"—Trap Card, [Synchro Destructor], activate!"
The final strike imbued with Synchro light triggered successfully after the Synchro Monster [Stardust Dragon] destroyed [Draco Berserker of the Tenyi] on the opponent's field.
It inflicted damage to the Shadow Duelist equal to Draco Berserker's original Attack of 3000, and since [Draco Berserker of the Tenyi] itself was also a Synchro Monster, an additional damage equal to half its Attack was dealt.
"A total of 4500 damage—go!"
The Synchro light of Stardust pierced through, detonating with power equal to a direct attack from Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, blasting toward the Shadow Duelist racing ahead.
"This Synchro combo of yours—is this the resolve you've chosen to end this tragedy?"
Though old scars obscured half his face, the Shadow Duelist's eyes showed not a hint of fear or hesitation—just as they had before this turn began.
Even with only 500 Life Points remaining, facing the risk of instant defeat by [Speed World 2], the Shadow Duelist showed no sign of panic.
"Not enough… your resolve is nowhere near enough!"
Raising his arm toward his Graveyard, the Shadow Duelist revealed a hidden trump card.
It was the card sent to the Graveyard last turn by his second [Speed Spell - Angel Baton].
"I activate the effect of [Damage Eater] in my Graveyard!"
[When your opponent activates a Spell, Trap, or Effect Monster that would inflict damage, you can banish this card from your Graveyard; that effect becomes a Life Point recovery instead. This effect can only be activated during your opponent's turn.]
The reason the Shadow Duelist had no fear of [Speed World 2]'s finishing damage was that he had already prepared the means to resist all incoming harm—just as Miles had previously discarded [Damage Diet] with [Drill Warrior] to evade Speed World's instant-kill effect.
No tactician fights clean.
"That card—oh no!" Krista's pupils shrank in alarm.
The entire Turbo Duel was suddenly flipped on its head—an absolute 180° reversal—because of that one card.
"Absorb all damage dealt by [Synchro Destructor]!"
[Shadow Duelist, LP: 500 → 5000]
His Life Points exploded tenfold, and his jet-black D-Wheel blazed along a crimson-purple trajectory, accelerating to its peak.
"You speak only of hope to save the future—but do you have the resolve to bear destruction?! For fifty years since our village was annihilated, we've borne the pain of it all!"
The village they lived in had been obliterated by magic stones. Even the records of its destruction were erased by the Axet Republic.
Those who "survived" that explosion weren't truly alive. The blast had overturned the surface of the land and exposed the buried veins of mana stones below—no human could have survived such devastation.
They were beings reborn only after accepting the earth's wailing and the grudge of the Earthbound Gods—revived as something between human and spirit.
That was why, even after losing the first Shadow Game, the Shadow Duelist could vanish unharmed.
Because they were already dead.
"You don't have it! The cowardice of not daring to change the future—and the cowardice of not daring to accept destruction—are the same to me!"
The Duel resumed. With overwhelming Life Points, the Shadow Duelist drove his Earthbound Immortal forward, racing toward the end of the Turbo Duel—and victory.
Meanwhile, Miles and Krista, riding Stardust Dragon and Stardust Spark Dragon, had only 1000 Life Points left—and one card remaining in Krista's hand.
That was why Miles understood—an enemy with conviction was the hardest of all to defeat.
Each held their own beliefs.
Neither side could be persuaded by words anymore.
No matter what the Shadow Duelist said, Miles would never stand by and watch an entire nation's lives—and the friends fighting to save it—be lost.
No matter how noble the cause, to those struggling to live on, death was still meaningless.
"Then we'll settle everything with this final battle," Krista declared. "Since our beliefs can't coexist, let's do as we always do. Let the Duel decide—the meaning of light and darkness, good and evil, hope and destruction!"
At the edge of the Turbo Duel's final stretch, Krista—the girl with just one card left—was illuminated by the blinding golden light of the Millennium Scale strapped to her D-Wheel.
It was a light meant to weigh everything.
"When there is no absolute right or wrong… whether the road ahead leads to heaven or hell—let this Duel, and this card, be the measure!"
Slamming her final Trap Card into the slot beside her D-Wheel, Krista ended her turn.
"I Set one card, and end my turn!"
"To decide everything with a Duel?"
Krista's fearless resolve made even Miles look at her with admiration.
Truly, she was every bit the Duel-obsessed girl who had lived her whole life on this Spirit Continent.
"Krista—I believe in you!"
He believed that the final card Krista had set could bring forth a miracle born of conviction.
"Miles, I believe in you too."
"Huh?"
Krista's reply made Miles pause for a moment. Her gentle eyes, soft as flowing water, carried a determination that embraced both life and death.
"My turn—draw!"
The turn shifted again. The Shadow Duelist drew his card.
With 5000 Life Points remaining, and [Earthbound Immortal] still on the field—ready to bypass both Stardust Dragons for a direct attack—victory was within reach.
To end this endless cycle of destruction—to end fifty years of pain—the finish line was before him.
"I suppose… I never asked your name," Miles said.
"A name? I've long forgotten it," the Shadow Duelist answered. "It's been fifty years since I left it behind..."
[Shadow Duelist, SPC: 5 → 6]
[Miles & Krista, SPC: 5 → 6]
The final acceleration of the D-Wheels surged toward the end.
After two turns of accumulation, the Shadow Duelist's two Speed Spells finally met their activation conditions.
Even though victory seemed assured by merely attacking directly with the Earthbound Immortal, the Shadow Duelist refused to leave anything to chance.
Absolute certainty—100% control of the outcome—that was his ultimate resolve.
"Final turn!—[Speed Spell - Synchro Revival], activate!"
[Activate only if you have 5 or more Speed Counters. Select 1 Synchro Monster in your Extra Deck. Banish from your Graveyard the Tuner and non-Tuner monsters listed on its Synchro Summon requirements, then Special Summon the selected Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck. This Special Summon is treated as a Synchro Summon. The monster Special Summoned by this effect is banished during the End Phase.]
A Speed Spell that could only be used in Turbo Duels when holding 5 or more Speed Counters—[Speed Spell - Synchro Revival] called forth Synchro power from the Graveyard itself.
"I banish from my Graveyard the Level 4 Tuner [Trap Eater] and the Level 4 [Earthbound Linewalker] as Synchro Materials! From the depths of the Graveyard—Speed Spell Synchro Summon!"
4★ + 4★ = 8★!
"Light and darkness are two sides of the same coin… from their union, emerge the ruler of chaos! Manifest—the [Chaos Ruler, the Chaotic Magical Dragon]!"
[Chaos Ruler, the Chaotic Magical Dragon] Level 8│DARK│Dragon│3000 ATK│2500 DEF
[Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters]
On the blazing Turbo Duel track, the chaotic dragon of light and darkness roared, tearing through the radiant Synchro light.
"And now—the effect of [Chaos Ruler, the Chaotic Magical Dragon] activates!"
[When this card is Synchro Summoned: Excavate the top 5 cards of your Deck; you can add 1 LIGHT or DARK monster from among them to your hand, and send the rest to the Graveyard.]
The Shadow Duelist revealed the top five cards of his Deck: three Speed Spells, one LIGHT [Chaos-End Master], and another LIGHT [Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning].
"That card!"
Miles recognized it instantly—the legendary Chaos monster known as the Envoy of the Beginning.
So even beyond his Earthbound God and Draco Berserker, the Shadow Duelist's Deck still held a trump card of that magnitude.
Fifty years of hatred, persistence, and obsession had forged a Deck powerful enough to embody his will.
As expected, the Shadow Duelist chose that card to add to his hand.
"I add [Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning] to my hand—and Special Summon it!"
[This card cannot be Normal Summoned. Must first be Special Summoned by banishing 1 LIGHT and 1 DARK monster from your Graveyard.]
"I banish the LIGHT [Chaos-End Master] and the DARK [Draco Berserker of the Tenyi] from my Graveyard—now, descend! The strongest warrior of chaos!"
[Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning] Level 8│LIGHT│Warrior│3000 ATK│2500 DEF
The Chaos Ruler descended. The Shadow Duelist had reached the ultimate field at the end of the cycle of destruction—three monsters, each boasting 3000 Attack.
Even if Krista's last set card was a defense against direct attacks, it wouldn't be enough.
With 5000 Life Points remaining and a field whose power far exceeded that of the twin Stardust Dragons, the Shadow Duelist—his D-Wheel blazing at full speed—declared the start of his Battle Phase.
"Let all tragedy end here! With this battle, I'll conclude the fifty-year cycle of destruction!"
Before him stood three symbols of his fate:
The Earthbound Immortal—born of the land's resentment, polluted by magic stones.
The Chaos Ruler—an incarnation of will torn between good and evil.
The Chaos Soldier—his resolve to bring about destruction and recreate everything anew.
The Battle Phase carried all his conviction. Three monsters, each representing a different creed, charged simultaneously toward Miles and Krista.
If the attack went through, the Axet Republic would meet its explosive annihilation, just as fate decreed.
All the sacrifices—their allies Leon, Nidhogg, Irena, and Ecclesia—who had stayed behind to restrain the leyline and buy them time, would have been in vain.
"Even if you say the tragedy of destruction will repeat…"
Krista's amethyst-blue eyes, so like Yusei Fudo's, shone with unwavering resolve.
"Right now, losing the people we care about—that's the real tragedy! And that's the one ending I refuse to accept!"
Their beliefs collided at their peaks.
Destruction, to rebuild a nation anew.
And survival, no matter how battered, to protect the lives that still burned.
"Everything rests on this one card!—Trap Card, [Speed Spell - Overboost], activate!"
Krista's final Trap was one meant for Turbo Duels—a support Trap that let her trigger a Speed Spell directly from her Deck.
[Select 1 Speed Spell from your Deck that can be activated based on your current Speed Counters, and activate it.]
As the Trap activated, the wind of velocity roared. A glowing card shot out from Krista's Deck.
"The Speed Spell I'll activate from my Deck is—[Speed Spell - Synchro Revival]!"
The same Speed Spell the Shadow Duelist had used this turn—one that performs a Synchro Summon from the Graveyard when 5 or more Speed Counters are present.
"I banish from my Graveyard the Level 4 Tuner [Top Runner] and the Level 3 [Lady Ninja Yae], and perform a Speed Spell Synchro Summon!"
4★ + 3★ = 7★!
Seven stars of Synchro light flared, ignited by the flame of Krista Shia's will—the will to live and protect those she loved.
"Krista… This card may bring destruction—but if you use it to protect the one most precious to you, it will bloom into the most beautiful flower."
"Thank you, Mom. You were the one who taught me the courage to protect what's important!"
A fiery card gleamed between her fingers. With a proud, regal roar, crimson petals burst into bloom across the battlefield.
"Let the frozen flames engulf the world! Bloom, black flower of annihilation! Synchro Summon! Appear—[Black Rose Dragon]!"
[Black Rose Dragon] Level 7│FIRE│Dragon│2400 ATK│1800 DEF
[Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters]
The scarlet rose of destruction and rebirth—Krista's final Synchro Monster.
"When [Black Rose Dragon] is successfully Summoned—its effect activates!"
[When this card is Special Summoned: Destroy all cards on the field.]
As it appeared, it unleashed the power to annihilate everything—including itself.
Once, Krista had been too afraid of its destructive power to ever use it. But now, to protect what mattered most—
—she chose to detonate it all.
"You fool! You actually summoned [Black Rose Dragon] on my turn—to destroy everything?!"
The Shadow Duelist's expression shifted for the first time, shaken by the girl's conviction.
A Synchro Summon performed during the opponent's turn—an Accel Synchro.
Though the Earthbound Immortal was unaffected by Spells and Traps, it had no protection against Monster Effects.
And neither the Chaos Ruler nor the Black Luster Soldier could withstand [Black Rose Dragon]'s field destruction.
"You mean to destroy everything?! Activating that effect will wipe out your monsters too!"
"The power to destroy means nothing. Protecting someone through destruction—that's what truly matters!"
Side by side, Krista's white hand brushed gently across Miles's back amid the storm of rose fire.
"Krista?"
"I've always believed in you, Miles!"
As [Black Rose Dragon]'s effect triggered, Krista activated the protection of [Stardust Spark Dragon].
[Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 1 card you control; that card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn.]
"I use [Stardust Spark Dragon]'s effect—to protect [Stardust Dragon] from destruction this turn!"
She didn't protect her own monster. Instead, she left all her hope—all her Stardust—to the one she wished to save.
"Take everything I have, Miles!!"
Krista pressed her palm firmly against his back.
It was a cooperative move seen only in team Turbo Races—when one rider, knowing they can no longer win, passes their speed to their partner.
Even a small push could decide victory in a race measured by fractions of a second.
"Take my speed too! Go, Miles—!"
Feeling Krista's conviction behind him, Miles's crystal-built D-Wheel flared to life in radiant brilliance.
That last push ignited a surge of acceleration. His D-Wheel and [Stardust Dragon] raced together as one.
Having entrusted everything to Miles, Krista unleashed [Black Rose Dragon]'s devastating bloom.
"—Black Rose Gale!!"
[Black Rose Dragon] Destroyed
[Stardust Spark Dragon] Destroyed
[Earthbound Immortal Uru] Destroyed
[Chaos Ruler, the Chaotic Magical Dragon] Destroyed.
[Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning] Destroyed
The rose storm covered the blazing Nazca Lines, wiping out everything in its path. Only [Stardust Dragon], protected by [Stardust Spark Dragon]'s blessing, soared free from the vortex.
With his field annihilated, the Shadow Duelist's black D-Wheel lost balance in the explosion's shockwave.
"Miles… in this Duel, I'll show you… how reliable I can be!"
"I've felt it loud and clear, Krista!"
Taking on Krista's speed and determination, Miles burst through the storm of roses—making his final, impossible comeback at the climax of the Turbo Duel.
...
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