"Chapter 761: Cannot Survive Without Battling
The Assassin, whose senses were connected to Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts, simultaneously felt the endless pain the moment Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts was killed by Insect Queen. It felt as if poison and digestive fluid were also injected into his own body.
Even compared to Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts, whose nerves were dissolved in an instant, the pain the Assassin felt was much more conscious.
Amidst the wail, the Assassin, whose Spirit had been killed, powerlessly fell, dropping directly from the platform into the Deep Pit, where he was pierced by the sharp blade at the bottom of the pit and died in pain.
Witnessing the death of another, the Shorty who had killed his opponent instead laughed even more excitedly: "Jijijijiji, as expected, my Insect Queen is the strongest! Another perfect victory!"
Glancing at Aknadin, who sat on the High Platform, coldly watching this group of Prisoners slaughter each other, the Shorty remembered the promise Aknadin had made before. Aknadin had sworn on the life of the Pharaoh he served and his own glory as a Priest that if these Prisoners could successfully win ten consecutive Duels in the life-and-death, torture-like battles he arranged among them, he would grant that winner freedom.
Because Aknadin had even included the Pharaoh when making the promise, adding considerable credibility to his words, the Prisoners, including the Shorty, believed Aknadin. It was for that enticing freedom that they fought so seriously and desperately, offering Aknadin one bloody slaughter after another.
"More power, I need more power!"
Amidst the Shorty's laughter, the body of the Insect Queen in front of him grew slightly in size. This caused Seto to widen his eyes, and a guess surfaced in his mind: "Could it be—!?"
"Moth Wing's crimes were fraud, damaging others' property, and gambling cheating. Compared to the Assassin who attempted the Pharaoh's assassination, his committed sins were insignificant. But in the end, with his inner desire and malice continuously expanding, it turned out to be his victory." Sitting on the High Platform, Aknadin's mouth curved up,
"No, perhaps the premise was wrong from the start. From beginning to end, Moth Wing's malice was greater. Was it just that he had that evil heart but lacked the courage to commit corresponding evil deeds, which is why he only committed sins of that degree?"
"Lord Aknadin, what is this?!"
Although he already had a guess in his mind, Seto still found it difficult to conclude, or perhaps he was somewhat unwilling to believe that the idea in his heart was true. With an expression of disbelief, he looked at Aknadin sitting on the High Platform, hoping he could give him an acceptable answer.
However, Aknadin admitted it without reservation: "It's just as you thought, Seto. This is the idea you had before, to gather the Prisoners, make them slaughter each other using the Gu Method, and finally determine the strongest Spirit to obtain power that surpasses a Divine-Beast."
Aknadin's hand rested on the handrail as he looked at Seto below the platform. Noticing that Moth Wing on the Deep Pit was taking the opportunity to rest, he ordered again: "What are you doing? Do you think you have time to rest? Arrange the next battle."
"Remember, if you don't battle, you cannot survive!"
For an instant, Seto almost thought that Aknadin, sitting in the seat, was King Aknamkanon, the Previous Pharaoh he had met once when he was a child. Looking from this angle, Seto suddenly noticed that Aknadin's face bore some slight resemblance to King Aknamkanon's, and their names were also somewhat similar.
But, it must just be an illusion.
With a serious expression, Seto looked at Aknadin and said: "But Lord Aknadin, Hayato Kobayashi has already found us other means to bring power without sacrifice. It's truly absurd to still make the Prisoners continue to slaughter each other."
As he spoke, Seto glared with fierce eyes at the Guards watching over the Prisoners in the other cages in the Dungeon: "What are you doing! Make them stop!"
The Guards were reprimanded by Seto and looked at Aknadin with some hesitation, unsure whether they should follow Seto's instructions. In terms of status, they were all Aknadin's confidantes, but Seto, as a Priest, also held power over their lives and deaths. Emotionally, they, like Seto, did not want to see the bloody scene of humans infighting.
They didn't understand why Priest Aknadin, who had always been kind to others and even treated Prisoners with a benevolent heart, would suddenly undergo such a drastic change in temperament today and make them do such cruel things.
The Millennium Eye stared at the slightly hesitant Guards nearby. Aknadin also spoke seriously: "Quiet, Seto! Isn't this also what you wished to see? Compared to Spirits awakened within the heart, Spirits born from malice are much easier to grow. What makes their Spirits grow is the will to survive in the hearts of these Criminals right now."
"I heard that the Pharaoh was attacked again today, right? Even with Shada, who has awakened Spirit Power, accompanying you to protect the Pharaoh, it didn't change the result that the Pharaoh almost died, right?"
"If the Pharaoh were to die like this, it would be like a gentle push on a plate hanging precariously on the edge of a table; the Kingdom would be easily destroyed. I, who deeply love this Kingdom, do not want to see such a result. I believe you feel the same."
As if Aknadin had seen through what Seto was thinking in his heart, his words went straight to the core: "So, Seto, you don't want the Pharaoh to be in danger again, right?"
"To achieve this, what we need is not a strong heart, but power, more power!"
Aknadin's line of sight returned to above the Deep Pit. Seto followed Aknadin's line of sight and saw that Moth Wing, who had won before, had achieved victory once again during this time. The size of the Insect Queen had grown larger again, and the aura it possessed now was somewhat close to the strong Stone Tablet Monsters Seto held.
Furthermore, due to the change in viewing angle, Seto also saw a faintly glowing mark of the Eye of Udjat on Moth Wing's forehead. The will to survive that allowed his Spirit to grow through consecutive victories seemed to come from the power of the Millennium Eye held by Aknadin!?
Isn't the Millennium Eye only capable of seeing a Spirit's attribute and considered the most useless among the Millennium Items? How does it also have the ability to influence others' minds? Seto, who didn't know that Aknadin had always been hiding his capabilities, thought this was strange.
As Aknadin watched Moth Wing win once again, he glanced at Seto beside him and completed the unspoken latter half of his sentence in his mind: "And, after the Pharaoh dies, a new Pharaoh!"
Another Chapter, Moth Wing's Death (lol)
Seto and Hayato's Determination Chapter
(End of Chapter)
Chapter 762: Hurry Up and Bring It Out for Appraisal
One of the Guards beside him, after confirming that Moth Wing had killed his opponent, glanced at Aknadin, and Aknadin understood his meaning.
"He's already won nine matches? Then the entertainment ends here. It's time to bring out the main course that's worth appraising." Aknadin nodded, ordering his Subordinates, "Send that woman in!"
"That woman?" Seto looked at the direction the Soldiers went after receiving the order. It was the cage where he had previously seen Kisara imprisoned. Aknadin was going to bring Kisara to the Deep Pit to battle as well? How could this be!
Seto immediately became anxious and quickly said to Aknadin, "Lord Aknadin, you can't possibly be sending that woman to participate in a death match, can you! That woman is not a Criminal, she shouldn't be—"
"Whether that woman has committed a crime, you should know better than I do, Seto." Aknadin interrupted Seto. "Not a single Guard can identify the entrance through which this woman entered the City under their responsibility. You should have known this from your Subordinates, and an unidentified person who has trespassed into the Royal City is undoubtedly a Sinner."
Seto was speechless for a moment, unable to refute Aknadin's words. Of course, he knew this, especially now that the kingdom was facing the threat of Thief Bakura and his Subordinates. Any unidentified person could even be killed directly without anyone raising an objection. To protect the Pharaoh and guard the kingdom, this was a necessary sacrifice.
However, because it was Kisara, Seto, who had always adhered to the law in comparison to Mahad, for the first time violated the teachings of Priest Aknadin and committed his first act of favoritism and perversion of justice in his life, even bringing Kisara back to his Residence.
"But, but..." Even though he knew he had done something wrong, just thinking about Kisara being sent to slaughter those Criminals filled Seto with resistance. He opened his mouth, wanting to persuade Aknadin, but couldn't find a suitable reason.
Seeing Seto lose his composure like this because of a woman, Aknadin also frowned. Could it be that Seto liked this woman? Although I had thought about having Seto marry and have an heir early, the object should be a Noble Children, not a Commoner Woman like this?
Moreover, the usually cold and arrogant Seto is actually arguing with me for the sake of a woman he's known for less than a day. This person's influence on Seto is too great!
Seto is going to become the Pharaoh, and women are too troublesome.
"Watch closely, Seto, I confirmed it with the power of the Millennium Eye before." Previously, Aknadin only had the idea of utilizing Kisara, but after figuring something out, Aknadin subtly developed killing intent towards Kisara. However, he still maintained a perfect facade. "The magic contained within that woman's heart is difficult to estimate even with the Millennium Eye."
"With such a premise, the power of the monster that can be awakened within that woman's heart will absolutely not be weak. It's a magic so vast that even the Millennium Eye, one of the Millennium Items, cannot see through it."
"Even the purpose of this Dungeon's existence is to nurture the nourishment that allows the monster within her heart to grow as much as possible. Now, the first portion of nourishment is about to be absorbed by that woman!"
As Aknadin spoke, his gaze fell upon Moth Wing, who was standing on the platform above the Deep Pit and had already won nine consecutive matches. The implication was that he was the "nourishment" that would allow the monster within Kisara's heart to grow.
From the very beginning, the condition he offered to Moth Wing and the other Criminals was impossible to fulfill. The Criminals had to win ten consecutive matches under the threat of death and the temptation of freedom. Throughout this process, all their desire and potential within their body and heart would be fully developed and squeezed out, allowing their monsters to achieve maximum growth.
Then, after they had won nine matches, Aknadin would arrange for them to battle Kisara, crushing all their hope when they were just a hair's breadth away from freedom.
Kisara's cage was opened by the Guards. Two Soldiers grabbed her arms and brought her out of the cage, dragging her by the arms to a protrusion by the edge of the Deep Pit. The mechanism activated, and several wooden boards unfolded to form a bridge leading to a newly vacated platform above the Deep Pit. It was clear they were going to force Kisara onto it.
Seto's fists were clenched tightly. When Kisara looked back at him, casting a helpless gaze, Seto ultimately couldn't control the emotion in his heart and said sharply, "Please, please wait, I cannot stand by and do nothing about your actions!"
"Even if it's Lord Aknadin, I cannot remain silent!"
Hearing Seto repeatedly resist his will for the sake of this woman, the gentle expression on Aknadin's face couldn't be maintained, becoming somewhat serious. "Stop making trouble, Seto, how long are you going to be so naive! If you cannot possess the resolve to counter a god, you will never obtain power that surpasses a god!"
"You are unwilling to dirty your hands, so this guilt will be borne by me. Open your eyes and see clearly, that woman is afraid, trembling and screaming because of terror! Then, the power that surpasses a god will fall into your hands!"
Seto was stunned, because Aknadin's words completely touched upon something that had been troubling him deep within his heart.
Power and glory. He had always believed that the two were intertwined, that power could increase glory, and glory would also bring power. But it wasn't until he encountered Bakura that he realized he had been unable to make a choice between the two, neither gaining great strength nor being able to protect the glory he already possessed.
Aknadin's actions were essentially making the choice for Seto, giving up the glory of a Priest, using power against the citizens he should have been protecting, in order to obtain great strength. If it were someone else who didn't deeply pursue power, they might still firmly maintain their stance and refute Aknadin's actions as completely lacking in glory.
However, Seto hesitated for a moment because of that desire for power.
Looking back at Seto, who was stunned by Aknadin's words, Kisara softly murmured his name: "Seto."
And Aknadin, seeing that Seto finally didn't continue to refute him, waved his hand. Seeing this, the two Guards pushed Kisara from behind, causing her to stumble onto the wooden bridge. And because the mechanism of the wooden boards forming the bridge began to recycle, she was forced onto the platform covered in spikes!
"Woman, summon your monster and let me see its power!" Aknadin said from his seat.
He wasn't worried at all about whether Kisara could win. The monsters controlled by every Prisoner participating in the death match were awakened by the power of his Millennium Eye. He knew their power very well. Even Moth Wing, who had already won nine consecutive matches, his inner darkness had only become four or five times stronger than before.
But Kisara, if he looked at her not with his naked eye but with the Millennium Eye, Aknadin's eyes would be filled with pure white light. The vast magic contained within her heart would inevitably nurture a powerful Spirit. Even though Aknadin hadn't seen the Spirit's true form with his own eyes until now, Aknadin still believed that it would absolutely not disappoint him.
After briefly confirming with the Millennium Eye that the light around Kisara was as dazzling as ever, Aknadin raised his left hand to cover his eyes. But even he didn't notice that when he raised his hand, his palm, exposed to the line of sight of the Millennium Eye, was wrapped in dark aura.
"Hehehehehe, my opponent this time is actually this woman? I haven't seen you battle before, you must be a beginner. Lord Moth Wing is really lucky, as long as I kill you, freedom will be within reach, a beautiful tomorrow awaits me!"
Moth Wing watched Kisara walk onto the platform. Although he was very dismissive of her, he immediately summoned his monster. "Come out, my beloved Insect Queen!"
The spider monster that had killed many strong enemies appeared before Moth Wing. Due to the continuous victories and the constantly swelling desire and arrogance within the User's heart, Insect Queen's size was already twice as large as when Seto first saw it.
However, facing the appearance of Insect Queen, Kisara, who had been forced onto the High Platform, still stood there alone, trembling, and showed no sign of summoning her Spirit.
Seeing this, Seto was extremely anxious. To comfort himself, he chose to believe Aknadin's previous statement, believing that an extremely powerful Spirit, one that might even surpass the power of a god, resided within Kisara. In that case, even if Kisara was forced onto the platform by Aknadin to battle, she could still protect her life and be safe.
But what was happening now? Why wasn't Kisara summoning her Spirit? If this continued, she would be in danger!
What are you doing, Kisara? Hurry and summon your Spirit, or you'll die!
In Seto's clenched hand, his fingernails had dug into his flesh, almost piercing the skin. In his anxiety, he couldn't help but move closer and closer towards the direction of the Deep Pit.
Seeing that Kisara was slow to summon her monster, Moth Wing had no idea of waiting leisurely for her. He wanted victory, he wanted to live. For this, neither honor nor face were necessary existences for him. Since the opponent wasn't making a move, he would strike while she was weak and take her life!
"Hiss—!"
Insect Queen raised its abdomen and aimed its spinneret at Kisara's location, suddenly spraying out a massive amount of silk thread, completely binding Kisara in place, unable to move!
"Ugh!" Her body completely wrapped in silk thread, Kisara couldn't even move on the platform now, leaving herself to be slaughtered by Moth Wing's Insect Queen.
"Kisara!" Seeing this, Seto shouted out urgently.
And Aknadin also frowned tightly, urging, "Woman, aren't you going to summon your Spirit quickly? Do you want to be killed!"
It wasn't that Aknadin cared about Kisara's life and death like Seto did. Aknadin was just thinking that if Kisara died like this, wouldn't that magic on her be completely wasted? That would be too great a loss.
"Hehehehehe, caution is the parent of safety. Although I don't know why this woman isn't summoning her monster, just in case, I'll grab you with silk thread first." Moth Wing said, grinning strangely. "Then comes the last—"
"You wish!"
Just as Moth Wing was about to have his Insect Queen deliver the final blow to the bound Kisara, Seto, having reached his limit of patience, completely overcame the desire for power in his heart and called out his stone tablet monster. He raised the Duel Arena high, and the Winged Warrior Duos, holding a long sword, was summoned by Seto. With a sword slash, it repelled Insect Queen's attack.
And Seto himself, with Winged Warrior Duos's help, leaped onto the platform. He drew a small knife from the bottom of the Millennium Rod in his hand, cut open the silk thread wrapped around Kisara, and said to her with a serious face, "Don't leave my side from now on, do you hear me, Kisara."
Seto's tone when speaking carried a kind of arrogant order, as always, but Kisara heard Seto's concern for her in it. She nodded shyly and softly "Mm"ed, hiding behind Seto.
And Aknadin's eyes widened, looking at Seto with disbelief. "Seto! What are you doing, Seto!"
Facing Aknadin's question, Seto took a deep breath and said calmly, "I failed to protect my mother. Until now, I still regret my lack of strength at that time."
"But I swear, this time will be absolutely different!"
Looking at Insect Queen confronting his Winged Warrior Duos, Seto reached out his palm. "I, Seto, have spent the past twenty-plus years of my life in pursuit of power, but even I have my own pride and persistence. If the stakes for power are the sacrifice of others, then I would rather not have it!"
"I give up the pursuit of power, Priest Aknadin!" Seto firmly swung the Millennium Rod. "I will absolutely not let Kisara die!"
Following Seto's words, the Winged Warrior Duos before him received a magic boost from the Millennium Rod. Its wings behind it suddenly spread, and the dazzling seven-colored magic transformed into light wings, propelling it towards Insect Queen!
"I didn't expect a Priest to also break into this death match, it really excites me! You made me suffer so much, now you also come and feel my pain, Lord Priest!" Facing the attack of Winged Warrior Duos under Seto's command, Moth Wing was not flustered at all, grinning fiercely, he similarly ordered, "If it were at the very beginning, my Insect Queen would indeed not be a match for Lord Priest, but after experiencing so many battles—"
"My pain is above yours!"
Insect Queen flew towards Winged Warrior Duos. The result was unexpected. The sword slash swung by Winged Warrior Duos was easily accepted by Insect Queen for the vast majority, not posing any threat to Moth Wing behind it. And after the two collided, it was actually his Insect Queen that gained the upper hand, just as Moth Wing had said!?
But Seto gave a cold snort. "Idiot, my puzzle of victory is much more perfect than you imagined! Look closely, my true attack target!"
Moth Wing was also startled upon hearing this. He suddenly looked up, only to see the remaining sword slash that wasn't completely accepted by Insect Queen flying directly towards the chains linking the ceiling to the platform above the Deep Pit, cutting them all off.
In an instant, all the platforms above the Deep Pit lost their fixation, and along with the prisoners fighting on them, they all fell into the Deep Pit!
Chapter 763: You Are the Dragon!
"Seto!"
Witnessing the iron plate carrying Seto, Kisara, and the others fall from the sky as the chains snapped, Aknadin could no longer maintain his indifferent facade. He stood up excitedly from his seat and shouted towards the deep pit.
Everything he had done here, although under the guise of a great cause, others might not know, but he himself knew perfectly well. All of this, everything, was for Seto. If Seto died, what meaning would everything he had done have?
Aknadin's heart was enveloped by despair. The Millennium Eye in his left eye emitted a faint golden radiance. But just as Aknadin thought Seto was doomed, he suddenly saw an arm clinging to a broken iron chain. Judging by the golden ring on the arm, it couldn't be a prisoner; it could only be Seto!
With one hand clinging to the broken chains, Seto's other hand was firmly gripping the handle of the Millennium Rod. Kisara was holding onto the Millennium Rod with both hands, which was why they hadn't fallen into the deep pit together.
The physical condition of humans cannot be generalized. Seto's body, due to years of training, far surpassed that of ordinary people. However, at this moment, to bear the weight of two people with one arm, while simultaneously using only grip strength with the other hand to hold the handle of the Millennium Rod carrying Kisara's weight, although he could barely maintain it for a while, he definitely couldn't hold on for too long.
If this were a melodramatic television show, there would definitely be passages like "Let go," "I'd rather die than let go," "Goodbye," "No!" and perhaps even a plot device for a reunion sixteen years later. However, this is the world of Duelists!
"Duos!"
Shouting towards the distance, the Duos that Seto had summoned earlier had not left the field due to the previous actions. At this moment, it was flying in the air, spreading the pair of wing cases on its back which were not merely decoration.
As a high-level Stone Tablet Monster, flying could be said to be the most basic ability. How could a monster spirit not be able to fly?
Although Seto could only barely support himself at this moment, the freely flying Duos could lend a hand. Carrying two people together and flying was simply too easy for Duos.
But just as Duos decreased its height slightly and approached Seto and Kisara, it suddenly stopped abruptly, as if it had hit something, and its limbs made movements of continuously struggling but were unable to move.
The sharp-eyed Seto noticed immediately that, accompanying Duos's struggle, there were faint, thread-like things in the air above that were intermittently visible due to light reflection: "Is that silk thread? Could it be—!?"
"That's right, Priest!"
Following the direction of the voice, Seto suddenly looked up, but saw Insect Queen hanging in the air, stepping on a web. And Moth Wing, whom Seto had thought had fallen to his death with the iron plate earlier, was now holding onto a section of Insect Queen's torso, with an arrogant expression on his face.
Looking at the struggling Seto and Kisara, Insect Queen immediately spat out a large amount of silk thread, wrapping Seto, Kisara, and the iron chain together, preventing the two of them from falling.
However, this wasn't him showing mercy or kindness to save them. Because of Insect Queen's silk, the Duel Arena Seto had opened was completely wrapped in silk thread. Seto's action of trying to summon another Stone Tablet Monster the moment he saw Moth Wing was also interrupted by this, and he looked at the arrogant Moth Wing with a gloomy face.
"You escaped death by weaving a net with silk threads and staying in the air, you Small Fry!"
"Hehehehe, say whatever you want, Priest. Being able to survive is the truth. For survival, us small figures will struggle desperately," Moth Wing boasted triumphantly. "Furthermore, do you really think I, Moth Wing, am some small character who can only live for two chapters? Idiot, I can live for at least three chapters!"
"Now, it's my turn to 'Judgment' you, Priest!"
Moth Wing laughed loudly, making Aknadin extremely anxious: "Stop it! Seto is not your target for battle, are you disobeying my order!"
"Huh?" Hearing Aknadin's words, Moth Wing raised an eyebrow and laughed contemptuously, "Did you misunderstand something, Priest? Although I really want freedom, I know very well that you never intended to let us out from beginning to end. Not only did you arrange things so we couldn't achieve ten consecutive victories, but even if we did win ten times, you would kill us, right?"
"Since that's the case, at least I'll drag a high and mighty Priest down to Hell with me!"
Moth Wing grinned, and the faint Eye of Wjat/Udjat on his forehead gradually faded.
'Because he interfered with the minds of too many prisoners, his inner desire and malice swelled, causing his influence to weaken!?' Aknadin gritted his teeth in anger, but he couldn't summon a Stone Tablet Monster.
Although Bakura had told some lies earlier to mislead Dark Yugi and the others, in order to make the lies harder to expose, Bakura had indeed done some things, including taking the tablets stored in Aknadin's Stone Tablet Temple.
This resulted in Aknadin having no Stone Tablet Monsters to summon at this moment to assist Seto, and he could only watch helplessly as Moth Wing controlled Insect Queen to approach Seto.
"Go taste the flavor of a Priest, my Insect Queen!" With an order, Moth Wing manipulated Insect Queen to pounce on Seto. The entangled Seto couldn't summon a Stone Tablet Monster, Aknadin couldn't offer assistance, and Duos was also in the same shackled state.
Seeing that Seto and Kisara were about to die under Insect Queen's attack, Kisara's eyes gradually glowed with a blue radiance, and her pure white long hair floated up as if blown by wind.
The enormous magic power on Kisara that Aknadin observed was certainly not an illusion, but a real existence. However, unlike his guess, Kisara's inner thoughts did not nurture any great monster spirit, nor was there any external force residing within her.
The source of this power had never been anything else; it had always come from Kisara herself. Kisara had always been quite aware of the power she possessed, but she never wanted to use this power on humans.
Her meeting with Seto when she was young not only etched her bond with Seto into Kisara's heart but also left behind an aspiration for the Seto who fought for justice back then. The figure of Seto fighting to become an Ally of Justice was simply incredibly cool. Therefore, since then, Kisara had always emulated Seto in fighting to protect others.
For example, before this, a village was targeted by Bakura's personnel. They organized many monster beasts to attack, attempting to create a massacre tragedy that would wipe out the village. Kisara, the partner of the Ally of Justice—the "Young Girl of Justice"—naturally couldn't stand by and do nothing. She used her power to eliminate all those annoying monster beasts.
It was just that the aftermath of the battle was a bit large. Carelessly, Kisara's battle at that time affected a nearby river, causing the river to change direction to another place. Also, because she was alone, Kisara couldn't handle the corpses of the dead monster beasts. However, these small troubles should be more acceptable than the death of the entire village.
It was just a pity that, although Kisara had done many things for numerous strangers, they did not know of Kisara's contribution. They still ostracized Kisara, who had rare white hair, and thought that Kisara always followed misfortune to protect them, mistakenly believing that Kisara would bring misfortune.
Despite this, Kisara had always held a kind heart and did not care about the unkindness of others, emulating Seto, who had saved her in the past, to protect others.
Just recently, on the day the Pharaoh ascended, Kisara, who had not entered the city because of her appearance, sensed the dark aura emanating from the Royal City. Worried about the safety of Seto, who was serving the Pharaoh in the Royal City, Kisara, who had always stayed away from crowds and lived in seclusion, entered the city, until now.
Kisara had come specifically to protect Seto, and now that Seto was in danger, it was only natural that she would take action!
As something unusual appeared on Kisara, a radiance surged from within her body, enveloping her entire being and rushing into the air to block Insect Queen's attack!
At this moment, everyone in the dungeon widened their eyes in unison, unable to believe the scene before them, whether it was Moth Wing, Seto, or Aknadin.
The radiance enveloping "Kisara" dissipated. A pair of vast dragon wings that covered the sky spread open, and a slender dragon tail coiled around, completely surrounding and protecting Seto behind her. A massive dragon head opened its mouth and roared at Moth Wing and Insect Queen!
"Roar!!!"
Blue eyes, a pure white divine body, the giant dragon's characteristics were exactly the same as Kisara's. Kisara, who was just a young girl moments ago, had transformed into a dragon to protect Seto!
And looking at the white dragon before him, Seto remembered. He clearly remembered that the ones who had destroyed his village and killed his mother, the slave traders, were completely annihilated by this giant white dragon before him!
"Blue-Eyes White Dragon! Is this your power, Kisara!" Seto murmured. Although he had once thought that Kisara might be related to that white dragon from back then, Seto had never thought that the white dragon resided within Kisara; rather, she *was* the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!
Because Seto was in danger, the divine monster spirit Kisara had transformed into—Blue-Eyes White Dragon—showed a human-like angry expression, glaring at Moth Wing and Insect Queen. It emitted a terrifying and dangerous aura, making the originally certain victory Moth Wing extremely nervous, his heartbeat also accelerating.
"H-how could such an existence be possible? How could the legendary White Dragon God of the Desert be real!?" Moth Wing, who had heard travelers crossing the desert speak of the legend of the White Dragon God protecting humans, felt his hands and feet turn cold and trembled slightly with fear. "This is too much, such an opponent, I cannot win at all!"
"No, it must be an illusion, you can't fool me, it must be an illusion!" Seemingly scared to the extreme, Moth Wing even became somewhat mentally unstable, shouting frantically, "Insect Queen, go! Don't let it get close to me!"
Insect Queen received Moth Wing's instruction. If it were a monster beast without wisdom, it would naturally bravely pounce forward like it did when attacking Seto. But because of Moth Wing's continuous victories and his swelling darkness, she, who had initially gained wisdom, had also learned to read the atmosphere. The Blue-Eyes White Dragon on the other side, even ignoring the gap in size, just its aura alone was something a Small Fry like her couldn't handle.
No matter how much Moth Wing urged, Insect Queen, whom he had previously regarded as his most precious treasure, showed no gratitude for Moth Wing raising her. She stayed put, curling up and refusing to advance, even lowering her body and showing a pleading expression to Seto and Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
However, Blue-Eyes White Dragon didn't care about the opponent's attitude at this moment. She remembered everything that had been done to Seto earlier. She opened her mouth and took a deep breath, and dazzling radiance gathered in Blue-Eyes White Dragon's mouth.
Then, the giant dragon breathed towards its target. The brilliant flood of light completely swallowed Moth Wing and Insect Queen in an instant. Forget about any semblance of resistance; facing the white dragon's attack, the two didn't even have room to wail. In an instant, they were completely wiped from the world and sent to rebirth.
---Hopefully, that guy will have some sense in his next life and not provoke people he can't afford to provoke.
After the flood of light piercing everything in front of it, it broke through the ground, creating a perfectly circular large hole in the ceiling of the dungeon. Witnessing Blue-Eyes White Dragon, witnessing the great power displayed by Kisara, Aknadin covered his Millennium Eye with one hand and couldn't help but exclaim: "What magnificent power, it's simply comparable to a deity, no, it's simply power that surpasses a deity!"
"Such power even exceeded the power of the three Egyptian Gods who protect the Pharaoh. With such power, Seto, he will definitely become the Pharaoh!"
And on the ground, the commotion caused by Blue-Eyes White Dragon in the dungeon attracted the attention of many people, whether it was Priest Shimon, who was anxiously heading towards Dark Yugi's location in the Royal Palace because the Pharaoh was unconscious, or Kaiba Seto, who was attempting to infiltrate the Royal Palace and happened to arrive near the dungeon where the guard personnel had been drawn away.
"What kind of power is this?" Witnessing the radiance bursting from underground, Kaiba inexplicably felt a sense of familiarity from it, and he always felt that there was some existence inside that was attracting him.
Originally, he had planned to go to the Royal Palace first, but due to the appearance of this light, Kaiba changed direction out of curiosity and went near the dungeon.
Coincidentally, when Kaiba, relying on his characteristic of not being seen by others, bypassed the guards and arrived at the dungeon, he happened to see Seto leaving the dungeon, holding Kisara in his arms.
"Chapter 764: This matter is my fault, but I will not apologize
Kaiba was also filled with curiosity towards the woman held in the arms of the person who looked exactly like him, a woman emanating a familiar aura. He followed them. Seto, completely unaware that someone was following him, walked towards the Royal Palace on his own.
Just now in the Dungeon, Kisara had transformed into the Blue-Eyes White Dragon and eliminated Moth Wing before turning back into her human form and falling unconscious. The rescued Seto had no mind to think about anything else at the moment. His heart filled with worry for Kisara, he headed straight for the Medical Ward, a place he had just visited, planning to have the Court Physicians examine Kisara's condition.
The Court Physicians, who had just finished treating the unconscious Pharaoh, the sleeping Hayato, and the exhausted Shada, had no idea that they were about to get more work. There was no way they were getting off work today. The good news, however, was that Ancient Egyptian living habits involved sleeping late into the night anyway, so staying up late for overtime was not an issue.
Meanwhile, inside the Millennium Ring.
"I cannot accept!"
Amidst a mournful cry, the radiance of The Winged Dragon of Ra shone down, completely expelling Bakura's figure from this space.
Before Hayato's eyes, the illusion that Bakura, who had resided within the Millennium Ring, had constructed quickly dissipated as Bakura disappeared, revealing the original void within the Millennium Ring. This was the first time Hayato had seen the kind of sight Marik saw every day when he was trapped inside the Millennium Ring.
Three thousand years later, the evil soul residing within the Millennium Ring first killed Bakura's Father, who was obsessed and maddened by ancient objects. Then, when Bakura touched the Millennium Ring, it invaded the body of the still young Bakura at that time, occupying his mind, and incidentally killed Shadi, who had been guarding it for decades, turning Shadi into a spirit body.
It was precisely because Hayato knew this that, after obtaining the Millennium Ring, he first expelled the evil will within it. Although this was just a world of memory and could not change everything that would happen in the future three thousand years later, it could at least resolve the hidden danger for Hayato when he used the Millennium Ring, leaving him with no worries.
After all, even if Hayato's mind wasn't invaded by the Millennium Ring, it was hard to say if Bakura had other means, such as sharing vision, to steal information. So, just in case, Hayato completely eliminated Bakura within the Millennium Ring.
As one of the Millennium Items, the Millennium Ring itself did not possess the special ability of an interior space. This space was more so created by Bakura, imitating the Millennium Puzzle which hosted the Nameless Pharaoh's soul. It was specifically designed for spirit bodies and was not meant for normal people to stay in. Therefore, after clearing out Bakura's soul, Hayato planned to leave this place.
However, just as he closed his eyes, intending to return to the Outside World, the Psychic Ectoplasm detached itself from Hayato's body without his active control, appearing in this world of void.
"Hmm?" Hayato looked at the Psychic Ectoplasm with some surprise. "What happened? How did you run out by yourself?"
While speaking, Hayato was about to reach out and place his hand on the shoulder of the Psychic Ectoplasm, which looked exactly like him, to see what was going on with it. But what Hayato didn't expect was that his extended hand was suddenly slapped away by the Psychic Ectoplasm!?
Not only that, the Psychic Ectoplasm, which had previously acted like a puppet without wisdom, now quite human-like, crossed its arms over its chest, put on an arrogant expression, and began to speak:
"Hmph, who allowed you to touch my Jade Body, as the Pharaoh?"
Whether it was the expression when it spoke, or the unique arrogant tone, coupled with a face and voice exactly like his own, there was no way Hayato couldn't recognize that the Psychic Ectoplasm before him was simply that guy who had inexplicably dueled him before and called himself "Pharaoh".
No, continuing to use the general term "Pharaoh" to address this guy seemed a bit inappropriate now. Hayato, who had some suspicion about the identity of the person before him, wore an expression full of vigilance and questioned, "How did you intrude here, Meriamun!"
"Only now have you finally figured out who I truly am, idiot." Not evading either, the "Pharaoh" admitted right then and there that his identity was the same as what Hayato had suspected. He was the Master of this body of Hayato's three thousand years ago — Meriamun.
Hayato should have thought of this earlier. The name Meriamun was very strange. What qualification did a mere Commoner have to add the name of the god "Amun" to his name? But if he could become Pharaoh after the dynasty changed in the future, then it would be reasonable.
It's just that Hayato, who didn't know much about the history of Egypt, fundamentally didn't know which Pharaohs there were after the Eighteenth Dynasty, which was the current one, ended and the Nineteenth Dynasty began. He was even less clear about the Ancient Egypt history in this World of Duelists.
The "Pharaoh", or Meriamun, looked at Hayato with an annoyed expression. "Since you already know my name, on what grounds do you have the nerve to ask me how I 'intruded' here? Get this clear for me, you idiot, it was you who arbitrarily brought me and Nefertari, who should have been in the future, to this era, and committed an unforgivable sin, namely, without my consent, arbitrarily occupied my body!"
"The intruder is not me, but you!"
Without a doubt, Meriamun's aura gained the upper hand at this moment, and it also provided a basis for his previous making things difficult for Hayato. Just ask, if someone uninvited occupied your body, would you have a good temper?
However, when Hayato heard Meriamun's words, he just curled his lip and said carelessly, "Although I didn't intentionally choose this body of yours, it's also a fact that I took over your body because of the Dark Game that Bakura initiated."
"This point is indeed my fault, but I will not apologize."
Looking at the self-assured Hayato, Meriamun's lips curled up, and he smiled with a bit of disdain. "I guess you are not someone who would apologize to others either. No one understands you better than I do."
While speaking, Meriamun suddenly extended a hand and pushed Hayato in the chest while Hayato was completely defenseless.
The next moment, the world spun before Hayato's eyes. He only felt his mind detach from the Millennium Ring, and his line of sight rose all the way, coming to the sky above the Outside World.
Opening his eyes, Hayato found himself abruptly appearing before a Chessboard.
Seeking recommendations (OvO)
(End of Chapter)
## Chapter 765: A Classic Flickering Candle
While called a Chessboard, the large area before him was actually closer to a sand table, filled with miniature terrain and Ancient Egyptian Architecture. However, because the sand table was marked with a grid, and Hayato also saw several game pieces, Hayato felt it was a Chessboard.
The few game pieces before him immediately captured Hayato's attention the moment he saw them. It wasn't because the game pieces were exquisitely made, but because Hayato felt an unusual familiarity looking at them.
Aside from that, the game piece closest to Hayato, with its simple yet spirited facial details, was none other than Hayato himself!
Not only that, Hayato looked beside the game piece representing himself and also saw a game piece that looked very much like Nefertari.
Is this some kind of board game? Reminded by the game pieces before him, Hayato suddenly recalled something — from beginning to end, although on the surface the Dark Game Bakura had set up seemed like a traditional role-playing game, as if the game would end if the controlled character died.
But actually, the premise "tabletop" had to be added before "role-playing game". The gap between the two was as vast as the gap between **Lightsworn** and **Infernoid**. Although both decks involved Milling, their approaches were completely different.
"Role-playing" meant you had to face and think about problems from the character's perspective. However, in "tabletop role-playing", you became the Player of numerous game pieces, able to view everything happening In the Game from multiple perspectives. Even if the primary controlled game piece died, you only needed to replace it with another game piece.
The so-called "tabletop role-playing", this ultimate Dark Game, was precisely such an Existence. It was only because of the subjective first impression left by his past life's memory that Hayato subconsciously forgot this point.
Although he didn't know what means Meriamun had used to bring himself to the perspective of a Game participant, it was thanks to the opponent that Hayato was able to realize that he wasn't one of the many "game pieces" he thought he was, but the Player. He should actually thank him for that.
And since Hayato had already moved his perspective to a position outside the Game, that meant —
"Tsk, should I say it's expected of the Duel King? You actually realized the truth behind this Game." A familiar voice came. Hayato looked over, only to see Bakura, wearing a sailor shirt, sitting on a seat by the Chessboard, speaking to him through gritted teeth, his face annoyed. "Hayato Kobayashi!"
On the surface, the Bakura before him looked exactly like the evil will within the Millennium Ring that Hayato had just eliminated. But now that Hayato recalled the truth of the Dark Game, he knew the two were not the same Existence. The latter was merely an NPC replicated in the Memory World Three Thousand Years Ago, and the same went for Bakura.
The Bakura before him was the true Person who dragged Dark Yugi and Hayato into the Dark Game. He was the one controlling game pieces like Bakura to oppose Hayato and Dark Yugi. And if Hayato remembered correctly, at the same time, Bakura was also the true form of the evil will left within the Millennium Ring.
Even though he only realized the truth of the Dark Game thanks to Meriamun, that didn't stop Hayato from putting on a confident expression to bluff: "Isn't that natural? The Game you set up is simply too boring and too crude. It's still twenty thousand years away from the birth of a game that could completely deceive me."
Bakura, who didn't know of Meriamun's Existence, didn't doubt him. Frowning, he said, "Still talking big, huh? Tsk, just now one of the game pieces I controlled disappeared. That must be thanks to you, right?"
Although it was a question, Bakura's tone was very certain, after all, there weren't many other answers.
Just a moment before Hayato, the Game participant and Player, woke up before this Chessboard, one of the many game pieces controlled by Bakura was eliminated. That game piece was an evil will injected into the Millennium Ring by Bakura after he controlled Bakura to take the Millennium Ring from Mahad and recreated the history of three thousand years ago.
One benefit of doing this was that it could increase the power limit of the "Bakura" game piece. Another benefit was that if "Bakura" was eliminated, if someone touched and retrieved the Millennium Ring, that will could seize the opportunity to take over the toucher's body, providing Bakura with a new game piece.
Even if it didn't succeed in taking over the body, as long as that will remained within the Millennium Ring, the Millennium Ring could still serve as an item providing vision, offering Bakura information about the surroundings.
It's important to know that although in this Dark Game, both Bakura and Hayato had many game pieces at their disposal, these game pieces were actually not much different from NPCs. They weren't directly controlled by them but had their own action logic.
For example, Seto and Mahad were game pieces under Dark Yugi's name, but Dark Yugi only had the authority to command them. How Mahad and Seto did things and what choices they made when facing problems were not something Dark Yugi could control.
Bakura and Hayato, as Players, could actually only control their own game piece. The existence of other game pieces was more to provide them with backup options. In case the game piece they controlled died, as long as the other game pieces completed the final goal of the game, they could still achieve victory.
Actually, even though Hayato immediately entered the Millennium Ring after repelling Bakura to eliminate the evil will within it, the journey as Yugi and Seto brought Dark Yugi, Shada, and Hayato back to the Royal Palace had already provided Bakura with quite a bit of information.
He now knew that this bastard Hayato was fundamentally just bluffing to scare him before. The moment he controlled Bakura to escape, that guy actually collapsed. If he had made Bakura fight to the death and stay before, perhaps he could have wiped out Dark Yugi and Hayato completely, but he had foolishly missed the opportunity.
Then, that will was eliminated. Combined with the information from before, it could only have been done by Hayato.
Now it was too late to regret. Hayato, who was now recuperating in the Royal Palace, would soon fully recover. However, as long as the other piece of information he had obtained was accurate and the action he was undertaking based on it succeeded, he could still recover his losses.
Thinking of this, Bakura couldn't help but provoke Hayato: "Heh heh, I'll let you taste a little sweetness first. Anyway, I'm getting closer and closer to victory. Once I complete my final goal in this ultimate dark game, both your life, Hayato, and the Nameless Pharaoh's life will be nothing but a flickering candle!"
end of ch
trasnlter iam working on fixing the charcter names so iwill use engilsh names only the first name only better card naming i have fixed the first 167 ch and iwll countine