Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

I remember after Hayato it was my turn, and Jonouchi's face looked like he was wearing a mask of pain. I don't want to see Mimi anymore, guwa! I don't want to see her!

"Don't worry, Jonouchi, I'm not summoning Xiaomi." Hayato said this to reassure Jonouchi, but he couldn't stop smiling. "Even if I were to fuse and summon Xiaomi, I would do it during your turn. Why would I summon it during my turn to restrict myself? Although I only brought Mello as a lower-level monster in Pearl Tears, Pearl Tears also has its own Fusion Monsters."

"In the mournful elegy, clear, lingering tears transform into pearls, and the pulsating strings create ripples on the water. Push open the closed gates of the world's destruction! Rank 5☆, proclaim to the world why Fusion Summoning is the noblest form of summoning!"

"Descend, O Vagatamashi!"

"【The Lament of the Pearl-Tear Clan - The Narcissus Mermaid】!"

A song similar to the one that had played when Melo appeared before began, but this time the song was much clearer, causing a strange, faint sadness to well up in the hearts of the other three who heard it. A wave surged from the cards on Hayato's field, and a mermaid songstress wielding a colorful longsword appeared in the tide.

The Nanjing lock hanging on her chest swayed with the mermaid's movements, and her long, silvery-white hair with a hint of blue seemed to float in the water, revealing her pink ears that resembled fish fins.

【Tears of Elegy Clan - Narcissus Mermaid】【5☆/Dark】

[Aquarium/Fusion/Effect]

[2300/1200]

"Although the words you shouted when you summoned it sounded intimidating, that monster just looks like an ordinary mermaid, doesn't it?" With his arms crossed, the seahorse looked disdainful. "I thought it would at least be a Kraken or a sea monster based on a giant squid."

"Those monster tears do exist, but I didn't bring any. Besides, the Water Fairy is quite strong, you know."

Similar to Hayato's pose with one hand on his hip, [Tearful Song Clan - Narcissus Mermaid] nodded affirmatively: "I am just a mermaid, I don't have the weak power of other monsters."

"Right, Melo?" As she spoke, [Tears of Elegy Clan - Narcissus Mermaid] glanced at Melo beside her, then frowned in surprise. "Huh? Strange, where are the others? There's no scent of them in the cemetery."

"Reporting to Sister Narcissus, I have no idea!" Melo said matter-of-factly.

"I see, I understand now!" The water fairy had a look of sudden realization. "It must be that Master has figured things out and decided to give up all the other women to be with me, so he gave up all the other cards, including the Little Mermaid and the others, and plans to be with me forever... Ouch, that hurts!"

"You seem more like someone who wields a katana than a short sword. Why are you so clumsy? And what about Melo? You've forgotten about Melo, who's a grown woman?" Hayato tapped the [Tears of Elegy Clan - Narcissus Mermaid] card and opened his palm. "Your time for overthinking is over. Give me the card first."

"If you want it, then... umm, don't hit my head, don't hit my head, you'll go crazy." The water fairy rubbed her head with one hand, and with the other hand she quickly waved her short sword, controlling a wave to surge into Hayato's hand, turning it into a card.

"If 【Tears of Elegy - Narcissus Mermaid】is Special Summoned, her first effect can be activated: Choose one 【Tears of Elegy】card from my Deck to add to my hand or send to the Graveyard. I choose to add this 【Claw Sound of Eternal Rubbing】to my hand."

Hayato, who had just received the card, explained that he had let the Narcissus mermaid go. He watched as she hid behind Melo, but he didn't pay her any more attention. Instead, he added the card to his hand and shook off the water that hadn't actually gotten on his hands.

Since [Tears of Elegy - Mermaid of the Pearl Clan] has already used both of her effects this turn, Hayato naturally won't specifically search for her in his deck to add to his hand. Instead, he chooses to add the Normal Trap Card [Claw Sound of Eternal Friction], which also has the [Tears of Elegy] clan signature, to his hand.

—Although the Chinese characters in the card name are 【壹世坏】, the phonetic annotation on it is 【珠泪哀歌】. Therefore, the card 【壹世坏擦擦的爪音】, which does not seem to have the 【珠泪哀歌】 field, is also a 【珠泪哀歌】 card and falls within the search range of 【珠泪哀歌族·水仙女人鱼】.

Trap cards need to be set for one turn before they can be used. Hayato, who added this card to his hand, didn't intend to play it anyway. Instead, he glanced at the three cards remaining in his hand and casually said, "The 'Tearful Song Tribe Narcissus Mermaid' that was Special Summoned by 'Easy Fusion' can activate its effects at will, but it can't participate in attacks and will self-destruct at the end of the turn. I need to find a way to squeeze out as much of its remaining value as possible before the end of the turn."

"Mmm, squeeze mine, squeeze mine!" Upon hearing Hayato's words, the narcissus mermaid showed no nervousness whatsoever; on the contrary, she seemed quite expectant.

In Hayato's card box, the [Disruption Yellow] card, which had been brought into the virtual world but not added to his deck, peeked out in surprise upon hearing the Narcissus Mermaid's words and commented in an old-fashioned manner: "I've never heard of such a shameless request in my life. Does anyone actually like going to the graveyard that much?"

“Just kidding, going back to the graveyard is like going home, at least it’s much better than banishing.” Beside it, Alai sighed, “Usually I’m always fused with [Shadowmon] and the like, or with the reptiles from [Netherworld]. It’s rare to have a female monster to partner with, but they kicked me out of the deck again and won’t let me attach to it.”

"Judging from the cards Master just retrieved, the next one should be the fusion of that monster and that mermaid lady, right? However, it seems Master doesn't have any [Fusion] cards in his hand yet?"

Chapter 1272 Doesn't a bitter choice mean making the other side feel bitter?

Watching Aleister and [Disruption Yellow] interact, none of the three of them, who could see the spirits, spoke. Instead, they took the opportunity to memorize the information leaked from Hayato's card spirit [Summoner-Aleister] and looked at the three cards in Hayato's hand.

Hayato currently has three cards: one is the Tearful Souls Trap Card he previously added to his hand, another is the "Death Village" monster which can be used as Fusion Material for a certain monster, and the last card, if it's not a Fusion Spell Card, means he probably won't be performing a Fusion Summon. After all, without Fusion, even Hayato probably can't perform another Fusion Summon, right?

However, recalling the two Fusion Monsters on Hayato's field at that moment, Yugi and the others realized that Hayato hadn't used a Fusion Spell Card when either [Hungry Poison Fusion Dragon] or [Tearful Song-Type Narcissus Mermaid] appeared, which made them a little uncertain again.

Fusion Summoning is a rather card-inefficient summoning method. Hayato already has two Fusion Monsters on the field and still has three cards in his hand, which is already quite good. If he were to continue with Fusion Summoning, it would be a bit impolite.

However, having only three cards now does not mean there will only be three cards later. Hayato played a card and took out five cards from his deck in one go, saying, "I activate the Normal Spell Card [Bitter Choice]. I select five cards from my deck for my opponent to see. Then, my opponent chooses one card from these cards and adds it to my hand, while the rest are discarded to the graveyard."

"Ugh, having to choose cards is such a bitter pill to swallow." As he spoke, Hayato showed the other three the cards he had selected from his deck.

[Shaddoll Lizard] [Shaddoll Primal Core] [Shaddoll Wing - Wendy] [Shaddoll Fusion] [Shaddoll Flame Core - Dream Prison]

Hayato's display of the cards made Kaiba's face darken, and Jonouchi directly retorted, "Where was the bitterness in your choice of cards? It's clearly us who are more bitter, isn't it?"

"The first four Shaddoll cards, Shaddoll Lizard can be combined with Shaddoll Hound and Shaddoll Wing Wendy, and Shaddoll Core can be recycled from Shaddoll Fusion. They can all be combined to form a combo to utilize resources. The last one, Shaddoll Flame Core - Dream Prison, is a card that can fill the graveyard with a large number of monsters based on the type of monster on the field."

Yugi was familiar with Hayato's card effects and figured out the trick behind Hayato's "Bitter Choice" card. However, understanding the situation didn't mean he knew how to counter it. He said helplessly, "It's not easy to choose either card."

"Actually, you don't need to worry about the game. Although you'll all see the [Bitter Choice] card during the demonstration, only one person can decide which card I add to my hand." Hayato pointed ahead and looked at Kaiba, saying, "You decide, Seth."

"Hmm? You didn't choose 'Game' or 'Mediocre,' but instead designated me to choose?" Kaiba raised an eyebrow in surprise, then revealed a fiercely competitive smile. "Just as I see you as an opponent I must surpass, you also believe I'm the only one who could possibly become your opponent—"

"That's enough for now. I'm just worried that if Jonouchi were to come, he could just randomly pick the best option by 'selecting his troops and generals' and then 'which one to choose?' On the other hand, Seth, you would only choose the optimal solution at least for this moment, right?"

Upon hearing Hayato's words, Kaiba's smile vanished instantly, and he coldly snorted, "Hmph, to use such a boring excuse to compare me to mediocrity? Then I'll choose the Shaddoll Core."

Even if Hayato gets Shaddoll Core, a continuous trap card, he can't play it for a while. More importantly, Shaddoll Fusion, which forms a combo with it, won't be returned to Hayato's hand unless Shaddoll Core is sent to the graveyard by an effect and its second effect is triggered.

The other three cards only allow for a combo that involves Special Summoning a Shaddoll monster on the field, flipping it face-up, and then dumping it into the Graveyard. This is more acceptable to Kaiba than Shaddoll Fusion reaching Hayato's hand, because he remembers that Shaddoll Fusion's effect was a cheat-level Fusion Spell Card that allowed him to use monsters from his Deck as materials when his opponent had a Fusion Special Summoned monster on their field.

Yugi nodded, having no objection to Kaiba's choice and also agreeing that [Shaddoll's Protocore] was the optimal solution. However, Jonouchi scratched his head, looking somewhat troubled, and said, "They actually chose [Shaddoll's Protocore], and even Yugi didn't object? But why do I feel that [Shaddoll Flame Core - Dream Prison] is the most dangerous?"

"Hmph, as expected of Jonouchi, your intuition is as sharp as ever." After Kaiba made his choice, Hayato reached out and retrieved [Shaddoll Core] from the five cards floating in front of him, adding it to his hand. He watched as the other cards shattered and went to the graveyard. "In fact, the truth is that [Shaddoll Flame Core - Dream Prison] is the most dangerous card among the five I chose."

"If you ask why, it's because Fire is the primary attribute of Duel Monsters!"

(R-Ace, Teostra Eyes, Heaven's Grail, and others give you a thumbs up)

As the four cards entered the graveyard together, the Chain Lights once again shone in Hayato's Duel Disk, just like when [Tears of Elegy - Mermaid of the Pearl Tribe] was summoned, and it was a triple Chain right from the start.

"If a card is sent to the graveyard by an effect, the effects of [Shaddoll Lizard], [Shadowwing Wendy], and [Shaddoll Firecore - Dream Prison] can all be activated. And I don't think even Yugi would include two [Royal Command] cards in his deck and set them both at the same time, right?"

Seeing Yugi shake his head with a wry smile, Hayato continued, "Then let's set up a chain: C1 [Shaddoll Flame Core - Dream Prison] C2 [Shaddoll Lizard] C3 [Shaddoll Wing - Wendy]. First, the effect of [Shaddoll Wing - Wendy]: Special Summon one [Shaddoll] monster from my Deck, except for the one in the chain, in face-down Defense Position."

"I summon [Shadowdome] in the back-side defense position."

Hayato placed a card face down on the Duel Disk and waved his hand again. "Next is the effect of [Shaddoll Lizard]. Send one [Shaddoll] card other than [Shaddoll Lizard] from my Deck to the Graveyard. I choose [Shaddoll Hound]."

"Finally, there's the effect of [Shadowbringer - Dream Prison]. Based on the original attribute of the monsters on the field, I send two cards from the top of my deck to the graveyard. Right now, there are two attributes on the field: LIGHT and DARK. I send two cards from the top of my deck to the graveyard."

Seeing that Hayato did nothing but pile up graveyards and pile up more graveyards during this turn, Yugi had a look of sudden realization: "I see, I think I understand why Hayato thinks his deck is strong enough to be called 2.0."

"For ordinary duelists, the resources in the graveyard are not unusable, but there is always some loss. It can only be considered a supplementary means to slightly enhance strength. However, Hayato is different. What he is better at than others is the use of the graveyard. And the combination of [Tears of Elegy] with other cards such as [Shadowdome] has the ability to quickly pile a large number of cards into the graveyard, even half of the deck. If all goes well, it is not impossible to pile the entire deck into the graveyard in one go."

"Then, for Hayato, who could use the graveyard almost as flexibly as his hand, it was like dueling with an entire deck!"

"Although it sounds like you're praising Tear's power, why do I always feel like you're targeting me? Some monsters just like going to graveyards, what can I do?" Hayato said helplessly, shrugging.

[Disruption·Huang], unwilling to be left out, poked her head out: "I have a problem with that!"

"Who asked you?" Hayato snapped his fingers, shoving the annoying minions back down. "Now that you know how my deck works, you should have anticipated what's coming next, right? That's right, the effects of the Shaddoll Hound sent to the graveyard by Shaddoll Lizard, and the other Shaddoll Primal Core sent to the graveyard by Shaddoll Firecore - Dream Prison, activate!"

"C1 [Shaddoll Hound] C2 [Shaddoll Core], If [Shaddoll Core] is sent to the Graveyard by an effect, add one [Shaddoll] Spell/Trap Card other than [Shaddoll Core] from my Graveyard to my hand. I chose [Shaddoll Fusion]. Then, the effect of [Shaddoll Hound] is to change the battle position of one monster on the field and prevent the effects of Flip Monsters other than [Shaddoll] monsters from activating."

Instead of changing the face-down Defense Position of Jonouchi's monsters or the positions of the gadgets on the field, Hayato chose his face-down Defense Position Shadowdome. "I will change the position of my face-down Defense Position Shadowdome to face-up Attack Position and trigger its Flip effect!"

[Shadowdow Beast] [Face-down Defense Position → ATK 2200]

"Draw two cards from my deck and discard one card from my hand."

After a cycle of using the "Bitter Choice" card to fill the graveyard, Hayato's hand had grown to a full five cards. And among these five cards, there was one Fusion Spell Card that the other three least wanted to see: "Shaddoll Fusion."

Under the wary gazes of the others, Hayato drew [Shaddoll Fusion] and inserted it into his Spell & Trap Zone: "Spell Card [Shaddoll Fusion] activated! Although this card is limited to Fusion Summoning of [Shaddoll] Fusion Monsters, if your opponent controls a monster Special Summoned from their Fusion Deck, you can also use monsters from your Deck as Fusion Material!"

"The required materials are a Shaddoll monster and a DARK monster. I will use the DARK monster 'Tearful Lament' (Narcissus Mermaid) on my field and 'Divine Shadow - Merchant's Staff Spirit' from my deck as Fusion Materials to perform a Fusion Summon!"

Because [Tears of Elegy - Narcissus Mermaid] was Special Summoned by [Easy Fusion], Hayato had no intention of keeping it on the field. He ruthlessly sent the Narcissus Mermaid, who was resisting leaving him, to the Graveyard as Fusion Material along with [Divine Shadow - Merchant's Staff Spirit] from his deck for Fusion Summoning.

Unexpectedly, Hayato didn't actually use the fusion of monsters from his hand as Aleister claimed. The group instinctively looked at Aleister, who had provided the false information, only to find that he had already run back into Hayato's deck, leaving behind a sly smile, as if to say: 'Ah, you guys actually believed that.'

"Souls wandering between life and death, release the resentment that has settled in the abyss of darkness upon this land! Crowned with the name of 'God' in the sense of 'interpretation,' let the locked-up despair descend here!"

"Fusion Summon! Wagatsumashi—"

"【Shadowy Midrash】!"

Hearing that Hayato had switched to Tamashii so quickly, the Narcissus, who was forced to leave no matter how much she dawdled, became even more displeased. In her resentment, the green-haired priestess appeared on Hayato's field riding a phantom dragon with a black and purple body, causing Jonouchi to subconsciously suffer from PTSD.

"I knew it, it'll be Xiaomi in the end!"

【Shadowd Midrash】【5☆/Dark】

[Mage Race/Fusion/Effect]

[2200/800]

After summoning Xiaomi through fusion, Hayato looked at Jonouchi, who looked frustrated, and said with a smile, "Think about it from another angle, Jonouchi. Wouldn't it feel much better if you knew from the beginning that you could only Special Summon once, rather than having Xiaomi suddenly appear during your turn and during your setup to crush your setup?"

"Not at all. I just feel frustrated," Jonouchi said helplessly. "Even though so many years have passed, why do I still feel the same powerlessness and frustration every time I run into Mimi as I did the first time?"

"That's why I like to call solving the millet puzzle 'the first subject of the card game,' and it's only been five years. Maybe duelists from other worlds will still be figuring out how to solve the millet puzzle ten years from now." Hayato said, then waved his hand again, "Next, the final development will begin."

"As fusion material, it is sent to the graveyard. Both [Tears of Elegy - Narcissus Mermaid] and [Divine Shadow - Merchant's Staff Spirit] have effects that can be activated. First, the effect of [Tears of Elegy - Narcissus Mermaid] is to send five cards from the top of my deck to the graveyard."

"Five cards... I'm increasingly convinced that 'Tears of Elegy' is a fake card; the effect is ridiculously overpowered." Jonouchi watched Hayato draw five cards and send them to the graveyard, noticing that he had already piled a full fifteen cards into the graveyard this turn—both blind and targeted—but the actual effect was almost the same as a completely targeted graveyard. It really did confirm what Hayato said when introducing the deck: a blindly piled-up deck is almost as effective as a targeted pile.

After glancing at Hayato's monsters on the field, Jonouchi breathed a slight sigh of relief and said, "However, there are always trade-offs. Although the effect is excessive, Hayato, while you have a large number of monsters, their attack and defense stats are relatively low—"

Before Jonouchi could finish speaking, he saw Hayato smile and send a card to the graveyard, saying, "And the effect of [Divine Shadow - Merchant's Staff Spirit], send a [Shaddoll] monster from my hand—my second [Shaddoll Flame Core - Dream Prison]—to the graveyard."

"This turn, the ATK and DEF of the monsters I control increase by 100 times the original Level of the monster in the Graveyard. And the Level of [Shadowdorm - Dream Prison] is 9☆!"

In an instant, countless threads emerged from Hayato's grave, channeling power into the monsters on his field, causing their aura to surge dramatically!

【The Lament of the Pearl-Tear Clan - Mermaid of Melo】【ATK800→1700】

【Shadowbeast】【ATK2200→3100】

【Shadowbringer Midrash】【ATK 2200→3100】

However, what's more intriguing than the other monsters is that the [Hungry Poison Fusion Dragon], which stole the effect of the [Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon], also received the power from the [Divine Shadow - Merchant's Staff Spirit]!

[Ferocious, Hungry, and Poisonous Fusion Dragon] [ATK 2800 → 3700]

If the threat posed by the [Ferocious Hungry Poison Fusion Dragon] with only 2800 attack power wasn't too great, the addition of these 900 attack power instantly changed its power. Crossing the 3000 attack power threshold, it could easily defeat the [Blue-Eyes White Dragon] and the [Super Magical Dragon Knight - Red-Eyes Dragon Rider], and even the [Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon] with the highest attack power on the field was no match for it!

Now, not only Jonouchi, but also Kaiba and Yugi were under considerable threat. This made Kaiba turn around and glare fiercely at Jonouchi, saying, "You mediocre person, did you have to say that one more thing?"

"Enter the battle phase and start wreaking havoc! [Ferocious Hungry Poison Fusion Dragon], let's start with Seth's side, with that [Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon] that 'generously' gave you its effects!"

Hayato grinned maliciously and waved his hand down, ordering, "Ultimately Poisonous Acid Extinction Rain!"

Play through all of Chapter 1273.

"Extinction Rain of Strong Acid! Take down the Blue-Eyes Tyrannosaurus Rex!"

In the first phase of this duel, Hayato chose Kaiba as his first target, not for any other reason than that he had the most monsters in attack position on the field.