I apologize for not posting for 3 months. In truth, I am struggling to find some form of work. I was unable to concentrate on my fiction due to the stress of being potentially unemployed.
My apologies for the late updates.
When my work condition is stable and acclimated, this fiction will resume at a usual pace. Perhaps once a month. If it takes longer than 1 month, do take note that this fiction will not be axed in any way, just me being busy IRL.
The quality of this chapter... is not the best. May be updated in future. But for now, enjoy and thank you for your understanding.
A2 C3: Theory Duel
Sora's Point of View
Earlier today, Yuzu had dragged me away from my target, Akaba Reiji. Normally, I would have been annoyed by such distractions, but given my lack of direct avenues to meet my main target, I can comply with whatever that Yuzu requests of me. She had dragged me away to a pier of all places, which was strange considering places like these are not supposed to be places for young people like us.
Entering one of the many warehouses, I asked albeit impatient, "Hey, Yuzu. Why did you bring me here?" I turned to Yuzu who was still at the door and noticed that she has closed the door.
…
We're a bit far from civilization right now. What is she planning to do? I doubt she knows about my identity, so what is this all about? My free hand, the one that is not holding a lollipop right now, instinctively reached for my pocket to retrieve my duel disk.
She approached and then…
Clapped her palms and lowered herself, "Please, teach me how to Fusion Summon!"
That was surprising! I even blurted my bewilderment.
"Please, teach me how to Fusion Summon!" she repeated.
"But, why?" I cannot think of a reason why Yuzu would want to be stronger. She had not been defeated before, so why is she asking me how to Fusion Summon. Besides… she even has that… Dimension Barrier card that can stop all the summoning methods.
"I want to get stronger!" she began. "Well…" She pulled out her deck and showed me, "Kyou-sensei… we discovered that he was the one who created our cards. And he gave me some of these to improve my deck."
She then showed me some of the cards and to my surprise, the cards were purple, in other words, they were all Fusion Monsters. Also, Yuzu mentioned another interesting thing about Kyou Yuuki, he is the creator of their cards.
More information about him is always great… especially when he was challenged by Akaba Reiji. I doubt anyone else is able to catch it, but I did. Right before their duel was interrupted, I was able to catch a glimpse of the card he drew. It doesn't look as intimidating when the picture is that of a gold ball. Which gave sets off several warning bells in my head.
As I have been trained in the Fusion Dimension, I given training in the physical aspects of dueling, therefore Action Duel is something I can handle quite easily. Being able to climb and maneuver around the field and searching for tiny objects is also elementary for me. But that was not the only thing I've learned during my training. I've also honed my instincts as a duelist to 'know and feel' certain cards. It is hard to explain this but take my deck for example, I used my cute Fluffal monsters and fuse them with Edge Imp monsters into strong Fusion Monsters. What I am trying to say is, appearances can be deceiving and Kyou Yuuki, despite showing a card that only look like a harmless gold ball, must have a certain gimmick to it.
Lastly, I am quite familiar with some of his other monsters… specifically the Cyber Dragons.
In Fusion Dimension, Cyber Dragons was like a fairy tale for us. Most of us knows about it but in the end, it was all a myth… now that I see them in action…
In any case, about that card he drew, there must be something special about that card he showed Reiji in the end. After all, he did mention how he wanted to play that card but couldn't due to the interruption. I even asked Hibiki-sensei about that card and she told us how there were no data about it.
Back to reality, Yuzu even told me more about him. It was a story of how he single-handedly took down an entire school and subsequently close it for good. She also mentioned that it was a single Fusion Monster that he Fusion Summoned by using all of his opponent's monster as its materials. That right there is without a doubt the work of the Super Polymerization spell card.
"Sora?" Yuzu called out to me.
"Ah, sorry I was too absorbed into the story." I voiced my excuse.
"Well, I don't blame you."
Good, now I need to find a chance to add this into my report for Midori-sensei.
"So, you wanted to learn how to Fusion Summon then, I guess I had time to kill so sure." I answered. I do plan on teach Yuzu how to Fusion Summon. It is leagues better and stronger than Xyz Summon.
Fusion Summoning is a normal thing from where I come from. While I shouldn't teach my potential enemies about our methods, this one is acceptable. In this dimension, Fusion Summoning is as basic as it gets, so I could teach Yuzu that much. Besides, the Fusion monsters Yuzu showed me are strong, but not as strong. "Here." I dug out a spell card from my deck and hand it over to Yuzu.
"Polymerization," said Yuzu, "Ah, the card Kyou-sensei taught us a few days ago."
"Yeah, you need this card to perform the most basic Fusion Summoning. To do that, you will also need to have the right materials in your hands and on your field to bring out the monster." I explained. These are the fundamentals after all.
"But… can't you do it with monsters from the graveyard?" Kyou Yuuki even told them about that possibility?
"Hmm, its not as difficult but doable." I replied, especially when I have a card that does it.
"What about from the banish pile?"
Wait, what? You can do that?
"There's even contact fusion too and super polymerization…"
These I know but, fusion summoning with banished monsters? That was news even for me!
Masumi's Point of View
I walked along with the man who was supposedly a former professor in LDS. I even tried calling him professor but he stopped me at once and opted for an easier suffix.
I've heard so much about this person and now I am being treated as one of his students.
We then arrived at a simple apartment. It looked run down with two floor. We climbed the stairs and entered the room.
"Well, here we are. My home. Simple but homey. Just how I like it." He said as he took off his jacket and hang it on a hanger before moving deeper into the house. "Well make yourself comfortable."
I was surprised to learn that such a prestige person would prefer to live in a simple run-down apartment like this, considering that he is not only an LDS teacher but also the person who created our cards. I tried to make myself comfortable but… there the living room is very minimalistic. I had no choice but to sit down on a cushion.
"Sorry, I don't get many guests."
Yeah, I can see that.
"Help yourself to whatever that is in the pantry. I have a stockpile of snacks in there and some rock candies, if you like them."
I turned to the shared kitchen area but turned away and could see a few simple cooking utensils like a rice cooker, some knives and a few cooking pots and pans. He cooks too?
"How about some drinks? Juice? Milk? Tea?" He asked as he came out of a room and approached the kitchen area. His clothes are now a simple white T-shirt with the same pants.
"Um… no thanks? Wait, that's not the point!" That's right, I followed him here because of his message for me… 5 years ago. "I came here because you know who the culprit is!"
"Yes, I did. And you have already failed by a huge margin." He said as he pours a glass of orange juice before putting the carton back inside. Was there some kind of test now? "Not only did you approach a stranger about your problems, you even follow said stranger to somewhere you don't know."
"But you are famous in LDS!"
"Even so, you don't know me. For all you know, I can be a dangerous predator who kidnap young children and sell off their organs for profit."
What is he talking about? Selling organs? What's that?
"…" He stare blankly as if he realized something, "You… don't know what I mean do you?"
I could only stare at him at such incredulous claims.
"Sigh, they don't do thinks like in the OG manga do they, saw blades… cyanide pill… falling off a building… I miss Malik and Bakura…" he rambled. "Anyway, here. It's alright, there's nothing suspicious in it." He placed the glass on the coffee table in front of me and had a resigned look on his face but overall, a satisfying one. He then took a seat on the same couch as I am but kept a significant distance.
"So, you want to look for Marco huh." He asked once more and I nodded after drinking a sip of the orange juice. "While it is true that I know who the culprit is… but I believe you must earn the right to know about it!"
"So, you want me to win against you?"
"Not win… I just need you to qualify for that. Believe me when I tell you this, I have never once been defeated so you don't have a single chance to win against me."
I scoffed, "Yeah right, you are about to lose to Akaba Reiji back then. You only had a card in your hand and all of your strongest monsters were destroyed too, so what can you do?" I reminded him. I was there and watched how Akaba Reiji had destroyed all of his monsters with ease.
"Those weren't my strongest monsters." He answered and once more I stare at him with the most skeptical look I can master. Seriously, how delusional this guy can be.
I read into his eyes and… he wasn't lying…
"Those are some of my benchmarks and Reiji passed with flying colours, destroying each and everyone of them with ease. But if the duel went on, Reiji WILL lose."
I am as skeptical as people get, but the way his eyes look tells me a different story. Much like my evaluation of him yesterday, his eyes were brilliant… exactly like diamonds. Even as he told me that he will win, his eyes did not lose the same luster.
"Now then, I invited you for a good reason and I can see the amount of wasted potential in you." He said as he stood up and then sat across the table, in front of me, facing me directly.
"What do you mean?"
"Exactly as I have written in the message for you. The fact that you came to me, means you wish to learn how deep this rabbit hole goes. And I will now show you how shallow minded you are." He said and this got on my nerve.
He may be a legend for all I care, but he is getting on my nerves.
"I am the Fusion Ace of LDS-"
"And I do not care! Your title means nothing to me."
I gripped my fists. I hate this guy already! Dismissing my achievements like it was nothing! I worked hard to become who I am today and he squandered them like it meant nothing! Unlike me, you don't even need to struggle in your entire life!
"Good, you are angry. And I have the information you wanted. What are you going to do about?" He asked as he leaned forward and rests his head on the back of his crossed fingers.
"Obviously, I am going to get it out of you!" I declared as I attached my duel disk.
He huffed with a condescending smirk.
"Of course you would." He then took in a long breath before breathing out again. "Sit back down."
"You decline my duel?"
"No, I accept. But we will duel it my way. Put that duel disk away… now." He did not raised his tone but the way he spoke seem to shook something within me as my body instinctively sit down and my hands are placed on my lap. "We will duel but with a different way." He said as he moved the glass of juice to the side before snapping his finger.
All of a sudden, the coffee table came to life. It had a screen on and I recognized it as a duel field. It was also a traditional one, as in it doesn't have the revised Pendulum Zones.
In LDS, after Sakaki Yuuya performed Pendulum Summoning, we soon found out that almost all of the available duel fields include an additional zones on both left and right side of the player's field. Before, those two additional zones did not exist. The same as this one, which brought a feeling of nostalgia for me. So, we will not be using Solid Vision then.
"Now then, in this duel, we will be playing with a special rule. I am sure Marco-sensei taught you a thing or two about this one."
I could only give him a bewildered look.
…
"He… did not teach you did he? Memory Duel? Theory Duel? No?" he gave me another incredulous stare.
I could only shake my head.
"Sigh… No wonder that synchro and ritual one did better… I guess Marco was too busy being a people person then. Alright listen up.
I call this one Theory Duel. But others can call it Memory Duel. The rules to this is the same as your usual Master Duel, except with 1 key difference. You do not use your physical cards to duel.
In other words, like its name suggests, you must remember each and everything that has been played. From the cards being sent to the graveyard, from the number of cards that exists on the field, and even what you have in your graveyard. In other words, can you keep track of everything that has happened?"
As he said that, the screen on the coffee table did exactly that, showing face down cards being placed on the field, sent to the graveyard etc.
Theory Duel… Memory Duel. I summarize that it is a duel where memory plays the important component in this duel.
"In that case, what about our hand? Or the card that we drew?" I inquired.
Right on cue, the screen flashes to another series of images.
"Well, that's the best part. You can imagine starting off with all 5 cards that you wanted. Not only that, if you 'set a card face down, it can be anything. Say for example, you 'set' a quick spell card, but depending on the situation, you can decide to change what that card is. After all, your opponent do not know that 'face down' card nor your hands, therefore you can change them into anything you want on the get go.
HOWEVER, if you revealed a card, that card must be present somewhere. For example, if you revealed Polymerization, it would mean that one card in your hand OR face down on your spell and trap zone is Polymerization."
I watched and listened as he explained. The 5 cards it started off with started as face downs before flipping, reveal a full hand of yellow cards. Then it flipped face down again and when it flipped face up again, they were all green, then magenta, then yellow again. This also applied to face down cards on the field which cycled through the colours until it is revealed.
Easily enough. However, there is one flaw.
"What happened if I misremember something? Like… Polymerization-" I then noticed that one of the cards turned into Polymerization. Right. "-If I had revealed it and did not remember that it was in my hand-" the very card disappear and changed into another colour, "-or face down on the field. What then?"
"This is the next rule. There is a new win and lose condition of the rule. If I catch and call our 3 mistakes that my opponent made, then I win. Subsequently, if I called out wrongly for 3 times, I will lose the duel. Life Points is a thing here, so if anyone loses all of their life points, even if they do not make mistakes, they still lose."
I watched how the screen also showed two rows with the words 'Correct' and 'Incorrect' on them. They also have a number counter up to 3. There is also a Life Point counter of 4000 too. So, in short, like Master Duel, 0 Life Points means a lose. Additionally, get 3 correct callouts and you win while 3 incorrect callouts are an automatic lost regardless of Life Points.
"Wait, what if neither of us remember?"
"A fair point, especially when neither of use remember each part. Which is why… we have third parties recording the duel. Third parties will write down each and every information that had gone by and they will judge if the callout was correct or incorrect. 2 or more judges are recommended so that it prevents cheating or making it one sided."
"But there are no third parties with us."
"Worry not…" He snapped his finger and I watched the displays on the table showing a history of all actions made. "Histories of all actions, cards played, life point differences and the likes are all recorded automatically here."
This is interesting… why isn't there something like this in LDS?
"You must be wondering, why isn't there something like this in LDS," Is he a mind reader now? "Well to answer your question, its because, according to the higher ups, and I quote: 'We already have solid vision technology for our duels, we don't need something this redundant!' and so, this lesson becomes somewhat of an exclusive in my class. My old students, the LDS teachers included, tried to do this activity but found it too difficult for them, so it wasn't taught. I believe Richua and Ai did it in their class, Marco… he didn't do so well in it. While Haisu… since he's all about being some villain, decided to use his own method instead."
That…
I hate to say this… but it could be the reason why Nekoro do so well… she even remembered our card effects after our first duel with her… Yaiba too but to a lesser degree. I had difficulties trying to remember some cards but I would say I did well enough.
So, this is the secret…
"Alright, enough talk." He said as he waved his hands over the table and the field is cleared, "Let's begin our Memory Duel, or as I like to call it Theory Duel, since it sounded cooler." I gave him a look as he brags about like a boy, despite him being old, he sure have some childish sense of priorities, "Don't give me that look, its good to be young."
I sighed and looked at the empty field. In my mind, I visualized my deck and my cards since those are the ones I am very familiar with. 5 cards, all face down, were drawn and I imagine my optimal 5 starting cards.
"Are you ready?" he asked. To which, I nodded.
"Duel!"
Theory Duel
Yuuki – 4000 5
Masumi – 4000 5
"I will begin first to demonstrate how to do this. To activate a card effect, simply declare the card name you want to activate. I activate the spell Adamancipator Friends, with it, I can excavate the top cards of my deck equal to the number of Rock monsters I control and add 5 to the number, and then add 1 of said Rock monsters excavated equal to or lower than the number of the cards excavated. Return the rest to the bottom of the deck and I can only Special Summon Rock monsters this turn. Since I do not have a monster, I excavate the top 5 cards and add a Level 5 or lower Rock monster, since I excavate 5."
"With this, I shall reveal, Adamancipator Analyzer, Adamancipator Crystal – Dragite, Adamancipator Researcher, Adamancipator Seeker and Adamancipator Researcher. With these 5 cards excavated, I add Adamancipator Seeker and return the rest… without changing their order."
Excavate… a mechanic which the player reveals the top cards and either return them and shuffle them back into the deck. The similar term of this is mill, except unlike excavate, you send them to the graveyard or banish them.
"Next, to summon or set a monster, simply declare what you plan to do and then say its name. The voice recognition will automatically detect the card you declare. For example, I summon Tuner monster, Adamancipator Seeker (Level 2/EARTH/Rock/Tuner/Effect/1200/1000)"
A synchro deck… they usually come with Tuner monsters.
"I activate Adamancipator Seeker's effect, I excavate the top 5 cards of my deck and special summon 1 Level 4 or lower non-Tuner Rock monster." He declared 5 names from the top of the deck and the screen revealed them accordingly. "I special summon Adamancipator Crystal – Leonite (Level 4/FIRE/Rock/Effect/0/2200) and return the rest to the bottom of my deck"
This is… starting to get out of hand… the amount of information he presented is a lot right from the get go! But disregarding the information he gave me, I noticed that he had both Tuner and Non-Tuner on the field… in other words, he will Synchro Summon.
"Next, I will tune Adamancipator Crystal – Leonite (4) with tuner monster, Adamancipator Seeker (2) to Synchro Summon, Level 6 Adamancipator Risen – Leonite (Level 6/FIRE/Rock/Synchro/Effect/2400/2200)!" I watched the table did the synchro process and is greeted with a card that had a picture of the same man riding a lion like beast.
Honestly, from the card alone… the beast looks amazing. I wonder how it would look when we do this in Solid Vision.
"Next, Leonite's effect. I can excavate the top 5 cards of my deck and add 1 excavated Adamancipator and then return the rest to the bottom of my deck in any order I want."
He excavated and I essentially tuned out his 5 revelations. But I did take note of a card he added because immediately, he Special Summoned it.
"I special summon Tuner monster Adamancipator Researcher (Level 2/EARTH/Rock/Tuner/Effect/100/2100). I can special summon her when I control a Rock monster. And once more… I can excavate the top 5 cards of my deck and Special Summon a non-Tuner Level 4 or lower Rock monster and return the rest to the bottom of my deck."
Once more, I only focus on one.
"I Special Summon Adamancipator Crystal – Raptite (Level 4/WIND/Rock/Effect/0/2200)"
Again…
"Synchro Summon (Level 4+2 = 6) Adamancipator Risen – Raptite (Level 6/WIND/Rock/Synchro/Effect/2200/2800)" Another Synchro monster and now I can see the portrait of a girl riding a green crystal eagle.
"Raptite's effect, Excavate 5 and special summon a Rock monster." He did so and he brought out "Adamancipator Analyzer (Level 4/EARTH/Rock/Tuner/Effect/1500/1700), and yes, you know where this is going." He said and true to his word, he excavated 5 cards again and special summon 1 of the 5 excavated cards.
"I special summon Adamancipator Crystal – Dragite (Level 4/WATER/Rock/Effect/0/2200). But before I Synchro Summon, I activate his effect to draw 1 card if its Special Summoned by the effect of an Adamancipator card." He did as such and without a doubt, Synchro Summon soon after. "Synchro Summon (Level 4+4 = 8), Level 8, Adamancipator Risen – Dragite (Level 8/WATER/Rock/Synchro/Effect/3000/2200)!"
"Now, I reveal the top 5 cards of my Deck" He did as such, "Then rearrange them to the bottom of my deck. For every Rock monster revealed, I return cards my opponent controls to the hand."
And for a third time, he synchro summoned another monster just as easily. While Synchro Summoning is not my area of expertise, my experience with Yaiba had taught me that Synchro Summoning usually uses up a lot of materials… but when I look at the resources that my opponent still have… which is a hand of 5 cards, as if he had not depleted his resources.
"Now then, girl. I have given myself a huge handicap." He called out and I was confused. "Since I have revealed my full deck with all that excavation, I must adhere to the arrangements of every card that I have excavated and arranged back to the bottom of my deck."
He was right. He had excavated a total of 7 times, all of which were a multiple of fives. Which means he had excavated all 35 cards and must remember the position of every card in his deck. So even in this format, he is giving me a handicap.
"Do you understand what that means girl? It means you have many chances to call out any mistakes I make… assuming if you remember them."
Tch. Inwardly I clicked my tongue. If I had known about this, I would have paid more attention to each card he had excavated. He got me good.
"With that said, I set 1 card and I end my turn."
Yuuki – 4000 4
Masumi – 4000 5
"…My turn, Draw." I declared and the table screen showed a face down card being added to my hand.
Yuuki's Point of View
Memory Duel… I called it Theory Duel since it sounded cooler but my students in LDS, and You Show prefer to call it Memory Duel. Oh well, to each their own.
I began using this dueling format during my second year in LDS. It started off as a simple classroom activity to spice up the game. However, one must remember that back during those times, Synchro and Xyz are not commonly available yet. To put it into perspective, Fusions are considered rare but not difficult to find. Synchros and Xyz are considered Super Rare in my opinion. As in, they have the cards but most of them have no effects whatsoever. And chances of them being brought out is rare, therefore I consider them as Super Rare.
As someone who plays the game with a Master Rule 5 rule set, which consists of the modern gameplay of having Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum and Link, Master Rule 3 is extraordinarily slow.
Due to this, I thought I engage my students in other dueling formats. I even tried the Duel Terminal format of having 3 columns which did practically nothing because no one is able to go over 3 monster, unlike back in my world.
To make a long story short, I tried various activities and formats. However, Theory Duel is the most educational one out of all of the formats I have taught. The reason was simple…
THEY DO NOT READ!
Not to mention that their test papers usually quiz the students on card names and effects along with attack and defense values. Its like those trivia questions you find in any Yu-Gi-Oh! games. I would know, since I've played the Tag Force series and even the DS titles.
Another test is practical test where they uses trial decks to duel, sometimes puzzles. I easily aced them but the students, they all struggled hard. Even the easy ones.
Which again, I must stress, is because they do not read the card effects.
On the other hand, I do have students who read. My best student who is also my junior and is now the teacher's representative, Ebi Richua. She is a natural and I was so grateful to FINALLY have one who reads without me reminding them. The next one… is Hiiragi Yuzu… I can use one hand to count the number of students who read card effects. Woe is me…
Rather than forcing them to do something they could not do, I decided to do something about it. If they don't read, why not have them memorize. Then I can incorporate my abilities into it. Essentially, by making a rule that is similar to my abilities.
Thus, why and how Theory Duel is now born. If they cannot read, might as well familiarize them and make them memorize. Is it the best method? Not really, but it is a new method and efficient for me.
"Draw." Masumi declared.
Ah yes, its her turn. Let's see… she will no doubt imagine the best card she has in her hand. That said, she will no doubt try to OTK me with Lapis Lazuli's effect.
Gem-Knight Lady Lapis Lazuli is a Fusion monster with the effect of inflicting 500 points of damage for each Special Summoned monster on the field. With a bit of math, 8 monsters will instantly deal 4000 damage to my life points. If she uses Master Diamond, with the effect of copying a Gem-Knight monster's effect, which is Lady Lapis Lazuli, she would only need half of said requirements since she can trigger the burn damage twice. I've given her 3 Special Summoned monsters, so all she needed is a method to bring out those two monsters.
"I activate the spell Gem Knight Fusion!" she declared.
That's a sudden move. Right off the bat she goes for the throat. I can respect that. Alright, I'll bite. What will she bring out?
"With this card, I will fuse three Gem-Knights in my hand, Sapphire, Garnet and Crystal. Solid blue will! Red truth! Glass eye! Create a whirlpool of light and shine bright as you become one! Fusion Summon."
Right on cue, 3 out of the 5 cards in her hands were revealed and they were sent to the graveyard.
I would prefer they drop the summoning chants and save them when we duel in Solid Visions. But alas, they did so anyways. I would know, all of my previous students always do their summoning chants. No matter what format they are dueling in. I suppose it's the norm here. And I've been called a 'chunni' (8th grader syndrome) before.
"Appear, Gem-Knight Master Diamond (Level 9/EARTH/Rock/Fusion/Effect/2900/2500)" The fusion card appeared on her board.
If I want to comment on one thing, it is the fact that despite having every resources available to her, she is miserable at managing them. After all, Gem-knight monsters have versatile effects when sent to the Graveyard. For example, rather than having 3 Normal monster with no value, she could have a Gem-Knight Quartz or Obsidian in her hands instead. These two have more value and could replenish her hand. Not to mention how she chose to bring out Master Diamond. Not to say that the Fusion Monster is weak. Don't get me wrong. Master Diamond is one of the strongest monster in a Gem-Knight deck. He is on the limited list for a reason after all, and that reason is none other than Lady Lapis Lazuli. If only she brought her out first then there would be more value in her plays.
I guess I know where to start with her. And I won't hold anything back until she learns. Frankly, there are many criticisms towards my methods and I do not care about their opinions. After all, it was also thanks to my spartan training, my best students, namely Ibi Richua came out who she is today.
"Battle!"
What? Already? I am starting to regret making you my student you know.
"I attack your Adamancipator Risen – Leonite (2400)!" she declared.
"I respond with the Trap Card Magical Cylinder." I sighed. "When my opponent declares an attack, target the attacking monster and negate the attack. Then inflict damage to them equals to its attack points. Master Diamond's attack points are 2900, in other words…"
Needless to say, Masumi lost a lot on the get go.
Yuuki – 4000 4
Masumi – 1100 2
She clicked her tongue. "I set… two cards face down and end my turn."
Yuuki – 4000 4
Masumi – 1100 0
"My turn. Draw." I drew my card and sighed, "Seriously girl? Did I make a mistake to take you in?"
"What?"
"I honestly cannot believe how messy your play is. I am going to have so much to clean up after this." Once more, I gave my honest and direct opinion regarding her playstyle. Emphasizing on how inefficient she plays her cards, like having 3 normal monsters instead of something more efficient.
"Of course I would do that, it's what Marco-sensei would do." She argued.
Ah yes, her biggest flaw. It is not a surprising fact that Masumi is overly enamored with her own sensei. She is willing to risk her own life and pull others down with her after all. On the other hand, I feel like I've seen this play somewhere…
"Marco this, Marco that… seriously girl, stop trying to be someone you are not."
She paused for a moment. Her glares on me is evident as she bares her frustrations and anger. I can bet that she would storm away immediately had I not have the details about a certain missing person. But she will need to earn it. Besides, with how she duels and her lack of personal creativity, I doubt she can do anything.
"From my hands I activate the effect of Harpie's Feather Duster. This allows me to destroy all your face down cards." I declared.
Masumi's Point of View
I hate him…
I hate him.
I hate him!
I hate him! I HATE HIM!
He dares talk about Marco-sensei! Even if he taught Marco-sensei, I won't allow him to talk about sensei like this!
I look at his condescending eyes. Iolite… wisdom and knowledge. Onyx, black as the unknown. But above all else, ammolite, unpredictable and chaotic. These are the gem stones and brilliance I could describe him now. I hate how he knows so much. I hate how I know little about him! I hate the way how he is doing all of this and me not understanding anything at all!
Then he played his spell to clear my spell and trap.
You want originality, I will show you original! At first, if he declares an attack, I would have used the same card he used on me! But if they are destroyed, or about to be, I can still pull this one trick. Something I've learned from Marco-sensei. He used it once but until this day, I've taken note of it.
"Before my face down is destroyed, I reveal my first face down trap! Fragment Fusion." The card flipped over, "With this, I can banish Fusion Material monsters in my graveyard to fuse a Gem-Knight monster in my Extra Deck! The one I want to fuse is Gem-Knight Lady Brilliant Diamond!"
I banish the three Gem-Knight monsters that I use to fusion summon Master Diamond.
"Fusion Summon! My true ace, Gem-Knight Brilliant Diamond (Level 10/EARTH/Rock/Fusion/Effect/3400/2000)!" said monster was placed to my field. The moment it appeared, the last face down spell and trap card is destroyed due to Harpie's Feather Duster's effect.
"Now, I activate my destroyed trap card's effect, Waking the Dragon!"
"What?" for once, I caught the surprised gasp of my opponent.
"When this card leaves the field by my opponent's card effects and is now in the Graveyard or banished, I can special summon 1 monster from my deck or Extra Deck! With this effect, I will special summon from my Extra Deck the Fusion Monster, Gem-Knight Lady Rose Diamond (Level 8/EARTH/Rock/Fusion/Effect/2700/2400)!" I declared proudly as I recalled Marco-sensei's plays. He used that card once and I was amazed by how he easily brought out his Fusion Monster without Fusion Summoning them. It was also one of the many reasons why I enrolled in the Fusion Course in the first place.
The very technique that inspires me! How's that for something original!
I grinned at my advantage as I continue to examine my opponent. Kyou Yuuki's eyes were still wide at the play. His mouth is hanging a little.
Heh, how does it feel now!
…
Or so I thought as his huffs… soon quickens. His surprised expressions turned to amusement… then came his chortles which became more and more audible. It's like those evil villainous chuckles only… soft but cold and dry.
"Ah… I missed that card. I never thought I would see that one again. But what surprised me the most is the fact that someone like you would be using that card." He then chortled again, "I never thought Marco would use that card. But it seems like he did."
"So does that mean you gave him that card?" Even that is not enough…
Ugh…
As much as I hate him… I must admit, it was also that very same method that made me like Fusion Summoning.
"Yes. I am his sensei after all. And now, the sensei of your sensei will teach you bitter defeat." When he declared that, I got ready. "First, lets look at the board."
I observed the field. The only monster my opponent have that is a threat is his Dragite with an attack points of 3000. The rest of his monsters are 2400 and 2200 respectively. Meanwhile on my field, I have the attack points advantage. And if Master Diamond or Lady Rose Diamond would be destroyed by his Dragite, Lady Rose Diamond would protect my either of them from being destroyed. This is the perfect play!
When he is done with summarizing, he then brought my attention to something else.
"Now then Masumi," I think that was the first time he has ever called me by my name throughout this entire duel. "Here's a question. Doesn't this remind you of something? Here's a hint, the time when Reiji challenged me."
When he put it that way, I recalled how Akaba Reiji had cleared Kyou Yuuki's field and then on the next turn, Kyou Yuuki brought out a big Fusion Monster. Only for it to fizzle out.
"What about it?" I replied to show that I am aware of the event he described.
"Oh nothing really, it's just that… you have 3 monsters on your field so…" the moment he said that, all three of my Fusion Monsters were… gone?
Wait, what is going on? Why are all three of my monsters gone?
"What did you do!" That wasn't a question.
"When there are 3 or more monsters on either side of the field, I can tribute 3 monsters on that side and summon this monster to that side of the field. Since I am using all 3 of your monsters, this card will go to your side."
"Eh?"
"I summon The Winged Dragon of Ra – Sphere Mode (Level 10/DIVINE/Divine-Beast-Effect/?/?) to your side of the field!" at the mentioned of that card, I then recognize the portrait. A gold ball. All three of my Fusion monsters have been replaced by a golden ball that has… ? attack? Wait, that means it has no attack points!
…
What?
…
I don't understand! What is going on?
"What did you do?"
"I've already told you. I tribute your monsters to summon something else instead." He repeated, only difference is that I know what he did but I failed to understand how it is possible to do it! When you tribute summon something, you would tribute your own monsters to summon it, NOT your opponent's monsters!
"Wait, I call Incorrect! Incorrect!" I remembered this duel's format and how I can call out such misplay.
I then watched as I got an incorrect callout instead. Is this a bug? No, it must be rigged! This is his home after all, and his machine, so he must have cheated! That is the only explanation!
"You're cheating!"
Yuuki's Point of View
Should I be offended? She called me cheating. It's like those cases when you are so good at something, others think you are cheating when you are just simply too good.
She withdrew from the game.
Yuuki – 4000 4
Masumi – 1100 0 - Withdraw
And is clearly upset and outraged by that one card alone. I showed her the physical copy of the card and told her to read it. As she did, I could see… the outer space… a galaxy forming in the background behind her. She is clearly reading the card but it looked as if she is learning about the universe. Then again Ra is like the Egyptian Sun God so that's partially correct.
Now that is a nostalgic reaction. Her eyes were wide. Mouth became nonexistent as her form slowly turned chibi. Her wide eyes does not indicate shock, rather it had a blank stare. This reminds me, the last time someone gave me a reaction like this was Yuuya when he discovered that he can read card effects. If anyone ask, no he only read when I remind him to (even still he never reads).
…
I really hope that the Yuuya faces in the other dimensions know how to read.
Another Point of View
I stifled and resisted the urge to sneeze in this dusty warehouse. It is very important that I keep myself hidden since I've been following Yuzu, the Ruri of this dimension. Normally, I do not mind showing up to meet her… but not this time since that Fusion spy is with her.
"Mmhoo!" I suppressed the irritating sneeze but failed.
"WHOSE THERE!" Damn it, me and my bad luck!
Another Point of View
"AHCHOO!" I sneezed while leaning against my D-Wheel as I waited. I wouldn't be here had Rin not been kidnapped by my look alike and then disappeared. Damn it, thinking back at the memory did not help at all.
I hunkered down further as I shivered. Somehow, I had ended up on some cold place when I ventured into a portal.
"Rin… where are you…" I can only pray that she is safe, wherever she is. But first…
"WHERE IN THE WORLD AM I!"
Midori's Point of View
As I passed through the courtyard, I heard someone sneezed. My curiosity was rewarded with a boy in purple squatting before a bunch of flowers and tending to them.
"What a wonderful day today my beautiful daisies. I see you are all well today, after all I got a whiff of your spores." He said in a rather energetic tone, "Ah, I see that the roses have bloomed! My how beautiful you all are."
And he went on and on complimenting the flowers. In fact, Duel Academia looked more colourful and vibrant thanks to him. The flowers he planted in the courtyard is the only thing that is colourful in this entire island. Ever since the professor appear and took over, our curriculum had changed drastically and we were told that there is a war coming. Even showed us a traumatizing event where one of the student being turned into a card.
But I do know the real truth. The professor is not someone I can trust. The one I am working for told me the real truth behind it all.
"Oya, Midori-sensei!" I was brought back to reality when said student who was tending the plants came up to me rather enthusiastically. "Are you busy now? Want to tend to the flowers with me?"
"I can't right now Yuri, I need to submit my report to the higher ups." While his face maintained his smile, I could read the atmosphere around him. Even saw an after image of him crying in the corner. "But I can join you after that." Immediately, the afterimage brightened to a kid jumping with joy.
In a way, I do pity the boy. He has no 'friends' at all.
Reiji's Point of View
I watched the recording of my duel against Kyou Yuuki for the umpteenth time as I analyzed each and every moment of my duel against him. My comeback was perfect as I had cleared his field. Our duel was cut short because of Kishiga Marco's disappearance. On one hand, I was able to breathe a sigh of relief as I was free from the pressure that had been building up inside me throughout that duel.
Visualizing myself dueling him and dueling the actual man himself are completely different. When I am directly facing him, it was like facing an empty void, like I've learned of my insignificance in the grand scheme of things… To make matters worse. He did it all by giving me a huge handicap.
I analyzed the recording again and focused once more at the card he showed me when we were interrupted.
A golden ball of a monster.
Once more, I zoomed in on the card. It was a card that defied all manner of understanding. Firstly, its name. The Winged Dragon of Ra – Sphere Mode.A name that does not exist in our database. Secondly, its attribute… DIVINE. In duel monsters, we have a total of 6 attributes, Light, Dark, Fire, Water, Wind and Earth but never Divine. Thirdly, the monster type is called Divine-Beast… And last but not least, its effect…
I then simulate the continuation of our duel… how he tributes all 3 of my D/D/D monsters. How he uses effects from his graveyard to summon and fill his board again and then… depletes my life points in a one turn kill.
"The more I learn about him, the more confusing it gets." I spoke my thoughts aloud before leaning my back against my chair. I gazed upwards to the ceiling. "If only there is something…"
I then recalled everything I've learned about him. Then thought about Pendulum Monsters… how on earth does he acquire them. We know that he was the creator of 99% of our cards. My cards are designed by myself so I am familiar with the entire process. I even have the full list of cards he had created and none of them lists Pendulum Cards. The only conclusion I can think of was he had sold his services to other companies, but that conclusion was also dashed when we look into their releases.
"Ritual, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum. They can all be Linked."
My eyes widened when I recalled a specific quote he made. I don't know what came over me but somehow I had a hunch.
"Neither of the four, but the big one watching you five."
…
So far, I and a select few knows the existence of 3 other dimensions. Fusion Dimension, the one that my father is in and is preparing his army. Synchro Dimension, Xyz Dimension and including this one, Standard Dimension which uses Pendulum Summon. Years ago, we have confirmed that the Ritual Dimension does not exist. However…
Kyou Yuuki claimed to know of five… yet from his claims that he is not one of the five but a bigger one that watches us. If the fifth unfound and unconfirmed dimension is the Ritual Dimension, it could also explain how Kyou Yuuki could use such an unusual Ritual Summoning method. But that does not explain how he knows of the other summoning methods.
Based on everything I theorize, Kyou Yuuki is from a dimension… that uses an unknown summoning called Link Summoning. No… not just Link Summoning. He is even familiar with unusual variations of Xyz Summoning… Xyz Change. He even submitted a report on Super Polymerization. Even though we cannot prove the theory right, he was able to write with confidence and claimed it all as true facts.
"A dimension that watches all five of us… and even uses Ritual, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum and then… Link."
For once… I suddenly felt my heart pumping.
"Nii-san… you smiled…" I heard the other occupant in the room spoke out.
I smiled huh… yes, I guess I did.