[Heroic Spirit - Vlad III★★★★★★★★ (8-Star)][Dark] [Zombie/Effect][ATK2300/DEF1200]
"Now it is the time of darkness, the feast of blood~" Vlad, holding a strange long spear, appeared on Hoshino's field, accompanied by special effects featuring black bats.
"Vlad? The legendary vampire, indeed a cursed name." Upon seeing the true form of the monster summoned by Hoshino, Hakutaku unexpectedly sighed in relief, "A villain mixed among the so-called heroes, is this the result of your desperation?"
"Master, may I drink our opponent's blood?" Vlad's elegant demeanor flickered with a hint of anger at Hakutaku's disrespectful words. "It's not time yet, Vlad. One more step is needed," Hoshino replied, her entire demeanor had changed since summoning Vlad III. "Just one last step, and we can dedicate the opponent's blood to this victory."
"Come forth, my final trump card..." Imitating Vlad's tone, Hoshino slowly drew the card from her hand.
"Doesn't Hoshino seem a bit odd?" Anzu asked, tilting her head at Hoshino's weird tone.
"Who knows, maybe she's just into character," Mai, having caught Hoshino's slight smirk, guessed the reason for Hoshino's change, "With so many kids watching, she probably just wants to show off."
"I will banish [Heroic Spirit - Jeanne d'Arc] from the graveyard and special summon from my hand!"
The field, previously darkened by Vlad III's arrival, suddenly burst into fierce flames.
"Feel it, the wrath from hell!"
"Special Summon, [Heroic Spirit - Jeanne d'Arc (Alter)]!!"
[Heroic Spirit - Jeanne d'Arc (Alter)★★★★★★★★ (8-Star)][Dark] [Fiend/Effect][ATK3000/DEF2500]
[This card cannot be normally summoned. It can only be special summoned by banishing one [Heroic Spirit - Jeanne d'Arc] from the graveyard. This card's type can be treated as [Fairy].]
Walking along the flames, Jeanne Alter, holding a pitch-black flag, appeared on the mini duel platform.
"Heh heh heh, Jeanne(Alter) will make you bleed on the spot," Hoshino said, lowering her voice with satisfaction at the sight of Jeanne(Alter).
"Huh?! Master, what's wrong with you? Did someone hit your head?" Without hesitation, the sharp-tongued Jeanne(Alter) showed a face of disdain, mocking Hoshino's strange tone, "Can you speak normally? Keep this up, and I'll go on strike."
"Huh? I thought it sounded pretty cool. Is it that strange?" Hoshino's smile turned awkward as her taste was questioned.
"I also think Master's tone is very dignified and reliable," Vlad quietly nodded in agreement.
"The Duel King just summoned two 8-Star monsters in one go!" The children, who had never seen such a thing, were all awestruck by Hoshino's continuous summoning of powerful monsters.
"Normally, it's tough to summon even one."
"Yeah, it's hard to gather two sacrifices."
"Besides, 8-star monsters are usually very rare and hard to draw."
"The Duel King is so strong!"
"Go, Duel King, crush the shop wrecker!"
"Hehe, keep praising me, say more!" Hoshino's nose almost went sky-high, indulging in the endless praise.
"She summoned two high-level non-Warrior monsters in one go." In stark contrast to Hoshino's elation, Hakutaku's expression twisted with increasing discomfort, "I'm done for. If I don't draw [DNA Surgery] next, this duel is over."
"Shop Wrecker!" Hoshino called out to the increasingly distressed Hakutaku, her lips curling into a clear smirk. "Let me guess, you're praying for your next card to be [DNA Surgery], right?"
"!!!"
"But it's useless because the time is now, and it's time to pay for your despicable actions!" Pointing at Hakutaku, Hoshino publicly declared the finishing blow, "Everything I've endured, planned, and prepared is to defeat you this turn!"
"No, no way! Your monsters' attack power isn't enough to defeat me!" Panicked, Hakutaku staggered backward, nearly falling off the mini duel platform.
"Activate [Heroic Spirit - Jeanne d'Arc (Alter)]'s special effect!" Forcefully pointing downward with the hand directed at Hakutaku, Hoshino stabbed Jeanne Alter's card hard, "Go, Ephemeral Dream!"
[③: Once per turn, you can pay half of your life points to activate this effect. Until the end of the turn, this card is not affected by your opponent's card effects, and its attack increases by the amount of life points paid. This effect can be activated during the opponent's turn.]
"Don't hold back; use as many life points as you need, Jeanne!"
"I won't hold back, but don't complain about the pain later, Master!" Despite her words, Jeanne Alter's action of absorbing Hoshino's LP was noticeably more cautious this time, showing some remorse for hurting Hoshino last time.
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 3150 → 1575]
"Even though I feel sorry for Master, this is exhilarating!" Jeanne Alter's eyes slightly reddened after absorbing the life points, and she subconsciously licked her lips.
[Heroic Spirit - Jeanne Alter ATK 3000 → 4575]
"This is terrifying attack power; I've never seen an attack above 4000 before!"
"With such high attack power, the duel can end in one strike."
"No, it's not," Yugi said, judging the result at a glance. He explained to the surrounding children, "Even if all of Hoshino's monsters' attack power were used, they couldn't directly deplete the shop-wrecker's life points, considering the [Kinetic Soldier]'s field-boosted attack power."
[Hakutaku LP 3500]
"Impressive calculation, Yugi!" Praising Yugi, Hoshino moved her hand to Vlad III's card, "What if we add Vlad III's effect?"
"The feeling of blood is wonderful. I can fiercely feel the bloody light raging on the battlefield!" Vlad, whose aura had grown more intense, showed red glows in his eyes like Jeanne.
[①: When your life points are lower than your opponent's, this card's attack increases by the difference.]
[Heroic Spirit - Vlad III ATK 2300→ 4225]
"Another monster with attack power 4000, Duel King is truly amazing!" The sudden surge in the attack power of the two 8-star monsters brought the duel's atmosphere to its peak.
"With this, Duel King will win!"
"It's over, Hakutaku!" After completing the final operation, Hoshino commanded Jeanne and Vlad to attack, "Go, attack the two [Kinetic Soldier]."
"To fight alongside the infamous Impaler, what an honor."
"Likewise, the Dragon Witch of France's."
"Come on, all evil! Pierce the opponent in the most glorious way!" Hoshino shouted excitedly.
"Behold, my blood-soaked life, the origin of the Impaler's fame!"
"Hell, incarnate is the reward for your depravity![Kazikli Bey]!!"
"All evil shall gather here."
"My sword is hatred! My dragon is vengeance! My flames are retribution! Everything will be pierced! [La Grondement du Haine]!!"
The lush vegetation on Hakutaku's field, due to the field spell, was instantly filled with blood and fiery spikes. The Kinetic Soldier stabbed to pieces and exploding into the spike-filled hell, had no chance to react.
[Hakutaku LP 3500 → 0]
[Duel over, the victor is Rank King Chiyuki Hoshino!]
"I... I got defeated in an instant!" Hakutaku, unable to believe his life points had been wiped out, slumped onto the table in despair. "Even with a counter deck, I lost so miserably. This is the gap between me and the Duel King."
"Hehe, a beautiful victory! Shop wrecker, your evil plans have been completely shattered!" With the confidence of a victor, Hoshino put away her cards and silently awaited the children's imminent praise.
"That last blow was so cruel!"
"So many spikes, it's scary!"
"Duel King is so cool!"
"Mom, I want to go home!"
"You brats!" The huge contrast to her expectations left Hoshino quite displeased. "Don't let me catch you, or I'll defeat you in an even crueler way, you little saint quartz!"
Even the lowest-level duel would yield some quartz, Hoshino thought.
"Boss..." Seeing their boss's crushing defeat, his lackeys didn't know what to say.
"Let's go, retreat. We won't come to this shop again!" Calming himself from the defeat, Hakutaku decisively chose to leave. "Even as shop wreckers, we have basic principles. Since I lost, I won't trouble you anymore."
"Oh? You're pretending to be a good guy now?" Jounouchi mocked, "Even if you come back, Hoshino will beat you every time! Right, miss manager?"
"Who's the miss manager!" Hoshino responded by uppercutting Jounouchi's chin, rejecting the title.
"Well, now that they are gone, we can continue our activities!" Grandpa Sugoroku calmed the crowd with his trademark smile. "Kids, who wants to buy card packs?"
"Me! I want to buy some!"
"Me too, I want to draw Jeanne!"
"Jeanne is stronger, but I still want to draw Jeanne(Alter)!"
"I want to duel Hoshino, her duels are so exciting!"
Though she wanted to tell them they couldn't draw Jeanne no matter how many packs they bought, Hoshino held back for the sake of not shattering their dreams. "Grandpa, you made a lot of money today by using me as an advertisement."
"Hoshino, don't forget I'm still the record holder with 9 UR cards, and it's almost 10. Don't forget our duel later!" Jounouchi eagerly anticipated his upcoming revenge match.
"Ah, it's already 9 o'clock!" Hoshino looked alarmed at Jounouchi's reminder.
"What, getting scared?"
"I haven't had breakfast yet!"
"Huh!"
"Let's go, Mai! How about treating me to a meal?" Rejuvenated, Hoshino cheerfully hopped over to Mai.
"No problem, Chiyuki~" Mai gave her a thumbs up, taking Hoshino's wrist and heading to the store entrance.
"Ouch!" Suddenly, a kid rushed into the store and collided straight into Hoshino.
"Stupid kid, watch where you're going!" Seeing Hoshino get hit, Mai angrily scolded the boy who had fallen.
"It's okay, Mai. He's just a kid. Are you alright kid?" Calming Mai, Hoshino turned to the boy who had bumped into her. "Huh? This hairstyle looks familiar..."
"Mokuba? What are you doing here?" Hoshino, crouching down, recognized the familiar child immediately. "Shouldn't you be with your brother, dealing with the Big Five at KaibaCorp?"
"Hoshino, help my brother! He's in trouble!" Mokuba, on the verge of tears, looked up at Hoshino for help.
"Kaiba?!"
——————
"So, because Kaiba lost to Yugi, even as president, his credibility in the company has plummeted?" After understanding the situation, Hoshino continued, "And the five biggest shareholders, have united, causing unrest within KaibaCorp."
"Yes, that's right." Mokuba nodded solemnly.
"But the Big Five joining forces with Pegasus to sell KaibaCorp, won't that hurt their reputation too?" Yugi's analysis made sense; betraying one's company shouldn't leave one's reputation unscathed.
"That's the worst part!" Mokuba clenched his teeth in anger. "They claim they're not selling KaibaCorp, just partnering with Pegasus's Industrial Illusions to develop a VR game based on Duel Monsters to restore the company's reputation."
"Huh!" Jounouchi, already knowing the Big Five's real secret from Pegasus, was as angry as Mokuba. "Such lie can be exposed by asking them to produce the nonexistent game."
"But the issue is..." Mokuba hung his head again, "They made that VR game and set a condition: if my brother clears it, they'll hand over their shares and resign."
"Hah, Kaiba wouldn't fall for such an obvious trap, right?!" Hoshino, suddenly agitated, couldn't understand the VR game's nature in this world but knew its dangers from her original world, where everyone who'd seen Sword Art Online knew its risks.
"My brother accepted..."
"Really? Kaiba is that stubborn?" Hoshino couldn't believe Kaiba, with his intellect, wouldn't see the trap and still jump in.
"But my brother said..."
("I, Seto Kaiba, will never refuse any challenge! And avoiding this, using my authority to fire them, would bring a revenge capable of destroying KaibaCorp. So I must face it head-on!")
"I see." Hoshino smiled wryly, finding some sense in Kaiba's words. "But seeking our help means Kaiba hasn't cleared the game."
"Yes, my brother failed and is trapped in the virtual world." Mokuba, his voice trembling, was pained to admit Kaiba's failure.
"Hoshino, Yugi, please enter the virtual world and save my brother! You're our only hope now."
(*****)
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