Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

By blocking the activation of the third monster, [Giant Plant], it also means that even if Tania uses the [Amazon Princess] and [Black Garden] combo from the last duel, she can no longer achieve an OTK. This is because from the very beginning, Misawa's field has no space left for the Special Summon of [Rose Token]. By blocking all his monster zones with high-ATK monsters, he completely shuts down Tania's OTK strategy!

"If there were a way to perform a special summon similar to Fusion or Ritual without using Spell Cards, sending my Giant Plants to the Graveyard two by two, my combo could probably be extended and even achieve an infinite loop, right? I wonder if what Principal Kobayashi mentioned in class about 'Xyz' and 'Link' is true, but it was probably just something he said casually, which is a shame."

With his last two cards face down on the back field, Misawa looked at Tanya and said, "The OTK strategy of 'Black Garden' and 'Amazon Princess' has been completely ineffective since the moment my field was filled with high-attack monsters, Tanya. Let me see your 'courage' beyond 'wisdom'. I look forward to seeing how you deal with my monsters!"

"I place two cards face down, and my turn ends."

[Misawa Daichi: 4000LP, 0 cards in hand]

[Super Combination Monster - Laputinus] [DEF2200]

【Dark Storm Dragon】【ATK2700】

[Giant Plant] [ATK2400] X3

[GaiK] X2

Location: [Chemical Electricity Boundary]

Chapter 1134 Lightning Rod and the Tiger-Lion King

[Misawa Daichi: 4000LP, 0 cards in hand]

[Super Combination Monster - Laputinus] [DEF2200]

【Dark Storm Dragon】【ATK2700】

[Giant Plant] [ATK2400] X3

[GaiK] X2

Location: [Chemical Electricity Boundary]

Despite Misawa's seemingly weak and unassailable board presence, his final stage is still quite oppressive in the current meta. After all, most decks have limited removal options these days. Unless you draw a powerful card like "Lightning Strike," you're usually limited at best if you can remove two or three of your opponent's powerful monsters.

On the field in Misawa, there were a total of five monsters. Even the one with the lowest stats, [Super Monster - Laputinus], had a defense of 2200 points. It is rare for a monster that can be Normal Summoned to break through this value, unless it is a monster with negative effects like [Goblin Assault Force] or [Electric Blade Bug].

Sometimes, even without any special effects to achieve suppression, pure numerical suppression is powerful in itself.

"What a remarkable performance, Misawa-kun! I'm growing to like you more and more." Tanya wasn't discouraged by the imposing aura of Misawa's monsters; on the contrary, she was even more excited by the strength Misawa displayed, as a member of the Amazons. "I'll have to respond to you with equal, or even greater, courage and wisdom!"

"My turn, draw a card, then discard one card from my hand, I activate the spell card [Lightning Vortex]!"

Although she didn't draw a super-powerful board clear card like [Lightning Strike], its lower-ranking alternative, [Lightning Vortex], was drawn into Tanya's hand immediately, precisely targeting the biggest flaw in Misawa's strategy and attempting to retaliate with it.

Lightning power began to gather on Tania's field, and once it was fully charged, it could strike Misawa's field at any moment. Misawa said, "You actually drew a field-clearing card right away, Tania. But I know my monsters have no resistance, so why wouldn't I prepare any protective measures?"

"Open the cover card, the trap card [Darkness of the Scapegoat]!"

"You can activate this card when the effect of a Spell, Trap, or Monster on the field destroys it, thus negating that effect!"

As if to declare that only red lightning could shine in this void world, as Misawa opened the Geka, the lightning that was still brewing on Tania's field was suddenly surrounded by the darkness surging from all sides. The accumulated electrical energy was as if it had come into contact with a conductor and was quickly diverted to the surroundings, disappearing into nothingness in an instant.

"In ancient times, humans feared the power of lightning, and guided by storytelling priests, they believed it might be the sound of the thunder god's hammer striking the skull of a frost giant." Recalling the "God of Stories" from the TV series he'd recently been watching, Misawa, having neutralized [Lightning Vortex], began to speak.

"However, human wisdom has strengthened courage and dispelled the fear in the darkness. We have come to know that the essence of lightning is nothing more than a discharge phenomenon caused by the potential difference between positive and negative charges in the upper and lower parts of the cloud. Humans have even developed the ability to resist lightning by using 'lightning rods,' which are actually lightning attractors."

Raising his Duel Disk, Misawa caught a card retrieved from it and said, "The follow-up effect of 'Darkness of the Scapegoat' sends one Level 3 or lower DARK monster from my Deck to the Graveyard as a lightning rod to defend against Tanya's 'Lightning Vortex'."

"The card I sent to the graveyard is this [Soul Scissors]." Misawa briefly mentioned the card he sent to the graveyard, and then noticed a smile on Tanya's face.

"You successfully defended against that move, well done, Misawa-kun~" Tanya nodded approvingly, "That's more like it. If I had easily defeated you, I would have lost interest in your weakness."

Tanya paused, then her expression turned serious again: "But the lightning just now was merely a clarion call before the attack. The girls of the Amazon are only just beginning their battle. Do you have enough defensive measures in place, Misawa-kun?"

"If I have no monsters on my field, I activate the effect of [Amazon Warrior Captain] in my hand and Special Summon it from my hand!"

Although the effect requires activation to enter a chain, the appearance of [Amazon Warrior Captain] made Misawa take it seriously. After all, in the previous duel, [Amazon Warrior Captain] was an important part of Tania's OTK strategy, as it could start from the hand without occupying a normal summon slot and search for cards to increase the attack power of [Amazon Princess].

As is well known, a card that doesn't occupy a Normal Summon slot, starts from the hand, and can search for cards in the deck to gain card advantage is generally called a "spinning top." [Amazon Warrior Captain] is such a "spinning top," and a very high-quality one at that.

[Amazon Warrior Captain] [ATK1900]

Unlike the previous duel where the second effect of "Amazon's Cry" limited the use of only one monster, the "Amazon Warrior Captain" that appears this time was summoned by Tania in attack position, and just like last time, it came into the duel arena from outside the field.

With Tanya having already revealed the truth, the Amazons no longer concealed their identities and completely laid bare that they were elves. Without even needing Tanya's command, the Amazon Warrior Captain, upon entering the field, used its effect to retrieve a card from Tanya's deck and place it face-down on the back row.

"If [Amazon Warrior Captain] is successfully Summoned or Special Summoned, this effect activates. Set one [Amazon] Spell/Trap Card or one [Fusion] Card from my Deck to my Spell/Trap Zone. During the turn this effect is used, I can only attack with [Amazon] monsters."

After a pause, Tanya pressed the button to activate the face-down card, revealing the green border of the card she had placed face down. However, given that the monsters on Misawa's field all had higher ATK than [Amazon Warrior Captain], which would grant it the 1000 ATK bonus from [Amazon's Fighting Spirit], Tanya didn't search for [Amazon's Fighting Spirit], which she had used in the last duel. Instead, she searched for a general-purpose card that most people were quite familiar with.

"The Normal Spell Card [Fusion] can be activated immediately during my turn, even if it was just set." Tanya showed a monster card from her hand. "It sends two monsters, [Amazonian Pet Tiger] from my hand and [Amazonian Warrior Captain] from the field, as Fusion Materials to the Graveyard!"

"The fusion requirements are a Level 5 or higher Amazonian monster and an Amazonian monster combined, and the Level 5 Amazonian Warrior Captain is already a Level 5!"

"O ferocious beasts of the forest, be tamed by the strongest who commands the warriors, become new beasts, and evolve into the king of beasts!"

Tanya's previous mount, the tiger, also arrived at the duel arena at Tanya's call. Its true form was actually the [Amazon's Pet Tiger]. Together with the [Amazon Warrior Captain], it leaped high into the vortex of [fusion], a vortex capable of creating incredible miracles and infinite possibilities!

"Appear, my soul!"

A card with a purple border appeared out of thin air in Tanya's hand. Not only Maeda Hayato, who could see the spirits, but even Misawa Daichi, who was opposite Tanya, could clearly feel that the card was emitting an aura that was exactly the same as Tanya's.

The feeling was as if, as Tanya had said, the card was truly a part of her soul.

An invisible soul flame burned within her, and for a fleeting moment, Tanya's eyes transformed into the vertical pupils of an animal. She placed the card in her hand onto the duel disk and called out her name—

Fusion Summon!

"【Amazonian Pet Tiger Lion King】!"

The red lightning drawn by the fusion vortex was easily torn apart by a sharp claw, and a liger beast with tiger stripes all over its body and a lion's mane around its head appeared in front of Tanya!

【Amazonian Pet Tiger Lion King】【9 stars/location】

[Orc/Fusion/Effect]

[2900/2800]

Chapter 1135 Intelligence Network.jpg

【Amazonian Pet Tiger Lion King】【9 stars/location】

[Orc/Fusion/Effect]

[2900/2800]

Hayato Maeda glanced at the [Amazonian Pet Tiger-Lion King] that had appeared on Tanya's field, then at Tanya herself, and a strange thought began to form in his mind. However, considering that the duel was still ongoing, he put aside his speculation for the time being and continued watching the duel.

Misawa couldn't help but take a few more glances at the [Amazonian Pet Tiger Lion King]. Although the monster did look majestic, with several scars adorning its stripes that were particularly eye-catching, and its long mane as a male lion despite being female, the main reason he paid special attention to it was because its attack power was currently the highest in the entire field, surpassing the five monsters on his own field.

It seems that the five monsters I chose were just to cover the field, and their quality is not very good. None of the five are good enough.

Tanya's story didn't end with the appearance of the [Amazonian Pet Tiger-Lion King]. Looking at her two remaining cards, Tanya said, "The powerful [Tiger-Lion King] is a great asset to the [Amazon]. As long as the [Amazonian Pet Tiger-Lion King] is still around, she will be the strongest shield for the girls of the [Amazon], protecting their lives."

"While [Amazonian Pet Tiger Lion King] is in the Monster Zone, your opponent's monsters cannot attack monsters other than this card. With an attack power of 2900, [Amazonian Pet Tiger Lion King] is not a barrier that ordinary monsters can break through."

“However, without its companions to fight alongside, the [Amazonian Pet Tiger-Lion King] is barely managing to keep the [Amazonian] tribe alive, let alone reproduce and grow stronger. Even wild beasts feel lonely when their companions are gone.” Tania sighed casually, a wistful expression on her face, as she pulled a card from her hand.

By inserting the card into the Spell & Trap Zone of the Duel Disk, a green-bordered Spell Card appears in front of Tanya: "Normal Spell Card [Fusion Recycle], I add [Fusion] and [Amazon Warrior Captain], which were sent to the Graveyard as Fusion Material, back to my hand."

"Did you retrieve [Amazon Warrior Captain]? But don't underestimate my intelligence network, Tanya." Misawa watched Tanya add two cards to her hand and said, "While [Amazon Warrior Captain] allows you to freely use [Amazon] Spell/Trap Cards in your deck, which is quite advantageous, both of its effects, whether Special Summoning or Card Searching, are limited to 'each effect of this card name can only be used once per turn,' right?"

Tanya looked at Misawa with surprise: "I only used the [Amazon Warrior Captain] card twice. You have a keen eye, Misawa-kun. That's right, [Amazon Warrior Captain] can no longer use any of its effects, at least not this turn."

"Furthermore, I remember that [Amazon Warrior Captain] is a Level 5 monster, and even to Normal Summon it, you need a Tribute of a monster. If I had to choose, I would prefer to use [Amazon Pet Tiger] from the Graveyard and combine it with [Amazon Pet Tiger Lion King] to form an attack-locking combo."

Even during the duel, Misawa didn't hold back at all, and took the initiative to point out the inappropriate choice Tanya had just made, offering friendly guidance and sharing his understanding of the [Amazon] deck.

Although Tanya is the "Queen of the Amazons," it's not that no one used Amazon decks before her. The person who did was quite famous: Mai Peacock, who was once the champion of a major tournament in the World Duelist Championship and is still active in the professional duelist circle today.

It is said that her nickname "Queen" comes from both her personality and her style of dueling. She uses two decks: "Harpie" and "Amazon". Except for a few cards like "Hawk Girl", the monsters in both decks are all powerful and domineering, like the Queen.

—That being said, in front of the previous World Pro Duelist Championship winner, Joey Wheeler, that proud "queen" duelist never seemed to have the guts to stand up for herself. And the former would always inexplicably have bad luck when dueling against the latter, to the point that their duels would always turn into ambiguous flirting.

Misawa's dueling style is called "Data Duel," which focuses on collecting various data about his opponent to plan his deck composition and strategy. It sounds like he'd be perfect for a god-tier deck called "Intelligence Gate Blade Master." In another timeline, he discovered that Jaden was adept at using [Fusion] to create miracles, and he specifically devised a tactic to seal [Fusion].

As a renowned duelist, Mai Kujaku has naturally considered the possibility of dueling with her. However, to be honest, Mai Kujaku's style when using the Amazon deck is completely different from when she uses the Harpy deck, which is good at destroying the back row. Instead, she focuses on a heavy trap and a chain of monsters to flood the field.

The fact that Tanya's "Amazon" deck can use fusion monsters already exceeds the information Misawa has collected about the "Amazon" deck. Rather, starting with "Amazon Warrior Captain," these are cards that have never appeared in Mai's hands and are unique to Tanya.

Misawa's gaze shifted to Tanya's hand: "However, although that's my understanding, Tanya, you shouldn't make that kind of mistake in a duel, right? Could it be that your last remaining card is also a monster card, and you're planning to use the two monsters you have to perform a Fusion Summon?"

"No, the last card in my hand was a trap card, but I am indeed going to use [Fusion] to perform a Fusion Summon. One of the materials is the [Amazon Warrior Chief] that I just got back into my hand, because the Amazon tribe reveres bravery, and only those who stand out from the warriors can become the true king of the tribe."

"I banish 'Amazon's Secret' from my Graveyard to activate its second effect: If I Fusion Summon an 'Amazon' Fusion Monster this turn, I can send one 'Amazon' monster from my Fusion Deck to the Graveyard as Fusion Material, only once per turn!"

As Tanya finished speaking, she took out a card from the graveyard, and several runes that communicated with nature were invisibly drawn in the air around her.

Drawn by the runes, a transparent figure vaguely appeared behind Tanya—

Chapter 1136 Growth Stage, Adult Stage, Perfect Form, Ultimate Form (Confirmed)

"I send this card from my Fusion Deck—[Amazonian Empress]—to the Graveyard, along with [Amazonian Pet Tiger] from my hand, as Fusion Material for an [Amazonian] Fusion Monster. I use a Spell Card: [Fusion]!"

With a nostalgic glance at the [Amazonian Empress] card in her hand, Tanya sent it to the graveyard, unaware of the figure that had appeared briefly behind her and then quickly vanished. She looked up, waved her hand, and said:

"Empress of the Forest, absorb the power of the valiant tiger cubs and build an empire that rules over all! This is the final glory and splendor of the Amazon. Let the final celebration begin!"

"Show yourself, Level 10☆! Fusion Summon!"

"The Empress of the Amazons!"

[The Empress of the Amazons] [10 stars/location]

[Warrior Race/Fusion/Effect]

[3200/2800]

The skull possessed a pair of imposing horns, pointing high into the sky as if proclaiming its power. The thick, long tusk connecting to its upper jaw further proved it was no mere herdsman, but a ferocious beast that hunted and fought with its horns and sharp teeth. However, this ferocious beast now possessed only one tusk; the other had been broken off at the root. Even its head had been severed and used as a helmet, a trophy used to highlight the power of others.

Her clothing and attire were exactly the same as other Amazons, and she was not much different from other members of her tribe because of her identity. The Amazon Queen's helmet and shoulder armor were made of ferocious beasts that had once threatened the tribe but had been killed by her. She held an exaggeratedly large greatsword and stood in front of Tanya.

She is also the most unique of the Duel Monsters Tania has used so far. It's not because she is the highest level or the only humanoid Fusion Monster to appear, but because unlike other Amazon monsters, she doesn't appear off the field and join the duel when Tania calls her. Both her Fusion Material, Amazonian Empress, and she herself appear on the field directly after the Duel Monster Card is played.

This is perfectly normal in a regular duel. Even duelists whose cards contain awakened spirits will have their monsters appear from the cards during the duel. But Tanya has materialized all her other monsters, even the non-human Amazonian monster, the Amazonian Pet Tiger. So why is it that the Amazonian Queen, who seems to have the highest status in the Amazonian tribe, hasn't materialized?

Misawa didn't voice his doubts. While he was indeed somewhat interested in things outside of the duel, he was more concerned with the duel itself. Compared to the special nature of the Amazonian Empress, the Amazonian Empress herself was more worthy of Misawa's attention.

"Attack power, 3200 points! That's even higher than the legendary [Blue-Eyes White Dragon]!" Seeing that Tanya still had one card left in her hand, Misawa exclaimed, "I didn't expect there to be an ability to use fusion materials from a fusion deck, but when exactly will [Amazon's Secret Technique] be released—?"

"I see. So, [Lightning Vortex] was the card that was sent to the graveyard as the cost of activating the card?"