"Uaaaaagh!!"
Hex was the first to act. Brandishing a small hand-axe in his left hand, he charged straight at Yugo in a blind rush.
With a roar, Hex swung his axe down from high above his head. But Yugo was faster, slipping inside his guard and driving a Palm Strike into the youth's chest before the blade could even descend. Hex gasped as the air was knocked out of his lungs, his momentum reversed as he was shoved backward.
"Gah... hff...!?"
Bewildered by the fact that he had been struck despite being the one on the offensive, Hex groaned in a pain so sharp it made him forget how to breathe.
Observing the exchange with wide eyes, Anhel offered her own assessment of Yugo’s movements.
"His nerves are impressive enough, staying that calm in the face of an attack, but his speed is even better. I’m amazed he can move so nimbly while wearing full plate. Is it some kind of special upgrade?"
"No," Fee replied. "I’ve made a few adjustments to suit my brother, but nothing major. Most of what you're seeing is my brother's own physical performance."
"You’re kidding! That’s incredible. He’s drawing out the Blaster's specs to their absolute limit!"
At Fee's words, Anhel's eyes sparkled. She began to stare intently at Yugo’s every move, her gaze practically devouring the scene.
Even while clad in the Blaster—a heavy, old-model Full-body Armor-type Magic Item—Yugo displayed unbelievable agility. He was dominating the battle with overwhelming ease.
Yugo generally refrained from initiating attacks. Instead, he employed a combat style that focused on parrying Hex's charges and delivering precise counters in the same motion.
He was like a matador toyed with a raging bull. Even in the heavy armor, which should have inevitably caused some sluggishness, his reactions were instantaneous. He drove Hex into a corner without allowing a single blow to land.
"Hah... hah...! Dammit! Stop acting so smug! Quit dodging every single damn thing!"
"Oh, my bad. In that case, I'll give you the head-on fight you want!"
"!!?"
Annoyed by the shout from the frustrated Hex, Yugo gave a sharp response and kicked off the ground, soaring into the air.
As both Anhel and Hex stood dazed by a level of mobility unthinkable for someone in heavy armor, Yugo used the momentum of his descent to deliver a powerful knifehand strike.
"Blaster Chop!!"
"Nuah!? Gh—guuuuuuh!!"
Hex managed to intercept the blow with his axe at the very last second, but the sheer force behind the strike sent a numbing vibration through his hands.
His face turned pale as he realized instantly that a direct hit would have been the end. Watching him struggle, the Industrial Department students jeered mockingly.
"What a joke. Hex is pathetic if he’s getting toyed with like this by a guy using an old-model Magic Item."
"His attacks are too linear and predictable. It’s no wonder he’s getting handled."
They laughed and sneered as Yugo continued to make a fool of Hex, but Anhel watched her peers with cold, dismissive eyes.
Deciding she didn’t want to waste another second on fools, she looked away and returned to evaluating the two combatants in her mind.
(It’s true that Hex’s movements are linear and simple because the blood has rushed to his head. However, the weight behind his strikes hasn't changed. The abnormal one here is Yugo, who’s parrying those blows with absolute minimal movement.)
If those two mocking Hex were to step up against him right now, they would undoubtedly be unable to dodge or block his strikes. They’d be knocked out in a single hit.
Hex's movements were linear, but they weren't slow, and his power was more than sufficient. Anhel could see that clearly from where she stood.
Yugo was the one who was extraordinary—not only was he dodging everything, but he was landing counters and had completely broken his opponent’s aggressive spirit with a single move. Anhel felt a sense of disappointment toward her classmates; to a casual observer, Hex looked weak, but they were supposed to be craftsmen. Their inability to see the truth was pathetic.
(They hate both Yugo and Hex, so they just want to believe a pathetic guy is being beaten by someone even worse so they can laugh at them. Correctly judging a user’s skill is supposed to be a craftsman’s job. How shameful...)
Wondering when the Industrial Department students had become so incompetent, Anhel let out a small sigh.
She pushed aside thoughts of her classmates, whose judgment was clouded by resentment, and decided to measure as much of Yugo’s strength as possible. She called out to him loudly.
"Hey, Yugo! You’re hiding a trump card, aren't you? If you don’t mind, let me see that too!"
"Oh? You can tell? As expected of a craftsman! Alright, then... I’ll live up to those expectations! Super Transformation!!"
Revealing the Blaster's hidden ability to the woman who had seen through his restraint, Yugo unleashed his power.
He was enveloped in a brilliant purple light that dazzled the onlookers. When it faded, he stood before the Industrial Department students clad in a form of heavy, reinforced armor.
Even the students who despised him couldn't hide their shock, standing frozen at the sight of the Blaster’s radical transformation.
"The armor... it changed? Judging by the color shift, did the composition of the metal change? No, was it the density of the Magic Power within the Micro-particle Metal? Based on the geometry of the plates, it exceeds the total volume of metal originally stored in the Blaster. What factor triggered that manifestation? How is Yugo drawing that form out at will? This is fascinating... I can't get enough of this...!!"
The phenomenon of the armor's shape literally transforming was something she had never seen before.
Seeing that it wasn't a fluke but something triggered by Yugo’s own will, Anhel’s eyes gleamed with an even more intense light. She began to mutter her analysis under her breath, a manic, borderline-crazed smile spreading across her face.
With her heavy breathing making her chest heave in excitement, she made no effort to hide her exhilaration. She summed up her feelings in a single, short sentence.
"God... it’s absolutely thrilling...!!"