Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

Yugi noticed that Hayato had sent three cards to the graveyard: [Disruptor King], [Disruptor Knight], and [Dragon Knight Gaia]. These fusion monsters seemed out of place in the [Inferno Machine] deck, making Yugi wonder if these cards were just there to fill space, or if Hayato's so-called "pure [Inferno Machine]" deck was simply based on his personal standards of "purity".

The game also selected three Fusion Monsters: [Winged Beast Chimera], [Celestial Knight], and [Super Magician Swordsman - Dark Paladin].

Although they were sent from the Fusion Deck to the Graveyard, this does not mean that Yugi and Jonouchi can Special Summon these monsters with cards like "Monster Resurrection". This is because Fusion Monsters have a "Resurrection Restriction". If they have not officially appeared once, they cannot be Special Summoned even if they are sent to the Graveyard.

The game sent the card to the graveyard, but that wasn't the end of it; the effect of [Hellfire Tearah] continued to activate.

"In five or more cases, the second effect of [Inferno Tira] sends three cards from the top of both players' decks to the graveyard. Then, the third effect is that if there are eight or more Fusion Materials, each player may choose up to three of their banished cards to return to the graveyard."

"And finally, when there are ten or more types, both players send all cards in their hands to the graveyard!"

Upon hearing Hayato's words, Yugi's expression changed: "This is bad!"

The first two effects are okay; adding three cards to the graveyard isn't a big loss for a fairly solid deck. As for recycling banished cards, it just means that Hayato can recycle three monsters like "Hellfire Lilith" that were previously banished by "Soul Liberation".

However, the card in his hand at this moment is the invincible Kuriboh, which has the powerful effect of reducing battle damage to zero, and can also be used as the cost for the effect of [Dragon Knight - Dark Magician Girl].

After losing this only card in his hand, he has no cards left to block Hayato's monster attacks, and the cards in his back row are completely powerless against such an effect!

The game also explains why Hayato set a card face down before activating the effect of [Purgatory Dream]. Setting a card face down before the start of the battle phase seems like a mistake, but because of the effect of [Hellfire Machine - Tiera], Hayato was able to keep a card.

But...

Seeing Hayato's eager expression as he held the only card in his hand, Yugi suddenly had a strange premonition, especially since Hayato had specifically emphasized "Tamashi" when summoning [Hellfire Machine - Tiera].

No way, could it be that Hayato is going to take on even a monster like [Hellfire Machine Tierra]?

"Chain effect of [Hellfire Machine Tierra], I activate this Quick-Play Spell Card in my hand, [Mysterious Chinese Pot]." Under Yugi's "completely expected" gaze, Hayato activated his true Tamashi in his hand. "Although it has high attack power, unfortunately, the only thing that [Hellfire Machine Tierra] is useful to me is its effect."

"But her effect only activates when she is successfully Special Summoned, which means that for me now she's only good for cooking. It would be a huge waste not to squeeze every last bit of value out of every monster!"

Ignoring the astonishment and teary-eyed cuteness on the face of [Hellfire Tierra] behind him, Hayato even shouted excitedly, "Release [Hellfire Tierra], and then I'll restore her defense stat to 3600 base points!"

[Game: 8000LP, Hand Cards 1→0]

[Hayato: 8000→11600LP, 0 cards in hand]

The massive [Hellfire Teara] disappeared behind Hayato with a look of reluctance and longing. As the game discarded his hand, Hayato's Life Points increased to a full 11600, enough to withstand three and a half attacks from the standard Duel Monster ATK unit [Blue-Eyes White Dragon].

As a result, Hayato only had two face-down cards left in his back row, and his hand and front row monsters were empty.

However, Yugi and Jonouchi knew that the more dangerous the situation, the more dangerous it was, because Hayato's graveyard was currently filled with a large number of cards due to the recent fusion with [Inferno Tyra]. The incredibly abundant graveyard was the source of power for the [Inferno] monsters.

With no monsters on the field causing the total Level to be 0, Hayato was free to squander the cards in his Graveyard to summon [Inferno Machine] monsters at will, and that's exactly what he was doing.

"I have already summoned a higher-level [Hellfire Machine] once before, so next up is another higher-level [Hellfire Machine]. Prepare to face what can be called the most evil being among demons!"

Hayato said, taking three [Inferno] monsters from the graveyard, "I will banish these three [Inferno] monsters from the graveyard—"

"Onuncu, meaning 10, is named the Whisperer."

"O evil demon, enemy of the 'Kingdom,' descend with the flames of annihilation!"

"【Hellfire Machine - Nava】!"

The green lights flickered and transformed into a red sea serpent soaring into the air behind Hayato. Although it was not as large as the [Hellfire Machine - Tiera] that Hayato had just released as usual, when it spread its six pairs of wings, it was enough to blot out the sky.

[Hellfire Machine - Nava] [10☆/Fire → 10☆/Dark]

[Demon/Special Summon/Effect]

[3000/3000]

"Hoo hoo hoo, don't blink! Yugi, Jonouchi, this monster will be the last one you ever see," Hayato said smugly. "As the tenth point of the Reverse Kabbalah, [Hellfire Machine Nava] possesses destructive power equal to [Hellfire Machine Lilith]!"

"When [Inferno Machine - Lava] is Special Summoned, destroy all monsters on the field except this card!"

"Since it's Nawa, then let's call this move 'Flaming Torch Melting Scales'!"

Hayato casually gave it a name that infringed on someone else's copyright. 【Hellfire Machine - Nawa】spit out a large amount of green flames, and in just an instant, the already scorched land of 【Dark World - Shadow Utopia】 was transformed into a purgatory-like sea of ​​fire.

Amidst the flames, the two Shadow Tokens and the Dragon Knight - Dark Magician Girl on the game field couldn't even last a second before being devoured by the emerald green flames that even the power of the Dark World - Shadow Detour could not erode or cover.

Before disappearing, [Dragon Knight - Dark Magician Girl] gave Yugi an apologetic look, clearly resentful that she could no longer protect Yugi.

"【Dark Magician Girl】!"

The game shouted, but all it got was an empty arena and the [Hellfire Machine - Nava] eyeing it menacingly.

"Heh heh heh, the moment has finally come, Game. Now all the obstacles in your way are completely cleared away. Are you ready to take this painful blow? Relax, it will hurt a lot at first, but it will hurt even more afterward!"

Hayato flashed a savage grin that even Malik would applaud, and declared without hesitation, "Entering the battle phase, I'm going to use [Hellfire Machine - Lava] to directly attack the opponent!"

"Thunderous Sunlight - Calamity Sound Starfall Fiery Hammer!"

With Hayato's shout, [Hellfire Machine - Nava] opened its massive maw once more, spewing emerald infernal flames at Yugi and Jonouchi!

"3000 attack power, that's the same level as the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, so strong, too strong."

"Unfortunately, I'm not ready to accept that level of attack, Hayato!" Even in the face of crisis, Yugi still smiled confidently and pressed the button on the Duel Disk to activate a face-down card. "My backup plan when [Dragon Knight - Dark Magician Girl] is destroyed is [Kuriboh] in my hand, but a fully prepared duelist always has a backup plan as a backup plan!"

"Activate the Trap Card, [Magic Cylinder]! Negate the attack of [Inferno Machine - Lava], then eat the attack of your own monster, Hayato!"

"What?!"

Jonouchi thought he was about to take a heavy hit, but unexpectedly, the face card from the back of the game came in handy at this moment. To his surprise, two cylinders appeared in front of them. One of them accurately caught the attack spat out by [Hellfire Machine - Nava], and then the same green flame was spat out from the other cylinder, heading straight for Hayato!

"Ooh!"

[Hayato: 11600→8600LP]

"Damn it, it's a [Magic Cylinder]! I never expected you to choose a card like that—"

Hayato, struck by the flames, wore a pained expression. He paused mid-sentence.

"—You think I'd say that? Let me help you remember again, Yugi!" Hayato said, pressing the button to activate a face-down card, revealing a Quick-Play Spell Card that had been face-down the previous turn and was now ready to be activated. "When dealing with me, whatever you do, don't use cards that negate attacks, like Absorption Shield or Spell Cylinder!"

"Quick-Play Spell Card [Double Chance] activated!"

Jonouchi and Yugi never expected to see Hayato using this card, which he often used in Duel Kingdom, again after so long.

Even after so much time has passed, the two of them still remember the effect of that card.

"When a monster's attack is negated, target that monster. That monster can only attack once more during this Battle Phase..."

"This effect doubles the monster's attack power during the damage step of its attack!"

"Hmph, that's right, that's exactly it. For me, a mere 3000 points of damage is nothing, not even as much as what I absorbed from [Hellfire Machine Tiera] before."

"But Yugi, Jonouchi, what you'll be facing next is—"

[Hellfire Machine - Lava] [ATK3000→6000]

"—A direct attack has struck again, and the damage has surged to 6000 points!"

The emerald green flames, which should have given people a sense of vitality, descended much more rapidly than before. However, at this moment, the flames engulfing Yugi and Jonouchi were nothing but deadly and vicious fire.

"Ugh!" "Cough!"

[Game: 8000 → 2000 LP]

The attack dealt a full 6000 points of damage. If it weren't for the fact that this was a two-person duel, Yugi and Jonouchi would have been instantly killed by this attack. Even though they still had 2000 points left in their base score, the powerful impact of the attack sent them flying and crashing into the wall behind them, leaving them unable to move for a while.

"Hoo hoo hoo, feel the pain, experience the pain, accept the pain, understand the pain! This is the power of the [Hellfire Machine] that I have obtained, and no one can defy it! Hmph, hehe, hahahahahaha!"

With an arrogant three-part laugh, the empty-handed Hayato declared, "My turn is over. Now it's Jonouchi's turn, isn't it?"

"But after taking 6000 points of combat damage from [Hellfire Machine - Nava], Jonouchi, who shares this base score with Yugi, can you really stand up and continue the duel without the protection of a power like the [Millennium Treasure]?"

[Hayato: 8600LP, 0 cards in hand]

[Hellfire Machine - Lava] [ATK6000→3000]

【GaiKa】

Location: [Dark World - Shadow Utopia]

At the end of Hayato's turn, because he had released [Hellfire Machine - Tiera] during this turn, a [Shadow Token] was formed on his field by dark green flames.

However, Yugi had no time to pay attention to the [Shadow Token] that had appeared on Hayato's field. He struggled to his feet, looked at Jonouchi lying not far from him, and called out, "Jonouchi! Jonouchi!"

He was very worried that Jonouchi would really fall down as Hayato had said.

At this moment, Jonouchi did indeed feel the soul-deep pain caused by the attack from the [Hellfire Machine], just as Hayato had said. However, it was slightly different from what he had initially thought. He had expected intense pain, but what he felt was more like being electrocuted when he took off his sweater to touch an iron gate in winter—it didn't hurt much at all.

(【Nawa】: It's just the master's task)

The game felt so intense because Hayato knew he was protected by dark power, so he used a little more force. Jonouchi should have been only slightly affected and should have woken up immediately. The reason Hayato said that was because he felt a familiar aura from Jonouchi at that moment.

That was an aura extremely similar to the power of the Eye of Timaeus that the game possesses.

Coincidentally, a similar aura also appeared on Kaiba, who was fighting Ameruda downstairs at that moment.

Such an aura came and went quickly. Kaiba, who was dueling with Ameruda, only paused for a moment before waking up, wondering if he had just hallucinated. Jonouchi also suddenly woke up from the ground, finding himself back in the duel he had just fought.

"Strange, what was that just now?" Jonouchi didn't notice that a card had silently entered the bottom of his deck, and he only stood up under Yugi's gratified gaze.

"Jonnori, are you alright?"

"Uh, I guess it's alright?" Jonouchi asked, somewhat confused by Yugi's question. But when he turned to look at Yugi, he was suddenly startled. "Hey Yugi, what's that on your shoulder?!"

"Ugh, why are there so many of them around Hayato and that Doma organization member? And there are way too many of them around Hayato!"

Jonouchi's words startled Rafera: "Jonnouchi Katsuya, you've actually awakened the ability to see the existence of Card Spirits?!"

"Hehe, interesting. This makes the duel even more fun." Hayato was surprised that Jonouchi had awakened the power of the Card Spirits, but it also felt reasonable. He was also curious about which monster Jonouchi would awaken first.

Is it the "Red-Eyed Black Dragon" that symbolizes his indomitable perseverance, or the "Time Magician" that represents his incredible gambling luck?

"Oh, so it's Card Spirits?" After a few words from the game, Jonouchi easily accepted the existence of Card Spirits. After all, he had been through a lot. "Although I still don't quite understand, it just means that Jonouchi-sama has become stronger, right?"

Feeling brimming with power, Jonouchi raised his head with high spirits and glanced at Hayato's [Inferno Machine - Nava] on the field: "Demons that stand between us and Hayato, let the even stronger Jonouchi defeat you incarnations of darkness!"

No, awakening cards and spirits don't make you stronger at all.

The game wanted to correct Jonouchi's chuunibyou (delusional) thoughts, but considering that it might affect Jonouchi's fighting spirit, it held back from saying it.

"My turn, draw a card." After glancing at the card he drew, Jonouchi realized it was the spell card [Pot of Greed] and immediately activated it.

"Activate the Spell Card [Pot of Greed], from ———"

"At this moment, I activate the effect of [Inferno Machine - Nava]." Hayato interrupted Jonouchi, saying, "Once per turn, when a Spell/Trap effect is activated, I can Tribute one monster on my field to negate that activation and banish it."

"Release [Shadow Token] to nullify and banish [Pot of Greed]!"

Before Chronos Pot could even show a smile, it shattered. Upon seeing this, Jonouchi said unhappily, "I guessed it. If the effect of [Hellfire Machine Lilith] is to destroy all Spell & Trap Cards and negate the effects of Monsters, then the effect of [Hellfire Machine Nava] is indeed to destroy all Monsters and negate the effects of Spell & Trap Cards."

"However, you've been tricked, Hayato. The card I drew in the first round is my attack strategy!"