Chapter 55

"I use my Mine Spider and your Marie as tributes to summon my monster card, [Revolver Dragon]! "

[Revolver Dragon★★★★★★★ (7 stars) Dark][Machine/Effect][ATK: 2600 DEF: 2000]

"At this moment, I activate [Heroic Spirit—Marie Antoinette]'s special effect! "Hoshino gently tapped the graveyard with her finger, causing a soft glow to emanate from the desolate area.

"Please inherit the soul of France." In the graveyard, Marie clasped her hands in prayer.

[Effect: When this card is sent to the graveyard, you can add 1 [heroic spirit] monster from your deck or graveyard to your hand.]

After completing the search, Hoshino added a monster card to her hand and reshuffled her deck.

"Due to the effect of the spell card [Soul Exchange], [Revolver Dragon] cannot attack this turn." Keith tapped the card of [Revolver Dragon] twice and took three duel coins from his pocket. "But it can activate its special effect! "

[Effect: Once per turn, you can target 1 monster your opponent controls; toss a coin 3 times, and if at least 2 results are heads, destroy that target.]

"Let's see how my luck is today." Keith tossed the three coins onto the table, a mysterious smirk on his face.

Result: 2 heads and 1 tail!

"Hahaha, it appears like luck is on my side today! "Keith laughed as the barrel of [Revolver Dragon] began to load. "Fire, destroy the monster on her field! "

The targeted face-down [Leonidas I] reappeared.

"Muscles supreme! For the second time!"Leonidas flexed his muscles without any concern for the gun barrel aimed at him.

"That muscle-brain is such a bother. Activate the quick-play spell card [Body of the Saint]! "Hoshino activated the newly set spell card, which enveloped Leonidas in a hazy image of Jeanne d'Arc.

[Effect: Target 1 [Heroic Spirit] monster you control; that monster is unaffected by other card effects this turn.]

"Bang, bang, bang! " The three shots fired from [Revolver Dragon] hit Leonidas' muscles.

"Perfectly trained muscles can easily deflect a few bullets," Leonidas flexed, causing the bullets to bounce off. "No problem at all!! "

"Not bad." Keith, unfazed by the deflected bullets, crossed his arms and said, "You wouldn't be worthy of a duel against me if you couldn't do this much! Turn end! "

"My turn, draw! "Hoshino frowned at her new card, which was unsuitable for the current situation.

"I sacrifice [Leonidas I] to summon a monster card! "Hoshino drew out a monster card from her hand, closed her eyes, and whispered a prayer: "Lord, please look away for a moment! "

Leonidas, still flexing, was enveloped in a white light. "Haha, then inherit my muscle strength! "

"I summon [Heroic Spirit - Martha] in attack mode! "Slamming the card on the table, Hoshino declared energetically, "Inheriting Marie's soul of France and Leonidas' muscle strength, the invincible card, Martha, go get him, boss! "

"Seriously, stop calling me the boss! "Martha appeared on the field, brushing her hair aside with a complaint, "Why do I have to inherit muscle strength too?! "

[Heroic Spirit – Martha★★★★★★ (6 stars) Light][Fairy/Effect][ATK: 1600 DEF: 1300]

"Sorry, boss, I got too excited." Hoshino's apology lacked sincerity as she displayed a 'sorry, but I'll do it again' attitude.

"Activate Martha's special effect! "Hoshino almost slipped but managed to correct herself, tapping Martha's card on the table.

[Effect: When this card is Summoned or Special Summoned, you can Special Summon 1 [Tarrasque Token] (Dragon-Type/Fire/Level 4/ATK 1500/DEF 1500).]

With a mighty roar, Tarrasque appeared beside Martha, affectionately nuzzling her cheek.

[Tarrasque★★★★ (4 stars) Fire][Dragon/Token][ATK:1500 DEF:1500]

"A saint who subdued a dragon, along with the dragon itself..." Jonouchi, having heard Yugi's explanation, was somewhat familiar with Martha but didn't expect the card to summon both the saint and the dragon.

"Hey, even though it's a tribute-summoned higher-level monster, its attack isn't much higher than Leonidas'! "Keith crossed his arms and shook his head disdainfully. "You summoned two weaklings with such a grand declaration."

"Roar! "Tarrasque, seemingly understanding the insult, growled at Keith.

"What now, boss? He mocked us! He called you a weakling! "Hoshino, with a mischievous smile, egged Martha on.

"Of course, we beat him up! "Martha, furious at being called a weakling, was ready to fight.

"Show him the power of the saint who subdued the dragon! "Hoshino raised her right hand with the duel glove, pointing at [Revolver Dragon] on Keith's field, declaring Martha's attack.

"Hey, are you serious? Using a 1600 ATK monster to attack my 2600 ATK [Revolver Dragon]?"Keith couldn't comprehend Hoshino's move.

"Once opposing enemies, now united, the combined power..." Hoshino crossed her hands over her chest, confidently watching Martha charge at [Revolver Dragon]. "Can destroy all evil! "

"Activate [Heroic Spirit—Martha]'s special effect! "

"O dragon ignorant of love's sorrow, like a star! "The enormous holy power concentrated in Martha's right fist, a brilliant light capable of purifying all evil, said, "Lord, please close your eyes for a moment."

[Effect: When this card attacks an opponent's monster, you can tribute 1 Dragon-Type monster you control to destroy the opponent's monster and inflict damage to your opponent equal to that monster's original ATK.]

Tarrasque flew up, using its massive body to restrain [Revolver Dragon].

"There's no escape; take this! Iron Fist of Judgment!!! "

The holy power burst from Martha's fist, piercing through [Revolver Dragon] and Tarrasque simultaneously.

"That was awesome, boss! "Hoshino's eyes sparkled with admiration for the legendary Iron Fist of Judgment.

Martha, not denying Hoshino's calling her 'boss,' cracked her knuckles. "I'm not a weakling, you scum! "

Keith Howard's LP → 1400

The audience below was stunned. The legendary saint dismantled a dragon bare-handed. What a shock.

"That's so cool! Hoshino is in the lead! "Jonouchi, finally snapping back to reality, was so excited that he grabbed Yugi by the neck and shook him wildly, causing Yugi to gasp for air.

"I get it, Jonouchi, but this hurts," Yugi, struggling to breathe, managed to complain.

"Hehehe, very impressive indeed," Keith sneered, his eyes behind his sunglasses becoming sharper. "With such strength, I can't call you a girl anymore. Chiyuki Hoshino—I'll remember that name."

Despite the loss of his life points, Keith remained composed. He revealed the trap card he had set earlier: "I activated the trap card, [Time Machine]! "

[Time Machine Trap Card Effect: When a monster is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, Special Summon that monster from the graveyard in the same battle position.]

Hoshino was taken aback upon seeing this card for the first time.

"So, [Revolver Dragon] is special summoned back to my field! "Keith returned [the Revolver Dragon] from the graveyard to the field, accompanied by the sound of turning gears.

[Revolver Dragon ATK: 2600]

"Although you didn't destroy my [Revolver Dragon], you did deal significant damage to my life points." Keith was shaking his head. "I can't take another hit like that."

"Keith truly is the American champion. Despite losing life points, he still has the upper hand on the field." Jonouchi, who had been ecstatic moments ago, now felt deflated after Keith activated a single trap card. "If [Revolver Dragon] activates its effect successfully again next turn, Hoshino will be..."

"What are you saying, Jonouchi? "Anzu interrupted, scolding him. "Whose side are you on? The chance of [Revolver Dragon's] effect failing is higher! "

"I'm just worried," Jonouchi muttered, poking his fingers together after being reprimanded by Anzu.

"Though he seems an idiot, Jonouchi isn't entirely wrong." Holmes, now half-transparent, appeared behind Hoshino again. "Hoshino, did you notice anything strange about that coin? "

"Something strange? "Hoshino hadn't noticed anything unusual until Holmes mentioned it. "Did you see something, Mr. Holmes? "

"This is just my speculation; I have no solid evidence yet. I need to observe him tossing the coin once more." Holmes, polishing his pipe, locked his sharp gaze on Keith's right hand as he tossed the coin.

"So, he is likely to succeed again next turn. If Keith has tampered with the coin, it must be to increase the chances of success. I'll set another card and end my turn."

"It's my turn, draw!"Keith, with his usual sly smile, looked at his drawn card.

"I summon a monster in face-down Defense Position, and let's test my luck again." Keith placed a monster card face-down and pulled out his coin once more. "Activate [Revolver Dragon]'s effect! "

Flip: Heads, Flip: Tails, Flip: Heads

"Sorry, I succeeded again! "Keith's exaggerated grin was visible even behind his dark sunglasses.

"Hoshino, he's definitely cheating! "Holmes suddenly exclaimed, finally seeing through Keith's trick.

"Cheating? Is there something wrong with the coin? Are both sides heads? "Hoshino, now fully focused, carefully observed but saw nothing wrong.

"It isn't so straightforward. Holmes shook his head, dismissing Hoshino's hypothesis. "Though it's not both heads, the coin is indeed problematic."

"Not both heads, but still problematic? "Hoshino was even more puzzled by Holmes' explanation.

"This man is smart. Only two of the three coins have been tampered with, however little. From the outside, it's difficult to tell." Holmes explained his theory: "After three observations, including the Mine Spider's coin toss, it's evident. Two coins have a different flipping angle than the third. A skilled gambler can manage a marginally changed coin to land in a certain direction with amazing precision."

"Then I'll expose his trick! "Hoshino, now understanding, whispered angrily.

"No, you can't. You have no proof." Holmes shook his head, stopping Hoshino's impulsive move. "First, from the outside, the coins look normal and require a specific tossing technique to control. Even if you accuse Keith, he won't admit it."

"So, what should I do? I can't let him succeed every time." Hoshino, feeling dejected, lowered her head.

"You can ask him to change the coin, a reasonable request, but it won't change this turn's result. Or..." Holmes, in his half-transparent state, patted Hoshino's head, smiling, "Or you can simply destroy his [Revolver Dragon], which is what you're best at."

"[Revolver Dragon], ready to fire! "Keith yelled excitedly, pointing at Hoshino's Martha, "Fire the death bullet, [Revolver Dragon]! "

Three dark bullets shot towards Martha's seemingly slender body.

"Boss, I'm counting on you! "Hoshino, focusing on the incoming bullets, moved her fingers towards the graveyard.

"Hey, Hoshino, what are you doing? Duel Monsters isn't a game where cheering for your monsters helps." Keith's laugh grew more arrogant.

However, the next scene stunned Keith.

Facing the three nearly invisible bullets, Martha punched out three times with blinding speed.

"Ora! Ora! Ora! "Her solid punches intercepted the bullets, creating bright sparks on impact.

"How is this possible? "Keith couldn't believe his eyes. His [Revolver Dragon]'s effect, which had succeeded twice in a row, was nullified without Hoshino activating any set cards.

"Confused? Wondering why I didn't activate a set card, yet Martha wasn't destroyed?"Hoshino sneered at Keith, "I activate [the body of the saint]'s graveyard effect! "

[Effect: When a [heroic spirit] monster you control is targeted by a monster effect, you can banish this card from your graveyard; negate that effect. This effect cannot be activated the next time this card is sent to the graveyard.]

The faint, holy silhouette of Jeanne d'Arc appeared behind Martha, merging with her.

"I feel the will of the Lord! "