"To actually summon a monster stronger than Lady Nun's on the very first turn!"
"A Fusion Academy student… aside from the White Dragon Tamer Kaima Seth, there's actually someone else who can use Blue-Eyes White Dragon?!"
"So young, yet possessing this level of strength… terrifying!"
The head-on clash of high-Attack counter-suppression saw Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon even surpass Sylvia's Malefic monsters, causing every spectator inside the cathedral to stare in astonishment.
"Normally, there really aren't any other White Dragon Tamers~" Irena shrugged helplessly. "But choosing a Blue-Eyes deck to fight against Malefic's high-Attack pressure… that's some terrifying dueling intuition, Miles."
Among the many doors in the Millennium Puzzle's Soul Room, each representing a different deck, the attack power of Blue-Eyes White Dragon—described right on the card as "the legendary dragon renowned for its high Attack. Any opponent can be crushed; its destructive power is immeasurable"—was indeed the optimal choice against Malefic monsters.
"Although [Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon] summoned by [Future Fusion] can't attack, the [Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon] summoned by [Ultimate Fusion] can still battle this turn!"
Miles pressed the offensive head-on. Under the sacred atmosphere of the grand cathedral, he commanded the Dragons of Light to tear sin apart.
"Destroy [Malefic Cyber End Dragon]! Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack!—Neo Ultimate Burst of Destruction!"
The three-headed Ultimate Dragon and the three-headed End Dragon (which wasn't actually a Dragon-Type) collided head-on.
An extreme clash erupted on the very first turn of the player going second. The collision of annihilating white light and blazing electronic currents followed the age-old law that 'the one on the left loses,' allowing Miles to successfully overpower his opponent.
Neo Ultimate Burst of Destruction detonated inside the imperial cathedral, the instant bloom of light washing over everything as its afterglow fell upon the statue of the God Card.
God said, let there be light. Light and divine statues should have formed an incomparably sacred composition, yet when cast upon that mysterious God Card statue, the image felt strangely out of place.
[Sylvia, LP: 4000 → 3500]
Her Life Points dropping, Sylvia never could have imagined that she—who had gone first and summoned two Malefic monsters with 4000 Attack—would suffer a disadvantage in direct combat.
That said, destroying one of Sylvia's Malefic monsters was already the full extent of what Miles could accomplish for now.
What about the triple attack that [Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon] prided itself on?
Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon's triple-attack effect could only be used when it was the only face-up card on its controller's field.
And on Miles' field right now, there was still the original Ultimate Dragon standing beside it.
"Is your attack finished? Then it's my turn!"
Snapping back from the setback of that opening battle, Sylvia flipped open the face-down Trap Card in her back row.
"When a Malefic monster is destroyed!—I activate the Trap Card [Malefic Tune]!"
[If a face-up "Malefic" monster(s) you control is destroyed by battle or an opponent's card effect: Draw 2 cards.]
"Because [Malefic Cyber End Dragon] was destroyed, I draw 2 cards from my Deck!"
"Just a draw Trap, huh."
In Miles' assessment, it wasn't even as good as [Pot of Greed].
"Of course, it's not just drawing cards. Destroying Malefic monsters only gives rise to even stronger Malefic forms. You can't erase the sins in people's hearts with brute force alone. This is the truth!"
From the swelling chest beneath Sylvia's nun habit, the silver cross radiated an unusual holy glow within the domain of Malefic World.
Her pale fingers drew a card from her hand, brushing past the cross on her chest, as Sylvia once more offered a prayer-like enchantment upon the card.
"A Malefic Dragon even stronger than the ultimate of ultimate Dragons! When a Malefic monster is destroyed, I can Special Summon from my hand! The truth that echoes through the world of sin—Malefic Truth Dragon!"
[Malefic Truth Dragon] Level 12│DARK│Dragon│5000 ATK│5000 DEF
[If a "Malefic" monster you control, except "Malefic Truth Dragon", is destroyed by battle or by card effect: You can pay half your Life Points; Special Summon this card from your hand or Graveyard.]
From the depths of the Field Spell [Malefic World], as if condensing all the true sins of this world, the Level 12 highest-tier Dragon, [Malefic Truth Dragon], spread its massive wings and roared as it materialized.
Sylvia clasped her hands before her chest in sincere prayer. "Because of the Special Summon of [Malefic Truth Dragon], I pay half my Life Points. O gods, I offer up my soul and body!"
[Sylvia, LP: 3500 → 1750]
It had to be said… this nun somehow exuded a strange sensual aura no matter what she did.
Even the act of paying Life Points as a cost, accompanied by the faint expression of pain on her beautiful face as her life force drained away, was enough to send one's imagination running wild.
The Special Summon condition of [Malefic Truth Dragon] was simple: as long as it existed in the hand or Graveyard, when a Malefic monster was destroyed, paying half one's Life Points allowed it to be Special Summoned directly.
In other words, to destroy [Malefic Truth Dragon], it was best to first eliminate the other Malefic monsters on the field. Get the order wrong, and you'd only allow [Malefic Truth Dragon] in the Graveyard to revive once again.
Of course, that was assuming it could even be destroyed.
As a fellow Level 12 Dragon-Type monster, Malefic Truth Dragon's Attack exceeded the Ultimate Dragon's 4500, reaching the full 5000 printed on its card.
"By the way, aren't you going to fuse with it?" Miles asked.
If Miles remembered correctly, in the anime storyline, after paying half one's Life Points to Special Summon [Malefic Truth Dragon], the Duelist could fuse with it.
Yes. Literally the final boss style, sitting on top of the monster's head. Miles was actually rather curious to see Sylvia fuse with it.
"F-Fuse?" Sylvia's cheeks instantly flushed bright red.
"I-I would never do something like that! Fusion like that is far too shameless! How could one commit such an indecent act before the gods?!"
Miles would bet anything that this lewd nun had downright misunderstood what he meant by 'fuse.'
"I set two cards. End of turn!"
Slamming the cards in his hand onto the cathedral floor, Miles declared the end of his turn going second.
After a single exchange of battle, the high-Attack clash between Malefic and Blue-Eyes left two massive, guardian-deity-like boss monsters still standing on each side of the field.
"My turn. During my Draw Phase, the effect of the Field Spell Card [Malefic World] activates!"
[While this card is face-up on the field, you can activate this effect instead of conducting a normal draw during your Draw Phase. Choose 3 "Malefic" cards from your Deck and have your opponent pick 1 of them at random to add to your hand.]
It could be considered a pseudo-destined draw. When needed, by activating [Malefic World], Sylvia could guarantee that the card she drew at the start of her turn would be a Malefic card.
This also avoided drawing other monsters in the Deck that existed purely as Special Summon costs for Malefic monsters—such as [Rainbow Dragon], which couldn't be Summoned at all.
"All sins shall be borne by the gods and by me! I randomly add one 'Malefic' card from my Deck to my hand!"
With the card in hand, Sylvia glanced at its face, a mesmerizing smile blooming at the corner of her lips.
Then, without hesitation, she activated the Malefic card she had drawn this turn.
"Advance! I activate the Quick-Play Spell Card [Malefic Divide]!"
[Target 1 "Malefic" monster in your GY; Special Summon it, ignoring its Summoning conditions, but its effects are negated, also banish it during the End Phase.]
This was essentially a Malefic-exclusive version of Monster Reborn. Since Malefic monsters in the Graveyard couldn't be Special Summoned by normal means, revival required cards like [Malefic Divide] that explicitly "ignore Summoning conditions."
Though both involved revival and both involved a cross, Malefic Divide felt less like holy resurrection and more like tearing open a cross-shaped rift in space within Malefic World to force a Special Summon.
"Return to my field, [Malefic Cyber End Dragon]!"
"Roar—!"
[Malefic Cyber End Dragon, ATK: 4000]
The [Malefic Cyber End Dragon] that had been destroyed by Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon just last turn reappeared, its steel body crackling with electricity and malefic darkness, stationing itself behind Sylvia.
"So there are three Malefic monsters now…" Nova said nervously.
With their minimum Attack sitting at 4000, every additional monster on the field increased the oppressive pressure of their sheer power.
"But Malefic with just 4000 Attack can't break through the Ultimate Dragons," Irena said, her eyes fixed on the 5000-Attack Malefic Truth Dragon. "So the real problem is still that thing."
Sylvia said calmly, "Miles, this turn, I'll let you witness another form of power hidden deep within Malefic sin."
"Another form of power?"
"The form of power the Varian Empire takes pride in!"
If there was one power the Empire was proud of, it could only be that—Xyz Summoning.
There were two Level 10 monsters on the field. It was time.
With a horizontal sweep of her slender arm as Spirit Eyes shone brightly, Sylvia overlaid her [Malefic Rainbow Dragon] and [Malefic Cyber End Dragon], constructing an overlay network that transcended Malefic World itself.
"Miles!"
Inside the Millennium Puzzle's Soul Room, Dark Aisha suddenly cried out excitedly.
"What is it, Aisha?"
"This power… it's so familiar. Unbelievably familiar. It's like… the power of another me!"
"Another you? Aisha, that's impossible."
That was an overlay network built from two Level 10 monsters. How could that possibly be the power of low-rank specialist Aisha?
"(╬￣皿￣)=○ You'll regret not believing me!"
"Okay, okay, I believe you."
Although Miles instinctively dismissed Dark Aisha's suspicion, the moment he saw the monster that emerged, he realized he'd denied it far too fast.
"The Xyz body constructed from two sins! From here begins my battle—blade entrusted with the darkness of sin!"
Not only was the form of power eerily familiar, even the summoning chant was almost a direct copy of Aisha's style.
A dark version of Number 39: Utopia.
"Appear, emissary of chaos! Number XX—Utopic Dark Infinity!!"
[Number XX: Utopic Dark Infinity] Rank 10│DARK│Warrior│4000 ATK│4000 DEF
[2 or more Level 10 monsters]
"It's Utopia?!" Irena and Nova exclaimed in unison.
The signature Xyz monster of Aisha Carlos's Xyz side—Number 39: Utopia.
Yet the Utopia monster Xyz Summoned on Sylvia's field was neither Rank 4, nor LIGHT-Attribute, nor No.39.
Despite that, it was, without a doubt, Utopia.
Standing within Malefic World, wielding a massive black greatsword, a crimson mantle billowing behind it, this DARK-Attribute Rank 10 Xyz Monster was Number XX: Utopic Dark Infinity.
Meanwhile, inside the consulate, Aisha—already in full burnout mode—was slumped on a toilet.
Ever since earlier, imperial nobles had continuously come to pay courtesy visits to the Carlos family due to her status as a Royal Knight.
Left with no choice, Aisha had resorted to the ancient art of the Bathroom Escape, hiding out on the consulate's toilet.
"(￣ー￣) Man… I'm so jealous of Mr. Miles. He can just go out and have fun. And Nova too… she gets to go out together with Mr. Miles."
As she sighed, the Spirit Eyes on Aisha's arm suddenly lit up without warning.
At the same time, the cards [Number 39: Utopia], [Number 39: Utopia Double], and [Number F0: Utopic Future] in the card case strapped to her thigh all reacted in unison.
"(゜-゜) The Utopias are getting restless… Is it because we're in the land of Xyz, so they want to go out and play too, just like me?"
The simple-minded Aisha still hadn't realized what was actually happening.
Back in the cathedral, Miles said in amazement, "So there are Duelists on the Empire's side who can use the power of Utopia too."
Although it was a totally different system from the LIGHT-Attribute Utopia—and even had an extremely special Double-X numbering—this was still a huge discovery.
The dark branch of Utopia. This nun, Sylvia, really wasn't just lewd for show.
"I activate the effect of Number XX: Utopic Dark Infinity!"
Sylvia raised her hand and pointed toward Utopic Dark Infinity on her field. Responding to the command, the Utopia monster lifted its black greatsword high overhead.
[Once per turn: You can target 1 other face-up Special Summoned monster you control; gain LP equal to its original ATK.]
"I target the Special Summoned [Malefic Truth Dragon] on my field and activate the effect! I recover Life Points equal to Malefic Truth Dragon's original Attack!"
A massive surge of vitality—using Malefic Truth Dragon's full 5000 original Attack as the recovery value—poured into Sylvia's body in a chaotic torrent of intertwined light and darkness.
[Sylvia, LP: 1750 → 6750]
"A blessing bestowed by divine power—the chaos of life. I accept it all!"
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