Ren's face twisted comically from Mokey Mokey's blow, spinning through the air before her mismatched eyes flickered unsteadily.
"That really hurt this time, little Ai!"
She clutched the cheek Mokey Mokey had smacked. Even though this wasn't a Shadow Game and the Spirit Eyes' output was usually minimized during a duel, she hadn't expected such explosive power from that charging tofu block.
"But… I'm kind of happy."
Miles said, "Ren, did Aisha just knock you broken?"
Spun away at that ridiculous angle and still saying she's "kind of happy"... this was beyond corruption; she was drifting toward full-blown masochism.
"Happy? I'm happy too, Ren-chan."
Miles frowned, "Wait… Aisha, are you broken now too?"
On Aisha's side, it looked like she was heading into sadist territory.
A bizarre image flashed in Miles's mind—timid Aisha transformed into a sadist, her hobby being stepping on people's heads with her black-stockinged, cute little feet.
…Why did that seem even more indecent than a normal sadist?
Miles quickly shook his head to banish the thought.
"Does this fog even affect you if you're inside the Puzzle?"
Whether the Millennium Puzzle shielded its bearer from the mist was unclear, but Aisha had been dueling in the fog for so long without changing. No sign of corruption, no trace of desires surfacing.
If she had a desire, it was probably not wanting to hand over Miles—but that kind of will to protect wasn't dark at all.
Ren, on the other hand, still wore her smile, but the dark aura around her was clearly deepening, synchronizing with her Evil HEROes.
"I'm glad you can fight me at this level, little Ai. It's been a long time since we had a duel like this."
Not since childhood, when they'd first awakened their Spirit Eyes and could fight on equal footing, trading blow for blow. As their gap in skill widened, the duels had lost their meaning.
Now, it felt like regaining that original spark.
Maybe finding joy in that was one of Ren's hidden desires.
"Happy or not, I'm still not losing this duel! Hitting me in the face in front of Miles… I'll pay you back double."
Dark power erupted, spilling into the fog from the card Ren had drawn last turn—her ace that could overcome even the battle-immune Sky Cavalry Centaurea.
"You won't get that payback. My turn's over!"
Still with no set cards—or no cards to set—Aisha left Mokey Mokey in Attack Position, ending her turn in a dangerous state.
"My turn, draw. Now for my strongest Dark HERO fusion!"
"Strongest?!"
"Spell Card, [Dark Calling], activate!"
She slammed her key draw from last turn onto the field. Darkness connected hand to Graveyard, exuding the ultimate ominous aura.
[Banish from your hand and/or Graveyard the Fusion Materials listed on a Fusion Monster that must be Special Summoned with "Dark Fusion"; Special Summon that monster from your Extra Deck (this is treated as a Fusion Summon with "Dark Fusion").]
"From my hand, [Evil HERO Malicious Edge]—bounced back earlier—and from my Graveyard, [Evil HERO Infernal Prodigy], as Fusion Material! Dark Calling!"
Feeling the darkness almost pierce the fog, Luca, sitting on Megan, kicked her black-and-white-stockinged legs excitedly.
"That's it! It's here! I've waited so long for the Dark HERO's trump card—tear Aisha Carlos apart!"
Above, Luca squirmed in excitement; below, the unconscious Megan could only suffer. Already weakened from being annihilated by Evil HEROes in a Shadow Game, now she was being jostled mercilessly—waking up was unlikely.
"Ultimate Dark Fusion to shatter heaven and earth—bring death's salvation to all! Fusion Summon! [Evil HERO Malicious Bane]!"
[Evil HERO Malicious Bane] Level 8│DARK│Fiend│3000 ATK / 3000 DEF
Encased in heavy, spiked black armor, the dark HERO's mere arrival made Aisha shiver.
Miles said, "So it's come after all."
With immunity to both battle and effect destruction, Miles had known from the start that Aisha would struggle to deal with this card.
And it had appeared at the worst time—after she'd already summoned both her non-destruction removal Xyz monsters.
"It's over! Malicious Bane's effect, activate!"
[During your Main Phase: Destroy all monsters your opponent controls with ATK less than or equal to this card's, and this card gains 200 ATK for each destroyed, until the end of this turn. "HERO" monsters you control cannot attack for the rest of this turn, except this one.]
Destruction immunity on defense, field-wiping power on offense—Malicious Bane was the pinnacle of HERO devastation.
"Death Blade Tempest!!"
The black blade howled like a hurricane, devouring Aisha's field.
Even the battle-immune Sky Cavalry Centaurea couldn't resist the dark storm.
[Sacred Knight Ceryneian Sky Cavalry Centaurea] destroyed.
[Mokey Mokey] destroyed.
Swept clean with no set cards, Aisha was once again in a lopsided position.
"Two monsters destroyed—Malicious Bane's ATK rises by 400!"
[Malicious Bane, ATK: 3000 → 3400]
Now stronger than the legendary Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
"This hit will end the slugfest, little Ai. You should've known—you can't win a duel like this. Even in a slugfest, you've never beaten me!"
Raising her arm in sync with Malicious Bane's stance, Ren's mismatched eyes gleamed as she declared the final Battle Phase.
"Hand Miles over! Direct attack!— Death Blade Burst!!"
Moving too fast to see, Malicious Bane slashed past Aisha in an instant, blade-laden body cutting rents in her stockings, skirt, and even the chest of her top.
"I win," Ren said flatly. "If I'd summoned Malicious Bane earlier, you would've lost even faster. Now you see the gap between us, little Ai."
"We'll see about that! Saving your trump card for last—that's only natural, isn't it?"
To Ren's surprise, Aisha stayed calm, her fingers pinching her own trump card.
"From my hand, [Kuriboh]'s effect—discard it to take no battle damage from this attack!"
The clutch Kuriboh—Aisha's reason for staying so composed, with no set cards.
"This duel's not over yet, Ren-chan!"
"Still as stubborn as ever? Even if Kuriboh buys you a turn, you can't win."
With Malicious Bane's towering ATK, its field-wipe, and dual immunity, Ren held an overwhelming advantage. Plus, her back row hid the Trap [Breakthrough Skill], ready to negate any monster effect Aisha might rely on.
A true trump card, saved for the decisive moment. Even after Sky Cavalry Centaurea blindsided her last turn and Mokey Mokey punched her, Ren had held it back.
"I set my last card and end my turn. You're in checkmate, little Ai!"
Hemmed in both openly and covertly, Aisha took a deep breath—knowing full well the fog eroded duelists.
The dense mist filled her lungs, her chest rising and falling.
"Hahahaha, finally—this is the crisis I've been waiting for."
Far off, Luca clapped excitedly.
"Fall already, Aisha Carlos. I'm sick of your fake nice-girl act. Show your hidden desire—release your darkness!"
After her deep breath, Aisha's fingers touched her Spirit Eyes Deck.
"Checkmate? Then I'll bet everything on this last draw. My turn—draw!"
Her fingers slid over the deck, pulling one card, its trail in the mist marked by dazzling effects.
In the Millennium Puzzle's Soul Room, Dark Aisha spoke softly.
"Miles, the last seal on Dystopia seemed to loosen just now."
"Is that so?" Miles smiled faintly. "Then why does this final draw from you feel so full of hope—completely the opposite of despair's darkness?"
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going!
[