Just as An'er declared her attack, Morgan suddenly laughed. The sound made An'er's confidence falter for an instant, but the attack declaration was already made—there was no turning back now. All she could do was pray her strike would succeed.
Hannah hadn't noticed Morgan's expression. She was too shocked by An'er's direct attack strategy. By her calculations, Assembled Nightingale could attack five times in total, and with 2300 Attack, if Morgan took all five hits directly, it would be a certain defeat.
This was a nearly unstoppable tactic… after all, direct attacks were among the hardest effects to defend against in a Duel. Normally, monsters with direct attack effects had very low Attack, but An'er had multiplied that power several times over. It was truly unorthodox and dangerously difficult to anticipate.
Even Hannah herself, facing An'er without prior information, might have lost easily… She could only be thankful this was an exhibition Duel; otherwise, completing her boss's mission without knowing this strategy would've been far too dangerous.
Meanwhile, Isla realized her earlier prediction had been correct. Her brows furrowed. It was indeed the worst-case scenario. Morgan had probably never dealt with this kind of tactic before… could she handle it?
Five direct strikes. Suddenly, 8000 Life Points seemed far too little.
As Assembled Nightingale's attack drew near, Morgan smiled and spoke:
"Now, I activate [Exosisters Magnifica]'s effect!"
An'er's heart sank. Morgan's confidence stemmed from having a counter to direct attacks.
Still… how did she know? This was An'er's first time revealing this strategy at Island Academy. Could it be Morgan really was that hidden Shadow Duelist, who had learned her Decklist from an ally?
The suspicion grew rapidly in her mind. Even before the Duel was over, she was convinced… Morgan had to be a Shadow Duelist!
Despite that, no matter what counter Morgan had prepared, it was useless. Assembled Nightingale could not be destroyed by battle or effects. Nothing could stop this attack!
Morgan had no idea how wildly An'er's thoughts were racing. Calmly, she continued:
"By detaching 1 Overlay Unit, I can target and banish 1 card on your field."
"I banish your [Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale]!"
The light orbs around Magnifica vanished as the two Exosisters swung their gunblades, striking Assembled Nightingale.
The Nightingale's body twisted and warped, then vanished as if expelled from the world.
An'er froze, stunned that her supposed finishing blow had crumbled.
…How? Wasn't her Nightingale protected from battle and effect destruction? Why did Morgan's effect still work?
She realized too late… Nightingale resisted destruction, yes, but not banishment. [Exosisters Magnifica] removed it from play entirely. Its protection meant nothing.
An'er clenched her fists in regret. She had fallen into a trap of her own making. She'd assumed the only counters would be destruction, forgetting entirely about banishment—or tributing.
Her proudest strike had been undone with ease.
The crowd fell silent, then erupted into cheers. The supposedly unstoppable win condition had been shattered by Morgan. Of course—Morgan was still Morgan. An'er was no match.
"Unbelievable! She had an answer after all!"
"When I heard it could attack four or more times, my head was spinning. If that had landed, the Duel would've ended right there."
"Amazing! Forest Academy's been beating us down for years. Finally, we get to cheer for our own!"
"Did Morgan actually predict her whole tactic in advance? She's too strong!"
The crowd's voices joined in unity. With the opponent from another Academy, their support went to Morgan without question. She had done what none of them could. For that alone, she had their absolute loyalty.
The principal's body trembled with excitement, fist clenched, eyes gleaming. He even shot a smug look at the old man, as if to say, "So this is your best student? Not so great after all."
The old man fumed, beard bristling, yet had no words to rebut. This was the first time anyone had stopped An'er's combo. It only deepened his curiosity about Morgan. Who was this girl who could outdo even the Duel King's disciple?
With Assembled Nightingale banished, An'er snapped out of her daze. The Duel wasn't over. She couldn't afford despair. With her strongest monster gone, she ended her Battle Phase and shifted to defense.
"I Set two cards. Turn end."
Grinding her teeth, An'er ended her turn. Yet, her Deck wasn't limited to one strategy. Sudden-kill tactics worked only against the unprepared. Now that Morgan had countered it, she needed another path to victory.
She thought back… when the Duel King had entrusted her with this Deck, he'd suggested mixing it with another archetype he'd built, something about a battlefront. She had refused, disliking the aesthetics. Now, with the Duel King missing and her own Deck-building skills average at best, she regretted it.
Sighing inwardly, she refocused on the Duel.
"My turn. Draw!"
Morgan smiled, drew a card, glanced at it, and slid it into her hand. She had just defused An'er's lethal five-hit combo. Pure Lyrilusc had few options left—maybe only Lyrilusc burn effects or a big Ensemble performance with Luli.
Albeit An'er's Deck surely held more than one Assembled Nightingale. Morgan had to stay cautious.
After all, she had been reckless. If An'er had stacked [Lyrilusc - Cobalt Sparrow] beneath Nightingale, it would've gained immunity to effects. Then, it truly would've been unstoppable.
After some thought, Morgan resolved to destroy the remaining monster on the field. She was well-prepared; the Exosisters could disrupt opponents during their turns. Still, she had to be mindful: [Lyrilusc - Recital Starling] inflicted damage equal to the battle damage the opponent took.
That meant if Morgan destroyed it in battle, she would take the same damage herself.
With [Exosisters Magnifica]'s 2800 Attack, she would take 2800 damage back. Not worth it when already ahead.
But there was a simpler solution. If she switched [Exosister Elis] to Attack Position and used her to destroy Recital Starling, she'd only take 500 damage. A small price.
Then Magnifica could attack directly twice, for 5600 damage, plus Elis's 500—totaling 6100. A solid swing.
Morgan smiled. An'er still had two face-downs, but so what?
She had plenty of hand traps to feel safe.
"I switch [Exosister Elis] to Attack Position!"
"Battle! [Exosister Elis], attack [Lyrilusc - Recital Starling]!"
'Here it comes!'
An'er bit her lip. Morgan's plan was obvious—she wasn't even trying to hide it.
Destroy the lone monster, then attack directly. It was the simplest winning path.
After all, no matter how flashy the strategy, in the end, victory always came down to plain, direct attacks. Reducing Life Points was the surest road.
And An'er had prepared for that.
The instant Morgan declared her attack, An'er flipped her Set card.
"I activate the Trap Card, [Lyrilusc - Phantom Feathers]!"
"Target 1 Lyrilusc monster I control; all monsters your opponent controls have their ATK become equal to that monster's ATK, and their Levels/Ranks become 1!"
Her only Lyrilusc on the field was [Lyrilusc - Recital Starling], so she chose it.
In an instant, Morgan's monsters' ATK dropped to zero, and their Levels became 1.
The attack accomplished nothing.
The old man watching sighed in relief, muttering that if An'er had been wiped out by the second turn, his reputation would've been ruined.
The principal, on the other hand, was frustrated. He would've loved for Morgan to finish it instantly, to raise morale. Seeing her stopped here made him sigh.
Morgan, though, wasn't worried. The Duel had only just begun. She hadn't spent many resources.
"I Set one card. Turn end!"
An'er exhaled in relief. She had protected her key monster. Recital Starling's search effect was central to her combo—it could not be destroyed. With only three copies in the Deck and one already in the Graveyard, losing another would cripple her.
Drawing a deep breath, An'er steadied herself. This turn, she would unmask Morgan as the Shadow Duelist!
"My turn. Draw!"
...
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