"Who's there!"
The Order Church disciples were extremely on guard; before Lishia had even fully revealed herself, they had already sensed someone approaching and flashed the bladed knuckles on their arms—completely unfitting for clergy.
"Wait, don't stab me. It's me! It's me!"
Forcing herself to act calm as she stepped out, Lishia tried her best to imitate the Saint's tone, just like Miles and the others had described.
Even though she herself had never once met the Order's Saint.
"Ah, you're…!"
Lishia's appearance was clearly a critical hit. Even with the masks on, Miles, hiding behind her, could still imagine the dumbfounded looks beneath them.
"Lady Saint! Lady Saint, why have you appeared here?"
The disguise had succeeded. Or rather, in terms of physical appearance, the similarity was 100%—without a single flaw. Truly seamless.
What happened next depended entirely on Lishia's acting.
Since she knew nothing about the Order's internal situation, the more she talked, the more likely she'd slip.
So, remembering Miles's warning, Lishia kept her words to a minimum.
"Came back to take a look."
The Order Saint's cold mode lacked the real Saint's cheerful brightness, but considering the identical appearance, speaking less didn't matter.
"Came back to take a look?"
Even through their masks, cold sweat could be seen dripping from the foreheads of the Order disciples.
Something felt very wrong.
It was as if Lishia's simple phrase—"Came back to take a look"—was unbelievably shocking.
"W-what's wrong? Can't I come back and take a look?"
Lishia, too, began to panic.
"No, it's just…"
The disciples huddled together, whispering for a long moment, before the one in the lead suddenly bolted toward the interior.
He ran while shouting:
"Someone, come quick! The runaway Saint has come back!"
"Eh? Runaway Saint?"
Blinking her big, innocent eyes, Lishia froze in place.
She was supposed to be the Order Saint. What was this about a runaway Saint?
As expected of a devout religious organization—their efficiency was terrifying.
Before she even processed what had happened, the Saint-looking Lishia was already surrounded by countless mask-wearing disciples.
"Lady Saint, though you've come back of your own will, by the High Prelate's orders, we must still detain you."
"Th-this isn't right." Lishia finally panicked, looking around frantically. "Who's trying to frame me?!"
"Shoot, I think we were tricked by that Saint."
Only now did Miles realize what was happening.
Although Ecclesia always referred to herself as the Order's Saint, she had never once mentioned her time inside the Order. Nor had she explained why, as the Saint, she had come all the way from the Western Kingdom to Fusion Academy.
"Runaway Saint. So Ecclesia really… ran away from home!"
Miles had finally spotted the blind spot.
Originally, if they couldn't sneak past with the disguise, they planned to retreat and rethink things.
But now they were finished—Lishia was surrounded on all sides.
Retreat?
There was no retreat!
"I said it from the start! This plan was stupid!"
White light flashed from Kaima's fingertips. Along with the mighty roar of the legendary Blue-Eyes White Dragon, the dragon manifested and lunged out, its jaws scooping up Lishia from within the encirclement.
Standing atop Blue-Eyes's head, Kaima raised her arm, Spirit Eyes shining, and shouted:
"I am Kaima Seth, current head of the Duke Seth family. Order Church, listen well. By royal decree, the Seth family is to investigate the obelisk tower. Anyone who obstructs will be treated as committing treason."
In the end, they chose the simplest, roughest, and most efficient method—forcing their way through.
Miles had known from the start that with Kaima's personality, she was never going to do anything 'low profile.'
But the reason he still asked Lishia to try was because he had foreseen it.
Even now, with Kaima standing on Blue-Eyes's head, the dragon holding a Saint in its jaws, and her announcing the Duke Seth family name, none of it would work on the Order Church.
The disciples surrounding them said nothing, simply forming a wall of bodies to block Blue-Eyes from getting any nearer to the obelisk tower.
The Order Church didn't care at all about the Seth family's authority.
This seemingly righteous religious group hid darkness no weaker than the Church of the Old Dominators.
Miles had already sensed this from obtaining the Dogmatika cards from the Old Dominator Pope.
"If it's a fight you want, then we'll fight!"
Kaima had already charged in. Miles, who took money to solve problems, wasn't about to back down.
Besides, if you counted Lishia too, they had five real Duelists here—each backed by powerful cards.
That kind of combat level, in the Spirit Continent, was equivalent to several regiments of a standing army. How could a dozen disciples hope to stop them?
Following Kaima and Blue-Eyes in the vanguard, the others also began summoning their monsters.
"Burst forth, Dark Magician Girl!"
"Flames of destiny, burn all—Destiny HERO - Destroyer Phoenix Enforcer!"
"When the sky and earth converge, the sun shall shine upon the land! The Winged Dragon of Ra!"
Out of respect for the two-million-gold fee, Miles didn't hold back at all. From the very first clash, he unleashed a God Card—Ra's flames scorched the earth as reality itself trembled.
The obelisk tower existed for the worship of the Sun God.
Now that the real Sun God had descended, how could they possibly be blocked from approaching?
In the face of divine power, the disciples—who weren't even Duelists—were sent flying like insects.
With flames and lightning tearing through everything, the Order Church alone couldn't possibly stop the full-force charge of this group of villains.
Perhaps Kaima had been right: charging straight in from the start really was the best choice.
"Stay sharp! We're getting close to the obelisk tower!"
Riding Blue-Eyes at the very front, Kaima shouted.
"I-I-I'm still here!"
Right—Kaima wasn't the one closest to the front.
The one truly leading the charge was Lishia, still clenched in Blue-Eyes's jaws.
She was so panicked she could no longer maintain the Saint's tone and had reverted to her dialect.
"Kaima-senpai, whatever you do, don't fire Burst Stream of Destruction! I'll die!"
Because Blue-Eyes had to keep holding Lishia, it could only fight using its wings and claws.
Even so, it was far beyond anything the ordinary disciples could resist.
"Wait! The obelisk tower… why does it look like that?!"
Dangling from the dragon's mouth, Lishia was the first to spot something wrong—as a Tower Warden, she recognized the abnormality immediately.
From afar, the orderly, square peak of the obelisk tower looked normal.
However, once they got close, the corruption at the base became visible.
Like living flesh, pulsating crimson veins stretched out from the earth, creeping their way into the tower's interior.
"Is this… something the Order Church did?"
It was an act that could only be described as "evil" at first glance… unimaginable from a religious order that projected such a righteous façade.
No wonder they kept it hidden.
If this were exposed, the Order Church would undoubtedly be branded as a cult.
"This ends here! This is no place for you ignorant fools to run wild!"
A stern, elderly voice thundered across the area.
The High Prelate of the Order, clad in sacred white vestments, slowly emerged from the disciples who had been blasted away.
His familiar appearance left everyone stunned, even doubting their own eyes.
The High Prelate of the Order looked identical to the Old Dominator Pope—the one who attacked Fusion Academy while wielding the strongest Wicked God.
The very same Pope Miles had knocked off the clocktower, whose body was smashed beyond recognition, and whose soul had been devoured by a Wicked God.
"You old geezer, you're still alive?!"
Ignoring Miles's question, the High Prelate spoke calmly.
"Aisha Yuna Carlos. Chosen by the gods, a child of destiny. It is undeniable that you possess power capable of altering the world itself. Albeit, regrettably, your ignorance will lead to your ruin here."
"I already beat you to a pulp once. Who gave you the courage to act so smug?"
"Heh… Watch closely. The ancient god-slaying civilization shall be revived here. The era where Duelists rule this continent will soon become mere history."
Scarlet mana rippled from the High Prelate's hand and resonated with the obelisk tower buried deep in the ground, producing a demonic melody as if calling forth the depths of hell.
"Ugh, what awful music." Ren couldn't help covering her ears.
"You call this music? More like funeral wailing!" Irena spat harshly.
Even Kaima, normally unfazed by anything, frowned at how unbearably hideous the sound was.
Miles said, serious, "Hey, hey, hey! You plan to stop us with noise pollution? Old man, aren't you being a little too naïve?"
"It's not you I'm stopping… but—"
The High Prelate slowly raised his arm and pointed at the Duel Monsters that had been slaughtering their way across the battlefield just moments ago.
Spirit Eyes dimmed. Under the infernal melody's influence, the materialized Duel Monsters vanished—despite having received no dismissal command from their Duelists.
"Ow! My butt!"
With Blue-Eyes White Dragon gone, Lishia—who had been clamped in its jaws—fell straight onto her backside.
Kaima, still standing on the dragon's head a moment ago, reacted in a blink and flipped to the ground with ease.
"The Duel Monsters… they actually vanished!" Miles glanced at his Spirit Eyes, which showed no response. "Is it because of that funeral dirge just now?"
"Spirit Prohibition! Erasing all Duel power—this is the relic of the prehistoric civilization!"
"Prehistoric… civilization's relic?"
Indeed, from the translated ancient ballads of the Old Continent, they'd learned that humanity once fought a near-mutual-destruction war against the gods.
But that the relics of this civilization could seal away Duel power—the continent's most mysterious force, the Spirit Eyes—was beyond anything Miles had imagined.
It was a power capable of distorting the world's very rules.
"Without Duel Monsters, even top Duelists are just ordinary people. Kill them!"
Although most disciples had been knocked flying earlier, a portion of the lucky survivors still had the strength to fight.
Fueled by vengeance, they charged. In their eyes, without Duel Monsters, these people had no combat ability whatsoever.
"Oh? And who exactly are you calling 'ordinary'?"
Irena pressed down her witch hat, drew her staff from her waist—and ice immediately surged across the ground.
In a flashing crack, the legs of the approaching disciples froze solid, locking them in place.
"Struggle any further and you might lose your legs," Irena warned with a wicked grin.
With Duel Monsters forbidden, the world of swords and magic had returned—and the Gray Witch Irena, a natural "Grand Magus", was once again at her peak.
"Senpai, you're like my personal superhero!" Ren cheered.
"Returning the compliment." Irena leveled her staff at the High Prelate. "Without Duel Monsters, even the High Prelate of the Order is just an ordinary old man."
Lightning surged from her staff's tip, an arrow of light firing toward the High Prelate.
"You really are as relentless as ever, senpai!"
A familiar youthful voice descended from above, joining the chaos.
Inside the domain where all Duel Monsters were banned, a draconic figure swooped in, blocking the magical strike with ease.
[Masquerade the Blazing Dragon]
"That voice… Arnold!"
Though dressed bizarrely and wearing a crimson mask, there was no mistaking him—the boy who appeared to shield the High Prelate was Arnold, Lishia's childhood friend and first-year underling at Aisha's Academy.
[Aluber the Jester of Despia]
"Call me by my new name—Aluber. It's my new stage name~"
Aisha: "Stage name? Did Arnold finally break his brain?"
Miles: "Anyone with a normal brain wouldn't insist on being your underling."
"(╬￣皿￣)=○!!"
Although Miles mocked him, in truth, he didn't dislike Arnold.
In fact, that foolishly loyal underling personality was… strangely endearing.
Nonetheless, now, things were unquestionably different.
Miles had wondered earlier why Arnold never showed up before the final showdown of the Synchron Academy Tournament. If he had been there, he certainly would've jumped out like Princess Nova to make himself seen.
It now seemed that Arnold had already left Fusion Academy by then.
"Aisha-sis! Long time no see! I really did miss you!"
"You sure don't look like you missed me."
"Miss killing you—which is basically the same thing~"
Masquerade slowly lifted its head. Whatever method Aluber had used, only he seemed capable of summoning Duel Monsters in the face of the prehistoric civilization's sealing power.
"It's the Branded Stigmata! Only Branded power can escape the seal!"
Lishia, who had fallen on her butt, suddenly shouted a warning.
Hearing her voice now, it was obvious she was no longer the ordinary country girl Lishia.
Ecclesia, in her Saint state, awakened by possession at the crucial moment, covering the fake cross-shaped stigmata on her forehead, and the brilliant golden light rekindled the Spirit Eye on her arm.
"Monster Summon—[Fallen of Albaz]!"
The dark-skinned, white-haired boy materialized from the card before everyone's eyes.
When Albaz and Aluber stood facing each other in the same space, a careful look showed that although their clothing differed greatly, their facial features were strikingly similar.
"So you finally couldn't help showing yourself, Ecclesia! And my foolish little brother!"
"Little brother?"
[Fallen of Albaz] was definitely a Monster Card owned by Saint Ecclesia, yet Aluber called him his younger brother.
Of course, the term "fallen child" originally refers to an unacknowledged son, a child born out of wedlock.
Combined with their similar appearances, there was nothing out of place about it.
"Ecclesia, what in the world is going on?" Miles seized the opening, wanting to learn the truth at once. "Was Arnold being controlled?"
"Saying he was controlled isn't quite accurate. In truth, Arnold was also a vessel from the beginning. His own consciousness and Aluber's do not connect."
"Arnold was… also a vessel?"
Both childhood friends, both vessels. The two now confronting each other were neither the originals.
Possession against possession—two people bearing the power of the Branded were the only ones capable of using Duel Monsters after the relic of the ancient civilization activated.
Without any hesitation, Aluber ordered Masquerade the Blazing Dragon to attack. "Then let me see how long your pitiful scraps of Branded power can hold out!"
"Let's transform too, Albaz!"
"Right!"
The white-haired boy nodded firmly, then his body shifted into draconic form.
[Albion the Branded Dragon]
Twin dragon breaths clashed in the air. Their Attack seemed evenly matched, but after the impact, it was clear Ecclesia, in her Saint state, was the one weakening more.
"Looks like Ecclesia still hasn't fully recovered," Miles immediately realized.
If Ecclesia's strength were fully restored, she wouldn't have waited until the last moment to reappear.
Just as Aluber said, with so little Branded power remaining, Ecclesia was totally suppressed.
"Damn it… If only I could use Duel Monsters right now, I could help…"
Miles, powerless under the resonance of the ancient civilization's relic, slapped at his dim Spirit Eye to no response.
Right then, after tanking another blast of dragon breath, Ecclesia—panting—looked at Miles and reminded him, "Senpai, the key!"
"The key? You mean—!"
"The Key to the Obelisk Tower! This is our last chance!"
Miles reacted hurriedly, pulling the strangely shaped key from the inner pocket of Aisha's jacket.
"A relic of ancient civilization can only be fought with an ancient weapon! Senpai—enter the obelisk tower with the key and awaken the ultimate god-slaying weapon!"
"Awaken the god-slaying weapon and fight with it? That's exactly what I want!"
Seeing Miles suddenly produce the key and charge toward the obelisk tower, the expression beneath the High Prelate's mask twisted in panic.
"Impossible! The Key to the Obelisk Tower isn't in the Saint's hands!?"
As the High Prelate of the Order Church, he never imagined that Ecclesia had prepared for this moment long ago.
She had even entrusted the most important key to an outsider.
"Saint, are you insane?"
"I'm perfectly sane!" Ecclesia snapped back viciously. "Better to entrust it to Senpai Miles and Senpai Aisha than let someone like you get your hands on it! They're a thousand times more reliable!"
"Utter nonsense!" Furious, the High Prelate roared, "Stop him! Don't let her inside the obelisk tower! Seize the key!"
Aluber, the only one capable of summoning Duel Monsters, was currently locked down by Ecclesia.
Which left only a bunch of small fry followers still able to act under the High Prelate's command.
However, the moment they tried to rush forward under his authoritative pressure, they noticed their legs were still frozen in place.
Irena sighed regretfully. "So cruel… I told them—if they struggle, their legs will break."
She said it sounded cruel… yet she was the one who cast that cruel ice spell.
"Useless trash!" The High Prelate moved in personally, intending to cut Miles off.
"Hmph? Magic… isn't working!?"
He was at least a priest, with decent proficiency in magic. Yet the ice spells Irena threw were all blocked by him.
And since Irena still had to watch the remaining followers who could still move, she was indeed struggling.
"Old man's magic resistance is pretty high… then how about physical resistance?"
Ren leapt high, spinning 360° beautifully in midair, then used gravity to drive a fierce kick straight into the High Prelate's mask.
"This one's to clear a path for my comrades!—Hero Kick!"
Pure physical damage—100%—plus the thickness of Ren's boot heel. The High Prelate took the full force head-on, the mask on his face shattering entirely and revealing his distorted features kicked inward.
Ren: "Go, Miles!"
Irena: "Show us the god-slaying weapon!"
Ecclesia: "Everything is in your hands now, Senpai!"
With all his companions working together to protect him, Miles—holding the Key to the Obelisk Tower—finally reached and touched the tower's surface, carved with mysterious glyphs.
In that instant, the key and the obelisk tower released light simultaneously.
The ancient ruin that had slept for nearly ten thousand years awakened.
No one knew what lay beyond those ten thousand years connected by the light, not even Miles, who felt a surge of nervousness and unease.
Abruptly, at that moment, five slender pale fingers joined his through the radiance, pressing down on the activated key together.
"Kaima!"
"I told you, Miles… I'm coming with you to seek the answer within the obelisk tower!"
The slumbering [Obelisk the Tormentor], and the ultimate god-slaying weapon, "Heaven's Court".
All answers lay beyond this opened light.
"Even if you come along… I'm not giving you a discount, Kaima!"
"I'll pay you double!"
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going! [Patreon.com/RedZTL]