Chapter 654 - 654
"Fusion Summon! — Heroic Spirit – Praying Bow, Robin Hood!"
[Heroic Spirit – Praying Bow, Robin Hood ★★★★★★ (Level 6)][WIND][Plant/Fusion/Effect][ATK 2000/DEF 500]
["Heroic Spirit – Robin Hood" + Claw of Hermos]
["!!! ∑(ﾟДﾟノ)ノ Huh?! You can actually use the Holy Grail's effect to forcibly summon a Noble Phantasm equipment created from a Legendary Dragon Fusion?!"]
"This weapon is a bit special, aibo," Hoshino Alter explained.
"Because of Archer Robin Hood's Independent Action trait, even as a Noble Phantasm monster, it still possesses combat capability on its own. And more importantly…"
A smile formed at the corner of Hoshino Alter's lips as she slammed the Fusion card onto the Duel Disk.
"Now we'll decide the outcome using a Plant-Type monster!"
"So that's it!" Alexis suddenly realized.
"Senpai endured those attacks on purpose so the Xyz Materials and Heroic Spirit – Irisviel would be sent to the Graveyard, fulfilling the conditions for a special Fusion Summon!"
"But the effect of Queen Mardel's monster on the field—" Misawa warned, sensing trouble.
"—The effect of Rikka Queen activates!"
Mardel raised her arm and triggered the effect.
"I detach one Xyz Material and force the monster you Fusion Summoned to be Tributed!"
A wall resembling mirror-like illusions of flowers and water unfolded. Using the purifying power of the Rikka Queen, Mardel attempted to erase Robin Hood the moment he appeared.
Queen Mardel: "..."
Hoshino Alter: "..."
However, the two simply stared at each other quietly for quite a while, yet the expected summoning light never appeared on the field.
"Let's finish this quickly, Hoshino Chiyuki. Stop delaying."
With the impurities in the Lake of Purification boiling violently, Mardel could not help but feel anxious.
If the sacred land were truly lost because of this duel, it would not simply be the human world that suffered.
Hoshino Alter smiled.
"I'm not delaying. Robin Hood was already summoned a while ago. If you can't see him, that's hardly my fault, right?"
"Already summoned? What nonsense are you talking about?"
"I'm not joking." Hoshino Alter lifted his Duel Disk.
"As a Heroic Spirit skilled in assassination and disruption, how could he reveal his true form so easily?"
Just as Hoshino Alter said, Robin Hood's card sat properly in the Monster Zone on the Duel Disk, yet there was no trace whatsoever of him stepping onto the field.
"No-Face King! Heroic Spirit – Praying Bow, Robin Hood cannot become the target of your effects, and cannot be chosen as an attack target!"
No-Face King—Robin Hood's Noble Phantasm.
The cloak he wore was a magical tool known as "Inherited Defense."
Its effect allowed complete transparency—blending perfectly into the surroundings—and granted an effect equivalent to the Assassin class skill Presence Concealment.
Hoshino commented:
["So because he can't be targeted by effects or attacks… you literally can't see Robin Hood at all. That really fits that guy's personality."]
"Well then, Queen Mardel? Aren't you going to continue activating your effect?"
Hoshino Alter's field had two monsters: Cu and Robin Hood.
One could not be affected by the opponent's monster effects, and the other could not be targeted by monster effects at all.
Therefore, the forced Tribute effect of Rikka Queen Teardrop had absolutely no target to use on.
Alternatively, Queen Mardel could choose to Tribute her own Rikka monster, triggering the effect of Rikka Petal and forcing Bai Xing to Tribute one of his monsters instead.
"Now isn't the time yet," Queen Mardel judged.
"No, this is your last chance. Don't say I didn't warn you later!" Hoshino Alter kindly advised.
"You think such cheap psychological tricks would deceive me? Useless."
"Heh… what a stubborn queen you are~"
The smile on Hoshino Alter's face clearly showed that her scheme had succeeded.
By using reverse psychology, she knew Queen Mardel would never take her suggestion—and that was exactly what he wanted.
Hoshino muttered:
["You strategy types are all so scheming…"]
"Well then, when the time comes, you'll definitely regret your decision!
Battle—!"
Entering the Battle Phase, Hoshino Alter immediately ordered Cu Chulainn Alter to charge toward Queen Mardel's field.
Beneath their feet, the once-pure lake now boiled like black magma, turning the battlefield into a vision of hell.
The final battle turn had begun.
The darkness that could destroy everything was guided toward the sharp claws of Cu Chulainn Alter.
"The power of darkness… it's expanding even further?"
Unable to believe that such a hellish sight had appeared within the once-pure Kingdom, Queen Mardel bit her lip lightly.
"The King of Light among humans… yet you wield such wickedness. This alone proves that the human world is already beyond salvation."
"So you're saying the human world is beyond saving?"
The All the World's Evils flowing from the Holy Grail used for the Fusion Summon wrapped around Hoshino Alter's body.
The girl who once appeared innocent and harmless now exuded an indescribable sinister aura.
"If the human world really is beyond saving—
Then this hellish scene will be proof that I'll drag this Kingdom down with it!"
A chill suddenly ran down Queen Mardel's spine.
Never in her life had she felt such a sensation—the instinctive fear of something crawling up her back—caused by nothing more than Hoshino Alter's threat.
"You… are you threatening me? Destroying my Kingdom? Humans could never accomplish such a thing!"
Although Queen Mardel instinctively forced herself to refute it, the intuition deep within her told her clearly…
The threat from the girl before her—the so-called King of Light—was no joke.
If the human world were truly destroyed by invasion, then the Kingdom would inevitably be swallowed by this pitch-black tide of malice, like the abyss of hell.
"Take this attack, Queen Mardel! The effect of Cu Chulainn Alter activates!"
"When this card declares an attack, destroy all monsters on your field with DEF lower than this card's ATK!"
"The slaughter begins! Leave none alive!"
Swinging his claws, he raised a massive black wave from the boiling darkness beneath his feet.
From the black liquid, he pulled forth the weapon that should have transformed into bone armor—Gáe Bolg.
"Turn into nothingness!—Gáe Bolg!"
An auto-guided demonic spear missile—Cu Chulainn's original Noble Phantasm.
When used in his Alter form, Cu Chulainn throws the spear with full force without regard for his own body being shattered. Compared to when he is normally summoned, both the power and the effective range are greatly increased.
It carries an instant-death effect against the entire enemy formation, and even if instant death does not trigger, it still deals massive damage.
However, by using Rune magic to simultaneously regenerate his collapsing body while throwing the attack, Cu Chulainn himself does not suffer lasting damage—…aside from the unimaginable pain.
At this moment, Cu Chulainn Alter, with 4500 ATK, far surpassed the DEF of all the Rikka monsters on Queen Mardel's field. The destructive demonic spear missile had already locked onto every Rikka Saint monster.
"Don't forget—when my Plant-Type monsters would be destroyed by a card effect, I can activate the effect of Kanzashi the Rikka Queen and Tribute one monster instead of that destruction! At the same time, this will trigger the Continuous Spell Rikka Flurries!"
This was exactly the perfect moment Queen Mardel had been waiting for.
By Tributing a monster as a replacement for destruction, she could also activate the effect that forced Hoshino Alter to Tribute one of her own monsters.
"What an easy-to-read queen!" Hoshino Alter laughed.
"I told you already—don't regret your own decisions later! Robin Hood, do it!"
Crack—!
At Hoshino Alter's call, the crystal umbrella-sword in the hand of Kanzashi the Rikka Queen, which had protected Queen Mardel by blocking several destruction effects before, suddenly shattered.
"Nice work, Robin Hood," Hoshino Alter praised the still-invisible Heroic Spirit.
Sabotage A—Robin Hood's inherent skill.
It represents the talent to weaken the opponent's forces before battle even begins.
At Rank A, he could reduce nearly 60% of the enemy's fighting strength before the enemy army even advanced.
In group combat, this was practically equivalent to a complete collapse. However, the higher this skill became, the lower the hero's spiritual rank as a heroic figure would be.
[Once per turn: Target 1 monster your opponent controls; negate that monster's effects until the end of the turn.]
"I already knew you'd activate Kanzashi the Rikka Queen to replace destruction," Hoshino Alter explained casually.
"So before the battle even started, I had Robin Hood destroy your monster's effect first~"
"So it was then…!" Queen Mardel frowned deeply, recalling the moment.
("No, this is your last chance. Don't say I didn't warn you later.")
Robin Hood had never shown himself even for a single moment on the field.
Therefore, Queen Mardel had no way of knowing when Bai Xing activated the effect.
"You have no chance left to Tribute a monster, Queen Mardel!"
"No… I still have a chance!"
With her pale fingers, Queen Mardel picked up two cards from her Duel Disk at the same time and declared:
"I chain to Cu Chulainn Alter's attack! I activate the effect of Teardrop the Rikka Queen, and Tribute Mudan the Rikka Fairy on my field directly!"
Rather than being completely annihilated by Gáe Bolg, it was better to Tribute a monster herself and make a desperate counterattack.
"Muda da—!" Hoshino Alter roared without stopping the attack declaration.
"Go, Cu Chulainn! Mad King Missile!"
"I keep telling you, Master—you really need to work on your naming sense!"
Gáe Bolg exploded across Queen Mardel's field, creating a nuclear-like shockwave. A towering black tornado erupted toward the sky, annihilating the power of the spirits as the price.
[Teardrop the Rikka Queen destroyed]
[Kanzashi the Rikka Queen destroyed]
[Number 87: Queen of the Night destroyed]
The entire Rikka formation was wiped out.
After all chained effects resolved, and after Queen Mardel had Tributed her Rikka monster, the Continuous Spell on her field activated.
"The effect of Rikka Flurries—when a Rikka monster on my field is Tributed, you must also choose one monster on your field and Tribute it."
The bones in Cu Chulainn Alter's arm shattered along with the arm used to throw the killing spear. Blood sprayed outward, covering his entire body.
"That's enough… With just that throw, I've probably surpassed even my master!"
Cu Chulainn Alter is Tributed
"You chose to Tribute Cu Chulainn Alter?!" Everyone present was stunned as Hoshino Alter sent the Cu Alter card from the Duel Disk to the Graveyard.
Compared to Robin Hood, who had never even appeared since being summoned, Cu Chulainn's destructive power was clearly the one worth keeping.
However, only Hoshino and Minazuki—who exchanged a knowing smile—understood what this meant.
"Your turn now, Robin Hood!"
"Heh, finally time to make my move?" a slightly playful voice sounded from behind Queen Mardel.
Leaping down from the air, Robin Hood cast aside the No-Face King cloak fluttering in the wind. The crossbow in his hand had already locked onto its prey, ready to fire.
For the sake of victory, Robin Hood had long since grown used to any method necessary—ambushes, night raids, poisoned arrows.
From the moment he appeared, he had been lurking in stealth only for this final killing strike.
"Release everything! This is Robin Hood's direct attack!"
[Heroic Spirit – Praying Bow, Robin Hood: Damage inflicted by this card when it attacks directly is doubled.]
Threatened by Robin Hood suddenly appearing behind her without warning, Queen Mardel spoke seriously:
"A doubled attack… but Robin Hood only has 2000 ATK. Even doubled, that's only 4000 damage!"
"Who said Robin Hood only has 2000 ATK?!"
Minazuki pulled out Lunalight Sabre Dancer, which had been sent to the Graveyard earlier as Xyz Material.
"Didn't expect that, did you? While Robin Hood was sneaking around, I was preparing something too!"
[Lunalight Sabre Dancer: (③) Once per turn: You can banish this card from your Graveyard, then target 1 Fusion Monster you control; it gains 3000 ATK until the end of the turn.]
"I banish Lunalight Sabre Dancer from play to give Robin Hood 3000 ATK!"
[Heroic Spirit – Praying Bow, Robin Hood ATK 2000 → 5000]
"F-five thousand attack power?!" Queen Mardel cried in shock.
Minazuki shouted:
"Take this, King of the Light! This is the combined full-power attack between me and the principal!!"
Hoshino Alter declared:
"And because Robin Hood's effect doubles the damage of direct attacks, this strike will deal 10,000 points of damage!!"
Robin Hood loaded his bolt and fired the yew-wood bow with all his strength toward Queen Mardel.
"O tree of burial rites—sharpen your claws!"
Among Celtic and Norse traditions, the yew tree is considered a sacred tree.
Making a bow from yew signifies a ritual of becoming one with the forest.
Furthermore, the yew tree was regarded as a gateway to the underworld. Perhaps knowing this, the Servant once said before his death:
"I want to be buried where this arrow falls."
"—Prayer Bow (Yew Bow)!"
Minazuki & Hoshino Alter:
"Total annihilation—!!"
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!"
[Queen Mardel LP 7000 → 0]
"It's not over yet!"
As the emerald arrow pierced Queen Mardel's body and fell into the depths of the black lake, the magic power of the Pyramid of Light on Bai Xing's chest burst forth.
"Bloom forth—The Sacred Tree of Light planted here,
That will purify all filth and corruption!!"