Is this the poker world?Ada thief!

Chapter 1727 Pegasus Meteor
"Rainbow-Dragon!"

【Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon】【8☆/Light】

[Dragon Clan/Effect]

[3000/0]

"What's going on with that monster!?" Although Keith Hunter had investigated the information about [Sapphire Beast] beforehand, his understanding was still at the point where John had obtained the seven cards of [Sapphire Beast] but hadn't awakened [Ultimate Sapphire God - Rainbow Dragon]. He was completely unaware of the existence of [Ultimate Sapphire Beast - Rainbow Dragon]. "That's also a [Sapphire Beast]!? Where did it come from! The card you just retrieved with the [Soul Card] was clearly [Ultimate Sapphire God - Rainbow Dragon]!"

“That’s true, but [Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon] was already in my hand from the start.” Flipping over the remaining two cards in his hand, revealing [Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon] and [Gem God Awakening], which had already been revealed during the search, John said, “This effect can only be activated when a [Gem Beast] monster declares an attack to Special Summon [Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon] from my hand!”

As the [Jade Beast - Amethyst Cat] returned to the field after its attack, John waved his hand again, and Keith Hunter declared: "And now, I will use it to destroy the [Rainbow Dragon]!"

"The rainbow light shattered!"

A beam of seven colors shot from the mouth of [Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon], instantly piercing and annihilating [Rainbow Dragon]. Although it was [Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon]'s pre-awakening form, [Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon]'s 3000 attack power, equivalent to the "Legendary [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]," was already a formidable force, enough to wipe out most monsters!

In the world of Duel Monsters, you either have to be a stat-based monster or have an overpowered mechanic, otherwise you have no chance of surviving. Rainbow Dragon not only has no mechanics, but its stats are also inferior to Ultra Gem Monster Rainbow Dragon, so its only fate is to be killed by Rainbow Dragon's breath.

However, because [Rainbow Dragon] is in Defense Position, Keith Hunter did not suffer any battle damage, and his base score remained at 3400.

Now, Keith Hunter was truly at his wit's end, but surprisingly, he calmed down and even mocked John, saying, "I didn't expect the [Jade Beast] to have such a trick up its sleeve. I almost got defeated by you—yes, almost!"

"Just now, without [Rainbow Dragon], John Anderson, the combined ATK of the monsters on your field exceeded 4000 points, enough to threaten me. But because of [Rainbow Dragon]'s obstruction, you used [Sapphire Beast - Amethyst Cat] to launch a direct attack on me in order to Special Summon [Ultimate Sapphire Beast - Rainbow Dragon]."

"So you did reduce my base score by 600 points and ruined the opportunity for [Rainbow Dragon] to provide direct attacks for the other two [Jade Beasts], but the chance to kill me this turn has already slipped through your fingers!"

Looking at John's [Jade Beast - Amber Mammoth] with 1700 attack power and [Jade Beast - Topaz Tiger] with 1600 attack power, Jim frowned from the sidelines: "Total attack power, 3300 points? Just 100 points short of defeating the opponent."

However, John's response to Keith Hunter was a curt "So reva do ka na!"

"Attack! Amber, Topaz!" John waved his hand. "I won't keep the glory of victory to myself; I'll leave it to you two to directly attack and reduce their life points."

"Wild Amber, Fierce Topaz!"

“I’ve been waiting for you to say that, Johnny!” Upon hearing this, the Jade Beast - Yellow Jade Tiger rushed out and pounced on Keith Hunter with rage.

The Jade Beast - Azure Jade Pegasus was captured because it was meant to save him, and he had long wanted to attack Keith Hunter to vent his anger. Its long, sharp claws snapped shut in front of the Jade Beast - Yellow Jade Tiger, leaving a crisscrossing claw mark. Keith Hunter's life points were reduced by nearly half with this single blow!
Keith Hunt: 3400 → 1800LP, 1 card in hand

Keith Hunter winced in pain after being struck hard by the [Jewel Beast - Topaz Tiger], which had been holding a grudge against him. However, he still looked at the [Jewel Beast - Topaz Tiger] with disdain, who could only attack him once due to the rules: "Although it can increase its attack power by 400 points when attacking monsters, its normal attack power is only 1600 points. So even if it attacks directly, it won't hurt much."

"And what about my attack?" As he spoke, shadows enveloped Keith Hunter, and the [Jade Beast - Amber Mammoth] followed behind the [Jade Beast - Topaz Tiger] and launched an attack. Its raised elephant legs crashed down like pillars supporting the sky, instantly pinning Keith Hunter to the ground!

Keith Hunt: 1800 → 100LP, 1 card in hand

"A rather heavy attack. If the [Jade Beast - Yellow Jade Tiger]'s attack had been this strong, I would have already lost." Keith Hunter scrambled to his feet, looking at his base score of 100 points, which seemed to be locked in place, and laughed arrogantly.

"These last 100 basic points will be an insurmountable abyss between us!" Keith Hunter laughed wildly. "In terms of strategy, you really can't beat me, Keith Hunter!"

“I say, Keith Hunter, didn’t you really want my [Ultimate Gem Beast - Rainbow Dragon]? You even stole Sapphire, which is [Gem Beast - Jade Pegasus], for it.” However, John ignored Keith Hunter’s taunts and instead looked at the card in his hand, saying, “But you can destroy my cards and seal my summons, but you can’t sever the bond between me and my family by any means!”

"Quick-Play Spell Card [Gem God Awakening]! Now is the time to witness the pinnacle of our bond!"

John played his Quick-Play Spell Card and waved his hand, saying, "This card requires me to show one of my [Ultimate Jewel God] monsters to my opponent before it can be activated. The [Ultimate Jewel God - Rainbow Dragon] searched by the [Soul Card] exists precisely for this moment. I can choose to apply one of the two effects of [Jewel God Awakening]!"

"Add a [Bridge] card or [Rainbow Bridge] from my Deck to my hand or send it to the Graveyard, or Special Summon a [Crystal Beast] monster from my hand, Deck, Graveyard, or my Spell & Trap Zone!"

"My choice is to Special Summon [Jade Beast Pegasus] from my deck!"

Upon hearing John's words, Keith Hunter panicked for a moment, but when he heard that the monster John wanted to Special Summon was [Sapphire Beast - Jade Pegasus], he burst out laughing: "Hmph, hahahaha, have you gone mad, you little brat? You could have easily defeated me by Special Summoning even one [Sapphire Beast - Ruby Beast] from your Graveyard using that card's effect, yet you chose to Special Summon [Sapphire Beast - Jade Pegasus]?"

“Your spirit is clearly right here with me, still safely locked in this ‘cage.’” After glancing at the capsule device hanging in mid-air, Keith Hunter became even more relieved to confirm that [Jade Beast - Jade Pegasus] was still imprisoned there. “Without a spirit residing within it, your [Jade Beast - Jade Pegasus] card is clearly just an empty shell; it can’t summon any monsters at all!”

John confidently replied, "Don't judge the bond between me and the [Jewel Beasts] by your own standards. Can a mere spatial barrier diminish our affection? [Ultimate Jewel God - Rainbow Dragon] isn't just for show; it's a capsule device. Watch me break through and show you!"

"Respond to me, Sapphire!"

Under the rainbow light of the [Jade God Awakening], the [Jade Beast - Azure Jade Pegasus], which had felt that it was only a hair's breadth away from complete "suffocation" and death, felt that it had regained the ability to breathe. To be precise, it was the bond between John and itself that provided it with the "air" that sustained its life.

Enveloped in rainbow light, he ignored the electric shocks inside the capsule device and suddenly broke free of the spatial constraints by spreading his wings!
"Click——"

"Wow!"

The capsule device was forcefully ripped apart from the inside by the greatly enhanced [Jade Beast - Jade Pegasus], and fragments fell like snowflakes and stardust. The [Jade Beast - Jade Pegasus] was finally freed and soared into the sky! "The bond between us and Johnny cannot be hindered by that device!" it shouted, aiming down at the panicked Keith Hunter on the ground.

【Jade Beast - Jade Pegasus】【ATK1800】

“Although Sapphire has the ability to place a single [Crystal Beast] as a Continuous Spell Card in my backrow when it comes into play,” John laughed, looking at the [Crystal Beast - Jade Pegasus] that had returned to his side, “I think it’s no longer necessary, is it?”

"Those who do not understand the sins and pain of the Elven Heart, vanish from this world!" John shouted with a wave of his hand. "Go, Sapphire, with your fury!"

As John pointed at Keith Hunter, the [Jade Beast - Azure Pegasus] in the sky began its swooping down: "Pegasus Meteor!"

Pegasus's horn pierced the air, forming a funnel-shaped air shield in front of it. Then, as the speed of the [Jade Beast - Azure Jade Pegasus] broke the sound barrier, Keith Hunter could only see a white light hurtling straight toward him in the air. Then he felt his body break free from the constraints of gravity and fly up!
Keith Hunt: 100LP → 0

The duel ended the moment Keith Hunter's Life Points reached zero. Even though he hadn't lost much Life Points, John was still panting heavily, looking quite exhausted. O'Brien, who had been aiming at Keith Hunter to prevent him from making any tricks, also put away his gun.

"We won!" Judai exclaimed excitedly from the sidelines, his heart pounding with excitement over John's victory and the brilliant attack he delivered at the last moment after retrieving the crucial card spirit. He grabbed Asuka's hand and raised it above his head, "Yay! It's John's victory!"

"Aren't you getting a little too excited, Judai?" Asuka looked helpless, but her hand gestures showed no sign of her being resistant to Judai's attempt to celebrate with her.

"Hmph, it took quite a while, but we still won in the end." Manjoume crossed his arms. "It really kept me waiting, but in the end I saw the miserable end that trash who steals other people's card Pokémon deserves."

Because the duel was over, Jaden hurriedly went to John's side and asked with concern, "How do you feel about ending the duel with the 'Death Gauntlet' on?"

"Yeah, although I felt uncomfortable from having my stamina drained, it disappeared quickly." John wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Ruby kept an eye on things for me, and it seems that something in this Duel Disk is indeed helping to mitigate the damage I would have taken. Thank you so much for Fubuki-senpai's Duel Disk."

"It's so great that my brother can help," Asuka said with a smile.

In the distance, Keith Hunter, sent flying by the final blow from the [Jade Beast - Azure Pegasus] and lying face up on the ground, stared at the ceiling and suddenly began to mutter to himself, "Don't you understand the relationship between humans and elves? It's as if I don't want elves who can communicate with me telepathically."

Keith Hunter, his eyes unfocused and not looking at anything, didn't expect anyone to pay attention to him. He just kept muttering to himself, "Me too, I want companions too. But none of my cards have responded to me, they've all betrayed me."

"Losing companions, tasting the pain in one's heart"

"It was precisely because I couldn't bear this feeling that I closed my heart."

The demons behind him had long been driven away by John's gem beasts' attacks. Keith Hunter, whose mind had not been affected by the demon power implanted in his body, muttered to himself as if trying to clear his name.

"It sounds like you have a terrible past, but that's no excuse for doing evil." Judai stated his reasoning. "You must have got the cause and effect wrong. It's not that your cards aren't responding to you, but that you've developed the idea that the cards won't respond to you. So, cards that you don't trust naturally can't reciprocate your trust in the same way!"

"Heh, is that so? Although I want to say something like 'don't project your own feelings onto others,' let's just say that's how it is." Keith Hunter just smiled contemptuously at Jaden's statement without refuting it. "Anyway, it's because I have the ability to see spirits, but I can't awaken any spirits in my cards, while other mediocre people who can't see spirits can gain their favor. That's why I became a spirit hunter out of jealousy."

"Those who cannot see spirits can possess them, yet cannot communicate with them; I, who can see spirits, have never received their favor. In any case, that's just how humans are—we're not qualified to communicate with spirits on a spiritual level."

Following John, the "death bracelet" on Keith Hunter's wrist also lit up. The bright yellow light indicated that Keith Hunter's physical strength and even life force were being rapidly extracted and transferred to a certain place. Jim also immediately seized the opportunity to use the operation of the "death bracelet" to further pinpoint the destination to be reached next.

Unlike before, whether it was because Keith Hunter himself, as a "Spirit Master," had a high degree of compatibility with the power of the Spirits, or because the [Ultimate Gem God - Rainbow Dragon] had just used its own power even though it hadn't appeared, when the "Death Gloves" activated, several Spirits that had escaped from the capsule behind Keith Hunter surrounded him.

But clearly, even the gentlest elves would find it hard not to harbor malice towards a villain like Keith Hunter who had taken them away from their friends, imprisoned and tortured them, and constantly threatened them with death. They were simply taking advantage of the fact that Keith Hunter's life force had been extracted by the "Death Gloves" to use this power that had not yet been transferred to retaliate against him.

The elves transformed into white specks of light, covering Keith Hunter and completely enveloping him with their life force. Following the power leaked from the moment the [Ultimate Jewel God - Rainbow Dragon] appeared, they opened a door to another dimension that existed for an extremely short time, forcefully pushing Keith Hunter into it!

Enveloped in white light, Keith Hunter vanished from Jaden and the others' sight!
"Could it be that he was devoured by the elves?" Even though he was also a spirit user, it didn't mean that Manjoume could understand what the elves' actions just now meant, but it didn't stop him from understanding that Keith Hunter would definitely not have a good ending. "Hmph, he should have been prepared for this from the moment he started plundering other people's spirits. He probably became nourishment for the elves, right? It's a natural ending."

“We should move on. We’ve been lingering here for too long.” After putting the [Volcano Bomb] card back into its special card case for later cleaning and maintenance, O’Brien picked up the [Jelly Bean Warrior] card and handed it to John. “And, this card is right for you, isn’t it?”

“Thank you very much, O’Brien.” John carefully put away the card, intending to return to America after this matter was settled and return it to Tom.

Meanwhile, as Jaden and the others approached their final destination, Professor Cobra, who had been monitoring their progress, discovered that the dueling energy needed to restore Yubel, even with the addition of John's recent duel, was still insufficient. He decided to personally take matters into his own hands and gather the last bit of dueling energy required.

The camera follows the gap in the door opened by the elves to the other side of the "other dimension," the elf world. In front of Hayato, a large mass of life energy is poured into the "cocoon" in front of him.

"I don't know where such a huge amount of life energy came from, it's like a person was stuffed in as a living sacrifice." Hayato looked at the "cocoon" in front of him with great anticipation, "But it's finally about to be born, isn't it? The 'Absolute King' of this forest territory!"

　Although it was announced long ago that the card was a reversal, I didn't expect it to be a pendulum reversal, especially with the whole family having a pendulum scale of 0. I have a feeling that there's a big brother with a scale of 12 hidden in the last card.

　　Searching? Guilty! Activating from hand? Guilty! Special Summoning by effect? ​​Guilty! Activating from Graveyard banishment? Guilty! Chaining to me? Guilty! Destroying my card? Guilty! Targeting my card? Guilty! Activating during my turn? Guilty!

　　Not voting? That's a crime! :)

　　
　
(End of this chapter)