"My turn, draw." Hikaru casually drew a card as if nothing was happening, glanced at the card he'd drawn, then continued speaking.
"Duelists must evolve step by step. Only then can they be called duelists. This is a real truth and a rather reasonable matter."
"As a duelist, one must ceaselessly strive, ceaselessly create brand-new possibilities. Only this way can one become stronger."
"But, Throne, your so-called creating, your so-called becoming stronger, has it truly made you stronger?"
Hikaru looked at Throne without diverting his gaze.
"What are you trying to say?" Throne responded coldly.
"I heard from Yuma. Your aces are Heraldry Crest and Heraldic King." Hikaru looked at Throne and continued. "Even more, I heard that in that final duel, you'd already more or less let go.
After all, Yuma was the child of someone who shared your fate."
"But why, at this time, would you take Hart, take Quattro, and run wild in this world completely unrelated to you?
That's all because of the Goddess of Despair."
Hikaru's words made Synchro Dimension viewers puzzled. They looked at each other, not knowing what Hikaru was talking about.
"The Goddess of Despair is an existence that appears only before the most despairing people."
"At that time, you must have realized your own despair, the despair that in this life you could never take revenge again."
"You wanted release, wanted death, sending Yuma back to the real world. But at that time you saw the Goddess of Despair, were lured by her power, and appeared here."
"What are you rambling about?" Throne didn't understand.
He wasn't interested in these matters now.
He only wanted to be happy, joyful, torturing Faker's son.
Everything else was irrelevant!
"Heh... indeed, sounds like it has nothing to do with you. After all, so long as you can make Kite and Hart destroy each other, you're satisfied. You gave up finding trouble with Dr. Faker, and could only settle for tormenting his son!"
"Bastard!" Throne's eyes erupted with blood-red intense light. Powerful heraldic force even shook the entire room's space to expand.
"My matters with Faker are Xyz Dimension matters. Don't need you to talk about them."
"Ah, yes." Hikaru lightly nodded, admitting this. "So they're not important to me."
"What's important is that you're the Goddess of Despair's agent.
So I'll show you what real duelists' dueling is!
Ending this duel in one turn!"
One turn?
Big talk.
You with only 500 Life Points remaining, what can you do?
"Activate Continuous Spell Card, Brilliant Fusion!"
"When this card is activated, as its effect resolution, using monsters from my Deck as Fusion Materials, Fusion Summon 1 Gem-Knight Fusion Monster with ATK and DEF becoming 0. When this card leaves the field, that monster is destroyed!"
"I send Gem-Knight Sapphire and Gem-Knight Quartz from my Deck to the Graveyard, conduct Fusion Summon."
"Fusion Summon, Gem-Knight Aquamarine."
Gem-Knight Aquamarine. Level 6, EARTH Attribute, Aqua-Type. ATK 1400.
"Quartz's effect. When this card is sent to the Graveyard or banished as a Fusion Material, I can add 1 Gem-Knight monster from my Graveyard to my hand. I add Sapphire to my hand."
"Normal Summon Sapphire. Activate Spell Card, Fusion Substitute."
"This card can use monsters on the field as Fusion Materials to conduct one Fusion Summon."
"I fuse Sapphire and Aquamarine."
"The Fusion condition is Gem-Knight monster plus Aqua-Type monster."
"Fusion Summon, Gem-Knight Amethyst!"
Gem-Knight Amethyst. Level 7, EARTH Attribute, Aqua-Type. ATK 1950.
"Amethyst!?"
"Haven't seen Amethyst in a long time."
"The spear captain. Truly rare."
"If that's the case, he should win, right?"
Fusion Dimension people watching to this point roughly understood Hikaru's line of thinking.
Very simple. Monsters on the field would be negated, so use effects of monsters not on the field, right?
"Aquamarine's effect in the Graveyard. When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard, target 1 card on the opponent's field to activate. That opponent's card returns to the hand!
I choose Heraldry Crest!"
"Open Set card, Trap Card, Divine Wrath!"
"Discard 1 hand card, negate a monster effect and destroy it!"
Throne had long anticipated: "Heheh, using Prismaura and Aquamarine's effects to deal with the skill-copying issue, WRGP participants should all know this. You didn't think I had no preparation, did you?"
This was true.
WRGP participants would all consider and search for corresponding strategies.
Especially in Hikaru's kind of situation.
Hikaru, a top Fusion duelist who'd faced countless "Fusion restriction" and "Fusion sealing" duels, this Fusion Dimension's unanimously acknowledged "strongest Fusion User," this "Absolute Fusion Duelist" invincible across spirit dimensions.
His fame was great enough, so those researching him were naturally many. So Throne understood Hikaru's "solution-thinking" clearly.
His battles were naturally anticipated and warily watched.
"Is that so... the Set card is Divine Wrath?"
Hikaru pondered, thought a moment, and lightly nodded.
"Indeed, as a means to protect Aquamarine's target, it's also quite useful. After all, monsters on the field being negated by you doesn't mean other zones would be negated too."
"For protecting hand and Graveyard monster effects, nothing better."
"But..." Hikaru's calm face was gradually replaced by coldness. "This also means, your final resistance is also gone."
?
"Activate the effect of Fusion Substitute in the Graveyard, return Aquamarine in the Graveyard to the Extra Deck, banish Fusion Substitute itself, draw 1 card."
Hikaru looked at the card he drew, corners of his mouth curving into a laugh.
"Pay half my Life Points, open Set card!"
Half life?
At this time!?
Including Throne, everyone at this moment was slightly surprised.
Unlike Gossip Shadow, who conducted heavy pressure via 86, Throne pursued not only pressure but also direct fast wins after effect stealing.
Of course, even losing all materials, he had cards like "Heraldic Beast Twin-Headed Eagle and Heraldic Beast Stad Whale" in his Graveyard to fight again. So circular battles and long-line battles weren't as constrained as with a single 86.
Saying which was stronger between 86 and his own 69, one couldn't really say. If 69 came out first, even Rhongomyniad's effect wouldn't work. Conversely, if Rhongomyniad came out first, Heraldry Crest wouldn't have a chance to appear either.
The best situation was naturally having both Heraldry Crest and Rhongomyniad.
Endurance, burst, and powerful attack ability all together.
This was why the Goddess of Despair favored 86 and 69.
But where in a situation with only 500 Life Points did one still cut into their not-abundant Life Points?
"Trap Card, Dinomorphia Domain!"
"What card is that?"
"Eh, looks like it's also Fusion?"
"Brand-new Fusion?"
The viewers discussed among themselves.
In Hikaru's duels, one could always see new, strange Fusions.
And not only previous duels. The Fusion Hikaru used this time was also a card they'd never seen.
"Oh!"
Only one person recognized this card.
"Isn't this the card I gave that kid?"
A large group of Fusion Dimension people turned back, searching for the source of the voice, and saw a young man wearing a green jacket and a red cap.
Rex Raptor!
It was him!
Then it wasn't strange, then it wasn't strange.
"That kid, finally completed the Dinomorphia Fusion?" Rex Raptor curled his mouth up, mood quite good.
On stage, the Trap card's effect was still continuing.
Hikaru, LP: 500 → 250.
"That Aquamarine, the purpose wasn't to solve Heraldry Crest, but to test what my final Set card is?" Throne also quickly reacted.
Hikaru definitely had a method he believed could achieve fast victory. He just couldn't be certain all his cards would successfully pass through, so...
Prioritize the "trap-stepping" test first!
His real objective had actually been prepared from the opening!
"Dinomorphia Domain's effect. During my or the opponent's Main Phase, pay half my basic score to activate. Send Fusion Materials determined by a Dinomorphia Fusion Monster from my hand, Deck, or field to the Graveyard, and Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck."
Deck Fusion!
"Send Dinomorphia Therizia and Dinomorphia Diplos from my Deck to the Graveyard."
"Fusion Summon!"
"Level 6, Dinomorphia Kentregina!"
Accompanying the Fusion call, two cyber dinosaur people flew into the Graveyard. A blonde female warrior covered in cutting-edge technology, swinging a mechanical dragon tail, with a confident expression, appeared on Hikaru's field.
Dinomorphia Kentregina. Level 6, DARK Attribute, Dinosaur-Type. ATK 4000.
ATK 4000!?
Throne widened his eyes.
A Level 6 Fusion Monster with 4000 ATK?
"ATK 4000?"
"Isn't it Level 6?"
"Such a low Level with 4000 ATK..."
"Hey, everyone, look, that monster's state isn't right!" Someone called their friends nearby and shared what they'd noticed.
Quick-reacting viewers had immediately noticed a strange phenomenon.
And that phenomenon, Throne had also seen.
He widened his eyes and shocked, looked at Heraldry Crest beside him. That originally tall, imposing, menacing monster was shrinking its own body and reducing its own ATK!
Wha, what was happening?
Throne watched this scene in disbelief.
Heraldry Crest, ATK: 2600 → 0.
"Impossible!" Throne shouted directly. "Heraldry Crest appeared first. All other monster effects should be negated!"
"Precisely." Hikaru calmly said. "Precisely so. That's why my monster has 4000 ATK, and your monster becomes 0."
Wha...
"Dinomorphia Kentregina's effect. This card's ATK decreases by my own basic score value."
Throne's pupils shrank.
No wonder Level 6 had 4000 ATK!
No wonder... Heraldry Crest's ATK dropped!
"Ugh... ah! Too, too clever!"
Someone understood this scene.
"Since the opponent has the ability to steal monster effects, then just give it all to him! Doesn't he like stealing effects? Here's this effect for you, how are you not satisfied!"
"Hahaha, so interesting. Turns out you could do it this way!"
Gifting the negative effect to the opponent!
"But..." Chazz Princeton frowned and said, "if it's only this, it's not enough to defeat Heraldry Crest."
Heraldry Crest could also activate Genom-Heritage's effect to make the opponent's monster ATK become 0, and this card becomes the opponent's monster's original ATK value.
In this situation, Kentregina had no way to achieve fast victory.
"Quick-Play Spell Card, De-Fusion."
?!!
"Return Kentregina to the Extra Deck, Special Summon the two Fusion Materials from the Graveyard."
Two cyber dinosaurs appeared on the field, looking full of confidence, not fearing the opponent at all.
"Wh, why?" Throne didn't understand.
"I heard from Yuma... Heraldry Crest has the ability that when the opponent attacks this card, detach 1 Xyz Material to destroy 1 card on the opponent's field, right?"
"What?"
"That monster has another effect!?"
"So sneaky. Not only cannot be destroyed in battle by non-Number monsters, but when attacked, can destroy 1 card on the opponent's field?"
"Why is the monster overlaid from these two monsters so powerful!"
Why? Because this thing is from the monster-infested Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL.
"So that's it. You knew about this." Throne looked at Hikaru. The pretense of panic on his face vanished, replaced by absolute confidence. "You, with only 250 Life Points, have no surplus method to choose. Give up early."
Hikaru held up a card, lightly shaking it, and said: "That's hard to say, Throne."
?
"Right now, the effects of your field cards, I know them all. The effects of Graveyard cards have all been shown. Hand is zero.
And I still have this last Fusion."
Could it be!?
One card...
"Throne, I hold no malice toward you, because I heard from Yuma, you'd originally already wanted to give up revenge. Only the sudden appearance of the Goddess of Despair drove you mad again..."
"I need to defeat you. After defeating you, only then will I have the opportunity to make the Goddess of Despair descend."
"So I won't hold back!"
"Quick-Play Spell Card, Rapid Trigger!"
"Destroy Fusion Material monsters on my field as determined by the Fusion Monster card, Fusion Summon that 1 Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck. The Fusion Monster Special Summoned by this effect can only attack monsters Special Summoned from the Extra Deck, and is unaffected by effects activated by other monsters Special Summoned from the Extra Deck!"
"Destroy the two Dinomorphia on my field!"
Bang, bang!
Metallic resonance.
Countless fragments composed a dance of metal and lightning.
A pitch-black figure, both arms wielding red wrist blades, once more truly descended!
Dinomorphia Kentregina. Level 6, DARK Attribute, Dinosaur-Type. ATK 4000.
"Unaffected by activated effects..."
"That's right. Heraldry Crest's continuous-type effect, the monster Fusion Summoned by Rapid Trigger still has to bear it. Precisely for this reason, your Heraldry Crest's ATK will return to 0 once more!"
"Rooaaar!"
Heraldry Crest, having just recovered its ATK not long ago, roared as it absorbed all monster power on the field. But mixed among all this power were things it couldn't use, couldn't bear... the price!
Heraldry Crest's ATK became 0 once again!
The Main Deck is the projection of a duelist's heart. The monsters of the Extra Deck are the final conviction.
Although some don't use Extra Decks, at least for Throne, for Number duelists, it was so.
Although he'd strengthened Main Deck cards, from beginning to end, what Throne used was still his original Number cards.
"Battle! Kentregina attacks Heraldry Crest!"
"Number monsters can't be destroyed in battle by cards other than Number cards, but the damage still must be borne!"
"And that damage is 4000!"
Kentregina laughed. Like Wolverine, she swung both hands, rushing at Heraldry Crest. After the two sharp red arm blades sliced through, enormous power pierced through Throne.
"Aaaah!"
Throne, LP: 4000 → 0.
Throne's chest was pierced. Life Points instantly hit zero. He shrieked and screamed.
"Father!" Quattro rose anxiously.
But at this moment, Throne seemed to come back to himself, finally speaking as if released: "No... it's fine, this way... is good."
Then this lost soul that should have long departed finally transformed into points of light and left the world of the living.
Hikaru shook his hand.
Won in three turns. Hadn't expected it to be this fast.
He'd originally been considering using Branded for a long battle.
But during the duel, he'd sensed the opponent's inner heart.
Although the original-work version of Heraldry Crest was still powerful, and although Throne had been diligently working for the Goddess of Despair, he'd already grown tired. Too tired.
He'd already grown weary of living.
So from the start, he'd also gone for a fast kill and hadn't much considered the so-called future.
Where Throne had vanished, a card slowly flickered and floated: Number 69: Heraldry Crest. Tierra snapped her fingers. Countless puppet strings flew out from all directions, preparing to recover the card. But Hikaru raised his hand, signaling her not to.
She was puzzled but saw that the card slowly vanished from midair.
"Just letting her take it away?" Tierra was puzzled.
"Only by completely shattering the state she considers her strongest can she truly realize whether her despair is really despair. Only then can she completely perish."