"The universal genius Da Vinci-chan has arrived." Da Vinci's familiar smiling face suddenly appeared in the bottom right corner of the screen.
"Da Vinci! How are you here?" Hoshino exclaimed excitedly, looking at Da Vinci as if she were a savior.
"Long time no see, Hoshino-chan. Though, it's only been about two days," Da Vinci's trademark smile brought a sense of reassurance.
This feeling was the so-called "if Da Vinci is here, everything will be fine" mindset. Truly deserving of the title "universal genius."
"Since you left your original world, I've been monitoring you. The world you're in now is different from your original world, more like Chaldea's dimension," Da Vinci began to explain her observations to Hoshino.
A different dimension? Could she mean the difference between the third dimension and the second dimension? Hoshino thought, no wonder Chaldea, being part of the second dimension, felt more familiar.
"Da Vinci-san, this isn't the time to discuss settings." A worried Mash interrupted Da Vinci's enthusiastic explanation.
On the screen, the Pharaoh was gradually falling into a disadvantage. To protect his friends' soul cards from being sent to the graveyard, he had expended too many resources and was now struggling.
"Medea!" Hoshino glanced at the remaining cards in the Pharaoh's hand and saw the Medea card that had replaced Mash's.
"Yugi Mutou isn't Chaldea's Master, so he can't use the Servant cards effectively," Da Vinci explained quickly due to the dire situation. "In his hands, Medea is just a blank card with no effect."
"Da Vinci, tell me what I can do now," Hoshino said urgently, worried about her friends' lives.
"Now it's time for the universal genius, Da Vinci, to step in." With a confident smile, Da Vinci reached below her body—more accurately, the bottom of the screen, since only half of her avatar was visible.
"The high-precision Millennium Item replica: Millennium Ruler!" With a peculiar tone, Da Vinci pulled out a ruler-like object from below the screen.
"..."
"Huh? No one laughed? Wasn't that funny?" Da Vinci asked awkwardly in the sudden silence.
"Da Vinci, you think this is a comedy manga? This is no time for jokes," Hoshino said, looking disdainfully at the ruler in Da Vinci's hand.
"How mean! You're slandering my carefully crafted item." Pretending to cry, Da Vinci placed the ruler into a nearby device.
Like magic, the golden ruler appeared in Hoshino's hand the next second.
It didn't seem special when seen through the screen, but up close, Hoshino couldn't help but exclaim, "Exquisite!"
The golden ruler was intricately engraved with strange characters on both sides. Although Hoshino couldn't understand their meaning, the meticulous craftsmanship made it feel alive, captivating her completely. She wouldn't question if someone told her it belonged in the Louvre.
"Impressed, aren't you?" Da Vinci laughed, seeing Hoshino's astonished expression. "By combining the mysteries of ancient Egypt with Chaldea's cutting-edge technology and magecraft, we precisely inscribed these characters on the ruler. This process quickly elevates its concept to match that of a Millennium Item."
A genius, truly a genius. Hoshino knew Da Vinci's simple explanation belied the immense difficulty of such a task.
"Senpai, there's no time. Wear the ruler," Mash urged, still operating the equipment.
"Wear it? But it's just a ruler, how do I..." Hoshino fumbled, unsure how to proceed.
In her panic, the ruler started writhing like a living thing.
"Ew, what's happening? It's so gross." Hoshino's discomfort was palpable as the ruler moved.
The ruler twisted from her hand to her wrist, wrapping around it like a bracelet before stopping.
"It actually looks nice, like a golden bracelet," Hoshino said, turning her wrist and admiring the ruler. "Let's call it the Millennium Bracelet instead of the Millennium Ruler."
"Senpai, focus. The dark power is being infused now," Mash said, finally completing her work on the equipment.
"What, dark power? Wait—" Before Hoshino could react, the engraved characters on the bracelet started moving, transferring into her body.
The light around her changed rapidly, flickering like a slideshow.
"What's happening, Mash?" Hoshino asked in terror.
"This is the history of the Millennium Items. Please endure it, Senpai," Mash encouraged her with a supportive look.
Slaughter, resentment, and cruelty. The spirits of ancient Egyptians cursed the world, and Hoshino finally understood the immense hatred contained within a single village, passed down for millennia. The screams of villagers being melted into gold during the forging of the Millennium Items were akin to hellish wails, shaking her soul.
This was the most brutal scene Hoshino had ever witnessed. The intense mental shock made her retch uncontrollably. The so-called dark power was, in reality, the infusion of these spirits' grudges into her body, causing unimaginable pain.
"Hang in there, Hoshino-chan. This is the only way to survive the shadow game." Although Da Vinci had designed the device, its effectiveness was uncertain.
"Without this power, there's no way to defeat Pegasus, who possesses the Millennium Eye."
"Pegasus!" The name reignited a spark of determination in Hoshino's eyes.
"I am destined to be the King of Games, and there's a hefty prize waiting for me. Do you think a little pain will stop me?" Desire, possibly humanity's strongest emotion, is crucial for evolution. The greater the desire, the faster the evolution.
"You've been dead for thousands of years. This era no longer belongs to you. I have friends to save, real living beings of this era. Millennium Item spirits, behave yourselves!" With her overwhelming desire, Hoshino's mental strength finally subdued the dark power within the item.
"You did it, Senpai!" Mash sighed in relief, seeing the "complete" message on the device.
"It's finally over." Hoshino smiled at Mash, panting heavily.
"Hoshino-chan, it's your turn to step in," Da Vinci said, her expression still serious despite the successful device. "Yugi is about to lose."
A familiar white light surrounded Hoshino. She looked at her gradually transparent hands in confusion. "What's happening? Am I being sacrificed?"
"Don't joke, Senpai," Mash smiled gently. "It's time for you to leave."
"So, I have to leave Chaldea." Hoshino felt a twinge of sadness. Although it was her first time here, Chaldea felt like home.
Looking back at the Heroic Spirits behind her, Hoshino felt a newfound courage.
"Good luck, Master. Okita will always support you."
"Take care, Master, and remember to eat regularly."
"Don't let me die in vain again, Master."
"Sorry I couldn't be of more help, Master."
"My sword points where your heart desires."
"Destroy the oppressors with love!"
...
"Hahaha, there's no way you can win now, Yugi." Bakura's laughter grew wilder.
"Damn, is this the end?" The Pharaoh despaired as he looked at his hand, finding no hope for victory.
"How about abandoning those worthless cards on your field and fighting me head-on?" Bakura sneered, glancing at Jonouchi, Honda, and Anzu on the field.
"Using such underhanded tactics to win, and you still laugh?"
"Who?" Bakura was startled to see a third person in the supposedly closed dark game.
"You've done well. Leave the rest to me, Yugi." Hoshino took the cards from the Pharaoh's trembling hand.
"Hoshino!?" Jonouchi, Honda, Anzu, and even Yugi exclaimed in surprise as she suddenly appeared.
Ignoring their calls, Hoshino's eyes locked onto Bakura.
"Let's end this, Millennium Ring!"(Referring to Bakura)