For most Yu-Gi-Oh! players, going first is everything.
Sure, some decks actually prefer to go second, but even those sometimes can't break a strong enough opening—letting the opponent go first can be a fatal mistake.
Of course, in this world, the rarity and scarcity of cards—and their relative power—had to be factored in. Hikaru Amagi couldn't build one of those modern turn-one boards with five or six negates like he could before arriving here.
Still, he had his methods. Tricks. Resource loops. Hand refresh.
And right now? His opening hand gave him the perfect chance to act.
"I activate the Spell Card—Polymerization! I fuse two Thunder Dragon cards in my hand to Fusion Summon—Thunderstorm Fusion Dragon!"
The pitch-black dragon reemerged, still in Attack Position.
Thunderstorm Fusion Dragon – Level 8 – DARK – Thunder – ATK 2600
"Still in Attack Position?" Skull Knight rattled his bony head, the sound echoing through the dark.
Hikaru smiled confidently.
He'd always been a Fusion user—but that didn't mean he didn't know how to counter. From the moment he landed in this world, he'd prepped multiple anti-meta strategies against what this dimension could throw at him.
He didn't draw them last time.
But this time was different.
"I activate the Spell—Shaddoll Fusion!"
"A new Fusion?" Skull Knight chuckled, sensing the card's dark energy. "Shadow-attribute Fusion, is it?"
"If my opponent controls a monster Special Summoned from the Extra Deck, I can Fusion Summon directly using monsters from my Deck!
I send Shaddoll Falco and Elemental HERO Avian from my Deck to the Graveyard to Fusion Summon—
El Shaddoll Wendigo!"
El Shaddoll Wendigo – Level 6 – WIND – Psychic – DEF 2800
"A wall with 2800 DEF—decent," Skull Knight muttered. "But still not enough to withstand my Underworld Dragon."
"Heh… Fusion's only just begun."
"I activate the effect of Shaddoll Falco sent to the Graveyard—when sent by a card effect, it Special Summons itself face-down!"
Hikaru snapped his fingers, and puppet strings dragged the buried Falco back to the field in face-down Defense Position.
"Next, I activate Wendigo's effect! Once per turn, I can make a monster immune to destruction by battle with Special Summoned monsters.
I choose Thunderstorm Fusion Dragon! Then I attack your shadow copy of my Thunderstorm!"
Electricity surged. The real Thunderstorm Dragon crashed into the dark doppelgänger, blasting it into pieces.
Skull Knight didn't flinch. "A single consumed soul—nothing more. If you can't stop Necrodeath, I'll just devour your dragon's soul again next turn."
"To me, your defense is as flimsy as paper!"
"Is that so?" Hikaru grinned. "I set one card. Turn end—
At this moment, Fusion Recycling Plant activates: At the end of the turn, I can return one Fusion Material from the Graveyard to my hand.
I return Thunder Dragon."
He flashed the card briefly before slipping it back into his hand.
Skull Knight watched, confused.
An ATK 2600 monster, a 2800 wall, and one set monster with weak Defense—nothing special. Why the confidence?
He didn't understand—but he felt excitement.
A feeling he remembered well from life.
His name had once been Roman Goodwin.
Now, he was merely a shadow, a husk. The elder brother of Rex Goodwin, resurrected by dark magic.
No—perhaps not even that.
What stood here was a fragment. A shell. A residual will Rex had preserved.
Roman had been chosen—by both light and dark. He'd cast off his Crimson Dragon mark, severed his own arm, and given it to his brother. He had chosen to follow the Earthbound path.
He wanted Rex to gather the Signers and defeat him, so the world would still be saved.
But Rex had lost faith. In people. In the cycle of gods and dragons. In the broken system where the Tops preyed on the Commons.
So Rex had summoned him—Skull Knight.
And even if he wasn't really Roman, he had no intention of handing his legacy over to just anyone.
He'd been watching Hikaru Amagi for days.
His interactions, his understanding of Fusion… and the dark power within him.
So far—Hikaru met his standards.
But if this was all…
Then it'd be better to kill him now and spare him the Crimson Dragon's wrath.
"My turn. Draw!"
Skull Knight whipped a card from his deck.
"At this moment, I flip my Trap Card—Core of Shaddoll!'" Hikaru's voice cut through the air.
A massive white crystal head appeared on the field, accompanied by eerie wails of the dead.
Ever since White Crystal absorbed so much Spirit agony, this card's cries had become terrifyingly real.
Skull Knight's eye-flames flared slightly. A card imbued with darkness, like his own.
"This card becomes a Level 9 DARK Spellcaster monster—ATK 1450 / DEF 1950!
And when used for a Shaddoll Fusion Summon, it can substitute any Attribute!"
In that instant—
Hikaru's victory was sealed.
Skull Knight blinked, confused. He laughed dryly, then revealed a monster from his hand.
"I Normal Summon—Hellfire Wing Dragon – Ghoul Wyvern!"
Ghoul Wyvern – Level 4 – DARK – Zombie – ATK 1700
"When Summoned, I can add a Necro Fusion from my Deck to my hand… huh?"
Nothing happened.
His deck was silent.
What?
He wasn't using a digital duel disk—this was the ceremonial model, used by ancient priests! It couldn't malfunction!
"Sorry," Hikaru said, grinning. "While Thunderstorm Fusion Dragon is on the field, your cards can't be added to your hand except by drawing."
"A lockdown effect? Impressive…"
Now he understood why Hikaru protected that monster so fiercely. Even after destruction, he'd brought it back.
"But it's fine. Once Necrodeath attacks, your last few Life Points will vanish in a flash."
Skull Knight smiled, revealing another card. "I activate Book of Life – Forbidden Spell! I banish a Thunder Dragon from your Graveyard to Special Summon Ghoul Lancer from mine!"
Even if Hikaru had some sneaky Trap, Ghoul Lancer's piercing effect would end the Duel right here!
"Trap Card, activate!" Hikaru called.
"Continuous Trap—Shaddoll Schism!"
"A specialized Fusion card! It lets me banish Shaddoll Fusion Materials from my field and Graveyard to Fusion Summon!"
"But… your Graveyard's empty."
"Not a problem. I banish Core of Shaddoll and Shaddoll Falco from the field!"
Puppet strings erupted from the void, weaving something monstrous.
"Listen carefully!" Hikaru placed a card from his Extra Deck onto the field. "Voice of God, divine command—Fusion Summon!
Descend!
El Shaddoll Winda!"
A green-haired puppet master appeared, wrapped in veils and strings. Her fingers manipulated not only phantoms, but even a blonde girl and a dolphin beside her.
El Shaddoll Winda – Level 5 – DARK – Spellcaster – ATK 2200
At the same time, Ghoul Lancer reappeared on Skull Knight's field.
Ghoul Lancer – Level 5 – DARK – Zombie – ATK 2000
"El Shaddoll Winda… that's her name?" Skull Knight whispered. The darkness inside her was vast—equal to Necrodeath.
But only 2200 ATK…
"Schism's effect continues!" Hikaru shouted. "After Fusion Summon, I send one opponent's monster with the same Attribute to the Graveyard!
Begone—Underworld Dragon – Necrodeath!"
Necrodeath shrieked, resisting, but the puppet strings latched on and dragged it down, howling all the way.
Moments later, the dragon that refused to go home… returned to the grave.
"I see… so that's what it does." Skull Knight's flames flickered.
"But this alone won't stop Necrodeath's return. I can just bring it back next turn—!"
He glanced at his hand, ready to act… and froze.
None of his cards responded.
No matter what he tried—none of them activated.
What… what's happening!?
Then his gaze snapped to Thunderstorm Dragon.
Then to Winda.
"El Shaddoll Winda's effect—while she's on the field, both players can only Special Summon once per turn!"
God herself says: she *hates combo spam.
To Synchro-heavy decks, Winda was a death sentence.
Skull Knight stared at her.
A Fusion user from another world—using cards specifically to counter this dimension?
He wasn't surprised.
But to him, Winda meant more.
Locking revival. Locking Special Summons. Locking search.
Dark. Puppet-like. Machine-like. Suited for the dead.
This man—this Duelist—was the perfect successor for his legacy.
A Fusionist… in a world of Synchros.
But even that wasn't enough!
He glanced at his set card: Truth in the Dark, a Trap that required a direct attack to activate. It let him reveal a Level 1 monster from hand to Special Summon a copy from the Deck.
His field had two monsters.
Breaking this lock wouldn't be easy.
If Hikaru got greedy and didn't finish him now—next turn, he'd revive Necrodeath, and without Schism, Hikaru would be doomed.
So… what would he do?
"Draw!"
Skull Knight gripped his reins.
Staring at Hikaru's every move.
He was nervous.
And curious.
Would this dark duelist play smart… or reckless?
"Didn't expect this…" Hikaru looked at his card. "Interesting."
A Duel reveals a person's soul.
Drawing the same card on turn one and now—what did it mean?
"Normal Summon—Elemental HERO Prisma!"
Prisma – Level 4 – LIGHT – Warrior – ATK 1700
Skull Knight sagged slightly.
So he was going for lethal.
"I activate Prisma's effect—reveal Flame Wingman from my Extra Deck, send Burstinatrix to the Grave."
Light shimmered through Prisma's body. The image of a fiery heroine appeared over him.
Skull Knight stared, seeing not the card—but himself reflected in that glinting prism.
A dead man. An empty husk.
A fragment of someone who once had dreams.
And in that moment—he remembered who he'd been.
"I activate Miracle Fusion! I banish Avian and Burstinatrix from the Grave to Fusion Summon—!"
Fusion. Again. Always Fusion.
"Hikaru Amagi…"
Even without words—Skull Knight felt it.
This man meant what he said.
"Fusion Summon—Elemental HERO Flame Wingman!"
Flame Wingman – Level 6 – WIND – Warrior – ATK 2100
Skull Knight knew that card. Outdated. Weak. Specific. Rarely used.
And yet—it had a burn effect similar to Necrodeath's soul damage.
"Battle! Flame Wingman attacks Ghoul Wyvern!"
Skull Knight LP: 4000 → 3600
"Flame Wingman's effect! Deal damage equal to ATK of destroyed monster!"
Skull Knight LP: 3600 → 1900
"Winda attacks Ghoul Lancer!"
Skull Knight LP: 1900 → 1700
"Finally—Thunderstorm Fusion Dragon attacks directly!"
Hikaru didn't know what the face-down was.
But not attacking wasn't an option.
Thunderstorm Dragon soared high. Lightning speared downward.
The attack connected.
For a brief moment, Hikaru blinked.
Then—embers danced across Skull Knight's frame.
His body began to disintegrate.
Skull Knight LP: 1700 → 0