It was finally the Mathematician's turn in the Tag Duel.
As his turn began, he slowly drew a card from his Deck and chuckled.
Hikaru had never seen the Mathematician's Deck before, so he was curious, what kind of cards would he use?
Even the Amazoness Empress turned to glance at him.
A Spellcaster from the Secret Village of the Spellcasters... he must be from that famous research facility, right?
She recalled what she knew of the Village and made her own judgment.
Then she turned her gaze to his "power."
As teammates, she could roughly sense the Spirit Energy Level of her partner.
Seven Stars...?
Spirit Energy was different from badge rankings. The star rankings in GX were merely tournament tiers; duelists with different badge stars might have equal Spirit Energy. For example, her own strength was on par with that Perfumer from the Forest Zone, they were both Eight-Star Spirits.
Seven Stars was already excellent. So, she was fairly satisfied that Bastion had paired her with a spirit of that caliber.
The question now was, would the Mathematician go all out?
"Ohohoho..." The Mathematician peeked at his hand and lazily slid a card into his Duel Disk. "I activate the Spell Card, Mystical Space Typhoon, to destroy Amazoness Hot Spring."
A gust of wind blew past, shattering the Hot Spring.
The first card, decent, but nothing special.
The Empress observed.
"Then... I Normal Summon this in Defense Position." He coughed lightly and placed a card sideways on his Duel Disk. "Magical Scientist."
'!!!?' In Hikaru's stunned gaze, a greasy, balding doctor in gold chains with hands in his pockets appeared on the field.
[Magical Scientist] Level 1│DARK│Spellcaster│300 DEF
"A Level 1 monster?"
"Only 300 Defense?"
Some students who had been tense burst into laughter upon seeing the monster.
What a joke, just a scrub!
"Haha, Bastion's pretty considerate after all!"
"Guess we can go now. Free Four-Star Stamps secured!"
The Empress also furrowed her brow, glancing skeptically at the spirit beside her.
What is this?
Playing dumb on purpose?
On the other side, Tierra noticed something, Hikaru's hand was now pressed firmly against his Duel Disk, looking incredibly tense.
'…What's going on?'
He wasn't this nervous even when dueling Professor Banner!
Nervous?
Yes, of course!
Because in front of him stood the second most powerful monster in all of Yu-Gi-Oh! history!
"Magical Scientist's effect, pay 1000 Life Points to Special Summon 1 Level 6 or lower Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck. It can't attack directly and returns to the Extra Deck at the End Phase."
"Hold it!" Hikaru didn't hesitate. "I chain to your activation with the Quick-Play Spell, El Shaddoll Fusion!"
As soon as the Scientist activated its effect, Hikaru wasted no time in responding.
"I fuse Horned Saurus on the field with Shaddoll Squamata from my hand!"
"Fusion Materials: 1 Shaddoll monster and 1 DARK monster!"
Hikaru swiftly sent his cards to the Graveyard and pointed to the sky:
"Hear me!
Voice of God, Words of God, comprehend and decode this divine command!
Fusion Summon!"
"Level 5"
"El Shaddoll Winda!!"
A green-haired Spellcaster descended slowly from a purple halo and stood calmly at center stage.
Now God forbids you from Special Summoning any more Fusion Monsters this turn!
[El Shaddoll Winda] Level 5│DARK│Spellcaster│2200 ATK
"Then I pay 1000 Life Points to Special Summon Dark Flare Knight."
"Wait, what?"
"Huh?"
The familiar black-armored knight appeared on the Mathematician's field, startling the students, and even some of Hikaru's cards seemed to buzz with confusion.
[Dark Flare Knight] Level 6│DARK│Warrior│2200 ATK
"Winda's effect: while she's face-up, both players can only Special Summon once per turn!" Hikaru warned, then continued resolving effects. "Also, Squamata's effect, when sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, I can send 1 Shaddoll card from my Deck to the Graveyard. I send Shaddoll Dragon."
He opened his Deck, sent the dragon to the Graveyard, then pointed at the card next to Amazoness Magic Mirror. "Shaddoll Dragon's effect: When sent by a card effect, destroy 1 Spell or Trap on the field!"
"Destroy that Set card!"
With a burst, the card next to the Continuous Trap shattered, it was Call of the Haunted.
"As expected of Hikaru..."
"He locked down effects on the opponent's turn and took out a Set card to give his teammate a better chance next round."
"As always, Fusion's true answer lies with Hikaru."
'Fusion's answer?'
Hikaru frowned.
The answer was across the field!
The Amazoness Empress also frowned slightly.
So far, she wasn't satisfied with this turn.
Even more frustrating was the way the male human across from her behaved, as if her field setup was trivial and the Mathematician was the real threat, was this all an act for her benefit?
If he thought this would make her accept him, he was sorely mistaken.
"Hohohoho," the Mathematician stroked his beard and nodded. "As expected of Amaki Hikaru, instantly grasping the danger. Hehehe..."
'…What are these cryptic riddles?'
The Empress grew even more displeased.
"Then let's battle… Your Majesty, please defeat the fallen angel."
"Hmph, fine!" The Empress didn't mind and charged toward Construct with her massive blade.
She couldn't be destroyed by battle or effects, which meant Construct's effect wouldn't apply, and normal battle would proceed.
And since they had equal ATK, only Construct would be destroyed.
Watching the towering giant shatter, Hikaru didn't flinch. He simply activated its effect: "When Construct is sent to the Graveyard, I can recover a Shaddoll Spell or Trap from the Graveyard. I return Shaddoll Fusion to my hand."
"Tch, that Deck Fusion Spell again?"
"Now then..." The Mathematician stroked his beard again. "Guess it's my move, Dark Flare Knight attacks Winda."
With equal ATK and no effects preventing destruction, both monsters clashed and vanished in mutual destruction.
"Now that Winda is gone, I can Special Summon again, which means I can activate Dark Flare Knight's effect." He stroked his beard. "When it's destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon 1 Mirage Knight from my hand or Deck."
"...Winda's effect: when sent to the Graveyard, recover a Shaddoll Spell or Trap from the Graveyard. I choose El Shaddoll Fusion."
Hikaru added the card to his hand, knowing there was no way to stop the Mathematician now. All he could do was watch.
As Dark Flare Knight shattered, a radiant knight emerged from its remains, wielding a golden scythe like a mythical hero.
[Mirage Knight] Level 8│LIGHT│Warrior│2800 ATK
"2800 Attack, same as me," the Empress noted, nodding slightly.
Now this was more like it…
"Since Mirage Knight was Special Summoned during the Battle Phase, it can attack immediately. Attack the Amazoness Queen in Attack Position, and now Mirage Knight's effect activates."
The Mathematician gently tapped his staff. "When battling a monster, Mirage Knight gains ATK equal to the original ATK of that monster during damage calculation only."
"What?"
"Huh!?"
The Amazoness Queen was in Attack Position to reduce piercing damage.
But now, regular battle damage would still apply!
[Mirage Knight, ATK: 2800 → 5200]
Mirage Knight appeared before the Queen. Her image shimmered across his body. She tried to counter, but somehow her strike rebounded onto herself.
"Tch..." Gloria braced for the hit.
[Gloria & Hikaru, LP: 8000 → 5,200]
Hikaru let out a long breath.
Seeing that, Gloria frowned. Meanwhile, Grace, though she'd been teasing her sister about dueling, had been watching seriously, and a spark flashed in her mind.
"Wait a sec, Magical Scientist's effect can be activated repeatedly," Grace said, left hand propped on her right elbow, tapping her cheek. "Dark Flare Knight's effect isn't once per turn either.
"If Winda hadn't been there, the Mathematician could've activated Scientist three times, summoned three Dark Flare Knights, and suicided them into the Queen. That would summon three Mirage Knights, for just 3600 Life Points."
"Huh?"
"Yes! That's right!"
"Hissssssss"
At last, everyone present, students and spirits alike, realized the terror of the Magical Scientist, and the speed of Hikaru's reaction.
The Empress quickly did the math in her head: Mirage Knight battled monsters, but practically acted like a direct attacker.
With 2800 ATK, three Mirage Knights attacking meant 8400 damage!
8000 LP gone in an instant?! If not for the clause preventing Scientist's effect from activating in the Battle Phase, the Duel would have ended!
She looked in shock at the kindly old man with a white beard next to her and finally grasped his strength. However, more than that, she immediately turned to Hikaru.
So he realized the danger earlier than anyone here?!
Even when his teammate hadn't seen it yet?!