The waddling penguin Empen charged at Thunder Dragon Colossus.
With a peck of its yellow beak, Colossus was destroyed on the spot. The spectators were stunned, and Hakun was dumbfounded as well.
His mighty Thunder Dragon Colossus… gone, just like that?
Destroyed… by a penguin?
Even if the Attack Point difference was undeniable, he simply couldn't accept it.
The crowd was left speechless. To see such a fearsome monster fall so abruptly carried a shocking impact.
"Good grief! That penguin's vicious… it just wiped out Colossus."
"Guess we can't judge monsters just by their artwork. Gotta factor in effects and ATK too. I thought Colossus had over 3000 ATK."
"Proves there are no bad Decks, only bad Duelists. With someone as strong as Morgan, even a bird Deck is terrifying."
Hearing the chatter, Hakun's face flushed red. He had meant to overwhelm Morgan, but to be destroyed in such a way… he clenched his teeth, fury burning in his eyes.
In truth, he wasn't calm at all, but leaned toward madness. Otherwise, he wouldn't have joined the Shadow Duelists. His refined demeanor was just an act—he believed the contrast made his true insanity stand out all the more.
But when faced with setbacks like this, his mask slipped. Especially in defeat.
His eyes bloodshot, Hakun swore he'd return the humiliation Morgan had dealt him this turn.
"My turn ends," Morgan said with a smile.
Now with Barrier Statue of the Stormwinds on her field, neither player could Special Summon except for WIND monsters. Since Thunder Dragon Decks were all LIGHT and DARK monsters with no WIND, Hakun's Special Summons were completely sealed.
Thunder Dragons, unlike Morgan's Floowandereeze, relied heavily on Special Summoning. To summon his Fusion Monsters, Hakun would have to get rid of the Statue. And if he shifted focus to it, Morgan would seize her chance.
Charles wasn't the only one who could see the flow of advantage. Isla also noticed how Hakun's oppressive field had been unraveled by Morgan, who then turned the tables and sealed his Special Summons. Her plays were fluid and flawless.
What Isla admired most was how Morgan could draw out the strengths of any Deck she used, always turning them into victory—true mastery of exploiting advantages while covering weaknesses.
Such an ability in the world of Dueling was terrifying.
By now, Hannah had stepped out from the crowd. With so many people watching, the Silver Dorm's dorm leader appearing wasn't unusual.
She sighed at Hakun's impulsive expression. At first, she thought the boss had sent her some wise teammates, but now it was clear—this guy was a lunatic. The boss, too. Didn't they fear exposure?
Facing Morgan in a Duel demanded calm. Hakun's current state was nothing but openings.
If the rest of them were like this, she'd rather not play at all.
Her eyes returned to the Duel.
"My turn, draw!" Hakun shouted. He glanced at his draw, then added it to his hand.
For now, Special Summons were locked. But he still had Thunder Dragonroar on the field with 2400 ATK, and the card he drew was Thunder Dragonmatrix.
By discarding it to the Graveyard, he could boost a Thunder monster by 500 ATK.
That way, Dragonroar could destroy Empen, then Aloof Lupine could destroy the Statue.
Convinced this was the best plan, Hakun didn't hesitate.
"I activate the effect of Thunder Dragonmatrix from my hand!"
"Discard this card; target 1 Thunder monster you control, it gains 500 ATK."
He tossed it to the Graveyard. Dragonroar's ATK rose to 2900.
At the same time, Matrix's second effect triggered.
"If this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: Add 1 Thunder Dragonmatrix from your Deck to your hand."
Another copy was added to Hakun's hand, readying him for future plays.
Abruptly, before he could continue, Morgan flipped her Set card. She wasn't about to give him a chance.
"I activate the Trap, Floowandereeze and the Dreaming Town!"
"During the Main Phase, Normal Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Winged Beast."
"I Normal Summon Floowandereeze & Eglen in Attack Position!"
Once again, Eglen appeared—but this time, on Hakun's turn.
Charles knew what was coming. From the start, he'd seen how Morgan's Deck thrived on resource cycling. Each Normal Summon retrieved monsters from the Banished Zone, while any monster leaving the field was banished. Even Graveyard hate was useless here.
Just those two points were enough to frustrate most Decks. Its only flaw seemed to be low ATK.
Even so, Morgan patched that by locking Special Summons. Without them, opponents were stuck Normal Summoning weak monsters that couldn't match Empen's power.
Thus, when her trap brought out Eglen, Hakun had already lost the right to play.
Sure enough, Eglen's effect activated.
"I activate Eglen's effect!"
"Add 1 Level 7 or higher Winged Beast from your Deck to your hand, then you can immediately Normal Summon 1 Winged Beast."
"I add Raiza the Mega Monarch to my hand!"
Hakun froze. Did he hear right?
Morgan even had this card in her Deck? That was a Monarch card!
Suddenly, his heart sank. Raiza was a Winged Beast too—and its effect was…
"Next, I chain the effect of the banished Robina!"
"When a Winged Beast is Normal Summoned: Add this card to your hand."
"Then I Normal Summon Floowandereeze & Robina!"
Now the chain was Morgan's. Hakun could only watch.
Robina's effect searched Floowandereeze & Stri, which Morgan then prepared to summon.
"I Tribute Robina and Eglen!"
"Tribute Summon! Raiza the Mega Monarch!"
A violent wind tore across the field, far harsher than before, stinging skin like blades.
[Raiza the Mega Monarch] Level 8│WIND│Winged Beast│2800 ATK / 1000 DEF
Perfect for Floowandereeze. It could return up to two cards to the top of the Deck—monsters on the field, or cards in the Graveyard.
"I activate Raiza's effect!"
"When this card is Tribute Summoned: Target 1 card on the field and 1 card in either Graveyard; place them on top of their Decks in any order."
Morgan pointed straight at Dragonroar.
"I target your Thunder Dragonroar on the field and Thunder Dragon in your Graveyard—return them to the top of your Deck!"
With Dragondark, a Level 5, it could only be Tribute Summoned if it returned. Even though Hakun still had Aloof Lupine, Morgan would destroy it next turn, leaving him no Tribute fodder.
Hakun ground his teeth. He still had a chance, though. Aloof Lupine's ATK was higher than the Statue's. If he destroyed the Statue first, he could resume Special Summoning.
But Morgan didn't give him the chance.
"I activate the effect of Floowandereeze and the Dreaming Town in my Graveyard!"
"If you Tribute Summon a Level 7 or higher monster while this card is in your Graveyard: Banish this card; flip all opponent's monsters face-down!"
Smack!
Hakun's lone monster flipped face-down. His eyes widened—he was completely locked out this turn.
"My turn ends… oh wait, I think it's still your turn," Morgan said with a sunny smile.
...
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