Hello, everyone! I am back! It has been three years and I apologize for that. I won't blame anyone if you've stopped reading this fanfic because you've been waiting far too long. Covid 19 had taken a great toll on me in many ways, especially financially, so I had no choice but to take many works here and there to support myself and my family. I even suffered Covid once as well. As a result, I didn't have time to continue writing fanfic.

However, now I finally got a stable job and have some time to once again write fanfic. I can't promise that my update will be as often as before, but I will fulfill my promise to finish this fanfic and end my ARC-V Trilogy. Afterwards, I hope I can write a new fanfic, but that depends. After I finished The Last Supreme King Dragon, I originally intended to do ARC-V Manga rewrite, but things have changed and I have other preferences to write, so the ARC-V Manga Rewrite must be put onto the shelf for the time being.

For whoever is still reading this fanfic, I am grateful for your willingness and patience to wait for so long. Since it's been a long time, maybe my writing skill isn't as good, but I'll try my best to return to my prime condition!

By the way, I've made a some changes for certain previous chapters. You might want to read the previous chapters again to see the changes made.


OUTSIDE CATHEDRAL – THE VILLAGE OF HOLY ELF – DUEL MONSTER REALM

Artemis and Elias waited on the field just right outside the cathedral. Looking at their surroundings, Ginger, Benmaru, and the Superheavy Samurais have successfully evacuated the villagers to safety. That's one less thing to worry about. The ones who were still in the village are the Holy Elves inside the cathedral. The prayer shouldn't take up much time. They just need several minutes to be done with. Until then, Artemis and Elias would make sure none of the enemies would ever step foot inside the cathedral.

"Now, look what we have here."

Artemis and Elias tensed up. Their arms raised their respective Duel Disks, ready to fight. From the burning flames and smoke, Rowan emerged with an amused smile plastered on his face. They could hear footsteps behind him, no doubt the other Apophis servants under his command. From the sounds, they could tell that Ginger was telling the truth. The servants' numbers overwhelmed theirs.

However, that didn't mean that hope had been lost. They still had a chance. Like any other force, if their leader goes down, then the rest can't do anything but retreat. Sure, there were still possibilities that the other Apophis servants will still attack the cathedral, but taking out Rowan would at least lessen the enemies' manpower considerably. And it'll be easier to handle an army without leadership.

"I suppose you won't let me pass." Rowan said while holding a hand to his men not to make any move.

"Damn right, we won't. I don't think we need to waste more our time talking about the obvious." Serena activated her Duel Disk, and so did Elias.

"Two against one? Nice to know you're not one of those naïve people who insisted on fighting one-on-one. However, you'll be sharing your LP, Field, and Graveyard." Rowan set a condition.

"No objection." Elias agreed, and Artemis didn't protest either.

[[MASTER DUEL]]

"I'm taking the first Turn! From my hand, I summon Moonlight Pink Squirrel!" Artemis summoned Pink Squirrel (ATK: 500 / DEF: 500 / LV: 2) in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone. It was a female monster in pink jumpsuit with squirrel ears and tail.

"From my hand, I activate Field Spell: Lunar Valley! Once per Turn, when a Level 3 or lower Moonlight Monster is summoned to the Field, I can summon Moon Token equal to the total Level of the summoned Moonlight Monster." Artemis summoned two Moon Tokens to her Main Monster Zone. The tokens took the shape of golden crescent moons with two star-shaped wings.

"Appear, the circuit that lights up the darkness!" Artemis called forth the Link Summoning circuit.

"Arrowhead confirmed! The summoning condition is at least 1 Moonlight Monster! I set Moonlight Pink Squirrel and the two Moon Tokens on the Link Markers! Circuit Combine!" Artemis set Pink Squirrel at the Top Arrow and the two Moon Tokens at the Bottom Arrow and Right Arrow.

"Link Summon! Appear, Link 3! Moonlight Wolverine Dancer (ATK: 2100/ LINK: 3 / LM: Top, Bottom, Right)!" Artemis summoned Wolverine Dancer in the Link Monster Zone.

"I set a card and end my Turn." Artemis concluded.

"My Turn! From my hand, I activate Magic Card: Magical Oasis! I discard one Djinn Monster I have in my hand to add 1 Ritual Spell Card from my Deck." Rowan sent Djinn Demolisher of Rituals to his Graveyard and then added a Ritual Spell to his hand.

"When a Magic Card is activated, I can Special Summon Djinn Caster of Rituals (ATK: 300 / DEF: 200 / LV: 2) from my hand!" Rowan summoned a genie Monster wearing an azure-colored turban paired with an azure-colored cloak with its lower body covered in bandage.

"Appear! The circuit that grants wishes!" Rowan called forth the Link Summoning Circuit, placing Djinn Caster of Rituals in the Bottom-Left Link Marker.

"Link Summon! Link 1! Sinister Crimson Djinn (ATK: 100 / LINK: 1 / LM: Bottom-Left)!" Rowan summoned his Link Monster in the Link Monster Zone.

"When Sinister Crimson Djinn is Link Summoned, I can Special Summon a Djinn Monster from my hand in Defense Position." Rowan summoned Djinn Demolisher of Rituals (ATK: 1000 / DEF: 300 / LV: 4) in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone.

"I activate Ritual Spell: Ritual of Salvation. I banish Djinn Demolisher of Rituals and Djinn Caster of Rituals from my Graveyard to perform Ritual Summon!" At Rowan's command, a magic circle appeared on his Field. Djinn Demolisher and Djinn Caster turned into sphere of spirits that went into the magic circle, causing purple smoke to come out, a silhouette hiding behind the thick smoke.

"Ritual Summon! Appear, Level 6! Elzine the Genie of Desolation (ATK: 3000 / DEF: 1000 / LV: 6)!" Rowan summoned a Monster with the appearance of a blue-skinned bald, bearded old man. He wore a white cloth that covered his back and arms, long claw-like nails and a third eye on his forehead. Rowan placed his Ritual Monster in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone pointed by Sinister Crimson Djinn's Link Marker.

"I activate Elzine the Genie of Desolation's effect! Once per Turn, I can return a Djinn Monster that was banished to the Graveyard!" Rowan returned the banished Djinn Demolisher of Rituals back to his Graveyard.

"He returned one of the Monsters he used as Ritual Material. That means, he can use it again if he's going to do another Ritual Summon." Artemis remembered Rowan's method. His Deck's Ritual Summons usually involved sending one or more Djinn Monsters to the Graveyard and then banishing them to summon his Ritual Monsters.

"The Ritual Monster we must watch out for the most is Zaguine. But recently he's been incorporating Link Summoning as well. We can't just assume that he'll be using his Ritual Monsters as often as he did before." Artemis stared warily at Rowan before shifting her gaze to her partner. When it comes to Rowan, Elias had experience against him. He knew Rowan's Deck and strategy better than her. She trusts that Elias would make the right countermeasure, and she'll support him.

"My Turn! Battle! I attack Wolverine Dancer with Elzine the Genie of Desolation!" Rowan declared Battle Phase. Elzine summoned saif-like swords from four gateways he created from his smoke. The swords thrust at high-speed towards the Moonlight Monster on the other side of the Field.

"Trap Card: Full Moon Howling! When an Extra Deck Moonlight Monster I control is targeted for an attack, I can negate its destruction and Special Summon a Moonlight Monster from my Graveyard with its effect negated!" Artemis opened her Reverse Card and revived Pink Squirrel. The squirrel-like Monster appeared in front of Wolverine Dancer and blocked the incoming blades with her shield.

"But you'll still take damage!" Rowan reminded her as one of the blades still managed to scratch the Link Monster.

ARTEMIS & ELIAS LP: 4000 = 3100

"And when Djinn Caster of Rituals is used as a Ritual Material, the summoned Ritual Monster can inflict 600 damage to the opposing player after each attack!" Rowan revealed. Djinn Caster's spirit appeared and directly struck Artemis and Elias.

ARTEMIS & ELIAS LP: 4000 = 2500

"I end my Turn." Rowan concluded. He then turned to Elias, smiling smugly. "You know, last time I dueled you was at Amenti. You were with Rio Kamishiro that time and got defeated by me. Are you sure that this rematch will be any different?"

"Yes. It would be different. We'll defeat you now." Elias sharply told him. He still remembered that Duel against Rowan. The Djinn user turned the table just when he and Rio were so close. And he won't repeat that same defeat.

"I must stop him from summoning Zaguine..." Elias thought determinedly.

"My Turn! I summon Grim Ritua from my hand!" Elias summoned Grim Ritua (ATK: 600 / DEF: 700 / LV: 2) in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone.

"If Grim Ritua is Normal or Special Summoned, I can Special Summon 1 Ritua Monster from my Deck!" Elias summoned Ritua Abyss (ATK: 800 / DEF: 500 / LV: 2) in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone.

"When Ritua Abyss is summoned, I can add 1 Ritua Monster with 1000 or less DEF from my Deck to my hand." Elias added a Ritua Monster to his hand.

"I activate Magic Card: Stream Upper! I can double the Level of all WATER Monsters I control!" Elias raised Grimm Ritua and Ritua's Abyss Levels from 2 to 4.

"I overlay Grimm Ritua and Ritua Abyss!" Elias sent his two Ritua Monsters into the Overlay Network.

"Xyz Summon! Come forth, Rank 4! Eviritua Merrowgeist (ATK: 2100 / DEF: 1600 / RANK: 4 / ORU: 2)!" Elias summoned his Xyz Monster in Attack Position in the zone next to Moonlight Pink Squirrel.

"Battle! I attack Elzine the Genie of Desolation with Eviritua Merrowgeist!" Elias declared Battle Phase.

"I activate Quick Play Spell: Jellyfish Dance! When a WATER Monster I control is battling, I can double its ATK until the end of Battle Phase!" Elias raised Merrowgeist's ATK from 2100 to 4200.

Merrowgeist raised her staff. The blue gem on her staff shined, summoning a whirl of water, forming into a tornado. She swung her staff down towards the opposing Ritual Monster. Elzine was trapped within the tornado of water and destroyed.

ROWAN LP: 4000 = 2800

"I activate Elzine's effect! When this card is destroyed by Battle of card effect, I can banish 1 Ritual Monster from my Deck!" Rowan sent a Ritual Monster to his Graveyard. This action caught Elias' attention.

"Banishing a Ritual Monster? Not sending it to the Graveyard? Was it part of his plan to summon Zaquine? No, before that, if the Level 6 Elzine is sent to the Graveyard, the chances for him to summon Zaguine faster is higher. I won't let that happen!" Elias was glad that he had expected this to happen and thought up a plan to ensure his worst fear wouldn't come true.

"I activate Merrowgeist's effect! When this card destroyed a Monster by Battle, I can use an Overlay Unit to send the destroyed Monster back to the Deck instead of the Graveyard!" Elias declared, using one of Overlay Units to have Merrowgeist return Elzine to the Deck.

"What?!" Rowan was taken aback by Elias' move. He clicked his tongue and then turned to Sinister Crimson Djinn. "I activate Sinister Crimson Djinn's second effect! When a Djinn Monster I control is removed from the Field, I can Release it to end the Battle Phase!"

As Sinister Crimson Djinn has lower ATK than Artemis and Elias' Monsters, he had no choice but to end the Battle Phase now otherwise he'll be finished by the Moonlight Monsters.

"I set a card and end my Turn." Elias concluded.

"I praised you for coming up with a countermeasure against my strategy. But if you think that's all what it takes to defeat me, you're sorely mistaken." Rowan told Elias. His Field was wide and empty, and yet he was still brimming with confidence.

Artemis and Elias would like to believe that this was just Rowan bluffing. However, they knew better not to underestimate Apophis' offspring. This was especially true for Elias who had been defeated by Rowan before. Counting the fact that Apophis' power had been increasing, Artemis and Elias were even more cautious against their opponent now.

"Huh. They're not letting their guard down even though my Field is empty. A wise choice because I still have more under my sleeves." Rowan found himself enjoying this situation despite the disadvantage he was in.

"My Turn! From my hand, I activate Magic Card: Silent Fusion! I Fuse Wolverine Dancer and Pink Squirrel! Warrior of beast! Squirrel with the charm of cherry blossom! Spiral into the moon's gravity and become a new power! Fusion Summon! Come to me! Beautiful beast that dances in the moonlight! Moonlight Cat Dancer (ATK: 2400 / DEF: 2000 / LV: 7)!" Artemis summoned her ace Monster in Attack Position.

"Due to Silent Fusion's effect, my Cat Dancer cannot attack this Turn." Artemis revealed, confusing Rowan.

"If it cannot attack, then why bother summoning it this Turn?" Rowan asked, but Artemis didn't bother to answer him and simply continued her move.

"I activate Full Moon Howling's additional effect from my Graveyard! I banished it to Special Summon an Extra Deck Moonlight Monster from my Graveyard!" Artemis revived Wolverine Dancer in the Link Monster Zone.

"I activate Pink Squirrel's effect! When a Moonlight Link Monster is Special Summoned to the Field while this card is in the Graveyard, I can Special Summon it at the zone pointed by the Link Monster!" Artemis also revived Pink Squirrel right below Wolverine Dancer's Link Marker.

"Battle! I attack directly with Wolverine Dancer!" Artemis declared Battle Phase. In a flash, Wolverine Dancer was already right in front of Rowan, her claws ready to make a slash.

"I activate Sinister Crimson Djinn's third effect! I can banish this card from the Graveyard to negate any damage I'll take and summon a Djinn Monster in Defense Position from my Graveyard!" Rowan banished his Link Monster from the Graveyard and revived Djinn Demolisher of Ritual in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone. The Djinn Monster immediately blocked Wolverine Dancer's claw and threw her back to the other side of the Field.

"I activate Wolverine Dancer's effect! When Wolverine Dancer failed to inflict battle damage, I can inflict a damage equal to the ATK of the Monster pointed by its Link Marker!" As Wolverine Dancer's bottom Link Marker points to Pink Squirrel, the damage inflicted to Rowan was 500.

ROWAN LP: 2800 = 2300

"Since I shared a Field with Elias, Merrowgeist is also my Monster! I attack Djinn Demolisher of Rituals with Merrowgeist!" Artemis declared Battle using Merrowgeist. The Xyz Monster easily blew away the Djinn Monster with her water tornado.

ROWAN LP: 2300 = 1200

"I set a card and end my Turn." Artemis concluded. She actually thought of using Merrowgeist's effect to send Djinn Demolisher back to the Deck, but she's also aware of Zaguine's summoning conditions and didn't want to waste Merrowgeist's remaining Overlay Unit on Djinn Demolisher.

"Let me guess, you're saving your Overlay Unit in the case I summon a Monster that might help me summon Zaguine." Rowan correctly deduced what Artemis was thinking, making the girl tense up. Rowan smirked at her visible reaction. "You're not wrong in being cautious. However, do you really think that I only have one way to summon up Zaguine?"

"What?" Artemis and Elias narrowed their eyes at Rowan's question.

"My Turn! When I don't control any card on my Field, I can Special Summon Djinn Observer of the Ritual (ATK: 2000 / DEF: 800 / LV: 6) from my hand!" Rowan summoned Djinn Observer in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone.

"When Djinn Observer is summoned, I can add 2 Djinn Monsters from my Deck to my hand." Rowan added two more Djinn Monsters to his hand. He picked one of them immediately.

"When there is a Level 5 or above Djinn Monster on my Field, I can Special Summon Djinn Guarantor of Rituals (ATK: 400 / DEF: 300 / LV: 3) from my hand!" Rowan summoned Djinn Guarantor in Attack Position next to Djinn Observer.

"And I activate Ritual Spell: Genie Sacrifice Ritual! I can perform a Ritual Monster by Releasing Djinn Monster I control on the Field and one of my opponent's Monsters as materials!" Rowan activated the Ritual Spell, choosing his two Djinn Monsters and Artemis' Moonlight Pink Squirrel as materials.

"What?! Using an opponent's Monster as a material?!" Artemis and Elias were shocked. They could only watch as Pink Squirrel was taken from them.

"Ritual Summon! Appear! Level 11, God of the Unseen – Zaguine (ATK: 3800 / DEF: 3000 / LV: 11)!" Rowan summoned Zaguine in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone.

"No way! I thought you need Northwemko and Garlandolf to summon Zaguine!" Elias exclaimed in disbelief.

"Why, yes. Summoning Zaguine using Northwemko and Garlandolf as materials would allow me to use Zaguine at full power. However, that doesn't mean I can't use other Monsters to summon Zaguine." He could activate Zaguine's entire effects if he used Northwemko and Garlandolf. That's why he likes to use both Ritual Monsters as materials to summon Zaguine.

"You...!" Elias glared at Rowan. Back then Rowan confirmed that Zaguine could only be summoned by having Northwemko and Garlandolf in the Graveyard. But here, in front of him, Zaguine stood without having to send Northwemko and Garlandolf.

"Now, why would I reveal all my power to my enemy, Kino?" Rowan smiled mockingly at the Ritua user.

"Battle! I attack Eviritua Merrowgeist with Zaguine!" Rowan declared his Battle Phase.

Zaguine's black shadow hands extended to Merrowgeist, crushing the Xyz Monster until it was unrecognizable.

ARTEMIS & ELIAS LP: 2800 = 1100

"When Zaguine destroyed a Monster, it inflicts additional 500 damage to my opponent!" Rowan added. Zaguine threw the unrecognizable remains of Merrowgeist towards Artemis and Elias, blasting them away.

ARTEMIS & ELIAS LP: 1100 = 600

"I can understand how that Monster beat you, Elias..." Artemis said while groaning in pain from the attack.

"This is nothing compared to last time... Be careful, he's not done yet...!" Elias helped Artemis stand up. They're not finished yet.

"Since I didn't use Northwemko and Garlandolf as materials, I can't use the effect that reduce all your Monsters' ATK to 0. However, I still have other effects that can wipe out your monsters." Rowan revealed.

"When Djinn Guarantor is used as a Ritual Material, once per Turn when the Ritual Monster destroyed a Monster, I can set two Magic or Trap Cards from my Deck." Rowan set two cards from his Deck to his Magic and Trap Zone.

"When Zaguine is summoned using at least one Djinn Monster, I can make another attack by banishing Djinn Monster I have in my Graveyard and the banished Monster's ATK is added to Zaguine!" Rowan banished Guarantor from his Graveyard, allowing Zaguine to make its second attack towards Moonlight Wolverine Dancer.

"I won't let that happen! Trap Card: Ritua Defender! When a Ritua Monster I control is destroyed, I can Special Summon a Ritua Monster from my Graveyard in Defense Position and end the Battle Phase!" Elias opened his Reverse Card, reviving Grimm Ritua and forcefully ended Zaguine's attack.

"I hope that's not the countermeasure that you came up against my Zaguine. You must have more than that to stop me, aren't you?" Rowan made a taunting gesture just as he ended his Turn.

"Of course, we have! We won't let you get away with this!" Elias declared before beginning his Turn.

"I feel bad for Shark and Rio who wants their friend's body back, but they'll understand that we have no choice under this dire situation!" Elias prayed that the Kamishiro twins would forgive him for this.

"I activate Ritual Spell: Ritual Ceremonial Water Mirror! I can use this card to perform Ritual Summon by Releasing Monsters from Field or hand whose total Levels equal to the Level of the Ritual Monster I summon!" Elias activated the Ritual Spell from his hand that he just drew.

"I activate Grimm Ritua's effect! If I Ritual Monster exactly 1 WATER Ritual Monster with a card effect that requires use of Monsters, this card can be used as the entire Tribute!" As Elias declared, Grimm Ritua's body was surrounded by bubbles from a glowing blue magic circle forming beneath it. Within the bubble, Grimm Ritua's form began to change.

"Ritual Summon! Come forth, Eviritua Mind Augus (ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2000 / LV: 6)!" The bubble burst out, revealing Mind Augus in Attack Position.

"I activate Mind Augus' effect! When this card is Ritual Summoned, I can target up to 5 cards in any Graveyard and shuffle those cards back to the Deck!" Elias chose the cards in Rowan's Graveyard. There was a total of 3 Djinn Monsters in Rowan's Graveyard, so Elias returned all those cards to Rowan's Deck.

"Now you can't activate Zaguine's effect to make multiple attacks and you can't perform Ritual Summon that requires Djinn Monsters as materials to be in the Graveyard." Elias now has locked Rowan's means to use Zaguine's effect and performing his main Ritual Monster, at least for the time being.

"Also, I activate Equip-Spell: Aqua Mace to Mind Augus!" Elias granted Mind Augus an additional teal-colored mace as a weapon.

"Battle! I attack God of the Unseen – Zaguine with Eviritua Mind Augus!" Elias declared an attack, surprising Artemis and Rowan.

"You're attacking even though Mind Augus' ATK is lower than Zaguine?" Rowan questioned suspiciously.

"WATER Monster equipped with Aqua Mace cannot be destroyed by Battle and any battle damage will be inflicted to my opponent instead!" Elias revealed.

"If this attack hit him, then even if Zaguine cannot be destroyed, Rowan would still receive 1300 damage!" Artemis thought hopefully.

"It's pointless! When Djinn Observer is used as a Ritual Material, any damage involving the Ritual Monster will be halved!"

"What?!"

Zaguine endured Mind Augus' water tornado, but the wave of the attack still managed to blow away Rowan several steps back.

ROWAN LP: 1200 = 550

"Dammit!" Artemis scowled that Rowan managed to avoid the finishing blow.

"That was close! You did well summon a Monster that could return the cards in my Graveyard back to my Deck and then inflict damage to me directly without having to overpower my Zaguine. Thanks to that, I can't use Zaguine's effect anymore." Rowan clapped his hands.

Artemis and Elias were at the advantage but at the same time they didn't feel they were. Rowan's LP was in red, there was only 1 card in his hand, and he only has Zaguine on his Field. Despite that, Artemis and Elias could feel that Rowan was not in desperation like most cornered Duelist do.

"You're done, right? Hurry up and let the little miss start her Turn." Rowan casually stood up and patted away dust from his clothes.

"My Turn! With Scale 2 Moonlight Forest Caterpillar and Scale 6 Moonlight Cream Bee, I set the Pendulum Scale!" Artemis set the Pendulum Scale that allows her to summon Level 3 to 5 Monsters simultaneously.

"Pendulum Summon! Appear, my Monster!" Artemis summoned Moonlight Orchid Beetle (ATK: 1000 / DEF: 200 / LV: 5 / PS: 1) in Attack Position in the Main Zone.

"I activate Moonlight Forest Caterpillar's Pendulum Effect! Once per Turn, I can perform Fusion Summon using the Monsters I control on my Field!" Artemis chose to fuse Cat Dancer and Wolverine Dancer.

"Two beautiful beasts that dance in the moonlight! Spiral into the moon's gravity and become a new power! Fusion Summon! Come to me! Supple beast that dances through moonlit fields! Moonlight Panther Dancer (ATK: 2800 / DEF: 2500 / LV: 8)!" Artemis summoned Panther Dancer in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone.

"I know about Panther Dancer. With that ATK, it won't be enough to defeat my Zaguine." Rowan pointed out the difference of ATKs between his and Artemis' Monsters.

"I'm not done yet! I activate Cream Bee's Pendulum Effect! Once per Turn, I can activate an effect that has been activated for a second time!" Artemis chose to once again use Forest Caterpillar's Pendulum Effect.

"Cream Beetle can be treated as two tributes. I fuse Panther Dancer and Cream Beetle!" As Cream Beetle was treated as two Monsters, she had fulfilled the summoning conditions of her intended Fusion Monster.

"Elegant beast dancing on the moonlit wilderness! The beetle singing in moonlit summer! Swarm in a vortex of the moon's gravity and revive with a new power! Fusion Summon! Come forth! The king of beasts dancing atop the summit of the moonlight wilderness! Moonlight Leo Dancer (ATK: 3500 / DEF: 3000 / LV: 10)!" Artemis summoned Leo Dancer in Attack Position in the Main Zone.

"When Orchid Beetle is used as a Fusion Material, the Fusion Monster gains 500 ATK!" Artemis raised Leo Dancer's ATK to 4000, higher than Zaguine.

"I see. Summoning Cat Dancer with Silent Fusion was in preparation to summon Leo Dancer on this Turn. She knew not to solely rely on Elias' Monster to defeat me." Rowan was genuinely impressed.

"Battle! I attack Zaguine with Leo Dancer!" Artemis declared Battle Phase. With Leo Dancer's effect, she could deliver the finishing blow for sure this time. Whatever effect Zaguine has, Leo Dancer can't be affected by it.

Leo Dancer leaped towards the Ritual Monster, her sword raised up, ready to slash her enemy. Her sword swung down, just as it was about to reach Zaguine, Rowan smiled widely.

"At this moment, I activate Trap Card: Call of the Chaotic Spirit! When a Level 10 or above Ritual Monster I control is targeted by an attack, I can activate this card to Special Summon a Monster that I banished and treated it as a Ritual Summon!" Rowan opened his first Reverse Card, returning Garlandorf the King of Destruction (ATK: 2500 / DEF: 1400 / LV: 7) that he banished and then summoned it in Attack Position in the Main Monster Zone.

"What?!"

"Summoning Garlandolf during my Turn?!"

"The Ritual Monster he banished Djinn Observer's effect was Garlandolf?!" Elias was beginning to panic inside. Rowan had set those two specific cards in his previous Turn. He wouldn't have picked the cards and set them unless this was within his calculation.

"I activate Garlandolf's effect! When this card is Ritual Summoned, I can destroy all other face-up Monsters on the Field with DEF less than or equal to this card's ATK and it gains 100 ATK for each card destroyed!" Garlandolf destroyed Eviritua Mind Augus in a flash, crushing through the opposing Ritual Monster's abdomen with its clawed hand.

"Leo Dancer can't be targeted by a card effect!" Artemis exclaimed as Garlandolf let Leo Dancer pass and slashed down Zaguine.

ROWAN LP: 550 = 350

"After Leo Dancer made its first attack, if Damage Calculation is performed, I can destroy all monster my opponent controls and can make a second attack!"

Leo Dancer quickly turned back to Garlandolf and destroyed it with her sword wave before shifting her attention back again to Rowan, who is now without any Monster on his Field. However, before Leo Dancer could even turn her body around, Rowan opened his second Reverse Card.

"At this moment I activate Trap Card: Spiritual Wall! When I control no Monster, any damage I'll take this Turn will be negated!" As Rowan declared his Trap, Leo Dancer's sword missed by a millimeter, leaving Rowan unharmed.

"Again! Damn it! Just how did he able to do that?!" Artemis couldn't hold her frustration. Just when it seemed they were so close, Rowan survived yet again.

"Please save your complaint for later time and let me start my Turn." Rowan looked all too pleased to see his opponent's anger at her failure in finishing him off.

"I end my Turn..." Artemis reluctantly ended her Turn. She then turned to Elias. "I'm sorry Elias..."

"No. You did well, Artemis. We'll do something on my next Turn–"

"I wonder. You made the right decision to summon your Fusion Monster. If not, your Field would've been empty by now. Not that it changes anything. You two are finished either way." Rowan interrupted Elias' assurance. His eyes glinted sinisterly at the two.

"What did you say?!" Artemis glared furiously at the Djinn user.

"My Turn. I activate Spiritual Wall's effect in my Graveyard. When this card is in Graveyard, I can banish a Ritual Monster I control to add a Ritual Spell from my Deck to my hand and activate it." Rowan banished Garlandolf and then activated a Ritual Spell.

"I activate Ritual Spell: Wish of Reincarnation Ritual! I banish Zaguine in my Graveyard to Ritual Summon another Zaguine from my Deck!" Rowan banished Zaguine from the Graveyard, turning it into a spirit that entered a black magic circle. "What?! Summoning another Zaguine?!" Artemis and Elias couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"Reincarnation Ritual Summon! Appear, Level 11, God of the Unseen – Zaguine (ATK: 3800 / DEF: 3000 / LV: 11)!"

From the circle, black flames burst out and slowly faded into thick smoke that formed into Zaguine.

"R-Reincarnation...Ritual Summon...?!" Elias uttered in a stutter. He had tried his best to come up with all possible countermeasures he could think of, but were his efforts not enough? Was it for naught?

"I had expected you'll come up with countermeasure against me. That's why I also made a countermeasure on my own. Your ideas aren't bad. You're just unfortunate that I'm one step ahead of you, Kino." Rowan truly never bored with this moment. The moment when his opponent despaired as they were faced with their inevitable defeat.

"I activate Zaguine's effect. When this card is used as a Material for Ritual Summon, the Ritual Monster gains ATK equal to the ATK of the banished Monster." Rowan raised the reincarnated Zaguine ATK to 7600, overpowering Moonlight Leo Dancer.

"Battle. I attack Moonlight Leo Dancer with Zaguine!"

Zaguine bound Leo Dancer with huge black shadow hands, crushing her body. The Ritual Monster tightened his grip on the Fusion Monster before throwing her at Artemis and Elias. Before Leo Dancer could reach Artemis and Elias, Zaguine exhaled black flames from his mouth, burning the Fusion Monster together with Artemis and Elias.

ARTEMIS & ELIAS LP: 350 = 0

Artemis and Elias collapsed with burns on their bodies. It took them everything not to pass out from the impact. To think that Rowan had grown this strong. If Rowan was already at this level, they feared to imagine how strong the rest of Apophis offspring had become now.

"In honor of your struggle, I will respect your wishes by not turning you into one of us."

Rowan pulled out a knife from the sleeve of his clothes as he approached Artemis and Elias. He decided to go with Elias first. The Ritua user couldn't even look up to see his hated enemy. Rowan's hand reached for Elias to grab him by the collar...

A blinding light came from the cathedral, engulfing the whole building. Rowan instinctively let go of Elias and stared at the shining cathedral. The light felt suffocating. It gave off the same feeling as Ma'at's blessing. This light wasn't as strong as the blessing, but it wasn't any less unpleasant and the power not to be underestimated.

"What's that light?" Rowan wished to know what was inside but was hesitant at the same time because he knew that he wouldn't emerge unharmed should he make a contact with it.

Rowan didn't get to take another step closer to the cathedral as someone burst out from the cathedral's door and gave him a powerful kick on his chest, getting wind and blood out of Rowan, skidding him back, away from Elias and Artemis.

"Urgh...!" Rowan held his chest that got kicked. He turned to his assailant and was shocked to see Ifrit standing in front of him.

"You're...!"

INNER CORE – DUEL MONSTER REALM – DIMENSION PULSE

Sho led Yuri to a valley filled with various flowers. The valley is a large, serene area with elevated trails and clean air, seemingly untouched by humanity. From the flowers blooming in the valley, Yuri found further proof that this place was separate from the human realm. The flowers were of different kinds and in the human realm it wouldn't be possible to bloom at the same time as they could only bloom in separate seasons. To see them blooming together was something beyond the words beautiful could ever describe it.

"Yuri!"

Yuri turned to the side and saw Yuya running towards him together with his Kuriboh. And when he realized it, Sho was already gone, leaving him only with Winged Kuriboh by his side.

"Yuya? Where have you been?" Yuri asked.

"I was looking for you and then Kuribohder led me here. Where have you been?" Yuya asked back.

Yuri didn't know what to say. He wasn't sure to share his conversation with Leo and Sho. He also wondered if before coming here, Yuya also met people who were supposed to have died like he did. There must be a meaning to why they were led to this place.

"Kuri! Kuri!"

Both Kuribohder and Winged Kuriboh tugged on their respective master's sleeve while pointing at a pathway in front of them.

Beyond the pathway was a massive structure which soared over a kilometer above the surrounding cave like a fortress. Surrounding the tallest tower's finned peak were four shorter towers located on the ordinal-oriented sides of the complex with dragon statues on top of each tower.


NEXT CHAPTER PREVIEW:

Trial of Dragons – Yuya and Yuri enter the sanctuary of the dragons and meet a fragment materialized from the memories within the core of the Dimension Pulse. Yuya and Yuri are then instructed to take a certain trial.


How is it for the first chapter after three years? I'm sorry if I made a lot of mistakes here and there. I'll do my best to write better next time.

Actually, I'm looking for someone willing to help me check the Duels. If you have someone to recommend or wish to help me to write Duels, I would very much appreciate it.

Thank you for reading this chapter!