Chapter 20: The More It's In The Name, The Less It Can Be Done
"First Turn is mine!" Hayato shouted, drawing five cards into his Hand first. Without waiting for Shouji on the other side to react, he drew a card from his Deck. The Duel with Yugi before was just a friendly spar, so the two of them could calmly discuss who would go first. After all, under the Rules where "the player going first can draw one card," the advantage of the First Turn is significant. Hayato didn't know this Manjoume Shouji on the other side, so why would he give the advantage away?
"Tch, how vulgar, not elegant at all." Having the First Turn snatched away, Manjoume Shouji was a bit displeased. After all, in his view, the cause of this Duel was Hayato Kobayashi approaching Nosaka Miho. Seeing this Duel as deciding the outcome of love, he always felt that Hayato on the other side was implying he intended to "get there first."
After drawing a card into his Hand, Hayato began to check his Hand. Thanks to the Kame Game Shop and the System's Card Pack opening, Hayato's Deck was now significantly strengthened. At this moment, Hayato's Hand was quite perfect, with the addition of three Spell Cards, and even the other three Monster Cards were decent. It was much stronger than his Duel with Yugi.
"I Summon this Card to the Field! Come forth, [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress]!" Hayato slapped a Card from his Hand onto the Field and declared the Summon, about to continue his next move. But Jonouchi and the others' exclamations made him stop: "Ahhh, what is that!" Following Anzu's exclamation were Jonouchi and Honda's perfectly synchronized shouts: "The Duel Monsters are Materializing!!!" On the Field, a face-up, significantly enlarged Card of [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress] appeared out of thin air. Immediately after, from the Card Art on the front of the Card, a blue winged dragon flew out, flapping its wings. It stood between the two Duel Platforms, using the Card as a foothold, and roared towards the sky.
[Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress] [4☆/Wind] [Dragon Type/Normal] [1400/1200]
"Although it's a hastily constructed Duel Platform and the sound system doesn't have enough space, making it a simplified version, the Monster's movements are also limited to a small space." Manjoume Shouji seemed to enjoy Jonouchi and the others' surprised expressions. "Marvel to your heart's content at this future technology, you country bumpkins!"
"While I agree that Duel Monsters will be the future mainstream, calling people 'country bumpkins' like that is really irritating." Hayato was a bit annoyed by Shouji's attitude and continued to place Cards on the Field. "I Set a Card in my Spell/Trap Zone. End Turn."
"Setting in the Spell/Trap Zone? Hmph, Duel Monsters should be played straightforwardly." Completely bringing his views on love into the Duel, Manjoume Shouji, who hated everything associated with his rival, even found Hayato's action of Setting in the Spell/Trap Zone annoying.
[Hayato: Hand 5→6→4]
"My Turn! Remember well the sight of my victory!" Drawing a Card and glancing at his Hand, Manjoume Shouji played a Card with a confident expression: "Witness what a noble's Duel is like! I Summon [Mystical Elf]!" A Card appeared on Shouji's Field. From the Card Art emerged a graceful elf, playfully circling the Field. As she landed on the Card, another elf, similar in appearance, somehow appeared beside her.
[Mystical Elf] [4☆/Earth] [Spellcaster Type/Normal] [1900/900]
"Its ATK is actually as high as 1900!" Honda and the others exclaimed, perfectly cooperating with Shouji's play. "It can practically rival Hayato's [Death Stalker]." So why are you so impressed by a Normal Monster with less than 1000 ATK? Hayato's inner thoughts at this moment were, in short, extremely confused. If you're going to be amazed, you should be marveling at the power of [Axe of Despair], right? Are you focusing on the wrong thing?
"[Mystical Elf], destroy the enemy before you for your master, me! Magic Duet!" Shouji shouted with full momentum, waving his hand towards [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress] on Hayato's Field. Along with his Attack declaration, the two [Mystical Elf] sisters on his Field simultaneously opened their palms, and two masses of magical energy intertwined and spun out. Until the Attack turned [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress] into fragments and it disappeared from the Field, Shouji's eyes were fixed on the Set Card in Hayato's Spell/Trap Zone.
Although he spoke dismissively of his opponent, Manjoume Shouji actually took this Duel quite seriously. On one hand, he wanted to defeat his opponent in Duel Monsters, which Hayato was best at, to decide the outcome of love. On the other hand, his pride as a member of the Manjoume family wouldn't allow him to fail. In fact, he hadn't been very interested in Duel Monsters before. Instead, his third brother, Jun, seemed to really like Duel Monsters. The Deck he was using for this Duel was specifically put together by his Subordinates, customized according to his own preferences with a "noble" theme because he thought nobles were elegant.
He didn't know much about Duel Monsters, but he had seen a recording of the National Duel Monsters Tournament from his brother at home. There was a disgusting guy who liked to use an Insect Deck that left a deep impression on him. That guy really liked using a Spell Card that could only be activated during the Attack declaration, "Antlion Pit of the Messiah". This was the reason Shouji kept watching Hayato's Spell/Trap Zone when he declared the Attack. However, now that the Battle was over and Hayato hadn't activated a Trap, Shouji couldn't help but feel relieved. Thinking about it, the opponent was just a normal high school student. How could he have the amazing plays of a Professional Player?
"A bluff Set Card, completely useless as expected." Saying provocative words, Shouji had a smug look on his face. "Your Life Points are only three-quarters left. I'll quickly finish you off in the next three Turns. My Turn ends—"
"Before your Turn ends, I activate this Card." Hayato interrupted Shouji's End Turn declaration and flipped over the Set Card on his Field. "[Time Machine], its Effect is to return the Monster you destroyed this Turn to the Field in its original state. Return, [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress]!" On the Field, the Set Card in Hayato's Spell/Trap Zone flipped up, and a giant machine emerged from the Card Art. As a large amount of steam poured out from the machine, its front hatch opened, and [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress], which had just been destroyed by [Mystical Elf], flew out and landed on the Field. However, unlike the arrogant roar when it first appeared, because it failed to protect the "fortress", [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress] merely bared its teeth at the opposing [Mystical Elf].
"Useless small fry, even if it appears again, it can't escape the fate of being destroyed," Shouji said, annoyed.
Hayato was noncommittal: "Heh, who knows? Maybe its Soul will become fuel for its allies' counterattack?"
Shouji didn't understand Hayato's words, but Jonouchi and the others reacted to Hayato's next move: "Here it comes, Hayato's super powerful combo!"
[Hayato: 2000 LP→1500, Hand 4] [Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress ATK 1400]
[Shouji: 2000 LP, Hand 5→6→5] [Mystical Elf ATK 1900]