"I… I haven't improved?"
After a long silence, Gloria muttered the words under her breath.
This...this was impossible.
Half a year ago, she needed three cards and Fusion to bring out Amazoness Empress. Now she could do it off Amazoness Princess alone, one whole card saved. And this turn, she'd even used Amazoness Secret Arts to fuse straight from her Extra Deck, something Amagi Hikaru had done back then that she could only watch in awe.
Right, she'd learned to use Extra Deck lines, the very technique Hikaru had mastered back then!
How could she be "standing still"!?
But, given her pride, she couldn't say any of that. She would never throw those words back just to refute him.
"Gloria, we teamed up once," he said gently, lifting a hand as though intoning a vow. "You're nothing like the worst of the Fusion Army in my mind, so I'm glad to be your friend.
'Fuse with all who can be fused, that's my Fusion.'
Even with core Fusion Army members, if they haven't truly done evil, if they aren't beyond change, then I can choose to fuse with them."
"Gloria, maybe I didn't feel it as clearly in a tag duel," he went on, "but after seeing you lose to Chazz and watching your revival matches, I'm sure, you're simply not suited to singles."
"Nn…" She'd tried so hard to change, but his words hit the one point she couldn't deny, and the very reason she had been pushing herself so mercilessly.
Gloria had slowly realized it herself.
Without Grace, her duels never felt smooth.
As tag specialists, their solo showings were… ordinary. Some duelists who barely troubled Hikaru would still give Gloria fits. She had no doubt, if she faced Jim, she'd be swept off the field in a blink.
"Since our duel, I know you've been trying to reach out, even mixing with students from the Fusion Department," Hikaru said, tapping his forehead with two fingers. "But at the Amazoness camp… you still shut the rest out, didn't you?"
Grace bit her lower lip.
He was right again.
She herself was fine, but her sister had only mirrored Hikaru's Fusion, Hikaru's way of dueling. Gloria had been imitating the idea, not living it.
"So what are you really thinking?" Even Hikaru couldn't see that yet.
He could only infer from the surface; without a duel, he couldn't look into a heart.
"D...dammit… my turn!"
Flustered at having her thoughts laid bare, a hot flush rose in Gloria's cheeks. Maybe the overtraining had kicked her body into a fever; her skin burned.
Thinking about it now… it must be true.
If she really just wanted to duel Hikaru, wouldn't it be better to just go find him?
There was always time to seek him out, no excuses, no "opportunities" needed.
Gloria drew and glanced at the card.
Tch- Amazoness Archer.
She skimmed the rest of her hand.
"In that case, I'll play this-Spell Card, Card Destruction!"
"Each player discards their entire hand, then draws the same number of cards they discarded!"
She pitched Amazoness Archer and the rest to the GY.
Hikaru arched a brow, then calmly sent his own hand to the GY as well.
Gloria drew three fresh cards.
'There. This is nothing like before.'
She still couldn't name the feeling twisting in her chest, but since Hikaru had called it out, she'd cut those crutches loose.
"Alright." She snapped a new card down. "If I control no monsters, or only 'Amazoness' monsters, I can Special Summon this card from my hand!
Amazoness War Chief!"
"Hah! Long time no see, Amagi Hikaru!"
"Did the Tyler sisters just straight-up poach War Chief?"
Amazoness War Chief — Level 4 | EARTH | Warrior | 1900 ATK / 1200 DEF
"When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: Set 1 'Amazoness' Spell/Trap or Polymerization directly from your Deck."
"I Set Polymerization. Then, I banish Amazoness Secret Arts from my GY and activate its effect. This turn, when I Fusion Summon an 'Amazoness' monster, I can also use 1 'Amazoness' Fusion Monster in my Extra Deck as material!"
"The Fusion requirement is: 1 'Amazoness' Fusion Monster + 1 'Amazoness' monster!"
"Lion that rules all beasts, kneel before the Empress."
"I fuse the Amazoness Empress in my Extra Deck with Amazoness War Chief on the field!"
"Fusion Summon-Amazoness Augusta!"
A figure even more imposing than the Empress landed in a whirl of scarlet cloak, greatblade braced on her shoulder.
Amazoness Augusta — Level 10 | EARTH | Warrior | 3200 ATK / 2800 DEF
There was no spirit riding that card; it was a gift from the Amazoness Empress to the Tyler sisters.
"Beautifully done, Sister Gloria," Grace said, palms cupping her cheeks. "You just pulled what Scatter Fusion did!"
"Amazoness Augusta, on Fusion Summon, Special Summon 1 'Amazoness' monster from the Deck!"
"Amazoness Scouts!"
A cluster of little warriors, some with short swords, others with tiny bows, took formation at Gloria's side.
Amazoness Scouts — Level 2 | EARTH | Warrior | 500 ATK / 1100 DEF
Their ATK wasn't much, but Prismaura's stats were 0/0 under Brilliant Fusion. 500 was more than enough.
"Battle Phase! Amazoness Scouts, attack Gem-Knight Prismaura!"
The dimmed crystal knight couldn't resist; with zero strength left, a practice arrow was enough to shatter it.
"Then, direct attack with Amazoness Augusta!" Gloria's eyes flashed.
"Trap Card, Fragment Fusion, activate!" Hikaru raised a hand. "Banish Fusion Materials listed on a 'Gem-Knight' Fusion from my GY; Fusion Summon that monster! I banish Gem-Knight Sapphire and Gem-Knight Prismaura to Fusion Summon, Gem-Knight Aquamarine!"
Gem-Knight Aquamarine — Level 6 | EARTH | Aqua | 1400 ATK / 2600 DEF
Gloria clicked her tongue at the sight of that familiar general, but it wasn't unexpected. She snapped to her vanguard: "Continue the battle, Quick Effect of Amazoness Scouts! Tribute it; this turn, my 'Amazoness' monsters cannot be destroyed by battle or by card effects!"
"Battle continues, Amazoness Augusta attacks Gem-Knight Aquamarine!"
Steel flashed. The queen of the hunt cleaved through the gemstone knight; even with a counter poised, Aquamarine vanished from the field beneath the sisters' iron discipline.
"Alright… with that, I Set 1 more and end my turn."
Hikaru rubbed his chin with thumb and forefinger.
He thought a moment, then drew in silence.
"Card Destruction earlier… Augusta now…"
Just playing Card Destruction and embracing the unknown already proved Gloria's courage. She wasn't someone who refused to face her flaws; the moment she realized a problem, she'd cut powerful lines like Amazoness Archer without a second thought. And she had delivered exactly what she'd claimed, Extra Deck Fusion lines.
From a capability standpoint, Gloria clearly hadn't stagnated.
Whether she'd changed in other ways, that was harder to say.
He hadn't come out here to play savior out of kindness. The Taylor sisters, after all, hadn't committed the worst sins of the Fusion Army in this timeline, and their relationship with Hikaru had genuinely thawed.
Down the line, the Fusion Army's leftover messes, like the Fusion Department, would need them. Out of friendship and "work," Hikaru would help them along.
Still, it was obvious: the sisters were different, and didn't yet know what they truly wanted.
He glanced from his hand to his GY. "First, Fusion Substitute in the GY, return Gem-Knight Aquamarine to the Extra Deck and draw 1. Then, Thunder Dragon Fusion in the GY, banish it to add 1 'Thunder' monster from my Deck."
Hikaru tucked Thunder Dragon Fusion into the pouch at his back, opened his Deck, and searched: "I add Thunder Dragon to hand."
"Now Thunder Dragon, discard it to add up to 2 'Thunder Dragon' from my Deck."
Two more cards slid free; he took them neatly.
"Continuous Spell, Domain of Flame Swords!"
"Oh! Domain of Flame Swords!" Gloria's face lit. "Are you finally using Flame Swordsman, Hikaru."
People liked to say he only brought out Flame Swordsman when he was dead serious. It wasn't true, but plenty still believed it.
At least for Gloria, seeing more of Hikaru's Fusions was a thrill in itself.
Hikaru frowned.
"Domain of Flame Swords, I send 1 Thunder Dragon from my hand to the GY; Special Summon, Flame Swordsman!"
"Hahaha! Flame Swordsman, making a grand entrance!" The swordsman laughed as he arrived, hands on his hips, flame-etched blade gleaming.
Flame Swordsman — Level 5 | FIRE | Warrior | 1800 ATK / 1600 DEF
"Normal Summon-Thunder Dragon! I Tribute it, Special Summon, Thunder Dragon Colossus!"
A golden sphere flickered before Hikaru, then burst. From the light stepped a black thunder-beast, man-tall and bristling with crackling scales.
[Thunder Dragon Colossus] — Level 8 | DARK | Thunder | 2600 ATK / 2400 DEF
"A Fusion that transforms straight from a monster!" Grace gasped.
Gloria surged a step forward, fatigue forgotten. Her heart hammered. This, this was why Hikaru's duels never got old: single-card fusions, Deck fusions, Extra Deck fusions, GY fusions, direct transformations… His whole Deck fused, and he himself kept "fusing" possibilities together.
Even the Fusion Army, even the Fusion Department, so long as you didn't cross his bottom line, he'd still try to fuse with you.
Back at the Amazoness camp she'd once doubted him, suspected that his "identity" kept him from teaming with her. But after that tag duel, she understood.
Hikaru was an absolute Fusion duelist, curious, expectant, relentless.
She wanted to see more, more dazzling fusions, more that made the world feel wider.
"Battle! Colossus, attack Amazoness Augusta! Domain of Flame Swords, reduce Flame Swordsman's ATK by 1000 and increase Thunder Dragon Colossus by 1000!"
Colossus lunged.
Thunder Dragon Colossus — ATK: 2600 → 3600.
"Domain pumps all your monsters, so even under mine you can still push past, but my hand's changed since Card Destruction!" Gloria snapped her Set card. "Continuous Trap-Amazoness Willpower!"
"Target 1 'Amazoness' monster in your GY; Special Summon it in Attack Position. It can't change its battle position and must attack if able. If this card leaves the field, destroy that monster; if that monster leaves, destroy this card."
A smile sparked across her face. "I revive, Amazoness Empress!"
The Empress's silhouette flickered back onto the field.
[Amazoness Empress] — Level 8 | EARTH | Warrior | 2800 ATK / 2400 DEF
"With Empress out, my other 'Amazoness' monsters can't be destroyed by battle or card effects! And with Augusta, my other monsters can't be targeted by your card effects!"
Gloria swept her left hand like a blade.
"How about it? You won't be destroying my board or targeting it with Thousand-Eyes Restrict anymore!"
Two queens, two walls. The protections overlapped into a fortress.
Hikaru didn't flinch. "You Special Summoned and changed the number of monsters, Battle Replay. I'll continue the attack and change the target, attack Amazoness Empress!"
Zzzzzzz---crackling bolts raked the queen.
Gloria — LP: 4000 → 3200.
Hikaru considered, then ended his turn.
"Good, now our LP are basically even." Gloria's smile sharpened.
Hikaru frowned, just a touch.
"Hikaru, maybe you're right. Maybe I still haven't figured out what I want, and maybe I'm still stuck. But it doesn't matter." She clenched a fist, that fierce smile cutting through the night. "I do know I want to duel you, and see more of your Fusion Summons.
That one thing is enough!"
Heat rose under her palm as she pressed it to her chest.
"Draw!" A heartbeat later she pulled a card, and something bright flashed in her eyes. "Good.
Field Spell-Amazoness Arena!"
Creak--creak-jingle~~jingle~~
Chains surged up around the stage, weaving into a massive cage.
"When this card is activated, both players recover 600 LP."
Gloria — LP: 3200 → 3800.
Hikaru — LP: 3000 → 3600.
"Both sides recover?" Tierra blinked behind Hikaru, hands tucked behind her back, a little surprised.
"Good, then let's take the most direct route, Amagi Hikaru." Gloria raised her right hand toward him. "In the most primal, most brutal way: while this card is on the field, whenever either player's monster battles, the attacker can pay 100 LP to inflict 100 damage to the opponent."
In other words, a cage match.
Hikaru glanced left and right, a little helpless.
'Do all Amazoness duelists end up here?
Can't figure it out? Then fight it out!'
"Battle! Amazoness Empress-attack your Flame Swordsman!"
"I pay 100 LP!"
"You take 100 damage!"
A chain whistled out from the iron lattice. Tierra lifted a hand to swat it aside, but Hikaru shook his head.
Thunk
The chain pierced through him. A spike of pain, and with it, a surge of fighting spirit.
Wild. Unending. A fervor that seemed ready to ignite him, and just as quickly burned away.
Gloria — LP: 3800 → 3700.
Hikaru — LP: 3600 → 3500.
"Domain of Flame Swords, reduce Flame Swordsman's ATK by 1000; Thunder Dragon Colossus gains 1000!"
"Ha, no problem!"
"With Amazoness Empress on the field, my Amazoness monsters gain piercing!"
The Empress dashed past her queenly counterpart, greatblade sweeping down. Flame Swordsman shattered in a spray of sparks.
Hikaru — LP: 3500 → 2700.
The heat swelled, coiling around the arena. Hikaru felt it, the core of Gloria Taylor's heart.
Pure dueling. Pure struggle. Pure passion. That was what Gloria loved.
"Battle continues, Amazoness Empress attacks again!" She thrust at Thunder Dragon Colossus.
"Eh? Sis, his monster's stronger! You'll take damage!"
"Oh ho," Tierra murmured, understanding at last.
Chains flew again, biting both duelists mid-swing.
Gloria — LP: 3700 → 3600.
Hikaru — LP: 2700 → 2600.
Electric fury gathered around Colossus. Its body braced against the impact, lightning net flashing. Even with her evolved techniques, the Empress couldn't break through 3600 ATK; she fell back to one knee.
Gloria — LP: 3600 → 2800.
Gloria staggered under the recoil, but didn't yield an inch.
"End turn!" She clenched a fist; her knuckles cracked.
Hikaru touched his chest, saying nothing.
Across the way, Grace's expression turned almost serenely zealous. "So that's it… mutual strikes, mutual blood, how interesting."
But she wasn't Gloria. After a beat, she tapped her cheek with one finger, thinking aloud: "Even if sis hasn't figured herself out yet, if we keep trading like this, and rely on our unbreakable Amazoness, the LP advantage will trend our way."
Hikaru could keep bringing back Flame Swordsman, but that only meant he'd keep eating piercing damage. If they repeated this turn after turn, big sister would win.
"My turn. Draw."
Hikaru looked at the card.
"So that's how it is…"
No helping Gloria find herself tonight, it seemed.
But she had found a method, and that was enough. The Fusion Department's future cleanup would be far less messy with the Taylor sisters on board.
"Domain of Flame Swords, send Thunder Dragon from my hand to the GY. Special Summon, Flame Swordsman!"
"Hahaha, your trusty swordsman returns!" The warrior sprinted in, blade roaring.
[Flame Swordsman] — Level 5 | FIRE | Warrior | 1800 ATK / 1600 DEF
"Then, Equip Spell, Salamandra Fusion!"
Fire erupted, wreathing the arena.
"Equip only to a FIRE Warrior; it gains 700 ATK. And while this is equipped to a Fusion I control—I send both to the GY to Special Summon, from my Extra Deck, 'Flame Swordsman' or a Fusion that mentions it."
"Equipped Fusion…" Gloria breathed.
A fusion that evolves another fusion!
The twins gasped in unison.
"Another new Fusion line!?" Gloria stared, unblinking.
"I send Flame Swordsman and Salamandra Fusion to the GY."
"Swordsman of flame, salamander's fang!
"Aggregate through Fusion, take on a new form, and stand with me!
"My partner. My friend. My emblem!
Ultimate Flame Swordsman!"
BOOM!
A pillar of fire tore into the sky. From within the blaze stepped a giant swordsman, reborn in searing mail and a greatsword of living flame.
[Ultimate Flame Swordsman] — Level 8 | FIRE | Warrior | 2800 ATK
"2800 ATK!" Gloria's eyes shone. She could barely stop herself from clapping.
Its ATK matched Amazoness Empress, even its Level and Type were the same.
"This way, I won't take any piercing," Grace murmured, still tracking the board.
"Battle Phase!" Hikaru leveled his gaze at the Empress. "Ultimate Flame Swordsman, attack Amazoness Empress!"
"I pay 100 LP!, and you take 100 damage!"
A chain lanced out from the steel lattice. Tierra lifted a hand to block it, but Hikaru shook his head.
Thunk
The chain punched through him. Pain flashed, then a fierce, rising surge of fighting spirit.
Wild. Boundless. A warmth that wanted to set him ablaze, and just as quickly, it faded.
Hikaru — LP: 2600 → 2500.
Gloria — LP: 2800 → 2700.
Before Gloria could chase the warmth that had just washed over her, Ultimate Flame Swordsman was already in her face. The blazing greatsword came up, not goofy now, but steady and solemn.
"But Amazoness Empress has higher ATK!"
"Ultimate Flame Swordsman's effect, at the start of the Damage Step, its ATK doubles until the end of the turn!"
Ultimate Flame Swordsman — ATK: 2800 → 5600.
The flame-blade bit straight through the jungle queen's guard. Fire seared the Empress, then licked across Gloria, and even brushed Grace at her side.
Gloria — LP: 2700 → 300.
Her knees buckled; Grace darted in to catch her.
"Continue! Thunder Dragon Colossus attacks," Hikaru swept an arm. "Domain of Flame Swords: reduce Ultimate Flame Swordsman by 1000 ATK, and Colossus gains 1000 ATK.
"And… Amazoness Arena once more! I pay 100 LP, you take 100 damage!"
He didn't mind using Arena to make her feel things more directly. He never disliked passion; in this world, duels were never purely merciless.
This time the chain pierced everyone again, Grace included. Startled, Gloria snapped her head up. She felt her sister's worry, their emotions resonating like a single chord.
Hikaru — LP: 2500 → 2400.
Gloria — LP: 300 → 200.
Gloria pressed a hand to her chest, cheeks flushed.
The long grind of overtraining, the fever that had never quite broken, maybe even something worse.
And at last she understood.
She understood why, after that first duel with Hikaru, she and Grace had tried to mix with students from the Fusion Department, tried to learn Hikaru's lines and ideas, tried Extra Deck Fusion, even tried to imitate him.
It was, Admiration.
These sisters, born for tag duels, had always leaned only on each other, and never truly understood anyone else.
Boredom had seeped into their old matches; among their peers, almost no one could beat them in a normal tag. But Amagi Hikaru, his duels brought back the joy they'd felt the very first time they played.
So even without fully understanding, they chased him. Instinctively.
That's why Gloria started forcing herself into singles. Why Grace began watching Hikaru more closely. Why Gloria pushed so hard in this tournament, to meet him here again, wanting it and fearing it at once.
Wanting to duel Hikaru. Fearing her weakness at singles.
And now… everything was clear.
"Thunder Dragon Colossus, attack Amazoness Empress!"
Thunder crashed down, but there was no pain this time. Only the wonder, and the inclusiveness of Fusion.
And the applause for sisters who had just stepped onto a new path.
...
Honestly, I know I've been making a few mistakes here and there in the chapters. This fic is the one I've been investing the most time into translating, easily around 1-2 hr per chapter, compared to the LOTR, Fairy Tail, and Pokémon fics I am translating. The main issue is that the card names in the raws keep changing, and sometimes the effects or attributes don't even match the Fusion Monsters that get summoned.
Because of that, I end up editing each chapter two or three times just to make sure the summoning flow feels natural and accurate. It's a lot of back-and-forth work.
I genuinely appreciate everyone who's been pointing out mistakes so far, thank you! I'll keep doing my best to maintain consistency and improve as I go. Let's see if I can keep the flow of the upcoming chapters smoother.