Chapter 69: What Exactly Got You So Fired Up?!

"She shook off the pressure the moment that kid said something to her..."

Dox watched the exchange between Rowan and Alexis from across the field, turning the thought over quietly.

Not that it mattered. When it came to that kind of bond, the brothers weren't about to lose to anyone.

"Sorry about that, Big Brother," Dox said, turning to Para with an oddly charged sincerity.

"Using your monster as a tribute."

"Don't be," Para replied, easy and unbothered.

"If it's for you, a little sacrifice is nothing."

Rowan stared at them.

He genuinely could not find a starting point for that exchange. There was nothing to grab onto.

Alexis had gone similarly blank beside him, and if anything, the sight of the two brothers having that moment made her want to beat them considerably more than she had a moment ago.

"But I can't settle for leaving it at that," Dox continued, moving back to business.

He drew one of the remaining cards from his hand and placed it on his Duel Disk.

"Spell Card: Dark Designator."

"This card lets me name a target monster. If that monster exists in my opponent's deck, they must add it to their hand."

He glanced at his brother.

"The monster I'm naming is Sanga of the Thunder."

Para let out a low, satisfied chuckle. "Naturally. My deck would never be without Sanga of the Thunder."

He pulled the card from his deck, held it up briefly for Rowan and Alexis to see, then folded it into his hand.

His Duel Disk shuffled the remaining deck automatically as it slid back into place.

"And that concludes my turn."

Dox looked across the field at them, his grin carrying something almost like a lecture in it.

"You're ahead on Life Points, I'll grant you that. But the field advantage is ours. Let this duel teach you something about what Tag Dueling is really built on."

"Field advantage?" Alexis said, already drawing from her deck. "I'd say that's still up for debate. My turn. Draw!"

She glanced at Rowan. He gave her a small nod: go ahead and attack.

She smiled once, then set the card she had drawn directly on her Duel Disk.

"I summon Cyber Tutu in attack position!"

"Hey!"

A soft flash of light, and a girl with pink chin-length hair leaped out of it mid-spin, landing on the field in a burst of energy.

Red and white outfit, light on her feet, instantly striking a pose beside the tall black-haired figure of Cyber Blader.

Cyber Tutu Level 3 / EARTH ATK: 1000 / DEF: 800

"Your teamwork was impressive," Alexis said, her voice measured.

"Sacrificing a monster with a negative effect to summon Kazejin in a single turn, that took real coordination between the two of you."

She pointed across the field at Para.

"But it also left the brother who made the sacrifice with an empty field. No monsters. No defense."

"Cyber Tutu, direct attack!"

"Hey!!"

The pink-haired girl launched herself skyward with a cheerful shout, spinning into a fast, sharp flying kick aimed squarely at Para.

The Paradox Brothers' expressions tightened in unison.

"She caught that opening."

The kick landed. Para grunted once, sharp and short.

5600 LP → 4600 LP

"Tch." Rowan watched, clicking his tongue quietly. "She couldn't bait out Kazejin's effect."

He had known this going in. Para's side of the field looked like a wide-open target, but Dox's Kazejin carried an effect that could reduce the damage from any one monster's attack to zero, once per turn.

That meant at most one of Alexis's two monsters could hit effectively.

The play was this: if Kazejin's effect activated on Cyber Tutu's lower ATK, then Cyber Blader's attack would land clean.

But the brothers were legendary duelists, not amateurs. They weren't about to burn a once-per-turn ability on a 1000 ATK direct hit when something bigger was coming.

They hadn't. Which meant the effect was still waiting.

"Cyber Blader's special ability," Alexis said, pivoting immediately.

"When the opponent controls exactly two monsters, her ATK doubles."

Two monsters on their side. Kazejin was one.

Whatever was sitting in Para's hand was soon going to be another, but right now, the count was exactly two.

Cyber Blader's ATK climbed in a rapid series of beeps.

2100 → 4200

"Cyber Blader, direct attack!"

The tall crimson figure let out a sharp cry and launched forward, spinning into a vicious tornado of motion, a razor-edged cyclone aimed straight at Para.

"4200 ATK?!" Syrus's voice cracked from the stands. "If that hits, they're down to 600 LP!"

"It won't hit," Jaden said, eyes fixed on the field.

"Kazejin's effect is once per turn. It zeroes out the damage from one attacking monster. That means..."

"That means this attack isn't getting through."

Dox raised his hand. "Kazejin, Hurricane Barrier!"

The round green figure on his side of the field threw its arms wide and exhaled a screaming white gale, a solid wall of wind that rose up between Cyber Blader and Para like a rampart.

The crimson tornado slammed into it and stopped cold, spinning out against the barrier and scattering apart.

Cyber Blader was pushed back to her starting position, momentum gone.