Is this the poker world?Ada thief!

Chapter 1896 Power is the reason to be king

Just as O'Brien watched [Guardian-Bao] fall into the lava pool, thinking he could just finish off one of the "Four Heavenly Kings," a mage in black robes—[Skilled Dark Magician]—suddenly appeared in front of him and struck him with a stick.

With a timely backbend and handspring, O'Brien retreated from the edge of the pit. The [Skilled White Mage], who also appeared by teleportation, used magic to control the [Guardian-Bao] he caught, sending him flying from below and landing back on the roof.

"What a sorry sight, [Bao], you almost got killed by such a weakling?"

"Tch, mind your own business. I didn't ask you to come and save me." [Guardian-Bao] was rescued by [Skilled White Mage], but he had a very displeased expression. "That guy who disrespected Lord Overlord is yours. I'm going to tear that black bastard to pieces!"

"Ahem, there's more than one person with dark skin here."

Before the open castle gates, a black dueling monster seemed to have heard the words of [Guardian-Bao] on the roof. Standing behind "Overlord," he coughed and reminded him, but did not appear on the roof with the other "Four Heavenly Kings." Instead, he stood behind "Overlord" and waited for the others. After all, if [Guardian-Bao] hadn't been careless and messed up, even the "Black and White Magisters" wouldn't have made a move. Would the entire "Four Heavenly Kings" have to be mobilized to deal with two random minions?

O'Brien and Jim had never heard of each other before on the list of the "Four Heavenly Kings." He was all black, wearing a tattered dark green cloak, and had a skull face; he didn't look like a good person.

Previously, at the Chaos Wizard's place, due to the Chaos Wizard's counterattack, O'Brien, Jim, and Jaden were separated. Later, due to the chaos caused by the Skeleton Priest, O'Brien and Jim had to escape from the castle that had been destroyed in the battle between Asuka and the Skeleton Priest. They didn't know what happened to the Skeleton Priest afterward, but they at least knew that the Chaos Wizard was dead—presumably, the monster in front of them was the new "Four Heavenly Kings" who succeeded the Chaos Wizard.

However, the [Skull Priest] that O'Brien and his group initially thought might have captured Jaden and brought him here never appeared. Next to that black monster, there was another monster serving behind "Overlord" that was also a skeleton, but its art style was the complete opposite of the [Skull Priest]. It looked like a king and was inexplicably somewhat "chi-version" in appearance.
"You two, you still have the mind to look at the other 'Four Heavenly Kings'? Don't think you can get away with being smug just because I suppressed you while you were careless, you brats!"

Seeing that Jim and O'Brien weren't paying full attention to him, [Guardian-Bao] waved his hand in annoyance. This time, however, he seriously drew out his "personal weapon"—a purple greatsword, [Greatsword of Exorcism-Twilight].

As soon as he drew his sword, [Guardian-Bao]'s aura surged, as if he had entered a true battle state. If he had attacked O'Brien and the others just now because he thought they were nothing more than stray dogs that had appeared out of nowhere, he now truly felt that the two of them were enemies who could pose a threat to him and that he had to eliminate them seriously.

As mentioned before, during the period when the "Overlord Army" was leaderless and the "Overlord" had not yet descended, due to the disappearance of the Demon King of the Dark Realm - Raine, most of the "Four Heavenly Kings" developed the ambition to "rise up" and sought ways to become stronger in order to suppress the other "Four Heavenly Kings". For example, the "Skeleton Priest" researched the legend of "Hyperfusion", the "Chaos Wizard" improved his "Chaos Magic", and the "King of the End - Demis" split into two individuals, the "Black and White Mages".

Among the "Four Heavenly Kings" at the time, there was actually an exception: [Guardian - Bao]. It's not that he didn't choose to increase his power; he did. His method was to use his own characteristics to continuously conquer more areas and defeat more enemies. He himself had the ability to continuously grow stronger just through combat.

The difference with 【Guardian-Bao】 is that he doesn't actually have the ambition to succeed 【Dark Realm Demon King-Rain】, and he has little interest in becoming the new leader of the "Overlord Army." However, he has a strong interest in becoming stronger. Rather, he is the most loyal to 【Dark Realm Demon King-Rain】, but not because of the latter's personal charisma, but simply because he admires the latter's immense power.

He understood the cruelty of this world, where the strong were respected and thus the strong were meant to humiliate the weak. He knew he was weaker than the Dark Lord, Raine, so it was normal for him to be conquered. He regretted Raine's death, but his primary concern was inheriting Raine's will and suppressing the other "Four Heavenly Kings" to prevent the current situation from changing too much.

This situation continued until the appearance of the man called "Overlord". At first, when they saw a brat appear in the heart of their "Overlord Army", [Guardian-Bao], like the "Black and White Magister", did not take him seriously. However, after he threw out the [Skull Priest's] relics and displayed terrifying power, [Guardian-Bao] was the first to "betray" him.

—No, how can this be called betrayal? From the very beginning, [Guardian-Bao] has been loyal to the power of [Dark Realm Demon King-Rain], and now that "Overlord" has unleashed even greater power, why not become one of his "Four Heavenly Kings"?

That's why O'Brien's smooth little combo infuriated him. The strong humiliate the weak, but O'Brien and Jim weren't even considered strong in his eyes. How could he, who had been humiliated by these two weaklings, be weaker than them? He absolutely refused to accept that!

So, not only did they dare to challenge the "Overlord" first, but we must not let them get away with it just for the sake of proving ourselves to be the strong!
However, while [Guardian-Bao] was in a hurry, someone else was even more anxious.

"Get-Out!"

As an archaeologist who is often away from home, it's essential to have some self-defense skills. Jim had learned a few from a colleague with a big nose. Although he couldn't match the god-like fighting prowess his colleague displayed in the furniture store, his skills were still quite good. He rushed forward and interrupted the attack of [Guardian-Bao] just before it came down, using his dueling disk to block the greatsword. He even almost snatched [Exorcising Greatsword-Twilight] with a disarming maneuver.

(Jim's Duel Disk design)

"I'm not going to duel with you endless bastards. 'Overlord'! All you do is hide behind these guys!"

"Get out here! I challenge you to a duel!"

"Tsk, brat, don't be rude to Lord 'Overlord'!" [Guardian-Bao], whose hatred was initially focused on O'Brien, suddenly changed his mind. His greatsword vanished from his hand and then reappeared, performing a "cancel sword technique," before viciously slashing at Jim. "This kind of shouting is utterly disrespectful!"

"clang--!"

Just as Jim on the rooftop was trying to break through the obstruction of [Guardian-Bao], the "Overlord" on the ground finally made a move after a long silence, seemingly activated by Jim's keyword "I want to duel him".

He didn't remove his mask, but just looked up at the roof. [Guardian-Bao] ultimately had an absolute advantage in strength. Jim's skills weren't as good as the archaeologist he knew, and he couldn't perform the maneuvers of switching items with lightning speed without being detected by the laser, or running relatively still on a falling train. After blocking several attacks, he was ultimately no match for [Guardian-Bao].

With a "Cancel Sword Technique," he deflected Jim's defensive and blocking Duel Disk, and [Guardian-Bao] raised his sword to cleave it: "Kid, die!"

"—I accept that challenge." Although his voice wasn't very loud and was quite calm, [Guardian-Bao] suddenly stopped his sword, hastily retracting his greatsword just before it was about to strike Jim, and turned his head to look behind him in surprise.

The "Overlord," who had been waiting for the farce to end, took action. With a wave of his hand, he caused the open door behind him to close slowly, and stepped forward with unhurried steps.

"But, but, Lord 'Overlord'!" [Guardian-Bao] said anxiously, "This is just a brat whom even I can't defeat, there's absolutely no need for you to take action—"

"Dare to stop me, I'll kill you all too." The calm voice revealed neither anger nor agitation, but in an instant, the "Four Heavenly Kings" fell silent, not daring to utter a single word. The "Black and White Magister," who was using his telekinesis to block the cards that served as bullets while trying to grab the agile O'Brien, also stopped at the same time.

Although he was unwilling to accept that he couldn't take revenge, in the underlying logic of [Guardian-Bao], the will of the "Overlord," being the stronger one, was absolute, while he, as the weaker one, was entitled to be humiliated not only by others but also by the "Overlord" himself. He could only glare fiercely at Jim and teleport back down.

The skilled white mage cast a spell, softening the ground in front of Jim and O'Brien into a mud-like substance. The skilled black mage then shaped this "fossilized mud" ground into steps leading to the surface. After the steps were completed, the skilled white mage cast a "mud-to-stone" spell, paving a path for Jim and O'Brien. Only then did the two monsters teleport away together.

Behind "Overlord," although called the "Four Heavenly Kings," there were actually five monsters serving as the background, while "Overlord" stood at the very front to meet the challenge. This was what Jim wanted, but when "Overlord" actually stepped forward, both he and O'Brien suddenly felt an invisible pressure being applied to them, almost making their bones creak.

(The aura of a tyrant; his battle record may not be impressive, but his prestige has never been diminished.)
“The leader of the Dark Realm, ‘Overlord’. What a terrifying aura.” O’Brien looked down at his fingers. Due to the suppression of that aura, his body had entered an extremely terrifying state. Not only were his limbs ice-cold and his fingers trembling uncontrollably, making it impossible for him to calm down, but his mind was also constantly urging him to “run away immediately.”

Jim also felt the power of "fear" creeping into his heart, but he still resolutely chose to step down the steps and shouted, "You... are you 'Overlord'!"

Although the other person gave Jim a strange sense of familiarity when they spoke, he couldn't recognize who was under such thick armor through the mask. So he simply ignored his feelings. Jim knew that he had only one thing to do now: to defeat "Overlord" here!

"Is it fun to attack innocent people who are powerless to resist? This is not war; are you enjoying the killing?"

"Why can you kill so easily! You bastard, people have died, so many people have died, and you treat all of this as just a coloring game! Casually taking so many lives and doing such cruel things is unforgivable! I cannot let a guy like you go unpunished, 'tyrant'!"

"You scum who enjoys fighting and killing—I'm here to kill you!"

"Duel!"

Jim Crocodile Cook: 4000 LP, Hand: 5

As he stopped, Jim, standing opposite "Overlord," drew five starting cards from his unfolded duel disk. Meanwhile, Karen the Crocodile was untied from behind and placed on the ground by Jim after he descended the steps. However, what puzzled Jim was that Karen, usually so fierce, showed no aggression today. Could it be that she too was suppressed by "Overlord's" aura?
Jim was wondering what was bothering him. "Overlord" also raised his left arm, and the Duel Disk unfolded. Five cards popped out and he caught them. Although the effect of the Duel Disk's automatic retrieval system looked familiar to Jim, he didn't think of anything else. After all, the Duel Disk on the other side could spin like a chainsaw, so it wasn't surprising that a few cards would pop out automatically.

"Duel." In a calm voice, "Overlord" announced his readiness for the duel.

[“Overlord”: 4000LP, Hand: 5→6]

Seeing that Jim didn't intend to take the first turn, "Overlord" didn't hold back either, directly drawing his sixth card to take the first turn, saying, "I'll start the duel first, draw a card."

"Ha, what a reckless move! You actually let Lord 'Overlord' have the first strike? What a terrible performance! You can't defeat Lord 'Overlord' in a duel like that!" As the self-proclaimed "Number One Overlord Fan," [Guardian-Bao] looked at the motionless Jim with disdain.

One of the new "Four Heavenly Kings"—[Evil King-Tracalel]—also agreed, saying, "If we can seize the first strike, we can at least show some of our strength in front of Lord 'Overlord,' but if we let Lord 'Overlord' take the initiative, that kid is finished!"

'That 'Overlord,' could it be that he's using some kind of first-move-oriented deck?' Upon hearing the words 'Overlord Army's Four Heavenly Kings,' O'Brien couldn't help but have this thought, but then he saw the other party play a card from his hand.

"During my Main Phase, I activate the Spell Card 'Pot of Greed' and draw two cards from my Deck." With a card-advantageous opening move like 'Pot of Greed,' seeing Jim's lack of response, "Overlord" immediately played his other card after drawing it. "Then, if I have no face-up monsters on my field, I pay half my Life Points to activate the Spell Card 'Hero's Arrival,' Special Summoning one Level 4 or lower 'E-Hero' monster from my Deck."

"I Special Summon [E·hero Bubble Man], and since I have no other cards on my field when this card is Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned, I activate its Summoning Effect and draw two more cards from my Deck."

【“霸王”：4000→2000LP，手牌：6→7→6→8】

【E·hero Foam Warrior】【ATK800】

"[E·hero]? Are you kidding me!" Jim was incredulous at the sight of "Overlord's" starting hand. It wasn't because his opponent had gained several cards in the blink of an eye, but because he couldn't accept that "Overlord" was using an [E·hero] deck. "What kind of 'hero' is this?!"

“Something’s not right, Jim!” O’Brien, who had a clear view from behind, couldn’t help but remind him, “The usual [E·hero Bubble Man] requires that there be no other cards in your hand in order to activate its appearance effect. All [E·hero Bubble Man] cards on the market have this effect.”

"But just as there is another version of the Magic Cylinder in the hands of the legendary duelist Yugi Muto, there is only one person who has a different version of the E·Hero Bubble Man. Just like now, even if there are other cards in the hand, as long as there are no other cards on the field, the summoning effect can still be activated. It can almost be regarded as that person's exclusive card!"

O'Brien pointed to the monster on the field with "Overlord" and said, "That card seems to be a card from Jaden!"

"What!?" Jim was shocked. Although he had dueled with Jaden and witnessed the effect of [E·hero Bubble Man] in the duel, he didn't know much about bottom-tier decks like [E·hero]. He thought it was just the normal effect of [E·hero Bubble Man]. After all, it's not like some unpopular decks don't hide one or two cards with overpowered effects. It's reasonable for a deck like [Hero], which is considered weak, to have such an efficient card draw card as [E·hero Bubble Man].

But without O'Brien's reminder, he hadn't realized it. However, if this [E·hero Bubble Man] card was Jaden's—he suddenly turned around and glared at "Overlord," gritting his teeth and saying, "Jaden's card is in your hands. What have you done to my friend!"

However, the "Overlord" coldly refused to answer his question: "I have no need to answer questions that are unrelated to the duel."

"Could it be that you...you ...

Seeing that Jim was about to be blinded by anger, O'Brien, who was watching from the sidelines, quickly reminded him: "Don't forget what we found where the clues for Jaden and the others went cold, Jim! There were fragments of the Duel Disk there, so it's possible that the other side picked up Jaden's card!"

"Don't lose your composure, Jim!"

"Don't worry, Brother, I've been calm, very calm!" Jim took a deep breath, then turned to O'Brien and nodded before looking back at "Overlord." "You stole my friend's card and used it without permission. Very well, the bills I'm going to collect from you have grown longer, 'Overlord'!"

"I'd like to see what tricks you can pull off with Jaden's cards. Not everyone can unleash the power of [Hero] like him, because true strength lies not in cards, but in the mind!"

Upon hearing this, "Overlord," who had been standing in front of O'Brien and Jim for so long, let out a brief laugh for the first time, but the laugh was full of contempt and disdain: "Heh? Power is just power, what difference is there between a card and a user?"

"The Spell Card [Hero Union] is activated. It can only be activated if there is a [Hero] monster on the field. I Special Summon two Level 4 or lower [E·hero] monsters from my hand. I Special Summon [E·hero Skyman] and [E·hero Shadow Mist Lady]."

【E·hero Sky Knight】【ATK1800】

【E·hero Shadow Mist Girl】【ATK1000】

Not only [E·Hero Bubble Man], but also, under Jim's angry gaze, "Overlord" summoned two more [E·Hero] monsters from Jaden's deck. However, like [E·Hero Bubble Man], these two monsters, jokingly referred to as the "big brother" and "big sister" of the [Hero] deck, were in a completely mindless state, showing none of the lively performance they usually displayed when used by Jaden.

—Especially [E·hero Bubbleman], he doesn't even say his favorite catchphrase "Because-I'm-Bubbleman" anymore.

"When 【E-hero Sky Warrior】is Special Summoned, I activate its effect to destroy Spell/Trap Cards on the field or search for 【Hero】 monsters in my Deck. I choose the latter and add this 【E-hero Golden Dark Star】 from my Deck to my hand."

While searching for the card in "Overlord", Jim felt as if he saw a shooting star in the sky flash, his right eye hurt, and he even vaguely saw the phantom of Jaden's card - [E·hero Golden Captain] on that card.

"'E-hero'?"

O'Brien was also puzzled by the sudden appearance of the new type of [Hero]. There was only one type of monster with the "Hero" field on the market, [E·hero], but Duel Academy had so many types, such as C, D, E, F, M, and V. Now even [E·hero] had a new variant, [E-hero]? Was there any other [Hero] that I needed to know about?
"Evil hero [E-hero], this is my power, a power that surpasses the powerless [E·hero]." The "Overlord" unusually added a word of introduction, displaying the card he had just retrieved. "I endowed these 'heroes' with demonic power. This powerful force allowed [E·hero] to 'evolve' into [E-hero]. This is all I did for [E-hero], merely granting them power."

"But that is the most important thing, because power is the reason for becoming king!"

Discarding the [E-hero Golden Dark Star] I just retrieved, "Overlord" said: "I can activate this effect by discarding [E-hero Golden Dark Star] from my hand. I will add one [Dark Fusion] or a card with that name from my deck to my hand, other than [E-hero Golden Dark Star]. I choose [Dark Fusion]."

"Next, activate [Dark Fusion]!"

　Bounty accumulation—

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The Overlord's mask in the original work was quite comical. It only appeared after Jaden's corruption. In the episode where he first appeared, there wasn't even a silhouette beforehand, and after appearing for less than a minute, Jim challenged him, and Jaden removed the mask. The mask only worked for a few dozen seconds, its effect on concealing his identity being practically nonexistent.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that because Jaden removed his mask, Jim held back throughout the duel, aiming to awaken Jaden. Then, the Super Fusion technique, ignoring the summoning conditions, fused with Dark Gaia, resulting in Jim's plot-driven death. If Jim hadn't known Jaden's identity, he might not have been defeated by the Overlord.

Therefore, here, it's simply a matter of having the Overlord not remove his mask, and having Jim be unaware of the Overlord's identity.

(End of this chapter)