"Blue-Eyes..."
Everyone present stared at the massive white dragon soaring across the sky, astonishment written on every face. Even the ever-composed Yugi Muto couldn't help but marvel at seeing Hikaru actually play Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
"I-Is that the legendary strongest dragon?" "But I heard only Mr. Seto Kaiba has that card?"
"Ah, I remember now! The GX tournament champion can apparently request an opportunity from Mr. Kaiba."
Under the narration of the young man who had once attended the GX tournament, the children pieced together the backstory.
"Impressive. To actually get Seto Kaiba's permission to use Blue-Eyes?" Odion looked at Hikaru in surprise, unable to contain his admiration. "But even Blue-Eyes White Dragon cannot hope to easily surpass a God!"
"Heh, is that so? Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon's effect: once per turn, I can target one monster my opponent controls and destroy it!" Hikaru pointed at the enormous Divine-Beast hovering above. "Despite its formidable ATK, if I'm not mistaken, to allow the card to bear the God's power, that power was probably distributed across multiple cards, wasn't it?
Otherwise, the Sun God's ATK wouldn't look like this."
Odion's expression tightened slightly.
The Sun God, or rather all three Egyptian Gods, were simply too famous. In this world, in this dimension, practically every duelist knew their effects. When those effects differed from expectations, any strong duelist could instantly deduce the reasons.
But still...
"Naive, Hikaru! Flip set card: Ra's Unity!"
Oh?
Hikaru watched as crimson flames erupted from the Sun God's body. Before long, its form gradually dissolved, replaced by an enormous phoenix of fire!
"Once per turn, by extinguishing the God's wrath, I recover Life Points equal to its ATK!"
Flames roared to life, rekindling Odion's flickering life force and restoring it to full.
Odion, LP: 100 → 4000.
Hikaru raised an eyebrow.
As expected of the Gravekeeper clan. They certainly had a way with words.
It was clearly just releasing the Sun God from the field and recovering Life Points equal to its ATK, yet he managed to phrase it so reverently. Truly heartfelt.
"Now then. Spell Card: Polymerization!"
Hikaru played the card from his hand. "The Fusion conditions are Blue-Eyes White Dragon plus a Dragon-Type monster. I fuse Blue-Eyes White Dragon in my hand with Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon on the field!"
"Fusion Summon!
Supreme and mightiest of dragons, spread your sky-darkening wings and display your authority as tyrant!
Level 8: Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon!"
Purple wings of light enveloped the slender, silver-white dragon. It drew a deep breath, then roared with fury.
RAAAH!!!!
Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon. Level 8, LIGHT Attribute, Dragon-Type. ATK 3400.
"When a monster from my hand or field is sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, Dreamland lets me draw one card. Draw."
He glanced down at the card.
"Spell Card: Fusion Deployment."
Hikaru revealed the drawn card. "Only one card with this name can be activated per turn. The turn this card is activated, I cannot Special Summon from the Extra Deck except Fusion Monsters.
Reveal one Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck to my opponent, then Special Summon one Fusion Material monster whose name is specifically listed on that card from my hand or Deck. I reveal Master of Chaos from my Extra Deck and Special Summon from my Deck: Dark Magician!"
"Haaah!"
A red-and-black magician burst from Hikaru's Deck, landing gracefully and gazing coolly at Odion.
"Wow! Dark Magician!" "Isn't that Mr. Yugi Muto's ace card?" "Blue-Eyes White Dragon and now Dark Magician? He's not going to Fuse those two together, is he?"
The children chattered excitedly.
Dark Magician...
Unlike the commonly known pure-black Dark Magician, the one Hikaru wielded was red.
Still, Yugi was actually quite familiar with this color.
He and his partner had once dueled a certain magician, and the Dark Magician that magician used had been this exact color.
Dark Magician. Level 7, DARK Attribute, Spellcaster-Type. ATK 2500.
"Entering the Battle Phase. Dark Magician, direct attack!"
"Wait! At this moment, Trap Card: Draining Shield, activate!"
A shield materialized before him, absorbing every ounce of Dark Magician's magical assault.
"I negate the opponent monster's attack, then recover Life Points equal to that monster's ATK."
Odion, LP: 4000 → 6500.
"Huh?"
"If that's the case, why not stop Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon, which has higher ATK?"
"Yeah..."
Odion shook his head gently, taking the opportunity to explain to his younger siblings. "Simple. Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon is unaffected by Trap Card effects."
Oh!
So that was why!
The younger siblings understood at once.
As a user of Trap-based tactics, Odion knew every kind of Trap Card inside and out. Likewise, he knew exactly which monsters were "Trap-immune." A monster as renowned as Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon was one he naturally recognized.
"Ha, so my tactic of having the lower-ATK monster attack first to clinch the win was seen through."
"Far too simple. You didn't hide it at all, so of course I'd see through it."
"Then, Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon, direct attack!"
"Tyrant Wing!"
The Tyrant Dragon's wings radiated brilliant light, then swept toward Odion.
"Ugh..."
Odion, LP: 6500 → 3100.
"At this moment, Blue-Eyes Tyrant Dragon's effect activates. Once per turn, at the end of the Damage Step when this card battled, I can target one Trap in my Graveyard and Set it to my field.
I Set Fusion Reserve face-down again."
Odion looked at Hikaru's Spell and Trap Zone but said nothing.
"Whoa, he's already preparing another round!" "Next turn he can search for Fusion Materials and Fuse again!"
"So this is the rumored Fusion cycle? Fascinating."
Hikaru's Fusion cycling was already famous worldwide. Most people understood Hikaru's Fusion logic, so when he pulled something like this, their reaction would only be "Oh, of course." They would never get this excited.
Hikaru glanced at his hand, then at his opponent. He hesitated for a moment before ending his turn.
"That's all."
"That's all?"
"But if he ends like that, doesn't everyone know what the set card has to be?"
True enough.
If Odion might have been wary of a Trap Card before, there was no way he'd worry about the set card now, was there?
"Heh, ending your turn without further preparation? Is that confidence, or is there something else in store?" Odion mused aloud, then drew from his Deck.
"Spell Card: Pot of Greed, activate."
Hikaru couldn't do anything about it and just watched him draw.
"Then, Spell Card: Graceful Charity."
Pot of Greed plus Graceful Charity. Standard equipment for legendary duelists. Hikaru was more or less used to it by now.
Pot of Greed was still common enough; even Duel Academy students had it. But Graceful Charity, as far as Hikaru could recall, hadn't been sold for quite some time.
Physically banned.
Odion shuffled through his hand, then the corner of his mouth twitched upward before he quickly returned to a serious expression. "Spell Card: The Shallow Grave.
Both players select one monster from their respective Graveyards and Set it face-down on their field."
Hikaru's brow furrowed.
He was going to...
Odion slowly opened his Graveyard, found a card, and Set it on his field.
Egyptian God Slime.
Hikaru didn't have much to choose from on his end. All his monsters felt about the same, so he picked Myutant Synthesis.
"Next, this card can Tribute monsters on my opponent's field as offerings for a Tribute Summon!"
Just as he thought!
Hikaru ruffled his own hair.
"Witness the divine radiance, Hikaru!" Odion spread his hand with a stern expression. "Let me show you the God's power! Normal Summon: The Winged Dragon of Ra - Sphere Mode!"
A deep hum resonated.
All three monsters on Hikaru's field dissolved into light. Then a massive golden sphere began slowly rising from Hikaru's side of the field.
The sphere hung high in the sky, like an enormous golden sun.
The Winged Dragon of Ra - Sphere Mode. Level 10, DIVINE Attribute, Divine-Beast Type. ATK 0.
"Huh?"
"Why did it appear on Hikaru's field?"
"It did..."
The children stared at the scene in bewilderment.
"The Winged Dragon of Ra - Sphere Mode cannot be Special Summoned. It requires 3 Tributes from either side of the field to be Normal Summoned to that side. Control of this Summoned card returns to its original owner during the End Phase of the next turn."
Although Hikaru was already thoroughly familiar with this card, seeing it in person, he couldn't help reading its description aloud.
"Correct." Odion spoke calmly. "This is the power of a God! A God can transform the opponent's monsters into its own offerings for Summoning! Even a White Dragon becomes fuel for the Sun God, becoming the power that manifests Its form!"
"What?" "Th-That's way too unfair, isn't it?" "And its ATK is 0. Can't you just summon a monster and attack it to win?"
"No." Odion shook his head. "Sphere Mode cannot attack, and it cannot be targeted by the opponent's attacks or effects."
Ohh.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
So there was still room to maneuver.
Or rather, was this the God's mercy?
"However, you can Tribute this card to Special Summon one The Winged Dragon of Ra from your hand or Deck, ignoring its Summoning conditions, with its ATK and DEF becoming 4000." Odion pointed at Hikaru. "In other words, Hikaru, if you cannot make the merciful God witness your Fusion, then you will face defeat!"
"Whoa!"
"If he takes back the God and it returns to Odion's field next turn, the God's power comes back!"
"And with 4000 ATK at that!"
"What can he even do?"
The onlookers felt Hikaru's defeat was all but certain.
"I Set one card. Turn end!" Odion Set yet another card.
Hikaru took a deep breath. "Heh, how do I deal with a God?
Simple. From start to finish, there is only one thing I will ever do!"
"Only one thing?" Everyone looked at Hikaru.
"The only thing Hikaru ever does is obviously Fusion..."
"Which means?"
"No way!" Even Odion stared at Hikaru in shock. "Don't tell me you intend to Fuse? Fuse a God?!"
"That's right! Let me show you my duel! Sun God!"
"A duel of Fusion!"