Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

[Mechanical Race/Fusion/Effect]

[2200/1900]

"What 'Alliance Manipulator'? This is clearly an 'Enemy Manipulator'!" [King of War Shadow - Lopto] couldn't help but complain, "How can even a spell card turn into a monster?"

"Even trap cards can awaken card spirits, so is it so strange for magic cards to turn into monsters?" Hayato said disdainfully to [Lopt, the Shadow of Kings], who had never witnessed the ultimate rehashing technique of the K-corporation—making a new card from a scene in the anime or manga and selling it again. "Besides, only Kaiba likes to use NTR cards like [Enemy Manipulator]. I'm a pure love fan."

"The effect of 【Union Manipulator】is, as the name suggests, to control and support Union monsters. Its Fusion Material requires a Machine-Type LIGHT monster and one of 【Y-Agile Head】 or 【Z-Infinite Tracks】. You can Special Summon it from the Fusion Deck by banishing the above cards from my field."

"When it is Special Summoned from a Fusion Deck, the first effect of [Union Manipulator] is activated, adding one Spell/Trap Card with 'Union Monster' in its effect text to my hand from my Deck. The card I choose is this one, the Field Spell Card [Union Hangar]."

"Then, the Field Spell Card [Union Hangar] is activated! It removes this [Royal Battle Stage], and now it's our turn!"

The original "Stage of the King's Battle" that covered the sky was removed and replaced by a steel-cast metal building that rose from the ground, enveloping Hayato and Lopto. In this high-rise, a huge column stood next to the area where the two were dueling, with hexagonal hangars identical to those in the previous "Alliance Activation" on it.

"As part of the effect processing when [Union Hangar] is activated, I can add one Machine-Type LIGHT Union Monster from my Deck to my hand. I chose the second one, [Z-Infinite Tracks]. Then, I will activate the second effect of [Union Manipulator]."

[Hayato Kobayashi: 4000LP, hand 3→4]

"Once per turn during my Main Phase, I can Special Summon a Machine-Type LIGHT Normal Monster or Union Monster from my hand. I will Special Summon [Z-Infinite Tracks], which I just added to my hand, to the field."

"Endless War... cough, Endless Tracks, come out!"

"Then at that instant, the effect of [Z-Infinite Tracks] activates, and in turn, the second effect of [Alliance Hangar] is activated! C1 [Z-Infinite Tracks] C2 [Alliance Hangar]!"

"First is the effect of [Union Hangar]. Once per turn, if I have a LIGHT Machine-Type Union Monster Normal or Special Summoned on my field, I can target it and equip it with one LIGHT Machine-Type Union Monster from my Deck that can be equipped to that monster and has a different card name. The Union Monster equipped by this effect cannot be Special Summoned this turn."

"And the effect of [Z-Infinite Tracks] itself is similar to that of [X-Cross Cannon] and [Y-Agile Dragon Head]. The effect of [Z-Infinite Tracks] is that when this card is Special Summoned, you can select a Level 4 LIGHT Machine-Type monster that I banished as an Equip Spell Card and equip it to it. Also, this is subject to the restriction that I cannot Special Summon monsters from the Fusion Deck this turn if I am not a LIGHT monster."

After saying a long string of words, Hayato waved his hand, "Then, the monster equipped to [Z-Infinite Tracks] by the effect of [Z-Infinite Tracks] and the monster equipped to [Z-Infinite Tracks] by [Union Hangar] is the third [Y-Agile Dragon Head] in my deck!"

"In this way, [X], [Y], and [Z] are now all gathered on my field, no, they've even come together!"

【Z-Infinite Tracks】(X-Cross Cannon, Y-Agile Head)【4☆/Light】

[Mechanical Race/Effect]

[1500/1300]

"The gathered metal hearts will calculate entirely new possibilities for the future! I'll directly unleash [X], [Y], [Z]!" Hayato raised his hand above his head and made a gesture. The three colored mechs on the field began to combine and transform, overlapping each other. It wasn't the combination they had during their previous alliance; instead, they were completely connected. "Ikuyo! Wagatsumashi!"

The colors of the patterns on the Trisolaran mechanical monster began to unify, with the [X], [Y], and [Z] stacked together from top to bottom in the order of blue, red, and yellow. The energy cores that responded to each other began to resonate and synchronize. Finally, the patterns on the Trisolaran monster—no, at this moment it should be called the "one-body monster"—unified and turned into a clear deep blue!

"Level 9☆! Triple Contact Fusion—"

"【XYZ-Super Divine Dragon Cannon】!"

As Hayato uttered their names, the [X][Y][Z] creatures, appearing once again in their master's arena with a completely new look, descended in the same new form after their unification!

【XYZ-Extreme Super Dragon Cannon】【9☆/Light】

[Mechanical Race/Fusion/Effect]

[3000/2800]

With the same attack and defense, a cooler card art, and a stronger effect, regardless of the actual practicality of [XYZ-Super Divine Dragon Cannon], Hayato had already won the game the moment he showed off this new card.

Moreover, Hayato's story is not yet over.

"Spell Card, [Inherited Power] activated. Send one monster I control to the Graveyard, then select one monster I control; the targeted monster's ATK increases by the ATK of the monster sent to the Graveyard until the end of this turn. I choose to send [Union Controller], which has already used two effects, to the Graveyard, and then increase the ATK of [XYZ-Super Super Dragon Cannon] by 2200!"

【XYZ-Extreme Super Dragon Cannon】【ATK3000→5200】

"Attack power, 5200 points!?" [King of War Shadow - Lopto] was now in a panic, because he noticed that this value had officially surpassed that of [King of Todoroki - Hal], whose defense power was a whopping 4000 points. Besides Hal, there was also [Summoned Beast - Melkaba] with 3500 attack power lurking nearby. It seemed that Hayato's monsters on the field were now enough to destroy all of his own monsters and then attack him directly!?

Seeing that besides [XYZ-Super Divine Dragon Cannon] and [Summoned Beast-Merkaba], Hayato had two other monsters on his field—[Kusha Fury-type Fenrir Wolf] with 2400 ATK and [Y-Agile Dragon Head] with 1500 ATK—[King of War Shadow-Loupt] calmed down.

However, I still have the effect of [Sleipnir the Monument] which I can use during the Battle Phase to banish any powerful monster on my opponent's field along with it. This would make it easy to deal with the attack of [XYZ-Super Divine Dragon Cannon]. Thinking about it carefully, there's absolutely no need to worry. As long as [King Kaio Battle - Hal] is still on my field, I'm completely safe.

Hmph, Kobayashi Hayato's frenzied attack is clearly showing signs of weakness, while my retreat and defense cannot conceal my brilliance. Kobayashi Hayato's unleashing of power is only for now; next turn, I can unleash even stronger cards than him. The scene of the field teeming with [King of Kings] monsters, brimming with vitality and bursting with life, is still vivid in my mind.

All in all, the advantage is with me!

"Finally, I activate the effect of [Z-Infinite Tracks] on my back field, Special Summon [Y-Agile Head] which was equipped to me in Attack Position, and equip it with the effect of [Y-Agile Head] which was previously banished to summon [Union Manipulator].

After filling in the last slot, Hayato glanced at the two remaining cards in his hand, waved his hand, and announced, "Enter the battle phase!"

"Then, I want to—"

"Before that, I have a card effect to activate!" Finally, Hayato's battle phase had arrived. [King's Shadow - Lopto] hurriedly interrupted Hayato, then grinned maliciously at him, "Heh heh, hahahahaha, I've finally waited for this moment, Kobayashi Hayato, this is the instant you enter your battle phase!"

"You don't think I just put [Divine Monument Mane - Sleipnir] on the field for show, do you? I haven't used either of its two effects yet, and now I'm going to use its first effect!"

Despite this, in reality, [King of War Shadow - Lopto] had no intention of using the second effect of [Divine Monument Mane - Sleipnir]. The activation condition for that effect is the same as the second effect of [King of the World War - Hal], both of which can only be activated when the opponent adds a card from their deck to their hand. The effect is to Special Summon a [Divine Monument Token] with the same ATK and DEF as [Divine Monument Mane - Sleipnir] in Attack Position from the owner's field.

The problem is, with so many monsters on Hayato's field, wouldn't using this effect just be giving Hayato an easy target to attack? So, [King's Shadow - Lopt] is just for show; it's impossible to actually use this second effect.

Picking up the card "Sleipnir the Monument" from the field, "Lopto the Shadow of Kings" coldly pointed the card at Hayato's field, saying, "During my Main Phase and my opponent's Battle Phase, you can target one face-up monster on your opponent's field to activate the effect of 'Sleipnir the Monument'. Banish the targeted monster and 'Sleipnir the Monument' together until the End Phase!"

"With this effect, [Divine Monument Mane - Sleipnir] can easily deal with powerful monsters, and monsters equipped with cards, like [Z-Infinite Tracks] on your field, will lose their equipment when they return. And now I'm going to use this effect on [XYZ-Super Divine Dragon Cannon], which has the highest attack power on your field!"

"Say goodbye to your ace monster!" With a savage grin, [Shadow of the King - Lopt]'s [Divine Stele Mane - Sleipnir] shone brightly.

Then, as if it were a replica of the previous experience of [Shadowdome], at the same moment the effect was activated, a spear inexplicably flew out and pierced through its abdomen. [Sleipnir the Monument], which had been eating grass and watching the show with its head down since it appeared, was "shot" as soon as it activated its effect. The whole person... the whole horse was completely swallowed up by the magic circle that unfolded on the spear, and not a single one of its eight legs was left.

"what?"

Seeing the scene before him, [Shadow of Kings - Lopte] was stunned, unable to comprehend the situation.

“Your [Divine Stele Mane - Sleipnir] is a stallion, so it won’t work well against the mare pulling the carriage of [Summoned Beast - Merkaba].” After forcibly classifying [Summoned Beast - Merkaba] as a “horse” and having it say it had no objection, Hayato casually tossed out a card. “[X][Y][Z] are making a long-awaited appearance. Of course, I have to give these old friends some face, and I’ve even prepared some cards with counters to protect their moves.”

"What do you think I summoned [Alai] and turned him into a 'light car' for? It couldn't have really been for the special summon of [X-Cross Cannon], could it?"

As he spoke, Hayato finally began to explain the monster's effect: "[Summoned Beast - Merkaba]'s effect is the so-called Tricolor Counter. Once per turn, when a monster's effect, Spell, or Trap Card is activated, you can send one card of the same type from your hand to the Graveyard to activate this effect—negate that activation and banish it."

"By the effect of the Chain Monster Card [Sleipnir the Monument], I discard the Monster Card [Death Stalker] from my hand to activate the effect of [Merkaba the Summoner], negating the effect of [Sleipnir the Monument], and only your [Sleipnir the Monument] will be banished!"

(A true old friend)

In the blink of an eye, the number of monsters on the field of [King of War Shadow - Lopto], which already only had three monsters left, decreased by one again, leaving only [King of War Shadow - Lopto] himself and [King of Todoroki - Hal] remaining. Meanwhile, Hayato's five monsters had already deployed their respective weapons and were preparing to launch an attack.

"First, let's use [Summoned Beast - Merkaba]'s attack to take down [King's Shadow - Lopto], which provides attack and defense bonuses. Was the effect move of [King of the Todoroki - Hal] called 'Ookami's Declaration'? Let's use that then—"

"The divine spear 'Spear the Gungnir'!"

(General view)

The red magic power absorbed from [Sleipnir the Monument] coiled around the spear of [Summoned Beast - Merkabah]. Compared to [Hal the King of the Thunder], who manipulated lightning and had no mount, [Summoned Beast - Merkabah] was now driving a chariot and throwing spears, making it much more like "Odin".

Under Hayato's command, [Summoned Beast - Merkaba] quickly hurled its spear, just as it had annihilated [Divine Monument Mane - Sleipnir] before. The spear, like a missile, landed in front of [King's Shadow - Lopto], and then exploded instantly just because [King's Shadow - Lopto] glanced at it. It was blown away, covered in dust, and left the field!

"That's more like it. If you're going to play cards, then play cards. What's with all this duelists coming onto the field?" Hayato continued, "Because [King of the War Shadow - Lopto] has been destroyed, its attack and defense bonuses have disappeared... Press the attack! [XYZ - Ultra Divine Dragon Cannon], attack [King of the Todoroki - Hal]!"

"Bloody Magic Square!"

[XYZ-Super Divine Dragon Cannon] deployed all its weapons, unleashing a barrage of firepower across nine zones from top to bottom, resembling a magic square or horizontal bar in mathematics. The simultaneous bombardment gave [King Kaio Battle - Howl], whose defenses had been weakened, no chance to retaliate.

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

This second round of attacks occurred in the extremely short time that [King of War Shadow - Lopto] was knocked down and hadn't even had time to get up. When he sat up, he found that all the monsters on his field had been cleared, leaving only [Kusha Fury-type Fenrir] with [Y-Agile Dragon Head] and [Z-Infinite Tracks] surrounding him.

Swallowing hard, [Shadow of the King - Lopto] forced a fawning smile at Hayato: "Heh. Can we make peace?"

"At this moment? You must be joking." Hayato's reply to [Lopt] was a contemptuous sneer. With a wave of Hayato's hand, his remaining three monsters swarmed forward, instantly wiping out [King's Shadow - Lopt's] initial 4000 points of basic score.

[Shadow of Kings - Lopt: 4000→2500→1000→0LP]

Chapter 1409 Clearing the Clouds and Seeing the Sun

To fulfill his earlier promise, Hayato even deliberately had [Kusha Wrathful Clan Fenrir Wolf] deliver the final blow and wipe out [King's Shadow - Lopto's] life points during the final attack.

The defeated [Shadow of the King - Lopto] lay on the ground. Although he hadn't completely lost consciousness and passed out, he was close. The Duel Disk on his arm, which was a manifestation of his power, also suddenly disappeared due to exhaustion, and the many cards placed on it instantly scattered.

While sending his monsters to launch a full-scale attack on [King of War Shadow - Lopt], ​​Hayato had already arrived at [Lopt]'s side and caught the scattered cards by grabbing the large mage robe on [Summoner - Aleister].

Seeing this, the [Shadow of Kings - Lopte] lying on the ground, his face contorted with rage, struggled to raise his hand and gritted his teeth, saying, "You, you bastard! Could it be that you've set your sights on the power of [Kings], and are now planning to double-cross him and reap the benefits?"

"The power of [Wang Zhan]?" Hayato raised an eyebrow, glanced disdainfully at the many cards spread out on his robe, and casually picked up a few. "I don't care about the power gained by exploiting the weak. Besides, you don't really think [Wang Zhan] is that strong, do you? Not only is he weak, but he is also narrow-minded and has a rather shallow understanding."

"All I really want are these few cards." As he spoke, Hayato turned over the cards he had received so that [King's Shadow - Lopto] could see them. The cards Hayato had received were [Dark Realm's Guide], [Star Relic's Guide], [Divine Monument's Mane - Sleipnir], and other cards he had used in previous duels, but there wasn't a single [King's Shadow] card.

Isn't this much better than the mere [King's Battle]? Not to mention that after obtaining these cards and keeping them for himself... cough cough, after returning these cards to their rightful owner, Hayato's system shop also unlocked two brand-new fields for him to purchase cards: [Star Relics] and [Dark Realm].

What's the fun in buying specific cards directly from the store? It's the thrill of opening packs that's exciting! If it weren't for the fact that his opponent this time is [Loki, the Shadow of the King], Hayato wouldn't even have planned to buy [Fenrir the Furious Wolf] from the system store.

After all—in the environment Hayato had experienced, [Kusha Fenrir Wolf] was just an ordinary card, not particularly rare, so much so that when it wasn't on the banned/limited card list, people could easily play three copies, earning it the nickname "B Three Wolves." But in the system shop, which has a rarity rating completely different from the physical card, [Kusha Fenrir Wolf] was actually designated as a noble UR!

Over the years, although he still duels to earn DP points, the speed at which he can exchange points for card packs can never keep up with the speed at which the system shop updates its cards. Even though the previously unlocked [Kusha Wrathful Tribe] doesn't have any Xyz-related cards, there are still a considerable number of cards waiting for him to acquire. After collecting all the cards from [Divine Monument], he also needs to prepare cards like [Heavenly Rock Cave]. The newly opened [Star Relics] can unlock multiple branches such as [Holy Image Knight], [Machine Insect], and [Self-Playing Sacred Music].

Before I became the Duel King, I couldn't buy cards freely and didn't have the freedom to allocate DP points. Now that I've been the Duel King for so many years, I still don't have the freedom to allocate DP points. So, was I just a Duel King for nothing?

Thinking of this, and looking at the [King's Battle] cards on his robe, Hayato casually grabbed them and tore the not-so-thin stack of cards to shreds!

At the same instant, the power of the [Kings] absorbed by [Lopto] was also released as the cards binding them were destroyed. Just as the defense of [Ice King - Nidhogg], who was far away in the [Light Realm] and was simultaneously resisting [Flame King - Nagilfa] and [Light King - Queen Mador] with the power of a single "dragon", was about to be broken, it was suddenly discovered that the attacks from both sides stopped at the same time.

"What happened?" Standing atop [Ice King Battle - Nidhogg] and directing the [Giant Plants] to share the burden, Misawa looked at the vines that were slowly retreating into the ground and ceasing their attacks with some confusion. "What happened?"

"I don't even know where the end of the Nine Realms is, how could I possibly know the answer to that kind of thing?" [Ice King War - Nidhogg] said irritably. If it weren't for the pressure of survival, he would never have allowed a mortal like Misawa to get close to him. "Those two seem to have stopped attacking. Did they break free from control?"

“I think I am.” The one who spoke was [Flame King War - Nagilfa], baring its teeth and covering the frostbitten parts of its body. “I had a really disgusting nightmare. I dreamed that I was killed and used as a sacrifice to Odin.”

"My dream was even more disgusting. I dreamt that I was killed, resurrected, and then killed again." [Light Realm King War - Queen Mador] also covered her head, looking like she had a headache, "but overall, I felt quite relaxed."

“Yes, yes, that’s the feeling, a contradictory feeling of being both tired and relaxed.” [Flame Realm King Battle - Nagilfa] nodded repeatedly, turning his head to look behind him. “And for some reason, the injuries I sustained from that demon’s attack have healed.”

“I think so too.” [Ice King Battle - Nidhogg] glanced at its tail. The wounds on it had also healed after the two [King Battles] in front of it regained consciousness. It thought it had just recovered by chance, but if [Flame King Battle - Nagilfa] had the same problem, then it was probably not a coincidence.

"My body feels so light, there's nothing to be afraid of anymore." The blonde [Light Realm King War - Queen Mador] said something cryptic, with a rather comfortable expression. "Those undead have also dispersed, it seems the danger foretold in the prophecy has probably subsided."

"Although I don't know what the 'prophecy' is all about, the person who resolved the crisis and freed us from being controlled must be a good person," [Flame Realm King War - Nagilfa] said憨憨地. "Compared to that demon who hunts us [King Wars], he's practically an angel!"

Knowing who the final opponent was, the one who shaped the world's end, Misawa nodded and said, "That's right. Our headmaster often says that there is no duelist more compassionate than him, and he often acts out with kindness."

“Although we are both human, there is indeed a big difference.” Like [Flame King Battle - Nagilfa], [Ice King Battle - Nidhogg], who was unaware that the person who hunted them back then was the same person as the “headmaster and teacher” mentioned by Misawa, also said with great approval, “Your teacher is so gentle, simply the gentlest person on earth.”

Just as the crisis in the [Light Realm] was resolved, the other nine realms experienced a similar situation, with the skeleton soldiers from the [Death Realm] inexplicably retreating back to Helheim.

On the lifeless land of the [Dead World], [Dead World King Battle - Hel], who mechanically commanded the undead to besiege Judai and Manjoume while occasionally releasing spells to neutralize attacks from afar, also "awakened" as Hayato tore up the card.

"Is that all? Although he's nominally my 'father,' he's ultimately just a weakling who came from another world." Muttering to himself, [Death King War - Hel] felt a pang of regret. "But that person, he didn't even hesitate to tear up the card that housed my consciousness? An interesting man."

Rather than being controlled, [King of the Dead - Hel] was more likely to voluntarily hand over his body and power to [King of the War - Lopto] out of curiosity, while his own consciousness actively detached from his body along with the power, transforming into a card in Lopto's hand, wanting to see if Lopto could truly become the "King of the Nine Realms" in the end.

Unfortunately, what she saw was not the script for "King of the Nine Realms". Lopte, like the makeup of the Shadow King War - Levantine that he tried to transform into, ended up as a "clown". But she did not feel sorry, because she found that Hayato, who seemed to have defeated Lopte, was a more interesting person.

With a wave of his hand, the portal that had previously driven Manjoume out of the [Dead Realm] reappeared, covering almost the entire sky, before crashing down. As the portal touched the earth and dissipated, the undead on the ground discovered that their master and the two living beings they had just besieged had vanished from the entire [Dead Realm].