Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

How could Kaiba miss such a good opportunity, entering the battle phase the round before Yugi's turn? After all, it was uncertain whether Hayato's defenses could be breached, but defeating Yugi seemed within reach. As long as he defeated Yugi, it wouldn't matter if Kaiba still didn't defeat Hayato in this four-person duel, because at least he had proven that he was stronger than Yugi and the second strongest duelist in the world, second only to Hayato.

Not only did Hayato weaken the defenses of all three, but he also manipulated Kaiba, Yugi, and Jonouchi to avoid forming an alliance and thus prevent them from targeting him simultaneously.

This unspoken but almost overt scheme made the gazes between Kaiba and Yugi become somewhat subtle.

Except for one person who still doesn't realize it—"Did you destroy another of the game's gadgets? Hayato, you really don't like to suffer losses, you just have to unleash all the monster's attacks."

Wiping his nose, Jonouchi said casually, "Looks like Hayato, you've given up on dealing with me and Kaiba and are planning to settle things with Yugi first? Hmph, just like back in the semifinals of Duel City. But that's fine, I can take this opportunity to have a one-on-one fight with Kaiba and avenge myself!"

Hearing Jonouchi's words, Hayato simply smiled, glanced at the three cards remaining in his hand, and said, "Then show Kaiba your power to the fullest, Jonouchi. I believe you can defeat him. Before that, let me finish the battle phase."

"Then, during my Main Phase 2, I set two cards face down and activate the Continuous Spell Card [Nightmare Mirage], and the turn ends here."

[Kobayashi Hayato: 1000LP, 0 cards in hand]

【The Lament of the Pearl-Tear Clan - Mermaid of Melo】【ATK1700→800】

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

【Shadowbeast】【ATK3100→2200】

【Shadowy Midrash】【ATK 3100→2200】

[Nightmare of the Mirage Tower] [Given Card] X2

The two cards Hayato set face-down were practically obvious to the other three players with their sharp memories; they could only be the trap card "Eternal Elegy of the Narcissus Mermaid," which he had previously searched for using the effect of "Tears of Elegy," and "Shaddoll's Core," which he had added to his hand using "Bitter Choice." However, Hayato's third card was surprisingly his "old friend," "Nightmare of the Mirage." Had he previously sent the card he had searched for using the effect of "Shaddoll Beast" to the graveyard?

Upon closer examination, the effect of the card "Nightmare of the Mirage" is indeed a perfect fit for Hayato's current deck, even without the other card, "Extraordinary Food." His "Tears of Elegy" can be fused directly with monsters from the Graveyard, and "Shaddoll" monsters can activate various effects when sent to the Graveyard, making "Nightmare of the Mirage" an excellent choice.

Especially now that it's a four-player free-for-all, the [Nightmare Mirage] card, which originally only allowed Hayato to draw a card once during the opponent's preparation phase in a normal duel, has now become able to draw cards during each of the other three players' preparation phases. Even if it's just replenishing the maximum of four cards each time, it's still a pretty amazing effect.

"...Before discussing banning others from using the [Pot] series cards, I think we should ban your [Nightmare Mirage] first." Kaiba said with a dark face, and Yugi nodded in agreement. "I agree, at least make it a limited card like [Heavenly Treasure].

"Tch, as the Duel King, my rights should be unlimited! How dare you restrict my cards as the Duel King!" Hayato said unhappily. It's just infighting, anyone can do that! "In that case, I'll also suggest making Seth's shameless 'Life-Slashing Treasure Card' a limited card. No, I mean completely nerfing its effect, making it extremely costly and only allowing two draws. Oh, and Jonouchi's 'Fate Treasure Card' too!"

I can't take it anymore, I'll just go all out with you card players. At worst, we'll all play in an OCG environment where all the animation cards are wiped out. When I go back to the real world, I'll borrow the Earth Angel from Isis and regain my full power of the Tears of the Goddess. How could I possibly lose?

Jonouchi, who was about to have his turn and had drawn half of his cards, looked up in confusion: "My turn, draw... Huh? Why am I involved?"

"By the way, Hayato, how did you know I drew the [Treasure Card of Fate]?"

"Who asked you?" Hayato raised an eyebrow in surprise upon hearing Jonouchi's words. "No, you just said 'Treasure of Destiny,' and it arrived? Your luck is just too incredible."

"My luck is only slightly better than average, Hayato, do you have to exaggerate like that? Besides, don't you guys also get whatever you want to draw?" Jonouchi said with some doubt. "Isn't that an essential talent for a true duelist?"

“I hope you have a clear understanding of the true duelists and the luck of ordinary people.” Hayato said, placing his hand on the top of the deck. “So, during Jonouchi’s Standby Phase, because of the effect of [Nightmare Mirage], I draw cards from my deck until I have four cards in my hand. My current hand is 0, so I can draw four cards.”

【Jounouchi Katsuya: 4000LP, hand size 1→2】

[Hayato Kobayashi: 1000LP, hand 0→4]

Seeing Hayato draw four cards, Jonouchi didn't care. Instead, he turned to Kaiba, who still had three monsters on the field: "The only one who didn't lose anything during Hayato's attack was you, Kaiba. Tch, it's not easy to defeat you. I'll have to replenish my hand for that."

"So in my main phase, I first activate the spell card [Treasure of Fate], roll the dice, and then draw the corresponding number of cards based on the dice roll. As a price, I need to banish the same number of cards from the top of my deck."

While it's described as a cost, the banishment of "Treasure of Fate" is merely a face-up banishment, which can actually be helpful for some decks. It doesn't seem like a cost at all, especially now that the International Illusion Society has released a "Thunder Dragon" deck that can activate its effect upon banishment, and even Keihei is using the "Thunder Dragon" deck.

Thinking about this, Kaiba's idea of ​​restricting or even banning the "Treasure Card of Destiny," which Hayato had casually mentioned earlier, suddenly resurfaced. He really looked forward to seeing the grumpy expression on that mediocre guy's face when he found out his card was on the banned list. Hahahaha!

Thinking this to himself, Kaiba couldn't help but smile. In this respect, neither he nor Jonouchi were mature enough; they were both childish.

As Jonouchi activated the [Treasure Card of Destiny], Yugi heard Hayato say, "Speaking of which, in the real world, dice rolling can be done by either the duelist or the virtual projection. What about in the virtual world? Could it be that during the random number generation, it will also be affected by Jonouchi's luck?"

"Is Jonouchi's luck something like athlete's foot? How could he get infected?" the game quipped. "Besides, you know how lucky Jonouchi is, Hayato. Although he usually seems lucky, he also has his share of bad luck. He only really goes into 'super lucky mode' when he encounters a crisis."

"And you're one to talk! Don't you also treat Jonouchi's luck like data from a video game? The lower his health, the better his luck, right?" Hayato said with a smile. "But I actually think Jonouchi's luck is at its peak right now."

"For Jonouchi, luck is no longer the elusive thing it used to be; it has become something he has completely conquered. The goddess of fortune is stubbornly clinging to the back of his warhorse, showing no intention of leaving."

As Hayato expected, the [Treasure of Fate] rolled an illusory die that landed in the center of the four people's empty space, and the number on the die finally stopped at the six!

"Maximum value 6! Therefore, I can draw six cards from my deck at once and then banish the top six cards from the deck!"

Because he hadn't completed the setup before entering the game, Jonouchi stylishly drew a card and then tossed the six cards at the top of his deck. Unlike the cards that were banished by the game, those cards didn't immediately disappear; instead, they were blown away by the strong winds on the airship to who-knows-where. Jonouchi, who had been stylish for less than three seconds, looked embarrassed.

But he immediately pretended nothing had happened and calmly looked at the seahorse.

Looking at Kaiba's last remaining card and his empty back row, Jonouchi confidently asked, "Do you have enough resources, Kaiba?"

"Hmph, how arrogant! Bring it on, you mediocre coward!"

Chapter 1275 Kobayashi Hayato's Behavior Shows Signs of Human-to-Human Transmission

With seven cards in hand, and a single Red-Eyes Black Dragon with 2700 attack power on the field, Joey's base score is also the initial 4000 points;

On the other hand, Kaiba has three monsters on the field: White Spirit Dragon with 2500 ATK, Blue-Eyes White Dragon with 3000 ATK, and Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon with 3400 ATK. However, he only has two cards left in his hand, no face-down cards in his back row, and only 2600 Life Points.

Jonouchi felt he had a great advantage.

With Kaiba's current setup, doesn't that mean he basically has no means to defend against Jonouchi's attacks and can only passively defend? As long as I can summon a monster with high enough attack power, I can easily deplete Kaiba's life points and defeat him. Could there be anything easier than that?

Keep in mind that Jonouchi currently has not just one or two cards in his hand, but a full seven! At the same time, there are also cards in his graveyard that can activate their effects.

"I banish this 'Red-Eyes Black Star Dragon,' which was previously sent to the Graveyard by 'Red-Eyes Fusion' as Fusion Material for 'Meteor Dragon - Meteor Black Dragon,' to activate its effect." Retrieving the card from the Graveyard, Jonouchi obediently put it in his pocket. "I add one 'Red-Eyes Fusion' card from my Deck and Graveyard to my hand."

"Red-Eyes Fusion again? Hmph, do you think you can summon a monster strong enough to defeat me by using only this one Fusion Summon per turn?"

Kaiba frowned and snorted coldly, but when he glanced at Hayato's [Shadowy Midrash] on the field, he seemed to just remember something and exclaimed in realization, "I see. After all, he's just a mediocre guy. Since he couldn't defeat [Shadowy Midrash], he thought he could use his one and only Special Summon to summon as many powerful monsters as possible?"

"Tch, arrogant seahorse, I never said I couldn't destroy Hayato's [Kamikage Midrash], it's just that I didn't want to." Jonouchi gave himself a thumbs up. "Although you all always think I'm an idiot, I'm actually not stupid at all. Most of the time I'm incredibly clever!"

"If I weaken Hayato's defense now, wouldn't that help you defeat Hayato when it's your turn next round, Kaiba? Then, after Hayato is defeated, Yugi will have no target to attack and will have to take you down as his target. I said I would definitely be the one to defeat you in this duel, and Yugi can't take my victory away!"

Although in front of Kaiba, Yugi, Hayato, and the others, Jonouchi still seemed like the same passionate high school student he was five years ago, after declaring his victory, he also revealed his side as a world champion duelist, with his eyes burning with the same fighting spirit as Red-Eyes.

"The Spell Card [Red-Eyes Insight] can be activated by sending one [Red-Eyes] monster from my Deck or hand to the Graveyard, and adding one [Red-Eyes] Spell/Trap Card other than [Red-Eyes Insight] from my Deck to my hand. I choose to send [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] from my Deck to the Graveyard, and then add the Trap Card [Chained Red-Eyes Fang] to my hand."

"However, my only goal is to send the Red-Eyes Black Dragon to its graveyard." With a wave of his hand, Jonouchi ordered, "No further developments are needed. I'm going to enter the battle now and prepare to be blasted apart by the power of the Red-Eyes, Kaiba!"

"Use my [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] to attack [White Spirit Dragon]! Void Black Flame Bullet!"

Because of the equipment of [Red-Eyes Baby Dragon], [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] has 300 more attack power than the original [Red-Eyes Black Dragon], which just happens to surpass the [White Spirit Dragon] with the lowest attack power on Kaiba's field, which has an attack power of exactly 2500. Jonouchi immediately planned to pick on the weakest opponent.

"You think you can destroy [White Spirit Dragon] and deal a mere 200 points of combat damage to me? Ha, is this all the mediocre man's boasting will amount to?" Kaiba sneered and waved his hand. "But giving you the chance to deal effect damage to me before was already a final favor. I won't let you touch my mercy again!"

"The effect of [Blue-Eyes White Dragon] is activated! If there is a monster on your opponent's field, you can Tribute it to activate this effect and Special Summon one [Blue-Eyes White Dragon] from your hand. This effect can also be activated during your opponent's turn!"

Not wanting to let Jonouchi continue to reduce his remaining 2600 base points, Kaiba was still planning to defeat Yugi and Hayato, so he decisively activated the effect of [White Spirit Dragon] to transform.

In a dazzling white light, the white color of the [White Spirit Dragon] faded, revealing its true form with a bluish-green glow. The [Blue-Eyes White Dragon], which Kaiba had previously retrieved using the second effect of [Gathering Power], was Special Summoned onto the field. Although this consumed Kaiba's only Special Summon of the turn, he believed that the 3000 ATK [Blue-Eyes White Dragon] was more than enough to suppress Jonouchi's [Red-Eyes Black Dragon], which only had 2700 ATK.

"Even if you've copied my [Blue-Eyes White Dragon], your [Red-Eyes] is still not the strongest evolved dragon like [Blue-Eyes]. I clearly demonstrated the power of [White Spirit Dragon] to you in the past, so does that mean you're just a mediocre person?"

Kaiba clearly remembered that when he, Jonouchi, and Yugi teamed up to fight Dartz, he had used the effect of [White Spirit Dragon] in front of Jonouchi. Could it be that this idiot only remembered that he had released his monster to summon [White Spirit Dragon]?

"Because of the Special Summon of [Blue-Eyes White Dragon], the Battle Rewind rule has been triggered. You have another chance to choose your target, you mediocre one." Kaiba said arrogantly, arms crossed. "However, unfortunately, I only have [Blue-Eyes White Dragon], [Blue-Eyes White Dragon], and the much stronger [Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon] on my field. No matter which one I choose, none of them are enemies that your bootleg [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] can defeat."

"No, you do have other options. You could attack Hayato or Yugi, clear their monsters, and create a more comfortable attacking environment for me next turn. Or, you could simply withdraw your attack and retreat to your own field like a clown providing a comedic performance?"

As usual, Kaiba unleashed a string of foul language, urging Jonouchi to continue attacking him. But to his surprise, after hearing his words, Jonouchi put back a card he had drawn from his hand and instead gave him a smug smile: "I was planning to use this Quick-Play Spell Card to lower the monster's attack power, but Kaiba, you actually increased the monster's attack power on your own initiative?"

"Just what I wanted! I'll continue to have [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] attack your [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]!"

A black dragon, its mouth ablaze with flames, flapped its wings and swooped down on the newly appeared [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]. The white dragon immediately retaliated with a breath of light, but the black dragon nimbly dodged it and closed the distance, its claws slicing across the [Blue-Eyes White Dragon's] body, leaving a bloody gash. Seeing its defenses breached by the black dragon before it, the [Blue-Eyes White Dragon] instantly entered a state of rage, roaring before retaliating.

Dragonfire and dragon breath canceled each other out, tail whips were evenly matched, and their speeds were also neck and neck. The white dragon, representing victory, and the black dragon, representing miracle, fought each other in this virtual world, carrying the will of their respective masters. Kaiba also heard the notification from the virtual world monitor that he had been keeping on. It seemed that the battle intensity between [Blue Eyes] and [Red Eyes] was challenging the simulation limit of this world.

However, Kaiba had long since lost interest in the virtual world. He casually closed the pop-up window, a smirk playing on his lips, and roared, "Courageous, but just reckless courage! Tear him apart like this! [Blue Eyes]!"

"Destroy Burst Stream"

The two intertwined dragons had abandoned all other means and were fighting with their primal claws. Although the [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] had been enhanced by the [Red-Eyes Baby Dragon], it was ultimately no match for the already powerful [Blue-Eyes]. After the [Blue-Eyes]'s sharp claws struck its unsuspecting body, the [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] was instantly severely injured. Then, as it continued to fall from the sky, the [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] was finished off by a long-range "Explosive Gale Bullet of Destruction" from the [Blue-Eyes White Dragon], completely destroying it and sending it to the graveyard.

Meanwhile, Jonouchi experienced his first drop in Life Points when his Red-Eyes Black Dragon was destroyed in battle.

【Jonnouchi Katsuya: 4000→3700LP, 8 card in hand】

At the same time, in the graveyard area that the destroyed [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] had entered, blazing flames erupted and surged forth.

“Even I am not the kind of person who would leave my advantages unused. My most obvious advantage in this duel is my Life Points. Compared to you, whose Life Points are already on their last legs, mine is still a full 4000 points. That’s why I came up with this plan.”

Jonouchi raised the Duel Disk, which was enveloped in burning black flames, in his left hand. "That is, to deliberately destroy my Red-Eyes to fulfill the card's activation condition! The effect of the destroyed Red-Eyes Sub-Black Dragon activates!"

"At the same time, the effect of [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] is chained, revealing my face-down card in the back row, and triggering the Trap Card [Red-Eyes Burnout]! If a face-up [Red-Eyes] monster on my field is destroyed, you can target that destroyed monster to activate this card!"

At this moment, after Blue-Eyes White Dragon defeated Red-Eyes Black Dragon, Jonouchi finally revealed the true identity of his back row face-down card, which turned out to be Red-Eyes Incinerate?!

"Both sides will take damage equal to the original ATK of the destroyed monster, and the destroyed [Red-Eyes Black Dragon] has an ATK of 2400! Also, due to the rules of a four-player duel, everyone present will be affected by this effect!"

"Self-destruct, [Red-Eyes Sub-Black Dragon], this is a necessary sacrifice!"

Previously, he had been quiet and seemingly without any power, but once given the opportunity, Jonouchi immediately unleashed a terrifying fighting force. This single [Red-Eyes Burn] attack dealt 2400 points of effect damage to everyone present. While Jonouchi himself could easily withstand the damage thanks to his remaining 3700 points of base score, the other three could not withstand such a significant reduction in their base scores.

Kaiba still has 2600 life points, so he can at least keep some. But Hayato only has 1000 life points and Yugi only has 1400 life points left. After taking this hit, his life points will drop to zero and he will lose!

In this four-person duel, the first to achieve a victory was actually Jonouchi?!

"How dare that mediocre guy steal Kobayashi Hayato's defeat right under my nose!? Unforgivable!" Kaiba had considered that Jonouchi's face-down card was "Red-Eyes Soul," which could revive monsters, and "Red-Eyes Fang with Chains," Kobayashi Hayato's favorite card that could steal other people's monsters. He even wondered if he had brought another gambling dice card to annoy him, but he never expected that his face-down card would be "Red-Eyes Burn," a self-destruct card that causes effect damage to the entire field.

Even more surprisingly, it was himself who detonated the bomb. If he hadn't used the effect of "White Spirit Dragon" to transform, this card wouldn't have been able to be activated without "Red-Eyes Black Dragon" being destroyed. Although Jonouchi's words revealed that even if "White Spirit Dragon" didn't transform into "Blue-Eyes White Dragon," he still had cards that could actively lower the attack power of his monsters, Kaiba was still extremely displeased that his arrogance had been exploited by the mere "mediocre" Jonouchi.

"I told you Jonouchi was dangerous, especially now with 4000 LP. Red-Eyes is terrifyingly strong." Despite the power of Red-Eyes Incineration being about to spread, Hayato remained calm, while Yugi smiled. "This is really bad, we're going to lose."

"What are you two laughing about so easily over there? If you dare to be defeated by that mediocre guy before I've even beaten you, I won't let you off easily!" The more relaxed Yugi and Hayato were, the angrier Kaiba became, his gaze fixed on Yugi and Hayato, especially Hayato, whom Kaiba stared at intently.

"I really want to say 'Sorry, I'm sorry, I have no more resources to use.'" Yugi said innocently, spreading his hands. "If I still had [Super Magical Dragon Knight - Red-Eyes Dragon Knight] and I had cards in my hand, I might be able to stop Jonouchi, but right now I have no cards in my hand and no face-down cards."

"Although it was a chaotic battle between four people, I have to congratulate Jonouchi on finally defeating me." Yugi smiled, paused for a moment, then turned his head and gestured for Kaiba to follow his gaze to Hayato. "Although that's what I wanted to celebrate, it seems that Hayato has no intention of leaving the stage. Instead of looking forward to me, you should look forward to Hayato, Kaiba."

Compared to Atum, Yugi doesn't really care much about winning or losing. Even when he said before the battle that he represented "another me," he was only happy for the strength shown by Jonouchi when he felt he was going to be defeated, without any feelings of frustration.

At the same time, he also insidiously guided Kaiba to focus more on Hayato. After all, he didn't want to get entangled with Kaiba, who could say such heavy words as "play cards with me for the rest of my life." The ones who were involved with Kaiba's previous life, Priest Seth, were Hayato and "another me," while I was just an ordinary card designer who wanted to live a peaceful life.

However, although Yugi was subtly retaliating against Hayato for his previous scheme against him in their fight, guiding Kaiba to look at Hayato, he wasn't lying. He didn't think Hayato would be without any countermeasures. He hadn't forgotten that after Hayato sent "Tearful Melody - Narcissus Mermaid" to the graveyard as Fusion Material last turn, he had also used her effect to blindly pile five more cards into the graveyard.

How can there be a situation where every time you fill the graveyard, you trigger a bunch of effects, but then the time you fill the graveyard the most, you don't even get a single card effect activated? This might happen to a beginner who's just started playing Duel Monsters, but it's impossible for a true duelist like Hayato, especially since he's the one who loves sending monsters to the graveyard.

As Hayato's graveyard flashed with light, the black flames attached to Jonouchi's Duel Disk instantly erupted and spread throughout the entire area. Surprisingly, these black flames did not cause any discomfort to the group, nor did they cause any burning sensation. Instead, they felt as if soft cotton was falling on their bodies.

"Playing with effect damage in front of me? Jonouchi, you're still 20,000 years too early." Hayato held up two fingers like a street urchin, bent over, and grinned smugly. "Under my terrifying divine power, I am immortal!"

As he raised his hand, a card from his graveyard transformed into a speck of light, flew out, and gathered in his hand, reverting to its original form as a monster card.

Chapter 1276 I have to admit, you're stronger now.