While Hikaru and Yusei were each deciding their next move...
In an underground laboratory, the black-haired girl pointed at the person on the screen and said to the other two, "She's Serena, the one who rescued me."
"Ah, she really looks exactly like Rin!"
In Yusei's second hideout, the boys and girls gathered in front of the display screen, whispering to each other.
Although everyone trusted that the residence Yusei had provided would be safe and well-hidden, they were still on the run. So they kept their voices as low as possible to reduce any chance of being discovered.
Earlier, before going to find Crow, Yusei had brought Rin and Yugo here as well, which was why he and Hikaru had arrived at the scene so late.
The three of them had briefly gotten to know each other in the laboratory. Upon learning that Ruri was from the Xyz Dimension, Yugo and Rin both developed a strong curiosity and longing for that world.
In the Xyz Dimension, Dueling was a form of entertainment. Ruri's Heartland was the happiest city in the world. Everyone lived joyfully there, without discrimination or class divisions. Children of both rich and poor could live together in the four Duel Academies.
For Rin and Yugo, who had grown up in the lower class and in an orphanage, this was almost unimaginable.
That was precisely why they were so captivated by the stories Ruri told.
Of course, what angered them most was the Fusion Army's sudden attack on the Xyz Dimension, which had toppled buildings and set fires everywhere. Ruri had watched people die right before her eyes.
When they heard that Ruri had been abducted without even a Duel, taken by someone who looked exactly like Yugo, their anger only grew.
Rin kept nudging Yugo with her elbow, making him repeatedly ask what he had done wrong.
However, Ruri was different from Rin and Serena. She was gentle and rational, and didn't suspect Yugo just because he looked exactly like Yuri. More importantly, the Yuto in her memory also looked exactly like Yugo.
She couldn't help but draw connections.
Especially since she had previously learned from Serena that they both appeared to be "daughters" of someone named Leo Akaba.
From Serena's perspective, this was perfectly ordinary. But for Ruri, it was deeply strange.
Because she had parents in her own world. Not only that, she also had a biological older brother, who loved her dearly.
But the fact that Serena could communicate with her directly using that strange Alchemy also confirmed that she and Serena did share some connection. It made her wonder if even more secrets lay waiting for her, Serena, and even Rin, as well as the "Yuto" she knew and the "Yugo" standing before her.
However, she kept these thoughts to herself. Instead, she found herself worried about Serena.
During their conversations, she had learned that Serena was originally raised in a laboratory as a "Duel warrior," trained by her "father" Leo Akaba. It was only with the help of Hikaru and some other seniors from the Fusion Department that Serena finally understood what life was truly like.
Even the unique Alchemy that Serena had mastered was taught to her by Hikaru.
But due to an imperfect plan and imprecise execution, the current situation had come about.
Although it seemed like Ruri's involvement wasn't that significant, if Hikaru blamed Serena and she was punished by the master she so deeply revered, then Ruri felt she couldn't just stand by in good conscience.
So while Yugo and Rin went to look at Yusei's screen, she stayed focused on the surveillance feed, wanting to see as much as possible of what had happened.
She wasn't the only one watching.
As the Geoglyph in the Satellite took shape, the enormous flying bird had long since caught the attention of residents in New Domino City. Naturally, the Fusion Army soldiers who had been ordered to capture Serena, Rin, and Ruri reported these developments up the chain.
And so, while the nobles grew anxious, they and Leo Akaba watched the earlier Duel together in the Elder Council chamber.
"This is truly..."
"How terrifying!"
"4200 Attack Points? Even mere lower-class people can reach that level?"
"Hahaha, an Earthbound Immortal with 1 Attack Point? That's ridicu... what?!"
"It directly reduces Life Points to 1?!"
"Losing 700 Life Points every time you activate a monster effect? Isn't that invincible?!"
A group of nobles had gathered to watch the replay of Crow and Shinji's Duel, exclaiming at some of the plays that unfolded.
When they saw the 4200 Attack Points, they were somewhat surprised but not particularly frightened.
But when they saw Crow combine Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca with Black-Winged Assault Dragon to create a seemingly unbeatable lockdown, they couldn't help but gasp in admiration.
Leo Akaba frowned as he watched.
Both monsters were certainly strong, but against his "Master Spirit Tech Force - Pendulum Ruler," they wouldn't be enough.
However, if the opponent established that field first, even he would find it extremely difficult. Almost impossible to deal with through any means other than Pendulum Master. Whether it was Sacred Beasts or Number cards, they all seemed to be severely countered.
Troublesome indeed.
And what was even more dangerous was that the opponent had already completed nearly half of the Geoglyph. If they finished it first, even Leo Akaba would struggle to respond.
Fortunately...
He looked at the report handed to him by his subordinate.
Because of the riot initiated by the lower-class people, the Fusion Army had taken the opportunity to harvest a large number of souls, providing them to Crimson Nova. When the opponent finished drawing the Geoglyph, they would inevitably be obstructed by others. At that point, he could sit back and revive Crimson Nova at his leisure.
A fully revived Crimson Nova was completely incomparable to one with only a flame phantom.
Just as he was thinking this, a familiar figure suddenly appeared on the screen. Someone he would recognize even if they turned to ash was driving toward the floating giant Geoglyph.
Leo Akaba's eyes lit up.
The corners of his mouth slowly curved upward.
Several nobles who had been observing his expression noticed his smile, and the worry on their faces immediately eased.
As expected of a genius scientist capable of creating Solid Vision technology, he could even smile in the face of such a crisis. Surely the great endeavor would succeed!
In truth, Leo Akaba wasn't smiling because of the current situation.
He had seen Hikaru foolishly driving toward such a high-level opponent, and he felt an indescribable sense of relief.
Hikaru, that fool, always charged forward whenever he saw so-called injustice. He never learned his lesson, always targeting the Fusion Army. And now, he had recklessly rushed toward a monster of this caliber.
That lower-class Duelist named Crow, regardless of his skill, had the backing of a god-level card like Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca. And not just an imitation, but the actual god's power. No matter how strong Hikaru's Dueling was, he would be suppressed.
When that happened, Hikaru would face the most unsolvable situation!
Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca and Black-Winged Assault Dragon!
One had to consider that although Hikaru's Deck primarily consisted of Spells and Traps, his battles and field clearing fundamentally relied on monsters. In this situation, how could he possibly deal with Black-Winged Assault Dragon?
Leo carefully recalled all of Hikaru's Fusion Monsters. Only one, Dragon Knight Draco-Equiste, could break through this situation.
But Dragon Knight Draco-Equiste required too many cards, and during the process, Hikaru might even need to activate the effect of Mudragon of the Swamp. By then, he could lose Life Points to Black-Winged Assault Dragon before even completing the summon!
In this dire situation, Hikaru's cards simply could not overcome the combination of Black-Winged Assault Dragon and Earthbound Immortal!
Even better, because many Blackwing cards used Normal Summons in their swarming process, even Hikaru's strongest lockdown monster, El Shaddoll Winda, couldn't seal Crow's plays! Crow had countless ways to deal with Winda!
Crow had ten thousand ways to win, while Hikaru had almost no chance of even competing!
He concluded that Hikaru was bound to lose!
Hehe...
Nothing was more satisfying than watching one's enemy self-destruct.
He thought for a moment and decided to tell his subordinates not to rush to capture Serena, but to focus on collecting souls first. Then he would let them watch Hikaru's inevitable defeat.
At that moment, Hikaru finally ascended the Geoglyph. He drove along the fiery corridor, gradually catching up with Crow.
"Crow, stop drawing the Geoglyph!" Hikaru shouted.
Although Dueling was the simplest and most direct method, since it was Crow, it might be possible to reason with him first. So Hikaru didn't immediately challenge him.
"Hikaru, are you trying to stop me?" Crow turned his head, alerted by Hikaru's approach. "I won't stop. Otherwise, Shinji's sacrifice would have been for nothing."
Hikaru frowned deeply, but he wasn't in a hurry to speak.
He wanted to hear what Crow had to say.
Although he fundamentally supported Yusei's approach, if Crow's reasoning was sound, then he had no right to force him to stop.
Crow clenched his fist and held it before him. "I've had enough. Enough of my friends, the people I care about, being tormented by this reality. I don't want to see people like Shinji fall into madness, and I don't want Yusei to sacrifice himself again walking an impossible path!
I want to end the god war early and create a world where everyone lives under God's protection. No class differences. Everyone as God's children."
"..Is that really the answer? Besides, what Yusei hopes for is to end this painful cycle entirely. Even if you end the god war now and let the Earthbound Immortal who revived you fully recover, creating a brand new world, the same tragedy will repeat thousands of years later."
"It doesn't matter. When that time comes, we'll just choose again. There won't be any more wars, because class will have been eliminated. Everyone will receive resources equally. And at that point, the war of the only god can be replaced by a Duel tournament..."
"What if the winner changes the rules?"
Crow's fist trembled slightly.
He was smart. Smart enough that when Hikaru raised this possibility, he immediately understood that his vision wasn't entirely right.
Of course, he could argue that when the time came, he would simply choose the next winner, and anyone who didn't conform to his ideals could be eliminated outright. He could say such things, but the moment he turned them over in his mind, he knew they were completely unreasonable.
That would just be trading noble rule for his own rule.
He shook his head and looked at Hikaru.
Hikaru waited for his reply.
But just as Crow was about to argue again, he suddenly remembered something. "You... I just saw you hit Serena, didn't I?"
Hikaru had indeed knocked Serena's forehead several times with his knuckles. He thought back and wondered if that even counted as hitting.
But since Crow asked, he nodded. "I guess so. After all, that idiot just decided to do something reckless on a whim. It got so many people dragged into the Fusion Army's mess..."
"Hitting children is wrong, Hikaru."
Hikaru was stunned.
He looked up at Crow, and after confirming that he wasn't joking, his mouth slowly fell open.
"Don't tell me, the 'protection' you mentioned..."
"I want to create a world where everyone can live safely and without worries. That's all... that's all."
Hikaru was dumbfounded.
He knew Crow loved children, but would he really go this far?
He glanced at the enormous Earthbound Immortal soaring through the sky beside him.
In the original story, an Earthbound Immortal would amplify its holder's resentment and anger to extremes, driving them to fight the Signers.
He had assumed that Shinji's extremism was simply because he was already radical in ARC-V, and that this world had only made it worse. Now it seemed that wasn't the case at all.
"It seems that in order to compete for the only god, the Earthbound Immortals greatly amplify their chosen agent's beliefs and obsessions," Tierra observed. She might not have been the strongest Duelist, but she was deeply knowledgeable in this domain.
"This human's desire to protect children wasn't just his campaign 'slogan' as a chosen one. It was his obsession."
So that's how it was.
Hikaru nodded.
"Then it looks like you have to go for it, Hikaru!" Tierra waved at him, cheering him on.
Hikaru glanced at the card in his hand, slid it into his Deck, and nodded.
"In that case, there's nothing more to talk about, Crow! Let's Duel!" Hikaru shouted.
"Alright, Hikaru! Even if you lose, I'll make sure you and Shinji are reborn together in this world!" Crow patted his chest, giving his assurance.
Both riders surged forward. At the next bend, Hikaru's Duel Runner maintained its speed without any deceleration, while Crow slowed slightly. The difference in their turning speeds created a gap.
Whoosh! Hikaru was the first to clear the curve!
"Turbo Duel! Acceleration!" the Duel Runner announced automatically.
Hikaru| LP: 4000
Crow | LP: 4000
Only half of the Geoglyph remained. A winner had to be decided before it was complete!
...
STONES??