Watching Shadowpriestess of Ohm vanish into another dimension, Emily's expression darkened.
As a second-year student at Saint Fusion Academy, her grasp of card effects was at least competent. From Yuui's earlier explanation, the Equip Spell Light Laser was clearly one of those "If I go down, I'm taking you with me" types of cards.
In essence, as long as that card was on the field, if Emily wanted to defeat Sparkman, she'd have to be ready to lose one of her own monsters in the process. Otherwise, no matter how strong her monsters were, they'd still be banished by the sword's effect—unless she could finish the duel in one blow.
"Tch… like a damned hedgehog!" Emily muttered through gritted teeth.
Yuui, however, didn't care about her complaints. He'd heard plenty of that before.
"Main Phase 2. I activate Spark Blaster's effect once more. It can be used up to three times, and after that, it destroys itself. This time, I'll change Sparkman to Defense Position!"
[Elemental HERO Sparkman, ATK 1600 → DEF 1400 | Equipped: Light Laser, Spark Blaster]
"Then I set one card and end my turn."
Alicia: "That way, she won't be able to break through our defenses, right, Yuui-san?"
"Yeah. At least for now," Yuui nodded slightly, replying inwardly, "Even back at the Underground Duel Arena, there weren't many duelists who could crack our defensive formation. Emily doesn't seem like the type to think several moves ahead… breaking through this setup won't be easy."
Alicia: "Then it's just a matter of when we draw that card! Once we get it, we can turn the tables!"
"Exactly." Yuui glanced at his Duel Disk. "We'll see when it comes."
Across the field, Emily glared at Yuui's formation, then at the single card left in her hand. After a moment of indecision, she declared, "My turn. At this moment, I activate the effect of the Spell Card Magical Blast in my Graveyard!
"While it's there, I can activate it before my Draw Phase. Instead of my normal draw, I return this card to my hand!"
A green Spell Card shot out of the Graveyard slot, which Emily snatched up before continuing, "Next, I Normal Summon Rapid-Fire Magician! Then I change Tricky Token to Attack Position!"
[Rapid-Fire Magician, ATK 1600]
[Tricky Token, DEF 1200 → ATK 2000]
"Tricky Token can't attack, yet with 2000 Attack, none of your monsters can beat it anyway!"
Emily then brandished the Spell she'd just retrieved. "I activate Magical Blast once again! It inflicts 200 points of damage to you for each Spellcaster on my field. I currently have three—Tricky Token, Gemini Elf, and Rapid-Fire Magician—so that's another 600 damage to you!"
Three bolts of multicolored energy shot toward Yuui.
[Yuui, LP: 3200 → 2600]
"And that's not all!" Emily continued. "Rapid-Fire Magician's effect activates! As long as it's face-up on the field, each time I activate a Normal Spell Card, you take 400 points of damage! So here's another 400 for you!"
Rapid-Fire Magician spun his twin staves, firing two green magic blasts straight at Yuui.
[Yuui, LP: 2600 → 2200]
A thousand points of effect damage still stung, and even Yuui's brows furrowed in pain.
Alicia: "Yuui-san, are you alright?"
"I'm fine. It's just a scratch." He said casually in his mind, then looked back at Emily. "Your turn's over yet? If it is, then it's mine."
Emily seethed at his calm demeanor. How could he act so unaffected after taking a thousand points of damage? Was his nerve made of steel?
Still, she forced herself to refocus on the field. She had three monsters, but none could break through Yuui's Clayman's 4000 Defense, and attacking Sparkman meant preparing to lose another monster. If she didn't deal with Sparkman now, Yuui would just use him to take out her Rapid-Fire Magician next turn, weakening her burn strategy.
"In that case!" Emily shouted, "Battle Phase! Gemini Elf attacks Elemental HERO Sparkman—Twin Magic!!"
The twin elves unleashed two streams of magical energy. Sparkman raised his sword to block but still took the hit, his armor cracking.
As he began to fade, he hurled the Light Laser at the twins—piercing them both through the chest.
A moment later, Sparkman exploded, and the Gemini Elf vanished into the dimensional void.
"The Equip Spell Light Laser's effect: any monster that battles the equipped monster is banished at the end of the Damage Step. So even though Sparkman was destroyed, your Gemini Elf is still banished," Yuui said coolly.
"Hmph! Even so, you can't defeat my remaining monsters!" Emily snapped back.
"Really?" Yuui lifted his hand. "I activate my face-down card—Trap Card, Hero Signal!" A beam of light shot skyward, forming a giant "H" in the air.
"The effect of Hero Signal! When a monster on my field is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon one Level 4 or lower Elemental HERO from my hand or Deck! I Special Summon from my Deck—Elemental HERO Stratos!!"
"Stratos!?" Emily's eyes widened. "That new HERO monster?!"
Her family had heard rumors about him—an unfamiliar HERO who had never appeared before, with an ability that made him exceptionally powerful in a HERO Deck.
A gust of turquoise wind roared through the arena, accompanied by the whirring of turbine wings. From the sky descended a blue-and-white armored warrior, twin thrusters spinning behind him.
[Elemental HERO Stratos, ATK 1800]
"So that's Stratos… definitely a new face," Emily murmured, her gaze dark. She was certain she'd never seen this HERO before.
She soon found out why Yuui had summoned him.
"I activate Elemental HERO Stratos's effect!" Yuui declared. "When this card is Special Summoned, I can add one HERO monster from my Deck to my hand! I add Elemental HERO Burstinatrix from my Deck!"
Yuui slid a card from his Deck into his hand.
Emily scowled, muttering under her breath, "A search effect for any HERO monster… this card's potential is enormous."
Though she wasn't a particularly strong duelist, Emily still had the keen eye of a noble and a Saint Fusion student. A card that could search any HERO was strategic gold.
And yet, such a card had fallen into the hands of a Nameless One like her? How infuriating.
With a touch of jealousy, she cast another glare at the handsome Stratos before saying coldly, "My turn's over."
Yuui looked at his cards. He knew that for now, they were deadlocked. Every card he drew could shift the balance. His Deck—more a card pile than a refined build—contained several ways to end the stalemate. It all depended on his next draw.
"My turn—draw!"
Yuui glanced at the drawn card and raised an eyebrow.
Alicia: "Yuui-san, that card…"
"Ah, not quite the one I wanted, yet it'll do. Just need to wait for the right moment."
He raised his arm. "Battle Phase! Elemental HERO Stratos attacks Rapid-Fire Magician—Turbine Storm!!"
Stratos's turbines roared to life, twin spirals of wind forming like twin tornado dragons. The gales ripped through Rapid-Fire Magician, scattering him into fragments.
[Emily, LP: 4000 → 3800]
"Hmph, all that effort for just 200 damage!" Emily brushed imaginary dust off her uniform and sneered. "So it's true… you only beat Kexi Arce by luck!"
"Say what you like. Victory in a duel isn't decided by words," Yuui shrugged. "My turn's over."
...
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