"The source of darkness? Me?"
Joey looked at Pegasus, baffled.
"That's right, Joey Boy." Pegasus's expression was grave. He leaned forward slightly and asked in a low voice:
"Have you, recently… come into contact with an existence from another dimension?"
Joey froze, then suddenly understood.
Right. The so-called cosmic darkness, the power of the root of darkness… could he mean the Supreme King?
If that's the case, then it's true. Not only had he made contact—he was practically living with that source now. He also knew the Supreme King had already entered Jaden's body.
"Well… you could say that." Joey looked up at the ceiling.
"We've confirmed that it's an extremely dangerous existence," Pegasus said. "If you know what that root is—or who it is—please cooperate with us.
Because this concerns world security."
Joey fell silent.
If it was about world security, he could understand. He knew how dangerous that being called the Supreme King was. That overwhelming darkness ranked near the top among all the villains he'd seen in his life—and he, Joey the streetwise, had truly seen a lot; there weren't many big scenes he hadn't witnessed.
But…
"If you find out who it is," Joey looked up and said, "then you'll take extreme measures to control him—or even eliminate him, right?"
"Only if necessary—but yes."
Pegasus didn't dodge the point and answered frankly.
"We must think of the world's safety."
"I see… well, that's understandable." Joey nodded. "All right. If I learn anything, I'll contact you immediately."
But Pegasus didn't accept that. His one remaining eye narrowed further.
"You refuse to cooperate, Joey Boy," he said. "You're trying to protect that person. Why?"
Joey went quiet again.
Then he spread his hands helplessly.
"Okay, since you can already tell… yes." Joey said seriously, "I've gotten to know him well, so I trust that kid. I know he won't be a threat.
And there's one more thing you should know, Pegasus."
He held his serious expression for a few seconds.
Then suddenly grinned.
"I, Joey Wheeler, have never in my life done anything to betray a friend."
Pegasus stared at him blankly for a moment.
Then he sighed lightly and brushed aside the long hair covering half his face.
"Well, I figured you might say that. As expected, Joey Boy—you've already been 'infected by the Cosmic Dark.'"
"What?" Joey muttered. "I'm not infected by anything—"
As he spoke, there was a metallic clang. Joey turned toward the sound and saw every window and the main door of the castle room drop thick metal shutters in unison, like armor plates, sealing the chamber airtight—not even a mosquito could get out.
Joey sprang to his feet.
"Pegasus, what does this mean?"
Pegasus also rose, unhurriedly walked to the opposite side, and slipped on a Duel Disk from who-knows-where.
"It means you're not leaving here today, Joey Boy."
Joey finally realized what was going on. "Wait—are you really Pegasus?"
"Of course, the genuine article. I've merely gained a brand-new perspective." Pegasus said coolly. "And now, through a duel, I'll share that perspective with you."
"Tch, looks like there's no avoiding a fight. Fine by me."
Joey unfolded his Duel Disk as well.
"You were never that great to begin with, Pegasus—but at least you were more normal than you are now. I'll use this duel to knock some sense back into you."
"Heh." Pegasus sneered. "Back in Duelist Kingdom, I didn't even spare you a glance. You were nothing but Yugi Muto's accessory, an insignificant little sidekick.
From Duelist Kingdom to now, our difference in strength hasn't changed one bit—allow me to show you."
"Duel!" x2
[Joey, LP 4000]
[Pegasus, LP 4000]
"I'll go first. Draw!"
Joey slapped a monster card onto the disk.
"I Normal Summon 'The Black Stone of Legend'!"
A black stone radiating dark red light appeared on Joey's field, with a fiery glow within like rippling magma.
[The Black Stone of Legend, ATK 0]
"The Red-Eyes Black Stone—quite a rare Red-Eyes support card." Pegasus smiled. "Seems you haven't been idle these years, Joey Boy."
"Then I tribute 'The Black Stone of Legend' to activate its effect!" Joey said. "By tributing this card, I can Special Summon a Level 7 or lower 'Red-Eyes' monster from my Deck!
Show yourself, my soul, the legendary black dragon that forges infinite possibility—
—Red-Eyes Black Dragon, Summon!"
It was like the pent-up fury deep within the earth finally erupted; unstoppable magma surged like a raging tide, the primordial roar of the land itself.
Scalding currents danced through the air; as they crashed down, blazing fragments scattered. The churning magma coalesced into draconic claws. The heavy flow condensed into jet-black scales; a long tail unfurled, its surface etched with molten trails. Giant bone-wings spread slowly under a baptism of lava, as if forged from pure flame.
Red-Eyes Black Dragon descended!
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon, ATK 2400]
"The legendary dragon stands proud as ever, no matter how much time passes." Pegasus paused, then chuckled. "But if I'm not mistaken, it was Rex Raptor's soul card originally, wasn't it?"
"A-hem…"
Joey coughed, indicating that maybe they shouldn't bring that up.
Yeah… his summoning chant now called it his own soul, but Red-Eyes originally was Rex's. Back on this very island, he'd defeated then world runner-up Rex Raptor and took Red-Eyes Black Dragon.
Since then, Red-Eyes's family name has been Joey.
"I set one card and end my turn!"
"My turn. Draw."
Pegasus drew, glanced at his hand, and revealed a slightly dangerous smile.
"Back then in Duelist Kingdom, we never faced each other directly, did we? Well, that was your good luck, Joey Boy."
Joey said nothing.
Hard to refute. He'd been a rookie, and Pegasus the final boss. Even Yugi struggled, and Kaiba lost and had his soul stolen.
But Pegasus had the Millennium Eye then; now he'd lost his main power source. And Joey himself was no longer the same.
"Let's make up for the missed match today—"
Pegasus revealed a card.
"I activate the Continuous Spell 'Toon Kingdom'!"
..
2 Bonus chapter at 500 PS