episode_0012

“What, what is it? What happened? Why is that coming out of Elfelt’s chest?”

“[Spirit of the Lock]? There was a card like that?”

“Now that you mention it, I think I might have seen it once before…”

“An effect that prevents drawing cards from the Deck? That can be used before your own turn comes?”

The onlookers, who had been frozen in surprise by the sudden situation, began to loudly murmur.

“Th-that outsider dared to use such a barbaric card!!”

“Interfering on the opponent’s turn, how utterly cowardly!! A disqualification as a duelist!!”

Among them, as Arianna had mentioned, were those who jeered and expressed their anger.

“Me too, I too want to be drawn from Elfelt-nim’s chest!!”

“I want to become the [Spirit of the Lock]!!!”

There was also a group that consistently said clearly strange things.

But the part that needs the most attention isn’t that.

“……”

“Hmm…”

It was the fact that several professors showed signs of tension.

‘Just as I thought.’

As I had expected, the exclusion of interference cards activated from the hand, ‘hand traps,’ doesn’t seem to have happened solely by the will of the students.

“U-uh, as expected, the reaction is very bad… Are you okay…?”

I raised my hand to Arianna to signal I was fine and took a moment to catch my breath.

“Be quiettttttt!!”

Then, putting strength into my abdomen, I turned to the onlookers and shouted.

“What’s wrong with using a card that isn’t forbidden?! If you’re just watching, shut up and watch!!”

After a moment of silence,

“What did you sayyyyyyyy?!”

“How dare this outsider, this bastard!!!”

“Do you want to die, you bastard!!!”

A thunderous wave of complaints erupted.

“Ah, I think it’s having a bad effect?!”

Rather, it felt a little enjoyable. No matter how much they shouted, they were ultimately guys who couldn’t disrupt the duel.

I turned my gaze away from the onlookers and looked at Elfelt. Elfelt was clearly flustered.

“U-uhhhn… Kugh…!!”

The situation of something strange coming out of her chest was probably surprising in itself, but she ended up using one card without being able to retrieve the card she originally intended to.

This is a world where ‘hand traps’ are treated as non-existent. It’s only natural to be confused if they suddenly intervene.

“…[Spirit of the Lock], is it a card that can only be used once per turn?”

Elfelt looked at me after some thought and asked.

“Yeah. That’s right. You have a good eye.”

Fortunately, she seemed to have regained some composure.

“…Summon [Spirit of Fire Flare]!”

As if she had made up her mind, Elfelt summoned a Level 1 monster to the field.

“Activate the effect upon summon. Discard one card from the hand, and add a FIRE attribute [Spirit] monster from the Deck…”

And as she activated that effect, her words trailed off and she glanced at me.

“No. Continue.”

“…The card I added is, [Spirit of Blazing Flames Elflare].”

It seemed to be the card she had originally intended to add with [Starting Bonfire].

Reading the effect of the log that appeared next to me the moment I thought I wanted to see it, it was a powerful development piece that could be Special Summoned to the field by banishing one FIRE attribute card from the Graveyard, and additionally add a FIRE attribute Spirit.

However, the card Elfelt just discarded from her hand was a Spell Card she couldn’t use because the activation conditions weren’t met. Since there were no monsters in the Graveyard, she couldn’t summon it.

‘Means to send the Level 1 monster on the field to the Graveyard… it doesn’t seem like she has any.’

[Spirit of the Lock] was quite an effective blow. Was it natural since the deck was built without considering ‘hand traps’? Its ability to ‘penetrate’ and develop after being interfered with is weak.

“Kugh… I’ll set a card in the Spell/Trap Zone. And turn end.”

As if confirming she had no further development, Elfelt frowned, set one card, and ended her turn.

It was a typical low-point field, consisting only of a Level 1 monster and one card face-down in the Spell/Trap Zone, set to be activated on the opponent’s turn.

“What, is this…?”

“Isn’t Elfelt-nim’s field much weaker than usual?”

“Did her hand get really bad?”

The onlookers loudly murmured at the weak field. Elfelt herself was making all sorts of faces, as if she wasn’t pleased with her own result.

It’s natural for it to be weak. Duelists in this world have likely never considered the possibility of ‘development being blocked’ in the first place.

However, I have no intention of allowing such comfortable duels where you can unconditionally complete your best development if you take the first turn and start developing.

…Well, conversely, since I know the opponent doesn’t have ‘hand traps,’ I can develop as much as I want. It almost makes me feel a little sorry. Just a very little.

“I’ll take the turn. Draw, Standby, enter Main Phase.”

“Yes. Please proceed.”

“Summon the monster [Abyss Knight Salmon].”

The moment I performed a Normal Summon thinking that,

“[Thunderclap]!!”

Elfelt activated a Trap Card as if she had been waiting.

Two-kwaaaaang!!

“Kuaaaaak!!”

[Abyss Knight Salmon], the mermaid-type monster (which has a cult following) that I summoned, which is a fish on top, was struck by lightning as soon as it appeared on the field, was burned black, and sent to the Graveyard.

Diddididididic-!

And at the same time, Elfelt’s Life Points dropped from 8000 to 4000 instantly.

“By [Thunderclap]’s effect, I pay half my Life Points to negate the monster’s summon and destroy it.”

It was a tough play, not hesitating to pay the cost of half her Life Points, as if to immediately reclaim the turn taken by [Spirit of the Lock].

“That surprised me.”

“Hmph. I won’t let you do as you please either!!”

Elfelt declared spiritedly. The onlookers also cheered, thinking my turn was now over.

“Ughhh. I finally got the turn, but like this…”

Arianna also looked dejected, thinking there was nothing more I could do.

But,

“Elfelt. You cut in at a bad point.”

“…Yes?”

Unfortunately, I can still do as I please.

From the start, I had no intention of playing a deck that stops just because the ‘Normal Summon’ that can only be done once was nullified.

“With the 1st effect, Special Summon [Abyss Knight Shark] from my hand.”

Development starts now.

“What, what…?”

“The summoned monster was destroyed right away, so why is the development still continuing?”

By Special Summoning with effects, adding cards from the Deck, and even retrieving [Abyss Knight Salmon] which went to the Graveyard, I continued the development of [Abyss Knight].

“Using these two on the field, I will [Cross Summon]. Any chain?”

“Uhh, no…”

“Then, continuing with the effect of [Abyss Knight Queenslayer] I just summoned, I will summon [Abyss Knight Tiamat] from my hand.”

The field was steadily filled with monsters. Starting with low-level monsters, they gradually lined up up to the ace monsters from the Extra Deck.

One, two, three.

“…This should be enough.”

The total attack power on my field had already far exceeded Elfelt’s Life Points, which she had used half of as the cost for [Thunderclap].

To the extent that I didn’t even need to Special Summon Ice Mirror Marius.

“I’ll enter the Battle Phase.”

Judging that this was enough, I entered the Battle Phase.

“Attack [Spirit of Fire Flare] with [Abyss Knight Tiamat], attack directly with [Abyss Knight Whale], and finish with [Abyss Knight Queenslayer].”

According to my command, each monster pierced through Elfelt’s monster and field with a giant axe, a tidal wave, and a spear respectively.

Diddididididic- Keeing!!

“Ugh, Kughhhhh…!!”

Elfelt’s Life Point counter instantly dropped to 0 and scattered into particles of light.

“My victory.”

It was a clean Turn 1 Kill on the second turn.

“I, I won… Elfelt-senpai, in one turn…”

Arianna, who had been speechless and watching my play midway through, trembled as if she couldn’t believe it, and,

“I-it’s over? Is it over? On the second turn’s first turn?”

“What was that…?”

“Even though the monster summoned by [Thunderclap] was destroyed right away, it still led to a kill…?”

That shock spread to the onlookers as well, causing a stir. Shock and bewilderment were greater than shouts of victory.

“Don’t make me laugh!!!”

One student, who clearly looked like a noble, with gold ornaments dangling all over his cape, shouted.

“It’s all your fault for using a dirty card like [Spirit of the Lock], making the opponent’s field weak!! If not for that, it wouldn’t have ended this anticlimactically!!”

Pointing at me, he rudely lost his temper, spitting as he yelled.

“How dare you interfere with the opponent’s development before their turn even comes, do you think such rude and barbaric behavior will be tolerated?! This duel is void!!”

“Th-that’s right!! Exactly!! Do you want to win that badly, using such dirty cards!!”

Other nobles around him began to agree with his shout. Judging by their faces and demeanor, I could already guess what kind of deck they use without even seeing it.

“Be quiet!!”

But the one who retorted to that was,

“Shut up, you idiots!!”

It wasn’t me. It wasn’t Arianna either.

“What do you know that you’re just babbling whatever comes to mind?!”

It was Elfelt, trembling with anger.

“This is my mistake!! I lost because I wasn’t good enough!!”

Elfelt’s anger wasn’t directed at the nobles, or at me.

“If I had used [Thunderclap] more calmly, I wouldn’t have died!! No, if I had at least set the card in defense position instead of summoning it in attack position, I could have endured longer!!”

It was her own uncalm play.

“Getting impatient because I couldn’t do the usual development… Pathetic…!! I’m so embarrassed…!!”

Regarding summoning in attack position, thinking she could easily secure follow-up plays, and using [Thunderclap] hastily right at the start, she was red in the face and trembling with anger.

“…Ryugisu!!”

Elfelt, who had been trembling for a long time, stared at me with reddened eyes, as if desperately trying to hold back tears, and,

“The next game, it won’t be so easy!!”

She shouted, pouring out her frustration and fighting spirit.

“Alright. I’ll look forward to it.”

As expected, Elfelt is a good duelist.