Seeing the three face-downs in Alicia's back row, Elina snorted in disdain—abruptly, then she forced down the mania and the grin on her face.
If her guess was right, she was being offered up as a sacrifice to this "Saint."
In their Order, the miracle of a "Stigmata" was not irrevocable. If you killed a Saint who bore Stigmata, the Stigmata would naturally fuse into the victor's body.
There was precedent for this. It was rumored that the current Saint of the Order had become a "Saint" in just such a way.
If so, while this little girl was still this weak, Elina had every chance to defeat her and become the new Saint!
At the thought of the power and status she would gain, greed flashed in Elina's eyes as she stared at the mark on Alicia's forehead.
Elina drew a deep breath. "My turn! I draw!!"
She looked over the card and swept her hand. "I activate the effect of the Continuous Spell Toy Vendor again! Once per turn: discard 1 card; draw 1 card and reveal it. If it's a Fluffal monster, I can Special Summon 1 monster from my hand. Otherwise, I discard the drawn card. I discard Card of Compensation from my hand and draw!"
Elina glanced at the card and smiled, revealing it. "I drew the monster Fluffal Octopus! By Toy Vendor's effect, I Special Summon Fluffal Octopus!!"
A pink octopus plush appeared on Elina's field. With that adorable little face, it was hard to believe it was… an octopus.
[Fluffal Octopus, ATK: 800]
"At this moment, Card of Compensation's effect activates! When this card is sent from the hand to the Graveyard, I draw two cards!"
After drawing two more, Elina continued, "Lastly, Fluffal Octopus's effect! When this card is Normal or Special Summoned, I can target 1 Fluffal or Edge Imp monster in my Graveyard; add it to my hand. I add Fluffal Owl from my Graveyard!"
As the card slid out of the Graveyard and into Elina's hand, Yuui's voice rang out from across the field. "Alicia, now!"
"Got it, Yuui-san!" Alicia nodded sharply. "I activate my face-down—Trap Card, Trap Dustshoot! If your hand contains 4 or more cards, I reveal your hand and choose 1 monster card; that card is returned to its owner's Deck. Now then—show me your cards!"
Elina's face instantly darkened.
Trap Dustshoot's effect was simple and not exactly powerful… albeit, it was infuriating. If your opponent had four or more cards, odds were one of them was key, and if that key card was a monster, it would be shuffled back into the Deck.
Even thinking about it made people see red.
Still, rules were rules. Elina revealed her five cards:
[Fluffal Mouse — Effect]
[Edge Imp Sabres — Effect]
[Frightfur Reborn — Spell]
[Strike Slash — Trap]
Alicia stared at the effects, shocked by how strong these "Frightfur" cards were.
Yuui, after scanning the lot, pointed at the Edge Imp Sabres at once. "Alicia—send that one back."
"Yuui-san? Its effect looks pretty ordinary. Why not pick Fluffal Owl?"
"Frightfur Fusions require both Fluffal and Edge Imp pieces. Sabres may look plain, but the monsters it enables have a lot of different effects. We have to put it back. As for Owl, sure, it searches Polymerization, which is annoying—even so, without Edge Imps, she'll struggle to make other Frightfurs, unless she has something stronger already. If she doesn't, we can survive this turn."
"I choose Edge Imp Sabres—return it to the Deck!"
Elina scowled, but sent Edge Imp Sabres back.
She snapped, "Then I Normal Summon Fluffal Owl and activate its effect! When it's Normal or Special Summoned, I add 1 Polymerization from my Deck to my hand. I add Polymerization!"
[Fluffal Owl, ATK: 1000]
Elina sneered at Alicia's remaining two back row. "You think putting my Edge Imp back stops me from summoning more Frightfurs? Naïve! Open set card—Trap, Designer Frightfur! I target 1 Edge Imp or Fluffal in my Graveyard and Special Summon it! I Special Summon Edge Imp Saw!"
[Edge Imp Saw, ATK: 500]
Yuui's brow furrowed. "So she had that as well."
Alicia tensed. "Yuui-san!?"
"It's fine. What she can summon still won't beat us."
Alicia relaxed. She trusted Yuui—always.
Elina swept her arm. "Next, I activate Polymerization! I fuse Fluffal Octopus on my field with Edge Imp Saw on my field! The materials are an Edge Imp monster and a Fluffal monster!"
The fusion vortex whirled open again as the cute octopus and the steel-bladed demon were drawn in.
"Claws of the beast, unite with the demon's apostle! Show a new form and power! Fusion Summon! Come forth, the sea devil that steals freedom and drags all into darkness—Frightfur Kraken!!"
From the vortex, eight purple tentacles tipped with razors shot out and gripped the ground. A dark-violet streak fell, kicking up dust. Two lifeless black pupils peered through the haze—then a gaping maw split open between them, a pair of eerie demon eyes gleaming.
When the smoke cleared, a three-meter-tall purple squid loomed on the field, exuding an omen even grimmer than Leo's.
"Frightfur Kraken—appear!"
[Frightfur Kraken, ATK: 2200 | DEF: 3000]
"Another new Frightfur!" Alicia swallowed. "Yuui-san, what does this one do?"
"Its monster effects aren't a big threat to us… but her Fusion Summons aren't done."
"Eh?"
Sure enough—
"I activate Fluffal Owl's other effect! Once per turn, I pay 500 Life Points; then I send materials from my hand and/or field that are listed on a Frightfur Fusion Monster, and Fusion Summon it from the Extra Deck!
"I pay 500 Life Points and fuse the Fluffal Owl on my field, the Frightfur Kraken on my field, and Fluffal Mouse from my hand! The materials are: 1 Frightfur Fusion Monster plus 1 or more Fluffal or Edge Imp monsters!"
[Elina, LP: 2400 → 1900]
As her Life Points fell, the dark whirlpool opened once more, drawing in all three.
Alicia stared, stunned. It was the first time she'd ever seen a Fusion Monster used for another Fusion.
"Fusing using a Fusion Monster… just like Shining Flare Wingman's requirement!"
Elina shrieked with ecstatic madness, "Appear—feral beast of the demonland, bare your fangs at all things and sweep clean all in your sight! Fusion Summon—Frightfur Sabre-Tooth!!"
...
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