"—Trap Card D – Time's effect! I can search my Deck for Destiny HERO monsters whose total Levels are lower than the Level 8 Shining Phoenix Enforcer and add them to my hand!"
Aster drew four Destiny HERO cards from his Deck in succession and flipped them up for Hoshino to see.
"The D·HERO cards I add to my hand are—Destiny HERO – Dreamer, Destiny HERO – Disk Commander, Destiny HERO – Doom Lord, and Destiny HERO – Captain Tenacious!"
"An Elemental HERO was destroyed, yet you searched Destiny HEROes instead… and four of them at once."
Seeing this kind of strategy—and this kind of HERO—for the first time, even Hoshino couldn't help but feel surprised.
Even Jaden ten years in the future had never used HEROes with a 'D' at the start of their name. That meant that, from this very moment onward, Jaden's and Aster's HERO paths had split into two entirely different directions.
["That's actually pretty insane. He just pulled off a reverse one-for-four instantly with that Trap."]
"Destiny HEROes… how interesting. In that case, I'll set two cards and end my turn."
[Hoshino's: 3 Hand Cards | 3 Set Cards]
"The bells of destiny have reached their climactic movement. My turn—draw!"
After resolving D – Time, plus his draw for the turn, Aster's hand—previously depleted by Elemental HERO Fusion plays—had instantly recovered to six cards.
"First, I activate the Spell Card—Night Beam!"
[Night Beam – Spell Effect: Target 1 Set Spell/Trap your opponent controls; destroy that target. Your opponent cannot activate the targeted card in response to this card's activation.]
"That card of yours is troublesome, Hoshino. I had to eliminate it ahead of time."
A thin beam of light shot out in the direction Aster pointed, striking the card in Hoshino's back row—the Phantasm Summon that had been recovered last turn by Tamamo.
"With Night Beam, you can't chain that card or activate Phantasm Summon in response—it's destroyed outright!"
[Phantasm Summon Destroyed]
"In that case, Magical Girl Illya won't be able to use those annoying transformations anymore."
Illya: "Sudden time off work—honestly doesn't feel bad at all~"
"Next, I activate the Spell Card Graceful Charity. I draw three cards, then discard the Destiny HERO – Disk Commander and Destiny HERO – Dreamer I just searched."
The two Destiny HEROes were sent to the Graveyard as discard costs, completely refreshing Aster's hand.
"Now, it's time to show you the power of D·HEROes. Spell Card—activate D – Spirit!"
[D – Spirit – Spell Effect: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower 'Destiny HERO' monster from your hand. You must not control any 'Destiny HERO' monsters to activate and to resolve this effect.]
Essentially the Destiny HERO version of Hoshino's often-used Heroic Spirit – Emergency Summon, a brand-new HERO slowly descended onto Edo's empty field beneath the night sky.
"Come forth—Destiny HERO – Diamond Dude!"
[Destiny HERO – Diamond Dude ★★★★ (Level 4)][DARK][Warrior/Effect][ATK 1400/DEF 1600]
A Destiny HERO whose body was embedded with diamonds, Diamond Dude gave off a completely different sense of duty compared to Elemental HEROes.
"Diamond Dude's effect! Once per turn, I can reveal the top card of my Deck."
Bathed in the dazzling reflection of diamonds, Aster flipped over the top card of his Deck. —Monster Reborn.
"Then, if the revealed card is a Normal Spell, send it to the Graveyard. If it isn't, return it to the bottom of the Deck."
Monster Reborn was clearly a Normal Spell. Aster sent it to the Graveyard and continued explaining.
"That Normal Spell sent to the Graveyard can be activated during my next turn's Main Phase. This is the Destiny HERO trait—sending power into the future."
Hoshino nodded in understanding.
"A HERO that controls time… so next turn, you get to use Monster Reborn for free."
A time-manipulating HERO, combined with the Clock Tower Prison, whose hands were still slowly advancing on the field, created an unknown pressure that even made Hoshino tense.
"Could Aster be planning to revive the Shining Phoenix Enforcer with Monster Reborn?" Clara guessed.
"But even if the number of Destiny HEROes in the Graveyard increases, it won't raise Elemental HERO Shining Phoenix Enforcer's ATK," Jaden analyzed.
"So even if it comes back, Sensei's field still looks stronger."
"It's not over yet. Witness it—this is the power of Destiny HEROes, who govern time and future fate."
Continuing his plays, Aster placed another monster card onto his Duel Disk.
"—For my Normal Summon this turn, I Summon Destiny HERO – Doom Lord in Attack Position."
[Destiny HERO – Doom Lord ★★★ (Level 3)][DARK][Warrior/Effect][ATK 600/DEF 800]
True to its name, the dark, demonic-looking Doom Lord hardly looked like a hero at all.
"Move, Doom Lord! Crush the enemy's time with the power of destiny! Doom Lord's effect activates!"
Charging forward, Doom Lord's sharp claws slashed toward Hoshino's Xyz-Summoned Tamamo-no-Mae. But at the moment of contact, instead of shattering the massive mech, its very existence began to blur.
"Begone. Doom Lord's effect—once per turn, I can send one monster on my opponent's field to the future, two turns ahead!"
"W-wait, let's talk this out—!"
Feeling her very existence fading away, Tamamo panicked, her tail flailing wildly.
But just as Aster declared, the Xyz-Summoned Tamamo card—along with the azure mech—vanished from the battlefield, as if they had never existed at all.
"Sent to the future two turns ahead… There's really an effect like that?"
The appearance of Destiny HEROes had already shocked Jaden, and their completely different aesthetic and mechanics compared to Elemental HEROes delivered yet another heavy blow to him.
"With that, the only troublesome monster left on your field is just one."
After sending the Xyz Tamamo to the future, Aster immediately entered the Battle Phase.
"By 'troublesome monster,' you don't mean me, do you?"
Gripping her massive stone axe a little tighter, Heracles Illya swallowed nervously after seeing Tamamo disappear without warning.
"D-don't scare me like that! Doom Lord's effect is once per turn, right?!"
"Battle! Diamond Dude, attack Magical Girl – Illya on the field!"
Rather than clashing head-on with Heracles Illya—who had 2800 ATK and couldn't be destroyed by battle—Aster commanded Diamond Dude to attack the base-form Illya, who hadn't undergone a Phantasm Summon.
"—Diamond Flying Kick!"
[Magical Girl – Illya Destroyed]
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 8000 → 7600]
"Doom Lord has already used its effect, so it can't attack. Lastly, I set two cards. End my turn."
Lowering his Duel Disk, it was clear that Aster had no way to break through Heracles Illya during this Battle Phase.
[Aster: 2 Hand Cards | 2 Set Cards]
["That's it?"]
Hoshino Alter couldn't help but scoff.
["With such a flashy entrance—'heroes who command time and represent destiny' and all that—I thought they'd be way scarier. Turns out all you did was send Tamamo to the future."]
Since the effect sent her two turns ahead instead of destroying her, Tamamo-no-Mae would inevitably return to Hoshino's field.
"The power of destiny is already in my hands. The flow of this duel is no longer under your control, Hoshino."
Unaware of Hoshino Alter's muttered sarcasm, Aster ended his turn with the same arrogant confidence as ever.
"Even if you temporarily removed my Xyz Monster, shouldn't you be paying a little more attention to your own Life Points? My turn—draw!"
Boom—!
The deep toll of a bell rang out once more. During Hoshino's second Standby Phase, Clock Tower Prison gained its second counter.
[Clock Counters ×2]
Even so, nothing else on the field changed.
As she drew her card, Hoshino glanced at the Life Point display on her Duel Disk.
[Aster Phoenix LP 900]
["Only 900 LP left and he's still that calm? He's definitely set defensive Traps, aibo!"]
Nodding, Hoshino quickly assessed the remaining resources in her hand.
"Exactly. And the simplest, most brutal way to break through defensive traps… is overwhelming offense. Ritual Spell activate—Ritual of the Guardian Heroic Spirit II – FATE!"
Magnificent light streaked across the night sky as the ritual magic activated on Hoshino's field.
[Ritual of the Guardian Heroic Spirit II – FATE – Ritual Spell Effect: Release monsters from your hand or field whose total Levels equal exactly the Level of the Ritual Monster, then Ritual Summon 1 "Heroic Spirit" monster from your hand.]
Compared to the previously used Ritual of the Guardian Servant – FATE, the version with the "II" suffix had stricter requirements—the released monsters' total Levels had to match the Ritual Monster exactly, not exceed it.
In exchange for those stricter conditions, the Ritual Spell granted a powerful bonus effect:
For the rest of this turn, the monster Ritual Summoned by this effect cannot be targeted by your opponent's effects and cannot be destroyed by your opponent's effects.
"I release Okita from my hand as the Ritual Tribute—total Level 7! Ritual Summon—"
Within the night sky created by Clock Tower Prison, holy light bloomed like colorful trails etched across a pitch-black canvas.
"Ritual Summon—Heroic Spirit – Artoria Pendragon (Santa Alter)!"
[Heroic Spirit – Artoria Pendragon (Santa Alter) ★★★★★★★ (Level 7)][DARK][Dragon/Ritual/Effect][ATK 2500/DEF 1500]
"Charge the sleigh~ like the wind~ and send the Singularity flying in one stroke—♪♪"
"I've been letting my junior Santa (Jeanne Lily) do all the work lately… Reindeer, don't forget—I'm the original Santa King."
Expressionless, Artoria pulled a gift from her massive white sack and tossed it to Hoshino. A soothing green light washed over her in an instant.
"Take it, reindeer. It's a bit early, but this is your Christmas gift for this year."
[①: If this card is Ritual Summoned: You gain 1000 Life Points.]
[Hoshino Chiyuki LP 7600 → 8600]
"Now then, Artoria! Since the Ritual Summon succeeded—let's battle!"
Hoshino raised her Duel Disk and entered the Battle Phase.
With the Ritual Spell's added protection—cannot be targeted by effects, cannot be destroyed by effects—Artoria could withstand most common defensive traps, such as Magic Cylinder or Mirror Force.
And with just a single successful attack, whether from Heracles Illya or Artoria, the damage would be enough to wipe out Edo's remaining Life Points.
"Artoria Pendragon (Santa Alter), attack Doom Lord!"
Even in her Christmas form, the power of the jet-black holy sword in the Knight King's hands was undiminished.
"—Be silent on this Christmas night!『Excalibur』~♪♪"
Accompanied by Artoria's lighthearted humming, roaring black energy surged across Aster's field, completely engulfing the mere 600-ATK Devil Man.
[Destiny HERO – Doom Lord Destroyed]
"Is… is the duel over?" Mash clenched her hands nervously.
With Doom Lord destroyed, Hoshino's attack should have gone through. Aster's set traps couldn't interfere with the added protection from the Servant Ritual Summon.
[Aster Phoenix LP: 900]
"The Life Points… didn't change?" Hoshino frowned in confusion.
That strike hadn't been blocked by anything, nor had any barrier appeared in front of Aster.
If anything had changed, it was the sound of the bell—the rhythm of Clock Tower Prison had quickened dramatically.
"You have no chance of winning now, Hoshino. Trap Card activate—Eternal Dread!"
Pointing to the Trap that had somehow already flipped open beneath his feet, Aster watched as the hands of Clock Tower Prison behind him began spinning rapidly.
Moments later, a massive full moon rose into the night sky, and the symbol of D slowly emerged upon its surface.
[Eternal Dread – Trap Effect: Place 2 Time Counters on "Clock Tower Prison."]
[Clock Counters ×4]
"Field Spell Clock Tower Prison's effect—when this card has four Clock Counters, its controller takes no damage whatsoever."