"Battle," Kira said. "Abyss Soldier, attack Z-ONE—I mean, the fake Z-ONE—directly!"
Abyss Soldier's body leaped across the starry sky like a swimming fish, its trident wrapped in flowing water as it thrust straight toward its opponent.
Having lost his Timelord defense line, Pseudo-Z-ONE's Field was completely empty. But he would not let Kira's attack through so easily. With a sweep of his mechanical arm, he flung out another card directly from his hand. The card landed in midair, projecting a noble and elegant female pope, who waved a golden staff in her hand.
"Trap Card, 'Empress Staff'!" Z-ONE said gravely. "When I have no Monsters on my Field, this card can be activated from my hand.
"Negate the attack of one opponent's Monster, then inflict 500 damage to them." (Original Work Card)
A Trap activated directly from the hand. The divine radiance released by the staff formed a barrier that blocked Abyss Soldier's attack. Its trident struck the invisible shield, and the rebounding current passed through Abyss Soldier and into Kira.
Kira, LP 4000 → LP 3500
"Haha, so even after dealing with the Timelord, I still came out worse in battle. Not bad, not bad. You're starting to look a little like Z-ONE."
Kira spoke in a lighthearted tone.
"Then I'll Set a Card and End Turn."
Pseudo-Z-ONE showed no reaction to the mocking praise. He merely analyzed the situation calmly.
For someone like Fujiki Kira, it was difficult to imagine that choosing a Monster with the ability to bounce cards back had been mere coincidence. He had to assume that this Monster had been specifically chosen to target his Timelords.
Pseudo-Z-ONE narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Not a bad plan. But if you think the Timelords' power amounts to no more than this, then you are gravely