"The final Sacred Beast… what is that?"
Banner and Crowler exchanged glances. As professors, they were at least somewhat familiar with the legends surrounding the Sacred Beasts of the island.
Especially Banner—unlike mere legends, as a member of the Shadow Riders, he possessed a certain degree of understanding of the Sacred Beasts' true power. It could be said that among everyone present—aside from the now-vanished Uria and the currently dueling Kagemaru—he knew the most.
"The final Sacred Beast? I've never heard of anything like that, nya?"
Yet even Banner had never heard of any existence beyond the Three Sacred Beasts.
Ending her Battle Phase, Hoshino placed all her remaining cards face-down onto her Duel Disk.
"I set two more cards. Turn end."
[Hoshino's: 0 Hand Cards | 3 Set Cards]
[Okita Souji ATK 4300 → 2300]
As Hoshino's turn ended, Okita's ATK—boosted by the combined power of Illya—returned to normal.
"My turn, draw!"
At the start of his turn, Kagemaru's gaze fell upon the card he had searched by effect on the previous turn.
"Hoshino, last turn, when Sangan was sent to the Graveyard, I added a monster with 1500 or less ATK from my Deck to my hand… and now, that monster will play your final funeral march!"
Placing the searched card onto his otherwise empty Monster Zone, Kagemaru—despite losing life force and raging internally—moved with an unsettling calm.
"I Normal Summon this monster in Attack Position—Necroface!"
[Necroface ★★★★ (Level 4)][DARK][Zombie/Effect][ATK 1200/DEF 1800]
A grotesque, bloodied, shattered head materialized, floating above Kagemaru's field.
"Necroface's effect—when this card is successfully Summoned, all banished cards belonging to both players are returned to the Graveyard!"
"A monster that can retrieve cards from the banished zone—this is bad!"
Kagemaru's sudden move was even more terrifying than Necroface's appearance.
Retrieving the three cards he had longed for from the banished zone, Kagemaru continued declaring effects.
"After Necroface's effect resolves, my three banished Sacred Beasts and your three banished cards all return to the Graveyard. Then, Necroface gains ATK equal to the number of cards returned to the Graveyard by this effect ×100!"
[Necroface ATK 1200 → 1800]
In Hoshino's Graveyard, the banished Valkyrie—along with the top two cards of her Deck that had been banished by the Valkyrie's effect—also returned.
"This is bad—if all three return to the Graveyard, won't they be able to revive endlessly again?"
Unease once more spread among the academy students.
After finally breaking through and banishing the Sacred Beasts, and heavily reducing Kagemaru's Life Points, they hadn't even had time to savor their advantage before Kagemaru overturned the situation through his setup—searching Necroface via Sangan.
"So you really brought a card that can retrieve banished cards… looks like I was a step too slow."
The only thing the endlessly reviving Sacred Beasts truly feared was banishment—something Kagemaru naturally understood. That was why Hoshino had wanted to end the duel quickly, before he could draw a key recovery card while the Sacred Beasts were banished.
"Hmph. Originally, Necroface's retrieval effect was prepared for this card."
Selecting a card from his hand and raising it high, an aura of chaotic darkness—denser even than when the Three Beasts had gathered—rose around Kagemaru.
"But now, it's already too late. I acknowledge your courage in fighting this far—but humans cannot defy absolute power! I activate a Spell Card from my hand—Dimension Fusion Destruction!"
Fire, thunder, and phantom power—after tearing through the dimensional barrier, the fused darkness expanded exponentially.
"The Three Beasts were originally one. When the earths apart, the Sacred Beast that bears the final mission will descend, absorbing the life force of all spirits between heaven and earth, and recreating this world anew!"
[Dimension Fusion Destruction Spell Effect:
Banish from your hand, field, and/or Graveyard the Fusion Material Monsters listed on a 'Phantasm' Fusion Monster, then Special Summon that Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, ignoring its Summoning conditions. Any battle damage you take from battles involving that monster becomes 0.]
"The Sacred Beasts… were originally one? The three of them can actually fuse?!"
Though this was the first time she had ever heard such a thing, the lingering unease in Hoshino's heart finally unraveled at that moment.
The Three Beasts weren't weak—but compared to the Three Egyptian Gods or the Three Wicked Gods of the same tier, their power had always felt lacking.
Yet from the very beginning, Hoshino had misunderstood something…
'When the Beast cards reappear upon the surface of the world, heaven and earth will be shrouded in chaos, darkness will awaken, and the world will be led toward destruction.'
The true power of the Three was never meant to be calculated separately. The Sacred Beast spoken of in the legends—the one that plunges heaven and earth into chaos and leads the world to ruin—had always referred to a single, complete being.
"Fusion Summon—Armityle the Chaos Phantasm!"
Armityle shares its name with "Armisael," the angel governing the womb and childbirth in Jewish legend—fitting Kagemaru's claim that it absorbs all life and destroys the world only to recreate it.
However, the reality was…
After combining the bodies of the Three Sacred Beasts, Armityle's grotesque and horrifying appearance was worlds apart from any so-called "angel."
But then again, even Duel Monsters of the Fairy Type were often misshapen and bizarre—so perhaps it still barely made sense.
[Armityle the Chaos Phantasm ★★★★★★★★★★ (Level 12)][DARK][Fiend/Fusion/Effect][ATK 0 / DEF 0]
["Uria, Lord of Searing Flames" + "Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder" + "Raviel, Lord of Phantasms"]
[This card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.]
Hoshino exclaimed in shock,
"Level 12, 0 ATK, 0 DEF… that's terrifying in its own way!"
As the saying goes, monsters with 0 ATK and 0 DEF are the truly dangerous ones—and combined with Level 12… at least to Hoshino's knowledge, only Grand Assassin King Hassan was treated that way.
"ROOOAAAR—!"
The roar that erupted from the fusion of the three Beasts' bodies echoed with three layers of chilling resonance.
"The sky… it's really being shrouded in chaos, just like the legend!"
No one knew who noticed first, but someone cried out in alarm.
Looking up, the sky—interwoven with black and white—had turned into a chaotic gray, even more oppressive and eerie than a pitch-black night.
And it wasn't limited to above the academy. The chaotic sky stretched endlessly beyond the horizon, engulfing the entire world.
"Mamma mia… d-does this mean the world is ending?" Crowler cried in panic, clutching his head.
"We just got word from the North American Academy—there's the same anomaly in the sky over there!" Atticus reported, showing a video sent from the American branch on his phone.
"The North Academy too!" Manjoume added tensely.
"Even the other academies are being affected…?"
Hoshino stared intently at the Chaos Phantasm before her, its cold, unending roar seeming capable of dragging the world into hell through fear alone.
In truth, it wasn't limited to Duel Academy.
If Hoshino were to use the Kaiba Corporation's artificial projection satellites to observe the planet right now, she would see that the once-blue Earth was now completely wrapped in chaotic darkness.
A situation where the entire planet was engulfed in darkness had only occurred once in recorded history.
Seven years ago—during the final battle between Hoshino, Yugi, Kaiba, and Dartz against the Great Leviathan.
"Chaos covering the sky, leading darkness to destroy the world… the Chaos Phantasm. So this is the final boss's entrance."
Hoshino bit her lip, forcing herself to remain calm. In a situation like this, it didn't matter if the whole world panicked—she couldn't afford to lose her composure.
"Cough—cough—cough!"
Violent coughing erupted from across the field, drawing Hoshino's gaze away from the Chaos Phantasm.
She then realized in shock that Kagemaru had aged even further than on the previous turn.
Graying temples and withered muscles—this could no longer be called middle-aged.
"It's absorbing even the wielder's own life force… no, is it targeting the wielder first? What an utterly dark and terrifying Beast."
Seeing through Kagemaru's condition at a glance, Hoshino shouted urgently:
"Stop this! This situation has already strayed from your ideals. If this continues, you'll be devoured by the Beast's power instead!"
"Even if I am devoured by the Sacred Beast's power, this is the path I chose!"
Completely unmoved, Kagemaru's steadily aging body continued to be eroded by chaos, to the point where it was no longer clear whether the will controlling him belonged to Kagemaru himself—or to the soul of chaotic darkness.
"If I cannot obtain eternal life, then I will use this body—already broken beyond repair—to sound the trumpet of the world's end!"
"This guy is completely insane!" Akasha condemned mercilessly.
"He's the type who wants to die and drag everyone else down with him. And this is someone who was allowed to become the academy's chairman?"
Minazuki nodded in agreement. "Putting character aside for the moment, all I can say is—having money really does mean you can do whatever you want."
Hoshino raised her Duel Disk and pointed straight ahead with determination. "Since you're resolved to go this far, there's no need for any more words. Come at me, Kagemaru!"
"—The effect of Armityle the Chaos Phantasm! During my turn, this card's ATK increases! Face the darkness of the final Sarced Beast, Hoshino Chiyuki!"
[Armityle the Chaos Phantasm ATK: 0 → 10000]
An incredibly simple and brutal effect—no fancy conditions whatsoever, just a direct increase in ATK.
In a normal Duel Monsters context, such an outrageous increase would be unimaginable. But on the trinity-born Chaos Phantasm, it somehow felt completely natural.
"At the same time, I activate my Trap Card—All-Out Attacks! All Special Summoned monsters on the field must be in Attack Position!"
Although all of Hoshino's monsters were already in Attack Position, Kagemaru had thoroughly studied many of her previous duels.
Hoshino's most common defensive tactic was summoning Mash from her Deck, or sacrificing Saint George from her hand to claw her way out of desperation and turn the tables.
All-Out Attacks had been prepared specifically to shut down that kind of play.
"Now you have nowhere left to run!"
"Who says I have nowhere to run? I activate my set Quick-Play Spell Card!"
She flipped open the card in her back row—the Quick-Play Spell she had searched and set earlier through Okita's summoning effect, bearing the name of the person herself. Facing the imminent attack of the Chaos Phantasm, Hoshino could only place her hopes on this card.
"—Firefly's Flame of Integrity!"
[Firefly's Flame of Integrity Quick-Play Spell Effect:
Choose 1 of the following effects.
● Activate by targeting 1 'Heroic Spirit – Okita Soji' you control. Return that monster to the hand, then reveal the top 3 cards of your Deck; add 2 of them to your hand, and return the remaining card to the Deck.]
Hoshino & Okita: "You didn't expect this, did you, Kagemaru?! This is my escape route!"
"She actually ran away at a time like this?!" the two remaining Illyas on the field cried out in disbelief.
"Wait—even if Okita returns to the hand, Sensei still has two Illyas in Attack Position on the field. The situation hasn't improved at all!" Jaden said, confused.
"Can't Headmistress Jeanne d'Illya activate her effect like last time to block the attack?"
"No. Jeanne d'Illya's effect can only be used once. There's no chance this time."
"Abandoning the cute Illya and running away by herself—Okita is such a trash ace card!"
Having provoked public outrage, Okita was bombarded with criticism from the students present.
But at a time like this, Hoshino had no leisure to worry about Okita's reputation.
Because of Firefly's Flame of Integrity's effect, she revealed the top three cards of her Deck. To truly stop the Chaos Phantasm's attack, that one key card had to be among these three.
"The odds should be pretty good… after all, it's you, Okita…"
"Hmph. Your pointless struggle ends here, Hoshino! Armityle the Chaos Phantasm—attack!"
A terrifying 10,000 points of ATK descended as triple energies spewed forth from the fused Sarced Beast's massive maw, intertwining into a chaotic reincarnation wave that surged straight toward Illya.
"Watch closely! This is the opening created by Okita!"
At the same time, having finished selecting two of the three revealed cards, Hoshino flipped the card at her feet. Brilliant golden summoning light enveloped the two Illyas.
"—I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Heroic Spirit Summon!"
[Heroic Spirit Summon | Quick-Play Spell Effect:
Banish 2 'Heroic Spirit' monsters from your hand and/or field; Special Summon 1 'Heroic Spirit' monster from your hand.]
"I banish Magical Girl Illya and Magical Girl Jeanne d'Illya from my field, and Special Summon a Heroic Spirit monster from my hand!"
Jaden suddenly realized it. "I get it—that's Sensei's strategy! Remove all three Attack Position monsters from the field, then summon a new Heroic Spirit. That way, the Chaos Phantasm has no choice but to attack that single monster!"
"But Kagemaru has a Trap that forces Special Summoned monsters into Attack Position!" Minazuki added. "How could an Attack Position monster possibly withstand 10,000 ATK?"
"Of course it can! Right now, there's one—and only one—Heroic Spirit capable of taking this blow!"
With her fingertips tracing a fiery arc, Hoshino dramatically slammed the monster card she had selected via Firefly's Flame of Integrity onto her Duel Disk.
"Just as expected of you, Okita—searching for Nobu is a piece of cake! By the effect of Heroic Spirit Summon, I Special Summon from my hand—Heroic Spirit – Oda Nobunaga!"
[Heroic Spirit – Oda Nobunaga ★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)][FIRE][Warrior/Effect][ATK 3000 / DEF 2500]
"When Oda Nobunaga is successfully Special Summoned, I can activate the Field Spell Burning Honnō-ji directly from my Deck!"
Opening the hidden compartment of her Duel Disk, Hoshino placed the Field Spell drawn from her Deck into play. By the rule that only one Field Spell may exist at a time, the raging flames of Honnō-ji instantly incinerated the eerie black tree of Fallen Paradise.
[Fallen Paradise destroyed]
"—Anyone who doesn't want to die, get the hell out of the way! The final, self-sacrificial battle of the Sixth Demon King begins now! This place will become a scorching, endless hell, where gods and Buddhas of the three realms are reduced to dust!"
Emerging from the flames sweeping across the battlefield, Nobunaga appeared with an uncharacteristically serious expression.
Perhaps even the Sixth Demon King—who had once effortlessly defeated True Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon—knew that facing the Chaos Phantasm meant survival was unlikely.
"I am Nobunaga—one who transcends the reincarnation of He Who Freely Uses Heaven, the enemy of gods, Buddhas, and all living beings!"
"Full firepower! Oda Nobunaga's effect activates—during damage calculation, when this card battles a Level 10 or higher monster, this card's ATK is doubled!"
Gods and Buddhas of the three realms turn to ash—
The Six Heavens converge, the four seas overturn—
[Oda Nobunaga ATK 3000 → 6000]
"Burn to nothingness! My blood, my bones, my life itself! UOOOOOO—Destroy it! 'Three Thousand Great Thousand Demon King'!!"
Manifesting behind Nobunaga, an aberrant form surpassing even the Sixth Demon King—a massive, six-armed flaming skeleton—collided violently with the gigantic Chaos Phantasm.
"Take it, Master… this is my final ripple—!"
Even with Nobunaga's ATK doubled to 6000, the gap between him and the Chaos Phantasm's overwhelming ATK remained insurmountable.
But this single moment was the absolute limit of both Hoshino and Nobunaga. Achieving 6000 ATK through the effect of a single card and directly clashing with this apocalyptic strike—no one but Nobunaga could have done it.
[Oda Nobunaga is destroyed]
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 4100 → 100]
"Nobunaga, I accept your will!" Standing amid the raging flames of Burning Honnō-ji, Hoshino—having endured the Chaos Phantasm's attack at the very limit—flipped over the final set card at her feet.