Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

Although limited cards like "Heavenly Treasure" and "Angel's Charity" can only be included once in each player's deck, Amelda's "New-Style Chef" deck excels at "not wasting food," offering numerous ways to recycle. He has already recycled both cards into his deck, and will have another chance to draw them later. Combined with his three cards in hand and the two unrevealed face-down cards in his back row, his resources are quite abundant.

On the other hand, Marufuji Sho, in order to fuse and summon [Super Transporter - Invisible Fusion], had only two cards left in his hand after he received the benefit of [Heavenly Treasure Card] at the start of his turn, and even with so many cards, he had not achieved any significant results. Amelda still had two monsters on the field, and his [Super Transporter - Invisible Fusion] was in defense position and could not attack.

Furthermore, he already used his Normal Summon on the previous "Blender Man," so he can't possibly have a "Treasure from Heaven" in his hand, right? Besides, he already has that card in his back row, so even if he had a "Treasure from Heaven," it wouldn't be of any use.

Unaware of Ameruda's thoughts, Marufuji Sho glanced at the two cards remaining in his hand, a troubled expression on his face. He took out a card and was about to activate it when he said, "Hmm... I don't have enough cards left. It looks like I have to use this card."

"Then I will use the magic card [Pot of Greed]—"

“Chain activation of Trap Card, [Negative]!” Just as Marufuji Sho inserted the card into the Spell & Trap Zone, he saw Ameluda immediately follow up with a chain, opening another face-down card in his back row.

"[Negate] can only be activated when a card draw effect is activated. Under this card's effect, the card drawn by that draw effect is revealed to both players, and then all cards are discarded to the Graveyard!"

"Eh!?"

Marufuji Sho's eyes widened in disbelief. He never expected that Amelda would have such a card set face-down in her back row: "She drew so many cards last turn, yet she prepared a card that prevents her opponent from drawing cards?!"

"What's so surprising? Isn't this your principal's favorite tactic? He only lets himself earn cards while preventing others from doing so. No, in his words, 'Duel Monsters is such a cruel game; if one person can keep playing, that's about it.'" Amelda was quite pleased that her [Negation] card had worked. It would have been even better if it had worked on Kaiba's [Life-Slaying Treasure Card], but unfortunately, she couldn't change it. "Alright, draw your card now, and let me see it!"

Resentful, Marufuji Sho could only draw the cards that the Pot of Greed allowed him to draw from his deck, and then watched helplessly as his two cards were sent to the graveyard.

Ameruda glanced at the two cards he had sent to the graveyard with a strange expression. He wasn't particularly concerned about the [Red Robot Call] card; he was more interested in the other one—

"Isn't that card [Supercritical Mech Force]?" Ameruda looked at Marufuji Sho. "Why are you including a support card from the [Mech] deck that you don't need in your [Mech] deck?"

"That card was from a freshman-only card pack when I enrolled last year. Although it has an effect that can support Machine-type characters, it is basically useless and I can't use it at all."

As he spoke, Marufuji Sho turned his gaze to Jaden outside the arena, "Because everyone in the second year starts to try out new card decks, my older brother encouraged me by saying that there is no such thing as a card that is not useful, so I put this card into the deck."

With a bitter expression on his face, Marufuji Sho glanced at the last card left in his hand—[Treasure Hammer]—and sank into frustration and despair.

【Marufuji Sho: 4000LP, hand 2→1】

His original thought was that since his luck in drawing cards was far inferior to his older brother's, it wouldn't matter if he drew useless cards with [Pot of Greed]; he could still use [Molten Hammer] to put them back into the deck and draw cards again. Even if he didn't draw cards that could change the situation after drawing two, surely some of the five he drew would be useful?

However, the "invalid" card also extinguished his last hope, and the two cards he drew were the final straw that broke the camel's back. Just as he had guessed, he had only drawn two trap cards that could only be activated in the next turn when he needed useful cards the most. There was nothing that could better demonstrate his incompetence.

I'm really no good. I'm weak and incompetent. This duel was crucial for my brother's chances of returning to the track in this competition. My brother was so looking forward to me...

With his head down, Marufuji Sho was afraid that if he looked up, he would accidentally see the disappointment in his older brother's eyes. But he didn't know if he was hallucinating, but he actually heard Jaden say something like "Well done".

Huh? "Well done"? It must be a hallucination. How could I possibly hear my older brother say something like that to me at a time like this?

"Well done, Sho! You actually turned the tables and used your opponent's card against them!" Jaden laughed happily, and then said to Ameruda, "I told you, Sho is quite capable, Mr. Ameruda."

"And Sho, I wasn't lying to you, was I? Although it may seem a bit inexplicable, that's what makes duels so fun! Now is the perfect time to put your cards to use!"

Somewhat bewildered, Marufuji Sho looked up, still not understanding the situation, until Judai pointed to his own grave.

What's in his own graveyard? Marufuji Sho glanced at the Duel Disk and saw a total of nine [Machine] monsters that had accumulated in his graveyard this turn, as well as the more conspicuous [Blender], and the [Red Machine Call] and [Supercritical Machine Force] that he had just sent to the graveyard.

Individually, each card seems unrelated, but when they are placed together, it's as if a circuit diagram unfolds before Marufuji Sho's eyes, and an electric current flows through each card as a node, reaching the endpoint. As if electrified, Marufuji Sho instantly understands the combo he unknowingly completed in his graveyard, and he also understands why Jaden is wearing such a happy smile at this moment.

"Although my card draw just now seemed like a complete failure, and I was even stopped by Mr. Ameruda's 'Negate', thanks to my older brother, I think I've found a way to win!" Thinking that he had completed his current deck building with his older brother's encouragement, and that his older brother's reminder had reminded him of the combo in the graveyard, Marufuji Sho looked at Jaden outside the field with gratitude in his eyes.

But he saw that Jaden shook his head in denial after hearing his words.

"That's not how it works, Sho. Although I told you you could add that card to your deck, aren't you the one who ultimately makes the decision and completes the deck building? Besides, I didn't remind you that there were any card effects in your graveyard or somewhere else that could be activated. Didn't you think of the card effects in your graveyard yourself?"

“The most crucial thing is that the one drawing cards and engaging in duels isn’t me standing here, but Sho yourself standing there. I’m just here believing in you, but most importantly, you believe in yourself.” Judai said, giving a thumbs up. “That’s right, even if you believe in yourself because you believe in me, that’s enough. It’s because you believed in yourself that you were able to do what you’re doing now!”

"This is something only you, Xiang, can do. Now, keep charging forward with courage!"

Marufuji Sho looked at Judai, feeling as if something had been filled in his heart.

'Something only I can do...'

Believe in yourself...

Without realizing it, Marufuji Sho laughed and nodded vigorously at Judai: "Yes! Well then, big brother, watch my duel closely!"

"This [Red Machine Call] was just sent to the Graveyard. I banish this card from my Graveyard and target one [Machine] monster in my Graveyard—this [Invisible Machine]—to activate its effect. Add [Invisible Machine] to my hand!"

【Marufuji Sho: 4000LP, hand 1→2】

After adding the card to his hand, Marufuji Sho immediately revealed it along with another card: "Then I will activate this [Mega Hammer], return this card and any number of cards in my hand to the deck, shuffle them, and draw the number of cards returned to the deck!"

"With hope—draw again! Draw!"

Previously, [Pot of Greed] was blocked by [Negation], but Marufuji Sho managed to reproduce the effect with [Mega Hammer], drawing two cards from his deck once again. With confidence, Marufuji Sho couldn't help but smile when he saw one of the cards he drew.

"Next, I will activate this spell card again, [Fusion Recycle], to retrieve one [Fusion] spell card and one monster sent to the graveyard as fusion material from my graveyard back to my hand. The monster I choose is this one, [Express Machine].

Returning the card to his hand, Marufuji Sho played it along with [Fusion] and said, "Next, I activate the Spell Card [Fusion] again, using [Express Robot] from my hand and [Super Transport Robot - Stealth Fusion] on the field as Fusion Materials to perform a Fusion Summon!"

In an instant, it felt as if the earth was shaking—no, to be precise, the ground was indeed moving, because the Field Spell Card [Giant Machine City] actually began to transform after Marufuji Sho activated this [Fusion] Spell Card!

"The required materials are a [Machine] Fusion Monster plus a [Machine] Monster. A new hope will be born at this moment, accompanied by courage and bonds!" After glancing at the [New Chef] on Amelda's field, Marufuji Sho said, "If the Special Summon of [New Chef] is called 'Dish Upgrade,' then this is mine—Transformation Upgrade!"

"Appear!! The embodiment of hope that unites all expectations and trust!! Robot, transform! Combine and attack!"

With the second activation of [Fusion], [Express Robot] and [Super Transport Robot - Stealth Fusion] were sent to the graveyard, and the two monsters transformed into light and merged into the ground beneath their feet. Amidst the roar, the overpass, river, and aerial guide lines beneath Amelda and Marufuji Sho's feet combined and transformed, merging together to form a gigantic super robot!

【Super Transportation Robot - Mobile Base】【10 stars/location】

[Mechanical Race/Fusion/Effect]

[0/5000]

Just as the new generation of magic chefs in Amelda are leveling up, Marufuji Sho's super transport robot - stealth combination has also completed its upgrade, rising from 9 stars to 10 stars, becoming the formidable presence before us!

"Once per turn, you can target one face-up monster your opponent controls to activate the effect of [Super Transporter - Mobile Base]!" The moment the new monster was summoned, Marufuji Sho commanded, "My target is [Forgrecia, the Foie Gras of the New Magic Chef]!"

Seeing that Marufuji Sho's newly summoned [Super Transport Robot - Mobile Base] was in Defense Position and only mentioned that it would target [Forgrecia, the Foie Gras of the New Chef] for its effect, without specifying the exact effect, Amelda sneered, "You're so smug just because you summoned a monster with 0 ATK? Since you want to see it, I'll show you my ultimate form, [New Chef]!"

In response to Marufuji Sho's Fusion Summon, while [Super Transport Robot - Mobile Base] targets [Forgrecia the New Chef's Foie Gras] as its effect target, Amelda waved her hand and said, "When a monster on the field is targeted by an attack or effect, I chain-activate the effect of [Forgrecia the New Chef's Foie Gras]!"

"I Tribute one of my 'New Chef' monsters and one Attack Position monster each player controls, then Special Summon a Level 5/6 'New Chef' Ritual Monster from my hand and Deck. I will Tribute 'New Chef's Foie Gra ...

Abandoning his previous style of reciting recipes as summoning incantations, Amelda retrieved a card from his deck and said in a deep voice, "The ultimate gourmet born from darkness, combining the power of the three bodies, will annihilate despair (meat), hatred (bread), and sin (vegetables)!"

"Dish upgrade - Level 6☆! Descend, Waga Tamashii!"

"The grand finale! [The New Magic Chef's Barbecue: Baglier]!"

Along with the aroma of meat filling the air and the grilled ribs laid out on the table, appeared the four-eyed demon wielding a scepter and six stars pinned to his chest. After waiting for so many years, he finally had his chance. Amelda uttered the line he had always wanted to learn after he had watched Hayato use [Hellfire Machine - Baal]:

"Do you dare disobey me, who possesses the power of Bayel?!"

Chapter 1479 Although it wasn't written on the card...

【The New Style of Magic Chef's Barbecue: Bagliel】【6☆/Dark】

[Warrior Race/Ritual/Effect]

[2400/1850]

It must be too well-known that even before Jaden and Amelda have explained it, Marufuji Sho already knows the two prototypes of "The New Style Chef's Barbecue: Baal": a grilled pork rib and the first of the seventy-two demons—Baal, the former chief god of the Canaanite religion, the origin of the word "Lord," who was vilified as a demon in the Old Testament after losing in the competition with the Christian religion, and whose name was even distorted to "Beelzebub" in the New Testament.

This supreme deity, who governs agriculture, embodies the sun, symbolizes abundance, and even once merged with lightning to become the god of storms, is still considered an "enemy of God" even now, despite being demonized as a demon god, and could even be called the "master demon"!

Upon its appearance, [The New Chef's Grill of Bagriel] exuded an extremely strong sense of oppression, causing Marufuji Sho to feel his breath catch for a moment. However, he continued, "Although [The New Chef's Foie Gras of Foie Gras of Foie Gras] has been sent to the graveyard, [Super Transporter - Mobile Base] will continue to process the effect after determining the target monster's attack power."

"Special Summon a [Machine] monster with an ATK equal to or less than the ATK of the target monster from my Deck/Fusion Deck!"

As he spoke, Marufuji Sho took out a card, “【Forgrecia, the Foie Gras Master of the New Magic Chef】 has an attack power of 2000, so I can Special Summon this 【Express Machine】 with an attack power of 400!”

【Express Man】【4 stars/location】

[Mechanical Race/Effect]

[400/1600]

Sho Marufuji said, “I Special Summoned a second ‘Express Mech’ from my Deck. ‘Express Mech’s’ effect is not limited to once per turn. When it is Special Summoned, it can target any ‘Mech’ monster other than two ‘Express Mechs’ in my Graveyard and add them to my hand.”

As he spoke, Marufuji Sho was about to retrieve the cards from the graveyard once more. However, at that moment, the "New-Style Magic Chef's Barbecue - Bagriel" on Ameruda's field suddenly activated, unleashing lightning that enveloped the sky. The high-voltage current released a powerful magnetic field, causing the two anthropomorphic "Machine" monsters on Marufuji Sho's field to simultaneously display expressions of pain and become immobilized?!

"While I don't know what you're trying to do by taking cards from the graveyard, do you think you can still use your monster effects freely? In front of Bayeri!"

As Ameruda spoke, a smile crept onto his lips. He finally understood why Hayato Kobayashi always shouted such arrogant lines after unleashing [Hellfire Machine - Baal]: "Do you dare defy me, who possesses Baal?" Regardless of whether the monster's suppressive power was actually that strong, shouting like that was undeniably stress-relieving and exhilarating.

"By activating the chain effect of [Express Machine], my [New Chef's Grilled Bagriel] can also activate its effect if it is successfully Special Summoned. Under the control of Bayeri, the effects of all face-up cards on your opponent's field are negated until the end of the turn. Furthermore, if [New Chef's Grilled Bagriel] is Special Summoned by the effect of a [New Chef] monster, you can Tribute as many monsters as possible on your opponent's field!"

"It's actually a release!?" Marufuji Sho finally understood why his [Express Machine] effect hadn't worked. But what shocked him even more was the exaggerated effect of [New-Style Magic Chef's Barbecue of Bagriel], which released all of the opponent's monsters without targeting any specific monster.

In Duel Monsters, many monsters possess various resistances. For example, the "This card cannot be destroyed by the opponent's card effects, and the opponent cannot target this card with their card effects" resistance is common to the "Majestic Monster" family. This resistance is so classic that it is directly named "Majestic Resistance". There is also the "Cannot be destroyed by battle" resistance, which is jokingly called the "most useless resistance" but is extremely useful when it is. And so on.

However, the Liberation Resistance is a rare and powerful resistance that few monsters possess. It exists only in a handful of monsters, such as [Five Magician], [SPYRAL - Double Agent], and [Dots and Echoes]. The vast majority of monsters are not equipped with this resistance, which is why [Turtle Kaimon - Gamesiale], [Lava Demon], and [Ra's Winged Dragon of Ra - Spherical] can thrive in the environment.

Although the release of 【New Chef's Barbecue of Bagriel】 is not a non-effect release like the Three Gluttons, but rather part of a monster effect, it is still enough to suppress most monsters that do not have the effect of "unaffected by monster effects", not to mention that the two monsters on Marufuji's field have no resistance at all.

The effect of [Express Robot] was negated, and then it and [Super Transport Robot - Mobile Base] were crushed by the electric grid released by [New Chef's Barbecue of Bagriel] and released to Marufuji Sho's graveyard. At this moment, Marufuji Sho only had one card left in his hand and the field was empty.

Even the city that had transformed back into its urban form after the Field Spell Cards [Giant Machine City] and [Super Transport Machine - Mobile Base], which were activated earlier, no longer lit up. It seemed that the electrical system had been damaged by the lightning storm earlier and would no longer function for this turn.

However, just when Ameluda thought Marufuji Sho had run out of options, countless lights suddenly illuminated the darkened city. As the light sources drew closer, Ameluda realized they were countless car headlights?

"Although you, Mr. Ameluda, have released all the monsters on my field, it's not over yet! My hope is not lost!" Marufuji Sho took out several cards from his graveyard. Ameluda discovered that those cards were the [Machines] that were currently speeding through the dark city. "I will activate the effect of [Blender Man] in my graveyard!"

Previously, besides releasing itself to Special Summon "Express Machine" from the Deck, "Blender Man" seemed to have no other use. It was the lead vehicle of Marufuji Sho's field team, followed by one "Machine Man" after another. Marufuji Sho continued, "You can only activate the effect of 'Blender Man' by paying me half of your Life Points and then banishing any number of Machine-Type monsters in my Graveyard, including 'Blender Man'!"

【Marufuji Sho: 4000→2000LP, 1 card in hand】

"Special Summon one [Machine] Fusion Monster from my Fusion Deck, equal to the number of monsters I banish, ignoring their Summoning conditions. Destroy the monsters Special Summoned by this effect during the End Phase!"

"The number of monsters I'm banishing is six!" Marufuji Sho said, taking a card from his Fusion Deck and holding it high above his head. "This is my final 'Red Robot Call'!"

(Image reference)

"Six [Machine] monsters? Does that mean I need to Special Summon a Level 6 [Machine] Fusion Monster?" Jaden, standing on the sidelines, pondered for a moment. "Is Sho's Level 6 [Machine] Monster [Rescue First Aid Machine]? Or [Steam Gyro Machine]?"

"Huh?! Wait a minute, I remember now, if we ignore the summoning conditions, there's also that 'Machine' that isn't a 'Machine'!" Jaden suddenly remembered a card and became excited, as if his card was about to be used.

【Steam Robot】, 【Drill Robot】, 【Rescue Robot】, 【Dragon Robot】, and 【Super Transportation Robot - Invisible Combine】, these five 【Robot】 monsters sped along under the leadership of 【Blender Robot】, and then transformed into a beam of light like a meteor, converging at one point and crashing down on Marufuji Shojo Field.

Amidst the light, the rings on the staff clattered together, and a monster appeared on Marufuji Sho's field—a monster even Amelda couldn't have predicted.

"The mysterious power from the cemetery will be awakened in the wilderness, and with mysterious steps, it will step into this land of miracles—this is the bond between my elder brother and me!"

Special Summon, Level 6!

"Come forth, [E·hero Necromancer]!"

Carrying a six-ringed Zen staff adorned with gold rings on his shoulder, Marufuji Sho appeared on the field as a burly man with a bare upper body revealing his muscular physique, dressed like a "Kyogen Mask" character from a Noh drama. His art style couldn't be described as incongruous with "Machine"—it was practically unrelated—because he was essentially a Fusion Monster from Jaden's "E·Hero" deck!

【E·hero Necromancer】【6☆/Dark】