Duelists Never Surrender!

"Entering the Main Phase, I'll set one card, and then, I activate the Spell Card—Card Destruction!" Julie inserted the Spell Card into her Duel Disk. "The effect of this card is that players with cards in their hand must discard all of them. After that, each player draws cards from their Deck equal to the number of cards they discarded. I'll send the three cards in my hand to the Graveyard and draw three cards from my Deck!"

"Since I have five cards in my hand, I draw five cards." Hara Shichi sent his five hand cards to the Graveyard and drew five new ones.

"Here it comes!" Julie's breathing quickened as she looked at her newly drawn hand.

"I'll Normal Summon Mezuki! I activate Mezuki's effect, sending Gozu-Meizu from my Deck to the Graveyard!"

A muscular Mezuki appeared on the field, wielding a great hammer. Its excellent effect and 1700 ATK made it quite well-known in dueling circles. However, Julie didn't plan on letting it stay active for long. She banished the Mezuki from her Graveyard to continue her combo. "Next, I'll banish Mezuki from my Graveyard and Special Summon Gozu-Meizu from the Graveyard!"

"Then, I activate my Set card—the Spell Card, Fusion!" Julie revealed the card she had just set. "I'll send Mezuki on the field and Gozu-Meizu to the Graveyard! Come forth! Dragon of the Underworld!"

The colossal dragon reappeared on the dueling field, its scarlet eyes fixed on Hara Shichi as it let out an enraged roar.

"Don't rush, Dragon of the Underworld. Soon, we'll wash away our previous shame." Julie stroked the Dragon of the Underworld's back and said gravely. "I activate Mezuki's effect, banish Borreload Dragon from my Graveyard, and Special Summon Borreload Dragon from my hand!"

"Finally, I activate Gozu-Meizu's effect, banishing this card from my Graveyard to activate Zombie World from my Deck!"

Shadows enveloped the stadium, and skulls and decaying wood piled up on the ground once more.

"I'll set one card, and end my turn!"

"I didn't expect her to use up all her hand cards in one turn," Hara Shichi said, looking at Julie. "It's like she never bricks."

"Alright, alright, it's our turn now, Hara Shichi, draw!" Ai instructed.

"My turn, draw!" Hara Shichi looked at his drawn hand and immediately began strategizing. "I enter Main Phase 1 and Normal Summon Madolche Madeleine."

The cute witch appeared on the field once again, riding a silver fork. However, this time she didn't seem as energetic as before, her pair of mismatched, glass-like eyes filled with confusion, as if asking Hara Shichi, Me again?

"It's like this when you set three cards," Hara Shichi waved his hand. "I activate Madeleine's effect, adding one Madolche monster from my Deck to my hand. I add Madolche Puddingcess from my Deck to my hand."

"Next, I activate the Spell Card, Monster Reborn, to Special Summon the Owl from my Graveyard to the field." Yes, Card Destruction, while helping Julie fill her Graveyard, had coincidentally helped Hara Shichi with his own Graveyard resources.

"No way! I Chain the effect of Borreload Dragon! Once per turn, during your opponent's Main Phase, you can target 1 Zombie monster in either player's Graveyard; Special Summon it to your field. After that, this face-up card is banished until the End Phase! I choose your Owl from your Graveyard and Special Summon it to my field!"

"In that case, your Monster Reborn will be negated because it lost its target!" Julie pointed at Hara Shichi.

"I Chain your Chain." Hara Shichi calmly inserted a Spell Card into his Duel Disk. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell Card—Forbidden Chalice. Do I need to explain its effect again?"

"Tsk, this card again." Julie certainly hadn't forgotten the effect of Forbidden Chalice. If it weren't for this Quick-Play Spell Card, she might have had a chance to turn things around back then.

"Alright then, I choose your Borreload Dragon. Do you have any more Chains?" Hara Shichi asked.

"No more. You can continue."

"Because Borreload Dragon's effect is negated, the Owl is Special Summoned to the field."

"Next, I activate the Owl's effect, banishing Rescue Cat from my Graveyard, and Special Summon Madolche Madeleine from my Deck in Defense Position."

"Two Level 4 monsters." Julie's lips suddenly couldn't help but curl into a smile, a hint of amusement appearing on her beautiful young face.

"Ai, let's do this." Hara Shichi reached into his Deck case and took out Tiramisu of the Tiara.

"Mhm." Ai nodded and placed her hand on Hara Shichi's again. Just as they were about to Xyz Summon, a faint voice suddenly rang out.

"I said, when Madeleine is successfully Special Summoned, there's a timing, right?"

Hara Shichi stopped what he was doing and looked at Julie's Set card. "That's right, there is indeed a timing. Do you want to activate your Set card?"

"Hahahaha! Of course, this is a gift I meticulously prepared for you. Enjoy it, Hara Shichi!" Julie said, then abruptly flipped over the Set card on her field.

"I activate the Trap Card—Paleoflora Prison! You can only activate this card if you have any of the following monsters face-up on your field: a monster that was Tribute Summoned, Ritual Summoned, or Fusion Summoned. Until the end of your opponent's next turn, neither player can perform Synchro or Xyz Summons, the effects of Synchro and Xyz Monsters on the field are negated, and they cannot attack!"

"You want to Xyz Summon?"

"Dream on!"

Chapter Twenty-Eight: A Small Charge.

"Hey, this is too targeted," Hara Shichi said, looking at the Trap Card Julie activated, and had to put Tiramisu of the Tiara back into its case.

"Hmph! Setting targeted cards is a valid strategy!" Julie slightly raised her smooth chin.

"Come on, let me see how you'll deal with my Dragon of the Underworld without Tiramisu!"

"Then... just watch me!"

Although Hara Shichi wanted to say that, in reality, he couldn't deal with it for the moment.

"I activate the Spell Card—Madolche Ticket." Hara Shichi inserted the Spell Card into his Duel Disk.

"Then I enter the Battle Phase and use the Owl to attack your Borreload Dragon."

"Since both have 1500 ATK, my Owl is destroyed by battle, and because of the Owl's effect, the Owl returns directly to the Deck. Immediately after, Madolche Ticket's effect triggers, allowing me to add one Madolche monster from my Deck to my hand. I choose the Owl and add it to my hand."

"I'll send Borreload Dragon to the Graveyard." Julie said indifferently.

"I'll set one card, and end my turn."

Hara Shichi said.

"My turn, draw!" Julie drew a card from her Deck and immediately exclaimed impatiently, "I enter the Battle Phase! Dragon of the Underworld attacks Madolche Madeleine!"

A strong impact blew over, and Hara Shichi frowned slightly. Even after being on this continent for so many days, he still wasn't entirely used to getting hurt while playing cards.

Hara Shichi: 4000 LP → 2400 LP

"Because of Dragon of the Underworld's effect, your Madolche Madeleine will not be destroyed by battle, but at the end of the Damage Step, your Madolche Madeleine's ATK will become 0, and I can Special Summon 1 'Dark Soul Token' with the same Level and original ATK as your Madolche Madeleine to my field! Then I'll use the Dark Soul Token to attack your Madolche Madeleine!"

Hara Shichi: 2600 → 1000 LP

"Madolche Madeleine was destroyed by battle, so I activate its effect to return it to the Deck. This triggers Madolche Ticket's effect, and I add Madolche Mille-Feu Cat from my Deck to my hand," Hara Shichi said, adding Mille-Feu Cat to his hand.

"I'll set one card and end my turn. It's your move."

"My turn, draw!" Hara Shichi glanced at the card he drew and then set it on the field. He continued, "I'm entering my Main Phase and will Normal Summon Madolche Puddingcess."

"Then, I activate Puddingcess's effect. I'll Tribute Puddingcess to Special Summon Madolche Owl from my Deck in Defense Position. Next, I activate Owl's effect, banishing Madolche Puddingcess from my Graveyard to Special Summon Madolche Puddingcess from my Deck in Defense Position."

"Tch, you figured it out that quickly?" Julie narrowed her eyes, looking at the monsters Hara Shichi had on the field in Defense Position.

Yes, Dragon of the Underworld's effect could allow Julie to quickly inflict 3000 LP of damage to her opponent, but it was also its weakness. As long as the opponent set their monsters in Defense Position, and their Defense was higher than their Attack, Dragon of the Underworld would be in an awkward spot.

"I'll end my turn here. It's your move."

"My turn, draw!" Julie's eyes lit up as she looked at the card she drew. She hadn't expected to draw this card, and it seemed the victory in this duel was already tilting in her favor.

"Owl's ATK is 1500 and DEF is 1100. Madolche Madeleine is ATK 1400/DEF 1200. As for Puddingcess... ATK 1800/DEF 1800?" Julie looked at the cute monster on the field with confusion. "It's a Level 5 monster that requires a Tribute Summon, and it has 'Princess' in its name, yet it only has 1800 ATK?"

"Something's not right. Tiramisu of the Tiara requires Level 4 monsters as Xyz Material. If Hara Shichi wanted to stall until Paleoflora Prison's effect ended, there's no reason for him to Special Summon a Level 5 monster."

Julie lowered her gaze. After a brief period of thought, a combo gradually formed in her mind.

"I'm entering my Main Phase. I'll Tribute Dragon of the Underworld to Tribute Summon... Varon Gaus!" Julie unhesitatingly sent Dragon of the Underworld from her field to the Graveyard and then placed the monster she had just drawn onto her Duel Disk.

Immediately, a humanoid monster clad in black armor with large horns appeared on the field, gathering a purple energy ball in its hand, seemingly ready to unleash it on its enemy.

"When this card is Tribute Summoned, target 1 card on the field; banish it!"

"I choose Madolche Puddingcess on your field!" Julie pointed at Puddingcess on Hara Shichi's field.

"You found out? But I was prepared," Hara Shichi said, opening the Set Card from his first turn. "I Chain Madolche Night to negate Gaus's effect."

"I knew it!" Julie frowned. "Then I'll activate Mezuki's effect from the Graveyard, banish it, and Special Summon Borreload Dragon."

Why are they called Zombies? Of course, it's because they can repeatedly jump out of the Graveyard.

Thus, Borreload Dragon, which had just been destroyed by battle, returned to the field to fight.

"Entering the Battle Phase, I'll attack your Owl with Gaus."

"Madolche Puddingcess's effect: monsters Special Summoned by this card cannot be destroyed by battle," Hara Shichi said calmly.

"Then I'll attack Madolche Madeleine with Borreload Dragon."

"Madolche Madeleine is destroyed and returns to the Deck, but this also triggers Madolche Ticket's effect. I add Madolche Puddingcess from my Deck to my hand."

"Tch, I'll end my turn like this," Julie clicked her tongue.

In another turn, Hara Shichi would be able to Xyz Summon. So... she had to end this quickly!

"My turn, draw."

"I'm entering my Main Phase. I'll switch Madolche Puddingcess to Attack Position."

"Attack Position? You want to destroy my Borreload Dragon?" Julie quickly activated Borreload Dragon's effect. "I activate Borreload Dragon's effect to Special Summon Dragon of the Underworld from the Graveyard! Then, Borreload Dragon is banished face-up!"

"This is so annoying, he's back from the Graveyard again," Ai frowned adorably. "If only I had a D.D. Crow right now, I could just banish her Graveyard monsters!"

"Yeah, why don't we?" Hara Shichi looked at Ai.

"Ahem, I believe in your superb skills. Even without cards like D.D. Crow, you can solve this predicament. Go, A-Qi, show her what you've got!" Ai said with a serious expression.

"I knew you'd say that," Hara Shichi replied with a look of "just as expected" and continued his play. "I'm entering the Battle Phase."

"Huh? Are you serious? Both my Gaus and Dragon of the Underworld have much higher ATK than your Puddingcess!"

"So what? I'll attack Gaus with Puddingcess!"

"Attacking a stronger opponent! Gaus, destroy it!" Julie shouted.

The cute Puddingcess bravely charged at Gaus, but it was blown back by Gaus's powerful energy ball, defeated.

"See? This is what happens when you overestimate yourself!" Julie laughed, pointing at Puddingcess's disheveled state.

"It's not over yet. I activate Puddingcess's effect!" Hara Shichi gritted his teeth. After the impact, he was left with only 400 LP.

"When this card battles an opponent's monster, after damage calculation, you can target 1 card on your opponent's field; destroy that target! I choose Dragon of the Underworld on your field to destroy!"

Chapter 29: This Kind of Duel Can't Bring Joy

"Damn it, it's a destruction effect?!" Julie reluctantly moved Dragon of the Underworld from her Duel Disk to the banished zone. Just like Dragon of the Underworld, Borreload Dragon had a powerful revival effect, but it also had its drawbacks: when a monster revived by it left the field, it would be banished directly.

This meant that she could no longer use Dragon of the Underworld in this duel.

"Then my Puddingcess returns to the Deck because it was destroyed by battle, and at the same time, Madolche Ticket is triggered again. I add Madolche Puddingcess from my Deck to my hand, and then I Normal Summon Madolche Puddingcess." Hara Shichi Normal Summoned Puddingcess once more.

"You know what I'm going to do, right?" Even though Hara Shichi only had 400 LP left, he showed no signs of nervousness. On the other hand, Julie's entire face had darkened as if water could drip from it.

"Owl summons Owl, Owl summons Big Princess. At the end of the turn, that Owl returns to the Deck due to Puddingcess's effect." Hara Shichi once again replicated his previous move, of course, all in Defense Position.

"At the end of the turn, Borreload Dragon returns to my field." Julie placed Borreload Dragon back on her Duel Disk, then looked at the two monsters on Hara Shichi's field, her heart beginning to grow agitated.

She had initially thought that by stopping Hara Shichi's Xyz Summon, he would be like a fish on a chopping block, at her mercy. But now, it seemed that was not the case at all. Instead, as time went on, she had fallen into a disadvantage.

Not only had she lost her ace monster, Dragon of the Underworld, but her hand resources were also dwindling.

"No, something's wrong!" Julie suddenly realized. Scenes from the duel replayed in her mind like a film. Soon, she found the source of the problem.

It's not my resources that are dwindling, but his that are growing!

Julie recalled Hara Shichi's moves, her crimson eyes fixing on a card she had previously overlooked—Madolche Ticket.

Yes, if he hadn't relied on Madolche Ticket to precisely search for Madolche Puddingcess repeatedly, Hara Shichi would have barely survived the first turn with the Madolche Puddingcess he initially searched with Madolche Madeleine. After that, he would have been helpless due to a lack of monsters!

But what good did it do to understand this now? Not only was it too late, but even if she had noticed it from the start, she couldn't have stopped Hara Shichi's resource loop.

"This card... I can't get past it."

Julie bit her lower lip, staring dejectedly at the Madolche Puddingcess on Hara Shichi's field. Ever since Sakuretsu Armor had been bounced back to the deck last time, she had removed it from her deck. Furthermore, her deck contained no negation cards at all; her deck's style was rapid Special Summons and attacks, and she hadn't considered a prolonged battle at all.

"She only has one monster removal card, Varon Gaus?" Ai seemed to understand Julie's predicament. "A-Qi, you're about to win!"

"Yes, if nothing unexpected happens," Hara Shichi nodded.

"My turn... Draw." This was a draw made without hope, and in reality, there was indeed no hope.

Julie looked at the card she drew and fell into despair—Growing Flower. When this card is sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; add 1 Level 5 or higher Zombie monster from your Deck to your hand. If "Zombie World" is on the field, you can also Special Summon it instead of adding it to your hand. After this effect resolves, until the end of this turn, you can only Special Summon Zombie monsters.

"It's useless... this weak monster is completely useless!" Sweat dripped from her cheeks onto the ground. Julie suddenly felt Hara Shichi's figure blur before her eyes, a series of ugly faces flickering on top of him, mocking, jeering, arrogant, and detestable, stabbing into her insides like cold, sharp knives.

"No... I don't want to lose... Get... get away from me!" Julie roared, then slammed the monster in her hand onto the Duel Disk. "I enter my Main Phase, Normal Summon Growing Flower!"

Yes, there was still a chance, she still had hope of winning. Julie looked at the beautiful little flower on her field and took a silver Duel Card from her Deck Box.

Although Julie usually used Growing Flower as a Graveyard resource to Special Summon high-level monsters, she had never forgotten one thing—that Growing Flower is a Tuner monster!

Paleoflora Prison had disappeared since the end of the last turn, meaning she could now perform a Synchro Summon!

"It's okay, I've practiced Synchro Summoning with my teacher many times, and I know what card to play to win in this situation." Julie's breathing quickened as she frantically searched her mind for a path to victory.

And then, she found the answer.