As the dawn entered through the window of Anthony's bedroom, he slowly stirred from his slumber, and began to get ready for the day. Two weeks had passed since the En Kingdom Tournament ended, and the En Kingdom fell to Kikai, due to the duel between Anthony and Ensho. Needless to say, the country was shocked by the event, to say the least. With the title of champion, and having bested En, Anthony gained even more followers, and the reactions from his peerage greatly varied, from the immense shock of Shokatsuryo and Kaku, to the indifferent reaction of Ryofu, to Kochu, who had suspected that something like it would happen. As for the former members of En…
*CRASH*
"Dang it!"
Anthony left his room and saw Ensho, no longer in her armor and with a rag in her hand, standing before a marble column that once held a vase, as the ceramic shards on the floor could testify. As punishment for her previous actions, Anthony gave Ensho the position of servant, which was below maid on the pecking order, but still a paid position. And she wasn't the only one. Although Anthony had intended to make Bunshu and Ganryo generals, or at least lieutenants, they had insisted on having the same position as their former leader, which he obliged. But while they took their new positions in stride, Ensho was most unhappy with the downgrade from ruler of a kingdom, to someone who worked for one. And the combination of a distaste for her position, as well as little to no work experience, and the pieces of ceramic that Ensho was trying desperately to clean up spoke volumes of the typical results.
"How's the working life treating you, Reiha?"
Ensho dropped the pieces of the vase and spun towards Anthony, and flashed a smile so forced, Anthony could have sworn he saw sparks. "It's a little hard, but I'm sure it's nothing that I can't handle."
"If you say so. Later." As the Messenger from Heaven left, Ensho scowled as she slowly picked up the bits of ceramic.
~KD~
"I'm telling you, this is the absolute worst!"
Ensho was currently on her break, sitting with Bunshu and Ganryo and complaining about her job over tea. She took a sip, then practically slammed her cup down and groaned in frustration. "I used to be the ruler of a kingdom, with servants at my beck and call, more money than I knew what to do with, and complete authority over my subjects. And now, all of that is gone!"
"Well, look on the bright side, Reiha!" said Ganryo, trying to cheer her friend up. "You still get to live in this palace!"
"Yes, in the servant's quarters, rather than my large and comfy bed," said Ensho.
"With the two of us!" pointed out Bunshu. "It's like a big sleepover!"
Ensho didn't respond, but she looked over to the door as Totaku and Kaku entered, sitting down away from her. "Look at those two. I'm willing to bet that neither of them have any idea what it's like to lose it all." However, her volume was greater than she wanted it to be, and the two maids overheard the blonde.
"W-Well, I wouldn't say that," said Totaku.
"Oh really? I doubt it. Last time I checked, Anthony found you two in the old capital, when Totaku was still around. Being under her must be far worse than this, and considering the state the city was in before I took over, I doubt that you're missing living there. You're just a couple of nobodies who Anthony took pity on."
"Excuse you!?" responded Kaku, who got out of her chair and walked over to Ensho, glaring at the former lord. "Who are you to make such judgements? You don't know anything about us!"
"I know enough."
"No, you really don't! If you knew even half of what Yue went through, maybe you wouldn't be so haughty!"
Ensho just rolled her eyes and took a sip of her tea. "Please. There's no way she had any power to lose. Just look at her!"
Kaku felt something snap. "That's it! I challenge you to a duel. And when I destroy you, you better prepare to apologize to Yue!"
"Hold on, Ei. I want to duel her."
Kaku turned towards her childhood friend. "Are you sure?"
"Positive."
Kaku nodded, and Totaku got up, her Duel Disk already on her wrist. Ensho places her own Duel Disk on, and the two walked over to each other.
"Is it alright if we duel in here?" asked Totaku.
"No problem!" said Ensho, as a newcomer walked into the room.
"...what's happening…"
Bunshu, Ganryo, and Kaku turned to see Ryofu, who had been walking past the room when she heard the argument, and came to investigate.
"Reiha and Yue are gonna duel!" said Bunshu, as the two girls got into position.
"Yue is…gonna win…"
"We'll see," said Ganryo, as the duel began.
(Ensho: 4000 LP)(Totaku: 4000 LP)
"If you don't mind, peasant, I'll go first!" said Ensho, as she drew six cards while Totaku drew five. "And to begin, I summon my Divine Dragon Ragnarok!"
The monster was an ethereal Eastern dragon that was a very light shade of pink, seemingly made entirely out of energy, as a white mane and whiskers crackled (LV 4: ATK 1500).
"And now, I set one card and end my turn!"
Totaku drew, then almost immediately after, Ensho played her face-down, which turned out to be a Trap Card with a king in golden armor holding the head of a defeated imp.
"Ohohohohoho! During your Standby Phase, I can activate my Thunder of Ruler, preventing you from conducting your Battle Phase!"
Totaku didn't respond, instead looking through her hand, before she selected her card.
"I play my Lonefire Blossom!"
The monster was a flower with a swirling brown and yellow stem, two purple leaves, and a large bulb that looked like a cherry bomb (LV 3: ATK 500).
"If you think that puny plant can stop my monster, you've got another thing coming!"
"It won't, but maybe this monster could. I activate the effect of Lonefire Blossom, tributing a Plant-type monster to Special Summon a Plant-type from my deck! And I tribute Lonefire Blossom to summon my Gigaplant!"
Her monster suddenly had the bulb explode, and out sprouted the massive Gemini Monster (LV 6: ATK 2400).
"And now I end my turn by setting two cards!"
Ensho smirked as she saw the face-downs, and drew.
"I tribute my Ragnarok to summon Luster Dragon #2!"
The heavenly dragon was soon replaced by the emerald one, which let out a loud roar (LV 6: ATK 2400).
"Not so fast! I activate my Pollinosis!"
The Trap Card was flipped up, showing Goblin of Greed with a germ mask, having a sneezing fit in a cloud of pollen. Gigaplant then began to transform into pollen, which surrounded the Dragon-type, which then exploded.
"By tributing a Plant-type, I can negate the summon of a monster, or the activation of a Spell Card or Trap Card, and destroy it!"
Ensho grimaced, but she smiled as she noticed one card in her hand. "I'll set a card and end my turn."
"Okay then, I draw! And I summon Lord Poison!"
The rotted ruler appeared on the field with a wicked groan (LV 4: ATK 1500), as Ensho groaned herself. "Ugh! What is with all of these disgusting monsters? First that ugly flytrap, and now this?"
"I'd be more concerned with the fact that you're open for a direct attack! Lord Poison, if you would!"
Her monster constricted Ensho with its tentacles and dealt a fair bit of damage (Ensho: 4000-2500 LP).
"Yue…is better…" said Ryofu.
"Well, it's too early to tell," said Ganryo. "Reiha still has a chance."
"I set one card and end my turn."
Ensho drew, and smiled. "Let's see how your Lord Poison does against my Luster Dragon!"
The blue dragon rose to its full height, sapphire scales shimmering (LV 4: ATK 1900).
"Attack with Sapphire Spark!"
The dragon fired a blast of blue fire at the Plant-type, blasting it into pixels (Totaku: 4000-3600 LP). Totaku smiled as her monster was destroyed, as she played a face-down, showing a skeletal demon bursting from the ground.
"Thanks! When Lord Poison is destroyed by battle, I can Special Summon a Plant-type monster from my Graveyard! And I activate Overdoom Line, which will increase the attack points of all Plant-types that are Special Summoned from the Graveyard by one thousand!"
However, Ensho simply smiled, and she activated her own Trap Card, showing two guards standing before a jail cell filled to the brim with prisoners.
"Ohohohohohohoho! I activate my Royal Prison, which prevents either of us from Special Summoning monsters from our Graveyard!"
Totaku bit her bottom lip, her plan having failed miserably, as Ensho ended her turn, still laughing obnoxiously. Totaku drew, then played a card that had a flower pot filled with a bubbling purple liquid, with the card Ivy Shackles being dunked into it.
"I activate my Magic Planter, which will let me send a Continuous Trap from my field to the Graveyard in order to draw two cards!"
The same planter on the card appeared below Overdoom Line, which slowly submerged itself in the purple goop, as Totaku drew her two cards, then put one of them into her Spell & Trap Zone.
"And now, I activate The World Tree!"
Behind her sprouted a massive tree, one that easily touched the ceiling.
"You'll see what this card does in a bit, but for now, I summon my Cactus Fighter to the field!"
Her new monster was a cactus with small, stumpy legs, large arms with curved needles for fingers, a wide mouth, and crazy yellow eyes (LV 4: ATK 1900).
"Whoa, that thing looks pretty tough!" said Bunshu.
"It's the same strength as Luster Dragon," said Ganryo, "so if Yue tries to attack, both monsters will be destroyed."
"Not quite!" said Totaku, as she activated her Trap Card, which had an image of Gigantic Cephalotus eating Botanical Girl. "I activate Plant Food Chain, which equips to my Cactus Fighter and increases its attack points by five hundred!" Her monster suddenly became stronger as power surged through its body (ATK 1900-2400).
"Now attack, Cactus Fighter!"
Her monster ran over to Luster Dragon and struck it with a prickly arm, sending it sprawling back, and then crossed its arms, before sending out a shower of needles, which made the Dragon-type explode into pixels (Ensho: 2500-2000 LP). As soon as this happened, a needle fell down and plunged into the ground (LV 1: DEF 500).
"What is this?" asked Ensho, clearly confused.
"Whenever my Cactus Fighter destroys a monster in battle, you gain a Needle Token," elaborated Totaku. "But it won't be out for long, as I activate my Fragrance Storm!"
A card appeared showing a flower surrounded by a storm that had swept up various plants, including Horseytail and Dandylion. A storm filled with flower petals suddenly began to make its way over to the token, destroying it.
"With this card, I can destroy one Plant-type on the field, then draw a card, and if it's a Plant-type, I can reveal it to draw a new card!" Totaku then drew the top card of her deck, then showed her opponent that it was Botanical Girl, before drawing another card. As this happened, an orange flower suddenly bloomed on The World Tree.
"And as you can see, my World Tree gains one Flower Counter every time a Plant-type is destroyed! I end my turn."
Ensho drew, then smiled wickedly.
"Not good," said Kaku, with Ryofu nodding in agreement.
"I play Dark Hole, which will destroy all monsters on the field! Say goodbye to your cactus!"
The black hole soon pulled in the Plant-type and crushed it into oblivion, as Totaku sent both it and Plant Food Chain to her Graveyard. Unfortunately for her, she couldn't use the effect of Plant Food Chain to revive a monster from her Graveyard, as Royal Prison was still in play. On the flip side, since Cactus Fighter was destroyed, The World Tree gained a second Flower Counter.
"Now I summon my Hunter Dragon!"
A long and thin dragon with black scales, orange wings, tan and black limbs with sharp talons, and blades on its chin and tail appeared, moving in a serpentine pattern above the sky (LV 3: ATK 1700).
"Now attack directly with your Hunter Harpoon!"
The dragon suddenly flew straight towards Totaku and struck her with the blade on its chin, before arching backwards and returning to its original position (Totaku: 3600-1900 LP).
"It looks like Reiha is winning!" said Ganryo in excitement.
"Yeah, for now," said Kaku in response.
"And now, I end my turn!"
"Okay then, I draw! And I set one monster, then I activate the effect of The World Tree!"
The two Flower Counters suddenly dissolved into small green orbs of light. "By removing a certain amount of Flower Counters from The World Tree, I can activate different effects. By removing two, I can destroy one card on the field!"
The balls of light began to float over to Royal Prison like fireflies, before the Trap Card exploded.
"And that should end my turn."
Ensho drew, then snickered as she saw what she picked up. "I activate my Ancient Rules, which lets me Special Summon a high-level Normal Monster from my hand, like my most powerful monster, Tri-Horned Dragon!"
The tattered scroll materialized, and out came a large blue wingless dragon with an orange underbelly. It had sharp yellow claws and talons, and a line of spikes that were the same color running down its back. There were three curved horns on the top of its head, and it had orange eyes filled with malice that Totaku swore were staring into her soul (LV 8: ATK 2850).
"What do you think about this monster, shrimp?" said Ensho.
"Um, it's pretty cool, I suppose," said Totaku, being polite as always.
"Well now, it's about to become your worst nightmare! Tri-Horned Dragon, attack that face-down monster!"
Her monster let out a shrill cry, then brought down its claw, revealing the monster in question to be Botanical Girl. The monster was a woman in a skintight outfit seemingly made from leaves, with Venus flytrap over her breasts and flowers on the end of her sleeves. Rather than hair, she had a large pink flower on her head, and dangling behind her like a huge ponytail was a pitcher plant (LV 3: DEF 1100). She cried in agony as she was destroyed, and as The World Tree gained one Flower Counter, Totaku pulled her deck out of her Duel Disk and looked through it.
"What is she doing?" asked Bunshu.
"Whenever Botanical Girl is sent from the field to the Graveyard," explained Kaku, "Totaku can add a Plant-type with one thousand or less defense points from her deck to her hand."
"Hunter Dragon, attack directly!"
Her monster shot forward, then pierced Totaku before it returned to its place beside Tri-Horned Dragon (Totaku: 1900-200 LP).
"And now, I end my turn!"
Totaku slowly moved her hand towards her deck, shaking a little, which didn't go unnoticed by her opponent.
"Ohohoho! A little frightened, are we? Don't worry if you lose, it's just a game! Unlike me, you won't lose anything important."
Totaku looked up at Ensho. "I already have."
"Please! I was the leader of an entire kingdom before I came here! And now look at me, a servant girl! The shame of it! What could you have possibly lost!?"
Totaku then looked at Ensho, eyes filled with deep sorrow. "Before I came to serve under Lord Anthony, I was the ruler of all of China."
Ensho's eyes widened, as her former generals gasped. "But," said Ganryo, "that would make you-"
"Totaku Chuei? Yes. After I was the emperor for no more than a week, I was kidnapped by a wicked man in white, who left me in a dungeon to rot. As I was trapped, he informed me that vicious lies about me being a horrible dictator had been spread, and that a group of faction leaders had banded together to overthrow me. And once I was finally freed, I learned that three of my generals had lost their souls, whose comatose bodies are now in the infirmary, and that both me, and my closest friend," she said, gesturing to Kaku, "would have to go only by our secret names to protect ourselves."
"Yue…" said Ryofu, surprised that her friend was revealing all of this information.
"But do you know what was the worst thing about that experience? Not being able to do anything. Ever since I was young, my one true goal in life was to help people, and being locked in that cell, while my friends and subjects suffered? Absolutely heartbreaking. But Lord Anthony gave me another chance! By being his maid, I can still help people! I can make people happy! And it's that mentality that helped me overcome the loss of my empire."
Ensho, Bunshu, and Ganryo were silent. Whether it was the revelation of Totaku's identity, or the speech she gave, they were in awe nonetheless. Totaku then drew her next card, and with a smile, she placed it onto her Monster Zone.
"I summon my Phoenixian Seed!"
Totaku's monster was a seed that was mahogany in color, with a few red leaves sprouting from the top, thin roots on the bottom, and in the center, a single large eye with a yellow iris (LV 2: ATK 800).
"And now, I use the special ability of my monster, sending it to the Graveyard to Special Summon my Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis from my hand!"
The monster then buried itself into the ground, and a piece of stone rose up, and out sprouted the new monster. A long green stem led to a cluster amaryllis that was mostly a deep red in color. There were also two blossoms that looked like wings, both of which were yellow in color, and one pink one in front that vaguely resembled an avian head, with a pair of red glowing eyes (LV 8: ATK 2200).
"And now, my Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis will attack your Hunter Dragon with Flame Petal!"
The crimson hurricane lily proceeded to unleash a flurry of burning petals, which torched the Dragon-type and blasted it into pieces (Ensho: 2000-1500 LP). Suddenly, the Plant-type spontaneously combusted, sending embers over to Ensho (Ensho: 1500-700 LP). As a second Flower Counter grew on The World Tree, Ensho was completely dumbfounded by what just happened.
"What was that just now!?"
"That was the power of Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis. Whenever it attacks, it destroys itself after damage calculation. And whenever Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, its effect, Scatter Flame, activates, dealing eight hundred points of damage. But I'm not done yet! I remove two Flower Counters from my World Tree in order to destroy your monster!"
The two flowers transformed into green balls of light that accumulated around the Dragon-type, before it blew up, leaving Ensho's field empty.
"Now I end my turn, and during my End Phase, I can banish a Plant-type from my Graveyard in order to Special Summon Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis from my Graveyard in defense mode!"
Totaku then pulled both Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis and Gigaplant out of her Graveyard, and placed the former onto her Monster Zone before she slipped the latter into a pocket on her outfit. The flower of flame returned to the field, its petals a little closer together (LV 8: DEF 0).
"This isn't good. If that monster is destroyed, Reiha will lose the duel, no doubt!" said Ganryo, as Ryofu smiled.
"Yue won."
"Well, not yet!" rebutted Ensho, drawing her next card. "I draw! And I set one monster face-down! That's it!"
As Ensho's monster appeared on the field, Totaku drew, then switched her monster into attack mode (ATK 2200), and pointed at the face-down.
"Go, Flame Petal!"
Her monster once again attacked, and the monster was revealed to be Divine Dragon Apocralyph (LV 4: DEF 1500). As it was destroyed, Totaku smiled cheerfully.
"Sorry, but it looks like you lose! Scatter Flame!"
The Plant-type once again exploded, and as a result, the remaining life points of Ensho were depleted (Ensho: 700-0 LP)(Winner: Totaku).
"I…I lost…" said Ensho, falling to her knees. "Again…"
"Don't worry about it," said Totaku. "As you said, it's only a game."
Ensho then looked up with a weak smile, before it vanished. "I…I'm sorry…"
Totaku just smiled. "It's nothing. Just try to help a little more, okay?"
Kaku walked over to her friend. "You know, Yue, you and Lord Anthony are both way too forgiving sometimes."
"Maybe. But I don't see it as a bad thing."
The two then went back to work, as Ryofu left silently. Ensho then got up, and made a vow to improve herself, not just as a duelist, but as a person. After all, if she kept up her attitude, the next person she worked for may not be so forgiving.