"Tsk! Damned Magic Armor Beast. Just because it’s invisible, it thinks it can do whatever it wants!"
"Eh? Wait—!? Wh-What’s happen—gah!"
"Wa-Waaah!? Wa-wa-wa, gaaack!!"
While Yugo and his companions managed to evade the onslaught through raw intuition and by sensing the creature’s presence, the Hero Candidates—still clueless as to what was even happening—fell prey to the Magic Armor Beast one after another.
They knew the enemy's general location, but because they couldn't see its movements, it was incredibly difficult to counter.
Experiencing firsthand just how troublesome an invisible opponent could be, Yugo and the others struggled to find an opening while barely managing to dodge the invisible strikes.
"I can't tell what kind of attacks it's even launching if I can't see its movements! We can't form a strategy like this, Yugo!"
"I know! But we’re not completely in the dark. We’ll gather every fragment of information we can and pin down its abilities and attack methods!"
They didn't know how it moved. They didn't know how it attacked. But they weren't without clues.
Evade the attacks, gather info, and find the answer one piece at a time. Yugo shouted that while they weren't exactly a Two-in-One Detective, he could surely identify the enemy if he scoured the library in his mind using the keywords he’d gathered. To this, Ryuga responded.
"In that case, I have an idea. It’s not quite a punishment for their peeping, but let’s make these guys useful."
"Wait—!? Hey, Ryuga!?"
Muttering those words, Ryuga casually grabbed Woz and Torin by their backs as they rolled around on the ground.
As Yugo watched with a look of pure shock, Ryuga hauled them to their feet and shoved them toward the Magic Armor Beast. Merciless attacks immediately slammed into the two "test subjects."
"Huh? Wh-What are you—buh!?"
"St-Stop! Ugohhh!! Gack!!"
Something slammed into the face of the terrified Woz. His head snapped to the side as if he’d been slapped, and the momentum sent him spinning away like a ballerina.
Witnessing the fate that awaited him, Torin cowered in fear. While he was still recoiling, a blow struck him squarely in the stomach, doubling him over as he was sent flying backward.
"Y-You... don't you think that was a bit much, even for them?"
"It’s a noble sacrifice to prevent a crime. I'm saddened, of course, but let’s just assume their deaths—now that they’ve become stars in the sky—actually meant something."
"No, they're still alive, so don't go killing them off..."
Yugo watched Woz and Torin vanish into the distance and then looked back at the remaining Hero Candidates, who were being struck down by invisible blows as they scrambled in a panic. He couldn't help but shoot a retort at Ryuga.
While he agreed they needed a lesson, Yugo’s face twitched at the tone of his Partner, who didn't seem to feel a shred of remorse. Then, Marcos spoke up with a grim expression.
"Yugo... did you see that? They were blown away in sequence."
"Huh? Yeah, I saw, but what about it?"
"Those two weren't hit at the same time; they were attacked in order. Furthermore, they weren't just knocked back; they were struck from different angles—slapped across the face, punched in the gut. That means while the Magic Armor Beast’s attacks are flexible and have reach, its actual area of effect is narrow."
"…!"
Yugo’s expression instantly sharpened. He had missed that detail because he was too busy feeling sorry for Woz and Torin, but Marcos was right.
The Magic Armor Beast was attacking from a distance without moving, yet it couldn't hit multiple targets at once. It had finished off Woz first, then moved on to Torin. It could only focus on one person at a time.
"If it were using invisible magic—like a Wind Attribute spell—to attack from a distance, the timing wouldn't match. A spell like that would be able to hit a group all at once."
"Which means it’s using a whip-like weapon. But it doesn't look like it's holding one. If it were, we’d be able to see the weapon itself."
Just as an invisible man’s clothes would still be visible, any weapon it held should have been apparent to them. If it had the ability to turn whatever it held or wore invisible, it should have been able to erase the dye stuck to its face as well.
Since it hadn't, it was highly likely the creature could only turn its own physical body transparent. Therefore, the whip-like weapon was almost certainly a mutated part of its own anatomy.
(It can turn invisible. It has a retractable limb. What else...)
Yugo deepened his deduction using the keywords in his mind. One by one, the imaginary books in his brain were shelved until he closed in on the truth. Finally, he found the final, necessary piece.
"A man-shaped thing was sticking to the wall!"
That detail, witnessed by the girls who had been targeted, was the final key.
Standing before the bookshelf in his mind, Yugo grabbed the book that fluttered down, confirmed its contents, and slowly opened his eyes.
"You can vanish, you have a retractable body part, and you can stick to walls... I’ve got it! I’ve seen through your true identity!"
In that instant, Yugo sensed something whipping toward his face.
Without a hint of panic, Yugo tilted his head. Almost simultaneously, as the object grazed his ear, Yugo snatched it with both hands just as Ryuga drew his Katana.
"Giiyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
A lukewarm, slimy texture. Clutching the wet, soft thing with both hands, Yugo turned toward the source of the scream echoing through the night.
With the sound of something collapsing heavily, the Magic Armor Beast gradually revealed its green skin beneath the splotches of Rainbow Color Paint. Glaring at it, Yugo spat out the answer.
"Just as I thought. You’re a Chameleon, aren’t you?"