Heroic Spirit Deck in Yu-Gi-Oh!

"They won! Since Dartz was only surviving by relying on Divine Serpent Geh, he should be completely finished now!"

Beyond the crumbling barrier, the three spectators cheered excitedly, unable to contain their joy.

Yugi smiled at Hoshino. "You did an incredible job, Hoshino! Now, our friends—and this entire world—are saved!"

As the duel disk's projection faded, so did the divine assimilation of the Lion King. The golden hue that had overtaken Hoshino's silver-white hair, tinted by the Holy Light particles, gradually faded, returning to its original color. Her emerald-green eyes also regained their natural shade.

"So… we actually saved the world? It doesn't feel real at all~"

Hoshino picked up the still-glowing Lion King card from her duel disk, but something nagged at her—a lingering unease, as if she had forgotten something important.

BOOM!!!

A massive black shadow crashed into the ruins, and in that instant, Hoshino realized what she had overlooked.

"—The Great Leviathan!"

If Divine Serpent Geh had already been colossal—so large that it nearly filled half the battlefield—then The Great Leviathan, whose semi-transparent, shadowy body now loomed over them, utterly shattered any previous concept of "gigantic."

The impact was so overwhelming that, from Hoshino's perspective, it didn't feel like the serpent had invaded the ruins. Rather, it felt as if the ruins themselves—like stars being consumed by the void—were being swallowed into the Leviathan's monstrous form.

"What the hell is happening now?!"

Struggling to maintain her balance, Hoshino voiced her exasperation. Inside The Great Leviathan, the familiar scenery vanished entirely. Even the ground beneath her feet lost its substance, as if she were plunging into an abyss of darkness.

In the boundless void, the only sound piercing the eerie silence was Dartz's chilling, manic laughter—a sound so unhinged, it sent shivers down their spines.

"Hoshino!"

Amidst the confusion, Yugi steadied himself and reached out toward her. The Millennium Puzzle on his chest radiated an eye-searing golden light, standing in stark contrast to the surrounding darkness.

"Yugi!"

Acting on instinct, Hoshino extended her right hand. In this overwhelming darkness, the golden glow of the Millennium Puzzle was the only visible beacon—the only thing she could orient herself by.

The moment their fingers made contact, the golden energy intensified exponentially. Expanding outward from Hoshino and Yugi, the brilliant light slowly pushed back the surrounding darkness.

As the scenery reassembled, the sensation of free-falling vanished, and at last, solid ground returned beneath their feet.

"Where… are we?"

But what unfolded before them was beyond comprehension.

The sealed ruins from earlier were gone. In their place stood an enormous, open space, filled with crumbling ancient structures—ruins that seemed to belong to an era long forgotten.

From the rolling waves ahead, Dartz's voice echoed once more.

"This is Atlantis, the legendary empire! What you now behold is the end of the world as it was ten thousand years ago."

"Dartz! You lost the duel, and you still refuse to give up?!"

Seeing Dartz still standing, Hoshino angrily shouted toward the sea.

"This is my contingency plan. If I cannot claim the souls of the legendary duelists through a duel… then I shall offer my own soul to the Orichalcos and complete the final step of its resurrection!"

"Ugh… where are we?!"

Weak groans came from Mokuba and the others. Having failed to stabilize themselves in the void, they had crashed to the ground. After a brief moment of unconsciousness, they slowly regained their senses.

Surprisingly, Kaiba, whose soul had been sealed during the duel, also awakened.

"Yugi, Hoshino?!"

Though slightly disoriented, Kaiba quickly pieced together the situation upon seeing them still standing.

"Hmph. So you really didn't disappoint me—you won the duel. Now, where the hell are we?"

"You're alive again! That's great!"

Relieved to see Kaiba back, Hoshino felt a surge of reassurance—their combat strength had slightly recovered, though Dartz's next scheme remained unknown.

Yugi furrowed his brows slightly. "Dartz just claimed this is Atlantis from ten thousand years ago... Could it be that we've been transported back in time?"

At that moment, a circular seal unfolded before them, and from within stepped a white-haired boy, hands tucked into the pockets of his shorts.

"This is Atlantis. But it's not ten thousand years ago."

His gaze was calm as he explained.

"To be precise, this is a manifestation of the Orichalcos God's consciousness—an illusory world that never should have existed."

Hoshino stared at the boy in shock.

"Even you came back to life? I was fighting that duel thinking I'd be avenging you!"

Scratching his head, the boy—Shota Dartz—glanced at Hoshino with a complicated expression.

"I thought I was dead for sure. I mean, I even blurted out 'oh SHIT' at the end—totally out of character for me. But… turns out that guy saved me."

"That guy?"

"—It's coming!"

Yugi, who had been watching the sea, suddenly shouted. His voice cut off Hoshino's question as the ocean's turbulent waves suddenly froze—a stillness so unnatural, it was as if time itself had stopped.

Anyone could tell—this was the brief calm before the storm.

"ROOOOAAAARR!!!"

A nightmarish roar shattered the ocean's surface. Water spiraled into towering, dragon-shaped torrents as an unimaginable force ascended.

Having absorbed Dartz's soul, The Great Leviathan had amassed enough power. Rising from the ocean, it was no longer a mere shadowy silhouette but a terrifying, fully-formed colossal entity.

A massive serpent with an abyssal black dragon's head.

Its gigantic body coiled in the sky, eclipsing the entire ocean beneath it.

A presence that dwarfed any monster they had ever encountered. A divine being whose oppressive might stood at the pinnacle of all existence.

"W-Wait a second… This is totally unfair."

Hoshino's lips twitched.

She had thought that Divine Serpent Geh, obliterated by the full power of the Lion King, was the pinnacle of darkness.

But compared to this...

That thing was barely even its tail.

Shota Dartz's expression darkened.

"Hoshino… while I was gone, that guy told me something important. It might just be the key to deciding the outcome of this battle."

Even Shota Dartz seemed taken aback by Dartz's willingness to sacrifice himself for the Orichalcos God's resurrection.

"Ten thousand years ago, the last of Atlantis's royal family fought alongside the Legendary Dragons in a desperate final stand to save the world."

He locked eyes with Hoshino.

"—So do you know why you were chosen as the fourth Legendary Duelist?"

"Eh? Are you saying I wasn't chosen because of my outstanding dueling skills?"

Shota Dartz's statement was so abrupt that Hoshino momentarily struggled to process it. Besides, if even Jonouchi could be chosen, then she definitely met the qualifications to be a Legendary Duelist.

Pressing his forehead, Shota Dartz sighed. "No, no! I've already explained before—only three Duelists can be chosen by the Legendary Dragons. You weren't selected—you were born with the power to command them."

"Enough talk! The attack is coming!"

Although Kaiba was also curious about the revelation regarding Hoshino, he prioritized the immediate danger. Seeing the enormous Leviathan's head drawing closer, he opted to issue a warning instead.

Already in battle stance, Yugi swiftly drew a card. "Let's counterattack! If we combine our strength, even that thing can be defeated!"

"Come forth—Dark Magician!"

"Reveal your imperial majesty—Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

"Then I'll call on my ace—Okita-san!"

The three signature monsters burst forth from their Duel Disks, surging toward the Leviathan with unrelenting force.

However, trying to fight the supreme deity of this world with mere Duel Monsters was clearly futile. Dark Magician and Blue-Eyes White Dragon—powerful as they were—lasted less than a second under the Leviathan's murderous gaze before being obliterated.

Okita, on the other hand, sensed the incoming devastation and swiftly utilized Shukuchi, retreating just in time to avoid the destructive shockwave.

Reappearing beside Hoshino, Okita wore an uncharacteristically serious expression. "Master, forget fighting it—we can't even get close! I've never faced an opponent this troublesome before!"

"Are you sure it's not just that you're too weak, Okita-san?"

Hoshino nearly blurted out the question, but seeing how even Yugi's and Kaiba's ace monsters had been wiped out instantly, she knew the problem wasn't with Okita—it was with the opponent itself.

Shota Dartz added grimly, "It's useless. Regular Duel Monsters can counter Orichalcos creatures, but the Leviathan is on an entirely different level! The only force capable of affecting it in this world is the power of the Legendary Dragons!"

"The power of the Legendary Dragons, huh? In that case…"

Realizing there was no alternative, the three Duelists instinctively drew their cards and slammed them onto their Duel Disks in unison.

"Go forth—The Eye of Timaeus!"

"Descend—The Fang of Critias!"

"Take it down—The Claw of Hermos!"

"ROAR!!" x3

Three deafening dragon roars echoed across the battlefield as the Legendary Dragons emerged, fusing with their respective Duel Monsters to assume new, more powerful forms.

Holding the Dark Magician Girl card aloft, Yugi called out, "The Eye of Timaeus—manifest a miracle and carve out hope! Fusion Summon—[Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight]!"

Dark Magician Girl's magician robes transformed into a silver knight's armor. Gripping a longsword, she leaped onto Timaeus's back, prepared for battle.

"Attack, Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight—Dragon Slash!!"

"Oooooooh!!"

With a sharp battle cry, the silver longsword sliced through the air, releasing a blinding arc of energy that slashed across the Leviathan's dark scales—leaving behind a glaring wound.

"It worked!" Honda cheered from the sidelines.

"GRAAAAH!!"

The Leviathan let out an enraged, guttural roar. A jet-black energy beam began condensing in its mouth before it fired directly at the Dragon Knight.

"Leave this to me and the Fang of Critias! Support me, Yugi!"

Taking a step forward, Kaiba crossed the Legendary Dragon card in his hand with the Trap Card Mirror Force that Yugi had drawn.

"Become a divine shield and reflect the destruction of darkness! Fusion Summon—[Mirror Force Dragon]!"

Now infused with divine energy, the dragon's entire body turned into a smooth, reflective surface. Spreading its wings, it positioned itself between the Dragon Knight and the Leviathan's attack.

The barrier-like wings absorbed the incoming black energy before instantly dispersing and reflecting it. The dark beam shattered into a rain of black projectiles that rained down upon the Leviathan's massive serpentine body.

The combined damage—blade wounds from earlier, followed by the reflected energy—made the Leviathan tremble for the first time. It no longer seemed as invincible as before.

"A weakness has finally appeared! Now's our chance, Okita-san!"

Spinning the newly drawn card between her fingertips, Hoshino activated the burning power of fire, resonating with the mysterious force of The Claw of Hermos.

"Lend us your power, Nobu! From a distant land, the eternally burning sword of the Demon King! Fusion Summon—[Beyond the Aeons]!"

Combining the Oda Nobunaga card with The Claw of Hermos, Hoshino used the dragon's power to awaken a new force—manifesting in a brand-new form.

A sword, burning eternally in a distant wasteland, shattered the bonds of space and time, appearing once more.

"Take this, Okita! Wield this sword, forged from Nobu's very essence, and slice through the darkness!!"

"Oh! Understood, Master! This time, I'll definitely succeed!"

Leaping high into the air, the slender and agile Okita caught the burning sword mid-flight.

"So strong… I can feel it. This is the power drawn forth by Nobu!"

Suspended in midair with the blazing sword in hand, even Okita's usual green haori had transformed into the Sixth Heaven Demon King's crimson robes.

"Go, Okita-san! Roast that giant snake for me!"

With morale at its peak and the Leviathan finally showing signs of vulnerability, Hoshino commanded the finishing strike.

Raising the sword before her eyes, Okita dashed forward, seemingly stepping through thin air. The unparalleled sword genius—now wielding a blade beyond myth—unleashed an unfathomable secret technique.

"First step—swifter than sound...!"

With each step, Okita's silhouette momentarily disappeared.

"Second step—eternal suffering..."

The fiery blade's trajectory flickered, appearing as though segments of reality had been cut away by sheer speed.

"Third step—the absolute sword!!"

Yet, this did not hinder the execution of the three-stage thrust. The First Thrust, Second Thrust, and Third Thrust overlapped in perfect synchrony, distorting the very fabric of space.

Piercing directly into the Leviathan's head, the attacks ignited the wounds inflicted by Yugi's and Kaiba's previous assaults.

At the exact moment and exact location, the compounded three-stage thrust exploded upon impact.

"—Mumyō, Sandanzuki!!!!"

(*****)

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