Sixteen Thousand Flames - One Last Prayer Before the Fall

To Lisa, the world was dull.

Everything felt like the same tired patterns repeating over and over again.

She had never struggled with anything—not truly.

Financial troubles?

She was born into the Solaris family—one of the industrial giants of the world. Material needs were never a concern.

Of course, Lisa wasn’t the type of spoiled heiress who threw tantrums to get what she wanted.

Her family had expectations. Standards to meet.

And Lisa met every one of them with unwavering drive.

But the truth was—she had never failed.

Not once.

Every task, every challenge, she exceeded expectations with ease.

And with every perfect result came a creeping sense of boredom.

How could she tell if she was growing… when she never knew the taste of failure?

How can a ship’s crew learn to survive a storm—if they’ve never faced one?

Then, one day in high school, a so-called “friend” invited her to play a game.

Guide Rise.

A fast-rising card battler game that had swept through the school like wildfire.

Boys, girls, juniors, seniors—everyone was playing it.

Even some of the teachers had joined in to play with their students.

Lisa, at first, had no interest in what she saw as a childish hobby.

She couldn't understand the appeal of wasting time and money on what were, essentially, fancy pieces of printed paper.

But then—her “friend” said something.

“What? Are you scared?”

That was all it took.

As a Solaris, Lisa couldn’t walk away from such a blatant provocation. Her pride wouldn’t allow it.

She took the bait.

And she lost—horribly.

The shock was real.

She couldn’t accept it.

In her mind, the loss was simply because she didn’t understand the game yet.

So she challenged her friend again.

And again.

And again.

Each loss piled on top of the last.

Frustration gripped her like never before.

Until finally… Lisa began taking the game seriously.

She studied, she built her deck, she refined her strategies.

She threw herself into the game and kept challenging her “friend” over and over.

But before she could ever claim her revenge, that friend left the country.

Lisa knew it was coming. That friend was like the wind—dancing freely wherever they pleased, never thinking about who they left behind.

And even now, to this day…

Lisa continues to search. For someone—anyone—who can make her feel that frustration again.

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Because to Lisa…

That was the one moment in her life when she finally felt truly alive.

“My turn, draw!” Lisa declared sharply, beginning her turn.

“OP limit increase. I generate 4 OP.”

Four glowing blue orbs swirled into existence beside her.

“I pay 2 OP,” two of the orbs popped like bubbles, “and activate the Support Card: Omniraiser!”

“I increase my OP limit by 1.”

Then, Lisa glanced at the card in her hand—eyes sharp, voice clear.

“I pay another 2 OP and activate Support Card: Equivalent Exchange.”

“I lower my Life Points by 2,000—”

Lisa LP: 2,750 → 750

“And I generate 1 OP for every 2,000 difference between our Life Points.”

“What—?!”

Amaya’s face went pale. Her LP sat at 13,000… which meant Lisa would generate the maximum—6 OP.

Five more blue orbs burst into form beside Lisa.

With a wicked grin curling on her lips, she tapped the Ashendoom card resting in her Guide Zone.

“This is... looking really bad…” Nicholas muttered, his eyes locked on the duel.

“Yeah…” Liora replied quietly, her emotions conflicted. She was more silent than usual.

“Guide Call!”

“Bloom, petals that herald the beginning of hell…”

Lisa slammed her Guide card into the center slot.

“Ashendoom!”

Ashendoom roared—an ear-splitting cry that sent chills down the spines of all who heard it. The very sky trembled at his call.

“Next, I pay 2 OP to summon my second Salamandra!”

“And with its effect, I special call Slasher Dragon, Gladius from my hand!”

“Gladius’s effect activates—Ashendoom gains +1,000 power!”

Ashendoom: 3,000 → 4,000

“Then I pay another 2 OP to activate Ashendoom’s Skill!”

“I expel Salamandra and Undrax from the Rest Zone—Ashendoom can attack twice this turn and gains Piercing!”

“Piercing…” Amaya swallowed hard. She might still be new to Guide Rise, but even she knew how dangerous Piercing could be.

“You’re trembling too soon,” Lisa said, amused.

She could clearly see the shadow of fear growing across Amaya’s expression.

“Scatter over the world…”

“Petals of Hellrose!!!”

“Activate: Frontier Protocol!”

“Ashendoom gains Power equal to the difference in our Life Points, and any damage it deals to LP is doubled!”

Ashendoom: 4,000 → 16,250

Ashendoom’s crimson body glowed a molten red, like fresh magma. Ash and smoke spread through the air, and the beast’s fiery eyes locked onto Elana.

“Battle.”

Lisa thrust her hand forward, palm open.

“Finish her, Ashendoom…”

She clenched her fist sharply.

“HELL DESTRUCTION BURST!!!”

Ashendoom opened his jaw wide. Lava-like drool dripped from his fangs. Red-hot energy surged into his mouth—and a massive burst of destruction fired straight at Elana.

“I activate Calibratyc Cymbal’s other effect!” Amaya shouted, responding in desperation.

“If my LP is above 10,000 and a unit attached to this card is targeted for an attack, I equalize its Power with the attacker’s, and neither is destroyed in a tie!”

Elana, with cymbals in hand, confidently struck them together—redirecting the searing blast and shielding herself from a direct hit.

“It’s pointless!” Lisa snapped.

“Ashendoom! Again!”

“HELL DESTRUCTION BURST!!!”

Another blazing wave tore through the field, striking Elana and sending shockwaves through Amaya. The pain burned through her body—but she couldn’t fall yet.

Not for her beloved sister sakes!

Amaya LP: 13,000 → 1,750

“Salamandra, direct damage.”

Lisa’s voice was cold, almost mechanical.

Amaya LP: 1,750 → 1,000

“Gladius, direct damage…”

Even quieter this time. A whisper laced with inevitability.

Amaya LP: 1,000 → 250

Lisa stared at the flickering red number on Amaya’s LP gauge. She exhaled slowly.

Amaya’s deck relied on long-term setup—and now that her Guide was destroyed this turn, all attached cards were sent to the Rest Zone.

There was no way she could recover from this.

Lantern Path decks rarely had high-power monsters to begin with.

And Lisa still had three units on her field.

Meaning Amaya would need four attacks to turn the duel around.

But Lantern Path specialized in healing and slow, methodical advantage.

Speed wasn’t its strength.

Lisa sighed again, quietly.

That feeling she’d longed for—the thrill, the frustration, the rush…

It was gone again. Out of reach.

“Turn end…