Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

At this moment, Keith moved the Duel Disk on his left wrist to his left waist, and placed his right hand on the deck as if gathering power, like a peerless swordsman about to draw his sword and strike, his whole spirit and energy were extremely focused.

Hayato remembers the effect of the Spell Card 【One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw】: "If the card drawn is 【One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw】, you can send that card to the Graveyard and destroy all cards on the field. Then inflict damage to me equal to 2000 times the number of cards sent to the Graveyard by this effect."

“Conversely, if I don’t draw [One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw], I return the number of cards from my graveyard that I previously sent from my deck to the graveyard to my deck,” Keith added, maintaining his pose. A smirk played on his lips. “In other words, it’s a gamble card that suits me perfectly.”

Keith staked the entire outcome of this duel on this card draw.

If he draws another "One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw" card from his deck, he can turn the tide and instantly defeat Hayato, just like an Iai Slash; but if he doesn't draw the card, Keith has to return the card from the graveyard to the deck, wasting his previous resources.

Hayato didn't know Keith's mindset, but as the one who started this dark game, and with his past knowledge, Hayato already knew that there were cards hidden in Keith's wristband.

After all, when talking about Keith, the "hidden card in the cuff" is an unavoidable classic. Even years after the anime aired, professional players paid tribute to Keith by using the "hidden dragon in the crotch" move in matches.

In this realm of dark games, only three things matter: fairness, fairness, and more fairness. The fact that Keith carries a card on him doesn't really matter, since Kaiba also wears a card around his neck every day.

However, if Keith dares to cheat, Hayato can use the power of the Dark Games to punish him. Hayato's Duel Disk for Keith is actually a modified version.

Even though Keith was in a near-desperate situation, Hayato assumed that Keith would definitely cheat again in such a predicament. However, to his surprise, Keith's card draw did not incur any punishment from the Dark Games, indicating that he hadn't actually cheated!

Hayato truly finds it hard to believe that the "thief" Keith could have changed his ways. Even though he just uttered lines that should have been a line from a repentant male supporting character, it was difficult to change Hayato's impression of him.

"That's rare, Keith. You didn't seem to use any cheating methods just now. What a pity about the little surprise I prepared for you."

"A little surprise? Heh, so you did tamper with the Duel Disk you gave me, didn't you? Not surprising at all." Hearing Hayato's mocking remark, Keith retorted, "Were you worried I'd switch cards like we did in our duel in Duel Kingdom?"

"Yes, so do you still dare to keep drawing cards, Keith?" Hayato said with a sneer. "Do you have a card hidden in your sleeve to replace the 'One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw'? Without cheating methods, are you confident that you can pin your future on your deck?"

Hayato's disdainful tone had no effect on Keith, whose sunglasses concealed his closed eyes: "Don't underestimate me, Hayato Kobayashi. I'm the All-American 'Thief' Keith. Drawing whatever cards I want is no problem for me. It's not just a brat like you who can do that!"

"Respond to me, my deck! Unfold the path of Tamashii, guided by destiny!"

Keith's right hand, holding a card, traced an arc in the air, and a faint, illusory golden light gathered on the card at Keith's fingertip: "Draw!"

"Magic Card, [One-Hit Kill! Iaijutsu Draw]!!"

As Keith casually revealed the card in his hand, the swordsman depicted in the artwork of his previously activated "One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw" card also drew his sword, and the arc-shaped slash swept away all the cards on both sides' fields in an instant!

Keith's previous dejected aura vanished instantly. He pointed at Hayato and said, "Send the 'One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw' card I drew to the graveyard, and destroy all six cards on my field: 'Second Chance', 'Inferno Baal', 'Inferno Admirer', the Field Spell Card 'Dark World - Shadow Detopia-', and those two face-down cards!"

Keith, seemingly transformed back into the glorious professional duelist he once was, said in a deep voice, "Checkmate, Duel King!!"

For a moment, the only three spectators in the duel—Rafiru, Baron, and Ameruda—were all stunned, unable to believe that they had witnessed such a scene.

"That guy actually managed to draw 'One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw' using the power of his deck?!" Baron counted on his fingers. "If all six cards are destroyed, it will deal a total of 12,000 damage to Kobayashi Hayato!?"

"Unbelievable! I thought that guy was just some lowly nobody who wallowed in the underground dueling arena, but he actually defeated Kobayashi Hayato!" Ameruda was also astonished. You see, if it weren't for Hayato, the one who was originally scheduled to duel Keith and seal his soul would have been Ameruda.

If it were me taking the lead, wouldn't I also be at risk of being caught off guard?

Even Rafael hadn't expected Keith to actually draw the [One-Hit Kill! Iaijutsu Draw]. However, compared to Baron and Amelda, one was surprised that Hayato would lose and the other was doubting his own judgment, Rafael was more concerned that if Hayato lost in the Dark Games, wouldn't the three of them have failed to protect Kobayashi Hayato as Tatsumi-sama had instructed?

A high jumper once said that people die when they are killed, which is only natural. In the Dark Game, if you lose, an ordinary person's life will end. After taking this hit from Keith Howard, Kobayashi Hayato is doomed!

With this in mind, Rafiru noticed that although Hayato's face also showed surprise, there was no fear of death whatsoever; instead, he wore a confident smile.

"I've witnessed something beyond my expectations, Shifu~" Hayato spread his arms wide, watching as the cards on his field shattered with a deafening roar, flames engulfing his body.

Seeing Hayato's [Inferno Machines] on the field and the field beneath his feet destroyed by the effect of [One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw], Keith couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. His long-tense nerves relaxed a little, and the pent-up fatigue surged into his heart.

However, he wasn't the kind of brat who would get carried away with a few advantages. Looking at the raging fire where Hayato was standing, he said sarcastically, "What a twisted sense of humor you have, Kobayashi Hayato. Are you trying to make me think you can defeat him with just that level of counterattack?"

"Stay where you are, Hayato Kobayashi!"

"What?! How could Hayato Kobayashi still be alive after taking 12000 points of damage?!" Ameruda was also surprised when he heard this. He looked into the firelight, and to his surprise, Hayato's unharmed figure actually appeared from the flames that disappeared with a wave of his hand!

With his excellent eyesight, Baron spotted Hayato's backcourt, which was obscured by the firelight: "That card is... [Fusion Defense]?"

"I activated Fusion Defense to negate the damage effect of 'One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw' and then sent one Fusion Monster from my Fusion Deck to the Graveyard."

As Hayato's voice rang out, the "flames" on Hayato's field twisted and transformed into a long snake with black and white wings. Holding a black and a white sphere in each hand, the snake, topped with bull horns, coiled around Hayato. After roaring and emitting a sound incomprehensible to humans, the card destroyed by [One-Hit Kill! Iai Draw] reappeared from the flames, while the snake's figure vanished like bubbles.

Watching Hayato send the [Hellfire Machine - Tierra] card to the graveyard, Keith said helplessly, "It's that so-called 'necessary sacrifice' again, Kobayashi Hayato."

"I was really thinking just now that 'it might succeed'."

"Disappointed, Keith?" Hayato said with a light laugh. Beside him, the resurrected [Hellfire Machine - Baal] and [Hellfire Machine - Admiral] were once again transformed into DARKs by [Dark World - Shadow Utopia -], eyeing Keith, who only had one [Second Chance] on the field.

"Disappointed? A little, of course, but who can say for sure what the line between hope and despair is? A glorious future full of hope can turn into utter despair after everything has been destroyed. So even in despair where there is no bottom, there is a possibility of finding hope again."

Keith said, drawing a card from his hand: "I summon [Double-Barreled Pistol Dragon] in Attack Position and use its effect. When it is successfully Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned, I activate [Inferno Machine Admirer] on your field."

On the field of Keith, a bipedal mechanical dragon appeared. The "Double-Barreled Pistol" is the lowest-ranking among Keith's "pistols". The "Double-Barreled Pistol Dragon" does not have the ability to activate its effect multiple times like the "Rewind Pistol Dragon" and the "Revolver Pistol Dragon".

Facing the demons on Hayato's field, the level 4☆ [Double-Barreled Pistol Dragon] seemed so weak, but it still pointed the gun barrel at the [Hellfire Machine Admirer] with the highest attack power.

The coin spun as it was tossed into the air, but neither of the duelists paid any attention to it, as if they already knew the outcome.

Hayato looked at Keith and asked, "Do you think you'll need to use the [Second Chance] effect, Keith?"

“Huh? Haven’t I already used ‘second chance’?” Keith replied, seemingly unrelated to the question.

"Ding ~"

The coin landed on the ground, revealing two identical blue-eyed white dragon patterns.

Before [Hellfire Machine Admirer] could utter its curse, it was struck and pierced by two bullets fired from the barrel of [Double-Barreled Pistol Dragon], destroyed, and sent to the graveyard.

Keith glanced at the four cards remaining in his hand, drew two of them: "Two cards face down, my turn ends."

[Keith: 2300LP, 2 cards in hand]

[Double-barreled pistol] [ATK1700]

[Second Chance] [Gaicard] X2

Seeing that Keith had finished his turn, Hayato also drew a card from the top of his deck: "My turn, draw. Then activate the effect of my back row face-down card [Reckless Greed], draw two cards from my deck."

"As a price, I will skip my next two gacha pulls."

Seeing that Hayato was using the effect of "Reckless Greed" to increase his hand size to three cards, Keith pressed the button on his Duel Disk: "Chain activation of my face-down card, Continuous Trap Card 'Call of the Dead,' Special Summon 'Bowshot Dragon' from my Graveyard in Attack Position."

"Still haven't given up, Keith? Then I'll chain-activate the effect of [Hellfire Baal], and in lieu of my monster release, I'll release [Double-Barreled Pistol Dragon] on your field and banish [Bow-Out Pistol Dragon] from your graveyard."

Unsurprisingly, Keith sent his "Double-Barreled Pistol Dragon" to the Graveyard and banished the card "Rewind Pistol Dragon". He had already anticipated this situation; "Cry of the Living Dead" was merely putting up a fight.

Hayato glanced at the cards in his hand. Thanks to the effect of "Reckless Greed," he finally added the only card in his deck, "Harpie's Feather Duster," to his hand and drew it to activate it.

Keith's second chance card and his face card blast armor were torn apart by the storm, leaving Keith's field completely empty. He could only face Hayato's 2600 attack power card, Hellfire Baal, with his remaining 2300 base points.

"What a majestic monster! It's strange to use words that describe natural scenery to describe a Duel Monster, but that's the only word I can use to describe the monster on your field right now," Keith said, looking at the Demon God on Hayato's field, now completely defenseless.

"Hmph, that's right. These are the monsters that I manifested with the dark power within me after I joined the 'Doma' organization. Through my duel with you, I've tested some of their power."

Upon hearing Hayato's words, Keith gave a strange smile.

"A monster formed from your mind? I can only say that it's a perfect match for you. But are you the kind of guy who would join some random organization, Kobayashi Hayato?"

"As long as it gives me strength, that's fine. You should understand Keith, a former national champion, right? He'd give up anything for victory. So, how about joining 'Doma,' Keith?"

Rafael had Hayato invite Keith before the duel even started, but he only extended the invitation now that the duel had secured the outcome and victory was within reach.

"Heh, I'll take your word for it then." Keith clearly didn't believe Hayato's words. "You probably still have something to say like 'I'll die if I don't join the organization,' right? But saying it won't change anything. I personally have absolutely no interest in joining any organization, whether it's 'Ghouls' or 'Doma.'"

"Besides, I absolutely loathe you. With your personality, any organization you join will definitely end up badly. I don't want to become one of those you 'sacrifice for the greater good'."

"Is that so? That's a pity. I'll activate the Field Spell Card [Orichalcos Barrier] and then enter the Battle Phase."

Hayato's previous activation of [Dark World - Shadow Utopia-] was replaced by a green halo, and the dark green shadow in the lamp tubes on [Hellfire Machine Baal] faded and returned to blue light, but the power of [Orichalcos Barrier] climbed up again.

Baal the Fire Machine seemed somewhat dismissive of the power of Orichalcos. He slammed his spear on the ground, pushing away the force binding him, but he didn't completely resist it, still collecting a portion into his weapon to slightly increase its attack power.

[Hellfire Machine - Baal] [ATK2600→3100]

"【Orichalcos Barrier】has the ability to increase the ATK of all monsters on my field by 500. I enter the Battle Phase, and then 【Inferno Baal】attacks 'Thief' Keith Howard directly!"

The wind and thunder were controlled by the demon god and contained within the spearhead. As the enormous demon launched its attack from above, Keith's face showed some tension, but not any resentment at defeat or fear of death.

[Keys: 2300LP → 0]

The power of the [Orichalcos Barrier] attached to the spear that pierced Keith's body captured Keith's soul and flowed into the card.

As Keith's soul left his body, the [Orichalcos Barrier] beneath their feet, which had only been open for a short time, began to shrink. In his dazed state, Keith, now detached from his body, seemed to see something enter the card along with his soul.

Without a shred of pity for life, Hayato swiftly and decisively slew Keith, securing victory in the duel. He lowered his head and retrieved the card from the "Orichalcos Barrier" displayed in the arena. Within the green ring on that card, the image of Keith's soul was clearly visible.

“The seventh point of the reverse Kabbalah Qliphoth, the enemy of 'Victory' [Baal].” Hayato’s lips curled up as he muttered to himself, “If it was Baal, the enemy of 'Victory', who killed Keith, then could Keith be considered…”

Hayato's voice was very soft, and neither Rafael nor the other two, who were approaching him because the duel had ended, heard what he said, nor did they care.

With the three of them witnessing it firsthand, Hayato completed the sealing of another duelist's soul for the first time. It was like a corrupt cop colluding with a gang shooting someone on camera by the gang. Now, Kobayashi Hayato had completely embarked on a path of no return and had become a "partner" they could truly trust.

As Hayato saw Rafael and his companions approaching, he casually tossed over the card that sealed Keith's soul, which Rafael caught. While the [Orichalcos Barrier] would immediately seal the soul of the defeated in a duel, the "Orichalcos God" lacked remote uploading capabilities. Offering the soul as a sacrifice would have to wait until they returned to the "Doma" headquarters and handed it over to Dartz.

Rafael glanced at the card, said nothing, and put it away before saying, "Then, let's continue searching for the next target, first—"

Chapter 571 Brave Ryuzaki Charges Forward

Hayato works alongside the "Three Musketeers of Doma," hunting down the souls of duelists, while the scene shifts several days later to a plane landing at an airport.

The private jet that appeared at the airport looked very strange. It didn't follow the aerodynamic shape of a conventional aircraft at all, but instead imitated the angular appearance of the most famous monster in the Duel Monsters series, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. This "plane" could fly entirely thanks to its powerful propulsion system.

Although its flight pattern was quite strange and eye-catching, the airport staff were not surprised. After all, the silver "KC" lettering on the side of the aircraft, which seemed to declare the sovereignty of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, revealed that the owner of the aircraft was Seto Kaiba, and it was not surprising that Seto Kaiba would do anything to the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

Moreover, although the design is embarrassing no matter how you look at it, Kaiba has already flown this aircraft between Domino City and America many times. Even if he was a little surprised at first, after so many times, he has long lost interest.

The diligent staff guided the aircraft to land and stop at an airport designated for small passenger planes. Whether by coincidence or not, Haima's Blue-Eyes White Dragon aircraft stopped next to a passenger plane bearing the "Paradis Corporation" logo.

Kaiba and his brother Keihei were the first to get off the plane, followed by Kaiba's usual freeloader Yugi, Anzu, Jonouchi, and Honda.

Although neither Yugi, the major shareholder of International Illusion Society with 30% stake, nor Kyoko, the little rich girl with a little money at home, nor Honda, from an "ordinary family," can afford to buy a plane ticket, there is no such thing as the satisfaction of getting something for free when you have to pay for it yourself.

Moreover, for the gamers, there wasn't enough time to leisurely take a fixed-route passenger plane and transfer from one stop to another to reach the United States.

"I still find it hard to believe that an organization could steal three God Cards overnight." Guiping still seemed unable to accept reality, especially since the people who kept the three God Cards were not just any ordinary third-rate duelists, but Seto Kaiba, Yugi Muto, and Isis Ishtar.

For Keihei, the game and Isis were alright, but the fact that even his brother Seto Kaiba failed to protect the card of [Obelisk the Tormentor] was what Keihei found most distressing.

As he spoke, Guiping revealed a smug smile, then changed the subject, "However, luckily I was a bit more skilled and left a little something for the [Obelisk the Tormentor] card without my brother knowing."

"You're hiding something from me and doing something underhanded, what's so great about that, Keihei!" Kaiba snorted, looking angry but with a touch of arrogance. "This accident has put your little tricks to good use. Don't let it happen again."

As Jonouchi stepped off the plane, he interjected, "But Kaiba, didn't you say on the way here that the signal from the tracker on the Obelisk disappeared halfway through the journey?"

Upon hearing this, Kaiba glanced at Jonouchi and said disdainfully, "A mediocre person is a mediocre person. I really find it hard to understand why you would think that the tracker would have any impact if it lost connection after navigating a certain route?"

"As long as we use the large data processor at Haima Group, which I personally designed, to simulate the signal trajectory sent by the tracker, it is quite easy to find out the routes that were not detected."