Update

As pointed out by both KingOtakuOverYou and HunterHQ, I noticed that there were some errors for the Playmaker vs Slipstream duel. They also provided tips on how to correct them as well. As such, I made the corrections, and if you go back to Chapter 80, you'll see the corrections I made. I'm truly thankful to the both of you for your assistance.

Response to Reviews

Thank you to Donkeyboy100, Guest, Kingdom Hearts Guy, KingOtakuOverYou, HunterHQ, Ambiguous, Guest, Jumpei Senpai, Big Duels, and T.V. 2000 for reviewing Chapter 80 of Obscured Truth.

What's up, everybody! I hope you're doing well as we move into the fall season. That being said, I also hope you had an excellent Thanksgiving as well! In addition, we're one step closer to the Mirror LINK VRAINS arc, so hold on tight for the coming chapters!

But enough talking, for we got some reviews to respond to:

Donkeyboy100: Glad you liked the chapter. And funny thing you mention that...

Guest: Well, duh.

Kingdom Hearts Guy: You'll see what's going on with Gil in this chapter.

KingOtakuOverYou: First off, thanks very much for your assistance in duel corrections. I appreciate it very much, and have credited you for your help above. I can see you're confused, so allow me to clarify something. During the scene between Soulburner and Revolver, Raguel basically reprimanded the former for making his loss bigger than others, as well as minimizing Revolver's losses to the point where they didn't matter. So in a sense, Soulburner became no better than Azrael or Lightning at that moment. And thanks for answering the QOTC as well.

HunterHQ: The main problem that the characters have is acknowledging the fact that they can't control everything in life. Their challenge is to acknowledge what happened, and make choices that will help them positively grow moving forward. For Frog and Pigeon, there was an actual war going on, so they didn't want to risk getting killed. Unlike the Tower of Hanoi, where people who lost turned into particles. I'm sure the duo was fine in the days they were imprisoned. You could say the Spatial Cube is an ancient relic. Yup, Gil has a Bitboot for himself, though he made sure it's non-lethal. The good guys don't know the existence of Jericho or Urizen yet, so how could they find them? And no, Aqua hasn't seen World Gears yet.

Ambiguous: Alright, maybe I went a little overboard there. The police most likely burned criminals' bodies to ensure that space was filled up. Sorry about that. And no, if the people cheered for criminals' deaths, they'd be no better than them. As for Arashi's ultimate decision, you'll find out later what he decides to do later on.

Guest: You'll find out the answers to your questions as you read the story.

Jumpei Senpai: Playmaker helping Slipstream was necessary, as otherwise, Slipstream would have been distracted. Oh, and on that topic regarding Slipstream, what you called him was offensive. Do not call him that name again. This your first and final warning. As for Infearno, he wasn't at the meeting. He was merely taking care of other matters.

Big Duels: Well, I have already decided who's going into Mirror LINK VRAINS, so stay tuned on that. As for the Playmaker vs Slipstream duel, the reason why I ended it in a draw was because I didn't want to disrespect the latter's growth as both as a duelist and an individual. Playmaker will eventually lose in the story. Just not right now.

T.V. 2000: Glad you agree with how the duel ended. And yes, you will see Aoi use the Marincess cards prior to Mirror LINK VRAINS sooner than you think. For your last question, please send me a PM, as it's something I can explain better than put it in a review. I can, however, answer the Hercules question here. I grew up learning that Hercules was the name of the son of Zeus. As for his design, I only knew Hercules' design from God of War, and I didn't know about Record of Ragnarök nor Fate/Stay Night at the time. Yes, Hercules is the Roman name for Heracles, though I used the former name because it was more familiar to me at the time.

Now that all reviews have been answered, let's get to the chapter, shall we? I hope you have One Hell of a Time reading it!

Chapter 81: Lessons in Anger

In a desolate landscape under a bloody sky, two pendants, one white-ruby and one white-sapphire, fall to the ground before transforming into Excalibur and Muramasa. Their owners, Raguel and Azrael, grab their swords before charging at one another, the blade lock resulting in a flash of light flooding the screen. When the light fades, LINK VRAINS is shown before being replaced my Mirror LINK VRAINS. The Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS logo then appears, with the words "OBSCURED TRUTH" to ominously appear underneath it in rainbow colours. Two symbols also appear underneath those words, with the first one consisting of a dark-orange demonic crest that had lion fangs on the sides, as well as Excalibur slashing it down the middle. The other symbol consisted of a dark-blue demonic crest that had two mirage blades making an X, as well as Muramasa slashing it down the middle.

Yuhiro, Yusaku, Takeru, and Arashi are sitting around a table at Café Nagi, looking at duel footage as they discuss strategies they can use to counter their enemies. At a nearby table, Roxy, Kusanagi, and Greg are chatting, a hamburger in Roxy's hand, and a hotdog in Kusanagi's hand. Rachel is shown nearby playing with Rasterliger, Salamangreat Balelynx, and Linkuriboh, until the four of them turn their heads to see Herald, Ai, and Flame chatting on the best type of entertainment in the world. All four of them go towards the three chatting Ignis and scare them with a large shout. This causes Yuhiro, Yusaku, Takeru, Arashi, Roxy, Kusanagi, and Greg to laugh at the three Ignis, who are still flustered by the prank.

Kengo Dojun looks down at the hospital bed his mother is on, gritting his teeth before making a fist with his right hand. At another hospital room, Yuhiro, Roxy, and Aoi are shown, where they look down on Miyu resting on her hospital bed. Yuhiro puts his hands on the sides of his head, a panicked and stressed look on his face as Roxy and Aoi try to calm him down, his anxiety settling in. Red, glowing cracks start to spread over his body before dimming on and off. Behind him, shadows form, one of which consists of a girl in her pre-teens wearing a white and blue Greek-styled dress, along with sandals twirling around, her shoulder-length blond hair flowing down behind her. The girl's eyes glow red as she raises her right arm in front of her and places her left hand on her chest, as if she were singing. After she disappears, a black-armored knight that had a spiked plume on his helmet, along with dark-steel plates on his arms appears in her place. Strapped to his sides were a pair of jagged, chained blades, each one having a demonic red-orange glyph pattern on them. Attached to his back was a long sword with a massive blade, as well as a set of arms that had large hands, each one having three claws. The multicolored shapes resembling eyes glowed as the knight pulls out all three blades and slashes the screen completely.

Raguel and Playmaker appear, riding parallel to one another on their duel boards, with Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode and Firewall Dragon following after them. Next is Soulburner and Slipstream, with Salamangreat Heatleo and Clear Wing Synchro Dragon following after the second duo. Last but not least, Blue Maiden and Numera appear, with Marincess Marbled Rock and Geomathmech Final Sigma following after the third duo.

At SOL Technologies, Akira, Hayami, Queen, and Pawn are looking at a monitor that showed Go Onizuka in the training dome, having won a duel against a virtual Playmaker. While the first two individuals frowned with concern, the second two had satisfied smiles on their faces.

In a dark abandoned room, Yukage narrows his eyes as looks at a happy memory of him and Yuhiro playing together as children by using the memory scanner. Blue, glowing cracks start to appear on his right hand, causing Yukage to take deep breaths to calm himself down. After looking at his pendant for a few moments, Yukage puts on his duel disk before he and Wraith raise their right hands to the sky and log into the network. Haru is then shown training under Azrael's tutelage in a room of a palace, having faced off against multiple upgraded Bitboots with Hydradrive Nagini, Scyllonic Hydradrive Kragun, and Medusoid Hydradrive Gorgun behind him. Nearby, Azrael and Wraith watch the match, wanting to see how much stronger Haru has become.

The screen then shifts to another room of the palace, where Bohman is sitting cross-legged, his eyes closed as he begins to meditate. His eyes open before they glow a rainbow color, the glow also spreading to his chest as the room briefly lights up before dimming down. But in the shadows, Malf's eyes glow red as he proceeds to lick his mouth, hunger on his mind.

Silhouettes of Yua Kogami and Katsuya pop up before they morph into their VRAINS personas Demeter and Percival, where the screen goes back to one room of the palace. Windy, who is wearing a cape and eyepatch, commands Stormridership Bahamut Bomber to attack Demeter, who responds by having Simorgh, Bird of Sovereignty intercept the attack. In another room, Jin Kusanagi stands with Lightning as the latter snaps his fingers, causing a small squad of Armatos Legio Decurions and Centurions to appear behind him. Armatos Legio Magnus Dux, along with Tribunus Laticlavius and Legatus Legionis also appeared behind Lightning. Percival growls as Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon rises from behind him, and two copies of Phantom Knights' Spear appear in his hands.

A silhouette of Ace is shown above Uchida Industries, his right hand outstretched over the company. Drachen faces off against a squad of Bitboots with Red-Eyes Black Dragon behind him, hellbent on getting it back from Ace. The screen then flips over to show Electrolyzer trying to escape his restraints using PSY-Framegears Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and Zeta, with Jericho ominously laughing in the background.

Smoke appears in various areas of the central station in LINK VRAINS, which has been attacked by multiple Bitboots. Phoenix and Gil stand back to back, with Nephthys, the Scared Flame and Abyss Actor – Evil Heel beside the duelists as they confront one Bitboot each. SengokuQueen and Ghost Girl do the same, with Secret Six Samurai – Rihan and Altergeist Memorygant beside the duelists as they too confront one Bitboot each. Stregone is shown arriving to assist both groups, Quintet Magician and Enlightenment Paladin behind him. Nearby, Rosetta confronts Ace, Black Rose Moonlight Dragon rising from behind her before roaring at Ace, who has Dystopia the Despondent rise behind him in response.

Watching these events using the Spatial Cube is Watchman, who is in his server. A disappointed look appears on his face before he pulls out a total of six Black Keys, three in each of his hands. Watchman's eyes glow with a purple color before three copies of Crimson Nova the Dark Cubic Lord appear behind him, which proceed to fuse into Crimson Nova Trinity the Dark Cubic Lord as the screen is covered with purple cubes.

Raguel and Azrael are then shown facing off against one another in a matrix-like battlefield. Turboblaze Dragon, along with Cyreaths Blazing Orthros, Aetos Dios, and Lernaean Hydra, appear behind Raguel before combining to form a tall, white-colored bipedal dragon with red irises and black pupils, as well as a long and slender neck. He had a long, voluminous wispy mane streaming out from the upper side of his snout and outwards from his head, with the two protrusions on his head having merged to form into a long, bright and blazing one. His four arms were slender and arm-like with a wing-like appearance and four fingers on his glowing, fiery claws. On his head was a golden piece of armor, with fiery-golden armor pieces on his feathered chest and body. Each of his feet had large grey claws, three at the front and one positioned at the back to resemble high heels. The jet-like engine tail's bands expanded outwards, with the feathers in it spiking upwards before a massive blast of fire erupts from it.

Teravolt Dragon, along with Cychaics Pluto, God of the Underworld, Jupiter, God of the Storm, and Neptune, God of the Sea, appear behind Azrael before combining to form a tall, purple-colored bipedal dragon with blue sclera and white pupils, as well as a small horn-like protrusion on the tip of his snout. His head sported a thundercloud-like crest tipped with yellow coloration, along with pieces of golden armor as well. At the base of his neck, his shoulders, knees, and wings was a black, stud-like feature resembling that of armor, with spikes appearing on the shoulders. His large wings consisted of a fanned shape that expanded outwards to show three spikes tipped with electricity. Strapped to his back was a halo with three spikes on it. Attached to his arms were baseball-mitt-like formations, with three-clawed hands on the undersides that glowed with electricity. His three-clawed feet also glowed with electricity as well. His tail now consisted of two electric generators with a spike at the end, which hummed before releasing electricity from it.

In a garden of Asagao flowers, Miyu sees Yuhiro on one knee, having grabbed the hilt of Excalibur to try and stand up on his feet, the sword having been planted on the ground. She run over and helps Yuhiro stand up on his feet, the both of them having grateful smiles on their faces. The both of them look upwards as the screen jumps to the bright sky and the glowing sun.

In LINK VRAINS, at Herald's server...

"Hello back to you, Raguel." Gil firmly stated, which got everyone's surprise upon hearing his voice. "You and I need to talk."

"Why is that, Gil?" Raguel questioned.

"I'll tell you once you meet me at these coordinates." Gil responded, as a series of coordinates appeared on Raguel's duel disk. "Oh, and feel free to bring your friends with you." He then hung up afterwards.

"I don't like this at all, Raguel." Herald commented.

"Neither do I, Herald. But we'll only know Gil's reasons for calling me once we meet him at these coordinates." Raguel pointed out.

"You won't be going alone, Raguel." Playmaker stated, having gotten Raguel's attention. "I'll be going with you. Like what Herald said, I don't like this at all."

"Gil's one creepy kid. I don't know how, but I can tell that something's not right about him. It's as though he's distorted." Ai commented.

"Well, you can count me in as well, Raguel." Soulburner asserted. "The more people that go, the better, and we can help one another get out of any traps that may come up."

"Same here." Slipstream added, having crossed his arms. "We'll hear Gil out, and then leave afterwards. Who knows? Maybe he might have something to show us."

Raguel nodded. "Alright. Here's the coordinates." He pressed a few buttons on his duel disk, which sent the coordinates to Playmaker, Soulburner, and Slipstream's duel disks. The four duelists then disappeared in a burst of blue light, indicating that they logged into the central network.

In LINK VRAINS...

The four duelists then appeared in the central network. More specifically, an area they recognized.

"Where in the world are we?" Ai questioned, as he looked around the area. "Wait a minute. Is this-?"

"It's the Black Market. Or what's left of it, anyway." Soulburner recognized the destroyed area around them. This was evident by the destroyed buildings, charred area, and the remnants of multiple bodies.

"Wasn't this area cut off from the network after the Turf War?" Flame asked.

"There were rumors about it online. But it seems SOL Technologies decided to keep it so they can salvage the area for anything they can use." Raguel hypothesized, as the quartet walked through the central area of the Black Market, which connected all the branches to one another. As they followed the coordinates, the quartet continued to find more and more remnants of dead bodies. Specifically, skeletons. This disturbed Raguel quite a bit. In addition, the quartet found pieces of the battleship Ace used to destroy the Black Market, along with numerous other things, such as broken weapons.

"Guys, get down!" Slipstream suddenly said, as the quartet immediately ran over to a large piece of rubble nearby and hid behind it. Soon, they noticed a small group of workers scanning the area. Ones that wore a familiar outfit the quartet recognized.

"Looks like you were right, Raguel. There's workers from SOL Technologies in the area." Herald whispered.

"Shh." Ai and Flame told Herald.

"Can you believe this mess?" one worker commented, his nametag reading 'Aiden'. "The Black Market scum under Ace's rule ruined everything thanks to the Turf War they started, and now SOL Technologies lost a valuable partner as a result."

Raguel, Soulburner, Playmaker, and Slipstream gasped upon hearing that statement. Was that true? Did SOL Technologies partner with the entire Black Market this entire time? Sure, they made an alliance with Epsilon to stop the Turf War, but did the company really ally itself with all the branches for business matters? Or did some of them not bother to ally itself with SOL Technologies? Either way, this was confusing for him to hear.

"Of course," another worker said, his nametag reading 'Logan'. "And due to those attacks in the network and in the real world, SOL Technologies lost several more business partners. It's a good thing the Kings and the higherups are taking action, starting with disposing Queen for her reckless actions. When I overheard her idea of putting the AI chip in Go Onizuka from the general network of workers, I was disgusted with her actions."

"A good majority of us were, Logan, but because of her status as a higherup, we couldn't stand up against her," a third worker stated to his coworkers, his nametag reading 'Scott'. "If it weren't for Akira Zaizen and Pawn, things would have escalated even further." The scanner in the third worker's hands began beeping as he went over to the area of rubble nearby. Upon pushing the rocks aside, he grinned after finding a silver cannister with purple fluid in it. "Hey, a Dascium cannister! And it's got data material in it too!"

"Nice find!" a fourth worker praised her co-worker as he stood up on his feet, the former's nametag reading 'Tracey'. "Rook is going to be pleased with this!"

"Take a look what I found!" Aiden called out to his coworkers, which caused them to go over to where he was. In his hands, he carried a purple-colored helmet. "I think this is the helmet the troops from Delta wear for their missions."

"Not a bad find." Logan responded, before his scanner started beeping, which led him to go to another area nearby. Moving the rocks aside, he eventually found a familiar AI that was shutdown. One that Raguel and Playmaker recognized. "Hey, I found one of Kitamura's AIs! And it's intact too by some miracle! This is going to help for sure!"

"That's awesome!" Tracey commented, before her scanner suddenly started beeping, which led her to go over to another piece of the area the workers were in. She moved the rocks aside quickly, where she found a katana. "Hey, I think I found a katana from Epsilon. Not sure if it'd be much use, though."

"Don't worry, Tracey. Rook will find a use for it, especially with the money it can make." Scott assured her.

WHOOSH!

Suddenly, Bit and Boot emerged from the shadows of a nearby alleyway, allowing the duo to catch the four workers off guard before they knocked each one of them out. From there, Bit and Boot logged the workers out of the network, but not before double checking their duel disks to ensure that they weren't being followed.

"Okay, what the Hell are we seeing?" Soulburner inquired. "What's Bit and Boot doing here?"

"I will admit that it's surprising." Flame said.

"Do you think Lightning sent Bit and Boot to scour the area for potential resources?" Ai asked.

"I doubt that, Ai." Playmaker told Ai.

"Shh. Be quiet. They're speaking." Raguel stated to the group.

"Can you believe the number of people in this area, Boot?" Bit asked his partner.

"Yeah, it's crazy how scavengers pop up during dark times just to get whatever they can. Goes to show how selfish humans can be sometimes." Boot replied, as he picked up the katana with his left hand. "Hmm. I don't think the master would like this."

"Maybe as a trophy?" Bit suggested, which caused Boot to shrug his shoulders. After a few seconds, Bit walked over to where one of Kitamura's AIs was. "Take a look, Boot. Another AI. One that's surprisingly intact, even for an older model."

"Yup. The master will surely like that." Boot agreed, before he noticed the Dascium cannister nearby. "And the master will also like this as well."

Bit then looked around the area, as if something got his attention.

"Something the matter, Bit?"

"We should get going, Boot. There may be people nearby." Soon, two duel boards appeared in front of Bit and Boot, the both of them jumping onto one duel board each after grabbing the things they saw on the ground.

"What about the person the master wants to see?" Bit asked.

"The master gave that person the coordinates, so he'll show up soon, and likely with his buddies as well." Boot assured Bit. "In the meanwhile, let's get this stuff back to the master."

"Right!" Bit and Boot then sped off on their duel boards, intent on heading to find their master.

"That was interesting to see." Slipstream commented, as he and the others walked out from the hiding spot they were in. "Both Bit and Boot mentioned a master they serve. The way they said it, it couldn't have been Lightning."

"It may be the case, Slipstream." Playmaker stated. "Still, we won't know more by standing around."

"Then let's get going and continue following the coordinates." Raguel decided, the other humans and Ignis nodding in agreement as they continued running forward, intent on finding the coordinates. If Raguel was being honest, he was a little intrigued by what he saw. What was a Bit and Boot doing in the former Black Market area if they weren't sent by Lightning? And based on their discussion, who was their master if that was the case?

The quartet turned left at a street before making a right after reaching a dead end. From there, they entered into an alleyway before making a left, where they made a right after reaching the end of the next alleyway. Upon reaching the end of the third alleyway the quartet was in, they found a staircase, which had a flamboyant entrance similar to that of a theatre.

"This is the place." Raguel stated, the coordinates they had matching the entrance they were at.

"Really? A theatre? The kid wants to meet us at a theatre of all places?" Ai questioned, disbelief evident in his tone.

"You have arrived, Raguel." Bit said out of nowhere, as Raguel, Playmaker, Soulburner, and Slipstream noticed him and Boot walking towards them.

"Hang on a minute. Don't tell me..." Raguel put two and two together in his mind. It seemed that Gil somehow managed to reprogram the two AIs in front of him.

"It looks like it. I've done a quick analysis of their algorithm, and found it to be modified." Herald observed.

"Yes. If Gil managed to reprogram Bit and Boot, it shows his skill as an efficient hacker." Flame added in support. "One that may rival the Knights of Hanoi."

"Or us. Hell, maybe even Blood Shepherd." Slipstream pointed out.

"The master has expected your presence, Raguel." Boot explained to Raguel and the group. "He told us to escort you and your friends to him. So please follow us." The two AIs then walked over to the door before knocking on it five times. They waited for a second before finishing it off with two knocks.

Raguel and the others then proceeded to follow Bit and Boot inside after the doors opened, all of them proceeding to walk down the stairs. Once they reached the end of the stairs, Bit and Boot then turned a right, the others following after them as they entered inside a massive area, which resembled that of a theatre. However, there were a few differences. The first was that there were no chairs present, all of them having been ripped out of the ground. Second, some of the theatre drapes had tears in them. Third, there were two theatre masks on the arch of the proscenium stage, one representing comedy, and the other representing tragedy.

And on the large proscenium stage was a director's chair, with Gil sitting on it as he saw the quartet escorted by Bit and Boot enter inside.

"Here is Raguel and his friends, just as you requested." Bit and Boot reported, having bowed in front of Gil. "We have also brought some stuff from the wreckage, one of which being an intact AI."

"One of Kitamura's AIs to be exact." Boot clarified.

Gil thought this over for a few seconds. "You two have done well. Put that stuff in storage, and get that AI up and running. I'll take care of both after I entertained my guests."

"Yes, sir!" both Bit and Boot complied, the duo proceeding to walk over to a door before closing it, intent on completing their assigned task.

"How in the world were you able to reprogram Bit and Boot like that?" Raguel inquired. "And how the Hell were you even able to get those two in the first place?"

"During the attacks a few days ago, I dueled against Bitboot, and obtained their data after defeating him in a duel." Gil answered, having begun to stand up from the chair he was sitting on. "It took some time, but I was able to eventually re-engineer Bit and Boot, and now they serve me."

"To be your clean-up crew, is that it?" Soulburner questioned.

"I'm just salvaging what's there from the Black Market, that's all Soulburner. I have a job after all." Gil clarified.

"This is getting us nowhere." Raguel told Soulburner, before he turned to Gil. "Why did you call me here? We have other matters to attend to."

"Other matters to attend to? Are they more important than what I have to show you? Especially on what I found out about Azrael?" Gil responded, as he pressed a few buttons on his duel disk, which caused a blue sphere of data to appear before it orbited above his right hand.

"Data on Azrael?" Raguel repeated out of surprise. What else could have Gil found out about Azrael?

"Yeah, that's correct." Gil confirmed. "I've been looking through it, and man is there a lot on there about Azrael."

"What information on Azrael do you specifically have, Gil?"

Gil smirked before he pressed the top of the sphere, which caused a screen to pop up that showed a list of several things, some which were highlighted in red. A teaching stick then formed in Gil's right hand, which he used to point to one of the things on the list. "Well, this is the list of companies Azrael went after in terms of programs and supplies. The highlights in red are the companies Azrael saw as corrupt, and proceeded to shut down. Do any of these names ring a bell in your mind, Raguel?"

Raguel narrowed his eyes as he read the list. He then gasped upon seeing the words Landios Confederation on it. Were you the one who told Ghost Girl to destroy Landios, Raguel wondered in his mind.

"If a list of companies Azrael went after for programs and supplies is all the data you have, Gil, then there's no further need for us to be here." Playmaker warned Gil.

"Wait, wait! There's more!" Gil said, having pressed a few buttons on his duel disk. Soon, a screen then popped up, which showed a symbol that had two and a half lines. The first line went downwards, the second went from left to right, and the half line was attached to the right of the first line. A small circle sat in between the first line and the half line. Soon after, a list of names popped up, where Gil then proceeded to highlight two of those names.

"What the Hell is this?" Slipstream asked.

"This, my friends, is the symbol of the Inquisitorius. An organization that I heard focused on eliminating heresy and other things that opposed the word of God. Apparently, these guys make even Delta look like amateurs." Gil answered, which got everyone's attention present.

"What in the world..." Raguel muttered, shocked that there was a secret organization out there he didn't know existed.

"I heard rumours of a jet black warrior working with them for multiple years. So I did some research on the matter before comparing it to the actions Azrael did in the network." Gil let out a chuckle. "You could say it's likely that Azrael is the jet black warrior who worked with the Inquisitorius. But then again, that's my theory."

Raguel narrowed his eyes. That made sense… to an extent. Azrael had to start somewhere for him to hone his skills and become the warrior and duelist he was today. But why would he work for a church of all places? Did Azrael have some debt he owed to them? Or was it something else?

"Oh, and I have two more things to show you." Gil added, as he pressed a button on his duel disk. Soon, the screen changed, which showed a data room in the FBI with multiple workers present. Within seconds, there was a brief blackout in the area, where a silhouette of a male teenager proceeded to kill the workers with a familiar katana Raguel recognized before placing a USB stick in one of the USB slots. After a few seconds, he took the USB stick before placing another one in, which caused a small burst of electricity to spread through the area as he quickly left the room.

"What the Hell..." Soulburner muttered, shocked at what he was seeing. Who could have done such a thing? A hacker was obviously involved, but judging from what was on the footage, there was someone else there as well.

"Surprising, huh? Then let's see how you react to this!" Gil pressed another button on his duel disk, which caused a screen to pop up that showed a picture. One that had all the Hanoi members on it. There were also X's on two of the scientists. "The X's you see there are two of the scientists that are unaccounted for. I can, however, confirm that one of them are dead."

"Dead?!" everyone else in the room repeated at the same time. As if on cue, Gil pressed a button on his duel disk, which showed footage where one of the scientists ran away from his pursuer. One who was covered in dark clothing, a katana in his hand. After cornering the scientist, the pursuer stabbed him with the katana, ending his life as he went over to the computer on his desk. He put a USB stick in the slot as he downloaded the information on it before taking the stick out. Once that was done, he sliced the laptop completely into pieces before escaping.

"Azrael actually killed one of the scientists..." Slipstream stated the obvious.

"Damn you, Azrael..." Playmaker said, before he turned to Raguel. "Were you aware of this information?"

"Azrael told me about it during our second duel. Though I didn't want to take any chances after he lied about killing Wraith and the eighth Lost Incident child." Raguel answered, causing the other three humans to frown in response before nodding in understanding. That made sense, for it led the group to make inaccurate conclusions upon hearing this information. In addition, it caught them off guard after finding out that Wraith was not only alive, but working with Azrael in joining forces with Lightning to destroy humanity.

"And that folks, is the information I have on Azrael." Gil finished. "Oh wait, I forgot to mention. Upon reprogramming Bit and Boot, I was able to acquire the Light Ignis's algorithm. I had to call in a lot of favors to get this information, but I got it in the end."

"You have Lightning's algorithm?" Soulburner asked, just to make sure what he heard was accurate.

"That's the Light Ignis's name? Huh. I expected it to be something like Sparkles." Gil then turned to Soulburner. "Oh, yes. You could say it was the cherry on top of all the information I got."

"All this information we just learned has caught me off guard." Flame commented, having narrowed his eyes. "I guess you were right about him, Ai."

"Of course I was right about Gil! I told you something was not right about him!" Ai reminded Flame, panic evident in his tone.

"Thank you for sharing this with us, Gil. Now as per our agreement, please hand it over." Raguel told Gil.

"Of course, of course. Just come on up to the stage." Gil replied, which Raguel did. Within seconds, Gil tossed the data sphere in his hand behind him, which caused a pillar to rise before a small cage trapped the data sphere. The entire stage was then covered in data particles for a few seconds from one end to the other. "Whoops."

"What the-? What is this?" Raguel looked around, shocked at what just happened.

"It's a trap after all!" Slipstream exclaimed, as he, Soulburner, and Playmaker got ready to bust Raguel out of whatever Gil trapped him in.

"Ah, ah, ah. You can't interfere." Gil said to the other three humans. "Raguel can't get out unless he defeats me in a duel."

"Why do you want to duel me, Gil?" Raguel inquired, as Gil walked over to the right side of the stage. After doing so, he frowned.

"Want to know why? It's because lately, I've been doubting your skills and resolve, especially regarding recent events." Gil replied, causing Raguel to roll his eyes. This again?

"My skills and resolve have improved, and I know that-."

"Improved, you say? You think your skills and resolve have improved? Nah, the both of them, along with your name have been stained irreparably due to your actions. And I'm not just talking about recent events. I'm talking about your entire time in the network!"

"Hey, Raguel may have made some mistakes, but he's a better individual now as a result of meeting the people he knows in his life!" Herald protested.

"Is that so?" Gil questioned back, his hands clasped behind his back. "If Raguel is the better individual he claims to be, then where was he when the attacks in the network and in the real world occurred? Oh, wait." He turned to Playmaker, Soulburner, and Slipstream. "He were with his buddies, trying to stop Lightning."

"We didn't know about the attacks until Lightning's duel against Blood Shepherd was finished, nor were we aware that Lightning trapped us." Playmaker advocated not just for himself, but for Raguel, Soulburner, and Slipstream.

"No one can control everything going on, nor can we predict what will happen next. We're not gods!" Slipstream told Gil.

"It's the truth! We can't change the past, but we can work to improve the future!" Soulburner added.

"You three and Raguel are nothing more than sellouts. You claim that what you do is selfless, but there's a bit of selfishness inside you guys." Gil scolded everyone present before turning to Raguel. "As for you Raguel, you disgust me the most."

"You do know that there's selfishness inside you too, right Gil?" Raguel pointed out.

"Yeah, I know, and I accept that fact." Gil acknowledged, a small smile on his face. Looks like he activated his demon mode. "It's something I've learned when I was a lab rat during Project: Apotheosis. There will always be selfishness in someone, no matter who you meet."

Raguel gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes in anger. So this was how Gil truly viewed humans due to what happened to him all those years ago. Still, there was something Raguel needed to know. "If this is your viewpoint on humans, then why didn't you side with Lightning and Azrael?"

Gil laughed loudly upon hearing this. "Because it would have had no benefit to me, duh! If humanity was destroyed, I would have lost in the end. As such, I'm helping you guys out so that humanity survives."

"So you're using us like tools, is that it?!" Soulburner angrily demanded.

"Now hang on, Soulburner. In my mind, you guys aren't tools at all. I think business partners would be the right term here." Gil clarified. "I'll be honest. I'm no hero, and I never want to be like one. I'd like to think myself as more of an anti-hero instead. And as for my point on selfishness, I doubt you or anyone else here would be able to deny that fact. For if you did..." He narrowed his eyes. "...Then you'd be a hypocrite."

Playmaker sighed. "You may be right, Gil."

"Playmaker..." Slipstream muttered.

"Don't tell me you're agreeing with Gil." Soulburner said.

"You didn't let me finish." Playmaker interjected to the both of them, before turning back to Gil. "You also may be wrong as well, Gil. Humans may be selfish as you say, but they can still use it to contribute towards selfless causes. Their reasons for doing so ultimately determine whether a person is truly selfish or not."

"I'll admit you make a strong case, Playmaker, and I acknowledge it one hundred percent. However, that doesn't change the truth about this world. Or at the very least, how I see it anyway." Gil turned to Raguel. "Going back to you, Raguel, the reason why you disgust me the most is because of how your selfishness has tainted you irreparably as an individual. It's due to that selfishness that you have to rely on others just so you can get your head on straight, faker!"

"You're wrong, Gil. I've found a better reason to fight. It's because I want to make the future a better reality for myself and my family!" Raguel proclaimed. "While my reason to fight in the past was selfish, nor can I change my beginnings, I can at least make better choices so I don't make such a mistake again! Ones that help me-!"

"So despite what happened, you still stand on your beliefs about your strength and resolve? Alright then." Gil interrupted before he activated his duel disk. "Show it to me. Convince me that my doubts on you are wrong. If you defeat me, I'll give you the data I have on Azrael, as well as Lightning's algorithm."

"And if you win?"

Gil smirked. "All I want is the satisfaction of destroying you in a duel, and to send a warning to those that disappoint me. So do you accept?"

Raguel thought this over. This entire conversation went downhill the moment Gil showed him and the others the data he obtained. If Raguel guessed, Gil must have lost faith in both him and the others as a result of their inability to show up in time to prevent the casualties. Therefore, Raguel saw this duel as an opportunity to show Gil that his doubts in him and the others are false. That, despite what happened, they're still strong enough to take the fight to the enemy and defeat them. And ultimately prove to Gil that selflessness still does exist in this world. A determined look appeared on Raguel's face as he activated his duel disk, much to Gil's pleasure. "Yes. I accept."

"Splendid!" Gil replied, as Playmaker, Soulburner, and Slipstream took a few steps back, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire. Just like Raguel, he planted his feet on the ground, ready for action.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Ai stated.

"I do too, Ai." Flame agreed. "But we must put our faith in Raguel. For he'll pull through and get us out of this mess!

"Duel!" Raguel and Gil shouted in unison.

Raguel: 4000 LP

Gil Ariba: 4000 LP

"You can go first, Raguel." Gil told Raguel. "I want you to solidify your field for what's to come."

"Very well, Gil. But you better not regret that choice later on." Raguel warned Gil, having accepted his offer. "My turn! I activate the Field Spell card, Cyreath Mount Olympus!" The card showed a silhouette of a massive mountain, which had several buildings attached to it. At the golden gates to Olympus was Achilles, Atalanta, Hercules/Alpha Mode, Medusa, Van Gogh, Jason, Circe, Nemo, and Paris, the group ready to enter into the place. A bright sun shined down on Olympus, as if to display its majestic sovereignty. "While this card is on my field, all 'Cyreath' monsters on my field gain 500 attack and defense points. What's more, they're unaffected by your monster effects. Next, because there are no monsters in my Main Monster Zones, I can Special Summon Cyreath Damselfly from my hand to my field." A large, black-skinned creature that had dots all over its body appeared on Raguel's field. It had a total of four wings, along with a long tail that had a spike at the end of it. Attached to its body was armored plating that had a lightning bolt on it.

Cyreath Damselfly ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

Cyreath Damselfly ATK: 0 + 500 = 500 DEF: 0 + 500 = 500

"Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared above Raguel. "The summoning conditions are one 'Cyreath' monster. I set Damselfly into the Link Markers!" Damselfly went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Scorpius!" A huge scorpion, with large pincers and a long tail, appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.

Cyreath Scorpius ATK: 1000 LINK-1⬇️

Cyreath Scorpius ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"Since Damselfly was used to Link Summon a Link monster, I can add one 'Cyreath' card from my deck to my hand. I add Cyreath Grand Treasure from my deck to my hand." Raguel decided, as a card popped out of his deck, which he took and added to his hand. "Next, I activate Scorpius' effect. Once per turn, when I control no monsters in the Main Monster Zones, I can Special Summon one Level 4 or lower 'Cyreath' monster from my Graveyard to a zone this card points to. Return, Damselfly!" At Raguel's command, Damselfly reappeared on his field, only in the Main Monster Zone Scorpius pointed to.

Cyreath Damselfly ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

Cyreath Damselfly ATK: 0 + 500 = 500 DEF: 0 + 500 = 500

"I activate the effect of Cyreath Doppelganger from my hand. As I control a 'Cyreath' monster, I can Special Summon this card from my hand to my field." A pale, shadowy man materialized itself on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 + 500 = 1000 DEF: 500 + 500 = 1000

"Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" Raguel said once again, as a second Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Cyreath' monsters. I set the Link 1 Cyreath Scorpius, Damselfly, and Doppelganger into the Link Markers!" Scorpius went into the top arrowhead, Damselfly went into the bottom-left arrowhead, and Doppelganger went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning all three of them red.

"Link Summon! Emerge! Link 3! Cyreath Circe!" A young woman with long pink hair, blue and green eyes, and fair skin appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. She had pointed ears, along with a golden tiara, a light tunic with a short skirt, and gladiator sandals. She also had a pair of falcon wings attached to her back. In Circe's hands was a staff that had a sun disk at the top, as well as a total of seven spikes.

Cyreath Circe ATK: 2400 LINK-3 ↙️⬆️↘️

Cyreath Circe ATK: 2400 + 500 = 2900

"Okay, you little punk! The slaughter is coming straight towards you, and your name is on it!" Circe declared.

"Oh, I'm so scared..." Gil muttered, a deadpan look on his face.

"Do not underestimate Circe, Gil. She'll flip you upside down, especially with the abilities she has." Herald warned Gil.

"I activate Circe's effect." Raguel continued, ignoring the banter between Herald and Gil. "Once per turn, during either of our turns, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath Piglet' token to a Main Monster Zone a 'Cyreath' Link monster points to. As such, I Special Summon a 'Cyreath Piglet' token to one of the Main Monster Zones Euryale points to." Soon, a pig with wings appeared in one of the Main Monster Zones Circe pointed to.

Cyreath Piglet ATK: 1200 DEF: 1200 LV: 4

Cyreath Piglet ATK: 1200 + 500 = 1700 DEF: 1200 + 500 = 1700

"Next, I activate the Spell card, Cyreath Grand Treasure. Normally, when this card is activated, I can draw two cards and shuffle two 'Cyreath' cards from my hand into my deck in exchange. However, if I control a Link 3 or higher 'Cyreath' Link monster, I can draw three cards instead before sending one 'Cyreath' card from my deck to my Graveyard. I send Cyreath Wandering Soul from my deck to my Graveyard." After Raguel took a card from his deck and sent it to his Graveyard, he drew the top three cards of his deck. "I activate Doppelganger's effect from my Graveyard. Once per duel, I can banish one 'Cyreath' monster in my Graveyard to Special Summon it right back to my field in attack position. I banish Scorpius from my Graveyard to Special Summon Doppelganger right back to my field!" At Raguel's command, Doppelganger reappeared on his field.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 + 500 = 1000 DEF: 500 + 500 = 1000

"From there, I activate the effect of Wandering Soul from my Graveyard. By banishing it, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath Wanderer' token to my field." Raguel added, as a small ball of mist in the form of a ghost appeared on Raguel's field as well.

Cyreath Wanderer Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

Cyreath Wanderer Token ATK: 0 + 500 = 500 DEF: 0 + 500 = 500

"Appear for a second time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A third Link Portal appeared above Raguel. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Cyreath' monsters. I set the Cyreath Piglet token, the Wanderer token, and Doppelganger into the Link Markers!" The Piglet token went into the left arrowhead, the Wanderer token went into the bottom arrowhead, and Doppelganger went into the right arrowhead, causing them all to turn red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Cyreath Odysseus!" A man wearing dark-purple armor all over his body appeared on Raguel's field in one of the two Main Monster Zones Circe pointed to. Silver armaments were attached his upper chest, which spread to each of his shoulders. There were also pieces of silver armaments also attached to his thighs, as well as on his forearms. He also wore a helmet that was coated in silver, which had dark-blue eyes on it. A black cape was attached to his shoulders, which flowed for a few seconds before dropping down.

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: 2500 LINK-3 ⬅️⬇️➡️

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

"There will be no mercy for someone like you! I won't stop until you're brought down for good!" Odysseus declared.

"I Set three cards face-down and end my turn." Raguel concluded.

"My turn! I draw!" Gil said, as he drew the top card of his deck.

"Continuous-Trap, activate! Cyreath Authority!" Raguel interrupted, as he gestured to his face-down card. The card showed multiple spartan soldiers bowing before Cyreath Zeus, Lord of the Storm, his right hand stretched out in front of him as he displayed a portion of his power. At his left and right sides were Hercules/Alpha Mode and Odysseus. "I can target one 'Cyreath' Link monster on my field, and prevent you from summoning monsters whose attack points are less than or equal to its original attack points. However, it's sent to the Graveyard during the second Standby Phase after its activation. I target Odysseus, which means you can't summon monsters whose attack points are less than or equal to 2500."

"What?!" Gil exclaimed, having been caught off guard. Since a good majority of his monsters had average attack points, that meant he couldn't swarm his field for quite a bit.

"In addition, I activate the Continuous-Trap, Cyreath Dominion! While this card is on my field, 'Cyreath' monsters I control are unaffected by your card effects." Soon, a rainbow aura surrounded Raguel's field.

"That's quite the setup." Soulburner commented, his eyes having widened out of disbelief upon hearing the information that was just announced.

"Yes. Cyreath Authority prevents one from summoning monsters whose attack points are less than or equal to the targeted 'Cyreath' Link monster's original attack points." Flame analyzed. "Dominion also protects Raguel's cards on his field from Gil's card effects, with Mount Olympus serving as a backup to protect Raguel's monsters from monster effects."

"And along with two Link 3 monsters on Raguel's field, he's good to go!" Ai said.

"Uh, if I may say something here. Isn't Authority practically broken?" Slipstream asked.

"Not exactly." Playmaker explained. "As long as you destroy it, then you'll be able to summon your weaker monsters. Otherwise, you won't be able to bring them out, and will be forced to wait unless you somehow draw a card that will destroy Authority."

"There's also other ways on bringing out monsters that are stronger than the targeted 'Cyreath' Link monster's attack points." Soulburner added in support. "For instance, using a summoning method with monsters from your hand."

Slipstream nodded in agreement. "Makes sense there."

Gil frowned as he looked up the cards on his duel disk before a smirk appeared on his face. "I see. So you further protected your monsters with your new cards, as well as restricted the monsters I can summon. Still, that won't stop me, starting with this! I activate the Spell card, Abyss Actors' Dress Rehearsal. At the start of my Main Phase 1, I can add one 'Abyss Actor' and one 'Abyss Script' Spell card from my deck to my hand. I add Abyss Actor – Evil Heel, and the Spell card Abyss Script – Opening Ceremony from my deck to my hand." Two cards popped out of Gil's deck which he took and added to his hand.

"I use the Scale 0 Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna and the Scale 9 Abyss Actor – Twinkle Little Star to set the Pendulum Scale!" Soon, two pillars of light appeared on both sides of Gil's field.

In the pillar of light on the left was a woman wearing a long black dress. She had long pink hair, with the front bang of it being yellow. In the middle of her dress was a purple rose.

In the pillar of light on the right was a small purple skinned girl in a tutu. She had light violet hair, and a dark violet hat on her head shaped like a rose.

Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna Scale: 0

Abyss Actor – Twinkle Little Star Scale: 9

"Is this guy for real?" Ai inquired, having turned to Playmaker. "Unless he has monsters that have at least 3000 attack points he can Pendulum summon in his hand, he's put two cards in his Pendulum scale for nothing."

"Pay attention, Ai. You never know what Gil will do." Playmaker advised Ai.

"I activate the Field Spell card, Abyss Playhouse – Fantastic Theater!" Gil stated. "Once per turn, I can reveal one 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster and one 'Abyss Script' Spell card in my hand to add one 'Abyss Script' Spell card with a different name from my deck to my hand. I reveal Evil Heel and Abyss Script – Opening Ceremony in my hand to add Abyss Script – Rise of the Abyss King from my deck to my hand." After Gil revealed the two declared cards in his hand to Raguel, a card popped out of his deck, which he took and added to his hand.

Why would Gil reveal his strongest monster to me, along with a card that would give him a strong advantage later on, Raguel wondered in his mind. Whatever he has in mind, I can't let my guard down.

"With the Set Pendulum Scale, I can Pendulum Summon monsters between Levels 1 and 8 at the same time! Emerge, Abyss Actor – Evil Heel!" Within moments, a portal opened between the two pillars, where one light emerged. The light hit the field and dissipated, which revealed a large, dark-blue fiend with a large mouth and a white mask rose on his body. His right arm was bigger than that of his left arm.

Abyss Actor – Evil Heel ATK: 3000 DEF: 2000 LV: 8 Scale: 1

"I'd normally use Evil Heel's effect to reduce your monster's attack points, but due to Mount Olympus' effect, as well as Dominion's effect of course, there's no point in doing so." Gil remarked. "But there's something else I can do, especially when I have this! I activate the Spell card, Abyss Script – Rise of the Abyss King! This card lets me target face-up cards you control up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' monsters I control in attack position with different names and destroy them. The best part is that if I control a Level 7 or higher 'Abyss Actor' monster, you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation!"

"What?!" Raguel gasped, with Herald widening his eyes out of shock as well. That meant he couldn't use Circe's effect to choose the targets for Gil's card effects or attacks in response to Rise of the Abyss King!

"But even with his Spell card, Gil can only target one card on Raguel's field." Soulburner observed.

"And all of us are aware which card Gil will target and destroy." Flame remarked, the other three humans and Ignis nodding in agreement.

"Circe is a crafty duel monster, I'll give you that, Raguel. It's a good thing I have a card that can maneuver around her effects." Gil commented, a grin on his face. "I target Authority!" Soon, a muscular purple demon that a gold emblem on his chest and golden spikes on his shoulders, as well as a tail connected himself behind Gil. Abyss King then smashed Authority with his right fist, turning it into particles. "And with Authority gone, that means I can summon my monsters once again. Woohoo! As such, I summon Abyss Actor – Sassy Rookie from my hand to my field." A one-eyed fiend with blue hair and wearing overalls appeared on Gil's field. On top of his head was a small gold and purple hat, with a bell at the top.

Abyss Actor – Sassy Rookie ATK: 1700 DEF: 1000 LV: 4 Scale: 2

"Appear, the circuit of theatrics!" A Link Portal appeared above Gil. "The summoning conditions are one 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster. I set Abyss Actor – Sassy Rookie into the Link Markers!" Sassy Rookie went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Abyss Actor – Hyper Director!" A light-blue skinned man with a buttoned up black shirt and an orange overcoat, as well as violet and purple striped pants, appeared on Gil's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. He had a small moustache and a monocle on his left eye, with what looked like a flexible hat on the back of his head. In his left hand, he carried a script as he sat down on a green director's chair that appeared behind him.

Abyss Actor – Hyper Director ATK: 800 LINK-1 ⬇️

"Hyper Director's effect!" Gil continued. "Once per turn, I can target one 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in my Pendulum zone and Special Summon it to my field. Also, I can place one 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster with a different name from my deck or Extra Deck to my Pendulum Zone. However, I can't Normal or Special Summon monsters for the rest of the turn, except for 'Abyss Actor' monsters of course. I target Mellow Madonna in my Pendulum Zone, and put the Scale 3 Abyss Actor – Superstar into my Pendulum Zone from my deck!" Mellow Madonna teleported from the Pendulum Zone and reappeared on Gil's field in the Main Monster Zone Hyper Director pointed to.

Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna ATK: 1800 DEF: 2500 LV: 7 Scale: 0

Gil then took a card from his deck and played it in his Pendulum Zone. In the pillar of light on his left was a pink-skinned fiend wearing an exaggerated suit. He had a mechanical monocle over his one eye, along with a hat resembling that of a rose.

Abyss Actor – Superstar Scale: 3

"Mellow Madonna gains 100 attack points for every 'Abyss Script' Spell card in my Graveyard. Since there's only one at the moment, Mellow Madonna gains 100 attack points." Soon, Mellow Madonna was surrounded in a pink aura that increased her strength.

Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna ATK: 1800 + 100 = 1900

"Next, I activate Superstar's Pendulum effect. Once per turn, I can-." Gil began speaking.

"Not gonna happen!" Raguel interrupted, having looked up Superstar's Pendulum and monster effects. "I activate the Trap card, Cyreath Eradication!" The card showed Hercules/Alpha Mode slashing right through Lernaean Hydra, three of his heads falling down to the ground in the process. "When you activate a card effect or summon a monster, I can negate the effect or summon and send it to your Graveyard. The best part is that you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation! So say goodbye to Superstar!" A blade of energy headed towards Superstar, which turned him into particles, much to Gil's displeasure.

"That was clever, Raguel, but such a thing won't stop my turn." Gil responded, a frown evident on his face. "Appear, the circuit of theatrics!" A Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two 'Abyss Actor' monsters. I set the Link 1 Abyss Actor – Hyper Director, and Mellow Madonna into the Link Markers!" Hyper Director went into the top arrowhead, while Mellow Madonna went into the bottom arrowhead, turning both of them red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Abyss Actor – Intricate Scriptwriter!" A dark-purple skinned man with glasses and light-purple eyes appeared on Gil's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. His attire consisted of a dark-blue tuxedo with pants, which had a rose in the form of the Abyss Actors' crest. In his hands, he carried a script.

Abyss Actor - Intricate Scriptwriter ATK: 2000 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️

"When Intricate Scriptwriter is Link Summoned and I control a Pendulum Summoned 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster, I can activate one of two effects. I choose to activate effect one, which lets me add one 'Abyss Script' Spell card from my Graveyard to my hand." Gil said, much to Raguel's dismay, the latter knowing which one the former will add to his hand. "I add Rise of the Abyss King from my deck to my hand, and once again activate it!"

"It isn't once per turn?!" both Raguel and Herald exclaimed, the other three humans and two Ignis also gasping upon hearing this.

"Well, this is unexpected." Slipstream admitted.

"Yup!" Gil confirmed to everyone present, before he turned to Raguel. "Like before, I can target face-up cards you control up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' monsters I control in attack position with different names and destroy them. And in case you've forgotten, if I control a Level 7 or higher 'Abyss Actor' monster, you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation! As I control two 'Abyss Actor' monsters in attack position, that means I can target two cards! I target Dominion and Odysseus!" Once again, Abyss King appeared before he proceeded to smash Dominion with his right fist before trying to do the same with Odysseus. However, the attack did nothing, much to Gil's surprise.

"How pathetic." Odysseus remarked.

"How the Hell is Odysseus still on your field?" Gil inquired out of confusion.

"It's because Odysseus is unaffected by your card effects while Mount Olympus is on the field, nor can he be destroyed by battle." Raguel explained, which made Gil frown in response.

"Huh. I didn't expect that." Gil shrugged his shoulders. "Well, at least I have this. I activate Intricate Scriptwriter's second effect! Once per turn, when I activate an 'Abyss Script' Spell card, I can negate the effects of one card on your field until the End Phase. I negate Mount Olympus's effects!" Intricate Scriptwriter began writing on the script in his hand, which fired a purple blast of energy that hit Mount Olympus, greying it out temporarily in the process. As a result, Circe and Odysseus's strength decreased.

Cyreath Circe ATK: 2900 - 500 = 2400

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: 3000 - 500 = 2500

"I Set two cards face-down." Gil stated, before he thrusted out his right hand. "Battle! Abyss Actor – Evil Heel attacks Cyreath Circe!"

"I activate Circe's effect!" Raguel responded. "Once per turn-!"

"Sorry, but that won't happen!" Gil interjected. "Once per turn, when you activate a monster effect and I control a Pendulum Summoned 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster, that effect becomes 'Destroy 1 Set Spell or Trap card your opponent's controls'."

"What?!" Raguel exclaimed.

"Even if it's only once per turn, it's certainly a pain in the butt to deal with!" Ai stated the obvious.

"And if you destroy the wrong card, it'll only get worse for you later on." Soulburner pointed out as well.

"But as long as you save your best monster effects for later, you should be able to get through such a card." Playmaker finished, having narrowed his eyes.

"So please choose the card you wish to destroy with Circe's new effect, Raguel." Gil smugly requested to Raguel, much to the latter's ire.

Raguel knew what one of the face-down cards were. Abyss Script – Opening Ceremony. When it was activated, Gil gained 500 life points for every 'Abyss Actor' monster he controlled. Should it be destroyed by an opponent's card effect while face-down, Gil was allowed to draw until he had five cards in his hand. As for the other one, Raguel didn't know about it at all, which meant that it can be anything.

"What are you thinking, Raguel?" Herald asked. "I'll support whatever decision you make."

"I destroy the face-down card on your left." Raguel decided, as the face-down card on Gil's left turned into particles.

"Ha! The card you destroyed was Abyss Script – Opening Ceremony! When it's destroyed by your card effect and I have a face-up 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in my Extra Deck, I can draw until I have five cards in my hand!" Gil announced, as he drew the top five cards of his deck. "Intricate Scriptwriter's third effect also activates! When an 'Abyss Script' Spell card is destroyed by your card effect, all 'Abyss Actor' monsters I control gain 300 attack points!" Intricate Scriptwriter wrote the Abyss Actor symbol down on his script, which caused him and Evil Heel to be surrounded in a purple aura that increased their attack points.

Abyss Actor – Evil Heel ATK: 3000 + 300 = 3300

Abyss Actor – Intricate Scriptwriter ATK: 2000 + 300 = 2300

"Now, Evil Heel! Attack Cyreath Circe with Heel Slam!" Evil Heel charged forward at Circe before grabbing her by the neck and slamming her down to the ground, which caused a small explosion that made Raguel grunt in pain as his life points dropped.

Raguel: 4000 – 900 = 3100 LP

"When Evil Heel destroys your monster by battle, I can target one 'Abyss Script' Spell card in my Graveyard and Set it. I target Rise of the Abyss King, and Set it to my field." A card popped out of Gil's Graveyard, which he took and Set to his field. "With that, I end my turn, which means Mount Olympus' effects are back to normal." As if on cue, Mount Olympus regained its natural color, which caused an aura to surround Odysseus that increased his strength.

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

Gil cheekily grinned. "That was but a taste of my strength. The question is: How will you respond next?"

"You'll find out really soon, that I promise. My turn! I draw!" Raguel replied, as he drew the top card of his deck. The first monster effect I activate, Gil will use Abyss Playhouse's effect to turn it into one that destroys his Set Spell and Trap cards instead, Raguel recalled in his mind. That means I have to get rid of it fast with a Spell or Trap card. "I activate the Spell card, Cyreath Excaliburst. This card lets me target one 'Cyreath' Link monster on my field, and send cards on your field to your Graveyard equal to its Link Rating. I target Odysseus, which is a Link 3 monster. That means I can send Evil Heel, Intricate Scriptwriter, and Abyss Playhouse to your Graveyard." Raguel pointed Excalibur at Gil's field, ready to fire a burst of wind at the latter's cards.

"Yes! With Abyss Playhouse gone, Raguel can use his monster effects freely!" Ai cheered.

"Hang on a minute, Raguel! I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Abyss Script – Trick Wall!" Gil interjected, as he gestured to his face-down card. The card showed Sassy Rookie extending his arms to create an energy wall that had the Abyss Actor symbol on it, which managed to protect Leading Lady and Wild Hope from Goyo Predator's Jutte. "I can target one 'Abyss Actor' on my field, and have it become unaffected by your card effects until the end of this turn. I target Evil Heel!" An energy wall surrounded Evil Heel seconds later.

"Your other cards are a different story. O Wind! Enrage!" Raguel fired a burst of wind from Excalibur, which went straight towards Evil Heel, Intricate Scriptwriter and Abyss Playhouse. Whereas Evil Heel survived the burst of wind, Abyss Playhouse and Intricate Scriptwriter were turned into particles. "I activate Odysseus' effect. Once per turn, I can Special Summon up to two 'Cyreath' monsters from my Graveyard to Main Monster Zones he points to. As such, I summon Damselfly and Circe from my Graveyard. Ley Line Beckoning!" Soon, Damselfly and Circe reappeared on Raguel's field in the Main Monster Zones Odysseus pointed to.

Cyreath Damselfly ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

Cyreath Damselfly ATK: 0 + 500 = 500 DEF: 0 + 500 = 500

Cyreath Circe ATK: 2400 LINK-3 ↙️⬆️↘️

Cyreath Circe ATK: 2400 + 500 = 2900

"Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared above Raguel. "The summoning conditions are one monster. I set Cyreath Damselfly into the Link Markers!" Damselfly went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning it red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Hephaestus!" A deformed blacksmith carrying a heated rod and a walking stick appeared on Raguel's field in one of the Main Monster Zones Odysseus pointed to. He wore a short brown tunic around his waist.

Cyreath Hephaestus ATK: 500 LINK-1 ↘️

Cyreath Hephaestus ATK: 500 + 500 = 1000

"I activate Hephaestus' effect." Raguel added. "Once per turn, if I control a 'Cyreath' monster, I can target one Spell or Trap card in my Graveyard and add it to my hand."

"Great. I know what card you're going to add..." Gil sarcastically muttered, annoyance evident in his tone.

"I target Eradication, and add it right back to my hand." A card popped out of Raguel's deck, which he took and added to his hand. "I activate Circe's effect. Once per turn, during either of our turns, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath Piglet' token to a Main Monster Zone a 'Cyreath' Link monster points to. As such, I Special Summon a 'Cyreath Piglet' token to one of the Main Monster Zones Odysseus points to." Soon, a pig with wings appeared in the second Main Monster Zone Odysseus pointed to.

Cyreath Piglet ATK: 1200 DEF: 1200 LV: 4

Cyreath Piglet ATK: 1200 + 500 = 1700 DEF: 1200 + 500 = 1700

"Appear, for a second time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" Raguel said, as a second Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two 'Cyreath' monsters. I set the Link 1 Cyreath Hephaestus and the Cyreath Piglet token into the Link Markers!" Hephaestus went into the bottom-left arrowhead, while the Piglet token went into the bottom arrowhead, turning both of them red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Cyreath Nemo!" A young boy with light-emerald eyes and orange hair appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. He wore a sailor's suit that had golden buttons and black bars on his shoulders, as well as blue pants. On top of his head was a sailor's cap that had a blue feather at the front.

Cyreath Nemo ATK: 1000 LINK-2 ↙️⬇️

Cyreath Nemo ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"I'd normally use Circe's second effect, but due to Evil Heel being unaffected by card effects, there's no point in doing so." Raguel remarked. "Instead, I activate Nemo's effect. When he's Link Summoned, I can add Cyreath Fusion from my deck or Graveyard to my hand." A card popped out of his deck, which he took and added to his hand. "I summon Cyreath Miner from my hand to my field." A small, male individual wearing mining gear and carrying mining equipment appeared on Raguel's field in the remaining Main Monster Zone Nemo pointed to.

Cyreath Miner ATK: 0 DEF: 2000 LV: 3

Cyreath Miner ATK: 0 + 500 = 500 DEF: 2000 + 500 = 2500

"Nemo's second effect! Once per turn, when a 'Cyreath' monster is Normal or Special Summoned to a Main Monster Zone he points to, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath' monster from my deck to my field." A card popped out of Raguel's deck, which he took and added to his hand. "I Special Summon Cyreath Hewdraw from my deck to my field." A medium-sized, serpent-like dragon with dark-purple scales and a white underbelly appeared on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Hewdraw ATK: 1800 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

Cyreath Hewdraw ATK: 1800 + 500 = 2300 DEF: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"I'd normally use Hewdraw's effect, but considering how Evil Heel is unaffected by my card effects, there's no point in doing so." Raguel acknowledged the obvious. "But I can still do this! Appear, for a third time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A third Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are one 'Cyreath' monster. I set Cyreath Miner into the Link Markers!" Miner went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Headhunter!" A female ninja wearing a purple and black robe appeared on Raguel's field in the remaining Main Monster Zone Nemo pointed to. Her face was covered in darkness, except for the eyes, which were black with a yellow-orange sclera.

Cyreath Headhunter ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️

Cyreath Headhunter ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"When Miner is used as Link Material for the Link Summon of a 'Cyreath' Link monster, I can add any card from my Graveyard to my hand. I add Authority from my Graveyard to my hand." Raguel stated, as a card popped out of his Graveyard, which he took and added to his hand. "In addition, I activate the Spell card, Cyreath Fusion! This card lets me Fusion Summon one 'Cyreath' Fusion monster from my Extra Deck, by using 'Cyreath' monsters from my hand or field. In addition, if you control a Ritual, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum, or Link monster, I can also use one 'Cyreath' Link monster from my Extra Deck as Fusion Material as well!"

"WHAT?!" Gil exclaimed, having tensed up upon hearing this information. It was so not good for him.

"I use Nemo, Headhunter, Hewdraw, and Circe on my field, as well as Cyreath Zeus, Lord of the Storm from my Extra Deck as Fusion Materials!" A silhouette of a muscular, white-haired man with pure white eyes, along with attire consisting of a white toga and a golden side guard on each arm appeared along with Nemo, Headhunter, Circe, and Hewdraw. They broke apart into red, blue, green, orange, and purple particles before they went upwards and swirled into a vortex. Five tornadoes of energy shot upwards and merged to form a white and yellow whirlwind.

"Supreme creature of the deep! Rise from the ocean's depths, and bury my enemies beneath your almighty waves!" Raguel chanted, as the orange lines on his white tunics glowed a soft purple. "Fusion Summon! Emerge, Level 8! Cyreath Lernaean Hydra!" A purple, nine-headed hydra with dark-blue armour on his skin appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. On his chest was a single eyeball, along with a jaw that had sharp teeth on it.

Cyreath Lernaean Hydra ATK: 3000 DEF: 2500 LV: 8

Cyreath Lernaean Hydra ATK: 3000 + 500 = 3500 DEF: 2500 + 500 = 3000

"I bet you're crapping your pants now that you're seeing two powerful monsters on our field, am I correct, Gil?" Herald taunted.

"I'm not scared at all. In fact, I'm pleased you're putting in the work to show me your strength." Gil responded. "Now come on, Raguel. Disprove my beliefs on you and the others."

"If that's what you want, then I'll show my strength to you at full force!" Raguel complied. "I activate Lernaean Hydra's effect. Once per turn, I can target one 'Cyreath' Link monster in my Graveyard, and have him gain attack points equal to that monster's Link rating times 500 until the end phase. In exchange, other monsters I control can't attack. I target Zeus, a Link 4 monster, which means Lernaean Hydra gains 2000 attack points!" Lernaean Hydra roared as his strength increased.

Cyreath Lernaean Hydra ATK: 3500 + (500 X 4) = 5500

"Say, Playmaker. Do you think Lernaean Hydra is similar to that of Cyberse Clock Dragon?" Ai questioned.

"Perhaps, but every monster is different, Ai." Playmaker replied.

"I'm curious as to whether Lernaean Hydra is almost like Salamangreat Violet Chimera." Flame commented.

"Like Playmaker said, we're about to find out right now." Soulburner said.

"Battle!" Raguel declared. "Cyreath Lernaean Hydra attacks Abyss Actor – Evil Heel! Gazer Exedra – First Shot!" Purple energy charged up in each of Lernaean Hydra's heads, along with the jaw in his chest, before they fired it at Evil Heel, which turned him into particles as Gil braced himself before the shockwave of the attack pushed him back several feet. Seconds later, his life points decreased.

Gil: 4000 – 2200 = 1800 LP

Within seconds, a piece of one of the theatre's two pillars fell, where Abyss King appeared before punching it with such force that the piece turned into particles to protect Gil, the latter crossing his arms. "That was very impressive, Raguel. But because you used your monster's effect, your other monsters can't attack. End your turn so I can begin mine."

"Oh, I forgot to mention Lernaean Hydra's other effect." Raguel commented. "You see, Lernaean Hydra can attack equal to the number of 'Cyreath' Link monsters used for its Fusion Summon."

"Woah, woah, woah. Seriously?!" Gil exclaimed.

"That's correct!" Herald confirmed. "A total of four 'Cyreath' Link monsters were used, which means Lernaean Hydra can attack three more times."

"So if this next attack hits, then Raguel wins!" Slipstream finished.

"Thus putting an end to this duel." Flame added.

"And the acquirement of new data." Playmaker said.

"This duel is over, Gil!" Raguel stated. "Cyreath Lernaean Hydra attacks you directly! Gazer Exedra – Second Shot!" Purple energy charged up in each of Lernaean Hydra's heads, along with the jaw in his chest, before they fired it at Gil.

"On the contrary, the duel isn't over." Gil countered. "I summon Battle Fader from my hand."

"Aw Hell no. Not Battle Fader!" Herald moaned, while Raguel grit his teeth and the others gasped.

"If you attack me directly, I can summon Battle Fader to negate the attack and end the Battle Phase. However, Battle Fader is banished once it leaves the field." Gil reminded Raguel and Herald, as a small creature with no arms or legs appeared on Gil's field. Its body consisted of two large mechanical limbs. One mechanical limb was in the shape of a clock hand, while the other limb had a golden bell attached onto a hook. On the creature's back was four sharp protrusions stretching outwards. Attached to the front was a small demonic face.

Battle Fader swung the limb with a bell like a pendulum, creating a barrier that stopped Lernaean Hydra's attack before turning the energy beams into particles.

Battle Fader ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1

"It seems Gil escaped from the jaws of defeat and snatched victory from us." Herald commented.

"We'll get another chance later on, Herald." Raguel assured Herald. "I activate Mount Olympus' second effect. Once, I can target one 'Cyreath' Link monster on my field, and gain life points equal to its Link rating times 500. I target Odysseus, which is a Link 3 monster. That means I gain 1500 life points!" A golden glow surrounded Raguel as his life points increased.

Raguel: 3100 + (500 X 3) = 4600 LP

"Aw man! I thought the duel was going to be over now!" Ai pouted.

"I thought the same, Ai. But it appears Gil has more tricks up his sleeve." Flame stated.

"The day Gil visited Café Matsuo, he had Raguel did a profile on him a while back. As a result, it's given Raguel complete knowledge of Gil's deck." Slipstream began speaking. "Though I'm not sure if that's what Gil wanted at the time."

"Everyone's deck, while adhering to its main strategies, has upgrades infused into it so the user can catch the opponent off guard." Playmaker said. "And all of us have put in new cards that put our opponents on edge."

"That's certainly true, Playmaker." Soulburner agreed, having remembered how he used Violet Chimera in his duels against Blue Girl and Jayla. "But our opponents have done the same."

"Obviously. For everyone evolves." Slipstream said.

"I Set two cards face-down and end my turn, which means Lernaean Hydra's effect ends." Raguel concluded, as Lernaean Hydra's strength reverted to normal.

Cyreath Lernaean Hydra ATK: 5500 – (500 X 4) = 3500

Gil nodded in approval of what happened, a smirk evident on his face. "That's the spirit, Raguel. Keep demonstrating your strength, and you might be able to change my beliefs on you and the others.

"Let me ask you a quick question, Gil. Why did you call me Faker during the two times we spoke last?" Raguel asked out of curiosity.

"Simple. Because after looking into everything that's happened, what you've been showing at the surface is a front to hide who you really are." Gil answered.

"Who I really am?"

"That's right. I believe that you're a person who's capable of great strength. Someone who isn't afraid to stain their hands with blood to ensure that threats are eliminated. However..." Gil narrowed his eyes. "Your moral code and ethics have prevented that from surfacing. If you only let go of them sooner, you could have been stronger!"

"And become a monster? No thanks." Raguel denied.

"But you, me, and the other three humans present are anything but human." Gil countered. "I mean, all of us went through horrific projects that have traumatized us forever. For me, I became someone who had powerful gifts, such as Abyss King and the Chains of Tragedy. You have that awesome sword of yours in your disposal, Raguel, along with an Ignis of your very own. Playmaker and Soulburner also have their own Ignis's, and as for Slipstream..." He turned to Slipstream. "I'd say that you have your own Ignis, but he's not with you now, is he? Maybe you have a highly tactical mind as a result of the Lost Incident?"

"The tactical mind I have now was the result of continuous learning and support in both engineering and programming, which I got from my family, not from the Lost Incident!" Slipstream angrily told Gil.

"Okay, okay. You make your point." Gil conceded. "What I'm ultimately saying is that all of us are anything but human. We all have unique gifts. My only question is this: Why aren't you using them to your full disposal, with nothing to hold you back?"

"Because if we cast off our moral codes and ethics, then like Raguel said, we'd be no better than our enemies." Playmaker answered in support of Raguel's answer. "We all have a responsibility to use our gifts for the greater good, and to temper them so that we don't fall into the paths our enemies took."

"Giving me the 'With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility' speech, Playmaker? Bullshit!" Gil replied callously to Playmaker. "Don't you dare pull a 'Holier Than Thou' Tv Trope on me! None of us are under that trope! In fact, no one is, especially with how everyone has selfishness inside them. But moving that aside, we have a duel to finish, don't you agree Raguel?"

Raguel nodded in agreement upon hearing that. Words were obviously getting nowhere. Sometimes, it took more than that to get a message across.

"Excellent! Then allow me to show you more of my unrestrained strength. My turn! I draw!" Gil drew the top card of his deck.

"I once again activate the Continuous-Trap card, Cyreath Authority." Raguel interjected, as he gestured to his face-down card. "Like before, I can target one 'Cyreath' Link monster on my field, and prevent you from summoning monsters whose attack points are less than or equal to its original attack points. However, it's sent to the Graveyard during the second Standby Phase after its activation. I target Odysseus once again, which means you can't summon monsters whose attack points are less than or equal to 2500."

"Bloody Hell. Not this again..." Gil muttered angrily.

"I activate the effect of Dominion in my Graveyard as well. By banishing it from my Graveyard, all 'Cyreath' cards on my field are unaffected by your card effects until the end of my next turn."

"Why, you-!" Gil grit his teeth. That was very annoying. Thanks to Authority, Gil couldn't bring out a good majority of his monsters. And due to Dominion, Gil couldn't use a few of his Abyss Script cards to clear away Raguel's field, as any card he played would be unaffected by his card effects. To sum it up, Raguel created a strong defense. "In that case, I activate the Spell card, Offerings to a Higher Power!" The card showed a group of subjects offering farm animals to several soldiers, who had come to collect tribute from them. "By sending one monster on my field to my Graveyard, I can draw two cards. I send Battle Fader from my field to my Graveyard, and draw!" After Battle Fader turned into particles, Gil drew the top two cards of his deck.

"From there, I activate the Spell card, Abyss Script – Fusion Performance!" The card showed Evil Heel colored blue and Superstar colored red circling around a vortex in a dark, glowing background. In the middle of the vortex was a book with the Abyss Actors' symbol, which glowed with a purple color. "This card lets me-."

"Sorry, but I won't let you do that." Raguel interjected, as he gestured to his face-down card. "Trap card, activate! Cyreath Eradication! Like before, when you activate a card effect or summon a monster, I can negate the effect or summon and send it to your Graveyard. In addition, you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation! So say goodbye to Fusion Performance!" A blade of energy headed towards Fusion Performance, which turned it into particles.

"Whew. Close one." Herald cried out of relief. "Otherwise, we would have had to deal with a Fusion monster."

"Oh, don't worry. You'll see my Fusion monster soon enough." Gil promised, which got Raguel and Herald's attention. "I activate the effect of Abyss Actor – Crafty Stagehand from my hand. By sending this card from my hand or field to my Graveyard, I can add one 'Abyss Script' card from my Graveyard right back to my hand."

"What?" both Raguel and Herald replied at the same time, surprise evident on their faces.

"I add Fusion Performance right back to my hand." Soon, a grey-skinned fiend wearing dark-blue overalls, along with a dark-blue hat with stitches on it appeared beside Gil, where he dug up his Graveyard to find Fusion Performance. After handing the card to Gil, he gave him a salute before turning to particles. "Even if you got rid of my card, I was prepared to get it back. I activate the Spell card, Abyss Script – Fusion Performance! This card lets me Fusion Summon one 'Abyss Actor' Fusion monster by using 'Abyss Actor' monsters in my hand, field, or Extra Deck as Fusion Material. As such, I use Sassy Rookie and Evil Heel in my Extra Deck, along with Funky Comedian in my hand as Fusion Materials!" Soon, a silhouette a fat, green four-armed fiend with a brown vest and orange pants, along with a small mask for eyes on the left side of his face and a top hat appeared beside the silhouettes of Sassy Rookie and Evil Heel. The three monsters broke apart into red, blue, and green particles before they went upwards and swirled into a vortex. Three tornadoes of energy shot upwards and merged to form a white and yellow whirlwind.

"Personification of nightmares! Emerge from the shadows, and show our enemies one hell of a time!" Gil chanted. "Fusion Summon! Come forth, Level 8! Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester!" A pale-skinned skeletal humanoid with orange eyes and no teeth appeared on Gil's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. His attire consisted of a coat with light-pink and yellow colors, along with breeches of similar colors. On top of his head was a hat that had the Abyss Actors' symbol at the ends of the tips. In his left hand, he carried a massive scythe that also had the Abyss Actors' symbol on it.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 3000 DEF: 3000 LV: 10 Scale: 0

"It's a Pendulum Fusion monster!" Herald shrieked, his eyes having widened upon seeing the monster on Gil's field.

"GAAAH! That thing's scary!" Ai screamed, fear evident in his tone.

"So this is one of the next steps in Fusion Summoning..." Playmaker observed.

"And I thought Reincarnation Fusion Summoning was the only unique version of Fusion Summoning." Soulburner admitted.

"It goes to show that there's always something that can be learned when it comes to duel monsters." Flame stated.

"I did not see this coming at all." Raguel commented out of shock.

"This is one of my strongest monsters, Raguel. You should feel privileged in fighting him." Gil said. "I activate Sadistic Jester's first effect. When he's Fusion Summoned, I can Set 'Abyss Script' Spell cards from my deck or Graveyard to my field up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' monsters used for his Fusion Summon. In addition, I can activate them the turn they're Set by this effect as well. I Set Abyss Script – Fire Dragon's Lair and Abyss Script – Climax Performance from my deck, along with Abyss Script - Trick Wall from my Graveyard to my field!" Two cards popped out of Gil's deck, while one popped out of his Graveyard. He took all three and Set them to his field.

"From there, I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Abyss Script – Climax Performance!" The card showed Superstar posing in front of a large audience on a creepy stage while engulfed in purple energy. "When this card is activated, all 'Abyss Actor' monsters on my field gain 600 attack and defense points." Sadistic Jester laughed as his strength went up.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 3000 + 600 = 3600 DEF: 3000 + 600 = 3600

"In addition, I activate the Spell card, Abyss Script – Fire Dragon's Lair!" Gil added. "I can target one 'Abyss Actor' monster I control, and should it destroy a monster by battle, you must banish three monsters from your Extra Deck."

"Say what?!" Raguel exclaimed, having been caught off guard by what he just heard.

"You heard me, Raguel. And to make things worse for you, I activate Twinkle Little Star's Pendulum effect." Gil grinned. "Once per turn, I can target one 'Abyss Actor' monster on my field, and have it make up to three attacks on monsters you control during each Battle Phase. In exchange, other monsters I control can't attack."

"Crap..." Raguel grit his teeth upon hearing this information. That did not sound good at all.

"A great majority of duelists use monsters from the Extra Deck. With Gil's setup, if his opponent had multiple monsters on their field, they'd lose a total of nine monsters from their Extra Deck!" Slipstream realized out of horror.

"Thus making that card quite powerful against those type of duelists." Flame said. "Especially since we all have monsters in our Extra Deck that assist with our deck's strategies."

"It's like taking out a major organ from the body!" Ai compared Fire Dragon's Lair to the human body losing an organ.

"That may be the case, Ai. However, Raguel will have something in response to what he just heard, whether it's now or later down the duel." Playmaker said.

"I really hope you're right, Playmaker. Because this duel's turning out to be nothing more than an Opera Seria!"

Everyone turned to look at Ai upon making that comment. Did Ai just compare the duel to a type of opera? Really? Upon seeing everyone stare at him, Ai shivered out of embarrassment.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear such a ridiculous comment." Gil stated, before he thrusted out his right hand at the duel field. "Battle! Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester attacks Cyreath Lernaean Hydra! At this point, I activate Sadistic Jester's second effect. When he battles a monster you control and the monsters used for his Fusion Summon are in my Graveyard, he gains attack points equal to the combined Pendulum Scale of the 'Abyss Actor' monsters used as Fusion Material times 200 until the end of the damage step. Sassy Rookie's Pendulum Scale was two, Evil Heel's Pendulum Scale was one, and Funky Comedian's Pendulum Scale was eight, which means Sadistic Jester gains a total of 2200 attack points! Heinous Laughter!" Sadistic Jester laughed as his strength increased.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 3600 + (200 X 11) = 5800

"Callous Reaping!" Sadistic Jester charged forward before spinning his scythe around in his hand and slashing Lernaean Hydra upwards, which turned him into particles as Raguel was pushed back several feet, his life points having decreased in the process. Seconds later, pieces of the proscenium stage were torn apart before they went upwards and slashed Raguel's right cheek, leaving a bloody mark on it.

Raguel: 4600 – 2400 = 2200 LP

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 5800 – (200 X 11) = 3600

"Since Sadistic Jester destroyed your monster, Fire Dragon's Lair's effect forces you to banish three monsters from your Extra Deck!" Gil reminded Raguel, the latter having narrowed his eyes in fury.

"I banish Cyreaths Atalanta, Pseudo, and Skull Wing from my Extra Deck." Raguel furiously decided, as three cards in his Extra Deck turned into particles. While Gil was anything but a child, he still looked like one, and Atalanta would not hurt children, even during a duel. So it was best to keep her out of this duel.

"One attack down, two to go! The battle continues! Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester attacks Cyreath Odysseus! And just like last time, Sadistic Jester gains attack points equal to the combined Pendulum Scale of the 'Abyss Actor' monsters used as Fusion Material times 200 until the end of the damage step. As such, he once again gains 2000 attack points! Heinous Laughter!" Sadistic Jester laughed as his strength increased.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 3600 + (200 X 11) = 5800

"Callous Reaping!" Sadistic Jester charged forward before spinning his scythe around in his hand, intent on slashing Odysseus.

"Sorry, Gil, but I got tricks up my sleeve, such as this!" Raguel replied. "First, when Odysseus battles a Special Summoned monster, his original attack points are doubled until the end of the damage step. Aegis Enhancement!" Odysseus let out a roar as his strength was doubled.

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: (2500 X 2) + 500 = 5500

"Second, like I said earlier, Odysseus is unaffected by your card effects while Mount Olympus is on the field, nor can he be destroyed by battle." Odysseus stopped the scythe from hitting him with his hands before he pushed it right back, much to both Gil's and Sadistic Jester's surprise.

"You're still losing life points, Raguel." Gil pointed out, as the resulting shockwave caused Raguel to slightly wince.

Raguel: 2200 – 300 = 1900 LP

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: ((5500 – 500) / 2) = 2500

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 5800 – (200 X 11) = 3600

"Two attacks down, one to go! The battle continues! Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester attacks Cyreath Odysseus! And just like last time, Sadistic Jester gains attack points equal to the combined Pendulum Scale of the 'Abyss Actor' monsters used for this card's Fusion Summon times 200 until the end of the damage step. As such, he once again gains 2200 attack points! Heinous Laughter!" Sadistic Jester laughed as his strength increased, while Odysseus let out a roar that increased his strength as well.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 3600 + (200 X 11) = 5800

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: (2500 X 2) + 500 = 5500

"Callous Reaping!" Sadistic Jester charged forward before spinning his scythe around in his hand, intent on slashing Odysseus. But like before, Odysseus stopped the scythe from hitting him before he pushed it right back. As a result, a stronger shockwave occurred, which pushed Raguel back as his life points dropped.

Raguel: 1900 – 300 = 1600 LP

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: ((5500 – 500) / 2) = 2500

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 5600 – (200 X 11) = 3600

Suddenly, a large chunk of the pillar beside Raguel fell, causing him to quickly roll away before summoning Excalibur to chop it up into pieces.

"Okay, that attack was powerful." Herald commented.

"I Set one card face-down and end my turn, which means Fire Dragon's Lair's effect ends as well." Gil concluded.

"Damn, this guy's good." Herald admitted. "I knew he was good after we created his profile, but it's different seeing it like this."

"Yeah..." Raguel narrowed his eyes. "But if I'm to prove Gil wrong, then I have to win."

"Prove me wrong, you say? I mean, you're doing good, but it won't be enough for me to change my beliefs on you and the others." Gil said, having crossed his arms.

"Are you saying my best isn't good enough right now?" Raguel inquired. "Because we're nearly tied right now."

"And yet I can see that a part of you is holding yourself back." Gil countered, before he put up three fingers. "Three years! Three fucking years you spent fighting for a girl in a coma, who's in another one by the way because of your failure to save her!"

"You don't have to remind me..." Raguel muttered, sadness and disappointment in himself evident in his tone.

"Raguel..." Herald worriedly said.

"And during those three years, you used Miyu Sugisaki's name to justify every single action you've done on the Black Market! Every! Single! One!" Gil infuriatingly continued. "These morals and codes of ethics you've put up as well are holding you back. If you wish to defeat your enemies once and for all, you must release them!"

Raguel glared at Gil, having gritted his teeth. "Those words you're saying... They're almost like the ones I heard from Azrael during our duel."

"Oh? So you know what I'm talking about, then?"

"Yeah, I know exactly what you're talking about." Raguel confirmed. "Those words... gave me the bitch slap I needed for a long time."

"Alright, then how exactly did those words make you feel, Raguel? Hmm?" Gil further questioned. "No. The moment Azrael entered the scene, the moment where he took away the one you loved and made you helpless, how did that make you feel?"

Raguel grew angry at that comment. He was obviously angry with what Azrael did. Not just angry. Infuriated. Peeved. Hostile. Sadness. And hate... towards himself.

"Man, Raguel's getting the emotional beatdown of the century." Soulburner commented.

"Do you think this is Gil's way of helping Raguel?" Slipstream asked.

"I'm not sure." Playmaker admitted.

"Not sure?" Ai repeated. "Because Gil is practically tearing Raguel apart from the inside out, and if this keeps up, the red cracks will appear on him again!"

"Those red cracks... A bad omen for what's to come..." Flame muttered in agreement.

"You dare say things that I've already heard before?" Raguel demanded. "Because they really tick me off."

"I do!" Gil confirmed. "That's good. I'm glad those words are ticking you off. Because you need to be reminded of what happened so you can draw out your inner strength. You must embrace all your emotions. Your anger. Your frustration. Your sadness. Your self-hatred. And then release them! Only then will you be able those who refuse to be changed! Only then can you-!"

"Hehehe..."

Gil gasped upon hearing Raguel giggle. It wasn't just him. The others gasped as well.

"Raguel?" Herald inquired.

"Hehehe..." Raguel said once again. "Hahaha. I was never holding back during the duel, Gil. I'd be a fool if I did that. Yet you want chaos?" Within seconds, red, glowing cracks began to form on the left side of his face. It wasn't just there. The red, glowing cracks appeared on his left arm, along with on his upper body. Within seconds, Raguel gasped as he felt his mind being opened up to new possibilities. It was as though Raguel was in a different realm, where there were different pieces of energy in the area. Energy he can connect to formulate plans and strategies that he can use to win the duel. Within seconds, a smirk appeared on Raguel's face, having formed a plan in his mind. "I will show you what you ask. My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck.

"Hang on, Raguel. I once again activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Abyss Script – Trick Wall! Like before, I can target one 'Abyss Actor' on my field, and have it become unaffected by your card effects until the end of this turn." Gil interrupted. "I target Sadistic Jester!" An energy wall surrounded Sadistic Jester seconds later.

"It's a minor inconvenience. One I can easily get through." Raguel responded. "I activate the effect of Cyreath Fusion from my Graveyard. By banishing it from my Graveyard, I can Special Summon one Cyberse Link monster from my Extra Deck to my field, and treat it as a Link Summon, but it can't attack the turn it was Special Summoned by this card's effect."

Gil narrowed his eyes. Even if Raguel brought out a strong Link monster, it couldn't attack. So it was likely that he'll bring out a Link monster that will contribute towards something greater. Or at the very least, help Raguel out.

"Now come from my Extra Deck! Link 2! Cyreath Pegasus!" A majestic black horse with wings flew onto Raguel's field in the right Main Monster Zone Odysseus was pointing to.

Cyreath Pegasus ATK: 1200 LINK-2 ⬅️➡️

Cyreath Pegasus ATK: 1200 + 500 = 1700

Gil immediately proceeded to look up Pegasus' effects on his duel disk, and his eyes widened out of shock upon doing so. "You have got to be kidding me!" Thanks to Dominion, Gil couldn't do anything to stop what was coming. Or at the very least, that's what Raguel thought.

"Judging from what Gil just found out, it seems Raguel brought out something that will help him win the duel." Ai stated the obvious.

"And it's something we'll find out soon." Slipstream said as well.

Raguel had the cards he needed to win this turn. However, a part of him wanted to make sure that the duel was truly in his victory. To put it simply, he can't take any chances. "I summon Cyreath Myrmekes from my hand to my field." A giant, ant-like creature the size of a dog with light-brown skin tunneled its way onto Raguel's field.

Cyreath Myrmekes ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 3

"Alright! Get him, Antony!" Herald cheered, before Raguel turned to the former, who shut his mouth.

"When Myrmekes is Normal Summoned, I can target one card on your field and banish it!" Raguel told Gil.

"You are aware that Sadistic Jester is unaffected by your card effects, right?" Gil inquired.

"I know, which is why I target and banish Twinkle Little Star instead." Raguel replied, much to Gil's shock as Myrmekes made a beeline towards Twinkle Little Star, chomping her up into particles before returning to Raguel's field.

"Aw, man. Now my monsters can't attack multiple times. This sucks..."

"Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared above Raguel. "The summoning conditions are one 'Cyreath' monster. I set Cyreath Myrmekes into the Link Markers!" Myrmekes went into the bottom-left arrowhead, turning it red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Ceryneian Hind!" A female deer with light-brown skin appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Unlike other deer though, she had male-like antlers made of gold and hooves made of bronze. She also had a dappled hide as well.

Cyreath Ceryneian Hind ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ↙️

Cyreath Ceryneian Hind ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"The effects of Ceryneian Hind and Myrmekes activate in sequence. First, when Ceryneian Hind is Link Summoned, I can draw the top card of my deck." Raguel began explaining, as he drew the top card of his deck. "Second, when Myrmekes is used as Link Material for the Link Summon of a 'Cyreath' Link monster, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath Myrmekes Critter' token to my field." A smaller version of Myrmekes appeared on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Myrmekes Critter Token ATK: 200 DEF: 200 LV: 2

Cyreath Myrmekes Critter Token ATK: 200 + 300 = 500 DEF: 200 + 300 = 500

"From there, I activate Odysseus' effect. Once per turn, I can Special Summon up to two 'Cyreath' monsters from my Graveyard to Main Monster Zones he points to. I Special Summon Doppelganger from my Graveyard to my field. Ley Line Beckoning!" Soon, Doppelganger appeared in the left Main Monster Zone Odysseus pointed to.

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4

Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 + 500 = 1000 DEF: 500 + 500 = 1000

"Appear, for a second time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" Raguel said, as a second Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Cyreath' monsters. I set the Link 1 Cyreath Ceryneian Hind, Doppelganger, and the Myrmekes Critter token into the Link Markers!" Ceryneian Hind went into the top-left arrowhead, Doppelganger went into the top-right arrowhead, and the Myrmekes Critter token went into the bottom arrowhead, turning all three of them red.

"The strongest warrior chosen by the gods leads the charge to victory! Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Cyreath Hercules!" A tall, muscular warrior wearing a brown tunic around his waist appeared on Raguel's field in the left Main Monster Zone Pegasus pointed to. He wore shoulder guards resembling lion paws and a helmet resembling a lion's head with a plume forming a mane. He also carried a massive gauntlet with a lion face on each arm.

Cyreath Hercules ATK: 2500 LINK-3 ↖️⬇️↗️

Cyreath Hercules ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

"Normally, the attack points of all monsters Hercules points to are decreased by 500, but right now, he's pointing to no monsters." Raguel stated. "But Hercules' Link Summon is leading to something greater, starting with this! I activate the Spell card, Godly Grandeur!" The card showed Raguel drawing the top card of his deck, orange light appearing on his hand as he drew the card. "By returning one 'Cyreath' Link monster in my Graveyard back to my Extra Deck, I can draw the top card of my deck and reveal it to you before activating one of three effects. I return Ceryneian Hind to my Extra Deck, and draw!" Raguel then drew the top card of his deck before looking at it briefly. "The card I drew is the Trap card, Alpha Mode Activate! Not only can I activate this card from my hand, you can't activate cards or effects in response to that card!"

"Tch!" Gil grit his teeth. That didn't sound good at all. Then again, he was curious about the new card Raguel drew. Perhaps it would help Raguel in showing his strength to him.

"From my hand, I activate the Trap card, Alpha Mode Activate!" Raguel announced. "By tributing one 'Cyreath' Link monster, I can Special Summon one "/Alpha Mode" Link monster whose name includes the tributed monster's name from my Extra Deck! I tribute Hercules!" A massive portal that had the symbols of Olympus on it appeared above Raguel before Hercules jumped into it, causing it to glow a bright light.

"Warrior consumed with madness, protect those you care about through the strength of your heart and iron will! Alpha Mode Summon! Link 3! Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode!" A colossal, statue-like man with long, shaggy black hair and elbow protrusions appeared on Raguel's field in the Main Monster Zone Pegasus pointed to. His body and yellow eyes turned red before letting out a massive roar, the Mad Enhancement having taken over him.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 3000 LINK-3 ↖️⬇️↗️

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 3000 + 500 = 3500

"When Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode is Special Summoned using 'Alpha Mode Activate', I can target up to three 'Cyreath' Link monsters with different Link ratings in my Graveyard and place 'God Hand' counters on him equal to the combined amount." Raguel explained. "I target Cyreath Zeus, Lord of the Storm, Circe, and Nemo, whose combined Link rating is nine. Therefore, I can place nine 'God Hand' counters on Hercules/Alpha Mode!" Nine orbs of light went out of Raguel's Graveyard and went into Hercules/Alpha Mode, hardening his body in the process.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode GHC: 0 + 9 = 9

"Allow me to share something else with you, Gil. Thanks to Pegasus' effect, monsters it points to can attack you directly!" Raguel revealed, which made Gil and everyone else gasp.

"A monster that allows direct attacks..." Slipstream muttered. "I hate to say it, but that's the only option Raguel has right now."

"Yet for Raguel to sink that low to win a duel..." Playmaker commented.

"Hey man, lay off. At least Raguel's not using other dishonorable methods to win a duel." Soulburner stated to Playmaker.

"That is true. Though like I said before, those red, glowing cracks on Raguel are a bad omen for what's to come for him." Flame pointed out.

"Are you saying that Raguel will act on his emotions?" Ai asked.

"Maybe. Maybe not." Flame narrowed his eyes. "Let's see what happens next."

"Battle!" Raguel declared. "Cyreath Odysseus attacks you directly! Brutal Beatdown!" Odysseus sped forward towards Gil, hellbent on pulverizing the latter.

"I don't think so, Raguel! Trap card, activate! Draining Shield!" Gil countered. "Not only does this card negate the attack of your monster, I also gain life points equal to your monster's attack points!" A translucent green barrier appeared around Gil as Odysseus proceeded to punch through it in fury, protecting the former from his attack. Then a translucent green aura surrounded Gil as his life points increased.

Gil: 1800 + 3000 = 4800 LP

At least I know what Gil's face-down card was, Raguel thought in his mind. I wouldn't expect the duel to end by this point after all, especially with the tricks Gil has left in his disposal. "The battle still continues! Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode attacks you directly! Nine Lives Blade Works!" Nine Lives appeared in Hercules/Alpha Mode's hand before he charged forward before slashing Gil nine times, which caused nine explosions to occur that sent the latter flying off the ground before he landed on his back.

Gil: 4800 – 3500 = 1300 LP

"Yikes. That one hurt..." Gil commented, a smirk on his face. However, it was clear that he was spooked by what happened.

"I Set one card face-down and end my turn, which means Dominion's second effect, as well as Trick Wall's effect ends." Raguel concluded.

Gil stood up on his feet before he began clapping. "Bravo! Bravo! That's the spirit! I didn't expect you to pull such a tactic, but it truly shows how ruthless you can be, don't you agree?"

"Ruthless?" Raguel repeated, before he thought it over very carefully. He directly attacked a kid with Odysseus and Hercules/Alpha Mode. Raguel shook his head back and forth, knowing that Gil was far from being an innocent child. Rather, Gil was a wolf in sheep's clothing, an opponent that must be defeated.

"Raguel! Hey, Raguel! Are you okay, Raguel?!" Herald concernedly inquired.

"Yeah, I'm fine Herald." Raguel snapped back, which made Herald shiver out of fear. "Why are you shivering?"

"Because I'm scared of you." Herald simply answered, causing Raguel to narrow his eyes. A part of him did regret his actions, but then again, you had to move forward with your choices. No point in dwelling on them.

"I'm sorry for scaring you, Herald. I really am. It's just..." Raguel looked at his right palm before he made a fist. "The actions and mistakes I've made up to now have led me to become the person I am. I need to be like this if I'm to win."

"Oh no..." Herald muttered back, fear still evident in his tone.

"Yes, Raguel! Just like that! Release your emotions, and flow with them! If you keep doing that, you'll disprove my beliefs on you and the others." Gil encouraged. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. Excellent, he thought in his mind. "First, I activate the Spell card, Monster Reborn. This card lets me target one monster in either of our Graveyards and Special Summon it to my field. I target Evil Heel in my Graveyard, and Special Summon him back to my field!" At Gil's command, Evil Heel reappeared on his field.

Abyss Actor – Evil Heel ATK: 3000 DEF: 2000 LV: 8 Scale: 1

"Since your monsters are unaffected by my monster effects thanks to Mount Olympus, there's no point in using Evil Heel's effect." Gil then gestured to his field. "Instead, I once again activate the Spell card, Abyss Script – Rise of the Abyss King! Just like before, I can target face-up cards you control up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' monsters I control in attack position with different names and destroy them. And in case you've forgotten, if I control a Level 7 or higher 'Abyss Actor' monster, you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation! As I control two 'Abyss Actor' monsters in attack position, that means I can target two cards!"

"Not every effect is an activated one, Gil." Raguel told Gil. "For while Hercules/Alpha Mode is on the field, you can't target my monsters for attacks or effects, except him. Thus, my monsters are safe."

"True, but your other cards aren't." Gil pointed out. "I target Authority and Mount Olympus!" Abyss King appeared before he proceeded to smash Authority and Mount Olympus with his fists, which caused both cards to turn into particles. Gil let out a sigh of relief upon seeing their destruction. Now his strategies are open for him to use again.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 3500 – 500 = 3000

Cyreath Pegasus ATK: 1700 – 500 = 1200

Cyreath Odysseus ATK: 3000 – 500 = 2500

"You activated Mount Olympus' third and final effect, Gil." Raguel replied. "When it leaves the field by a card effect, I can target one 'Cyreath' Link monster on my field and shuffle 'Cyreath' cards from my Graveyard and/or banished zone into my deck and/or Extra Deck. Then for every card shuffled by this effect, I can draw a card from the top of my deck. I target Hercules/Alpha Mode, whose Link rating is three. That means I can shuffle up to three cards. As such, I shuffle Eradication, Authority, and Zeus, Lord of the Storm into my deck and Extra Deck, and draw!" After Raguel took the three declared cards and shuffled them into his deck and Extra Deck, he drew the top three cards of his deck.

"Interesting. So you gained more cards. However, know that it won't help you, as I plan to start with this. I activate the Spell card, Abyss Script – Dramatic Story. This card lets me target one 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster I control, and Special Summon one 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster from my deck. Upon doing so, I can either place the targeted monster in my Pendulum Scale, or destroy it."

Raguel frowned upon hearing this. The only two choices Gil had on his field were either Evil Heel or Sadistic Jester, and they were both strong monsters. While Raguel knew that Gil was most likely setting up a Pendulum Summon, there was a question on the former's mind: Why would Gil give up such a strong offense?

"I target Evil Heel on my field, place him in my Pendulum Scale, and Special Summon Abyss Actor – Superlady from my deck to my field!" Gil decided, as Evil Heel turned into particles before appearing in the pillar of light on Gil's left. Then a woman wearing a more elegant, long black dress appeared on Gil's field. She had long pink hair that was in the form of two pigtails, with the front bang of it being green instead of yellow. In the middle of her dress was a purple rose.

Abyss Actor – Evil Heel Scale: 1

Abyss Actor – Superlady ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000 LV: 7 Scale: 9

"When Superlady is Special Summoned, I can target up to three 'Abyss Actor' monsters in my Graveyard and/or my Extra Deck, and add them to my hand. I target Superstar, Funky Comedian and Sassy Rookie in my Graveyard, and add them to my hand." One card popped out of Gil's Extra Deck, while two cards popped out of Gil's Graveyard, which he took and added to his hand.

"Ah. So that's why Gil targeted Evil Heel. He traded offense for a tactical advantage." Raguel deduced.

"Raw power isn't everything, Raguel." Herald pointed out, trying to converse with Raguel, who was still... not himself. "In a duel, it's more of a battle of minds. Whoever comes up with the best strategies that repels the opponent's strategies wins the duel."

"While that's true, Raguel and Herald, allow me to make a correction to your points." Gil interjected. "It's more of a balance between raw power and a tactical mind. Use them both together, and you win the duel. But moving along, I use the Scale 8 Abyss Actor – Funky Comedian to set the Pendulum Scale!" Soon, Funky Comedian appeared in the pillar of light on Gil's right.

Abyss Actor – Funky Comedian Scale: 8

"I'm not sure what you're planning, Gil, but I won't let it come to fruition." Raguel suddenly stated, as he gestured to his field. "Trap card, activate! Cyreath Primordial Aura! When this card is activated, I can target one 'Cyreath' monster on my field and equip it with this card. While the monster's equipped with this card, it's unaffected by your card effects. As such, I equip it onto Hercules/Alpha Mode!" As if on cue, Hercules/Alpha Mode let out a roar upon being surrounded with a massive aura.

"Son of a..." Gil muttered. Now even if he wanted to, he couldn't use Evil Heel's Pendulum effect to weaken Raguel's monsters, especially with Hercules/Alpha Mode preventing him from targeting other monsters for attacks or effects. However, Gil could use Funky Comedian's Pendulum effect to tribute a monster and strengthen Sadistic Jester. At least that was an option. "Alright, then. I activate Funky Comedian's Pendulum effect. Once per turn, by tributing an 'Abyss Actor' monster on my field, I can target one other 'Abyss Actor' monster I control, and have it gain attack points equal to the tributed monster's attack points until the end of this turn. I tribute Superlady, and target Sadistic Jester!" Superlady turned into particles, which went into Sadistic Jester as his strength increased.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 3600 + 2400 = 6000

"It's time to end this! Battle!" Gil thrusted out his right hand. "Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester attacks Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode! As the Fusion Materials used for Sadistic Jester's Fusion Summon are no longer in my Graveyard, his second effect doesn't kick in. Still, it's more than enough to finish you for good! Callous Reaping!" Sadistic Jester charged forward before spinning his scythe around in his hand, intent on slashing Hercules/Alpha Mode.

"This duel isn't over yet, Gil! If Hercules/Alpha Mode would leave the field by battle or card effect, I can remove one 'God Hand' counter from him instead, and by doing so, he gains 500 attack points! Immortal Reinforcement!" Raguel interrupted, as one of the nine orbs of light inside Hercules/Alpha Mode turned into particles that strengthened his body.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 3000 + 500 = 3500

"In addition, I activate the effect of Cyreath Guardian from my hand! By sending this card from my hand to the Graveyard, not only can I prevent my monster from being destroyed by battle or card effects this turn, any battle damage I take is halved as well." A giant, vertically wide octagonal shield composed of solid onyx that had the face of Zeus appeared in front of Hercules/Alpha Mode. The scythe then hit the shield, which protected Hercules/Alpha Mode from the attack. Unfortunately, a shockwave occurred instead, which sent Raguel flying off the ground before he hit the back of the broken pillar and fell off the stage as his life points dropped.

Raguel: 1600 – (2500 / 2) = 350 LP

Raguel moaned as he tried to lift his head. Everything hurt. The pain... the suffering... it was all there. Along with all the negative emotions too. The anger... the frustration... the sadness... the self-hatred... it filled his mind completely.

"Hey, wake up, Raguel!" Herald urged Raguel. "I understand you're going through a lot, but you need to keep going, right?"

Raguel groaned and shifted his right hand as he tried to get his bearings.

The other three humans and two Ignis knew how Raguel felt... to an extent. Weak and wounded. Broken from the inside out. The feeling of vulnerability... no one wanted that, especially those who went through the Lost Incident.

But perhaps that's the point of this, Playmaker realized, as he turned to Gil. Perhaps that's the true reason why Gil challenged Raguel to a duel. It's not just to challenge Raguel in changing his way of thinking on him and us, it's to see whether he's truly ready for what's to come in his own twisted way.

"I Set one card face-down, which means Funky Comedian's effect ends, and Sadistic Jester's attack points return to normal." Gil concluded, as a red aura surrounded Sadistic Jester, which reverted his strength to the amount he was originally at.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 6000 – 2400 = 3600

"Come on, Raguel! Get up! And fight me! Embrace all your emotions, and then release and flow with them! Do it, and nothing will stand in your way! What's stopping you, huh? Tell me! WHAT'S STOPPING YOU?!"

Raguel's eyes widened as he grit his teeth and clenched his fists. What was stopping him was his humanity. His fear that should he let go of his beliefs and moral codes, he'd truly become a monster, and abandoned by the people he met and accepted in their lives.

Raguel never wanted to be weak again since Azrael appeared on the scene. His failure to save Miyu had been haunting him as a result of what happened.

As such, Raguel had to stand up to keep fighting. So he can make the future a better reality both for himself and his family. That was the reason why Raguel wanted to fight after all, and he made that decision. No one else decided it for him.

Raguel grit his teeth and slowly got up on until he was on one knee. With a shout, he punched the ground as hard as he could, breaking the floor in the process.

Herald gasped. "Raguel?!"

The shock and adrenaline that was running through Raguel's body helped him stand up before slowly walking over to the proscenium stage and climbing onto it. Once that was done, he stood up on his feet, ready to continue the duel.

"I'd tell you what's stopping me from doing what you asked, Gil, but there's no point in doing so." Raguel angrily responded.

"It's okay to be angry, Raguel." Herald assured Raguel, causing the latter to turn to the former in surprise.

"And how is that, Herald?" Raguel questioned.

"Emotions are necessary to communicate with other people. They also allow us to act in response to situations such as this." Herald answered. "Though how you respond in accordance to those emotions is something entirely different. As Slipstream said, it's your choice on what happens next."

Raguel thought this over. Slipstream did make a strong point. Everyone was allowed to feel different emotions in response to things they hear and/or learn. The tricky part was the choices people would have to decide to make in response to what happened. "I do agree with your point, Herald. I really do. The thing is.." He clenched his fist, having seen the red, glowing cracks on his arm. "I can't be weak again. Otherwise, I'd fail everyone."

"Raguel..." Herald muttered. The good news was that Raguel was still able to communicate with him, despite the red, glowing cracks on his body. However, it seemed that the duel with Gil had traumatized him, just like during his duel against Azrael.

"Like I said before, Gil, I'm not out of this duel yet! I will show you my true beliefs on my strength and resolve! I will prove that your beliefs on the others and I are wrong, and show you that selflessness exists in this world!" Raguel declared, the red, glowing cracks glowing brighter in the process. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck.

"Continuous-Trap, activate! Gozen Match!" Gil interrupted. "While this card is on my field, we can only control one attribute of a monster at a time, and any other monsters that don't share the same attribute are sent to the Graveyard!"

"What?!" Raguel exclaimed.

"This can't be!" Herald added, his eyes having widened upon hearing what Gil just said.

"Another card that restricts how many monsters that can be on the field. Raguel's going to have trouble against that." Soulburner stated.

"Yes, except this time, it restricts how many attributes of monsters that can be on the field to only one." Flame commented. "Against decks that have multiple attributes, it would be very troublesome."

"But for decks that have only one attribute, it's not very effective." Slipstream pointed out.

"Say, Playmaker. Would Gozen Match work against Bohman?" Ai asked out of curiosity.

"Maybe." Playmaker hypothesized.

"Oh, but it's true, Raguel." Gil told Raguel, a cheeky grin on his face. "While Hercules/Alpha Mode prevents me from targeting other monsters except him for attacks or effects, it doesn't say that I can't send monsters you control to your Graveyard. So choose which monster you'll keep, and which ones you'll send to your Graveyard!"

Raguel thought this over. This was not good at all. All three of his monsters had different attributes. Hercules/Alpha Mode was a Dark attribute monster, Pegasus was a Wind attribute monster, and Odysseus was an Earth attribute monster. That meant Raguel can only keep one of his monsters on his field. To make things worse, there was only one logical option available for Raguel to choose from, as otherwise, all his chances of winning the duel would drop to zero. "I send Pegasus and Odysseus to my Graveyard." As if on cue, Pegasus and Odysseus turned into particles.

"Next, I activate the Equip Spell card, Nine Lives, and equip it onto Hercules/Alpha Mode!" A massive axe-sword then appeared on Raguel's field in front of Hercules/Alpha Mode, who picked it up. "When this card is equipped onto a 'Cyreath' monster, it gains 900 attack points." Hercules/Alpha Mode roared as his strength increased.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 3500 + 900 = 4400

"Yes! With Nine Lives, this duel is over for real!" Herald cheered.

"Not yet, Herald. Let's make sure that we can win the duel before doing something reckless." Raguel advised Herald.

"Huh. So you've taken a page from my book then, Raguel? It seems the advice from both myself and the others has affected your dueling for the better."

"So it has." Raguel smiled. Back then, he would duel with overwhelming force and tactics to defeat his opponents. But now... Raguel learned to temper that force with cards that solidified his field further. This way, even if something happened, Raguel would still survive. Well, aside from the red, glowing cracks on his body. That was something he needed to learn how to placate later on. "I summon Cyreath Mare from my hand to my field." A dark-grey skinned horse whose rib cage was showing appeared on Raguel's field.

Cyreath Mare ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"I activate Mare's first effect." Raguel continued. "Once per turn, I can either target one 'Cyreath' monster I control and equip it with Mare, or unequip it and Special Summon it to my field. I choose the former effect." Mare went over to Hercules/Alpha Mode, who climbed onto the horse.

"Time to end this once and for all! Battle!" Raguel thrusted out his right hand. "Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode attacks Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester! At this point, Mare's second effect activates. When the equipped monster battles, your monster loses 1000 attack points until the end of the damage step." Gil grit his teeth as Mare let out a burst of smog from its nose that went towards Sadistic Jester, which siphoned a portion of his strength.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester ATK: 3600 – 1000 = 2600

"In addition, Nine Lives has a second effect." Raguel added. "If it's equipped to a 'Cyreath Hercules' monster, all damage inflicted is doubled!"

Gil tensed up after hearing this. "What?" If this attack succeeded, then he'd lose. Or so that's what Raguel thought.

"Finish this duel with Nine Lives Blade Works, Hercules/Alpha Mode!" As if on cue, Hercules/Alpha Mode charged forward on Mare before swinging down Nine Lives at Sadistic Jester, who proceeded to block it with his scythe.

"You think you've won, Raguel? Think again!" Gil snarled back, as he thrusted out his right hand. "If Sadistic Jester is targeted for an attack, and I have an 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in my Pendulum scale, I can Special Summon that monster and place him in that Pendulum Scale. I Special Summon Evil Heel in defense position, and put Sadistic Jester in my Pendulum Scale!" Sadistic Jester blew up in an explosion that pushed Hercules/Alpha Mode and Mare back to Raguel's field. When the smoke dissipated, Sadistic Jester was in the pillar of light on Gil's right, while Evil Heel was now on his field in defense position.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester Scale: 0

Abyss Actor – Evil Heel ATK: 3000 DEF: 2000 LV: 8 Scale: 1

"A battle replay occurs. Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode attacks Abyss Actor – Evil Heel!" Raguel begrudgingly stated. "Like before, Mare's second effect activates. When the equipped monster battles, your monster loses 1000 attack points until the end of the damage step." Mare let out a burst of smog from its nose that went towards Evil Heel, which siphoned a portion of his strength.

Abyss Actor – Evil Heel ATK: 3000 – 1000 = 2000

"Nine Lives Blade Works!" Hercules/Alpha Mode charged forward on Mare before slashing Evil Heel nine times, which caused nine explosions to occur before turning him into particles.

"Mare has a third effect. When the equipped monster destroys a monster by battle, you take 1000 points of damage!" Raguel announced. "The best part is that it doesn't need to be sent to the Graveyard for this effect to occur."

"Crap..." Gil muttered, as ghostly wisps enveloped him and pushed him back several feet.

Gil: 1300 – 1000 = 300 LP

"I Set one card face-down and end my turn." Raguel breathed in and out. He was close. One more turn, and the duel would be in the bag.

"We were so close. So close!" Herald angrily commented.

"I hear you, Herald. But Gil has no monsters and Set cards on his field, Sadistic Jester and Funky Comedian in his Pendulum Scales, and Superstar and Sassy Rookie in his hand. We've got this." Raguel assured Herald. And with my Set card, I will survive, he thought in his mind.

"I hope you're right, Raguel. Because I can't help but feel that something bad is coming." Herald said back.

Gil let out a chuckle before it turned into laughter. "You've proven to be stronger than I expected, especially with how your skills, resolve, and name have been irreparably stained. Does that mean my stance on you and the others has changed? Maybe, but know that this duel has gone on long enough, faker. My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. "With the set Pendulum Scale, I can Pendulum Summon monsters between Levels 1 and 7 at the same time! Emerge, Abyss Actor – Superstar and Sassy Rookie!" Within moments, a portal opened between the two pillars, where two lights emerged. The lights hit the field and dissipated, which revealed Superstar and Sassy Rookie.

Abyss Actor – Superstar ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000 LV: 7 Scale: 3

Abyss Actor – Sassy Rookie ATK: 1700 DEF: 1000 LV: 4 Scale: 2

"Neither of those monsters are strong enough to defeat Hercules/Alpha Mode." Raguel pointed out the obvious.

"Oh, don't worry. You won't be seeing them for long." Gil assured Raguel. "I activate Sadistic Jester's Pendulum effect. Once, I can Special Summon 'Abyss Actor – Jesterling' tokens to my field up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monsters in my Extra Deck. Mellow Madonna, Evil Heel, and Superlady are in my Extra Deck. That means I can Special Summon three 'Abyss Actor – Jesterling' tokens to my field!" Soon, three pale-skinned skeletal humanoids with orange eyes and no teeth appeared on Gil's field. All three of them wore coats with light-pink and yellow colors, along with breeches of similar colors. On top of their heads were hats that had the Abyss Actors' symbol at the ends of the tips. Each of the humanoids carried a small scythe in their hands.

Abyss Actor – Jesterling ATK: 1500 DEF: 1500 LV: 4

Abyss Actor – Jesterling ATK: 1500 DEF: 1500 LV: 4

Abyss Actor – Jesterling ATK: 1500 DEF: 1500 LV: 4

"While you may have forced Sadistic Jester to leave the stage early, Raguel, I think it's time you met my strongest monster yet." Gil commented, having let out a small chuckle.

"What?" both Raguel and Herald said at the same time.

"Appear, the circuit of theatrics!" A Link Portal appeared above Gil. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Abyss Actor' monsters. I set Abyss Actor – Superstar, Sassy Rookie, and two of the three Jesterling tokens into the Link Markers!" Superstar went into the left arrowhead, Sassy Rookie went into the right arrowhead, and two of the three Jesterling tokens went into the bottom-left and bottom-right arrowheads before all four of them turned red.

"The ultimate spirit of theatre itself! Rise forth, and bring the duel to its final act!" Gil chanted. "Link Summon! Come before us! Link 4! Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer!" A massive, tall purple demon with red eyes and a large crest on his chest that had three Abyss Actor symbols on it appeared on Gil's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. He had ornate, armored shoulder pads on his shoulders colored in purple and silver. There were also purple and silver armored plating on his thighs, with pieces of it on his arms and legs. He had four arms, two of which were attached to the back of his shoulder blades. On top of his head was a large, circular hat that had four golden spikes on it.

Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer ATK: 3000 LINK-4 ↙️⬅️➡️↘️

Raguel blinked before gritting his teeth. "So this is the ultimate monster you're talking about..."

"Holy moly, that thing is huge!" Ai screamed.

"Whatever that monster is, it's anything but good." Slipstream commented.

"But we can't give up hope on Raguel, yet. Not if he still has a chance to survive this turn!" Soulburner stated.

"Soulburner is right. The duel isn't over until every card is played!" Playmaker agreed.

"Then let's see what happens next, as well as whether the both of you are right." Flame said.

"I activate Funky Comedian's Pendulum effect. Once per turn, by tributing an 'Abyss Actor' monster on my field, I can target one other 'Abyss Actor' monster I control, and have it gain attack points equal to the tributed monster's attack points until the end of this turn. I tribute the Jesterling token, and target Ballistic Balladeer!" Gil announced, as the Jesterling token turned into particles, which went into Ballistic Balladeer as his strength increased.

Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer ATK: 3000 + 1500 = 4500

"I activate Ballistic Balladeer's first effect. When a card or effect that changes his attack points is activated, except his, he gains 1000 attack points, and this isn't once per turn! Dramatic Integration!" Ballistic Balladeer laughed as his strength increased.

Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer ATK: 4500 + 1000 = 5500

"I also activate Ballistic Balladeer's second effect!" Gil immediately added. "Once per turn, during either of our turns, I can banish cards on your field equal to the number of 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monsters in my Pendulum scales, and this doesn't target!"

Raguel's eyes widened. "Are you kidding me?!"

"No, I am not. As there's two 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monsters in my Pendulum scales, I can banish two cards. I banish Primordial Aura and Nine Lives! Comedic Requiem!" The two upper arms attached to Ballistic Balladeer's shoulder blades fired purple energy at Primordial Aura and Nine Lives, turning both of them into particles. "And with Nine Lives gone, Hercules/Alpha Mode's attack points decrease!" As if on cue, Hercules/Alpha Mode's strength decreased.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 4400 – 900 = 3500

"But without Primordial Aura and Nine Lives..." Soulburner began speaking.

"Hercules/Alpha Mode's strength has decreased to the amount he was originally at." Flame finished.

"Battle!" Gil declared, as he thrusted out his right hand. "Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer attacks Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode! Tragic Rhapsody!" Four axes resembling that of the Abyss Actors' symbol appeared in Ballistic Balladeer's hands before he proceeded to bring them down on Hercules/Alpha Mode.

"Sorry, but when the equipped monster battles, Mare's second effect has your monster lose 1000 attack points until the end of the damage step." Raguel reminded Gil, as Mare let out a burst of smog from its nose that went towards Ballistic Balladeer, which did nothing. "What?"

"How the Hell is your monster unscathed?!" Herald exclaimed.

"Sorry, but while I have an 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in my Pendulum scale, Ballistic Balladeer is unaffected by your card effects." Gil explained. "Is that all you have left before the duel reaches its conclusion, Raguel?"

"No, it's not!" Raguel said, as he gestured to his face-down card. "Trap card, activate! Link Showdown! When a Link monster I control battles a monster with higher attack points, it gains attack points equal to its Link rating times 500. As Hercules/Alpha Mode is a Link 3 monster, that means he gains 1500 attack points!" Hercules/Alpha Mode let out a roar as his strength increased.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 3500 + (500 X 3) = 5000

"Furthermore, if Hercules/Alpha Mode would leave the field by battle or card effect, I can remove one 'God Hand' counter from him instead, and by doing so, he gains 500 attack points! Immortal Reinforcement!" A second of the nine orbs of light inside Hercules/Alpha Mode turned into particles that strengthened his body.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 5000 + 500 = 5500

"Thus, the battle will end in a draw, and your monster will be destroyed, while ours will survive!" Herald finished, as Hercules/Alpha Mode blocked the axes before pushing Balladeer back. To Raguel and Herald's surprise, however, Ballistic Balladeer remained on Gil's field.

"If Ballistic Balladeer would leave the field by battle, I can send one 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster from my Extra Deck to my Graveyard instead." Gil countered back. "I send Mellow Madonna from my Extra Deck to my Graveyard." A silhouette of Mellow Madonna appeared before she turned into particles, which went into Ballistic Balladeer so he can survive the battle.

"Yes, Raguel survived!" Ai cheered.

"That means Raguel gets one more chance to win the duel!" Slipstream added happily.

"Raguel has 350 life points, while Gil has 300 life points. The next turn will decide who wins this duel." Playmaker said.

"Your monster may have survived, Gil, but you don't have any monsters on your field that can attack." Raguel pointed out to Gil. "On my next turn, it's game over for you."

"No, Raguel. It's game over for you!" Gil shot back with a glare, which made Raguel and the others gasp out of shock. "I knew you'd use your face-down card, which is why I got this! I activate the Quick-Play Spell card from my hand, Revenge Attack! As my monster did not destroy yours in battle this turn, Ballistic Balladeer not only gains 1000 attack points, it can also attack again!"

"WHAT?!" Raguel exclaimed out of shock before letting out a small gasp. He remembered that card from months prior, where Dancho used it against SengokuQueen. Soon, Ballistic Balladeer let out a second laugh as his strength increased.

Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer ATK: 5500 + 1000 = 6500

"And since a card effect was activated that changed Ballistic Balladeer's attack points, he gains 1000 more attack points!" Ballistic Balladeer let out a third laugh that increased his strength.

Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer ATK: 6500 + 1000 = 7500

"Damn. Then... Raguel lost." Slipstream realized.

"With everything that's happened, it's an unfortunate conclusion. Though there is still one thing Raguel can do." Flame stated.

"A Deus Ex Machina, Flame? Really? Such a thing doesn't exist." Soulburner pointed out.

"Well..." Ai began speaking.

"Not now, Ai." Playmaker told Ai.

"I wasn't referring to a Deus Ex Machina at all, Soulburner. Rather, I was referring to Hercules/Alpha Mode." Flame clarified. "Just watch and see."

"You did well, Raguel, but it was all for naught in the end." Gil said. "The battle continues! Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer attacks Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode once again! Close the curtain on this duel with Tragic Rhapsody!" Four axes resembling that of the Abyss Actors' symbol appeared in Ballistic Balladeer's hands before he proceeded to bring them down on Hercules/Alpha Mode.

I'm going to lose, Raguel realized. But I can at least reduce the damage on my loss and ensure that Hercules/Alpha Mode is safe. "If Hercules/Alpha Mode would leave the field by battle or card effect, I can remove one 'God Hand' counter from him instead, and by doing so, he gains 500 attack points! Immortal Reinforcement!" A third of the nine orbs of light inside Hercules/Alpha Mode turned into particles that strengthened his body.

Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode ATK: 5500 + 500 = 6000

"Protecting your monster instead of yourself, Raguel? How cute. It doesn't change the fact that you're going to lose!" Gil furiously shouted, as the axes hit Hercules/Alpha Mode, which caused a massive explosion that sent a screaming Raguel flying off the massive proscenium stage for a second time before his back hit the wall behind him, his life points having hit zero upon impact.

Raguel: 350 – 1500 = 0

But before Raguel could hit the ground, Hercules/Alpha Mode jumped towards where he was and grabbed him so he can soften the blow.

"Raguel!" Playmaker cried out, as he, Soulburner, and Slipstream went over to their fallen comrade. Hercules/Alpha Mode then turned to particles, the three humans and two Ignis relieved to see Raguel okay.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little bruised up." Raguel assured the others, as Slipstream went over to his left side, while Soulburner went over to his right side so they can help him get up on his feet.

"You did well, but in the end, it wasn't enough to change my beliefs on you guys." Gil stated, having walked over to the stage to face the group, Ballistic Balladeer having turned into particles. "Though I am curious on something, Raguel."

"And what exactly are you curious about?"

Gil narrowed his eyes. "I found the duel footage between Azrael and Stregone, and saved it before it was deleted online. As I watched it, I found something that piqued my interest. What I need to know is this: Are you and Azrael brothers?"

Raguel frowned as he thought this over. It was only right for him to tell his allies the truth on who he was. The good thing was that the people who knew the truth about his origins still accepted him. From Quinton and Miles, to Roxy, to Playmaker and the others, they still cared for him as one of their own. "Yeah. Azrael and I are brothers."

"Raguel..." Slipstream warningly muttered.

"It's only fair Gil knows the truth, Slipstream. We can't afford to keep one another in the dark at a time like this." Raguel replied, which made Slipstream, Playmaker, and Soulburner nod in agreement. He then turned to Gil. "Azrael and I are brothers by foster care, blood, and adoption. To put it simply, the both of us were born in very bad situations, so our parents gave us their blood as a buffer to ensure our survival. I also had pieces of Azrael inserted into my body to repair my damaged lungs, along with filling the missing veins in my right arm and left leg. He had the same thing too, only to repair his liver, and fill in the missing veins in his left arm and right leg." Raguel let out a sad, yet disturbing chuckle. "All in the name of a project that wants to create miracles through any means necessary."

Gil whistled after hearing this. "Wow. I never realized that you were experimented on, especially when you were a baby too. I guess that explains those red, glowing cracks on your body and face." He crossed his arms. "Look, I'll be honest. I'm sorry what you went through. I really am. But it doesn't change what happened to you in the past. What I did to help you during our duel, I don't regret it at all."

"Are you kidding me?! You don't regret putting Raguel through such a torturous duel?! Both physically and mentally?!" Soulburner exclaimed furiously.

"I don't have regrets. I want to make sure my clients are strong so they can complete their goals." Gil explained harshly, before turning to Raguel. "There's something I need to know from you, Raguel. Do you regret the actions you made in the past?"

Raguel sighed. "You know what, Gil? Truth be told, I don't regret my actions. At the time those years ago, I was following what I believed in justice, and now I've realized how self-centered I was back then. For if it weren't for my actions, then the Hanoi wouldn't have been stopped, and Miyu would never have woken up that first time around."

"Alright. Go on." Gil put his hand on his chin, now curious on what Raguel will say next.

"Here's the thing. In the time I got to know the people I know now, my views have expanded, and I realized something." Raguel took a deep breath. "I can't change the past, but I can still make a fresh start for myself with the knowledge I have now, and I won't be defined by my past actions anymore. What's more, I will keep fighting so my dream of creating a better reality for myself and my family becomes true, no matter who or what is in my way! This, I promise."

Gil thought this over. "Fascinating. It seems like you've gotten a firm hold on your strengths and resolve. At least for now." He snapped his fingers, causing the data sphere to flow over to his hand. Within a few seconds, Gil handed Raguel the data sphere. "Here. You can have the information I found on Azrael."

"Why? I lost, did I not?"

"True, but you make a good case. As such, I'm intrigued on what happens to you and the others next." Gil admitted. "Who knows? Maybe my beliefs on you guys will change, maybe they won't. But I do like a good show. So continue to challenge my beliefs, Raguel. Playmaker. Soulburner. Slipstream. I look forward to seeing it."

"Plus, if you don't give the info, you don't get free desserts, right?" Slipstream pointed out, which caused everyone to chuckle.

"Alright, fine, you got me there." Gil conceded. "Oh, I forgot something." He pressed his duel disk, which caused a small data sphere to flow over to where Raguel was.

"Hey, another data sphere." Herald said. "And it's... hang on a minute. A virus bomb?!"

"Yup. It has Bitboot's data signature too." Gil confirmed. "The moment you see a Bitboot, press the button on the top. It'll shred each one apart, and give Lightning quite a headache. Think of it as my way of getting revenge on him for his role in this colossal mess."

"And what about your Bit and Boot?" Playmaker asked.

"They'll be fine. They have my coding, after all." Gil shrugged his shoulders. "Look, guys. I have no intentions of going to war. I am a businessman, first and foremost. Still, I'll see what I can do for you guys from afar. You have my word."

Raguel nodded. "Thank you."

"I think we should get going now." Ai suggested.

"Yes, we should." Playmaker agreed with Ai's point, as Raguel fully stood up on his feet. "We have a battle to fight tomorrow, so it's best to get some rest while we can."

"After what happened today, we all need a break for the battle to come." Soulburner concurred as well. With that, Playmaker, Soulburner, Slipstream, and Raguel logged out of the network, leaving Gil alone in the theatre.

"Raguel. Playmaker. Soulburner. Slipstream. You and your allies are interesting people. I look forward to working with you more in the future." Gil said, a smile appearing on his face as he pondered over what transpired. Could there truly be selflessness in a selfish world? Perhaps that's an answer Gil may find out one day, and if it meant continuing to challenge and be challenged by people, he may truly get it in the end.

Green, wispy pieces of data are shown floating through the network as a bright light briefly covers the screen, multiple cards popping up one by one.

Yusaku is first shown walking to school before he morphs into his VRAINS Persona Playmaker. Takeru is also shown doing the same thing before he morphs into his VRAINS Persona Soulburner. Last but not least, Yuhiro and Arashi are shown doing the same thing before they morph into the VRAINS Personas Raguel and Slipstream. Ai, Flame, Aqua, and Herald pop up on the screen one by one afterwards.

A split screen then pops up, showing Aoi walking down the street on one side, while Emma scratches the back of her head on the other side, as if she were stressed out. The both of them then morph into their VRAINS Personas Blue Maiden and Ghost Girl. A second split screen pops up afterwards, showing Rachel on her tablet on one side, while Gekiryushi practices her swordsmanship on the other side with concentration. The both of them then morph into their VRAINS Personas Numera and SengokuQueen.

Soon after, a third split screen appears, showing a skinny Go Onizuka clutching his head in pain with his left hand, while Kengo Dojun puts a hand on his chin, as if thinking something over. The screen then cracks, showing a virtual network where Go closes his eyes and spreads out his hands with a smile, while Blood Shepherd aims his right hand at the screen. A fourth split screen appears, showing Akairo completing some schoolwork, while Brion is in his apartment, looking at a picture in his locket with narrowed eyes, which showed his family. The screen then cracks, showing Drachen with Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword in his hand, while Electrolyzer has PSY-Framegears Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and Zeta attached to his body.

The main tower LINK VRAINS is shown before the screen cracks in two, which reveals the main tower in Mirror LINK VRAINS. Lightning's faction is shown in the light, but then the screen is enveloped in darkness before depicting Azrael flaring out the Muramasa with Malf and Wraith on his sides.

Revolver, Specter, and Infearno are then shown on the screen, with Revolver on the left, Infearno in the center, and Specter on the right.

The screen changes to show multiple people at Green Park. First is Kusanagi and Roxy beside one another, with Akira speaking to Emma and Gekiryushi nearby. Next is Arashi crossing his arms, with Takeru is looking out at another area while Yusaku simply looks ahead of him, Aoi sitting down on the stairs nearby. Yuhiro is seen looking ahead of him with a stressed expression on his face, a silhouette of Miyu trying to comfort him. Rachel runs up to where Yuhiro is before standing next to him, with Naoki trying to wave his hand to the humans nearby. Herald is shown with Ai, Flame, and Aqua nearby the humans. Last but not least, Ryoken, Youta, and Emon are shown conversing in another area of Green Park.

The screen then shows a grey landscape, where duel monsters appear in pairs. First is Firewall Dragon and Firewall eXceed Dragon, second is Salamangreat Heatleo and Violet Chimera, third is Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode and Turboblaze Dragon, fourth is Clear Wing Synchro Dragon and Hi-Speedroid Kitedrake, and fifth is Borreload Savage Dragon and Borreload Dragon before all of them disappear one by one. Last but not least, a network background appears, with a strand of rainbow data flowing around it before Raguel, Playmaker, Soulburner, and Slipstream appear, along with Ai, Flame, and Herald. All four humans draw a card from the top of their decks before a bright light covers the screen.

Card Gallery

Raguel:

Cyreath Mare (LV: 4/Dark/Cyberse/Union/ATK: 1000/DEF: 1000)

Effect: Once per turn, you can either: Target 1 'Cyreath monster you control; equip it with this card to that target. OR: Unequip this card and Special Summon it. If the equipped monster battles a monster your opponent controls, it loses 1000 ATK until the end of the damage step; also, if the equipped monster destroys your opponent's monster by battle: Inflict 1000 damage to your opponent. If the equipped monster would leave the field by battle or card effect, you can send this card to your Graveyard instead.

Godly Grandeur (Normal Spell card)

Effect: When this card is activated: Shuffle 1 'Cyreath' Link monster back into your Extra Deck, and if you do, draw the top card of your deck, then apply 1 of the following effects depending on the card you drew:

Monster: 1 monster your opponent controls loses ATK equal to the ATK of the monster drawn by this effect.

Spell: For the rest of this turn, all 'Cyreath' monsters you summon are unaffected by your opponent's card effects.

Trap: You can activate the Trap card drawn by this effect from your hand this turn; also, your opponent cannot activate cards or effects in response to that card's activation.

Cyreath Mount Olympus (Field Spell card)

Effect: All 'Cyreath' monsters you control gain 500 ATK and DEF; also they're unaffected by your opponent's card effects. Once, while this card is on your field: You can target 1 'Cyreath' Link monster you control; gain life points equal to its Link rating X 500. If this card leaves the field: You can target 1 'Cyreath' Link monster you control; shuffle 'Cyreath' cards from your GY and/or banished zone into your deck and/or Extra Deck, and if you do, draw 1 card from the top of your deck for each card shuffled this way.

Cyreath Eradication (Normal Trap card)

Effect: When your opponent activates a card effect or summons a monster: You can negate the effect or summon, and if you do, send it to your opponent's GY. Your opponent cannot activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation. You can only activate 1 'Cyreath Eradication' per turn.

Cyreath Authority (Continuous-Trap card)

Effect: Activate this card by targeting 1 'Cyreath' Link monster you control. While this card is on your field, your opponent cannot summon monsters whose ATK is less than or equal to the targeted 'Cyreath' Link monster's original ATK. Send this card to your GY during your 2nd Standby Phase after this card's activation. You can only control 1 'Cyreath Authority'.

Cyreath Odysseus (LR: 3/Cyberse/Earth/ATK: 2500/⬅️⬇️➡️)

Effect: While 'Cyreath Mount Olympus' is in your Field Spell zone, this card is unaffected by your opponent's card effects; also, it cannot be destroyed by battle. Once per turn: You can target up to 2 'Cyreath' monsters in your GY; Special Summon them to Main Monster Zones this card points to. If this card battles a Special Summoned monster, its original ATK is doubled until the end of the damage step.

Gil Ariba:

Abyss Actor – Superlady (LV: 7/Fiend/Pendulum/Dark/ATK: 2400/DEF: 2000/Scale: 9) (Credit to Donkeyboy100)

Pendulum Effect: If your opponent destroys a card you control: You can Special Summon this card from your Pendulum Zone to your field, and if you do, 'Abyss Actor' monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects for the rest of this turn. You can only use this effect of 'Abyss Actor – Superlady' once per duel.

Effect: While this card is on your field, your opponent cannot target 'Abyss Actor' monsters you control by battle or card effects, except this one. If this card is Special Summoned: You can target up to 3 'Abyss Actor' monsters in your GY and/or Extra Deck; add them to your hand. During each player's Battle Phase: Apply the following effect:

Yours: Monsters your opponent controls loses 500 ATK for each 'Abyss Actor' monster you control until the end of the damage step.

Your opponent's: 'Abyss Actor' monsters you control gain 500 ATK for each 'Abyss Actor' monster you control until the end of the damage step.

If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can add 1 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster from your deck to your hand. You can only use each effect of 'Abyss Actor – Superlady' once per turn.

Abyss Actor - Crafty Stagehand (LV: 4/Fiend/Pendulum/Dark/ATK: 1500/DEF: 1400/Scale: 6)

Pendulum Effect: While this card is in your Pendulum Zone, the effects of 'Abyss Script' cards cannot be negated.

Effect: When an 'Abyss Script' card leaves the field and is sent to the GY by your opponent's card effect while this card is in your hand or on your field: You can send this card from your hand or your field to your GY; add that card back to your hand. If this card leaves the field, and you have an 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster on your field: You can add 1 'Abyss Script' card from your deck or GY to your hand. You can only use each effect of 'Abyss Actor - Crafty Stagehand' once per turn.

Offerings to a Higher Power (Normal Spell card)

Effect: Tribute 1 monster you control; draw 2 cards from the top of your deck. You can only activate 1 'Offerings to a Higher Power' per turn.

Abyss Script – Fusion Performance (Normal Spell card)

Effect: Fusion Summon 1 'Abyss Actor' Fusion monster from your Extra Deck, by using 'Abyss Actor' monsters from your hand, field or Extra Deck as Fusion Material. If this card is in your GY, except the turn it was sent there: You can banish this card from your GY; Set 1 'Abyss Script' card from your GY or deck to your Spell & Trap card zone. It can be activated this turn. You can only use this effect of 'Abyss Script – Fusion Performance' once per turn.

Abyss Script – Trick Wall (Quick-Play Spell card) (Credit to Donkeyboy100)

Effect: Target 1 'Abyss Actor' monster you control; it is unaffected by your opponent's card effects until the end of the turn. If this Set card is destroyed by your opponent's card effect, and you have a face-up 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in your Extra Deck: You can Special Summon 1 monster from your opponents GY to your field, and if you do, treat it as an 'Abyss Actor' monster.

Abyss Script – Climax Performance (Quick-Play Spell card) (Credit to Donkeyboy100)

Effect: When this card is activated: All 'Abyss Actor' monsters you control gain 600 ATK and DEF. If this Set card is destroyed by your opponent's card effect, and you have a face-up 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in your Extra Deck: You can target 1 'Abyss Actor' monster you control; it gains 600 ATK and DEF until the end of your turn.

Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester (LV: 10/Fiend/Pendulum/Dark/ATK: 3000/DEF: 3000/Scale: 0)

Pendulum Effect: Once, if this card is in your Pendulum Scale: You can Special Summon 'Abyss Actor – Jesterling' tokens up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monsters face-up in your Extra deck.

Effect: 2 or more 'Abyss Actor' monsters. If this card is Fusion Summoned: You can Set 'Abyss Script' Spell cards from your deck or GY to your Spell & Trap card zone up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' monsters used for this card's Fusion Summon. They can be activated the turn they are Set. If this Fusion Summoned card battles a monster your opponent controls, and the monsters used for this card's Fusion Summon are in your GY: You can have this card gain ATK equal to the total Pendulum scale of those monsters X 200 until the end of the damage step. If this card is targeted for an attack and you have an 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in your Pendulum scale: You can Special Summon 1 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster from your Pendulum scale to your field in face-up defense position, and if you do, place this card in your Pendulum scale. You can only use this effect of 'Abyss Actor – Sadistic Jester' once per turn.

Abyss Actor – Ballistic Balladeer (LR: 4/Fiend/Dark/ATK: 3000/ ↙️⬅️➡️↘️)

Effect: 2 or more 'Abyss Actor' monsters. While you have an 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in your Pendulum scale, this card is unaffected by your opponent's card effects. When a card or effect that changes this card's ATK is activated, except this card's effect (Quick Effect): You can have this card gain 1000 ATK. Once per turn, during either player's turn (Quick Effect): You can banish cards your opponent controls up to the number of 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monsters in your Pendulum scales. If this card would leave the field by battle or card effect, you can send 1 'Abyss Actor' Pendulum monster in your Extra Deck to your GY instead.

QOTC

Do you think what Gil did was justified? And how do you think it will affect Yuhiro moving forward?

Chapter Preview

Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth. Chapter 82: Lessons in Self-Confidence. Ever since partnering with Aqua, Aoi's been having doubts on her mind about who she is as both a duelist and an individual. As a result, she still sees herself as a substitute for Miyu, and is unsure of what to do next for herself and her partnership with Aqua should Miyu wake up. Realizing this, Roxy decides to step in and pass on some much needed advice to Aoi from her personal experiences to prepare her for what's to come….

Chapter 83: Levelling The Playing Field. The Tower of Hanoi has been completed, and the heroes are ready to take the fight to Lightning and Azrael. Before they are able to mobilize, Greg calls in Yuhiro for an emergency, having learned that Brion and several others are about to be handed over by Sharpshot and Chainslaver to one of Balius' agents, who has arrived from Central Japan. Infuriated upon learning this information, Yuhiro logs in alone to assist Greg in rescuing Brion and the others, having a certain emergency measure, along with dark allies should things go awry...

Chapter 84: Into the Battle. The moment of truth has finally arrived. With no more delays, Playmaker, Raguel, Revolver, and all their allies finally uncover Lightning's whereabouts as they charge in to end this war once and for all. Upon entering Lightning's battlefield, he and Azrael begin to launch a full scale assault in retaliation as the heroes are faced with their biggest challenge yet...

Chapter 85: Bonds Beyond Time. The heroes continue to break through Lightning's defenses one by one, with Lightning and Azrael continuing to learn about the heroes' strategies and how their decks work. As the battle in the sky continues, Haru challenges Blue Maiden to a duel with a full resolve of his brotherhood with Bohman, with Blue Maiden prepared to match his with her own...

Author's Notes

Credit goes to Donkeyboy100 for some of the Abyss Actor cards you've seen in this chapter.

Well, this was certainly a fun chapter to write, as it's one of the several chapters I look forward to writing in the story. This chapter continues off from last chapter's cliffhanger, where Gil calls Raguel and wishes to speak with him. Suspicious of Gil's intentions, Playmaker and the others go with him, where upon following the coordinates, end up in the Black Market server. Let me say something here: As a result of the Turf War, SOL Technologies cut off access to the Black Market, similar to how it cut off access to the old LINK VRAINS after the creation of New LINK VRAINS. This makes the old Black Market server the perfect meeting spot, as people are technically not allowed to go there due to what happened.

As Raguel and the others follow the coordinates, they spot a few people from SOL Technologies, where they've been sent by Rook to salvage anything that can be found from the Turf War. And just when they've found some interesting things, Bit and Boot emerge to dispose of them. For those of you who are wondering, this Bit and Boot had been reprogrammed by Gil following his duel against Bitboot in Chapter 76. He managed to successfully split and reprogram Bit and Boot as his servants, and have been sent to salvage anything that can be found

Eventually, Raguel and the others find the place where Gil wishes to speak with them, which is the theatre he met Phoenix and Stregone at back in Chapter 53. Here, Gil reveals some interesting things to the group, which I'll break down. First is a list of the companies Azrael put on his hit list regarding programs and supplies, as well as ones that were corrupt and had to be brought down. I'll confirm right now: Azrael was the one who hired Ghost Girl to destroy Landios Confederation all the way back in Chapter 8. Goes to show that Azrael's had an impact on Raguel ever since the beginning of the story, don't you agree?

Second is the Inquisitorius, or the church that Watchman worked for. Here, Gil speculates that Azrael worked with them a long time ago, as evident by the rumours he found online. But is this true? Did Azrael truly work for the Inquisitorius? You'll find out later on.

Third is footage of Azrael attacking the FBI and hacking into their database a long time ago. Do note that, aside from Raguel, the others don't know about this yet. So now they have the knowledge.

Last but not least is footage where Azrael killed one of the Lost Incident scientists, thus proving that Azrael's words are indeed true. Why didn't Raguel tell the others about what happened? For a few reasons. First, everyone was focused on current events, so no need to distract them from those events. Second, the first time Raguel dueled Azrael, the latter lied on how he killed Wraith and the eighth Lost Incident child. As such, Raguel was wary that Azrael may have lied again. So until there was footage, Raguel didn't want to risk saying anything that's false. I mean, everyone was caught off guard once they found out that Azrael's not only the eighth Lost Incident child, but that Wraith was both alive and working with him and Lightning in destroying humanity.

Now let's get to the good stuff here. Allow me to say some stuff about Gil to start. I'd like to call him the antithesis when compared to Rachel and Brion. Because Rachel and Brion had people in their lives to help them get through the pain that was brought on them by Project: Apotheosis, they were able to both move forward and keep their faith in humanity. For Rachel, she was able to make friends and open herself to other people. For Brion, his parents teachings helped him retain his honour as a prince and goodwill in general towards people in his life. But for Gil, he had no one to help him get through the pain following Project: Apotheosis. Well, except for a woman from Delta who adopted him, only for her to get killed during a mission. Thus, Gil was alone, and forced to fend for himself. As a result, he gained knowledge about the reality of the world and skills on the go through learning. Or to sum it up, only those who persevere and acquire strength can survive. This helped Gil acquire his father's business as an information broker and his deck before throwing him to the authorities, and compared to his father, Gil mastered the Abyss Actor deck way better.

In addition, Gil wanted revenge on the people who ruined his life. It's selfish, but to Gil, who was forced to fend for himself, it didn't matter. In the end, Gil used forgiveness to punish his father, and got satisfaction when someone else killed Athaliah, thus being rid of the two people that had a bad influence on his life. I'm happy to say that Gil's personality is based off of Scaramouche from Genshin Impact as a result (I kid you not, that's his actual name in the game), and maybe a bit of Lord Garmadon from Lego Ninjago.

During the meeting, Gil expresses disappointment in Raguel and the others, saying that ever since what happened, he doubts their strength and resolve in dealing with threats. And it's here that Gil reveals an unfortunate truth: That everyone is selfish. No matter someone's intentions, there will always be a selfish portion inside them. Take Playmaker for example. Even though he was fighting for himself and everyone else who was affected by the Lost Incident, he wanted revenge, and lost several years of his life as a result. Or Yua Kogami. She escaped from the authorities and focused on self-interest rather than check on Revolver and the other Hanoi. Do you think there are other examples of selfishness in Obscured Truth? Or in the anime in general? Let me know.

Specifically, Gil also reveals why he's disgusted in Raguel. It's because of how Raguel's selfishness has tainted him irreparably as an individual. It's due to that selfishness that he had to rely on others just so he can get his head on straight. Even though Raguel counters that he's making better choices now despite his selfish mistakes in the past, Gil doesn't believe it. And so Gil challenges Raguel to a duel, wanting the latter to try and convince him that his beliefs on the group are wrong.

As such, the duel between Raguel and Gil occurs, both sides showing new cards over the course of the duel. On Raguel's side, he has the first Cyreath Union monster in Mare, a new Field Spell card in Mount Olympus, his Skill as a card in Godly Grandeur, a pair of Trap cards to restrict the opponent's moves in both Authority and Eradication, and a new Link Monster in Odysseus. I will just say that Raguel did really well in the duel as a result.

On Gil's side, he reveals a new Abyss Actor Pendulum monster in Superlady, along with an Abyss Actor Fusion Pendulum monster in Sadistic Jester, and an Abyss Actor Link monster in Ballistic Balladeer. In terms of Ballistic Balladeer's appearance, it's based off of Scaramouche's mech in Genshin Impact, only more organic. Gil also had a few new Abyss Script cards, along with Gozen Match in response to Raguel's moves. Credit goes to Donkeyboy100 for some of the Abyss Script cards, along with Superlady in the duel.

During the duel, Gil reveals the reason why he called Raguel a faker. It's because in all the times Gil's interacted with Raguel, he realized that what the latter was showing was nothing more than a front, for he's hiding strength deep within. If Raguel were to release it, then he can use that strength in destroying his enemies. As such, Gil advises Raguel to release his moral codes and ethics, along with embracing all his emotions so that he can unlock the strength deep within. The reason why Gil's doing this is because he's sick and tired of weakness, so he wants to help his clients reach their true potential. It benefits him selfishly because of how he wants to survive. Thanks to Gil's words, Raguel ends up focusing so much on the duel that his thought processes and planning have been expanded, which is another effect of the Link Trigger. Now Raguel isn't being affected by the Link Trigger, nor is it controlling him. And Raguel isn't controlling it, either. He's simply using it to expand his thought processes and planning, almost like the AI chip Go had. Due to this, Raguel was able to push Gil to the brink of defeat at 300 life points compared to his 350 life points.

But in the end, Gil managed to win the duel against Raguel thanks to Revenge Attack. If Gil didn't have Revenge Attack, then Raguel would have won the duel. Why did I have Raguel lose, you may ask? It's because sometimes, losing a duel allows you to learn more than by just winning it. Or a phrase I heard from a video game: "To lose is to gain, and to gain is to lose". I'll give a shoutout to anyone who figures out which video game the phrase comes from.

In the end, after learning about Raguel's plight, Gil softens up a little, having realized that he went too far. Does Gil regret it? No. Not at all. But I do want to show that he's aware when he goes too far with his clients. When Gil asks Raguel if he regrets his actions up to now, the latter says that in the end, he doesn't. For Raguel, he's realized that at the time, he was merely following his self-centered beliefs on justice. He can't change that, for it's in the past. Rather, Raguel's choosing not to let his past actions define him, and make a fresh start now that his views have been expanded. Not just on justice, but on everything else as well. Raguel then says that he will make his dream of creating a better reality for himself and his family true, no matter what's in his way.

Intrigued after hearing this, Gil ends up giving the data over to Raguel and the others. While Gil says that his beliefs on them hasn't obviously changed, he is willing to be flexible, however. It's as if Gil is continuing to challenge Raguel and the others to change his mind on them. Besides, if Gil is to survive, he needs strong people to ensure the world is safe. After all, should the heroes lose, then Gil loses his business, which is very bad for him. Ultimately, Gil is an anti-hero at heart, who cares for his well-being alone, even if his actions somehow end up helping the heroes.

Following this, Raguel and the others log out of the network, with Gil pondering over what happened before the chapter ends.

With everything having been recapped, I want to thank you all for reading Chapter 81 of Obscured Truth. As always, please let me know your thoughts about the chapters below in your reviews. Also, constructive criticism is appreciated, as your tips and advice helps make the story better. In addition, don't forget to favorite and follow the story. That way, you will get a notification once the next chapter is released.

What did you like the most about this chapter? The duel? The dialogue in between? Or was it something else?

Before I go, I just want to direct your attention to the four chapter previews for you guys to look forward to. I hope you're excited as I am as we head towards the Mirror LINK VRAINS arc. Only two more chapters and a Roxy's Report to go!

That's all for now, folks. See you really soon!