Chapter 268
"Return Dragon Slayer—Siegfried!"
[Heroic Spirit – Dragon-Blooded Knight Siegfried ★★★★★★ (Level 6)][EARTH][Warrior/Effect][ATK 0/DEF 3000]
Siegfried materialized on the battlefield, gripping his massive greatsword as a fierce blaze ignited in his eyes. "I regret that Saint George's sacrifice was necessary to summon me, but the saint's dragon-slaying resolve now fuels my blade!"
"With Malefic Cyber End Dragon now a Dragon-Type, you have three Dragon-Type monsters on your field," Hoshino announced confidently. "Thanks to Siegfried's effect, his ATK increases by 3000!"
[Siegfried ATK: 0 → 3000]
Byakuya smirked despite the growing threat. "A meager 3000 ATK? That's hardly enough to challenge the might of my field!"
Hoshino grinned knowingly. "Don't underestimate Siegfried. He thrives where dragons reign, and your field is a buffet of scaly targets!"
Still, Byakuya's confidence didn't falter. "No matter. Even if Siegfried stands against me, my strategy remains unbeatable. I activate the Quick-Play Spell [Mystik Wok]!"
Hoshino's jaw dropped. "That's the card Marik used to deep-fry the Winged Dragon of Ra! You've got to be kidding me!"
[Mystik Wok – Quick-Play Spell Effect: Tribute 1 monster. Select either its ATK or DEF, and gain that many Life Points.]
Byakuya's Malefic Cyber End Dragon disintegrated, its energy absorbed into the swirling wok.
"By tributing Malefic Cyber End Dragon, I recover 4000 Life Points!"
[Byakuya LP: 300 → 4300]
Jonouchi slammed his hand on the duel disk in frustration. "So that was your safety net, huh? No wonder you were so reckless with your LP earlier!"
Byakuya chuckled, raising his arms theatrically. "Exactly. And now, with my Life Points restored, my remaining monsters are free to attack! Prepare for annihilation!"
[Siegfried ATK 3000 → 2000]
Byakuya's field still held his defensive Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Red-Eyes Black Dragon, while Cyber End Dragon stood poised for attack.
[Cyber End Dragon ATK 4000]
"Some dragon-slaying hero," Byakuya taunted. "Cyber End Dragon, incinerate him with your flames! Attack—Ultimate Evolution Burst!"
From its three cybernetic heads, Cyber End Dragon unleashed a roaring inferno of blinding red flames.
"Trap Card, activate!" Hoshino declared, flipping her card with impeccable timing.
Jonouchi blinked in confusion. "Wait a second! Didn't you say there weren't any defensive cards set? Where did this come from?"
Hoshino sighed dramatically. "When I said I had no defense, that was before I had monsters on the field! Pay attention, Mr. Top 5 Duelist!"
"Activate Trap Card—[Mature Gentleman]!"
[Mature Gentleman – Trap Card Effect: Target 1 [Heroic Spirit] monster you control. This turn, that monster won't be destroyed by battle, and damage taken is halved.]
A shimmering barrier surrounded Siegfried, deflecting the flames as the Cyber End Dragon's attack crashed into it.
[Hoshino & Jonouchi LP: 4000 → 3000]
Though the flames subsided, Siegfried remained standing, his eyes blazing with renewed determination.
"I wasn't protecting myself," Hoshino explained, her voice steady. "The only thing I needed to defend was Siegfried." She turned to Jonouchi with an encouraging nod. "The rest is up to you. If you really are a champion of luck, draw the card that'll end this duel!"
As Byakuya ended his turn, lowering his duel disk, he sneered. "You're prolonging the inevitable. My monsters stand undefeated. This world will erase you completely, and no one will even remember you existed."
[Byakuya: 0 Hand Cards | 0 Set Cards]
Jonouchi cracked his knuckles, his expression fierce. "I get it, Hoshino!"
The two exchanged a glance filled with unspoken resolve—a bond forged through countless duel.
With a dramatic motion, Jonouchi drew his card. The light in his eyes intensified as a confident smile spread across his face. "This is it! Let's take this guy down together!"
He raised his card high. "First, I activate the effect of [The Black Stone of Legend] in my Graveyard!"
[The Black Stone of Legend Effect: If this card is in your GY: You can target 1 Level 7 or lower "Red-Eyes" monster in your GY; shuffle it into the Deck, and if you do, add this card to your hand.]
"I shuffle Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon back into my Deck and return The Black Stone of Legend to my hand!"
Byakuya scoffed, unimpressed. "A weakling reviving another weakling. What an insult to this duel."
Jonouchi laughed, unshaken by the insult. "Weaklings, huh? I've been called that a thousand times. But it's through those struggles that I made it to the top!"
Slamming his card onto the Duel Disk, Jonouchi's voice filled the field. "Hoshino, remember our first tag duel ten years ago? The details are fuzzy, but one thing stands out—this card!"
Dark energy erupted from his Duel Disk, intertwining with Siegfried's form.
"This is the miracle we created together—the bond between Red-Eyes and Heroic Spirits! I activate [Polymerization], fusing [The Black Stone of Legend] in my hand with Siegfried on the field!"
Siegfried raised his blade, merging with the black energy of the stone. His form transformed, wings of crimson fire unfurling as he took on the power of a dragon.
Hoshino's voice rang out. "The dragon-slayer becomes the dragon, yet the justice in his heart remains pure!"
Jonouchi shouted, his spirit ablaze. "Together, we summon the ultimate monster—the strongest fusion across time and space! Fusion Summon—[Crimson Demon Dragon – Siegfried Alter]!"
[Crimson Demon Dragon – Siegfried Alter ★★★★★★★★★★ (Level 10)][DARK][Dragon/Fusion/Effect][ATK 3000/DEF 3000]
[This card is also treated as a "Heroic Spirit" monster.]
The newly summoned monster roared, its presence overwhelming. "I am the ultimate sin dragon, and I have no apologies to offer!"
"Siegfried Alter's effect gathers the souls of all dragons on the field and in the graveyards!"
With a commanding declaration, Jonouchi unveiled the ultimate ability of Siegfried Alter, the mightiest demonic dragon, signaling the duo's final counterattack.
[Effect: This card gains 500 ATK for each Dragon-Type monster on the field and in both players' Graveyards.]
Hoshino began counting Byakuya's Dragon monsters aloud: "Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"
Jonouchi followed, grinning confidently: "And our side has four Dragon-Type monsters, plus Siegfried Alter!"
"That's a total of eight Dragon monsters across both the field and graveyards!" Hoshino pointed dramatically at Siegfried. "That means Siegfried Alter's ATK increases by 4000 points!"
The battlefield crackled with energy as Siegfried's greatsword began to pulse with blinding, otherworldly light. The cursed holy blade, Gram, surged with the combined power of the dragons it had slain and those it sought to destroy. Once a weapon of purity, the blade now glimmered jet-black, the mark of its transformation into the ultimate demonic sword.
[Siegfried Alter ATK 3000 → 7000]
"Seven… seven thousand ATK?!" Byakuya's voice cracked, his disbelief evident.
He stumbled backward, sweat dripping down his forehead. The air around Siegfried Alter grew oppressive, charged with a suffocating aura. Byakuya's confidence wavered, his mind racing between fear of Hoshino, the supposed Heroic Spirit wielder, and Jonouchi, the duelist he had sought to eliminate.
These two outdated duelists—relics of the past, in his view—had somehow summoned a power that rivaled even the Malefic World bestowed upon him by Lord Paradox.
Jonouchi smirked. "Brace yourself! Ready for your final defeat at the hands of Jonouchi-sama?"
Hoshino rolled her eyes. "Don't hog the credit! This is a team effort, Jonouchi!"
"No, it's my attack!" Siegfried Alter growled, his voice deep and commanding as he soared high into the sky, dragging a black streak of death behind his cursed blade.
"Slaying dragons is but a simple task! Split apart the intertwined worlds of light and shadow! Holy dragons, demonic dragons, all shall fall—BALMUNG!"
The jet-black streak of energy descended like a judgment from the heavens, cleaving through the defending Blue-Eyes White Dragon in an instant. The once-proud emperor of the battlefield shattered into shimmering fragments, disintegrating under the might of Siegfried's demonic blade.
[Blue-Eyes White Dragon destroyed]
Hoshino pointed to the next target: "When Siegfried Alter destroys a Dragon-Type monster by battle, it can attack again!"
"That makes two!" Siegfried's blade flashed once more, slicing through the slender form of Red-Eyes Black Dragon, reducing it to nothing but a fading memory.
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon destroyed]
Calm and composed, Siegfried hovered above the battlefield, his demonic wings unfurling like a shadow that blanketed the warped landscape. His crimson eyes locked onto the final opponent: Cyber End Dragon.
"This one's different—it's not a Dragon-Type, but that just makes the victory sweeter," Siegfried said with a smirk, channeling all his energy into a single, devastating strike. The cursed blade tore through the air, leaving a black-and-crimson arc in its wake as it obliterated Cyber End Dragon with ease.
[Cyber End Dragon destroyed]
[Byakuya LP 4300 → 1300]
"Damn it… to think they could push me this far," Byakuya muttered, clutching his chest. The force of Siegfried's attack felt like a physical blow, rattling his body and mind.
But his desperation fueled his resolve. He couldn't lose. He wouldn't lose. Malefic World, the deck entrusted to him by Paradox, was supposed to be invincible.
"Malefic World is unbreakable! There's no way outdated duelists like you can defeat me!" Byakuya shouted, his voice laced with both rage and desperation.
"Then let me escort you and your 'invincible' Malefic World straight to the end!" Hoshino retorted, flipping her Set card.
"Quick-Play Spell—[Buddhism of Emptiness]!"
A massive, fearsome Nio statue materialized behind her, its oppressive aura filling the battlefield with the promise of judgment.
Byakuya staggered back, visibly shaken. "What… what's happening?!"
The battlefield crackled and fractured, colors swirling chaotically as the apex of Malefic World—the radiant singularity where all light converged—began to crack. A thunderous CRACK echoed through the space, like the heavens themselves splitting apart.
"My Blade, My Sword! Slicing through void is my destiny!"
Through the fissure, beyond the confines of the Malefic World, a familiar red-and-blue figure descended elegantly, her twin swords gleaming like polished steel.
[Buddhism of Emptiness Quick-Play Spell Effect: Tribute 1 monster on the field; Special Summon 1 "Heroic Spirit - Shinmen Musashi no Kami Fujiwara no Harunobu" from your hand or Deck. If this card is Special Summoned this way, its ATK is increased by half the original ATK of the Tributed monster.]
Hoshino grinned. "I've Tributed Siegfried Alter to Special Summon [Heroic Spirit – Shinmen Musashi no Kami Fujiwara no Harunobu] from my hand! She gains 1500 ATK from Siegfried's original ATK!"
The Nio statue merged with Musashi as she landed gracefully on the battlefield. Her twin swords radiated a fierce, elemental energy, while a four-blade giant Nio loomed behind her, radiating pure destructive force.
"Namu, Tenman Daijizai Tenjin! With my blade, I shall sever your essence! This sword is my path to the void, my very life!"
[Heroic Spirit – Shinmen Musashi no Kami Fujiwara no Harunobu★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)][WIND][Warrior/Effect][ATK 3000 → 4500/DEF 2900]
Musashi's twin blades gleamed as she leaped forward, slicing through the air with unparalleled speed and precision.
The devastating slash of the Four Blades of Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind tore through the remnants of Malefic World, shattering Byakuya's final defenses.
"This feeling of landing the final blow—so thrilling, Master!" Musashi laughed joyfully, her twin blades flashing once more as she delivered the decisive strike.
"ISHANA, DAITENSHOU!!!"
The flash of light was blinding, and the battlefield erupted in a cascade of energy that obliterated Byakuya completely. His scream echoed one last time before fading into nothingness.
[Byakuya LP 1300 → 0]
[Duel Over. Winners: Katsuya Jonouchi & Chiyuki Hoshino!]
(*****)
If you'd like to read 25 chapters ahead, please consider joining my Patreon: patreon.com/ANeet. Your support means a lot. Thank you!