Chapter 279: Deal
"Special Summon during the Battle Phase?!"
Under Odion's gaze, Sky Galloping Gaia the Dragon Champion, who had just completed an attack, turned golden all over, just like when it first appeared, and then accelerated, vanishing from his sight again.
"By Tributing the Dragon-Type Fusion Monster Sky Galloping Gaia the Dragon Champion, I Special Summon this Monster from my Hand. This effect can even be activated during your Turn."
"Let me show you the limits of the bonds between me and Gaia," Hayato said, playing the card in his hand: "Prove your power to the world, prove that you're not just a cripple who can only ride a horse!"
"Dark Knight Gaia the Warrior!!!"
A speechless Gaia reappeared on Hayato's Field. He really wanted to grab Hayato and sew his mouth shut, to stop him from spouting nonsense, but considering it was his new Archetype/Variant's first appearance and he needed to make a strong impression, he could only maintain a dark expression, posing coolly with his sword.
Dark Knight Gaia the Warrior [Level 8/DARK Attribute]
[Warrior-Type/Effect]
[ATK 2600/DEF 2100]
Dark Knight Gaia, dismounted from its steed, did not suffer a decrease in its ATK even without the aid of Curse of Dragonfire. After swapping the long lance used for cavalry combat for a trident used for infantry battle, Dark Knight Gaia the Warrior glared intensely at Odion, whose Field was completely empty.
"Because it was Special Summoned during the Battle Phase, Gaia the Warrior also has the right to attack," Hayato said calmly. "First, let me confirm, your Hand isn't Kuriboh or a battle-negating card, is it? Alright, here I go!"
"Chaa!"
Seeing Odion, who showed no intention of resisting and calmly accepted his defeat, Dark Knight Gaia the Warrior showed no mercy at all. Instead, it exerted its full power within the Duel rules, forcefully knocking Odion unconscious.
[Odion: 2100 LP → 0]
Until it vanished, Gaia the Warrior kept staring at the unconscious Odion. Whenever his Archetype/Variant that rode horses or Dragons first appeared, Hayato would always shout a cool line. Why was he so lame today?
I already told you, I'm not a cripple who only rides horses!
Dark Knight Gaia the Warrior, having knocked out the only witness, dissipated as the Duel ended. The moment the Duel concluded, Hayato rushed towards the unconscious Odion, took off the Duel Disk from his wrist, and immediately retrieved Raviel, Lord of Phantasms from the Graveyard.
Holding the blue "Strongest Sacred Beast" card in his hand, Hayato looked around suspiciously. The previous two Sacred Beasts had already been taken by that elusive fellow Bakura; Uria, Lord of Searing Flames was one thing, but Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder was defeated by Hayato himself.
It had always been Hayato's prerogative to snatch others' belongings, but today, Bakura had snatched a card from Hayato, which made him quite displeased. Therefore, upon confirming that Odion possessed the Sacred Beast Emperor, he immediately decided to intercept this card.
However, to Hayato's surprise, Bakura did not appear out of thin air nearby, as he had the previous two times.
"Hmm, why can't I hear Odion's voice all of a sudden? This feeling... is it the Millennium Ring?!"
And just as Hayato reached out to support Odion, Marik, who had maintained a psychic link with him, frowned. Due to the interference effect of the Millennium Ring, the psychic link maintained by the Millennium Rod was suddenly and forcibly interrupted. This annoyed Marik, and he called Hayato's name in his basement, where he was alone, with considerable anger:
"Onore Hayato!"
However, he wasn't too worried about Odion's safety.
Perhaps it was some kind of bond, or perhaps a tacit understanding, but due to his childhood experience of being protected by Odion, Marik possessed a special ability beyond the Millennium Rod: no matter how far apart they were, he could always sense Odion's state.
Just like now, although the psychic link of the Millennium Rod was blocked by the Millennium Ring, Marik could feel that Odion was quite safe and his condition remained stable without any major changes.
But that was only limited to his physical condition.
"Big Bro, can we really just do whatever we want?" Dressed as a painter, Ojama Yellow stood before a group of similarly dressed Ojama Family Monsters, holding a bucket of paint and a brush, looking at Hayato with a face full of anticipation.
"I told you, didn't I? Although everything he did wasn't of his own subjective will but was instigated by that three-year-old Marik, crime is still crime." Hayato held Odion's cards, carefully selecting them. Cards he didn't need were casually tossed into the Shop to be recycled, while useful cards were added to his own card pool.
"Before Kaiba's people get here, this guy is all yours. Consider it one of his punishments." After saying this, Hayato saw Ojama Yellow leading the Ojama Family and a few Performapal who liked to join the fun, starting to doodle on Odion's face.
Although they looked disgusting, Hayato was surprised to find at this moment that the Ojama Family actually had quite a talent for this sort of thing.
Hayato looked back at the cards in his hand.
It had to be said, Odion's Deck was like a "vegetable patch after the radishes have been pulled out"—full of Trap Cards. The entire Deck had about fifty cards, thirty-odd of which were all sorts of Trap Cards, with only eight Monsters and a dozen or so Spell Cards, including Raviel, Lord of Phantasms.
Among these thirty-plus cards, there were Attack Declaration Trap Cards like Dimensional Prison and the never-activatable Sakuretsu Armor; Summoning Trap Cards like Torrential Tribute and various kinds of Trap Hole cards; Counter Trap Cards like Magic Jammer and Solemn Judgment; and Restriction Trap Cards like Spellbinding Circle and Gravity Bind.
Even Fake Traps like Fake Trap and Security Orb were prepared. If Hayato hadn't confirmed that there were no Traptrix monsters in Odion's Deck, he would have thought it was a Traptrix Deck.
Hayato even discovered something quite interesting—Odion had actually awakened a Duel Monster Spirit as well. However, unlike other Duelists who awakened spirits that were Monster Cards, he, like Hayato who initially received System help, awakened a Duel Monster Spirit that came from a Trap Card—Apophis the Awful, a "Monster Trap" that was still quite rare at the moment, and at least it was the first time Hayato had seen one.
This kind of Trap Card was somewhat similar to Spell Cards like Blaze of Glory which Summon Tokens. However, after "Monster Trap Cards" are activated, they don't Summon Tokens; instead, the card itself is directly treated as a Monster Card and placed in the Monster Zone, gaining a Level, Attribute, Type, and ATK/DEF. They can be treated as a Trap Card or a Monster Card.
Although he didn't have a collection of such cards yet, Hayato considered himself a man of principle. He didn't keep or sell this card, but instead returned it to Odion's pocket.
Then, he casually took his Millennium Puzzle Card, compared it with the few he already had, and revealed a satisfied smile.
Good luck, he didn't get two duplicate Millennium Puzzle Cards in a row like at the very beginning. With this, Hayato had finally collected six different Millennium Puzzle Cards. In other words, he now had the qualification to enter the Top 8 of Battle City. The only difference was that he still needed to go to the Duel Arena for the second stage to confirm his qualification.
However, Hayato, who knew the future plot, didn't really need to bother with that, because just now, he had sent another text message to Kaiba, informing him that he had caught a Rare Hunters suspect and that he had encountered another dead person—in the middle of Hayato's Duel with Odion, the Rare Hunters member whose wrist had been severed had long since died from excessive blood loss.
And that guy Kaiba's reply to Hayato was quite sharp:
"Hayato! Are you the grim reaper who brings death wherever you go?! This is the third time!"
"If there's a next time, I'll directly call the Domino City Police Department to arrest you as a major suspect!"
"Also, this number isn't for you to use as a Wish-granting Machine!"
Although the tone in the message was very harsh, Kaiba still added at the end, "I'll have people handle it."
Making a phone call could help, and the efficiency was quite high. Hayato felt that Kaiba was much more useful than a Forbidden Chalice or anything else.
Just as he was thinking this, Hayato heard the sound of car tires screeching against the ground from outside the alley as a car braked. Soon after, four or five fully armed The Security personnel escorted three medics to Hayato. After a quick confirmation, the group took Odion and the deceased Rare Hunters member away.
At first, Hayato thought he might as well hitch a ride and go to KaibaCorp Building with these people, but before he could even leave the alley, for a split second, he felt a chilling magical energy sweep over him.
When he turned his head to look again, the bodies of the medical and The Security personnel carrying Odion's stretcher abruptly froze. It looked as if someone had shouted "Za Warudo".
Hayato had seen this scene more than once. Of course, it had nothing to do with a Spirit Companion; he had seen it from Pegasus.
Turning his head, sure enough, Hayato saw Bakura's figure.
"What walks into an alley on six legs and walks out on two? The answer is Hayato and the Rare Hunters." With a mysterious smile, Bakura sniffed the overly damp air in the alley, which had not seen sunlight for years.
Hayato sneered, "I thought the answer was the Batman family."
Looking at Bakura, Hayato toyed with a card in his hand: "Everyone else is hunting Millennium Puzzle Cards everywhere to qualify for the Top 8 of Battle City, yet you, Bakura, are quite leisurely."
"After all, I'm not a powerful Duelist like you, Hayato-kun, am I? For me, making it to the Top 8 of Battle City is completely optional." Bakura looked at the card Hayato was toying with in his hand, his gaze sharp. "Instead, I'm more interested in the card in your hand."
The Duel Monster Spirit of Raviel, Lord of Phantasms struggled in Hayato's hand, attempting to act on its own to control Hayato and escape his grip. However, under the "kind" persuasion of The Winged Dragon of Ra and the Earthbound God, Raviel, Lord of Phantasms retreated back into the card.
"Do you want this card? If you want it, just say so. If you don't say it, how would I know you want it?" Hayato glanced at Raviel, Lord of Phantasms obediently crouching at the bottom of the card, turned the card over to show Bakura, and casually tapped its side. "But before that, answer me one question, Bakura."
"What exactly did you trade with that guy Marik? So far, I can't see what benefits you gained from him, or what he could gain from you."
Looking at the silent Bakura, Hayato took out another The Winged Dragon of Ra and looked at it: "Although the Sacred Beasts can be considered cards of a certain strength, Marik already has a God Card and doesn't care for these cards at all, even casually giving them to his subordinates to use."
"And you've been recycling the Sacred Beasts' cards. Didn't you hand them over yourself? From your left hand to your right, the only gains would be the Dueling energy collected by the Sacred Beasts during their use. Don't tell me you're already planning to seek immortality so early."
After hearing Hayato's questions, Bakura merely revealed a sinister smile: "The Sacred Beasts are just substitutes I found, just like the Millennium Eye. There's no harm in telling you about my deal with Marik; after all, it's about to be completed!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Bakura, standing before Hayato, suddenly transformed into a shadow and melted into the ground, assaulting Hayato!
Hayato reacted quickly. He held The Winged Dragon of Ra between his fingers and swung his palm: "In the name of God, I command you to retreat! The Winged Dragon of Ra!"
In an instant, the Immortal Phoenix's golden flames completely enveloped and protected Hayato's body. But to Hayato's surprise, Bakura's attack target was not him; instead, it bypassed the solar fire and struck the unconscious Odion, who had already been placed in the car!
"The attack target is Odion? You mean you, you bastard!" The moment Hayato confirmed Bakura's attack target, he understood Bakura's true purpose.
Odion's greatest value was neither the Raviel, Lord of Phantasms he once held and which was now in Hayato's hands, nor his position as the highest-ranking member of the Rare Hunters apart from Marik, nor the Tomb Keepers' curse inscribed on him.
The bonds between him and Marik were the most precious thing! Marik, who possessed a Dual Personality, had always had his Dark Personality sealed by Odion's presence. If Odion died, it was likely that Light Marik would instantly be replaced by Dark Marik's personality!
Hayato finally understood something: although the person who traded with Bakura was Marik, it was likely that Light Marik was completely in the dark about this. Bakura's real deal was actually with Dark Marik; that guy was the biggest beneficiary!
Having figured all this out, Hayato immediately changed tactics and launched an attack towards Bakura. However, Hayato, striking after the fact, was ultimately a step too late. The moment The Winged Dragon of Ra's flames struck the shadow Bakura had transformed into, he had already successfully hit the unconscious Odion.
In the instant of contact, Bakura released Uria, Lord of Searing Flames and Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder, which he had recycled earlier. The two Sacred Beasts, upon appearing, immediately frantically drained Odion's life force. In a short moment, Odion's condition plummeted like a bungee jump, his life instantly in peril!
Hayato's attack successfully sent Bakura flying, but Bakura, who crashed into the wall, laughed triumphantly: "Heh hahahahaha, Hayato, you ultimately fell for it! This was my real attack route!"
"You were one move short in the end!"
The two Sacred Beasts were easily abandoned by Bakura as single-use items, leaving the two cards like scraps of paper. Bakura immediately fled from here. And just a moment after he vanished, The Winged Dragon of Ra's flames fell, but only burned the concrete wall.
Hayato secretly cursed Bakura in his mind, annoyed that the guy was acting more and more like a rabbit. He hurriedly pushed aside the medical personnel who had just recovered from the Millennium Eye's influence and leaped into the car to check on Odion's condition.
As for Uria, Lord of Searing Flames and Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder, although they were quite arrogant and tried to attack Hayato when they first appeared, after being taught a lesson by The Winged Dragon of Ra and the Earthbound God, and seeing their boss, the Sacred Beast Emperor, obediently waiting nearby, they all meekly hid inside the cards.
"Hey, Odion, Odion!" Hayato urgently walked to Odion's side, looking at him as he woke from his unconsciousness due to pain. "You idiot, now is not the time for you to kick the bucket!"
"Hayato..." Odion said weakly, "I, I want to ask you for one thing..."
Meanwhile, in the distant basement, Marik unhappily drew a card, contemplating whether to add it to his Deck. Suddenly, he felt his heart briefly stop, and his vision instantly turned black. Before he could realize anything, he had already fallen unconscious, leaning back in his chair with his head tilted upwards.
Within a few seconds, he opened his eyes again. However, compared to before, the now-conscious Marik's gaze was far more dangerous, and he wore a maniacal grin, laughing maniacally as he looked at his own hands.
"Yada! That troublesome Odion is finally gone!"
Holding the Millennium Rod in his hand, Marik stood up from his seat, one hand pushing his slightly drooping bangs over his forehead, his face full of madness: "How many years has it been? I'm finally out!"
"Hmph hmph, heh heh, hmph hahahaha, hahahahahaha!"
"What an unpleasant laugh. It's only a mere decade or so in darkness; is there a need to be so happy?" In the corner of the basement, Bakura's figure abruptly appeared. He was leaning against the wall, eyes squinted, watching the wildly laughing Marik, or rather, "Dark Marik."
The moment Odion's life was in peril, the psychic seal that had confined Dark Marik for over a decade was finally lifted. Having broken free, he naturally crushed Light Marik and took control of the body immediately.
"Ryo Bakura? Hmph hmph, this is our first time meeting in the Real World, isn't it?" Turning his head to glance at Bakura, Marik seemed to disregard him, seriously examining the Millennium Rod in his hand. "I'm very satisfied with our deal. You truly got rid of Odion for me as promised."
Although Dark Marik had been sealed within the darkness of Marik's mind since the day he was born, due to the bonds between Light Marik and Odion, as Marik's baseless hatred for the Pharaoh deepened day by day, Dark Marik's power, as the embodiment of Marik's dark mind, was actually increasing day by day.
Although unable to struggle against his bonds, Dark Marik could somewhat influence parts of Light Marik's thoughts, especially given that Light Marik himself was completely unaware of possessing a Dual Personality.
This could be seen from the original story's timeline, where Marik insistently demanded that Odion use a fake card of a copied The Winged Dragon of Ra, sacrificing an easy victory. Even though the Rare Hunters had conducted countless experiments before without any success, Marik was determined to make Odion use the fake card at that time, and Dark Marik's influence was certainly at play.
Originally, Dark Marik did indeed have this plan: to wait for a suitable moment for Odion to die from Divine Punishment due to using a copied card, thereby freeing himself. However, before he could implement this plan, he was quite lucky to encounter Bakura.
At that time, Bakura actively approached Light Marik, wanting to make a deal with him. The arrogant Light Marik immediately tried to teach this inexplicable fellow a lesson with the Millennium Rod, and Bakura naturally retaliated with the power of the Millennium Eye.
The confrontation between the two Millennium Items, symbolizing thought and memory respectively, unexpectedly drew Bakura's consciousness into Marik's body, facilitating the meeting between Dark Marik and Bakura.
After realizing that the other party also possessed some power, Light Marik accepted the Sacred Beasts from Bakura as a token of sincerity, promising to arrange people to collect Dueling energy for him. In exchange, Bakura was to kill the Pharaoh, which was Yugi.
However, Light Marik did not know that in his inner mind, completely unbeknownst to him, Dark Marik had made another deal with Bakura—Bakura would help Dark Marik eliminate Odion, and in return, Dark Marik would give Bakura the Millennium Rod that he truly desired.
"I've already eliminated that Odion for you as promised. It truly wasn't easy to shift the hatred onto that Hayato," Bakura said impatiently, extending his hand. "So, shouldn't our deal conclude now? Give me the Millennium Rod."
"Of course." Dark Marik, his back to Bakura, turned around with a sinister smile and handed over the Millennium Rod.
Two currents of dark magic collided in this basement.
(end of chapter)