Heroic Spirit Deck in Yu-Gi-Oh!

"Stop messing around, Mana. Since you've already sneaked into the palace, you might as well join us for the celebration and grab something to eat—but only if you release all the guards you froze."

Mahad sighed, shaking his head helplessly.

"Yay! Delicious food, here I come! Let's go, Prince!"

In contrast, Mana jumped up excitedly and grabbed Yugi's hand, completely ignoring Mahad's condition as if she hadn't even heard it.

Yugi gave a slightly awkward smile. Truth be told, palace food wasn't exactly to his taste—but how could he turn down his childhood friend?

"Mana, at least undo the spell on the guards first. Otherwise, Mahad will get mad."

Mana stuck out her tongue mischievously and tapped her head. "Hehe, actually… I forgot how to undo the spell. So I'll have to ask Master to do it for me~"

You little menace… Just cast and forget, huh...

Watching the playful back-and-forth between teacher and student, Hoshino suddenly realized why Mana had felt so familiar—and why her presence had made her heart flutter the first time they met.

"Dark Magician's apprentice… Master… Mana, you're Dark Magician Girl?!"

If Mahad was the Dark Magician, then Mana must be his apprentice—the Dark Magician Girl! It just hadn't clicked right away—her darker skin tone was so different from the light-skinned version Hoshino was used to. But now that it had, her eyes sparkled like she was meeting a celebrity.

"No wonder you're so cute… Dark Magician Girl, I'm your biggest fan!"

"Cute? Y-You mean me?"

Caught off guard by Hoshino's enthusiasm, Mana's cheeks flushed with a faint blush.

She'd said some pretty rude things earlier, and yet here this girl was, complimenting her like none of that had ever happened. Returning kindness for resentment—what a gentle soul. Compared to that, she felt a little petty. No wonder the Prince treated her so kindly.

After a whirlwind of internal drama, Mana shyly lowered her head.

"T-Thank you~"

The essential trait of any harem protagonist: Kind.

Even if Hoshino wasn't the main character, this skill still worked wonders.

"—Pharaoh! Master Mahad!"

A guard's panicked voice rang out, cutting off Hoshino and Mana's cheerful exchange.

"You're already moving? Impressive, guard dude. As expected of Master Mahad—so fast with the spell canceling~" Mana admired as the guard ran over.

But Mahad frowned in confusion. "I didn't get the chance to dispel the spell yet… This guard, he's not one of ours from the palace, is he?"

A guard from outside rushing in like this could only mean one thing—something urgent had happened.

Sensing something was wrong, Yugi quickly asked, "What happened? Don't panic—report slowly!"

"It's bad—really bad…" The guard was gasping for breath, but didn't stop to rest. His terrified eyes locked onto the Pharaoh.

"Your Majesty! A massive horde of monster soldiers dressed like bandits has appeared outside the city! Our forces can't hold them off! Their leader has already broken through and is heading straight for the palace!"

Mahad's expression darkened. "Monster soldiers… in bandit gear? Are those dark forces hiding in the shadows trying to spread fear across the country—on the day of the Pharaoh's coronation, no less?!"

"Monsters? So there really are monsters in this era too…"

Hoshino had mentally prepared herself for encountering strange creatures like monsters or beasts in mysterious ancient Egypt—but she never expected them to boldly storm into the city, let alone target the royal palace.

"Prince, hurry! You and Mana must hide in the main hall—it's too dangerous to stay out here!"

She grabbed Yugi's and Hoshino's wrists and bolted toward the palace interior.

In the main hall, the guards who had received the report early—and the priests who possessed Millennium Items—were already preparing for battle.

Seeing Yugi dragged in by Mana, the priests collectively let out a sigh of relief.

Simon reassured him, "Please don't worry, my Pharaoh. Protecting the kingdom and its Pharaoh is the sacred duty of priests bearing Millennium Items. With their power to summon Duel Monsters, no ordinary bandits can defeat them."

"Ordinary bandits, huh…" But Yugi still had a bad feeling. Knowing that monster soldiers were involved, he couldn't simply lump them in with your run-of-the-mill crooks.

"Enemy attack incoming!"

The chaos outside and the soldiers' shouts made it clear—the enemy leader had broken through and entered the Pharaoh's main hall.

The thunder of hooves, the roar of a beast, and a figure leaping over the guards—slamming a coffin onto the floor with a crash. One look at the familiar coffin, and Simon, the former high priest, was stunned.

"T-That's… the coffin of the previous Pharaoh!"

"Heh… got a sharp eye, old man~"

The figure that leapt off the horse—none other than Bakura—grinned with his signature sinister smirk. After escaping from Kaiba, Bakura had immediately summoned his dark monster bandits and stormed the palace without pause.

"You're… Bakura?!"

Just like Hoshino Alter and Kaiba had reacted earlier, both Hoshino and Yugi instantly recognized the face identical to Bakura's.

"Hahaha! What an honor. The mighty Pharaoh actually knows the name of a humble thief like me… Wait, Hoshino?!"

This time, it was Bakura's turn to be shocked.

The same Hoshino who'd just fought him in the tomb of the former Pharaoh had somehow returned to the palace before him?

He'd rushed here at top speed—yet Hoshino, who should've been left behind, was already here?! Teleportation?! If so… was Kaiba here too?

If Yugi, Kaiba, and Hoshino were all present—along with the priests guarding the Millennium Items—then Bakura had completely misjudged the power balance.

Looking around and seeing no sign of Kaiba, only a priest who resembled him, Bakura quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Seems even Kaiba isn't so quick to recover after a battle like that. In that case, if Hoshino here is barely standing, her soul must be nearly spent."

His mind racing, Bakura regained his confidence. He pointed straight at Yugi seated on the throne.

"Oh great Pharaoh, today the Thief King Bakura has come… for your Millennium Items! Better get ready!"

Mahad activated his Duel Disk with a stern expression. "You dare show such insolence in the presence of the Pharaoh? No need for him to get involved—your punishment shall come from us!"

Following his lead, the other priests all activated their golden, arm-worn Duel Disks. The display of power was so overwhelming, it left both Hoshino and Yugi wide-eyed.

"Duel Disks?! So they already had Duel Disks in this era?!"

"—O slumbering spirits, respond to the call of our souls! Bring judgment upon the wicked!"

Through the duel disks linked to the spirit monster tablets housed within the royal palace, the six priests who safeguarded the Millennium Items began summoning the spirit monsters they had formed contracts with.

"As expected—if duel disks exist, then of course Duel Monsters must exist too!"

Hoshino's face lit up with anticipation, her interest piqued. The priests looked incredibly reliable, and the monsters bound to them only added to that sense of power. Six against one—this completely one-sided advantage made Hoshino feel like she was watching a high-budget special effects film.

"But what kind of monsters are they summoning? They all look like weaklings…"

The monsters summoned by the priests were completely unfamiliar to Hoshino. The only vaguely recognizable one was the Spirit Magician used by Mahad, whose outfit somewhat resembled that of the Dark Magician. But it was just the outfit—its short stature was a far cry from the tall and imposing Dark Magician.

"Opening with a six-on-one, huh? You guys sure don't pull any punches~"

Unfazed, Bakura smiled at the summoned monsters and calmly activated his own duel disk.

Seto frowned. "To think even a mere thief possesses a duel disk… You're clearly no ordinary criminal!"

"Answer my call—Diabound Kernel!"

Diabound Kernel, which had previously defeated the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, had clearly undergone a transformation. Its once pure white body was now armored in hardened blue scales.

Hoshino remarked, "Another monster I've never seen before. But since these priests are supposed to be the Pharaoh's protectors, they should be able to handle this. Even if their monsters look like weaklings."

However, what followed quickly shattered Hoshino's sense of security.

As the battle began, it was indeed one-sided—but not in the way she had expected. The ones being overwhelmed were the priests, despite their superior numbers.

Hoshino hadn't been wrong: the spirit monsters summoned by the priests really were frail and weak. They were no match for Diabound.

Barely three seconds of impressiveness—what had started as an intimidating display was now a massacre. The spirit monsters lay beaten and bloodied, scattered across the chamber.

"This is brutal… So this is the level of those who claim to protect the Pharaoh?"

The gap between expectations and reality was so vast, Hoshino didn't know what to say. Was the enemy simply too strong? From any angle, it just looked like the priests were too weak.

What Hoshino didn't know was that, in this era, very few people could even summon monsters—let alone command them. The priests who wielded Millennium Items represented the nation's top military force.

In the past, under the reign of the previous Pharaoh, the nation had repelled invading armies purely through the priests' summoned monsters.

But Bakura's Diabound defied all logic and expectations. The priests, caught completely off guard, had never imagined a mere thief could wield such overwhelming power.

Having already stepped down from his priestly position, Simon—who was not participating in the battle—warned, "Be careful. The power of Diabound, sealed within the previous Pharaoh, is a strange and formidable force—it's not an opponent easily defeated."

Why didn't you say that earlier!?

Wiping blood from the corner of his mouth, Seto growled, "Damn it… Are we really going to have to bring out our trump cards? Mahad! Karim!"

Karim, the priest who held the Millennium Scales, exchanged a glance with Mahad and nodded in agreement.

"No choice then!" Retracting his heavily wounded Spirit Magician, Mahad used the power of the duel disk to summon a new spirit monster. "Go—Minotaur!"

[Enraged Battle Ox ATK 1700]

Seto followed up immediately: "Answer me—Centaur Beast!"

[Mystic Horseman ATK 1300]

"Oh, I've seen these two monsters before!" Hoshino perked up. Finally, something familiar—confirming that this world's Duel Monsters still had some connection to the modern cards she knew.

"But… these two still look like weaklings. Doesn't seem like they're any stronger than the ones before."

Karim raised the Millennium Scales high and unleashed its hidden power.

"—O Millennium Scales, measure the souls with your balance! Combine these spirit monsters into one, and create a force that can break through despair!"

Using the power of the Millennium Scales, Mahad's and Seto's monsters began to merge—fusing into a brand-new creature.

[Rabid Horseman ATK 2000]

Hoshino didn't even know where to begin her criticism. She could only press a hand to her forehead in exasperation. "Seriously? That's what you came up with after fusing? Couldn't you at least fuse something more… useful?"

The result was obvious. Even the fused Rabid Horseman was no match for Diabound—it was defeated in a single blow.

Perhaps unable to bear seeing his subordinates suffer further—or perhaps simply because, like Hoshino, he couldn't stand such pitiful strength—Yugi rose from his throne. He stepped forward, took the duel disk from Mahad, and positioned himself in front of Bakura.

"That's enough, Bakura. I'll be your opponent now."

"Hahaha! The Pharaoh himself steps up? Your priests really are useless!"

Bakura laughed wildly, showing no mercy in his mockery.

"Don't forget me, Bakura."

Snatching a duel disk from the stunned Seto, Hoshino stepped up beside the Pharaoh, shoulder to shoulder, facing Bakura.

"If you're dissatisfied with the level of dueling in this era—then allow us to show you the strength of two of the greatest duelists in history!"

(*****)

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