Response to Reviews

Thank you to Donkeyboy100, Pikachu99, KingOtakuOverYou, HunterHQ, Unnamed, Ambiguous, Naruto1999, Kingdom Hearts Guy, Noobmaster, Cosmic Cat, Malcolm, Cyber Warrior, Unknown, Badass Infearno, Pancakes, Magic Dragon, Anonymous, Guest, Nameless, T.V. 2000, and Guest for reviewing Chapter 81 of Obscured Truth.

Hey there, everyone! As always, I hope you're doing well, and are safe wherever you are in the world. Judging by your reviews, I can see that you guys really enjoyed the chapter. But before I respond to reviews, I just want to point something out here: My goal was not to start a debate on selfishness. I'm no philosopher at all, and everyone has a right to their own opinions, which is something I respect one hundred percent. Still, hearing your thoughts on selfishness was interesting to learn about, and I'll do my best to respond in an ethical and efficient manner.

So without further ado, I will go to answering reviews:

Donkeyboy100: No problem. It's only fair to give credit where it's due. That being said, I do hope you enjoy the chapters moving forward.

Pikachu99: It's been a while since I heard from you. I'm glad you liked Gil in the chapter.

KingOtakuOverYou: Yeah, Gil needed to give Raguel that thrashing, as he wanted to see whether the latter was truly a faker or not. Gil isn't looking for a relationship of parasitism and dependency at all. That's just dark, if you ask me. On the topic of Gil, well, I think you'll like the path I intend to put him on moving forward. He is an anti-hero after all.

HunterHQ: In all honesty, Gil didn't need Judgment Arrows. He won with his own strength. Now, now. Two of the newly revealed cards were used in the previous chapter. Jericho needs the Ignis data for his plan. He doesn't care if they're intact or not. Yeah, Aoi needs further development moving forward. The Hanoi don't know about Myojin and Urizen's details, nor do they know about Yukage's identity. Azrael and Wraith learned about Watchman by digging into numerous sources. If Bohman and Lightning had such a program, it would have been game over for the heroes. Indeed, Emon has the stealth suit that he can use. Go, Stealth Suits! Yuhiro worked with the Rickety Raiders a long time ago to steal data eggs for a client who needed them. It was just a one time task, and they were paid for it quite handsomely, if I may add. In Raguel's defense, his Link 3 monsters are very strong. Yes. Lightning made the data clones of Azrael, Wraith, and Malf so he can expose them on his side. However, he wasn't expecting the real versions to listen in on the conversation when he reveals his plans for the war. You'll find out the answer to what Blood Shepherd got from the portal in this chapter. In all honesty, Gil didn't know the truth about what Yuhiro was going through. Thus, he was stepping on a landmine, and didn't know about it at the time. If Gil knew the truth, he would have done the same thing. Well, Gil stands for his own self-benefit. Though he does have an open mind, and who knows? He may change for the better, despite being an anti-hero. If Aoi saw all of what happened in Chapter 81, she'd be furious. Uh, Slipstream is selfish, if you count his desire to get revenge on Windy.

Unnamed: At the moment, Arashi's duel disk doesn't have an AI. And why would he re-engineer an Echo? Well, Gil's place is damaged, but it's still intact surprisingly. Through a ton of searching and IOU's from people he worked with in the past, Gil got the information needed. The reason Gil did what he did was so Raguel would be convinced to unleash his power. To put it simply, Gil hates weakness, and wanted to smash it out of Raguel at all costs. Sorry, how in the world is Zahhak selfish? To be honest with you, Gil does care for humanity, though only because he needs mankind to survive if his business is to survive. I think you'll like the direction I intend to take Gil in moving forward.

Ambiguous: For Chapter 85, it was a play on words. It was not only a reference to the movie, but also a point to make, where bonds between siblings will always survive beyond time. Yuhiro will not do any time travelling in the story. My goal for the chapter is to show how bonds are shown, as well as how they're kept no matter what's in their way. Sharpshot and Chainslaver were not at Uchida Industries when it blew up. Yes, Drachen, Lord Kazuma, and Dancho are at the Hanoi's safehouses. Excuse me, Gil's OC cards were not Deus Ex Machina related. The second part of Neo Storm Access is a great example of Deus Ex Machina.

Naruto1999: Dude, I know exactly what selfishness is. You don't have to remind me. Sorry to hear that you lost your desire to eat Miso Ramen. Maybe Mapo Tofu instead, like back in Chapter 72?

Kingdom Hearts Guy: Of course it's something else.

Noobmaster: Oh, yes. Azrael still is linked into Frog and Pigeon's servers. So he knows about the alliance between the Hanoi and Playmaker's side. And Wraith still wiretapped Ai, though it stops working every now and then. Unfortunately, Greg didn't know the whereabouts of Gil following Project: Apotheosis. He assumed that Gil was going to be sent to a place where he'll eventually get adopted. Athaliah told Gil that his dad sold him to her to his face. Gil won't sell his Bit and Boot, as they're his personal AI servants. Yes, Watchman saw the envoys kill Yuhiro and Yukage's parents. You'll see whether Revolver reaches out to the other Lost Incident children. Don't worry about Gil. Even he knows how to be healthy.

Cosmic Cat: Beyond happy that you enjoyed the chapter. Gil actually had good intentions in terms of trying to make Raguel let go of his restraints. It's just the way he did it was twisted. As a result of what happened to Gil in the past, his beliefs are only centered around self-benefit.

Malcolm: Uh, I don't know what to say in response to that.

Cyber Warrior: Why would I include Faker in Raguel's profile? And the Season 3 enemies aren't going to call him that.

Unknown: You never know what will happen in the future, and like I said above, I think you'll like the direction I intend to take Gil in moving forward. Yeah, that's something Revolver may say to Gil. Yeah, if Revolver actually dueled in his 'duel' against Soulburner, he would have obviously won.

Badass Infearno: Glad you liked the chapter.

Pancakes: Thank you very much for the warning. I will never watch that anime in my life. It's pathetic, and as you said, the fandom is very toxic. So I will avoid that anime at all costs. As for your skit, it's not the best one.

Magic Dragon: High-sounding words? Are you referring to all-cap letters?

Anonymous: Yuhiro's good and fine, so rest assured. Though he is tired, so he'll have to get rest for Mirror LINK VRAINS. To be honest, Yuhiro's been real with himself ever since the beginning of Season 2, where he began to truly grow as his own individual. And Leshawna is the therapist Yuhiro went to see, not Aithne. She runs a bar, Eloise is a DJ, and Brea's attending school. In Gil's defense, he has been traumatized due to his father's betrayal, and is afraid that if he starts being vulnerable, he'll be betrayed again. So he puts up a mask to keep himself from falling apart.

Guest: No. None of the characters plan on going to church any time soon.

Nameless: Yeah, one of the scientists was in hiding, and trying to find the pieces so he can give them to the Hanoi. Revolver actually warned Frog and Pigeon that should they have any funny ideas on what they heard, he'll ensure that their business gets shut down for good. Honestly, Gil didn't think of the consequences of his actions through. He was just tired of Raguel showing weakness, and wanted to draw out his ruthless side after learning about how he punished Ace.

T.V. 2000: Glad you liked the duel and end result. I encourage you to ask questions, as it helps people learn and understand things. As for your question on the unholy trinity, well, all I'll say is for you to keep reading. For they may appear sooner than you think.

Guest: Lord Garmadon fired people out of his volcano. Literally. In Season 2 of Ninjago, he threw four Serpentine members off the Black Bounty for suggesting horrible ideas. Ex. More pirates, recreating the devourer, and the giant ham sandwich. That, to me, was funny. Honestly, Ninjago is one of my favourite shows to this day.

Now that all reviews have been answered, let's go onward to the chapter. I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 82: Lessons in Self-Confidence

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.

At SOL Technologies...

"Forgive me sirs, but I wasn't expecting a call at this hour." Akira apologized to both Knight and Bishop. The office he was in turned into a section of a restaurant Akira recognized. Knight was sitting on one chair in front of a table, which had a Filet Mignon and a drink on it. Bishop sat in a different chair at a different table, a small appetizer on the side, along with a chessboard.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures." Bishop pointed out. "And there's no need to be surprised, Zaizen. I'd be surprised too if I were in your shoes."

"I see." Akira nodded. Compared to Queen, Bishop and Knight were far nicer, if not a bit better than Pawn. Due to recent events, Pawn had to meet up with business partners and reassure them of SOL Technologies' capacities as a business, as well as placate their concerns in the process. As such, Akira was assigned to collaborate with Bishop and Knight in settling things down. "If I may ask, what happened to Queen?"

Knight smirked upon hearing the question. "The Kings sentenced her to probation following what happened with Go Onizuka. A shame what happened to him. Even with the Kings' warning, Queen still pursued her self-ambitions, which cost her a lot as a result."

"It most certainly did." Bishop agreed, before turning to Akira. "Tell me, Zaizen. When compared to cooking, do you think duelling can be a form of art?"

Akira thought this over. He had never been asked that question before. Then again, Akira heard about Bishop's likes and dislikes from the employees that worked under him, as well as the frustration that may come up should Bishop end up getting angered. So Akira thought about Bishop's question very thoroughly, wanting to come up with an answer that would please the latter. He spoke after gathering his thoughts. "I guess dueling can be considered an art... to an extent."

"Oh?" Bishop raised an eyebrow. "Clarify what you mean."

"When it comes to cooking, you need different ingredients to prepare the meal. When it comes to duel monsters, it's all about building your strategies, and ensuring that your opponent can't counter them in the end. Each card of the deck contains a piece of that strategy to form the overall canvas, and you eventually complete it after getting through interruptions that may arise." Akira thoroughly explained.

"What a fascinating answer, Zaizen. This is why you're among the most efficient of SOL Technologies' employees." Bishop commented.

"Is that so?" Akira muttered. He was recognized for the work he inputted in the years, not for one answer. He snapped out of his thoughts, knowing that they had to get through a meeting. "What exactly did you call me here for, sirs?"

"A few things." Knight replied. "First and foremost, the Kings have heard your concerns about the coming attack. Judging from what happened, they have agreed with your proposal, and want you to install the security update immediately."

"Thank you, sirs. I will get started on that right away." Akira said back. He was happy that the higherups were now focusing on the well-being of the company instead of the Ignis. After all, if a company wished to continue running its operations, it had to do damage control and rectify any problems present. That way, the company's partners would be assured on how its capabilities on an ethical standard, and agree to continue doing business with them. "Do you require anything else?"

"Actually, yes." Bishop confirmed, having pressed a few buttons on his tablet. Soon, a screen popped up, which showed footage of a small amount of military troops having been stationed in Den City, much to Akira's surprise. Bishop then pressed another button, causing the footage to transform into Balius at a press conference.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and I apologize for this urgent broadcast." Balius began speaking. "My name is Balius, and I am the ruler of Central Japan. Due to recent events and civil unrest, I have deployed a small squad of my troops to maintain order in Den City. Fear not, ladies and gentlemen. If everyone complies to the coming mandates, my men will leave Den City in about two weeks time. Failure to comply, and severe penalties will be issued."

"You called in assistance from Balius?!" Akira exclaimed, surprise evident in his tone.

"Given recent events, the FBI and our own authorities aren't enough to manage order." Knight began explaining. "So we called in some backup from Balius. Surely, you understand, yes?"

Akira nodded, having understood what Knight meant. Yet, a part of Akira was surprised. SOL Technologies was in collaboration with Balius and Central Japan? When did that start? And why did the company forge a business partnership with Balius in the first place? Wasn't SOL Technologies aware of what Balius did? This was extremely odd, and Akira made a mental note to investigate this further.

"Since you're someone the people trust, we want you to spearhead this initiative. Convince the people to cooperate with the authorities, and that things will be okay. The people will certainly heed your words, considering your good works in the past." Bishop stated.

"And if the people hate me for it?"

Bishop sighed. "Well, that is a risk you'll have to take. The Kings actually issued this order to Pawn, for one way or another, order must be maintained. The last thing anyone needs right now is martial law, which will have more long-term consequences for everyone should it come up."

"I... I will get started on that as well, sirs." Akira complied.

"Good. You are dismissed." Knight replied, before he and Bishop vanished along with the restaurant. Once that was done, Akira sighed to himself. Just when things started to become better, something worse had to come up. It was almost like an out of the frying pan and into the fire scenario. Then again, it could have been much worse.

He left the room and started walking back to his office. Once Akira went inside, he pulled out his phone and dialled a number. After a few rings, a person on the end answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Greg. I wanted to inform you of some information I learned." Akira said back. He told Greg about how SOL Technologies requested help from Balius, who was Central Japan's ruler. Akira also told Greg how the former was to support this initiative, which was something he didn't want to do. Next, Akira mentioned his suspicions on Balius, and why SOL Technologies partnered with him in the first place despite knowing what he did. In addition, he told Greg about the security update, as well as the coming war.

"Most troubling indeed. Though I'm glad you didn't call them in, despite being in charge of security and all." Greg commented.

"I have faith in the authorities here in Den City to calm things down." Akira stated. "Though the stuff about SOL Technologies partnering with Balius to bring order troubles me."

"It certainly does." Greg agreed. "I'll look more into this matter for you. In the meanwhile, as much as I hate saying this, you should play along until we gather more evidence of this matter."

Akira rolled his eyes. He did not want to play along with the initiative due to his suspicions on the matter. Then again, Akira didn't want to do anything suspicious that would give SOL Technologies a reason to fire him, or even worse if you believed the rumours about the Kings. According to one employee, the Kings actually intended on killing Queen, and had it not been for Bishop and Knight, she would have lost her life. Due to the advice the duo provided, it led the Kings to sentence her to probation instead. At least until this entire mess was cleaned up. "Alright. I'll do my best."

"Excellent. I'll update you once I find something." With that, Greg hung up, causing Akira to sigh afterwards. This… was going to be tricky, that's for sure. Perhaps focusing on his other task would help clear his mind.

So Akira walked out of his office and headed towards SOL Technologies' security operations center. There, he found Hayami, along with several analysts working.

"Mr. Zaizen. I wasn't expecting you at this time of the night." Hayami greeted Akira, surprise in the former's tone.

"It's only 9:30 pm, Hayami." Akira pointed out. "I can afford to work overtime a bit." He then proceeded to tell Hayami and the analysts present about the security update the Kings requested to implement into the systems after expressing his concerns on the coming war.

"Wow, Mr. Zaizen. I didn't expect the Kings to agree with your idea." Hayami admitted.

"When things are going bad as they are right now, you'd be surprised how cooperative people can be." Akira replied. "We must prepare countermeasures against the unexpected." He narrowed his eyes as he recalled his meeting with Playmaker, where the latter warned him about the Light Ignis's war on humanity.

If what Playmaker said is true, a huge calamity will occur in LINK VRAINS soon. One that's worse than the Tower of Hanoi. As to what shape this calamity will take, I must prepare for the worst, Akira thought in his mind. He will ensure that the network and Den City is protected in the name of the people who reside in them, which is something he'll do no matter what it takes.

Elsewhere, at Emma's apartment...

"If I'm being honest, having a roommate was the last thing I expected during these turbulent times." Emma admitted, having resumed typing on her laptop so she can complete her part in turning the Tower of Hanoi into a scanner.

"I hope I'm not being an inconvenience. I mean, with current events, I didn't want to risk anything and get Akira in a worse situation than he already is in." Aoi commented.

"That's certainly logical, Aoi. We don't want to get Akira to deal with more than he already has right now." Aqua agreed.

After the meeting with Revolver, Aoi asked Emma if she could move in with her temporarily. At least until the Ignis War was dealt with. Emma was surprised at hearing this, but agreed with the request after listening to Aoi's reasons. First being concern for Akira. As Aoi said, she didn't want to put Akira in a worse situation than he already was in right now. The second was that Aoi needed to leave and figure things out for herself. This made sense, for Aoi wanted to determine who she was as both a duelist and an individual. So some time away from Akira would help with that.

"Well, if one good thing came out of this arrangement, it's that you have more friends than you can count, don't you agree?" Emma said. "I mean, you were lonely once, but now you're more social and all that jazz."

"More friends than I can count?" Aoi repeated, before she put two and two together, having given Emma an unimpressed glare. "Oh..." On Aoi's left side was a little girl in a white dress with long white hair, and the Marincess emblem on her forehead. And on Aoi's right side was a little girl wearing a blue dress that had yellow dots, along with dark-blue and purple hair with yellow highlights. According to Aqua, those two monsters were named Sea Angel and Blue Slug.

Nearby was a young woman with orange hair who wore a white and pink dress with yellow frills resembling that of a jellyfish over purple tights. She was looking out the window, a frown evident on her face. According to Aqua, her name was Coral Anemone.

Apparently, Aqua had the idea of giving the duel monsters she made sentience, and was inspired by both Ai and Herald do so. When Aoi questioned why Aqua did this, the latter explained that all things have a voice. Whether it was humans, the creatures, mother nature, or something else, communication was important. For without a voice, you were robbed of an important right.

"Come on, Aoi! I want to play that game again!" Blue Slug begged Aoi.

"You had your turn, Blue Slug! It's my turn to play with Aoi!" Sea Angel retorted. "And I want cuddles!"

"I gave you cuddles two minutes ago, Sea Angel." Aoi reminded Sea Angel. "Now it's Blue Slug's turn. What was the game again, Blue Slug?"

"Rock, Paper, Scissors!" Blue Slug replied, which made Aoi roll her eyes. Of course it was that game. It was simple, quick, and straight to the point.

Aoi sighed. "Alright. Let's do it." That made Blue Slug smile, while Sea Angel pouted in response.

"Rock!"

Aoi and Blue Slug brought their right hands forward, then retracted them.

"Paper!" The duo repeated the action. "Scissors!" Another repetition. "Shoot!" The duo held out their hands. Both of them chose paper.

"Aw man. A tie." Blue Slug grunted.

"You know the rules, Blue Slug. Go again." Aoi said simply.

Aqua watched in amusement as Aoi and Blue Slug played a hand game. She turned to Sea Angel, who still had a pouted look on her face. Jealously was evident on Sea Angel's face, as she wanted more cuddles. "You'll get your turn if you're patient."

"Patience sucks." Sea Angel commented back.

"Rock! Paper! Scissors! Shoot!" Aoi and Blue Slug said at the same time. This time, one was rock, and the other was paper.

"Yay! Paper covers rock! I win!" Blue Slug cheered.

"You're certainly mastering the game, Blue Slug." Aoi muttered. She wondered what other games Blue Slug wanted to play. For all the Marincess monsters were curious about humans, and interacting with them would give each one an idea on what they were like.

"Is it my turn now?" Sea Angel asked.

"Yes. It's your turn now." Aoi confirmed, as Sea Angel quickly placed her head on the former's chest. Aoi then wrapped her arms around Sea Angel as she relaxed. In all honesty, this was nice. Seeing Sea Angel sleeping relaxed her. In fact, if Yusaku noticed Aoi's feelings towards him, then maybe she can give him this type of hug for comfort, and... Aoi's face then turned red out of embarrassment. Wait! Wait! Wait! What?! Why was Aoi thinking about Yusaku at a time like this?! It so wasn't the time right now!

"Like I said before. Just ill." Blue Slug said, with Sea Angel giving a smirk back in response. Rolling her eyes, Blue Slug got off the couch and began running around the apartment, wanting to see what was there.

"Okay, okay. That's enough, Blue Slug." Coral Anemone told Blue Slug, having gone over to where the latter was, which was at the kitchen. As evident on Coral Anemone's face, she was obviously impatient, having had enough with Sea Angel and Blue Slug's shenanigans.

"Aw come on, Coral Anemone! I wanted to know what food is! And maybe play around with some stuff!" Blue Slug complained.

"Listen to your sister, Blue Slug," a voice said in support to Coral Anemone's point. Soon, a woman in a red dress with spiky violet hair entered into the main area from the apartment. Spiked coral sat atop her shoulders, and fins adorned the sides of her dress. While she carried fan-like weapons in her hands, they weren't there.

"Alright, Marbled Rock. I'll stop." Blue Slug pouted back in compliance to Marbled Rock's wishes. Being one of the mature sisters, Marbled Rock's role was to help ensure that her younger siblings were kept in line.

"Thank you." Marbled Rock turned to Coral Anemone. "I didn't expect you to pitch in and help keep our little sisters in line."

Coral Anemone rolled her eyes, a small blush on her face. "Hey. I can only be patient for so long. It's no big deal or anything."

"Pardon me for interrupting your little conversation, ladies, but can sentient Cyberse creatures even eat food in the first place?" Emma wondered, having turned her head to see what was going on.

"Progleo...I mean, Rasterliger can eat food, so yes." Aoi answered, having met Yuhiro's dog multiple times. She still couldn't believe that Progleo had grown up into Rasterliger after seeing him in quite a while.

A smirk appeared on Emma's face. "You know, I have this rather intriguing idea, Aoi."

"And what would that be?" Aoi narrowed her eyes, unsure of what Emma would say next.

"Maybe you and your duel monsters can join together to become an idol band." Emma suggested.

"What's an idol band?" Blue Slug asked Coral Anemone and Marbled Rock, with Sea Angel waking up from her nap.

"Huh? What's everyone talking about?" Sea Angel inquired.

"Other ideas you can do include forming a girl gang like the Birds of Prey, launching a hostess club, or a maid café..." Emma listed out each idea, which caused Aoi, Aqua, Coral Anemone, and Marbled Rock to gasp out of shock.

"WHAT?!" everyone else in the room exclaimed. Within seconds, Coral Anemone and Marbled Rock ran over to where Emma was before pummeling her.

"Don't you dare mention those ideas again!" Coral Anemone demanded.

"Sea Angel and Blue Slug are innocent little girls! How dare you suggest those ideas!" Marbled Rock furiously added, the two of them in the process of pummeling Emma. Aoi, Aqua, Sea Angel, and Blue Slug watched the scene with blank expressions on their faces.

"Um, what exactly is a hostess-?" Sea Angel began speaking, only for Aoi to quickly cover the former's ears.

"You don't need to know about that! You don't need to know about that!" Aoi repeated to Sea Angel, now afraid for her sake.

"Let her ask, Aoi." Blue Slug told Aoi.

"No, no, no! There are things in this world you don't need to know about, Blue Slug! That, I will tell you!" Aqua firmly stated.

"Alright, alright." Blue Slug complied.

"And don't look into Emma's ideas either." Aoi panickily requested to both Blue Slug and Sea Angel, the both of them nodding in understanding, much to Aoi and Aqua's relief.

Before anyone can say anything else, Emma's laptop beeped, which indicated that it received a notification.

"Hey, check this out." Emma said, as Aoi got up from her seat on the couch before walking over to where the former was. Looking at the laptop, both woman saw what looked like a message.

From: Blood Shepherd

To: Ghost Girl

Subject: Emergency

If you're getting this, Emma, it means that I'm incapacitated for the time being. I set this contingency up to be sent to you should I not update it within forty-eight hours, but judging on what happened, it's clear that I need your help. Allow me to explain what I mean below:

During the Turf War, I encountered the AI known as Malf following my duel against Speckles. Before I could make a move, he grabbed Speckles and escaped in a portal. When I looked into what transpired, I saw pieces of Malf being left behind. Whether this was unintentional or not, I'm not sure, but I saw an opportunity to destroy Malf once and for all. Unfortunately, due to the hunt on the Ignis, I never had the chance to finish this virus bomb to eradicate Malf for good. I trust that you will finish this in my stead, and avenge my defeat.

Your brother,

Kengo.

Emma couldn't help but notice the tears falling down her cheeks after reading this message.

"Wow..." Aoi muttered. "Even after losing against Lightning, he had a contingency in place should something like this happen." She turned to Emma. "You okay?"

"Y-Yeah." Emma assured Aoi, having wiped the tears off her cheeks with her right forearm. "Even though Blood Shepherd was ruthless, he cared about my wellbeing in his own way." That was true. Despite Kengo's selfish goals, he didn't want Emma to get involved in his mess. That's why he specifically asked her to stay out of his way. For Kengo didn't want Emma as his enemy.

"This virus bomb... You think it can actually destroy Malf?" Aoi inquired.

"Maybe. Maybe not. Though it wouldn't hurt finishing what Blood Shepherd started." Emma responded, a firm look on her face as she resumed typing on her laptop. Once Emma was done completing her part of the Tower of Hanoi, she'd finish Kengo's virus bomb to use against Malf.

Seconds later, a screen popped up, a phone on it. After pressing the phone symbol, a window then opened up to show Roxy, much to Emma and Aoi's surprise.

"Hey, guys!" Roxy greeted Emma and Aoi.

"I wasn't expecting you to call us." Emma admitted. "I'm assuming you're here to check in on progress on my part so I don't slack off?"

"You know me. I just want to make sure everyone is close to completing their assigned parts." Roxy answered. "Anyhow, Yuhiro, Slipstream, and I are finished with our piece."

"What about Playmaker's side?" Aoi asked Roxy.

"They're done as well, and are resting for tomorrow's battle." Roxy confirmed, before she noticed the other people around Emma and Aoi. "Hang on a minute. Are those sentient Cyberse creatures?"

"Yup. All made by me." Aqua answered. "What Herald and Ai did served as inspiration for me to do so."

"Really, Aqua? Ai of all people? I get Herald, but Ai?" Emma inquired, having turned to face her.

"I wouldn't recommend underestimating someone just because of their quirks, Emma. You never know what they have to show." Aoi pointed out.

"Despite being lazy, Ai does have some better traits." Aqua remembered in her mind.

"Moving the conversation about Ai to the side, is there anything else you want to tell us, Roxy?" Emma asked.

"Playmaker got a message from Revolver. He said that we're to meet him at the Tower of Hanoi tomorrow afternoon." Roxy reported. "Should be enough time to get energized and ready for the fight."

"That sounds fair." Emma nodded her head back at the screen. "I'm not at by best if I don't get my beauty's sleep."

"Yeah. I suppose so." Aoi agreed, having been distracted by her thoughts. It looked like she was upset, or at least uncertain about something.

Roxy frowned after looking at Aoi's facial expression. Apparently, something wasn't right with her. "Alright. Glad we got things settled. Have a good night." The screen then closed, indicating that the call was over.

"Well, that was good and all." Emma commented, having turned to Aoi. "You should get some rest. I'll finish things up first before calling it a night."

"Y-Yeah, I'll do that." Aoi replied, having snapped out of her thoughts. The other Marincess monsters then turned into particles as they went into Aoi's duel disk. Once that was done, she went over to the cupboard and grabbed a blanket and pillow before placing them on the couch.

"You look sad, Aoi. Is everything alright?" Aqua questioned.

"Of course I'm fine, Aqua. Just tired, that's all." Aoi firmly replied, much to Aqua's worry. Before Aoi can say anything more, her phone vibrated, causing her to take it out of her pocket as she looked at it.

We need to talk. Meet me at the coordinates below.

Roxy.

K3920bmepdswlpfe345

"Hey. Those are coordinates." Aqua observed.

"Yeah. It seems Roxy wants to talk to us in the network." Aoi figured out.

"Just a heads-up, if Roxy duels you, then be careful. When I dueled her, she was quite vicious, especially with that deck of hers." Emma warned Aoi.

Whatever reason Roxy wants to speak to me, I won't be able to find out until I log into the network, Aoi thought in her mind. "Aqua, send Roxy a message. Let her know we're on our way."

"I already did." Aqua responded.

Aoi then proceeded to log into the network with the coordinates provided, intent on meeting up with Roxy, as per the latter's request.

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

Blue Maiden logged into the server the coordinates directed her to, and upon entry, she was amazed at the area she was in. The ground was covered with lush-green grass. The server had a dark-lit sky, with bright stars lighting it up. There were six areas in the server, which was divided evenly based on each Ignis's attribute. At the center was World Gears of Theurlogical Demiurgy, powering the entire server. Not only were data storms present throughout the server, Cyberse creatures of different types and sizes roamed the land.

"This looks... just like the Cyberse World." Aqua recognized, before her head turned over to World Gears. "And there's World Gears! I thought it was destroyed for good!"

"What exactly is World Gears, Aqua?" Blue Maiden asked, as she began walking through the area and looking at it.

"World Gears was the central core of the Cyberse World. The one who kept it running." Aqua explained. "It warms my heart to see it still alive after all this time."

"Glad you guys like it," a voice commented, causing Blue Maiden and Aqua to turn over to the individual ahead of them. The individual wore a black and white collared shirt and skirt, which was underneath a black coat with gold highlights that is open at the lower front. The coat had white cuffs and frills at the ends of the sleeves and white skull emblems on the upper arms. She wore a pale-yellow ribbon with a green gem-clip, and a brown waistcoat underneath. Last but not least, Angelica wore typical pirate boots. While her black, curly hair retained its color, her eye color changed to brown.

"R-Roxy? Is that-?" Blue Maiden began speaking.

"I'm known as Angelica in the network, Blue Maiden. The leader of the Rickety Raiders." Angelica clarified. "We need to talk."

"Well, I'm here, just as you wanted. What do you want?" Blue Maiden crossed her arms.

"Blue Maiden, are you having doubts about yourself?"

That question made Blue Maiden widen her eyes upon hearing it. After agreeing to partner with Aqua, Blue Maiden felt her resolve growing stronger. However, there was a voice inside her head that whispered pieces of doubt. Those pieces made Blue Maiden see herself as a substitute for Miyu due to what happened to her. What's more, Blue Maiden was unsure about her partnership with Aqua moving forward. Well, Aqua was obviously going to eventually leave at some point, but once Miyu wakes up, there was a question on Blue Maiden's mind: Would Aqua go to Miyu, or would she stay with Blue Maiden? "H-H-How do you-?"

"When you live and interact with multiple types of people as long as I have, you can make an accurate guess on what someone's going through just by looking at someone's facial expression." Angelica answered. "And judging from your facial expression, it seems I'm right."

Blue Maiden narrowed her eyes back at Angelica. "So what? Let's say you're right. Are you here to point out my doubts or something? Make me feel worse than I already am right now?"

"I highly doubt that's the case, Blue Maiden." Aqua told Blue Maiden.

"What? No. No. No. I'm not here for that at all." Angelica assured Blue Maiden. "Look. I want to help you get past your doubts and prepare you for what's to come."

"And how do you suggest we do that?" Blue Maiden asked.

"Simple. A duel." Angelica activated her duel disk. "What do you say, Blue Maiden? You in?"

Blue Maiden thought this over. Sometimes, words weren't enough to communicate with someone. Sometimes, it required something else for a message to be passed along to someone else.

"Look. I'm not even sure a duel will help get the main point across." Angelica sighed. "Again, I just want to help you overcome your doubts and-."

"I accept." Blue Maiden decided, much to Angelica's surprise and delight.

"You sure about this, Blue Maiden?" Aqua asked. "I'll support whatever decision you make."

"This is a good opportunity to see if I've truly mastered the deck you gave me, Aqua." Blue Maiden answered. "As well as see whether I can truly stand with the others for the coming war." She activated her duel disk, ready for the duel to come.

"Then let's begin, Blue Maiden." Angelica said. "Let me see the fruits of your training."

"You'll certainly see it, Angelica." Blue Maiden replied.

"Let's duel!" Angelica and Blue Maiden shouted in unison.

Angelica: 4000 LP

Blue Maiden: 4000 LP

"Since I'm hosting this duel, it's only fair I set the stage." Angelica said, with Blue Maiden nodding in agreement. It was a good idea, as Blue Maiden can see what deck Angelica wielded. Plus, it was Blue Maiden's first time in using the 'Marincess' deck in a duel, so this will certainly be good practice for the coming war. "My turn! I activate the Spell card, Card Destruction. The both of us must send our entire hand to our Graveyards and draw cards equal to the number of cards sent to the Graveyard by this effect." Angelica and Blue Maiden sent all the cards from their respective hands before drawing the top four cards of their respective decks.

"The effects of Bluebeard, the Plunder Patroll Shipwright and Whitebeard, the Plunder Patroll Helm activate. First, when Bluebeard's sent from my hand or Monster Zone to my Graveyard, I can discard one card from my hand to draw one card from the top of my deck. I send Plunder Patroll Shipshape Ships Shipping from my hand to my Graveyard, and draw!" After Angelica sent a card from her hand to her Graveyard, she drew the top card of her deck.

"Second, when Whitebeard is sent from the hand or field to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon one 'Plunder Patroll' monster from my deck. Emerge from my deck, Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey!" Angelica announced, as a green troll with wearing more sophisticated pirate clothing leapt onto Angelica's field. He wore a small red cap on the top of his head, and his face consisted of red sideburns and a goatee. Strapped to his side was a swashbuckling sword.

Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"I activate the effect of Goldenhair, the Newest Plunder Patroll in my Graveyard. By discarding one card from my hand, I can Special Summon her from my Graveyard to my field. I send Plunder Patroll Parrrty from my hand to my Graveyard!" After Angelica sent a card from her hand to her Graveyard, a green troll with golden-blond hair and a headband with two bunny ears on the side appeared on Angelica's field. She wore a dark-ragged brown and white pirate dress that had a bow at the center. In her right hand, she carried a pirate sword.

Goldenhair, the Newest Plunder Patroll ATK: 0 DEF: 2000 LV: 4

"In addition, I activate the Spell card, Salvage." Angelica stated. "This card lets me target two Water monsters whose attack points are 1500 or less, and add them to my hand. I target and add Whitebeard and Bluebeard from my Graveyard to my hand." Two cards popped out of Angelica's deck, which she took and added to her hand.

"I'll now swash up my circuit!" Angelica declared, as a Link Portal appeared above her. "The summoning conditions are two monsters, including a 'Plunder Patroll' monster. I set Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey and Goldenhair, the Newest Plunder Patroll into the Link Markers!" Redbeard went into the bottom-left arrowhead, while Goldenhair went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning them red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Blackbeard, the Plunder Patroll Captain!" A large green troll wearing an eyepatch covering his left eye with a large black beard appeared on Angelica's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. He wore a Viking helmet on his head, and a magnificent cape draped on his shoulders.

Blackbeard, the Plunder Patroll Captain ATK: 1600 LINK-2 ↙️↘️

"Redbeard's effect activates! Because I control a 'Plunder Patroll' monster, I can target it on my field and equip it with him. I target Blackbeard!" Angelica said, as Redbeard appeared in the Spell & Trap card zone, indicating that he was equipped with Blackbeard. "Next, I activate the effect of Blackeyes, the Plunder Patroll Seaguide from my hand. I can target one 'Plunder Patroll' monster in my Graveyard before Special Summoning this card from my hand, and by doing so, I can add that targeted monster from my Graveyard to my hand. I target Redbeard, and Special Summon Blackeyes from my hand to my field!" After a card popped out of Angelica's Graveyard, which she took and added to her hand, a black raven with golden elements all over its body flew onto her field.

Blackeyes, the Plunder Patroll Seaguide ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"I summon Whitebeard, the Plunder Patroll Helm." A green troll with bushy white hair jumped onto Angelica's field. He wore ragged pirate clothing all over his body, and a bronze visor covering his eyes.

Whitebeard, the Plunder Patroll Helm ATK: 1500 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"Bluebeard's effect! As I control a 'Plunder Patroll' monster other than this card, I can Special Summon him from my hand!" Angelica added, as a green troll wearing ragged pirate clothing appeared on her field. The only differences were that he wore a blue cap covering his neatly combed blue hair, and his beard was colored blue.

Bluebeard, the Plunder Patroll Shipwright ATK: 500 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"I'll now swash up my circuit for a second time!" Angelica stated, as a Link Portal appeared above her. "The summoning conditions are two monsters, including a 'Plunder Patroll' monster. I set the Link 2 Blackbeard, the Plunder Patroll Captain and Bluebeard, the Plunder Patroll Shipwright into the Link Markers!" Blackbeard went into the bottom-left and bottom arrowheads, while Bluebeard went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning them red.

"Strike dread into the hearts of your enemies across the seven seas! Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne!" A massive, three-masted frigate decorated in crimson-red and gold colors appeared on Angelica's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. It was adorned with grisly bones and skeletons throughout the ship, giving it a tough outer shell. A total of thirty cannons were spread out on both sides of the ship, making it formidable. Each of the sails were painted blood red, while the Jolly Roger flag at the top was coloured black with a skull's flames on it. At the back of the ship was a stained glass window, which depicted dead men writhing in flames.

Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne ATK: 2500 LINK-3 ↙️⬇️↘️

"When Queen Anne is Link Summoned using Blackbeard as Link Material, I can draw cards equal to the number of monsters it points to. Since Queen Anne is pointing to Blackeyes and Whitebeard, I can draw the top two cards of my deck." Angelica explained, as she drew the top two cards of her deck. "Next, I activate the effect of Plunder Patroll Shipshape Ships Shipping from my Graveyard. By banishing this card from my Graveyard, I can target one 'Plunder Patroll' monster on my field, and equip either one 'Plunder Patroll' monster or 'Emblem of the Plunder Patroll' from my deck onto that monster. I target Blackeyes, and equip a second copy of Redbeard from my deck to it!" A second copy of Redbeard appeared on Angelica's field in the Spell & Trap card zone, which was equipped to Blackeyes.

"I now tune the Level 4 Whitebeard, the Plunder Patroll Helm with the Level 4 Blackeyes, the Plunder Patroll Seaguide!" A bolt of green lightning struck Angelica as the world greyed out and her two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, one green, and one black appeared before turning blue and merging. Eight rings, stacked in a tower, appeared, a screen displaying "4 + 4" in front of them. The screen changed to "8" as light surged through the rings.

"Pirate ship embodying the powers of a goddess! Deploy, and lay waste to the enemy!" Angelica chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 8! Plunder Patrollship Jord!" A massive ship with three sails, two big ones coloured in red and white, and one small sail at the back coloured white appeared on Angelica's field in defense position in one of the three Main Monster Zones Queen Anne pointed to. On the sides, it had a paint job consisting of blue waves and a red X at the back. Each of the sides also had a total of three small shields coloured red, blue, and yellow. At the front of the ship was a large, spiked cannon.

Plunder Patrollship Jord ATK: 1500 DEF: 3000 LV: 8 Scale: 1

"Hang on a minute! That's a Synchro Pendulum monster!" Blue Maiden realized.

"I didn't expect this at all." Aqua admitted. In her and Blue Maiden's minds, Pendulum monsters were very rare after Link Summoning was introduced. That meant anyone who used them was able to catch someone off guard should it be used efficiently and with right timing.

"Then let's see if you can prepare yourself for what's coming next!" Angelica replied. "I activate Blackeyes' second effect! When it's sent to the Graveyard from my hand or from my Monster Zone, I can target one 'Plunder Patroll' monster in my Spell & Trap card zone, and Special Summon it to my field in defense position. I target the second copy of Redbeard in my Spell & Trap card zone!" As if on cue, Redbeard leapt onto Angelica's field in defense position.

Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

"I Set three cards face-down and end my turn." Angelica concluded. "Alright, Blue Maiden. You're up. Let me see how you've grown into the duelist and individual you are now!"

"Don't worry, Angelica. I won't disappoint you!" Blue Maiden promised. "My turn! I draw!" She drew the top card of her deck. "I activate the Spell card, Marincess Dive. This card lets me activate one of two effects. I choose effect one, which lets me target one non-Link 'Marincess' monster in my Graveyard, and Special Summon it to my field. I target Marincess Blue Tang in my Graveyard, and Special Summon her to my field!" A woman who wore a black vest over a blue dress, as well as had her long blue hair tied in a ponytail appeared on Blue Maiden's field.

Marincess Blue Tang ATK: 1500 DEF: 1200 LV: 4

"When Blue Tang is Normal or Special Summoned, I can send one 'Marincess' monster from my deck to my Graveyard. I send Marincess Sea Horse from my deck to my Graveyard." A card popped out of Blue Maiden's deck, which she took and sent to her Graveyard.

"Shine! The circuit of love, friendship, and bonds!" Blue Maiden said, as a Link Portal appeared above her. "The summoning conditions are one Level 4 or lower 'Marincess' monster. I set Marincess Blue Tang into the Link Markers!" Blue Tang went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Marincess Blue Slug!" A little girl wearing a blue dress that had yellow dots, along with dark-blue and purple hair with yellow highlights appeared on Blue Maiden's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.

Marincess Blue Slug ATK: 1500 LINK-1 ⬇️

"Okay! I'm gonna give it my best!" Blue Slug promised Blue Maiden and Aqua.

"Yes, you certainly will." Aqua encouraged Blue Slug, who waved hi back.

Again, this is gonna take a while to get used to, Blue Maiden thought in her mind. She snapped out of her thoughts, knowing that there was a duel to win. "The effects of Blue Slug and Blue Tang activate in sequence. First, when Blue Slug is Link Summoned, I can add one 'Marincess' monster from my Graveyard to my hand. I add Sea Horse right back to my hand." A card popped out of Blue Maiden's Graveyard, which she took and added to her hand.

"Second, when Blue Tang is sent to the Graveyard to Link Summon a Water Link monster, I can excavate the top three cards of my deck, and add one 'Marincess' card amongst the three to my hand, as well as shuffle the other two into my deck." Blue Maiden looked at the top three cards of her deck. "I add Marincess Wave to my hand." She took one card and added to her hand before shuffling the other two into her deck.

"I activate the effect of Marincess Sea Horse from my hand, which lets me Special Summon her to a Main Monster Zone a 'Marincess' Link monster on my field points to." Blue Maiden announced, as a girl wearing a pink and golden dress who had blond hair appeared on her field.

Marincess Sea Horse ATK: 1400 DEF: 1000 LV: 3

"Not so fast! I activate the Continuous-Trap cards, Plunder Patroll Deployment and Plunder Patroll Booty!" Angelica interrupted. "First, with Plunder Patrollship Deployment, when you Special Summon a monster to your field, I can Special Summon one 'Plunder Patroll' monster from my Extra Deck to my field, and equip it with this card. I Special Summon Plunder Patrollship Lys from my Extra Deck to my field!" A large pirate ship with two bows instead of one at the front, appeared on Angelica's field in defense position in the second Main Monster Zone Queen Anne pointed to. The ship had a large mast that was colored white and purple, with a smaller red and white sail in front of it. Two shields and five oars were on each side of the ship, as well as a set of cannons. Draped between the bows was a large pirate flag.

Plunder Patrollship Lys ATK: 2000 DEF: 2000 LV: 8

"Second, with Plunder Patroll Booty, I can declare one attribute, and upon doing so, I can target one face-up monster you control and have its attribute changed to the declared attribute until the end of the turn."

"What?" Blue Maiden gasped, with Aqua doing the same.

"I declare Fire, and change Blue Slug's attribute to that declared attribute!" Angelica said, as Blue Slug was surrounded in a fiery aura, which changed her attribute in the process.

Marincess Blue Slug Water - Fire

"In addition, I can also take one 'Plunder Patroll' monster from my Graveyard, and either shuffle it into my deck or Special Summon it to my field. I shuffle Blackeyes into my deck!" A card popped out of Angelica's deck, which she took and shuffled into her deck.

"Tch!" Blue Maiden gritted her teeth. This didn't look good, as her stronger 'Marincess' Link monsters needed Water monsters to be Link Summoned. What's more, Angelica brought out more monsters to her field.

"I activate Redbeard's first effect!" Angelica stated. "I can Special Summon one 'Plunder Patroll' monster from my Extra Deck whose attribute is the same as a monster you control or in your Graveyard before equipping it with him. As Blue Slug is a Fire attribute monster, I Special Summon the Fire attribute Plunder Patrollship Brann from my Extra Deck to my field!" A black and orange Viking ship appeared in the third of the three Main Monster Zones Queen Anne pointed to in defense position. On its sides were five different coloured shields, along with a set of oars. It had a red and white mast with a pirate's flag on top. At the front of the ship was a pirate cannon, with two bull horns on the sides.

Plunder Patrollship Brann ATK: 2500 DEF: 1000 LV: 8

A few seconds, Redbeard jumped onto the ship, indicating that it was equipped with the latter.

"Brann's effect! It gives all other Fiend monsters on my field 500 more attack points!" As if to prove her point, all of Angelica's monsters except for Brann glowed with energy.

Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000

Plunder Patrollship Jord ATK: 1500 + 500 = 2000

Plunder Patrollship Lys ATK: 2000 + 500 = 2500

"I'm not done yet! I activate Lys' effect!" Angelica added. "I can Special Summon one 'Plunder Patroll' monster from my Spell & Trap card zone to my field. Come to me once again, Redbeard!" Redbeard jumped off of Brann and reappeared on Angelica's field.

Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"Last but not least, I activate Queen Anne's effect. During either player's turn, I can tribute one 'Plunder Patroll' monster on my field, and have you discard cards up to the number of 'Plunder Patroll' monsters Queen Anne points to. Then Queen Anne gains 500 attack points for every card discarded by this effect. As Queen Anne points to three monsters, you must discard three cards, and Queen Anne gains a total of 1500 attack points!"

"What?!" Blue Maiden exclaimed, her eyes having widened upon hearing what Angelica just announced.

"I tribute Redbeard on my field." Angelica decided, as Redbeard turned to particles. "Now discard three cards from your hand, Blue Maiden!" Blue Maiden sent three cards from her hand in response.

Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne ATK: 3000 + (500 X 3) = 4500

"I told you that I'm not going to hold anything back. If you wish to defeat me, then you'll have to do it with your full strength!" Angelica told Blue Maiden. "The only question is: What will you do now, Blue Maiden?"

"Keep going, that's what!" Blue Maiden responded. "I activate the effect of Marincess Mandarin from my hand. Since I control two or more 'Marincess' monsters and this card is in my hand or Graveyard, I can Special Summon her to my field to a Main Monster Zone a 'Marincess' Link monster points to. However, it's banished once she leaves to the field." A pink-haired girl in an orange robe over a blue skirt appeared on Blue Maiden's field in the Main Monster Zone Blue Slug pointed to.

Marincess Mandarin ATK: 100 DEF: 100 LV: 1

"Shine for a second time! The circuit of love, friendship, and bonds!" A second Link Portal appeared above Blue Maiden. "The summoning conditions are two Water monsters. I set Marincess Sea Horse and Mandarin into the Link Markers!" Sea Horse went into the left arrowhead, while Mandarin went into the bottom arrowhead, turning both of them red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Marincess Coral Anemone!" A young woman with orange hair appeared on Blue Maiden's field in the Main Monster Zone Blue Slug pointed to. She wore a white and pink dress with yellow frills resembling that of a jellyfish over purple tights.

Marincess Coral Anemone ATK: 2000 LINK-2 ⬅️⬇️

"Alright! Don't worry, Blue Maiden! With my assistance, you'll win this duel!" Coral Anemone assured Blue Maiden.

"I activate Coral Anemone's effect. Once per turn, I can target one Water monster with 1500 or less attack points in my Graveyard, and Special Summon it to my field to a Main Monster Zone she points to." Blue Maiden continued. "I target and Special Summon Sea Horse back to my field." At Blue Maiden's command, Sea Horse reappeared on her field in the Main Monster Zone Coral Anemone pointed to.

Marincess Sea Horse ATK: 1400 DEF: 1000 LV: 3

"Shine for a third time! The circuit of love, friendship, and bonds!" A third Link Portal appeared above Blue Maiden. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Marincess' monsters. I set the Link 2 Marincess Coral Anemone, and Sea Horse into the Link Markers!" Coral Anemone went into the left and bottom arrowheads, while Sea Horse went into the right arrowhead, and Mandarin went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning all three of them red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Marincess Marbled Rock!" A woman in a red dress with spiky violet hair appeared on Blue Maiden's field in the Main Monster Zone Blue Slug pointed to. Spiked coral sat atop her shoulders, and fins adorned the sides of her dress. She also carried a fan-like weapon in each of her hands.

Marincess Marbled Rock ATK: 2500 LINK-3 ⬅️⬇️➡️

"I'm at your beck and call, Blue Maiden!" Marbled Rock said, ready for battle.

"Thanks, Marbled Rock." Blue Maiden replied, before turning back to Angelica. "Coral Anemone's effect! Since she was sent to my Graveyard, I can add a 'Marincess' card from my Graveyard to my hand. I add Marincess Sea Star from my Graveyard to my hand." A card popped out of Blue Maiden's deck, which she took and added to her hand.

"From there, I activate the Trap card, Marincess Wave from my hand."

"From your hand?" Angelica repeated out of confusion.

"As I control a Link 3 or higher 'Marincess' monster, I can activate this card from my hand." Blue Maiden explained. "First, since I control a 'Marincess' Link monster, I can target one face-up monster you control, and negate its effects until the end of this turn. Second, as I control a Link 2 or higher 'Marincess' monster, all cards on my field are unaffected by your card effects until the end of this turn as well! I target and negate Brann's effects until the end of this turn!" A shockwave fired out of Wave and hit Brann, which turned it grey as its effects were negated.

Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne ATK: 3000 - 500 = 2500

Plunder Patrollship Jord ATK: 2000 - 500 = 1500

Plunder Patrollship Lys ATK: 2500 – 500 = 2000

"Next, I activate the effect of Marincess Sea Star from my hand. By discarding this card from my hand to my Graveyard, I can target one 'Marincess' monster on my field, and increase its attack points by 800 until the end of this turn. I target Marbled Rock!" After Blue Maiden sent a card from her hand to her Graveyard, Marbled Rock was covered in a blue aura, which increased her strength.

Marincess Marbled Rock ATK: 2500 + 800 = 3300

"In addition, I activate Marbled Rock's effect." Blue Maiden added. "Once per turn, I can target one 'Marincess' card in my Graveyard, and add it to my hand. I target and add Sea Star from my Graveyard to my hand." Two cards popped out of Blue Maiden's deck, which she took and added to her hand. "And I once again activate Sea Star's effect from my hand."

"Hang on a minute. Your card can be activated more than once per turn?!" Angelica exclaimed.

"Sea Star's effect can be activated twice per turn." Blue Maiden clarified. "Like before, by discarding this card from my hand to my Graveyard, I can target one 'Marincess' monster on my field, and increase its attack points by 800 until the end of this turn. I target Marbled Rock once again!" After Blue Maiden sent a card from her hand to her Graveyard, Marbled Rock was covered in a blue aura once again, which increased her strength.

Marincess Marbled Rock ATK: 3300 + 800 = 4100

"I also activate the Continuous-Spell card, Marincess Schooling from my hand." The card showed Blue Slug, Sea Angel, and Coral Anemone swimming in the ocean, the trio following after Aqua Argonaut. "When a 'Marincess' monster battles a monster you control, I can have that monster gain attack points equal to the attack points of one other 'Marincess' monster I control until the end of the damage step."

"Now that's unexpected…." Angelica admitted.

"Battle!" Blue Maiden declared, as she thrusted out her right hand. "Marincess Marbled Rock attacks Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne! And thanks to Schooling, Marbled Rock gains attack points equal to the attack points of one other 'Marincess' monster on my field until the end of the damage step. I choose Blue Slug, which means Marbled Rock gains 1500 attack points!" Marbled Rock was surrounded in a blue aura, which increased her strength.

Marincess Marbled Rock ATK: 4100 + 1500 = 5600

"You'll have to try harder than that, Blue Maiden." Angelica said, as she gestured to her face-down card. "Trap card, activate! Half Unbreak! I can target one monster I control, and for the rest of this turn, the targeted monster cannot be destroyed by battle. In addition, any battle damage from battles involving that monster is halved I target Queen Anne!" Several bubbles enveloped Queen Anne.

"You'll still take damage, Angelica." Blue Maiden reminded Roxy. "Fan Vortex!" Watery energy surrounded the fans in Marbled Rock's hands before she threw them at Queen Anne. They struck the bubble and caused an explosion, which made Angelica wince as her life points dropped slightly.

Angelica: 4000 – (1100 / 2) = 3450 LP

Marincess Marbled Rock ATK: 5600 – 1500 = 4100

"The battle continues! Marincess Blue Slug attacks Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne! And just like before, Schooling's effect lets Blue Slug gain attack points equal to the attack points of one other 'Marincess' monster on my field until the end of the damage step. I choose Marbled Rock, which means Blue Slug gains 4100 attack points!" Blue Slug was surrounded in a blue aura, which increased her strength.

Marincess Blue Slug ATK: 1500 + 4100 = 5600

Blue Slug then charged forward and punched the bubble surrounding Queen Anne, which caused a shockwave that made Angelica wince as her life points dropped once again slightly.

Angelica: 3450 – (1100 / 2) = 2900 LP

"I end my turn, which means the effects of Plunder Patroll Booty, Wave, and Sea Star end." Blue Maiden concluded, as red auras surrounded Brann and Marbled Rock, which indicated that their stats have returned to normal. Blue Slug was also surrounded in a blue aura that changed her attribute back to Water.

Marincess Blue Slug Fire - Water

Marincess Marbled Rock ATK: 4100 – (800 X 2) = 2500

Plunder Patrollship Jord ATK: 1500 + 500 = 2000

Plunder Patrollship Lys ATK: 2000 + 500 = 2500

Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne ATK: 4500 – (500 X 3) + 500 = 3500

"Awesome job, Blue Maiden! Despite the hurdles you faced, you managed to get over them and deal some damage." Angelica praised Blue Maiden.

"It shows how no matter what I'm facing, I will get over it with everything I've got!" Blue Maiden affirmed.

"I appreciate your spirit, Blue Maiden. I really do." Angelica sighed. "That's why it's harder for me to tell you the truth."

"The truth?"

"About Miyu."

Blue Maiden gasped before an angry expression formed on her face. "Believe me, I already know the truth about Miyu. How you and Raguel kept the truth about her a secret from me, and when I found out, I was heartbroken for two reasons. The first being I didn't know what happened to Miyu, and how she was a victim of the Lost Incident. The second that my own friends would keep such a secret from me."

"Blue Maiden…" Aqua muttered.

"The thing is, I didn't want to keep the secret. I really didn't want to, but I had to respect Miyu's decision, even if it wasn't the best. Raguel and I… we wanted to surprise you once she was fully awake and back to normal. But then again, such a reason was selfish both on my part and Raguel's." Angelica admitted. "There's also my part of the story, which you deserve to know as well."

"Your part?" Blue Maiden repeated, confusion having replaced the angry look on her face.

"Yeah, and it's around the time Miyu and her parents were moving." Angelica clarified. "Miyu's mother, June Sugisaki, was my sister."

"What?" Blue Maiden quietly responded. She didn't know that Angelica had a sister, and for her to be Miyu's mother… it was unexpected indeed.

"Miyu told me about you, and how you changed her life for the better." Angelica began explaining. "After losing her mother's ring, she was afraid she'd never see you again, and tried to contact you before leaving. I tried telling June that kids sometimes make mistakes, but growing up with her, I knew how stubborn she can be. But just as they were about to move…"

"She was kidnapped and forced to participate in the Lost Incident." Blue Maiden finished, before she turned to Aqua. "Is Angelica telling the truth?"

"Yes. Nothing but the truth." Aqua sadly confirmed.

"Of course I'm telling the truth. You think I'm a liar? I'm a bit offended by that, actually." Angelica commented.

Blue Maiden thought this over. Even after everything that happened, Miyu still cared for Blue Maiden's wellbeing, to the point where she didn't want to tell her about her pain. To put it simply, Miyu didn't want to add her troubles onto Blue Maiden's, and wanted to wait until she was ready to do so.

"Well, Blue Maiden. Now that you know the truth, what will you do now?"

Blue Maiden frowned. She obviously knew what to do now. She wanted to save Miyu, help defeat Lightning, and put things back to normal. Yet for Raguel and Angelica to keep the truth from Blue Maiden… she felt betrayed. Friends don't keep secrets from one another. They tell each other the truth, and provide support to one another. After all, communication was important, as without it, one's health would be impacted. Specifically, physical, mental, and emotional health.

But despite what happened, Angelica and Raguel were her friends. Blue Maiden couldn't hold a grudge at someone who had good intentions, even though the actions chosen weren't the best. "I forgive you and Raguel for what you did. It wasn't right, but you guys had good intentions. I just wish you told me sooner." Blue Maiden finally stated.

"Thanks. I appreciate it very much. I really do." Angelica said back. "But you still didn't answer my question. Now that you know this information, what will you do now?"

"I…." Blue Maiden thought this over one final time before making her decision. "I'm going to fight with Raguel and the others in stopping Lightning and Azrael. I'm going to help put an end to this war, save Miyu, and ensure that no one else gets hurt in this conflict. That's what I'm going to do, and nothing will stand in my way!"

"Excellent spirit, Blue Maiden, but let's see how and where it stands moving forward! For you and I both know that the duel isn't over yet! My turn! I draw!" Angelica said, as she drew the top card of her deck. "First, I summon Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey from my hand to my field." The first copy of Redbeard appeared on Angelica's field.

Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"I activate the Spell card, Card of Demise. This card lets me draw until I have five cards in my hand. However, during my fifth Standby Phase after this card's activation, I must send all cards in my hand to my Graveyard." Angelica drew the top five cards of her deck.

Great. With more cards, Angelica has more options to try and overwhelm me, Blue Maiden cursed in her mind.

"I'll now swash up my circuit!" A Link Portal appeared above Angelica. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Plunder Patroll' monsters. I set the Link 3 Plunder Patrollship Queen Anne, and Redbeard, the Plunder Patroll Matey into the Link Markers!" Queen Anne went into the bottom-left, bottom, and bottom-right arrowheads, while Redbeard went into the top arrowhead, turning all four of them red.

"Infamous ship of the seven seas! Emerge out of Davy Jones' locker, and unleash the massacre of my enemies!" Angelica chanted. "Link Summon! Arise! Link 4! Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman!" A massive frigate with five tattered sails, fanged mouths on the sides, and the prow having a grim reaper with his scythe attached to it appeared on Angelica's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. On the ship's deck, it was encrusted with barnacles and other aquatic flora and fauna from the sea bed. A total of forty-six cannons were spread out on the sides of the ship, making it formidable. At the back of the ship were the skeletons of several ferocious sea beasts, as well as a sea serpent encircling those skeletons.

Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman ATK: 3200 LINK-4 ↙️⬆️⬇️↘️

Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman ATK: 3200 + 500 = 3700

"Be on your guard, Blue Maiden. Whatever that monster's effects are, we must be prepared." Aqua warned Blue Maiden.

"I'm with you on that one." Blue Maiden agreed. While Blue Maiden was able to get past the hurdles Angelica threw at her and deal some damage on her previous turn, something told her that this was going to be the hardest hurdle yet.

"The effects of Flying Dutchman and Redbeard activate in sequence. First, when Flying Dutchman is Link Summoned, I can send cards on your field to your Graveyard up to the number of monsters it points to." Angelica explained, a grin evident on her face. "The best part is that you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's effect."

"What?!" Blue Maiden's eyes widened upon hearing this information, with Aqua gasping as well.

"Flying Dutchman is pointing to Lys, Brann, and Jord, which means I can send up to three cards on your field to your Graveyard. I send Blue Slug, Marbled Rock, and Schooling to your Graveyard. Release The Kraken!" At Angelica's command, several kraken tentacles appeared before smashing Blue Slug, Marbled Rock, and Schooling to Blue Maiden's Graveyard, which made her grit her teeth in response.

Damn it. If Flying Dutchman's effect destroyed cards instead of sending them to the Graveyard, then I could have used Marincess Basilalima's effect in my Graveyard to banish her and protect my monsters, Blue Maiden thought in her mind.

"Second, when Redbeard is sent from my hand or Monster Zone to my Graveyard, I can target one 'Plunder Patroll' monster on my field with a different name, and equip him to it. I target Brann!" Angelica decided, as Redbeard jumped onto Brann, indicating that it was equipped with him.

"I activate Flying Dutchman's second effect. By shuffling a 'Plunder Patroll' monster on my field into my deck or Extra Deck, I can not only inflict damage to you equal to its original attack points, but also increase Flying Dutchman's attack points by that same amount until the end of my next turn." Angelica continued. "I shuffle Lys into my Extra Deck, which means Flying Dutchman gains 2000 attack points, and you take 2000 points of damage! Soul Ferrying!" Lys turned into particles, which went into Flying Dutchman as its strength increased.

Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman ATK: 3700 + 2000 = 5700

The cannons on Flying Dutchman then fired at Blue Maiden, which caused a few explosions that pushed her back as her life points dropped.

Blue Maiden: 4000 – 2000 = 2000 LP

"Since Lys left the field, Deployment is destroyed." As if on cue, Deployment turned into particles. "But moving forward, I activate the effect of Goldenhair in my Graveyard. By discarding one card from my hand, I can Special Summon her from my Graveyard to my field. I send Plunder Patroll Shipyaard from my hand to my Graveyard!" After Angelica sent a card from her hand to her Graveyard, Goldenhair reappeared on her field.

Goldenhair, the Newest Plunder Patroll ATK: 0 DEF: 2000 LV: 4

Goldenhair, the Newest Plunder Patroll ATK: 0 + 500 = 500

"I activate the effect of the Bluebeard in my hand! As I control a 'Plunder Patroll' monster other than this card, I can Special Summon him from my hand!" Angelica added, as a second copy of Bluebeard appeared on her field.

Bluebeard, the Plunder Patroll Shipwright ATK: 500 DEF: 1000 LV: 4

Bluebeard, the Plunder Patroll Shipwright ATK: 500 + 500 = 1000

"I overlay the Level 4 Goldenhair, the Newest Plunder Patroll with the Level 4 Bluebeard, the Plunder Patroll Shipwright!" A galaxy portal appeared behind Angelica. "With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network!" Goldenhair turned into a golden stream of energy, while Bluebeard turned into a blue stream of energy, the both of them entering into the portal before it erupted from the center.

"Set sail and answer the captain's call!" Angelica chanted. "Xyz Summon! Appear! Rank 4! Plunder Patrollship Moerk!" A dark-brown and bronze Viking ship appeared in the third Main Monster Zone Flying Dutchman was pointing to in defense position. On its sides were five different colored shields, along with a set of oars on each side. It had a red and black mast with a pirate's flag at the top. At the front of the ship was a pirate cannon. Two lights orbited the ship behind it as well.

Plunder Patrollship Moerk ATK: 1000 DEF: 2500 RNK: 4 OU: 2

Plunder Patrollship Moerk ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

"And now Xyz Summoning too." Aqua commented. "Angelica's not only strong, but versatile too."

"But that won't stop us, Aqua. You don't need to worry about that." Blue Maiden assured Aqua.

"Right!"

"As much as I appreciate the camaraderie between you two, I'd like to continue the duel now, please, especially the closing act." Angelica requested. "Battle! Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman attacks you directly!" At Angelica's command, the cannons on Flying Dutchman charged up, intent on firing at Blue Maiden.

"Sorry, Angelica, but the duel isn't over yet!" Blue Maiden countered. "I activate the effect of Schooling in my Graveyard. By banishing this card in my Graveyard, I can Special Summon one 'Marincess' monster from my Graveyard, and for the rest of this turn, it isn't destroyed by battle or card effects. What's more, should the monster Special Summoned be a 'Marincess' Link Monster, I can draw the top card of my deck. I Special Summon Marbled Rock from my Graveyard!" At Blue Maiden's command, Marbled Rock reappeared on her field in the Main Monster Zone. Seconds later, Blue Maiden drew the top card of her deck.

Marincess Marbled Rock ATK: 2500 LINK-3 ⬅️⬇️➡️

"I'm back!" Marbled Rock announced.

"As good as it is that you brought back a monster, Blue Maiden, it still doesn't change the outcome of this duel." Angelica stated. "A battle replay occurs! Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman attacks Marincess Marbled Rock! Infamous Voyage!" The cannons on Flying Dutchman fired at Marbled Rock.

"And I told you that the duel isn't over yet!" Blue Maiden reiterated. "I activate the effect of Marincess Crown Tail in my Graveyard! When your monster attacks, if I can banish this card from my Graveyard, I take no battle damage that is less than or equal to the total Link rating of the 'Marincess' Link monsters in my Graveyard times 1000."

"What? When did that-?" Angelica began speaking, before it hit her. Blue Maiden must have sent Crown Tail to her Graveyard earlier either by Card Destruction or by Queen Anne's effect.

"Since the total Link rating in Blue Maiden's Graveyard is three, that means the damage she takes is reduced by 3000." Aqua summed up.

"Tch." Angelica grit her teeth as the cannon blasts headed towards Marbled Rock, only for a barrier of water to protect her at the last minute. As for Blue Maiden, she slightly winced as her life points decreased.

Blue Maiden: 2000 – 200 = 1800 LP

"Because you Special Summoned a monster, I can activate Jord's effect." Angelica replied. "Once per turn, when you Special Summon a monster, I can add one 'Plunder Patroll' card from my deck to my hand. I add Emblem of the Plunder Patroll from my deck to my hand." A card popped out of Angelica's deck, which she took and added to her hand.

"In addition, I activate Jord's second effect. Once per turn, I can target one 'Plunder Patroll' card in my Graveyard and add it to my hand. In exchange, I must put Jord in my Pendulum Scale. I target and add Deployment from my Graveyard to my hand." After Angelica took a card from her Graveyard and added it to her hand, Jord turned into particles before a pillar of light appeared on Angelica's left side, where it appeared shortly after.

Plunder Patrollship Jord Scale: 1

"I activate the Equip Spell card, Emblem of the Plunder Patroll, and equip it onto Moerk." Angelica continued, as an emblem appeared on Moerk's sail. "The equipped monster gains 500 attack points, and can no longer be targeted by your card effects." As if on cue, Moerk was surrounded in a green aura that increased its strength.

Plunder Patrollship Moerk ATK: 1500 + 500 = 2000

"I end my turn." Angelica narrowed her eyes. "This will be your last chance to defeat me, Blue Maiden. So make the best of it."

"Trust me when I say I certainly will." Blue Maiden said back. "My turn! I draw!" She drew the top card of her deck before looking up Moerk and Brann's effects on her duel disk. This led to Blue Maiden gulping upon reading their effects.

"Are you okay, Blue Maiden?" Aqua inquired.

"Y-Yeah. Just a little surprised at what I'm reading, that's all." Blue Maiden responded. As Moerk and Brann had 'Plunder Patroll' cards equipped to them, that meant Angelica can activate their effects as Quick Effects once per turn.

The sooner I get rid of Blue Maiden's cards, the better, Angelica thought in her mind. She wouldn't let Blue Maiden activate cards, nor let her Link Summon a Link 4 monster should things progress the way they are right now. "I activate Moerk's effect. Once per turn, I can discard one 'Plunder Patroll' card from my hand to my Graveyard to target an effect monster on your field and banish it."

"..." Blue Maiden grit her teeth. Just as she expected, Angelica was using her monster's effects.

"I discard Deployment in my hand, and target and banish Marbled Rock!" After Angelica sent a card from her hand to her Graveyard, Moerk fired a cannon blast at Marbled Rock, which turned her into particles. "In addition, I can add one 'Plunder Patroll' Spell or Trap card from my deck to my hand. I add Plunder Patroll Recruitment from my deck to my hand." A card popped out of Angelica's deck, which she took and added to her hand.

In Blue Maiden's mind, even though Moerk and Brann's effects were Quick effects, they were still once per turn, and if Blue Maiden can get them out of the way for good, she can pull off her combos. The best part is that their effects don't target cards that activate their effects in the Graveyard. "I activate the effect of Marincess Pascalus from my Graveyard. By banishing her from my Graveyard, I can target and add one 'Marincess' Spell or Trap card in my Graveyard to my hand. I target and add Marincess Current from my Graveyard to my hand." A card popped out of Blue Maiden's Graveyard, which she took and added to her hand.

"Next, I activate the Spell card, Link Reborn. This card lets me Special Summon one Link monster from my Graveyard to my field, but it can't attack for the rest of this turn. Return to me, Coral Anemone!" At Blue Maiden's command, Coral Anemone reappeared on her field, only in the Main Monster Zone.

Marincess Coral Anemone ATK: 2000 LINK-2 ⬅️⬇️

"Ah, it's so good to be back!" Coral Anemone commented. "The Graveyard's so chilly!"

"I activate Coral Anemone's effect." Blue Maiden stated. "Once per turn, I can target one Water monster with 1500 or less attack points in my Graveyard, and Special Summon it to my field to a Main Monster Zone she points to." Blue Maiden continued. "I target and Special Summon Sea Horse back to my field." At Blue Maiden's command, Sea Horse reappeared on her field in the Main Monster Zone Coral Anemone pointed to.

Marincess Sea Horse ATK: 1400 DEF: 1000 LV: 3

"Shine! The circuit of love, friendship, and bonds!" A Link Portal appeared above Blue Maiden. "The summoning conditions are one Level 4 or lower 'Marincess' monster. I set Marincess Sea Horse into the Link Markers! I set Marincess Sea Horse into the Link Markers!" Sea Horse went into the left arrowhead, which turned red.

"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Marincess Sea Angel!" A little girl in a white dress with long white hair, and the Marincess emblem on her forehead appeared on Blue Maiden's field in the Main Monster Zone Coral Anemone pointed to.

Marincess Sea Angel ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬅️

"Yay! I'm on the duel field! I'm on the duel field!" Sea Angel cheered, waving her hand to Blue Maiden and Aqua, who waved back.

"When Sea Angel is Link Summoned, I can add one 'Marincess' Spell card from my deck to my hand. I add a second copy of Dive from my deck to my hand." Blue Maiden decided, as a card popped out of her deck, which she took and added to her hand. "I activate a second copy of Marincess Dive from my hand. Just like before, I can activate one of two effects. I choose effect one, which lets me target one non-Link 'Marincess' monster in my Graveyard, and Special Summon it to my field. I target Sea Horse in my Graveyard, and Special Summon her to my field once again!" Sea Horse then reappeared on Blue Maiden's field for a fourth time.

Marincess Sea Horse ATK: 1400 DEF: 1000 LV: 3

"I know what you plan to do, and I won't allow it! I activate Plunder Patroll Booty's effect!" Angelica interjected. "Once per turn, I can-."

"Not so fast, Angelica! I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Marincess Typhoon!" The card showed Marincess Coral Triangle firing watery energy from her hands, which formed into a typhoon that swallowed up a card completely. "When you activate a card effect, I can negate the effect and banish it."

"What?" Angelica gasped.

"In addition, if I control a Link 2 or higher 'Marincess' monster, I can banish cards you control up to the number of 'Marincess' Link monsters I control." Blue Maiden added.

"Flying Dutchman's unaffected by your card effects while it points to a monster." Angelica pointed out.

"In that case, I banish Moerk and Brann, along with Plunder Patroll Booty!" Blue Maiden said, as a typhoon of water blasted out of the card and consumed Moerk, Brann, and Plunder Patroll Booty.

Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman ATK: 5700 – 500 = 5200

"That was close, Blue Maiden." Aqua cried out of relief.

"It was for sure, Aqua. But I still have a chance to win this duel." Blue Maiden affirmed. "Shine for a second and final time! The circuit of love, friendship, and bonds!" A second Link Portal appeared above Blue Maiden. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Water' monsters. I set the Link 1 Marincess Sea Angel, the Link 2 Coral Anemone, and Sea Horse into the Link Markers!" Sea Angel went into the top arrowhead, Coral Anemone went into the left and right arrowheads, and Sea Horse went into the bottom arrowhead, turning all four of them red.

"Sorceress of the ocean! Heed my call, and safeguard the ocean from those who threaten it! Link Summon! Arise! Link 4! Marincess Aqua Argonaut!" A woman with yellow eyes and very long silver hair that was tied in two long strands appeared on Blue Maiden's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Her attire consisted of sleeveless black shirt with a blue tie, as well as a silver skirt over tights. Attached to her back was a pair of pink, translucent wings resembling that of an angels. In her hands, she carried a battle halberd.

Marincess Aqua Argonaut ATK: 2300 LINK-4 ⬅️⬆️⬇️➡️

"If you dare threaten my allies, I will deal with you swiftly!" Aqua Argonaut declared.

Angelica whistled. "Wow. A duel monster that resembles your first avatar, Blue Maiden? Color me surprised."

"Keep your surprise in, Angelica. Because there's still more to be seen." Blue Maiden said. "Such as this! When Coral Anemone is sent to the Graveyard, I can target one 'Marincess' card in my Graveyard, and add it to my hand. I add Sea Star to my hand!" A card popped out of Blue Maiden's Graveyard, which she took and added to her hand.

"In addition, I activate Typhoon's effect from my Graveyard. When I Link Summon a 'Marincess' Link monster, I can banish this card from my Graveyard to decrease your monster's attack points equal to the Link Summoned 'Marincess' Link monster's attack points."

"What?!" Angelica exclaimed.

"Aqua Argonaut's attack points are 2300, which means Flying Dutchman loses 2300 attack points." Blue Maiden stated, as a typhoon hit Flying Dutchman, which decreased its strength.

Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman ATK: 5200 – 2300 = 2900

"From there, I activate Sea Star's effect from my hand. By discarding this card from my hand to my Graveyard, I can target one 'Marincess' monster on my field, and increase its attack points by 800 until the end of this turn. I target Aqua Argonaut!" After Blue Maiden sent a card from her hand to her Graveyard, Aqua Argonaut was covered in a blue aura, which increased her strength.

Marincess Aqua Argonaut ATK: 2300 + 800 = 3100

"Battle!" Blue Maiden declared. "Marincess Aqua Argonaut attacks Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman! Hydro Halberd Slash!" Aqua Argonaut leapt into the air and slashed Flying Dutchman with such force that it caused an explosion, which made Angelica wince as her life points decreased.

Angelica: 2900 – 200 = 2700 LP

"All that for 200 points of damage? A bit of a letdown, don't you think?" Angelica questioned.

"Normally, it would be, if it weren't for this!" Blue Maiden responded. "I activate the Trap card, Marincess Current from my hand. To start, because I control a Link 3 or higher 'Marincess' Link monster, I can activate this card from my hand. Next, when a 'Marincess' Link monster I control destroys a monster you control, you take damage equal to its Link rating times 400. In addition, if the monster destroyed in battle was a Link monster while I control a Link 2 or higher 'Marincess' monster, you take damage equal to its Link rating times 500!"

"Woah, woah, woah! Are you kidding me right now?!" Angelica exclaimed.

"Nope, I'm not." Blue Maiden confirmed.

"Aqua Argonaut's Link rating is four, while Flying Dutchman's Link rating is three. That means you take a total of 3100 points of damage!" Aqua summed up.

"Or to put it in simple terms, this duel is officially over!" Blue Maiden finished, as two Link Portals appeared before a burst of water fired out of them, which hit Angelica as she was sent flying off the ground, her life points having dropped to zero by the time she landed on her back.

Angelica: 2700 – (400 X 4) – (500 X 3) = 0

Angelica let out a happy laugh as Blue Maiden walked over to her. "Awesome job, Blue Maiden! Your resolve is the real deal. It seems I've succeeded in helping you overcome your doubts."

"Truth be told, my doubts are still there." Blue Maiden acknowledged, having offered a hand to Angelica to help her stand up on her feet, who accepted it in response. "But I'm not going to let them stand in my way of helping end this war."

"That's the spirit." Angelica replied, having placed a hand on her hip. "Look. Even a person like myself makes mistakes and has doubts. What makes a difference, in the end, is how you choose to move forward in response to them."

"I will definitely keep that in mind." Blue Maiden assured Angelica, the two of them shaking hands in the process.

"Great! Then it's onto the next portion of your training!" Angelica pressed a button on her duel disk, which caused several large rings to rise high into the air in different places. Within seconds, the ground underneath Blue Maiden and Angelica began to rise high into the air at the same time, much to the former's surprise.

"Uh, Angelica? What is this?" Blue Maiden inquired.

"When you were Blue Angel, you had wings on your back. My best guess is that you brought back those wings, yet you never had the chance of practicing how to fly with them, right?" Angelica figured out.

"Yes." Blue Maiden confirmed with a pout.

Angelica then pressed a button on her duel disk, causing another area of the ground to rise up at the other end of the rings. "Your goal is simple. Fly through all of the rings to reach the other side. If you try to change up the order or take any shortcuts, then you'll end up regretting it."

"Angelica's right, Blue Maiden." Aqua commented. "When you take into account the distance of the rings, shortcuts are not advised here."

"Alright, then." Blue Maiden said, as a set of white wings sprung from her back. She then ran towards the edge and jumped off before flying towards the first ring. Upon doing so, Blue Maiden felt herself experience a burst of speed, which caused her to lose balance before falling down straight towards the ground. She rolled on the ground numerous times upon landing on it.

"No one gets it right the first time, Blue Maiden. Come on up and try again!" Angelica called out to her from the top of the higher ground, which resembled a ledge. "Or is this your way of saying you give up?"

Blue Maiden shook her head and got her bearings before standing up on her feet. "Who said I'm giving up, Angelica?" she called back, before summoning her duel board and riding up back to the high ledge above her. After landing on it, Blue Maiden then ran towards the edge of the ledge once again and jumped off before flying towards the first ring. Like before, Blue Maiden felt herself experience a burst of speed, only for her to stay centered as she flew through the second ring. Once again, Blue Maiden felt the burst of speed as she attempted to make a right towards the next ring. Unfortunately, that led her to fall down to the ground once again.

When Blue Maiden rode back to the top of the ledge on her duel board, Angelica lectured her on how birds flew when they took off the ground. At first, Blue Maiden was confused on what Roxy was saying. A bird and a human were completely different in terms of species. How exactly would learning about birds help her learn how to fly?

But then Angelica got to the part on what the wings did during flight, and how they respond to gravity. Birds used the upward force called lift by moving their wings through the air with the front part of its wing slightly higher than the back part. In Blue Maiden's case, she had to use her body to help her wings 'acquire' that part of flying, and all she had to do was lean her body sideways, forwards, or backwards.

So Blue Maiden once again ran towards the edge of the ledge once again and jumped off before flying towards the first ring. She felt the burst of speed through her body and let it flow past her as she flew through the second ring. Taking Angelica's advice, Blue Maiden leaned her body to her right side, which allowed her to make the right and speed through to the third ring. She leaned her body to her left side, and was able to get through the fourth ring.

Regardless, her efforts weren't without her failures. With each success came a mistake, which resulted in Blue Maiden once again falling to the ground. Still, this didn't deter her from completing her flying lessons. As such, Blue Maiden rode her duel board back up to the top of the ledge so she can try again. Again and again, she flew through the rings, and got more experience in doing so, despite falling some of the time.

Before Blue Maiden made another attempt, Angelica put a hand on her shoulder.

"What?" Blue Maiden asked.

"Sometimes, you gotta let the wind flow through you. Don't fight it. Let it guide you, and you'll be able to get through." Angelica explained. "Now fly, Blue Maiden. Fly!"

Nodding back in confidence, Blue Maiden ran off the ledge once more and flew through the first ring. Thanks to Angelica's advice, she got through the next four rings with ease. However, there was one more set of rings left for Blue Maiden to get through.

Those rings were connected to one another like a chain, which had a current of energy flowing through them.

Upon seeing this, Blue Maiden felt herself tense up, causing her to nearly lose her balance once again.

"It's okay to be scared, Blue Maiden." Aqua gently assured Blue Maiden. "Breathe. Let go of your fear. Your worries. Your doubts. Let them all go."

Blue Maiden closed her eyes and did what Aqua said, and was able to calm down as a result.

"Now, free the emotions sleeping within you, Blue Maiden, and fly!"

Opening her eyes, Blue Maiden then leaned backward, which allowed her to fly upwards and head towards the three chained rings. Steadying herself, she then sped straight forward and allowed herself to be immersed in the burst of wind. At the end of the final ring, she leaned back and allowed the wind to push her wings back, allowing them to stop her from missing the goal. Blue Maiden then gently glided down to the ledge in front of her, before dropping to it on one knee. As if on cue, a screen popped up on Blue Maiden's duel disk.

"You did it, Blue Maiden! You did it!" Angelica cheered.

"Yeah... I actually did it..." Blue Maiden muttered, a smile on her face.

Some time later...

"So is there anymore trials or something like that for me to do, Angelica?" Blue Maiden inquired cautiously, as she walked with Angelica through the server.

"Nah. You're good to go, and ready for the fight ahead." Angelica assured Blue Maiden.

"I can't believe Herald actually made a server resembling that of the Cyberse World." Aqua commented. "How did he get World Gears in the first place?"

"The Knights of Hanoi had it for a time, and then Raguel and Herald got it back from them." Angelica answered Aqua's question. "Since then, Herald's been safeguarding it to ensure that no one else gets their greasy hands on it. Almost like his save files in his games." That comment made the three of them laugh for a few moments upon picturing Herald protect something from his video games.

Blue Maiden smiled and turned to Angelica. "Thanks, Angelica. For all of this. I'm ready for the fight to come."

Angelica shrugged her shoulders. "I can only prepare you for so much, Blue Maiden. Still, I'm glad we were able to clear things up between us."

"Same here." Blue Maiden agreed, before the two of them shook hands.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you something." Angelica remembered. "Raguel and I found out who killed Miyu's parents."

"What?" both Blue Maiden and Aqua gasped at the same time.

"You know who did this?" Aqua questioned.

"And is this another secret you guys kept from me?" Blue Maiden inquired as well.

"What? No, no, no!" Angelica responded. "Raguel and I found this a day or two ago, and we wanted to be absolutely sure before we told you."

Blue Maiden thought this over as words popped up in her mind.

"Here's the issue, Aoi. While I know who it is, I need to absolutely make sure that my findings are correct. Because if I'm not, then I'll be going after the wrong person. I don't want to make that mistake."

According to Raguel, this made sense. The last thing anyone wanted was to involve an innocent person and ruin their life. But still, Blue Maiden wanted to make sure of one thing.

"Hey, Aqua. Is Angelica telling the truth?" Blue Maiden asked Aqua.

"Yes. One hundred percent." Aqua confirmed.

"I see." Blue Maiden turned to Angelica. "So who was responsible for such a deed?"

Angelica went over and whispered the answer in Blue Maiden's ear, causing the latter to gasp.

"My God... I... I can't believe it..." Blue Maiden frowned, surprise still evident in her tone. "To think that the murderer... was connected to all of this..."

"It's nuts... It really is..." Angelica replied.

"Then I'll help you find this killer you speak of, and bring him to justice." Blue Maiden promised, resolve evident in her tone.

"I appreciate it really much, Blue Maiden. But it'll have to be after the war, okay?" Angelica asked, with Blue Maiden and Aqua nodding in understanding in response. Once that was done, the two of them logged out of Herald's server, their business having concluded.

Back in the real world, at Cafe Matsuo...

Roxy walked out of the closed-off space, an exhausted, yet happy look on her face. Exhausted due to the duel and what happened. Happy because of how she was able to not only clear things between herself and Aoi up, but also help her get rid of her doubts.

She walked upstairs to the living room, where she saw Herald playing Pokemon: Legends Arceus, with Arashi sitting on one of the couches and cheering him on, while Yuhiro sat on the other couch and looked at the screen passively.

"Come on, come on! Almost there!" Herald said, as his game character got closer to a Pokemon known as Enamorus. His game character avoided the attacks Enamorus threw at him before using a smoke bomb to get in close. Within seconds, Herald pressed a button, causing his game character to throw a Poke Ball after breaking Enamorus' shield with several sticky bombs. Within seconds, Enamorus was caught, as evident by the victory sound the game made.

"YES!" Herald cheered. "I caught all the Pokemon in this game! Now I can face off against Arceus!"

"Awesome job, Herald." Arashi said, before turning to Yuhiro. "You heard? Herald's at the final boss of this game."

"Huh?" Yuhiro replied, before snapping out of his thoughts. "Oh. Great job, Herald."

"Hey, guys. What did I miss?" Roxy asked, having entered the living room.

"Herald's on the final boss of Pokemon: Legends Arceus." Arashi answered. "After everything that happened, it's good for him to get a victory."

"Of course it is!" Herald pointed out. "I worked hard to get to where I'm at right now."

"You know what I realized, Roxy?" Arashi put his hands behind the back of his head. "The coming battles against Lightning and Azrael are almost like a boss rush in a video game. Us fighting against multiple bosses to reach the true final bosses. And in the process, we learn tons of secret information and truths along the way, almost like with Herald here."

"Hey! The battle against the treacherous deceiver and his devil-like buddy broke my heart!" Herald countered. "He was a real homie too..." He turned to Yuhiro. "Say, Yuhiro. What are your thoughts on all this?"

"Uh, yeah. I agree with Arashi, I guess." Yuhiro answered, still dwelling on his thoughts.

Roxy, upon hearing this, gestured Arashi and Herald to leave the living room. Knowing that this was serious, Herald paused the game while Arashi went over and picked up Yuhiro's duel disk, the two of them exiting the living room and heading over to another area of the house. Once that was done, Roxy sat on the opposite couch facing Yuhiro. "Hey, what's going on, Yuhiro?"

Yuhiro looked up at Roxy and sighed. "During my duel against Azrael, he used a memory program to knit my broken memories together."

"Seriously?" Roxy gasped upon hearing this.

"Yup." Yuhiro answered. "The memories I lost as a result of the Lost Incident were sewed back, and now I remember things."

"Like what?"

"Well..." Yuhiro thought it over for a few moments. "I've seen memories of my past. Some include Yukage protecting me and an injured cat from bullies, the two of us obtaining our pendants from father, us playing together, us spending time with mom and dad, and a recap of the night before the Lost Incident. And over the course of the duel, I... I saw things from Yukage's perspective."

"Perspective? What do you mean by that?" Roxy raised an eyebrow out of concern.

"Well, I realized that everything Yukage did was to prevent something worse from happening down the road, no matter what the cost was." Yuhiro admitted. "Me on the other hand, because of my code of ethics, I couldn't take initiative like Yukage did. If I had, I could have prevented greater threats. I could have prevented so many people from losing their lives due to the Turf War and the recent attacks!" He held his head in his hands, trying very hard to process everything that happened. "I know what to do, but I don't know how to do it. My greatest fear is that if I choose the wrong actions, I'll end up no better than our enemies, and that scares me the most! So what do I do from here?!"

Roxy put a hand on Yuhiro's shoulder, which got his attention. "It is normal to be afraid, Yuhiro. Make sure you remember that. However, I can't make that decision on your dilemma for you. I can, however, say this: You have two paths. You can be the destroyer of this world, or you could be its savior. That's up to you."

"I'm neither of those things, Roxy. And I don't want to be either of them." Yuhiro bitterly replied, remembering how his crusade of being a warrior of justice for Miyu's sake had led to his spirit being split to the bone.

"Then focus on who you want to be as an individual and as a duelist. Like I said before, only you can make that decision. Your thoughts are better spent on things you can change, not those you can't." Roxy gently countered back, before gently ruffling Yuhiro's hair. "I'm with you till the end of the line, okay?"

Yuhiro nodded back in understanding after hearing this. He was glad that someone was there to listen to him with compassion instead of judgment. Those type of people are the ones he considers his friends. No. His family.

"There. You see. You feel a bit better." Roxy gestured Yuhiro to go upstairs. "You should get some rest. We have a battle to fight tomorrow, and we can't do it when you're sleepy."

Yuhiro chuckled at that comment. "I'll go to bed in a bit. I need to look into the data in Ace's duel disk first. Don't worry, I won't be too long."

"Alright. Let us know what you find in the morning, okay?" Roxy replied, with Yuhiro nodding back before standing up on his feet. He was about to head downstairs, only to stop at the first step.

"We've been selfish, haven't we?" Yuhiro said back.

"We have indeed, despite our best intentions." Roxy agreed with a sigh. "Though it's never too late to change. It's something my dad taught me. No matter what mistakes you make, it's not too late to do what's right in the end."

"I'll keep that in mind." Yuhiro replied, before he went downstairs to the backroom. He turned on the systems before typing on the digital keyboard, where he clicked on a folder that contained all the data from Ace's duel disk. After Yuhiro chopped off Ace's left forearm with Excalibur, he made sure that all the data on his duel disk was transferred to his so that he can look at it later on.

Alright, Ace. Let's see what you got on here, Yuhiro thought, as he clicked on the first of the files in the folder. His eyes widened upon seeing what was on there.

Apparently, Balius wasn't the only person who was in charge of the trafficking operations at Central Japan. The ones who started it in the first place were Brion's own parents: Derek Miyahara and Isabelle Miyahara, where the operations was originally a volunteer-only workforce to assist in building Central Japan's infrastructure and establish goodwill relations with neighbors. However, the both of them tried to stop the operations upon realizing what the workers were truly being used for under Balius' direction, one of which included mining Dascium so the material can be transferred to other companies.

One of those companies being SOL Technologies.

How could SOL Technologies partner with someone who runs a trafficking operation. Isn't the company aware of what Balius had done, Yuhiro angrily cursed in his mind out of shock. He continued reading the information, where he learned that Balius murdered Derek and Isabelle for two reasons. The first being to take control of Central Japan. The second, the more important one, was so that the trafficking operation wouldn't be exposed to the world. Yuhiro made a mental note to pass this information down to Brion the next time they crossed paths.

Yuhiro opened a second file in the folder, which showed evidence of SOL Technologies working with the Black Market. This included receipts of purchases, footage of deals being made, and shipments of Black Market materials for other companies. So what we saw and heard back in the Black Market server is true. SOL Technologies allied itself with the branches this entire time, he realized in his mind. Yuhiro had to remind himself that not everyone from SOL Technologies had working relations with the Black Market. The higherups were mostly to blame for that. Plus, Akira would never make business deals with other branches, except for Epsilon, the branch Yuhiro had respect for the most due to its honour and practices. Due to everything going on, Yuhiro made a mental note to investigate this later on and get Akira's assistance in cleansing SOL Technologies. For there was still hope for the company yet if they changed their ways, starting by kicking out the corrupt, and replacing it with ethical people.

Yuhiro opened a third file in the folder, which contained numerous bank accounts that had a ton of money on them to his surprise. This amount of money's more than enough to pay for the care of everyone who suffered due to the Turf War and the attacks, as well as assist with the reparation efforts, he realized in his mind. For many years, Yuhiro and Roxy used black market money to pay for Miyu's care at the hospital, so using it here was no different than back then. Looking at it closer, there was so much money in those bank accounts that some of it can be used for other things. From upgrading Café Matsuo's weapon systems, to funding charities, and more, the possibilities were endless.

Happy with this find, Yuhiro opened up a fourth file, which contained programs that Ace, Athaliah, and Speckles had. One of which being the data clone program that Ace used to distract Playmaker months prior. Another being Athaliah's research regarding Project: Apotheosis, as well as more blueprints for Bohman. Yuhiro decided to keep the data clone program and Athaliah's findings in a separate folder. As for the programs Speckles used, Yuhiro will decide what to do with it later.

But what caught Yuhiro off guard was the locations of data material caches in the network. If one was to use the data clone program effectively, they needed to have data material on hand. There was also footage of slaves mining and using data material to create weapons in Uchida Industries. And spearheading the efforts were none other than Chainslaver and Sharpshot. Huh. So you managed to resurface after all those years, Chainslaver, Yuhiro thought in his mind. As to where the slaves were, Yuhiro didn't know. This was something he needed to pass onto Greg for sure, for he'll know what to do regarding next steps. As such, Yuhiro made a mental note to do this just before the war.

Satisfied with these findings, Yuhiro opened up a fifth file, which contained something that caught him off guard. It was data on the Hanoi themselves. From safehouses, to programs, and footage of their meetings, it was all there. The only thing that wasn't on there was the real names for each Hanoi member. That made sense. For the Hanoi always covered their tracks up to ensure no one could track them down. Still, there was enough information to incriminate the Hanoi of their wrongdoings if Yuhiro and the others decided to pass this down to the authorities. Perhaps they can use it as blackmail should Revolver get any ideas of betraying them during such a difficult time.

After doing a final check of the fifth file, Yuhiro opened up the sixth file, which obviously contained Ace's entire deck. Yuhiro obviously knew what the deck did, yet as he looked through it, he felt... inspired by it to create new cards for his deck. Everything and everyone evolves in response to different situations, and if Yuhiro was to ensure that he was never weak again, he needed an advantage. But as Yuhiro continued to look through the deck, a familiar card caught his eye.

Judgment Arrows.

Oh, this is just perfect, Yuhiro thought in his mind, a grin forming on his face. Lightning must have given Ace Judgment Arrows as a reward for his service, and now that Yuhiro had it, he can use the card in a far better manner than Lightning could ever dream of. As a result, new strategies were open to him. But should he show the card to the others? They'd obviously tell him to delete the card. Maybe Yuhiro can make a case in saying that they can make counters to Judgment Arrows, and can even point out that with the card as a sample, they can make their own Link Spells and Traps to even the playing field. But ultimately, Yuhiro decided to keep Judgment Arrows a secret because the others will end up debating on what to do with it. For there was nothing wrong in using an advantage to catch someone off guard.

So Yuhiro proceeded to make some new cards for the 'Cyreath' deck by using the 'Evil Eye' deck as inspiration. This way, he can get stronger, and ensure that he's never weak again. After making each card, he put them in the same folder the unholy trinity was in, along with Judgment Arrows. It took some time, but Yuhiro eventually made several cards that will help catch his opponents off guard, no matter who they were.

Once Yuhiro was done, he yawned, now tired from everything that happened today. He needed rest, and the next morning, he'll tell the others what he found out. As for the Judgment Arrows part, Yuhiro will make a decision on whether to reveal it or not in the morning.

Having finished looking through Ace's data, Yuhiro closed the folder and ensured his work was complete before turning off the systems. He then got off his seat and headed upstairs to his room, intent on getting a good night's sleep. For Roxy was right. He and the others had a war to fight tomorrow, and they couldn't do it when they were sleepy, that's for sure.

A few hours later….

"Ugh." Herald slowly got up on his feet before looking at his surroundings. It was a desolate, forest-like area that had a dead aura around it. This was evident by the wildlife in the area, shrivelled trees, and the dark, night-like sky. There was also a massive castle that Herald recognized, which was damaged, as shown by the cracks and several pieces that were torn off of it.

What disturbed Herald the most as he went through the area was the massive lake with a purple glow, which had shadowy, ribbon-like tentacles sprouting out of it. The worst part was that Herald didn't know what it was, but if he did know anything, it was that it wasn't anything but ordinary.

Herald soon turned upon hearing a sound, where he noticed Soulburner chasing a male individual that he didn't recognize, bow and arrow on hand. Soulburner fired several arrows at the individual before jumping in the air and spinning horizontally so he can get a better aim with his weapon. He fired an arrow, which distracted the individual long enough for Soulburner to slam the individual to the ground and restrain him. Soulburner then tried to finish the individual off with a curved blade resembling Heatleo's claws appearing in his right hand. However, shadowy, ribbon-like tentacles appeared, causing Soulburner to jump high into the air. But he was a split-second too late, for he was stabbed by one of them as he fell to the ground. Even though Soulburner managed to get up on one knee, it was clear he was in pain.

The male individual mocked Soulburner before escaping deeper in the forest. Herald soon heard a scream, where he immediately flew over to the source of the sound. Here, his eyes widened at what he was seeing.

Apparently, Playmaker was in the middle of a duel against a swordsman who had silver blond hair, as well as black armor that had red cracks on it. The tunics he had were now coloured black, with red, evenly spaced lines all over it. A visor with red vertical lines covered his eyes, which prevented Herald from discerning the swordsman's identity. Yet he had a suspicion that he knew who he was.

Playmaker was currently restrained by the shadowy, ribbon-like tentacles that were wrapped around his arms and legs, which proceeded to try and pull him into the massive lake. The swordsman's feet was on the top of the lake, allowing him to walk on it. Two of Playmaker's monsters were also restrained by shadowy, ribbon-like tentacles.

Herald soon heard Blue Maiden call out Playmaker's name, with Slipstream and Tigress trying to tell her that they had to escape. Numera was also there doing the same. After Blue Maiden shouted Playmaker's name one final time, Playmaker was somehow able to break out of his holdings with a loud shout, much to the swordsman's surprise as he charged forward and slashed him with a sword resembling that of Decode Talker's. After making it back on land, Playmaker proceeded to play a series of moves that led him to Link Summon what looked like an evolved version of Firewall Dragon.

Unfortunately, Herald couldn't see the rest because he was blown back by a massive burst of energy that resulted from the clash between Playmaker and the swordsman. When Herald came to be, he saw the swordsman raise his sword above his head. In one final attempt, Playmaker charged forward and attempted to punch the swordsman in the gut. Only for the swordsman to block it with his left hand before uppercutting Playmaker. This gave the swordsman enough time to raise his sword above his head fully, where black, red, and purple particles merged into the swordsman's sword, which formed into a dark pillar of light that composed of those colors. The swordsman then brought the pillar of light down towards Playmaker, which caused a massive explosion that sent him flying off the ground, having rolled several times upon landing on his side.

"Playmaker!" Herald cried out of shock and concern. This shouldn't be happening. It was a bad dream. It had to be!

The next thing Herald knew, the black swordsman appeared where he was before pointing his sword at the former.

"Please. Don't hurt me! Please!" Herald pleaded. Sadly, they fell on deaf ears as the swordsman swung his sword at Herald, which caused him to scream in pure terror in response to the blade being swung straight at him.

Herald gasped and opened his eyes. He vaulted upwards within seconds, breathing hard and clutching his chest. What the Hell was that, he worriedly thought in his mind.

"Hey, is everything okay, Herald?" Yuhiro asked, having slowly got up from his bed.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah. Everything's fine. Just a bad dream." Herald assured Yuhiro. "Get some rest, okay? We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow, yes, yes, yes."

"Alright, sure. Just listen to some meditation if it keeps up." Yuhiro replied, with Herald nodding in understanding before the former fell back asleep. After ensuring that Yuhiro was truly asleep, Herald went into his server before racing over to World Gears, pure fear and concern evident on his face.

"World Gears, I need your help. It's urgent!" Herald shouted, having flew over to the giant core of his server. "I had this nightmare, and I need to know what it means, as well as how it will affect the events of this war. If you care for the wellbeing of the Cyberse World, please help me."

There was silence in the server for several moments. It was as if World Gears was thinking over Herald's pleas.

"I heard your plea, and will help you." World Gears complied. "But know that what I'm about to show you are merely events from multiple paths to take, as there is no set path in life. Also, know that once something is made known, it cannot be made unknown. Do you accept the terms?"

Herald sent a message quick to the other Ignis, aware that they need to know what he ends up finding out from World Gears before turning back to it. "Yes. I accept." Within seconds, bright tendrils surrounded Herald as he entered into a meditative state, having begun the process.

Minutes later….

Ai, Flame, and Aqua logged into Herald's server, the group landing on the lush green grass that composed of the ground.

"I wonder why Herald called us at this time of the night." Ai wondered. "He does know we need to rest and prepare for tomorrow, right?"

"Ai, Herald wouldn't call us at this hour unless it was extremely urgent." Flame pointed out. "I wonder where he is."

"There!" Aqua said, having pointed her finger to Herald's location. She, Ai, and Flame floated over to where Herald was, where the trio spotted him floating in a meditating stance cross-legged, his head moving back and forth as energy surrounded him.

"Herald, you alright?" Ai asked, as Herald finished his meditation sequence. Ai helped Herald stand up on his feet, the latter feeling a bit woozy.

"What were you doing, Herald?" Flame inquired as well, he and Aqua going over to where Ai and Herald were.

"With World Gears' power, I went forward in time to view alternate futures and see all possible outcomes of the war." Herald answered.

"And just how many did you see?"

"14,000,605."

"Okay, now that's a lot of futures." Ai commented. "Maybe it's a sign that we win in every single one of them."

"No path is set in stone, Ai. You of all people should know that." Aqua told Ai, before she turned to Herald. "How many did we win?"

"One." Herald lamentedly confirmed, much to the surprise of the other Ignis. "And in the future where we win, a grave threat emerges afterwards. One so dark that it makes the Ignis War a kiddie fight."

"If you're referring to the Crisis, then obviously." Ai impulsively said. "I mean, what else-."

"Ai, judging from Herald's expression on his face, there's something else." Flame interjected.

"What exactly are you talking about, Herald?" Aqua gently asked Herald.

Herald thought for a few seconds before looking at the others, determination having replaced the fear on his face. "Listen closely, everyone. For it's important you know what I saw in my nightmare. And if we're to prevent it from coming true, or at the very least, mitigate its impact, then I need your help in creating a contingency."

"What do you have in mind, Herald?" Ai questioned.

"Well..."

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

Angelica:

Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman (LR: 4/Fiend/Water/Effect/ATK: 3200/↙️⬆️⬇️↘️)

Effect: 2 or more 'Plunder Patroll' monsters. Unaffected by your opponent's card effects while this card points to a monster. If this card is Link Summoned: You can send cards on your opponent's field to their GY up to the number of monsters this card points to. Your opponent cannot activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation. You can shuffle 1 'Plunder Patroll' monster into your deck or Extra Deck; inflict damage to your opponent equal to its original ATK, and if you do, you can have this card gain ATK equal to the shuffled monster's original ATK until the end of your next turn. You can only use this effect of 'Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman' once per turn.

Blue Maiden:

Marincess Schooling (Continuous-Spell card)

Effect: When a 'Marincess' monster you control battles a monster your opponent controls: You can have your monster gain ATK equal to the ATK of 1 'Marincess' monster you control with a different name until the end of the damage step. If this card is in your GY: You can banish this card from your GY; Special Summon 1 'Marincess' monster from your GY, and if you do, it can't be destroyed by battle or card effects for the rest of this turn. If a 'Marincess' Link monster was Special Summoned by your GY by this effect, you can draw 1 card from your deck. You can only use each effect of 'Marincess Schooling' once per turn.

Marincess Typhoon (Quick-Play Spell card)

Effect: When your opponent activates a card effect: You can negate the effect, and if you do, banish it. Then, if you control a Link-2 or higher 'Marincess' Link monster: You can banish cards your opponent controls up to the number of 'Marincess' Link monsters on your field. You can only use each effect of 'Marincess Typhoon' once per turn.

QOTC

If you were starting out as a duelist, who would you want as a mentor?

Chapter Preview

Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth. 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

And with that, another chapter is complete. Despite being straightforward, I do hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. As such, a quick recap is needed:

First up is the scene at SOL Technologies, where Akira interacts with Bishop and Knight. Here, the duo inform Akira of how Balius sent troops to keep things calm following the attacks in the real world and in the network. Do note that Pawn was sent by the Kings to do this favor for them, so Akira was obviously not responsible. Even though Akira doesn't like it, he's put in charge of spearheading the initiative, and helping the people accept what's going on. There's also the security update the Kings authorized Akira to install in the network, so he's doing that as well. After Akira tells Greg about what he found out, Greg has him play along for the time being until more evidence is gathered.

Next is the scene at Emma's apartment, with the Marincess monsters being sentient. I do hope you've enjoyed seeing each one of them and their personalities, as well as Emma making comments that led to her getting pummeled in the process. It wasn't touched upon in the anime on why Aoi was with Emma, so I had her move in with Emma temporarily for two reasons. The first is that Aoi needs time for herself to think on recent events, and determine her standing on them. The second is that she doesn't want to put Akira in a bigger mess than he's already in right now. Once again, I do hope you liked this slice of life scene. We so far had Yuhiro's Cyreath deck, Takeru's Salamangreats, and Linkuriboh from Yusaku's deck be sentient, along with the Marincess monsters of course. Which sentient Cyberse creatures do you want to see next?

From there, Roxy calls Aoi and has her come to Herald's server, where the two of them talk. This leads to a duel between the two, as Angelica's goal is to help Blue Maiden move past her doubts. However, there's also another reason why Angelica did this. She wanted to apologize to Blue Maiden for keeping the truth about Miyu a secret from her for so long. For Blue Maiden, she has every right to be angry at Angelica and Yuhiro for what they did. However, she's mature enough to understand the reasons they did it. Back then, Miyu didn't want to add her troubles to Aoi's, and wanted to wait until she was ready to tell her the truth. So she made Yuhiro and Angelica promise they wouldn't tell Blue Maiden until after she left the hospital. As such, while Yuhiro and Roxy's reasons for keeping what happened to Miyu were indeed selfish, they still had good intentions.

Angelica also reveals her portion of the story. More specifically, how Miyu got kidnapped for the Lost Incident. Following the ring incident at the park, Miyu tried to reach out to Blue Maiden, only for her parents to prevent her from doing so. And just when they were going to move to another place, Miyu was kidnapped for the Lost Incident. I said it once, and I'll say it again: Watchman was the one who brought the children for the Lost Incident, except for Yusaku, where if memory serves, he was brought in by Dr. Kogami.

For the actual duel, it's one that I wanted to write for quite a while now. I did promise you guys a duel where Blue Maiden uses the Marincess deck prior to Mirror LINK VRAINS. Angelica here throws everything she has at Blue Maiden, which includes four summoning methods (Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, and Link) and a new ace monster in the form of Plunder Patrollship Flying Dutchman. It just goes to show how strong of a duelist Angelica is, as her combos stopped Blue Maiden from pulling off most of her strategies. Luckily, Blue Maiden was able to overcome Angelica's strategies by having lots of backup available, to the point where she was able to win the duel with Marincess Aqua Argonaut.

In the end, Angelica and Blue Maiden reconcile with one another for good. I also included Angelica teaching Blue Maiden how to fly, as it was never really covered how in the world she knew how to fly within such a short span of time.

Following the duel is the discussion between Yuhiro and Roxy, where he tells the latter about how he got his memories back, and is unsure what to do now. Roxy, in turn, tells Yuhiro that only he has the power to make such a decision before assuring him that she's with him till the end of the line. She also encourages him to make that decision based on what he can change, not what he can't change.

From there, Yuhiro dives deep into the information that Ace had on his duel disk. I won't dive into detail, as it's already been thoroughly explained what he finds above. Instead, I want to hear your thoughts on Yuhiro's findings, and how it may impact events to come in the future.

As for Herald's nightmare, I won't say anything about it. What I will say is that it has scared him to the point where he's asked Ai, Flame, and Aqua for their help in creating a contingency in response to the nightmare. But what is this contingency? You'll have to read on to find out.

Therefore, I want to thank you all for reading Chapter 82 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 enjoy the most from this chapter? The slice of life moments between Aoi, the Marincess monsters, and Emma? The duel? Yuhiro's findings on Ace's duel disk? The nightmare? Or something else?

That's all for now, folks. Stay tuned, as next chapter.. well, there's going to be some dark and epic moments to look forward to, don't you agree? Oh, and I know it's early, but Happy Halloween everyone!