A multi-headed mechanical dragon made almost entirely of tire-like coils rose from the smoke and took the field on Hikaru Amagi's side. In its place, both the Ancient Gear Double-Headed Hound and Cyber Dragon were gone.
"W-What…?"
"My Double-Headed Hound!?"
"What just happened?!"
Hikaru smirked and raised the monster card on his Duel Disk.
"Chimeratech Fortress Dragon," he declared. "Its Fusion Materials are Cyber Dragon and one or more Machine-Type monsters. It's a Fusion Monster that doesn't need Polymerization, and it doesn't need your permission to use your monsters either."
He gestured toward the field. "You just send the listed materials on either side to the Graveyard, and it gets Special Summoned straight from the Extra Deck."
"And its ATK? One thousand times the number of materials."
Chimeratech Fortress Dragon – Level 8 / DARK / Machine / ATK 2000
"Damn it…" Jinrin Kaname clenched his fists, his whole body trembling.
Not even when Hikaru called out the Fusion Club for being neither about fusions nor a real club had he felt this humiliated.
The Double-Headed Hound wasn't a soul card or anything—it was a tool. But to see his monster, his own monster, taken and fused into an enemy without even a word… he was furious.
"Zane," Alexis said curiously, "Was that Cyber Dragon…?"
Zane nodded. "Hikaru traded me Cyber Repair Plant for one of my extra Cyber Dragons."
He had tons of them—originals, Zwei, Drei, Vier… and multiple copies of the base model. He had planned to give some to Syrus eventually, so giving one to Hikaru wasn't a big deal.
A Cyber Dragon for Cyber Repair Plant was a fair trade in any deck-building philosophy.
"As for Fortress Dragon," Zane continued with a smile, "It's a different version than mine. Must be one he picked up from another dimension."
In a world full of different versions of the same card with different effects—like Hikaru's watered-down Future Fusion versus Zane's powerful one—it was nothing unusual. The mention of "other worlds" just made it more acceptable. Everyone nodded, buying it instantly.
"Then—Chimeratech Fortress Dragon, direct attack!"
"Tch—Trap Card, Mirror Force! Activate!"
Holy crap—Mirror Force!?
"So close! Just a little more and Hikaru would've landed massive damage!"
"Ugh, Mirror Force? If not for that, he would've had the win…"
"Now Hikaru's field is wide open!"
Hikaru raised his left arm to shield himself, watching his Cyber Dragon disintegrate into particles of light.
He gave a little shrug.
"Keep watching, Syrus." Zane suddenly spoke, his tone sharp.
"Huh?"
"Watch carefully what Hikaru does next."
Syrus flinched, instantly locking his eyes on the field.
"Main Phase 2," Hikaru muttered. He pressed a button on his Duel Disk. The field slot extended, and a massive machine-like structure emerged on the virtual landscape.
"Field Spell—Fusion Recycling Plant!"
Click-clack—ding-dang—ka-chunk!
Gears whirred. Metal arms emerged from the terrain. The area around the duel transformed into a massive factory, endlessly scanning and processing the battlefield.
"What the heck is that?"
"Is it a… Fusion-based Field Spell?"
"Fusion Recycling Plant's effect," Hikaru announced. "Once per turn, I can discard one card to add Polymerization from my Deck or GY to my hand."
"Huh?" Syrus tilted his head. "Why not just use Fusion Sage, then?"
Even Jinrin's brows furrowed.
"I discard my Fusion Substitute to add a second copy of Fusion Substitute from my Deck to my hand."
???
Aside from seasoned duelists like Zane, Jaden, and Chazz—who instantly understood what Hikaru was doing—everyone else looked thoroughly baffled.
Discarding one Fusion card… to add another Fusion card?
What was the point?
Then Bastion, ever the walking encyclopedia and tutorial box, let out a soft hum.
"Ah… I see. Fusion Substitute's graveyard effect. You banish it to return one Fusion Monster from your GY to the Extra Deck and draw one card."
"Fusion Monster…" Jinrin muttered, and then his expression twisted.
"That's right!" Hikaru snapped his fingers. "Now you get it. I return Chimeratech Fortress Dragon to the Extra Deck, banish Fusion Substitute from my Graveyard… and draw one card."
Jinrin's face darkened.
What's worse than your opponent having a monster that can eat all your Machines?
Watching him recycle it right in front of you, with the intent to use it again next turn.
"YOU MONSTER!!"
"Monster?" Hikaru's face fell dark. "You're calling me a monster?"
"I'm being nice calling you a senpai. You're the real monster here."
"You call yourselves a Fusion Club, but all you do is bully underclassmen, create divisions between dorms, and train like it's the military. How can you even dare to call yourselves Fusion Duelists?"
"But since I've got the chance today, I'm going to show you my resolve!"
"Fusion is about unity, synergy, cooperation, harmony, understanding!"
"Not your sick little dictatorship!"
"I Set three cards. End turn."
Three. Whole. Cards.
Slapped face-down with menace. Hikaru Amagi wasn't just dueling.
He was sending a message.
Jinrin's hands trembled.
What were those three Set cards?
Around them, more first-year students began murmuring—many already leaning toward Hikaru's club. Some even started venting their own experiences: how miserable it had been inside the original Fusion Club, how oppressive the atmosphere was.
Truth was, such bullying wasn't rare in the academy. The dorm color system, while not as overt as Hogwarts houses, still bred competition and discrimination.
And the Fusion Club had amplified it to a grotesque extreme.
Jinrin drew his next card, his once-rigid posture now visibly drenched in sweat.
For someone known for his strict discipline and composure, he was wiping his forehead with the back of his hand like a man drowning in heat.
He had known Hikaru Amagi was a fanatical fusion purist—but he'd never actually dueled him.
Now he understood why the professors hated Hikaru so much.
His purity… made their whole system feel tainted by comparison.
Why? Why did it feel like he was the freshman!?
He was the upperclassman here!
Again, he wiped his forehead.
"Don't think it's over yet!"
Yes. Hikaru might recycle his monster and destroy all of Jinrin's Machines next turn.
But if Jinrin could win this turn, it wouldn't matter!
Ancient Gear monsters couldn't be stopped by face-downs during battle
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For this week I will do more release depending on the power stones !
100 Power Stones = 1 chapter (in addition to the daily update)
So give stones if you want mooooar !