How come the Ace of Cups isn't considered the Holy Grail?

The Gate of Destiny seemed surprised that its lines would be stolen one day, so it didn't react for a moment. It was unclear whether it was stunned by Youdu's actions or was actually thinking about what it should add.

Finally, just as Youdu found the small and inconspicuous keyhole among the dragon's teeth, the Gate of Destiny, which had been broken earlier, spoke again, and the eyes on the dragon's face adjusted their brightness in response to the sound.

However, this time, its voice lacked emotional fluctuations, sounding like it was reading lines from a script in a monotone.

"After opening this door, as a price, when you duel in this world, one or more 'Number' monster cards will be added to your opponent's Extra Deck. However, if you win, you will directly acquire those 'Number' cards from their hand."

Ok?

Yudu sensed a familiar feeling.

"Commander, is that you? Commander?"

The voice didn't answer him; it seemed to have just come to educate him, or rather, to explain in detail the effects of his unique skill.

You Du clicked his tongue in regret.

But the "after-sales service" was indeed very thorough. The phrase "you can directly obtain those 'No.' cards from them" made him immediately realize that he had to open the door to destiny right away.

This is a great opportunity to obtain powerful cards!

Hoping to meet a gun king! Lustful! Giant Eye!

If all else fails, we could just leave [No. 41 Mudsleepy Beast Sleepy Beast] to languish!

He didn't know what to use to forge these cards. If he could just get them from his opponent, it would save him a lot of trouble!

As for things like the Gate of Origin Numbers and the Celestial Spirit of Origin Numbers, he didn't even dare to dream of them...

He found it hard to imagine that there could be someone of that caliber in this Holy Grail War.

Yuto held the Emperor's Key and aimed it at the keyhole, which was a circular indentation deep enough for Yuto to fit his entire hand inside.

He had considered doing what the cult leader did and saying "Soar to the heavens!" when opening the door to create some atmosphere, but in the end he gave up on that idea and simply turned the key.

click!

A crisp click of gears locking, accompanied by a burst of light from the keyhole, rang out as the Gate of Destiny slowly opened. The iron chains wrapped around it snapped one by one, and the huge shockwave emanating from the crack in the door made You Du feel as if he was about to be blown away.

But he still managed to stand firmly on his strong legs. He looked up, intending to see if the door led to the Star Realm, when he bumped headfirst into a very familiar golden dragon.

Blanch! Source Dragon?!

This was Yudu's final thought.

The next moment, his consciousness returned to darkness.

Meanwhile, in Xueyuan City.

People who had just experienced the theater explosion and were now enjoying the city's vibrant nightlife were drawn to look up by a long, drawn-out dragon's roar.

"Huh? Is that... a dragon...?"

The man, gazing up at the sky, stared blankly at the enormous golden dragon that seemed to fill the entire city of Xueyuan, and hesitantly asked his female companion beside him, "Could this be some kind of event being held in Xueyuan City?"

His girlfriend handled all the planning and research for this trip to Xueyuan City; he didn't bring his brain with him at all, so he had no idea whether this was some kind of unique activity in Xueyuan City.

For example, is this golden dragon actually a projection or something?

"Huh?" The woman was stunned for a moment, then immediately and decisively shook her head vigorously: "No, no, absolutely not, at least I had never heard of such a thing before I came here!"

Similar incidents continued to occur throughout the city, and people reacted in various ways. Some, like the man, suspected it was some kind of activity; others thought it was an unusual phenomenon and fled in fear; still others called their bosses to work overtime...

Just as the appearance of the Source Dragon caused a disturbance in Snowfield City, under everyone's gaze, the Source Dragon, which had been quietly staying in the sky, suddenly transformed into pure golden light, condensing into a group of golden light orbs of varying sizes, which dispersed in all directions.

Some of the light fell into the snowfield city, and the sight of it falling like raindrops aroused the curiosity of the onlookers. Some people immediately ran towards the place where the light fell, wanting to see what the light was.

Police Chief Orlando, who was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window in his office watching the Source Dragon, frowned as he noticed one of the orbs of light heading towards the location of the underground workshop where his summoned Servant, Alexandre Dumas, was.

This is not good...

Chapter 249 Dance to your heart's content, you mongrels!

The unrest caused by the Source Dragons did not end there.

In the royal suite on the top floor of a casino hotel called Crystal Hill in the snowfield city, Gilgamesh, who was summoned as the pseudo-Archer, was sitting with his eyes closed on the sofa by the floor-to-ceiling window.

But when the Source Dragon appeared, he sensed its aura and suddenly opened his eyes.

"This aura... the aura of a creator god? No, it's actually a dragon?"

Why did he sense the aura of a creator god emanating from the dragon?

Despite the strangeness, upon seeing the Source Dragon disappear and several orbs of light flying toward him at an extremely fast speed, Gilgamesh, even though he didn't sense any danger from those orbs, still took out several shield-type Noble Phantasms from his treasury and placed them in front of the orbs of light.

However, those orbs of light seemed to be on a completely different level from these magical artifacts, passing through them without encountering any resistance and entering his body.

"Hmm? This is..." Gilgamesh had already grasped the healing elixir in his hand, and he had no intention of leaving the stage so early before he could settle his score with his close friend Enkidu.

Just as he opened the bottle to drink the elixir, the familiar feeling he got from the orbs of light after they entered his body made him stop what he was doing. He closed his eyes and quietly experienced the golden orbs of light that had settled down after entering his body, like a stagnant pool.

He was very familiar with this power; he must have experienced it firsthand sometime during that time…

Following this feeling, Gilgamesh saw four cards. Although the cards were inexplicably covered by a layer of light and could not be seen at all, the strange swirling pattern on the back of the cards immediately triggered his memory.

"This... Hmph, hahahahahaha! So that's how it is! So it was you?!" The wide-eyed confusion gradually turned into a maniacal smile on his face. Gilgamesh stood up from the sofa, his whole body exuding a high fighting spirit.

The bathrobe vanished instantly, replaced by a suit of golden armor. Gilgamesh's crimson eyes gazed at the spot where the Source Dragon had disappeared, his wild laughter filled with glee.

He recognized the cards, and thus became aware of Youdu's existence.

"I didn't expect that besides Enkidu, even you would be drawn into this fake Holy Grail War? Very good! Excellent! This truly brings me immense pleasure!"

Gilgamesh was now somewhat glad that he hadn't drunk the elixir of youth and gone straight into action.

Otherwise, Enkidu would have been alright, but if I, as a child, had to face Yudo, I would probably have been played like an ordinary child, leaving me with a terrible memory.

"Your Majesty! Just now, someone saw several strange orbs of light flying this way. Are you alright?"

A flustered girl's voice, accompanied by hurried footsteps, stopped outside the door.

Clearly, no matter how anxious she was, she always upheld her duty as a subject.

You may be flustered, anxious, or at a loss, but as a subject, you must never trespass into the king's palace because of this.

This is the most basic quality that a subject should possess.

"Tini? It's alright, come in!"

Having encountered a formidable opponent, Gilgamesh, in a cheerful mood, found himself increasingly drawn to the little girl who served as his Master, and promptly invited her in.

The commotion outside the door paused for a moment, and then a little girl who looked about 12 or 3 years old pushed open the door and walked in. When she saw Gilgamesh, who was fully prepared and seemed ready to fight someone at any moment, her pupils contracted slightly in surprise.

She wore a gorgeous white gown, her lustrous black hair cascading over her brown skin, her delicate face slightly parted, and her voice clear and pure.

"My lord, just now in the sky above Snowfield City—"

"That matter is no longer necessary. I already know who it was." Gilgamesh, having removed his armor and changed into a bathrobe, took out a flask of divine wine and an exquisite wine cup from the treasury, poured the golden liquid into the cup, and smiled casually.

The person I knew was the same one I fought yesterday... Was he a Servant who was summoned?

Tini glanced at Gilgamesh, who made no attempt to hide his delight, recalled his state before entering the room, understood, and said nothing more.

"I understand. Should we send someone to investigate those connected to that dragon?"

“No need, he’ll come looking for me sooner or later.” The liquid in the glass turned into a mirror, reflecting Gilgamesh’s face. He gently swirled the glass, watching his reflection shatter in the ripples.

"Before that, there's still an unfinished battle between me and my friend that needs to be resolved..."

Upon hearing this, Tini said nothing and simply took her leave from Gilgamesh.

To be honest, choosing such a conspicuous location for the outpost made her feel extremely uneasy.

Although she wanted to suggest to Gilgamesh that they change their base, seeing Gilgamesh's current state, she wisely swallowed her advice, lest she disturb the good mood of the oldest king.

Gilgamesh continued to sit by the window, looking down at the city that had once again become chaotic, smiling as he drank alone.

hum~

Dance yourselves until the battle between me and Enkidu is decided, you bastards!

If you can survive that guy's attacks...

"Hahahaha—"

……

"I... fell asleep?" In the dimly lit room with no windows, Ayaka Sajou opened her eyes and stared at the slightly yellowed ceiling of the hotel, momentarily unable to react.

Her memory stopped at the moment when Yuuto took out the card and said the words 'Duelist,' and then without any transition, it abruptly shifted to the scene where she had woken up.

Even when lying down, I kept my upper body on the bed with only my knees and the rest of my body hanging off the edge. When I woke up, my lower body felt completely numb...

what happened?

How did I fall asleep?

Since her body hadn't fully recovered yet, Ayaka Sajou decided to take advantage of this time to try and recall what happened before she fell asleep.

Then she remembered the card that had made her fall into a deep sleep with just one glance at it.

Ayaka Sajou: "!!!"

No, that card is way too dangerous!

Ayaka Sajou sat up abruptly, a tingling sensation immediately rising in her lower limbs.

Before she could even let out a soothing, tingling breath, she saw Yu Du slumped on the table with his eyes closed...

And the unfamiliar purplish-black mage standing beside him.

enemy!?

In an instant, Ayaka Sajou felt her blood run cold.

Forget about the drowsiness of wanting to stay in bed, the tingling sensation in her lower limbs, the emptiness in her stomach; even normal breathing was a luxury for her at this moment.

The feeling of a snake slowly tightening around her neck, the chilling sense of death creeping closer, made her body tremble involuntarily.

Are you going to die...?

Black Magician: "?"

What are you looking at?

Chapter 250 Whose subordinate is this? He's incredibly brave!

'The uncivilized Yuan Shulong caused an accident and fled the scene!'

I slept until I naturally woke up, feeling refreshed and energized!

'My Master seems about to faint from fright because of my card spirits...'

The somewhat abrupt three-part structure perfectly captures the rollercoaster-like psychological journey of You Du after waking from his dream.

"So...that person was actually summoned by you?"

After witnessing Yutaka retrieve the Black Magician from the card and then resummon it, Ayaka Sajou, whose back was soaked with cold sweat from tension, realized that the other party was not an enemy.

The moment she realized this, she suddenly relaxed. Her overly tense body seemed to have exhausted all its strength, leaving her feeling so weak and unable to exert any force.

“Yeah, last night I was the one who had the black magician bring us both out of that theater. You—oh right, you don’t seem to have actually seen what he looked like…”

Slapping his forehead, Yuuto remembered that last night he had carried Ayaka Sajou on his shoulder with her face turned backward. She didn't have eyes in the back of her head, so she definitely didn't see him summon the Black Magician.

In addition, the dark magician was a quiet person and didn't make a sound while bringing them out. Even if Ayaka Sajou wanted to distinguish friend from foe by sound, she didn't have the prerequisite. So she always thought that Yuu Watari used some kind of magic to bring her out... although that wasn't wrong.

"Um, I'm sorry, Master, this was my oversight..."

Shaking his head, Yuuto put the Black Magician back into the card, glanced at Ayaka Sajou who was still somewhat shaken, said a few words, and then left the room in spirit form.

"I'll wander around for a bit and come back later. Master, you can take this time to wash up!"

After Yutari left, Ayaka Sajou, who had calmed down, wanted to change out of her sweat-soaked clothes and wash them. However, when she got up to open her luggage and take out her change of clothes, she froze in place when she saw the room that seemed to stretch out from one end to the other.

Is her luggage still at the place where she was kidnapped?

Because I always carry my wallet with me, I didn't notice anything amiss when I checked into this cheap motel last night. It wasn't until I needed it that I suddenly remembered it...

Ayaka Sajou: "..."

If we go there now, can we still find it?

And it seems the cash in my wallet is in some danger...