Is this the poker world?Ada thief!

【小林隼人：4000LP，手牌：3→4→3→2】

【The Three Heroes: Sword Master】【ATK2500】

【Teaching Thunder - Flederis】【ATK2500】

【Knight of Guidance - Flederis】【ATK2500】

【The Fall of the White Dragon】【ATK1800】

"Although you Special Summoned 'White Dragon's Fallen' to the field with a card name that can be used as 'Albus's Fallen,' you still cannot use Fusion Summon due to the existence of 'Fusion Forbidden Area.'"

"In that case, wouldn't it be enough for me to just deal with the [Forbidden Fusion Area]?"

Hearing Hayato's words, Kaiba raised an eyebrow and reminded him, "But don't forget, Blue-Eyes Jet Dragon grants my other cards on the field resistance to be destroyed by your effects."

"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten. After all, the prototype of that card is your jet plane, which is truly unforgettable." Hayato waved his hand and raised another finger. "However, I must point out that, except for the [Teaching Thunder - Friedris] period when 'Friedris's' power was sealed by the restraints, her power has been preserved and has not been affected by the changes in the stigmata and marks."

"The second effect of 【Three Heroes Swordsman】! You can target a face-up card on the field to negate its effect. If I have a 【Acycia】 monster or 【Albus's Fallen Child】 in my Graveyard, you can also destroy the targeted card. Although it's a targeting negation, 【Forbidden Fusion Zone】 doesn't have the same resistance to being targeted as 【Blue-Eyed Silver Dragon】—"

Before Hayato could finish speaking, Kaiba realized the situation had become quite dire: "Masaka!?"

"【Fusion Forbidden Area】is nullified by the effect of 【Three Heroes Swordsman】! This nullification effect is not just for one turn, but is permanent. Then, 【Blue-Eyes Jet Dragon】protects 【Fusion Forbidden Area】 from being destroyed, but the seal on my Fusion Summon has already been lifted!"

Hayato paused, then said, "With this kind of action, I'm certainly full of martial virtue, aren't I? It's obvious that Seth's [Forbidden Region Fusion] was meaningless in the first place."

"What did you say?" Kaiba, upon hearing this, seemed to have triggered the Holy Word D, frowning in confusion. What did he mean by "[Fusion Forbidden Area] is meaningless"? This card at least helped him block Hayato's initial "Mysterious Card Placed by the Branded Player" move, didn't it?

In Kaiba's memory, he already knew Hayato's monster cards—at least the ones he had used in the past—very clearly. Naturally, the monster that could use the opponent's Dragon-Type monsters as Fusion Material to summon the Fusion Monster [Abyss Dragon - White World Reincarnation Dragon] without entering a chain was his main target.

Able to stop [Abyss Dragon - White World Reincarnation Dragon] from affecting my field—

"The greatest significance of the 'Forbidden Fusion Area' is that it can prevent 'Abyss Dragon - White World Reincarnation Dragon' from wiping out all the Dragon-type monsters on my field." Hayato said Kaiba's thoughts without missing a word. Seeing Kaiba's furrowed brows, Hayato shrugged, "But that's exactly what I'm saying. In fact, the 'Forbidden Fusion Area' can't prevent its arrival at all."

"What did you say?!" Kaiba looked serious, not because he was angry, but because he really wanted to know why Hayato would say that, so that he could improve his approach in the future.

"【Abyss Dragon - White World Reincarnation Dragon】is indeed a Fusion Monster, and it does require a Fusion Summon to summon normally. However, a Special Summon that sends monsters from both sides' fields to the Graveyard as Fusion Material without using Fusion is a Special Summon, not a Fusion Summon~"

Hayato spread his hands with an innocent expression, "I thought you were going to use a card like [Dimensional Barrier] to directly seal my Fusion Summon of monsters, but it turns out to be [Fusion Forbidden Area]. It only seals the act of 'Fusion Summon' instead of the Special Summon of Fusion Monsters, and it can't stop the power of [Abyss Dragon - White World Reincarnation Dragon].

"But that's what martial virtue is all about. You could have just dropped a Vishdel and used six cannons to kill the enemy target, but you chose to drop the Kingslayer for a tense and exciting battle. Victory is what I pursue, but beyond victory, I'm also looking forward to seeing what kind of power you and [Blue Eyes] can unleash."

Kaiba recalled Hayato's earlier words: "I see. 'Taking a detour' and 'taking a shortcut,' right?"

"It seems you've finally grasped my battle aesthetics, Seth." Hayato chuckled as he played a card from his hand. "Now that the restrictions on Fusion Summoning have been lifted, I can use it legitimately."

“If [Albus's Fallen Child] is on my field or in my graveyard, I activate this effect to Special Summon [Caltis, the Saintess of Hell] by its own effect.” Hayato paused, then added, “Although this card has historically served as a Fusion material in Fusion combos within the [Brand] deck and as Fusion Material for [Hell Dragon - Great Puppet Theater Dragon], it is itself a Tuner Monster of the Spellcaster type!”

"So, please use my power, Hayato-sama~" [Saintess of Hell - Caltesia] appeared on Hayato's field like a ghost, and politely lifted her skirt to bow to Hayato.

【Saintess of Hell - Caltescia】【4☆/Light】

[Mage Race/Adjustment/Effect]

[1500/1500]

"First, I will use the effect of [Saintess of Hell - Caltesia] to activate during both players' Main Phases, using monsters from my hand and field as Fusion Material to perform a Fusion Summon of a Fusion Monster of Level 8 or higher. However, due to the self-restriction of [White Dragon's Fall], I can only Summon a Fusion Synchro Monster of Level 8 this turn."

After a pause, Hayato picked up a card from the Duel Disk. "Therefore, I will send 'Albus's Fallen' and 'Three Heroes's Swordsman' from my field as Fusion Materials to the Graveyard to fulfill the Fusion Material requirement and add a Synchro Monster to 'Albus's Fallen'!"

Theo, Aden, and Friedris completed the relay with Albus, transferring their power to him. The Fallen Dragon of the White Dragon absorbed the power lent to him and immediately began to transform. A surge of divine flames burned in his hands and quickly spread throughout his body. Although the white robe was burned, the red fire dragon that appeared behind the flames released an extremely high sense of oppression.

However, the power that had been absorbed all at once and was somewhat difficult to tame was completely controlled in the next moment. The flames stopped and instantly turned into solidified sword-shaped ice. The power of the [Sword Appraisal] entrusted by the Sword Appraisal Masters was manifested at this moment. A black dragon wearing white ice armor and wielding an ice water spirit sword descended!

"At the bottom of the icy lake of Daling Peak, the purest water reflects the 'image' of the Heart Sword. The icy water vanishes, transforming into the raw stone for forging the sword. [Ice Water] and [Image Sword], life and death, an endless cycle! In the midst of delusion, let out the cry from your heart!"

"Contact Fusion Summon, Level 8☆!"

"Phantom Dragon Draws its Sword! [Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon]!"

【Ice Sword Dragon - Illusion Ice Dragon】【8☆/Dark】

[Phantom Dragon Race/Fusion/Effect]

[3000/2500]

Although the [Brand] combo usually involves a two-stage fusion summon of [Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon] using the effects of [Divine Flame Dragon - Crimson Realm Dragon] or [Brand Dragon - White Realm Dragon], the summoning sequence is not strictly defined. In particular, since Hayato's [Three Heroes Sword Master] on the field has already used all its effects, it is not a waste to send it to the graveyard.

"That card, isn't the fusion material [Albus's Fallen Heir] added to the fusion monster?"

Since Synchro Summoning had not yet appeared in the past, Hayato mostly used Fusion Monsters as materials when Fusion Summoning the rare Phantom Dragon-Type monster "Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon". He usually did not specifically mention that not only Fusion, but also Synchro Summoning and even the yet-to-be-released Xyz Monsters and Link Monsters could be used as Fusion Materials.

Even Kaiba showed a rather surprised expression when he saw Hayato fuse IceSword Dragon with Albus's Fallen Blood to create IceSword Dragon.

But his expression quickly returned to normal: "Has it adapted to the power of the new era along with your progress? [The Fall of Albus] is truly terrifying. Such intelligence can certainly be put to good use next time."

"Until then, let your monster survive the next round, shall we? I'm going to use the effect of [Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon] right now!" Hayato waved his hand. "Once per turn, you can send one Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck that requires [Albus's Fallen Blood] as Fusion Material to the Graveyard to activate this effect—banish one monster on the field, but as a trade, this card cannot use this effect next turn!" "Because it activates first and then selects the banished target, this effect can't target anything, not even if you use the effect of [Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon] to transform into another monster at Speed ​​2, it won't work!"

Hayato took a purple-bordered card from his Extra Deck, casually tossed it into the Graveyard, and pointed at Kaiba's field, "I'll send [Ash Dragon - Fallen Dragon] to the Graveyard, and then banish [Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon] from my opponent's field!"

Despite Hayato's claim that it was useless, Kaiba still removed the "Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon" card from his Duel Disk at that moment, saying, "Don't even think about it! During both players' turns, I Tribute the "Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon" that I Synchro Summon on my field to activate its effect, and Special Summon a LIGHT Dragon-Type Synchro Monster from my Extra Deck in Defense Position, except for one "Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon". The monster Special Summoned by this effect is destroyed during the End Phase of this turn!"

Kaiba pulled out a card and said, "And the monster I want to Special Summon is this one—[Blue-Eyes Silver Dragon] Returns!"

Rather than letting his monsters be banished without any resistance, Kaiba chose to Special Summon Blue-Eyes Silver Dragon again to refresh the "Might Resistance" of his Dragon-Type monsters, since the last Blue-Eyes Silver Dragon only lasted until the end of this turn.

But Hayato smiled as he watched Kaiba unleash the Blue-Eyes Spirit Dragon, seemingly unconcerned that his target had escaped. Instead, he pointed to the other monsters: "In that case, I'll just eliminate the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Spirit Dragon."

The hazy Blue-Eyes Ultimate Spirit Dragon completely turned into a phantom and was banished from the field under the threat of Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon. Kaiba picked up the card somewhat unhappily and said, "What a pity. Originally, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Spirit Dragon had a 'last words' effect that allowed me to Special Summon a LIGHT Dragon-Type monster other than myself from my Graveyard if it was destroyed by battle or card effect."

“But because it was an exclusion rather than a destruction, it didn’t allow you, Seth, to succeed,” Hayato said with a smile. “So, after the effect of [Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon] is resolved, it’s Seth’s turn to use the effect of [Blue-Eyed Silver Dragon] that you just Special Summoned.”

"I don't need you to remind me of that." Kaiba glared at Hayato with annoyance and waved his hand. "Then, at the moment [Blue-Eyes Silver Dragon] is summoned, its effect activates, making all my Dragon-Type monsters immune to effects until the end phase of the next turn, and also immune to my opponent's effects."

Seto Kaiba: 4000 LP, Hand: 2

[Ultimate Dragon Mage] [ATK5000]

Blue-Eyes Jet Dragon】【ATK3000

[Abyssal Blue-Eyes Dragon] [DEF2500]

【Blue-Eyed Silver Dragon】【DEF3000】

Backcourt: [Forbidden Area of ​​Fusion] [True Light]

Venue: [Hall of Light]

"Although I've lost [Blue-Eyes Ultimate Spirit Dragon] and [Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon], my defense remains impregnable! Hayato, while your [Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon] effect is powerful, its effect cooldown is far too slow. The efficiency of banishing only one card every two turns is insufficient to deal with the many monsters on my field, especially my [Ultimate Dragon Magister]. Even with its effect negated, it still boasts a terrifying 5000 attack power!"

It's clear that Kaiba is very satisfied with the power of the Ultimate Dragon Mage, even though its effects had already been erased by the Knight of Instruction, Friedrich. He's still praising it. If it weren't for the fact that the Five Divine Dragons are so classic and have already created a strong preconceived notion among many people, he might have already started planning to make the Ultimate Dragon Mage the representative of the classic attack power of "5000 attack power"—just like his Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Obelisk the Tormentor.

Meanwhile, Hayato, despite having only one card left in his hand, gave Kaiba a smug smile and said, "Although refreshing the 'Majesty' resistance ensured that I couldn't easily break through your lineup, my goal was already achieved when you lost the double seal of the graveyard by [Blue-Eyes Ultimate Spirit Dragon] and [Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon]."

"The spell card 'Pot of Greed' returns five monster cards from my Graveyard to my Deck: 'White Saintess - Exeria,' 'Laughing Seagull,' 'Three Heroes of the Sword,' 'Black Dragon Exeria,' and 'White Dragon's Fallen Child.' Shuffles and draws two cards."

When [White Dragon's Fall] first appeared, Hayato threw [Black Dragon's Exotica] into the graveyard. Hayato originally wanted to use her effect after [Ice Sword Dragon - Phantom Ice Dragon] used its effect to fill the graveyard. She has the ability to target and return one Level 8 Fusion Monster from the Graveyard or banished, along with herself and one card on the field to the Deck. Although it is a targeting effect, it can deal with some troublesome cards, such as [Blue-Eyes Jet Dragon]. Hayato didn't want to see her constantly jumping between the field and the graveyard.

The prerequisite for using its effect is that the Level 8 Fusion Monster must be banished or sent to the Graveyard by Hayato. However, because Blue-Eyes Ultimate Spirit Dragon sealed Hayato's banishment of cards from the Graveyard at that time, the Fusion Combo of Divine Flame Dragon - Crimson Dragon could not be used. Hayato could only choose to use the effect of Ice Sword Dragon - Illusion Ice Dragon to send the monster to the Graveyard.

Although he did achieve his goal and even successfully dealt with the cards [Blue-Eyes Ultimate Spirit Dragon] and [Blue-Eyes Fairy Dragon], [Blue-Eyes Silver Dragon] did cause him some trouble. Hayato now only has his own cards and Kaiba's [True Light] and [Hall of Light] left on the field to target.

Using the effect of [Acrecia the Black Dragon] for just two cards is too wasteful, so Hayato activates [Pot of Greed] at this moment to collect a large number of cards from the graveyard and draw cards at once.

After glancing at the cards he had drawn, Hayato played another spell card: "Next, I will activate this card again, the spell card [Angel's Charity], draw three cards from my deck and discard two cards from my hand."

"The cards I discarded are these two: [Albus of Ash] and [Iron Beast Flame Engineer - Kit]."

As Hayato discarded two cards, one of the cards that Hayato sent to the graveyard lit up. A pink-haired girl carrying a Gatling gun that was emitting blue flames rushed into the battlefield, coolly threw the card at Hayato, and then walked away.

"Thank you, Kite~" Hayato waved to the departing girl, showing her the card that had been thrown at him and placing it on his Duel Disk. "If [Iron Beast Flame Worker - Kite] is sent to the Graveyard, activate its effect to Special Summon a specific monster from my Graveyard in Defense Position, except for [Iron Beast Flame Worker - Kite].

"The monsters I can Special Summon are [Iron Beast] monsters, [Treasure Cannon Monster] monsters, and [Albus's Fallen Child], or monsters whose card names include [Albus's Fallen Child]. The one I choose to Special Summon is [Albus of Ashes], which was just sent to the Graveyard along with [Gite].

Albus of Ashes [4☆/Dark]

[Dragon Clan/Effect]

[1800/0]

"Although it's a period when I lost the power of the mark, my body feels very light." Albus, having changed back into his familiar clothes, stretched and drew his dagger, assuming a fighting stance. "I'm ready for battle."

"Battle? No, that has nothing to do with you, Albus." Hayato shook his head upon hearing this. "Although you can increase your attack power based on the number of monsters in your graveyard and protect other monsters from being targeted by your opponent's effects, all I need is your level."

"Rank." Albus looked at himself, then at [Saintess of Hell - Caltesia], and suddenly a bad look appeared on his face. "Wait, wait a minute, I don't think I'm really suited for Synchro, am I?"

"Hmph, you won't stand for this." Hayato picked up a card and said, "Send my Level 4 Tuner monster [Caltesia, the Saintess of Hell] and Level 4 non-Tuner monster [Albus the Ashes] to the Graveyard as Synchro Materials. The material requirement is to have at least one Tuner monster plus one non-Tuner monster!"

"Avatar, mighty dragon! Swallow the power of the dragon and transform it into your own power, unleashing endless fear and destruction!"

"Summoning Synchro, Level 4☆ + 4☆ = 8☆!"

"Neither dragon, nor god, nor human—[The Heavenly Dragon and Demon God]!"

A tyrannical aura was released without any concealment. The muscular [Heavenly Dragon Demon God] emerged from the synchronized light constructed by Albus and [Saintess of Hell - Caltesia], its fierce roar terrifying!
[Heavenly Dragon Demon God] [8☆/Dark]

[Phantom Dragon Race/Synchro/Effect]

[3000/0] (End of Chapter)