"Ann! The time limit... it was five minutes, wasn't it?"
"Yugo... you can't be serious! You're planning to use that? It’s too dangerous! It's still unfinished!"
Yugo reconfirmed the time limit she had mentioned during yesterday’s experiment. Realizing exactly what he was about to do, Anhel desperately tried to talk him out of it. As his Exclusive Engineer, she feared for his life, but Yugo responded with a voice heavy with resolve.
"I know. But at this rate, either Isaac or I will end up dead. This is the only way left to stop him."
"But...!"
"Ann... what is Brother trying to do? What exactly is that form?"
Fee had been listening to the exchange in silence. He finally spoke up, his voice trembling with anxiety. Anhel glanced at him, her face contorting in distress, before she looked down and shook her head.
"Lady Anhel? What’s happening?"
"..."
Anhel couldn't even answer Claire's plea. She seemed lost, unable to find the words to explain the gravity of the situation.
As Fee and the others grew more frantic at her silence, Yugo stood his ground against Isaac and crossed his arms in front of his face. He clenched his fists so tightly his bones creaked, peering through the gap with a sharp, piercing gaze. Even Isaac, his mind warped by the Demonic Swords, felt a flicker of primal fear.
"W-what are you doing? That kind of bluff won't work on me! I-I'm the one... I'm the strongest one here!"
Isaac lashed out with the Demonic Swords, sounding like a child throwing a tantrum. He unleashed waves of Magic Power Blades, firing them blindly at Yugo as if trying to drown out the terror rising in his chest.
"Just die! Die already, Scum Yugo!"
"Yugo, look out!"
Melt’s scream echoed through the arena as the devastating strike bore down on him. Without attempting to dodge or defend, Yugo took the full force of Isaac’s slash head-on. A massive explosion rocked the battlefield.
"Ha... haha! I did it! I did it! I win! This duel is mine! Ah-hyahyahyahya! Hya... hya...?"
Feeling the weight of the impact, Isaac was certain of his victory. His face twisted into a jubilant, manic grin as he laughed, convinced he had finally put an end to the loathsome Yugo with his new power. But then, an alien sound reached his ears.
"What... what is that sound?"
Isaac stumbled back, a crushing sense of dread washing over him. He stared at the thick black smoke rising from where Yugo had been standing. A sound rumbled from within the shroud—something familiar, yet he couldn't quite place where he’d heard it before. Then, he noticed the anomaly.
"Why... why is the smoke black?"
The clouds drifting before him were pitch black. If his attack had merely kicked up dust and debris, the cloud should have been brown. This black soot was entirely wrong. What was the source of it? Where had it come from?
As Isaac stood paralyzed by confusion and fear, a thunderous roar erupted from the black smoke.
"A-ha... ahahahaha! I get it. I know that sound!"
There were too many things Isaac didn't understand. He didn't know what was happening or what the smoke meant, but hearing that roar brought one realization to light.
It was the sound of ignition.
But it wasn't the small click of a stove or a handheld lighter. This was something far more violent. It was like the ignition of a jet engine.
It was the sound of flames with immense pressure and thermal energy erupting all at once, roaring as they consumed the air. Isaac’s eyes went wide as a Crimson Lotus Radiance pierced through the black smoke, a light so intense it felt like it would sear his retinas.
"Ha... haha... wait, what?"
The red light cut through the black shroud as the figure slowly approached. Isaac stood transfixed by the heavy footsteps and the swaying crimson shimmer as it finally emerged.
It was a Black Armor. A beautiful, pulsating crystal shone with a Crimson Radiance at its center. The Magic Crystals embedded in the gauntlets and greaves flickered like a heartbeat, their intensity surging with every pulse.
Isaac found it beautiful. In the same breath, he found it terrifying.
Suddenly, a heavy mechanical drone echoed as massive flames erupted from the collar of the armor. The fire spouted with the force of a volcanic eruption before stretching out into a long, flickering trail.
It looked like a Crimson Muffler. Or perhaps a Crimson Stole.
Faced with Yugo’s new form—a silhouette of jet-black steel wreathed in the Crimson Lotus Flames—Isaac could only offer a hollow, trembling laugh.
"Aha... ahahahaha! What is that? What the hell is that thing!?"
"Sorry, Isaac. I don't have time for a lecture," Yugo said. The visor of his crimson-stained Blaster armor locked onto Isaac. His voice was quiet, yet it burned with heat. "This form is an Ultra-Short-Term Decisive Battle Type."
Isaac’s body locked up, overwhelmed by the sheer pressure and the aura of threat radiating from the black knight. Yugo tightened his fists and kicked off the ground.
"Just wait. I'm ending this right now."