Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

"Squeak~~~Bang!!!"

Just as Kyoko was about to speak, the last and largest firework of the evening's fireworks display was launched into the sky and exploded violently, almost filling the entire sky with its dazzling display and creating a tremendous sound. This attracted everyone's attention and drowned out Kyoko's words.

As the fireworks dissipated, Atum looked at Kyoko with a puzzled expression: "Hmm? Sorry, Kyoko, I didn't hear what you said just now. Could you repeat it?"

However, Kyoko had already struggled for a long time and exhausted all her courage to say what she felt just now. She simply couldn't muster enough courage to say it again. Her face flushed with embarrassment, she denied it in a flustered manner: "No, nothing. Forget about what just happened, Atum."

As she spoke, she quickly ran away from Atum and walked back.

However, although she was annoyed that her confession, which she had finally mustered the courage to do, was interrupted by the beautiful but untimely fireworks, at the same time, Kyoko felt a little relieved that Atum hadn't heard her confession.

Watching Kyoko's departing figure, Atum thought to himself, 'This is alright, Kyoko, this is all I need. I appreciate your kindness, but I'm sorry.'

'As a spirit of the past, I am unable to respond to your wishes, so this will be alright.'

And within the game "Millennium Puzzle," Atum's innermost thoughts were heard: 'Another me...'

Back in his hotel room, Hayato looked out the window and saw Atum standing alone on the rooftop, returning his body to the game and back into the Millennium Puzzle. He sighed.

Ultimately, Atum chose to return to the Underworld, following the same trajectory of fate that Hayato had known. It's not that there's anything wrong with this; after all, while Jonouchi, Hayato, and the others were Atum's friends and companions in the real world, Mana, Simon, and the others were also waiting for their Pharaoh Atum in the Underworld.

However, no matter how much he tried to understand, Hayato couldn't help but feel a little sad. After all, Atem's return to the Underworld meant that they in the real world would be forever separated from Atem and could never see him again. He had never heard of anyone from the Underworld returning to the real world.

Hmm? I don't think so, right?

Hayato suddenly remembered something. If he remembered correctly, a few years into the future, a pharaoh who had been dead for a long time came to the real world.

I think his name was something like "Abydos III." He was introduced as a member of the "Seven Stars" organization, who used the Dark Game to duel in order to steal the cards of the "Three Phantom Demons." However, despite his impressive title, he was actually just a complete novice. Because of this contrast, Hayato still had a certain impression of this character who only appeared once.

Without a doubt, that guy wasn't a lonely ghost from the past wandering in the real world like Atem before him. Instead, he was someone whose soul had indeed returned to the underworld but then came back to the real world from there. He even took a liking to the future Jaden Yuki after their duel and invited him to play cards together in the underworld after his death. You could say he was Kaiba from another perspective.

Although it's unclear how he manages to travel between the real world and the underworld, this undoubtedly opens up a new avenue for Hayato. Perhaps even if Atum returns to the underworld, if the way "Abydos III" came to the real world is replicable, Atum might be able to return from time to time to reunite with them.

This is not impossible. At least as far as Hayato knows, in the story of "The Dark Side of Dimensions," which is a sequel to the manga rather than the anime timeline, there is a case where Atum returns to the real world when the game is in dire straits.

On the other hand, Hayato also felt that even if Abydos III's method of coming to the real world was replicable, it wouldn't be easy. Otherwise, the real world would have been filled with those souls who lingered in reality long ago.

Rather than telling Atum now and being disappointed later, Hayato felt it was better to keep it a secret for a while, confirm that it was feasible, and then surprise the others.

As Hayato was thinking this, the door to the room, which wasn't closed, was suddenly pushed open, and a pale-faced Malik rushed in in a panic: "W-This is terrible, brother-in-law!"

"Sigh, the beacon fires on the city walls always seem to go out and then be lit again." With his hands behind his back, Hayato turned around and looked at Malik with a helpless expression. "And who is your brother-in-law?"

“Stop worrying about those unimportant titles, brother-in-law! This is a big problem, brother-in-law! I just remembered something, brother-in-law!” Malik paused, then said in alarm, “Do you remember that ‘Dark Bakura’ who took us to the Pharaoh’s Memory Tablet? He collected several Millennium Items, including my sister’s Millennium Jewelry.”

"I was playing a game and I was trying to romance an older sister character. It suddenly occurred to me that we haven't called her or asked how she is doing yet!"

Malik finished speaking, but he couldn't see even a trace of surprise on Hayato's face. Hayato calmly said without changing his expression, "Oh, you mean Isis? But I called her as soon as I came back from the memory world, didn't you?"

“Jashin-chan wasn’t lying; Isis is perfectly fine. However, she did tell me that if you keep forgetting about her, you’ll be the one in trouble.”

"Then why didn't you warn me, brother-in-law!" Malik could already imagine the miserable fate that awaited him when he returned to see Isis, and he cried out in despair:

"Oh no!"

Chapter 853 Was Jonouchi impersonated?

Although Atum told Hayato and the others about his decision under the fireworks last night, he wasn't really in such a hurry to leave immediately. At least until the end of their trip to Egypt, Atum would continue to stay in the real world.

As the night passed, the sun rose as usual. Because of Atum's words yesterday, he hadn't slept well. Even after washing up, Game was still a little sleepy when he came out of his room. He immediately saw Pegasus sitting in the common lounge area, elegantly enjoying something.

“Good morning, game boy. Looks like you didn’t sleep well last night?” Pegasus said gently, putting down his small cup. “Our journey will be a bit long today. You can rest on the bus.”

"Good morning, Pegasus-san."

Yugi greeted him with a smile. Because Pegasus put his cup on the table, Yugi could see that what was in his cup was not the black coffee that foreigners usually drink in the morning, but a cup of chocolate that looked very sweet. No wonder Yugi smelled chocolate as soon as he saw Pegasus. At first, he thought that he had not distinguished between coffee beans and cocoa beans.

"Compared to the bitter taste of coffee, I've always preferred the sweetness of chocolate cocoa. After all, I've never cared about the so-called 'adult bitterness'." Seemingly sensing Yugi's thoughts, Pegasus said with a smile, "So, would you like a cup, Yugi boy?"

Although the chocolate was indeed very fragrant, I still couldn't accept drinking something so sweet so early in the morning, especially since Pegasus actually used a fork to pick up a piece of cake full of cream to eat with the chocolate, making it even sweeter.

Waving his hand, Yugi declined Pegasus's offer, and then heard Hayato's voice: "Who can eat something so sweet so early in the morning, Pegasus? Your taste is really weird."

“That’s right, who in their right mind would drink hot chocolate with cream cake first thing in the morning?” Malik’s voice came in agreement.

Yugi nodded in agreement upon hearing their words, but upon looking over, he paused, then couldn't help but remark, "But Hayato, Malik, you two also..."

Holding a plate of curry, Malik picked up a spoon, scooped up a mouthful, and put it in his mouth. While eating the soft, mushy potatoes, he said with some confusion, "Hmm? What's wrong?"

“It’s weird that Pegasus eats dessert in the morning, but Malik, you’re not much better. Who eats curry first thing in the morning?” Hayato said, holding a bowl of noodles, taking a big slurp and speaking with a slightly slurred tongue.

"Brother-in-law, you're not much better off, are you?"

Although it was only for one night, the wealthy Bekas did not settle for a random hotel. Instead, he generously booked eight of the most luxurious suites in a local star-rated hotel in Luxor, providing one room for each of the eight people in the group.

Although they seem to have no travel plans and just go wherever they want, they still do some basic research. The hotel they are currently staying at is not only in the best location to watch the New Year's fireworks display, but also offers the most abundant breakfast options, which can satisfy the needs of most people.

However, before actually arriving here, Yugi never imagined that this hotel could even fulfill Malik's request for "vegan curry" and Hayato's request for "a pound of pork belly with the fat removed and finely chopped into a sauce for noodles".

They ordered a set meal of broad bean croquettes and a hamburger. Seeing Jonouchi and the others wake up and emerge from their rooms, they greeted them. However, after learning about the variety of food at the hotel, Jonouchi and the others ordered some dishes they wouldn't normally bother making because they were too much trouble.

For example, Jonouchi also got a curry and asked the other party to add a tonkatsu (fried pork cutlet).

As he was carrying the food back, Jonouchi suddenly heard someone mention his name:

"That person over there looks like Katsuya Jonouchi."

Although the speaker was using English, which neither Jonouchi nor Jonouchi recognized, Jonouchi could at least understand his own name, even if he couldn't understand the other words. He paused, looking towards the source of the voice that seemed to have recognized him.

The two girls, dressed in upper-class attire, were speaking to him. Being in the common lounge area of ​​this hotel's luxury suites meant they were unlikely to be some rich girls crowdfunding for wealth in online groups. They seemed oblivious to Jonouchi's gaze and continued talking to themselves: "Really? But I don't really think so?"

“Absolutely! Let me tell you, there’s a way to identify powerful duelists who are good at Duel Monsters: look at their hairstyles. The more skilled a Duel Monsters person is, the more outrageous their hairstyles will be.” After a pause, the blonde girl who spoke first said confidently, “Leaving aside others, I have Katsuya Jonouchi’s hairstyle etched into my DNA.”

"Don't try to etch all sorts of random things into your DNA. And I really don't understand why you admire that guy named Katsuya Jonouchi so much. Isn't he just a guy who relies solely on luck in duels?"

"You're not allowed to talk about Katsuya Jonouchi like that! Do you know how hard he's worked? Nobody knows better than me. Mr. Katsuya Jonouchi has been practicing hard for two and a half years to reach his current level in order to become a powerful duelist. You little black-hearted bastard!"

"Hmph, Lord Hayato will surely annihilate Jonouchi in an instant!"

"Instant hair!"

In just a few words, the two best friends, who were just best friends a moment ago, started arguing and verbally attacking each other for their favorite duelists.

Behind Jonouchi, Honda urged curiously, "What are you doing, Jonouchi? Don't stop and block the way."

"No, Honda, I just heard someone mention my name over there, and although I didn't quite understand, it seemed like they also mentioned Hayato's name." Jonouchi said, somewhat troubled. "I guess it's because I'm so famous that my fans recognized me."

"Uh, are those two ladies over there? It seems they did mention your name." Honda's English was much better than Jonouchi's, but it was still only mediocre. He could only manage a few sentences at most and couldn't translate. He could only understand that the two girls did mention Jonouchi's name repeatedly.

Turning back, Honda sized up Jonouchi, returning a questioning look to his smug expression: "But to say you actually have fans? Impossible! They didn't even glance at you when they were talking."

"Hmph, then let me prove it to you. Here you go."

He handed his curry to Honda and strode towards the two arguing girls, saying, "Excuse me, ladies, did you mention 'Jonnouchi Katsuya' just now?"

This sentence almost exhausted all of Jonouchi's English vocabulary. Although his pronunciation was very awkward, Jonouchi believed that when he showed his face, the two girls would definitely recognize him.

Hearing an unfamiliar voice, the two girls stopped arguing and looked at Jonouchi, who was speaking. However, under Jonouchi's expectant gaze, the blonde girl, who seemed to be a fan of Jonouchi, frowned: "Tsk, who are you? You're using the same hairstyle as Katsuya Jonouchi. Are you idolizing him?"

"It's useless. So what if you have the same hairstyle? Do you think you can become a duelist as good as Katsuya Jonouchi?"

"Huh?" Jonouchi was also taken aback upon hearing this, and from the girl's displeased expression, he half-listened and half-guessed that something was amiss.

They said something about "same hairstyle," but I am Katsuya Jonouchi! Is my identity being questioned? Something feels off. How can I prove that I am who I am?

"Exactly, exactly. Although I still think that Katsuya Jonouchi is just a folk expert, a second-rate duelist, not even a hair on Hayato's head, he's not someone you can scam, even if you look like a delinquent who didn't graduate from school and has poor grades."

The girl's best friend chimed in, tugging at the blonde girl as she spoke, "Especially since you actually showed up on the floor where the luxury suites of this hotel are located. Even a passerby like me knows that Katsuya Jonouchi is very poor. You should at least put some effort into it."

"Let's go, Hani. Let's go down there again and check to make sure that was Katsuya Jonouchi. Wasting time is better than running into someone trying to hit on us again."

The two girls left, and Honda came over carrying Jonouchi's curry and his own pancakes. Seeing Jonouchi lying on the ground looking dejected, he immediately came over to tease him: "Hahahaha, Jonouchi, nobody even recognized him! Are you trying to make me laugh to death so I can't get close to Shizuka..."

Honda's words came to an abrupt halt when he was about to be exposed, and Jonouchi, ignoring the fact that he had almost revealed his foot, said with an annoyed expression: "Damn it, I don't really understand what's wrong with those two guys. It's one thing if they didn't recognize me, but they're also so good at judging people."

"No, that's not right. I know now. It must be because they saw the imposter on the lower floors that they didn't recognize me. Even though I don't know who it was, it's unforgivable!"

After Pegasus suddenly sneezed in the distance, Jonouchi angrily walked towards the elevator, wanting to see which floor the two girls had gone to meet the person impersonating him. Meanwhile, Honda helplessly returned to Hayato and the others with the curry that Jonouchi no longer wanted, and told them about Jonouchi's whereabouts.

"Can I eat this?" After removing the tonkatsu, Malik took Jonouchi's curry and added some spicy miso. Hayato, who had just finished eating and was extremely excited about what Jonouchi had encountered, left the table, leaving Malik behind who said, "I'll have two servings." Pegasus, on the other hand, had not yet finished his cloyingly sweet cake, and the rest of the group had only just started eating.

Seeing that Hayato would go down with Jonouchi, the group, who had been worried that Jonouchi, who couldn't speak any of the local dialect, might cause trouble, immediately relaxed and enjoyed their breakfast in peace.

As for Hayato, since the luxury suite has a private elevator, he immediately noticed that the elevator was currently stopped on the first floor. He knew that the two girls that Jonouchi and Honda mentioned had most likely gone to the first floor, so he also took the elevator to the first floor and began looking for Jonouchi, who had arrived earlier.

However, before he could find Jonouchi, he overheard some hotel guests on the first floor mentioning his name.

"Hey, hurry up! If you miss out on seeing the legendary duelist because you're too slow, don't blame me."

"But I heard that person claimed he wasn't Katsuya Jonouchi? Is it true or not?"

"Of course! If you were a celebrity, would you want people to recognize you eating at a cheap hotel buffet? Of course it's true!"

Although the passersby were speaking Arabic, Hayato understood it easily and raised an eyebrow. There really was someone impersonating Jonouchi? Wait, judging from the conversation, the person who seemed to be Jonouchi didn't claim to be him. This is interesting; I must hurry and join the fun.

Without making a sound, Hayato blended in with the group of passersby who seemed to know exactly where they were looking for someone, and followed them into the hotel's first-floor buffet restaurant.

Upon entering the buffet restaurant, there was no need for the few passersby to lead the way. Hayato noticed at a glance the long table laden with food, surrounded by a large group of people.

"I've already told you I'm not that guy Jonouchi! Are you Egyptians face-blind? What do I look like about him?! Don't bother me while I'm getting my food! The buffet only lasts two hours!"

Despite his own emphasis, the people around him simply didn't believe him and continued to harass him.

Hayato was surprised by the coincidence that he knew the person who was mistaken for Jonouchi in the cafeteria. However, he didn't intend to appear in front of him because he noticed Jonouchi, who was also in the cafeteria, and realized that Jonouchi was also paying attention to them.

After searching almost the entire floor, he finally found the guy who was impersonating him, surrounded by many female fans, in the cafeteria. He was so envious... and infuriating. Jonouchi walked towards him angrily.

"I've finally found you, you imposter—wait, it's you?"

Halfway through his sentence, Jonouchi froze upon seeing the other person's face, while the other person, as if seeing a savior, hurriedly exclaimed, "Why are you just standing there watching, Jonouchi!"

While waving to Jonouchi, the man explained to the people around him again, "That blond guy over there is the Jonouchi Katsuya you're looking for. My name is Baron, remember it well!"

Chapter 854 A World Where Only Malik Is Wounded

"So that's why these Egyptians just can't understand human language," Baron said, scooping up a huge plate of Egyptian fried rice and showing it off with a bewildered expression.

"It's one thing for people with face blindness not to recognize each other, but I made it so clear to them that I'm not Jonouchi, but those deaf and blind guys just wouldn't listen."

"That's right, I can't figure out how you resemble me, Baron. Those people are really blind!" Sitting opposite Baron, Jonouchi said indignantly, very unhappy that he hadn't been recognized before and had been mistaken for someone impersonating him.

After glancing at Jonouchi and taking another bite of fried rice, Baron said with a puzzled look, "To be honest, the fact that you have so many enthusiastic fans is already surprising and hard for me to understand. Although I am also fascinated by your heroic figure during duels, I did not expect that the audience who have only watched your duels could also understand your charm."

Upon hearing Baron's words, Jonouchi, whose gaze was meeting Baron's, felt the undisguised fervor in his eyes and couldn't help but get goosebumps: "Don't say anything weird that's easy to misunderstand."