[Jeanne d'Arc (Lily) DEF: 800]
After the Special Summon resolved, Akasha waved her hand and activated the effect.
"Now—let the radiance of the Holy Night shine! Jeanne d'Arc Lily's effect! When this card is Special Summoned, you gain Life Points equal to the number of 'Lily' monsters you control × 300!"
Counting Jeanne d'Arc Lily, who had just been Special Summoned, Akasha now controlled 3 "Lily" monsters.
[Akasha LP 5000 → 5900]
Jaden leaned forward excitedly. "The longer the duel goes on, the more Life Points you gain—yup, that's totally Akasha, hurting people in reverse!"
"Even if you recover Life Points, if you can't withstand my monsters' attacks, it's still just a pointless struggle!"
With Child Alarm having redirected the attack target, Izana immediately destroyed Jeanne d'Arc Lily on Akasha's field.
[Jeanne d'Arc Lily — Destroyed]
The petite figure vanished beneath flashing blades, leaving behind a beautifully wrapped Christmas present on the field.
"Well, at least let me leave you a Christmas gift, Akasha~"
"Jeanne d'Arc Lily's effect activates! When this card is destroyed by battle or card effect: you can add 1 'Heroic Spirit' monster from your Deck to your hand!"
Upon opening the Christmas gift Jeanne left behind, instead of a holy light, a chilling aura of vengeance seeped out.
"—And the monster I'm adding to my hand is: April Fools Hessian Lobo!"
(This card is also treated as a 'Heroic Spirit' card.)
"Using a Trap to block the attack, then using a monster effect to search… Akasha, you really are amazing." Alexis praised, though a small frown lingered on her face.
"But! My Battle Phase isn't over yet—my Cyber Angel Izana still has another attack!"
[②: When this card destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the GY: it can make a second attack on a monster.]
"Oh ruler of the Sixth Heaven, let mortals witness your divine presence—Cyber Angel Izana's second attack!"
A sacred Buddhist radiance shone behind Izana's tall, graceful figure. At the same time, the four weapons she held turned mid-swing, redirecting toward Medea Lily.
"⊙﹏⊙ How is that fair!? Attacking twice is cheating!"
With a sulking complaint, Medea Lily's small figure also dissolved into light, fading from the icy battlefield.
[Medea Lily — Destroyed]
"I set 1 card and end my turn!"
[Alexis's: 2 Hand Cards | 1 Set Card]
"My turn—draw!"
At the start of her turn, Akasha immediately revealed the Avenger she had added to her hand last turn.
"Watch closely, Alexis—this is the blazing flame of hatred burning within me right now! I Special Summon Hessian Lobo from my hand!"
[If you have 2 or more "Lily" monsters in your GY, you can Special Summon this card from your hand.]
A dark miasma swirled as the vengeful spirit of the Avenger of Shinjuku, Hessian Lobo, ignited into an unquenchable flame, manifesting as a terrifying Avenger.
[April Fools – Hessian Lobo ★★★★★★ (Level 6)][DARK][Zombie/Effect][ATK 2000/DEF 1000]
"Awooooo—!!"
A furious howl shook the air. There was no room for understanding—only a beast fueled by pure hatred remained.
Alexis stared, stunned. A monster born entirely from such intense hatred—was this really how Akasha felt inside?
"…..."
"…He's… actually kind of cute, though. This Avenger."
The chibi-style Lobo stood in stark contrast to the fearsome aura he emitted moments ago, creating an unexpectedly adorable charm that instantly softened Alexis's expression.
"What the—! I thought you were genuinely mad, Akasha! So you were just joking around!"
"I'm not joking!" Akasha retorted, genuinely irritated. "Even if this Lobo is in chibi form, my burning desire for revenge is 100% real! I activate Hessian Lobo's effect!"
[If this card is Special Summoned: Add 1 "Lily" card from your Deck to your hand.]
"The card I'm adding is—Heroic Spirit – Jack the Ripper!"
"Oh, it's Akasha's ace monster—Jack the Ripper! So cool!" Jaden exclaimed, impressed by pretty much everything he saw—truly a first-rate hype-man.
But Jack the Ripper's terrifying strength was real, especially among the typically low-statted Lily monsters.
"Next, I Tribute my Nursery Rhyme to Tribute Summon the monster I just searched—Jack the Ripper!"
The card slammed onto the Duel Disk, and beneath the light of the Tribute Summon, a thick, chilling fog rolled across the frozen cavern.
[Heroic Spirit – Jack the Ripper ★★★★★★ (Level 6)][DARK][Zombie/Effect][ATK 800/DEF 1000]
"Time for the dissection~"
Jack hunched forward, dragging a dagger slowly across her pale thigh.
"From here on out—it's hell."
[Once per turn: You can target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; change it to face-down Defense Position.
If this card battles a Defense Position monster, destroy that monster without damage calculation.]
"I activate Jack the Ripper's effect! I target your Cyber Angel Izana to switch it into face-down Defense Position!
And when Jack battles a Defense Position monster, she can destroy it without damage calculation!"
"So it's Jack the Ripper's infamous London Mist… As your ace monster, I've studied it before."
Asuka tapped the Izana card on her Duel Disk, announcing her counter.
"But that death-shrouding mist can't obscure Izana's sacred radiance! I activate Cyber Angel Izana's effect!"
[③: Once per turn, when a card or effect that targets a "Cyber Angel" Ritual Monster you control is activated:
Shuffle 1 Ritual Monster from your GY into the Deck; then destroy 1 card your opponent controls.]
"When Jack the Ripper chooses Cyber Angel Izana as the target of her effect, I can return the Cyber Angel Benten I used as Tribute for the Ritual Summon last turn from the GY back to the Deck and activate a counter-effect!"
Behind Izana's alluring figure, a radiant Buddhist light burst through the dense mist, purifying the magic Jack used to conceal herself. At the same time, Izana's sharp axe sensed Jack's hidden presence and flew straight toward her.
"Take this, Akasha! According to Cyber Angel Izana's effect, I destroy Jack the Ripper!"
Jaden's face lit up with excitement as he praised her, "Amazing! As expected of Obelisk Blue's Alexis! You used your monster's own chained effect to counter Akasha's ace, Jack!"
"A counter that destroys cards, huh? But Alexis, you're still just a little short!"
Akasha slammed the monster fulfilling the activation condition onto her Duel Disk. The icy arena rumbled like a storming sea.
"There is a cute little girl here waiting for you to protect her, Blackbeard!"
With a furious roar, Edward Teach emerged directly from Akasha's hand, standing atop the legendary pirate ship—the Queen Anne's Revenge.
"To harm a young maiden—my rage soars to the heavens!!"
[If this card is in your hand or GY, and a "Lily" monster you control becomes the target of an attack or an opponent's card effect, you can activate one of the following effects:
● Negate that effect and destroy that card. Then, banish this card.]
"Now go! Fire at full force—'Queen Anne's Revenge'!!"
The massive ship intercepted the flying axe meant for Jack, then charged forward atop raging waves. At Teach's command, cannon fire rained down like a storm toward Alexis's field.
"Due to Edward Teach's effect, I negate Cyber Angel Izana's effect and destroy her!"
Hand traps are still traps—and if anything, ones activated from the hand were even harder to detect than face-down set cards on the field.
"In that case, to prevent my Cyber Angel monster's destruction, I banish the Ritual Spell Machine Angel Ritual from my GY instead!"
Alexis raised her Duel Disk as the GY slot emitted a mechanical glow. "Endure the bombardment with your effect, Izana!"
A golden Buddhist aura expanded outward, forming the huge silhouette of a cross-legged Buddha behind Izana. It enveloped Cyber Angel Izana and successfully shielded her from the Queen Anne's Revenge's devastating barrage.
"So the counter failed… but it doesn't matter. As long as I protect the young maiden—my life has no regrets."
With the effect resolved, Blackbeard and his beloved ship faded away with the receding waves, and the frozen battlefield returned to silence once more.
Jaden inhaled sharply, his breath frosting in the frigid air. "So this is how Obelisk Blue students duel… it's amazing!"
"You're holding on better than I expected, Alexis." A confident smirk curled on Akasha's lips. "But now that all your destruction effects have been negated, we're back to square one."
Mist spread once again across the frozen field. This time, Alexis had no way to destroy Jack or protect her monster.
"Due to Jack the Ripper's effect, Cyber Angel Izana is changed to Defense Position! Now, Jack—attack and cut through her defense!"
Battle Step. Akasha first ordered Jack—who ignores DEF and destroys Defense Position monsters—to strike.
"We are flame, rain, and force… bring slaughter upon this land—Maria the Ripper!!"
From within the mist, silver blades flashed, slicing effortlessly across Izana's smooth skin and shattering her into fragmented data.
[Cyber Angel Izana – Destroyed]
"Next, Lobo attacks directly! Taste the flames of my vengeance!"
The wolf's claws slashed across Alexis's body—though an illusion, the impact was still equivalent to a direct 2000-point hit.
"Ahhh!"
[Alexis Rhodes LP 4000 → 2000]
The intense shock, combined with Alexis's involuntary cry, instantly wiped out half of her Life Points.
At the same moment her LP dropped, the temperature of the icy arena plummeted sharply. A bone-chilling cold clawed at Alexis's bathrobe-covered body.
"W-what is this…?" She rubbed her exposed hands and feet, shivering. The sudden drop made Alexis instinctively frown.
"Cold? Good—feel it!" Akasha sneered. "Because what I felt inside when I saw that scene was far colder than what your body feels right now!"
"So strange… why is the environment getting colder as LP decreases? This isn't a normal Duel at all…"
Alexis finally began to realize it. A Duel Arena of ice hidden within the hot springs resort, built near a volcanic cliff—none of this was normal, including Akasha's behavior.
"Don't tell me… this is a Shadow Game, Akasha?"
"You finally noticed. This frozen Duel Arena can produce the same real effects as a Shadow Game."
Akasha placed her Duel Disk down, ending her turn, then locked her eyes on Asuka.
"After you stole the most important thing from me, I came prepared to risk my life. It's your turn—so don't you dare run now!"
"No, this is insane!" Unable to contain herself, Alexis shouted, "I don't understand any of this! Why are we even risking our lives in a Shadow Game here?!"
Jaden's expression hardened with concern. "This isn't good, Akasha. A Shadow Game? Isn't that what Sensei used against the vampires before? Even if you wanted a fair duel with Alexis, this is too far—"
Akasha bit her lip, her icy gaze piercing into Alexis.
"Alexis… kissed Hoshino-nee in the hot springs! I saw it—those two were doing something so shameless!"
"Ehhh?!!" ×2
Both Alexis and Jaden shouted in shock.
"W-wait, seriously?! Something like that?!"
The revelation overloaded Jaden's pure and innocent brain, leaving him frozen in disbelief.
"Alexis… did that with Sensei? Impossible! Akasha, you must have misunderstood!"
"So you saw it… Akasha."
"It really happened?!"
Jaden was shaken to his core. For the first time in his life, the pure-hearted boy experienced the shock of a real love-triangle battlefield unfolding right before his eyes.