City Streets
(Selector Infected Wixoss OST: Daily Life ~ Missing Parts)
The very next morning after discussing their plans for the day at hand, Aichi, Kai and Ruko left the apartment blocks together whilst Kamui went off in a different direction to another portion of the city, presumably in the hope of finding Amika who had no knowledge of what was really going behind the inner workings of the Selector Battles or what Mayu was seemingly capable of. The Selector and the two cardfighters who had joined her each shared the same thoughts that were currently going through their mind and it was those thoughts that had each of them rather troubled at this moment, knowing the person that they knew they would have to talk to.
"Forgive me if I still haven't completely got this straight..." Aichi murmured "But... Yuzuki was in love with Kazuki, her brother, which was her motivation in the Selector Battles. Only when she discovered that becoming an Eternal Girl meant becoming an LRIG..."
"Hanayo took over her body and fulfilled that wish in her place," Kai concluded "Though given the circumstances, I do find the extent of Yuzuki's exact wish... questionable."
"Right... The subject of this whole incest love triangle thing aside," Ruko interjected "There's still a lot of things that we need to ask her about. Even if she's not like Tama, Yuki or Umr, she still might know something about Mayu we don't."
"I agree," the Kagero user replied "The last time we saw her, she said that she didn't mean for any of what happened to Yuzuki other than she needed to see for herself. However... I have the feeling she wasn't telling us the whole truth then."
The Selector and Aichi remained silent, though their expressions had gone down slightly at this moment having recalled their respective meetings with Hanayo herself on the day that the Royal Paladin user and the friends he brought into this world had taken their first steps in this city. Ruko felt rather guilty knowing that the first time she had met with Hanayo since the day she and Yuzuki saw Kazuki's confession to the body now inhabited by the former LRIG wasn't at the best of times with Reverse having plagued her at the time. That moment was also the first time she had met Aichi in person, after overhearing his conversation with Hanayo that confirmed he could also see the LRIGs around him and given the mood she was in at the time, the Selector felt terrible for leaving quite the first impression with him then.
Deciding that pondering back over those past events wasn't going to do her or the two cardfighters beside her any favours, she led the way over to Kazuki's apartment, having visited both him and Yuzuki there once before. After crossing through several more streets in some of the more busier portions of the city, occasionally hearing what sounded like the voices of a few LRIGs in the possession of Selectors that they passed by, the three of them eventually arrived at the front door that led to the apartment itself, with Aichi having recognized its appearance from his previous departure with Hanayo. Just shortly after they arrived, they looked to their right to see that Hitoe was hurrying over to them.
"S... Sorry for being late!" she panted before taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down. Yuzuki from within her card, now held in a neck wallet of some kind that hung from the Selector's neck, looked over to Aichi and Kai swallowing a small gulp as she did so.
"I guess... Ruko's already told you everything about this... complication, right?" she asked nervously.
"Yes..." Aichi answered "I know incest isn't a subject that I or any of my friends would like to partake in, but I understand about how you feel about Kazuki."
"If both of you have feelings for one another, that is, if his aren't only apparent solely through Hanayo's actions," Kai spoke "Then we have no right to intervene."
"Well... at least you're not like some people," Yuzuki murmured whilst briefly scratching her head.
(End Music)
As Ruko was about to reach out for the handle to the doorway in front of the group, said doorway suddenly swung open as Kazuki looked out to her, Hitoe and the two cardfighters standing beside them.
"Ah... Ruko!" he gasped "It's been a while!"
"T... That's true, Kazuki," the Selector replied "Is everything alright?"
"Well... things have been somewhat quiet for the last two days," he answered "But more importantly, I'm glad you've been found after what Hatsu had told me. Your disappearance gave us all quite the scare."
As Ruko laughed nervously in response, feeling that it was better to simply play along knowing that with Kazuki's lack of access to the Selector Battles or their understanding itself, there was a chance that the truth would not roll out as smoothly as she would like. He then looked over to Aichi.
"It's nice to see you again too Aichi," he spoke before looking over to Kai, having only heard about him through name and presumed reputation amongst several players of the Wixoss card game, some of which being Selectors themselves.
"This is Kai-kun," Aichi kindly clarified "... Yuzuki and I found him in the park just a few minutes after we left you."
"So you're Kai Toshiki," Kazuki murmured as he mentally noted the Kagero user's serious expression as evidenced by his gaze "From what I've been hearing amongst the Wixoss playerbase around this city, you have quite the reputation."
"So I have heard," Kai simply replied.
"It's nice to see you again," Hitoe kindly greeted.
"A... Anyway," said Ruko "We were wondering if... Yuzuki-san was in at the moment."
"She's upstairs in the living space," Kazuki answered "I'm just heading out to take care of a few things first. Maybe I might even learn a thing or two from your friend later."
"T... Thank you very much, Kazuki-kun," said Aichi "And take care."
The older sibling of Yuzuki simply smiled in reply as he left for the other parts of the city whilst everyone else outside nodded in agreement and headed inside, knowing that this was the chance that they were waiting for to talk with Hanayo.
Elsewhere...
(Cardfight! Vanguard OST: Unmei no Deai)
"Amika! Are you around here?!"
Kamui was in another part of the city, looking for the aforementioned Selector herself in the hope of informing her of everything that he had learned about the Selector Battles thus far from Aichi, Kai and the other cardfighters and Selectors around him. Running about different streets with the hope of running into Amika herself and begrudgingly, with the hope that he could hear Piruluk's voice nearby, the Nova Grappler user was moving about rather quickly which only attracted a few stares from some passing people and on occasion, the sight of an LRIG or two, not that he could see them in the midst of his rush.
As he was passing by a more open area that seemed more reminiscent of the park that he had first encountered Chiyori in as evidenced by the various trees that now surrounded him, a cold gust of wind suddenly whistled around him as what appeared to be a small piece of paper suddenly flew right into his face.
"Ack!" groaned Kamui as he was immediately robbed of all foresight the moment the piece of paper covered over his eyes as he frantically reached out with his right hand before pulling it right out of his face. Upon looking down at it, he could now see that it was a photo that had blown right into him, the person being depicted on it looking almost identical to someone he knew, the brown hair and a certain ponytail being an indicator of that.
"Please give it back!" called a voice as a woman and a man immediately approached the Nova Grappler user in a hurry, panic being littered on their faces.
"H... Here you go," said Kamui as he handed the photo back to them, the woman sighing in partial relief "So you know Amika?"
"Amika?" the man murmured in confusion "... I'm afraid you must be mistaken. This... is a photo of our late daughter, who recently passed away under tragic and most unfortunate circumstances."
"Oh... I'm sorry," the Nova Grappler user murmured as he was shown the photo again, now immediately seeing where he had gotten the confusion from. He recalled that Amika had her ponytail up on the right side of her hair whilst the girl in the photo had her's styled on the left. "It's just... that girl looks a lot like a friend I'm looking for."
"We humbly accept your apology, boy," the girl's mother replied "If you wish to keep the name of our poor girl as a reminder to avoid further confusion, it is Sakaguchi Ayumi. We were in the midst of constructing a memorial for her in this small glade before that earlier gust blew the picture into your hands."
"I see..."
Kamui, now understanding the weight of this personal issue began to back slowly away from the mother and father of their deceased daughter, this Sakaguchi Ayumi that he was told about now seeming like a topic that he should not press on any further about, for their emotional state that was no doubt still crippled after what had happened to her.
"I suppose I'll leave you to it then..." he murmured as he began to leave the small area "I'm sorry to hear about it."
And with a quick wave of a goodbye exchanged between the three of them, the Nova Grappler user left the small park like area with his pace having slowed to a walk, no doubt from thinking over the weight of what he had just been told at this very moment, even if it was initially a 'case of mistaken identity' from a single photo that had blown into his face earlier.
"Calm down...!" he muttered quietly to himself "I know I feel bad for whatever happened to this Ayumi, but I've got other things to worry about!"
Regaining his resolve immediately afterwards, he picked up the pace into a run as he began to scour the city for the Selector that he was looking for, hoping that what Kai told him about in regards to an outcome from the Selector Battles had not already befallen her.
(End Music)
Kurebayashi Apartment
Hanayo sat in the living space all alone with her eyes closed, no doubt in thought over everything that had happened since she had left Aichi, Kai and Naoki on their own on that day. Guilt had been eating away at her for a long while now, not just because of her own concerns for Yuzuki herself, but how Kazuki had to deal with the fact that his closest friends had turned against him because of his feelings for what he percieved was his own sister, unaware of what was actually going on around him. Her thoughts were then interrupted as she heard a knock at the door. Walking up to it, the former LRIG opened it up to see both Ruko and Kai standing outside in front her with Aichi and Hitoe behind them.
"Ruko..." she breathed "Are you alright?"
"For the moment, I am," the Selector replied as she looked to Hanayo "We were just wanting to talk with you. And... I know this might not be the best time to bring it up now, but Yuzuki is with us. She..."
"I understand," she interrupted as she turned around and began walking back inside "I promise I'll make everything as clear as I can, no matter how much Yuzuki may despise me at this moment."
"Hanayo..." Yuzuki spoke out, interrupting the former LRIG's steps for a moment "I still can't forgive you for not telling me about what was really going on and I certainly can't forgive you for playing with Kazuki's feelings without my consent. But... I am willing to listen to what you have to say."
As Hanayo briefly looked back at the card containing her, she walked away from them as everyone ekse entered the apartment itself and each took a seat on one of the two couchs that were present. The former LRIG quickly went into another room for a few moments before returning outside with a large piece of paper that was held in her hand. Upon looking up at what Hanayo was holding, Yuzuki realized what it was before the former LRIG turned it around to show everyone. It appeared to be a drawing of some kind that depicted a girl with long brown reddish hair along with a flower stuck in it and wearing a orange dress. The left half of the picture was covered up by a black colour that looked like it was scribbled on frantically to cover up whatever was on there.
"That's..." Yuzuki breathed as everyone else looked down to her.
"That was your drawing, right?" Aichi murmured.
"Yeah..." she replied "That was... kind of how it started in the first place."
The LRIG closed her eyes, now recalling everything that had led up to that drawing in the first place.
"I was nothing more than a kindergartener at that time..." she explained "I had imagined Kazuki as a handsome prince, without even thinking about what the thought of it would even stir up. And whilst my teacher showed no sign of disdain, the other people in my class... they didn't think that much. Unable to stomach the thought of being called a freak... I scribbled out the 'dark prince' I had imaged then, hoping to bury that 'hallucination' for good. But, as the years went by... my feelings and my desire for Kazuki only grew stronger... as did my desperation for my wish in the Selector Battles to come true. And yet Hanayo...!"
"Calm down, Yuzuki," said Hanayo as she approached the table where her LRIG card was laid out.
"How can I calm down?!" she yelled, leading to collected gasps from everyone but Kai in the room. "If you had told me about what's really going on, the three of us wouldn't be in this mess!"
"Yuzuki-san..." Hitoe murmured nervously, now noticing the more hostile mood that had been stirred up.
"Yuzuki..." Hanayo breathed as she looked down at the floor for a moment "I... I wanted to tell you about what would really happen. But... at the time, you were already beyond the point of reasoning. Even Ruko's attempt to diverge you from that path ended in complete failure. That's why... I had no choice but to let you see what really happened for yourself."
Yuzuki immediately bit her lip and kept her right fist clenched tightly, trying to keep her slowly building anger under control so that everyone in the room could somehow get to the end of the conversation without anything taking a turn for the worst. Taking a few deep breaths, she looked back up to Hanayo, ready to continue their discussion.
"Is it true of what Mayu said...?" she asked "That LRIGs cannot reveal the truth to their Selector, unless they are trapped in their card forever?"
"It is true," Hanayo murmured "Even in this body however, I have had a close call with just exposing everything to Aichi, Kai and Ishida."
"What do you mean?" asked Ruko.
"Yuzuki's wish was to be in love with Kazuki," she explained "Even though I now inhabit her body... I am still burdened by Mayu to carry out that duty without revealing anything to him or almost anyone else."
"And how do I know that this isn't a trick of any sort...?" Yuzuki asked whilst raising an eyebrow.
"That's because..." Hanayo murmured before suddenly clutching herself in pain, struggling to stand upright for a moment.
(Selector Spread Wixoss OST: Conflict)
Everyone but Kai and Yuzuki gasped in horror as they saw the former LRIG stumble around backwards, finding it difficult to keep her balance as she clutched her head and her chest. Before she fell back onto the floor, both the Kagero user and Hitoe quickly got up from the couches they were sitting on and caught her just in the nick of time before they looked over to her head. For a brief moment though, he suddenly felt a strange sensation course through him, feeling almost similar to when Yuki had triggered the Seed fragment within him during his first battle with Ruko.
"No more excuses Hanayo!" Yuzuki called "Are you telling me the truth or are you still hiding secrets from me?!"
"I don't believe that she is lying..."
As the LRIG's expression changed to one of confusion for a moment, Kai looked back to the card that was containing her whilst helping Hanayo back to the table alongside Hitoe.
"Just now... I could sense that she was in pain," he spoke "And I think I know how."
"Mayu..." Ruko murmured.
"If it really is her doing," Kai concluded "She must be willing to go to almost any length to punish those that reveal the truth, even when granting a wish that their Selector wants to fulfill."
"And because I wished to love Kazuki forever..." Yuzuki breathed before gasping, the realization having just dawned on her at this very moment. "Wait... are you saying if you don't keep loving Kazuki as me, you'll...?"
"That's right..." Hanayo answered "If I don't keep that wish fulfilled or I reveal the entire truth of the Selector System... Mayu will make me disappear and your soulless body will be left as nothing more than a rotting corpse."
Just as she had finished speaking however, the former LRIG suddenly lost consciousness as Aichi and Hitoe looked on in horror, knowing that there was no telling if what she had spoken of was occurring right before them at this very moment.
"W... We need to help her before Kazuki gets back!" the Selector gasped as Ruko approached the three of them.
"It looks like she's burning up..." she murmured "We better help cool her head down."
As Kai and Hitoe nodded in agreement, the Kagero user helped the Selector to haul Hanayo's unconscious self up onto the couch they were previously sitting on whilst Ruko hurried over to the kitchen area to prepare a wet cloth for the former LRIG's head. As Aichi moved over to Hanayo to keep a close on her condition, he gazed right back down at Yuzuki's card, now noticing the complete change in her expression compared to earlier when she was seemingly still holding a grudge on what she believed was deception in the use of her wish. Now that she had witnessed what had just happened along with everything she had been told, she fell down onto her knees in the space of her card, now realizing what was really going on with Hanayo.
"What have I done...?!" she gasped.
(End Music)
City Streets
As midday rolled over, Kamui eventually came to a stop in his trek for Amika as he came to a stop outside of a large building, his efforts in finding the Selector of Piruluk proving to be in vain thus far. He looked around to see that he was in another part of the city as he knew that wherever he was now was completely unfamiliar to where he had explored earlier along with the places that he had been to the previous day. As he was just about finished with observing his surroundings and ready to resume his search, he suddenly looked to the doorway opening up, just in time to see both Ulith and Akira leaving the building together, the latter of whom seemed to be almost huddled up to the cruel demanored Selector with her scar seemingly not present on her right cheek.
"Ulith-chan doesn't need to worry about anything," she said in a soothing like tone "Aki-lovely will make sure that Sendou character will pay dearly for wounding your pride."
"I sense your concern," Ulith replied "But Sendou Aichi is not one to be underestimated. His own strength rivals that of Kai Toshiki's himself and given your state, you are not prepared to handle him just yet."
"Then I'll continue to rack in more victories to show my worth and my devotion!" Akira replied "Because of you... I'm no longer 'that' person who had nothing!"
"But of course. Before you may even consider that however, there is someone I would like you to meet."
As Ulith wrapped an arm across the top of the Selector seemingly in comfort, she kept a sinister smile hidden from the view of both her and Kamui who had just listened in on every single word that they just said. He narrowed his eyes for a moment, now seeing who exactly that he had just encountered.
"So that's Akira and Ulith," he murmured "Ishida said they've given Aichi and Kai a hard time on their own. But... who are they be meeting with? Is it Kiyoi or someone we don't know about?"
Feeling as if his earlier goal of looking for Amika could wait for the current moment, Kamui decided to follow the two Selectors both closely and quietly, in the hope of finding out something new for the group to learn that he could share. Walking as carefully as he could, the Nova Grappler user kept a close eye on the both of them, doing his best to not attract their attention. After being told of Kai's previous injury by Akira herself along with her affinity for sharp objects, Kamui knew that he was treading a very fine and dangerous line into the decision that he had just made.
Kurebayashi Apartment
As Hanayo remained unconscious on the couch closest to the small table, everyone anxiously waited for her to make a recovery, especially after what she had just told them and the situation that she had now found herself within. During this time, Aichi and Ruko had brought out the cards containing Tama, Yuki and Umr, bringing the three LRIGs up to speed with what had just happened. Needless to say, whilst the girl of white and Umr were initially confused by the drama that was involved within the whole complication, Yuki however had some understanding of what had been going on between Hanayo, Yuzuki and Kazuki.
"You mean to tell me that the girl who became Hitoe's LRIG had foolishly banked on her wish for the sake of forbidden love?" she muttered.
"That... bluntly sums it up," Yuzuki huffed "It's just that... I want to hate Hanayo for using my wish without telling me of what was really going on. But after what she told us and what we just witnessed... I feel that I can't blame her for the way things have gone."
"What do you mean?" asked Ruko.
"Think about it Ruko," the LRIG replied "As we all saw in that 'last battle', Mayu's not the only power at play in the inner workings of the Selector Battles. Yuki told us that the Star-vaders had been working with her from the start and if Aichi and Kai remember what they're capable of..."
"Yeah..." Aichi murmured "I thought when Blaster Blade shattered the Seed that the whole of Link Joker would be accepted by Cray."
"However, it appears there are still those that have maintained their loyalty to the Void," Kai spoke "And it appears to be the same evil I once acqainted myself with and one that I must overcome once again."
As Yuzuki sighed deeply in regards to the scenario that she, Hanayo and Kazuki were now in, the Kagero user stood up from the table and walked around to face her card. The LRIG then looked up at him, not feeling very thrilled in regards to going over this topic.
"Kai... I know you said that you wouldn't intervene if Kazuki's feelings weren't truely brought about through Hanayo's doing," she murmured "But..."
"I see now."
Yuzuki suddenly blinked as she looked up at Kai who had knelt down to get a better look at her card which was laid down on the small table that was in front of him.
"Yuzuki, from what I understand," he spoke "This is an issue that has been plaguing you for years since 'that day'. But as you have said, you previously tried to discard those feeling to protect him from the social stigma that you endured from. However, even that has not seemed to work in anyone's favour."
"That's true..." she answered.
"Then, if we are going to help you solve this issue..." Kai replied "I need you to prove that those feelings for Kazuki are truely honest."
The LRIG suddenly stepped backwards in response to what the Kagero user had just told her whilst Aichi, Ruko and Hitoe simply blinked, confused as to what he meant. From what Yuzuki could gather, although Kai had fully understood everything about her issue involving her feelings for Kazuki, he still wasn't entirely convinced as to whether or not those feelings were truely honest to either her brother or herself.
"W... What are you suggesting, Kai?" she asked.
"If you were once a Selector, who had bet everything on making her wish come true," he answered "Then perhaps a battle would all you need to prove your seriousness."
"H... Hold on Kai!" the LRIG exclaimed "I can't just let you put Hitoe in harm's way just to get to the bottom of this!"
"That is not what I meant."
Yuzuki once again blinked in confusion as to what Kai was telling her, seemingly not getting the full meaning of what he was implying through this battle to her. Just as Yuki was about to come down to the one conclusion that was available, Umr had spoken out for her.
"You mean to conduct a battle, against Yuzuki herself as if she were still a Selector," she spoke.
"That is correct, Umr," Kai answered.
"W... Wait..." said Yuzuki "How can I battle you like a Selector when I'm stuck inside this card?!"
"I... can act as liason."
Everyone turned their attention to see that Hanayo was slowly sitting up from where she had been lying down, removing the cloth from her forehead as she looked over to Yuzuki herself.
"Hanayo, are you sure you're alright?" Aichi asked in concern.
"It's nothing I can't handle..." the former LRIG replied as she brought our a deck from her pocket "Let me act as your hand and aide, Yuzuki. You decide your own moves, just as you would as a Selector, I'll just follow your lead."
"A... Are you sure, Hanayo?" asked Yuzuki.
"Yeah," she answered "Even in this situation, I feel guilty about what my involvement has done to you and Kazuki. But... if this helps to verify the feelings you have, the feelings I have to bear to keep your body alive until we can fix this, I'll gladly help."
The LRIG herself was somewhat taken aback by the kindness that she had offered her in this very moment. For the first time since they made the oath for the birth of a new Eternal Girl, Yuzuki felt she could trust Hanayo again, even if the roles in this scenario appeared to be somewhat reversed in a sense. Holding her head down, she began running a million thoughts through her head as Kai waited patiently for her to make a decision. Eventually, Yuzuki looked back at him before turning to Hanayo.
"Alright then..." she said "If that's how I'm going to sort out my feelings once and for all... then I'll accept your challenge, Kai Toshiki!"
"Very well then," he spoke "I expect you to not hold anything back, Kurebayashi Yuzuki."
The LRIG nodded firmly in reply as Hanayo brought her card over to the other side of the table to prepare themselves to face off against the Kagero user. She showed Yuzuki all of the cards that were comprised of her current deck with the latter surprised that a Level 5 form for the former LRIG existed in her old deck and that much had changed since she had used it in her last Selector Battle. A minute or so later, both Kai and Hanayo prepared the respective starting hands and reached out for the starting LRIGs they laid on the table.
"Battle, Kai and Yuzuki!" Tama called loudly.
"P... Please do your best," said Hitoe.
Aichi and Hitoe nodded towards the LRIG, showing that they still held support for her in the face of this battle, knowing that the path to sorting out her true feelings for Kazuki was not going to be an easy one. Yuzuki smiled sadly in reply before turning her attention back to Kai who was now prepared to begin the battle against her.
"Open, the LRIG!" the both of them along with Hanayo declared out loud as they flipped up their starting LRIGs.
(Cardfight! Vanguard OST: Kinkou)
"Hanayo-Zero!" Yuzuki called.
"Lizard Runner, Undeux."
Everyone else suddenly blinked as they saw the choice that Kai had made for his starting LRIG, seeming puzzled by the fact that he had normally used Conroe instead of Undeux. None however were more confused than Ruko and Yuki, who had remembered they had not seen this particular unit in any of their battles against him.
"He changed his starting unit?" Aichi murmured "But why Undeux?"
"He must have a reason..." said Hitoe, thinking back to the battles she had seen Kai partake in.
"Draw," Kai spoke, indicating that he was taking the first turn by drawing his single card before looking through his LRIG deck for the card he wanted "Grow! Embodiment of Armor, Bahr!"
On a field imaged in both his and Yuzuki's minds, Undeux vanished in a bright orange glow as Bahr appeared in its place, taking up a defensive stance as it could not attack on the first turn. The air remained silent as the imaged form of Hanayo-Zero looked upon the demon from the Kagero clan before she too was enveloped in an orange glow, indicating that Yuzuki was beginning her turn.
"I grow Hanayo-One!" her voice sounded out "I summon 2 Iron and attack!"
As Hanayo's form did not change much as a result of the Grow, two Iron, Natural Stone materialized onto the field both in front and to the left of the LRIG. On Yuzuki's command, they immediately hurled several blobs of molten metal at Bahr who used his blade to block out some of the bubbling substance whilst two stray shots had landed directly on his armour and hair, solidifying on contact after burning him from the heat. Hanayo then leaped up into the air and hurled a fireball right at the Embodiment of Armour which was then immediately intercepted by Wyvern Guard, Barri, who generated a green barrier in front of it to dispell the attack.
Back in the apartment, after Barri's card was placed in Kai's Trash Pile, the Life Cloth count between Yuzuki and him remained at 7 to 5 with his first two Life Cloths being Dragonic Burnout and Calamity Tower Wyvern. He stared at them for a brief moment before looked down at Yuzuki, who was looking up at the cards that Hanayo currently held as liason of her hand, given her inability to exit her card and play out the battle somewhat close to normally. She then looked back at the Kagero user, keeping a serious gaze in her eye.
"I promise that won't be all, Kai!" she called "Turn end!"
End of Turn 2
Kai vs Yuzuki
Hand - 5 : 5
Life Cloths - 5 : 7
Current LRIGs - Embodiment of Armor, Bahr : Hanayo-One
SIGNI : EMPTY - EMPTY - EMPTY : Iron, Natural Stone - Iron, Natural Stone - EMPTY
Ener - 2 : 0
Kai simply drew two cards to begin his turn before moving Dragonic Burnout's card to his Ener Zone, paying the necessary cost that was needed for him to Grow this next unit.
"Grow!" he called as he placed the card he chose on top of Bahr "Dragon Knight, Aleph!"
Immediately after he had done that, he placed the unit known as Embodiment of Spear Tahr on the rightmost SIGNI space before looking over to Yuzuki herself, her expression tensing up upon the moment he had made that action.
"This move is..." she murmured.
"That's correct," Kai replied as he moved Calamity Tower Wyvern's card to his Trash before taking a second copy of Bahr from his LRIG deck and stacking it beneath Aleph's card. The Kagero user then placed Tahr's card from the SIGNI Zone he summoned the unit to before placing it in his Ener Zone and taking out another card from his LRIG deck.
"Superior Grow!" he called "Embodiment of Victory, Aleph!"
Within the field imaged in his and Yuzuki's minds, Aleph and the dragon he rode atop of appeared in the Level 3 they were depicted as, as evidenced by the Embodiment of Victory's more demonic appearance in contrast to the Dragon Knight that he was previously seen as. Two Dual Axe Archdragons along with a single Gatling Claw Dragon appeared in front of and to the side of the unit as they stared towards the SIGNI that Yuzuki had summoned as well as Hanayo.
"Attack!" Kai declared.
The left Dual Axe Archdragon and Gatling Claw charged towards their foes before immediately banishing them from the field with the use of their respective weapons. The Dual Axe Archdragon on Aleph's right swung down its axe onto the floor with a mighty smash as a shockwave knocked Hanayo onto her back. She fumbled for a moment before looking up to see that the Embodiment of Victory and his dragon were coming down fast towards her. The imaged LRIG shielded her face as the steed that Aleph rode on top of unleashed a torrent of flames right at her.
Within reality, Hanayo herself flipped up Yuzuki's next Life Cloth which revealed Diabride, Natural Pyroxene. The LRIG herself smiled as soon as she saw what she had gotten as the card was placed on top of Servant D2, her first crushed Life Cloth.
"With Diabride's Life Burst," she spoke "I banish the Dual Axe Archdragon on your left!"
Kai simply moved said Dual Axe Archdragon's card from that SIGNI zone to his Ener Zone, not seeming fazed as he normally would in the face of a Vanguard fight or in this case, a Wixoss battle.
"Turn end," he spoke."
(End Music)
End of Turn 3
Kai vs Yuzuki
Hand - 4 : 5
Life Cloths - 5 : 5
Current LRIGs - Embodiment of Victory, Aleph : Hanayo-One
SIGNI : EMPTY - Gatling Claw Dragon - Dual Axe Archdragon : EMPTY - EMPTY - EMPTY
Ener - 2 : 2
"They're tied," Aichi murmured.
"Yuzuki hasn't battled in control of herself in a long while..." said Ruko "And now... she's managing to keep up with Kai."
"Battle!" Tama called out loud.
As Hanayo drew two more cards to begin Yuzuki's next turn, the LRIG herself looked over the cards that were currently being held on as her hand. Upon seeing the two familiar Spell cards that were gathered, she nodded in compliance.
(Cardfight! Vanguard Unreleased Soundtrack: Contention)
"First, I Ener Charge with the third Iron in my hand!" she declared "Then I Grow Hanayo-Two!"
Hanayo then moved Servant D2 from the Ener Zone to the Trash Pile before placing the card that represented her second Level's form on top of Hanayo-One. She looked down at Yuzuki who once again nodded for confirmation.
"Kai, this is where the battle really begins!" she called "I activate Swift Advance!"
Kai kept his gaze sharp as he looked upon the Colourless Spell card, recalling that Hitoe had used a copy in her previous battle against Ren and having been well aware of its capabilties in the right hands.
"Now let me show you, my Superior Grow!" Yuzuki declared as Hanayo picked out the LRIG card she wanted "Hanayo-Three, Blazing Flame Dance!"
On the imaged field, Hanayo's appearance changed drastically as she emerged from the column of fire, her dress having gain longer coattails to it. A blaze of fire suddenly enveloped Gattling Claw Dragon as it left the field immediately after it had died down.
"I'm not done yet!" Yuzuki's voice sounded out "With another copy of Swift Advance, I Superior Grow again!"
A column of fire enveloped Hanayo once again as her form changed completely once more, this time to show that the skirt of her dress had changed to the style of a rose with a thorn loosely being wrapped around the waist section. Appearing onto the battlefield this time were SIGNI by the name of Malachite, Natural Pyroxene, Chrysobe, Natural Stone and Opalal, Natural Stone. As Kai stared onto the field that Yuzuki managed to assemble, he looked over to her card to see that the LRIG was breathing heavily, as if something was on her mind.
"Is something wrong?" he asked.
"Earlier, you asked me if my feelings for Kazuki were honest..." she murmured as she clenched her right fist "If defeating you is the only way to convince you... then I'll come at you with everything I have!"
"Come then."
Yuzuki looked up to Hanayo who nodded back, showing that she was willing to comply with whatever moves the LRIG was willing to make.
"First, Chrysobe attacks Dual Axe Archdragon!" she declared.
Kai simply moved the banished SIGNI to his Ener Zone, showing that he had let her attack go through so easily.
"Now Kai's field is empty..." Aichi murmured "Yuzuki's putting the pressure on him from that double Superior Grow, just like Hanayo did in her battle against me."
"You've battled Hanayo-san before?" asked Ruko.
"I didn't know it was her at the time until I met you for the first time," he answered "But even though I understand where Yuzuki is coming from... I can't help but feel sorry for Hanayo."
Hitoe and the other LRIGs that were laid out on the table away from the battle remained silent, having no comments of their own to add to the current discussion. But deep down, the Selector shared the same thoughts as Aichi, concerned for the states of both Hanayo and Yuzuki in the situations that each of them had respectively been in with the former having lived as an LRIG once before.
"My other two SIGNI attack!" Yuzuki called as Hanayo downed their respective cards. Kai then revealed his two crushed Life Cloths, those being Seal Dragon, Artpique and his own Servant D2.
"Got a Life Burst," he spoke "I draw 1 card."
"Let's go, Hanayo!" the LRIG declared "With all of our might, I'll show him how serious I am!"
On the imaged field, Hanayo with a fiery aura surrounding her manipulated the thorn around her dress before lashing it out at Aleph and the dragon he stood atop of, bruising them in the result of the clash. A green aura surrounded the Embodiment of Victory as Dragon Monk, Genjo briefly appeared, showing that Kai had triggered the Life Burst to recover a Life Cloth after the battle had ended.
Only four hits to go... Yuzuki murmured to herself And knowing Kai like we do...
"Turn end."
End of Turn 4
Kai vs Yuzuki
Hand - 4 : 1
Life Cloths - 3 : 5
Current LRIGs - Embodiment of Victory, Aleph : Hanayo-Four, Hundred-Fire Profusion
SIGNI : EMPTY - EMPTY - EMPTY : Chrysobe, Natural Stone - Malachite, Natural Pyroxene - Opalal, Natural Stone
Ener - 7 : 0
"Up and draw."
As Kai begun his turn, he began thinking over what he had learned from both Yuzuki and Hanayo over the course of the day thus far in regards to their seperate scenarios, both of which tied to the dillema at hand. The source of it all being the LRIG's own feelings for Kazuki and how her wish had burdened Hanayo with maintaining it within her own body. When he had finished recollecting all of his own thoughts on the matter, he looked down to Yuzuki herself.
"I can sense that you have been serious about what you are trying to prove to me," he spoke "Certainly, I believe that your own feelings for Kazuki are genuine, even if it is within a subject area that neither me or my companions wish to tread into ourselves."
"Well... I'm relieved to hear that you're actually taking this rather well..." she murmured "I just wonder even if I get my body back, Kazuki will notice something's different."
"But..." Kai continued "When I think about the case with any romantic relationship one wishes to pursue, there is one thing that I don't understand."
"What is that?" asked Hanayo.
"We can all now tell that Yuzuki has every intention on wanting be in love with her brother and so far throughout this battle, I can tell she is serious about going through with that objective. However, there is one question that remains in all of this. That question... is why."
(End Music)
Everyone else with the exception of Yuki and Umr gasped for a moment, having realized that this was an important question that they had never asked Yuzuki about in the first place in regards to the subject at hand. Even Yuzuki couldn't help but falter for a moment, having not exactly pondered over this herself throughout the course of her run in the Selector Battles whilst she was still a Selector within her own body.
"That's..." she murmured nervously, unable to think of an answer to give to him.
"If you do not have a reason for going through with loving your own brother in the first place..." Kai continued as he moved two cards from his Ener Zone to his Trash "Then the only thing you're doing is acting on impulse with no thought or regard to his own feelings. If you have a reason that you're not telling us... then I have no choice but to force it out of you!"
As Yuzuki gritted her teeth, knowing for a fact that what the Kagero user was saying to her was mostly true, he held out a card from his LRIG deck above him.
(Cardfight! Vanguard Unreleased Soundtrack: Thunder of Narukami)
"Grow the Vanguard!" he declared "The apocalyptic flames that reduce everything in this world to ash!"
Back within the imaged field, a large column of fire enveloped Aleph, causing him and the dragon he rode on top of to vanish from sight. Then, the familiar giant shadow appeared within the tall blaze as the embers died down to reveal the crimson clad dragon that was familiar to all, but the real Hanayo herself, having not seen it in action for herself beforehand. Clutching tightly to its sword, it roared loudly sending a shockwave across the battlefield as Kai called out the unit's name.
"Dragonic Overlord!"
"So... this is the card that Kazuki's been hearing about..." Hanayo breathed "The one that defeated Akira once before. Dragonic Overlord..."
Yuzuki clenched her teeth as she looked across towards Dragonic Overlord's card, knowing that this battle to verify her feelings for Kazuki and to make a start on patching things up between herself, her brother and Hanayo had only just gotten more difficult.
(End Music)
And there we go! Hoping to get some more answers about the Selector Battles, Aichi, Kai, Ruko and Hitoe pay a visit to Hanayo with an intially angered Yuzuki. Yuzuki at first finds herself unable to forgive Hanayo for the earlier deception that made her brother Kazuki fall in love with the former LRIG instead of her, but after discovering firsthand what kind of a burden that her wish has caused, she accepts a battle from Kai to truely discover if her feelings for Kazuki are genuine with enough reason as she has previously believed. Meanwhile, in the midst of his search for Amika, Kamui encounters Akira and Ulith who are paying a visit to someone and follows closely behind, hoping to learn something new for the group. What will happen next? Find out next time on Stand Up, the LRIG! Please feel free to share your thoughts or criticisms and I'll see you all next chapter! Until then!
Author's Note: Yep. If you've figured it out already from the name drop of Sakaguchi Ayumi, Kamui's involvement in the Peeping Analyze sub-arc will be starting up soon.
