Chapter #8: Playground of Amusement
"Careful, Yuya!" Manami hovered under the tree as both Yuya and Ayami climbed up the tree. Next to her, her Uncle Yusho was watching with a smile on his face.
"You're such a worrywart, Manami," Ayami teased.
Manami frowned. She wasn't a worrywart, right?...
"Don't look so anxious, Manami," Uncle Yusho said. He smiled at her. "I know that you care about them, but sometimes, having fun means that you have to take a chance or two."
"... alright, Uncle Yusho." Manami glanced at the tree again. "... still. They don't need to be so reckless…"
"Well, you and I are here, aren't we? Come, you said that you'd come up with a new strategy, right? How about you show me?"
Manami cast another look back—but Uncle Yusho was probably right.
As long as he was there, and she was there, what could go wrong?
Ayami glanced through the cards in her deck, before she headed down.
They held a short conversation that Ayami eventually cut off with her brusqueness.
Her opponent… seemed nice enough, even if Ayami was annoyed by her bringing up Manami. Still, that had nothing to do with this.
They were in the finals, after all.
Winner takes all.
"Duelists locked in battle!" Masumi declared—taking the lead.
"Kicking the earth and dancing in the air alongside their monsters!"
"They storm through this field!"
"Behold! This is the newest and greatest evolution of Dueling!"
"Action—"
"—Duel!"
The Action Cards scattered in the field around them—an area that resembled an indoor playground, with slides, nets and ball pits galore. It was bright and colourful—
In Ayami's opinion, it was just a little too cheerful.
Still—
Not a bad place for a duel.
[DUEL!]
Sakaki Ayami: 4000LP
Kotsu Masumi: 4000LP
[Turn 1: Ayami] [H:5]
"I'll start, then," Ayami said. She glanced through her hand. "I'll Normal Summon Amazement Attendant Comica!" The calm blonde girl appeared on her field.
[Amazement Attendant Comica (4*/1400/1800/LIGHT/Machine/Effect)]
"With her effect, I'll set another "Attraction" Trap from my deck," Ayami continued. "I'll set one more card facedown and end my turn!"
[Turn 2: Masumi] [H:6]
"Draw!" Masumi declared. "I'll activate the Continuous Spell, Brilliant Fusion!"
Oh, that painfully overpowered Spell from before? Come to think of it, Manami was surrounded by a bunch of Fusion users, right? So how come she hadn't managed to learn Fusion, or the other summoning methods? That much was strange…
"I'll perform a Fusion Summon using materials in my deck! I'll fuse Gem-Knight Garnet and Gem-Knight Sardonyx from my deck! Gem burning with flames. Gem with a blaze within! In a whirlpool of light, combine to bring forth a new dazzling radiance. In the magma and flames, be forged into the steadfast warrior! Fusion Summon! The one and only Gem-Knight Citrine!" The warrior with a large red sword made of magma appeared, wearing copper orange armour.
[Gem-Knight Citrine (7*/2200/1950/EARTH/Pyro/Fusion/Effect)]
"Citrine's attack and defense points become 0, since it was summoned with the effect of Brilliant Fusion!" Masumi explained.
[Gem-Knight Citrine: 2200 → 0ATK; 1950 → 0DEF]
"Then, I'll activate the Spell Card, Gem-Knight Fusion!"
"Two Fusion Summons in a single turn?" Ayami let out a snort. "Not bad. You did that in your last match too, right? That's consistency for you." It was the closest that she would get to complimenting her opponent.
"I'll fuse Gem-Knight Obsidian and Gem-Knight Lapis in my hand!" Masumi dropped the two monsters into the graveyard. "Sharp jet-black darkness! Blue stone that hides mysterious power! Now, become light and appear! Fusion Summon! Level 5! Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli!" Her ace appeared as well.
[Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli (5*/2400/1000/EARTH/Rock/Fusion/Effect)]
"I'll activate the effect of Gem-Knight Obsidian! I'll Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from the graveyard! Return, Gem-Knight Sardonyx!" A warrior made of warm-coloured rocks appeared, milky white stripes covering it. It was holding onto the chain of a spiked flail, swinging it through the air like a wrecking ball.
[Gem-Knight Sardonyx (4*/1800/900/EARTH/Pyro/Gemini/Effect)]
"That's not a Normal Monster," Ayami said—it felt like she was stating the obvious, but she genuinely didn't understand.
"Sardonyx is a Gemini Monster," Masumi explained. "They're treated as Normal Monsters on the field and in the graveyard—and if they're Normal Summoned again once they're face-up on the field, they become Effect Monsters with their actual effects! Like right now! I'll Normal Summon Gem-Knight Sardonyx!" The red warrior glowed briefly.
"... well, I won't claim to understand what's going on with that mechanic. But I'll activate my Trap Card, Amaze Attraction Horror House!" Ayami gestured forward—one section of the playground turned rather creepy, ghosts floating around it. "I will equip it to Comica. And once per turn, while Horror House is equipped to a monster I control, I can target a Effect Monster you control and negate its effects! I'll target Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli!"
Effect damage was far too difficult to deal with, and with the effect of Lady Lapis Lazuli, she'd take 1500 damage right now. (Comica didn't count, she was a Normal Summoned monster.) Anyway, it was too much to deal with right now.
Still, she hadn't drawn Arlekino yet, so that was a shame.
"I'll banish Gem-Knight Lapis from the graveyard to add Gem-Knight Fusion from my graveyard to my hand." Masumi revealed the card. "By discarding a Spell from my hand, I can give the monster that was summoned with Brilliant Fusion's effect its original attack and defense points until your next End Phase!"
[Gem-Knight Citrine: 0 → 2200ATK; 0 → 1950DEF]
"Battle Phase!" Masumi declared. "Gem-Knight Sardonyx attacks Amazement Attendant Comica!"
"I will activate Comica's effect," Ayami retorted. "I'll target my Amaze Attraction Horror House and change it to be equipped to your monster! I'll equip it to Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli!" The blue lady knight was surrounded by dark energy for a brief moment.
Comica was destroyed by the spiked flail.
Ayami: 4000 - 400 = 3600LP
"When Gem-Knight Sardonyx destroys your monster by battle," Masumi announced, "I can add a "Gem-Knight" card from my deck to my hand!" She picked up a card. "Attack directly, Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli!"
… yeah, Masumi definitely wanted to defeat her in one turn. Twice over.
Ayami casually grabbed onto a rope ladder, beginning to climb up. As she got to the top of the rope ladder, landing on a platform, she grabbed an Action Card from the top of the railing.
… it wouldn't work. Oh well.
"Trap Card, Amaze Attraction Rapid Racing!" Ayami declared. "I'll equip it to Lady Lapis Lazuli!" A car appeared right in front of Lady Lapis Lazuli, stopping her in place as she was leaping up towards Ayami. "I'll increase your monster's Level by 1 and change its battle position!" Lady Lapis Lazuli was forced to flee as the car shot towards her, pushing her back into a defensive stance.
[Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli: 5* + 1* = 6*]
"... Gem-Knight Citrine attacks directly! And when Citrine attacks or is attacked, you can't activate cards or effects until the end of the Damage Step!"
Well, that sucked. No point going for Action Cards then. Citrine jumped up, swinging at her with its sword. Ayami's life points fell by a large chunk immediately.
Ayami: 3600 - 2200 = 1400LP
"I'll end my turn," Masumi said.
Ayami shook her head. What a rough turn. This girl was definitely the best duelist that she'd seen in their age group.
[Turn 3: Ayami] [H:4]
"Draw!" Ayami declared. She glanced through her hand. "... okay. Got it."
"Got it?" Masumi asked.
"First, I'll activate the Spell Card, Terraforming! I can add a Field Spell from my deck to my hand!" Ayami picked up the card. "I'll activate the Field Spell, Amazement Precious Park. And I'll set a card facedown. Then, I'll activate the card that I just set, since my Field Spell lets me do so—the Trap Card, Amaze Attraction Cyclo Coaster!" The rollercoaster appeared on the field, racing on newly created tracks through the playground. "I'll equip it to Gem-Knight Citrine. And since I activated a Trap Card, I can Special Summon Amazement Administrator Arlekino from my hand!" Her ace appeared on the field as well.
[Amazement Administrator Arlekino (7*/2600/2200/DARK/Psychic/Effect)]
"An ace monster that has 2600 attack points and Special Summons itself…" Shiori leaned forward on the railing. "Still as impressive as earlier."
Still, as far as Shiori could tell, Sakaki Ayami's deck bled card advantage like nothing else, especially when she didn't have Arlekino on the field.
2600 attack points was usually enough, after all… most people had an ace with 2500 attack points.
"You're rather invested," Manami commented. "I haven't seen you actually paying attention to most of the matches." She seemed to think of something, smiling with a hint of mischief after a moment. "Are you paying attention for Ayami or Masumi?"
"... can't it be both?"
"Cyclo-Coaster's effect!" Ayami declared. "I'll send it to the graveyard to add a "Amazement" monster from my deck to my hand!"
She plucked up a card from her deck. From below, Masumi watched her, Citrine and Lady Lapis Lazuli by her side.
No set cards. But with Action Cards, Masumi might be able to protect Lady Lapis Lazuli, and if she did that, Ayami was screwed.
"I'll activate the effect of Amazement Assistant Delia!" She continued. "By revealing a "Attraction" Trap in my hand, I can Special Summon her from my hand!" Delia appeared with a playful wink next to Arlekino, who rolled his eyes. She grabbed onto a nearby supporting pillar of the playground, grinning down at Masumi.
[Amazement Assistant Delia (4*/1800/1400/LIGHT/Machine/Effect)]
"I'll activate Delia's effect. By sending Rapid Racing from the field to the graveyard, I can set another "Attraction" Trap from my deck." Ayami gestured forward. "Arlekino's effect! I will banish both Cyclo-Coaster and Rapid Racing from my graveyard, and destroy two cards you control. I will target Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli and Gem-Knight Citrine! Rebuilding Algorithm!"
She already started moving across the nearby bridge to another platform—Delia cheerfully followed her. On the lower floor, Masumi was racing towards an Action Card near a ballpit.
Masumi got to her Action Card a few seconds before Ayami's effect resolved, picking it up and glancing at it, before placing it down, barely making it in time. "Action Card, Ball Barrier!" A bright red coloured sphere appeared, surrounding Lady Lapis Lazuli. "I can target a monster I control, and the first time it would be destroyed this turn, it's not destroyed! I'll target Lady Lapis Lazuli!"
Arlekino raised an eyebrow, before he dove forward. A blast left his hands, hitting Lady Lapis Lazuli's shield and destroying it with a single hit. Then, he pulled off his hat, gesturing forward with it, darkness seeping out of it and wrapping around Citrine, swallowing it and destroying it.
One down. But Lady Lapis Lazuli was Masumi's current win condition—and Ayami had to get rid of it or cripple it, no matter what.
"Battle Phase!" She declared. "Amazement Assistant Delia attacks Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli!" After all, now that she had used the effect of Rapid Racing to change it to Defense Position, Lady Lapis Lazuli was defending with her 1000 defense points, as opposed to those 2400 attack points—far more manageable.
And most Action Cards raised attack points, rather than defense points. So the chance that Masumi would get an appropriate card was…
Masumi grabbed an Action Card from a nearby slide, flipping it over. "Action Card, Childish Defense!" She called out. "My monster gains defense points equal to your monster's attack points!"
"... really childish," Ayami said, rolling her eyes. She didn't touch the Action Card in her hand, instead gesturing forward. "Amaze Attraction Horror House's effect. Since it's equipped to your monster, I can flip that monster facedown!"
Lady Lapis Lazuli was halted in her tracks as she tried to follow Masumi—coming to a quick pause, before she collapsed, turning back into a set card.
"Horror House is sent to the graveyard, since the monster that it was equipped to is no longer face-up," Ayami explained. "But you can't give defense points to a monster that isn't face-up, so…" She smirked. "Your card has no effect. Better luck next time!"
Childish Defense turned grey and faded a moment later. Delia winked again, dashing forward and slashing straight through the facedown monster, destroying her.
And that just left Sardonyx.
Ayami got to the next platform, even as she nodded to Arlekino, still floating at the top of the field. "Amazement Administrator Arlekino attacks Gem-Knight Sardonyx! Amusement Order!"
Masumi ran for another Action Card, across a wobbly balance beam bridge between two ballpits. However, just as she got on the balance beam, a ball shot past her, making her lose her balance and fall backwards. She whipped her head around to look.
"Looks like this indoor playground comes with a few cannons too," Ayami said with a smirk. Next to her, there was one of those propelling tubes that could shoot balls out across the playground—there were a few scattered around the ground on the platform that she was on. "Sorry, but if you're going to go for Action Cards, I have the right to stop you, just like you have the right to stop me! Arlekino, finish it off!"
Arlekino, not one to disappoint, swiftly cut down Sardonyx, before retreating back to her side.
Masumi: 4000 - 800 = 3200LP
"In a single turn, you cleared away my entire field…" Masumi said. She narrowed her eyes. "... you really aren't simple, Sakaki Ayami."
"Well, my last opponent said that I had no foresight," Ayami said. "But I have my own pride, you know. I'm not going to go down in a One Turn Kill, and I'm not going to sit idly by and lose when I have a chance to stop you. I'll set a card and end my turn there."
Arlekino, Delia, two set cards. Not a bad turn. And her Field Spell was there to help with recursion too…
It would take way more from Masumi to break her field now.
[Turn 4: Masumi] [H:4]
"Draw," Masumi said. "I'll banish Gem-Knight Sardonyx from the graveyard to add Gem-Knight Fusion back to my hand! And then, I'll activate it! I'll fuse Gem-Knight Lazuli and Gem-Knight Tourmaline in my hand! Gem tinged with lightning. Green stone that hides mysterious power. In a whirlpool of light, combine to bring forth a new dazzling radiance! Fusion Summon! Shine with the brightness of the prism, and split light into coloured flair! Gem-Knight Prismaura!" Holding up his shield, the knight in white armour appeared, red cape drifting behind him in the air.
[Gem-Knight Prismaura (7*/2450/1400/LIGHT/Thunder/Fusion/Effect)]
"Lazuli's effect! I can add Tourmaline from my graveyard to my hand!"
"Arlekino's effect," Ayami countered. "When my opponent Normal or Special Summons a monster, once per turn, I can equip a "Attraction" Trap from my deck to that monster! I'll equip the Trap Card, Amaze Attraction Viking Vortex to your monster! Dark Amusement!" The large boat appeared, floating on the field.
"Viking Vortex…" Masumi turned her head. "That one returns my monster to the hand if I activate its effect, right? That's how you defeated Shijima, right?"
"Yeah. Are you two friends or something?"
"I don't know him," Masumi said. "But I was watching your match. Battle Phase—I'll have Prismaura attack Delia!"
"Trap Card, Amaze Attraction Wonder Wheel!" Ayami revealed one of her two set cards. "I'll equip it to Prismaura, and with its effect, I will switch Prismaura's attack and defense points until the End Phase!" The ferris wheel appeared, shadowy hands dragging Prismaura into it and spinning it around, before it was tossed back out, straight towards Delia.
[Gem-Knight Prismaura: 2450 → 1400ATK; 1400 → 2450DEF]
Prismaura collided with Delia, destroying itself.
Masumi: 3200 - 400 = 2800LP
Wonder Wheel and Viking Vortex, naturally, were sent to the graveyard too.
"I don't need your fancy summoning methods," Ayami said with a shrug. "As far as I can see, I've just gotten rid of three cards with one."
"I'll set a monster and a card," Masumi said. "Over to you."
"I'll activate the Trap Card, Amaze Attraction Thrill Train," Ayami called out. "I'll equip it to Delia. And I'll change Delia to Defense Position—then, you have to set a "Attraction" Trap from my graveyard to my field."
"Wonder Wheel," Masumi said. The set card reappeared on Ayami's field.
And then…
"During the End Phase, I will send Thrill Train to the graveyard with my Field Spell's effect. And I'll set my banished Cyclo-Coaster to the field!"
With this, she now had two new set cards, ready to be used.
[Turn 5: Ayami] [H:1]
"Draw!" Ayami declared. "I'll activate the Trap Card, Amaze Attraction Cyclo-Coaster! I'll equip it to Delia! And then, by sending it to the graveyard, I will send a Spell or Trap that you control to the graveyard too! I'll choose your set card!"
"Trap Card, Fragment Fusion!" Masumi declared. "I'll banish materials from my graveyard to Fusion Summon! I'll banish Gem-Knight Lazuli and Gem-Knight Obsidian from the graveyard to Fusion Summon! Sharp jet-black darkness! Green stone that hides mysterious power! In a whirlpool of light, combine to bring forth a new dazzling radiance. Fusion Summon! With your powerful fists, rain down blows on my opponents! Gem-Knight Zirconia!" A warrior made of blue and grey rock appeared, with a long purple cape fluttering behind him.
[Gem-Knight Zirconia (8*/2900/2500/EARTH/Rock/Fusion)]
"So you got a Fusion Monster out before your card was destroyed." Ayami shrugged. Masumi moved for an Action Card—Ayami fired off a few shots from the nearby tube, but Masumi braved the barrage. "I'll assume that you know what's happening here? I'll banish Amaze Attraction Thrill Train and Amaze Attraction Cyclo-Coaster from the graveyard to destroy both of your monsters! Rebuilding Algorithm!"
Masumi barely grabbed an Action Card in time, but when she glanced at it, it was clear that she hadn't gotten what she wanted. Both of her monsters exploded a second later, scattering into gems.
"Battle Phase! Arlekino attacks directly!"
"I'll activate the Action Card, Blinding Barrier! I'll end the Battle Phase, and my opponent's monsters lose 1000 attack points until my next End Phase!" Masumi declared. Both Arlekino and Delia flinched back from a bright spotlight that shone down on them.
[Amazement Administrator Arlekino: 2600 - 1000 = 1600ATK]
[Amazement Assistant Delia: 1800 - 1000 = 800ATK]
"I'll end my turn," Ayami said with a shrug. She still had a set card, and Arlekino's effect would bring down any monster that Masumi brought out on her turn.
[Turn 6: Masumi] [H:2]
"Draw," Masumi said. She glanced through her hand. "... I'll activate the Spell Card, Graceful Charity! I'll draw three cards and discard two!" She quickly filed through the cards in her hand. "I'll activate the Spell Card, Dark Factory of Mass Production. I can add two Normal Monsters from my graveyard to my hand." She picked up a card from her graveyard. "I'll activate the effect of Gem-Knight Fusion. By banishing Gem-Knight Zirconia from the graveyard, I'll add it back to my hand! And now, I'll activate the Spell Card, Gem-Knight Fusion! I will fuse Gem-Knight Tourmaline, Gem-Knight Sapphire and Gem-Knight Emerald! Gem tinged with lightning! Gem shining with the water's flow! Brilliant emerald of good fortune! In a whirlpool of light, combine to bring forth a new dazzling radiance! Fusion Summon! Appear! Supreme radiance who illuminates everything! Gem-Knight Master Diamond!"
Masumi's strongest monster appeared—a testament to how strong her opponent was. An armour dressed in dazzling white armour, holding onto a black sword, different coloured gems embedded in the blade, shimmering like a rainbow. Like a prism, his armour seemed to split light into the different colours, shining on the ground around him.
[Gem-Knight Master Diamond (9*/2900/2500/EARTH/Rock/Fusion/Effect)]
She'd emptied out her entire hand—this was the final chance.
"I'll activate Arlekino's effect," Ayami said. "I'll equip Amaze Attraction Rapid Racing from my deck to your monster!"
To negate an attack then. It made sense—while she could have gone for Horror House to block off effects, and used Wonder Wheel to swap Master Diamond's attack and defense points, 2500 attack points against Delia's 800 would still be enough to finish her off, considering that she only had 1400 life points. So Ayami was likely counting on Master Diamond being an attack-based monster.
Which, well…
That was the case, but also, Master Diamond was very versatile.
"Master Diamond's effect," Masumi declared. "I'll banish Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli from my graveyard, and—Master Diamond copies her effects!"
Ayami's eyes widened. "What?"
Masumi gestured forward. "With the effect that Gem-Knight Master Diamond copied from Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli, by sending a "Gem-Knight" monster from my Main Deck or Extra Deck to the graveyard, I can inflict 500 damage to you for each Special Summoned monster on the field, including itself! There's three—Arlekino, Delia and Master Diamond himself!"
"So that's 1500 damage," Ayami muttered. "... damn it." She tossed the Action Card that she had found earlier onto the duel disk. "Action Card, Acceleration. I'll negate an instance of effect damage."
I'm not going to get a chance like this again.
Masumi grabbed an Action Card at the very last moment—from the bottom of a bright spotlight. She glanced at it.
… good.
"Action Card, No Action!" She declared. "I'll negate your card's effect!"
The Action Card shattered.
Above Master Diamond, three large blue orbs formed—
They flew out at Ayami, right past her monsters, right past the traps that supposedly made her invincible—
And knocked her to the ground.
Ayami: 1400 - 500 x 3 = 0LP
Winner: Kotsu Masumi!
The field faded, and Ayami's monster carried her down, before disappearing.
Masumi couldn't help it.
She grinned.
That was more like it.
"You really are strong, Sakaki Ayami," she said.
"... you're not too bad yourself." Ayami shrugged. "Oh well. I couldn't go all the way." She seemed far too casual—even the hand wave seemed nonchalant. However, the girl left before Masumi could say anything to her.
And then, there was the crowd.
Masumi stood there, before a crowd that was cheering her name…
Her gaze drifted to her parents in the crowd, both of whom were out of their seats, clapping loudly for her. She waved to them.
Then, she turned towards the LDS stands—towards one specific figure, sitting near the top.
Fujishiro Shiori met her gaze, raised her hands and clapped once.
Just one clap, but…
Masumi felt the grin on her face grow.
She'd never been so happy in her life.
"I can't believe Ayami lost to her," Yuya said, slightly dismayed. "Is LDS that strong?"
"No," Sae said. "You saw what happened earlier. Not everyone from LDS is strong—but their strongest members are stronger than almost anyone else." She smiled gently. "That girl… just happened to be both talented. And she had a good teacher, too. I hope Ayami isn't too upset."
Yuya shook his head. "I mean… you have to win too, okay, Sae?"
"Well, I can't promise I'll definitely win." Sae reached over, gently patting his shoulder. "But I'll certainly put in an attempt. Make sure to comfort her when she comes back, alright?"
Ayami made sure that she was further into the corridor before she finally reacted.
Her fist made contact with the wall—bruising her knuckles.
"Damn it," she muttered.
She had meant what she'd said earlier—Kotsu Masumi was good. Better than her. She wasn't that much of a sore loser, that she couldn't admit it. And for the sake of You Show's image, she had to hold in her frustration.
She wasn't upset at Masumi for winning, obviously.
Just annoyed at herself for falling at the last step.
"Don't look so upset now, Ayami."
Ayami's head shot up.
"Dad," she said, slightly embarrassed. "Um…"
Ryoma eyed her, before gesturing for her to raise her hand. Ayami did so, slightly sheepish—revealing the redness of her knuckles, some spots of blood on them.
"Why waste time getting frustrated? That's not You Show's way." Ryoma folded his arms. He was smiling rather affectionately. "Just get stronger. Learn from the loss."
"I was already planning on doing that," Ayami said. "I'm not a person that can't take a loss…" She'd always reflected on her losses, even if they made her feel embarrassed every time.
"How are you going to go on the podium later with your hand like that?"
… right. At the end of the whole day, there would be an awards ceremony where they handed out medals for first and second place in each category.
"I'll go wash off my hands and join you in the stands," Ayami said. "After all, I want to watch—"
Her throat went slightly dry.
Manami.
"Sae," she said. "I want to watch Sae's match."
Ryoma eyed her for a moment, and then he sighed. "Of course," he said, humouring her. "Let's go cheer her on."
End Notes:
These last few chapters have been pretty duel-heavy… and that continues to Chapter 10. :) On the bright side, Chapter 10 onwards goes back to more cute character moments.
Reminder that Ayami doesn't know that Manami knows Xyz.
Masumi also doesn't have Lady Brilliant Diamond right now.
I've been pretty busy over the last week, so I didn't manage to get to much writing. That's also why this chapter is just one duel, and half the length of the usual ones. Still, in a week or so, my schedule should clear up, and I'll be able to write a bit more. Plus, I'm also gunning for finishing the current arc of my other fic before December, so that's my main priority right now.
Review responses!
To T.V. 2000, you're right! I never intended for Ayami to win—it would give You Show too much prestige at this point in time. I can't directly talk about cards or decks that might show up in the story until they do show up though—otherwise, I set the precedent for spoilers. Hope you understand that! :)
To cardfan135, yeah, I always felt like it was a shame that Amazement never got more support. It's a really cool archetype. And Shiori definitely misses things—she's intelligent and analytical in her own way, but she's still learning and figuring out interactions with others. I'm glad you like Sae!
To Hikaru, mm, you'll probably get to see something like that, yes.
To Question (pfft), I did say that I wasn't going to talk about pairings until they actually happen, so I can't confirm anything.
To phantomdragons, the power curve is interesting, but it won't change evenly across the board. :) It'll probably become clearer what I mean when we catch up to canon.
To Draco, mm, the important part about Shiori is that she isn't completely uncaring about others—she just has more focused priorities. As such, it's pretty natural for her to get fond of Manami, after like… six months of knowing each other.
To kurenai lui, good guesses on the decks! :)
To yuki, I agree that Masumi has more of a reason to win here. As for Shiori and Yuya… well I can't spoil that. :)