Chapter 1260: A Worthy Opponent for a God

"Destroy my Thor, Lord of the Aesir with its own effect!"

The sky suddenly cracked open with spiderweb-like black fissures. A pale dagger wrapped in the roots of the World Tree pierced through the clouds. The moment the blade ran through Thor, Mjölnir, the Hammer of Thunder, let out a crisp sound like shattering glass.

Thor's bronze-colored divine body began to disintegrate from the wound. His armor cracked into electrified bronze powder. The flying fragments of divine remains transformed into miniature thunderstorms as they fell, creating a zone of lightning.

The airplane-headed commentator shouted excitedly: "Ohhh! Who could have predicted this!? To avoid the effect of 'Drowning Mirror Force,' Dragan actually chose to destroy his own god with his own hand! Although this saved him from being bounced back to the deck, Thor, Lord of the Aesir has also been destroyed! Was it really worth it!?"

"That's fine."

Outside the field, Captain Halldor smiled.

"As expected, that guy Dragan won't be tripped up by such a simple move."

Broder also spoke: "Yeah. A god isn't so easily defeated. A duelist chosen by a god will protect and amplify each other's power with the god's strength, bringing out their maximum potential. Only when we combine the power of the Rune Eye with the might of the gods…"

"Exactly." Halldor crossed his arms and nodded slightly. "We are invincible."

"Gods are immortal!" Dragan declared proudly. "No matter how many times they fall, they can rise again from the flames!

I set one card and end my turn.

During the End Phase, the effect of 'Thor, Lord of the Aesir' in the Graveyard activates. When this card exists in the Graveyard during the End Phase, Special Summon Thor, Lord of the Aesir from the Graveyard! Revive, Thor!"

The sea surface suddenly exploded with towering waves. Between the torn waves, burning Rune runes emerged. A deep, ancient war-drum-like rumble came from the seabed. Nine scarlet lightning bolts shot down from the clouds, assembling the outline of bronze armor at the center of the vortex.

Thor's eyes opened within the lightning. His pupils surged with even more violent thunder than before. The torn fragments of his cloak automatically stitched themselves back together, crackling with electric arcs as they fluttered. The moment his massive foot stepped onto the crest of a wave, the entire sea was instantly covered in a blue-white web of electricity. Even the splashing water droplets solidified into floating thunder orbs.

Mjölnir burst out from the deep sea, its head entwined with newborn World Tree roots. The instant Thor gripped the hammer's handle, all the lightning surged back into his body. The dark clouds in the sky shattered into neat geometric cracks.

[Thor, Lord of the Aesir, ATK 3500]

"And when Thor is Special Summoned by its own effect," Dragan pointed to the sky with his right hand, "inflict 800 damage to the opponent!"

The revived Thor swung his war hammer once more. The divine hammer summoned heavenly lightning, and massive bolts of thunder crashed down onto Kira's Duel Runner. His Duel Runner shook violently, and his already dwindling Life Points continued to drop.

[Kira, LP 1100 → LP 300]

The airplane-headed commentator exclaimed: "Th-this is completely unexpected! Thor, Lord of the Aesir actually has a costless self-revival ability, and every revival comes with 800 damage! Does this mean that defeating Thor would actually be extremely disadvantageous for Kira himself? Especially since Kira's Life Points are now down to just 300…"

"Exactly!" Dragan laughed, picking up the commentator's words. "Your Life Points are already a candle in the wind. That means you can no longer afford to destroy Thor. The moment you defeat him, Thor's revival will definitely reduce your Life Points to 0. Even if you defeat me, it's the same. In a team duel, even if my Life Points hit zero, the duel doesn't end. I still have comrades behind me who can continue the fight. But if you take one more hit from Thor, it's all over for you!"

Dragan's eyes showed clear contempt.

"If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for being too arrogant—thinking you could challenge the WRGP stage, which represents the world's highest level of strength, all by yourself."

"You guys do seem stronger than the opponents I've faced before."

Kira spoke calmly and snapped his fingers.

"But before your turn fully ends, I'll activate this last card. Trap Card 'Rainbow Life'!"

Kira sent one card from his hand to the Graveyard and explained: "By discarding one card from the hand, Rainbow Life makes all damage I receive this turn become 0. My Life Points return to what they were at the start of the turn. Additionally, I gain Life Points equal to the total damage that was nullified."

Dragan: "Nani!?"

The Nordic rider's pupils contracted. He was so shocked he nearly lost control of his Duel Runner.

A rainbow-colored radiance gathered in mid-air, resembling the Bifrost from Norse mythology. However, the energy of this rainbow bridge converged into a single point, turning the seven-colored light into a blazing white pillar that poured entirely into Kira's body.

"My Life Points at the start of the turn were 3000, and the damage I took this turn was 2700," Kira said. "Therefore, my Life Points are restored to 5700."

[Kira, LP 300 → LP 5700]

Dragan was stunned: "His Life Points jumped back to… How is that possible? All of the god's attacks became completely meaningless…"

The expressions of his two teammates outside the field also changed. Broder said gravely: "Fujiki Kira… I didn't expect him to have such a countermeasure."

"The more critical the situation, the more Dragan needs to keep a steady mindset," Halldor said. "He only recovered his Life Points. On the field, we still hold the advantage with the god under our control. As long as he doesn't panic, Dragan and his god are still enough to stabilize the situation."

"My turn. Draw."

It was now Kira's turn once again.

"During the Standby Phase of this turn, the effect of 'Playful Possum' in the Graveyard activates," Kira said. "When this card is destroyed by its own effect, it can be Special Summoned from the Graveyard during the Standby Phase of the next turn. Therefore, I Special Summon 'Playful Possum' from the Graveyard once more."

[Playful Possum, ATK 800]

"I see," Dragan seemed to understand. "So Playful Possum can self-destruct every turn and revive itself the next turn. Then, when a Beast monster on the field is destroyed, the Green Baboon in the Graveyard can be Special Summoned. This gives the Green Baboon a semi-immortal state as well…"

But after analyzing for a moment, Dragan shook his head with a smile.

"You've built quite a nice combo. But this kind of revival is still far inferior to the true 'immortality' of the Lord of the Aesir. Even if you revive the Green Baboon, it's nowhere near a match for the Lord of the Aesir."

However, Kira only smiled more mysteriously upon hearing this.

"I said earlier that today I chose a deck that is perfectly suited as an opponent for a god. It seems you didn't quite understand what I meant."

"Nani?"

Dragan's expression changed slightly. An ominous premonition began rising in his heart.

"In that case, let me demonstrate it to you directly."

Kira continued.

"First, activate the Spell Card 'Aurora Draw.' This card can only be activated when the only card in your hand is this one. Draw two cards from your deck."

Kira drew two cards, then waved his hand.

"The effect of Playful Possum activates. When there is a monster on the opponent's field with higher ATK than this card, I can destroy this card itself!"

Boom!

With a loud explosion, Playful Possum self-destructed once again.

"At this moment, the effect of a monster in my hand activates. This card cannot be Normal Summoned. It can only be Special Summoned from the hand when a monster on my field is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard by a card effect.

Come forth——Meklord Emperor Wisel!!!"

…