"Despite Prohibition being in play, preventing the summoning of 'Flame Swordsman', its evolved form, 'Dark Flare Knight', is still fair game."
Of course, under normal circumstances, without fusing Dark Magician and Flame Swordsman, summoning Dark Flare Knight would be impossible.
But Hikaru's trap card just slapped Ryu in the face.
"A Fusion Spell that activates from the Graveyard? That's insane!"
"No, no, this goes beyond insane!"
"He just used a monster from his field and a card from his Graveyard to bypass the usual Fusion requirements—how is that even legal!?"
Judai, who had been watching with concern, instantly lit up and high-fived Sho when he saw Hikaru not only dodge damage but turn the whole duel around.
"Tch… I set one card and end my turn," Ryu muttered, wiping sweat from his brow, glaring at Hikaru.
"My turn. Draw." Hikaru pulled a card from his deck and gave it a look.
Nice—time to fuse again!
Though Ryu's face was tight with tension, in his heart he was calm—he had the win condition set.
His face-down card was Mirror Force—the classic, the legendary, the nuke.
Ever since losing to Hikaru and getting expelled from the Fusion Club, ever since being reprimanded by Professor Chronos in front of the whole academy, he'd been thinking of nothing but revenge.
To him, Yellow Dorm was Yellow for a reason—beneath Blue Dorm. Even if they were both Fusion Club, the hierarchy was clear.
He never blamed himself. It was all Hikaru's fault for not knowing his place. Even Chronos-sensei didn't back him.
Then, Professor Reiji Akaba offered him power.
Ryu followed Akaba's instructions, journeyed into another dimension, and found cards from the Gem-Knight archetype. But that wasn't the real reward. The true prize was the "darkness" buried deep within that world.
He infused his Deck with it—corrupted it. All to shatter Hikaru's overconfidence and drag him into the shadows.
And Mirror Force was his ace-in-the-hole. Hikaru's Fusion monsters might be tough, but they didn't destroy cards. All he needed was for Hikaru to attack…
"Senpai."
Hikaru held a card in his hand, spinning it slowly, his eyes looking up like he was lost in thought. "You know, after that duel, I really did start to wonder if I'd gone too far…"
"Hmph, finally admitting you—"
"I thought about it for two weeks. And I came to one conclusion." Hikaru's eyes locked onto Ryu. He smiled. "I was right. I was completely, absolutely right."
"You—!"
"I pay 2000 Life Points and activate the Spell Card—Exchange of the Spirit's Will!"
"What?!"
Hikaru tapped his chin in thought. "I was saving this one for a duel with Judai, honestly. Heroes make top-tier Fusion material."
"Oi, Hikaru! Are you planning on stealing my Heroes!?" Judai stood up from the crowd and shouted, half-laughing.
"This—this even counts as Fusion?"
"Yeah, yeah, I know what you're gonna say," Hikaru cut off the protest. "You still don't get it. Fusion doesn't mean it has to be your own monster, senpai."
!!
"You came here spouting off about revenge, targeted my whole strategy, and you definitely brought a specific card—right? That old quote I said once: 'If you don't respect your cards, they won't answer you.'
I bet you're planning to throw that back in my face, huh?
So then—I declare: Ancient Gear Golem!"
"Ugh!!" Ryu flinched.
Exchange of the Spirit's Will: Declare a monster card. Your opponent reveals their Deck, and if the declared monster is there, they must either add it to your hand, or special summon it to your field.
"A card like that… It's like using Prohibition against him!"
"Turning his own strategy against him. Nice!"
The audience buzzed with excitement.
"Go ahead, check. You've got it, right?" Hikaru asked calmly.
"Tch." Ryu grudgingly searched his Deck, pulled out the Golem, and threw it at Hikaru. Hikaru caught it with a smirk.
"You don't want me to summon it for free, so you gave it to me… then I'll pay one more thousand Life Points and activate Instant Fusion! I Special Summon a non-effect Fusion Monster, level 6 or lower—Panzer Dragon!"
"Then I tribute Dark Flare Knight and Panzer Dragon—Advance Summon! Rise, Ancient Gear Golem!"
The gears churned. A steel colossus slowly stood, joints screeching, eyes glowing crimson as it stared Ryu down.
Ancient Gear Golem: Level 8, EARTH, Machine, ATK 3000.
"Hmm, looks a bit… off today." Hikaru raised an eyebrow, staring at his monster.
"Ancient Gear Golem…!"
"Wait, he just tribute summoned?! Isn't he all about Fusion?"
"Don't jump to conclusions! It's Hikaru. He's not done yet."
"You're right, Hikaru hasn't fused anything yet!" Ryu protested, desperate.
"You don't get it at all, senpai." Hikaru shook his head. "This is exactly why you lost the first time. You cling to your idea of what Fusion 'should' be. You never even try to understand your monsters. You blamed me, but all I did was duel you fairly.
You think because you now have a Fusion spell and some new cards you can match me?
You're dreaming."
He raised a card high.
"Fusion is far more than putting two monsters together!
I activate the Spell Card—Ancient Gear Fusion!"
"What the heck is that?!"
"Never heard of it!"
"Mama mia!" Even Chronos-sensei rushed to the edge of the arena in disbelief.
"Like the name says," Hikaru explained, "Ancient Gear Fusion lets me Fusion Summon an 'Ancient Gear' Fusion Monster using monsters from my hand or field as materials—
But if I have Ancient Gear Golem on the field, I can also use materials directly from my Deck."
"FROM THE DECK?!"
"WHAT?!"
"TO FUSE?!?!?!"
The entire audience collectively screamed.
"Here we go!" Hikaru lifted his arm toward the heavens. "I fuse Ancient Gear Golem on my field, Ancient Gear Beast and Ancient Gear Knight from my Deck!"
Gears and metal claws erupted from his Deck, spiraling into the sky, merging with the towering Golem!
Hikaru clapped his hands together—"Fierce hounds! Iron knights! Combine with the eternal giant and become the ultimate machine!
Fusion Summon! Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem!!"
A four-legged colossus descended, arms transformed into giant smashing pistons, the earth trembling under its weight. So massive, the students couldn't even see its full form from below.
Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem: Level 10, EARTH, Machine, ATK 4400.
"Mama mia…" Professor Chronos gasped in awe. "Where did he even GET that card…!?"
"S-So big…" Sho whispered.
"That's 4400 ATK?!?" Hayato choked.
Judai, meanwhile, was yelling with excitement. "Fusion! That's what I'm talking about!"
"This monster inherits Ancient Gear Golem's effect: when it attacks, your opponent can't activate Spells or Traps until the end of the Damage Step," Hikaru declared. "Ultimate Golem, attack Gem-Knight Citrine—!"
"W-Wait—!!" Ryu stumbled back, eyes wide with fear.
He could see it—the same dark aura that had infected his own Deck now wrapped around the golem.
He remembered what Akaba told him: the higher the attack, the greater the mental shock!
"Ultimate Slam!" Hikaru commanded.
4400 ATK. That one hit—
"No! Noooo—!"
BOOM.
The impact landed. Hikaru blinked.
Huh? The holograms… vanished?
Chronos-sensei leapt onto the field, dashed to Ryu's side, checked his vitals, gave him a few CPR pushes, then stood and shouted, "Ryu is unconscious! The winner—Hikaru Tenjo!"
"Call the infirmary!!"
Hikaru stood there, stunned.
"…I… knocked him out playing cards?"