"The Legendary Heart?" Kaiba repeated, eyes narrowing at the blank card in Aoi's hand.
"Yes." Aoi held the card up. "Its name is 'The Legendary Heart'."
A pale white glow rose from her skin, washing over the card like moonlight.The previously blank surface filled in, ink blooming into shape—artwork, text, and aura snapping into place as if the card had been waiting for her recognition to become "real."
At the same moment—
Kaiba's Fang of Critias, Yugi's Fang of Timaeus, and Jounouchi's Fang of Hermos all reacted.
Three separate pulses of light burst from their decks.
"This is—!" Kaiba's pupils tightened.
The air vibrated.A deep, ancient roar echoed through the room.
Above them, the silhouettes of three dragons manifested in luminous outline—each one different, each one unmistakably proud—and together they howled toward the ceiling, like they were celebrating being seen for what they truly were.
Aoi's gaze softened just slightly.
"Kaiba. Yugi. Jounouchi. The three of you have all been acknowledged by the Legendary Dragons," she said. "Use them properly. They'll be the blade that cuts through Doma's trap."
Then she looked back at the card.
"And this—The Legendary Heart—I'm keeping for now. When the final battle comes… I have a feeling it'll matter."
No one argued.
No one doubted her.
Kaiba's eyes moved to the small box Honda had dug out.
"Aoi," he said, voice clipped. "The box."
Aoi opened it.
Inside lay a single artifact, nestled like an eye in a velvet coffin.
A Millennium Eye.
"…So Pegasus stopped using it after Duelist Kingdom," Aoi said quietly.
She lifted it with care, then turned and placed it into Yugi's hand.
"Yugi. You take it. You'll need it more than me."
Dark Yugi nodded once. "Understood."
Jounouchi scratched his head. "So… where do we go now?"
Aoi's expression finally eased—just a fraction.
"Let's move together," she said, smiling. "Like Duelist Kingdom. Same team."
Kaiba immediately rejected it.
"I refuse. I don't need a herd. Doma is my problem."
Aoi tilted her head. "Then I'll go with Yugi and the others. You sure you're not coming?"
Kaiba clicked his tongue—hard. "Tch… Fine. Move."
Jounouchi snickered under his breath. "Heh. Only Aoi can train Kaiba."
Kaiba shot him a sideways look sharp enough to cut glass.
Jounouchi went stiff, instantly understanding the warning. "S-sorry."
Aoi ignored the posturing and turned to Yugi. "Why were you here besides Pegasus?"
Yugi explained, "Back in Domino, we ran into Doma too. My grandpa's friend—Professor Hopkins—knows something about Orichalcos. We came looking for him. He lives around here."
Aoi nodded. "Then that's our route."
"How are we getting there?" Honda asked.
Otogi raised a hand. "My car. But… it's cramped."
Kaiba didn't even look back. "Aoi and I don't need it."
He grabbed her wrist and pulled her straight toward the Blue-Eyes jet.
Jounouchi stared. "He brought a plane…?"
Yugi's group piled into Otogi's car, sun and wind beating down as they drove.
Meanwhile, Kaiba activated autopilot and—without shame—slept.
Aoi, seated behind him, watched the clouds slide by and muttered internally: Unbelievable. That man's stamina is a myth.
They arrived at the address.
Or what used to be the address.
Only ruins remained.
"That's horrible…" Anzu whispered.
"Professor Hopkins! Rebecca!" Yugi shouted into the wreckage.
"Yugi!" A blonde girl in a cowboy outfit ran out from behind a broken wall.
"Rebecca!"
She barely got the words out before she broke down, collapsing into Yugi's arms.
"Y-Yugi… Grandpa… Grandpa—!"
Yugi held her shoulders. "Rebecca. What happened?"
She wiped her face and forced herself to speak. "Not here… We should talk on our camper."
Then she noticed Kaiba and Aoi.
"And those two are…?"
Yugi introduced them. "Kaiba Seto. And Aoi…"
Rebecca's eyes widened. "You're Kaiba—the KaibaCorp president. And you're Aoi… I heard about you. You beat Yugi twice."
Aoi smiled politely. "Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too," Rebecca said, then turned urgent again. "They took Grandpa. A group of men kidnapped him and burned the house. I survived because I was riding near the valley."
"Doma…" Jounouchi muttered darkly.
"But why target Professor Hopkins?" Honda asked.
Otogi's gaze sharpened. "Because of what he found."
Aoi looked at him. "What did he find?"
"Get inside the camper first," Rebecca said quickly.
As they rode, Otogi explained, "Recently, Professor Hopkins discovered a mural… from ten thousand years ago. It depicts monsters destroying the world."
Aoi's eyes narrowed.
"That sounds exactly like what's happening now—Duel Monsters materializing and rampaging," she said.
The camper fell quiet.
Then Aoi added, softly but with weight:
"Ten thousand years ago… three thousand years ago… and now. Do you really think it's coincidence?"
No one answered.
Yugi finally said, "That's exactly what Professor Hopkins believed."
Kaiba cut in, impatient. "Stop wasting time on fairy tales."
Rebecca's eyes snapped toward him. "You're unbelievably rude."
Kaiba's glare flared. "What did you say?"
Aoi shot Kaiba a hard look—rare for her. "Seto. Not now."
Kaiba huffed, but fell silent.
Anzu moved to the tiny kitchen. "Everyone, we should eat something. We haven't eaten all day."
While the others started preparing food…
Yugi and Rebecca sat away from the camper, the wind cold against the cliff edge.
Rebecca pulled a card from her jacket and handed it to him.
Yugi read the message written across it:
"Nameless Pharaoh King — at sunrise, come alone to Death Valley.Doma Three Musketeers — Rafael."
Yugi's eyes darkened. "Death Valley… where is it?"
Rebecca pointed. "Straight ahead. About an hour by car."
Yugi exhaled slowly. "I'm sorry. I dragged you into this."
Rebecca shook her head, trembling. "But… you can't go alone. I can't let you—"
A voice—cool, precise, and faintly amused—cut through the night air from behind them.
"…This is something I can't not get involved in."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 165)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter220)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter125)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (This matter is completely finished.)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 220
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 185
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 248
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 230
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 125
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 145
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 120
I Can Copy Unique Skills 115
Summoning an Evil God, but the 75
Supernatural Multiverse 110
My Harem Is Indescribable 100
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 105
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 67
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 105
Still playing traditional Honk 80
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 85
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 78
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 80
Checking In in Demon Slayer 85
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 100
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 85
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 80
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 90
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 75
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 85
Why did they assign me to Uma 75
MYGO Beauties 70
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 75
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 80
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 100
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 60
The Uma Musume Who Became 60
I'm Definitely Not the King of 80
After Maxing Out Every Class 80
Naruto: I'm Konoha's Local Men 44
Honkai: World Modulation Mode 57
I, the Elden Sword Saint 50
Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 43
No One Knows Pokémon Better 50
I, Sakazuki, Won't Go Down Tha 45
From Trilobites to Titans 45
Chainsaw Man: Contracted with 55
DanMachi: My Party Members Are 60
An Anime Heroine Darkened 55
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