Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

"Special Summon this card from my hand! Come forth, the strongest spellcaster, and my most trusted servant!"

"【Guardian Priest - Mahad】!"

Chapter 992 I just threw away my deck!

"Come forth, [Guardian Priest - Mahad]!"

Unlike the dark aura of conventional magic, as Atum drew his card, a sacred, solemn, peaceful, and serene power of light surged from the card in his hand and radiated throughout the entire arena.

Before him, the Dark Magician, which had dissipated into golden particles when it left the stage, reappeared in the golden particles that seemed to rewind time. However, this time, what appeared was not so much the Dark Magician as Mahad himself, who had long been a spirit residing within the Dark Magician card.

That was Mahad's true form as he returned to the underworld with the soul of the pharaoh who had wandered the mortal world for three thousand years and regained his past power!

【Guardian Priest - Mahad】【7☆/Light】

[Mage Race/Effect]

[2500/2100]

"Such powerful strength! I feel an incomparably holy power emanating from him!" Sensing a completely new power she had never felt before, a novel power from another dimension—the Underworld—even Sera, who had been watching the entire battle, couldn't help but exclaim, "He can win! With this kind of power, he can definitely defeat Kobayashi Hayato... Wait, his attack power is only 2500 points?"

“When I draw the card [Guardian Priest - Mahad], I can show [Mahad] to my opponent and Special Summon [Mahad] from my hand.” Atum put down the card in his hand and glanced at Sera. “Although [Mahad]’s attack power is only 2500 points, which is equivalent to his [Dark Magician] era, it doesn’t mean that his power is only that.”

"As a priest who protects the Pharaoh, [Mahad] possesses a sacred power that represents protection rather than destruction, capable of dispelling evil and darkness. During the damage phase of battles against dark-attribute monsters, his attack power will be doubled."

"If it's doubled, that's 5000 points? That's the same level of attack power as the [Five Divine Dragons]. You've really made something of yourself, Priest Mahad."

Upon hearing the effect of [Guardian Priest - Mahad], Yugi looked at [Mahad] on the field with delight. "After using [Forbidden Drop], the effect of [Blood Demon - D] is nullified, allowing [Guardian Priest - Mahad] to fully unleash its powerful effect. At the same time, [Blood Demon - D], whose attack is halved, happens to be a DARK monster."

“【血魔-D】变为一半后的1450点攻击力对上翻倍后的【守护神官-马哈德】的5000点攻击力，将会一口气造成足足3550点伤害，恰好可以清空隼人之前因为【恶魔的宣告】的效果而支付了500点后剩余的3500点基本分！”

Hearing Yugi, Atem, and Sera loudly plotting, Hayato cast a dangerous glance at the Guardian Priest Mahad, who was kneeling respectfully on one knee in front of Atem, awaiting the attack command: "As the Duel King, my power is limitless. In the realm of Duel Monsters, I am a god!"

"The moment your monster is Special Summoned, the gaze of [Summoned Beast - Light Body] also falls upon you. Once per turn, if a monster is Special Summoned onto your opponent's field, target that monster and activate the effect of [Summoned Beast - Light Body] to destroy it!" Pointing at [Guardian Priest - Mahad], Hayato commanded, "How dare you use such a card against me, a god! Such dangerous cards that appear without permission should be discontinued!"

"Eight-point halo!"

"You didn't use this name when you applied this effect just now, did you?!"

Amid Atum's complaints, [Summoned Beast - Light Body] changed the way its effect was displayed. Although it was still a gesture of raising its hand, this time it released not a laser, but a ball of light that was twisted and compressed into the shape of a chainsaw blade, which attacked [Guardian Priest - Mahad].

"Tsk, although he has gained great power, perhaps because of his past experiences, Mahad still hasn't gained any strong resistance. If I use the effect of [Summoned Beast - Light Body], Mahad will indeed be destroyed and unable to help me defeat you."

Seeing the incoming ball of light, Atum said this, but he wasn't nervous at all. He took out a card from the graveyard, "However, there was someone who, after Mahad and I left this world, spent his entire life training to prevent such a thing from happening again. Let Hayato see your power, Mana!"

"Oh, leave it to me, Prince!" Shouting her own unique title for Atum, Mana, who had appeared earlier, jumped out from the card Atum had played. With a wave of her wand, she instantly erected a barrier in front of her, her skill level incomparable to that of [Dark Magician Girl].

The destructive light wheel crashed into the magic barrier, but it was instantly absorbed as if it had vanished into thin air, failing to cause even the slightest ripple.

"When was that card—" Hayato frowned as he looked at [Guardian Priest-Mana] who had landed next to [Guardian Priest-Mahad], "The previous 'Machine Knight Heavenly Sweep'?"

【Guardian Priestess - Mana】【6☆/Light】

[Mage Race/Effect]

[2000/1700]

"You can activate her effect when [Guardian Priestess Mana] is in my hand or Graveyard and her effect is activated, targeting only one Spellcaster monster on my field. Special Summon her to my field."

Atem explained the effect of [Mana], "At the same time, as long as [Mana] is in my Monster Zone, all Spellcaster monsters of Level 7 or higher on my field will not be destroyed by effect damage."

Following Atem, Yugi continued, "We already anticipated that [Summoned Beast - Light] would activate its effect and destroy cards when we Special Summon a powerful monster that could threaten you, Hayato. However, [Mana]'s effect, which exists to protect, is the biggest counter to your [Summoned Beast - Light]. We successfully tricked you into using your only destruction effect!"

"That's why, even though I had a lot of cards to use and could have included [Summoned Beast - Light Body] in the effect of [Forbidden Drop] to halve its attack power and nullify its effect, I ultimately chose to use this power only on [Blood Demon - D]."

Looking at Hayato's face-down card in the back row, Yugi played a card and said, "Hayato, the face-down card in your back row, because of the presence of [Nightmare Mirage], is probably another [Extraordinary Food] set up as a bluff, right? In other words, if you were to activate that card, you could at most send [Demon's Declaration] and [Nightmare Mirage] to the graveyard and recover 2000 life points in one go."

"In that case, let's further enhance [Mahad]! The Quick-Play Spell Card [Dark Magician Enhancement] gains enhancements based on the number of [Dark Magician] and [Dark Magician Girl] cards on either player's field or in their Graveyard. I have two [Dark Magician] cards in my Graveyard, and although [Blood Demon - D] on your field turned [Dark Magician Girl] into an Equip Card, it will still be counted."

Atem said, "If there are three or more monsters, until the end of the turn, I can select one Spellcaster monster on the field, increase its ATK by 1000, and at the same time, I cannot activate the effects of my opponent's Spell/Trap monsters in response to the activation of my Spell/Trap Card effects. My Spell/Trap Cards on the field will not be destroyed by my opponent's effects, and my Spellcaster DARK monsters on the field will not be affected by my opponent's effects!"

"Increase the attack power of [Guardian Priest - Mahad] by 1000 points. With this effect doubled, its attack power will reach 7000 points. Even if you use the power of [Extraordinary Food], you will not be able to recover enough points to maintain the basic score of the duel in one go!"

[Guardian Priest - Mahad] [ATK2500→3500]

With four cards remaining in his hand, Atum waved his hand and said, "Although I also cherish the time I spent with you all in the real world, it's time to bring this duel to a close, Hayato. Enter the battle phase!"

"Use [Guardian Priest - Mahad] to attack your [Blood Demon - D]!"

On one side, Atem declared his intention to attack and defeat Hayato this turn, while on the other side, Yugi prepared to use a quick-play spell card called "Whirlwind".

This card can precisely destroy a designated Spell/Trap Card. Logically, it should be used to prioritize destroying Hayato's mysterious face-down card in the back row, which is what a cautious duelist should do. However, Atem's personality has always been such that he knowingly steps into a trap and then defeats it fair and square with righteous means.

This was especially true after deducing that there was a greater than 99% chance that Hayato's card was [Extraordinary Food]. Atum revealed his trump card to Hayato before the attack, showing no fear of any unexpected events.

What was the surprise? Just like the unbreakable bond between Atum and Mahad, Yugi is willing to guarantee that Hayato definitely has [Rainbow Kuriboh] in his hand right now. Even if it wasn't because of [Treasure from Heaven] that he got it, the effect of [Nightmare Mirage] must have already sent it to Hayato's hand.

The Rainbow Kuriboh, which has a similar protective effect to Kuriboh, manifests its protective power as an equipment card that appears on the attacking monster, preventing it from attacking and thus stopping the battle.

However, Yugi's "Whirlwind" can counter the effect of "Rainbow Kuriboh". By using "Whirlwind" to destroy "Rainbow Kuriboh" the moment it appears as an equipment card, and simultaneously using "Dark Magician's Enhancement" to prevent the opponent from chaining Spell/Trap Cards to activate Spell/Trap/Monster effects, Yugi will fill the gap in Atem's offense!

"We've got this in the bag!" X2

Although their thoughts were completely different, Atum and the game shouted at the same time.

Meanwhile, [Guardian Priest - Mahad] raised his staff to absorb the magic power left on both sides by [Dark Magician] and [Dark Magician Girl]. The instant a light shone at the tip of his staff, he suddenly pulled it out and shouted, "Jackpot!"

In an instant, the magic power amplified by [Dark Magician Enhancement] split into three beams, attacking [D-hero Blood Demon-D], who was in a weakened state on the field. It transformed into three magic power gathering points around him, which suddenly expanded and were about to tear open a spatial rift to destroy [Blood Demon-D], who had just bullied [Dark Magician Girl] and attacked [Dark Magician].

As expected, seeing [Guardian Priest - Mahad] launch an attack, Hayato drew a card and said, "When the opponent's monster attacks, I activate the effect of [Rainbow Kuriboh] in my hand, equipping it to the attacking monster—[Guardian Priest - Mahad]—preventing it from attacking—"

"But the effect of the chain [Rainbow Kuriboh] allows me to activate the Quick-Play Spell Card [Whirlwind] from my hand, destroying [Rainbow Kuriboh] which is an Equip Card!" I draw [Whirlwind] and activate it. Before the [Rainbow Kuriboh] descends with its seven-colored light curtain, Yugi destroys it in advance, thus nullifying Hayato's move.

“Well done, Aibo!” Atum smiled and said confidently, “And because of the effect of [Dark Magic Enhancement], at the moment of this attack declaration, Hayato, you can no longer chain [Whirlwind] to activate other spell, trap, or monster effects. You can only watch helplessly as [Guardian Priest - Mahad]'s attack lands!”

Hayato's eyes widened as he watched his Rainbow Kuriboh be torn apart by the whirlwind unleashed by the game, while Atem commanded Guardian Priest Mahad to attack D-hero Blood Demon D.

[Guardian Priest - Mahad] [ATK3500→7000]

"boom!"

An explosion occurred at the location of [Blood Demon-D], seemingly because [Guardian Priest-Mahad]'s attack power surged in an instant, exceeding the limit of the energy he could control. The strong wind almost spun the game's hair into a mess, and remembering the so-called "no harm from smoke" rule, he looked nervously at the location of [Blood Demon-D]: "Could it be?!"

“No, look at your feet, Aibo.” Atum, who was one with the game, instantly understood the unspoken second half of the game’s sentence and replied, pointing to the blood pool at his feet, which had dried up before and was now disappearing even with the last traces. “Mahad’s attack just now did destroy Blood Demon-D.”

"but--"

"However, as a Kami, I am not so easily defeated by you!" Hayato's voice rang out. In front of him, amidst the smoke and dust, was a semi-transparent energy shield with illusory cards attached to it. "It's just that you can't activate the cards when declaring an attack. I just used this card!"

“Trap Card [Power Wall]: This card can only be activated when an opponent’s monster’s attack is used to calculate battle damage that I would otherwise suffer. It reduces that battle damage to 0.” Hayato said, pulling a thick stack of cards from his deck. “As a trade-off, each card can negate 500 points of damage. Send the card from the top of my deck to the graveyard.”

"The 1450-point attack power of the [Blood Demon-D] caused me to suffer 5550 points of battle damage at that moment, and twelve cards need to be sent to the graveyard."

"I'm just throwing away my deck!"

Chapter 993 The Magic of Harmony

"I'm just throwing my deck around!"

He grabbed a stack of cards and threw them out. The [Power Wall] blocked all the combat damage that should have landed on Hayato, protecting his base score from even the slightest damage.

However, [D-hero Blood Demon-D], who was in front of Hayato and just outside the protection range of [Power Wall], did not receive such treatment. Having already been weakened by [Forbidden Drop], he was unable to resist the magic of [Guardian Priest-Mahad], which suddenly unleashed powerful energy during his battle with the dark attribute user. He was instantly destroyed and sent to the graveyard.

Atem and Yugi just saw the dried-up blood pool on the ground completely disappear because [Blood Demon-D] had been destroyed and left the field. However, the departure of [Blood Demon-D] could not release [Dark Magician Girl], which had been turned into an Equip Card, back to Yugi's field. Instead, it was sent to the Graveyard.

Upon seeing that Hayato's face-down card wasn't the expected "Unusual Food" but rather "Power Wall," Atem exclaimed in surprise, "The face-down card wasn't 'Unusual Food,' which means that when you activated 'Nightmare Mirage' just now, Hayato, you didn't actually have any way to avoid the risk? You were willing to risk discarding four cards in your next turn just to activate 'Nightmare Mirage'?!"

"Hmph, that's how it is. Because Atem, you're sure you can draw that 'Heavenly Treasure' from your deck, right? I'm absolutely certain of that." Hayato calmly sent the 'Power Wall' card to the graveyard, saying, "Although I'll draw fewer cards because of this, it will also successfully mislead you into thinking that my backrow face-down card is 'Extra Eater.' When it comes to strategy, you can't beat me, Kobayashi Hayato!"

"And because it was sent to the graveyard by the effect of [Power Wall], some card effects will be activated."

As Hayato snapped his fingers, the shadow beneath his feet suddenly expanded, spreading across his field as if it were alive, and several dark phantoms rose from the shadow.

"Among the cards sent to the graveyard, the effects of [Shaddoll Hound] are: target one monster on the field and change its battle position; the effect of [Shaddoll Beast] is: I draw one card from my Deck; the effect of [Shaddoll Wing - Venti] is: Special Summon one other [Shaddoll] monster from my Deck in face-down Defense Position; and the effect of [Shaddoll Hedgehog] is: add one other [Shaddoll] monster from my Deck to my hand."

With the effects of four monster cards activating simultaneously, Hayato arranged the chain reaction sequence according to his own will and began to reverse the process.

After searching his deck for a card and adding it to his hand, Hayato also placed a monster card face down on the field. Then, after drawing a card from the top of his deck, he flipped the monster that he had just Special Summoned in face-down Defense Position onto the field.

What appeared was the [Shadowdress], which Hayato had used in his previous duel with Ayami. It was once a warrior named [Starman - Tenshi Uekichi], but has now mutated into a beast crawling on the ground.

【Shadowdoll Lizard】【4☆/Dark】

[Mage Race/Reverse/Effect]

[1800/1000]

"When a monster's battle position is changed by the effect of [Shaddoll Hound], the effects of Flip monsters other than [Shaddoll] will not activate, but [Shaddoll Lizard] will not be affected. Although its ATK is only 1800, which is less than [Guardian Priest - Mana], it has the effect of targeting and destroying one monster on the field when flipped!"

Upon hearing Hayato's words, Atem said, "Because of the effect of [Guardian Priest - Mana], all my level 7 or higher Spellcaster monsters on the field will not be destroyed by effects."

“Of course I know that, but I never said I would use an effect to destroy your [Guardian Priest-Mahad]. He has already attacked and is no longer a threat to me.” Hayato pointed to [Guardian Priest-Mana], who was tilting her head. “Although [Guardian Priest-Mana] is protecting [Guardian Priest-Mahad], her own level is only 6☆ and she is not within the protection range of her own effect.”

"To protect others, you erected an absolutely unbreakable barrier, leaving yourself alone on the outside of the shield? In that case, just destroy it, [Guardian Priest - Mana]!"

"It's because you're always targeting me that I can't stand you!" Mana said, extremely annoyed, upon hearing that Hayato had chosen her as the target of his destruction. She then turned to Atum and Mahad and started to whine, "You two should also express your opinion, Prince and Master!"

“Well, that’s just Hayato’s style. I’m used to it, Mana.” Atum shrugged and said helplessly, while Mahad looked at Mana calmly. “Besides, you’re not afraid of being destroyed, are you, Mana?”

"Ugh! How could you say something like that? Help me, Master!"

"Mana? (Without concern)"

Despite it being a serious occasion disrupted by an effect, [Guardian Priestess Mana] was knocked out of the field by the dark energy spewed out by [Shadowdow Lizard] while playing around. Neither Atem nor Mahad reacted much, because in the next moment, a purple Kuriboh suddenly flew out from the ground where [Guardian Priestess Mana] had just been, dragging [Dark Magician Girl], who had changed her clothes, onto the field.

"Hehehe, Mana-chan's a great victory! You didn't expect that, did you? I can come back again!"

After waving goodbye to the exhausted and vanished [Anka Kuriboh], Mana reappeared as the [Dark Magician Girl], hands on her hips, arrogantly declaring, "I am immortal, hohohoho~"

Looking at the energetic Mana, Atem shook his head helplessly and looked at Hayato, saying, "Hayato, you used the effect of [Shadowdow Lizard] earlier, which exploited the loophole in the effect of [Guardian Priest - Mana] and destroyed it. This did prevent me from continuing to use her to attack your [Summon - Light] on the field and destroy it together with it. It also prevented my subsequent attacks."

"If [Guardian Priestess - Mana] is destroyed by battle or card effect, its third effect can be activated, allowing you to Special Summon one [Dark Magician Girl] from my Graveyard, hand, or Deck."

After a pause, Atum continued, "At the same time, because there are two Dark Mages in my graveyard, Dark Magician Girl will inherit her teacher's magic power and gain 600 attack power. Furthermore, the effect of Dark Magician Enhancement will apply to her, making her immune to the effects of the opponent until the end of the turn."

As Atem spoke, Hayato saw that the Dark Magician Girl on his field was raising her wand to absorb the remaining magic power on the field. The powerful magic power turned into air currents that swirled around the Dark Magician Girl.

"Ohhhhhh! Swallow the magic, and the power will surge!"

Dark Magician Girl: ATK 2000 → 2600

Unbeknownst to them, the girl who had been guided and protected by her teacher had grown into an outstanding mage, even possessing power greater than her teacher's. Atum looked at [Dark Magician Girl] with satisfaction, then turned his gaze to Hayato and said, "Then, let's continue the battle phase, Hayato. I'll use [Dark Magician Girl] to attack your [Shadowdow Lizard]!"

"Not only is its attack power lower than [Summoned Beast - Light], but if I remember correctly, the [Shaddoll] monster's ability is that you can only activate one of its flip effect or its effect when sent to the Graveyard in a single turn, right? In that case, now that your [Shaddoll Lizard] has already activated its flip effect, this is the perfect time to destroy it!"