"Follow me!"

"Kaiba?" Glancing at him as he issued orders on his own and walked away from the finals arena, Hoshino grumbled, "If acting cool could make money, this guy would probably be richer than a nation."

["Aibo, he already is richer than a nation."]

Even while complaining, Hoshino had no choice but to follow Kaiba, since she had lost her lead.

"Where is this…?" Arriving where Kaiba had stopped, Hoshino said with mixed feelings, "Does this even count as 'within the castle's range'?"

"'Within the castle's range' and 'inside the castle' are not the same concept," Kaiba explained.

Eve had only predicted that the World Legacy was somewhere "within the castle's range," but everyone had unconsciously assumed it meant inside the castle itself.

Yet where Kaiba was standing now—was the endpoint of the absurdly long staircase leading up to Duelist Kingdom Castle.

Tilting her head, Hoshino frowned. "Kaiba, there's nothing here. How could this have anything to do with a World Legacy?"

"But Hoshino!" Eve perked up, her blue ahoge twitching. "Even if it's not exactly here, the World Legacy's presence is definitely much stronger now!"

"If I'm right," Kaiba said, gazing into the distance—the starting point of the staircase, "then the World Legacy of Duelist Kingdom… can only be there!"

Back then, duel arenas were set all over Duelist Kingdom Island so participants could battle anytime, anywhere.

And at the very base of the castle staircase—there was also a duel arena.

"…That's really not a memory I want to revisit," Hoshino said with a bitter smile.

That arena at the base of the stairs was where she and Kaiba had first dueled.

More precisely, it was their first one-on-one duel.

And most importantly—it was the place where Hoshino suffered her very first defeat after arriving in this world.

"To be honest, I've been subconsciously avoiding this answer," she sighed. "But I guess I can't escape it after all."

["I was going to say earlier—if it's not near the finals arena, then it had to be there, right, aibo?"]

Looking at the previous locations of the World Legacy items, each one corresponded to a crucial turning point in Hoshino's fate.

It was almost as if she had been standing at branching points that could create countless parallel worlds…

On the left (victory)—the timeline she was familiar with.

On the right (defeat)—a completely unfamiliar timeline, yet still one that belonged to her.

But this time, the branches were reversed.

If she hadn't lost that duel back then…

If the naive girl who had just arrived in this world had continued winning all the way through Duelist Kingdom without ever being splashed with the cold reality of defeat…

Then she wouldn't have won against Atem or Pegasus later. She wouldn't have become the Duel King of this world.

From another perspective, that duel with Kaiba was the most crucial loss—at exactly the right time.

["So you were still hung up on that loss, aibo? I thought you'd moved past it."]

"No!" Hoshino shook her head in despair. "What I'm resisting… is this ridiculously long staircase!"

"Haah… haah! I'm dying… Eve, give me a hand."

Panting heavily, Hoshino finally made her way down from the top to the base of the stairs, feeling more exhausted than after fighting the Nine Realms King's.

"Oh, how it pains me, my poor Hoshino girl~" Following behind, Pegasus held his forehead dramatically.

"Pegasus, if you feel even a shred of guilt, then stop building staircases this long!" Hoshino snapped at the "culprit."

"Who would've thought—you're amazing at dueling, but your stamina is surprisingly poor," Eve remarked in surprise.

Completely opposite to Hoshino, Eve—despite looking even more frail—had walked the entire way down effortlessly, without even breaking a sweat.

"In my world, the stronger your dueling ability, the greater your power—and naturally, your stamina improves too."

"So this is what they mean by different power systems between worlds…" Hoshino muttered. "If I had chakra, I could clear these stairs in two jumps."

Leaning against Eve's soft, faintly fragrant body, Hoshino finally caught her breath.

"I don't know what chakra is," Eve said thoughtfully, "but the strongest duelists I know can even split rocks with their bare hands~"

Feeling Hoshino's limp weight against her, Eve added curiously, "If someone with your dueling strength came to our world, you could probably shatter stars."

"Shatter stars?!" Hoshino quickly shook her head. "Don't say things like that—it sounds like I'd explode or something."

["I see! So in Eve's world, the proper use of the World Legacy—'Star Armor'—is to smash your opponent directly when you're about to lose a duel!"]

"Then why would I even duel people at that point?" Even exhausted, Hoshino couldn't resist retorting. "Might as well just crush anyone who challenges me. The Legend of Hoshino: single-handedly ending dueling history in another world."

After a short rest, Hoshino reluctantly pulled herself away from Eve.

"Hoshino, the World Legacy's presence here is incredibly strong—we're really close! We should be able to summon it here."

Clasping her hands together, Eve radiated a pure, sacred light that gently surrounded her. The priestess stood still, with only the blue ahoge atop her head twitching as if sensing something.

"Oh my God, how holy and beautiful!" Pegasus said, his eyes sparkling as he gazed at her. "Eve girl, so you really are a shrine maiden with mysterious power~"

"—To stand against the calamity of the world, guided by the Star Chalice priestess… please, restore the brilliance of the World Legacy!"

Under Eve's priestess chant, the light of the World Legacy surged up from beneath her feet, gathering and taking shape—slowly emerging from the ground as a spear-like form.

World Legacy — "Star Spear"

"Another weapon-type?" Yugi guessed.

"To think such a relic was hidden within my kingdom—what a surprise!" Pegasus remarked, his tone tinged with the curiosity of a former archaeologist.

"It's the Star Spear—we did it again, Hoshino!" Eve jumped excitedly. "That makes three World Legacies! We're getting really close to our goal!"

"Not yet—we haven't actually obtained it," Hoshino replied calmly.

Unlike her first reckless encounter, Hoshino—now possessing two World Legacies—was far more cautious. At the very least, she wasn't about to touch the Star Spear without thinking.

As expected, once the artifact appeared, a blue energy surged out from it, gradually forming the shape of its guardian spirit.

But unlike before, this time the guardian spirit didn't take the form of a girl resembling Hoshino. Instead, it stood before them in a long coat.

"…Is that… brother?" Mokuba said in surprise.

"Not necessarily. Not everyone in a coat is Kaiba," Hoshino replied skeptically.

After all, while the general silhouette was visible, the finer details—like facial features—were obscured.

Guardian Spirit: "Hmph!"

"o(ﾟДﾟ)っ! No doubt about it—that's Kaiba!"

The moment it let out that signature scoff, Hoshino pointed decisively.

"You idiot!" the real Kaiba snapped, frowning.

"If it's a guardian spirit, then it's probably Kaiba from seven years ago—the one who dueled here," Yugi analyzed.

Due to various reasons, Hoshino's appearance had changed slightly over the years, making it easier to distinguish her past self from the present. But for Kaiba, the difference between then and now wasn't as obvious.

"Doesn't matter which version it is—just beat him, and that's it!" Hoshino declared, activating her Duel Disk as star-like particles gathered over her deck.

However, the guardian spirit Kaiba didn't activate a Duel Disk. Instead, it turned and walked toward the massive duel arena behind it.

"A duel on the platform, huh… that brings back memories," Hoshino said, then glanced at Pegasus. "But after all these years, does this antique arena even still work?"

Indoor duel arenas might still function, but ones left outdoors like this had been exposed to years of wind and sun.

Shrugging, Pegasus replied, "I don't know. It's KaibaCorp's product—you should ask Kaiba boy."

"No problem," Kaiba answered confidently. "Even if it's from seven years ago, anything made by KaibaCorp is guaranteed quality."

Mokuba added, "The arenas on Duelist Kingdom were specially treated for outdoor use. Even after all this time, they're still perfectly functional!"

"So basically—it works, right!" Hoshino stepped onto the long-awaited duel platform, placing her deck onto the table, which remained spotless despite years of exposure.

["You seem unusually excited, aibo."]

"Of course I am!" Hoshino grinned. "Getting the chance to stand on this stage again—it's once in a lifetime. And this time, I won't lose!"

She wasn't exaggerating. In real life, how often do you get a chance to redo your past failures?

"Good luck, Hoshino!" Yugi cheered.

Even Pegasus grew excited. "To overcome defeat and prove its meaning with victory—very cool, Hoshino girl!"

"Well, if this Kaiba is still at his level from seven years ago, then I've already won this duel!"

Duel—!

[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 8000]

VS

[World Legacy Guardian (Seto Kaiba) LP 8000]

"I'll go first—draw!"

The sudden shout startled Hoshino. The guardian spirit didn't just imitate Kaiba's "hmph"—even its voice during the duel was identical.

Slamming a card onto the arena table, a strange fusion effect began to manifest before the guardian spirit.

"Continuous Spell—Future Fusion! I send Fusion Materials from my Deck to the Graveyard, and during my second Standby Phase, I Special Summon the Fusion Monster!"

Hoshino remembered it clearly—back when she first dueled Kaiba here, the very first card he played was also Future Fusion.

Which meant the target was obvious.

"I send three Blue-Eyes White Dragons from my Deck to the Graveyard! In two turns, I will Fusion Summon Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

"Blue-Eyes White Dragon…" Kaiba muttered, his expression complicated at the sight of his iconic card.

"It's okay, big brother," Mokuba reassured him. "These aren't the real cards—just recreations based on memory."

"The guardian spirit is probably using simulated cards. After all, it could even use Hoshino's Heroic Spirit deck before."

Compared to the three unique copies of Blue-Eyes in the world, Heroic Spirit cards were even rarer—yet the guardian could replicate them. Clearly, its understanding of cards differed from that of humans.

"Using Future Fusion for Ultimate Dragon—even now, that's a strong play," Hoshino admitted.

Seven years ago, Kaiba already had this level of skill. He truly deserved his title as a top duelist.

"But if that's all, it's not enough anymore! Back then, I might've been pressured—but now? A dragon that takes two turns to appear isn't threatening at all!"

The guardian spirit immediately followed up, playing another spell. A massive mirror of dragons materialized, reflecting the image of three Blue-Eyes.

"Spell Card—Dragon's Mirror! I banish the three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in my Graveyard and Fusion Summon!"

Without waiting two turns, the guardian Kaiba brought out his ace instantly.

"Crush them! Smash them! Celebrate! —Fusion Summon!!!"