Yusaku flipped up another card in his hand.
"I chain to your effect and activate the Quick-Play Spell Card, [Forbidden Droplet]!"
"You can send any number of other cards from your hand and field to the GY to activate it. Then you choose that many effect monsters your opponent controls. Those monsters' ATK are halved and their effects are negated until the end of the turn."
Yusaku revealed the other two cards in his hand.
"I send the Continuous Trap [Infinite Impermanence] I activated on the field, along with the monster [Dot Scaper] in my hand, to the GY. I apply [Forbidden Droplet] to your [Borreload Savage Dragon] and [Legendary Six Samurai - Shi En]. Their effects are negated and their ATK are halved!"
"It's just one extra attack!" Fujiwara snorted coldly. "Then I chain to your effect and activate [Borreload Savage Dragon]'s effect, detaching 1 counter to negate a monster effect!"
"Pointless." Yusaku glanced at him. "You should be familiar with [Dark Ruler No More], right? [Forbidden Droplet] is similar… No, it's even stronger than that."
"When [Forbidden Droplet] is activated, your opponent cannot respond to its activation with cards, nor with effects that share a card type with the cards sent to the GY to activate it!"
"One of the cards I sent was the monster [Dot Scaper], so you can't respond to this card's activation with any monster effects."
Hearing this, Fujiwara's pupils shrank. "What!? That's impossible!"
Refusing to accept it, he tried once more to activate Borreload Savage Dragon's effect, only to find that no matter how he operated the disk, he couldn't even bring up the activation prompt, let alone resolve the effect.
The Dueling Disk kept chiming "beep, beep," clearly indicating: "No chain possible."
Since Fujiwara could not add anything to the chain, the entire chain resolved immediately.
C1: Infinite Impermanence → C2: Legendary Six Samurai - Shi En → C3: Forbidden Droplet.
"Effects, resolve!" Yusaku said in a low voice. "Your [Borreload Savage Dragon] and [Legendary Six Samurai - Shi En] have all of their effects negated and their ATK halved until the end of the turn!"
The instant his voice fell, an illusory crystal goblet formed in midair over the plaza, its body shimmering with seven-colored light. A torrent of [Royal Gravity]'s water poured down from the cup.
The moment it hit the ground, ripples of energy surged outwards. When the wave passed through Fujiwara's Monster Zone, crackling arcs of electricity burst from his monsters.
[Legendary Six Samurai - Shi En]
[ATK: 2500 → 1250]
[Borreload Savage Dragon]
[ATK: 3500 → 1750]
"So, since your [Legendary Six Samurai - Shi En]'s effect is negated, the effect of my [Infinite Impermanence] will now resolve properly, negating the effect of your [Legendary Lord Six Samurai - Shi En] on the field!"
As his words fell, a huge mechanical dragon covered in intricate circuitry rose up behind Yusaku as a projection, its eyes glowing crimson. It opened a maw full of metallic fangs.
A streak of ghostly blue lightning snaked out like a living thing, striking Fujiwara's Warrior monster dead on. In the instant the current exploded, the glow around the monster's body abruptly went dim.
"Next, the effect of [Dot Scaper] in my GY activates. When this card is sent to the GY, it can Special Summon itself."
A pale blue stream of data burst out of the GY, and [Royal Gravity]'s tiny mechanical beast leapt lightly onto the field.
[Dot Scaper]
[Level 1 / Cyberse / Effect]
[ATK: 0]
Watching the board state, the Flame Wolf Dojo students stood there dumbfounded.
That chain had looked like a fierce back-and-forth, but from beginning to end, Yusaku had only activated three cards, plus the earlier [Lava Golem] and [Royal Gravity].
Yet the defensive wall Fujiwara had painstakingly erected had been dismantled layer by layer in less than a minute.
Only now did they finally understand why Fujiwara had lost so miserably last time. Their dueling skill simply wasn't on the same level.
On the field.
Staring at his monsters, all completely negated, Fujiwara forced himself to sound calm and snorted coldly, repeating almost the exact same line he had used in their last duel. "Lava Golem is Special Summoned by Tributing and uses up your Normal Summon. Once it hits the field you can't Normal Summon again! And this time it's different from before, you've only got two cards left in your hand now."
Hearing that, Yusaku glanced at the cards in his hand and smiled faintly. "One card is enough."
Fujiwara: "?"
Yusaku then slammed down the only card left in his hand.
"I activate the effect of [Mathmech Circular] in my hand. By sending 1 [Mathmech] monster from my Deck to the GY, I can Special Summon this card from my hand. After this effect resolves, until the end of the turn I can only declare attacks with 1 monster."
The moment they saw the card Yusaku used, the players familiar with the [Mathmech] deck exploded with excitement.
"Holy crap, it's Circular!"
"Circle god, start up!"
"With Circle god in play, that's all she wrote!"
By contrast, the Takeuchi Dojo students all wore puzzled expressions. None of them had ever seen Yusaku use this card before.
They had never seen Yusaku play this card before.
Seeing this, someone couldn't help asking, "Why are you all so hyped? Is this card Yusaku-senpai's using really that strong? It doesn't look that crazy to me. After it resolves you can only attack with one monster, and he's still facing four monsters. How's he supposed to clear the board?"
"Strong? I think it's pretty mid. After its effect, you can only attack with one monster, and there are still four monsters on the other side. How's he clearing the board?"
One of the players answered.
"You'll see in a second. That self-lock might as well not exist for [Mathmech]. It makes almost no difference."
The student who had just spoken froze. "Huh?"
On the field.
Yusaku revealed a card from his Deck.
"According to [Mathmech Circular]'s effect, I send [Mathmech Sigma] from my Deck to the GY and Special Summon [Mathmech Circular] to my field!"
The moment his words fell, a silver-white pillar of light shot out of his Deck. A small mech monster with a cold metallic sheen took shape within it and landed on the field with a solid thud, the gears on its body whirring at high speed.
[Mathmech Circular]
[Level 4 / Cyberse / Effect]
[ATK: 1500]
Seeing the monster Yusaku had summoned, Fujiwara blinked, then suddenly burst into wild laughter. "So you really are using the same deck as last time! This duel is mine, Yusaku!"
He snapped his arm out, and a set card on his back row flipped up. As the card opened, a gray dimensional rift appeared above it, radiating oppressive spatial pressure.
"Bet you didn't see this coming. I had this in my opening hand!"
"I activate the Trap Card, [Dimensional Barrier]!"
"This card's effect: I declare 1 type of monster: Ritual, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, or Pendulum. This turn, neither player can Special Summon monsters of the declared type, and the effects of those monsters on the field are negated!"
"I declare [Synchro] monsters! This turn you can't conduct any Synchro Summons, and all Synchro monster effects on the field get shut down!"
Fujiwara looked over at Yusaku, a smug smirk tugging at his lips. "This time, you can't summon that damned monster. There's no way you're ending the duel in a single swing again."
Seeing the card Fujiwara had activated, the [Royal Gravity] students all gasped.
"Damn it, I didn't think that face-down card of Fujiwara's would be [Dimensional Barrier]. Now Yusaku-senpai can't Synchro at all."
"And he's locked himself into attacking with only one monster because of that Circular effect. There's no way he can break Fujiwara's board…"
"…"
But very soon, someone noticed what was really going on. The group of disciples who were usually glued to Yusaku, super noob, and absolutely obsessed with dueling, were not worried in the slightest. Instead they were watching the field with a look like they were waiting for the big show to start.
Seeing this, another student tugged on his senior's sleeve and asked, "Senpai, the [Royal Gravity] guys aren't worried at all about Yusaku-senpai throwing the game? His summons are sealed right now!"
Kouki just waved his hand and laughed. "What's there to worry about? You guys don't know what he just activated. Locking Synchro does nothing to him. In this build, Synchro is only a tiny part of the plan to begin with."
"If he wants to crack that field, he's got at least three different ways to do it!"
"Three?" The dojo students all stared, stunned, at Kouki.
Kazetaro joined in. "Calling it just 'three' is underselling it. That's the charm of 'Circle god.'"
Hearing the two of them, the [Royal Gravity] students suddenly remembered what Yusaku had told Fujiwara during their first duel: the [Royal Gravity] deck wasn't limited to just Synchro as a summoning method.
With that, they snapped out of it.
"Right! How did I forget what he said? His deck builds are never conventional. Having more than one summoning method in a single deck is nothing to him."
On the field.
Yusaku looked at Fujiwara. "Didn't I already tell you? This deck runs Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum, and Link. No matter what you try to lock, it's useless."
Fujiwara shot Yusaku a dismissive glance. "You said that last time too, and that monster 'you can't Summon by Synchro' still ended the duel in one hit. You think I'm going to let you win again?"
"And this time you're in an even worse position than before. Once you activated that, what was it, [Circular], you locked yourself into attacking with only one monster. This trash has just 1500 ATK. Honestly, you should've cut that card ages ago."
Yusaku's lips curved into a mysterious smile. "Then watch how this 'trash monster' you're mocking ends this duel."
He then revealed a card in his GY.
"I activate the effect of [Mathmech Sigma] in the GY. If this card is in my hand or GY and there are no monsters in my Extra Monster Zone, I can Special Summon it!"
"My Extra Monster Zone is empty right now, so come forth, [Mathmech Sigma]!"
A pale purple glow rose from the GY as a Cyberse monster with a Tuner mark slowly floated into view, data-like streams of light flowing around its body as it landed steadily on Yusaku's field.
[Mathmech Sigma]
[Level 4 / Cyberse / Tuner / Effect]
[ATK: 1000]
"This is the moment!"
Yusaku shouted.
"[Mathmech Circular]'s other effect activates. While it's on the field, if a [Mathmech] monster is Normal or Special Summoned to my field, I can add 1 [Mathmech] card from my Deck to my hand. Since I already have [Mathmech Sigma], I'll add the Spell Card [Mathmech Equation] from my Deck!"
After adding the searched card to his hand, Yusaku raised his arm, his voice ringing across the plaza. "Next, I overlay the [Mathmech Sigma] I just Special Summoned and [Mathmech Circular] to build the Overlay Network!"
Fujiwara's face changed instantly, his brows knitting together. "Xyz Summon?"
"I Xyz Summon, Rank 4… [Primathmech Alembertian]!"
The moment Yusaku's words fell, his two [Mathmech] monsters turned into silver and violet streaks of light that shot skyward, crossing paths in midair.
They twisted into a spiral beam that tore open a golden Xyz vortex. From within the whirlpool, gears, circuitry, and other mechanical parts spilled out, rapidly assembling within the pillar of light.
A heartbeat later, a roar of dense mechanical motion shook the air. A humanoid mech wielding a massive alloy greatsword slowly descended from the vortex, the lines across its armor glowing with deep blue current.
[Primathmech Alembertian]
[Rank 4 / Cyberse / Xyz / Effect]
[Xyz Materials: 2]
[ATK: 2000]
"[Primathmech Alembertian]'s effect!"
Yusaku barked.
"I detach both of this card's Xyz Materials!"
[Primathmech Alembertian]
[Xyz Materials: 2 → 0]
"I add [Mathmech Subtraction] from my Deck to my hand!"
He slid the searched card into his hand in one smooth motion and continued without any pause. "Then I activate Alembertian's other effect. I tribute 1 of my monsters to Special Summon 1 Level 4 [Mathmech] monster from my hand or GY!"
"I tribute Alembertian itself and Special Summon [Mathmech Circular] from my GY back to the field!"
As his voice fell, Alembertian dissolved into a shower of radiant fragments. Within that light, countless tiny circuit patterns flickered into view.
Moments later, [Mathmech Circular]'s silhouette reformed at the center of a web of golden lightning, reappearing in the middle of the battlefield, its armor shining with a cold metallic luster, blue sparks snapping at its joints.
[Mathmech Circular]
[ATK: 1500]
"Next, I activate the effect of [Mathmech Subtraction] in my hand!" Yusaku's eyes were sharp as blades. "I target 1 face-up monster on the field, Special Summon this card from my hand, and that monster loses 1000 ATK until the end of the turn!"
He pointed straight at Fujiwara's field, his voice hard as steel. "I target your [Lava Golem], reduce its ATK by 1000, and Special Summon [Mathmech Subtraction]!"
[Lava Golem]
[ATK: 3000 → 2000]
As Lava Golem's attack power suddenly dropped, the magma covering its body visibly dimmed.
The next instant, a crimson streak like a shooting star cut across the air. When it landed, it sent out a ring-shaped shockwave, and a mech monster clad in red armor touched down solidly on Yusaku's field.
[Mathmech Subtraction]
[Level 4 / Cyberse / Effect]
[ATK: 1000]
(End of Chapter)
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