Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

These are clearly the three nameless dragons that appeared in the original "Doma Saga," the most polarizing chapter in the first Yu-Gi-Oh! anime!

Because the series composition and duel composition of the "Doma Saga" were not handled by the original author Kazuki Takahashi, but by Shin Yoshida and Masahiro Hikokubo, the latter two tend to have a nine-black-one-white or nine-white-one-black character design and a greater emphasis on exploring the mechanics, which is quite different from the style of the "Doma Saga" compared to Kazuki Takahashi's black-and-white character design and his style of focusing on psychological description.

Although many characters displayed rich charm in this chapter, the fact that these characters were completely different from their previous personas—in other words, their personas collapsed—along with the fact that the "Doma Chapter" contained too many card-printing elements despite the many excellent duels, made the "Doma Chapter" the most controversial chapter.

However, as a card player devoid of emotion, Hayato's deepest impression wasn't of the Doma Knights, who were practically mirror images of the main trio in this arc, nor even of the classic parody material of Yugi using "Berserker's Spirit" to humiliate that guy from Haga who had been dead for who knows how long, but rather of the infamous fake card "Orichalcos".

The Orichalcos series of cards only appeared in the anime. Even when the K Foundation, which was responsible for issuing the cards, tried to capitalize on nostalgia later, they only released a few cards like the Orichalcos Barrier, which had no resemblance to the anime cards in terms of card art, effects, or names. However, this did not stop domestic counterfeit card dealers from printing their own cards at the time.

At that age when we didn't have much of a discernment, who didn't fight with someone else's "Orichalcos Barrier" when they were in elementary school? Not to mention the original "Six-Pointed Star" series that domestic manufacturers printed even more after they got a taste of success, and even the infamous fake card "Orichalcos God's Sweep".

However, the treatment of the [Nameless Dragon] card, which also appeared in the anime, was much better than that of [Orichalcos]. Although it was released many years later than the anime, they were eventually made into physical cards after retaining their original names and having their effects weakened. Furthermore, the K Foundation, which had mastered the secret to wealth, learned to keep the cards in suspense and instead of releasing them all at once, they released them slowly over several days.

After all, releasing all the cards at once can indeed boost the sales of a single card pack, but with nostalgia fans' money so easy to earn, it would be a waste not to break them down into smaller packs to collectively increase sales. (Specifically referring to the incremental release of the new DP27 cards, specifically the Seahorse vs. Isis card.)

These are the Eyes of Timaeus, which were awakened by Yugi and Yami Yugi, and whose dormant powers were fused together to form a new monster. The Eyes of Timaeus were pierced by the Sword of Justice.

Awakened by the seahorse and fused with the trap to become a monster, the [Critia's Fang] was pierced by the "Sword of Wisdom," but for the seahorse, it might be the "Sword of Science."

And what should have been a fusion with a magic card to form a monster, but instead it fused with a monster to form an Equip Spell Card, was "Hermes' Claw," which Jonouchi pulled out the "Sword of Freedom" stuck in the claw.

The three giant dragon crystal statues that appeared in front of Hayato at this moment were none other than these three [Nameless Dragons]!

As for why it's called the Nameless Dragon even though it has a name? Don't ask, it's simply the Nameless Dragon!

As Hayato was inwardly cursing the "Nameless Dragon," he heard a trembling voice come from behind him: "Finally, you've arrived, savior of the world—"

"You! How could it be you?!"

Seeing Hayato repeatedly snatch her away from the game and then free her with the Magic Wand, Dark Magician Girl seemed quite flustered.

Chapter 546 The Thousand-Year Hostage

The real world.

"Hayato!" Yugi woke up with a start, sitting up in bed in a cold sweat, only to realize that he had just been dreaming. However, what he dreamed about was a real event that he had personally experienced a few days ago.

“Aibo…” Yami Yugi’s voice came from within the Millennium Puzzle. As a soul being, he didn’t need the same sleep as Yugi, so he floated out of the Millennium Puzzle the moment Yugi woke up, looking at the still-shaken Yami Yugi, “Are you alright?”

"Game..." Also awakened by Game's exclamation was Mutou Sugoroku, a light sleeper. He gently knocked on the door of the game room a few times and asked, "Were you having a nightmare?"

"...Yeah, I'm fine." The game player raised his pajama-clad arm to wipe the sweat from his forehead, answering both his other self and his concerned grandfather outside the door. But judging from his condition, how could he possibly be fine?

When Anubis activated the hidden power of the Three Phantoms called the "Gate of Phantoms" based on the knowledge he obtained from the "Millennium Magic Book," everything in the world instantly froze, except for Hayato and Anubis, who retained the ability to speak.

However, in reality, the game at that time still retained a conscious mind, but it didn't even have the ability to move its eyes. It could only watch helplessly as Hayato left behind a series of "last words" that could not be conveyed.

After the card called [Super Fusion] was activated, Hayato and Anubis perished together, disappearing from the world without leaving a trace, except for the three Egyptian God cards.

At the beginning, Jonouchi and the others, who did not witness Hayato's final actions as in the game, were briefly excited because of Anubis's disappearance, assuming that they had successfully defeated it. Even Kaiba, Malik, and Isis were only slightly puzzled as to why Hayato had disappeared in an instant, and did not think at all that "Hayato had sacrificed himself".

But the silence of the game, so out of place with the cheerful crowd, was so abrupt. When the game announced Hayato's "death," the atmosphere instantly turned cold, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over it.

Even now, the game can still recall the grim expressions on everyone's faces back then.

Outside the door, Muto Sugoroku paused for a moment, then said, "If there's nothing else, you should get some rest. If Hayato were here, he wouldn't want his friend to get hurt."

"Yes, I understand, Grandpa."

Having weathered so many storms over the years, Sugoroku has seen and experienced a great deal, so he can completely understand Yugi's feelings at this moment, after all, he has also experienced the pain of losing a friend.

But what could he say? It was through his own experience that he understood that such things couldn't be soothed by a few words of comfort; only time could dilute the sorrow. Moreover, talking to someone who shared the same grief could also be helpful.

As shrewd as Muto Sugoroku, how could he not notice that his grandson sometimes transforms into a completely different person?

However, it's such a pity that Hayato lost his life at such a young age.

Feeling a pang of sadness at the fragility of life, Muto Sugoroku turned off the lights in the hallway and returned to his room.

However, in the game's room, Yugi, who had been awakened in the middle of the night, did not fall back asleep so quickly. Instead, he got out of bed, put on his slippers, walked to his desk in his room, pulled out a chair, sat down, and took out a golden cabinet that he used to store cards.

This golden chest was originally used to store fragments of the Millennium Puzzle, but later, because it was the perfect size and had plenty of space, Yugi used it to store his deck and spare cards. After opening the golden chest, Yugi's deck was revealed, face down. He reached out and pulled out the card with the red border that was placed on top.

'【Sky Dragon of Osiris】...' Behind Yugi, Yami Yugi silently watched Yugi's movements, silently reciting the name of the card in his hand. In that frozen world, he too witnessed Hayato fulfilling what he had always said: 'To sacrifice oneself for the greater good.'

Upon learning of Hayato's "death," everyone initially denied it, almost completely unable to accept that Hayato, who had been perfectly fine just moments before, had suddenly died. They felt that how could Hayato, who always exuded confidence and composure, have died so peacefully? They believed he must have been playing some kind of prank, given Hayato's notoriously wicked sense of humor.

But it is indeed true.

Thus, Jonouchi, Honda, Malik, and even Kaiba were all consumed by anger. They were furious that Anubis, that bastard, had taken the life of someone important to them, but they were also incredibly frustrated to find that they had nowhere to vent their anger.

Anger transformed into an incredibly oppressive atmosphere, and in the end, everyone reluctantly accepted the fact that "Hayato is dead."

As the last item left behind by Hayato, the card of "Sky Dragon of Osiris," one of the "Three Egyptian God Cards," remained in Yugi's hands. However, Yugi did not feel the same excitement he had when he first obtained "Sky Dragon of Osiris" from Dark Marik in Duel City. Instead, he was simply reminiscing about Hayato's "life" when he saw the card.

'What a cunning fellow! After defeating me, he just ran away like that.'

The words that Kaiba said when he took the [Obelisk the Tormentor] a few days ago still seem to echo in the game's ears.

The last of the "Three Egyptian God Cards," and the one that best represents Hayato, is the "Ra's Winged Dragon." It was taken by the usually gentle and kind-hearted Isis, and it's difficult to describe her expression at that moment in the game.

Although Isis's statement that "[Ra] is the most powerful of the three Egyptian God cards and must be properly protected" sounds unreasonable, even Kaiba, who had a fanatical pursuit of the power of powerful cards, did not stop Isis at the time.

"Crack!"

"Ughh ...

The sound of shattering glass outside the door suddenly interrupted their memories, followed by a scream!

"That voice is... Chicken!" Yugi immediately recognized the source of the voice as his grandfather, Muto Sugoroku, who had just passed away. Without even putting away the golden cabinet and card deck, he grabbed the folded duel disk and cards, grabbed his coat from the back of the chair, and pushed open the door to run outside.

In the corridor, through the bright moonlight streaming into the room through the broken window, Yugi saw a hooded stranger making a chop motion, while his grandfather, Muto Sugoroku, was falling into the hooded man's arms and being held hostage!

"Chicken Sauce!" Almost instantly, accompanied by a flash of light from the Millennium Puzzle, Yami Yugi appeared in place of Ono Yugi, demanding sharply, "Who exactly are you?!"

While asking the question, the game's actions were not slow at all. He tossed out the [Elf Swordsman] card. Under the influence of dark power, the [Elf Swordsman] card spirit directly materialized. As the card spun and flew, the sharp sword slashed towards the hooded man!

Chapter 547 The Elf Swordsman is Dead Again, How Inhuman!

Unlike the gentle and kind-hearted Yugi Oni, Yami Yugi has never been a kind person with gentle methods. It is only under the influence of his Aibo that his style of doing things seems a little more appropriate.

At this moment, because of the attack on Sugoroku Muto, Yami Yugi didn't even consider whether using dark power to materialize the spirit would kill the guy in front of him who seemed to be breaking and entering. Instead, he recklessly unleashed his full power.

But to his surprise, facing the suddenly materialized [Elven Swordsman]'s slash, the hooded man not only showed no intention of dodging, but a cold smile appeared on his lips illuminated by the moonlight. Instead, he used his left arm, which was adorned with a circular device, to directly punch the [Elven Swordsman]'s attack!?

Under the astonished gaze of the game, the Elf Swordsman's attack failed to achieve any results. Instead, he was hit back and killed instantly by the hooded man's green-glowing punch!

The Elf Swordsman is dead again! How inhuman!

"Lord Muto Yugi, oh dear, perhaps it would be more appropriate to call you 'the nameless pharaoh'..." Holding the unconscious Muto Sugoroku hostage, the hooded man loosened his clenched fist, and a chain ornament inlaid with a green gemstone fell from his palm. The eerie green light from earlier probably came from that ornament.

The game recalls that style of chain ornament. During the KC Cup in the US, in order to obtain the [Divine Flame Emperor - Uria] used for the activation ritual, the game encountered a person who called himself "Rafael," and at that time, the game saw the same chain ornament around Rafael's neck.

"You called me 'the nameless pharaoh' on our first meeting, who exactly are you—"

The game was not discouraged by the departure of the [Elf Swordsman], and drew another card. The [Dark Magician] was about to appear from the card and launch another attack.

But even faster than the game's actions was the hooded man's hand suddenly landing on the neck of the man he was holding hostage, Sugoroku Mutou: "Hey, hey, hey, pay a little attention to this side, you nameless pharaoh. Are you trying to test whether it's faster for you to summon monsters to attack me, or for me to snap this old guy's neck like I'm snapping branches off a roadside bush?"

"What?!" Yugi gritted his teeth in anger at the hooded man's despicable act of taking Muto Sugoroku hostage, wishing he could summon [Dark Magician Girl] at the same time as [Dark Magician] for a super double boost.

However, he was also concerned about Muto Sugoroku's safety. His hand, which held up the [Dark Magician] card, hovered stiffly on the duel disk, hesitant to drop it, fearing that any reaction he made might provoke the hooded man.

But this hesitation was exactly what the hooded man wanted. Seeing that the game did not make a decisive move, he sneered: "Just as Lord Raferu said, you, nameless pharaoh, are nothing more than a 'responder.' Although you are willing to sacrifice yourself when facing a crisis, you have no decisiveness to give up in order to achieve your goal."

"Since you're not going to make a move, then I'll take this old man with me!"

As he spoke, the hooded man hoisted the still unconscious Muto Sugoroku onto his shoulder and then leaped out of the broken window!

"boom!"

Although the game immediately summoned [Dark Magician] to attack the moment the hooded man removed his hand from Sugoroku's neck, the attack was a step too slow and missed, allowing the hooded man to escape with Sugoroku.

The game rushed to the window and, imitating the hooded man, stepped out onto the window and chased after him. With the protection of the [Dark Magician], it landed smoothly from the third floor. But just as it was about to chase after the hooded man who had also jumped out of the window, it discovered that the guy had actually gotten on a motorcycle that had been parked downstairs beforehand.

"If you want to bring this old guy back, go to the rooftop of that unfinished building across the street, Nameless Pharaoh, and remember to bring the cards of the 'Three Egyptian Gods'!"

Leaving behind those words, the hooded man's motorcycle tires screeched against the ground as the roaring mechanical beast carried him and Muto Soroku away, leaving only a scarlet taillight trailing in the night streets.

Beside Yugi, the Dark Magician kept his emerald wand aimed at the motorcycle, but ultimately failed to fire a second attack. Yugi couldn't risk harming Sugoroku and could only watch as the hooded man carried him away.

The light of the Millennium Puzzle dimmed, the Dark Game switched to the Surface Game, and the sounds of the game echoed through the quiet streets:

"grandfather---!!!"

"Master Shuangliu has been arrested again?!"

After arriving at a construction site not far from the Kameji Card Shop, in front of a building that was still under construction and not yet completed, Jonouchi, who had rushed there after receiving a notification from Yugi, heard what Yugi had to say and exclaimed excitedly, "To use such despicable means as kidnapping is truly unforgivable!"

"Although it's the same old story of Sugoroku being kidnapped and then forced into a game, it feels very strange," Honda, who arrived shortly after, also looked serious. "We have to rescue him; we can't just leave him like this."

"But is the other side eyeing the 'Three Egyptian Gods' cards?" Kyoko asked Yugi.

Yugi nodded: "Ah, the other party specifically asked me to bring the 'Three Egyptian Gods' cards. They must be eyeing the power of the 'Three Egyptian Gods' left behind by Hayato, which is why they kidnapped Chicken Sauce to coerce me."

“Speaking of which, if I remember correctly, the cards of the ‘Three Egyptian Gods’ can only be used by people associated with the ‘Millennium Items,’ like Malik, Hayato, and Yugi, although Kaiba can inexplicably do it too.” Jonouchi frowned as he recalled, “If that person is doing it for ‘God,’ Yugi might just hand him a card and he’ll be punished by ‘God.’”

Upon hearing this, Yugi recalled the chain he had seen before, shook his head, and said, "No, my intuition as a duelist tells me that that person is not simple, and it seems that he is not just eyeing the 'God' card. He must be plotting something else."

"Next, I will go up and find him, and then defeat him in a duel, but I am not sure if that person will do something despicable after losing the duel."

Jonouchi nodded knowingly: "After all, he's the kind of person who kidnapped someone to coerce you into playing the game. It's not impossible that he'll use Sugoroku as a threat again when he realizes he's about to lose."

“I see, I understand what you mean, Yugi.” Honda put his arm around Jonouchi’s shoulder. “That guy can’t possibly have Sugoroku with him during a duel. While you distract him with the duel, we’ll rescue Sugoroku!”

"I'm counting on you, Jonouchi, Honda."

Although the building is not yet completed, it is not lacking in many aspects, and it is equipped with elevators and other amenities.

Taking the elevator to the top floor of the building, Yugi and Kyoko teamed up, while Jonouchi and Honda separated from them to avoid revealing their presence. After passing through a set of scaffolding marked "Safety First," Yugi and Kyoko arrived at the central open space on the top floor.

Apart from a construction crane parked there, the game team looked around but could only find building materials piled up like a wall, and couldn't find a single person.

"Welcome to your final resting place, nameless pharaoh!"

Just as Yugi and Kyoko were looking around, a voice suddenly rang out from above them. Then, the hooded guy that Yugi had seen before suddenly jumped down from the sky and landed not far in front of them.

Looking up, Game noticed a large stack of wooden planks fixed to the crane ropes some distance above the ground. Presumably, the hooded guy in front of him had just been standing there waiting for Game's arrival.

However, the game failed to find Sugoroku Muto near the location where he appeared, suggesting that he was being hidden.

"Hmm? You didn't come alone, but brought a friend?" The hooded man glanced at Anzu beside Yugi, not caring about her at all. "Whatever, it's just in time. They can collect your corpse. So, nameless pharaoh, did you bring a 'god' with you?"

Upon hearing this, Yugi reached for the top card of his deck on his duel disk, pulled it out, and showed it to the hooded man opposite him: "As you can see, I've brought with me one of the 'Three Egyptian Gods,' the card of 'Sky Dragon of Osiris.' So, where did you hide Chicken Sauce!"