The silver chariot roared forward, its hardened front smashing through Toadally Awesome. The frog let out a pitiful cry before shattering in a violent explosion. The blast rocked Dukon's D-Wheel, sending it swerving dangerously as he nearly flipped over. Clearly unaccustomed to such a setback, Dukon struggled clumsily for several moments before regaining balance.
After Morgan's attack, Dukon lost all the pride he'd shown earlier. He glared viciously at Morgan. Since entering Duel Academy's Senior Division, this was the first time anyone had humiliated him so thoroughly.
Not only was his field broken, but his Life Points were cut down too. For someone obsessed with perfection, it was unbearable.
"Morgan, you'll pay for this!"
Grinding his teeth, Dukon accelerated hard, Hannah's repeated warnings about keeping a cool head completely forgotten.
Watching from the stands, Hannah sighed and covered her face. Clearly, a week of boot camp hadn't fixed their personalities at all. Now she understood—the boss hadn't given her their files because he wanted her to identify and discipline them herself. She'd been roped into the dirty work.
Regardless, it was too late to complain. Since she had taken them under her wing, she couldn't just abandon them—it would risk exposing her own identity.
"Time to suggest a pay raise to the boss. That new D-Wheel model has been on my wish list for ages."
Her lips curled into a sly smile. Cleaning up this mess better be worth something. After all, the real prize of the Senior Division was securing Morgan's allegiance.
She turned her gaze back to the track.
"I Set three cards and end my turn."
Morgan slid three cards face-down: Shaddoll Schism, Dogmatika Punishment, and Twister.
These were traps for Dukon. Schism would let Morgan Fusion Summon on her opponent's turn using Graveyard resources, bringing out Winda to lock Special Summons. It was the standard strategy of the Invoked-Shaddoll-Dogmatika hybrid, a catch-all Deck able to pressure nearly any situation.
Dogmatika Punishment sent a monster from the Extra Deck to the Graveyard to destroy an opponent's monster with lower ATK—a powerful interruption, though it prevented Extra Deck summons for the rest of the turn.
Used well, these two cards alone could completely cripple Dukon's next plays.
"My turn, draw!"
Dukon furiously sped forward. Like many Shadow Duelists in this batch, his personality flaws ran deep. He was obsessed with perfection—if a Duel strayed from his ideal plan, he grew irritable, his weaknesses laid bare.
"I activate Swap Frog from my hand!"
"By discarding a WATER monster, I can Special Summon it from my hand!"
"I discard Dupe Frog to Special Summon Swap Frog!"
A frog with black-and-yellow markings appeared behind Dukon, its bulging throat sacs pulsing as its eerie purple eyes glowed.
Girls were almost universally disgusted by slimy creatures like this. Jade and Isla both blanched at the sight. Morgan, though unaffected emotionally, paid close attention to Dukon's chain of plays.
"When Swap Frog is Special Summoned, I can send 1 Level 2 or lower WATER Aqua monster from my Deck to the Graveyard!"
"I send Ronintoadin to the Graveyard!"
Step by step, Dukon built toward his goal: reviving Toadally Awesome, his ace and the symbol of his pursuit of perfection.
Even so, Morgan was ready. The same trick would not work on her twice.
From the stands, Jade finally realized what he was planning. She shouted desperately:
"Morgan, stop him! Don't let him summon that damn Toadally Awesome again!"
Her hatred for the frog was clear, and Isla wasn't any better off—Dukon's Frog Deck had already creeped her out with one attack that left her shuddering.
"Now, I activate Ronintoadin's effect from the Graveyard!"
"By banishing 1 Frog monster, I Special Summon it!"
With this, Dukon would have the materials needed to Xyz Summon Toadally Awesome again. Abruptly, Morgan flipped a card immediately.
"I activate the Continuous Trap, Shaddoll Schism!"
"During either player's Main Phase, I Fusion Summon a Shaddoll Fusion Monster using monsters from my field or Graveyard as materials!"
"I fuse Shaddoll Beast on my field with Reeshaddoll Wendi in my Graveyard!"
"Fusion Summon! El Shaddoll Winda!"
A vortex of energy opened behind Morgan, swallowing the monsters before spitting out a new one—a petite figure riding a puppetlike purple dragon, its staff radiating destructive light.
[El Shaddoll Winda] Level 5│DARK│Spellcaster│2200 ATK / 800 DEF
"Fusion Summoning during my turn?!"
Dukon's face fell. He hadn't expected Morgan to fuse mid-chain. Still, it was his turn. If he could Special Summon Ronintoadin, he could still Xyz into Toadally Awesome.
Suddenly, then Morgan spoke calmly:
"El Shaddoll Winda's effect."
"As long as she's on the field, each player can only Special Summon once per turn."
"What?!"
Dukon paled. His entire chain collapsed. Summoning Ronintoadin meant he couldn't summon Toadally Awesome. Worse, his Normal Summon had already been used.
Gritting his teeth, he reluctantly shifted gears.
"I Special Summon Ronintoadin in Defense Position… My turn ends."
Helpless, Dukon ended. In this world, Winda's lock was still brutally effective.
Morgan smirked. She wasn't about to give Dukon another chance.
"My turn, draw!"
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going!
[Patreon.com/RedZTL]