"The Evil Gods,"
Ishizu began calmly.
"Odion told me already. You encountered one of the Three Evil Godsâthe first among them, called âThe Wicked Eraserâ, who has the terrifying power to end all things and annihilate everything within sight.
But even so, that God is only the weakest of the three."
Ishizu poured Kira a cup of tea. He accepted and thanked her.
"Aside from Eraser, there is âThe Wicked Dreadrootâ and âThe Wicked Avatarâ. These three are counterparts to the Egyptian Gods, possessing world-shattering power."
Kira already knew this and wasnât surprised. "But I heard the Three Evil Gods appeared years ago, fought Yugi Muto, and were destroyed."
Ishizu nodded.
"Pegasus failed to resist the Evil Godsâ mental corruption, created the three evil cards, and his adopted son Yako Tenma was possessed, nearly causing disaster.
But after Yugiâs God Cards overpowered the Evil Gods, Industrial Illusions destroyed those cards. But while the cards can be destroyed, the gods themselves cannot be so easily erased.
The God Cards are gone, but the Evil Gods merely returned to their pre-card stateâwaiting for a new chance."
"So theyâre back now?"
Ishizu shook her head. "No, not yet. If theyâd fully returned, thereâd be no need for all these cults and schemes to revive them."
"So this is related to the spirit I found?"
At the mention of itself, the big eyeball floated to Kiraâs side, quietly listening.
"Itâs connected to the Evil Godsâ resurrection?"
"Thatâs our current theory," Ishizu said. "You know our family kept the Pharaohâs God Cards for 3,000 years; while we never truly possessed them, we developed a deep connection and some insight into the realm of gods.
Because of this, our family was recognized by the gods. We may not be Pharaoh or Priests, but we have the bloodline to wield godly power."
She glanced at the eyeball, which listened intently.
"We suspect the Evil Gods are hidden beyond this dimension, somewhere in the spirit world. That world has guardians, like our tomb keepers.
A group of guardians watched over the Evil Godsâ tablets for countless years, preventing their power from falling into the wrong hands... until the seal was threatened."
"Threatened?"
"We learned this indirectly from spiritsâjust fragments, not necessarily precise.
But piecing it together: some outside force tried to break into the sealed land, waking the Evil Gods and weakening the seal."
"Outside force? Any suspects?"
"None so far," Ishizu said. "But rumors in the spirit world say the guardians were helpless. One guardian escaped, closed the way behind them, and hid the sealed land within the spirit realm.
Now, even if outsiders seek the Evil Gods, they canât find the seal.
The only way to reach it again is to find that guardian spirit."
"This guy?" Kira looked at the floating eyeball, which looked back, innocent and confused.
Ishizu nodded. "We werenât sure at first. But since the church hunts this spirit so relentlessly, the rumor seems credible."
"Huh?"
Eraser was dumbfounded.
Why is it different from my version?
"Enough," Avatar said coldly. "I thought youâd be useful allies. I was wrong. The proposal is offâwe donât need your strength."
Trueman frowned, wanting to argue, but was cut off.
"Begone. Youâre not welcome here."
Before Trueman could reply, his form twisted and dissolved into black mist.
The third Evil God, Dreadroot, spoke after a pause. "Then, should I try next?"
"No," Avatar said, "Iâll go myself."
The other two were shocked.
Eraser said, "But youâre weaker than us now. You canât even manifest in the real world..."
"What?" Avatar snapped. "You think Iâll lose to that human like you did?"
Eraser shut up.
But for some reason, though they were on the same side, Eraser felt a sudden urge:
I hope that despicable human teaches big bro a lessonâlet him see for himself!

Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Who Let Him Play Yu-Gi-Oh!