"A promise? Akasha, you even made a promise with a Shadow Rider?"
Hoshino spoke with genuine concern. She feared Akasha had been deceived by some ancient monster and might end up walking down some strange, "inhuman" path.
"Yuki-onna is a spirit capable of bewitching the human heart. When a person's emotions waver strongly, their heart becomes invaded by her ice."
While explaining, Kaibaman activated his Duel Disk and stepped onto one end of the frozen duel arena.
"And once someone's heart is invaded by Yuki-onna, if they can't fulfill the desire born in that moment, they'll never break free from the shackles. This so-called 'promise' is nothing noble at all!"
"Wait… are you really Kaiba?" Hoshino finally couldn't hold back. Hearing him talk so casually about Yuki-onna and spiritual possession—this was far too strange.
The Kaiba she knew was a strict believer in science. He would never accept the actual existence of things like Yuki-onna or spirits.
And yet Kaibaman sounded perfectly familiar with all of it.
"Hmph! I already told you—I am the Hero of Justice, Kaibaman! Now let me use a Duel to wake you up, Akasha!"
The moment Kaibaman took a dueling stance, Yuki-onna reacted as if she had just grabbed onto her final lifeline, desperately begging Akasha:
"Akasha, as long as you defeat that man, no matter what you desire, I will help make it come true!"
Jaden grabbed Akasha's arm, urging frantically, "You can't listen to her, Akasha! Kaiba-san already said it—those are just lies meant to bewitch you!"
Yet even with Jaden's warning, Akasha's expression remained unchanged.
If anything, neither Hoshino nor Jaden could guess what kind of charm Yuki-onna had used… or what kind of desire Akasha held deep within her heart.
So Hoshino decided to simply leave this matter to Kaibaman. After all, he looked like he had plenty of experience dealing with this sort of thing.
…So he really isn't Seto Kaiba?
That doubt still lingered as Hoshino looked toward the frozen duel arena, where Kaibaman and Akasha now faced each other from opposite sides.
"Hmph. Not bad—so this is the conviction hidden inside your heart, Akasha!"
"I won't lose to some weirdo in a costume! Who do you think you are—putting on a Blue-Eyes White Dragon headpiece and acting like you can do whatever you want?!"
[Kaibaman VS Akasha]
Duel!
"Then I'll take the first turn—draw!"
Akasha declared confidently. Since her strategy relied heavily on traps, taking the first turn to set up her backrow was crucial.
"I Set three cards. Turn end."
She didn't summon a monster—clearly waiting for Kaibaman to walk straight into her traps.
"My turn—draw!"
The way he said draw dripped with Kaiba's usual intensity. Aside from the chuunibyou Blue-Eyes helmet, every movement Kaibaman made was unmistakably Seto Kaiba.
Inserting a Spell Card into his Duel Disk, a strange mechanical device materialized on his field.
"Come forth! Bingo Machine, Go!!!"
A Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon-themed contraption appeared, with three White Dragon heads. Hoshino immediately recognized it—it looked exactly like that horribly designed Blue-Eyes lottery machine from Duel City, the one used to determine turn order.
Or rather, it was probably directly modeled after it and made into a card.
And hearing Kaiba himself shout "GO!" was strangely entertaining.
[Bingo Machine, Go!!! – Spell Card Effect: Reveal 3 cards from your Deck that each meet at least 1 of the criteria listed below; your opponent randomly picks 1 for you to add to your hand, and you shuffle the rest back into your Deck. You can only activate 1 "Bingo Machine, Go!!!" per turn.
● "Blue-Eyes" monster
● Spell/Trap that mentions "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" or "Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon," except "Bingo Machine, Go!!!"]
"These are the three cards selected by my Bingo Machine, Go! Make your choice!"
Three cards rolled out from each Blue-Eyes head and flipped over in front of everyone.
"This is—?!"
"Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
"All three copies are Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
The lineup was perfectly uniform—three identical "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" cards.
"And you said you're not Kaiba." Hoshino immediately caught him.
There was only one person in the world who could hold three copies of Blue-Eyes White Dragon—and that was Seto Kaiba.
"You absolutely ARE Seto Kaiba—you put on a helmet and suddenly your whole personality escapes the cage!"
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Kaibaman let out his iconic laugh, dodging the accusation. He pointed at Akasha. "Hurry up and choose! According to the effect, I add the selected card to my hand and shuffle the others back!"
"What's there to choose?! They're all the same!"
"They may look identical—but each Blue-Eyes is a unique existence! Stop complaining and choose!"
"You're so annoying… fine, the middle one!"
Seeing her finally choose, Kaibaman smirked.
"Hmph. You've chosen your path… and that path leads straight to hell!"
Hoshino nodded with impressed disbelief. "Wow… this man really does radiate Hero of Justice energy."
Akasha complained ruthlessly.
"Why do I feel like I've only become more of a chuunibyou than before?"
After adding the Blue-Eyes White Dragon he searched with Bingo Machine, Go!!! to his hand, Kaibaman continued revealing his cards.
"I activate the effect of Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon in my hand! By revealing Blue-Eyes White Dragon, I can Special Summon it!"
[Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon ★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)][LIGHT] [Dragon/Effect][ATK 3000 / DEF 2500]
"ROAAAAAR!!"
A deafening draconic cry echoed across the icy cavern. Cloaked in radiant white light, the Alternative White Dragon unfurled its massive wings and descended onto the frozen arena.
Kaibaman then slapped down another monster.
"Next, I Normal Summon—Hero of Justice – Kaibaman!"
Hoshino raised an eyebrow.
"Eh?! Is this a 'I summon myself!' kind of thing?"
[Kaibaman ★★★ (Level 3)][LIGHT] [Warrior/Effect][ATK 200 / DEF 700]
A monster identical to Kaibaman materialized—making it look like he had just divided into two.
"Effect of Kaibaman! I Tribute this card to Special Summon 1 'Blue-Eyes White Dragon' from my hand!"
As his projection dissolved into light, another gleaming white dragon soared across the glacial arena.
"This is the majesty of the emperor who rules above all! Come forth—my most beautiful dragon!!"
[Blue-Eyes White Dragon – ATK 3000]
Stunned by the oppressive presence of two Blue-Eyes on the field, Jaden spoke nervously:
"To summon two Blue-Eyes just like that… If Akasha has no monsters, isn't she in real danger?"
Hoshino shook her head.
"Akasha didn't summon a monster, but she Set three cards. With traps that obvious, if Kaiba attacks recklessly, he's the one who'll be in danger."
A glance at Akasha's calm expression made it clear—if Kaibaman attacked now, he would absolutely die a painful death.
"I Set two cards. Turn end!"
Even with a terrifying double–Blue-Eyes board, Kaibaman didn't dare crash into Akasha's unknown traps.
"You shouted so confidently, but ended up chickening out," Akasha teased as she drew for her turn.
Kaibaman remained unfazed. Crossing his arms, he lectured:
"Charging headfirst isn't always justice. Sometimes defense is necessary to seize victory. Just like the desire you're holding inside, Akasha!"
"My desire?" Akasha scowled. "A chuunibyou weirdo in a dragon helmet could never understand what I want!"
Kaibaman only chuckled—then pointed toward the defeated Yuki-onna lying crumpled on the ground.
"Heh… So you're saying that pitiful woman understands you better?"
"Shut up! I just don't want a creep like you lecturing me!"
Hoshino: "Ah, she said it—the C-word."
Jaden: "Calling Kaiba-san a creep… he's definitely mad now…"
Hoshino admitted she felt the same—but she'd never dare say it aloud. Respect for Kaiba was one thing… fear was another.
"—I activate the Spell Card Purely Bloom!"
[Pure Bloom – Spell Effect: Special Summon 1 'Artoria Pendragon – Lily' from your hand or Deck.]
"Arise, young Knight King! Walk the path of blooming flowers—by the name of the holy sword, guide the Heroic Spirits!"
[Artoria Pendragon – Lily ★★★★ (Level 4)][LIGHT] [Dragon/Tuner/Effect][ATK 1200 / DEF 800]
[When this card is Special Summoned: Add 1 'Heroic Spirit' monster from your Deck, GY, or banished cards to your hand.]
"Due to Lily's effect, I add Heroic Spirit – Nursery Rhyme to my hand!
Then I Normal Summon The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion in Defense Position!"
[The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion ★★★ (Level 3)][Rock/Effect][ATK 1000 / DEF 1600]
A strange, glowing creature appeared—like a small stone idol sprouting limbs.
Jaden blinked.
"What kind of weird monster is that? Why would Akasha put something like that in her Deck?"
"Jaden, you didn't pay attention in class again, did you?" Hoshino scolded, hands on hips. "I told you to stop hanging out with Minazuki just playing games! The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion is part of the required curriculum!"
[The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion Effect: You can substitute this card for any 1 Fusion Material Monster, but the other Fusion Materials must be correct.]
"So it can replace a Fusion Material? That's amazing! It'd be perfect in my Deck!" Jaden said excitedly.
(Okita: "Σ(っ°Д°;)っ Huh?! If such a convenient monster exists, won't Okita-san's value as Fusion Material drop even lower?!")
[You can Tribute Fusion Material Monsters on the field, including this face-up card; Special Summon 1 corresponding LIGHT Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck.]
"And Fusion Parasite – LIGHT is specifically designed to help summon LIGHT Fusion Monsters."
Without needing Polymerization, Akasha tributed both monsters as Fusion Materials.
"Using The Light – Hex-Sealed Fusion's effect, I Special Summon—
Ideal King of Knight – Artoria Pendragon Lily!!"
[Ideal King of Knight – Artoria Pendragon Lily ★★★★★★★★★ (Level 9)][LIGHT] [Dragon/Fusion/Effect][ATK 2400 / DEF 2100]
["Heroic Spirit – Artoria Pendragon Lily" + "Heroic Spirit – Artoria Pendragon"]
"—The King who understands the human heart more than anyone… has arrived!"
With Hex-Sealed Fusion acting as the substitute material, Akasha successfully summoned the idealized King of Knights.
"Ah, I remember this one—it's the monster Miss Hoshino used against Mr. Yugi in the KC Grand Prix."
Jaden, unusually sentimental, clenched his fist. "So nostalgic… Back then, I had just met Sensei and Akasha. Hard to believe so many years have already passed."
Masked Kaiba huffed in approval.
"Hmph. The Ideal King of Knights, is it? Certainly an impressive monster. But even that ideal radiance is still far inferior to the brilliance of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
"Don't get ahead of yourself. My summoning isn't finished!
Since I have a Lily monster on the field, the card I just searched—Heroic Spirit – Nursery Rhyme—can be Special Summoned!"
[Heroic Spirit – Nursery Rhyme ATK 800]
"And according to Nursery Rhyme's effect, when it is Special Summoned, I can search the Spell Card Phantasm Summon and add it to my hand!"
With a smooth chain of searches and effects, Akasha slid her final Fusion Spell into her Duel Disk.
"Now, I fuse the Nursery Rhyme on my field, the Jack in my hand, and the Saber Lily in my Graveyard as Fusion Materials!
Fusion Summon—Heroic Spirit – Paul Bunyan!"
[Heroic Spirit – Paul Bunyan ★★★★★★★★ (Level 8)][EARTH] [Warrior/Fusion/Effect]
[ATK 2600 / DEF 1000]
"Because of Paul Bunyan's effect, all 'Lily' monsters on the field gain 500 ATK and DEF!"
[Ideal King of Knights ATK 2400 → 2900]
[Paul Bunyan ATK 2600 → 3100]
"The colossal Bunyan will become the dragonslaying hero of today!"