Yu-Gi-Oh! The Pitfall Hero

"John, in response to your call, the hero has arrived!"

711 The final blow, GEM erupts!

"...Junior?!"

Watching Jaden Yuki descend from the sky like a hero, launching a direct attack on Keith and knocking him down while simultaneously retrieving the "Gummy Bean" from the villain's hands, John, utterly astonished by this miraculous sight, widened his eyes in astonishment.

This unexpected yet not unexpected turn of events filled John with a myriad of emotions as he realized the crisis before him had been averted.

"As long as you believe in your heart, miracles can happen! Go, John, it's your turn to create a miracle this time! Quickly finish this despicable man off with a duel!"

Extend your index and middle fingers toward where John is.

Jaden Yuki, having snatched the card from Keith's hand, took advantage of Keith's momentary lapse in concentration and, while saying this to John, decisively made his escape, disappearing behind John.

At this moment, Keith, realizing that the card that could threaten John had been taken away, got up from the ground, swaying his body and covering his face in anger.

The unexpected blow from Jaden Yuki just now severely damaged his face, and it was still throbbing with pain.

If he weren't a hunter with a stronger physique than the average person, that one blow would have been enough to knock him unconscious.

"You two brats, you can't be spared..."

"The duel continues... My turn, draw a card!"

Ignoring Keith's impending anger, John abruptly ended his turn by waving his hand and drawing a new card from his deck.

Seeing this, Keith had no choice but to grit his teeth and shut up, refocusing his attention on the duel in front of him.

Wait for me!

Just wait and see how I deal with you two brats after I win!

If I can hold out until the next round, it will be my victory, Keith!!!

With the monster "Camouflage Guardian" on my field, boasting a defense of 1900, there's absolutely no way those Gem Beasts could break through that defense.

When it's my turn again, I can use the effects of Continuous Spell Cards to deal damage to my opponent based on the number of Crystal Beasts I captured.

"This card is... the Jade Pegasus..."

Looking at the card he had just drawn, John subconsciously looked up at the Jade Pegasus elf who was trapped in a capsule by Keith and was now hanging from the ceiling of the dilapidated building.

Noticing John's gaze, the trapped Jade Pegasus nodded in return, conveying its thoughts to him.

"I understand... Jade Pegasus, you're planning to fight too, right?"

Having understood Jade Pegasus's intentions, John, without the slightest hesitation, raised the card high above his head: "Go! Keith... I won't let you interfere with my ideals!"

"I summon this card from my hand in Attack Position. Come forth! [Crystal Beast - Jade Pegasus] (ATK: 1800)!"

As he said this, John slammed the Jade Pegasus card onto the Duel Disk.

Because the card's spirit was trapped, even though John placed the card on the Duel Disk, the Jade Pegasus did not appear in front of him.

"Hahahaha...!!! I'm dying of laughter, are you an idiot?"

After a moment of surprise, Keith, relieved to have escaped unscathed, curled his lip and uttered an undisguised sarcasm: "You used the hard-won chance to turn the tide to summon an empty shell of the [Jade Beast - Azure Jade Pegasus]?"

“…John, you should know best that a card without a spirit residing within it has no power!”

"No, this isn't an empty shell!"

"Nani?"

Refuting Keith's words, John waved his arms and shouted, "The cards are the gateway to the spirits! And what opens this gateway is a heart full of trust!"

"So...come forth! Jade Pegasus!"

John stretched out his arm toward the empty space in front of him and called out the name of the Jade Pegasus.

In response to John's call, the Jade Pegasus, which should have been trapped, began to emit a bluish-green glow from its body.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

Seeing the changes taking place inside the capsule, Keith, who had never witnessed such a sight before, was shocked and couldn't help but let out a surprised cry.

What exactly is going on now?

Could it be true, as that guy said, that we can break through the cage's confinement by relying on so-called bonds?

“Hahaha!”

As the light shone to its limit, the Jade Pegasus burst through the capsule, breaking free of its cage. It leaped out and stretched its body in mid-air, flying towards John's location.

“The friendship between John and us cannot be hindered by this device!”

Showing the power of their bond to Keith, the Jade Pegasus spread its wings and entered John's arena.

"How can this be?!"

The incomprehensible reality unfolding before him caused Keith to instinctively take a half-step back, his face showing shock.

Logically speaking, it shouldn't be possible for an elf to break free from that device on its own.

But why? Why was the Jade Pegasus able to break free of its restraints?

"At that moment, I activated the effect of Jade Pegasus, placing [Crystal Beast Ruby Beast] from my deck into my Spell & Trap Zone."

John glanced at his returning family, a slight smile playing on his lips. He then drew a card from his deck and placed it in the back row of the Duel Disk.

An irregularly shaped red gem appeared in John's magic trap area as he moved.

After that, John waved his hand again, holding a card high above his head: "Next, I activate the spell card [Under Wings]. According to the effect of this card, I can return all [Crystal Beasts] on the field, except for Jade Pegasus, to my hand!"

"Varied……"

-

[Under the Wings]

(Spell Card)

Effect: This effect can only be activated while "Crystal Beast Jade Pegasus" is face-up on your field. All cards on the field except "Crystal Beast Jade Pegasus" that have "Crystal Beast" in their name are returned to their owners' hands.

-

Spreading its wings toward the sky, the Jade Pegasus uttered a call.

In response to the call of the Jade Pegasus, who was leading the team, all the Jade Beasts on both sides broke free from their restraints at that moment, transforming into different colored lights that gathered in John's hand like a rainbow.

"We're about to go! Everyone!"

John, having rescued the [Jewel Beast], pulled out another spell card and showed it to Keith: "Spell Card [GEM Burst] activated!"

"Ban the three cards [G Power], [E Power], and [M Power] from your graveyard, and place as many [Crystal Beasts] from your hand as possible into the Spell & Trap Zone."

John waved the Crystal Beasts he had just returned to his hand using the effect of "Under Wings," glanced at Keith's panicked expression, and then placed five Crystal Beast monster cards into his back row.

As he moved, five different colored gems appeared simultaneously, accompanied by various colored lights, in the area behind him.

"It's not over yet! The magic card's effect has a follow-up!"

"Nani?"

"Each [Jewel Beast] placed based on the effect of [GEM Burst] will deal 500 points of damage to the opponent!"

Amber mammoth, topaz tiger, amethyst cat, ruby ​​beast, jade turtle...

At John's command, the phantoms of these gem beasts appeared behind the gem, conveying their anger to Keith.

Each Jade Beast will deal 500 points of damage to Keith.

John placed a total of five Gem Beasts in the backfield, which will cause Soygith to suffer a total of 2500 points of massive damage!

"...Keith! Be punished for not understanding the hearts of the elves!"

With a furrowed brow, John made his final declaration toward Keith: "That's it! Five-Colored GEM Explosion!"

Five beams of light of different colors intertwined in mid-air, eventually transforming into a massive energy surge.

Enveloped by the impact that descended from the sky, Keith, while enduring the pain, couldn't help but howl loudly: "...Ughhhhhh!!!"

(Keeth LP: 1300→0)

Damage exceeding Keith's maximum health instantly robbed him of his remaining health.

Keith, facing defeat in the duel, lost all his health points and began to fall uncontrollably backward, crashing heavily onto the cold ground.

Keith stared blankly at the illusory sky reflected through the dilapidated buildings, unable to accept the outcome; his pupils remained unfocused.

"You did it! John! You beat that guy!"

"Thank you, Judai. I couldn't have done these things without your help."

Seeing that the duel was over, Jaden Yuki quickly came to John's side, and while giving him a high five, returned the card that he had taken from Keith to John.

John gave Jaden Yuki a grateful look as he accepted the card.

"I actually... I actually had a heart-to-heart talk with an elf..."

Keith, who had been knocked down, began to mutter to himself, "But... my friend, someone else took my card..."

"Having lost friends and suffering from the pain of emotional torment, I was unable to bear these negative emotions and ultimately chose to close myself off."

Keith, like the other victims, was someone whose spirit had been taken away from him.

However, this cannot be a reason for him to do bad things.

Having made so many mistakes, it's time for him to bear the consequences.

"Humans are not qualified to confide in elves. There is no one in this world who possesses such a pure heart."

"No...it's..."

Just as John was about to say something to Keith, several white orbs of light suddenly appeared beside Keith and converged on him.

Within these white orbs of light are the vengeful spirits of the elves that Keith once harmed.

The elves he killed are now taking this opportunity to seek revenge.

"Ugh... I... I don't want to... I don't want to die, help me!!!"

Realizing the tragic end that awaited him, Keith, driven by a survival instinct, cried out for help to Jaden Yuki and John.