"Even if I only have four Monster Cards, I'm still gonna beat you down, Luca Slint!!"
The declaration of war rang out as Miles, in the guise of a little loli, placed one hand on her hip and pointed the other straight at Luca across from her, striking a cocky pose the princess herself would never normally make.
"Miles-san… so cute!!"
The little princess was already adorable enough, and now with Miles's soul inside her, it hit Aisha right in some strange, sweet spot. Even knowing this was a serious Shadow Game, she couldn't stop her heart from fluttering.
Nova asked nervously, "A duel, Miles? But I've never actually dueled before, I've barely even watched any… is this really okay?"
"Of course. I came here just to duel in your place. All you need to do is watch, Nova!"
"Just watch, really, onii-chan?"
"Absolutely. Leave everything to me!"
"Alright, then I'll believe in you both—Miles! And Aisha too!"
To Nova, whether it was Aisha or Miles who claimed to be another personality of Aisha, they were both her lifesaving benefactors who had upheld their promise and rescued her in her darkest hour.
"Ridiculous. You think you can duel me with some thrown-together Deck? Another personality inside the Millennium Puzzle… Aisha called you Miles, didn't she? Are you looking down on me?!"
"Who's looking down on you? Did you forget you lost to me already in that Practical Test Duel?"
Their first duel had ended in a loss for Luca. Even though the inner personality of the Millennium Ring interfered in the latter half, Miles still won thanks to Fusion Summoning the strongest [Arcana Knight Joker]. Back then, Aisha's Deck was barely cobbled together—"pathetic" was an understatement.
Of course, even now, Aisha's Deck wasn't nearly as expensive as Nova's extravagant one.
Extravagant to the point it had only four Monster Cards. Miles had never fought such a "rich" battle before.
"No way. You think I spent the last six months for nothing? I've completely transformed!"
"Six months, huh? Don't you mean tears behind iron bars?"
"Enough talk. Prepare to die!"
"Duel!"
[Nova, LP: 4000]
[Luca, LP: 4000]
The duel began, the Spirit Eyes on the little princess's slender arm glowing to show she had the first turn.
"My turn, draw."
Miles drew and glanced at her opening hand. Sure enough, with only four Monsters in a forty-card Deck, the odds of drawing one first turn were abysmally low.
A Bond Deck—yet defined by a lack of bonds.
Fortunately, the Spell Cards Prince Homar Kaiser had sent Nova were strong enough that even without Monsters, she could hold out.
"I Set two cards and end my turn."
With no Monsters to fight, she'd just have to play defensively for now.
"My turn, draw!"
Luca drew with far more arrogance than Miles. No key Sacred Beast this early, but against a field with no Monsters, she didn't need it.
What unsettled Luca was how she felt no connection to her Sacred Beasts in this duel.
"What? Do the Sacred Beasts think this petty match isn't worth their time? How relaxed."
The first thing she did was slam a card onto the ground, transforming the royal garden's scenery.
"—Field Spell [Mausoleum of the Emperor]!"
As the Field Spell activated, the royal garden vanished, replaced by an ancient stone tomb aflame.
[Mausoleum of the Emperor – Field Spell
During your Main Phase, you can activate one of these effects:
● Pay 1000 LP to Normal Summon one Level 5 or higher monster without Tribute.
● Pay 2000 LP to Normal Summon one Level 7 or higher monster without Tribute.]
By paying Life Points, you could replace Tribute requirements—1000 LP per monster Tributed.
[Luca Slint, LP: 4000 → 2000]
She boldly paid 2000 LP to replace two Tributes, raising a Monster high overhead.
The pain of Life Points draining in a Shadow Game stabbed straight through the brain, yet Luca was unfazed, grinning instead.
"—Tribute Summon! Eternal Demon that devours even the sun's brilliance, descend! The Supremacy Sun!"
[The Supremacy Sun] Level 10│DARK│Fiend│3000 ATK/3000 DEF
A towering Level 10 Fiend appeared, blotting out even the faintest rays of light.
Miles frowned. "So you've dropped the angel act. Straight into darkness now, Luca Slint!"
"Does it matter black or white? So long as power supports my Deck, it's the strongest Monster!"
"Oh?"
His frown eased into a raised brow. That she could say this now meant she really had grown stronger these six months. What had she gone through in prison?
"What a terrifying Monster, Miles… I'm scared… uuuh!"
Miles had forgotten—Nova had trauma from childhood, shadows of fear toward grotesque Demons. Especially this [The Supremacy Sun].
It wasn't ugly exactly, but eerie. A legless demon-armored sun, crawling with arms alone.
"Calm down, Nova."
He thought to say, "Just close your eyes." But with Soul Link, she'd see what he saw—unless he shut his own eyes, which he couldn't mid-duel.
"This Monster can be beaten in seconds, Nova!"
"Really, Miles?"
Hearing her soft, crying voice pleading his name stoked his resolve to protect.
"Don't play dumb, you have no Monsters! Direct attack, The Supremacy Sun! Flame of the Evil Sun!!"
Black and crimson flames surged in the empty field.
"—Shine! Trap Card activate, [Mirror Force]!"
[When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Destroy all Attack Position monsters your opponent controls.]
A shining barrier erupted before the little princess, absorbing the flames, then reflected them back double.
"I told you, done in seconds! Destroy [The Supremacy Sun]!"
Her Monster incinerated and annihilated by her own attack, after paying 2000 LP to Summon it, Luca watched it crushed by an ordinary rare Trap Card.
Sometimes, simple, powerful effects really could turn a duel upside down.
"Heh."
Yet she showed no panic, no trace of her old flustered self.
"So it's destroyed. Then—Continuous Spell activate, [Card of Safe Return]!"
[Whenever a monster is Special Summoned from your Graveyard: Draw 3 cards.]
One of the famous "Pot" cards, requiring revival to work but rewarding it with three draws each time.
"I Set one card, end turn."
Punished by sacred light, she still casually threw out Card of Safe Return and ended.
"My turn, draw."
For Miles, every draw mattered. He needed Monsters.
But again, no Monster this turn. His Soul Link synergy with Aisha's body wasn't here in Nova's—his draws weren't blessed.
"Heh~"
Luca smirked, irritating as ever. "In your Standby Phase, I activate [The Supremacy Sun]'s effect!"
[Cannot be Special Summoned except by its own effect. If this face-up card on the field is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: During your next Standby Phase, discard 1 card; Special Summon this card from the Graveyard.]
"I discard 1 card to revive [The Supremacy Sun]! Eternal flame reignited!"
[The Supremacy Sun, ATK: 3000]
Its broken body reformed, endless revival ability manifest.
And with it revived, Luca could trigger another effect.
"When a monster is Special Summoned from the Graveyard, I draw 3 cards!"
Discard 1, revive, then draw 3. Infinite resources, getting stronger each death.
"It's back… what do we do, Miles?"
"Seems destruction alone won't work. I Set 1 card and end."
To fight back, he needed to survive until he drew Monsters.
"Still no Monsters? Your Deck only has 4, doesn't it? What a joke!"
After two idle turns, she'd guessed the truth.
"Then I'll destroy my own Monster! Trap Card activate, [Destruct Potion]!"
[Target 1 monster you control; destroy it, then gain LP equal to its ATK.]
"I destroy [The Supremacy Sun] to regain 3000 LP!"
[Luca Slint, LP: 2000 → 5000]
"Then draw, discard, and revive The Supremacy Sun again, triggering [Card of Safe Return]!"
[The Supremacy Sun, ATK: 3000]
An endless combo, building advantage.
"I'll also activate [Mausoleum of the Emperor] again, pay 2000 LP to Normal Summon another [The Supremacy Sun]!"
[Luca Slint, LP: 5000 → 3000]
[The Supremacy Sun, ATK: 3000] ×2
"Heh, go ahead and destroy them now, Miles. You said they were nothing, right? Battle! Direct attack!"
With two [The Supremacy Sun], she put Miles right into lethal range.
He understood now—destroying them only made Luca stronger.
"—Trap activate, [Wall of Disruption]!"
[When an opponent's monster declares an attack: All Attack Position monsters your opponent controls lose 800 ATK for each monster they control.]
A wall of light rose, cutting the Demons down.
"With 2 monsters, each [The Supremacy Sun] loses 1600 ATK!"
[The Supremacy Sun, ATK: 3000 → 1400] ×2
"So what? You'll still take this attack! Burn in the flames!"
Even weakened, their scorching blaze slammed into Nova's small body. Too light to withstand, Miles was sent tumbling, crashing at Aisha's feet.
[Nova Kaiser, LP: 4000 → 2400]
"Sorry you had to see that, Aisha." Flat on his back, he scratched his cheek with a sheepish smile.
"Unforgivable! How dare she send cute Miles flying!"
Aisha's rare fury flared.
"Stop calling me cute, Aisha."
He dusted himself off, but before he could steady himself, another attack came with Luca's cruel laughter.
"Hahaha! Did I say you could stand up? Keep rolling, I'm not done watching yet!"
"I refuse!"
He would not take two direct attacks in a row without Monsters.
"—Trap activate, [Defense Draw]!"
[During damage calculation, when you would take battle damage: Make that damage 0, and draw 1 card.]
One of the weakest in rarity among Nova's Spell Cards, but simple and effective.
"Damage is nullified, and I draw!"
He felt it immediately—this draw was right. The Duelist's instinct.
And the card's face confirmed it. More terrifying than a Monster.
"My turn ends," Luca said after.
"Finally, it's time to play! Draw!"
Excited, he drew—but what he'd pulled last turn mattered more.
An A-rank Spell Card, perfect synergy with Nova's Deck. The best starter.
"—Spell Card activate, [Painful Choice]!"
[Select 5 cards from your Deck and reveal them. Your opponent chooses 1. Add that card to your hand, send the others to the Graveyard.]
A Forbidden card among Forbidden, so strong it felt fake. Thin the Deck by 4, add 1. No downsides.
Miles quickly revealed 5 cards via the Spirit Eyes projection:
Spell: [Monster Reborn]
Monsters: [Laundry Dragonmaid], [Kitchen Dragonmaid], [Dragonmaid Nudyarl], [Dragonmaid Tinkhec]
All the Monsters in Nova's Deck, laid bare.
Thanks to [Mausoleum of the Emperor], even high-level Dragonmaids could be Summoned by paying LP.
Whatever Luca chose, Miles would finally begin.
"Well, pick one, Luca. What's wrong, cat got your tongue?"
For the first time, the royal princess's cute face twisted into a mocking smirk.
"Miles with a smug face… so cute again! I'm gonna melt!"
Unlike Aisha, who was squealing, Luca twitched at the bitter truth of [Painful Choice].
"Painful Choice…"
It truly was painful… but only for the opponent who had to make it.
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going!
[Patreon.com/RedZTL]