On the Spirit Continent-where swords and magic had once been the mainstream-people once again personally felt why, within just a century, Duel Cards had entirely replaced them.
To alter the course of a war, or even to bring it to an end, only two cards were needed.
Insignificant humans were simply incapable of standing against colossal gods that had been materialized through the power of cards.
In the western region of the Kingdom of Livorden, the war caused by the heretical cultists' rebellion ended with a single strike from the Obelisk and ZEUS.
Of course, this also marked the first time in the history of the Spirit Continent that divine power was used to directly intervene in a war between humans.
And for the first time, it demonstrated to every nation just what level of deterrence would be created if an existence on the level of a God Card were used in human warfare.
Naturally, this small-scale war of annihilation against the western cultists spread to the ears of the upper echelons of the Spirit Continent's three great nations, embellished with extremely exaggerated descriptions.
In response to this event, the leaders of the three great nations each expressed very different attitudes.
"Hahahahahaha!"
First was Old King Kaiser. Upon hearing the news, his aged face finally broke into a hearty laugh he hadn't shown in a long time.
"As expected of the current and sole Royal Knight! Indeed, I didn't misjudge you."
It was only natural for Lord Kaiser of the Livorden royal family to react this way.
After all, according to the details of the war rumors, the one who ultimately obtained the God Card [Obelisk the Tormentor] was Aisha Carlos—the Royal Duel Knight of the Kingdom of Livorden.
So what was there for Lord Kaiser to worry about?
Laughter was the correct response.
That said, there was, of course, work that had to be done properly, and with Old King Kaiser's many years of ruling experience, he would never overlook it.
That was to continue consolidating and elevating the status of the Carlos family within the Kingdom of Livorden.
A talent who possessed a God Card—no, now it was more appropriate to call them a strategic-level, top-tier Duelist—had to be courted and maintained with one hundred and twenty percent effort.
"On that matter, Father," the eldest prince, Homar Kaiser, proposed.
"Nova seems to be on very good terms with Royal Knight Aisha. I think that rather than simply relying on money and wealth, building stronger interpersonal ties between the Kaiser family and the Carlos family would be far more reliable."
"That's a good suggestion."
Thinking of Nova's relationship with Aisha, Old King Kaiser felt even more gratified.
"To be thinking of easing my burdens at such a young age… truly worthy of being my proud and lovely daughter."
Compared to the optimistic attitude of the Livorden royal family, the Axet Republic's council felt more relief than anything else.
They were relieved that, back then, they had forcibly granted Aisha Carlos the title of Republic Knight.
And that badge—which could naturally accumulate and increase Spell Magic Points—was, by any measure, a national-level legendary artifact.
As the saying goes, taking someone's hand makes your arm soft; eating someone's food makes your mouth soft. At the very least, for the sake of that badge, the Republic could be considered to be on friendly terms with the superpowerhouse Aisha Carlos.
Of course, where there was joy, there was also worry.
The upper ranks of the Varian Empire were just unable to feel happy.
Although the incident of the Slint family's attack on the royal capital had been deflected with blame-shifting, and the two nations had not outwardly fallen out over it, to say that national relations were unaffected would have been impossible.
Not to mention that the Duelist currently shaking the continent with both a God Card and a god-slaying weapon was none other than the very hero who had once resolved the Empire Marshal incident in the royal capital—Aisha Carlos.
The Varian Empire, founded upon overwhelming military might, now found that the side with which it had the worst relations was holding super cards capable of altering the balance of continental warfare.
This left the Empire's upper echelon practically sleepless at night.
"Your Majesty," said a minister well past fifty as he knelt on one knee in sincere petition. "This humble one believes that it has become unquestionably necessary to begin courting the Carlos family… and especially the Duelist Aisha Carlos."
"Oh? Is that so?"
From atop the throne came a voice far younger than expected… a voice that could be described as that of a girl.
"I think it's not quite time to lose face like that yet, is it?"
Her exquisitely delicate features were as cold as ice, revealing no trace of emotion. The Emperor's slender, pale fingers idly toyed with the ring engraved with the imperial emblem—symbol of noble status—entirely unconsciously.
"..."
The speechless minister understood his Emperor's temperament all too well.
Her so-called refusals, regardless of the reason given, could all be boiled down to a single result—she found it troublesome.
"Your Majesty need not trouble yourself with this matter in the slightest. Simply leave it entirely to this old man."
"Very well. Go ahead, then."
Just a moment ago, she had spoken of 'losing face,' and now she immediately changed her tune and agreed without hesitation.
The fundamental reason was simple: it wouldn't require her to personally take action.
Emperor Quaedes of the Varian Empire was more unconventional than any previous emperor, yet also more powerful than any emperor in history.
"A top-tier powerhouse capable of wielding a God Card, hm?"
The young Emperor's icy eyes were deep and mysterious. After the minister departed, she sat alone upon the throne, murmuring in contemplation.
"Sigh… if only Aisha Carlos were a man. Then he could just marry into the Empire."
...
"(?﹃?) Hehehe, Mr. Miles, it's really Mr. Miles~"
"Ai-san, you should wipe the drool off your mouth."
After Miles successfully manifested his guardian spirit form for the first time, Aisha Yuna Carlos immediately clung tightly to him and refused to let go.
After all, this not only allowed her to press right up against Miles, but also let her openly declare her claim, forcing the other women—who were just as interested in Miles's manifested form—to keep a bit of distance.
"By the way, Miles, will you be able to stay in this state all the time from now on?" Ren asked, curiosity and concern mingling in her voice.
If Miles could perfectly maintain his guardian spirit form and move freely in the future, then maybe there wouldn't be such an urgent need to go find Viel to alchemize a body for him.
After all, a price tag of two million gold coins was outrageously high… like being ruthlessly fleeced by a crooked merchant.
This was the question Ren, who knew the inside details, cared about the most right now.
At current Spirit Continent prices, if Miles could save that two million gold coins, such an enormous sum would be enough for her to live a carefree life for the rest of her days.
Together with him!
"Probably not."
However, Ren's fantasy of a shamelessly blissful future lasted only a few seconds before Miles mercilessly shut it down.
The rate at which his mental energy was being drained was simply far too fast.
Maybe during the Duel earlier, with the dual reinforcement of the Obelisk and ZEUS, Miles hadn't felt it as clearly.
But once the Duel ended and the two divine beings fully disappeared, maintaining manifestation solely in guardian spirit form no longer felt good at all.
Maintaining a state of independent soul manifestation was like pulling the plug out of a reservoir of stored mental energy.
Miles could feel himself being continuously hollowed out.
If he maintained his guardian spirit form for too long, his remaining mental energy might not even be enough to perform a manifested Duel Monster Summon.
Looking at it this way, going to Viel to alchemize a truly physical body was still undoubtedly necessary.
Only after personally experiencing the pain of having both body and soul drained dry did Miles truly understand why Camille—the guardian spirit of the Millennium Key—knew the technique of guardian spirit manifestation, yet still preferred to stay inside the Key and live as a shut-in.
If it weren't to confirm whether the current crisis had been quite resolved, Miles would probably have already slipped back into the Soul Room of the Millennium Puzzle.
The crisis referred to the danger posed by the Despia cultists, who had used prehistoric civilization technology to seal Duel Monster Summoning.
After the High Prelate's death and Miles's direct defeat of Aluber, the distortion rooted in the Branded Stigmata gradually faded.
As the orthodox Saint, Ecclesia finally recovered most of the power that had been suppressed by dark faith.
At this moment, Ecclesia's forehead was glowing with the X-shaped mark as she held the key and silently prayed toward the Obelisk Tower.
As Ecclesia had said, by using the power of the Stigmata to erase the dark notes spreading outward from the Obelisk Tower as a medium, the villagers in the western settlements who had been controlled into rioting would return to normal.
"I hope everything goes smoothly." When it came to sacred, religious, and occult matters like the power of the Stigmata, not even Irena's magic could lend a hand.
The companions standing guard nearby could only offer Saint Ecclesia spiritual support. Even Miles, who was still forcing himself to remain manifested as a guardian spirit, thought the same.
However, as Miles observed the entire Obelisk Tower from the outside, memories of the many strange experiences his consciousness had undergone within the tower surfaced, making it feel as though he had lived through a long, winding dream.
Kaima's loli transformation.
Domino City from the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!.
Kaiba Corporation and Seto Kaiba.
Traveling back three thousand years to ancient Egypt and inheriting the Pharaoh's Deck.
And the ancestors of the Carlos family.
"Oh, right—Aisha!"
As Miles reorganized the memories of his experiences inside the Obelisk Tower, he suddenly remembered something extremely important.
Why was it that the ancestors of the Carlos family were connected to the Obelisk Tower?
"I'm here, Mr. Miles!" Aisha said excitedly. "Just give the order! I'll do anything, no matter the cost!"
"I just called your name. Do you really need to respond that seriously?"
"Heehee, it's a rare opportunity. So, will you eat first, or bathe first, or maybe eat—"
"Stop! Don't ask me whether I want to eat tofu blocks."
Because he could truly face her in person, Miles could tell that Aisha's excitement since earlier was unprecedented—almost like she'd gone a little hyper from having an audience.
"Aisha, I wanted to tell you... I met Yuna."
"(゜-゜) Huh? You met Yuna? Um… is there something strange about meeting Yuna?"
"That… aren't you surprised at all?"
"Is that really something to be surprised about?"
Their conversation seemed totally out of sync.
"I mean that Yuna Carlos! The one I met!"
"I know!"
Aisha slapped her flat chest and formally introduced herself.
"I'm Aisha Yuna Carlos! Pleased to meet you?"
...
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