Looking at the card she drew, Morgan placed it into her hand. To be honest, Morgan still had a bit of speed-phobia—while racing on the D-Wheel, she often imagined what might happen if she accidentally fell off. Because of this, aside from drawing cards, her hands almost never left the handles.
Glancing at her hand, Morgan realized she didn't have enough resources this turn to push for a finishing blow. So, her plan was once again focused on setting up her Graveyard and playing defensively. And of course, for defense, she would go into Shizuku.
But for Morgan, going into Shizuku wasn't about stalling to die—it was laying the groundwork for her next chain of plays.
"I activate the Spell Card, Upstart Goblin, from my hand!"
"I draw 1 card from my Deck, and my opponent gains 1000 Life Points."
Morgan drew again, while Yaoyao's Life Points increased by 1000. For Sky Strikers, this card was a perfect fit: it not only replenished the hand but also loaded another Spell into the Graveyard. After all, most Sky Striker Spells gained additional effects if three or more Spells were already in the Graveyard.
So any card that quickly set up the Graveyard became a top priority.
As for the 1000 Life Points she gave her opponent? In practice, it hardly mattered.
Albeit, to most people watching, this looked like a poor play… after all, wasn't giving the opponent more Life Points only making victory harder?
Jade tilted her head, confused. "Why would Morgan give her opponent more Life Points? 8000 is already plenty, and now it's 9000. Isn't that just harder to win against?"
Rowe was also puzzled and turned to Isla. Though she was already a pro duelist, she had to admit that Isla's grasp of dueling theory was much clearer than hers. Right now, she couldn't figure out Morgan's reasoning.
Isla smiled after thinking for a moment. "Actually, it's very simple. Morgan just wants to send Spells to the Graveyard."
"Remember her Duel against Professor Mayn? Every Sky Striker Quick-Play Spell she activated had a secondary effect. Though to trigger that, you need at least three Spells in the Graveyard."
"So, for Morgan to maximize her Spells, she needs to hit that three-Spell threshold as quickly as possible. Upstart Goblin does exactly that—fills the Graveyard and draws her a card. As for the 1000 LP, it's negligible."
Only then did Jade and Rowe understand, both turning their eyes back to Morgan.
They hadn't expected that every single one of her plays highlighted the core traits of her Deck. Compared to her, they felt ashamed.
By now, Morgan had already moved on to her next play. She had one Spell in the Graveyard, but that wasn't enough.
"I activate the Spell Card, Reinforcement of the Army, from my hand!"
"I add Sky Striker Ace - Raye from my Deck to my hand!"
This card was the true low-level monster of the Sky Strikers—the white-haired beauty, Raye.
And with that, her Graveyard now had two Spells.
"I Normal Summon Sky Striker Ace - Raye in Attack Position!"
A girl in a black-and-white uniform appeared on the field. She had long, fluffy white hair down to her waist, a slender frame wrapped in a short white skirt, and held a long, black-red blade in her hands, her expression resolute.
[Sky Striker Ace - Raye] Level 4│DARK│Warrior│1500 ATK / 1500 DEF
The crowd gasped in excitement. They'd heard plenty about Morgan's "magical girl" Deck, but only the students and teachers present in the classroom Duel had actually seen Roze before. Now, another even cuter girl had appeared, and they couldn't contain their excitement.
Unlike the aloof Roze, Raye leaned toward the adorable side, which made her even more popular.
"So cute! Is this what you guys call the Sky Strikers?"
"Yeah, that's right—but yesterday we saw a different one. Personally, I like the one in the black military uniform."
"Children make choices—adults take them all!"
"Where did Morgan even get this Deck? I want a set of waifus too!"
Of course, Morgan, blazing along the track, didn't hear the chatter. She twisted the handles and accelerated, riding alongside Yaoyao like a crimson shooting star.
"I activate Sky Striker Ace - Raye's effect!"
"I Tribute her to Special Summon 1 Sky Striker Ace monster from the Extra Deck to the Extra Monster Zone!"
"I Special Summon Sky Striker Ace - Hayate!"
Raye raised her blade with both hands, light flashed, and she vanished. In her place appeared a fully armed girl with white hair and emerald-green armor, wielding a long sword shaped like a sniper rifle.
[Sky Striker Ace - Hayate] Link-1│DARK│Warrior│1500 ATK
All Sky Strikers shared 1500 ATK, but their effects differed vastly. Hayate could attack the opponent directly, and after dealing battle damage, she sent one Sky Striker card from the Deck to the Graveyard.
A powerful Graveyard setup tool—and she could also chip away at Life Points, undoing the gap Upstart Goblin had created.
Morgan wasted no time.
"Battle! Sky Striker Ace - Hayate, direct attack!"
Yaoyao froze. She still had two high-ATK monsters on her field… how could Morgan get past them to strike directly?
Suddenly, her eyes widened as Hayate's blade glowed emerald, releasing a green energy beam that bypassed her monsters and hit her head-on.
Caught off guard, Yaoyao lost speed, falling behind Morgan.
Confused, she looked at Morgan. How had she managed to attack her?
Morgan grinned. "Hayate can attack directly."
"And after damage calculation, she sends one Sky Striker card from the Deck to the Graveyard."
"I send Sky Striker Mecha - Widow Anchor to the Graveyard."
'She can attack directly?!'
Yaoyao's blank face flickered with realization. Though she was sensitive about other topics, her grasp of dueling was sharp. Her first thought was to remove Hayate immediately—otherwise, her Life Points would be whittled away bit by bit.
Still, if Morgan only had this one monster, Fluffals could easily clear it. Once her turn ended, Yaoyao could Fusion Summon Frightfur Whale to destroy Hayate, then attack directly with the rest for overwhelming advantage.
With that thought, Yaoyao pushed her D-Wheel forward, accelerating again.
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Sky Striker Mobilize - Engage, from my hand!"
Morgan declared. This was the central starter of the Deck—she'd saved it for last to avoid interruption.
"I can only activate this when I control no monsters in my Main Monster Zones. I add 1 Sky Striker card from my Deck to my hand, except another Engage."
"If I have three or more Spells in the Graveyard, I also draw 1 card."
She added Sky Striker Maneuver - Jamming Waves to her hand, then drew one more card.
Even though Engage was gone, Morgan could still recycle it later with Kagari, so she wasn't worried.
For now, she'd focus on defense while reinforcing her hand.
After all, she still had Widow Anchor to retrieve, and the more monsters her opponent had, the better it was for her.
"I use Sky Striker Ace - Hayate to set the Link!"
"Link Summon! Sky Striker Ace - Shizuku!"
Her equipment shifted again—green armor turning to watery blue, the sniper-sword replaced with crystalline daggers.
This was the form Morgan jokingly called "Water Knife." But Shizuku was hardly useless stalling; as long as she remained, her effect lowered the ATK of all opponent's monsters by 100 for each Spell in the Graveyard.
"At the End Phase, Shizuku's effect activates. I add 1 Sky Striker Spell from my Deck to my hand with a name not already in my Graveyard."
"I add Sky Striker Mecha - Hornet Drones to my hand!"
"Turn end!"
Finally, Morgan's turn was over. Yaoyao's dull eyes narrowed with anticipation—this Duel was full of unpredictability, and she couldn't help but feel excited.
Even so, leaving only one monster on the field? That felt like Morgan was mocking her.
Still, Yaoyao wasn't angry. Because this turn, she would make Morgan taste the full power of Frightfurs.
Victory would soon be decided.
"My turn! Draw!"
...
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