Chapter 193

Equipped with the "Harpie Lady - Cyber Tight" outfit, her attack power rose from the original 1800 points to 2100, already far surpassing Jonouchi's Dragon-Type Warrior.

"Battle! Next, I will use Harpie Lady - Cyber Tight to attack the Dragon-Type Warrior!"

The Harpie Lady, now holding a small leather whip, glanced at the Dragon-Type Warrior before her and lashed out without hesitation.

However, just as the Harpie Lady's whip was about to touch the Dragon-Type Warrior, Jonouchi flipped his face-down card.

"Activate Trap Card, Chain Energy!"

Following the activation of the trap, a three-pronged chain appeared in the Dragon-Type Warrior's hand, and with a skillful throw, the Harpie Lady, who had been brandishing her whip, was instantly bound.

Her already proud figure became even more prominent under the restraint of the iron chains.

Chain Energy is a Trap Card with two effects; you can choose one to activate.

The first effect allows one of your own monsters to gain 500 attack points.

The other effect allows you to change the opponent's attacking monster to Defense Position.

Without a doubt, Jonouchi was using the second effect, so the Harpie Lady, now in Defense Position, had her stats changed from 2100 Attack to 1300 Defense.

Just as Jonouchi activated the trap, Yami Yugi and President Kaiba finally arrived late.

Upon learning from Honda and the others that Mai Kujaku and Jonouchi were engaged in a Shadow Duel, they were furious and cursed Marik for his cowardice.

However, Marik turned a deaf ear to Yugi's insults; in fact, the angrier Yami Yugi became, the more Marik enjoyed it.

To see the Nameless Pharaoh in even greater agony, Marik used the power of the Millennium Rod to add a little side show for Jonouchi and Mai Kujaku.

That is, every time a monster was summoned, a Soul Chain would appear between the monster and Mai Kujaku and the others; once a monster was destroyed or life points were reduced, they would feel the pain in their souls.

To put it simply, this is what is called a Shadow Duel; if one's willpower and mental strength are not strong enough, their mind might collapse before the duel even ends.

Such a Shadow Duel can only be initiated by a user of a Millennium Item, and as long as it follows the rules, even Yami Yugi, the Nameless Pharaoh, cannot interfere or force it to stop.

Soon, Mai Kujaku was the first to experience the horror of the "Shadow Duel" and tasted the true pain coming from her soul!

"My turn, I summon Baby Dragon in Attack Position, then use the Dragon-Type Warrior to attack Harpie Lady - Cyber Tight."

The Harpie Lady, bound and in Defense Position with 1300 Defense, was no match for the 1500 Attack Dragon-Type Warrior and was instantly slashed into pieces.

As the Harpie Lady wailed and turned into fragments, the Soul Chain connected to her snapped, and Mai Kujaku suddenly felt a piercing pain in her soul.

However, seeing Mai Kujaku wince in pain, Jonouchi, now controlled by Marik, remained indifferent and said excitedly: "My attack isn't over yet. Next, I will use Baby Dragon to attack you directly!"

【Baby Dragon, Level 3 Monster

Attack: 1200 Defense: 800】

A fireball erupted from the small yellow dragon's mouth and shot toward Mai Kujaku, causing Yami Yugi and the others watching from afar to gasp in shock.

With the Harpie Lady in Defense Position defeated and her soul suffering such pain, in a Shadow Duel, such a direct attack was almost no different from real damage.

Looking at the incoming fireball, even the usually independent and strong Mai Kujaku couldn't help but show a trace of fear in her eyes.

"Kuri! Kuri!"

However, just as the fireball was about to hit her, a furry, spherical creature suddenly blocked her path, taking the mental damage for her.

As the smoke cleared, Mai Kujaku, protected behind it, was startled but otherwise completely unharmed.

Shengzai, who had blocked the fireball for her, patted the fur on his body with his small green claws, and the relaxed look in his large eyes made Mai Kujaku breathe a huge sigh of relief.

Just kidding, a little bit of mental damage was something Shengzai truly didn't take seriously.

Although he looked like a Kuriboh on the outside, he was no ordinary Kuriboh; with the shared abilities from multiple worlds, his willpower and mental strength were terrifyingly high.

That level of mental trauma was not even a tickle to him.

"Is that a Duel Spirit? Is Mai actually a duelist recognized by a Duel Spirit!"

Others couldn't see Shengzai, the Duel Spirit, but Yami Yugi could, and not only Yami Yugi, but Marik, hiding behind the scenes as the holder of a Millennium Item, saw Shengzai too.

He had wondered before why Mai Kujaku, a mere ordinary duelist, had the confidence to stand up to him; so it turned out she was someone recognized by a Duel Spirit.

Mai Kujaku's Life Points: 4000 -> 2800.

Shengzai took the mental trauma of Baby Dragon's direct attack for Mai Kujaku, but the damage still had to be calculated.

"Hmph, consider yourself lucky. I'll set one more card, turn end."

Not seeing the satisfied expression he wanted on Mai Kujaku's face after the direct attack, Jonouchi was quite dissatisfied and ended his turn while grumbling.

Hearing Jonouchi's words and seeing Shengzai, who had blocked the damage for her, get dirty, Mai Kujaku was instantly furious!

Before, she felt guilty about dueling Jonouchi because of her mission, but now she was truly angry.

So what if you're controlled! Does having your memory tampered with give you the right to act recklessly?

Anyway, Shengzai had guaranteed that Jonouchi wouldn't die if he lost, so now she, Mai Kujaku, was going to give him a profound lesson.

"My turn, I activate the Continuous Spell Card "Hysteric Sign" from my hand.

1: As the effect of activating this card, choose 1 "Elegant Egotist" from your deck or graveyard and add it to your hand.

2: During the turn this card is sent from the hand or field to the graveyard, add up to 3 "Harpie" cards from your deck to your hand.

"According to the effect of this Continuous Spell, I will add Elegant Egotist to my hand.

Next, I will Normal Summon "Harpie Queen" in Attack Position.

I activate Elegant Egotist from my hand; as long as there is a "Harpie Lady" on the field, I can Special Summon two Harpie Ladies from my hand or deck.

So I will summon Harpie Lady 1 and Harpie Lady 2.

It's not over yet, I activate the Spell Card Dust Tornado, discard one card from my hand, and destroy one of the opponent's face-down cards."

As a Harpie Lady card was sent from her hand to the graveyard, Jonouchi's face-down card on the field was destroyed.

And the three Harpie Ladies on Mai Kujaku's field, because Harpie Lady 1 increases attack power by 300, were now:

Harpie Queen: 1900 -> 2200

Harpie Lady 1: 1300 -> 1600

Harpie Lady 2: 1300 -> 1600

(End of Chapter)