Sitting on [Dingirsu, the Orcust of the Evening Star]'s hand, Noah delivered news that didn't surprise Youmi in the slightest.
Youmi glanced at the new Deck she'd just uploaded into the space and raised an eyebrow. "Probably Yugi or Kaiba, right? They're still in this world after all. Running into one of the Big Five and wiping them out on sight sounds about right."
A video window opened, showing Leichter using [Jinzo] as his Deck Master.
"Strictly speaking, it's not that he was just defeated. I only just discovered it." Noah started the playback, explaining, "I thought you were the one who instantly wiped out three of them, but apparently, Gansley wasn't taken out by you. I can't even reconstruct the footage of his duel. Anyway, let's take a look."
Noah turned to the projected recording, and Youmi followed his gaze.
The clip was short—just a few disjointed fragments.
Even so, Youmi could make out a figure made entirely of static and glitching symbols who crushed Gansley with a single punch from [Trickstar Holly Angel].
Reaching for the deck box that contained her [Mikanko] Deck, Youmi noticed that the box, which had been empty due to the lack of sleeves, was now full again.
"What is it? Got an idea? Could it be... another time traveler like you?" Noah closed the recording and looked at Youmi, who was staring blankly at her deck box.
"Maybe. Probably someone I don't know~"
Returning the deck box to her belt, Youmi thought to herself that she'd have to ask [Ten Thousand Dragon] later if one of her fellow 'countrymen' had also ended up in this world. "Anyway, enough about that. You said we could start our duel now, right? I don't see you the same way I do those five losers. How about we have a proper duel under this era's rules?"
Youmi stood up, and [Dingirsu, the Orcust of the Evening Star] gently set them down on the ground.
"I actually wanted to try your 'Link Summon' technique myself," Noah said, stepping to face her. "As the master of this domain, I've already copied the Deck you were just constructing and I've learned how to use it."
He waved his hand, and the field transformed into the New Master Rule layout Youmi had used. "And since it's a rare opportunity, let's invite your friends to watch too, Youmi."
Yugi and the others slid down a chute-like device and landed on suddenly materialized bleachers nearby, looking bewildered.
"Eh? We were just in that weird Noah's Maze, weren't we? Why are we—ow! My nose!" Joey face-planted on arrival, clutching his nose and speaking through the nasal pain. Then, spotting the duel field ahead, he exclaimed, "Hey, Yuge, looks like someone's about to duel Noah!"
Hearing that Noah had copied her Deck, Youmi let out a wry laugh. "Heh, so you copied my Deck and that one, huh... Guess I'll tweak it a little~ No objections, right?"
"DUEL." ×2
Turn 1
"My turn first. Draw."
Noah won the coin toss and immediately slammed down a Spell Card. "I activate [Foolish Burial] to send [Dandylion] from my Deck to the Graveyard! [Dandylion]'s effect activates—Special Summon two [Fluff Tokens]!"
Watching the two tokens appear on Noah's field, Youmi wondered if she should just surrender now. One card, and the man was already set to combo off.
"Yeah, I know where this is going. How about you just go all out?"
Youmi glanced at her hand, nodded without a word, and let him continue his setup.
"Hey, Yuge, what's with those weird grid patterns and the new summon style? Never seen that before!"
As Noah began his first Link Summons, Joey leaned forward, fascinated. Yami Yugi and Kaiba, meanwhile, were analyzing the advantages and possible combo lines of this new summoning method.
By the time Noah had nearly emptied his Extra Deck, however, Joey and Serenity were already playing poker in the stands, Joey's face plastered with paper cards.
"Alright, my turn's over. I assume I don't need to explain each effect to you—or do you need me to give your 'audience' a quick lecture?"
Before him stood six differently colored Link Monsters; his Extra Deck had only a few cards left, and his Main Deck was already half gone.
Youmi looked at the last remaining blue crystal beside her and at her own monster—[Knightmare Corruptor Iblee]—on her field. With no Link Arrows pointing her way, she couldn't even Special Summon right now.
If there was any consolation, it was that Noah's combo-heavy build probably didn't include much in the way of disruption or backrow removal. Once she drew her pieces, she could turn it around.
"Noah's monsters' effects are as follows:
[Knightmare Mermaid]: While this card is on the field, monsters not co-linked lose 1000 Attack and Defense.
[Knightmare Goblin]: Co-linked monsters on your field cannot be targeted by card effects.
[Knightmare Cerberus]: Co-linked monsters on your field cannot be destroyed by card effects.
[Knightmare Phoenix]: Co-linked monsters on your field cannot be destroyed by battle.
[Knightmare Unicorn]: During your Draw Phase, if co-linked [Knightmare] monsters exist, draw cards equal to the number of different [Knightmare] monsters you control.
[Knightmare Gryphon]: While this card is on the field, Special Summoned monsters that are not in a co-linked state cannot activate their effects."
Youmi listed each of the effects one by one, her expression far more serious than it had been when dealing with the weaklings of the Big Five.
Now her only monster—[Knightmare Corruptor Iblee]—was stranded, unable to be used for a Link Summon with no arrows pointing to her zone.
Still, she found a small comfort in the fact that Noah's setup likely lacked any disruptive Traps or Spells. That fortress of combo pieces was impressive—albeit fragile. All she needed was the right draw.
Turn 2
"So, you're not planning to surrender, huh? Going to struggle a bit longer?" Noah tilted his head, watching Youmi's expressionless face. "Well, I suppose that's a duelist's pride."
Youmi silently drew a card, then slapped it onto the field.
[Trickstar Light Stage]. Upon activation, its effect lets her add one [Trickstar] monster from her Deck to her hand. She chose [Trickstar Lycoris].
Then, Youmi activated [Terraforming], searched another [Trickstar Light Stage], and activated it to add a second [Trickstar Lycoris].
Next came [Set Rotation]. Youmi gave Noah a [Mystic Mine] while activating a third [Trickstar Light Stage] for herself, adding a third [Trickstar Lycoris].
"At this point, adding a monster to your hand won't help. There's no way to break through that board," Seto Kaiba muttered, watching this unfamiliar duelist add a low-attack monster that couldn't hope to defeat even one of Noah's [Knightmare] monsters. He scoffed. "She's out of options. This duel's as good as over."
Yami Yugi shook his head. "Not necessarily. There's no despair in her eyes. She must have a way to turn this around."
Standing beside him in the virtual stands, Yugi Muto tilted his head. "That person... isn't that Youmi?"
Ignoring the startled murmurs from the spectators, Youmi tributed [Knightmare Corruptor Iblee] to Tribute Summon [Trickstar Corobane].
Then she revealed her three [Trickstar Lycoris] from her hand. "I reveal the three [Trickstar Lycoris] in my hand and activate their effects! Each Special Summons itself, returning [Trickstar Corobane] to my hand. The stage is set—it's showtime. Oh, by the way, Noah, that card in your hand... it's not [Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring], is it?"
Confident that Youmi couldn't possibly overcome his field, Noah casually showed his hand—it was a [Level Eater].
"Well then, looks like the game's over." Youmi nodded and activated a Spell Card. "[Card of Sanctity]. Both players draw until they have six cards in hand."
Noah drew five new cards, only to see Youmi and her three [Trickstar Lycoris] staring at him with the expressions of executioners. "What? Is there something on my face?"
"[Trickstar Lycoris]'s effect—while it's on the field, each time your opponent adds cards to their hand, they take 200 damage for each card added." Youmi held up three fingers. "I control three of them. You drew five cards. 5 × 200 × 3 = 3000 damage."
Noah nearly dropped his cards in shock, but then quickly pointed to his field. "But with [Knightmare Gryphon]'s effect, since they're not co-linked, shouldn't—"
Youmi shook her head. "They're Continuous Effects—they don't activate. Also, [Trickstar Light Stage]'s effect: whenever a [Trickstar] monster you control inflicts battle or effect damage to your opponent, inflict 200 additional damage. Since it triggered three times, that's another 3 × 200 = 600."
[Noah, LP: 4000 → 400]
Showing Noah the [Card Destruction] she'd just drawn, Youmi considered it for a moment, then declared the end of her turn.
As Noah drew his next card, the nightmare's symphony finally reached its end.
...
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