"—Fusion Summon [Meteor Black Comet Dragon]!"
Right after Kaima's play, Kevin unleashed his own Fusion Summon. With the blazing might of the ultimate Black Dragon, he carved open a path through the skies of the capital for the ultimate White Dragon.
"Sis, Aisha. The victory of Livorden, of the royal capital, I'm entrusting it to you. Please… end this meaningless war!"
"Kevin… leave it to us!"
Feeling the fiery support at their backs, Kaima rode the pure white Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, soaring upward through the path of black flames.
"Kaima, too fast—I'm getting dragon-sick here!"
At most, Aisha had only ever floated by clinging to three Mokey Mokeys. Riding a monster like Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon was beyond her.
The sudden surge of speed whipped up her short white hair, her head burying deep into Kaima's chest.
So big, so soft, so overwhelming.
This dizzying sensation…
Was it motion sickness, dragon sickness, or…
"If we slow down now, all our efforts will be wasted, Aisha. Just endure a bit longer, alright?"
For once, Kaima's voice softened.
Perhaps because she noticed the girl she had forcibly pulled into her arms was indeed weakened from being unprepared. For a moment, Kaima even felt a tinge of guilt.
But slowing down was not an option.
Only by borrowing the breakthrough blasted open by Kevin's Meteor Black Comet Dragon could the Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon outpace the pursuing Super Quantal Mech Beasts.
Slowing down now meant they might not even pierce the capital's mist barrier.
"I'll make it up to you later, Aisha!"
A promise from the duke's heir—maybe the dragon-sickness was worth it after all.
Regardless, the enemy wasn't about to let Livorden's Fusion Monsters break through so easily.
The pursuing Super Quantal Mech Beasts… began combining.
"I'll form the head!"
"I'll form the body!"
"I'll form the arms and shoulders!"
"I'll form the legs!"
Super Dimensional Fusion!
[Super Quantal Mech King Great Magnus]!!!
At the crucial moment before they broke through, the enemy revealed their hidden trump card. The combined humanoid mech [Super Quantal Mech King Great Magnus] accelerated, closing in on the Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon.
"Tsk—damn it!" Kaima scowled.
This fused Mech King was on an entirely different level from the mass-produced machines before, both in strength and speed.
Turning back to fight would only invite endless pursuit. Yet if they ignored it, they might be caught before piercing the barrier.
"Keep charging, Kaima Seth!"
From the top of the capital's tallest clock tower, a reliable voice rang out.
Hearing that familiar tone, Kaima's eyes widened, a flicker of surprise… and joy.
"Alester-senpai?"
As a second-year at Fusion Academy, Kaima had known the third-year Alester for more than a year.
And now, the genius Fusion Academy, hailed as once-in-a-century, had appeared in the embattled capital. Nothing could be more reassuring.
"Leave this to me, Kaima. You go thrash the one above!"
Gripping [Invocation], Alester alone intercepted the massive combined mech.
"Battle destruction is the most efficient solution. Earth Attribute Fusion Summon—[Invoked Magellanica]!"
[Invoked Magellanica] Level 8│EARTH│Rock/Fusion/Effect│3000 ATK / 3300 DEF
Once again, it was impossible to discern the Fusion Materials. Drawing upon the earth's power, the towering [Invoked Magellanica] stood like a walking mountain, raising its giant stone fist to block Great Magnus.
"Mana infusion! If you haven't eaten yet, then eat my fist!"
Strengthening monsters directly with his own mana—something even Grand Magus Fiona would never dare attempt. Yet Alester had achieved it.
Thus, he was called both a genius… and a madman.
Genius on the left, madman on the right.
Enhanced by his mana, Magellanica's earth-shattering punch destroyed Great Magnus outright.
Watching Kaima and Aisha escape pursuit, Alester sighed as he recalled his card.
"Man, this isn't what I came to the capital for. Forget it… Let the juniors handle the rest. I've got real business."
No longer interfering, Alester leapt from the tower. In freefall, he redirected his descent with flowing mana, aiming straight for the First Prison of the Capital—the very place Luca Slint had been held.
"Rrroooar—!"
With Kevin and Alester's aid, Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon finally broke through the barrier mist that sealed the capital.
Beyond the haze, Kaima and Aisha once again saw the sun.
Riding the soaring white dragon felt like entering a new world, their desperate battle just moments ago like a fading dream.
Ding~!
A heavy bell tolled, sparing them the need to search.
The Empire's warship—Concord of Bells.
Like a steel beast soaring over the capital, this vessel was said to be the Varian Empire's fusion of military might and Duel Monster power, a supermassive warship beyond its era.
Before its vast size, even Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon seemed small.
However, Kaima hadn't brought Aisha to smash the ship head-on.
Their target was singular.
"General Cameron! Interception failed, the targets are approaching!"
On the bridge, the urgency in the announcer's tone was clear.
"So that's their last card, huh? Then leave it to me."
Unlike the panicked soldiers, Cameron Slint stood immovable, the calm of a Supreme General radiating from him.
And then—the next moment, the warship's windows were shattered by three dragon heads, accompanied by a girl's scream.
"AAAAHHHH—I thought I was dead!"
Tears pricked Aisha's eyes. As Kaima charged straight into the warship, she thought she had already crossed the Sanzu River.
Who could have guessed that the usually composed Kaima Seth would be so reckless… even using a dragon's head to smash into a warship?
Even now, Kaima crouched on the dragon's back, grinning wildly, more excited and arrogant than anyone.
"On behalf of the embattled capital, we've come to settle accounts, Supreme General Cameron Slint!"
"Oh? So you're the Seth brat the Marshal mentioned. Just as the rumors say."
Indeed, as the rumors said. Though Kaima appeared female, no one would ever mistake her for such. What woman would ride a dragon to headbutt a warship thousands of meters in the sky?
"Hmph. Enough talk. Time to duel, Cameron!"
Straight to the point, Kaima locked eyes on her foe. With the warship's duelists already deployed to the battlefield, Cameron hadn't even left himself a guard.
Perhaps it was confidence in his own strength.
Or perhaps he never imagined anyone in the capital could assault the warship like this. Unless… was there a traitor within the Empire?
"Hmph. You dare challenge me, brat? Recklessness from beginning to end."
Cameron snapped his fingers. The warship's skylight split open, transforming the bridge into an open-air duel arena.
"Reckless? Hmph. I've even brought my joker card!"
"Joker? What joker?" Aisha asked.
"You, Aisha Carlos!"
The domineering Kaima yanked Aisha forward.
"In this situation, with no outside interference, even a 2v1 Tag Duel can't be avoided! This is my strategy to snipe the Empire's general."
Reckless yet calculating—Kaima's anchor was Aisha herself.
Against a Varian Supreme General wielding cards like cannons, Kaima would never overestimate herself enough to think she could win alone.
But with Aisha? That was different.
Aisha Yuna Carlos—she had truly defeated Kaima before. One of the rare duelists whom Kaima acknowledged.
"As long as we win this Duel, the battlefield below changes. This chance comes once—we cannot lose, Aisha!"
—Soul Exchange!
"You're right, Kaima."
At that instant, Miles stepped forth, swapping into the body.
At such a crucial moment, victory here mattered more than any duel before. Seizing the warship meant saving countless lives on the ground.
No Duel could be more worthwhile.
"You brats are nothing. No matter how many, you can't defeat me!"
Cameron still didn't grasp the gravity of the moment.
In his eyes, the bombardment of the noble manors had gone exactly as planned. That meant only academy kids remained to resist. Hardly a threat.
"Duel—!"
A 2v1 Tag Duel began. This was Miles's first time fighting side by side with Kaima.
The memory of their fierce clash at the Fusion Academy Festival was still vivid. And now, his once-bitter rival was an ally. Nothing could be more reliable.
"My turn, draw!"
Cameron Slint, Luca's father, took the first turn of the Tag Duel, drawing a card.
"I set one card. End turn."
Only setting a single Spell/Trap, Cameron ended. To Miles, such a first turn was blatant disrespect. Practically asking for death.
"Doesn't he know the worth of a Turn 2 Triple Blue-Eyes Fusion? Get him, Kaima!"
Abruptly, before he could finish, Miles's own Spirit Eyes lit up—it was his turn to go first instead.
"Damn it, why me? This wastes our perfect opening strike!"
"Aisha Carlos!"
Kaima turned to him with unwavering trust in her eyes.
"Bringing you here means I trust your strength more than anyone. Go all out. Show the power of the Duelist who taught me how to shatter fate's chains!"
Aisha stared, "I'm so glad to have your trust, Miles… sigh~"
'…Why the sigh then?'
"Kaima…"
With Kaima's rare words of trust, Miles couldn't possibly disappoint her.
"Then watch me unleash my full assault! My turn, draw!"
He looked at the six cards in his opening hand.
How to go all out?
'Hm? Seems like the only option is…'
"I Normal Summon Mokey Mokey in Attack Position! Direct attack!"
[Mokey Mokey ATK: 300]
Promising a full assault… only to swing with a 300-ATK Mokey Mokey.
Even so, that was truly the best he had. Out of six cards, Mokey Mokey was the only one with battle potential.
Yes, Aisha had been slacking before using Mokey Mokey as deadweight.
Albeit now, this was genuinely Miles's all-out offensive.
"Believe me, Kaima! I really am going all out!"
So why did it sound like he was pleading guilty?
Blame Aisha for dragging Mokey Mokey's name through the mud. Now Miles sounded like the boy who cried wolf.
"Oh, is that so? Fine then. Hmph~"
Kaima's tone cooled, her dismissive hum dripping with irony. Trust waning.
"As long as you're happy."
Miles cast a glance, '...Wait, why did that sound like an angry girlfriend?'
...
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