"My turn. Draw."
Kira drew, then gestured to his Duel Disk.
"Standby Phase—my GY monster's effect triggers again. You haven't forgotten, have you?"
Sartorius snorted.
"Treeborn Frog, right? If your Spell/Trap Zone is empty, it can Special Summon itself from the GY."
"Correct."
Kira revealed the GY card.
"Special Summon Treeborn Frog in Defense again."
The little angel-winged toad hopped out, halo shining, even landing with a holy sparkle.
But as soon as it landed, the glow dimmed. The toad groaned, crackled with dark red current, barely staying Head.
"What's that?" Sarina sensed something wrong.
"Heh… hahaha! You haven't realized it yet, but your monsters are deep in the realm of Light. In this realm, excess power is unnecessary. Only Light—purifying, simplifying Light—shall remain!"
Sartorius flung an arm, his expression contorting.
"Light Barrier's other effect! All monsters on the field that are not 'Arcana Force' have their effects negated!" (anime effect)
Sarina: "!"
From the name alone, Light Barrier is clearly a card born of the Light of Destruction possessing her brother—something the original Arcana Force deck didn't have.
But the effect is absurdly strong: if you're pure Arcana Force, it becomes a one-sided Skill Drain.
No wonder Sartorius says the Light makes everything simple and pure—everyone becomes a mortal under it. That is "purity," isn't it?
Even so, this anime-strength effect has a flaw: during its controller's Standby Phase, you must rotate the card. If it lands Tail, the Field becomes a blank, and all its effects stop.
It's just that with Sartorius's power, the failure chance is low.
"I activate the Spell 'Graceful Charity.'"
Kira said.
"Draw three, then discard two."
Sartorius kept chuckling.
"Struggle. Struggle all you like. With Light's power fully unleashed, nothing you do matters!"
Kira ignored him. "Normal Summon 'Chiron the Mage.'"
Before the monster appeared, hoofbeats sounded. A silver-armored centaur stepped out, a staff with a gem-like red tip in hand.
[Chiron the Mage, ATK 1800]
"First, we battle."
Kira waved straight at the Fool.
"Chiron the Mage, attack Arcana Force 0 - The Fool!"
Sarina held her breath.
Sure enough—regardless of defenses, you have to probe the Fool. With Sartorius at 900 LP, that un-switchable 0 ATK Fool is the biggest hole.
If Chiron lands the hit, the match ends immediately.
"Too weak!"
Sartorius barked.
"As expected! I activate my set—Continuous Trap 'Spirit Barrier'!"
A transparent barrier unfolded before the Fool like a glass screen. Chiron's strike burst against it without a crack; the Fool was unharmed.
"So long as I control a monster, all battle damage I take becomes 0!"
Sarina jolted. "As long as he has a monster—this is bad! The Fool…"
Sartorius laughed.
"That's right! Thanks to the Fool you gifted me, it's become the strongest shield—can't be destroyed, unaffected by your effects, and now I take no battle damage. Basically invincible!"
Thus the biggest hole was plugged—and turned into Sartorius's ultimate wall. Unless you take down The Fool, you can't deal battle damage.
"I see. That's a bit troublesome."
Kira said lightly.
"Then Battle Phase ends. Chiron the Mage's effect—once per turn, discard one Spell from hand."
Kira pitched a Spell to the GY.
"Destroy one Spell/Trap on your field."
Sartorius laughed.
"Are you brain-dead? I told you—so long as Light Barrier is on the field, all effects of non-Arcana monsters are negated!"
"I know. Negated doesn't mean 'can't be activated.'"
Kira smiled.
"Next, I chain to Chiron's effect with the Quick-Play Spell 'Mystik Wok.' I tribute Chiron and gain LP equal to its ATK."
A giant black wok appeared, flames roaring beneath. Chiron had barely cast his dispel when he fell into the wok, turned to golden motes, and flowed into Kira.
[Kira, LP 2300 → 4100]
"You healed yourself?"
Sartorius's mind raced—then he realized.
No, that's not the point. This is…
"Light Barrier negates all non-Arcana monster effects," Kira said. "Chiron was on the field when I activated his effect, but by resolution he'd been tributed by Mystik Wok and was in the GY—outside the Light's realm. Thus, he's no longer under the Barrier and his effect resolves normally."
Sartorius's eyes bulged theatrically—pupils quaking.
"Bastard—!"
"Destroy the Field Spell 'Light Barrier,'" Kira said.
Chiron's dying spell struck the Barrier.
Light Barrier can bind everything on the field—but not the dead. The blast shattered the Barrier like glass, raining fragments across the arena.
You could feel that more than a duel-field broke. In that instant, even Sartorius's aura and strength dipped.
It seemed the Field was bolstering his Light as well.
"Good… good, Duel King."
Sartorius's contorted grin widened.
"Now you've really made me angry."
...
2 Bonus chapters at 500 PS