"Trace! On!"
Countless swords embedded in the wasteland rose, pointing towards the surging magical energy in the sky as Emiya's equipment returned.
[Heroic Spirit – Shirou Emiya ATK 2200 → 6100]
"Since we can't stop it, let's go all out, Emiya!" Facing her fate without a trace of fear, Hoshino commanded, "Attack the Dark Magician!"
"But it won't work; under equal conditions, Chiyuki's Emiya's attack power is 300 points lower than the Yugi's Dark Magician!" Although they managed to overturn a huge disadvantage, the small difference in attack power in Duel Monsters rules would still result in the monster's destruction.
"Let me answer you with this infinite sword, Mr. Ace!" With a roar that drowned out the dusk, Emiya leaped high, plunging into the dense rain of magic alongside a sea of swords.
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 4100 → 3800]
"Emiya-san looks tragic!" Okita pretended to wipe away non-existent tears, mourning for Emiya. "Emiya-san, I'll convey your heroic figure to your comrades in the Chaldea kitchen."
"Don't presume my dead so easily, you fool Okita!" A familiar and steady voice emerged from the aftermath of the clash between the infinite swords and the magic rain. "Making fun of my title as a hero of justice and a top chef, I won't fail this time for the master!"
"How is this possible? Why wasn't Emiya..." Yugi's eyes narrowed in disbelief, looking at Emiya emerging unscathed from the clash.
[Heroic Spirit - Shirou Emiya ATK 6100 → 5600]
"So that's it, Hoshino!" With difficulty, Yugi squeezed out the words, glancing at the now-disappeared equipped card [Fou of The Sun] in Hoshino's back row. "She used Fou's effect to substitute for Emiya's destruction."
"Exactly, Yugi!" Hoshino, relieved to see Emiya safe, added, "Let's gamble, Yugi; the next attack will decide the winner! Due to the effect of [Unlimited Blade Works], Emiya can continue to attack!"
"Go, Emiya, attack the [Dark Magician of Chaos] on Yugi's field!"
"Hmph, so that's what you meant by gambling?" Understanding Hoshino's words, Yugi smiled wryly. "Due to the negative effect of [Unlimited Blade Works], each time Emiya attacks, one of his equipment cards will be randomly destroyed."
"In other words!" With Yugi's hint, Jonouchi suddenly realized, "If Emiya randomly destroys the equipment card with the highest attack power increase, [United We Stand], Yugi can survive, otherwise..."
"This is truly a life-and-death strike." Honda nervously swallowed, sweat trickling down his face.
[Magic Formula] destroyed!
[Heroic Spirit – Shirou Emiya ATK 5600 → 4900]
"It wasn't the equipment with the lowest attack power, nor the one with the highest!" To everyone's surprise, the Magic Formula, which increased attack power to a certain extent, shattered with Emiya's attack. "So, what is the final result?"
Even with the destruction of the grimoire, Emiya's attack power still overwhelmed the Dark Magician of Chaos on the Yugi's field. Emiya, descending from the dim sky, wielded his swords, kanshou and bakuya, like two heavy guillotines, slicing the Dark Magician of Chaos into three parts.
[Dark Magician of Chaos] destroyed
[Yugi Muto LP 2400 → 300]
"Damn it, did Yugi survive?" Mai Valentine, feeling immense regret, grabbed Jonouchi's collar and shook him vigorously. "What kind of luck is this?"
The dizziness from the high-frequency shaking left Jonouchi feeling faint. "Mai, calm down a bit. Yugi had a two-thirds chance of surviving; it's not extraordinary luck."
"Yeah, real luck would be like you surviving with a one-sixth chance!" Hoshino, not feeling any regret, teased Jonouchi's luck.
"That close call, Hoshino!" Relaxing his grip that had almost pierced his palms, Yugi sighed in relief. For a moment, he genuinely believed he might lose, which would mean his grandfather's soul would be forever trapped in a card—something he couldn't accept. "Hoshino, you're really strong, much stronger than I imagined. You might be the second person to push me this far after Pegasus."
Due to the negative effect of [Unlimited Blade Works], [United We Stand] was destroyed.
The destruction of [United We Stand] was inconsequential; the only monster left on the Yugi's field was a trembling Dark Magician Girl.
"Sorry, but battles aren't child's play. No matter how cute you are, I still have to send you to the graveyard." With a cold demeanor, Emiya threw Kanshou, effortlessly slicing through the Dark Magician Girl.
[Piercing Thorn Spear] destroyed.
"Now, Yugi, you have no other monsters on the field, and the attack power of your Dark Magician will decrease by 1600 points due to the destruction of [United We Stand]." Hoshino pointed to the empty field.
[Dark Magician ATK 4800]
"What does it matter?" Standing confidently on the burning ground, Yugi remained straight-backed and confident. "Even though my Life Points are low, I have a Dark Magician on the field with attack power exceeding the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Hoshino, do you think you still have a chance to win?"
"Hahaha!" Hoshino suddenly burst into laughter, startling Yugi with her unusual reaction. "Yugi, you're good at setting up flags for yourself."
"Flag? What do you mean?" Confused, Yugi found Hoshino's words even more perplexing than Pegasus's English jargon.
"Of course, I'll win!" Not having time to explain further, Hoshino drew a card from her hand, "This turn, not only will I win, but I'll win beautifully!"
"Impossible!" Yugi strongly denied Hoshino's confident words. "Because of the field spell [Unlimited Blade Works], your other monsters can't attack besides Emiya; you can't defeat me this turn."
"What does it matter?" Dramatically slamming the card onto the sand-covered table, Hoshino smiled brightly. "This card is my final move in this duel!"
"Activate the Quick-Play Spell [Dream Summon] from my hand!"
[Effect of the Quick-Play Spell: Send the materials for a [Heroic Spirit] Fusion Monster from your hand or field to the Graveyard, or banish [Heroic Spirit] monsters from your Graveyard to Fusion Summon that Fusion Monster.]
"Dream Summon?!" Yugi frowned as if he understood something. "So, it's a [Polymerization] card specifically for [Heroic Spirits], but it's a Quick-Play Spell, which is different from typical [Polymerization] cards."
"The most important part is, it can fuse monsters from the Graveyard?" Yugi thought, feeling he might have overlooked something crucial. His intuition told him that this could potentially cost him the duel.
"Hoshino's Fusion Monster, huh? But what kind of Heroic Spirits can Hoshino currently fuse on the field?" Jounouchi was trying hard to recall, feeling that the answer was just within reach but missing a key element.
"Yugi, you should know very well what monster I'm going to fuse, right?" Hoshino asked, with a sly smile forming on her lips as she looked at the frowning Yugi.
"Impossible, the monster you're trying to fuse..." Yugi suddenly felt a chill down his spine and instinctively denied the possibility. "Majin-Okita Sōji(Alter), right?"
"If it were impossible, I wouldn't say I'm going to win beautifully!" Hoshino raised the [Dream Summon] card high, the card's mysterious glow adding a different hue to the twilight sky. "Using the special effect of [Dream Summon], Fusion Summon the monster card [Heroic Spirit – Majin-Okita Sōji(Alter)]!"
"Hmph didn't expect that, Starfish Hair! In the end, it's a showdown between the ace monsters!" Okita, who had been preparing for this, pointed her sword at the ever-calm Dark Magician before her. "Today, Okita-san will prove her ace status with her strongest form!"
"Stop joking, Hoshino, Okita Sōji (Alter) requires [Nobunaga Oda] as a fusion material! Where is Nobunaga Oda on your field?" Yugi still believed that Hoshino was bluffing and tried to refute her.
"Hahaha, did someone call my name?" However, a familiar hearty laugh shattered the Yugi's last bit of confidence. "Okita, you really can't do without me, huh? Only the true protagonist appears at critical moments to save the day."
"Nobunaga, A true protagonist wouldn't spend the entire battle lying in the Graveyard!" Okita's sharp retort struck Nobunaga's heart.
"The entire battle in the Graveyard?" Yugi, who could hear the conversation between the Heroic Spirits, finally realized the crucial point he had forgotten.
("Because of the effect of [The Seven Rings that Cover the Burning Heavens], as a substitute for destruction and damage, two cards from the top of the Deck were sent to the Graveyard.")
"The two cards sent to the Graveyard, one was Okita, who was revived by Hoshino using [Monster Reborn], and the other was..." Yugi, grasping the situation, found it hard to believe such a coincidence. "Randomly sending the top two cards of the Deck to the Graveyard ended up sending both Okita and Nobunaga together, huh?!"
"Yes, although it was a coincidence, Okita-san believes it's just that Nobunaga can't stay away from me, so she always ends up getting shuffled together with Okita-san~" Okita nodded with satisfaction, a 'w'-shaped smile appearing on her face.
"Stop being narcissistic, Okita. I just think you can't win this battle for our master alone!" Nobunaga's spirit, still in the Graveyard, defended her position energetically. "But I never thought I'd end up lying in the Graveyard for an entire duel; this definitely could make it into the Top 10 Most Embarrassing Moments of Demon King Nobunaga."
"Sorry, Nobu. When I chose to revive someone, I just thought Okita-san's abilities were more suited to dealing with [Magical Hats]."
Okita, slightly apologetic, looked firmly at the two on the field. "But now I need the combined strength of both of you, so I'm counting on you!"
Nobunaga didn't mind Hoshino's choice with [Monster Reborn]. As someone familiar with dueling, she naturally understood that summoning Okita to break through the four [Magical Hats] in one go was indeed the best choice at the time.
"Since it's master's request, I don't mind fusing with this sick swordsman again!" Nobunaga, smiling, lowered her hat slightly to cover her eyes, and extended her hand toward Okita. "But this time, since I'm just a semi-spirit in the Graveyard, let's not beat each other up during the fusion."
"Hmph, I didn't expect Nobunaga to be so obedient." Caught off guard by Nobunaga's sudden friendliness, Okita blushed slightly and hesitantly reached out her hand.
"Careful, Okita-san!" Mash suddenly noticed the ominous dark aura around Nobunaga's hand and urgently warned.
"It's too late!" Nobunaga's eyes, hidden under her hat, revealed unparalleled cunning and murderous intent. "Feel this, the resentment accumulated from lying in the Graveyard for an entire duel, the wrath of the Demon King!"
"Aaaaaaahhhh!!"
"Fu-sion!"
The familiar black vortex engulfed both of them, their figures gradually disappearing, leaving only Okita's screams echoing through the tense space.
"Send [Heroic Spirit - Okita Souji] and [Heroic Spirit – Shirou Emiya] from the field to the Graveyard, and banish [Heroic Spirit - Nobunaga Oda] from the Graveyard, to Fusion Summon using the effect of [Dream Summon]!" Hoshino flicked the mysteriously glowing card into the black vortex before her. As the card merged with the light, the once turbulent black vortex began to calm down.
"Including me too?" Emiya was momentarily surprised upon hearing Hoshino's fusion declaration, but then he understood the reasoning behind Hoshino's choice.
If Emiya remained within the Unlimited Blade Works space, it would trigger the negative effect of the [Unlimited Blade Works] card, preventing any new Fusion Monster from attacking.
"Well, I guess I'll see what fusion feels like!" Emiya, without resistance, spread his arms and merged into the black vortex.
As Emiya entered, the vortex, now fulfilling all conditions, spun even more violently, forming a jet-black pillar that seemed to pierce the sky.
"Yugi, do you remember? Yesterday, when we teamed up against the Labyrinth Brothers, I said I wanted to use this card to prove that I'm not weaker than you." Hoshino spoke nostalgically, holding a new card between her fingers. "But now, my wish is not just to prove that I'm not weaker than you!"
The purple card was slammed onto the table, the tremendous energy from the card scattering the sand on the table. As soon as the card touched the arena, Kaiba Corporation's most advanced projection equipment initiated complex calculations.
"This card is the proof that I will surpass you! Fusion Summon, [Heroic Spirit - Majin-Okita Sōji(Alter)]!"
The gathering and dispersing black vortex blew away the burning sword graveyard, then quickly focused on a single point, revealing the tall figure of the Demon General.
" Majin-Okita Sōji, reporting for duty for the ultimate victory!" Wielding the massive katana [Rengoku], the Majin-Okita Sōji(Alter), with her tan skin, spoke calmly.
[Heroic Spirit – Majin-Okita Sōji(Alter)★★★★★★★★★★ (10 Stars) DARK][Warrior/Fusion/Effect][ATK 3000 DEF 2500]
[[Heroic Spirit - Okita Souji] + [Heroic Spirit - Nobunaga Oda] + [Heroic Spirit] Monster. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by Fusion Summon. The turn this card battles, banish this card at the end of the Battle Phase.]
"So, this is Chiyuki's final trump card?" Mai Valentine, initially stunned by the black pillar piercing through the entire space, was now shocked for a different reason upon seeing the Majin-Okita Sōji for the first time. "But with only 3000 attack points, it can't defeat Yugi's [Dark Magician]!"
"Jounouchi, you guys should have seen Chiyuki use this card before, right? What exactly is its effect?" Yugi's question suggested that Hoshino had definitely summoned and used this card before. "Who will emerge victorious in this duel?"
"Uh..." Jounouchi scratched his head awkwardly, unsure how to answer Mai's question. "She did use it, but at that time... how should I put it..."
"The duel ended so quickly that we didn't have time to see the card's effect." As unbelievable as it sounded, Jounouchi was speaking from personal experience.
"Ended the duel in an instant?" Mai, realizing Jounouchi wasn't trying to deceive her, repeated his words in disbelief. "An attack like a flash of light, capable of ending everything in an instant without even revealing the card's effect."
"That's right, Mai. It's an attack like a flash of light, an unfathomable light that pierces through darkness!" Hoshino on the hill of swords seemed to blend with the aura of the Majin-Okita Sōji, intimidating the entire space.
"Launch the final attack, Majin-Okita Sōji!"
"It's useless, Hoshino. Your card, Majin-Okita Sōji i, doesn't have a higher attack than my Dark Magician!" Yugi waved his hand, commanding the Dark Magician to counterattack.
"Understand" was The usual response from the Dark Magician, who was preparing to leap up after receiving the counterattack command.
[Dark Magician ATK 4800]
However, to Yugi's surprise, the next moment, the Dark Magician's usually calm expression was replaced with one of shock.
"Polar Star!" As Mai described, it was an attack as swift as light, moving at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye. This ultimate technique, capable of traversing any space, was effective even within the unique realm.
With a movement that seemed to shatter the space itself, Majin-Okita Sōji instantly appeared before the Dark Magician. In a fraction of a second, before anyone could react, she had already swung her katana, [Rengoku], unleashing countless beams of light.
"I will pierce the infinite world… I will sever the thread of destiny with this boundless light!!" The Dark Magician, who had intended to counterattack, was engulfed in the golden light of Beam, resulting in a one-sided annihilation.
"So cool! Is that Majin-Okita Sōji?" Mash, eyes sparkling, admired the golden light of Beam in the darkening sky. "Although she looks just like Okita-san, she seems much more reliable! Is her dark skin because she fused with Emiya-san? But there's no trace of Nobunaga, who was also part of the fusion."
"Mash, you must be a hidden sharp-tongued person..." Hoshino chuckled helplessly, feeling that Mash's brief comment managed to mock all three fusion components. "You're quite the charming little devil~"
"Impossible, the Dark Magician had higher attack power!" Yugi, for the first time, shouted in disbelief at the scene before him.
"Take a closer look, Yugi!" Hoshino pointed at Demon General Souji, who was cutting through the golden light, and explained.
[Majin-Okita Sōji ATK 5000]
[①: For each [Heroic Spirit] monster card banished, this card's attack power increases by 1000 points.]
"Yugi, besides Nobunaga Oda, who was used as fusion material from the Graveyard, do you need a reminder of which another monster card was banished?" Hoshino spoke with sudden hostility as if listing the Yugi's misdeeds.
"The banished monster..." Yugi clenched his teeth, recalling that moment.
——————
"What an attack! It hurts so much!!"
" According to [Dark Magician of Chaos]'s effect, monsters destroyed by it aren't sent to the graveyard; they are removed from play."
"So I can't even go to the graveyard this time. It's a miserable fate for a Saint." The wound inflicted by the black orb started spreading, gradually consuming his body.
——————
"[Heroic Spirit - Saint George]!!" Yugi, nearly biting through his teeth, forced out the name.
"That's right. If Saint George hadn't been banished, Majin-Okita Sōji 's attack power wouldn't have been able to surpass that of the Dark Magician!"
"There's a reason for everything, Yugi!" Hoshino raised her right hand, pointing to the crimson sky, where the once empty twilight now seemed to feature a radiant smile from Saint George. "This is the last will, the last legacy, left to us by Saint George, who died a tragic death!"
"Yugi, it doesn't matter if all my previous actions and plans were within your calculations, as long as this final move can turn the tables, that's enough!" Now at the critical juncture, Hoshino roared without restraint, venting the resentment accumulated from being targeted by the King throughout the duel. "Go, Majin-Okita Sōji, with everyone's will, achieve the final victory!"
"Zekken, Mukyusandan!!!" After countless golden beams, Majin-Okita Sōji's attack finally shattered Yugi's first and last ace, the Dark Magician.
[Yugi Muto LP: 300 → 100]
"Incredible, Hoshino! Actually, from the moment you freed Andersen, you had already completely exceeded my calculations."Yugi, looking at his life points dwindling like a candle in the wind, placed all his cards on the table. "But you're still one step short, Hoshino because the effect of [Fou of The Sun] prevented the Dark Magician's destruction!"
[Dark Magician: ATK 4800 → 4300]
"My Dark Magician on the field is still intact, but your Majin-Okita Sōji will have to leave after this turn ends."
"It's not good, Chiyuki! If you let Yugi survive and mount a counterattack, things could get really bad!" Mai shouted, fully aware of the Yugi's fearsome abilities. Even with only 100 life points left, Yugi's fighting spirit was formidable, as she had experienced in the previous duel.
"Mai, doesn't something seem strange to you?" Jounouchi asked, becoming increasingly calm in this critical moment. "If Hoshino had the [Dream Summon] card, why didn't he choose to fuse Majin-Okita Sōji from the beginning, instead of using [Unlimited Blade Works]?"
"If it weren't for [Collected Power] stealing all the copied Equip Cards, Yugi's Dark Magician wouldn't have such a high attack power."
"Exactly, Hoshino-girl," Pegasus commented, puzzled from his throne. "What could have prompted you to make such a choice? Is there a secret about Yugi-boy that we're missing?"
"It's because none of you understand the true terror of the Main protagonist!"
(*****)
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