Upon hearing the other party call him a "kid," Lester, who had been lying on the ground, instantly sprang up, bristling with anger. "Who are you calling a kid!?"
Kira just smiled without answering.
"Damn it, how dare you look down on me like that!" Lester snapped, "Stop underestimating people! Since you want to act all high and mighty, I'll show you the wrath of the heavens! My turn—draw!"
After drawing, Lester didn't act immediately but exchanged a glance with Jakob.
Jakob glanced at him and then gave a small nod, as if granting permission.
Only then did Lester begin his move. "I summon 'Sky Core'!"
Like the other two Meklord Emperors, each one relies on its own core for activation. The Sky Core is a blue orb, giving off a fresher feeling compared to the other Meklord Emperor cores.
"Then I activate the Spell Card 'Dark Hole'!" Lester announced. "All monsters on the field are destroyed!"
Yes, the classic sweep—the ultimate destroyer of all monsters on the field, like flipping the table in pure dueling chaos. At first glance, Lester appears to have far more monsters on the field than Kira, so he'd be at a disadvantage, but actually his hand is forced.
The Meklord Emperor Granel managed to survive the last turn's lethal triple attack from Chimeratech Rampage Dragon, but their Life Points are only 1200 now. Meklord Emperor Granel's attack points are equal to their LP, so it's just 1200. Against an opponent who doesn't synchro summon, Meklord Emperor Granel's incredible effects are basically useless—a dead weight.
Also, any Meklord Emperor monster with "∞" in its name can only have one copy on the field. In other words, the three Meklord Emperors can't all exist at the same time.
Furthermore, whenever a Meklord Emperor is on the field, all other monsters you control can't attack.
So, leaving the barely-alive Meklord Emperor Granel on the field actually prevents Lester from developing his strategy or attacking. It's better to clean it off, and put all hope for a counterattack on his Meklord Emperor.
But Kira had no intention of losing his own monster alongside them. "At this moment, I activate my Set Card—the Continuous Trap 'Dimension Gate'! When this card is activated, I can banish one monster I control!"
A swirling dimensional vortex appeared overhead, with a beam of light connecting heaven and earth like a quantum tunnel.
"I banish my 'Chimeratech Rampage Dragon'!"
Jakob said in a deep voice, "He's dodging the destruction by banishing his own monster, huh?"
At the very last split second before Dark Hole crushed the field, Chimeratech Rampage Dragon was sucked into the vortex and disappeared. Then the effect of Dark Hole cleared the rest: Meklord Emperor Granel's battered remains and the freshly summoned Sky Core were pulverized.
"Tch, that Rampage Dragon actually escaped." Lester was annoyed. "But Sky Core's effect activates at this moment!"
When Sky Core is destroyed by a card effect, you can special summon 'Meklord Emperor Skiel' and its four components—five cards in total—from your hand, deck, and graveyard!
Lester, hands in the air:
"Appear!
My Meklord Emperor Skiel, assembled with all five components!"
[Meklord Emperor Skiel, ATK 0]
[Skiel Top, DEF 0]
[Skiel Attack, DEF 0]
[Skiel Guard, DEF 300]
[Skiel Carrier, DEF 0]
Just to be safe, Lester kept all the components except the main body in defense position. After all, they only have 1200 LP left compared to Kira's untouched 8000—a huge gap. They must act cautiously.
"Combine! Meklord Emperor Skiel!!!"
Mechanical energy surged, metal and electronics synchronized to a harmonious rhythm. The chest piece resembled the head of a mechanical falcon, its sharp gaze looking through illusions. In the void of its falcon-like eyes spun the Meklord Emperor's infinity loop of energy.
The tall, sky-blue merged body radiated a cold metallic shine. Each joint was flawless, as if crafted by the finest artisans.
Lester declared, "Skiel's attack points equal the total attack of all its assembled parts on the field!"
Currently, Skiel Top has 600 ATK, Skiel Attack 1000 ATK, Skiel Guard 200 ATK, Skiel Carrier 400 ATK.
[Meklord Emperor Skiel, ATK 2200]
"And not only that. As Skiel's effect activates and Skiel is summoned, my Set Card also activates." Jakob's deep voice cut in. "I activate the Continuous Trap 'Limit Reverse', which can revive a monster with 1000 or less ATK from the graveyard.
I special summon 'Granel Carrier' from the grave!"
[Granel Carrier, DEF 700]
(In the anime, Primo equips components from Skiel to Wisel while dueling Yusei. This shows the three Meklords' parts can be used interchangeably.)
On the field, any Meklord Emperor can gain attack points from all other Meklord parts, and as long as any model of Meklord Emperor with "∞" in its name is present, the components can't be destroyed.
Granel Carrier's attack is 700, so Skiel absorbs this as well. Its ATK climbs again.
[Meklord Emperor Skiel: ATK 2200→2900]
"But I'm not done! My Meklord Emperor is just starting to evolve!" Lester continued. "I still have 'Skiel Attack 3' in my hand! If 'Skiel Attack' is on my field, I can tribute it to special summon Skiel Attack 3 from my hand!
So I tribute Skiel Attack for an upgrade!"
Skiel's arm dissolved into particles, reassembling into a rapidly flapping blue mechanical dragonfly, which transformed into another mechanical arm and attached to Skiel, boosting its aura.
[Skiel Attack 3, ATK 1200]
With a boost to the Skiel Attack, Skiel gains more attack:
[Meklord Emperor Skiel: ATK 2900→3100]
"And I'm not done evolving my Meklord Emperor Skiel!" Lester declared, "I'll now tribute Skiel Attack 3 for an even higher evolution!"
Another card appeared in his hand.
"'Skiel Attack 5' can be special summoned from the hand by tributing Skiel Attack 3 on your field!
So, tribute Skiel Attack 3—second upgrade! Come forth, Skiel Attack 5!"
The newly attached arm detached again, dissolved into particles, and then rebuilt into a new arm that attached to Skiel, electricity crackling, and more power flowed.
[Skiel Attack 5, ATK 1400]
[Meklord Emperor Skiel: ATK 3100→3300]
Kira murmured: "That's pretty strong..."
He wasn't just putting on a front—he was genuinely impressed.
Skiel Attack 3, Skiel Attack 5—all these Meklord components have the restriction "if there is no Meklord Emperor on the field, destroy this card." If you can't summon the main body, the parts are totally useless—literal bricks in hand.
And that's not all—the upgrades must be played in strict order. First, summon Skiel Attack, then tribute it for Skiel Attack 3, then tribute that for Skiel Attack 5; same with the other parts, all must follow the upgrade order.
So for Kira, anyone who can assemble this deck and perform well in a duel is already quite strong.
…