It was as if the legendary battle of Shimōsa had been reenacted—the joint assault of Shuten and Minamoto-no-Raikou, the Seven Duels of Swordmasters, revived on the field!
"Go, Minamoto-no-Raikou!!"
[Heroic Spirit – Minamoto-no-Raikou ★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)][LIGHT][Warrior/Effect][ATK 2800/DEF 2000]
"Punishment… begins. Do not worry, Master—Mama will take care of everything~"
Camula scoffed dismissively.
"Hohoho… after all that effort, all you managed to summon is a monster with 2800 ATK? It still falls short of my Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem!"
"Arghhh, it's making me furious-nane! That is clearly my Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem, nanone!!"
Crowler bit down on his handkerchief in anger. Watching his ace monster forced to serve and take orders from a seductive vampire—being NTR'd so thoroughly—left him on the verge of tears.
Raising a hand to the sky, Hoshino countered with confidence:
"No, Camula. Look closely at this lightning cleaving through the darkness! Behold—Doujigiri Yasutsuna!"
[Effect: If you control "Heroic Spirit – Minamoto-no-Raikou" and "Heroic Spirit – Shuten Dōji" is in your GY: You can add this card from your Deck or GY to your hand.]
Catching the Equip Spell as it shot out from her Duel Disk, Hoshino slammed it onto the field. At the same moment, a blade engulfed in roaring lightning descended from the heavens into Raikou's waiting hand.
"Activate Yasutsuna's effect! The equipped LIGHT monster gains ATK equal to its DEF!"
[Heroic Spirit – Minamoto-no-Raikou ATK 2800 → 4800]
"Mama mia—4800 ATK!? That's stronger than my Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem… no, even stronger than the legendary Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, nanone!?"
Crowler clutched his face in disbelief as Raikou's overwhelming ATK exceeded all common sense.
"—Who says a blade forged to slay oni cannot cut down vampires as well!?"
Entering the Battle Phase, Raikou dashed forward, her blade's tip scraping across the ground and carving a trail of crackling thunder in her wake.
"With this ATK, Minamoto-no-Raikou will tear that vampire to shreds!"
Hoshino pointed at the weakest monster on Camula's field—
[Vampire Fraulein ATK 600]
"No matter how much LP you sacrifice—even if you stake your very life—you cannot protect that monster today!"
Not daring to endure the attack directly, Camula flipped her Set card:
"In that case, I'll use your precious monster as a shield instead! I activate my Trap—Shift!"
[Effect: You can activate this card when your opponent designates 1 monster on your side of the field as the target of a Spell, Trap, or battle attack. Change the target to a different monster on your side of the field.]
In an instant, the two monsters switched positions. Illya, now in the attack's path, stared blankly at the incoming lightning.
"Eh!? What's going on!?"
"Thanks to Shift, the target changes! My Illya in Defense Position will take the hit instead—meaning I won't take any battle damage!"
A pillar of lightning crashed down on Vampire Illya, making her convulse as her tongue went numb.
"Uuuhhh… s-so tingly, but kinda nice~~"
[Magical Girl – Illya destroyed]
Jaden winced sympathetically.
"Illya's really been through a lot lately, huh…"
Akashia nodded.
"Yeah… even worse than Okita's suffering. Is this the burden of being an ace unit?"
"How shameless, Camula! To use my adorable Illya as a shield!"
The watching students all snapped back immediately:
"No, no, no—Headmistress, you were the one who used Illya as ammunition in the first place. You can't complain now."
Though the attack had been terrifying, Camula managed to hold on and exhaled in relief.
"That ends your Battle Phase, brat! 'Lightning that tears through darkness'? Even with that much ATK, your monster can't touch my vampires anymore!"
"No, I'm not finished! Heroic Spirit – Minamoto-no-Raikou's Special Effect—"
Hoshino raised her Duel Disk as magical energy surged from the four Heroic Spirits in her GY, materializing into four demonic thunder spirits.
"If it is Master's will… then even if I must become an oni myself, Raikou shall obey!"
Lifting Yasutsuna again, Raikou summoned more lightning. The four demonic lightning avatars—each wielding one of her four heavenly weapons—descended onto the battlefield.
"—Arise, my loyalty, my limbs, my armor! Take form from my memories—the Four Heavenly Kings!!"
[Effect: Once while face-up on the field: You can banish 4 "Heroic Spirit" monsters with different names from your GY; destroy all face-up Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.]
"I banish Mash, Okita, Shuten, and Astolfo from my GY!"
Had she used this effect earlier, she would have destroyed the Attack Position monsters but left Illya in Defense Position—limiting her damage. But now? There was no need to hold back.
"Open fire, Minamoto-no-Raikou!!"
"—Turn to ashes! Vengeful Lightning of the Ox-King!!!"
Calling upon the manifestation of the demonic ox deity and divine messenger Gyūki, Raikou's thunderous might swept through the enemy formation in an instant.
Empowered by the Four Heavenly Kings, her lightning-infused blade obliterated all of Camula's Attack Position monsters—including the Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem that Shuten had forced into Attack Mode.
[Vampire Fraulein destroyed]
[Vampire Lord destroyed]
[Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem destroyed]
"H-How… how is this possible…?"
Camula stood frozen, unable to comprehend the devastation now laying across the field.
Not just her—the surrounding Duel Academy students were speechless.
"She wiped everything… even Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem… with a single effect."
"So since the moment she appeared… the Headmistress never considered Camula's field a threat?"
"This… this is the power of the Duel King? This is insane…"
Rumors of Hoshino's overwhelming strength had spread across the Academy, but this was the first time most students had seen her duel seriously.
"Camula! In the end, this lightning did pierce through your darkness! With Minamoto-no-Raikou at 4800 ATK, the flow of this Duel has now completely reversed!"
Hoshino slid a card onto her Duel Disk.
"I set 1 card and end my turn. Your move!"
"Damn it… Even after activating the Illusion Gate, I'm still being pushed back this hard!?"
As she began her turn and drew her card, Camula's hand trembled. From behind her, she could feel the cold, suffocating pressure radiating from the Illusion Gate.
Sensing something abnormal, Hoshino spoke cautiously:
"Camula… The Illusion Gate may grant you near-cheating power by borrowing the might of the Sacred Beasts. But the price for using it is the soul and life of the loser—offered as a sacrifice to the Three Sacred Beasts."
According to the legend Kaiba once mentioned, the condition for the Sacred Beasts' resurrection was to absorb the life force of every Duel Spirit on Earth as nourishment.
Even if exaggerated, legends don't form without reason. Their revival could very well require a living sacrifice.
Originally, the cunning Camula could have easily chosen someone else present to sacrifice instead of herself when activating the Gate. But after Hoshino initiated her Shadow Game, such despicable tactics were no longer possible.
"I can't lose. I absolutely cannot lose. The century-long wish of the Vampire Clan must be fulfilled with my own hands."
Back in medieval Europe, the once-prosperous Vampire race possessed territories of their own. Noble vampires were even granted the title of Count.
But 300 years ago, the vampires' beauty sparked jealousy from the highest authorities of the Church. Under the Church's indoctrination, humans—brainwashed into believing vampires were evil—launched a mass extermination.
In just two years, peaceful vampires—men, women, and children—were all slaughtered.
At the time, Camula had been nothing more than a young, innocent vampire girl. Her father sealed her inside a coffin hidden in a remote cave, allowing her to sleep and avoid the purge. She became the last surviving vampire in the world.
"After sleeping for a hundred years, I was awakened by the guidance of the Sacred Beast. It promised me—if I revive it, I will obtain the power of darkness vast enough to envelop the world. With that power, I will resurrect my massacred family! That is why I cannot lose! Draw—!"
The card Camula drew carried a century of conviction—an overwhelming aura of darkness surged from her.
"Hahahaha! Little girl—no—Hoshino Chiyuki! This Duel belongs to me!"
Laughing wildly at her draw, Camula felt certain that fate had finally chosen her.
"I activate the effect of Vampire Lord in my GY! Since it was destroyed by a card effect, during my Standby Phase it Special Summons itself! And then I activate Monster Reborn to revive Vampire Fraulein from my GY!"
Blood-red bats fluttered out of the Graveyard, materializing as two graceful vampire figures on Camula's field.
[Vampire Lord ATK 2000]
[Vampire Fraulein ATK 600]
Crowler snorted smugly, arms crossed:
"This vampire is already at the end of her rope-nanone! With monsters this weak, there's no way you can defeat the Headmistress' monsters!"
"Shut up, you ugly!" Camula snapped back, slamming the card she drew onto her crimson Duel Disk. Her seductive smile carried an alluring, irresistible charm.
"This! This is my ace monster! I Tribute both vampires on my field to Tribute Summon—Vampire Vamp!"
[Vampire Vamp ★★★★★★★ (Level 7)][DARK][Zombie/Effect][ATK 2000/DEF 2000]
The bewitching beauty descended under a crimson moon, using the blood of the two vampires as her offering.
Raikou frowned, brows tightening.
"Master, this monster is dangerous. The aura of evil she emits… is on a completely different level from the others!"
"Vampire Vamp's effect activates! When this card is Normal Summoned, or when another 'Vampire' monster is Summoned to your field, you can equip 1 face-up monster your opponent controls with higher ATK than this card to this card as an Equip Card!"
Her entrancing eyes locked onto Hoshino's Minamoto-no-Raikou. The tall swordswoman, lightning blade in hand, suddenly stiffened.
"Hngh… What are you trying to do…?"
"Now, savor it… the Vampire Queen's kiss~"
Floating up to Raikou, Vampire Vamp leaned forward, softly pressing her lips against Raikou's. A wave of corrupting seduction flooded into Raikou's body, numbing her mind.
"With this, your power is now mine." Camula smirked. "Vampire Vamp gains ATK equal to the original ATK of the equipped monster."
Yasutsuna shattered. Raikou—bewitched and corrupted—was dragged to Camula's Spell & Trap Zone, smiling deliriously toward Hoshino.
"Ara~ As a mother, letting you witness such indecent behavior… I've failed as a parent~ Oh well, I'll just 'educate' you properly until you forget everything~"
[Vampire Vamp ATK 2000 → 4800]
Hoshino stiffened.
"H-Hey, don't twist the logic to make it sound like it's my fault! It's not like I chose to watch this! And seriously—Raikou too!? Vampires really are the most troublesome deck to fight…"
"This Duel has flipped in my favor! Vampire Vamp—attack directly!"
Minazuki swallowed hard.
"4800 ATK… that's a direct kill in one strike…"
"Sorry, but I'm not taking that hit head-on!" Hoshino declared, flipping her only Set card.
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell—Phantasm Summon! This Fusion Spell, which Illya searched earlier, lets me Fusion Summon using monsters from my hand and GY!"
Camula narrowed her eyes.
"A fusion? With your GY emptied? Everything was banished. What monster could you possibly summon with such meager resources?"
"Heh… Don't forget, Camula—my ace is still resting in my Graveyard!"
Sending a monster from her hand to the GY, stardust flared across the field, forming a new dreamlike silhouette.
"I fuse Magical Girl – Illya in my GY with Heroic Spirit – Yang Guifei in my hand! Manifest—Fusion born from pure possibility—Magical Girl – Yang Guifei Illya!"
[Magical Girl – Yang Guifei Illya ★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)][FIRE][Psychic/Fusion/Effect][ATK 2300/DEF 1000]
"No matter how often Master bullies her, at the crucial moment—she always stands without hesitation to turn the Duel around! That is what makes her a true ace monster!"
Transformed into a glamorous beauty dressed like the most beloved imperial concubine, Yang Guifei Illya—radiating elegance and cuteness together—landed gracefully on Hoshino's field.
"⁄(⁄⁄•⁄⁄•⁄⁄)⁄ Th-this outfit feels so revealing… I feel really embarrassed, Master…"