CHAPTER 17

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Hirobana Shio: 4000 LP

Yusou Ken: 4000 LP

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While Ken was having a mental breakdown from the prospects of dying over a damn card game, Horibana Shio started the duel, going first, drawing a card, and adding it into his hand. The man had a look of pity on his face, but it instantly disappeared when he started his turn.

"From my hand, I activate the spell card, Graceful Charity! This card allows me to draw 3 cards and then discard 2."

Taking 3 cards from his deck, he took a moment to think it through before placing two cards into the graveyard.

"I then use the spell Foolish Burial to send one card from my deck to the graveyard! I choose Kidmodo Dragon (LVL 3 / 100 / 200)!"

Sending the exact card after searching his deck to the graveyard, Horibana quickly shuffled his deck before moving on.

"I activate Kidmodo Dragon's special effect to allow me to special summon one Dragon type monster from my hand to the field. I choose to summon Serpent Night Dragon (LVL 7 / 2350 / 2400) in Attack Position! I then activate the effect of Thunder Dragon (LVL 5 / 1600 / 1500) in my hand! By discarding it to the graveyard, I can add up to two of the same monsters into my hand."

As Horibana was searching his deck for his monsters, Ken's mind was going into overdrive, forsaking worrying about the ruling of the shadow duel. First off, whoa, this guy was using good cards and combos. Foolish Burial into Kidmodo Dragon for a level 7 special summon. And Thunder Dragon? That was something that you don't see every day.

"Now, with two Thunder Dragon's in my hand, I will finally use the spell, Polymerization! Proud dragons with the authority of thunder merge together and bring forth destruction! I use both my Thunder Dragons as material for fusion summon Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (LVL 7 / 2800 / 2100)!"

The two Thunder Dragons appeared from a lightning bolt that shot down from the sky before getting sucked into a purple-bluish void, the two dragons converging into the center as they fused into Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, who flew out of the void in its fused state. It roared towards Ken as sparks of lightning crackled around its body. The Solid Vision hologram felt so real as the heat from the monster and lightning arcs was somehow getting to him.

["There it is! Horibana Shio brings out his ace monster in his first turn, a staple in his playstyle! With a monster of that caliber, Yusou Ken will have a hard time getting over this hurdle that is Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon!"]

The same announcer as before gave the play-by-play to the audience, though Ken tried his best to snuff the voice out and focused on the game itself.

"I now normal summon Alexandrite Dragon (LVL 4 / 2000 / 100) in Attack Position and another card in the back row before ending my turn."

Three monsters on the field and a card in the back row? Damn, that was a good play. It was Ken's turn now, so he draws and adds it to the hand pile. Licking his dry lips, he took a second to think before he began his main phase.

"I start by normal summoning Witchcrafter Genni (LVL 1 / 300 / 500) in face-up Defense Position!"

Placing the card horizontally onto the Duel Disk, a flash appeared in front of him as a blonde girl with glasses manifested, reading her book with intense focus before suddenly realizing that she was in the middle of a duel. Scrambling, she wills a magic staff into her hand as she gives him an apologetic smile.

["How interesting! Witchcrafter, I've never heard of such an archetype before in my years of commentating! Ladies and gentlemen, A never-before-seen card has appeared!"]

... That was weird; Kaiba and Pegasus must be forcing their employees to their maximum because that animation was really good. Almost too good in his opinion, he thought before looking back at his cards in his hand.

"Next, I activate Genni's effect! By discarding one spell card from my hand, I can tribute Genni to special summon one Witchcrafter monster from my deck to the field! I choose Witchcrafter Schmietta (LVL 4 / 1800 / 1600) and special summon her in face-up Defense!"

Discarding both a spell card from his hand and Genni from his field to the GY, Ken takes out his deck and searches for Schmietta, only for him to find her conveniently shuffled at the bottom of his deck. He suddenly felt something brush his mind, as if trying to call him, but he ignored it for now since he had a duel to win.

Shuffling the deck once more, he places Schmietta onto the field. Genni, who was still in the physical field, waved her staff as a magic circle manifested under her. And with a flash of light purple, she disappeared and was replaced by a steampunk-themed girl with bright red hair who was working on a large, mechanical wrench-like tool.

Seeing that she was summoned, she looked around before noticing him. As she gave a cheerful wave, the tools and anvil that were summoned along with her disappeared into motes of energy. Damn, these animations were really cute.

"I now activate Witchcrafter Schmietta's effect! I can, once more, discard a spell card and tribute her to special summon one Witchcrafter monster from my deck to the field!"

He took out his deck and looked at the bottom. It was the card that he was searching for! Again, it's like the cards that he's searching for appear at the bottom of his deck for his convenience; this was getting weird.

"I special summon Witchcrafter Madame Verre (LVL 8 / 1000 / 2800) in face-up Defense Position!"

Schmietta made a magic circle by tapping her large wrench onto the ground, just in front of her, before jumping into it. Another flash of purple later, Madame Verre arrives onto the field, sitting on her crystal throne lazily as she observes the world around her, her magic staff floating just out of hands reach.

She suddenly turned back to face Ken, her gaze lingering on his confused face before she huffed, looking back at the fusion monster in the opposite field. She then gave the dragon monster a smug smile, causing it to growl menacingly.

["A DEF of 2800! The card that Yusou Ken summoned has more DEF points than a Blue Eyes White Dragon, a rare sight! In fact, this must be one of the highest DEF points that I've seen in a duel before!"]

"I'll activate Schmietta's effect from the GY. By banishing her, I can send one Witchcrafter card from the deck to the GY. I choose Witchcrafter Unveiling."

Horibana hasn't used his set trap card at all during his summons, meaning it must be a battle-oriented trap card, some extender for another incoming combo, or a feint to bluff him. Here's hoping that nothing crazy is set face-down in that back row of his.

"I'll skip the Battle Phase and set three cards faced down. As I end my turn, however, during my End Phase, some cards from my GY activate. If I control a Witchcrafter monster on my field, I can return Witchcrafter spell cards back into my hand; that's if I haven't used said spell card's effect during the turn it was sent to the GY. I return Witchcrafter Confusion Confession and Witchcrafter Collaboration back into my hand."

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Horibana Shio:4000 LP

Hand: 1

Monsters: Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, Serpent Night Dragon, Alexandrite Dragon

Backrow: 1

Graveyard: Kidmodo Dragon, Thunder Dragon(x2), Polymerization

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Yusou Ken:4000 LP

Hand: 3

Monsters: Witchcrafter Madame Verre

Backrow: 3

Graveyard: Witchcrafter Genni, Witchcrafter Schmietta

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"My turn, I draw!"

Drawing his card for the turn, Horibana sighs at the drawn card and gives him another pity look before announcing.

"Sorry, but it's my victory. I activate the card I just drew, Dragon's Mirror! I can banish as much material I need from my field or graveyard to fusion summon one Dragon monster! I use all my dragons in my graveyard and two monsters on my field as material!"

… Uh oh.

Five balls of energy appear on the field, symbolizing the material as a mirror with decorative accessories similar to a dragon that manifests itself in the field. The balls of energy fly into the mirror, and a second later, the mirror cracks slightly as two dragon claws the size of an SUV burst out and grab the sides of the mirror. With a loud roar, the frame of the mirror expands from one pull, expanding it large enough for the fusion monster body to fly out of it.

"I fusion summon! Appear before me, Five-Headed Dragon (LVL 7 / 5000 / 5000)!"

With a deafening roar, the fused dragon descends to the field, its landing causing a miniature earthquake from the weight. Heads made out of fire, water, wind, earth, and dark glared at Ken as the crowd went wild at the monster.

Holy shit was it large! It was the size of a fucking skyscraper!

["I don't believe it! Of my years of commentating, I've never seen anyone summon such a being! Everyone, you are currently witnessing a miracle happen right now! Its stats are higher than even Seto Kaiba's Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"]

"I didn't want to pull this out now, but I need to win this duel for my family's sake. I am sorry."

Taking a card in his hand, Hirobana said apologetically before his face hardened.

"I now play the equip spell, United We Stand! For each monster I control, the equipped monster gains 800 ATK and DEF. I equip this card to my Five-Headed Dragon, and as my field currently has 2 face-up monsters, it totals Five-Headed Dragon's ATK and DEF to 6600 / 6600!"

Oh shit!

"Battle! Five-Headed Dragon (6600) attacks your Madame Verre (2800)!"

ROAR!

Each dragon head starts to charge up its respective element's breath attack as Madame Verre takes her floating staff into her hand, readying herself to retaliate the attack.

"Before you attack, I reveal my face-down card! The trap Witchcrafter Patronus activates! I can return one Spellcaster monster from my graveyard to my deck, and if so, I can add one Witchcrafter spell card from my deck to my hand. I send Genni to search Witchcrafter Holiday!"

"That trap doesn't stop its attack! Go, Five-Headed Dragon!"

"Yes, it didn't, but this card will! I now flip over the quick-play spell, Witchcrafter Draping! I can target one spell or trap card that you control, up to the number of Witchcrafters that I control, and force you to return them back to your hand. I remove United We Stand back to your hand."

Gusts of wind manifested all of a sudden as the equip card in Hirobana's back row gets blown away, lowering the ATK and DEF points floating at the side of Five-Headed Dragon back to 5000 / 5000.

"Then, I chain the activation of Madame Verre's quick-effect! During battle calculation, if my Spellcaster monster battles an opponent's monster, I can reveal spell cards with the name Witchcrafter. Each card revealed will increase my battling monster's ATK and DEF by 1000 until the end of this turn."

Ken flipped and revealed four cards from his hand to Hirobana.

"I reveal 3 of my Witchcrafter spells, so Madame Verre gains an additional 3000 ATK and DEF (4000 / 5800)!"

As Five-Headed Dragon (5000) shot out five elemental breaths towards Madame Verre (5800), the magus simply waved her staff horizontally as a four-layered barrier manifested itself around her.

The barriers crack and dissipate into motes, but the last barrier holds before reflecting the breath attacks towards Five-Headed Dragon, which explodes upon contact.

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Hirobana: 4000LP → 3200LP

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Both duelists covered their faces from the gusts that were generated by the attack. After a moment, Hirobana clicks his tongue and reequips United We Stand to Five-Headed Dragon before ending his turn.

"That's a niche gimmick, but even with an extra 3000 ATK, my Five-Headed Dragon (6600) is still stronger!"

Placing his hand on his deck for his draw, he thought about the card he needed. There were a lot more ways to get through it, but to confirm his win, he just needed one monster in the deck filled with spells. The odds were not there mathematically. If the Heart of the Cards were real, then please answer his wish.

With a deep breath, he drew his card with flair. Looking at the card he just drew, his face lit up at the brownish-orange border of the card as he began his final turn of the duel.

"I play the spell card Witchcrafter Confusion Confession! I can use monsters in my field and hand as material for fusion summon. I use Witchcrafter Madame Verre on my field and Witchcrafter Haine in my hand as material for fusion summon! Come forth, Witchcrafter Vice-Madame (LVL 8 / 2700 / 2800)!"

Upon hearing Haine's name, you could physically see Madame Verre break a cold sweat as she started looking around her surroundings in fear of something. Said something came in the form of a magic blast that came from behind him, crashing into her sides before she shattered into energy for the fusion summon.

Looking behind him, he could see Haine staring at the shattered Madame with her staff raised, looking a little annoyed before sighing with a heave, letting the energy form into Witchcrafter Genni, who stood by her side,along with another summon, the pink-haired Witchcrafter Edel, who was glaring at a piece of parchment with dark circles under her eyes.

"I then play the spell card Witchcrafter Holiday from my hand! I can target one Witchcrafter monster from my GY and special summon it back onto the field. Come back, Withcrafter Madame Verre, in Attack Position!"

The spell card that appeared on the field shatters into familiar energies before merging together to form Witchcrafter Madame Verre, who smiled with a smug look at being resummoned onto the field, before her face paling at the Witchcrafters on the field glaring down at the madame of the Witchcrafters.

Ignoring the clear tension in the room...

"I chain the activation of Witchcrafter Holiday with Witchcrafter Vice-Madame's quick-effect! When a spell card or effect, or a non-fusion Spellcaster monster effect, is activated, I can activate one of the few abilities Vice-Madame has. I choose to special summon a Level 6 or lower Witchcrafter monster from my deck or hand to the field. From my deck, manifest onto the field, Witchcrafter Edel (LVL 5 / 2000 / 2300), in Attack Position!"

The Edel on the field, hearing herself being summoned on the field, tossed the parchments that she was holding and happily went to the side next to Vice-Madame, taking out a large wrench-tool that looked similar to Schmietta's staff.

"Battle! Witchcrafter Vice-Madame (2700) attacks Five-Headed Dragon (6600)!"

"Not so fast! I activate my trap card, Metalmorph! I can equip this trap card to a monster, and it gains 300 ATK, making my Five-Headed Dragon 6900 ATK!"

Silver liquid flowed from the trap card on the field before coating the dragon with metal, the now empowered dragon with a sheen giving out an ear-shattering roar.

But Ken simply smirked as he pressed a button on his Duel Disk. Looks like he felt Madame Verre's dangerous effect and popped that face-down!

"I reveal my last face-down card! The trap Witchcrafter Masterpiece's effect activates! If I control a Witchcrafter monster, I can target one spell card from my GY and add a copy of the card with the same name from my deck to my hand. I choose Witchcrafter Holiday."

Taking the card from the deck, Ken quickly presses another button.

"Battle calculation, Madame Verre's effect activates! I reveal three spell cards, so Vice-Madame gains 3000 additional ATK and DEF."

"She's not strong enough! Five-Headed Dragon has 6900 ATK to your 5700 ATK, and it's indestructible to Dark monsters by battle!"

"I don't plan to battle your monster though! That's where Vice-Madame's ability activates once more! Due to Madame Verre activating her effect, Vice-Madame can activate her own quick-effect! She can destroy one card on the field, and I choose to destroy your Five-Headed Dragon!"

"WHAT?!"

As Five-Headed Dragon charges up another set of breath attacks, Vice-Madame raises her staff in preparation, the air around her sparking from the discharge of magic energy before she yelled inaudibly.

Eight large magic circles manifested above the fused dragon, revolving menacingly before eight bolts of condensed magic blasted towards the Five-Headed Dragon, exploding in a hue of purple smoke.

The smoke dissipates, as fragments of the shattered Five-Headed Dragon merely linger.

"Replay occurs; Vice-Madame (5700) attacks Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (2800) while my other monsters (1000 + 2000) attack directly for game! Destructive Witchcraft!"

All of the Witchcrafters obeyed as a plethora of magic circles manifested in front of Vice-Madame. Reeling her staff back with both hands, she held her staff like a baseball bat and slammed it onto the magic circle formation, sending bolts of magic towards the remaining dragon.

BOOM!

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Hirobana: 3200LP → 300LP → 0LP

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["And we have a winner! Yusou Ken defied all odds and won against the 6900 ATK hurdle! This is one of—if not—the best duel that I've witnessed to this day! Now, let's send Hirobana Shio to the Shadow Realm!"]

CRACKLE!

"ARGHHHH!"

As soon as his Life Points hit zero, the collar on Hirobana beeped before electricity surged from the collar, electrocuting the man to death.

Ken stared at the convulsing man on the ground with horror on his face, distracting him from realizing the tendril of magic that seeped into his own collar as the Witchcrafters remaining on the field shattered into light, their heated gazes no longer lingering on him.

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