Reina felt a flicker of intimidation as Yugo stood before her, clad in his new blue armor. Though it possessed a slim silhouette, it radiated a tangible sense of pressure and raw power.
Judging by how he had neutralized her flames and the sudden manifestation of that staff, she realized this was an opponent she couldn't afford to underestimate. She narrowed her eyes.
"What’s with the getup? Don't tell me you're a Clear Plate holder, too?"
"Don't put me on your level," Yugo replied. "This is a power my brother and my comrades entrusted to me—a strength meant to protect. Blaster Fifth Form: [Blue Armor]."
As he spoke, the once-black Blaster surged with a new, azure energy. Draconic motifs adorned the headpiece and various sections of the plating. Despite the transformation, Reina maintained her air of absolute confidence. If anything, she seemed to relish the appearance of a worthy test for her strength.
"Heh. I don't really get it, but I guess it’s just another magic item. Fine by me. Let's see how long that power holds up against mine!"
With a sharp cry, Reina ignited her hands, launching a relentless barrage of fireballs.
Yugo glanced back at the Idrima mother and child behind him. He began spinning his staff like a propeller, channeling water through the weapon to create a shimmering aquatic veil. As the fireballs struck the water-drenched barrier, they were either deflected or hissed into steam, extinguished one after another.
While repelling the continuous assault, Yugo increased the speed of his rotation and let out a fierce shout.
"Hah! Seiya! Hyaaaaaah!"
"Tch! So that's how you blocked my flames earlier," Reina spat, clicking her tongue in annoyance as she watched him effortlessly parry her fire.
Still, she reasoned that as long as she kept up the pressure, he would be too busy protecting the monsters to close the distance. She settled in for a war of attrition, continuing her fiery volley—or so she intended.
"Ugh?! What the—?!"
A sudden, piercing pain shot through her shoulder, forcing her to halt her attack.
She glanced at the source of the injury and found a purple magic sword buried in her flesh. Glancing back, she saw Melt watching her with a smug, triumphant expression.
"Did you forget about me? You didn't think Yugo was the only one you were fighting, did you?"
"You... you cheating brat!"
Reina’s fury literally flared as she realized she had left herself wide open by assuming the fight was a duel.
However, a sudden presence from behind made her gasp. She whipped her head around only to see Yugo leaping toward her, staff raised high.
"Dammit! Every one of you is so underhanded!"
Reina clicked her tongue again. It was irritating that Yugo was capitalizing on the opening Melt had created, but she wasn't entirely rattled yet.
Given his timing, she could still intercept him. He thought he had the drop on her, but she was about to deliver a brutal counter-hit. Calculating the distance perfectly, Reina ignited her leg and swung a high kick meant to take Yugo's head off.
Her strike should have landed perfectly, but an impossible sight unfolded just before impact.
"Hah!"
"Wha—?! Gwah!"
Yugo suddenly kicked off the empty air, performing a massive second jump.
Leaping again without a foothold, he flipped forward in mid-air and landed gracefully behind her. Reina’s full-power kick met nothing but air, leaving her exposed as Yugo delivered a punishing horizontal strike with his staff into her midsection.
The blow, effectively a counter-attack, sent Reina staggering backward. She doubled over, clutching her stomach and groaning in pain.
"You... how did you... jump again in mid-air?!"
"Who knows? Why don't you try to figure it out with your own eyes!"
Yugo kicked off the ground and took to the sky once more.
Reina threw a straight right to intercept him, but Yugo suddenly shifted to the left while still in the air. Evading her punch, he struck her knee joint with the staff, causing her leg to buckle instantly.
"This guy... again?! Gwah! Agggh!"
A follow-up strike rattled her chest, and as she tried to scramble back to her feet, he struck her joints from the opposite direction. Yugo was systematic, accumulating damage through a fluid, relentless series of strikes.
The pain was agonizing, but the tactical disadvantage was worse: Reina couldn't grasp the secret behind his movement. As long as she didn't understand how he was maneuvering so inexplicably in the air, she couldn't counter him.
Her inability to adapt bred panic. Panic dulled her reflexes and ruined her flow. A vicious cycle had begun.
"Damn it! He’s too fast!"
Her composure evaporated, replaced by a frantic, messy rage. Like a fire fueled by poor timber, she was burning hot but losing her focus, her field of vision narrowing by the second.
Meanwhile, Fee and the others watched from a safe distance, clearly seeing the mechanism behind Yugo’s mid-air acrobatics.
"It’s water! High-pressure water streams are jetting out from the armor for a split second!"
"Yugo is using his posture to balance against the thrust of those jets," Melt added. "That's what allows him to move like that in mid-air!"
The defining characteristic of Blaster’s fifth form, the [Blue Armor], was its incredible agility. Its slim profile allowed for high speeds, but its true lethality lay in its mid-air maneuverability.
This strength came from more than just the armor’s weight; it was the result of specialized leg enhancements and water jet devices placed throughout the suit to act as thrusters. By emitting a burst of high-pressure water from the soles of his feet, Yugo could perform a pseudo-double jump. By venting water from the joints, he could shift laterally in mid-air. Though difficult to master, the armor offered terrifying mobility to those who could handle it.
The trade-off was a lack of upper-body reinforcement and a defense that relied almost entirely on the natural resistances of the dragon materials. The staff was chosen specifically to compensate for this—its reach allowed Yugo to maintain distance, turning his mobility into a deadly, unpredictable weapon.
He had utilized that same jumping power earlier to reach the Idrima monsters in a single bound. Of course, such mobility was only possible because of Yugo’s own technical skill. He had poured himself into training to master this power, all to grow closer to the hero he aspired to be.
"Dammit! Dammit! Stop bouncing around like a flea! You're so annoying!"
Faced with Yugo’s perfected technique, Reina—who relied on straightforward martial arts—was being toyed with.
Even when she tried to engage him head-on, his staff kept her at bay. When she tried to close the gap, he simply leaped away, dealing damage with a sweeping strike as he repositioned. She couldn't even transition to long-range combat; Yugo stayed at a precise middle distance, preventing her from exposing an opening.
Still blinded by rage, she failed to see the secret of the water jets. She funneled her anger into her flames, triggering a massive explosion that finally forced Yugo back. But it wasn't enough to turn the tide.
She knew she would lose if she stayed on the defensive. Her only chance was a decisive strike.
Reina lowered her center of gravity and charged straight at Yugo. Seeing her approach, Yugo didn't retreat; he leaped forward, charging straight back at her.