Yugioh [492-497] (Patreon)

Chapter 492: An Open-World Card-Battling RPG

Lyman had gone missing.

Only after he failed to show up at the Red Dorm for days on end, skipped classes in a row, and even missed faculty meetings did everyone finally realize this.

The Academy quickly dispatched a search-and-rescue team to investigate everywhere Lyman had been before vanishing. They also sent squad after squad into the woods behind the Academy to comb the mountains, but so far they had found nothing.

No clues, no sign he'd left the island—almost as if the teacher had evaporated into thin air.

Only his beloved cat, Pharaoh, was still at the Red Dorm. The fat cat couldn't have cared less—ate when it was time to eat, slept when it was time to sleep, utterly unbothered by the disappearance of his poop-scooping human.

To make matters worse, the Academy was in a tense and delicate period, which made everyone all the more worried about a teacher going missing now of all times.

Naturally, many people began to suspect the Shadow Riders.

In the original story, Lyman had been assigned one of the keys sealing the Sacred Beast, so being attacked by the Shadow Riders would have made sense. But the timeline had shifted, and the key that should have gone to Lyman was now with Kira; in theory, he no longer had a reason to be targeted.

Then again, the Chancellor had said every member of the Shadow Riders was a desperado—cruel and ruthless—so who knew what nasty methods they might use. They might be taking hostages, for instance.

Jaden was particularly beside himself. If you didn't count Kira, who was always in the lab getting special lessons from Lyman, Jaden was definitely the student closest to him in the whole school.

He even wanted to drag his dormmates out to the island to join the search and look for the teacher. But there were no leads. On a big island like this, where would you even start? In the end, under Syrus and Chumley's persuasion, he reluctantly dropped it.

Kira, on the other hand, wasn't concerned. Even if it were the Shadow Riders, Lyman was essentially the strongest fighter among them.

Right now, Lyman's alchemically crafted artificial body was nearing its limit, so he was probably off preparing for the end. Once he was ready, he'd naturally show up again and entrust the fruits of his life's research to the student he trusted most.

Of course, you couldn't explain any of that to Jaden. Even though Kira told him not to worry so much, Jaden was still listless. He was even less excited than usual about their nightly trips to the Spirit World; the spark just wasn't there, and many times he couldn't get into it.

That said, he perked right up when there were duels to be had.

The two of them queued up together for several nights in a row, making decent progress.

After getting intel from Ha Des, they headed north and traveled for several days. After about six days on the road, they found a Supreme King army camp, just like he'd said.

Jaden snapped back to life. With a duel lined up, he temporarily tossed aside his gloom over the missing teacher, summoned Elemental HERO Flame Wingman on the spot, and charged in at the head of the assault.

They enjoyed some lively friendly duels with the garrison at the camp. Jaden quickly noticed the spirits there all looked fierce and thuggish, like bullies who'd swallow a man whole. But once you traded cards, you'd find they were all pretty easy to talk to.

Just like music, dueling was a way to make friends across species and dimensions. See? Even demons with faces like that became more polite after a duel.

As Ha Des's side had said, the garrison was very enthusiastic about pointing them onward. From here, the Supreme King's city lay to the northeast, though it was still far, and the road ahead was long.

Before they left, Kira also picked up some supplies from the friendly spirits.

For example, Duel Disks from different dimensions. Spirits couldn't hand over the Duel Disks they grew on their bodies, but the armory had some left behind by fallen duelists from other dimensions.

They also had card supplies. There weren't any super-powerful cards, but the lot together would fetch a decent price.

There were also armors and gear. Duelists in other worlds relied on their cards and didn't need to brawl in person, but armor wasn't completely useless.

Take Chazz from the anime, for example. In the alternate-dimension arc, poor Chazz wanted to duel his opponent, but the evil spirit didn't play by duel etiquette at all—teleported behind him and chop-stunned him before he could even draw a card.

Sure, that was mostly on the new writer for that arc—classic plot contrivance—but it does make you think.

A lot of the spirits' armor had been specially tempered, with magical resistance. If Chazz had been wearing armor back then, maybe that chop wouldn't have knocked him out on the spot; he'd at least have had a chance to counter with a card.

If it hadn't been plot armor and came down to a real duel, that spirit might not have beaten Chazz at all.

Jaden, for his part, scored two mounts from the camp. They weren't horses, though—they looked like chocobos from the Final Fantasy series.

They felt similar to riding a horse—reins in hand—but these birds were a lot more physically capable than Earth horses. They were faster, had better stamina, and could run all day without so much as panting.

Whether that was due to the Supreme King's army's training or not, these chocobos were also very intelligent. Kira and Jaden knew nothing about riding, but after grabbing the reins they quickly got the hang of it.

It really gave Kira the feeling of an open-world, card-battling RPG. Uncover the map, grind mobs, occasionally hit a spirit village for a few side quests, snag a new deck or two, and even get equipment and mounts as drops—pretty solid gameplay.

After leaving the Supreme King's camp and mounting the chocobos, their speed skyrocketed. In just two days they covered more ground than they had in the previous several combined.

…

That evening, after classes and work, Jaden couldn't wait to pull Kira online again. They rode out on the chocobos, and after less than ten minutes, a commotion stirred in the distance.

They exchanged a look, swung their reins, and turned toward the sound.

They approached the source and stopped behind a big rock, then both poked their heads out to get a look.

Sure enough, there was a squad down below. They were all in uniform—not commoners—wearing matching armor like a proper army. Their faces were pale; on a few, you could even see fangs peeking out at the corners of their mouths.

Kira and Jaden glanced at each other.

They'd had dealings with someone similar to the Shadow Riders not long ago, so they recognized the species at once.

They were vampires.

Chapter 493: What the Hell Am I Supposed to Choose?

"Vampires?"

Jaden was surprised.

"Like the one you said Zane ran into? But this isn't the Spirit World."

Kira wasn't surprised. "The Spirit World has humans, and all kinds of similar animals and plants, just like ours. Why wouldn't it have vampires?"

Jaden thought about it and realized that made sense. He'd even forgotten for a moment that since there are vampire decks in the dueling world, there would naturally be vampires in the Spirit World too—just not the same species as Camula.

Jaden wanted to get closer to see what the vampires below were saying. But before he could do anything, someone shouted, "Who's there!?"

"Eh?"

Jaden jumped.

Busted already?

"Vampires' senses are sharper than humans'. Not surprising they noticed something," Kira said, already standing up and stepping out from behind the rock openly.

Seeing that, Jaden followed him out to the front of the unit.

There were maybe a dozen vampires. Up close, the two realized they looked like a routed force.

They were in disarray; some had smears of blood and wounds on their already-pale faces. Others had torn clothes and damaged armor, clearly cut by blades—evidence of a hard fight.

Kira didn't recognize the rank and file, but the one leading them was clearly of a different caliber.

By vampire standards his features were refined—a classic vampire face—with blue hair and aristocratic clothes. He had some cuts on him, but his bearing set him apart from the riffraff at his sides.

He was a higher vampire of standing: Vampire's Curse, Level 6, ATK 2000. In the manga Yu-Gi-Oh! R, it was the ace of one of Pegasus J. Crawford's card professors; by the Labyrinth Brothers metric, it could be called a "legendary monster that has fought Yugi Muto."

Of course, this one here in the Spirit World wasn't that same one.

The vampires' faces changed the instant they saw the two.

"Lackeys of the Supreme King!"

Jaden blinked, confused.

"Me?"

Kira patted his shoulder. "We're riding chocobos and wearing gear borrowed from the Supreme King's army."

"Oh, right," Jaden said.

The chocobos and their gear had all come from the Supreme King's army—hard to miss to the locals.

The Supreme King's forces were rising across a dozen different dimensions, waging conquest. Most dimensions had been subdued, but a number of local powers were still resisting.

These vampires were one such force. They'd been routed after fighting the Supreme King's army, and while retreating, they bumped into what looked like two isolated lackeys—naturally they were enraged and ready to strike.

Jaden raised both hands helplessly. "It's a misunderstanding—"

Kira thought that wasn't entirely untrue. They weren't lackeys of the Supreme King—but Jaden himself had deeper ties to the Supreme King than any grunt…

"Stragglers."

Unlike the agitated grunts behind him, Vampire's Curse stayed cool. The single demonic wing on his back gave a faint flap, and his underlings calmed down.

"Even if we say we have nothing to do with the Supreme King, you wouldn't believe it now, would you?"

"Correct. Begging for mercy with a stupid lie isn't an option."

Vampire's Curse lifted his arm; a living, organic-looking Duel Disk writhed out of it. The base and Monster Zones oozed a deep, blood-red liquid.

"With Duel Disks like those… that makes you duelists. In the Supreme King's army, you must at least be team leaders," he said gravely. "So let's speak the way duelists do."

"Funny, that's exactly what I was about to say."

Kira smiled and unfolded his Duel Disk.

Jaden opened his mouth, realizing he'd once again missed his window to call dibs on the duel. He'd gotten a few good battles in back at the last camp, though, so he closed his mouth and stepped aside to watch.

The materialized Elemental HERO Flame Wingman folded his arms and hovered at his side, glaring at the dozen vampires to ward off any cheap shots. Seeing such a strong HERO guarding Jaden, the vampires hesitated; they didn't dare attack and watched their leader duel the blade-wielder instead.

"Duel!" x2

 [Kira, LP 4000]

[Vampire's Curse, LP 4000]

"I'll go first. Draw."

Vampire's Curse had the first move.

"I Normal Summon Vampire Bat in Defense Position." (anime-only card)

 A cloud of red-eyed little bats fluttered onto his field—the same kind Camula used in the anime, a low-level Zombie.

[Vampire Bat, DEF 1200]

"I set one card and end my turn."

"My turn, draw."

Kira glanced at his draw and smiled.

He'd drawn a heavyweight right off the bat.

He didn't stand on ceremony. "First, I summon this: Thunder King—Attack Position!"

[Thunder King Rai-Oh, ATK 1900]

Thunder King, a monster Jaden used in the manga. When it became a real card, it immediately found a home in floodgate strategies and was infamous for spiking players' blood pressure.

A Level 4 with a solid 1900 ATK and the effect, while it's on the field, "neither player can add cards from the Deck to the hand except by drawing." It can also Tribute itself to negate a Special Summon and destroy that monster.

A top-tier standalone card—good stats plus a lockdown effect—staple of "don't-let-'em-play" decks of the era.

But that wasn't the main point.

"Next, I activate this."

Kira flicked out another card.

"The Spell Card Lullaby of Obedience. I pay 2000 Life Points and declare a monster name. If your Deck contains that card, you must choose to either add it to my hand, or Special Summon it in Attack Position to my field."

[Kira, LP 4000 → 2000]

Vampire's Curse started. "Declare my monster?"

"Uh-huh." Kira smiled.

He didn't know his opponent's exact build, but that didn't matter.

Since this was the Spirit World and the opponent was a notable spirit, there was one card he'd definitely be running.

"I declare Vampire's Curse."

"Kisama (you bastard)!"

Vampire's Curse glared.

Right out of the gate with that kind of play?

 From my Deck, no less—are you kidding me?

 "Tch. Add to hand or Special Summon, huh. Then obviously I choose…" Vampire's Curse said coolly, "Add it to your hand."

"Sorry. You can't."

Kira smiled and pointed at Thunder King on his field.

"While Thunder King is on the field, neither of us can add cards from the Deck to the hand."

Vampire's Curse froze.

Then his eyes bulged and his mouth slowly fell open.

What!?

 If you can't add from the Deck to the hand, then that means…

 "Right. When Lullaby of Obedience resolves, since I can't add the card to my hand, you can only 'choose' to Special Summon yourself to my field."

Thunder King + Lullaby of Obedience is one of those community-brainworm combos. If your opponent helpfully runs Holactie the Creator of Light, you can even use it to ignore its summoning conditions and plop it onto your field for an instant win.

Yes, Lullaby of Obedience can ignore conditions and summon Holactie; the TCG/OCG even issued a special ruling to address this exact interaction.

If you have Thunder King on the field and activate Lullaby of Obedience declaring Holactie, since you can't add it to your hand, your opponent is "forced" to Special Summon it to your field, granting you the win.

Kira gave a courteous smile and a "be my guest" gesture.

"Come on, summon yourself."

Vampire's Curse: "…"

Then why the hell are you making me choose anything?

Chapter 494: The Noble Vampire Knight

Vampire's Curse: "…"

He never imagined that some rando he bumped into on the road would open with a play this heavy.

Lullaby of Obedience, snatching his namesake straight from his Deck—just hearing that was busted enough. The only thing worse would be the Lullaby of Obedience + Thunder King combo.

"Well? Choose," Kira tilted his head.

The vampire shot him a look, then muttered, sullen, after a moment.

"I choose… to Special Summon myself to your field."

"Ahaha, how courteous."

Kira smiled and caught the golden light that shot out of his opponent's Deck between his index and middle finger.

"In that case, I'll just have to accept your fealty, reluctantly.

Come, Vampire's Curse—Special Summon to my field!"

As the card slapped down, the vampire's projected avatar shot across and landed before Kira, manifesting as another Vampire's Curse that now stood facing its original.

[Vampire's Curse, ATK 2000]

Watching their lord betray himself, the vampire grunts clicked their tongues and sneaked glances at their commander's face. It was pale to begin with, but now it was so dark it looked like ink might drip off.

"Battle," Kira said. "Thunder King, attack Vampire Bat."

Vampire's Curse's face hardened, his voice turning hoarse and cold. "If you dare covet the power of our bloodline, you'd better be worthy of it.

I activate my set card—the Trap Card: Malevolent Catastrophe!"

Mm?

Kira raised a brow.

That card destroys all Spell/Traps on attack declaration—no, that's the printed version. This one—Marik used it in the anime—its effect was…

"When the opponent declares an attack, destroy all monsters on the field!"

Vampire's Curse flung his arms wide and roared.

"So every monster on the field—including myself—is destroyed!"

A purple-black vortex yawned open; waves of erasure washed across the field. The monsters on both sides were sucked in and, after futile struggling, annihilated.

"Whoa, ruthless—even to yourself," Kira chuckled.

"Traitors to His Highness must all die," the vampire aristocrat said proudly, chin lifted. "Myself included."

"His Highness?"

That caught Kira's ear.

"And the great bloodline does not die. No matter how many times, as long as there is fresh, delicious blood, we will rise from our coffins anew—even against lowly lackeys of the Supreme King!"

"The Vampire Bat on my field has an effect. When this card would be destroyed, I can send another copy from my Deck to the Graveyard and make its destruction negated!" (anime-only card)

 He revealed another Vampire Bat and sent it to the Graveyard.

"So Vampire Bat's destruction is negated."

"Whoa, nice," Jaden said. "That leaves only Kira's monsters destroyed."

"Hmph, not just that." Vampire's Curse laughed. "I myself am immortal. No matter how many times you fell me—give me fresh blood, and I'll resurrect!"

As he spoke, the Vampire's Curse that had been destroyed and sent to its owner's Graveyard crept, eerily, out of the slot on his Duel Disk—then sank its fangs into his own neck.

One Vampire's Curse bit the other's neck and drank greedily, leaving two signature puncture marks on that pale throat. The sight was downright macabre.

As the blood flowed, the corpse's face quickly regained vitality. The cursed bloodline sprang back to the field in peak condition, landing in front of his "original" with arms crossed.

"Huh?" Jaden blinked. "He sucked his own blood to revive?"

Vampire's Curse: "When Vampire's Curse is sent to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon it by draining 500 of the duelist's Life Points!" (original effect)

[Vampire's Curse, LP 4000 → 3500]

In the manga, the description was "regenerates by drinking the player's blood," but in practice it functioned as paying 500 Life Points. The printed card watered it down to only reviving after battle destruction, and the instant revive was changed to the next Standby Phase.

"Of course, since I was the original controller and it went to my Graveyard, I pay the 500 Life Points and Special Summon it to my field," Vampire's Curse laughed. "And when it revives by this effect, it gains 500 ATK!"

[Vampire's Curse, ATK 2000 → 2500]

In the printed card, the ATK boost resets if it leaves the field, so even if it's destroyed and revives again, it caps at base ATK +500, i.e., 2500.

But the original ruling was different. The card professor who used it told Yugi outright: Vampire's Curse is immortal.

No matter what monster defeats it, it returns stronger the next turn. So in the original context, it likely stacked +500 on top of whatever ATK it had when it last left the field—the more times you beat it, the stronger it got.

An immortal monster with no ceiling—so long as the duelist's Life Points could keep up.

"Whoa, not only did he keep the Vampire Bat, he revived stronger too!"

Grinning, Jaden started chatting idly with the vampire grunts.

"Your boss is pretty good, huh. Not bad at all."

The vampires: "…"

His attitude threw them off so hard they didn't know what to do with themselves.

They almost wanted to ask: whose side are you on?

 "Cracking the Thunder King lock, huh. You're clearly not like the other spirits around here," Kira said with an approving smile.

"But of course."

At this, Vampire's Curse seemed proud, lifting his chin.

"I am a noble vampire knight in His Highness's service—not like those riffraff who bend the knee to the Supreme King's tyranny!"

"A vampire knight, I see. Impressive—respect," Kira said with a smile. He set two cards from his hand.

"I set two and end my turn."

Chapter 495: Vampire Kingdom

"My turn. Draw!"

It was Vampire's Curse's turn again.

He was one of the last remaining elites of the blood race. The vampires had managed to fight the Supreme King's local garrison in this region for days without collapsing, even taking down several commanders along the way—this vampire had no small part in that.

This was his first time running into someone who opened by yanking his namesake straight out of his Deck. Even he had been taken aback—but he'd responded well, defused the assault, and seized the advantage.

The advantage is mine!

Now all he had to do was press it and finish this as fast as possible.

"I activate the Field Spell—Vampire Kingdom!"

He raised the card high.

Magic erupted. With a rumble that shook the earth, an ancient, dangerous black castle rose from the ground, bringing with it endless darkness and dread.

A blood-red moon hung high in the sky—neither bright nor gentle like a normal moon, but an eerie, saturated crimson, as if soaked in blood.

Thick, uncanny mists boiled up and wrapped the castle in an icy, inexplicable fog. The silhouette wavered within—now showing, now hiding—like the legendary city of demons.

"Vampire Kingdom gives my Zombie monsters +500 ATK during damage calculation when they battle."

Vampire's Curse lifted another card from his hand.

"Next, I'll borrow this one's strength!

I Tribute my Vampire Bat to Tribute Summon, Level 5—

—Vampire Lord!"

The bat cloud circled twice and vanished. Laughter echoed out of the black mist. A graceful vampire lord snapped his aristocratic cloak and alit lightly on the ground.

[Vampire Lord, ATK 2000]

"Oooh, another vampire who looks pretty strong," Jaden was already chatting with the onlooking bloods. "Your leader's got game."

"But of course."

At first they thought the boy was strange, but now they were chatting comfortably.

"Milord is one of our race's foremost generals. You lackeys of the Supreme King are no match."

"Told you we're not with the Supreme—eh, forget it," Jaden grinned. "Don't worry, he can't beat Kira."

"Tch. Big talk."

"…"

Vampire's Curse had already bellowed, launching his attack.

"I attack directly with myself—Vampire's Curse!"

Face hard, the vampire sprang, spreading his single wing as he dove at Kira.

As Jaden had said, Kira didn't panic even with an empty field. He flicked a set card: "I activate the Continuous Trap: Amazoness Onslaught.

Once per turn during the Battle Phase, I can Special Summon an Amazoness monster from my hand."

"Special Summoning mid-battle, huh? A wall?" Vampire's Curse snorted. "But before my cursed power—"

"A wall? Not at all."

Kira snapped his fingers and smiled.

"From my hand, I Special Summon—

—Amazoness Swords Woman!"

A hard-muscled warrior with flying red hair brandished her blade, red moonlight from above flashing along the steel.

"When Special Summoned by this effect, the monster gains 500 ATK until the end of this turn."

[Amazoness Swords Woman, ATK 1500 → 2000]

"Amazoness Swords Woman?"

Vampire's Curse was puzzled. Clearly, in this dimension he hadn't seen the Amazoness war tribe—much less this swordswoman.

"Well? Backing off?" Kira smiled.

The vampire did hesitate for a heartbeat—but then set his jaw.

"Back off?"

He scoffed softly, amused.

ATK 2000, lower than his own, and still in Attack Position—obviously suspicious. Or maybe the opponent was bluffing to spook him into not attacking.

Either way, squandering momentum here out of fear would be unforgivable. Even if there was a pitfall, he, Vampire's Curse, was immortal. And this swordswoman was clearly the last line of defense—break her, and Vampire Lord's direct attack would end it.

There was absolutely no reason to flinch.

"If you think that's enough to scare me, you underestimate me." He strode forward and barked, "Vampire's Curse, continue the attack!

And the Field Spell—Vampire Kingdom—kicks in: during damage calculation in battle, my vampire gains 500 ATK!"

[Vampire's Curse, ATK 2500 → 3000]

He switched targets to the newly arrived Amazoness Swords Woman. She stepped forward fearlessly and thrust.

But the vampire was much faster. With a contemptuous snort, he swayed his upper body and slipped past the edge. He flicked a finger against the blade—clang—and it shattered into several pieces.

What he didn't expect was that one shard spun in midair, then suddenly accelerated, slicing back in a bizarre arc—and stabbed the "original" Vampire's Curse behind him.

[Vampire's Curse, LP 3500 → 2500]

"Gah!"

The cold, sudden strike made him jolt—and startled him. "What was that!?"

"Amazoness Swords Woman makes battle damage from battles involving her dealt to your Life Points," Kira explained with a smile.

Vampire's Curse flinched.

What a nauseatingly stalling effect…

 "We're not done," Kira went on. "Anyone who fights the Amazoness warriors has to leave the stage."

"What?" Vampire's Curse said coldly. "What are you—huh!?"

His eyes snapped wide as his body began to turn translucent—fading away until it vanished from his field as if it had evaporated into thin air.

"Bakanaka (impossible)!"

His composure began to crack.

"I'm immortal! As long as I pay with blood, I'll come back stronger, no matter how many times—"

"Only if you're destroyed and sent to the Graveyard."

Kira pointed at his backrow Trap with a light smile.

"The Continuous Trap: Amazoness Onslaught: any monster that battles an Amazoness is banished."

Vampire's Curse: "!"

Chapter 496: The Evil Eye of Coercion

Bounced damage and banish?

 Vampire's Curse ground his teeth. He prided himself on his ever-growing immortality—but against banish, even he was helpless.

And with his avatar banished, even his aura as a spirit seemed to dim; agitation crept in.

"But it's not over. Your field's empty now, however you slice it."

He barked, voice hard.

"And I still have Vampire Lord—more than enough to finish you!

Die! Vampire Lord, direct attack!"

The lord leapt, silhouette framed against the crimson moon. The weird red mist poured into him like an invisible power source—the demon castle behind was feeding him.

[Vampire Lord, ATK 2000 → 2500]

Vampire Kingdom boosts Zombie ATK by 500 during damage calculation when they attack.

"This ends it!" Blood-red light flashed in his eyes. "Lackey of the Supreme King—die here!"

[Kira, LP 2000 → 6000]

The vampire jolted. "Up to six thousand!?"

"The Trap: Nutrient Z." Kira tapped his backrow. "When you'd take over 2000 battle damage during damage calculation, gain 4000 Life Points before damage is applied."

"So you end up with more LP." He curled his lip. "Whatever—attack continues. Lord, strike!"

The vampire lord raked a claw. Kira simply raised his Duel Disk, and with a clang caught the talons on the edge.

[Kira, LP 6000 → 3500]

"Don't think it ends there," Vampire's Curse said darkly. "At this moment, Vampire Lord's effect activates.

When this card inflicts battle damage, declare Monster, Spell, or Trap; your opponent must send one card of that type from their Deck to the Graveyard.

I declare Spell. Send a Spell from your Deck to the GY."

A Spell popped out of Kira's Deck. He took it and dropped it to the Graveyard.

"And at this moment, Vampire Kingdom's follow-up effect activates," Vampire's Curse continued. "Once per turn, when a card is sent from your opponent's Deck to the Graveyard, send a DARK 'Vampire' from your hand or Deck to the Graveyard, then target and destroy a card on the field."

Another card popped from his Deck, and he plucked it.

"I send another Vampire Bat from my Deck to the GY—destroy that disgusting Continuous Trap, Amazoness Onslaught!"

A cloud of bats burst from the castle, circled Kira's Trap, and—pop—blew it to pieces.

"Ooh, so there's synergy with vampires!" Jaden praised. "Your monster forces a mill, then the Kingdom punishes that with a destruction trigger—nice combo!"

"Obviously." A nearby vampire grunt was already chatting with him. "That's the power of our bloodline!"

Jaden grinned mysteriously. "Heh-heh, but Kira's tricks aren't that simple…"

As Onslaught shattered, a golden vortex shot up. A sword's gleam cleaved it, and the red-haired swordswoman returned.

[Amazoness Swords Woman, ATK 1500]

Vampire's Curse's eyelid twitched.

"Her again!?"

"When Amazoness Onslaught is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, Special Summon an Amazoness from the Graveyard," Kira said mildly. "I Special Summon Amazoness Swords Woman back."

"You…" Vampire's Curse's face darkened. "You plan to win by bouncing damage off that thing?"

"Hm?" Kira sounded perfectly matter-of-fact. "Is there a problem?"

"…"

It felt wrong in every way—yet faced with that calm question, he found himself at a loss for words.

He drew a slow breath.

"I set one and end my turn."

Even with the Kingdom's boost, the lord only hit 2500; even if damage bounced, it was only 1000—he could stomach it.

"My turn. Draw," Kira said. "I activate the Spell Pot of Greed to draw two."

He drew two more.

"Next, the Continuous Spell: Mirage of Nightmare. During your Standby Phase, I draw until I have four cards in hand."

He set three cards. "I end my turn."

Vampire's Curse glanced at three face-downs, then at the fierce swordswoman standing guard, and felt his irritation deepen.

He'd fought for years and met many strong duelists. But one who made you this mad to play against? Rare.

"My turn. Draw!"

"Standby Phase—Mirage of Nightmare. I draw up to four," Kira said, drawing.

"Draw all you like. This turn, the duel ends!

I activate the Equip Spell: D.D.R. - Different Dimension Reincarnation! I discard a card to revive a monster that was banished.

Return—my avatar! Vampire's Curse!"

[Vampire's Curse, ATK 2000]

As the avatar returned, his own strength seemed to swell—the blood mist around the castle surged into him, roiling as his aura grew.

"You figured that Amazoness will scare me off?" he shouted. "Too naive! Now you'll see—the power of my bloodline won't be stopped by a trick like that!

I activate the Spell: Evil Eye of Coercion! While I control a vampire, your monsters bow under the vampires' pressure and cannot defend—so all my monsters can attack directly!"

This was one the vampire card professor used against Yugi. It was printed later, but nerfed to only let one Zombie with 2000 or less ATK attack directly—faithful to the scene, but much less useful.

A phantom pair of eyes opened behind him. An invisible pressure rolled out like a thousandfold gravity. Under that weight, the swordswoman dropped to one knee, bracing on her blade, unable to move.

"Hahahaha! Now I can sidestep your damned swordswoman—my vampires can all attack directly!"

Red light flashed in his eyes.

"Final blow—die!"

Chapter 497: Undying Bloodline

"Take this!"

Vampire's Curse shouted.

"I'll use Vampire's Curse—myself—to attack directly!

Under the Evil Eye of Coercion, your monsters can't defend. I win!"

His cursed avatar vaulted the field, its pale face twisted in the same anger as the original, claws outstretched straight for Kira.

Amazoness Swords Woman knelt, wanting to rise—but under that oppressive gaze she couldn't; she could only brace on her sword and watch the vampire soar.

Unhurried, Kira flipped a set card. "I activate the Trap: Intruder Alarm - Yellow Alert!

When your opponent declares an attack, Special Summon a monster from your hand, and force the attacking monster to attack the summoned monster." (original effect)

Vampire's Curse started. "Forced attack…"

His instincts screamed trouble. With the Kingdom boost, Vampire's Curse sat at 2500 ATK; if forced to hit Amazoness Swords Woman, he'd eat 1000 back.

But wait—no. The forced attack was on the newly summoned monster, not that cursed swordswoman.

As long as it wasn't her, it should be fine. Whatever he summons—

 "I Special Summon: Reflect Bounder," Kira said. "If this Attack Position card is chosen as the attack target, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the attacking monster's ATK."

"…"

Bastard! 

Do you have a single normal monster in that Deck?

 The noble blood felt a rush of hot blood—nearly spat out last night's meal.

This was worse than hitting Amazoness Swords Woman. At least she only reflected battle damage. This thing was a walking Magic Cylinder. Amazoness Swords Woman would have bounced 1000—tolerable. Take this, and you were getting carried out.

In the mirror on the mage's hand, the lunging vampire's form was already reflected—about to fling it back.

In that split second, the vampire didn't think—he roared and flipped his backrow. "I activate the Trap: Destruct Potion!

Destroy one monster I control, then gain Life Points equal to its ATK!"

"A self-destruction card," Kira nodded. "I see—packed specifically to dodge opposing traps… and not just that."

"Exactly!" Vampire's Curse laughed. "As I said, I am immortal—I revive stronger every time!

With Destruct Potion, I destroy—

—myself, Vampire's Curse!"

With a boom, the on-field vampire exploded into blood mist and scattered. The mist immediately coursed into the original; he drew a deep breath, vigor flooding back.

[Vampire's Curse (player), LP 2500 → 4500]

"Because this is the attack declaration step, we haven't entered damage calculation yet, so Vampire Kingdom hasn't applied. Vampire's Curse's ATK at destruction was still 2000.

Therefore, I gain 2000 Life."

He thrust a finger.

"But! As I said, I resurrect, ever stronger.

I pay 500 Life Points—revive once more, Vampire's Curse!"

[Vampire's Curse (player), LP 4500 → 4000]

The recently departed spectral vampire surfaced like a ghost and sank its fangs into the original's neck. Fed on blood, it solidified and returned to the field brimming with vigor.

[Vampire's Curse, ATK 2000 → 2500]

"By destroying myself with a Trap I heal, boost ATK, dodge your nasty effects—and since it was a Special Summon during the Battle Phase, I even get an extra attack this turn!"

Grunts on the sidelines whooped.

"As expected of milord!"

"Only milord could use such lines so deftly!"

Vampire's Curse seemed quite pleased with his smooth sequence. He strode forward and declared: "Listen well, you insidious lackey! For His Highness's sake, I cannot lose—and I will not betray my kind!

The honor of our bloodline does not allow submission or surrender. We will fight the invaders to the end—no matter the cost, even to the last!"

They were strangers, but those words fired Jaden up. "Ohhh—now that's a duelist's spirit!"

And it was true. Kira could feel it—this spirit was on another level from the opponents they'd faced along the way.

Not about Deck strength, nor ace power—simply the strength of the duelist.

Part talent, part presence. And presence could be magnified by will and conviction—that's why duelists are, in a way, creatures of pure belief.

That the blood race could fight the Supreme King's army this long had a lot to do with their iron will to fight.

In fact, they were the natives here; the Supreme King's army were the invaders. In terms of alignment, Kira and company were headed to pick a fight with the Supreme King anyway—these vampires might well be allies.

On the road, he'd been thinking: the Supreme King's influence was everywhere; his mooks were innumerable. Sure, walking up and dueling the King himself would be the most direct route—but until they found him, taking on an army alone would be inconvenient.

If they could pull in allied forces along the way, that might help.

And if those allies came with rarer Decks… all the better.

Thinking that, Kira smiled.

As the saying goes, no fight, no friendship. After today, he was sure they'd be happy to talk.

"Still smiling?"

Seeing that easy smile only stoked the vampire's ire. That sunny face felt like mockery.

Fury flared. He stepped and barked:

"Destruct Potion is a Trap you can activate during the Battle Phase.

So the resurrected Vampire's Curse is also Special Summoned during the Battle Phase—and can still attack this turn!

This time it really is over!"