Chapter 112 – Luck of the Venturis

The cheers from Chuck's victory had barely begun to settle when the tournament floor was already preparing for the next Feature Match, as the pace of the Top 8 wasn't slowing down; if anything, the atmosphere seemed to grow even more intense and excited with each passing match.

Mike Patrick turned toward the camera with a grin and said, "Well, folks, if you thought our last quarterfinal was exciting, don't go anywhere! Because our next matchup might be one of the most unusual we've seen all tournament!"

The camera shifted toward the entrance of the Feature Table.

Two familiar faces stepped into view, and the crowd immediately recognised them.

"That's right!" Mike announced. "It's DANTE VENTURI versus LUCIA VENTURI!"

The arena erupted while the big screen showed the matchup.

DANTE VENTURI VS LUCIA VENTURI

Alexander looked toward the approaching pair and smiled, "Grandfather versus granddaughter."

Mike laughed, "Talk about a family rivalry."

"It gets even more interesting," Alexander replied. "This is essentially a mirror match."

Mike glanced toward him and asked, "A mirror match?"

"When two Duelists use nearly identical decks with only minimal differences, usually because of their personal preferences or playstyles, we call it a mirror match."

Mike nodded, "So we're about to see the same strategy on both sides of the field?"

"More or less."

Alexander's smile widened, "And considering who these two are... I have a feeling that 'more or less' is doing a lot of work there."

Mike raised an eyebrow.

Dante and Lucia took their seats before the nearby judge performed the coin toss to determine who would go first.

The coin spun through the air, and when it landed, it became clear that Dante won.

The experienced gambler immediately chose to go first.

Alexander watched him carefully and commented, "Dante knows exactly what he's doing."

Mike nodded, "Because he wants to establish his defensive pieces?"

"That, and control the pace. Going first gives him the opportunity to decide when the risks begin."

Dante drew his opening hand and studied it while, across the table, Lucia did the same; then she smiled.

Dante immediately noticed, and his expression became suspicious as he observed, "That smile worries me."

Lucia blinked innocently, "What smile?"

Dante sighed, "That one."

The audience burst into laughter at their banter.

Lucia's smile only became wider while Dante shook his head, "You're trouble."

He began conservatively, "I summon Vorse Raider in Attack Position!"

The familiar card appeared on the field

[Vorse Raider - 1900 ATK / 1200 DEF]

Dante then set a card in his back row, "Your move."

Lucia drew and looked at her hand before summoning her own monster, "I summon Gemini Elf!"

The 1900 ATK monster card was placed on her side of the field.

[Gemini Elf - 1900 ATK / 900 DEF]

She also set a card and ended her turn.

Both had exactly 1900 ATK, and neither player attacked.

Mike chuckled, "Well, this is awkward."

Alexander laughed, "They both know exactly what would happen."

"Both monsters would destroy each other."

"And neither wants to make the first trade."

The audience laughed as the two Duelists simply stared at each other.

On the next turn, Dante summoned another monster, Jirai Gumo, but still held back from attacking.

Lucia answered with the same monster.

Now both sides had nearly identical monsters.

Vorse Raider and Gemini Elf. Jirai Gumo and Jirai Gumo.

Mike stared at the field, "I don't think I've ever seen a mirror match this literal."

Alexander laughed.

Lucia looked across the field, "We're getting predictable, Grandpa."

Dante nodded solemnly, "We're getting old."

Lucia immediately corrected him, "You're getting old. I'm in my prime..."

Dante looked at her, "I'll remember that."

The audience erupted in laughter once again.

But eventually, someone had to make the first move.

Dante drew, looked at his field, then at Lucia's before his eyes settled on Jirai Gumo.

He knew the risk, yet, "I attack with Jirai Gumo!"

The monster's effect activated, and Dante flipped a coin while announcing, "Heads!"

Heads.

He called it right; the attack succeeded.

Lucia chose not to activate her set card; thus, Jirai Gumo destroyed Gemini Elf, and Lucia lost 200 LP.

[Lucia - 3700 LP]

The crowd cheered while Dante smiled and said, "Still got it."

Lucia simply drew on her turn, then she directly attacked with Jirai Gumo, but Dante activated the set Waboku.

She also flipped the coin, "Heads!"

Tails.

The audience gasped as Lucia's Life Points were immediately halved.

[Lucia - 1850 LP]

Dante's expression changed, and he muttered, "Lucia..."

But Lucia merely stared at her hand, then she smiled.

Dante recognised it immediately.

He stared at her, "...What?"

Lucia didn't answer; she simply ended her turn.

Dante looked increasingly suspicious; he drew, set another card in the back row, and this time, he didn't hesitate and entered the Battle Phase.

Lucia responded, "I activate Fairy Box!"

The Trap Card activated, then Dante declared, "Vorse Raider, attack!"

The coin was tossed again, and Lucia called it correctly.

The attack was reduced to nothing.

Then Dante attacked with Jirai Gumo, flipped the coin and called it right.

However, Lucia activated Fairy Box again, and once more called it right, thus reducing Jirai Gumo's ATK to 0.

Mike laughed, "This is ridiculous! Fairy Box saves her!"

Alexander nodded but couldn't help smiling, "And that's the kind of Duel we're watching. This isn't a normal Duel anymore. It's basically a gambling table with monsters on it. Every single move is a gamble."

At the same time, the crowd erupted.

On the next turn, Lucia drew and summoned her own Vorse Raider, then she played an Equip Spell, "I activate Megamorph!"

The card equipped itself to Vorse Raider.

Because Lucia's Life Points were lower than Dante's, Megamorph doubled the monster's ATK.

[Vorse Raider — 3800 ATK / 1200 DEF]

The crowd exploded.

Mike practically shouted, "3800 ATTACK POINTS!"

Alexander immediately understood, "That's the irony!"

Mike looked at him, "Irony?"

"Lucia lost half her Life Points because of Jirai Gumo." Alexander pointed toward Megamorph. "And that exact situation is what made Megamorph so powerful!"

Dante stared at the absurd Vorse Raider on the field, then he looked at Lucia, then back at the monster.

He laughed and asked, "You planned that?"

Lucia shook her head, "Nope."

Dante's laughter abruptly stopped, and he muttered, "Somehow that's worse..."

The audience erupted.

Lucia giggled, then she entered her Battle Phase, "Vorse Raider attacks!"

Dante activated his set card, Skull Dice.

The Judge brought out the dice and gave it to Dante, who rolled.

One.

The audience groaned as the monster's ATK was barely reduced.

Lucia's 3700 ATK Vorse Raider destroyed Dante's Vorse Raider.

Dante lost another chunk of Life Points.

[Dante - 2200 LP]

Dante didn't panic; he simply drew his next card and set a monster.

Then activated another card, Graceful Dice.

He rolled, and the result was five.

The crowd cheered as Jirai Gumo's ATK increased.

[Jirai Gumo - 2700 ATK]

Mike looked at the two monsters and muttered, "Still not enough."

"Not yet," Alexander agreed.

Dante attacked anyway, and so the coin was tossed.

Dante called it wrong.

The effect activated and his Life Points were halved.

[Dante - 1100 LP]

The audience gasped, but then Alexander's eyes widened, "Wait."

Mike looked toward him, "What?"

"Look at the Life Points."

"Dante has now fallen below Lucia!"

Alexander grinned, "His Life Points are lower than Lucia's."

Mike immediately understood, "So Megamorph!"

"Exactly."

The effect of Megamorph changed, and Lucia's Vorse Raider dropped from 3800 ATK to 950 ATK.

The monster was now weaker than Jirai Gumo, and Dante's attack connected.

Vorse Raider was destroyed, and Lucia lost LP.

[Lucia - 100 LP]

The crowd went absolutely wild as that was a true gamble of an attack.

Mike stared at the field, "100!"

Alexander laughed, "This is unbelievable!"

The audience was now completely invested. The two best gamblers in the tournament were literally gambling against one another, and despite Lucia being down to only 100 Life Points, she refused to lose.

Over the following turns, the duel became a chaotic exchange of calculated risks and impossible luck.

Dante successfully activated Goddess of Whim.

The audience held its breath when the coin was tossed.

Correct. The effect succeeded. He activated Fairy Box again. Correct. Skull Dice. Another favourable result. Dante even activated Second Coin Toss, improving the reliability of his coin-based effects.

His decisions were careful and calculated.

He wasn't simply throwing coins into the air and hoping. He understood probability and understood when the odds were worth taking.

But Lucia just kept getting lucky.

A Waboku activation at the exact right moment. A favourable die roll when Dante's attack would have ended the duel. A fortunate draw at the exact time it was needed. A well-timed Bottomless Trap Hole.

Every time Dante thought he had finally cornered her, something happened.

Mike was almost laughing in disbelief, "Alexander, statistically speaking, Dante should have won this duel already!"

Alexander nodded, "He's actually winning the statistical battle."

"But Lucia keeps surviving."

"That's the problem."

Lucia drew another card, then she activated a set Trap Card, "I activate Fiend Comedian. I toss a coin and call it. If I call it right, all your cards in the Graveyard are removed from play immediately. If I call it wrong, it sends a number of cards equal to the cards in your Graveyard from my Deck to my Graveyard."

Dante looked at the card; his expression changed as he observed, "That's new."

Lucia grinned, "I know."

The coin was tossed.

Tails.

The effect activated.

Lucia began sending cards from the top of her Deck to the Graveyard based on the number of cards in Dante's Graveyard.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four...

The audience watched as card after card went to the Graveyard.

Then another and another.

A good portion of Lucia's Deck was sent to the Graveyard; then the last card was Barrel Dragon.

The powerful monster disappeared into the Graveyard.

Dante's eyes widened.

Lucia looked down at her Graveyard, then at the card in her hand and smiled before she activated it, "I activate Monster Reborn!"

The crowd exploded.

Dante simply stared at her and muttered, "You have got to be kidding me..."

Lucia laughed, "I didn't know that was still in there!"

Dante pointed at her, "That's even worse!"

The audience laughed.

"I taught you to keep track of the cards in your Deck, field and hand so you can have a good idea of where everything is!"

Lucia shrugged, "Guess I forgot."

Dante stared at her.

The fact that Lucia hadn't actually planned this made it somehow even more absurd.

She hadn't made some brilliant calculated play. She had just randomly gambled, and somehow, the gamble had placed exactly what she needed into her Graveyard.

Monster Reborn brought Barrel Dragon onto the field.

Mike shouted, "BARREL DRAGON! IT'S HERE!"

Dante looked at the powerful machine.

It was the monster he himself had been holding onto as a potential finisher, and now it was on Lucia's side of the field. Worse, Dante only had one face-up Gemini Elf standing between himself and defeat.

Lucia activated Barrel Dragon's effect.

Three coins were tossed by the judge, and the entire arena went silent.

First coin.

Heads.

Second.

Heads.

Dante swallowed.

Third.

The coin spun.

It landed.

Heads.

The arena exploded.

Dante burst out laughing, "Hahaha! Okay. I'm impressed."

He shook his head, "That's ridiculous luck, child."

Lucia beamed, "Thank you."

Dante looked at her, "That wasn't a compliment."

Lucia simply laughed.

Barrel Dragon's effect destroyed Dante's monster. The path was clear, so Lucia entered her Battle Phase and attacked with Barrel Dragon.

The attack connected, and Dante's Life Points fell to zero.

[Dante - 0 LP]

The crowd erupted.

Mike raised his voice over the noise, "WHAT A DUEL! LUCIA VENTURI TAKES THE FIRST DUEL!"

Alexander shook his head with a smile, "That was insane."

Mike laughed, "Was it strategy or luck?"

Alexander thought about it, "Both."

Then he smiled, "But mostly luck."

Dante gathered his cards and shuffled the deck. He wasn't bitter. He was thinking.

He knew exactly what had happened. He knew Lucia had access to Monster Reborn. He knew Megamorph could become more dangerous if her Life Points were lower. Most importantly, he understood that deliberately pushing Lucia's Life Points down could actually create opportunities for her.

So this time, Dante changed his approach. He wasn't going to make the same mistake twice.

The second Duel began, and Dante went first again.

He summoned Gemini Elf, then set one card.

Lucia summoned Vorse Raider.

Again, neither player attacked as both understood the danger of the mirror match.

Dante drew, looked at his card, then smiled.

He summoned Time Wizard, and Lucia immediately looked at him, "You're not going to."

Dante smiled back, "Why not?"

The audience reacted immediately.

Dante activated Time Wizard.

The arena became silent; even Mike stopped talking.

The coin was tossed.

Tails.

The effect failed, and Dante took the damage.

[Dante - 2800 LP]

The audience groaned.

Lucia laughed, "You really did it."

Dante shrugged, "Sometimes you have to."

There was no anger or frustration, as he had knowingly taken the gamble.

The reward had been worth the risk, or at least, he believed it was.

Mike smiled, "That's the gambler we've been talking about."

Alexander nodded, "He understands that calculated risks can still fail."

Lucia drew and summoned Jirai Gumo, then attacked with Vorse Raider.

Dante activated Fairy Box in response.

The coin was tossed.

Correct.

The attack was stopped.

Lucia attacked with Jirai Gumo, and as a result, the coin was tossed.

Tails.

Her Life Points were halved.

[Lucia - 2000 LP]

Dante smiled, "See?"

Lucia shrugged, "Worth trying."

Then Dante activated Fairy Box again.

Another coin toss.

Correct.

He survived again.

On his next turn, Dante paid 500 Life Points to keep Fairy Box active.

[Dante - 2300 LP]

He drew, then set one monster and ended his turn.

Lucia drew.

She looked at her hand and smiled.

Dante's eyes widened as he guessed, "Again?"

Lucia smile grew wider as she activated Megamorph.

This time she equipped it to Jirai Gumo.

The monster's ATK skyrocketed.

[Jirai Gumo - 4400 ATK / 100 DEF]

Dante closed his eyes and muttered, "I hate that card."

The audience burst into laughter.

Lucia attacked with Vorse Raider, and Dante's set monster was flipped face-up.

It was Cyber Jar. Its effect activated immediately, so every monster on the field was destroyed.

The crowd gasped.

Then both players revealed the top five cards of their Decks.

Dante's cards were revealed.

Gemini Elf.

Vorse Raider.

Barrel Dragon.

Graceful Dice.

Second Coin Toss.

Dante smiled.

He could Special Summon both Gemini Elf and Vorse Raider while the other cards went to his hand.

Lucia revealed her five cards.

Gamble.

Fiend Comedian.

Morphing Jar.

Waboku.

Skull Dice.

She set Morphing Jar, then, rather than holding onto her cards, she began setting them.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five.

When her entire back row was filled, she ended her turn.

The crowd reacted to the sudden change in the field.

Dante paid the 500 Life Points required to maintain Fairy Box.

[Dante - 1800 LP]

Then he looked at his field, and his expression hardened.

He summoned his monsters, "Come forth, Barrel Dragon!"

The powerful machine card landed on the field, then Dante activated Second Coin Toss.

Mike immediately understood, "He isn't taking any chances with Barrel Dragon."

"He's improving his odds," Alexander said.

Dante activated Barrel Dragon's effect.

His target was the set Morphing Jar.

Three coins appeared.

First.

Heads.

Second.

Tails.

Third.

Tails.

The effect failed.

The crowd groaned.

But Dante wasn't finished, as he made use of Second Coin Toss' effect.

He would try again.

The coins were tossed.

Heads.

Tails.

Heads.

Success. Morphing Jar was destroyed, and the audience erupted.

Dante entered his Battle Phase, but Lucia activated Waboku.

Dante expected it, so he simply ended his turn.

Lucia drew, then immediately activated Fiend Comedian.

The coin was tossed.

The result was terrible.

A large number of crucial cards were sent to the Graveyard.

Lucia's Deck was being thinned considerably, and none of them was useful there.

Dante chuckled, "You can't always be lucky..."

Lucia looked at him, then smiled, "Maybe you're right."

She then activated Gamble.

Mike leaned forward, "What's she doing?"

Alexander smiled, "Look at her hand."

Lucia had only two cards, and Dante had enough cards in his hand for Gamble to activate.

She tossed the coin.

"Heads."

The effect succeeded, and Lucia drew until her hand reached five cards.

The crowd cheered.

Dante simply shook his head, "Of course."

Lucia then set one monster and two cards in her back row and ended her turn.

Dante paid the 500 Life Points required to maintain Fairy Box and drew.

[Dante - 1300 LP]

He summoned another monster, then immediately activated Barrel Dragon's effect and targeted the unknown face-down monster.

Lucia responded by activating Mystical Space Typhoon and targeting the Continuous Spell Card in the back row.

The Spell destroyed Second Coin Toss, and the crowd reacted.

Mike shouted, "She just took away Dante's second chance!"

Alexander nodded, "Exactly. Now if Barrel Dragon fails, he won't be able to try again."

Dante's expression remained calm as the coins were tossed.

Heads.

Tails.

Tails.

Failure.

The audience groaned while Dante closed his eyes. His expression became one of resigned disbelief.

He then entered the Battle Phase and attacked the set monster.

It flipped face-up, and Alexander's eyes widened as he exclaimed, "Damn!"

Mike looked at him, "What?"

"It's Fiber Jar!"

The audience erupted as the card's effect activated.

Every card on the field, in the hands of both players, and in their Graveyards was shuffled back into their respective Decks, then both players drew five new cards.

The entire Duel had effectively been reset except for one thing, their Life Points remained unchanged.

Dante stared at the field.

The audience was completely invested now.

He set two cards in his back row, then ended his turn.

Lucia drew and activated Pot of Greed, drawing two more cards, then immediately activated two Mystical Space Typhoons and with them Dante's remaining field defences disappeared.

The audience roared.

Lucia then summoned another monster, Goddess of Whim.

The small monster card landed on the field, and Lucia activated its effect.

A coin was once again tossed.

She called it.

Correct, and as a result, the monster's ATK doubled.

The crowd exploded.

Dante simply stared at the monster, then sighed, "Of course..."

Mike laughed, "At this point, I'm not even surprised anymore."

Alexander shook his head, "Neither is Dante."

Lucia entered the Battle Phase and declared, "Goddess of Whim, finish this!"

The attack connected, and Dante's Life Points fell.

[Dante - 0 LP]

The arena exploded with cheers.

Mike raised his voice over the noise, "LUCIA VENTURI WINS TWO DUELS TO ZERO! SHE IS OUR NEXT SEMIFINALIST!"

Lucia stood from her seat, smiling.

Dante remained seated for several seconds as he looked at Lucia, then at the field, then toward the ceiling.

Finally, he laughed, "You know, I taught you how to gamble."

Lucia smiled. "I know."

Dante shook his head, "I don't remember teaching you how to cheat probability."

Lucia laughed, "Maybe I'm just that lucky."

Dante looked at her, then back toward the ceiling, "Unfortunately, that's exactly what I'm afraid of."

Lucia extended her hand.

Dante took it, but instead of merely shaking it, he pulled her into a hug.

The crowd erupted again.

When they separated, Dante raised Lucia's hand high into the air.

The audience cheered for the unlikely winner.

Grandfather and granddaughter. Gambler and lucky gambler. Teacher and student. And somehow, against all statistical expectations, Lucia Venturi had won.