"Wh-what?! What the hell is that?!" Batz screamed, his eyes wide with shock.
It was only natural to be startled. A man had suddenly sprouted flames from a transformed right arm and was now hurtling toward him at high speed.
Paralyzed by the sudden turn of events, Batz could only watch as Yugo slammed into him. It was a punch backed by rocket propulsion and Yugo's entire body weight—closer to a full-body tackle than a simple strike. As Batz was sent hurtling backward, Yugo shouted to Melt.
"Melt, now!"
"On it! Just make sure you get out of the way, Yugo!"
Melt had been charging her Magic Power while Yugo made his move. Her Sword Ring flashed, manifesting five blades of light. She lined them up in a single row, and as they shot toward their target, they merged into a single, massive blade of energy.
Just as Batz managed to regain his footing, Melt swung her arms, unleashing her grand technique.
"Pierce him! Sword Straight!!"
"Gaaaah?! Why, you...!"
Batz caught the massive Giant Magic Power Sword with his Demonic Sword. Gritting his teeth, he dug his heels into the cobblestones, desperately resisting the overwhelming force of Melt’s attack.
He was being pushed back inch by inch, but he refused to yield. Letting out a feral roar, he unleashed the power of the Demonic Sword. With a violent upward swing, he parried the giant blade into the sky.
"Graaaagh!"
Sparks of reddish-black lightning erupted around him—the physical manifestation of the sword's Torrent of Magic Power. Clad in the discharge of his own unstable emotions, Batz threw everything he had into an upward slash, successfully deflecting the Magic Power Sword at the very last second.
"I... I will...! I'll stay with En... forever...!"
Batz had survived the ultimate move, but the effort had pushed his body to its breaking point.
Even as the curse of the Demonic Sword eroded his mind, he continued to scream out the obsession that drove him. He glared at the enemies before him and the cafe standing behind them, his voice raw with desperation.
"If it weren't for this shop! If it weren't for you people! En would have stayed with me forever! Disappear! DIE! GET LOST!!"
Blood-colored Magic Power began to coil around the Demonic Sword as Batz prepared a massive shockwave.
If he just swung this blade, he could destroy everything—the pests in his way and the hateful place that had stolen En from him.
Blinded by hatred and a magically-amplified bloodlust, he prepared to release the strike. But then—
"...I told you. I'm stopping you right here."
"?!?"
Batz’s bloodshot eyes finally registered Yugo. The boy’s right arm was wreathed in a brilliant, crimson radiance.
Yugo had retracted the rocket-boosters, returning his armor to its standard form. He was low to the ground, legs braced in a wide stance as if stretching his tendons. He pulled his right arm back, twisting his torso to coil his strength like a spring.
As Yugo focused his Magic Power into his fist, the silhouette looked strangely familiar.
Earlier, Melt had mentioned two ways to beat Batz. One was hit-and-run tactics. The other was long-range combat.
Yugo didn't have many long-range options. He didn't have anything he could fire repeatedly like Melt. But he wasn't entirely without a projectile.
He had exactly one.
It took time to charge, making it impractical for most fights, but its power was absolute. It could knock out even the most heavily armored foe in a single blow.
It was the very first move he had used when he first donned the Blaster armor: a simple, devastating punch that released compressed magical energy.
But this time, it was different. Now, that energy was converted into pure fire.
The magic crystal his comrade-in-arms had given him had upgraded his Blaster armor. It allowed Yugo to visualize his power more vividly, bringing his inner image closer to the finishing moves of his dreams.
"...Skull, I'm putting your gift to good use!"
With a shout to the friend who had granted him this strength, Yugo struck.
He pulled his left hand back and stepped forward with a thunderous stomp, thrusting his right fist out toward Batz.
Like a karate punch driven by a pulley, his fist shot forward, unleashing the concentrated Magic Power as a colossal projectile of fire.
"Special Move! Dragon Fang Blaster!!"
"What?! Whaaaaaaa!"
The flames erupted from Yugo’s arm, taking the form of a Flame Dragon as they lunged for their target.
Batz tried to release his own reddish-black Magic Power to intercept it, but his dark magic was swallowed whole by the Flame Dragon and incinerated in an instant.
The hit was direct. The explosion was massive. The force of the dragon’s impact sent the Demonic Sword flying from Batz’s grip.
Batz tumbled across the ground, groaning. He tried to crawl back toward the sword, but Yugo’s hand clamped firmly around his wrist.
"It's over. Give it up. Don't cause any more pain for the friends who actually care about you."
"Ugh... nng..."
Whether from the damage or the backlash of the Demonic Sword, Batz finally hit his limit. His head slumped forward as he lost consciousness.
The battle was over. Yugo deactivated his Blaster armor. Jinba, seeing the fight was won, emerged from the cafe and turned to Rommelo.
"Rommelo-san! Call for the medical squad and reinforcements immediately! And get the Demonic Sword Countermeasure Unit down here too!"
"R-right. On it..."
Rommelo, still looking dazed by the sheer scale of the fight, followed Jinba's instructions and began calling for backup.
Once he was moving, Jinba turned to Yugo.
"Yugo, great work. Taking down a Demonic Sword wielder is a hell of an achievement!"
"...I realized it once we started fighting. That thing is terrifying. If Batz actually knew how to use a sword, or if he’d been fully consumed by it, I don't know if we would have won."
"Yeah, I hear you. But don't worry. The recovery team Rommelo called will handle the sword. As for Batz, it looks like he wasn't fully corrupted. It’ll take time, but he should recover. He’ll have to serve his time for what he’s done, of course."
"Right. So, the case is officially closed then..."
Having felt the true horror of the Demonic Sword, Yugo found it hard to relax.
He nodded at Jinba's words, exhaling a long, weary breath as he tried to convince himself that it was finally over.
"I'll leave the rest to the Security Force. I am... so incredibly... tired!"
Relieved that the crisis had finally passed, Yugo flopped down onto the ground and stared up at the sky.
As the medical squad carried Batz and Sanga away, and as En watched them go with a look of deep concern, Yugo offered a silent prayer. He prayed that, despite everything, the future would hold some light for the three of them.