"——Dark Burning Magic!"
Although the God Card has resistance to targeting and removal effects, it cannot defend against a full-field wipe like Dark Magic Twin Burst. However, Ideal King of Knights Lily remains on the field thanks to her effect that prevents "Heroic Spirit" monsters from being destroyed by card effects.
With the Evil God annihilated, Yugi confidently declared:
"Since The Wicked Dreadroot has been eliminated, the effect that halves the ATK and DEF of all monsters on the field is also gone! Sorry, Hoshino, but I still control the field."
[Dark Magician ATK 1250 → 2500]
[Dark Magician Girl ATK 1000 → 2000]
[Ideal King of Knights Lily ATK 1200 → 2400]
Dark Magician already had more ATK than Ideal King of Knights Lily, and now Dark Magician Girl was on the field as well. The Fusion Summon of The Dark Magicians, followed by Dark Magic Twin Burst, allowed Yugi to instantly regain the upper hand.
"So it's about control of the field, huh? If you want to play the monster power game, then—activate the effect of Ideal King of Knights Lily! Once per turn: target 1 'Heroic Spirit' monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it!"
A scorching flame ignited the field, accompanied by bold, hearty laughter...
"Special Summon — Heroic Spirit – Oda Nobunaga!"
If Hoshino had revived Nobunaga before Slifer was destroyed, she would've been immediately wiped out by Thunder Force. That's why Hoshino waited until after the Battle Phase to bring her back.
[Heroic Spirit – Oda Nobunaga ★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)][FIRE][Warrior/Effect][ATK 3000/DEF 2500]
Nobunaga emerged from the flames, shouldering her blazing gun and laughing heartily:
"Muahahaha! After such a long absence, I return only to intervene in a divine duel? Truly the perfect battlefield for me!"
King of Knights Lily kindly reminded her, "Nobunaga-san, the Gods were already defeated before you even entered the field."
"Huh? Then what's the point of me even showing up?"
Hoshino replied, "Of course there's a point. Your stats are identical to Blue-Eyes White Dragon! At the very least, we're not outgunned anymore!"
"Blue-Eyes White Dragon? That brute's just a power unit. I've been reduced to that level?"
"Sure, Blue-Eyes is a power unit—but do you think just anyone can fill that role? Being a combat unit is a form of recognition too!"
…Good thing Kaiba in the audience couldn't hear any of this.
After summoning Nobunaga, Hoshino placed another card on her Duel Disk:
"Since I control King of Knights Lily, I can Special Summon Heroic Spirit – Nursery Rhyme from my hand in Defense Position, thanks to the effect I searched with Marie!"
[Heroic Spirit – Nursery Rhyme ★★★★ (Level 4)][DARK][Spellcaster/Effect][ATK 800/DEF 800]
[This card is also treated as a "Lily" card.]
[①: If you control a "Lily" monster, you can Special Summon this card from your hand.]
Falling from the sky with snacks and toys, Nursery Rhyme patted the dust off her little dress:
"It's been a while since I've hit the field. I wonder if I can beat a God?"
You, tiny as you are, would probably just slip between a god's teeth…
"Nursery Rhyme's effect activates: when this card is Special Summoned, I can add 1 Spell Card that lists both 'Heroic Spirit' and 'Lily' from my Deck to my hand. I'll choose Blessful Time, and activate it immediately!"[Blessful Time | Spell Card Effect: Discard 1 "Heroic Spirit" monster to activate. Draw 1 card, then draw 1 additional card for each face-up "Lily" monster with a different name you control.]
"I discard Heroic Spirit – Mash Kyrielight from my hand, and since I control Nursery Rhyme and King of Knights Lily—two differently named 'Lily' monsters—I draw 3 cards thanks to Blessful Time's effect!"
With her hand now refreshed to four cards, Hoshino confidently slammed them all onto her Duel Disk.
"I set four cards and end my turn."
[Hoshino's: 0 Hand Cards | 4 Set Cards]
"My turn! Draw!"
Looking at his drawn card, Yugi's eyes lit up with anticipation.
"Let's continue, Hoshino—the battle of the gods! I activate the Continuous Spell: Spell Sanctuary!"[Spell Sanctuary | Continuous Spell Effect: When you activate this card, each player can add 1 Spell Card from their Deck to their hand. While this card is face-up on the field, players can activate Spell Cards on their opponent's turn.](Anime-only Card)
"Thanks to Spell Sanctuary, both of us get to search 1 Spell from our Deck and add it to our hands!"
After searching, Yugi silently looked toward Hoshino.
"You're just giving me a free Spell card? There's no way it's that simple..." Hoshino muttered. Even though she searched a Spell, she didn't feel any joy in receiving it.
Once Hoshino completed her search, Yugi continued:
"Now I activate the Spell I just searched—Reasoning!"Hoshino's brow twitched slightly. If Yugi had gone so far as to give her a free Spell just to set up Reasoning, then something was definitely up.
"Reasoning's effect: My opponent declares a monster level between 1 and 12. Then I reveal cards from the top of my Deck until I reveal a monster that can be Special Summoned. If its Level is different from the declared one, I Special Summon it!"
It was a high-risk, high-reward Spell Card that could mill his Deck and Special Summon a monster—but the crucial choice rested with Hoshino.
"So I pick a level, huh..."
[Partner, most people call Level 4, since that's the most common.]
"No... this is Yugi we're talking about. He's never that simple." Hoshino thought hard, trying to read Yugi's intent behind using this card.
"If the revealed monster's Level is different from what I call, he can summon it. And the monster he most wants to summon now... I get it! You're trying to summon a God with this, aren't you?! Too bad—Detective Hoshino sees right through you!"
Confident in her deduction, Hoshino declared:
"Then my declared Level is 10. Begin revealing!"
By calling Level 10, if Yugi flips a Level 10 monster, he won't be able to summon it.
Yugi's eyes widened slightly.
"You went straight for Level 10, huh? Bold move, Hoshino. Let's see what fate decides!"
Activating Reasoning, Yugi flipped over the top card of his Deck—and paused.
"First card's already a monster?!"
Mokuba, watching nervously, gulped.
"So… was it a God?!"
Flipping the card between his fingers, Yugi smiled:
"The monster I revealed is Ra's Disciple, Level 4! Due to Reasoning's effect, I Special Summon it to the field!"
[Ra's Disciple ★★★★ (Level 4)][LIGHT][Fairy/Effect][ATK 1100/DEF 600]
[Effect: When this card is Summoned: You can Special Summon up to 2 "Ra's Disciple" from your hand and/or Deck.]
"And thanks to Ra's Disciple's effect, I can Special Summon two more from the Deck!"
[Ra's Disciple ATK 1100] ×3
Watching the three Ra's Disciples stand side by side, Hoshino Alter's voice echoed from within the pyramid, grumbling:
[I told you to declare Level 4! Some 'Detective'... I'm cutting your background music.]
Hoshino Alter's frustration was immeasurable.
Seriously, how is anyone supposed to guess that right? What if I had declared Level 4 and he flipped Obelisk instead? That'd be even worse!
"With this, the requirements to summon a God are met once more! I Tribute all three Ra's Disciples!"
Slamming his card down onto the Duel Disk, Yugi invoked the summoning chant that summoned the flames of the gods:
"Great beast of the sky, please hear my cry.
Transform thyself from orb of light and bring me victory in this fight.
Envelop the desert with your glow and cast your rage upon my foe.
Unlock your powers from deep within so that together we may win.
Appear in this Shadow Game as I call out your name—Winged Dragon of Ra!"
A glowing golden sphere appeared and began to transform, engulfed in divine fire. From the flames emerged the mightiest Egyptian God, its cry shaking the battlefield.
[The Winged Dragon of Ra ★★★★★★★★★★ (Level 10)][DIVINE][Divine-Beast/Effect][ATK ?/DEF ?]
"The Winged Dragon of Ra gains ATK and DEF equal to the combined ATK of the Tributed monsters!"
[Ra's ATK 3300]
Kaiba, watching from the stands with arms folded, narrowed his eyes at the blazing god:
"The strongest Egyptian God—The Winged Dragon of Ra. Yugi always manages to summon it first… He's playing this with extreme caution."
"Since I Tribute Summoned, Precious Cards from Beyond activates—I draw two cards!"
With a replenished hand, Yugi raised his arm dramatically:
"Battle! Dark Magician Girl, Dark Magician—destroy Nursery Rhyme and Ideal King of Knights Lily!"
Twin blasts of dark magic ripped through the battlefield. Dark Magician Girl wiped out Nursery Rhyme, while Dark Magician eliminated Ideal King of Knights Lily, who was in Attack Position.
[Nursery Rhyme – destroyed]
[Ideal King of Knights Lily – destroyed]
"Lily's effect activates when destroyed by battle! I can add 1 'Heroic Spirit' monster from my Deck to my hand!"
[Hoshino LP 2900 → 2800]
"Final blow! The Winged Dragon of Ra—incinerate Oda Nobunaga!"
Possibly wary of Hoshino's four set cards, Yugi refrained from using Ra's effect to convert his Life Points into ATK.
"—Golden Flame Cannon!!"
A golden torrent of flame surged toward Oda Nobunaga, engulfing the field in searing divine fire.
"Hahahaha! Is this supposed to be the fire of a god? Honestly, it's just a bit warm."
From within the roaring inferno, Nobunaga's mocking laughter echoed.
"Too weak! So this is all a god can do? What a letdown!"
An even hotter flame burst behind her, dispelling the divine fire. A massive red skull, wreathed in hellfire, loomed behind her.
"Anyone foolish enough to mess with me—disappear! This place is now the Great Fiery Hell! Gods and Buddhas alike will turn to ash!"
A field of demonic flame overwhelmed Ra's divine light. Nobunaga's true Noble Phantasm unfolded—a Reality Marble that turned her into an absolute force against the divine and the mystic.
"As Ra declared an attack, I activate the Continuous Trap Card—Demon King of the Sixth Heaven!"
[Demon King of the Sixth Heaven | Continuous Trap Effect: Once per turn, you can target 1 "Heroic Spirit" monster in your Graveyard; banish it.]
"I banish Heroic Spirit – Artoria Pendragon from the Graveyard, triggering Demon King of the Sixth Heaven's effect!"
[If "Heroic Spirit – Oda Nobunaga" battles a Divine-Attribute monster: During Damage Calculation only, it gains ATK equal to the total ATK of all banished "Heroic Spirit" monsters.]
"Thanks to Demon King of the Sixth Heaven, Nobunaga gains ATK equal to Artoria's ATK!
Now smash that oversized chicken god to pieces!"
[Oda Nobunaga ATK 3000 → 5400]
"OOOOHHH! Fight when it's time to fight! Die when it's time to die!
And win when it's time to win! That's the way of The Sixth Heaven Demon King!"
Completely overwhelming Ra's divine fire, the red skeletal Stand behind Nobunaga launched its massive fists skyward to crush Ra.
"As expected, you had a set card like that… but I won't let you destroy a God with just a single Trap Card!"
Feeling the heat of the incoming strike, Yugi inserted a card into his Duel Disk:
"Thanks to the Continuous Spell—Spell Sanctuary—Spells can be activated at any time!
I activate the Spell Card—Dark Magic Attack!"
[Dark Magic Attack | Spell Effect: If you control "Dark Magician": Destroy all Spells and Traps your opponent controls.]
"If I destroy your Continuous Trap by sending it to the Graveyard, its effect can't resolve!"
Dark Magician raised his staff and launched an explosive wave of magical destruction toward the back row.
"No, Yugi! I won't let this go unanswered! I activate my Counter Trap—Battle of Camlann!!"
(*****)
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