The second duel has started. Houki believed she was dueling Meldrick, but she was actually dueling Oberin. It's only started, but Oberin has already played two traps, Level Blaster and Coffin Seller, that will deal damage to Houki. He also had one other face-down ready and waiting. However, it was now Houki's turn.

"You might have a few traps, but I'm still going to walk out of this as the winner." Houki claimed, but she needed to be careful. 'His last facedown must be something to protects his life points. I don't have anything that can stop that, but I've got to take the chance and attack. I'll just have to force my way through those traps.' She thought. "For my first move, I summon Hito of the Blazing Flame!" She summoned out her swordsman as he emerged with 1700atk points.

"Just simply summoning that monster was a mistake!" Oberin claimed. "By normal summoning a monster, you lose 100LP for each of it's level due to Level Blaster! That monster is level four, and so you lose 400LP!" His first trap activated as it fired right at Houki and her life points dropped to 3600.

"I might have taken some damage, but you're about to lose even more! Hito, attack him directly!" Houki ordered. Hito went straight at Oberin, but he didn't even flinch.

"Another foolish mistake, Miss Shinonono!" Oberin claimed. "I reveal my third trap: Defense Draw! Not only do I take no battle damage, but it also allows me to draw one card!" Her attack was stopped, but he also drew that card making her turn wasted.

"I'll get you yet, Meldrick. For now, I'll place a face-down of my own and end my turn!" Houki said.

"My turn!" Oberin said as he drew his next card. "I'll begin by summoning my Trap Imp to the field!" A small hole opened up on the field with a small purple creature jumping out of it and it only had 400atk points. "He might be small, but he has a useful ability! All I have to do is send one card in my hand to the graveyard and activate a trap from my hand!"

"You can activate a trap from your hand?!" Houki said as she was shocked to hear that.

"That's right. So, I send United Front to the graveyard so I may activate my Jar of Greed!" Oberin claimed as he discarded one trap and activated another. "That allows me to draw one more card." He drew another card and it was a spell. "I activate Pre-Preparation of Rites! This allows me to add one ritual spell and one ritual monster to my hand!" Two cards came out of his deck and they were just the two cards he needed. "With that, I can now activate the Rite of Secret Guard ritual spell!"

"He's ritual summoning?!" Hector said. "How when he has only one monster on his field?!"

"Normally, I would offer monsters whose total levels equal six to summon this monster. However, if I happen to have two active traps on my field, I can offer only one monster." Oberin clarified. That wasn't good for Houki. "Now, I offer my Trap Imp!" A dark magic circle formed underneath his imp and his imp fell through it. When that happened, a ray of dark light shot into the air with a new monster emerging. "I ritual summon Horrid Noble!" He summoned out a monster that wore a musketeer-like attire in cranberry color, but the head was a skull. The weird thing was that it had zero attack points.

"A monster with zero attack points? What are you planning?" Houki questioned.

"You're about to find out." Oberin said. "My Horrid Noble actually gains 500atk points for every trap that I have in my graveyard, and I currently have three!" When he said that, his monsters attack points increased to 1500.

"That isn't enough to beat my Hito!" Houki said.

"You're quick to judge, yet cautious at the same time, Miss Shinonono. Horrid Noble has one other effect! I can activate a trap card directly from my hand!" Oberin claimed and that's what he's about to do. "I activate Reinforcements! This trap card grants Horrid Trapper another 500atk points until the end of this turn! With one more trap in my graveyard, he gains even more power!" Horrid Noble's power increased again to 2500. This wasn't good for Houki. "Now witness the terror of my power! Horrid Noble, attack her Hito with Cage of Demise!" His monster's eyes glowed purple and used dark powers to form a cage around her monster. Then, the cage closed around Hito and caused him to vanish. When that happened, Houki's life points dropped down to 2800. "Don't forget about Coffin Seller! Since you lost a monster, you take more damage!" His trap caused dark energy to form around Houki with her life points dropping even more to 2500. "With that, I end my turn, and Horrid Noble loses some of his power." Now that his turn is over, his monster's attack points dropped down to 2000.

"Oh man. This isn't looking good for Houki." Mila said.

"I was hoping to see Izanami, but I guess Houki won't last long enough for that to happen." Conner said as he thinks Houki has already lost.

"Not bad." Houki said as she endured what was thrown at her. "However, there's no way I'm going to lose. You got that? I won't let you go after Ichika."

"You won't, will you?" Oberin questioned.

"No, I won't. Not that I expect the likes of you to understand." Houki said.

"Oh, I do understand. You're fighting for someone, but so am I." Oberin claimed.

'What's he talking about? He's fighting for someone?' Houki thought as she didn't get it. 'Something isn't quite right about this guy.' She may not know the truth, but Oberin does speak it.

'I promise that I would protect Master Meldrick.' Oberin thought as he looked up to the sky. 'It's not just my responsibility. I did it all for her.'

...

Flashback

'I was abandoned as a child, orphaned with no home.' Oberin narrated. 'The only thing that watched over me was the moon.' When he was a child, Oberin was in the middle of nowhere and had nothing. It seemed like he wasn't going to last. 'I thought it was fate to vanish, but the kindness of one person saved me.'

"What are you doing out here alone?" Oberin looked up and was met with a woman in a cloak and she appeared to be pregnant.

'That kind woman saved me, and she happened to be Master Meldrick's mother. She took me to her home, but not a house. She took me underground where there others like me.' Meldrick's kind mother found Oberin and brought him to her home for comfort. The home was underground and there others like Oberin.

"What is this place?" Oberin asked.

"We bring in people like you who have no home and give them one. Here, people can feel safe." Meldrick's mother claimed. "In exchange, they aid us. You see, we have the responsibility to await the return of the Great Hero from long ago. We also watch over one of the eight Mystic Artifacts." Oberin didn't understand any of this at the time, but he just went with it.

"There you are. What took you so long?" That was when Oberin met a man who looked a lot like Meldrick himself: Meldrick's father. "You shouldn't have been up in the surface for so long."

"I found another lost one." She said as she showed Oberin.

"I see... Another servant for us. Very well, but you are pregnant. Your main concern should be over our heir." Meldrick's father claimed.

"Stop that. This is just a mere child." Meldrick's mother said as Oberin felt safe with her, but Oberin could see the disdain her husband has.

'I didn't know at the time, but the woman was actually the wife of the chief. It was thanks to her that I'm still here today Ever since that day, she showered me with kindness. She made me feel welcomed since I knew no one there or what to think of my situation. When I was around her, I felt a sense of security. She treated me like an equal, but her husband treated me like I was a mere servant who was worth little to nothing. All that really mattered to him was the purpose of their people. Then, the time came when my new master was born.'

"Waaa! Waaa!"

"It's a healthy boy, sir."

"Excellent! We'll name him Meldrick!" Meldrick's father said as he took his new born son with him, but his mother wasn't doing so well. However, Oberin stayed by her side.

"Oberin..." She said as she caressed her face. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I'll be around much longer to watch over you. However, I'm trusting you to watch over my son. My husband is so focused on our duties to that of the Great Hero that he's become blind. I fear what he might make Meldrick do. Please take care of my son."

"Of course." Oberin agreed.

"Thank you..." She said and those ended up being her last words.

End of Flashback

...

'I promised her that I would take care of Master Meldrick. Ever since that day, I cared for him like he was my own little brother, despite how his father treated me as a worthless servant. Despite that, I shall continue with my promise. Even if that means I will destroy this girl.' Oberin thought. Oberin is trapped within the memories of what he has happened, and that was only the beginning. Freedom might be out of his reach, but that all really depends on Meldrick.

"It's my turn now!" Houki said as she drew her next card, but she'll have to play her cards carefully. One false move and she could end up loosing the last of her life points. "First, I'll start my turn by summoning Moon Swordsman Ventin to the field!" She summoned out another swordsman as he came out with 1700atk points.

"Another monster that is level four! That means you lose 400LP!" Oberin claimed. His trap activated again with Houki getting blasted and her life points dropped again to 2100. "Every move you make brings you closer and closer to your defeat! Do you still think you can defeat the likes of me?!"

"I do!" Houki said. "I play my spell, Sun and Moon Vindication! Since I have Ventin on the field, this spell card allows me to summon Sun Swordsman Vinto from my deck!" She summoned out her second samurai as it arrived with 1800atk points.

"Awesome! That's the card I gave her!" Rin cheered. "With both of those monsters on the field, she's sure to win!"

"You're right, Rin." Hector said. "Since that was a special summon, Meldrick's Level Blaster can't deal any damage to her."

"What's more is that Vinto's and Vento's powers are truly awaken when they are on the field together." Senshi said. "Since they're both on the field, they both gain an extra 800atk points." Both of her swordsmen gained power to 2500 and 2600atk points. "What's more is that neither of them can be destroyed and Houki won't take any damage from his attacks now. She's set up a powerful barrier."

"The downside to using Sun and Moon Vindication is that I'm not allowed to attack with either of my monsters this turn, but that's a small price to pay." Houki said. "Come my next turn, I'll finish you off."

"That's a big thing to say, Miss Shinonono." Oberin stated.

"Just simple reasoning." Houki explained. "Right now, you have no cards in your hand. Even if your monster allows you to activate traps directly from your hand, there's no guarantee that'll you'll get one you can activate right away. Even if you do, your monster can't deal any damage to me." Houki is right when she explained all of it. She might have had a rough start, but it looks like she's the one that got Oberin trapped now. "There's no way I'm going to lose, and I'm not just saying that. It's actually a fact."

"A fact, you say?" Oberin questioned.

"I learned to trust my deck as well as my instincts, but there has been something gnawing at me." Houki said. "I remember when I was forced to duel Ichika, I heard a voice in my head. The memories are vivid, but I certainly remember a voice. Your voice...doesn't match it!"

"I beg your pardon?" Oberin questioned.

"The way you sound, the way you talk, and the way you act don't match with what's been going on with Meldrick." Houki said. "I said I trust my instincts, and my instincts are telling me that you're not Meldrick! You don't seem at all like the man we've been weary of!" All of them were astonished that Houki would say such things.

"Has Shinonono lost it? Of course that's Meldrick!" Conner said.

"That's quite the accusation, but you have no proof!" Oberin claimed and held out the fake gauntlet. "See this?! Only the real Meldrick would have this!"

"All I'm saying is that something doesn't feel right with you." Houki said. "I just know that you're not the same guy who has been after us." It seems like Houki is starting to unfold the truth. This isn't good for Oberin and Meldrick's plan.

'I'm with Houki.' Senshi thought. 'That doesn't seem like the same man that has been hunting us down.'

"If that's not Meldrick, where's the real snake in the grass?" Hector questioned. That was when it hit Senshi.

"I wonder..." Senshi said as he looked towards "Michael" with suspicion.

'No! They're catching on too soon!' Meldrick thought.

"You speak nonsense!" Oberin shouted as he simply refuses to let her see the truth.

"If you do manage to beat me, what will it matter?" Houki questioned. "Either way, I'm not loosing! So bring it on you bald creep! Give me your best shot!" She dared.

"I shall, and I will banish you to darkness once I do beat you!" Oberin claimed. 'I must not lose this duel. I must fulfill Master Meldrick's wishes, even if it costs me everything!' Oberin thought as the memories of Meldrick's mother, the closest thing he had to a mother, fueled him. Inside, he's like an animal bashing against his cage with the memories making him more fierce. 'No matter what becomes of me, Master Meldrick will be the one to reign supreme!' This duel could be coming an end soon and Oberin will do everything he can to fulfill that promise.

To Be Continued...