Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc V: The Six Dimensions

by BlaiseCandell

Before the invasion of the Xyz Dimension, scans done by the Fusion Dimension reveal two more dimensions. The Ritual Dimension, and the Link Dimension. Within those two dimensions, Chiaki, Yuji, Miharu and Yuno have their lives turned upside down, and are tossed into a vicious war. Also, why are there five people with the same faces as them?

49. Chapter 49: Can't Snuff Out (Lights)

Starting Notes:

Welcome back! I won't deny it but uh, this is mostly a filler chapter. In it, we give the Lancers in the Underground some screentime, haha. Four team-up duels! The Tag Duels follow the ruleset that I settled on in Chapter 1 for 2v2 duels, where the fields, graveyards and life points are shared, with 8000LP. :) On the other hand, 2v1 duels have separate LP, fields and graveyards, and they're essentially treated as a Battle Royale, so the players don't draw on the first turn, but anyone except the first player can attack. Full disclosure, do not expect most of the duels to last very long for that exact reason—our Lancers are at a point where even one of them would be able to trounce a low-level Security opponent by themselves. The duels (most of them, at least) won't be short either, since there are four duelists and more life points, but yeah, just setting expectations! Also, once again, the officers have names. They are not at all relevant, and are still minor characters—I'm just trying to get better about fodder characters, instead of just naming them with numbers. Only one of the duels in this chapter is actually against a somewhat important character—so just enjoy the ride. :) … this was a much better idea in my brain than when I actually had to write it. You'd think I'd have learned from Chapter 38 to not write four duels in one chapter, but nope. I do think that the chapter as a whole is better than separate though. That's why this took so long anyway! Two of the duel summaries will be added later, once I'm less tired. :) Enjoy!

---

Chapter 49: Lights That Cannot Be Snuffed Out

Roget, who had been very satisfied beforehand, now looked like he had swallowed a lemon.

He rewound the footage again.

And there the two figures were, on a rooftop. Watching his Friendship Cup.

Academia was already here? Yuri and that quiet partner of his hadn't made any moves yet, but it was undeniable that they were here. Had Dennis already sent back word then?

Damn it.

In that case, he had to hasten his plans.

"Fetch Sergey," he said to the engineer over the phone. "I need to give him some orders."

"Sir, Sergey is…" The engineer sounded hesitant. Roget frowned. He remembered how Sergey had abruptly gone silent from his madness a while back—but he had still seemed accepting of orders then. Had something gone wrong with him now?

"What's wrong with Sergey?" He snapped. "You assured me that he was in good condition earlier today!"

"The thing is, after watching the last duel earlier…" The engineer hesitated. "Well, we sedated him, but he started switching between screaming his lungs out and laughing his head off. He's quiet now, but he might not be stable…"

"... check on the mind control chip," Roget ordered. "I need him to be stable when I substitute him in tomorrow! His opponent has to be left in perfect condition by the end of the duel."

Or, alternatively…

If he could avoid using Sergey altogether, and have that person join him instead…

He shook his head. One thing at a time.

He might as well head over and look at Sergey. It wasn't like Kaname was awake yet, anyway.

---

In the sterile white room, the man rocked back and forth.

Beautiful beautiful beautiful hahahahaha smoke crash machine fire blood

Crash crash crash crash how dare he crash crash smoke yes hurt hurt bleed out fall apart goddess fall can gods fall ah beautiful exactly what I wanted to see yes

Hahhahahah

I want to do that too rip tear destroy fall apart make them break and capture the beauty like a painting

Imagine how good it feels to be the one destroying

I want to go back to then

How many people can I destroy now?

The man laughed to himself uncontrollably again, his throat hoarse.

… ah. That person was here now. The one that thought that he could control Sergey.

Hah.

That was long gone. Sergey did not know how, but he would not question it, he would simply be obedient to himself.

And, if he waited…

"Do you hear me, Sergey? Make sure that you do not kill your opponent."

Sergey grinned.

Of course not.

Beauty came from pain. And the dead couldn't feel pain.

His opponent would be very, very alive.

---

With the end of the second round, of course, came another interview with the King. Seven out of eight participants were present in the living room, so they were all watching the television.

Currently, Miharu was making tea for everyone—Yugo had asked for coffee and been shut down unanimously by the Lancers, for the simple fact that it was literally nighttime. The blue and yellow-haired boy was still very tense—every time that Serena glanced over, he looked like he was a ticking bomb ready to explode at any moment. Yuno was seated next to Yugo, chatting with him and keeping his mind occupied on a bunch of different topics—at that moment, Serena respected him for the sheer courage and confidence that he had, to be able to handle Yugo when he was clearly so wound up.

Shun seemed to share the same sentiment. Both he and Serena were sat on the couch further away from the two, just so that they didn't somehow set off the bomb—neither of them having enough confidence that their social skills could handle this. Yuya was hovering nervously, occasionally chiming in to offer something to the conversation between Yugo and Yuno. He looked like he desperately wanted to help but had no clue how to do so. Yugo seemed oblivious to that though.

Reira was following behind Miharu, not really saying or doing anything—just content to watch Miharu make tea.

Of course, the interview did catch all of their attention.

"Shall we review the events of today, King?" Melissa Claire said. "What are you feeling? It seems that the Lancers, the strange people from outside the City, are likely to be the ones to face you."

"Indeed," Jack said. "As the King, I won't shy away from any challengers. All of them have proven themselves rather strong just to make it this far."

"Oh? Do you still look favourably upon Shun Kurosaki?"

"I look favourably upon most of them," Jack said. "I never expected Aki to be defeated in only the second round—for that reason alone, because I know that she defeated Aki at her best, I will admit that I am very curious about Miharu Kogami."

Serena glanced over at Miharu, who had already begun distributing cups to everyone. Two cups of ice tea were sitting in front of Shun and Serena. The blonde girl seemed oddly distracted though—her thoughts seemed to be somewhere else.

"Of course, many of the Lancers took out rather impressive opponents this round as well—from Yuno Sugisaki's tricky defeat of Crow Hogan to Serena Akaba defeating Shinji Weber. It was… unfortunate that Yuya Sakaki had to fight his friend, but the strength of character to win was something that he showed there as well. It is a strength that…" Jack paused. "Well, Reira Akaba's victory came from that strength as well."

He clearly disapproved of Mion's refusal to actually win against Reira, though most people might not have been able to tell.

"But I will admit that another duel that impressed me almost as much as Kogami-san and Aki's duel was the duel between Kiryu Kyosuke and Yugo."

"Oh?" Melissa Claire smiled. "Would you care to elaborate on that?"

"... Yugo has a spirit that I have not seen in many in this city," Jack said. "He is a person that has very few ulterior motives, if any at all. He just wants to win for that feeling of victory, and he wants to win to feel more free. I can respect that very much."

"I see, I see!"

The interview continued, but there was one match that was completely ignored.

"... he's got me completely wrong," Yugo said, but he did not elaborate. Serena saw Yuno deliberately avoid the topic as well—he did not push. Instead, with a smile, he redirected Yugo's attention to another topic. It was clearly manipulative, but he was…

He was just trying to help Yugo.

… Serena found herself feeling slightly odd.

… you're far too kind, Yuno Sugisaki.

I wonder if you might have been able to help Yuri, if you knew him back then—no, if you, Yuto, Yugo and Yuya might have been able to help him, with how different all of you are. Good lord knows that the White Inferno isn't exactly helping him, from what I can tell anyway…

---

Several hours ago:

In the end, while they were in the Underground, just as Yuzu and Yuto were about to reach the place where Yuto had claimed that the others were, they were ambushed by a smoke bomb.

Yuzu was coughing in the smoke, and she briefly lost track of where Yuto was. She bumbled around for a while, searching for a way out. As the smoke cleared, she found that she had wandered far from where they had previously been—the area was still somewhat foggy, but she couldn't see Yuto anymore.

She then heard coughing, rushing in the direction that she heard it from. As such, she bumped into—

"What are you doing down here?" She exclaimed.

Sora looked at her, still coughing, but he beamed. "Yuzu!" He exclaimed. "Thank goodness! I've been looking everywhere!"

"Weren't you up there with the rest of them?" Yuzu blinked. "Yuya—how's Yuya? Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened!" Sora said reassuringly. He was still short of breath, but he was also unwrapping a lollipop, so Yuzu assumed that he was probably fine. "Last that I saw, the next match was just starting—it was between Myojin and Reira-san."

"... oh, that's cruel," Yuzu said, covering her mouth.

"Yeah, but that's their business. I came here to protect you, Yuzu!" Sora glanced around. "I snuck down here through using that elevator of theirs—I don't think they thought that anyone would come down here willingly, so there were no guards there. But seeing Yuya so worried, I couldn't not do anything, you know? And I was worried too!"

"Sora…" Yuzu smiled, slightly moved. "I was with Yuto. We should get back to him—"

"Oh? It seems that the smoke bomb did flush out a few of you, huh?" An unfamiliar voice called. With a sinking feeling, Yuzu turned over to see another unfamiliar Security Officer—there were really too many of them at this point, huh? Oh, and there was a second one as well. A man and a woman, both of them standing in front of them. "Huh? That boy with blue hair doesn't look familiar…"

"But if he's with her, he's a priority target," the man said. "Well—we'll take you into custody!"

"You can try!" Yuzu exclaimed, readying her duel disk.

"Huh, we're fighting?" Sora blinked, before he chuckled. "Well, it'll be nice to fight side by side with you for a change! Let's go, Yuzu—shall we have a Tag Duel?"

Yuzu grinned. Yes, despite the circumstances, she had missed Sora more than words could express. There was just something lighter about him now, compared to then—something more genuine to his smile and his jokes. Her heart couldn't help but feel lighter.

She was happy to fight alongside him as well.

---

"Ouch! Watch where you're stepping, big man!" Sawatari said with a scowl.

"Sawatari?" He heard Gongenzaka say, before Gongenzaka lifted Sawatari directly in the air. The brunet let out a loud shriek, before the two of them left the smoke. "We're out. Are you alright?"

Sawatari blinked, confused by the concern for a moment. "I—I'm fine?" He glanced around. "Where are the rest?" He coughed. "Not that I care that much, obviously, but they should have followed my voice out!"

"Your voice?" Gongenzaka said, sounding rather sarcastic. Sawatari bristled, but before he could say anything, two Security Officers approached.

"By the law of the Security Hunt, you have to duel us."

"Huh? Ok, Gongenzaka, you can take the bald one—"

"Let's not waste time," one of them said—a bald man with a rather deep voice. "Shall we have a Tag Duel?"

Gongenzaka paled. Sawatari frowned. "Oi, is dueling with me that unappealing, big guy?"

"My cards don't work if there are Spells and Traps in the graveyard, Sawatari," Gongenzaka said, looking uneasy. "My cards may be liabilities…"

Oh. So it wasn't that he thought Sawatari was a liability. He thought that he would be a liability in any Tag Duel. That was the reason for his discomfort. Sawatari coughed, disguising his real feelings while he frantically thought. It would be nice to have a partner to rely on, after all.

"Well," he said, keeping his voice haughty, "that's no issue for me! You only have to say the word." He quickly opened up his deck slot, frantically removing some Spells from the deck and slotting in some random other cards. There were still some Spells, but he could work around that. Probably. Or fake it until he made it, at least. "There. Done! Now, are you going to take this honour that I, the great Sawatari, have bestowed upon you?"

Thankfully, Gongenzaka did not say anything grateful or make things awkward. "If you are going so far, then I will work alongside you," Gongenzaka vowed. "Very well. As fellow Lancers, let us work together and crush our foes!"

---

Kyorin had been away from the main area when the smoke bomb had hit, checking on the elevator down to the Underground—after all, Yuto hadn't been back in a while, so she was worried. This also meant that she was there when Mion Myojin was sent down to the Underground, and two Security Officers challenged her immediately. Mion looked less confused than the rest of them had been—so the others had learned what coming down here was like? That was good, but also troublin… Kyorin didn't want them to suffer if they faced each other.

Still though, who in the tournament could eliminate Mion? Kyorin hadn't been at LDS for so long—it was just a cover story for how she had come out of nowhere, after all. Reiji Akaba could say that a large bear was a new transfer student at LDS, and the most that anyone would be concerned with would be what deck the bear was using. In comparison, Kyorin's easy admission into the school was pretty underwhelming. (Except for apparently being the first dimensional traveller to Standard. That had certainly been a… realisation.)

Even so, it would have been hard not to hear about the absurdly skilled Mion Myojin who had transferred to a different campus for unknown reasons halfway through her first year. And after their conversation in Standard, right before they were going to leave…

Well, Kyorin had always admired those who were confident. It was why she had been drawn to the fiery form of Chiaki Katsuya in the first place, despite her skittish nature. Even though there had been something else that had felt drawn to Yuji Fujita in her, in the end, it had been her choice—she had seen Chiaki and decided that yes, she wanted to be confident like that. So, with that in mind, it wasn't surprising that she admired the vice-captain of the Lancers so much.

"... two of you?" Mion shrugged. "Alright then. I guess I'll have to take a while before I find Shingo…"

She was going to take two of them on by herself?

No!

Despite Kyorin's nervousness, she dashed forward, right to Mion's side.

"Please let me help you, Myojin-san!" Kyorin said, stammering out the words.

"Rinsoka…" Mion seemed surprised at her presence, before nodding. "Alright. I assume that Tsukikage has gotten the rest of you together?" She seemed surprisingly laidback for someone that was down here—especially considering that she must have just lost to whoever she had faced. And of course, the first thing that she did was to check on the safety of the Lancers.

"Yes," Kyorin said.

"Good. I'll have to ask him about what's been going on later then." Mion turned towards their opponents. "Let's wrap this up quickly—with me and you, it's not that big of a problem."

---

"Yuzu?" Yuto rubbed at his eyes, before remembering that he had goggles—swiftly, he pulled them up over his eyes, though enough dust had already gotten into his eyes that they still stung. The smoke was thick, and as he glanced around, he still couldn't see anyone. He moved in a random direction, before a hand grabbed his arm. He immediately tried to shake it off, but then, he heard a soft drawl.

"Relax. We meet often, don't we? Just me here, not an enemy."

"Makishima-san!..." Yuto blinked. "You can tell it's me?"

"Aren't you the one shouting Yuzu Hiiragi's name into the literal void?" Hitoda sounded amused. "Yes. I'm touching a wall right now—follow me and we should make it out. Well, either that or we'll drop into an incinerator after walking on a conveyor belt." Her voice was remarkably clear for someone stuck in a smoke cloud. After a while of trusting her and walking straight, they made it out of the thicker part of the smoke.

Hitoda, who looked remarkably unbothered—as she always was—turned to him. "Geez, you're not even the one that I'm supposed to protect, but I'm still remarkably attached to you," she said. "You had goggles, and you still couldn't tell it was me?"

"It protects my eyes, but it's not like it makes smoke see-through," Yuto said, feeling somewhat wronged.

Hitoda laughed. "If you say so. You're still weak though—look at me, completely unaffected."

"If you could breathe in a cloud like that, you're not human, Makishima-san," Yuto remarked. Hitoda hid her laugh behind her hand. "Anyway—we need to find Yuzu. I was with her earlier—"

"And I was with everyone else. We all got scattered in the smoke, which, let me be clear, was entirely the idiocy of everyone else. Seriously, who moves around in the smoke randomly when it's clearly being used by someone hostile? At least I got my bearings first…"

"Indeed. Then again, that does mean that you've come face to face with me as your opponent."

Both Hitoda and Yuto looked over. Leaning on a nearby storage counter was—

"There was a man with black hair there and a woman with dark orange hair. They crushed both Serena and Dennis and arrested all three of us. They were… surprisingly overwhelming, for all that they're not people involved in war."

"... you're the one that arrested my comrades." (And Dennis, but Yuto did not personally want to draw attention to Dennis's betrayal, because thinking about it would make it hurt more.)

The orange-haired woman looked at him. "I don't know you," she said bluntly. "I'm just doing my job."

Hitoda grinned, something rather shark-like to her expression. "Spoken exactly like an officer in a corrupt regime," she said. "To us, you hurt our comrades, but to you, it was just Tuesday, huh?" She sounded like she was just making a joke, but that was just how she was. Yuto sighed.

"It was a Thursday, actually. Your group caused me to get called in on my day off." The woman put her hands in her pockets. "Under the laws of the Security Hunt, you have to face me. So?"

"I'm not—" Yuto grimaced. He had to go and find Yuzu and the rest, to make sure that they were alright. Dueling against someone that Shun could compliment as 'overwhelming' would only be a waste of time that he could use to find his comrades. And this woman didn't look like the pushy kind to force a duel on them. "I'm going somewhere else."

The woman tilted her head. "... and what if I said that I would tell you who your enemy was, if you won?" She mused.

Yuto's head jerked back towards her. Hitoda raised an eyebrow. "Enemy?" She asked.

"Your enemy, yes." The woman shrugged in faux-nonchalance. "Shun Kurosaki called it Academia, I do believe. Don't you want to know where they are in this City?"

"You know?" Yuto said, his voice barely a whisper.

"Of course. If you win, I'll tell you. If you lose, you suffer the fate that losers in the Underground face."

"... deal," Yuto said.

"... oi, Kamisoka." Hitoda raised a hand, fussing with her hair bun. "You sure are getting yourself in a fix."

"Are you dueling with him?" The orange-haired woman asked.

"Suppose I might as well." Hitoda smiled sweetly. "I'm here after all, aren't I?"

"Sure. A two-on-one match then. If I win against either one of you though, it's game."

"Huh? What a restrictive way of dueling."

Yuto glanced at Hitoda worriedly. The green-haired girl noticed, and she smirked.

"Could work," she said after a moment. "We've dueled together back in Standard—you're not the worst person to work with. And you're tricky too. Shall we?"

Yuto nodded after a moment. "Who are you?" He asked.

The woman, who had simply been watching them, raised her duel disk. "Chino Otobashi of the Elite Officers," she said, pushing her braids back over her shoulders. "I hope you put up a better show than your comrades did."

"So you do remember!" Hitoda grinned. "Good. I'd hate to beat you up for something that you don't remember."

---

So, with the matchups settled, and no one having a clue of what the others were doing, they all launched into duels of their own volition.

[TAG DUEL!]

Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in: 8000LP

Seiju Tenma & Hoemi Makima: 8000LP

[Turn 1: Seiju] [H:5]

"I'll start," their opponent said. "I will Normal Summon The Agent of Mystery - Earth!" A white-haired, pale angel appeared, blue and green wings behind her. She smiled confidently.

[The Agent of Mystery - Earth (2*/1000/800/LIGHT/Fairy/Tuner/Effect)]

"With the effect of The Agent of Mystery - Earth, I can add a "The Agent" monster from my deck to my hand. Then, I will activate the Spell Card, The Sacred Waters in the Sky. I can activate the Field Spell, The Sanctuary in the Sky, directly from my deck!" He immediately placed the card down, an angelic glow surrounding all of them. "Then, since The Sanctuary in the Sky is on the field or in the graveyard, I can gain 500 life points for each "Hyperion" or "The Agent" monster I control. I control one."

"We gain life points, Seiju darling," the woman reminded. The man sighed, nodding.

"Yes, Hoemi."

Seiju Tenma & Hoemi Makima: 8000 + 500 = 8500LP

"I will then activate the Spell Card, Celestial Transformation. I can Special Summon a Fairy monster from my hand, but its attack points are halved, and it is destroyed during the End Phase. Come—The Agent of Force - Mars." A muscular, red-skinned man with large white wings appeared.

[The Agent of Force - Mars (3*/0/0/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

[The Agent of Force - Mars: 0 / 2 = 0ATK]

"I'll tune the Level 2 The Agent of Mystery - Earth to the Level 3 The Agent of Force - Mars. Darkness that coexists peacefully with the light, rise up now, and gently guide souls to their rest! Synchro Summon! Level 5! The Executor of the Underworld - Pluto!" A grey-skinned man with long purple hair appeared on the field.

[The Executor of the Underworld - Pluto (5*/2300/0/DARK/Fairy/Synchro/Tuner/Effect)]

"I will end my turn."

"Interesting! Fairies, huh?" Sora grinned sharply. "Care to go first, Yuzu?"

"Sure," Yuzu said, determinedly drawing a card. "I won't let you down!"

[Turn 2: Yuzu] [H:6]

"Draw! I'll activate the Spell Card, 1st Movement Solo! I'll Special Summon a Level 4 or lower "Melodious" monster from my hand or deck! Come from the deck—Opera the Melodious Diva!" The pink-haired girl dressed in a pastel dress appeared on the field.

[Opera the Melodious Diva (4*/2300/1000/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

"Then, since I control a "Melodious" monster, I can Special Summon Sonata the Melodious Diva from my hand!" The green-haired girl appeared on the field as well. "And while I control Sonata the Melodious Diva, all Fairy monsters I control gain 500 attack and defense points!" Both Sonata and Opera glowed.

[Sonata the Melodious Diva (3*/1200/1000/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

[Sonata the Melodious Diva: 1200 + 500 = 1700ATK; 1000 + 500 = 1500DEF]

[Opera the Melodious Diva: 2300 + 500 = 2800ATK; 1000 + 500 = 1500DEF]

"A Level 4 monster with 2300 base attack points…" One of their opponents said thoughtfully. "Interesting."

"Opera normally can't attack on the turn that she is Normal Summoned or flipped face-up, but that's no issue when she's Special Summoned!" Yuzu declared. "Opera the Melodious Diva attacks Pluto!"

"Pluto's effect," her opponent said. "By banishing a monster from the graveyard, like The Agent of Force - Mars, I can change an Effect Monster on the field into facedown Defense Position. I choose Opera the Melodious Diva." Opera was forced down and turned into a set card. Yuzu grimaced.

"I'll move to my Main Phase 2!" She replied. "Open, circuit—"

Her duel disk buzzed, the familiar sound of an error. Huh? She couldn't use her current monsters to Link Summon? Why not?

"Link Summons can only be performed with face-up monsters," Sora replied, as though reading her mind.

Really? But Fusion Summons could still be performed with facedown monsters…

Ah, different rulings. Sure, why not.

"In that case, I'll set a card facedown," Yuzu replied. "Over to you."

[Turn 3: Hoemi] [H:6]

"Hmm, you use Fairy monsters too, huh?" The smiling woman commented as she drew a card. "Might make it harder to take you down, but we're no pushovers just because of that. I'll Normal Summon Vylon Soldier." A golden yellow monster appeared, a strange robot that was mostly angelic-looking.

[Vylon Soldier (4*/1700/1000/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

"I'll then activate the Spell Card, Photon Lead. I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower LIGHT monster from my hand. Come—Vylon Prism!" A white, strangely solid-shaped monster with multicoloured wings jutting out around it appeared. It looked like it was made of polished, shining silver.

[Vylon Prism (4*/1500/1500/LIGHT/Thunder/Tuner/Effect)]

"And I'll tune the Level 4 Vylon Prism to the Level 4 Vylon Soldier! Golden angel descending from the sky, let your destructive wings break anything that dares to approach! Synchro Summon! Level 8! Vylon Epsilon!" A white and gold, somewhat humanoid angel with wide white wings appeared, metal forming most of its body, along with thin white hands.

[Vylon Epsilon (8*/2800/1200/LIGHT/Fairy/Synchro/Effect)]

"2800 attack points?" Yuzu exclaimed.

"I will activate the effect of Vylon Prism!" Hoemi declared. "I'll pay 500 life points to equip it from the graveyard to Epsilon!"

Equipping a monster? That was kind of like Yuno's Battle Ocean…

Seiju Tenma & Hoemi Makima: 8500 - 500 = 8000LP

"And next, I'll equip the Equip Spells, Vylon Material and Vylon Component, to Epsilon!" That meant that the monster was now equipped with three cards. "I will activate the effect of Epsilon. By sending Vylon Component to the graveyard, I can target and destroy a monster you control. I will choose your set monster!" Opera the Melodious Diva was summarily removed from the field. "And with the effect of Vylon Component, since it was sent from the field to the graveyard while it was face-up, I can add a "Vylon" Spell Card from my deck to my hand. I will add Vylon Segment from my deck to my hand and equip it to Epsilon!"

With all of that done, Hoemi cheerfully started her Battle Phase. "Pluto attacks Sonata the Melodious Diva!"

Yuzu braced herself, but to her surprise, even though Sonata was destroyed, she did not take damage.

"While The Sanctuary in the Sky is on the field, players don't take damage from battles involving Fairy monsters they control," Hoemi said, still smiling. "So you're safe from that! Unfortunately, you're not quite as lucky when it comes to the other attack! I'll have Vylon Epsilon attack directly!~ And with the effects of the equipped Vylon Prism and Vylon Material, Vylon Epsilon gains 1000 and 600 attack points respectively."

[Vylon Epsilon: 2800 + 1000 + 600 = 4400ATK]

What? Yuzu hadn't thought they'd be taking that much damage—

A blast of light hit her, and she winced, falling back.

Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in: 8000 - 4400 = 3600LP

"I'll end my turn!"

"Sorry, Sora… I miscalculated," Yuzu said, wincing.

"Huh? You're good, it's all fine!" Sora beamed at her. "As long as you're fine, we can solve things later!" He drew a card from his deck, still confident. "Besides, if they're just blocking battle damage involving their Fairy monsters, that does leave another way for us to deal damage, right?"

[Turn 4: Sora] [H:6]

"Draw! I'll activate the Spell Card, Frightfur Patchwork! I can add the Spell Card, Polymerization, and an "Edge Imp" monster from my deck to my hand!" He revealed another card in his hand. "I'll Normal Summon Fluffal Mouse!" A small blue mouse appeared in front of him, with twin white wings, holding onto a donut in its hands.

[Fluffal Mouse (1*/100/100/EARTH/Fairy/Effect)]

"With the effect of Fluffal Mouse, I can Special Summon two more copies of it from the deck, but I can't Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck this turn, except "Frightfur" monsters!" Two more cute blue mice appeared next to the original monster. "Then, I'll activate the Spell Card, Polymerization! I'll fuse all three copies of Fluffal Mouse on the field with Edge Imp Sabres in my hand!" The four monsters shot up, swirling around in a void. "Demonic claws, sharp fangs! Become one in the mystic vortex and show us a new form and power! Fusion Summon! Show yourself! Mystical jungle beast that rips everything to shreds! Frightfur Tiger!" A large turquoise tiger appeared on the field, a gigantic pair of scissors slicing straight through it, blades splayed out, impaling it like spears.

[Frightfur Tiger (6*/1900/1200/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]

"When Frightfur Tiger is Fusion Summoned, I can target cards on the field, up to the number of Fusion Materials used for its Fusion Summon, and destroy them all! I will target Vylon Epsilon—"

"Nuh uh!" Hoemi grinned. "Vylon Epsilon prevents you from targeting cards equipped to it with card effects. Oh, and Vylon Segment stops Epsilon from being targeted with monster and Trap effects. So you can't target any of them!"

And with that, she had effectively wasted Sora's usage of those two additional mice in the Fusion Summon. Still though, Sora took it in stride. "Then, with Tiger's effect, I will target and destroy The Sanctuary in the Sky and Pluto!"

Hoemi pouted. "Aww, sorry, Seiju. Most that I can do is this. I'll use Pluto's effect! By banishing Vylon Soldier from the graveyard, I'll change your monster to facedown Defense Position!" Tiger flipped facedown, but the effect still continued. The two cards that weren't protected by the interlocking Vylon effects immediately shattered.

"It's fine." The other officer was still paying attention to Sora's moves.

Yuzu frowned. It was going to be hard, wasn't it? Having that monster be so well protected…

However, when she looked at Sora, she didn't find anything other than confidence in his expression.

"So I can't target them… fine by me!" Sora was still grinning. "4400 attack points is a pretty interesting hurdle, but the answer is pretty obvious for someone like me! Continuous Spell Card, Toy Vendor!" He revealed the card in his hand. "I'll use its effect. By discarding a card, I can draw a card! Then, if it's a "Fluffal" monster, I can Special Summon a monster from my hand." He swiftly drew a card, glancing at it. "Heh, aren't I lucky? It's even the monster that I wanted to find! Come—Fluffal Dog!" A fluffy brown-spotted white puppy appeared in front of him, and Yuzu was momentarily overcome by the cuteness.

[Fluffal Dog (4*/1700/1000/EARTH/Fairy/Effect)]

"I will activate the effect of Fluffal Dog! When Normal or Special Summoned, I can add a "Fluffal" monster or Edge Imp Sabres from my deck to my hand!" Sora quickly added the card to his hand. "I'll activate the Spell Card, Polymerization!" Apparently, he already had another copy in his hand when he had used Frightfur Patchwork. "And I'll fuse Fluffal Dog on the field and Edge Imp Chain in my hand! Guardian of the home. Dark creature that resides within. Combine and form the dark monster that destroys all! Fusion Summon! Level 9! Frightfur Cruel Whale!"

A black and white whale formed in front of him, with a crazed smile and blades shooting out from its body, floating around it, dangerously sharp, with stuffing stuck to them.

[Frightfur Cruel Whale (9*/2600/2400/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]

"A second strong Fusion Summon…" Yuzu murmured.

"Well, I am pretty good at Fusion," Sora said proudly. He stopped for a moment though—was he still allowed to be proud of being good at this summoning method, his specialty? Was he allowed to carry on using it as his strength, as though nothing had happened?

Or would that be insulting to the comrades that he had now chosen?

Before he could doubt himself anymore, Yuzu put a hand on his shoulder firmly. "You are, Sora," she said. "You're my teacher." And there was something fiercely empathetic to her eyes. "You're good at Fusion—just as good as Serena."

Clearly, she had understood his conflicted feelings. Even so…

The reference to Serena was a deliberate choice. Serena was trying to redeem herself, after all—she had found all sorts of reasons to despise Academia and turned on them with no doubt at all in her own choices. She still proudly used Fusion as her strength—turning it into a blade for herself, instead of Academia.

So why couldn't Sora do the same?

"Edge Imp Chain lets me add a "Frightfur" card from my deck to my hand. Cruel Whale's effect," he said, nodding to Yuzu. "I can destroy a card on both of our fields! And this effect doesn't target! I'll destroy Toy Vendor and Vylon Epsilon!" The two cards were destroyed as Cruel Whale swam between them, thrashing and allowing the blades embedded in it to slice through the two cards.

"Since Vylon Segment and Vylon Material were sent to the graveyard, I can add two "Vylon" Spells from my deck to my hand," Hoemi said, a frown crossing her face.

"Nice try," Sora said. "Toy Vendor lets me add a "Fluffal" monster or Edge Imp Sabres from my deck to my hand." He gestured forward. "Attack directly, Frightfur Cruel Whale!"

The large whale charged forward, knocking down their opponents' life points immediately.

Seiju Tenma & Hoemi Makima: 8000 - 2600 = 5400LP

"And that's payback for the last turn," Sora said proudly with a wink. He ended his turn. Their opponents' field was empty, while Yuzu and Sora still had Yuzu's set card, along with their set Frightfur Tiger and Frightfur Whale in Attack Position. "We've got this in the bag, Yuzu."

Yuzu couldn't help but smile. "I can believe you on that front!" She said lightly.

[Turn 5: Seiju] [H:3]

"Draw," the mild-mannered officer said. "I will banish The Executor of the Underworld - Pluto from my graveyard to add The Sanctuary in the Sky from my graveyard to my hand. And I'll activate it." A bright, holy glow surrounded the field as the Field Spell reappeared. "I will Normal Summon The Agent of Creation - Venus from my hand." An angel with golden robes and wings appeared in front of him, a blue, purple and red orb floating around her.

[The Agent of Creation - Venus (3*/1600/0/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

"With her effect, I can pay 500 life points to Special Summon a Mystical Shine Ball from my deck. I will use it three times!"

Seiju Tenma & Hoemi Makima: 5400 - 500 x 3 = 3900LP

The three orbs around Venus flew out, turning bright white and gleaming like clouds.

[Mystical Shine Ball (x3) (2*/500/500/LIGHT/Fairy)]

"I will then banish The Agent of Mystery - Earth from my graveyard to Special Summon Majesty Hyperion from my hand!" A large, dark fairy appeared, silver armour glinting on it, even as purple spirit-like flames danced around it. It stood in front of their opponents, giving off an intimidating aura. The monster settled down in Defense Position.

[Majesty Hyperion (8*/2100/2700/DARK/Fairy/Effect)]

"While I control Majesty Hyperion, all damage that I take from Fairy monsters is taken by you as well," Seiju explained dryly. "Mystical Shine Ball attacks Frightfur Cruel Whale."

Sora blinked. "Huh?"

"The damage that I take is reduced to 0 because The Sanctuary in the Sky is face-up on the field, and the battling monster is a Fairy monster," Seiju said. "But you still take all the damage involved because of Majesty Hyperion's effect—Sanctuary in the Sky only protects me, not you."

"... clever," Sora said cheerfully. "Alright, I'm using it now, Yuzu." The set card flipped over. "Quickplay Spell, Pianissimo! I can target a face-up monster I control, and that monster's original attack points become 100, but it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn! I'll choose Frightfur Cruel Whale!" Cruel Whale let out an annoyed sound, but with the effect, it was both weakened and protected.

[Frightfur Cruel Whale: 2600 → 100ATK]

The attack hit, but it dealt substantially less damage to them than it would otherwise have done. They would have taken 2100 damage—and with three Shine Balls to attack with, that would have been an automatic loss. Yuzu pressed her hand to her chest in relief.

Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in: 3600 - 400 = 3200LP

"... tch." Seiju gestured to Sora's facedown monster. "The second Mystical Shine Ball attacks your facedown Frightfur Tiger."

Frightfur Tiger flipped over. Because it was in Defense Position, Mystical Shine Ball wasn't destroyed by battle, but Sora and Yuzu still took damage.

Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in: 3200 - 700 = 2500LP

"And the third Mystical Shine Ball." The ball battered itself against Frightfur Tiger as well.

Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in: 2500 - 700 = 1800LP

"And then, The Agent of Creation - Venus attacks your Frightfur Cruel Whale." A beam of light shot out, but thanks to Pianissimo, the monster held on.

Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in: 1800 - 1500 = 300LP

If their opponent had brought out Majesty Hyperion in Attack Position, they probably would have won. Or maybe not—Sora hadn't looked fazed at all, so it was likely that he'd had another plan anyway. Even so, their caution had done them well—their opponents were in a surprisingly good spot, considering that if Yuzu or Sora attacked their monsters, they would take all the damage and lose.

Even so…

"I will tribute the three Mystical Shine Balls to Special Summon Trias Hierarchia from my hand." A beautiful white angel with six long, white wings appeared, looking imposing and regal. She sat down, a defensive wall for their opponents alongside Majesty Hyperion.

[Trias Hierarchia (9*/1900/2900/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

"Since I tributed at least two monsters, I can destroy a card you control. I will destroy Frightfur Tiger." The green tiger shattered. "Then, since I tributed three monsters, I can draw two cards. I will set a card facedown and end my turn."

[Turn 6: Yuzu] [H:4]

"Draw!" Yuzu declared.

"I'll be entrusting my cute monster to you, Yuzu!" Sora called cheerfully. Cruel Whale turned its head back, grinning at Yuzu in an honestly unnerving way. Still though, Yuzu found that her heart felt slightly warmer at the praise.

Alright. 300 life points. Two shields to work through. A damage reflection effect.

Still though…

In that case, there was an obvious choice to make here, wasn't there?

"I will Normal Summon Soprano the Melodious Songstress," Yuzu said. The woman with dark blue and red spiky hair appeared on the field.

[Soprano the Melodious Songstress (4*/1400/1400/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

"Then, I'll Special Summon Canon the Melodious Diva from my hand." The purple-skinned woman with short blue hair appeared on the field as well.

[Canon the Melodious Diva (4*/1400/2000/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

"I will open the circuit of rising harmonies! Arrowhead confirmed! The conditions are two Fairy monsters! I'll set Soprano the Melodious Songstress and Canon the Melodious Diva in the Link Markers! Beautiful genius with the perfect voice! With your hands that channel the power of music, bring every melody together in wondrous harmony! Circuit Combine! Link Summon! Link 2! Bloom Harmonist the Melodious Floral Virtuoso!" The pink-haired woman appeared in front of her, smiling sweetly.

[Bloom Harmonist the Melodious Floral Virtuoso (L2/1000/LIGHT/Fairy/Link/Effect/↙, ↘)]

"I will discard a card with the effect of Bloom Harmonist the Melodious Floral Virtuoso!" Yuzu declared. "And I'll Special Summon two "Melodious" monsters from my deck to Bloom Harmonist's Link Markers in Defense Position! Floral Outburst! Come! Alto the Melodious Songstress! Laureate Francois the Melodious Maestra!" The two monsters appeared, and Sora whistled, clearly knowing what she was about to do.

[Alto the Melodious Songstress (1*/100/800/LIGHT/Fairy/Tuner/Effect)]

[Laureate Francois the Melodious Maestra (7*/2300/1700/LIGHT/Fairy/Effect)]

"I will use the effect of Alto the Melodious Songstress," Yuzu declared. "Since she was Special Summoned, I can increase or decrease the Level of a "Melodious" monster on the field by one. I will increase Laureate Francois's Level by 1!"

[Laureate Francois the Melodious Maestra: 7* + 1* = 8*]

"I will activate the effect of Laureate Francois. I can add a LIGHT Fairy monster from my graveyard to my hand, but I can't activate the effect of monsters this turn, except LIGHT monsters." She picked up a card from the graveyard. "I'll tune the Level 1 Alto the Melodious Songstress to the Level 8 Laureate Francois the Melodious Maestra! Graceful melody! Low-rising harmony! Let the rising rhythm signal your arrival to this stage now, noble voice! Synchro Summon! Level 9! Evolution of music! Gospodin Tchaikovsky the Melodious Overture Saint!" The monochrome, half-white, half-black monster appeared, angelic wings spread out, casting bright light across the ground—spinning around batons in their hands.

[Gospodin Tchaikovsky the Melodious Overture Saint (9*/3000/2000/LIGHT/Fairy/Synchro/Effect)]

"I will activate the effect of Gospodin Tchaikovsky the Melodious Overture Saint," Yuzu said. "I'll target a "Melodious" monster I control and two cards on the field, and I will destroy all three of them! I will destroy Majesty's Hyperion, Trias Hierarchia and Bloom Harmonist the Melodious Floral Virtuoso! Betrayal Rhapsody!" The three cards were destroyed as the beautiful singer held out her hands—as simple as that. "Then, I can gain 400 life points for each card destroyed!" She managed to give them some more breathing room, their life points shooting up by a small amount.

Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in: 300 + 400 x 3 = 1500LP

"Nice, Yuzu!" Sora praised enthusiastically from next to her. "Looks like you really have learned a lot, huh? I'm still taking credit as your first proper teacher though!"

"My first proper teacher was my dad," Yuzu said, unable to resist jabbing at him a bit. However, she was still smiling. "Gospodin Tchaikovsky the Melodious Overture Saint attacks Venus!"

"Trap Card, Light of Judgment. Since The Sanctuary in the Sky is on the field, I can discard a LIGHT monster and choose one of two effects. I will choose the second effect—sending a card on the field to the graveyard. I will send your Synchro Monster to the graveyard."

Tchaikovsky vanished from the field. Yuzu grimaced, but she wasn't discouraged by any means. Sure, her opponent wouldn't be taking damage again—that Field Spell really was troublesome—but it could be worse.

"Frightfur Cruel Whale attacks Venus." The whale landed another heavy hit, destroying the golden fairy and glancing around menacingly. However, their opponent's life points didn't change. "I'll end my turn with a set card! Over to you!"

[Turn 7: Hoemi] [H:4]

"Draw!~" Hoemi said, still seeming rather enthusiastic. "I'll activate the Spell Card, Monster Reborn. Come back to the field, Vylon Epsilon!" The troublesome Synchro Monster from before reappeared on the field—its stats just as alarming as before.

[Vylon Epsilon (8*/2800/1200/LIGHT/Fairy/Synchro/Effect)]

"I'll activate the Spell Card, Vylon Matter! By shuffling Vylon Material, Vylon Segment and Vylon Component into the deck, I can use one of two effects. I will destroy a card you control." Yuzu's set card exploded with electricity. "Then, I will equip the two Equip Spells, Vylon Material and Vylon Filament, to Epsilon!" The two Spells appeared in her backrow. "I'll activate the effect of Vylon Epsilon. By sending Vylon Filament to the graveyard, I will destroy a monster you control. I'll destroy Frightfur Cruel Whale!"

This effect cleared out the rest of Yuzu and Sora's field.

"Hey, Yuzu," Sora said with a shrug. "You got this?"

"We're fine," Yuzu agreed.

"Are you?" Hoemi gestured to her graveyard. "With Vylon Filament's effect, I will add another "Vylon" Spell from my deck to my hand. I'll add Vylon Segment to my hand and equip it to Vylon Epsilon! Now, it can't be targeted by monster or Trap effects either! And Material gives it 600 attack points!"

[Vylon Epsilon: 2800 + 600 = 3400ATK]

"Attack directly, Vylon Epsilon!"

"Since you declared an attack, I can Special Summon Consonance the Melodious Diva from my hand!" A girl with light orange skin and bright yellow hair appeared, grinning and twirling around the field in pink ballet slippers. She was wearing a long pink dress, and sunflower yellow ribbons were tied around her wrists, trailing around her.

[Consonance the Melodious Diva (5*/1900/1300/LIGHT/Fairy/Tuner/Effect)]

"Then, the attack is negated, and I can target a monster in my graveyard! I will choose Frightfur Cruel Whale!"

"Oh?" Sora blinked, seeming confused.

"Hmm…" Her opponent hummed. "That's it then! Over to you!"

[Turn 8: Sora] [H:3]

Before Sora started his turn, Yuzu gestured for him to wait. "During the End Phase, if the monster targeted by Consonance's effect is in the graveyard, I can revive it as a "Melodious" monster! Come back—Frightfur Cruel Whale!"

"So you're giving me back my monster? Aww, thanks!" Sora grinned, drawing a card. "I'll finish this off then!"

"Uh, read Consonance's effect," Yuzu quickly reminded. Sora glanced at the effect that was showing on his duel disk—for Tag Duels, while the cards that a player owned were on their own duel disk, their partner also had access to their card effects and information.

"Hmm, nice!" Sora gestured forward. "Consonance the Melodious Diva's effect! Once per turn, it can copy the name, Type, Attribute and Level of a monster in the graveyard! I'll have her copy Edge Imp Chain!" Consonance's body seemed to turn metallic for a moment, assimilating the other monster's traits. Her eyes glowed red. "And I'll Normal Summon Fluffal Owl!" The small, cute yellow owl appeared on the field, fluttering around nervously.

[Fluffal Owl (2*/1000/1000/EARTH/Fairy/Effect)]

"Since Fluffal Owl was Normal or Special Summoned from the hand, I can add another copy of the Spell Card, Polymerization, from my deck to my hand!" Sora retrieved the card swiftly—his third copy of Polymerization. "I will activate it, and fuse Fluffal Owl with Consonance the Melodious Diva, whose name is treated as "Edge Imp Chain"! Chain of destruction! Become one with the bird of prey and show us you new powerful form! Fusion Summon! Come out! Sea devil that steals freedom and pulls everything into the darkness! Frightfur Kraken!" A large purple creature with large razor blades forming its spidery legs appeared, letting out a strange gurgling noise.

[Frightfur Kraken (8*/2200/3000/WATER/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]

"Frightfur Kraken can attack twice per turn," Sora said with a shark-like grin, mirroring his own monster. "I didn't actually need it, but to show how superior I am to you—"

Yuzu cleared her throat. "Villain speech," she reminded.

"... uh, to, uh, provide a good show instead of just crushing you beneath my feet like the ants you are—"

"Still a villain speech."

"... ah, screw it!" Sora abandoned his explanation. "I'll activate Cruel Whale's effect! By sending a "Frightfur" card from my deck or Extra Deck to the graveyard and targeting a Fusion Monster I control—Cruel Whale itself—that monster gains attack points equal to half its original attack points!" He sent one of his Fusion Monsters from his Extra Deck to the graveyard, and Cruel Whale glowed.

[Frightfur Cruel Whale: 2600 + 2600 / 2 = 3900ATK]

"Attack Vylon Epsilon!"

Cruel Whale destroyed the large monster, but thanks to The Sanctuary in the Sky, their opponent's life points didn't change. Now though, their opponents were open.

"Attack twice, Frightfur Kraken!" Sora called.

Two slashes of blades—

And their opponents' life points were reduced to nothing.

Seiju Tenma & Hoemi Makima: 3900 - 2200 - 2200 = 0LP

Winner: Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in!

"Nice, Yuzu!" Sora held up a hand, and Yuzu high-fived him. Of course, their opponents' shock bracelets went off at that exact moment, but the two of them managed to mostly ignore it. "Shall we go and find the others?"

---

[DUEL!]

Noboru Gongenzaka & Shingo Sawatari: 8000LP

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 8000LP

[Turn 1: Shobo] [H:5]

"I'll activate the Field Spell, Rescue-ACE HQ," one of their opponents said. Large blue screens formed all around them, and Sawatari swerved his head around, looking at all of them. "I'll then Normal Summon Rescue-ACE Hydrant!" A red robot with long arms appeared, a small projector on the top of its head, projecting blue light on the area in front of it.

[Rescue-ACE Hydrant (1*/0/0/FIRE/Machine/Effect)]

"During my Main Phase, Rescue-ACE Hydrant allows me to add a "Rescue-ACE" monster from my deck to my hand, other than Rescue-ACE Hydrant itself. I will then activate the Spell Card, ALERT!" The man bellowed out the last word, deafening Sawatari immediately. And okay, was the card's name written entirely in caps? That was highly unnecessary.

"Since I control Rescue-ACE Hydrant, I can use the second effect of ALERT!" The man shouted out the name again, and Sawatari frowned. "I will add a "Rescue-ACE" monster from my deck to my hand. Rescue-ACE HQ also gives me an additional Normal Summon this turn, so I will Normal Summon Rescue-ACE Air Lifter!" A blue and silver robot appeared, surrounded by flames.

[Rescue-ACE Air Lifter (4*/1700/1700/FIRE/Warrior/Effect)]

"I will activate the effect of Rescue-ACE Air Lifter! When Normal or Special Summoned, I can add a "Rescue-ACE" Spell from my deck to my hand! Then, I'll set two cards facedown! Over to you!"

Sawatari shook his head. "Guess I'll go next—to work my magic, after all!"

"No!" Gongenzaka shouted from next to him. "I sense fighting spirit from this man—he speaks with conviction!"

"... if you call high volume conviction, I guess that's correct," Sawatari snarked.

"Indeed!" Gongenzaka didn't seem to understand the sarcasm. "So I must respond to it with my own fighting spirit!"

[Turn 2: Gongenzaka] [H:6]

"Draw! This man, Gongenzaka, will discard Superheavy Samurai Motorbike from my hand with its own effect! Since I have no Spells or Traps in my graveyard, I can add a "Superheavy Samurai" monster from my deck to my hand!" Gongenzaka immediately revealed the card. "Since the opponent controls two or more monsters while this man, Gongenzaka controls no monsters, I can Special Summon Superheavy Samurai Scales from my hand!" A large green robotic man appeared.

[Superheavy Samurai Scales (4*/800/1800/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"Then, when Superheavy Samurai Scales is Normal or Special Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower "Superheavy Samurai" monster from my graveyard in Defense Position!"

"You are forbidden!" Their opponent, Shobo shouted. "CONTAIN!" It took Sawatari a while before he realised that the man had activated a Trap Card which had the literal name 'CONTAIN!' Sure. Why not. "And I will chain the effect of Rescue-ACE Air Lifter! When my opponent activates a monster effect, I can tribute Air Lifter from my hand or field to Special Summon a "Rescue-ACE" monster from my hand! Come—Rescue-ACE Fire Engine!" A large red mecha with several extra limbs appeared, standing almost as tall as a storage container.

[Rescue-ACE Fire Engine (7*/2500/2500/FIRE/Machine/Effect)]

"Then, the effect of CONTAIN!" Sawatari nearly jumped back—once again jumpscared by the man's yelling. "Your monster's effects are negated and it cannot attack. Then, since I control Rescue-ACE Hydrant, that monster also cannot be used for a Synchro Summon this turn!"

"I see," Gongenzaka said solemnly. "Then I shall simply perform a Link Summon—"

Then, Sawatari saw an error message show up on Gongenzaka's duel disk.

"Hmm?"

"Uh." Shobo raised a hand. "I never say this because these don't exist, but… the card also bans Fusion, Xyz and Link Summoning using that monster?"

"Then you should say the full effect, dipshit!" Sawatari said, offended—not even on his own behalf, but on Gongenzaka's. It was just rude to not tell someone fully what they couldn't do, because the other person would just look stupid.

"Sawatari!" Gongenzaka chided, clearly not understanding his intentions. "They don't know about the existence of the other summoning methods the way that we do! Of course they don't say those other summons aloud!" He sighed. "I will Special Summon Superheavy Samurai Trumpeter from my hand, since I have no Spells or Traps in my graveyard." A robot with a samurai hat, made of blue and orange metal, appeared.

[Superheavy Samurai Trumpeter (2*/300/600/EARTH/Machine/Tuner/Effect)]

"But this man, Gongenzaka, cannot Special Summon monsters for the rest of the turn, except "Superheavy Samurai" monsters." Gongenzaka held out another card. "And now, by tributing Superheavy Samurai Trumpeter and Superheavy Samurai Scales, I will Tribute Summon Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei!" The large warrior made of sturdy white and orange metal appeared, stomping each foot on the ground and causing it to rumble.

[Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei (8*/1000/3500/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"And when Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei is Normal or Special Summoned, I can change its battle position!" One of Gongenzaka's strongest monsters slowly shifted into Defense Position, holding out its arms to protect him. "And then, when Superheavy Samurai Trumpeter is tributed for the Tribute Summon of a "Superheavy Samurai" monster while I have no Spells or Traps in my graveyard, I can Special Summon it to the field in Defense Position!" The smaller monster reappeared on the field.

"Not bad, big guy," Sawatari said with a smirk.

"Rescue-ACE Fire Engine's effect," Shobo said, cutting in. "When my opponent Special Summons a monster to their field, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower "Rescue-ACE" monster from my hand, deck or graveyard. Come from the deck, Rescue-ACE Monitor!" A mostly black robot appeared, with two large cannons on its 'shoulders'.

[Rescue-ACE Monitor (4*/1800/1800/FIRE/Warrior/Effect)]

"And Rescue-ACE Monitor allows me to add a "Rescue-ACE" Trap from my deck to my hand."

"Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei allows my monsters to attack while in Defense Position, and they use their defense points for damage calculation!" Gongenzaka declared. "Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei attacks Rescue-ACE Fire Engine!"

"While my opponent controls a monster, my "Rescue-ACE" monsters gain 500 attack and defense points with the effect of my Field Spell," their opponent said.

[Rescue-ACE Monitor: 1800 + 500 = 2300ATK/DEF]

[Rescue-ACE Fire Engine: 2500 + 500 = 3000ATK/DEF]

[Rescue-ACE Hydrant: 0 + 500 = 500ATK/DEF]

"But it is not enough to overcome my steadfast Big Benkei!" Gongenzaka said in a booming voice. Sawatari seriously considered getting earplugs for a brief moment. "The attack continues!"

Fire Engine was destroyed, and their opponents took some damage from the attack.

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 8000 - 500 = 7500LP

"And Superheavy Samurai Trumpeter will attack your Rescue-ACE Hydrant!"

"Hydrant cannot be targeted for attacks or card effects while I control another "Rescue-ACE" monster," Shobo countered.

"... well, this man, Gongenzaka, will end his turn."

[Turn 3: Sojiro] [H:6]

"Draw," their other opponent declared—a rather laidback-looking man. For a moment, he and Sawatari shared a moment of solidarity—their partners were clearly far too loud for them. "I'll be borrowing Air Lifter, Shobo. I'll banish a FIRE Warrior monster—Rescue-ACE Air Lifter—from our graveyard to Special Summon Infernoble Knight Astolfo from my hand. It's a once per duel effect though." A red-haired warrior appeared on the field, smiling maniacally. They were dressed in white armour with fiery red accents.

[Infernoble Knight Astolfo (1*/500/200/FIRE/Warrior/Effect)]

"Astolfo copies the Level of the monster banished for its effect—so it becomes Level 4!"

[Infernoble Knight Astolfo: 1* → 4*]

"I'll then equip the Equip Spell, "Infernoble Arms - Durendal" to Infernoble Knight Astolfo." A long red sword appeared in the knight's hands, which was cool and all, but Sawatari was more concerned with the fact that the supposedly calm and laidback man had, uh, raised his hands to indicate air quotes around the name of his card.

"Why the air quotes?" Sawatari asked.

"That's how the card is written," Sojiro said. "Its name is "Infernoble Arms - Durendal", quotes included."

"... huh. That must be annoying to read." Sawatari blinked. "Both of your decks sound like they have cards whose names suck to read."

"Yes," Sojiro said, with no trace of irony. "If say, someone was trying to transcribe this duel in a piece of writing line by line, it would probably be really difficult for them to format it in any comprehensible way—the card names would just be horrendously unclear."

"Oh, that person would suffer." Sawatari agreed. "Good thing that no one's doing that then." He then blinked. "Wait, I'm not supposed to agree with our opponents…"

"Anyway," the man said, continuing his turn, "with Durendal's effect, when equipped to a monster, I can add a Level 5 or lower FIRE Warrior monster from my deck to my hand, and then destroy Durendal itself." He swapped out the cards swiftly. "I will then Special Summon Infernoble Knight - Renaud from my hand, since I control a FIRE Warrior monster!" A man with spiky red hair appeared, wearing the same white and red armour as Astolfo.

[Infernoble Knight - Renaud (1*/500/200/FIRE/Warrior/Effect)]

"When Renaud is summoned this way, he is treated as a Tuner monster! And since he was Special Summoned, I can also add a FIRE Warrior monster that is banished or in my graveyard to my hand—or an Equip Spell. I'll add Durendal back to my hand." He wisely did not use the full name of the card, avoiding having to do the air quotes again. "I will then tune the Level 1 Infernoble Knight - Renaud to the Level 4 Infernoble Knight Astolfo!"

"Why do some of your cards have dashes while others don't?" Sawatari knew that he was really not one to talk when it came to inconsistencies in decks, considering his track record of constantly changing decks, but he could at least judge the aesthetic of it all—inconsistent formatting within an archetype, really?

"Irrelevant," the man said, ignoring Sawatari's words completely. "Synchro Summon! Come—Level 5, Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver!" A man with fiery red hair in a messy ponytail appeared, his armour accented with bright red patterns—some flames were also swirling around him. He held up two glowing swords that were also on fire.

[Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver (5*/2000/200/FIRE/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]

"I will equip Durendal to Captain Oliver," Sojiro continued. "And I will equip three more Equip Spells to Captain Oliver as well—Noble Arms of Destiny, Noble Arms - Caliburn and Noble Arms - Clarent." The monster in front of him was practically covered in weapons. "Caliburn grants Captain Oliver 500 attack points, and once per turn, I can gain 500 life points."

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 7500 + 500 = 8000LP

[Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver: 2000 + 500 = 2500ATK]

"Then, with Clarent's effect, I can pay 500 life points to let Captain Oliver attack directly this turn!"

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 8000 - 500 = 7500LP

"What?" Gongenzaka exclaimed.

The man who had appeared very calm but apparently had no chill at all pointed forward. "Captain Oliver attacks directly. And when Captain Oliver attacks while it is equipped with an Equip Card, I can destroy a face-up card you control! I will destroy Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei!"

Gongenzaka's monster was destroyed, to his disbelief. Then, the attack hit them, knocking down their life points by a large amount.

Noboru Gongenzaka & Shingo Sawatari: 8000 - 2500 = 5500LP

"I'll then have Rescue-ACE Monitor attack your Trumpeter." The other monster was wiped out. "And Hydrant attacks directly." A small blast hit them, dealing a small amount of damage.

Noboru Gongenzaka & Shingo Sawatari: 5500 - 500 = 5000LP

"And that's all the cards gone," Sojiro said. "I will use Astolfo's effect and banish it from the graveyard. Pass."

"Sawatari."

Sawatari turned over to Gongenzaka, who looked slightly down.

"I am sorry that I could not even leave a card for your turn," Gongenzaka said. "Even after you made allowances for me… I, Gongenzaka, could not even do a thing against that…"

"Hey, hey, big guy!" Sawatari exclaimed, feeling uncomfortable. Those words—the self-depreciation, Gongenzaka feeling like he wasn't good enough, like he was a useless let-down… Sawatari was all too used to feeling those things about himself, for all that he liked to show off. He couldn't in good conscience kick someone that was down. "That's enough of that. I said that we were going to win, and the great Sawatari doesn't go back on his promises! And you're no load—we're going to win this together! Just watch—I'll set up the field, and what's mine is yours!"

[Turn 4: Sawatari] [H:6]

"Draw!" Sawatari glanced at the card. Alright, he had to be more conservative without his draw advantage cards being so readily available, but this would work! "Alright, Gongenzaka, this is going to look really stupid, but I promise that I'll fix it before your turn comes around! I'll set the Scale 2 Abyss Actor - Leading Lady and the Scale 8 Abyss Actor - Comic Relief in the Pendulum Scales!" The two pillars of light rose up around them. "With this Pendulum Scale, I can Pendulum Summon monsters from Level 3 to Level 7! Swing, pendulum! Pendulum Summon! Abyss Actor - Superstar! And Abyss Actor - Twinkle Little Star!" The tall actor dressed in black with bright pink hair appeared. Meanwhile, next to him, a young witch with coral pink hair was sitting on a bright pink star, wearing a pink hat that was the same colour as Superstar's hair. She seemed to follow behind him admiringly.

[Abyss Actor - Superstar (7*/S3/2500/1800/DARK/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect)]

[Abyss Actor - Twinkle Little Star (4*/S9/1000/1000/DARK/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect)]

"I will then activate the effect of Abyss Actor - Superstar! I can add an "Abyss Script" card from my deck to my hand, but it is sent to the graveyard during the End Phase." He flipped over the card immediately. "Abyss Script - Rise of the Abyss King! Since I control two "Abyss Actor" monsters in Attack Position, I can destroy two cards that you control! I'll choose Rescue-ACE Monitor and your Synchro Monster!" Surprisingly, Gongenzaka didn't object—did he actually trust that Sawatari would avoid sabotaging him?... that was oddly touching.

"Once per turn, Captain Oliver cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects, thanks to the effect of Noble Arms of Destiny." Their opponent said, still sounding rather calm. However, Monitor was still destroyed.

"I will activate the Pendulum Effect of Abyss Actor - Comic Relief," Sawatari declared. "I will target Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver and Twinkle Little Star, and change control of them! Then, Comic Relief destroys itself!" Twinkle Little Star drifted over to his opponent's field, while he took control of the stronger monster. His opponent's eyes widened. "Abyss Actor - Superstar attacks Rescue-ACE Hydrant!" His monster cleaned out the weaker monster immediately with a wave of his hand.

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 7500 - 2000 = 5500LP

"And Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver attacks directly!"

The knight struck his own owner, shoving him back.

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 5500 - 2500 = 3000LP

"During my second Main Phase, I'll activate the Continuous Spell, Abyss Script - Abysstainment!" Sawatari continued. "By tributing an "Abyss Actor" monster I control, I can target a "Abyss Script" Spell in my graveyard and set it to the field! I will tribute Superstar." He retrieved Rise of the Abyss King, setting it on the field. "And I'll end my turn!" He turned to Gongenzaka. "See?"

"So you purposely used a card that could recycle your Spells to avoid inconveniencing me…" Gongenzaka clenched his fists—and then he started crying. Very manly tears, but nonetheless, tears anyway. "How surprisingly sincere of you! I, the man Gongenzaka, feel honoured by this gesture—"

Their opponents were staring at them. Sawatari frantically waved his hands, even as Gongenzaka took out a handkerchief and began wiping at his face furiously. "Uh, take your turn!"

The field was currently very uneven—their opponents had no monsters on their field, but they did have the four Equip Spells on their field, still equipped to Captain Oliver. Meanwhile, Gongenzaka and Sawatari had Leading Lady in the Pendulum Scale and the stolen Captain Oliver on their field, along with the Continuous Spell, Abyss Script - Abysstainment and the set Abyss Script - Rise of the Abyss King.

[Turn 5: Shobo] [H:2]

"Draw!" Shobo shouted. Ah, it was back to shouting again. Oh no. "I will banish Rescue-ACE Fire Engine and Rescue-ACE Hydrant from the graveyard to Special Summon Rescue-ACE Turbulence from my hand!" A large vehicle-like monster appeared—resembling a firetruck, it was surrounded by several large cannons, all of which were glowing, ready to fire.

[Rescue-ACE Turbulence (9*/3000/3000/FIRE/Machine/Effect)]

"Rescue-ACE Turbulence gains 500 attack and defense points from the effect of Rescue-ACE HQ."

[Rescue-ACE Turbulence: 3000 + 500 = 3500ATK/DEF]

"I will activate the effect of Noble Arms - Caliburn. We will gain 500 life points."

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 3000 + 500 = 3500LP

"Quickplay Spell, Mystical Space Typhoon. I will destroy a Spell or Trap on the field—I will choose Noble Arms of Destiny." He destroyed the Equip Spell that they controlled. "And Rescue-ACE Turbulence attacks Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver."

The fire engine shot forward, quite literally running over the red-haired warrior, wheels grinding against the ground. The rest of the Equip Spells all exploded one by one on their opponents' field, though they didn't seem bothered.

Noboru Gongenzaka & Shingo Sawatari: 5000 - 500 = 4500LP

"I will then move to my Main Phase 2. I will activate the effect of Rescue-ACE Turbulence! I can set up to four "Rescue-ACE" Quickplay Spells or Traps from my deck to the field!"

"... aren't your cards all just capitalised words?"

"My Spells and Traps, such as ALERT!," the man said, shouting the last word and giving Sawatari a heart attack, "are always treated as "Rescue-ACE" cards." He set four cards from his deck. "I will activate the effect of Rescue-ACE HQ. I will shuffle four "Rescue-ACE" cards that are banished or in the graveyard into the deck, and draw a card. So I'll shuffle Rescue-ACE Fire Engine, Rescue-ACE Hydrant, Rescue-ACE Monitor and Rescue-ACE Air Lifter into the deck." He drew a card swiftly. "I will set one more card facedown." That made for five cards facedown—he must have wanted to clear out his backrow for that. "Ending my turn."

[Turn 6: Gongenzaka] [H:4]

"Draw!" Gongenzaka glanced at his hand. "I will Normal Summon Superheavy Samurai Flutist from my hand!" A black and purple robot holding a flute appeared, playing a few notes before abruptly stopping.

[Superheavy Samurai Flutist (3*/500/1000/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"Trap Card, activate! EXTINGUISH!" The man bellowed. "I can target an Effect Monster you control and destroy it!" Flutist was destroyed, but Gongenzaka didn't look too fazed.

"Since I have no Spells or Traps in my graveyard, I can Special Summon Superheavy Samurai Big Waraji from my hand!" The golden robot appeared, seeming rather thin and limbless.

[Superheavy Samurai Big Waraji (5*/800/1800/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"After Big Waraji is Special Summoned, I cannot Special Summon monsters this turn, except "Superheavy Samurai" monsters! Then, I will open the circuit of steadfast spirit! Arrowhead confirmed! The conditions are a "Superheavy Samurai" monster! I will set Superheavy Samurai Big Waraji in the Link Markers! Come, stationary mechanical puppet! Stand still and drive off the evil forces that would destroy us who fight for justice! Circuit Combine! Link Summon! Link 1! Superheavy Samurai Scarecrow!" The still white and green robot appeared in the Extra Monster Zone.

[Superheavy Samurai Scarecrow (L1/0/EARTH/Machine/Link/Effect/↙)]

"I will then activate the effect of Superheavy Samurai Scarecrow! While I have no Spells and Traps in my graveyard, I can discard a card to Special Summon a "Superheavy Samurai" monster from my graveyard to the zone it points to."

"Trap Card, CONTAIN! I will target your monster and negate its effects, and it cannot declare an attack this turn!"

"Since you're targeting my "Superheavy Samurai" monster with a card effect, I can banish Flutist from the graveyard, negate that effect and destroy that card!" He managed to protect Scarecrow, and the effect resolved, with Superheavy Samurai Scales returning to the field. "When Superheavy Samurai Scales is Normal or Special Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower "Superheavy Samurai" monster from my graveyard in Defense Position. Return to the field, Superheavy Samurai Motorbike!" A pink robot which resembled, well, a motorbike, appeared next to the green machine.

[Superheavy Samurai Motorbike (2*/800/1200/EARTH/Machine/Tuner/Effect)]

"I will tune the Level 2 Superheavy Samurai Motorbike to the Level 4 Superheavy Samurai Scales! Rise your war cry. Divine ogre! Show yourself. On this battlefield of raging ice and storm! Synchro Summon! Now depart for the front! Level 6! Superheavy Samurai Ogre Shutendoji!" A tall red monster holding onto a long spiked mace appeared, golden bands of metal overlapping most of its limbs.

[Superheavy Samurai Ogre Shutendoji (6*/500/2500/EARTH/Machine/Synchro/Effect)]

"When Superheavy Samurai Ogre Shutendoji is Synchro Summoned, while I have no Spells or Traps in my graveyard, I can destroy all Spells and Traps you control!" The rest of the set cards, along with the Field Spell, were all destroyed.

"When a card that I control leaves the field by your card effect, I can destroy a card you control with the effect of Rescue-ACE Turbulence," Shobo countered. "I will destroy Superheavy Samurai Ogre Shutendoji." The red machine monster was destroyed. Gongenzaka, however, remained relatively unaffected.

"I will end my turn," he said. "Over to you." Either way, he had still cleared out the field, which would make the subsequent turns easier to weather.

Well, provided that Sawatari defeated Turbulence on his turn, but…

[Turn 7: Sojiro] [H:2]

"Draw," their other opponent said. "It has been two Standby Phases since Infernoble Knight Astolfo banished itself from the graveyard. I will Special Summon it back to the field, and then Special Summon a FIRE Warrior monster that is banished or in the graveyard. I will Special Summon Infernoble Knight Renaud back to the field as well." The two Warrior monsters reappeared on the field. "And I will use the effect of Infernoble Knight Renaud to add Noble Arms - Caliburn from my graveyard to my hand."

He refilled his hand.

"Then, I will activate the effect of Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver. I will Special Summon it from my graveyard and equip Astolfo to it as an Equip Spell that gives it 500 attack points." The earlier Synchro Monster reappeared.

[Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver: 2000 + 500 = 2500ATK]

"I will then equip Noble Arms - Caliburn to it. It gains 500 attack points, and once per turn, we gain 500 life points." The monster glowed.

[Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver: 2500 + 500 = 3000ATK]

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 3500 + 500 = 4000LP

"And Captain Oliver attacks Superheavy Samurai Scarecrow," he said. "I will use his effect to destroy Abyss Script - Abysstainment." Sawatari's monster was destroyed, and a moment later, so was Gongenzaka's. While he would usually take no damage from battles involving Scarecrow, since he had a Spell in his graveyard now, the effect didn't apply.

Noboru Gongenzaka & Shingo Sawatari: 4500 - 3000 = 1500LP

"Rescue-ACE Turbulence attacks directly."

"When my opponent declares an attack, I can banish Superheavy Samurai Helper from my graveyard to Special Summon a "Superheavy Samurai" monster from the graveyard." Gongenzaka removed the monster that he had discarded for Scarecrow's effect from play. "Return to the field, Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei!" The tall, strong monster reappeared on the field.

[Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei (8*/1000/3500/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"... I'll end my turn then."

[Turn 8: Sawatari] [H:2]

"Draw," Sawatari said. "Nice job! I'll finish this off—I'll set the Scale 8 Abyss Actor - Funky Comedian in the Pendulum Scale! Pendulum Summon! Come back to the field! Abyss Actor - Superstar! Abyss Actor - Twinkle Little Star! Abyss Actor - Comic Relief!" His three monsters all returned from the Extra Deck to the field, all of them showboating as per normal.

[Abyss Actor - Superstar (7*/S3/2500/1800/DARK/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect)]

[Abyss Actor - Twinkle Little Star (4*/S9/1000/1000/DARK/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect)]

[Abyss Actor - Comic Relief (3*/S8/1000/2000/DARK/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect)]

"I will then activate the effect of Abyss Actor - Superstar! I will add an "Abyss Script" card from my deck to my hand! I will add the Quickplay Spell Card, Abyss Script - Romantic Terror from my deck to my hand!" Sawatari gestured to his field. "I will use the Pendulum Effect of Abyss Actor - Funky Comedian! By tributing Abyss Actor - Superstar, I can grant its attack points to another monster I control—Abyss Actor - Twinkle Little Star!" The unassuming monster flew around, stars gleaming around it.

[Abyss Actor - Twinkle Little Star: 1000 + 2500 = 3500ATK]

"And—Battle Phase! Twinkle Little Star can attack monsters up to three times per Battle Phase! Attack Renaud, Captain Oliver and Turbulence!"

The three monsters were destroyed by the small fiend, even as a translucent spirit of Superstar guided the monster's every move. Renaud was in Defense Position, so no damage was taken from that battle, but the other two attacks still dealt a small amount of damage.

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 4000 - 500 - 500 = 3000LP

"And now, for the final blow!" Sawatari turned to Gongenzaka, grinning. "Care to say it?"

"... Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei attacks directly," Gongenzaka said, returning a proud smile. His monster charged forward, eliminating the last of their opponents' life points.

Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada: 3000 - 3500 = 0LP

Winner: Noboru Gongenzaka & Shingo Sawatari!

"Yes!" Sawatari pumped a fist in the air. "Didn't even need to use Romantic Terror too… look, Gongenzaka! It worked out!"

"Yes," Gongenzaka said. "It did." He glanced at their unconscious opponents on the ground. "Still though… to think that they still perpetuate such an unbalanced system. It's not like they are weak either. Why do the strong choose to suppress others when they could instead lift them higher?"

"Not everyone's as honourable as you, big guy." Sawatari said, rolling his eyes.

"I suppose not."

"You know," Sawatari said, glancing at him, still trying to play it cool, "why didn't you use my Rise of the Abyss King? I mean, if you had added a Pendulum Monster to your hand and Pendulum Summoned my monsters, you could've used Abyss King instead…"

"And treat your monster like a disposable piece to advance my attacks?" Gongenzaka scoffed at the very thought. "My honour would never be able to take it. And besides, even if technically using a Spell or Trap wouldn't sabotage myself anymore, it's still against my morals. What about you? Why give my Big Benkei the last attack?"

Sawatari grimaced, feeling his ears go red. It was entirely sentimental on his part too, wasn't it? He cleared his throat. "Whatever. Let's go find the others. You weren't so bad to duel with, big guy."

---

[DUEL!]

Hapi Kasegawa & Kana Edogawa: 8000LP

Mion Myojin & Kyorin Rinsoka: 8000LP

[Turn 1: Kyorin] [H:5]

"I'll start," Kyorin said shyly. "I'll Normal Summon Dance Princess of the Nekroz." The red-haired woman appeared on her field.

[Dance Princess of the Nekroz (4*/1600/800/WATER/Spellcaster/Effect)]

"And I'll then activate the Ritual Spell, Nekroz Cycle!"

"I will activate the effect of PSY-Framegear Delta in my hand! When you activate a Spell, I can—" Their opponent, Hapi, blinked. "Huh? I can't activate it?"

"While I control Dance Princess of the Nekroz, you can't activate cards or effects in response to the activation of a "Nekroz" Ritual Spell," Kyorin explained. So her opponent's deck focused around handtraps, huh? She would have to keep that in mind… "I will tribute Shurit, Strategist of the Nekroz in my hand, and with his effect, he serves as the full tribute. Fabled wisdom of the roaring demon gods. Be channelled into the mirror formed from ice, and bless the ancient sorcerer! Ritual Summon! Level 8! Nekroz of Valkyrus!" The white-haired man with a rather impressive-looking beard appeared, sweeping his dark cloak behind him.

[Nekroz of Valkyrus (8*/2900/1700/WATER/Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect)]

"Shurit lets me add a "Nekroz" Warrior Ritual Monster from my deck to my hand," Kyorin continued. "I will activate the effect of Nekroz of Valkyrus to tribute up to two monsters in my hand and on my field to draw the same number of cards."

"I will activate the effect of PSY-Framegear Gamma. When my opponent activates a monster effect while I control no monsters, I can Special Summon this card from my hand, along with PSY-Frame Driver from my deck." Two monsters appeared on Hapi's field—one of them was a smaller gold and black metallic sphere surrounded by green plasma. Next to it was a humanoid figure wearing a green mask, along with a black shirt and pants, as well as white gloves. It was surrounded by the same green plasma.

[PSY-Frame Gamma (2*/1000/0/LIGHT/Psychic/Tuner/Effect)]

[PSY-Frame Driver (6*/2500/0/LIGHT/Psychic)]

"And then, I can negate the activation of the effect and destroy that monster!"

"I will discard Nekroz of Gungnir from my hand," Kyorin replied. "I will protect Valkyrus from being destroyed by battle or card effects this turn!" An icy barrier surrounded Valkyrus, deflecting the bolt of green energy that shot towards him. However, Valkyrus's effect was still negated. "I will then discard Nekroz of Brionac from my hand to add a "Nekroz" monster from my deck to my hand, other than Brionac itself." She discarded the card that she had added to her hand with Shurit's effect. "Then, I will discard Nekroz of Unicore from my hand. I can add a "Nekroz" card from my graveyard to my hand." With that roundabout method, she recovered Nekroz Cycle from her graveyard. "I will activate the Ritual Spell, Nekroz Cycle. By tributing the Level 4 Dance Princess of the Nekroz, I can Ritual Summon a "Nekroz" Ritual Monster from my hand or graveyard. Fabled unicorn who cuts the strings of fate. Be channelled into the mirror formed from ice, and bless the ancient sorcerer! Ritual Summon! Level 4—Nekroz of Unicore!" The young man with a long cloak appeared, sweeping back his long white braid as he observed the field.

[Nekroz of Unicore (4*/2300/1000/WATER/Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect)]

"I will end my turn," Kyorin said.

"The monsters Special Summoned with Gamma's effect are banished during the End Phase," Hapi replied. The two monsters vanished from her field in a blur of green particles.

[Turn 2: Hapi] [H:5]

"Draw! I will activate the Field Spell, PSY-Frame Circuit!" Green lines of electricity flew all around them. "I will activate the Spell Card, One for One! I can discard a monster and Special Summon a Level 1 monster from the deck. Come! PSY-Framegear Beta!" A creature that seemed to be made of the fragmented parts of a shield appeared, held together by bolts of green electricity.

[PSY-Framegear Beta (1*/700/0/LIGHT/Psychic/Tuner/Effect)]

"And then, since I Special Summoned a "PSY-Frame" Tuner monster, I can Special Summon PSY-Frame Multi-Threader from my graveyard." A strange humanoid figure with light green skin appeared, grinning widely as plasma whirled around it in a vortex. He was wearing a blue suit, and his arms and legs were made entirely out of metal.

[PSY-Frame Multi-Threader (6*/0/2500/LIGHT/Psychic/Effect)]

"I will tune the Level 1 PSY-Framegear Beta to the Level 6 PSY-Frame Multi-Threader! Light in the cybernetic machines of the future, help us to evolve to a new path! Reach the step to bow before ascension! Synchro Summon! Level 7! PSY-Framelord Zeta!" A tall figure in black armour appeared, covered in silver spikes. The figure was faceless, wearing a silver mask.

[Psy-Framelord Zeta (7*/2500/1800/LIGHT/Psychic/Synchro/Effect)]

"Zeta attacks Nekroz of Unicore."

Kyorin blinked. Her monster was destroyed, but that wasn't that big of a deal.

Mion Myojin & Kyorin Rinsoka: 8000 - 200 = 7800LP

"I will then activate the Spell Card, Graceful Charity! I can draw three cards and discard two cards." Their opponent was clearly searching for a hand trap for themselves. "I will end my turn."

[Turn 3: Mion] [H:6]

Mion hummed, drawing a card. "Rinsoka. Good try." She said. "Her handtraps don't work while she controls a monster. I will activate the Field Spell, Magical Citadel of Endymion." Her usual Field Spell appeared on the field.

"I will activate the effect of PSY-Framelord Zeta!" Hapi countered. "I will target and banish both Zeta and Valkyrus until my next Battle Phase!"

"To make it so that your hand traps work again?" Mion shrugged. "Sorry, Rinsoka."

"No, it's alright." Kyorin smiled. "I know you'll do a good job anyway!"

Mion smiled. "I'll live up to your expectations," she said. "I'll activate the Continuous Spell, Mythical Institution! And every time that I activate a Spell Card, my Magical Citadel of Endymion gains a Spell Counter!" She revealed a card in her hand. "I will then set the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Master Cerberus in the Pendulum Scale. And since I have no monster in my other Pendulum Scale, I can destroy Master Cerberus with his own effect to add a Level 7 or lower "Mythical Beast" Effect Monster from my deck to my hand."

"I will activate the effect of PSY-Framegear Gamma in my hand once again!" Then, Hapi frowned. "Why isn't it…"

"Your Gamma responds to monster effects, correct?" Mion asked, raising an eyebrow. "Sorry. The effects of monsters in the Pendulum Scale are treated as the activation of Continuous Spell effects." Her Continuous Spell started glowing as she spoke. "Wait a while longer, if your aim is to negate the effects of my monsters."

She swiped up a card from her deck.

"When a "Mythical Beast" Pendulum Monster Card is destroyed by battle or card effect, Mythical Institution gains two Spell Counters," Mion explained. "And that occurs each time that happens. Monsters destroyed in the Pendulum Scale count for this effect too. I will then set the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Jackal King in my Pendulum Scale." Her other strongest Mythical Beast appeared in the Pendulum Scale, and Kyorin watched curiously—she hadn't actually seen Mion play in this particular way before. She must have searched out Jackal King with Master Cerberus's effect. "Jackal King's Pendulum Effect. Since I have no monster in my other Pendulum Scale, by destroying Jackal King, I can Special Summon a "Mythical Beast" Pendulum Monster from my Extra Deck, except Jackal King himself."

The pillar of light dissolved again, and as Jackal King dissolved into misty shadows, Master Cerberus reappeared on the field, looking proud and majestic.

[Mythical Beast Master Cerberus (8*/S4/2800/2800/LIGHT/Spellcaster/Pendulum/Effect)]

"I'll set the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Bashilisk in the Pendulum Scale," Mion continued. "Mythical Beast Master Cerberus gains two Spell Counters when I activate a Spell Card, which, as you have probably guessed by now, Pendulum Monsters count as while they are in the Pendulum Zone. Since I have no monster in my other Pendulum Scale, I can destroy Bashilisk and shuffle a face-up Spellcaster Pendulum Monster from my Extra Deck into the deck to draw a card. I will return Jackal King to the deck." She now had three cards left in her hand, and a frankly unnecessary number of Spell Counters.

[Magical Citadel of Endymion: Spell Counter(s): 4]

[Mythical Institution: Spell Counter(s): 6]

[Mythical Beast Master Cerberus: Spell Counter(s): 2]

"I will then set the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Garuda in the Pendulum Scale. And since, once again, I have no monster in my other Pendulum Scale, I can destroy it to destroy another Spell or Trap on the field." The number of Spell Counters on their field ticked up again, and PSY-Frame Circuit was destroyed a second later. Their opponent looked shocked. "I will activate the effect of Mythical Institution. By removing any number of Spell Counters from it, I can add a monster from my deck or face-up in my Extra Deck to my hand with an equal Level to the number of Spell Counters removed, as long as that monster has an effect that can allow it to carry Spell Counters. I will remove three Spell Counters from it."

[Mythical Institution: Spell Counter(s): 5]

"I will then set the Scale 2 Servant of Endymion and the Scale 8 Magister of Endymion in the Pendulum Scales," Mion declared. "With this Pendulum Scale, I can Pendulum Summon monsters from Level 3 to Level 7! Swing, pendulum! Come back from the Extra Deck! Mythical Beast Bashilisk! Mythical Beast Garuda!" The two strange beasts appeared—each of them having two heads, one floating in the air and surrounded by mist, while the other prowled on the ground.

[Mythical Beast Bashilisk (4*/S4/1800/500/LIGHT/Spellcaster/Pendulum/Effect)]

[Mythical Beast Garuda (4*/S4/1200/1600/LIGHT/Spellcaster/Pendulum/Effect)]

"Mythical Beast Master Cerberus attacks you directly," Mion said.

"I will activate the effect of PSY-Frame Beta in my hand. I will Special Summon it from my hand and Special Summon PSY-Frame Driver from my deck!" Another copy of Beta and Driver appeared. "Then, I can destroy your monster, and end the Battle Phase—" Then, another error message showed up. Their opponent sighed in exasperation. "Oh, what is it now?"

"How is your card effect phrased?" Mion asked.

"Uh, I can Special Summon it, and if I do, I can destroy your monster. Then, I can end the Battle Phase."

"Makes sense." Mion shrugged. "Want to explain it to her, Rinsoka?"

"Um—" Kyorin blinked. "So, there's three parts to the effect, right?" She thought through the words for a moment. "It's an A, and if you do, B, then C effect. Master Cerberus can't be destroyed by card effects while you control at least four Spell Counters, right? So, with the way that the card effect is phrased, even if your monster can't be destroyed, she can still Special Summon her monsters, but if your monster can't be destroyed, the Battle Phase doesn't end?"

"Yes. Well done." Mion turned back to her opponent. "And from how you phrased it—your effect doesn't negate the attack, correct? So the attack continues with a replay. Master Cerberus attacks Driver." The bipedal beast charged forward, crushing Driver.

Hapi Kasegawa & Kana Edogawa: 8000 - 300 = 7700LP

"I'll move to my Main Phase 2," Mion continued, leaving PSY-Framegear Beta on the field. "Mythical Institution has five Spell Counters. Mythical Beast Master Cerberus has eight Spell Counters. Magical Citadel of Endymion has seven Spell Counters. And Servant of Endymion has one Spell Counter."

"Are you doing math for us?"

"I'm saying that while I would like to let Rinsoka-san have another turn, I don't want to stress her out," Mion said with a shrug. "If you don't mind?"

"I don't mind as long as you win!" Kyorin said determinedly. She had no reason to want to duel more—she just wanted to find the others as fast as possible.

"Sure," Mion said, smiling at her. "I will Normal Summon Frequency Magician." A mage in a purple cloak appeared on her field.

[Frequency Magician (2*/800/400/LIGHT/Spellcaster/Tuner/Effect)]

"I'll tune the Level 2 Frequency Magician to the Level 4 Mythical Beast Garuda," Mion continued. "Appear now, in a strong gust of wind, temperamental sorcerer! Synchro Summon! Level 6! Tempest Magician!" Swinging her scythe around, the female mage resembled a reaper, with long dark grey hair tucked behind her ears.

[Tempest Magician (6*/2200/1400/DARK/Spellcaster/Synchro/Effect)]

"I will activate the effect of Tempest Magician. When Synchro Summoned, a Spell Counter is placed on her."

[Tempest Magician: Spell Counter(s): 1]

"Then, by removing all Spell Counters from my field, you take 500 damage for each," Mion said. "Magicalized Tempest!" The deadly effect rushed forward. "And I know that you have Gamma in your hand, but it won't work while you control a monster!"

Kyorin watched, wide-eyed.

How many Spell Counters was that?...

Hapi Kasegawa & Kana Edogawa: 7700 - 500 x 22 = 0LP

Winner: Mion Myojin & Kyorin Rinsoka!

"... wow!" Kyorin glanced down self-consciously. "That was… good! I barely did anything, but you still pulled through…"

"Barely did anything?" Mion sighed. She was still smiling, but there was something slightly exasperated to her smile. "Isn't that by your own choice?"

Kyorin blinked in surprise.

"Your summon of Valkyrus," Mion pointed out. "You had Nekroz of Gungnir in your hand from the start, along with Valkyrus, Shurit, Cycle and Dance Princess. A much better play if you were the only one dueling—in other words, if I wasn't here—would have been to Normal Summon Dance Princess, use Cycle to tribute Shurit and bring out Gungnir first, and add Clausolas to your hand. Discard Clausolas for Mirror, and banish Shurit from the graveyard with Mirror to Ritual Summon Valkyrus. Use Valkyrus's effect to tribute Dance Princess and draw a card, and with Dance Princess's effect, add Shurit back to your hand. But you brought out Valkyrus first and added Brionac to Ritual Summon Unicore instead—likely because you wanted to lock off their field, right?"

"... you saw that much?"

"Mm. I always pay attention to my comrades' duels, you know." Mion put her hands in her pockets. "You did that because you were nervous, right?"

"... I wasn't sure what I could do that you couldn't do. I just wanted to…" Kyorin glanced away. "I'm fine with a supporting role…"

"That just shows your lack of confidence," Mion said. "Though I understand that very well—I used to be a bit like that, actually."

"Huh?" Kyorin's eyes widened. "I can't imagine you not being confident…"

Mion shrugged. "It wasn't a confidence thing. It was a feeling that I needed to take care of everyone around me. Back in Standard, Kamisoka-san called me out on it though." Her smile grew slightly. "Threw a fit about it and everything, called me out on trying to defend her at the expense of myself. I guess I was thinking about that today. If I was still the same Mion that would rather lose than let my partner lose… well, I wouldn't have taken the win immediately today. I'd have been more considerate of your feelings, and set you up to win."

"I'm glad you didn't," Kyorin said. "I mean—if you can win, and—I'm not that strong, actually."

"Not that strong, and yet you're here," Mion commented. "You know, you're really special. The rest of them all came in groups—they weren't alone when they came to Maiami City. You, though? You travelled worlds alone, for the sake of your friends."

"... I don't know if that was the case," Kyorin confessed. "I just know that I would have done anything to find them… and then suddenly, I was in Standard. I don't understand why. But once I was there…" She smiled to herself. "I never had friends until I met Yuji and Chiaki, you know. Maybe that's why they're so special to me… they didn't really care, you know? About the world around them? They lived to their own rhythm, in the way that made them feel comfortable, and they never let anyone question them. And they gave me a place in that world. When I lost them, I was alone… but when I came to Standard, when the Lancers started to form… I didn't feel so alone anymore, then."

Mion nodded after a moment. "It's good not to be alone," she said. "To be honest, most of the people around me were people that I wanted to take care of. Not really 'friends', you know?" She chuckled. "I'm glad to have met all of you too. It's a weird group, but it's comfortable. We all count on each other and take care of each other—that's something, at the very least."

"Mmm!" Kyorin smiled. "It is."

---

[DUEL!]

Chino Otobashi: 4000LP

Yuto Kamisoka: 4000LP

Hitoda Makishima: 4000LP

[Turn 1: Chino] [H:5]

"Since I'm the one at the disadvantage, I'll start first," the orange-haired woman said. Flipping her braid over her shoulder, she drew her starting hand. Yuto and Hitoda drew their starting hands as well. "I will activate the Spell Card, Naturia Flourish. Since I control no Tuner monsters, I can Special Summon a "Naturia" Tuner monster from my deck. Come—Naturia Camellia!" A bright red flower with a yellow middle appeared, blooming brightly.

[Naturia Camellia (4*/1400/700/EARTH/Plant/Tuner/Effect)]

"Then, I can add a "Naturia" monster from my deck or graveyard to my hand." Chino gestured to Camellia with her hand. "When Naturia Camellia is Normal or Special Summoned, I can send a "Naturia" monster from my deck to the graveyard. I'll then Normal Summon Naturia Mole Cricket." A strange brown beetle with a yellow underbelly appeared on her field. Translucent green wings fluttered behind it.

[Naturia Mole Cricket (1*/0/0/EARTH/Insect/Effect)]

Yuto narrowed his eyes.

Despite how unassuming it looked, this was the one card that Shun had mentioned specifically. The card that enabled all of this woman's strategies.

"I will activate the effect of Naturia Mole Cricket," the woman said blasely. "By tributing it, I can Special Summon a "Naturia" monster from my deck. With the effect of Naturia Camellia, once per turn, if I would have to tribute a monster to activate a "Naturia" monster's effect, I can instead send two cards from the top of my deck to the graveyard."

So instead of having to tribute a monster to summon a monster—a very fair effect—she was getting to mill two cards and Special Summon a monster for free?

"I will Special Summon Naturia Antjaw from my deck." A strange brown ant with wings made from leaves appeared, holding onto a grey kernel.

[Naturia Antjaw (2*/400/200/EARTH/Insect/Effect)]

"I will tune the Level 4 Naturia Camellia to the Level 1 Naturia Mole Cricket," Chino continued. "Leaves fall. The forest's silent protector walks through the trees. Appear now, sacred guardian of the Naturia Forest! Synchro Summon! Level 5! Naturia Beast!" A beautiful green tiger appeared, bark covering most of its body, and black stripes crossing across the lush green fur.

[Naturia Beast (5*/2200/1700/EARTH/Beast/Synchro/Effect)]

"When I Special Summon a "Naturia" monster from my Extra Deck, Mole Cricket can revive itself back to my field." The small insect reappeared on her field. "Quickplay Spell Card, Naturia Blessing. It has three effects, but I will choose the first—I can Special Summon a monster from my hand or graveyard. Come back to the field, Naturia Camellia." The red flower once again bloomed on her field. "I will tune the Level 4 Naturia Camellia to the Level 2 Naturia Antjaw."

The two monsters dissolved into green energy that swirled around her.

"Flowers bloom around the slumbering dragon in the woods. Appear now, noble dragon that safeguards the Naturia Forest. Guide my path. Synchro Summon. Level 6. Naturia Barkion." A cute green and grey dragon appeared, slightly smaller than the tiger. It landed next to Naturia Beast, serving as another strange force on the field. While Naturia Beast was in the Extra Monster Zone, Naturia Barkion was right behind it.

[Naturia Barkion (6*/2500/1800/EARTH/Dragon/Synchro/Effect)]

"So, I will set two cards facedown," Chino continued. "I end my turn."

[Turn 2: Yuto] [H:5]

"I'll Normal Summon The Phantom Knights of Torn Scales." A silver set of armour appeared, blue glowing orbs staring through the helm, with blue spirit-like flames emerging from the bottom half of the armour.

[The Phantom Knights of Torn Scales (3*/600/1600/DARK/Warrior/Effect)]

"Then, I will activate its effect. By discarding a card, I can send a "Phantom Knights" card from my deck to the graveyard." He picked up a card from his graveyard, showing it to his opponent. "I will banish The Phantom Knights of Ancient Cloak from my graveyard to add a "The Phantom Knights" card from my deck to my hand. And since I control a "The Phantom Knights" monster, I can Special Summon The Phantom Knights of Silent Boots from my hand." The glowing blue spirit dressed in worn red-tinted leather appeared.

[The Phantom Knights of Silent Boots (3*/200/1200/DARK/Warrior/Effect)]

"I'll overlay the Level 3 The Phantom Knights of Silent Boots and the Level 3 The Phantom Knights of Torn Scales! Souls of knights who fell on the battlefield. Revive here and now, and become the light that breaks the darkness! Xyz Summon! Appear, Rank 3—The Phantom Knights of Break Sword!" In front of him, the dark knight on horseback appeared.

[The Phantom Knights of Break Sword (R3/2000/1000/DARK/Warrior/Xyz/Effect) (OU:2)]

"I'll then activate Break Sword's effect! By detaching an Overlay Unit, I can destroy a card I control and a card you control! I will destroy The Phantom Knights of Break Sword himself and Naturia Barkion! Mutual Destruction!" It was the natural choice, after all—Barkion was the one with higher attack points.

"Continuous Trap, Safe Zone," Chino countered. "While it is face-up on the field, Barkion cannot be targeted or destroyed by card effects, and it cannot be destroyed by battle."

Break Sword burst into flames, but it was the only one. Yuto didn't allow himself to be fazed. "I will activate the effect of Break Sword! I can Special Summon two "The Phantom Knights" monsters with the same Level from my graveyard, and increase their Levels by 1! Return to the field, Silent Boots and Torn Scales!" The two monsters reappeared on his field, shadows swirling around them.

[The Phantom Knights of Torn Scales: 3* + 1* = 4*]

[The Phantom Knights of Silent Boots: 3* + 1* = 4*]

"I'll overlay my two Level 4 monsters! Formed from pitch-black darkness, to fight those foolish enough to oppose it with its treacherous fangs! Now, descend! Xyz Summon! Appear now! Rank 4! Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!" The black and purple dragon emerged in front of him, letting out a loud roar.

[Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon (R4/2500/2000/DARK/Dragon/Xyz/Effect) (OU:2)]

"I will activate Dark Rebellion's effect!" Yuto declared. "By detaching an Overlay Unit, I will halve your Naturia Beast's attack points until the End Phase, and Dark Rebellion gains attack points equal to the amount lost by Naturia Beast! Treason Discharge!" The electricity shot forward, shocking the green tiger, draining away its power.

[Naturia Beast: 2200 / 2 = 1100ATK]

[Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon: OU:2 - 1 = OU:1; 2500 + 1100 = 3600ATK]

"And I'll move to my Battle Phase!"

Hitoda raised an eyebrow. "... playing it safe, huh?" The green-haired girl remarked.

"I will activate the effect of Naturia Mole Cricket. By tributing it, I can Special Summon a "Naturia" monster from my deck," Chino said placidly. "And since you control the monster with the highest attack points on the field, I can Special Summon two monsters instead of just one. Come. Naturia Butterfly. Naturia Fruitfly." The two monsters appeared on her field, one of them being a bubbly-looking pink butterfly and the other being a strange fly whose body was made of different fruits, such a grape, blackberry and strawberry.

[Naturia Butterfly (3*/500/1200/EARTH/Insect/Tuner/Effect)]

[Naturia Fruitfly (3*/800/1500/EARTH/Insect/Effect)]

"Dark Rebellion attacks Naturia Beast! Rebellious Lightning Disobey!"

"When I control Naturia Fruitfly, all monsters you control lose 300 attack and defense points for each "Naturia" monster I control," Chino said dismissively.

[Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon: 3600 - 300 x 4 = 2400ATK; 2000 - 300 x 4 = 800DEF]

"But there's no need to bother. Once per turn, when an attack is declared, I can negate that attack with the effect of Naturia Butterfly, by sending a card from the top of my deck to the graveyard." Dark Rebellion's attack was deflected almost effortlessly.

Yuto grimaced. "I'll set two cards facedown," he said. "I end my turn." His monster's attack points returned to normal—and then dropped lower, with Fruitfly's continuous effect.

[Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon: 2500 - 300 x 4 = 1300ATK, 2000 - 300 x 4 = 800DEF]

"... hmm." Hitoda tilted her head. "Interesting. Hey, Yuto, I have a request."

"Huh?"

"Don't do anything on my turn unless I tell you to," Hitoda said simply. "I want to test something."

[Turn 3: Hitoda] [H:5]

Hitoda immediately held out a card. "I'll be taking my turn now, Otobashi-san," she said, her tone slightly teasing despite the serious situation. "Feel free to cut in if you want! Might be hard though, if we only use monster effects."

Yuto blinked. "Huh?"

"You haven't noticed?" Hitoda gestured to Chino. "She's waiting for us to do something. She's been waiting the entire time—and at this point, you've run through monster effects, attacks, Normal Summons and Special Summons. In other words, those are safe. So I might as well stick to the safe things." She placed down the card. "Come—Eda the Sun Magician." The redhead magician appeared in front of her, glowing with light.

[Eda the Sun Magician (4*/1500/1500/EARTH/Spellcaster/Effect)]

"Since Eda was Normal Summoned or flipped face-up, I can Special Summon a Spellcaster monster with 1500 defense points from my deck in facedown Defense Position." A set card appeared in front of her. "And since I control a Spellcaster monster, I can Special Summon Ranryu from my hand!" The green dragon appeared next to Eda.

[Ranryu (4*/1500/200/WIND/Dragon/Effect)]

Yuto frowned. He understood her plan, but her main advantage engine consisted of those Continuous Spells and Traps, right? Would this really work out for her?

"And I'll send both Eda and Ranryu to the graveyard! Come from the deck—Awakening of the Possessed - Rasenryu!" The large green dragon appeared on her field, body winding through the air as it let out a loud roar.

[Awakening of the Possessed - Rasenryu (5*/2000/200/WIND/Dragon/Effect)]

"When Rasenryu is Special Summoned by its own effect, I can return a card you control to the hand," Hitoda declared. "I'll return Naturia Barkion to the hand. And since it's a Synchro Monster, it goes to the Extra Deck. It also circumvents your Safe Zone!" The dragon surrounded by bark was swept up in a bright green gale. Since Barkion left the field, Safe Zone also vanished. "So that's one of the troublesome two down… now, did the one that I just got rid of negate Traps or Spells?" She hummed. "Hey, Yuto. Do you have anything debilitating that you can use on that tiger?"

"Huh? I mean, yes…"

"Help me out and use it now."

Slightly intrigued, Yuto flipped up his set card. "Trap Card, Phantom Knights' Fog Blade," he said. "I'll target Naturia Beast, negate its effects, and it cannot attack or be targeted for attacks."

The tiger was surrounded by blue and purple fog, collapsing slightly.

"Hmm. No response!" Hitoda smiled. "Good. Then we know for sure."

"Huh?"

"Beast negates Spells. Barkion negates Traps. Butterfly negates attacks." Hitoda smiled brightly, tilting her head in a rather cocky manner. "Am I wrong?"

"No," Chino said. She still seemed surprisingly unbothered.

"Good! Then I will activate the Continuous Spell, Awakening of the Possessed. Monsters I control gain 300 attack and defense points for each different Attribute I control."

[Awakening of the Possessed - Rasenryu: 2000 + 300 - 300 x 3 = 1400ATK; 200 + 300 - 300 x 3 = 0DEF]

"Fruitfly's still troublesome," Yuto muttered.

"It is," Hitoda agreed. "It's not a big deal though. Quickplay Spell, Sol and Luna. I can target a monster I control and a monster you control, and apply an effect to each depending on their battle position. I will target my set monster and your Naturia Butterfly. Face-up monsters targeted with this effect are shifted to facedown Defense Position, while facedown monsters are flipped into face-up Defense Position!" Naturia Butterfly vanished from the field, while the set monster flipped up, revealing a bespectacled girl with short hair. "This is Aussa the Earth Charmer."

[Aussa the Earth Charmer (3*/500/1500/EARTH/Spellcaster/Flip/Effect)]

"When Aussa the Earth Charmer is flipped face-up, I can take control of an EARTH monster you control," Hitoda continued. "I will take Naturia Beast." The problematic monster shifted over to her field. "And that means that your monsters are… not as well off. I control two Attributes now, and since Butterfly is facedown, Fruitfly's effect only currently counts one monster. Would you like to hazard a guess on how this is going to go for you?"

[Awakening of the Possessed - Rasenryu: 2000 + 300 x 2 - 300 = 2300ATK; 200 + 300 x 2 = 500DEF]

[Naturia Beast: 2200 + 300 x 2 - 300 = 2500ATK; 1700 + 300 x 2 - 300 = 2000DEF]

"Of course, your monster can't currently attack, but mine has no issue, no?" Hitoda gestured forward, and Rasenryu charged towards Naturia Fruitfly.

"I'll activate my Continuous Trap Card," Chino said, folding her arms. "Naturia Sacred Tree. I can choose one of two effects. I will use this effect—by tributing an EARTH Insect monster like Fruitfly, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower EARTH Plant monster from my deck. Come—Naturia Cherries!" A pair of slightly bright pink cherries appeared in front of her in Defense Position.

[Naturia Cherries (1*/200/200/EARTH/Plant/Tuner/Effect)]

"... hmm. If you summoned it, you want me to attack it." Hitoda pointed to the set monster. "I'll take that replay and attack Butterfly." Since Butterfly was facedown, its effect wouldn't work—its effect activated on attack declaration, and by the time it flipped face-up, the effect could not activate. Thus, it was destroyed. "I'll move to my Main Phase 2! Open, multi-coloured circuit! Arrowhead confirmed! The conditions are two monsters, including an EARTH monster! I will set Naturia Beast and Awakening of the Possessed - Rasenryu in the Link Markers! Appear now, ascended figure of the earth! Circuit Combine! Link Summon! Link 2! Aussa the Earth Charmer, Immovable!" The older version of Aussa appeared, while the original Aussa remained on the field. Meanwhile, Fog Blade was destroyed, since the monster that had been targeted with its effect had left the field.

[Aussa the Earth Charmer, Immovable (L2/1850/EARTH/Spellcaster/Link/Effect/↙, ↘]

"Since Rasenryu was sent to the graveyard, I can add a "Possessed" or "Spiritual Wind Art" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand. Furthermore, since I summoned a Spellcaster monster with 1850 attack points, I can draw a card with the effect of Awakening of the Possessed."

"Since you Special Summoned a monster from the Extra Deck, I can revive Naturia Mole Cricket," Chino replied. The small cricket reappeared on her field.

"Sure," Hitoda said easily. "I'll set two cards facedown. And with Aussa's effect. I can Special Summon an EARTH monster from your graveyard to my field. I'll take your Naturia Beast." The tiger rose up on her field. "And I'll end my turn now."

"During the end of your Main Phase, I will activate the effect of Naturia Mole Cricket." The insect with green wings dissolved into light again. "Come from the deck. Naturia Marron. Naturia Mantis." A large, fuzzy chestnut appeared on the field, along with a mantis with wide and bubbly blue eyes.

[Naturia Marron (3*/1200/700/EARTH/Plant/Effect)]

[Naturia Mantis (4*/1700/1500/EARTH/Insect/Effect)]

"Hmm, nice." Hitoda shrugged. "I end my turn."

"A complete reversal…" Yuto murmured. He nodded. "Nice."

"Can't discredit your work," Hitoda said with a wink.

[Turn 4: Chino] [H:2]

"Draw," Chino said. "I will activate the effect of Naturia Marron. By shuffling two "Naturia" monsters from my graveyard into the deck—Naturia Camellia and Naturia Butterfly—I will draw a card. Then, I will tune the Level 1 Naturia Cherries to the Level 4 Naturia Mantis and the Level 3 Naturia Marron. Beautiful huntress, descend and crush the world out of shape! Synchro Summon! Level 8! Naturia Tigridia!" A tiger covered in green fur appeared—but it didn't look quite the same as Naturia Beast. Its fur was sleeker, carrying a shine to it. Roses could be seen blooming around its head, with thorns looping around its legs. She was wearing bright gold armour—there was something rather leopard-like to her stance, as though she was gracefully ready to pounce at any moment.

[Naturia Tigridia (8*/2500/1000/EARTH/Beast/Synchro/Effect)]

"2500 attack points…" Hitoda hummed. "For now, it comes up short against either of us."

"I'm not quite sure I care," Chino replied. "Since I Special Summoned a "Naturia" monster from the Extra Deck, I can revive Naturia Mole Cricket." The insect reappeared again, continuing the loop. "Since Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon has the highest attack points on the field, even if it's a tie, I can tribute Mole Cricket to Special Summon two "Naturia" monsters from my deck. Come—Naturia Camellia. Naturia Bamboo Shoot." Two monsters appeared on her field—one of them was the familiar red flower from before. The other was a strange brown bamboo shoot with a spiked head.

[Naturia Bamboo Shoot (5*/2000/2000/EARTH/Plant/Effect)]

"I will activate the effect of Naturia Camellia. I will send Naturia Eggplant from my deck to the graveyard." The effect resolved, but Chino clearly wasn't done. "I will activate the effect of Naturia Eggplant. When sent to the graveyard, I can add a "Naturia" monster from my graveyard to my hand." She picked up a card. "I will tune the Level 4 Naturia Camellia to the Level 5 Naturia Bamboo Shoot. Ferocious lion that stalks the world beneath the sacred tree! Come forth now! Synchro Summon! Level 9! Naturia Leodrake!" A large orange lion appeared, its body and midsection covered in green. Its mane was made of vermillion flower petals, and behind it, its tail was a bright flower. Orange paws pressed against the ground.

[Naturia Leodrake (9*/3000/1800/EARTH/Beast/Synchro/Effect)]

Now, on the field, Chino had Naturia Sacred Tree, along with Naturia Leodrake and Naturia Tigridia. Hitoda had two set cards, Awakening of the Possessed, Aussa the Earth Charmer, and the Link form of Aussa. Meanwhile, Yuto had a set card and Dark Rebellion on his field.

"Naturia Leodrake attacks Naturia Beast," Chino said, turning on her own monster in an instant.

"I'll activate the Continuous Trap, Unpossessed," Hitoda countered. Beast was still destroyed, but the damage that Hitoda took was lower, due to Awakening of the Unpossessed giving Naturia Beast 300 more attack and defense points.

[Naturia Beast: 2200 + 300 = 2500ATK; 1700 + 300 = 2000DEF]

Hitoda: 4000 - 500 = 3500LP

"Since a monster I control was destroyed by battle or card effect, I can Special Summon a Spellcaster monster with 1500 defense points and a different Attribute from my deck in face-up Attack Position and facedown Defense Position." She revealed a card. "Wynn the Wind Charmer." She placed it on her field facedown.

[Wynn the Wind Charmer (3*/500/1500/WIND/Spellcaster/Flip/Effect)]

"Naturia Tigridia attacks Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!"

Was she… having her monster clash against his, to destroy both of them?

"I'll activate the Trap Card, The Phantom Knights of Lost Vambrace," Yuto declared. "I'll target your monster and lower its attack points by 600. Its Level becomes 2, and then, I can Special Summon Lost Vambrace as a monster in Defense Position." The dark armour with a gold medal in front of it appeared, surrounded by flickering blue embers.

[The Phantom Knights of Lost Vambrace (2*/0/600/DARK/Warrior)]

[Naturia Tigridia: 8* → 2*; 2500 - 600 = 1900ATK]

"Then, "The Phantom Knights" monsters I control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn."

The attack continued, and the graceful tigress was destroyed—

Chino smiled.

Chino: 4000 - 600 = 3400LP

"When Naturia Tigridia is destroyed by battle or a card effect, I can Special Summon a "Naturia" Synchro Monster from my Extra Deck, ignoring summoning conditions," she explained. "Return to my side—Naturia Barkion." The small dragon from earlier appeared in front of her, sneezing, its whiskers puffing out. "Attack Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!"

What on earth…

Their monsters collided, both of them being destroyed. Hitoda whistled. "Not taking notice of me at all, huh?"

"... higher-ranked Security members get access to footage from the cameras throughout the City," Chino said, folding her arms. "Hitoda Makishima. You were with that dark-haired girl… Kamisoka, right? The two of you went to search the Underground Arena to find clues about your comrades."

Yuto whirled his head toward Hitoda—she and Nue had been looking for them? Nue hadn't mentioned that…

"You have a horrifyingly defensive deck," Chino continued. "Your backrow cards protect from battle destruction, card effect destruction, provide floating and replacement monsters every time you lose a monster, boost your monsters' stats and give card advantage. The moment you managed to remove Barkion and Beast and set all that up, I lost to you. There is no point in trying to break through that."

"Hmm!" Hitoda laughed. "I'm flattered! So your goal is just Yuto now, then?"

Yuto tensed up.

"Quite frankly, yes. I don't need to do anything for foolish pride. I'm just here to do my job. And we agreed that if one of you falls, both of you fall." Chino hummed. "... Main Phase 2."

She held up a card, twisting it through the air in a rare display of showmanship.

"I told you that I know who your enemy is. Shall I prove it?"

"Huh?"

"Spell Card," Chino declared. "Miracle Synchro Fusion."

Fusion?

What?

"I can perform a Fusion Summon of a monster that requires a Synchro Monster as material, by banishing its Fusion Materials from my field or graveyard. Famed beast with the power of iron, join with the dragon that lets out the loud roar, and create the ultimate protector. Fusion Summon! Level 10! Naturia Exterio!"

The green tiger from before re-emerged, though it was now wearing a similar guise to Barkion—silvery, beautiful scales all over its body and a bark-like set of armour over its legs and the tail. A true fusion between the two monsters and their traits—

And a deadly strike to Yuto's heart.

[Naturia Exterio (10*/2800/2400/EARTH/Beast/Fusion/Effect)]

---

Makoto watched from nearby, sighing as he twirled the same card between his fingers.

"Showing off that weapon so early? It's your fault if they're prepared for us." He folded his arms. "... it's not like they stand a chance anyway, since Exterio has shown up. That card's the worst of both worlds—for your opponents, that is."

---

"You can Fusion Summon?" Yuto exclaimed, taking a step forward.

"I think that's evident." Chino folded her arms. "I'll set two cards facedown and end my turn."

[Turn 5: Yuto] [H:2]

Yuto drew a card, staring at the monster.

A Fusion Monster, right there, when he had least expected it.

"I'll activate the Spell Card, The Phantom Knights' Rank-Up-Magic Burial," he said after a moment.

"I will activate the effect of Naturia Exterio," Chino replied. "When my opponent activates a Spell or Trap Card, I can banish a card from my graveyard and send a card from the top of my deck to the graveyard—and then, I can negate the activation of that card and destroy it."

Damn it!

This Fusion Monster, it's—a proper fusion between those two monsters. And it infinitely fuels itself—it will never stop negating my effects! What do I do—

"Hey, Yuto."

Yuto felt his hand shaking. He adjusted his wrist brace, taking a deep breath.

"Yuto," Hitoda repeated. She sighed. "I'm not good with this." She reached out, grabbing his shoulder and turning him towards her. Her dark blue eyes were more steady than before, staring at him and forcing him to focus on her. "She's trying to poke at your insecurities. Your fears. She knows that you want so desperately to understand where her Fusion has come from. Don't let her wash you away. If you win—that's an outcome that grants us more than frantically asking questions will offer you."

Right.

Yuto took a deep breath, nodding.

He just had to focus on winning.

"There we go," Hitoda said. Was that… a short moment of relief? Then, immediately, the green-haired girl went back to a casual smile, her flippant attitude returning in an instant. "I'm not the kind that's good with emotions, you know!"

Yuto raised a hand. Then, swiftly, he slapped himself right in the face.

Right.

Focus on the duel.

As impressive as that was—a Fusion Summon with Synchro Monsters as material?

As much significance as the phrase 'Fusion Summon' has to me…

As unexpected as it is…

It is still just a single monster. I can't allow it to shake me completely…

"Well, that's one way to focus," Hitoda said with a laugh.

Yuto gestured to his graveyard. "I will banish Phantom Knights' Fog Blade from my graveyard," he said. "I can revive a "The Phantom Knights" monster from my graveyard, but it is banished when it leaves the field. And this is a Trap effect, not a Trap Card, so you can't negate it with that monster. Return to my field, The Phantom Knights of Torn Scales." The silver set of armour reappeared on the field. "I will banish The Phantom Knights of Silent Boots from the graveyard to add a "Phantom Knights" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand. I'll then discard that card to use Torn Scales' effect and send another "Phantom Knights" card from my deck to the graveyard. And I'll Normal Summon The Phantom Knights of Ragged Gloves." A set of black gloves surrounded by blue flames appeared.

[The Phantom Knights of Ragged Gloves (3*/1000/500/DARK/Warrior/Effect)]

"Manifest, circuit that honours the fallen warriors! Arrowhead confirmed! The conditions are two or more DARK monsters. I will set The Phantom Knights of Lost Vambrace, The Phantom Knights of Ragged Gloves and The Phantom Knights of Torn Scales in the Link Markers. Dark, angry polearm, rise into the air with the crackling blue fire of the ancient warriors! With no path backwards and only light in front of you, aid your fellow warriors in destroying the enemy. Circuit Combine. Link Summon—Link 3! The Phantom Knights of Rusty Bardiche!" Tattered cloak sweeping through the air, the figure dressed in armour appeared, surrounded by the same blue wisps.

[The Phantom Knights of Rusty Bardiche (L3/2100/DARK/Warrior/Link/Effect/↙, ↘, →)]

"Mole Cricket returns to the field," Chino reminded.

"When Rusty Bardiche is Link Summoned, I can send a "The Phantom Knights" monster from my deck to the graveyard, and set a "Phantom Knights" Spell or Trap from my deck to my field. I'll banish Phantom Knights' Reinforcements from the graveyard to add a "The Phantom Knights" monster from my deck to my hand, and send a "Phantom Knights" card with a different name from my deck to the graveyard."

He lifted another card from his graveyard.

"I will banish The Phantom Knights of Stained Greaves to Special Summon a "The Phantom Knights" monster from my hand. Come—The Phantom Knights of Cloven Helm!" A helmet appeared next to the other monsters in Attack Position, glowing brightly.

[The Phantom Knights of Cloven Helm (4*/1500/500/DARK/Warrior/Effect)]

"I'll then banish the Trap Card, Phantom Knights' Wing from the graveyard. I'll revive a "The Phantom Knights" monster, but that monster is banished when it leaves the field. So come—The Phantom Knights of Ancient Cloak." He brought back Ancient Cloak to the field in Attack Position—this was clearly another copy of Ancient Cloak, not the one that had been banished earlier. "I will then change Ancient Cloak to Defense Position, and give a DARK monster on the field 800 attack and defense points until your next End Phase! I will choose Rusty Bardiche!"

[The Phantom Knights of Rusty Bardiche: 2100 + 800 = 2900ATK]

"And I'll banish Ragged Gloves from the graveyard to send another "Phantom Knights" card from my deck to the graveyard." He continued to banish cards from his graveyard—at once strategic and wild."Since a "Phantom Knights" card was sent to the graveyard, Cloven Helm gains 500 attack points."

[The Phantom Knights of Cloven Helm: 1500 + 500 = 2000ATK]

"I do not have a monster with higher attack points than Naturia Leodrake," Yuto pointed out. "So your monster—it has the highest attack points on the field. Mole Cricket can only summon one monster—I'm moving to my Battle Phase. Are you going to do anything first?"

"At the end of the Main Phase, I will tribute Naturia Mole Cricket," Chino said, still sounding rather calm. "Come—Naturia Fruitfly." The small fly appeared on her field. "I have three "Naturia" monsters."

[The Phantom Knights of Cloven Helm: 2000 - 300 x 3 = 1100ATK; 500 - 300 x 3 = 0DEF]

[The Phantom Knights of Rusty Bardiche: 2900 - 300 x 3 = 2000ATK]

[The Phantom Knights of Ancient Cloak: 800 - 300 x 3 = 0ATK; 1000 - 300 x 3 = 100DEF]

"Attack Naturia Fruitfly, Cloven Helm!" The small fly was cut down, and all of Yuto's monsters had their attack and defense points returned to normal.

Chino: 3400 - 300 = 3100LP

"And Rusty Bardiche will attack Naturia Exterio! Rusty Strike!"

The Fusion Monster was—gratifyingly—cut down.

Chino: 3100 - 100 = 3000LP

For just a moment, Yuto tasted a feeling of victory.

"... you really did set up your own offence," Hitoda said with a chuckle. "Well done."

"Is it the time to praise him yet?" Chino replied. "He hasn't won yet." She snapped her fingers. "Quickplay Spell, Naturia Blessing. I can Special Summon a "Naturia" monster from the graveyard. I choose Naturia Exterio."

"... ah, you spoilsport," Hitoda said. "Let him feel good about himself, why don't you?" She flipped up one of her set cards. "Trap Card, Possessed Partnerships. I will Special Summon a Spellcaster monster with 1500 defense points from my hand or graveyard in face-up Attack Position or facedown Defense Position. Come from my hand—Familiar-Possessed - Wynn." Another form of Wynn appeared on the field, her green hair floating behind her in an invisible breeze.

[Familiar-Possessed - Wynn (4*/1850/1500/WIND/Spellcaster/Effect)]

"And since I now control at least two Attributes, I can destroy a face-up card you control," Hitoda continued. "Let's say goodbye to that Sacred Tree of yours, shall we?" The Continuous Trap exploded as well.

Yuto blinked. She took advantage of the moment before Exterio was summoned to remove another option…

She's a little like Nue in that regard, huh? Eating away at the opponent's moves? Except that while Nue's more direct when it comes to countering options, her deck's more… insidious.

"When Naturia Sacred Tree is destroyed, I can add a "Naturia" card from my deck to my hand," Chino replied.

"Fair enough!" Hitoda grinned as the familiar figure of Naturia Exterio reappeared. "Awakening of the Possessed's effect triggers. I summoned a Spellcaster monster with 1850 attack points. Thus, I can draw a card."

Yuto glanced at his field for a moment, before he sighed. "I'll end my turn," he said.

[Turn 6: Hitoda] [H:3]

"Draw," Hitoda said. She glanced at her hand, before turning to her field. "So, if you want to negate our cards—negating yours is fair game, right?"

"If you want to look at it that way," Chino replied.

"Good. I'll Flip Summon Wynn the Wind Charmer. I will also use Aussa's effect—the Link one—to Special Summon Naturia Tigridia from your graveyard to my field. Then, I'll open the multi-coloured circuit again. Arrowhead confirmed! The conditions are two or more monsters with different names, except Tokens! I will set Naturia Tigridia, Aussa the Earth Charmer, Wynn the Wind Charmer and Familiar-Possessed - Wynn in the Link Markers."

Oh, it had to be that Link 4 monster then…

"Verdant winds are born as the sands of time fall away!" Hitoda declared. "An arrow that flies through the eternal gale! Now, huntress with divine power, tamer of every beast beneath the sky! Strike down any who try to pull tricks in your presence! Circuit Combine! Link Summon! Link 4! Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess!" The white-haired archer from before appeared, holding up her angelic golden bow. The green beast that she was sitting on seemed rather enthusiastic, and the woman rested in the leftmost Main Monster Zone.

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess (L4/?/WIND/Fairy/Link/Effect/↙, ↑, ↓, ↘)]

"Apollousa's original attack points are equal to the number of materials used for her Link Summon, multiplied by 800."

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess: ? → 800 x 4 = 3200ATK]

"So that easily exceeds yours," Hitoda said with a laugh. "And let's not forget Awakening of the Possessed too."

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess: 3200 + 300 x 2 = 3800ATK]

[Aussa the Earth Charmer, Immovable: 1850 + 300 x 2 = 2450ATK]

"I have not forgotten," Chino replied. "Mole Cricket revives itself."

"Alright with me," Hitoda said, with a slight smirk—as though she was laughing at their opponent on the inside. "When my opponent activates a monster effect, I can lower Apollousa's attack points by 800 to negate the activation of that effect. So for now, call this pesticide. Windblume Arrow!" One of the white and red arrows flew forward, and the cricket did not reappear.

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess: 3800 - 800 = 3000ATK]

"Battle Phase," Hitoda continued. "Apollousa attacks Exterio." For the second time, Naturia Exterio was destroyed.

Chino: 3000 - 200 = 2800LP

"And Aussa attacks Leodrake. When a "Familiar-Possessed" monster, which Aussa is always treated as, attacks a monster you control, she gains 800 attack points during damage calculation with the effect of Unpossessed."

[Aussa the Earth Charmer, Immovable: 2450 + 800 = 3250ATK]

The large lion was destroyed as well.

Chino: 2800 - 250 = 2550LP

"I end my turn. So?" Hitoda asked. "Nervous?"

"... nervous about a few pinpricks of damage?" Chino said, raising an eyebrow. "Nervous about a single negation effect? I haven't been this looked down upon in almost four years. I'm Security's negation expert—if I could be that easily felled by this, I'd have been out of a job years ago."

"Hey, you're what, twenty? Don't look down on us."

"Nineteen," Chino replied. "Going on twenty, yes. And you're what, seventeen going on eighteen?"

"Actually, I'm already eighteen. Birthday passed a few weeks ago." Hitoda rolled her eyes. "Thing is, we're not kids. Don't think that just because you're currently employed, you can look down on us. I've worked eighteen hour shifts too and you don't see me boasting about my ability to stay awake." Mostly because I immediately collapse afterwards. "Thing is, if you want to look down on us, you had better win and prove it."

[Turn 7: Chino] [H:3]

"Draw," Chino said after a moment. "I will Normal Summon Naturia Marron." She made direct eye contact with Hitoda. "I will activate Marron's effect. I will send a "Naturia" monster from my deck to the graveyard."

"Sure, go ahead," Hitoda replied.

"I will send another copy of Naturia Eggplant to the graveyard. And I will then activate Naturia Eggplant's effect, to add a "Naturia" monster from my graveyard to my hand."

"Oh, that one does have to be countered," Hitoda said flippantly. "Apollousa. Windblume Arrow!"

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess: 3000 - 800 = 2200ATK]

"... I will activate the effect of Naturia Marron," Chino continued. "I will target Naturia Camellia and Naturia Eggplant in my graveyard to shuffle them back into the deck, and draw a card."

"Nope to that too," Hitoda replied. "Windblume Arrow!" The arrow struck—while Apollousa did not destroy the monster that had activated the effect, she still negated it.

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess: 2200 - 800 = 1400ATK]

"Fine then," Chino replied, still rather calm. "Spell Card, One for One, I can send a monster from my hand to the graveyard and Special Summon a Level 1 monster from my deck. Come—Naturia Mole Cricket."

"You have another one?" Hitoda said in surprise.

"Obviously." Chino raised a hand. "I discarded my third copy of Naturia Eggplant. Can I add a "Naturia" monster back to my hand?"

Hitoda considered it. "Take it," she said after a moment.

Chino picked up a card. "By banishing the Level 5 Naturia Bamboo Shoot from the graveyard, I will revive Spore. Do you have a response?"

"Spore?" Hitoda murmured. "... no." She was clearly saving the last negate to block off Mole Cricket's highly annoying effect. In front of Chino, a large dandelion spore appeared.

[Spore (1*/400/800/WIND/Plant/Tuner/Effect)]

"Spore's Level increases by the monster banished for this effect."

[Spore: 1* + 5* = 6*]

"I will then activate the effect of Mole Cricket."

Hitoda did not hesitate. "I will negate it. Windblume Arrow!"

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess: 1400 - 800 = 600ATK]

"If that's your choice," Chino said bluntly, "I win. I will tune the Level 6 Spore to the Level 3 Naturia Marron and the Level 1 Naturia Mole Cricket. Earth, burst into the nature that covers the world! Guardian of the sacred tree, rise now and defend the world beyond that which you adore! Synchro Summon! Level 10! Leo, the Keeper of the Sacred Tree!" A version of Leodrake that was dressed in black and silver armour appeared in front of her—and it was familiar to Yuto.

Hadn't that man with the dark orange hair used it too?

[Leo, the Keeper of the Sacred Tree (10*/3100/1900/EARTH/Beast/Synchro/Effect)]

It was only when Hitoda and Chino both looked at him that Yuto realised that he had spoken aloud.

"Which guy with orange hair?" Hitoda said.

"He had his match after you," Yuto said. "Uh—Naoya Otobashi—"

Right. Same last name.

"A city where one sibling is a criminal and the other is a police officer? Sounds like a sitcom." Hitoda hummed. "Sounds complicated—I wouldn't want to be you."

"There's nothing complicated to it," Chino said, glancing away coldly. "I just want to live my life without anyone interfering with me. I just want my life. And that brother of mine never stops getting in trouble…"

"He protests against unfairness while you enforce it," Yuto said, remembering Crow and Shinji. The devastation and conviction in their eyes—in Kiryu's eyes, as well… it was something born of the same complacency that this woman wanted to live in. "If you grew up a Commons, don't you feel the same anger that they all do?"

"... what right does an outsider have to tell me what I feel or don't feel?" Chino retorted, still sounding as calm as ever. "You can speak all the pretty words of rebellion that you want, but they won't move the hearts of those that refuse to listen. They will spit on you regardless. You can't change them, so why bother?" There was something ruthless to the words—and there it was, that familiar hatred of the Tops that Yuto had heard so many times. "Better to simply force them to acknowledge you with your strength, become essential to them, so that they can never look down on you again. Revolution is a child's dream. Someday, they'll wake up and realise how much time they wasted on things that will never go anywhere."

Hitoda laughed. It was a heartless response, and Yuto turned over, slightly confused. Hitoda covered her mouth, before she tilted her head. "Is that what happened to you?" She asked. "This city… you're really all kinda screwed up by it, huh? If I could feel pity, I'd pity you all. You've become the kind of person that could abandon your own brother for prestige and power, and you're calling that maturity!"

Chino did not visibly react. After a moment, she simply held out the two cards in her hand, as though trying to avoid what Hitoda had just said. "Checkmate," she replied. "I will Special Summon Naturia Hydrangea from my hand, since I activated a "Naturia" monster's effect this turn." A blooming blue flower appeared in front of her.

[Naturia Hydrangea (5*/1900/2000/EARTH/Plant/Effect)]

"I will then activate the set Quickplay Spell, Naturia Blessing."

Again?

"I will revive Naturia Fruitfly." The small insect reappeared. "All your monsters lose 300 attack and defense points for each "Naturia" monster I control."

[The Phantom Knights of Cloven Helm: 2000 - 300 x 2 = 1400ATK; 500 - 300 x 2 = 0DEF]

[The Phantom Knights of Rusty Bardiche: 2900 - 300 x 2 = 2300ATK]

[The Phantom Knights of Ancient Cloak: 800 - 300 x 2 = 200ATK; 1000 - 300 x 2 = 400DEF]

[Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess: 600 - 300 x 2 = 0ATK]

[Aussa the Earth Charmer, Immovable: 2450 - 300 x 2 = 1850ATK]

"With Fruitfly's effect, I can take control of a monster with 0 defense points that you control," Chino said. "I will take Cloven Helm." The helmet floated over to her side of the field, no longer weakened.

Yuto's eyes widened.

"I only have to defeat one of you for this to count," Chino said. "Sadly for you, Yuto Kamisoka—you're the weak link."

What?

I can't—

This entire duel, she's stopped me from doing anything—

"Naturia Fruitfly attacks the Defense Position Ancient Cloak, Leo attacks Rusty Bardiche, and Hydrangea and Cloven Helm attack directly," Chino concluded coldly. "Like I said—" Her lip twisted briefly, in a moment of displeasure. "Checkmate."

All four attacks landed—

Yuto: 4000 - 800 - 1900 - 2000 = 0LP

Yuto fell down from the last hit—his own monster's attack.

"Like I said—the weak link. There's no need to continue, correct, Hitoda Makishima?"

Hitoda looked at her, before lowering her duel disk. Chino deactivated her duel disk too.

"Since you lost, I suppose you'll never know where your enemy is," Chino said, looking directly at Yuto, and—

What was this feeling of failure? Of losing to something so perfectly calculated…

He almost couldn't stand it.

"So. I will be escorting you to the cell now. I assure you that I'm physically stronger than you as well, so there's no point in trying to fight your way out of this—"

Another smoke bomb hit the area—a different one from before. Someone grabbed Yuto and lifted him—the dark-haired boy was still practically catatonic.

"I've never been so happy to see you, Tsukikage," Hitoda snarked. Tsukikage was carrying both of them at the same time, which was a testament to his strength. "So? What did our leader say?"

"... his position has been compromised," Tsukikage said. "We are to leave the Underground and hide in the City immediately, before anything more happens down here."

"Sure." Hitoda looked at Yuto for a moment. "... I think we need a break."

Yuto was still staring into space.

Why is it, he thought, that the first time that I have a duel against a truly strong opponent who is actually out to hurt me, I lose immediately?

Why is it that I crumbled when I could have discovered who was behind all this?

… I failed. Hitoda's defences were perfect. It was me. I was the problem.

I wasn't strong enough.

I couldn't do anything.

That felt so short. The two of them made competent moves, and I was there—what, struggling to stay afloat? Suppressed so cleanly by my opponent?

I keep on losing to these 'tricky' decks even though I have so much experience against them. I thought I was better at dealing with them now—my duel against Nue made me feel more confident in that. But was it just because I knew her? Am I still just as weak against everyone else?

I hate this.

---

"Cruel words there, Chino."

"... I could have accomplished the same victory by attacking his partner," Chino mentioned. It wasn't that great of a revelation to Makoto, who had caught it pretty much instantly. "He just had to bring up Naoya. What could I do other than retaliate?"

Makoto held up his hands. "Not criticising you. You win how you want to win. You really tormented him for no reason though. I thought that your philosophy was to not let your feelings get in the way of your job—that it was just business, as it were."

Chino shrugged. She didn't try to make excuses for herself. "I let them go in the end, didn't I?"

"Yeah, I'm sure that you were happy to. Do the bare minimum and get paid, huh?" Makoto sighed. "... we should be giving a report to the boss soon. Probably nothing big's happening up there—I'd almost prefer to do paperwork for that instead of this." He reached out a hand. "Still though, you said that you wanted to face them to test their strength for yourself, right? That's why you didn't want me to interfere too. So? How do they compare?"

"... better than most of the candidates down here," Chino said. "If we want to defeat them, we will have to get our own hands dirty. But they're the same as those two that we faced back then—not good enough to defeat us."

"... tch. I almost wish they were."

"If they defeated us, we could treat it as being defeated and done with this," Makoto agreed. "Are you sure that it was wise to show them that you had a Fusion card? It's not going to interfere with some big plan that the boss has cooked up, right?"

"If it does, I'm glad," Chino said after a pause. "But I doubt it. It's not like he's going to pull some large play that involves Fusion Summoning, right?"

---

In the present:

"I hope that you weren't too alarmed," Roget said pleasantly, sitting by the bed in Security's infirmary. "It was essential for the plan, after all—I was sure that you'd understand. You're the practical kind. And besides, you did tell me that you heal fast. It should be no issue for you. It's not a big deal. I've already instructed the nurses to give you anything that you want. Sergey will be substituting for you in the Cup."

Kaname had apparently broken a rib, but it wasn't as serious as it could have been. Even so, it should put her out of commission for around three to six weeks.

'Should'.

He had already learned that things that should happen didn't matter to this girl. After all—she never bothered with trying to conform to the logic of the world around her, how things should be, and so on—

So many people said 'I make my own choices', and yet, they rarely ever did. They allowed themselves to be influenced by others—to make decisions that were in line with the intentions of others instead of their own, to be suppressed by expectations. It was only human, to be so easily cast away by yourself.

But from the day that he had met this girl, Kaname Mizuchi had only made choices for her own goals.

Roget could… slightly respect that. Mostly because he could use it.

"You will have understood this by now—you're a smart one, after all." Roget leaned his weight on his arm. "You were placed in the Friendship Cup to play a very specific role. You may have thought that your role was to eliminate anyone that I didn't want there. Of course, you're right on that. Good job. But it was also meant for this. I needed your reaction to be genuine so that no one would suspect a thing, of course. And you've proved very useful to me—your mission was a resounding success, and even the ending—because you were taken out of the tournament so brutally, no one will question it when I say that you cannot continue dueling, because it's true. No one will question it when I say I am going to substitute someone in your place."

He grinned widely.

"And because we've already seen a scene of violence from a duelist that was supposedly honourable, the fact that Sergey Volkov will be in this tournament will be far less controversial than if I had simply slotted him in at the start."

Of course, that had been among his considerations. Having Sergey, who was so infamous in the City, be included immediately would have drawn the attention of everyone to him, the man behind the curtain, which might have exposed his machinations. It was a fool's plan. So by placing his pieces down like this…

He had created a situation where Sergey's presence was somewhat acceptable, compared to before. It would still terrify the audience into compliance, but they wouldn't dare to complain.

"But—and I'm only telling you this because you are the only person that I trust fully in this City." He paused for the appropriate amount of time to convey hesitation, pretending that he was considering whether to share things with her or not, as though he hadn't already practised this speech in his head before he even stepped into this room. It wouldn't do to let on that he didn't trust her at all, after all. The only thing that he trusted her to do was be a fool, and continue listening to his orders, because that was just the kind of person that she was. "The danger that I confessed was coming to this city three years ago? It's about to erupt. And I'll need your help then, so rest well. It's the only way to keep this City and its people safe. And you did want to work with me for that, correct? So I'd like you in your peak condition as soon as possible."

He was about to stand up and leave—he was done with the speech that he had composed in his head, after all. However, things didn't proceed precisely like how he had planned them—

Kaname grabbed his wrist, holding it tightly, as though she was about to rip his hand off.

She let go once he was looking at her, and then she signed a single word.

'Apologise.'

"What?" Roget snapped reflexively. "Apologise for what?" Then, he realised how harsh his voice was, swiftly toning it down.

'Told. Me.' Apologise for not telling me beforehand.

"For not telling you?" Roget sighed. "I already said that it was necessary for my plan. If I had told you, you might have disagreed with me, and that would have interrupted my plan."

'I. Anyway. Agree.' I would have agreed anyway. "Tell.' Tell me next time. Then, of course, again—'Apologise.'

Roget grimaced, somewhat exasperated. "I'm not going to apologise for a plan that went so well," he said. "If you have nothing better to say, I'm going back to the office."

Kaname shook her head.

"Fine then." Roget took a step back. "I expect your attendance, even so. Your brother's other two lookalikes have turned up in the city."

And for the briefest of moments, he saw her tense up.

"Exactly. That's why you can't afford to fall behind." Roget hummed. "You've seen how strong the other three are. If those two are enemies… well, shouldn't you get rid of them once you're well?"

It doesn't matter what she decides to do. As long as she turns her gaze on someone who is not me—

Her strength is still mine to use. After all, I stand on my own. Thus—no matter who she destroys, it always benefits me the most.

… who other than her would dare to look at me, in this place that is my kingdom, and demand an apology from me?

---

Duel 1 Summary: Yuzu Hiiragi & Sora Shiun'in vs Hoemi Makima & Seiju Tenma

Duel Format: Tag Duel

Turn 1: Seiju Tenma

Seiju Normal Summons The Agent of Mystery - Earth. (2*/1000/800) He uses Earth's effect to add a "The Agent" monster from his deck to his hand. He activates the Spell Card, The Sacred Waters in the Sky to activate the Field Spell, The Sanctuary in the Sky from the deck and gain 500 LP for each "The Agent" or "Hyperion" monster he controls. [ST&HM: 8000 + 500 = 8500LP] He activates the Spell Card, Celestial Transformation, to Special Summon The Agent of Force - Mars (3*/0/0) from his hand. He tunes the Level 2 Earth to the Level 3 Mars to Synchro Summon The Executor of the Underworld - Pluto (5*/2300/0) He ends his turn.

Turn 2: Yuzu Hiiragi

Yuzu draws. She activates 1st Movement Solo to Special Summon Opera the Melodious Diva (4*/2300/1000) from her Deck. She Special Summons Sonata the Melodious Diva (3*/1200/1000) from her hand. Sonata gives all Fairy monsters she controls 500 ATK/DEF. (STMD: 1200 + 500 = 1700ATK; 1000 + 500 = 1500DEF) (OTMD: 2300 + 500 = 2800ATK; 1000 + 500 = 1500DEF) She has Opera attack Pluto. Seiju banishes Mars from the GY with Pluto's effect to change Opera to facedown Defense Position. Yuzu sets 1 card and ends her turn.

Turn 3: Hoemi Makima

Hoemi draws. She Normal Summons Vylon Soldier. (4*/1700/1000) She activates the Spell Card, Photon Lead, Special Summoning Vylon Prism (4*/1500/1500) from her hand. She tunes the Level 4 Prism to the Level 4 Soldier to Synchro Summon Vylon Epsilon (8*/2800/1200) in Attack Position. She pays 500 LP to equip Prism from the GY to Epsilon. [ST&HM: 8500 - 500 = 8000LP] Hoemi equips the Equip Spells, Vylon Component and Vylon Material to Epsilon. By sending Component to the GY, she destroys Yuzu's set Opera with Epsilon's effect. She uses Component's effect to add Vylon Segment to her hand and equip it to Epsilon. Prism gives Epsilon 1000 ATK and Material gives Epsilon 600 ATK. (VE: 2800 + 1000 + 600 = 4400ATK) Pluto attacks and destroys Sonata. Sanctuary in the Sky negates damage. Epsilon attacks directly. [YH&SS: 8000 - 4400 = 3600LP] She ends her turn.

Turn 4: Sora Shiun'in

Sora draws. Sora activates the Spell, Frightfur Patchwork. He adds Polymerization and Edge Imp Sabres from his deck to his hand. He Normal Summons Fluffal Mouse. (1*/100/100) With Mouse's effect, he Special Summons two more copies of Mouse from the Deck. He activates Polymerization, fusing the three copies of Mouse on the field with Sabres in his hand to Fusion Summon Frightfur Tiger. (6*/1900/1200) Epsilon stops targeting of its Equip Spells, Segment stops targeting of Epsilon with monster/Trap effects. Sora targets and destroys Sanctuary and Pluto. Hoemi uses Pluto's effect to banish Vylon Soldier and change Tiger to facedown Defense Position. Sora activates the Continuous Spell, Toy Vendor. He discards a card and draws a card, and since it's a "Fluffal" monster, he can Special Summon Fluffal Dog (4*/1700/1000) from his deck. He adds a "Fluffal" monster from his Deck to his hand. He activates Polymerization, fusing Fluffal Dog and Edge Imp Chain to Fusion Summon Frightfur Cruel Whale. (9*/2600/2400) He uses Chain's effect to add a "Frightfur" card from his Deck to his hand. He uses Cruel Whale's effect to destroy Epsilon and Toy Vendor. The two destroyed Equip Spells let Hoemi add two "Vylon" Spells from her Deck to her hand. Toy Vendor lets Sora add a "Fluffal" monster or Edge Imp Sabres from his Deck to his hand. Cruel Whale attacks directly. [ST&HM: 8000 - 2600 = 5400LP] Sora ends his turn.

Turn 5: Seiju Tenma

Seiju draws. He banishes Pluto from the GY to add Sanctuary from the GY to his hand. He activates it. He Normal Summons The Agent of Creation - Venus (3*/1600/0) from his hand and pays 500 LP thrice to Special Summon three Mystical Shine Balls (2*/500/500) from his Deck. [ST&HM: 5400 - 500 x 3 = 3900LP] He banishes Earth from his GY to Special Summon Majesty Hyperion (8*/2100/2700) from his hand. He has Mystical Shine Ball attack Cruel Whale. Sora activates the set card, Pianissimo, changing Cruel Whale's ATK to 100 and stopping it from being destroyed by battle or card effects that turn. (FCW: 2600 → 100ATK) [YH&SS: 3600 - 400 = 3200LP] The second Shine Ball attacks the Defense Position Tiger. [YH&SS: 3200 - 700 = 2500LP] The third one attacks Tiger. [YH&SS: 2500 - 700 = 1800LP] Venus attacks Cruel Whale. [YH&SS: 1800 - 1500 = 300LP] Seiju tributes all three Shine Balls to Special Summon Trias Hierarchia. (9*/1900/2900) He draws two cards with its effect and destroys Frightfur Tiger. He sets 1 card and ends his turn.

Turn 6: Yuzu Hiiragi

Yuzu draws. She Normal Summons Soprano the Melodious Songstress. (4*/1400/1400) She Special Summons Canon the Melodious Diva. (4*/1400/2000) She uses Soprano and Canon to Link Summon Bloom Harmonist the Melodious Floral Virtuoso. (L2/1000/↙, ↘) She uses Floral Virtuoso's effect and discards 1 card to Special Summon Alto the Melodious Songstress (1*/100/800) and Laureate Francois the Melodious Maestra (7*/2300/1700) from her Deck. She uses Alto's effect to increase Laureate Francois's Level by 1. (LFTMM: 7* + 1* = 8*) She uses Laureate Francois's effect to add a LIGHT Fairy monster from her GY to her hand. She then tunes the Level 1 Alto to the Level 8 Laureate Francois and Synchro Summons Gospodin Tchaikovsky the Melodious Overture Saint. (9*/3000/2000) She uses Tchaikovsky's effect to destroy Bloom Harmonist, along with Majesty Hyperion and Trias Hierarchia. She gains 400 LP for each. [YH&SS: 300 + 400 x 3 = 1500LP] Tchaikovsky attacks Venus. Seiju activates the Trap, Light of Judgement, discarding a LIGHT monster to send Tchaikovsky to the GY. Cruel Whale attacks Venus. Sanctuary negates damage. Yuzu sets 1 card and ends her turn.

Turn 7: Hoemi Makima

Hoemi draws. She activates Monster Reborn, reviving Vylon Epsilon. She activates the Spell Card, Vylon Matter, shuffling three Equip Spells into the Deck to destroy Yuzu's set card. She equips Vylon Material and Vylon Filament to Epsilon. She sends Filament to the GY with Epsilon's effect to destroy Cruel Whale. Filament lets Hoemi add Vylon Segment to her hand. She equips it to Epsilon. Epsilon gains 600 ATK and cannot be targeted by monster/Trap effects. (VE: 2800 + 600 = 3400ATK) It attacks directly. Yuzu Special Summons Consonance the Melodious Diva (5*/1900/1300) from her hand and negates the attack, before targeting Cruel Whale in the GY. Hoemi ends her turn. During the End Phase, Cruel Whale is revived as a "Melodious" monster.

Turn 8: Sora Shiun'in

Sora draws. He uses Consonance's effect to copy Edge Imp Chain's name. He Normal Summons Fluffal Owl. (2*/1000/1000) He adds Polymerization from his Deck to his hand. He activates it, fusing Owl and Consonance treated as Chain, Fusion Summoning Frightfur Kraken. (8*/2200/3000) He uses Cruel Whale's effect to send a "Frightfur" card from his Extra Deck to the GY and boost Cruel Whale's ATK by half its ATK. (FCW: 2600 + 1300 = 3900ATK) Cruel Whale attacks Epsilon. Sanctuary negates damage. Kraken attacks directly twice. [ST&HM: 3900 - 2200 - 2200 = 0LP] Yuzu and Sora win!

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Duel 2 Summary: Noboru Gongenzaka & Shingo Sawatari vs Shobo Akutsuki & Sojiro Yamada

Duel Format: Tag Duel

Turn 1: Shobo Akutsuki

Shobo activates the Field Spell, Rescue-ACE HQ. He Normal Summons Rescue-ACE Hydrant. (1*/0/0) He uses its effect to add a "Rescue-ACE" monster from his Deck to his hand. He activates the Spell Card, ALERT! to add a "Rescue-ACE" monster from his deck to his hand. With the effect of Rescue-ACE HQ, he Normal Summons Rescue-ACE Air Lifter. (4*/1700/1700) He uses Air Lifter's effect to add a "Rescue-ACE" Spell from his Deck to his hand. He sets 2 cards and ends his turn.

Turn 2: Noboru Gongenzaka

Gongenzaka draws. He discards Superheavy Samurai Motorbike to add Superheavy Samurai Scales (4*/800/1800) to his hand. He Special Summons Scales with its own effect. He activates Scales' effect. Shobo activates the Trap Card, CONTAIN!. He also uses Air Lifter's effect and tributes it to Special Summon Rescue-ACE Fire Engine (7*/2500/2500) from his hand. With CONTAIN!'s effect, Scales's effect is negated, and it cannot be used for Synchro, Link, Fusion or Xyz Summons. He uses the effect of Superheavy Samurai Trumpeter (2*/300/600) to Specail Summon itself from his hand. He tributes Trumpeter and Scales to Normal Summon Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei (8*/1000/3500) from his hand. Big Benkei changes itself to Defense Position. Trumpeter revives itself in Defense Position with its own effect. Shobo uses Fire Engine to Special Summon Rescue-ACE Monitor (4*/1800/1800) from the deck. Monitor lets Shobo add a "Rescue-ACE" Trap from his deck to his hand. Big Benkei attacks Fire Engine. HQ gives "Rescue-ACE" monsters 500ATK/DEF. (RAM: 1800 + 500 = 2300ATK/DEF) (RAFE: 2500 + 500 = 3000ATK/DEF) (RAH: 0 + 500 = 500ATK/DEF) [SA&SY: 8000 - 500 = 7500LP] Gongenzaka ends his turn.

Turn 3: Sojiro Yamada

Sojiro draws. He banishes Air Lifter to Special Summon Infernoble Knight Astolfo (1*/500/200) from his hand. Astolfo copies Air Lifter's Level. (IKA: 1* → 4*) He equips "Infernoble Arms - Durendal" to Astolfo. With its effect, he adds Infernoble Knight - Renaud from his Deck to his hand and destroys Durendal itself. He Special Summons Infernoble Knight - Renaud (1*/500/200) from his hand with its own effect, and it is treated as a Tuner monster. He uses its effect to add Durendal back to his hand. He tunes the Level 1 Renaud to the Level 4 Astolfo, Synchro Summoning Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver (5*/2000/200) in Attack Position. He equips Durendal, Noble Arms of Destiny, Noble Arms - Caliburn and Noble Arms - Clarent to Captain Oliver, granting it protection from destruction once per turn and 500 ATK. With Caliburn's effect, he gains 500 LP. [SA&SY: 7500 + 500 = 8000LP] (IKCO: 2000 + 500 = 2500ATK) He pays 500 LP with Clarent's effect to let Captain Oliver attack directly this turn. [SA&SY: 8000 - 500 = 7500LP] Captain Oliver attacks directly. With its effect, Sojiro destroys Big Benkei. [NG&SS: 8000 - 2500 = 5500LP] Monitor attacks Trumpeter. Hydrant attacks directly. [NG&SS: 5500 - 500 = 5000LP] Sojiro banishes Astolfo from the GY with its own effect. He ends his turn.

Turn 4: Shingo Sawatari

Sawatari draws. He sets the Scale 2 Abyss Actor - Leading Lady and the Scale 8 Abyss Actor - Comic Relief in the Pendulum Scales, Pendulum Summoning Abyss Actor - Superstar (7*/S3/2500/1800) and Abyss Actor - Twinkle Little Star (4*/S9/1000/1000) from his hand. He uses Superstar's effect to add Abyss Script - Rise of the Abyss King to his hand. He activates it, destroying Monitor and trying to destroy Captain Oliver, but Noble Arms of Destiny protects Captain Oliver. Sawatari uses the Pendulum Effect of Comic Relief, swapping control of Captain Oliver and Twinkle Little Star, before destroying Comic Relief. Superstar attacks Hydrant. [SA&SY: 7500 - 2000 = 5500LP] Captain Oliver attacks directly. [SA&SY: 5500 - 2500 = 3000LP] Sawatari activates the Continuous Spell, Abyss Script - Abysstainment. He tributes Superstar to set Rise of the Abyss King back to his field. He ends his turn.

Turn 5: Shobo Akutsuki

Shobo draws. He banishes Fire Engine and Hydrant from the GY to Special Summon Rescue-ACE Turbulence. (9*/3000/3000) With HQ's effect, Turbulence gains 500ATK/DEF. (RAT: 3000 + 500 = 3500ATK/DEF) He uses Caliburn's effect. [SA&SY: 3000 + 500 = 3500LP] He activates Mystical Space Typhoon, destroying their own Noble Arms of Destiny. Turbulence attacks Captain Oliver. [NG&SS: 5000 - 500 = 4500LP] Turbulence's effect sets 4 "Rescue-ACE" Quickplay Spells/Traps from the Deck. Using HQ's effect, he shuffles Air Lifter, Hydrant, Monitor and Fire Engine into the deck to draw a card. He sets 1 card facedown and ends his turn.

Turn 6: Noboru Gongenzaka

Gongenzaka draws. He Normal Summons Superheavy Samurai Flutist. (3*/500/1000) Shobo activates the Trap Card, EXTINGUISH! to destroy Flutist. Since Gongenzaka has no Spells/Traps in his GY, he Special Summons Superheavy Samurai Big Waraji (5*/800/1800) from his hand. He uses Big Waraji to Link Summon Superheavy Samurai Scarecrow. (L1/0/↙) He uses Scarecrow's effect to discard a card and Special Summon a "Superheavy Samurai" monster from the GY. Shobo activates CONTAIN!, to negate Scarecrow's effects. Gongenzaka banishes Flutist from the GY to negate the effect and destroy that card. He Special Summons Superheavy Samurai Scales from the GY and uses its effect to Special Summon Superheavy Samurai Motorbike (2*/800/1200) from the GY. He tunes the Level 2 Motorbike to the Level 4 Scales to Synchro Summon Superheavy Samurai Ogre Shutendoji (6*/500/2500) in Defense Position. He uses Shutendoji's effect to destroy all Spells/Traps the opponent controls. Turbulence destroys Shutendoji with its effect.

Turn 7: Sojiro Yamada

Sojiro draws. He Special Summons Astolfo back to the field with its effect, and Special Summons Renaud back with Astolfo's effect as well. He uses Renaud's effect to add a "Noble Arms" card from his GY to his hand. He uses Captain Oliver's effect, reviving itself and equipping Astolfo to it as an Equip Spell. (IKCO: 2000 + 500 = 2500ATK) He also equips Caliburn to it, gaining 500 LP and giving Captain Oliver 500 ATK. (IKCO: 2500 + 500 = 3000ATK) [SA&SY: 3500 + 500 = 4000LP] Captain Oliver attacks Scarecrow. With his effect, he destroys Abysstainment. [NG&SS: 4500 - 3000 = 1500LP] Turbulence attacks directly. Gongenzaka banishes Superheavy Samurai Helper from the GY to Special Summon Big Benkei from the GY in Defense Position. Shobo ends his turn.

Turn 8: Shingo Sawatari

Sawatari draws. He sets the Scale 8 Abyss Actor - Funky Comedian in the Pendulum Scale. He Pendulum Summons Superstar, Twinkle Little Star and Comic Relief (3*/S8/1000/2000) back to the field from the Extra Deck. He uses Superstar's effect to add Abyss Script - Romantic Terror from his Deck to his hand. He activates Funky Comedian's effect, tributing Superstar to give Twinkle Little Star ATK equal to its ATK. (AATLS: 1000 + 2500 = 3500ATK) Twinkle Little Star can attack monsters thrice per turn. It destroys Turbulence and Captain Oliver. [SA&SY: 4000 - 500 - 500 = 3000LP] Big Benkei attacks directly. [SA&SY: 3000 - 3500 = 0LP] Sawatari and Gongenzaka win!

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Duel 3 Summary: Mion Myojin & Kyorin Rinsoka vs Hapi Kasegawa & Kana Edogawa

Duel Format: Tag Duel

Turn 1: Kyorin Rinsoka

Kyorin Normal Summons Dance Princess of the Nekroz (4*/1600/800). She activates Nekroz Cycle. While she controls Dance Princess of the Nekroz, her opponent cannot response to the activation of "Nekroz" Spells. She tributes Shurit, Strategist of the Nekroz in her hand to Ritual Summon Nekroz of Valkyrus (8*/2900/1700) from her hand. Shurit lets her add a "Nekroz" Warrior Ritual Monster from the Deck to her hand. She activates Valkyrus's effect. Hapi activates the effect of PSY-Framegear Gamma (2*/1000/0) to Special Summon it from the hand, along with PSY-Frame Driver (6*/2500/0) from the Deck, before negating Valkyrus's effect and destroying it. Kyorin discards Nekroz of Gungnir to negate Valkyrus's destruction. She discards Nekroz of Brionac to add a "Nekroz" monster from her Deck to her hand, other than Nekroz of Brionac. She discards Nekroz of Unicore to add Nekroz Cycle from her graveyard to her hand. She activates Nekroz Cycle, tributing the Level 4 Dance Princess of the Nekroz to Ritual Summon Nekroz of Unicore (4*/2300/1000) from the GY in Attack Position. Kyorin ends her turn. The monsters summoned for the effect of PSY-Framegear Gamma are banished.

Turn 2: Hapi Kasegawa

Hapi draws. She activates the Field Spell, PSY-Frame Circuit. She activates the Spell Card, One for One, discarding a card to Special Summon the Level 1 PSY-Framegear Beta (1*/700/0) from the Deck. Since she Special Summoned a "PSY-Frame" monster, she can Special Summon PSY-Frame Multi-Threader (6*/0/2500) from the GY. She tunes the Level 1 PSY-Framegear Beta to the Level 6 PSY-Frame Multi-Threader to Synchro Summon PSY-Framelord Zeta. (7*/2500/1800) Zeta attacks and destroys Unicore. [MM&KR: 8000 - 200 = 7800LP] She activates the Spell Card, Graceful Charity, drawing three cards and discarding two. She ends her turn.

Turn 3: Mion Myojin

Mion draws. She activates the Field Spell, Magical Citadel of Endymion. Hapi uses the effect of PSY-Framelord Zeta to banish Zeta and Valkyrus from the field. She activates the Continuous Spell, Mythical Institution. She sets the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Master Cerberus in the Pendulum Scale. Since she has no other card in the Pendulum Scales, she destroys Master Cerberus to add a Level 7 or lower "Mythical Beast" Effect Monster from her Deck to her hand. When a Spell is activated, Magical Citadel of Endymion gains a Spell Counter. When a "Mythical Beast" Monster Card Mion controls is destroyed, Mythical Institution gains 2 Spell Counters. She sets the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Jackal King in the Pendulum Scale. Since she has no other card in her Pendulum Scales, she can destroy it to Special Summon a "Mythical Beast" Pendulum Monster from her Extra Deck. She Special Summons Mythical Beast Master Cerberus (8*/S4/2800/2800) from her Extra Deck. She sets the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Bashilisk in the Pendulum Scale. Since she has no other card in her Pendulum Scales, she destroys it, shuffling Jackal King into the Deck to draw a card. She sets the Scale 4 Mythical Beast Garuda in the Pendulum Scale. Since she has no other—you get it. She destroys Garuda to destroy PSY-Frame Circuit. She removes three Spell Counters from Mythical Institution to add Servant of Endymion from her Deck to her hand. She sets the Scale 2 Servant of Endymion and the Scale 8 Magister of Endymion in the Pendulum Scales. She Pendulum Summons Mythical Beast Bashilisk and Mythical Beast Garuda from her Extra Deck. Mythical Beast Master Cerberus attacks directly. Hapi activates the effect of PSY-Framegear Beta. While it and Driver are summoned to the field, since Master Cerberus cannot be destroyed by card effects while there are at least four Spell Counters on the field, it is not destroyed by Beta's effect. Thus, the Battle Phase does not end. Master Cerberus attacks Driver. [HK&KE: 8000 - 300 = 7700LP] She Normal Summons Frequency Magician (2*/800/400) from her hand. She tunes the Level 2 Frequency Magician to the Level 4 Mythical Beast Garuda to Synchro Summon Tempest Magician (6*/2200/1400) in Attack Position. Tempest Magician gains 1 Spell Counter with its own effect. She removes all Spell Counters from her field to inflict 500 damage to the opponent for each. [HK&KE: 7700 - 500 x 22 = 0LP] Mion and Kyorin win!

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Duel 4 Summary: Yuto Kamisoka & Hitoda Makishima vs Chino Otobashi

Duel Format: Battle Royale

Turn 1: Chino Otobashi

Chino activates the Spell Card, Naturia Flourish. Since she controls no Tuner monsters, she can Special Summon a "Naturia" Tuner Monster from her Deck. She Special Summons Naturia Camellia. (4*/1400/700) With Camellia's effect, she sends a "Naturia" card from her Deck to the GY. She Normal Summons Naturia Mole Cricket (1*/0/0) from her hand. She uses Mole Cricket's effect. With Camellia's effect, she substitutes the cost and sends two cards from the top of her Deck to the GY to Special Summon Naturia Antjaw (2*/400/200) from her Deck. She tunes the Level 4 Naturia Camellia to the Level 1 Naturia Mole Cricket, Synchro Summoning Naturia Beast. (5*/2200/1700) Mole Cricket revives itself back to her field. She activates the Spell Card, Naturia Blessing. She revives Naturia Camellia. She tunes the Level 4 Naturia Camellia to the Level 2 Naturia Antjaw, Synchro Summoning Naturia Barkion. (6*/2500/1800) She sets two cards and ends her turn.

Turn 2: Yuto Kamisoka

Yuto Normal Summons The Phantom Knights of Torn Scales. (3*/600/1600) He uses Torn Scales' effect to discard a card and send a "Phantom Knights" card from his Deck to the GY. He banishes Phantom Knights of Ancient Cloak from the GY to add a "The Phantom Knights" card from his Deck to his hand. Since he controls a "The Phantom Knights" monster, he Special Summons The Phantom Knights of Silent Boots (3*/200/1200) from his hand. He overlays the Level 3 Silent Boots and Torn Scales to Xyz Summon The Phantom Knights of Break Sword. (R3/2000/1000/OU:2) He uses Break Sword's effect to detach 1 Xyz Material and destroy Break Sword and Naturia Barkion. Chino activates the Continuous Trap, Safe Zone. While it's face-up on the field, Barkion cannot be targeted or destroyed by card effects, and it cannot be destroyed by battle. Yuto uses Break Sword's effect. He Special Summons Torn Scales and Silent Boots and increases each of their Levels by 1, and overlays the two of them to Xyz Summon Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon (R4/2500/2000/OU:2) in Attack Position. He activates Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon's effect, detaching 1 Xyz Material to halve Naturia Beast's ATK and have Dark Rebellion gain ATK equal to the amount lost. (NB: 2200 / 2 = 1100ATK) (DRXD: OU:2 - 1 = OU:1; 2500 + 1100 = 3600ATK) At the end of the Main Phase, Chino tributes Mole Cricket to Special Summon Naturia Butterfly (3*/500/1200) and Naturia Fruitfly (3*/800/1500) from the Deck. Dark Rebellion attacks Naturia Beast. Chino uses Naturia Butterfly's effect to send a card from the top of her Deck to the GY and negate the attack. Yuto sets 2 cards and ends his turn.

Turn 3: Hitoda Makishima

Hitoda Normal Summons Eda the Sun Magician (4*/1500/1500) from her hand. With Eda's effect, she Special Summons Aussa the Earth Charmer from her Deck in Defense Position. Since she controls a Spellcaster monster, she Special Summons Ranryu (4*/1500/200) from her hand. She sends Ranryu and Eda from the field to the graveyard to Special Summon Awakening of the Possessed - Rasenryu (5*/2000/20) from her Deck. With Rasenryu's effect, she returns Barkion to the Extra Deck. Safe Zone is destroyed. Yuto activates the Continuous Trap, Phantom Knights' Fog Blade, negating Naturia Beast's effect and preventing it from being attacked or attacking. Hitoda activates the Continuous Spell, Awakening of the Possessed, allowing her monsters to gain 300 ATK/DEF for each different Attribute she controls. For the sake of your eyes, stats will be omitted from this Duel Summary. Hitoda activates the Quickplay Spell, Sol and Luna, changing Naturia Butterfly to facedown Defense Position while changing her set monster, Aussa the Earth Charmer (3*/500/1500), to face-up Defense Position. She uses Aussa's effect to take control of Naturia Beast. Rasenryu attacks Naturia Fruitfly. Chino activates the Continuous Trap, Naturia Sacred Tree, attributing Naturia Fruitfly to Special Summon Naturia Cherries (1*/200/200) in Defense Position. Hitoda has Rasenryu attack and destroy Butterfly. Hitoda then uses Aussa and Rasenryu to Link Summon Aussa the Earth Charmer, Immovable (L2/1850/↙, ↘) She uses Rasenryu's effect to add Unpossessed from her Deck to her hand. Awakening of the Possessed lets her draw a card since she summoned a Spellcaster monster with 1850 ATK. Chino Special Summons Mole Cricket from the GY. Hitoda sets 2 cards facedown and uses Aussa's effect to revive Naturia Beast from Chino's GY to her field. Chino uses Mole Cricket's effect to Special Summon Naturia Marron (3*/1200/700) and Naturia Mantis (4*/1700/1500) from the Deck to her field. Hitoda ends her turn.

Turn 4: Chino Otobashi

Chino draws. She shuffles Naturia Camellia and Naturia Butterfly from the GY into the Deck with Marron's effect to draw a card. She tunes the Level 1 Naturia Cherries to the Level 4 Naturia Mantis and the Level 3 Naturia Marron, Synchro Summoning Naturia Tigridia (8*/2500/1000) in Attack Position. With Mole Cricket's effect, she revives it. She tributes it to Special Summon Naturia Camellia and Naturia Bamboo Shoot (5*/2000/2000) from her Deck. She uses Camellia's effect to send Naturia Eggplant from her Deck to the GY. She adds a "Naturia" monster from her GY to her hand with Eggplant's effect. She tunes the Level 4 Camellia to the Level 5 Bamboo Shoot, Synchro Summoning Naturia Leodrake (9*/3000/1800) in Attack Position. Naturia Leodrake attacks Naturia Beast. Hitoda activates the Continuous Trap, Unpossessed. [HM: 4000 - 500 = 3500LP] She uses Unpossessed's effect to Special Summon a Spellcaster monster with 1500 DEF and a different Attribute from her Deck. She Special Summons Wynn the Wind Charmer (3*/500/1500) in facedown Defense Position. Tigridia attacks Dark Rebellion. Yuto activates the Trap Card, The Phantom Knights of Lost Vambrace, Special Summoning it as a Level 2 monster and making Tigridia Level 2, while also lowering its ATK by 600. [CO: 4000 - 600 = 3400LP] Naturia Tigridia Special Summons Naturia Barkion from the Extra Deck, since it was destroyed. Barkion attacks Dark Rebellion, and they are both destroyed. Chino activates the Spell Card, Miracle Synchro Fusion, banishing Barkion and Beast from the GY to Fusion Summon Naturia Exterio. (10*/2800/2400) Chino sets 2 cards and ends her turn.

Turn 5: Yuto Kamisoka

Yuto draws. He activates the Spell Card, The Phantom Knights' Rank-Up-Magic Force. Chino banishes a card from her GY and sends a card from the top of her Deck to the GY to negate it with Exterio's effect. Yuto does a lot of banishing here that I don't want to narrate again, but it ends with Ragged Gloves and Torn Scales on the field. He uses Ragged Gloves, Torn Scales and Lost Vambrace to Link Summon The Phantom Knights of Rusty Bardiche. (L3/2100/↙, ↘, →) He sends a "The Phantom Knights" monster from his Deck to the GY and sets a "Phantom Knights" Spell/Trap from his Deck facedown. He banishes Phantom Knights' Reinforcements from the GY to add a "The Phantom Knights" monster from his Deck to his hand, and he sends a "Phantom Knights" card with a different name from his Deck to the GY. He banishes Stained Greaves from the GY and Special Summons The Phantom Knights of Cloven Helm (4*/1500/500) from his hand. He banishes Phantom Knights' Wing from the GY and revives Ancient Cloak. He changes Ancient Cloak to Defense Position to give Rusty Bardiche 800 ATK/DEF and banishes Ragged Gloves from the GY to send another "Phantom Knights" card from his Deck to the GY. Cloven Helm gains 500 ATK. Chino tributes Mole Cricket to Special Summon Naturia Fruitfly from her Deck. Fruitfly lowers all of the opposing monsters' attack and defense points, but once again, we're not typing that out. Cloven Helm attacks Fruitfly, and Rusty Bardiche destroys Exterio. [CO: 3400 - 300 - 100 = 3000LP]

Chino activates the Quickplay Spell, Naturia Blessing, reviving Naturia Exterio. Hitoda activates the Trap Card, Possessed Partnerships, chaining it to Naturia Blessing. She Special Summons Familiar-Possessed - Wynn (4*/1850/1500) from her hand, and destroys Naturia Sacred Tree. Chino adds a "Naturia" card from her Deck to her hand with Naturia Sacred Tree's effect. Hitoda draws a card with Awakening of the Possessed's effect. Yuto ends his turn.

Turn 6: Hitoda Makishima

Hitoda draws. She Flip Summons Wynn the Wind Charmer. She uses Aussa the Earth Charmer, Immovable's effect to revive Naturia Tigridia to her field. She uses Naturia Tigridia, Wynn the Wind Charmer, Aussa the Earth Charmer and Familiar-Possessed - Wynn to Link Summon Apollousa, Bow of the Goddess. (L4/?/↙, ↑, ↓, ↘) Apollousa's original ATK is equal to the number of materials used for her Link Summon x 800. (ABOTG: ? → 800 x 4 = 3200ATK) Apollousa gains 600 ATK from Awakening of the Possessed. Chino uses Mole Cricket's effect. Hitoda uses Apollousa's effect, lowering its ATK by 800 to negate the effect. (ABOTG: 3200 + 600 - 800 = 3000ATK) Apollousa attacks Exterio. [CO: 3000 - 200 = 2800LP] Aussa attacks Leodrake. It gains 800 ATK with Unpossessed, and 600 ATK with Awakening of the Possessed. (ATECI: 1850 + 800 + 600 = 3250ATK) [CO: 2800 - 250 = 2550LP] Hitoda ends her turn.

Turn 7: Chino Otobashi

Chino draws. She Normal Summons Naturia Marron. She uses Marron's effect to send Eggplant from her Deck to the GY. Eggplant lets her add a "Naturia" monster from her GY to her hand. Hitoda negates it by reducing Apollousa's ATK by 800. Chino shuffles Camellia and Eggplant from her GY into the Deck for Marron's effect. Hitoda negates that by reducing Apollousa's ATK by 800 again. Chino activates the Spell Card, One for One, sending Naturia Eggplant from her hand to the GY to Special Summon Naturia Mole Cricket from her Deck. Chino uses Eggplant's effect to add a "Naturia" monster from her GY to her hand. She banishes the Level 5 Bamboo Shoot from the GY to revive Spore (1*/400/800) and increase its Level by 5. (S: 1* + 5* = 6*) Chino activates Mole Cricket's effect. Apollousa's ATK is lowered by 800 to negate the attack. (ABOTG: 3000 - 800 x 3 = 600ATK) Chino tunes the Level 6 Spore to the Level 3 Marron and the Level 1 Mole Cricket, Synchro Summoning Leo, the Keeper of the Sacred Tree. (10*/3100/1900) Chino Special Summons Naturia Hydrangea. (5*/1900/2000) She activates her set card, Naturia Blessing, reviving Naturia Fruitfly. A lot of debuffs happen here again. Fruitfly takes control of Cloven Helm. Fruitfly attacks Ancient Cloak, Leo attacks Rusty Bardiche, and Cloven Helm and Hydrangea attack directly. [YK: 4000 - 800 - 1900 - 2000 = 0LP] By special rule, Yuto and Hitoda lose.

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OC Cards:

Alto the Melodious Songstress

(1*/100/800/LIGHT/Fairy/Tuner/Effect)

If this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 "Melodious" monster on the field; increase or decrease its Level by 1. If a "Melodious" monster you control battles an opponent's monster while this card is in the GY: You can banish this card from the GY; decrease the opposing monster's ATK by 500. You can only activate each effect of "Alto the Melodious Songstress" once per turn.

Gospodin Tchaikovsky the Melodious Overture Saint

(9*/3000/2000/LIGHT/Fairy/Synchro/Effect)

1 LIGHT Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters

If this card is Synchro Summoned using at least 2 "Melodious" monsters as Synchro Material: You can target 1 "Melodious" monster you control and 2 cards on the field; destroy the targeted cards, and if you do, gain LP equal to the number of destroyed cards x 400. If this card battles a Special Summoned monster: You can target 1 "Melodious" monster you control other than this card; Tribute it, and if you do, negate the effects of that Special Summoned monster until the end of the Battle Phase. Your opponent cannot activate the effects of that monster they control in response to this effect. You can only activate each effect of "Gospodin Tchaikovsky the Melodious Overture Saint" once per turn.

Consonance the Melodious Diva

(5*/1900/1300/LIGHT/Fairy/Tuner/Effect)

When your opponent's monster declares an attack: You can Special Summon this card from your hand, and if you do, negate that attack, then you can target 1 monster in your GY. During the End Phase, if the monster targeted by the above effect is still in the GY: You can Special Summon it to the field, and if you do, it is treated as a "Melodious" monster. Once per turn: You can target 1 monster in the GY; this card's name and Level/Attribute/Type become the same as the targeted monster's until the End Phase.

Trivia: Honestly, I just made this card because I knew that Yuzu would probably need another Tuner to tune to her low-Level monsters, since Alto is meant to be tuned to the Maestras. No big plans for it, just made it around like Chapter 40 and it was convenient to bring it in.

Naturia Flourish

(Spell)

If you control no Tuner monster(s): Special Summon 1 "Naturia" Tuner monster from your Deck, and if you do, add 1 "Naturia" monster from your Deck or GY to your hand. You can only activate "Naturia Flourish" once per turn.

Naturia Tigridia

(8*/2500/1000/EARTH/Beast/Synchro/Effect)

1 EARTH Tuner + 1 EARTH non-Tuner monster

If a monster declares an attack: You can send 1 card from the top of your Deck to the GY; negate the attack. This card cannot be targeted by card effects during your opponent's turn. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect: Special Summon 1 "Naturia" Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck, ignoring Summoning conditions. You can only activate each effect of "Naturia Tigridia" once per turn.

Trivia: It always bugged me mildly that Naturia had Synchros for Level 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10, but there was just one missing Level in the middle. Thus, I made this card in like 2019 for a different fic that I scrapped. Its name is a fusion of 'tiger' and 'viridian'. I know Scrap Dragon exists and is usually the Level 8 (before the Baronne Swordsoul era) you make, but eh.

Phantom Knights' Reinforcements

(Trap)

You can target 1 DARK monster you control; that monster cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn. You can banish this card from the GY; add 1 "The Phantom Knights" monster from your Deck to your hand, and if you do, send 1 "Phantom Knights" card with a different name from that card from your Deck to the GY. You can only activate each effect of "Phantom Knights' Reinforcements" once per turn.

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Different Card Effects from TCG:

1st Movement Solo - Can Special Summon from the hand or deck like its TCG version, but does not have the Special Summoning restriction, since it doesn't have it in the anime.

Abyss Actor - Leading Lady - TCG effect, but its ATK-lowering effect only lasts for one turn.

Abyss Actor - Superstar - Anime effect. Using its TCG effect makes it immune to Zarc's effects.

Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon - Anime effect

The Phantom Knights' Rank-Up-Magic Burial - Anime-only card.

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End Notes:

(These notes are very all over the place. I wrote them as I was writing each part of the chapter, and this has been one and a half weeks in the making, so yeah, there might be some repeats.)

As a reminder, the Round 1 interview about contestants can be found in the Shorts fic! It's Chapter 6. Anyway, we're really getting into it now.

… I should definitely have split this chapter. Send help. This chapter was so long that I took a break in between to write a chapter of Twin Dragons just to avoid burnout. But yeah, hope you enjoyed! It was a conscious decision to post it all as one chapter, so that I wouldn't make you guys sit through two chapters of filler before getting to the big one.

Just to clarify, but Sora does not know that Roget was sent as an Academia spy. Since Roget was sent there three years ago, Sora wasn't even in Academia yet, haha. So yeah, the Lancers, for now, do not have confirmation that it is Roget.

Every Lancer in the Underground except Tsukikage and Nue got a duel here. Tsukikage, because he was talking to Reiji before coming back down, and Nue, because she's only sent down once Tsukikage's done evacuating everyone. She's going to be stuck down there for a while longer. :) I needed her stuck there for a specific plot point. Of course, the Lancers won't make it out immediately either, and because Roget is watching, they can't exactly reunite with the others, but they're certainly going to play a larger role.

Can you tell I kind of just went with the flow this chapter? I definitely just tried to have fun with the duels and dialogue, haha. It's going to be a lighter spot in an otherwise tense arc. (I say this after that fourth duel and final scene. My bad. But yeah, the first half is lighter. The power of whiplash.)

I was originally going to skip Sawatari-Gongenzaka and Mion-Kyorin's duels, and focus on the other two, but I decided that I was being mildly biased, so I just did all four. I mean, Mion-Kyorin didn't take me that long since it is, for all intents and purposes, a complete curbstomp. Sora and Yuzu's duel also came easily enough—I always wanted the two of them to Tag Duel at least once. The ending of the duel was definitely what I was writing to get to though—Sora struggling to give a finishing statement that doesn't sound like a villain's speech, haha.

I also wanted to give Sawatari and Gongenzaka an actual win when they dueled together. I'll fully admit that it was hard to write. I feel like I'm underselling a lot of the Lancers' strength simply because some are stronger than others, which is why I gave them a chance to show off that hey, if they actually listen to each other, they can be pretty competent instead of being comic relief. Their duel definitely took me the longest because I have zero clue about what any of the decks involved do though, so I had to read through and construct a few test decks to play with so that I could figure it out. You'd think that after almost six years of writing Arc V fanfiction, I would be able to write a coherent Superheavy Samurai turn on the first try, but nope. I swear I'll get better though, because I do want to give Gongenzaka more to do! It's a learning curve. For once, though, I actually feel okay about the duel that I wrote with them! :D But yeah, also showing Sawatari being a bit less self-centred and being willing to actually work with Gongenzaka without considering him a burden is nice. I feel like I write Sawatari as someone more down to earth and self-reflective than canon in this story, because while I don't say it explicitly, Sawatari in this story is not deluded about his own capabilities in the slightest—he knows that he's weak, and he's trying his best to find something special about himself that he can call his own. You see that in the Yugo duel and in his interactions with the other Lancers too, especially, well, how he talks to Mion. He's just trying his best. :)

Meanwhile, Kyorin and Mion's duel was fun to write. To be honest, either of them could sweep their opponents away by themselves. I just wanted to follow up on their dynamic from Chapter 22. Kyorin is a rare example of a character in this story who actually doesn't hide her feelings at all—she doesn't put up fronts to try to look more confident, she's always anxious and struggles with a lot of things, but she shows those weaknesses openly. (I think I've mentioned this before on an off note, but Kyorin has both dyscalculia and dyslexia, which does impact her in terms of language and working with numbers, which is why, as those who have read the Shorts would probably know, she likes drawing instead. It's something that I based off a friend of mine.) Meanwhile, Mion is probably the most straightforward out of the characters here—she has her own inner complications, but most of the time, she simply accepts things as they are and works to change them if she doesn't like them—she never compromises on her own morals.

(Also, I wanted to show off Tempest Magician FTK, but I used it as an OTK instead, since I wanted Kyorin to actually get to do something. Of course, it's not something consistent, considering that it requires her to directly draw into six specific cards here, and three of them have to already be in her hand before she can search any of the others. Still though, the fact that it exists and will work unless the opponent has a handtrap negate on the first turn makes it very apparent to me why this card is banned. Also, Mion will never use this again. Not successfully, at least—just feels too cheap to me, and a single negate will counter it.)

I'll quickly go over how I work with certain things in Tag Duels. Hypothetically, if a player uses the Spell, Pot of Avarice, and returns two of their own monsters and three of their partner's monsters to the deck to draw two cards, the cards are returned to their original owner's deck—they do not get mixed into the current player's deck. Furthermore, only the most 'recent' player can respond to a move with hand traps. Obviously, graveyard and field effects are fair game, but for example, if it's Sawatari's turn, Gongenzaka cannot activate the effects of cards in his hand. This is specifically for 2v2 duels though. Also, I don't know if I ever put a proper ruling on this, but players cannot read the effects of other players' cards unless they're teaming up or their opponent chooses to show it to them. So yup, you can't read your opponent's cards. :D That's why a lot of the characters can be seen working off memory and experience.

So the cameo decks are all decks that I heavily considered giving to what I would consider the 'minibosses' of the arc, aka the Elite Officers. In fact, all of the characters are based off early concepts for other officers that could have existed before I cut down the cast. The names are literally random though.

Vylons had such a cool aesthetic, but were frustratingly incompetent in terms of Main Deck monsters. Otherwise, I'd straightup have made them a boss deck. Agents were going to cameo under Ruka, but I decided against that a while into the Friendship Cup. I love them too though, so they also cameoed here. The ruling of Majesty Hyperion's effect still working even though The Sanctuary in the Sky reduces damage to 0 is valid. It's the same ruling that allows Recite Starling's effect to work even when Assembly Nightingale's effect is active.

For the next duel, Infernoble Knights got new support, so I gave them some screentime, even though there are no major characters using them. Because of that, Rescue-ACE, which is an archetype of FIRE Warriors (and also Machines), also got put in. Originally, it was a team-up of Flamvell and Laval. I was hoping the new Infernoble Knights would be translated by the time I got here, but well, it didn't matter in the end, since I didn't actually use them. The normal Infernoble Knights are painful. I also tried to keep it to just the Infernoble Knight monsters for fun, though I did give some standard Noble Arms cards to the deck to help it out a little. Meanwhile, the Rescue-ACE archetype is pretty small, so I didn't mind using it here. It's pretty fun! Here's hoping that they don't immediately get new support after I post this chapter! (Edit: I wrote this note at the start of April because that was when I drafted the duel. Thanks, Duelist Nexus.)

Anyway, it's a pair-up that you wouldn't expect to work, but since all Infernoble Knight cards use FIRE Warriors in general, they actually work out. (And also, are painfully difficult to transcribe into duel dialogue. It got to the point where I lampshaded it in universe. And let's not get started on the inconsistent translations.) (Also, the first time that I saw the Rescue-ACE cards, I thought of a character that just shouted out the card names and how annoying that would be, and while I'm not using them in a major capacity in this fic, I decided to carry over that spirit. It's not often that Sawatari plays the straight man.)

And of course, PSY-Frame was also a deck that would usually be a pretty good counter to decks with no recovery. Unfortunately, they drew the short straw of being assigned to be opponents to Nekroz and Endymion, or more specifically, to Mion and Kyorin. :D Even more unfortunately, they don't get Lambda. So that went about as well as one might expect. No need for more discussion on that front. If Watts were a deck that would only threaten Yuzu and Gongenzaka, PSY-Frame would threaten everyone but Mion and Kyorin, lmao. Admittedly, Kyorin doesn't seem to do much here, but that's the point—Mion herself points out how Kyorin tried to set things up to help her, instead of playing on her own. Kyorin isn't quite confident enough to play for herself in a Tag Duel, especially not when someone like Mion, who she perceives as better than her, is around.

Ok, we can finally talk about the big one! So really, Yuto being in this duel and losing in it was always intended. Why? Because throughout this entire fic, Yuto doesn't actually know what it feels like to lose to an enemy. Clearly, he's never lost to Academia, or he'd be dead. His only loss is to Nue, which, to him, doesn't feel as dangerous. In a sense, I wanted Yuto to have a meaningful loss before this arc ended, to set up stuff for a future arc too. And hey, there's his trauma. :D He lost to a Fusion user, which is definitely going to affect him for a while—especially because he lost and should have died, but didn't. (And yes, the moment that Naturia showed up, everyone should have expected Miracle Synchro Fusion to show up as well. :) God, I love Naturia.) Also, the duel was definitely meant to subvert your expectations—I'm pretty sure that none of you expected Chino to actually pull through, but eh. I need my antagonists to be convincingly strong, at the very least. Funnily enough, if Academia is quantity over quality, Roget's philosophy here is quality over quantity.

What I went back and forth on for most of the arc—even until I actually wrote this chapter—was who his partner should be. Yuzu, Sora and Sawatari were all in contention as well. In the end, Hitoda 'won' (or, I guess you could consider it a loss) and ended up as Yuto's partner. Why? Well, a large part of it is that I wanted to give the other three characters a chance to be properly badass, and it just so happened that all three of them (Sora to a lesser extent) are destroyed by Naturia Beast. (Yuto, on the other hand, is absolutely helpless against any of the Synchros. Sorry if you all wanted to see him do more in this duel, but I hope I conveyed how genuinely painful Beast/Barkion/Exterio are to work around. He literally couldn't Rank Up or use Traps.) So, while there are also future plot reasons that Hitoda works as Yuto's partner here, it was also because she's one of the only available characters who can put up a decent showing against Chino.

Also, yes, I actually laid down some subtle clues in earlier chapters, but the Elite Officers are very aware of how Fusion works. I won't point out all of them because this note is already too long, but for example, in Chapter 26, Makoto mentions that they're not familiar with Pendulum, Ritual and Xyz, but Fusion is never mentioned. In Chapter 27, when Serena tries to Fusion Summon, Makoto and Chino are completely unfazed. Makoto says that it's not in the video, but notably, he isn't actually shocked by it—simply because he already knows what it is, he just didn't think that these opponents would also have access to it. Meanwhile, Chino clearly knows how it works, because she says "since it's Spell-based, it's no concern." Technically, she's seen Serena use Polymerization, but the fact that she can generalise it completely is a clue to the fact that she already knows how it works. There's a lot of tiny details like that sprinkled throughout.

Moving on, we'll talk about some of the non-duel scenes. I don't know how you all guessed it—I actually went back and checked if I said it outright, but it's pretty impressive how many of you guessed that Sergey was going to replace Kaname in the tournament from Round 3 onwards. Shoutout to two of the Guests, Mr. Owl and especially to LHOCIN, who gave me a heart attack when I first read their guess about Sergey, haha. (Not in a bad way, though.) Yes, the intention from the start was always to swap them out halfway, to signify the shift in the arc—whenever Sergey shows up, things are about to go to shit. It's also to remind everyone that to Roget, each of his pawns are interchangeable in every way except how he uses them. That conversation at the end is basically a mirror of how narcissists tend to downplay their actions towards others. If you're interested, you can search up The Narcissist's Prayer for a simplified version of how that line of thought works.

So yup! You can see it in how Roget immediately starts to say that what he did wasn't a big deal the moment that he steps into the room. He genuinely doesn't see how problematic he is—he's just focused on himself and how all of this will affect his plans. The cajoling, the praise—all of it is an attempt at gaslighting her into thinking that what he did was right. I'd like to draw everyone's attention to the line where Roget goes off-script at the end and says that if he had told her, she might have disagreed. Also, the fact that he frames Kaname as being in the wrong for wanting an apology for him forcing her into a crash. I try to write Roget's dialogue differently when the conversation is in his control—aka following how he planned for it to go—and when it goes off-script. When things become unexpected, he always tries to rewire them back to his original plan, instead of actually reflecting or addressing the new point. Megalomanical. :)

(Whoops, that got long. But yeah, I have a lot of thoughts about Roget as a character in this story. To be honest, I just have a lot of thoughts in general about this story. Help. :p Maybe someday I'll find a platform where I can just dump all these long monologues, and they won't have to take up space in the notes.)

Review responses! (Which I'm starting before I finish the chapter because I'm tired of writing duels for a bit.) (I appreciate no one pressuring me to update! It'd have stressed me out a lot, haha—I really don't like the people who spam authors to update faster. Hope you all enjoyed anyway.) (Also, reminder to Guests that using a name helps me with responding to you!)

To LHOCIN, like I said earlier, good job on guessing the Sergey plot point! Roget is going to get plenty of screentime from now onwards—he's definitely been plotting stuff in the background this entire time, but he's about to properly show his hand. Interesting guesses! As usual, I won't confirm or deny anything, but all that logic is pretty solid. :) Thank you for your review!

To phantomdragons, you asked for a mega-chapter? Here you go. :D Ok, but seriously, I was grinning when I read your review, because your interpretation of the 'older sister characters' is so interesting—and it's actually something I was going to expand upon in later arcs, but you're right! Despite how they're seemingly more mature than the other characters, they're still seventeen. (Well, eighteen in Hitoda's case now. Yes, this story has an actual timeline, even if I don't call actual attention to it.) They still have their own shit to work out, and the thing is, because they're so focused on helping other people work out their problems (see Shino, circa 2023), most of them don't actually have their shit figured out. I won't elaborate more on that, but I love that you caught it. And yeah, I'm glad you caught the detail about Kaname's smile being because she completed Roget's mission for her! Kaname's feelings on Roget… are a lot more complicated than you all probably think, because we haven't actually gotten to see much of anything from her perspective—just from people around her. :D Good guesses on the QOTC. I love how every review is just speculating on what I'm going to do with the three Yu boys, lmao.

To cardfan135, thanks for the review and well-wishes! I laughed when I read "I'm so sorry for you". But yeah, I think I mentioned in Chapter 45 that this arc was never intended to be this long—it was supposed to go on until Chapter 54. A lot of the duels in the Friendship Cup were meant to be skimmed over, and I only intended to focus on 'big duels', so to speak. For example, I think that my original intentions for the first round were to only write Yuno vs Chojiro, Yuzu vs Carly, Yuya vs Kyorin, Mion vs Rua, Serena vs Hitoda, Crow vs Naoya, Shinji vs Ruka, Yugo vs Sawatari and Kaname vs Misty in full, while skimming over the rest—not to be lazy, per se, but because I felt like no one would be interested in seeing those duels in full, and I was worried that if I stayed in the Friendship Cup for too long, it would give people Arc Fatigue. In general, there's a lot of things that I tried to tone down in the arc initially because I thought that no one would be interested in them, before I just went "screw it, it's the story I want to write" and redrafted like most of it. Believe it or not, my solution to "the arc will be too long if I include all the Friendship Cup duels" was "just make the chapters longer". _ Sometimes I wonder how my brain can even function. But yeah, we're coming to the end of the first half, and we're already at the point where I originally thought we'd be done. :D I did think about it more though, and we're probably going to around Chapter 65 or so? Give or take like three or four chapters. I might do some major fusing of chapters though. Can't comment on the Sherry and Shun theory though, for obvious reasons.

To the Guest asking about Academia getting Link Monsters, all I can give to that is a yes. When will they get them? Can't say that.

To the Guest saying that you want to slap Roget, judging from this comments section, you're not the only one! :)

To NightWingBOI, glad that you enjoyed the chapter, and thanks for the well wishes! Honestly, I'm really excited to write the second half too—I've been waiting to write it for a very long time. :)

To the Guest who commented on how Roget is more vile and smart than before, yeah, that was a large part of how I struggled when I was planning out my rewrite of the arc. In Arc V proper, Roget is surprisingly incompetent, all things considered—he does basically nothing. I knew that I wanted to make him properly fit his chess motif by actually letting him plot, and letting him be in control of things. Yugo is definitely going through a lot right now. :)

To the Guest asking about hybrid Ritual-Pendulum monsters, anything relating to that would be a plot spoiler. I will point out that currently, there is only one hybrid monster in the whole story—Yuya's Odd-Eyes Rebellion Dragon, though he hasn't used it for a long while. I'm sure we can all understand why. The thing is, I have complicated feelings on hybrid monsters and how they're used in stories. On one hand, they're cool as hell. I think we can all agree on that. On the other hand, it feels like sometimes monsters are made, and then the Pendulum attribute is tacked onto them to symbolise some kind of great improvement, but it doesn't actually do anything, nor does it symbolise anything. There's a reason why, up until Zarc's defeat, the only person that used Pendulum hybrid cards was Yuya—because Zarc's power from within the Pendulum resonated with Yuya's growth and created those monsters. (And technically the Professor had them too, but that's irrelevant for reasons that I'm not explaining here. :)) I think I know how I want to implement them in this story—but well, for the simple purpose that their existence is… well, supposed to be unique and special, and having more of them devalues that, any of them that show up will likely be because they're plot relevant. (Oh, and ignore all the analysis that I did earlier on how they work in Arc-V canon, because that's not how they're going to work here. :D) Thank you for asking though—it's an interesting question.

To the Guest who predicted the matchups and analysed how Miharu and Yuno's duel would go, it's some good analysis there! :)

To PhilJS89, I hope that my explanation on how 2v2 duels work in this story made sense to you! :) And yeah, Fleur has always been an interesting deck to write, because it's a mish-mash of so many different cards that are weaved together by its own archetype. Noble Knights, Synchrons, Warriors, Plants, even Beasts and general Synchro Monster support. Speeder is a great card, yeah. :D Thanks for the review!

To Unlucky-Fausto, I'm glad that someone found the Watt joke funny! ^_^ I really like Watts, and I kind of wish that they were good. I mostly meant that Gongenzaka and Yuzu don't really have that much monster removal compared to the rest of the Arc-V cast. For example, Sawatari could bring out Twinkle Little Star, power it up with Funky Comedian, and clear the whole field immediately. I'm glad that you caught up with the story. :D Uh, I'm kind of responding in reverse order here. I'm glad that you liked Chapter 46! I've been waiting to write Miharu vs Aki for like six months, haha. In response to the question about pairings, well, most of the pairings weren't actually planned out from the start. I explained how Shun and Nue kinda came into existence because of how well their future arcs intersected. Shino and Ryo were born out of a conversation I had with a friend of mine, when discussing some future plot points. Mion and Reiji were interesting, because they were originally intended to be just friends. Mion's character, as it stands, is the more approachable one out of her and Reiji—she directly called Reiji out on his bullshit with Sawatari, directly confronts him about his lack of transparency, and in general, just tries her best to make sure that the Lancers are alright. Writing them as a pairing came after I wrote her introduction in Chapter 10, reread it, and went 'Reiji Akaba would never agree to make a whole deck for her that fast, no matter how strong she is, unless he's literally the largest simp in the world'. After a moment where I reconsidered my life decisions, I also realised how hysterically funny it would be for Reiji and Sawatari to end up brothers-in-law. However, the two relationship arcs that I had fully planned out when going into this were Yuno/Miharu and Yuji/Chiaki, obviously. (And to a lesser extent, Yuri/Serena, since that one… well, will take a while to make it even remotely realistic.)

To Makosultima12, like I said, no problem! Honestly, what I've done with that theme so far is just sowing the seeds. I really do want the war to be painful, and not just because people die in it, but because of how people feel when fighting. While I still don't want to reveal plans for future arcs, I do appreciate the point about the ensemble! Like I said, I'm always worried about casts being too large, so I'm… certainly going to do my best to manage that. I don't mind rambling, haha—I do enjoy reading reviews, after all. And honestly, I'm totally alright if people love or hate any of the characters in this fic! After all, the characters are going to make decisions that people aren't always going to agree with, because of their own mindsets and priorities. *glances at my outline* I can see several questionable decisions in the future already…

To kikuruhime, I guess you're hoping for some Berserk shenanigans, huh? :) You'll have to wait and see. Glad you enjoyed the chapter!

To Mr. Owl, glad that you think Roget is more menacing! Good guess on the Sergey front. I guess you'll have to wait until next chapter. :D

To the Guest who brought up how Yuya absorbed Yuto without winning against him—I'd like to reference my author's note all the way in Chapter 13. There are only three ways that a Yu boy will fuse with another. One—the winner is possessed by Zarc and wins while fully possessed. Two—one Yu-boy's dragon destroys the other's dragon by battle and they win the whole duel afterwards—even if they're not possessed. Three—if one of them would die or be carded while another is in their proximity. I'll leave you to ponder on that!

Also, I actually have the next cover of the story ready! The cover will change after the Synchro Arc is over, but I'm pretty excited to show it to you all—it's actually drawn by myself instead of a friend this time, haha. It's in the style of the Twin Dragons cover as a result.

QOTC: Who do you think Sergey specifically is going to duel in the next round? :)

Anyway, next chapter might take a while! I'm currently debating whether or not to combine the next two chapters together, if only because next chapter is Chapter 50 and there's a really important thing in the currently planned Chapter 51 that I kinda want to happen in a nice numbered chapter :) I'll think about it. If I combine them… hoo boy, it'll take a long while. It's the battle between practicality and symbolism, and I have a feeling I know what's going to win. Help.

This chapter concludes the first half of the Synchro Arc! (The happier half, believe it or not. *smiles innocently*) But yeah, in the next chapter, we return to the Friendship Cup. It's going to be fun! :D

Rant alert below! I'm adding this about an hour after the story was updated. It's directed at one reviewer in particular, who just left a guest review. If you don't want negativity, then please skip! This is the end of the chapter. See you soon!

Edit: It seems that I spoke too soon on the 'no one hassling me to update' front. I'd like to briefly state my policy on update spammers here. I'm sure that we've all seen that one guest reviewer who spams capitalised messages and exclamation marks in people's comments sections. You know, the 'UPDATE ! PLEASE! UPDATE !' guy, who starts off with spam and then starts insulting the author. The annoying one. (If you are lucky enough to not know who they are, go and check out An Alternative Universe's reviews. You will find them very easily.) And while I normally don't like being rude to reviewers, I hope that most of you know that this isn't directed at you, just that one guy. Like, really, I love reading most of your comments, no matter what they're about. I hope you all know that. So, uh, other than that one guy, feel free to skip this! I kinda have to put this here, because he/she/they are a guest and I can't block them. So I'm sorry to disturb the rest of you, because it's really not your fault.

Alright, so very honestly *clears throat* please, dear god, fuck off. Thank you! :) I really want to be more polite, but quite frankly, I've seen you in other comment sections, and I really don't want you around, so if I end up being rude enough to get you to go away, then that's a win for me. Newsflash to you, but writing takes time. People's lives don't revolve around you. If all you have to say is yell at me for not updating fast enough, hey, here's a good idea. Don't review at all, because there's nothing of substance that comes from your keyboard. And really, did you have to harass me on the chapter where I thanked everyone for not harassing me at the start of my review responses? That's just a little ironic. I'll delete your review now, because quite frankly, I owe you nothing. If there is no update, it's because I am not done with the chapter yet. It's that simple, and your whining doesn't change that fact. So congratulations! You have the honour of having the first guest review that I ever deleted on this story, and the first commenter to actually make me angry, somehow. If you would like to come back, please make an account so that I can block you.

Alright. Rant done.

And for everyone else, speaking more genuinely, thank you for your understanding, even when I take longer breaks. It is genuinely not easy for me to find time to write, with my condition and my real life issues. I do my best to update fast, but my chapters are long. I hope you all understand that. Thank you for your support thus far, truly. I'm sorry that you had to see that. I promise that I'll continue doing my best to update regularly, and to deliver quality chapters. :) See you soon!