Combos and the Cards that might be in your Deck all get guessed."
"After all, Hayato, you are the Duel King. It's not just me; many Duelists have specifically studied your and Yugi's Decks." With a smile, Ishizu calmly drew a card, as if ignoring the oppressive aura emanating from The Winged Dragon of Ra on Hayato's Field. "My Turn, Draw."
In reality, that was indeed the case. Although Ishizu was Marik's older sister, Hayato's attitude towards the two of them was different. If it were Marik, The Winged Dragon of Ra would have long ago unleashed its full oppressive power, but since it was Ishizu, Hayato had already instructed The Winged Dragon of Ra and his other monsters to take it easy when attacking.
"Alright then, during your Standby Phase, I Activate Mirage of Nightmare's Effect." Hayato also drew four cards. "I Draw Cards from my Deck until my Hand has four Cards."
"However, powerful Cards often come with risks. As the Cost of drawing those cards, during the Standby Phase of my next Turn, I will have to Discard Cards equal to the number I drew."
"You call it a risk, but a True Duelist can even utilize risks, can't they?" Ishizu said with a smile, activating a card from her Hand. "Alright then, I Activate the Spell Card Painful Choice from my Hand. I select five Cards from my Deck, and you, Hayato, will choose one of them to add to my Hand. The other Cards will be Sent to the Graveyard."
It seemed she had already decided which Cards to choose, as Ishizu immediately revealed five Cards from her Deck—
A bald monk, a shifty short guy, an arrogant blonde man, a masked Black-robed Figure, and a square-faced man carrying a cannon?
Their Card names were:
Gravekeeper's Recruiter, Gravekeeper's Vassal, Gravekeeper's Descendant, Gravekeeper's Assailant, Gravekeeper's Cannonholder
Huh?
Hayato looked quite surprised at the five Cards Ishizu revealed. He had originally been prepared to "bitterly" choose Dark Ruler Ha Des or similar Cards, but what he didn't expect was that Ishizu actually pulled out an unbeatable Gravekeeper's Deck?
"Just like you often do, Hayato," Ishizu explained, "I also have more than one Deck. A Deck built around Exchange of the Spirit as its Core, while possessing a powerful OTK capability against unprepared Opponents, but since you already know of its existence, Hayato, you'll certainly be prepared for it. So, I naturally won't use it."
"My Gravekeeper's Deck is the other Deck I use. This Deck is the embodiment of the successive leaders of our Tomb Keepers. To a certain extent, the Gravekeeper's Deck is my true Ace Card." Mentioning the Tomb Keepers, Ishizu's expression couldn't help but look serious. "Hayato, I want to personally defeat Marik, to defeat his dark personality that has broken free. Therefore, I don't want to lose."
"I will defeat you with this Gravekeeper's Deck!"
Hayato looked somewhat surprised at the battle-ready Ishizu, a faint smile slowly appearing on his face. "Is that so? It's rare to see such an expression on your face. But, I don't want to lose either. I will become the King of Duelists, the world's number one Sai Q Duelist."
"Since neither of us wants to lose, then let's Duel with all we've got, Ishizu!" Hayato said, pointing to one of the five Cards Ishizu had revealed. "The Card I choose is Gravekeeper's Recruiter. Add him to your Hand."
"Then, the other Cards will be Sent to the Graveyard." Ishizu took that bald monk—I mean, Gravekeeper's Recruiter—and added it to her Hand, then Sent the other four Gravekeeper's Monsters to the Graveyard.
In Duel Monsters, although most Duelists were still stuck in the "you play one, I play one" phase (Joey: Achoo!), the most commonly used was Tribute Summon. Ritual Summons and Fusions were rarely seen, and Spell Cards and Trap Cards were mostly used as extras, with their utilization rate of the Graveyard being quite low.
However, in the Meta of Hayato's previous life, the Graveyard was far more important than the Hand. Milling was a very important thing. Cards like Graceful Charity and Foolish Burial all possessed powerful targeted Milling Effects. But compared to the Painful Choice Ishizu had just used, they were all inferior.
Targeted Milling of four cards, without Cost or restriction, whether Spell, Trap, or Monster, and it could also thin the Deck. It's no wonder that in another World, Painful Choice became a Forbidden Card for eternity.
"I Activate the Effect of Gravekeeper's Commander from my Hand by Discarding him from my Hand to the Graveyard. Then, I Search for one Necrovalley from my Deck and add it to my Hand." Ishizu Sent a monster wearing a jackal mask to the Graveyard, and after Searching for the Card from her Deck, immediately Activated it on the Field. "Then, I Activate the Field Spell Card, Necrovalley!"
Just like in the previous Duel, when Mai Valentine Activated Harpie's Hunting Ground, replacing the Sky Duel Arena with an endless desert, as Ishizu placed Necrovalley in the Field Spell Card Zone of her Duel Disk, several tall mountains rose up around the Duel Field, completely encircling the Field and transforming it into a completely enclosed Hidden Deep Valley.
Although Hayato had never played a Gravekeeper's Deck before, for this particular Card Ishizu Activated, his impression was quite deep. Because, as mentioned before, in the Meta of his previous life, the Graveyard was a very important resource storage location. Many Decks even built their Combos/Board Development around the Graveyard. Yet, Necrovalley's Effect specifically existed to counter the "Graveyard"—
"Necrovalley is the resting place of the Pharaohs, where no one may disturb it." Ishizu said. "As long as this Card exists in the Field Zone, neither player can Banish Cards from the Graveyard. Furthermore, any Effects that involve Cards in the Graveyard will be Negated and cannot be applied."
With the appearance of Necrovalley, Hayato clearly felt his Link to X-Head Cannon, Y-Dragon Head, and Z-Metal Tank in the Graveyard was severed. It was as if an insurmountable Berlin Wall had been erected between reality and the Graveyard.
As long as the "Mommy Long—"—I mean, Necrovalley—exists on the Field, the Graveyard's existence will remain Sealed. Cards can only enter, not leave.
(end of chapter)