I fell ill the day after last week's shift and had a fever...... So I gave myself a round of leave w and have recovered, please rest assured.

PS: Don't say something like "If you draw 3 stars and change 3 valleys, my group ID will be changed to ......".

――――――――――

Ignoring the security guards, Isis forced to squeeze her arms in front of her and rushed to the top of the tower, where she quickly approached Malik, who had been knocked to the ground by the impact, crouched down, and helped him to his feet.

His hair slipped naturally from his forehead because he was lying on his back, which allowed Isis to get the most direct view of his brother's face.

Malik's eyes were closed, his eyebrows were flat, and there was no trace of anger in sight.

"The Price of the Dark Game......" The game came up, and after seeing Malik's appearance, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, "When the game is over, the loser will be swallowed by darkness." ”

"Malik, who has a negative personality, is gone, and when his original personality reawakens, he will open his eyes again."

"You should thank her, Isis."

While saying this, the game turned to look at the white-haired girl who was still standing in place...... She looked a little dazed.

"...... I won?" Li Bai shook his drowsy head to make himself sober.

"Yes, I won...... I used the combination of Light Vein and Dark Iron to defeat Malik...... "Memories of the past came to mind along with the details of the game, and she finally had a sense of down-to-earth composure.

"But why does it feel so weird......

Because of the end of the dark game, the negative impact on the winner will be naturally eliminated, and the girl's lost part of the memory has quietly returned, but ...... I don't know if it's because the power of the sun god is too strong, or if it's some other reason, these memories are a little pale.

Even in retrospect, those insights that I have personally experienced cannot be brought back.

Isis helped her brother up with the help of Honda, and then she herself went to Li Bai's side, wanting to express her gratitude.

"I know that no amount of words at this moment is enough to express my gratitude in its entirety." Ever since the future was interfered with and out of control, she had been in constant fear, she could not imagine what the final fate of her relatives would be, it was all because of her natural self-control that she was born different from ordinary people to maintain a normal face in front of outsiders, this gloomy and hopeless life had passed for too long...... It wasn't until a short time ago that she was terminated by the white-haired girl in front of her.

"But...... I still have to say thank you solemnly and formally. ”

"Thank you, Shiro...... Thank you for freeing our sister and brother from the shackles of darkness, and for saving the entire Tomb Guard. ”

After the initial unknown, Li Bai figured out the situation at the moment from her slightly vague memory, she didn't have anything unusual on the surface, but just listened quietly when Isis spoke...... However, after hearing this almost final thanks, she couldn't help but want to persuade this strong woman.

The Tomb Guardians, a symbol of ancient Egyptian kingship, have been honored for thousands of years, and they spontaneously served as tomb keepers for generations of pharaohs, and they did not hesitate to stay away from real life for the blood flowing in their ancestors and bodies, and lived in darkness all their lives.

Such a race is respectable, but it is also pathetic.

"I want to ...... Personally, I prefer to call it the yoke of history. ”

"If you think about it, Malik's hatred is inextricably linked to his one-sided worldview—the knowledge available underground is extremely limited, and even the availability of books to read cannot change this." The girl said, reaching out and pressing it in the void, stopping Isis from retorting, "Don't be angry, I'm not accusing you...... I admire your thousands of years of faithfulness to your faith, so I'm not asking you to abandon that and live your own lives where you can still hold on to your faith. ”

"But have you ever thought about it...... In another way, I use another form of storage to implement my own philosophy. ”

"Another way?" Being able to hold such a position in Egypt in the present world is enough to show Isis's intelligence, and she can vaguely understand what Li Bai wants to express.

"What do you mean...... Like me? ”

Her current identity is not only the acting patriarch of this blood clan, but also includes a series of prominent titles such as the president of the Egyptian Antiquities Research Association, the director of the Egyptian Archaeological Bureau, etc., which she has won in the past few years in order to make it easier to obtain information about her younger brother.

Does she mean to let all the Tomb Keepers be like me, from the underground to the surface?

"That's pretty much it." Li Bai stroked his hair, "You should have also discovered that according to your current identity, you can better protect and even restore the tombs of the pharaohs of the past dynasties, which is much more than what you can do when you are in the shadows." ”

There are more advantages besides these, but Li Bai doesn't intend to remind her so bluntly, she trusts the other party's judgment.

"But...... Not everyone has had my experience, and I can't guarantee that I will be able to convince them. Isis was moved, but she had her own concerns.

There is controversy where there are people, and there are still some die-hard conservatives in the community, who see her current status as a betrayal of blood and a symbol of uncleanness; So no matter how tempted she is, she doesn't dare to directly start this mode of symbolizing reform.

"I didn't let you copy your path exactly to them." The girl winked at her, "There is never more than one way to accomplish something." ”

"I'm ......," Isis still looked a little hesitant.

Since he has lived in this world for a long time, Li Bai's meaning Isis can be easily understood, indeed...... She could have picked out the part of the community that supported her, and then worked together to raise the next generation of the group in a more enlightened way, which was the gentlest way and the slowest, but with the baptism of time, it was predictable...... The Tomb Guardians will have a brighter future.

"But ......"

"Look behind you, look at your brother." Seeing that she only had the last trace of persistence, the girl made up for the final blow in time.

"Do you wish more hatred was born from the darkness underground?"

"You want ...... Are there more families suffering the same tragedy? ”

Li Bai was greatly touched by Dark Malik's wild words on the top of the Winged Divine Dragon—of course she wouldn't agree with that voice, but when the battle subsided, she had to think about the reason for it.

In her mind, no one is born to be buried in the dark, and many of the disasters of the Tomb Keeper Blood can be avoided...... Malik's negative personality was born because of the decay of this race. If you only look at it from this point, there is some truth to Dark Malik's curse, and if it were not for hatred, he would not have been born.

Now, there are only the last two battles left in the duel city, even if you count the Egyptian chapter, the day when the game leaves can be counted with your fingers, and when the living pharaoh returns to the time of history, the memories guarded by the tomb guards and those thousand-year-old artifacts naturally have no need to save zài, but Isis has no God's perspective, so the girl can't directly use this reason, she can only give other examples.

"I never knew that your eloquence was as good as the strength of a duelist." Isis was eventually convinced, and she was determined to let change start in her own generation.

"Although it can't be as easy as you say...... But I think even the smallest change is a change, and I'll give it a try. ”

"Thank you for making up my mind, I owe you more now......" she said, moving her hands to the back of her head, untying the glittering gold collar-like ornament from her neck, and holding it in front of the woman with both hands.

"The ultimate task of our clan is to return the artifact and the King's memory to the Lord that we are guarding...... This thousand-year-old piece of jewelry is one of the proofs of our existence. ”

"Take it, White." Isis said cautiously.

"I am willing, I will leave this mission to you to complete."

"This ......" Li Bai hesitated.

She knew very well that Isis wasn't trying to give the artifact to her, just asking her to give it to the game when the one was over.

As an honor, a persistence.

But when considering her, and the ethnic group behind her, even Malik and Lishid...... Considering the price these people paid for this, she couldn't help but feel the weight of this glory. In the invisible darkness, I don't know how many people have disappeared in the long river of time for these things, which is the fruit of many generations of common protection, and a symbol of the thousands of years of loyalty of the tomb guarding blood clan.

Perhaps it was a relief for Isis to give it to the girl.

"Okay." Silently letting out a sigh in his heart, Li Bai resolutely took over the artifact.

"I will."

……

It didn't take much time to settle the unconscious Malik, which was also due to the impact of the aquarium incident - in order to prevent similar accidents from happening again, Seahorse brought enough people on the airship, excluding the necessary medical personnel, and many bodyguards who worked full-time to protect them; With them in charge, the game soon went on.

"The next thing to do is...... A match between brother and game. Li Bai leaned his back against the wall and looked at the two people facing each other in the venue with some nervousness.

After defeating Malik, she automatically obtained the ownership of the god card [Wing God of the Sun God], but unfortunately, because she did not have the royal blood of ancient Egypt, and was not the reincarnation of a pharaoh or priest, she could not use this card.

Even if this restriction is excluded, the girl doubts that her poor divine affinity will allow her to manipulate this card well, whether it will be lying in the cemetery and the dead will not be able to draw it, or if it will be the last pile of tombs to be stuck in the fourth light path immediately behind it.

"It looks like I can't believe you anyway......" Li Bai stared at the Winged Divine Dragon in his hand, if his gaze could have temperature, this card would definitely have been burned to slag.

If it were converted to 2D animation, her mouth would have turned into a wavy line at the moment.

"Forget it, haven't you been prepared for this kind of thing a long time ago?"

"In comparison...... she turned her gaze to the battlefield, "let's see how this game goes." ”

Subconsciously, Li Bai hopes that Haima can win, after all, it is her brother, and the relationship is closer, but she also hopes to be in perfect condition in the finals - she wants to know what kind of progress will be made to the game strength after experiencing the impact of her new ideas and getting two god cards.

This ambivalence made her seem less happy.

"What is our Lady Prospect Champion struggling with alone?" The cameraman shifted the camera from the center of the venue to the girl's face, because the duel had not yet officially begun, he was more relaxed, and the camera was very diligent, so that the audience could see the whole situation including outside the venue It was his mission.

The title of quasi-champion is not made up by him, in fact, after watching the duel between Li Bai and Malik, the results of the world's Internet survey are almost overwhelmingly in favor of her winning the final championship, and they don't think that the game or the seahorse can stop her, this title was first proposed by fanatical fans who belong to the girl, and it quickly spread after being recognized.

"Maybe I'm worried about my president's brother." The reporter who was sitting next to him and writing the manuscript heard his words, raised his head and looked at Li Bai, "Isn't it rumored that she was adopted by Gonzaburo like Kaima Seto, and in this era, it is such an age...... It doesn't seem strange what happened to two siblings who are not related by blood. ”

"Hey...... You can just say this kind of thing casually, but don't write it into the manuscript. The photographer turned his head to stare at him mechanically, "...... I don't want to lose my job for some reason. ”

"You know, I'm measured." The reporter replied casually, and then buried himself in his manuscript again, as if he had just talked about how good the weather was today.

......The photographer opened his mouth, but the other party's calm appearance was surprisingly convincing, and he had to give up the idea of continuing to say something.

He hadn't forgotten the Angela he had met in the film crew before, although she was usually a little taciturn, but it was quite easy to get along with, and at that time he was still fantasizing about whether he could hook up...... When she suddenly proposed to resign and became Li Bai's personal guard the next day, he learned that the real master of this delicate-looking little girl was actually the Haima Group.

This guy can't be like Angela.

With the Sun's stupid as a negative teaching material, he really couldn't figure out how an ordinary reporter could dare to openly talk about such a sensitive topic, although the recent black suit was also five or six meters away from here, but he was not afraid of listening equipment, they had a contract with Seahorse that they must unconditionally obey a qiē "legitimate demand" during the competition, this possibility is very high.

Shrugging, the photographer learned to be a journalist and returned to his job, continuing to turn the lens so that it circled the top of the tower.

He didn't have the heart to care about these things that ordinary people shouldn't be involved in.

……

The second semi-final ended in a win for the game.

He used a different style of tactics in this game, and instead of choosing to use the gods against the gods, he used the power of the magic to take out Obeliske first, and then called out his own god Osiris...... In the face of the unparalleled suppressive power of the Lord of the Sky and Hell, even if the Seahorse showed its final killing move, the Blue-Eyed Ultimate Dragon could not hold back the decline and was forced to death.

"You're cunning." As he shook hands after the game, Seahorse gritted his teeth.

He couldn't have imagined that the game would dare to play like this - not everyone could tear a god from the sky every time in a non-god body, and the game would seem like a gamble to him by using other tactics to confront the god of destruction instead of using Osiris.

Losing the game, he had to hand over his god card, and the laurel crown that he hung with his own hands was completely gone, and he was defeated in the hands of the game, so how could he swallow this breath.

"Soldiers don't get tired of deceit." The game picks up Obeliske, but his eyes are fixed on the seahorse, the old enemy with whom he has been entangled.

"Actually, it was Shiro's previous battle that inspired me and made me decide to take such a risk."

What the girl can do, he thinks he can do.

Although the power of the God of Destruction is strong, it is far less than the Sun God that Li Bai faced...... If he can't even meet such conditions, how can he have the confidence to face her.

"Seahorse...... Your hunger for victory is a little excessive. For the sake of the relationship between the two, the game decided to remind the seahorse, "In the case of the situation, many of your mistakes can actually be avoided." ”

He felt that the desire to win the championship on the stage he had chosen was too strong, and he had lost some of the more important things in doing so, just like he had just been defeated by Bekas.

“…… Of course, the winner can say whatever he wants. The seahorse looked at him deeply, turned his head and walked to the place where Li Bai was standing.

Unlike the game, he is not in the mood, and the demeanor of the superior makes him admit defeat, but it does not mean that he is willing to accept the other party's preaching.

Even if he knew it was right.

"We succeeded, Tyros." Becas leaned back in his chair with a bottle of unopened red wine on the log table beside him.

For him, the moment Malik loses is a success, and any one of the other three winning the championship will only bring him benefits, and from the perspective of the game, he is already invincible.

"Congratulations, Master." The middle-aged butler who had been standing beside him gave praise at the right time.

"Teros." The silver-haired man turned his head and half-tilted his face to reveal his fairy-like face.

"Is it my delusion, you don't look happy?"

The middle-aged butler rarely answered him immediately.

"Heh......" Becas smiled and raised his hand to the bottle on the table, "I know you're complaining about me...... I blame that I didn't give her that card. ”

"I don't need to take a cup, I'll just drink it." He opened the cap of the bottle, let the bottle be poured to his mouth, and 'ruined' the bottle in the way he usually described it as a 'tyrannical thing'.

The only bystander stood to the side and watched him silently, not saying a word.

"Indeed, from the perspective of the whole world, it makes no difference who wins the championship for the rest of the people." Becas filled a third of the bottle in one fell swoop, then put it back on the table, "But I have to think about it for the future." ”

"You know what, Teros?"

As soon as the question was asked, he turned his neck back and said no more, and there was a brief silence in the hall.

Until the middle-aged butler opened his mouth to break it.

"I know, Master." He said.

"I will always be the same."

……

"Brother......" Li Bai looked at the tall figure in front of him, his heart was extremely complicated, there was both loss and happiness.

The former is because Seahorse lost to his rival again, and the latter is because he no longer has to worry about the embarrassing scene of the sibling meeting in the final.

"What are you thinking?" The seahorse reached out and rubbed his sister's soft hair, and then ignored the girl's eye attack that immediately turned into resentment, and took a big sip of the water bottle beside her.

"It's just a loss...... I'm not that vulnerable. ”

“…… Are you sure? Li Bai indignantly arranged his long snow-white hair that had been kneaded into Nestle, and he didn't know what kind of expression to show on his face.

"Of course." There was no emotion in Seahorse's voice, he just patted his sister on the shoulder, and after that, he nudged her and made her take a few steps in the direction of the arena.

"......" Li Bai was caught off guard and stumbled a little, and when she regained her footing, she turned back in confusion, but there was a sharp sound of breaking the air in her ears.

The girl who had had an experience had a quick eye and cut it off before the visitor slashed her head.

That's a card.

"When I was fighting the game, I could feel that he wasn't playing all his cards." The seahorse withdrew his right hand, and his eyes showed a hint of warmth in his eyes.

"It was a faint sense of threat, and it was even more than his Osiris." He looked at the game, which had been surrounded by Honda and the others.

At the moment of the final defeat, he had already used all his hole cards...... So even if he is a little unwilling, he must have admiration for such an opponent.

"The last remnant of the Big Five is dead, and this card is the spoils of war."

"Take it with you and go into battle."

"Go get it done...... That last piece of the puzzle. ”

Li Bai withdrew his gaze from the card and looked at the brown-haired young man in front of him seriously.

His hair hadn't been groomed for almost a month, and with his emaciated figure and deep eye sockets, he looked much older than his actual age.

Whenever they talk about him, people always have an attitude of looking up: the reformer and the supreme ruler of Haima Group, the leader of the game concept of the new era, and the young leader of the rich country...... They never seemed to think about it, and he was also an 18-year-old high school student.

Unlike the "past" represented in the game, the portrayal of this character is completely based on the "future", and the industrial transformation that will be carried out at the expense of Gozaburo is not only killed, but also the duel city that is currently being held...... His gaze and his strategy are all aimed at fighting against fate, but he is such a man who can be called a hero, just because of the needs of the plot, his "future" is lost to the "past".

The girl was inexplicably a little unworthy of him.

Little by little, the attitude that had been somewhat careless hardened again; She felt that just for the sake of such a brother, she should also try to break the shackles of fate and try to ...... Can you snatch the championship from the king who is determined in the plot?

An extremely classic scene was born...... Even many years later, there are still many loyal dueling fans who treasure this photograph taken at this time: a young girl with white hair facing her brother, standing upright, the fingers of her right hand pressed together next to her temple, a bright smile on her face as if to say-

“YES，MY~LORD！”

……

The last two remaining duelists stood staring at each other.

"It stands to reason that I should have congratulated you on making the cut, game...... But please forgive me for not doing it. Li Bai curled the corners of his mouth slightly, and smiled.

She didn't say why, because it was something that everyone could see at a glance.

"It's okay." The game calmly stared at the white-haired girl, "I can understand your feelings. ”

Eliminated the brother in front of him, and after winning the God of Destruction, he once again blocked the two brothers and sisters as a roadblock, to be honest, even he was a little unhappy.

"I know your persistence...... Personally, I also admire a duelist like the seahorse. ”

"But, I have something I have to get back!"

There is a lot of determination in the voice of the game, since he has come to this point, he has reached the finals, he will never allow himself to lose to his opponent, even if he does not have the advantage on the board, even if he is facing the strongest opponent in his life.

“…… Your memory, right. Li Bai unhurriedly said what he had been pursuing, and when she saw the game's slightly narrowed eyes, she didn't flinch, still staring at that sharp gaze.

"I'm not going to let go of water because of that." This is the girl's manifesto.

"I'm going to do my best." Here's the game's reply.

The words that had to be said had already been said before, and neither of them had any intention of continuing to greet each other, and after exchanging hands and shuffling cards, they looked at the referee standing in the center of the arena at the same time.

Under the watchful eye, Isono raised his right hand high.

There is so much to be done in this game, it has temporarily deprived the world's largest card gang, the Gurus, of its leader, and is about to cause a change in the Tomb Guards; It was the first to show people the existence of the word "god", and it also changed the world's fundamental view of card duels.

And now...... The final battle of Duel-Monster is about to begin, and the outcome will determine the final ownership of the three god cards, as well as the title of "Duel King", which symbolizes the highest glory.

This is the real final battle.

……

“Duel――！”