Heroic Spirit Deck in Yu-Gi-Oh!-Chapter 416

Duel Academy —

With the graduation ceremony concluded, Hoshino finally escaped the hectic schedule. She turned to Yugi and asked, "Do you think Jaden can win?"

Seeing the hesitation in Hoshino's heart, Yugi handed her a can of soda and smiled comfortingly.

"Relax. Don't you trust Jaden? As his teacher, you should have more faith in your student."

"Of course I do. Even if I hate to admit it, Jaden's strength has already surpassed mine... That's exactly why I asked you to send him to the past, Yugi."

Yugi took a light sip of his drink.

"Because you couldn't beat him, you sent him into an alternate timeline. You've become quite prideful in strange ways since becoming a teacher."

"It's not about pride..." Hoshino chugged her soda. Maybe too fast — the carbonation nearly made her choke.

Cough cough. "It's not about pride at all. When a student surpasses their teacher, what teacher wouldn't feel proud?"

Yugi was puzzled.

"If that's the case, why go through so much trouble? Why not just duel Jaden yourself for his graduation match? For him, beating you to graduate would've been the perfect ending."

"If you're sincerely asking, then I'll have to give you the Team Rocket answer: To protect the world from devastation! To unite all peoples within our nation~!"

Yugi twitched.

"Don't start with the Team Rocket routine — what if a student sees you acting like that?"

Pulling back from the slightly embarrassing pose, Hoshino sighed.

"Being a teacher is exhausting. You always have to maintain a serious image in front of your students... It really doesn't suit me."

"That's not true. Even Rebecca praised you as 'cool' when she saw you lecturing last time."

"Pfft, you jerk! Always rubbing in your married life, huh? Just because you're married doesn't mean you can feed me that kind of fluff!"

Downing the rest of her soda, Hoshino's expression turned more serious.

"But I wasn't joking. You said Jaden winning this graduation duel would be the best ending — but it's not. This duel isn't the end. It's just another beginning."

"Another beginning?"

"The future doomed to collapse — the era of ruin Paradox spoke of. It may be centuries away, but I still want to stop that outcome."

Yugi frowned slightly.

"But you just said it's centuries in the future. How could we possibly interfere with that?"

"We absolutely can! Think about it carefully. Even after the Egyptian Gods left, they retained the ability to transcend time... I believe that ability is the seed of hope left to us by another you — the Pharaoh."

"You mean... time travel? Are you saying...?"

Yugi paused as realization struck. He finally understood why Hoshino had gone to such lengths to send Jaden back in time.

"That's right — using the Egyptian Gods' ability to travel through time, we can gather the strongest Duelists from alternate timelines and worlds. We'll unite their lights of hope, which could never have met otherwise, to win a war that spans centuries!"

(***)

Back on the field:

"The effect of Artificial Hero – Sieg! I equip 1 Warrior monster from the Graveyard to this card! I choose Elemental HERO Great Tornado! Sieg gains 2800 ATK!"

[Sieg ATK: ? → 2800]

The Artificial Hero must inherit the strength of the original HERO monster to gain power... Adopting the form of Great Tornado, Sieg once again stirred up a whirlwind on Jaden's field.

"It's not over yet! I activate the effect of Evil HERO Sinister Necrom, which I sent to the Graveyard as the cost for Super Polymerization!"

[You can banish this card from your GY; Special Summon 1 "Evil HERO" monster from your hand or Deck, except "Evil HERO Sinister Necrom".]

"I Special Summon Evil HERO Malicious Edge from the Deck!"

[Evil HERO Malicious Edge ★★★★★★★ (Level 7)][DARK][Fiend/Effect][ATK 2600/DEF 1800]

With a swipe of its sharp claws, the third HERO monster appeared alongside Jaden.

"See that, Sensei? This is the full power of me and my HEROes!"

Thanks to Super Polymerization, multiple HEROes had now assembled, all targeting Hoshino's empty field — with only 400 LP left.

"I'll claim victory in this duel, Sensei! Ride the storm of Great Tornado! Direct attack, Sieg!"

With Hoshino's Graveyard banished and Illyasviel swept up by Super Polymerization, she was defenseless. As Jaden entered the Battle Phase, he aimed to seal the duel.

"Heh... Jaden, you forgot something..."

"??!!"

"You forgot... I still have one card in my hand!"

Raising the last card she held, Hoshino shouted:

"I activate the effect of [Heroic Spirit – Formal Dress Mash Kyrielight] from my hand!"

"Mash... again?!" Jaden's heart sank. In moments of crisis, her power had saved Hoshino countless times.

"But even Mash's defense can't block three HERO attacks in a row!"

Jaden reasserted control over the duel:

"This isn't just about Mash anymore! I'll gamble everything on the remaining Heroic Spirit in my Deck to defend against these full-powered attacks!"

[Effect: If you control no monsters, during your opponent's Battle Phase, you can send this card from your hand to the GY; apply the following effects for the rest of this turn.

• When your opponent declares an attack: You can draw 1 card, and if it is a "Heroic Spirit" monster that can be Normal Summoned, you can Special Summon it, then the attack target becomes that monster.]

"Heroic Spirit of Chaldea, lend me your strength — for the final defense! We must win this, Senpai!"

The Evil God grew tense.

"You had to draw a monster each time — and survive three attacks from HEROes. That's like gambling on a razor's edge..."

"You're underestimating me, Evil God-san. I've got plenty of experience with this kind of draw! Just treat it like a ten-pull in a gacha game..."

Hoshino forced a smile, but the sweat running down her face betrayed how high the stakes were.

"Easier said than done — this is way more intense than a gacha pull! Draw!"

A towering black figure rose from Hoshino's field, shielding her from the gale-force assault of Jaden's direct attack...

"Summon — [Heroic Spirit – Darius III]! Special Summoned in Defense Position via the effect of Mash – Formal Dress!"

[Heroic Spirit – Darius III ★★★★★★★(Level 7)][DARK][Warrior/Effect][ATK 2300/DEF 0]

When you treat it like a gacha pull, there's a good chance Darius will appear. Maybe it's just Hoshino's personal superstition, but somehow, the deck often answers her expectations.

With only 0 Defense Points, he couldn't possibly withstand Sieg's attack, bolstered by the power of Great Tornado. The towering black figure was scattered into the wind after blocking just one strike.

[Darius III destroyed.]

"So you drew a monster to block the attack... Is that the effect of Mash – Formal Dress's protection? But I still have two HEROes left that haven't attacked! Evil HERO Malicious Edge — direct attack! Sin Severing Claw!!"

The fiend lunged at Hoshino, its claws dragging a dark arc of malice across the field.

"Activating Mash – Formal Dress's effect again — I draw!"

From the fog of war, a new figure emerged.

"Monster Card — [Heroic Spirit – Caligula]!"

[Heroic Spirit – Caligula ★★★★(Level 4)][DARK][Warrior/Effect][ATK 1500/DEF 1200]

"Heh, looks like this'll end it, Sensei!" Jaden raised his hand. "When Evil HERO Malicious Edge attacks a Defense Position monster, it inflicts piercing battle damage!"

"Thanks for the reminder, Jaden!" Hoshino slammed down Caligula in Attack Position — if it was going to be pierced anyway, might as well face it head-on.

[Caligula – ATK: 1500]

"And now, the effect of the destroyed Darius III activates — 'Immortal Ten Thousand Soldiers'!"

[Effect: When this card leaves the field: You can banish 1 "Heroic Spirit" monster from your Deck; 1 monster your opponent controls loses 800 ATK/DEF until the end of this turn.]

"I banish Iskandar from my Deck! Now, Evil HERO Malicious Edge loses 800 ATK!"

She chose to banish the Ritual Monster Iskandar — one that can't be Normal Summoned — to slightly improve her odds of drawing a summonable monster.

Sometimes, it's the tiniest decisions that decide the outcome of a duel.

A wave of ghostly cavalry swept across the battlefield, disrupting Malicious Edge's momentum and weakening his fatal blow.

[Malicious Edge ATK 2600 → 1800]

"Nerooo—!!" Caligula punched with raw fury, clashing against the fiend's claws and intercepting the second strike meant for Hoshino.

[Caligula destroyed.]

[Hoshino LP: 400 → 100]

"What kind of battle is this...?"

Even the Supreme King and Yubel — Duel Spirits themselves — were stunned by the clash between Hero and Heroic Spirit. Through their vision, they saw it: countless silhouettes standing silently behind each duelist.

Behind Jaden — a legion of HEROes, eyes fixed on the future.

Behind Hoshino — an army of Heroic Spirits, spanning myth and history.

"To think you blocked two of my attacks in a row, Sensei. You're even tougher than Yugi said."

Jaden raised his hand skyward, calling on the will of HEROes for his final attack.

"But this is the last strike, Sensei! Elemental HERO Flame Wingman, direct attack — Flame Shoot!!"

Soaring on wings of fire, Flame Wingman launched a searing blast from his dragon arm toward Hoshino's field.

"Yeah... this is the final attack, Jaden! And I'll be the one to end this duel!"

Hoshino drew her burning soul card and slammed it onto the Duel Disk. The roar of a berserker echoed across the field — a cry of undying resistance and coming victory.

"Draw! Summon in Defense Position — [Heroic Spirit – Spartacus]!"

[Heroic Spirit – Spartacus ★★★(Level 3)][FIRE][Warrior/Effect][ATK 1500/DEF 1500]

[Effect: If this card is destroyed by battle: Inflict 500 damage to your opponent, then gain 500 LP.]

Engulfed in flames, Spartacus swung his burning sword, unleashing a retaliatory wave of fire against Jaden.

"Spartacus's effect activates — when destroyed by battle, you take 500 damage, and I gain 500 Life Points!"

"Flame Wingman's effect! When he destroys a monster by battle, you take damage equal to that monster's ATK!"

Their clash ignited a blinding explosion that scattered the clouds, illuminating the morning sky like a signal fire to the world.

Yubel: "To think he turned the tables in such a hopeless moment... Is this the power of a Duel King?"

"Turned the tables? No, Yubel!" Hoshino pointed to the radiant sky. "I told you — this duel ends with my victory!"

That gentle brilliance outshone the flames, radiating life and hope. True prayers. And in that light, the once-balanced scales of fate finally tipped.

"Jaden, do you remember when I activated The Heaven's Feel graveyard effect to mill the top card of my Deck?"

Hoshino slowly revealed the card that had been banished earlier in the duel — glowing with pure light.

"That card was [Heroic Spirit – Irisviel von Einzbern]! And last turn, it was banished by your trap effect — setting the miracle I needed for a final reversal!"

[Heroic Spirit – Irisviel von Einzbern Effect: During your opponent's turn (Quick Effect): You can return this banished card to the Deck; gain 1000 Life Points.]

Clad in white, Irisviel sent the light of love and motherhood — the radiance of the Holy Grail — down upon Hoshino.

"Your feelings reached me, Master~ I felt them, and turned your pure wish into strength — 'Sing Out, O' White Grail!'"

[Hoshino LP: 100 → 1100]

"Now the duel is decided, Jaden! Spartacus's effect gives me another 500 LP when he's destroyed!"

[Hoshino LP → 1600]

"1600 Life Points — enough to survive Flame Wingman's 1500 burn effect. But Jaden, can you withstand the 500 from Spartacus's counterattack?"

Holding Spartacus's card aloft, Hoshino pointed toward Jaden — a final counterattack launched by Heroic Spirit and Master, rising from the ashes as a rebellious star.

"Remember this, Jaden! An Ace card can turn a duel around — but a Soul Card? It can create miracles out of hopelessness. That's the true proof of a Duelist's soul!"

[Hoshino LP 1600 → 100]

"—Take this: Star of Rebellion That Pierces the Earth!!"

"AAAAHHHHHHHH—!!!"

[Jaden LP 200 → 0]

[Duel Over — Winner: Chiyuki Hoshino!] frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

(*****)

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