How come the Ace of Cups isn't considered the Holy Grail?

[Venom Minaga, the Serpent God]

【10 stars】

[Reptile/Special Summon/DARK]

[Attack power: 0→2500]

Chapter 185 The Magician's Cooperation

The duel is over.

Jingmi looked at the [Venom Minaga] that had appeared on her field and thought to herself.

It cannot be destroyed by card effects, nor is it affected by the effects of its own wild cards. Even if it is destroyed by battle, it can be revived by banishing 1 Reptile monster from the Graveyard. Furthermore, regardless of size, it can win by dealing 3 battle damages.

For her, who possesses such a monster, winning this duel is only a matter of time.

In just three more rounds, she will be able to win the duel and her first victory in this Holy Grail War.

Jingmi turned her gaze to Youdu across from her, and just then, Youdu made a move.

“Then, I’ll activate the monster effect of [Apprentice Magician] on the field!” Yuuto glanced at his [Apprentice Magician], which had been switched to Defense Position, and said after a moment’s thought.

"If this card is Normal or Special Summoned, I can add 1 [Dark Magician] from my Deck to my hand! Then I Normal Summon [Magician's Wand]!"

After adding the retrieved card to his hand, Yuuto picked out a card and placed it on his Duel Disk. A spirit holding a wand in both hands, resembling the Dark Magician, slowly emerged from his field.

"The effect of [Magician's Wand] activates! When this card is Summoned, I can add 1 Spell/Trap Card with 'Dark Magician' listed in its name from my Deck to my hand!"

"I add the Continuous Spell Card [Dark Magician Circle] to my hand and activate it immediately!"

hum-

In an instant, the black and gold circular magic circle covered the area on Yudu's side, and the faint magical power emanating from it alone made Reirōkan Misaya feel a sense of oppression.

Is this... just a glimpse of the power of the great magician of the Age of Gods?

Misaya Reirōkan felt both excited and a little afraid of facing the unknown.

Don't ask her why she calls Yudo a great magician one minute and an alchemist the next. There's no rule that says magicians can't study alchemy, so whatever she calls him is correct!

"The effect of [Dark Magic Circle] is activated! As part of the effect resolution when this card is activated, I can check the top 3 cards of my deck!" The circular magic circle under Yuuto's feet lit up faintly.

Reveal one of the "Dark Magician" cards, or any Spell/Trap Card with that name, to your opponent and add it to their hand. Then, place the remaining cards back on top of your deck in your preferred order.

Yuto flips over the top 3 cards of his deck one by one.

[Guardian Priest Mahad], [The Magician's Rescue], [Eternal Soul]...

He chose to add the Field Spell Card "Rescue of the Magician" to his hand, and left the order of the remaining cards unchanged, placing the newly acquired "Rescue of the Magician" directly onto the field area.

"Field Magic: The Magician's Rescue!"

The surrounding environment had not changed much, except that the center of the circular magic circle in the ferry area had become a bottomless, pitch-black cave.

"When this card is activated, I can select 1 [Eternal Spirit] from my Deck and set it on my field!"

The ancient stone tablet flashed past Youdu's back, and the next second it transformed into a card, placed on the field with the swirling pattern on the back facing up.

"Next, I activate the effect of [Magician's Twin Souls] in my hand!" Yuuto flipped [Magician's Twin Souls] over in his hand to show it to the opponent, Shizuka.

This series of actions made even the tranquility feel a little uneasy.

Does he have a way to break through the [Venom Minaga] barrier?

Yuto continued, "Based on its effect, I send 1 'Dark Magician Girl' from my deck to the graveyard, then send this card to the graveyard, and Special Summon 'Dark Magician' from the graveyard in Attack Position!"

"This is my strongest servant! [The Dark Magician]!"

A black hole opened in the center of the arena, and a figure dressed in a deep purple robe jumped out, gracefully landing on the arena with a staff in hand, before crouching down.

The Black Magician

【7 stars】

[Magician/Dark]

[Defense: 2100]

"At this very moment! The other effect of the Continuous Spell Card [Dark Magic Circle] activates!" The circular magic circle beneath Yuuto's feet emitted a light brimming with magical power, and he raised his hand to point towards the tranquility opposite him.

"If I have [Dark Magician] Summoned or Special Summoned on my field, I may banish 1 card on your field!"

Jingmi frowned upon hearing this: "It's useless, [Viper God Venominaga] won't be the target of the effect!"

"I know!" Yu Du lowered his raised hand without a care, but his extended index finger did not retract, pointing straight down at the ground.

"Therefore, I've chosen your Field Spell [Level Restriction: Area B]!"

Except for my eternal magic?

The calm frown eased slightly.

It seems he really can't break through the [Venomous Serpent God Venominaga]... Is she just overthinking it?

"Then I'll activate the effects of the field spell 'The Magician's Rescue'!"

"If you successfully Summon or Special Summon 'Dark Magician' or 'Dark Magician Girl', you may Special Summon 1 'Dark Magician' or 'Dark Magician Girl' from my Graveyard with a name different from that monster card!"

The monster Special Summoned from the field is [Dark Magician], so based on its effect, he chose to Special Summon [Dark Magician Girl] from the Graveyard.

"This is the magic power inherited from the highest-ranking magician, and also his only disciple!"

"【Dark Magician Girl】!"

The dark magician remained crouched, reached his hand into the dark cave in the ground, groped around for a while, and then suddenly pulled out the bewildered dark magician girl with a cold expression.

Black Magic Girl

【6 stars】

[Magician/Dark]

[Attack power: 2000]

"Huh? How did I get here?" The black magician girl was stunned for a moment. She remembered that she was clearly at home guarding the house. Then she looked around and saw the black magician next to her and Yuto behind her.

"Ah, Master, and Master! You're both here!"

Yudu paused briefly for a moment, then continued processing the chain of events as if he hadn't heard anything.

The surrounding mechanical bases disappeared under the effect of the magic circle, and Yuuto took out another card from his hand.

"I activate the Spell Card 'Sage's Jewel' from my hand. If 'Dark Magician Girl' is on my field, I can Special Summon 1 'Dark Magician' from my hand or Deck!"

"Come on! [Dark Magician]!"

The Dark Magician 2

[Attack power: 2500]

This time, without the effect of [Level Restriction Area B], [Dark Magician] stands on the field in Attack position.

"But... even so, it's still not as powerful as the monsters on the opponent's field, is it?"

Reiko Misaya glanced at Yutari and the monsters on the tranquil field.

Does this mean the Dark Magician should sacrifice himself to take down the monster, allowing the Dark Magician Girl to attack?

Not only her, but even the dark magician girl thought so.

In an instant, she perked up, radiating an air of 'Master, go in peace! Leave the rest to your disciple!'

The black magician's eyes twitched involuntarily when he noticed her appearance.

He really did take on a 'good' apprentice!

However, Yudou wouldn't go that far...

"The Spell Card [Dark Magician Barrage] is activated, increasing the ATK of [Dark Magician 2] on my field by the combined ATK of [Dark Magician Girl] on the field and in my Graveyard until the end of this turn!"

He has a [Dark Magician Girl] on his field, therefore [Dark Magician 2]'s attack power will increase by 2000 points!

The Dark Magician 2

[Attack power: 2500→4500]

It has already surpassed the attack power of the [Venom Minaga].

"Battle has begun!" Before Jingmi and Linglongguan Misaya could react, Yudou had already entered the battle phase.

"【Black Magician 2】Attack 【Viper God Venominaga】! Black Magic Missile Barrage!"

On the field, the Dark Magician 2 and the Dark Magician Girl, who looked regretful for some reason, pressed their wands together and fired a large number of magic bullets that looked like black bubbles, shooting them towards the Serpent God in the quiet field.

The magic bullets exploded the moment they touched the Serpent God's body, followed by a massive wave of magic bullets that completely engulfed the Serpent God.

"At this very moment! The effect of [Apprentice Illusionary Mage] on the field activates!"

"When another Spellcaster-Type DARK monster battles an opponent's monster during damage calculation, send this card from your hand or field to the Graveyard. That monster's ATK and DEF increase by 2000 points only during that damage calculation!"

A third staff appeared at the intersection of the two existing staffs. The Apprentice Magician of Illusion smiled at the Dark Magician Girl, and the combined power of the three made the attack even more powerful.

The Dark Magician 2

[Attack power: 4500→6500]

[Venom Minaga, the Serpent God]

[Attack power: 2500]

Jingmi stared wide-eyed in astonishment as the magic bullets continued to fly towards her, their aftershocks undiminished even after the serpent god had been destroyed.

If I can't defeat your monster, does that mean I can't win this duel?

Yu-Gi-Oh! is not such an inconvenient thing!

Tranquility: "Whoosh—!"

[Tranquility LP: 4000→0]

[Yudou: Win!]

Chapter 186 Poisonous Flower

With a single, coordinated attack from the three magicians, Tranquility's life points were wiped out in a single blow, and the powerful impact knocked her down, bringing the duel to an end.

Watching her body gradually become transparent, Jingmi, lying on the ground, no longer struggled or tried to escape.

It's pointless, because her spirit core was shattered when it was basically empty, and her magic power was constantly draining away. Even if she escaped at this time, she wouldn't be able to replenish her magic power through other means. At best, she would just be changing the place where she died.

She just felt very regretful.

I didn't meet anyone who could touch me this time either...

Feeling her body, with its days numbered, slowly fading away, she quietly closed her eyes and awaited death.

Just before she was about to leave, she suddenly felt a strange warmth in her palm.

That was a feeling she had never experienced before, something she had been searching for all along—to be able to touch someone who was still alive!

Who is it...?

She opened her eyes desperately, but her vision was completely blocked by golden particles of light that had dissipated into pure magic, and she could see nothing.

How could this be...? It was so hard...!

Filled with resentment, Tranquility was ultimately unable to struggle and refuse to leave the battlefield like those heroic spirits with battle continuation skills, and vanished into pure magic before Yuuto.

Only a single purple five-petaled flower remained in the same spot.

【Poison Flower: A】

[A flower formed from the essence of a potent venom capable of dissolving a human, each petal containing a terrifying toxin rarely seen in the world; perhaps it could be used to create some high-quality poisons?]

Holding the trophy left behind by the tranquil retreat in his hand, You Du stood silently in place, unsure whether to let go of the golden spear in his other hand.

Actually, he just wanted to see if fulfilling Tranquility's wish would improve the quality of the dropped items, but this...

Will he be dissolved by this flower the moment he releases the Holy Lance?

Yudou wasn't sure if he could become immune to the toxin without the Holy Lance's effects...

Looking around but unable to find a suitable container to store it, Youdu hesitated for a moment, but decided to continue holding the Holy Lance.

After all, he wasn't sure if the venom in the flower would seep through the fabric and directly corrode his body, so it was better to be careful.

You defeat your opponent, only to be eliminated because of their loot... That's a rather embarrassing way to be eliminated...