Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

"The effect of the chain [Shadow of the King - Lopto] activates the Quick-Play Spell Card [Forbidden Grail]! You can target one face-up monster on the field to activate this effect. This monster gains 400 ATK until the end of the turn, and its effects are negated!"

"And the monster I've chosen is none other than your [King's Shadow - Lopt]!"

C1 [Kusha's Wrathful Clan - Fenrir Wolf] C2 [Tears of Elegy Clan Type Kusha's Wrathful Clan] C3 [Shadow of the King - Lopt], ​​C4 [Forbidden Holy Grail]!

Although Hayato could have used this Forbidden Grail to negate its effect when [King Kai War - Hal] was present, that only cost him the opportunity to send [Tears of Elegy Clan Type Kusha's Wrath Clan] to the graveyard, which was far less worthwhile than using it on [King's War Shadow - Lopto] now.

Not only can it prevent him from summoning a new [King's War] from his deck, it can also remove the buffs provided by [King's War Shadow - Lopt] that are covering the [King's War Shadow - Lopt] monsters on the field!

However, seeing Hayato unleash the Forbidden Holy Grail, [King's War Shadow - Lopto] sneered, "The Holy Grail? It's nothing more than a vessel for holding the blood of gods in the myths of other regions. How dare you use the power of gods from other regions to fight against the King's War of the Nine Realms? Just obediently submit to the King's War's dominion!"

"The effect of the Continuous Trap Card [Domination of the King's Battle]! Since you chained [Shadow of the King's Battle - Lopto] to activate the Spell Card, I will also discard the only card in my hand to activate it, rewriting the effect of your [Forbidden Grail] - changing it to cause both duelists to draw one card from their decks!"

Lopte: 4000LP, hand 1→0

C1【俱舍怒威族·芬里尔狼】C2【珠泪哀歌族型俱舍怒威族】C3【王战之影-洛普特】C4【禁忌的圣杯】——C5，【王战的支配】！

After [King of War Shadow - Lopto] used up all the cards in his hand as ammunition, [King of Death War - Hel] took a turn to rest and then acted again, guiding the aura of death toward the [Forbidden Grail] in Hayato's back row.

The blood-red wine contained within the Forbidden Grail was corroded by the magic of death, and its effects became completely different from before. Just as the Forbidden Grail, which had been processed after the Domination of the King's War, was about to be poured out and poured on the Shadow of the King's War - Lopt, the wine inside completely dissipated and turned into abundant death magic.

The unreleased magic power thus fell into the hands of both sides, with Hayato and [King's Shadow - Lopto] simultaneously drawing a card from their decks.

Lopte: 4000LP, hand 0→1

[Hayato: 4000LP, hand 5→6]

Chapter 1405 The King of the World Comes to the King

(Note: The previous chapter has been significantly revised; a refresh is recommended.)

After a series of exchanges, Hayato's hand size remained at six cards, and the cards that [Shadow of the King - Lopto] had just used for [Domination of the King] were replenished.

The chain reaction continued, and then it was the turn of [Shadow of Kings - Lopt]'s effect.

Lopto, the Shadow of Kings, forcefully pulled a card from his deck and laughed wildly: "Although each of the Kings can only have one card of the same name on my field, it doesn't mean that each of the Kings in my deck only has one card. I, who rule the kings of the nine realms, can have as many cards as I want to possess their power."

With such abundant magical energy around it, and the sacrifice of [King of the Light - Hal] from before, [King of the Light - Lopto] simply didn't need to use any spells and just started "summoning" from its deck, playing the cards in its hand. "Therefore, what I want to Special Summon is—the second [King of the Light - Queen Mador] in my deck!"

The ground was transformed into life force by the rich magic, and lush green grass instantly spread out. [Light Realm King Battle - Queen Mador] appeared on the field of [King Battle Shadow - Lopto] for the second time. However, this time she did not even have a chance to express her emotions and was completely dominated by [King Battle Shadow - Lopto] from the beginning.

Like the other [Kings of War], [Light Realm King of War - Queen Mador] received an attack and defense boost from [King of War Shadow - Lopte], and her power began to increase.

[Battle of the King of Light - Queen Mador] [2400/2400→3400/3400]

Its appearance effect will trigger a new chain later. For now, we need to finish dealing with the existing chain effects. After the effect of [King's Shadow - Lopto], it is finally Hayato's turn to use the effect of [Tears of Elegy - Type Kusha's Wrath].

After sending the top two cards of the deck to the graveyard, the effect of [Tears of Elegy Type - Kusha's Wrath] was quickly resolved, and it was time for the third effect of [Kusha's Wrath - Fenrir Wolf] to be dealt with. However, although [Todoroki Kaio-Warrior] was previously locked, and [LIGHT Kaio-Warrior] was now in the same position as [Light Kaio-Warrior - Queen Mador], [Kusha's Wrath - Fenrir Wolf] still lost its lock due to the disappearance of its target, and its effect was wasted.

Just as he was about to make a sarcastic remark, [Shadow of the King - Lopte] suddenly saw two dark figures rising from Hayato's graveyard, and asked in surprise and doubt: "What are those?"

"This? Of course, it's the card that was just sent to the graveyard by the effect of [Tears of Elegy Type: Kusha's Wrath]!" Hayato glanced at the two cards he had just sent to the graveyard and said with a smile, "What luck! The two cards I sent to the graveyard both happen to have effects that can be activated when they are sent to the graveyard."

"C1 [Shadowwing Wendy], if this card is sent to the Graveyard by its effect, Special Summon one Shaddoll monster from my Deck except [Shadowwing Wendy] in face-down Defense Position."

After activating one card, Hayato immediately read out the effect of the second card, "And this card, C2 [Shadowdow Lizard]."

"If this card is sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, you can activate this effect: Send one Shaddoll card from my Deck, other than Shaddoll Lizard, to the Graveyard!"

After a pause, Hayato said, "The combination of [Tears of the Goddess] and [Kusaban]? There's no need for that! Red Mermaid and B-Three Wolves are actually just auxiliary tools. What I'm actually playing this time is 'pure [Shadowdew]'!"

"Shadowdome?" Looking at the two Shadowdome monsters that had appeared behind Hayato and were about to activate their effects, King's Shadow - Lopto sneered, "How ridiculous. Aren't you also manipulating other monsters as if they were puppets, just like I'm controlling the Kings like puppeteers?"

"With a card like this, do you really think you're some kind of righteous hero saving the world?"

“I never said anything like that. After all, things like ‘hero’ and ‘partner of justice’ have an expiration date. They’ll naturally fade away as you get older or grow up,” Hayato said dismissively. “On the contrary, [Lopto], I’ve always considered myself a villain.”

"Then why—" [Shadow of the King's War - Lopto] was about to question Hayato about why he was his enemy, but then suddenly realized that such a question was rather redundant, "Is it because of that?"

"That's the one. Unfortunately, you won't see any of the good qualities a positive character should have in me. I'm selfish, greedy, willful, and ruthless. Even Khorne would say I'm too extreme when he sees me, Tzeentch would never say 'this was all part of the plan' again when he sees me, Slaanesh is just an innocent little girl in front of me, and Nurgle would have to make way for me and help me sit down."

"No one wants to play games with a drifting controller. A chess piece that can be controlled by others is not liked by chess players. I will not allow a second person to interfere with this world that I can modify. One person to wreak havoc on the world is enough!"

Upon hearing Hayato's words, [Shadow of the Kings - Lopto]'s face darkened: "This level of arrogance is truly infuriating. Do you think you can contend with my invincible [Kings] with just a few worthless puppets? I've spent countless efforts to acquire the power of the [Kings], so let me show you true terror!"

"It's not just the cards you send to the graveyard that can activate their effects in this chain. If [King of Light - Queen Mador] is successfully Summoned or Special Summoned, it can also activate its effect—add one [King of Light] card other than [King of Light - Queen Mador] or one Plant-Type monster from my Deck to my hand!"

"By chaining with the effect of [King of Light - Queen Mador], I can release [King of Light - Queen Mador] from my field whose effects have already been used but are no longer useful to activate the effect of [King of Death - Hel]. This effect targets [King of Todoroki - Hal] in my Graveyard and Special Summon it to my field in Defense Position. This effect can also be activated during my opponent's turn!"

C1 [Shadowwing - Wendy] C2 [Shadowdow Lizard] C3 [King of Light - Queen Mador] C4 [King of the Dead - Hel], another long chain is unfolding!

Leaving behind naturally growing tree seeds, allowing them to send cards from the deck to the hands of [King of War - Lopte], the unconscious [King of Light - Queen Mador] disappears from [King of War - Lopte]'s field once again, replaced by thunderbolts crashing down once more.

Just like the "switching" tactic that Yugi and Atem were most good at in the past, [King Kai Battle - Hal] just switched to [King Kai Battle - Queen Mador] under the effect of [King's Shadow - Lopto] to avoid the effect of [Kusha's Wrath Tribe - Fenrir Wolf]. Now, after entering the field and activating an effect, [King Kai Battle - Queen Mador] switched again and handed the position back to [King Kai Battle - Hal].

Thunder struck again, illuminating the dot at the top of the "King's Battle Stage" above the field of "King's Battle Shadow - Lopto". "King's Battle - Hal", cloaked in the guise of "Odin", reappeared on the field of "King's Battle Shadow - Lopto" and immediately received an attack and defense boost from "King's Battle Shadow - Lopto".

[King Todoroki Battle - Howl] [3000/3000→4000/4000]

"【King of the Todoroki - Hal】is different from other 【Kings of the Todoroki】!" 【Shadow of the Kings of the Todoroki - Lopte】said smugly. "Unlike other 【Kings of the Todoroki】born from your so-called 'Duel-Links' of consciousness, 【King of the Todoroki - Hal】is a puppet I created by taking the shadow of 'Odin' left behind in the Nine Realms and the divine power of 'Thor' left behind in Asgard."

"That's why it has characteristics completely opposite to 'Odin' and the power of lightning. At the same time, despite wielding such powerful forces, it is just a puppet suit that can be disguised by others at will. Under my command, even [King's War Curse - Vala] can disguise itself as it."

"And its composite divine core naturally gave it more power than other [Kings of War]. All [Kings of War] who rule the nine realms have their power limited after being gathered into cards. In addition to the constraint that 'only one of the same card can be face-up on your field,' they can only release one effect."

"But [King of the Todoroki - Hal] is different! The effect that activated just now, 'when the opponent adds a card from their deck to their hand,' comes from Thor's lightning. The unrestrained and unpredictable lightning can easily destroy monsters, but it cannot be precisely targeted. However, unlike other [King of the Todoroki] effects, which have the restriction that 'this card's designated effect can only be used once per turn,' the effect of [King of the Todoroki - Hal] is only limited to once per turn!"

After a pause, [Shadow of the King - Lopto] said with a hint of smugness, "In other words, the effect of my second Special Summoned [King of the Todoroki - Hal] is not restricted from activation. It can still be activated to erase monsters on your field or in your hand when you add a card from your Deck to your hand!"

"I haven't even used its truly powerful third effect yet! By releasing a specified number of Spellcaster-Type or [King of Kings] monsters on my field, no Spell, Trap, or Monster effect can be activated against [King of Kings - Hal]; instead, it will only be annihilated by a barrage of projectiles. This is the power of [King of Kings]! My invincible Pwadada!"

Hearing [Shadow of the King - Lopto]'s confidence, Hayato clapped his hands in support and said, "So strong, so strong! Such a powerful effect completely counters my [Shadowdove]. My [Shadowdove] is terrified of this kind of effect that allows me to freely choose which cards to send to the graveyard."

"Heh, stop with the sarcastic remarks and get back to your turn." Using the effect of [Light Realm King - Queen Mador], [King's Shadow - Lopto] retrieved a card from the deck and added it to its hand, sneering, "No matter how much you stall, it won't change the fact that you'll be crushed to death by the [King's]!"

Although there was no over-summoning, the [King's Battle] was still used quite powerfully in the hands of [Lopto]. Not only did a continuous stream of monsters jump out from the deck, graveyard, and other places, but it was also able to resist Hayato's attacks time and time again, just like those Boss-level monsters in the game with their mechanics fully activated. Even the attack and defense values ​​of the [King's Battle] monsters themselves were not low.

After all, the English name for the [King's Battle] field held by the [King's Battle] players is "Generaider-Boss," and the official promotional slogan for [King's Battle] is "――Challenge the King who reigns over the world!!

—By the way, the tagline for [God's Monument] is "――Challenge the mystery of the world with 'God's Monument'!", which is basically the same as the format of [King's War], and it is also a kind of tribute (Hideki Go.jpg).

Unlike the "King of War" monsters, the "Shaddoll" deck has relatively few monsters with high attack power, with only one, "Shaddoll Firecore - Dream Prison," having a respectable 2900 ATK and DEF. However, despite generally lower stats than the "King of War" monsters, "Shaddoll" does have the fusion form "Divine Shaddoll," and its effects in the main deck monsters are not inferior to those of the "King of War" monsters!

"After the effects of [King of the Dead - Hel] and [King of the Light - Queen Mador] were resolved, it was my turn to use [Shaddoll Lizard]. Under its effect, I sent this [Shaddoll] card from my deck to the graveyard."

"Then comes the effect of [Shadowwing Wendy]: Special Summon [Shadowdome] from my Deck to my field in face-down Defense Position!"

Beneath Hayato's feet, a shadow split open and spread across the field, within which a pair of orange eyes opened, as if some dangerous beast was lurking in the shadows.

"Shaddoll? You sent a monster with that name to the graveyard last turn, didn't you?" [Shaddoll of the King - Lopto] remembered that Hayato had discarded Shaddoll during his turn to draw a card because of [Dark World's Draw]. In other words, it's another monster that can gain a card advantage when sent to the graveyard by an effect?

“You can include more than one [King of War] in your deck, so what’s wrong with me including a few more [Shaddoll Beasts]?” Hayato shrugged. “However, the characteristic of [Shaddoll] monsters is that they are generally Flip Monsters. The effect activated when they are sent to the Graveyard by an effect is only one of their two effects. When they are Flip Summoned, [Shaddoll] monsters can activate another effect, and [Shaddoll Beasts] is no exception.”

"But, the face-down Defense Position [Shadowdome] that was just Special Summoned, I can't flip it over unless I attack it first, right?" [Shadow of the King - Lopto] glanced at the card Hayato sent to the Graveyard, "Unless—"

"You have a keen sense of smell. That's right, the Shaddoll Hound that was sent to the Graveyard by the effect of Shaddoll Lizard also meets the conditions for its effect activation. It can target a monster on the field and activate its effect to change the battle position of the targeted monster. In this case, the effects of Flip monsters other than Shaddoll monsters will not activate. And the target I chose is naturally my face-down Defense Position Shaddoll on the field."

After pausing, deliberately giving the opponent an opportunity to chain [Shadow of Kings - Lopto], but the opponent didn't fall for it at all, so Hayato had no choice but to continue, "Then, the target of [Shadowhound]'s effect—[Shadowmon]—is flipped, becoming face-up Attack Position on my field, thus triggering its flip effect!"

"【Shadowmon】Can only be activated when flipped. I draw two cards from my deck and then discard one card from my hand!"

"Trying to gain cards? No way!" Hayato had already explained the characteristics of [Shaddoll]. Knowing that sending [Shaddoll] to the Graveyard could activate its effect, [Lopto the King of Kings] naturally wouldn't let him continue. He decisively said, "Chain the effect of [Shaddoll], I activate the effect of [Hal the King of Kings] on my field!"

"The Great God declares!"

The next instant, a "meteor" fell and pierced through the [Shadowmon] that Hayato had just appeared on the field. It wasn't until the "meteor" stopped that people could see that it was a spear. The [Shadowmon] with the purple jade pendant pierced through its waist let out a mournful cry, sank into the shadows, and then suddenly exploded, destroyed and sent to the graveyard.

Chapter 1406 Get Cross-X Cannon

"When the effect of a Spell/Trap/Monster is activated, I can release two [King of the Sea] and two Spellcaster-Type monsters on my field to negate and destroy the effect of [King of the Sea - Hal]!"

"The monsters I unleashed are—[King's War Curse - Vala] and [King's War of the Dead - Hel]."

"Huh? They actually freed me?" [Death King War - Hel] looked at his gradually transparent body with some surprise. "But then again, compared to myself and [Todoroki King War - Hal], who has the highest stats and hasn't used up all the effects, sacrificing me and [King War Curse - Vara], two 'redundant guys' who have already used up all the effects, is the 'right solution'."

"Sorry, bro, I have to go home due to unforeseen circumstances. See you next time~" As he spoke, [Death King Battle - Hel] waved to Hayato in a rather friendly manner.

"Okay, see you next time." Hayato said goodbye gently, watching [King of Death War - Hel] enter the cemetery alone—for a "Shinigami," the cemetery is just like home.

As for [King's Curse - Vara]? Since she had previously Special Summoned herself to the field using her own effect, she naturally had to pay the price now that she was leaving the field, and she has already been banished and disappeared.

Ignoring Hayato's interaction with [King of the Dead - Hel], [King of the Dead - Lopto] coldly looked at Hayato's [Shaddoll Beast], which was destroyed by a javelin piercing its body, and said, "You specifically introduced [Shaddoll] monsters as Flip Monsters and even activated the effect of [Shaddoll Hound], which can change the monster's battle position. How could I not be on guard?"

"Instead of negating [Shaddoll Hound], you could use other cards to flip [Shaddoll Beast] back and activate its effect. However, negating and destroying [Shaddoll Beast]'s effect also reduces the number of monsters on your field!"

After a pause, [Lopto, the Shadow of the Kings] crossed his arms and continued, "Alright, now continue drawing cards by activating the effect triggered when [Shadowdome] is destroyed, which is used to send it to the Graveyard by an effect. However, the second effect of [Hal, the King of Todoroki] will also activate after you draw a card!"

However, to [Shadow of the Kings - Lopto's] surprise, although [Shadowmon] was destroyed by [King of the Todoroki - Hal's] "Gungnir", the card draw effect it used in the previous turn was not activated by Hayato, and his hand remained unchanged at six cards.

"While I would love to accept your help in filling the graveyard, unfortunately, Shaddoll monsters generally have a restriction that only one of their two effects can be used in a single turn. Although the activation of Shaddoll's Flip effect was negated, it still counts as having been used, so I cannot use its second effect to draw cards from the deck."

Hayato watched as [Shadowdome] was sent to the graveyard, and nonchalantly selected a card in front of him. "But you're handing over Kang now? Although you really don't have a better choice, this way you won't have any resistance at all in my next move."

With six cards in hand and a [Kusha Fenrir Wolf] with 2400 ATK on the field, Hayato had already tricked out almost all of the second-speed effects that [King of War Shadow - Lopto] could use without even using a Normal Summon. Although his field lineup was indeed quite luxurious, the price behind it was that he only had the second effect of [Divine Monument Mane - Sleipnir] and [King of Kai War - Hal] left to use.

“Although I didn’t draw [Rampage Magic Circle], drawing Aleister is just as good. Since you didn’t keep a close watch on my prisoner, Aleister, you can go and bring him back yourself.” The selected card appeared on the field, and a sorcerer in a white and green robe appeared from the unfolding magic circle. “I Normal Summon [Summoner - Aleister] to my field in Defense Position!”

[Summoner - Aleister] [DEF 1800]

"【Summoner-Aleister】Only when it is Summoned/Flipped can its second effect be activated: Add one 【Summoning Magic】from my Deck to my hand."

As he spoke, Hayato drew a card, and while watching Hayato draw, [King of the War - Lopto] was a little worried that Hayato might still have [Shaddoll] in his hand, how would he know if Hayato had [Shaddoll] if he didn't use his effect to send the card to the graveyard? Anyway, the effect of [King of the War - Hal] was there, and he would have to use it sooner or later.

"So, once per turn, if your opponent adds a card from their deck to their hand outside of their draw phase, the second effect of [King of the Sea - Hal] can be activated, allowing your opponent to send one monster from their hand or field to the Graveyard." [King of the Sea - Lopto] stared intently at the six cards in Hayato's hand. "You can't possibly still have a [Shadowdome] monster in your hand, can you?"

"It's a shame, it seems like there really aren't any left?" Hayato looked at his hand, then helplessly spread his hands towards [Shadow of the King - Lopto], with a disappointed expression. "I thought I could use those [Shadowdew] cards from before to trick you into not activating this effect. What a pity."

Hearing Hayato say that, [Shadow of the King - Lopto] beamed with delight: "Ha! I knew it! A mere mortal dares to deceive the God of Deception?"

"Sending monsters from the field or hand to the graveyard is such a troublesome effect. I can't exactly send a monster that's no longer useful, like [Kusha Fury Fenrir Wolf] or my favorite [Summoner Aleister], to the graveyard, can I?"

Hearing Hayato's mutterings, the newly arrived [Kusha Wraith Fenrir Wolf] looked at the [Summoner - Aleister] beside him, somewhat panicked: "What's going on? How could anyone think of sacrificing such a powerful card like us so easily?"

"First time?"

Compared to Fenrir the Wolf, Aleister appeared extremely calm, especially since he knew his Summoning Magic could ensure that even monsters wouldn't find peace in the graveyard. Any monster that had spent even a little time with Hayato knew that Hayato's favorite pastime was sending monsters to the graveyard in various ways and then watching them suffer.

Hayato's face was filled with distress, and even the corners of his mouth were twitching as he faced a difficult decision. "I'm sorry, [Aleister], it seems it's time to say goodbye. So, let's sacrifice ourselves for the greater good, [Summoner-Aleister]!"

After retrieving a card for Hayato, [Summoner - Aleister] was no longer of much value on the field, so Hayato sent it directly to the graveyard. Aleister, who had anticipated this, sighed, looked at the lightning falling from the sky, casually set up a barrier to block the attack, and then gracefully left the field.

"Tsk." Hayato looked at [Summoner-Aleister], whose arrogance couldn't be stopped even by leaving the field, curled his lip, and played another card. "Although he has already made a sacred and voluntary sacrifice, [Aleister] says he is still willing to burn his own death for my victory."

"Spell Card [Summoning Magic] activated! Send the Fusion Materials of the Fusion Monster from my hand to the Graveyard, and Fusion Summon the Fusion Monster from the Fusion Deck. When performing a Fusion Summon of a [Summoned Beast] Fusion Monster, you can also banish monsters from my field and both players' Graveyards as Fusion Materials!"