Damn it—! My Great Monarch is gone!
When she saw You Ye activate Mu Ning's second effect, Chang Xingge's face tightened with regret.
Losing her Parshath, the Great Monarch, meant losing her field pressure next turn,
and without that, finishing You Ye off would be twice as hard.
As for the idea that You Ye might have bluffed with his declaration?
Not a chance.
After all, the duel system itself had publicly confirmed the card effects for both sides.
If she didn't believe it now, she'd be doubting the rules of the duel itself.
Chain Resolution:
Chain 3 – Mu Ning's second effect: resolves successfully; the Great Monarch, already pierced through by black feathers, is destroyed.
Chain 2 – The Great Monarch's effect: negated.
Chain 1 – Mu Ning's recovery: You Ye gains 1000 LP.
(You Ye LP: 2400 → 3400)
"Sigh… little Xingge really took the bait," Luo Hao said with a soft laugh.
Beside him, Wang Cheng could only nod in silence.
Because they'd once dueled against the Runick deck themselves,
both men had guessed that Chang Xingge would walk right into You Ye's trap.
Still, neither of them would say she'd misplayed.
Without knowing the Runick effects in detail,
they'd probably have done the same thing.
A loss was a loss — but Chang Xingge hadn't given up.
In her mind, You Ye only had two cards left in hand,
plus one from the draw — three in total.
She had two in hand and two on the field.
The card advantage wasn't out of reach yet.
You Ye, seeing her determination, smiled faintly.
"My turn — draw!"
He glanced at the card and his smile deepened.
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell Runick Destruction!
I choose to Special Summon a monster —
I summon Runick Fangs – Geri!"
"When Geri is Special Summoned from the Extra Deck,
I can add one 'Runick' Spell from my Graveyard to my hand,
except a Quick-Play Spell.
I'll retrieve Runick Fountain!"
Watching You Ye's smooth setup and that familiar Fountain return to his hand,
Chang Xingge's bitterness turned to a deeper sense of dread.
Wang Cheng and Luo Hao exchanged glances — both knew.
Having fought Runick before,
they recognized what this meant.
Chang Xingge was just one step from defeat.
"Main Phase One — any objections?"
Lost in thought about what to do next,
Chang Xingge barely heard him.
She sighed.
"No objections."
With her Great Monarch gone,
she had no defenses left —
Even if she wanted to resist, there was nothing she could do.
"I activate Field Spell Runick Fountain!
Then I play from my hand the Quick-Play Spell Runick Flashing Fire,
targeting your Parshath of the Hundred Beasts —
destroy it, and banish the top two cards of your Deck!"
The beast vanished in a burst of crimson flame.
"Next, I activate Fountain's effect.
I return Runick Slumber, Runick Destruction, and Runick Flashing Fire
to the bottom of my Deck in any order I choose —
and then I draw three cards!"
After drawing, You Ye's smile turned sharp.
"I Normal Summon Effect Veiler from my hand."
"...Huh?"
Chang Xingge blinked in confusion.
She knew about the Flower Baroness combo,
but the monster he had on the field — Geri, a Level 4 —
made that impossible.
Was he… holding back on purpose?
But then she caught the glint in his eye,
and realized — definitely not.
So what was he planning?
Her mind ran through the options —
Then one horrifying idea clicked.
Could he possibly have a Level 5 generic Synchro?
Some terrifying new end-board piece?
Her cautious expression returned immediately.
Wang Cheng and Luo Hao, by contrast, were thrilled.
A new Level 5 Synchro monster,
one powerful enough to fit any deck?
They were about to witness history!
And why did they assume it was a new card?
Simple — in the current card pool,
no existing Level 5 Synchro was worth using.
"You Ye, do you actually have a generic Level 5 Synchro monster that strong?"
Mu Ning finally asked, curiosity gleaming in her eyes.
As his spirit partner, she could sense the surge of energy —
something big was coming.
"Hmm? No, of course not."
His answer left everyone stunned.
Wang Cheng / Luo Hao / Chang Xingge / Mu Ning: "...???"
No Level 5 Synchro?
Then why summon Effect Veiler at all?
Wouldn't keeping her in hand for a monster negation next turn be smarter?
"You all seem to be misunderstanding something."
You Ye chuckled, instantly realizing what they were thinking.
Because of the Baronne de Fleur combo,
they'd all assumed he was about to Synchro Summon again.
But this time — that wasn't his plan.
He wasn't summoning a Synchro monster.
He was summoning a Link monster.
"Misunderstanding?"
The four of them looked more confused than ever.
A Tuner plus a non-Tuner that isn't Synchro Summoned…
What else could it be?
Seeing their bewilderment, You Ye smiled faintly.
"Since you're all so clueless,
I'll show you the power of the most universal Link-2 monster in history!"
"Link-2?"
"Link Summon?"
"The most universal in history?"
The three duelists and the spirit froze.
He hadn't summoned anything that restricted him —
So technically, he could Link Summon.
But… using a Tuner as material for a Link?
Who would even do that?
And what did he mean by "most universal"?
Before anyone could ask further, You Ye raised his hand.
"I set Effect Veiler and Runick Fangs – Geri as Link Materials,
arrows left and right—
Link Summon!
Link-2: S:P Little Knight!"
S:P Little Knight
Warrior / DARK / Link / Effect / Link-2
ATK: 1600
In an instant, a silent figure appeared on the field —
a young girl clad in a gray-black ninja outfit,
a scarf masking half her face, twin kunai glinting in her hands.
Her cold, lake-still eyes scanned the field,
then lingered on You Ye for a few seconds —
as if confirming something —
before turning forward again.
Even though she was clearly just a small Link-2 monster,
every duelist in the room felt it instinctively —
an overwhelming pressure.
She was strong.
Dangerously strong.
Anyone careless against her would pay dearly.
All three duelists and the spirit found themselves silently trying to guess her effect.
Before they could finish their thoughts, You Ye spoke again.
"Little Knight's first effect —
If this card were Link Summoned using
a Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, or Link monster as material,
You can target one card on the field or in either player's GY;
Banish that target.
Afterward, I can't declare a direct attack this turn."
"My Geri is a Fusion monster,
So I can activate Little Knight's effect!
I target your Parshath of the Stars —
and banish it!"
As he finished speaking,
Little Knight flicked one kunai at the chosen monster.
The Parshath of the Stars raised its shield to block,
but the moment the kunai struck,
its form shimmered — and vanished completely.
"...A Link-2 that simple to summon,"
Luo Hao murmured, eyes wide.
"Just using a Fusion, Synchro, or Xyz as material —
And it can target and banish anything?
Even with the restriction of no direct attacks,
That's nothing for a Runick deck!
It doesn't even need a Battle Phase!"
He paused, then added,
"But still… he said it's 'the most universal' one?
So this monster isn't just for Runick… it fits every deck.