"...Do you want to go to his side?"
Just a few minutes after Dark Yugi entered the stone tablet to embark on his journey to retrieve his memories, a spectral figure appeared out of nowhere in the sealed great hall.
Everyone turned around following the voice and discovered that, in this hall which should have been empty, a dark-skinned Egyptian had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. He wore a white robe, large gold earrings hung from his ears, and his blue pupils seemed empty at first glance, but upon closer inspection were unfathomable.
Jonouchi and Honda screamed "Ghost!" and clung to each other like monkeys climbing a tree.
"Shadi!" Yugi recognized the identity of the figure at once.
Like the Ishtar Clan, Shadi was also a Tomb Guardian of the Pharaoh in modern times. However, unlike them, his physical body had long been dead. Five years ago, when the seal of the Millennium Ring was broken and the soul of the Great Evil God Sok awakened, Shadi was killed.
The Shadi appearing before everyone now was actually a soul, sustained out of obligation and mission to the Pharaoh.
The gamers who had been passively watching the CGI cutscenes suddenly perked up.
"Here they come, here they come, their chance to get on board has finally arrived!"
"Do you want to go to his side?" Shadi asked again.
"Yes!" Yugi nodded vigorously.
"To get to his side, the only way is to find the Pharaoh's true 'Spirit Room' within the Millennium Pendant."
Shadi said slowly, pulling out from his wide robe a golden, Rune of Life-like object that radiated a brilliant light.
One of the Millennium Items, the Millennium Key, a divine artifact that can connect to others' inner worlds.
"Using this 'Millennium Key,' I can lead you into the Pharaoh's 'Maze of the Heart,' but whether you can find the real room within the maze depends on you.
But be careful—in that maze, if you take a wrong step, you might fall into an unfathomable abyss and never return. Even so, are you willing to go?"
Yugi hardly hesitated: "I'm willing!"
"No need to ask! We're partners, of course we must go together!" Jonouchi echoed.
The groupies eager to hop on the bandwagon quickly nodded like pecking chickens: "Willing, willing!"
"Good."
Shadi said blandly, raising the Millennium Key in his hand.
The golden Rune of Life radiated dazzling brightness. A gentle and invisible force seemed to grasp their souls, floating them out of their bodies. The Millennium Pendant on Yugi's chest also responded by emanating light, as if opening the doors for them.
...
The flow of time in the King's Memory World is different from the outside world. You could spend many days in this virtual world, while only a short time passes outside.
On the first day here, Youyu received a "Monster Extermination" task in a small town and collected a handsome reward from the local officials.
Although the NPCs here were also repellent to Youyu, the 'outsider,' they were even more afraid of the lurking monsters in the area. It was said that many people had already become the monster's food, and although people had been sent to the Royal Palace for assistance, the journey and procedural requirements would take some time, and more people could die in the meantime.
Without much thought, Youyu took on the commission and went solo to challenge the monster, described by locals as a ferocious and vicious beast, by midnight, only to find...
... it was merely an enlightened ancient tree.
There's a card like this in the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game, called "Ancient Tree of Enlightenment," with 600 attack points and 1500 defense points, a Normal Monster...
As expected, Masked Hero Goka punched straight through it, turning the trunk to ash all the way to the roots.
This commission earned Youyu quite a reward, enough to not worry about travel expenses for a while. He specifically asked the officials for a regional map to help him navigate.
This made Youyu feel like a demon hunter picking up trash as he maps out routes, only remembered when needed to kill monsters.
He traveled across the map, occasionally picking up tasks for some extra earnings. When encountering difficult problems, out came the Duel Disc, asking—
"—Fancy a thrilling game of Duel Monsters?"
Seriously, it really felt that way, with even the "solving everything through card games" mode being exactly alike. This often made Youyu feel as if he had logged into a card-duel version of The Witcher series.
With the map in hand, he first solved the problem of initial disorientation. Judging his position from the marked town, Youyu realized that his login point was roughly around the edge of the entire Memory Sand Table, quite far from the Pharaoh's Royal Palace.
Nonetheless, he wasn't in a rush to visit the Royal Palace, instead heading in the opposite direction, continuing toward the boundary.
Picking up commissions and defeating monsters along the way, occasionally collecting discarded items, Youyu even began to enjoy this ultra-realistic card RPG experience.
He increasingly admired the Ancient Egypt priests for developing such an immersive RPG game three thousand years ago, outshining video games three millennia later...
After two days on the road, he finally arrived at his planned destination.
Situated at the map boundary of the entire Memory Sand Table, further progress was impossible. No matter how realistic it is, a game map has its borders. This Memory Sand Table includes most areas from the Pharaoh's memory of three-thousand-year-old Egypt, but beyond that is a blank space.
The place Youyu reached, strictly speaking, wasn't under the Pharaoh's jurisdiction but rather one of the hidden side areas on this RPG game map.
This place was called the "Land of Trial."
Legend has it that three thousand years ago, even the Pharaoh himself passed the trial of light and darkness here, gaining acknowledgment and a high-level power called "Chaos."
Of course, that was three thousand years ago.
However, the world constructed based on the Pharaoh's memory also recreated this "Land of Trial" within the map.
"Young man, are you an outsider?"
The speaker was wrapped in a mage's robe so tightly that only a pair of eyes were visible. Judging by the voice, it seemed to be an elder, with a pentagram magic array painted on the hood and chest garments.
This was the "Ancient Mage," also appearing as a Monster Card with 1000 attack points in the future Duel Monsters game.
He was the Gatekeeper of the Land of Trial.
"Yes." Youyu nodded in acknowledgment.
"I see. Occasionally, outsiders come to this Land of Trial, seeking to obtain treasures here." The Ancient Mage knowingly nodded and said, "The Land of Trial allows any warrior possessing strength to enter for the challenge, but it does not welcome the weak.
To pass, you must first prove your strength."
Youyu nodded: "How do I prove it?"
The Ancient Mage, serious-faced, revealed the golden armband on his forearm, from which a few slots "clack" popped out, looking like...
...a luxury gold version of a Duel Disc.
"Through a sacred Battle Ceremony!" the Ancient Mage declared loudly, "If you can defeat me in the ceremony, you shall have the right to enter!"
Youyu: "..."
So... it's still about card games?