Chapter 112: The Single Slash That Severs the World
Though likewise a consciousness transmission passage, the color differed completely from Finesse's.
The deep blue lengthy tunnel's terminus was Nanki'in Sakuya's mental room.
Stepping in the first step, Amano was frightened by the scene before him.
Countless black phantoms coiled around Nanki'in Sakuya's limbs, imprisoning and suspending the girl at the mental room's very center.
And following soul exchange rules, Nanki'in Sakuya's body was in completely exposed condition.
This excessively impactful scene -- Amano had only seen in those unspeakable website doujins. Absolutely didn't know where to put his eyes.
This soul imprisoned state should be what Mana described as the Millennium Key's possession condition.
Not the background spirit form's temporary 'friendly' exchange. But eternally sealing this body's soul, eternally occupying the girl's body.
"Sakuya, Sakuya!" Amano tried awakening Nanki'in Sakuya.
Though in Sakuya's unconscious state, it wouldn't affect Amano taking control of this body.
But this visibly dangerous situation before him -- Amano worried that taking over the body like this would directly seal unconscious Nanki'in Sakuya's consciousness.
Several awakening attempts proved fruitless. Amano instead lowered his voice, leaning close to Nanki'in's ear, quietly saying:
"Stop sleeping, class rep. Kondo-sensei is here."
"Eh, not sleeping, not sleeping!"
Nanki'in Sakuya jerked her head up, looking exactly like being caught sleeping in class but still stubbornly denying it.
Unfortunately, still in bondage play posture.
After blankly staring several seconds, the awakened Sakuya realized this wasn't Class 1-E's classroom.
"What's happening, Amano?"
Should say Nanki'in Sakuya's expressionless cold-faced moe attribute came from her soul.
Even with limbs coiled by black shadows unable to move, suspended exposed before Amano, the girl could actually still maintain an expressionless face while questioning him.
If this were a normal girl in such a completely exposed shameful state, she'd already be hysterically screaming.
So emotional stability really was a plus.
"I understand. It's a dream!" Sakuya's clever little brain reached a conclusion. "If not a dream, having Amano see me in this state, I might as well just commit suicide."
So she still very much cared, just couldn't tell from her expression.
"Just treat it as a dream, class rep. I came to help you. Next, I need to temporarily control your body."
"Control... body?"
As if triggering a keyword in her mind, Nanki'in Sakuya's indifferent expression rarely displayed anguish.
"My... body... This isn't a dream. Right, I was just in a Dark Game! The opposing Dark Game duelist planned to seize my body! So why does Amano also want to control my body?"
Nanki'in Sakuya's gaze seriously observed Amano.
"So you want me too?"
How exactly did you reach that conclusion?
"But if I have to choose between them..."
The awakened Sakuya forcefully pulled her arm from the black shadows. The torn and severed darkness seemed not as solid as it appeared, proving Onikiri's possession hadn't yet succeeded.
"I'll choose to give my body to you, Amano!"
Nanki'in Sakuya extended her arm toward Amano. Grasping the girl's ice-cold right hand, Amano likewise exerted force, completely pulling Sakuya's body from the black shadows' restraints.
Was this a binary choice question?
"Because Amano, you just said you came to help me, right! Though with my brain, I can't understand why you're here or what will happen next. But I know I can trust you!"
"Sakuya..."
"Just like every exam, every homework assignment, every morning exercise, every class -- how you've helped me! As long as you're beside me, I feel unprecedentedly at ease! So, Amano!"
Nanki'in Sakuya gripped Amano's hand tighter with a few degrees more force. Yet no longer held tonight's disaster zone coldness of forcibly keeping Amano beside her.
"I'm entrusting my body to you, Amano! I, Nanki'in Sakuya, will forever remember this debt! Wagering the Nanki'in family's path of righteousness, I will never betray you this lifetime!"
Your underworld family dialogue sounds somewhat like marriage vows.
Is this proper underworld speak?
But doing this much should suffice!
Keeping Nanki'in Sakuya conscious could avoid mid-process consciousness being possessed and disappearing.
Obtaining Nanki'in Sakuya's approval avoided the system warning.
[WARNING! Using this skill may significantly decrease target affection. Please use cautiously!]
Doing this much definitely won't decrease affection anymore.
Then what needed doing next was only one thing!
"Exchange!"
"Then victory!"
Soul resonance body exchange -- when Amano reopened his eyes, ahead roared four massive Malefic Dragons.
Amano stood up again. Though likewise a girl's body, Nanki'in Sakuya gave Amano a feeling completely different from Finesse.
Speaking of differences -- from every pore and hair strand's touch to the frontal armor's weight, all gave Amano a refreshingly new sensation.
Human bodies were truly miraculous.
Despite everyone being completely different individuals, they could share one soul.
Of course, the possession matter -- Amano would absolutely never approve!
"Impossible! The Millennium Key's erosion actually disappeared!"
Thinking victory was assured, Onikiri looked toward the awakened and standing Nanki'in Sakuya, expression gradually stiffening.
This was seeing a ghost. Nothing like this had ever happened before.
"Sakuya, are you alright? Thank goodness!" In the Dark Game, the old man's own body burden was already heavy, but earlier he'd still first forced himself to check Sakuya's condition.
Seeing unconscious Sakuya reawaken, Muramasa finally breathed a sigh of relief.
However, after Muramasa's mechanical prosthetic eye flickered radiance, he saw completely different truth.
"You, you are... young friend Amano?"
"Ah?" Though using Sakuya's voice to produce Sakuya's sound, Amano's current shock came from his soul.
This was the first time his background spirit state was recognized.
Though previously Kikawayu nearly recognized him, he'd muddled through.
This time Nanki'in Muramasa directly saw through the truth with that mechanical prosthetic eye.
After Amano Shio's inverted aerial kick, Amano again exclaimed -- Master Vail, your technological prowess is too high!
Since seen through, Amano had no need to continue pretending. "Patriarch, temporarily inconvenient to explain to you. Must finish the duel first."
Despite outward appearance being his all-too-familiar adorable granddaughter, the speaking tone and expression were completely another person -- for Nanki'in Muramasa, this was also excessively wondrous.
"Could it be, young friend Amano, you also possess a Millennium Item? To accomplish things beyond common sense like this is truly astounding to this old man!"
Why does Muramasa say the same thing as Dark Magician Girl?
He genuinely didn't have such a good thing.
"Patriarch, compared to my matters, figuring out how to win now is more important."
Amano scanned his hand cards. The key to breaking the deadlock currently could only rely on Shiranui.
Not only checking hand cards, but also Sakuya's Extra Deck.
[UNLOCKED POSSESSED ARCHETYPE "SKY STRIKER"]
Because this girl's archetype fundamentally wasn't Shiranui, Amano couldn't freely throw out HERO Extra Deck cards like possessing Finesse.
And since the duel had already started, Sakuya's own Sky Striker archetype hadn't added the key Raye and Roze cards before duel start, and lacked EX Zone, so was completely unusable.
Fortunately, spending just five seconds, Amano thought of the breakthrough method.
The weakness hidden beneath Malefic monsters' overpowered ATK could be broken through with Shiranui.
But the prerequisite was quickly processing effects Nanki'in Sakuya hadn't yet activated while taking damage.
"When War God - Shiranui is destroyed, I can recover one banished Zombie monster. I return Demon Blade - Shiranui to the GY."
"Simultaneously, since the monster Special Summoned by Trap Card Shiranui Style Swallow's Slash, Shiranui Swordmaster, is banished when leaving the field, I activate Shiranui Swordmaster's banish effect!"
[When this card is banished: You can draw 1 card, then discard 1 card.]
"I send Shiranui Spiritualist to the GY."
"You bastard fundamentally aren't Nanki'in Sakuya!" Onikiri also saw through the truth.
How was he exposed again?
Could the Millennium Key also possess mystery-seeing functions?
"Nanki'in Sakuya's face couldn't possibly display so many expressions! You bastard, who exactly are you to dare intercept my prey!"
Just one operation and his duelist's exaggerated expressions already betrayed him?
Amano: "Do I have that many expressions?"
Sakuya: "Do I have that few expressions?"
However, Onikiri's questioning was easy to answer.
Amano pointed forward. "I'm naturally the one who came to defeat you!"
"Laughable!" Onikiri looked at these desperately powerful Malefic monsters on her field.
"I Set one card and end my turn. Come let me see your pitiful struggles before the four great Malefic Dragons!"
"My turn, draw!"
Turn shifted. Amano controlling Sakuya's body drew a card.
Sufficient. Though Sakuya's current remaining Shiranui resources were extremely limited, within these limited resources, enough to deploy Shiranui's flame blade that severs the Malefic World!
"Patriarch, borrowing your Set card!"
"Go, young friend Amano! This old man approves of your dueling strength!"
"Continuous Trap Card Call of the Haunted activates!"
[CALL OF THE HAUNTED] [Continuous Trap Card: Target 1 monster in your GY; Special Summon that target in face-up Attack Position. When this card leaves the field, destroy that target. When that target is destroyed, destroy this card.]
"I use the Continuous Trap to revive Shiranui Spiritualist just sent to the GY!"
[SHIRANUI SPIRITUALIST] [LV4 FIRE]
[Zombie/Effect] [ATK: 1500] [DEF: 0]
The spiritualist possessing highest position in the shrine revived burning from the GY onto Sakuya's Duel Disk.
"Then I Normal Summon a second demon blade! Manifest! Demon Blade of Ominous Hour - Shiranui!"
[DEMON BLADE OF OMINOUS HOUR - SHIRANUI] [LV3 FIRE]
[Zombie/Tuner/Effect] [ATK: 800] [DEF: 0]
Shiranui's demon blade monsters all possessed extremely rare Tuner attributes. And this Demon Blade of Ominous Hour, due to being Level 3, held special significance in Shiranui's Synchro system.
Could be used to Synchro Summon odd-Level Shiranui Synchro Monsters.
Amano controlling the girl's pale fingertips slid, illuminating two Monster Zone cards on the Duel Disk with flame Synchro special effects.
"Level 3 Tuner Demon Blade of Ominous Hour - Shiranui, Level 4 Shiranui Spiritualist, tuning!"
"3 + 4 = 7!"
"Play the soul-ferrying song! Hundred demon flames, sever gods and spirits with this blade!"
"Synchro Summon! Level 7! Shiranui Spectralsword!"
[SHIRANUI SPECTRALSWORD] [LV7 FIRE]
[Zombie/Synchro/Effect]
[ATK: 2100] [DEF: 0]
[1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters. You can only Special Summon "Shiranui Spectralsword" once per turn. Once per turn, during your Main Phase: You can banish 1 monster from your GY and/or face-up from your field, and if you do, apply this effect based on what it was. Zombie: All monsters you currently control gain 300 ATK. FIRE: Destroy 1 Spell/Trap on the field. Synchro: Destroy 1 monster on the field.]
The naginata-wielding girl warrior drew the burning demon blade from Synchro flames, materializing on Amano's field.
Though ATK wasn't high, the blade the Synchro girl monster held could sever this entire Malefic World.
Amano slammed the white card onto the Duel Disk, loudly declaring: "Now, Shiranui Spectralsword's effect activates!"
"Hahahaha, joining mid-duel, you fundamentally don't understand the situation!"
Onikiri stood on her backrow Trap Card radiating dark domain.
"When Skill Drain exists on the field, all face-up monster effects are negated!"
"No, I'm definitely activating this effect! Trap Card Shiranui Style Swallow's Slash's GY effect!"
Fifty years without touching Shiranui, or perhaps continuously reincarnating souls constantly worn down, made even Onikiri herself forget. Besides Special Summoning Zombie monsters from hand, this Trap Card in the GY had another special effect.
[SHIRANUI STYLE SWALLOW'S SLASH] [Trap Card: You can banish this card from your GY, then target 1 Zombie monster you control; this turn, that Zombie monster is unaffected by the effects of cards, except its own.]
"I banish this Trap Card from the GY, granting Shiranui Spectralsword resistance unafraid of dark domains, unaffected by any card effects!"
Unaffected by card effects except its own meant Shiranui Spectralsword, like last turn's Forbidden Lance-baptized War God - Shiranui, wouldn't be negated by Skill Drain.
"Next is Shiranui Spectralsword's effect! Using the effect to banish Shiranui Spiritualist from the GY! Apply effects based on the banished monster's type!"
[Zombie: All monsters you currently control gain 300 ATK.
FIRE: Destroy 1 Spell/Trap on the field.]
Being both FIRE and Zombie, Shiranui Spectralsword applying both effects simultaneously could destroy 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field "without targeting" while boosting its own ATK.
"Without targeting" effects meant the effect description lacked descriptions like "target XXX card."
Right, without targeting was crucial!
Because when Onikiri activated Malefic Territory, it granted Field Spell protection effects -- both sides couldn't select Field Spells as effect targets.
But this protection couldn't block "without targeting" destruction effects.
This was also the K-language's miraculous nature. Because it was perfectly recreated within Eden, it could use rules' power to transcend Malefic's domain.
"The card I destroy without targeting is Field Spell Malefic World!"
The effect-activated flame greatsword in the girl's hands surged with churning flame waves, swinging horizontally with world-severing might.
"Eight million gods, all become ashes!"
"-- River of Three Crossings!!"
Malefic World's dark battlefield transformed into burning ukiyo-e. The bizarre architecture inverted and suspended in the sky rift crumbled thunderously this instant.
[MALEFIC WORLD] destroyed
Losing the Field Spell, the Malefic monsters' greatest weakness was exposed.
All four great Malefic Dragons on Onikiri's field possessed the same negative effect.
[If there is no face-up Field Spell on the field, destroy this card.]
"Who exactly are you to know Malefic's weakness!"
In anime-like duels, checking opponent monster effects was impossible. So without prior intel, no one would know that without Field Spells, Malefic monsters self-destructed.
Right -- even in the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime theatrical version, when the three Duel Kings battled Malefic monsters, none thought to destroy the Field Spell.
"But you still miscalculated one thing!"
Onikiri's field -- the dark domain hadn't dispersed, Malefic monsters hadn't vanished.
"Because Skill Drain exists, Malefic monsters' own effects are also negated! So even losing the Field, Malefic monsters won't self-destruct from their own effects!"
"You've truly lived too long and grown senile with age!" Amano mercilessly mocked. After severing the entire Malefic World, the katana flames in Shiranui Spectralsword's hands still continuously burned.
"This blade will destroy Skill Drain together! The banished Shiranui Spiritualist's effect activates!"
[When this card is banished: Target 1 face-up card your opponent controls; destroy it.]
Using Shiranui Spectralsword to banish Spiritualist, activating the non-targeting card destruction effect, destroys Malefic World.
Then borrowing Shiranui Spiritualist's banish effect to target and destroy a card, destroying Skill Drain.
This turn, Amano wielded Shiranui Spectralsword's flame dual-blade style, annihilating both sin and darkness together.
[SKILL DRAIN] destroyed
Losing Field Spell and losing Skill Drain.
The fate awaiting Onikiri's four great Malefic Dragons was only--
"Time to vanish, Malefic Dragons born from darkness!" Amano raised his hand pointing toward the gradually collapsing sky.
"Roar--!" x4
Four overlapping laments resounded through heaven and earth. The extremely high ATK Malefic monsters' fate wasn't death in battle but dispersal under their own negative effects.
[MALEFIC RED-EYES BLACK DRAGON] destroyed
[MALEFIC CYBER END DRAGON] destroyed
[MALEFIC RAINBOW DRAGON] destroyed
[MALEFIC PARADIGM DRAGON] destroyed
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