Ultraman X split its processing power, dedicating most of it to Mordred's borrowed strength, essentially "printing a card" on the spot. A small portion of its processing power was reserved for maintaining Taichi's strategic retreat from the monster.
It was no longer possible to turn around and attack the monster, Jigjil, from behind. Taichi's only option was to find a way to slow it down so he could lure it to a deserted area.
Ex-Slicer—!
A blue, arrow-shaped beam of light shot from Ultraman X's right hand. Taichi's target was the monster's wings where they connected to its body, hoping to break them. But with most of X's processing power tied up with the card-printing, there wasn't enough to help him aim. The beam went slightly wide, hitting the fleshy part of the monster's wing instead.
Jigjil's body tilted to the side slightly, but it quickly recovered its flight. With a pained cry, a red heat ray erupted from its mouth, surging forward.
Taichi, who was constantly monitoring what was happening behind him, didn't hesitate. He changed his flight path and shot straight up, narrowly avoiding the attack. Again, Ex-Slicer!
This time, Taichi aimed for Jigjil's neck, determined to behead it. But Taichi had misjudged Jigjil's flying speed; in an instant, it accelerated and shifted its body to the side. Thankfully, Jigjil was big enough that the beam didn't miss completely. It hit the monster's tail, and the very tip of its tail fell vertically toward the ground below.
But Taichi also noticed something. The monster was trying to change its position so its front was always facing him. Based on a monster's habit of hiding and protecting its weak points, Taichi was confident its back or tail was its weakness.
Taichi's momentary joy at discovering the monster's potential weakness made him lose focus, and Jigjil took advantage of the opening. A heat ray shot from its mouth again. This time, Taichi couldn't dodge in time, and his leg was hit. Although the damage was transferred to Ultraman X, the intense heat made Taichi want to jump around. But when he heard X's anguished cry, his heart clenched with pain.
"You damn bastard!" Taichi roared.
The reason Taichi disliked close combat was partly because he was afraid of getting hurt, but also because the injuries were forcibly transferred to Ultraman X's body. He was soft-hearted and couldn't stand hearing X's cries.
Ultraman X Double Slicer—!
Dozens of light beams shot from X's hand, aiming for Jigjil's head and the base of its wings. From what he could see, the monster's most vulnerable points were its large wings. However, considering the monster used these wings to soar through space and fly at high speeds, they were likely only seemingly weak, but were in fact composed of tough, tense muscles.
And Taichi's guess was right. The monster suddenly flapped its wings, creating a sudden gust of wind that forcefully shifted the path of the light beams. This was ridiculous! They were condensed energy! But since there were over a dozen beams, a few of them managed to hit the monster. One, by a stroke of luck, went straight for its eye.
With a shriek, the monster clutched its wounded eye with one of its arms, its body free-falling toward the ground. At the same time, X's card-printing was finished.
"Mordred's power has been successfully used. Taichi, let's try out our new equipment," X's voice said in Taichi's ear. Then, a... phone card appeared before Taichi's eyes.
Seriously?! A phone card! The card even had an image of Mordred on it.
Switch Phone Card!
—Mordred Armor!
Ultraman X's body was covered in a layer of silver-white armor, and the antennas on the sides of its head also shot up.
"This armor can hide some of our data and resist external information and energy intrusions," Ultraman X said, explaining the Mordred Armor's abilities to Taichi. "In addition, this armor can provide a small amount of stamina recovery."
"X, did that monster's heat ray do much damage?" Taichi asked with concern.
"...Don't worry, the damage wasn't much, it was just a lot of heat. I was mostly caught off guard. Ultramen have a certain resistance to high temperatures," X said comfortingly.
"You sure didn't sound like you were fine," Mordred said, clenching her fists. "Also, I feel like I'm connected to both of you now. It's a really strange feeling."
"It's probably because the armor's power comes from you," X said, trying to change the subject. "Alright, no more chatting. Let's figure out how to defeat the monster!"
"Right, I noticed that monster kept defending its back. I suspect that might be its weak point," Taichi said, flying down while communicating his discovery to Mordred and X.
"Its back, huh." Mordred flashed a cunning smile.
"Mordred, you have a lot of combat experience. Give me some advice; I'm going to hit its back hard!" Taichi said through gritted teeth.
"No problem! X! Pull up your list of skills!" Combat consultant Mordred was now online.
With a defensive armor and a temporary combat consultant in Mordred, Taichi felt a little more confident in close-quarters combat.
The now one-eyed Jigjil furiously flapped its wings, and the ensuing storm destroyed the forest, leaving the ground in a mess. Thankfully, this mountain range had a road and was close to farmland, so there were no houses nearby. Otherwise, the storm, which had a radius of several hundred meters, would have been enough to uproot homes.
"Don't be afraid of the wind. It'll just give you some resistance. As for the trees caught in the storm, my armor will make sure you don't feel a thing and X won't get hurt," Mordred said, giving him advice while Ultraman X hung in mid-air.
"That monster has thick skin and rough flesh, and you don't have a weapon. Using a light beam would consume too much energy. To avoid wasting energy, we'll get up close and attack its back."
"First, hit the area around its good eye a few times to scare it and block its vision, then slip behind it to attack."
"Here's how to do it..."
When it came to brawling tactics, Mordred was an expert. Several light beams shot from X's hands, aimed directly at Jigjil's face. With X's full processing power, Taichi could finally aim properly.