Chapter 433: The Unjust Mob

Chapter 433: The Unjust Mob

"Summon, Canyon Swift Crab! Go and assist Grandma Babaya."

Without the hostage's concerns and the interference of the spell, Rod's primary worry now was the old man's health.

As for Laxus, with Mira and Elusa, two S-class members, and Rod, an A-class late-stage expert at the peak of his power, almost reaching the half-step S-class level, they had more than enough strength on their side.

If all else failed, they could always resort to a grand scheme, wreaking havoc on the grand cathedral—a future wedding venue that they didn't want to destroy.

Fried was escorted back to the guild by Gray, while Rod and Mira hurried towards the church.

Back at the guild, Wilhelm was busy informing everyone of the locations of their injured comrades, allowing them to go out and 'collect' their injured friends. They also took the opportunity to assess the damage caused to businesses and residents during the incident.

The girls, who had just recovered from their petrified state, each had their own tasks. Bisca set out to find Alzack, while Reby, no longer tasked with rewriting spells, went out to search for Jet and Troy.

Juvia wanted to find Gray but was informed that he was already on his way back, so she decided to greet him instead.

Kana, after much thought, felt that there were already enough people after Laxus, and she should first help bring back the injured members before heading to the church.

Lucy visited the infirmary to check on the Guild Master before rushing out to help with the rescue operation.

The commotion at Fairy Tail had not yet caused significant disruption to the entire festival.

Although there were many brawls, as Laxus had mentioned, it was like an entertaining side show. The only concern was whether they would be able to hold the Magic Parade later that night, considering the intensity of the fights.

At that moment, a crucial special effects artist for the Magic Parade appeared in the church, carrying several uniquely shaped staffs on his back.

Laxus' expression showed a hint of surprise: "I didn't expect the first person here to be you, Mistgun. Do you also enjoy this game?"

Mistgun didn't respond to his question, as he personally preferred the guild's unity. He hoped Laxus would give him some face:

"Your three assistants have all been defeated, right? I think it's best to end this and apologize at the guild... If you're sincere, I believe everyone will forgive you."

"Such a naive person," Laxus didn't acknowledge his words either, instead talking about what interested him the most,

"Do you know who the strongest person in Fairy Tail is? Both you and I are highly anticipated in the rumors."

"I'm not interested in such things, but if I had to say, it should be Gildarts."

"That guy doesn't count; he hasn't been back for ages. Among the others..." Laxus casually dismissed a troublesome existence and continued,

"There's no need to mention those who haven't reached S-class. Elusa has good potential, but she's still too weak. Mira just regained her strength, so she's even less likely..."

Mistgun was baffled by Laxus' arrogance and couldn't help but retort, "You say those two women aren't strong enough? Are your eyes broken?"

Unfazed, Laxus continued, "I acknowledge your strength, Mistgun. Let's compete for the title of Fairy Tail's strongest!"

Mistgun held a staff in his hand, "You only have eyes for such things. I never knew you were so shallow."

"Come on, let's fight for the title of the strongest. Make your move, Mistgun, or should I call you..."

Laxus seemed to have a talent for attracting hatred, and Mistgun swung his staff, striking out.

An absurdly large magic bullet flew out, and Laxus hastily waved his hand to counter it with lightning.

A powerful explosion reverberated through the church's hall, shattering all the windows on the first and second floors. Gusts of wind blew out from the doors and windows, stirring up clouds of dust.

People nearby hurriedly ran away to seek shelter.

Continuous flashes of lightning and magic array lights shone through the doors and windows, and the surging magic power was felt by almost every archmage in the city, signaling a grand battle in that direction.

"Elusa!"

"Rod, Mira."

The three met on the street outside the church, already aware of their opponent's movements through Wilhelm.

As Elusa had arrived a few seconds earlier, Rod casually asked, "Who's inside?"

Elusa shook her head, "Not sure yet, but to fight Laxus to this extent, it's probably that person."

Indeed, as the three entered, they immediately saw Mistgun's figure.

However, at that moment, Mistgun was floating in mid-air, enveloped by lightning emanating from the golden magic array below.

Across from him, Laxus was surrounded by the light of five magic arrays—gold, green, red, black, and purple.

Rod stood firm, receiving the Treant's attack and donning the Ember Crown.

Unfortunately, Mystogan's 'Five-Layer Magic Formation - Divine Dance' was merely a powerful sleep spell, a control skill with no real damage.

The Ember Crown was also useless.

"Ughhhh!"

"Wooooo!"

The two struggled against each other's magic, their labored shouts echoing. It was rare to hear such sounds from these two.

The light quickly dissipated, and Laxus straightened his body, "You're just a bunch of nuisances... Do you really think you're worthy of challenging me for the title of 'Strongest'?"

Mystogan fell to the ground, seemingly unharmed. It was said that he was an Enchantment-type Archmage, and his clothes might all be magical items.

"Are you okay?" Mira and Erza asked, concerned about Mystogan's condition.

"I'm fine," Mystogan tugged at his face mask, turning away from Erza and not wanting her to see his face.

He was now considering that with these three present, he should be able to leave.

Rod answered Laxus's question, "Strongest? Don't be ridiculous. We're here to bring you back."

"You caused all this chaos in the guild and the town just for something so trivial?" Rod continued.

Among the five present, only Laxus seemed interested in the title of 'Strongest'.

The other four didn't understand what he was thinking.

Rod bluntly expressed his opinion, "You're an idiot."

Laxus was enraged, and a thick bolt of lightning shot towards Rod.

"Change Armor - Thunder Emperor's Armor!"

Erza's body was enveloped in a pale blue armor, and she brandished a long spear to defend Rod.

The golden lightning was blocked by a semi-transparent barrier that suddenly appeared on the spear, and Erza remained unharmed.

"Receive - Soul of Satan!" Mira couldn't block it, but she knew Rod could handle it, so she chose to directly attack Laxus.

Mira stood to the side, her right hand raised, and three black magic balls filled with surging energy were continuously fired by her.

Laxus also extended his arm, using the golden lightning in his hand to counter, causing the magic balls to explode in mid-air.

The thunderous explosion shattered the stone bricks on the cathedral floor, sending them flying.

"Summon, Azure Carved Magic Statue, Crimson Marked Treant! Insight Crown, Ember Crown."

Following the standard battle procedure, Rod summoned two Magic Statues and two Treants, bestowing red and blue buffs on his four teammates.

The four large creatures completed their tasks and lined up, then ran towards the outer gate.

Their next task was to avoid getting killed and continuously provide buffs to their allies.

"You're just as the rumors say, always hiding behind others, especially women," Laxus taunted Rod, "Or should I praise you for your 'Strategist' style?"

Rod was now curious as to where Laxus had heard such outdated information. In the recent Phantom Lord and Paradise Tower battles, Laxus had always been at the forefront...

"Your provocation skills need more practice before you show off," Rod, upon hearing outdated intelligence from the enemy, didn't get angry; he just wanted to laugh.

Rod waved his hand, "Alright, let's finish this quickly. We have the Magic Parade tonight, and it's tiring."

"You..." Laxus was enveloped in lightning from head to toe, "Quickly finish? Who gave you the nerve to look down on me?"

Rod nodded; this was a proper provocation.

Fried mentioned that one of the main causes of this incident was the recent issue of the Archmage Weekly, which had published many embarrassing stories about the guild. Many had read the magazine and loudly mocked them, making Laxus feel belittled...

In other words, this guy hated being looked down upon the most.

And although his methods were bizarre, he was probably concerned about the guild, or at least its reputation.

Of course, these changes didn't alter the fact that he had harmed his companions, and severe punishment was necessary. Exiling him from the guild wasn't out of the question.

Before that, of course, he had to be taken down first.

"That's enough, Laxus!" Erza charged forward, thrusting the Thunder Emperor's Spear towards Laxus.

Laxus grasped the tip of the spear with one hand.

Erza continued to push forward, but the blue lightning that emerged from the spear tip seemed to have no effect on Laxus's body.

"How could such weak lightning..."

Laxus's words were cut short as he suddenly frowned, feeling a burning sensation in his palm as the red flowing light on the spear turned into flames.

"This is..." Laxus immediately unleashed a powerful lightning attack, channeling it through his spear towards Erza.

"Ahhhh!" Despite wearing the Thunder Emperor's Armor, which could reduce the power of lightning, Erza still felt a stinging sensation.

"Erza!" Mira's wings behind her flapped, and she rushed forward like an arrow, throwing a right hook towards Laxus' face.

Laxus released Erza's spear tip and raised his arm to defend.

But just as he blocked the right hook, Mira's left fist struck again. Laxus had to defend once more, and at the same time, he threw a punch towards Mira.

The two engaged in a dizzying exchange of punches, making it seem like there were over a dozen arms attacking simultaneously, despite only having four arms between them.

In the blink of an eye, the two clashed in a fierce battle of strength, with Mira ending the exchange with an uppercut side kick.

Laxus raised his arm to defend.

He sensed something amiss; Mira's attacks, just like Erza's previous spear attack, still caused a burning pain even though he managed to block them.

By this point in the fight, both of Laxus' sleeves were torn, yet the battle seemed evenly matched. However, judging by their clothes, it appeared as if Laxus had already lost.

Were those strange red lights the reason? Laxus quickly made his judgment, but what about the blue light?

After blocking Mira's kick, before he could counterattack, a figure appeared above him—it was Rod.

Rod had a pair of crimson dragon wings on his back, a dragon tail, and his hands and feet had transformed into dragon claws. His face was covered with flame-like dragon scales, resembling a half-mask with an exposed nose.

This was the first time Laxus had seen Rod in this form, and it was the first time for Erza as well. Although it resembled the appearance of absorbing a Mountain Dragon's soul, it was clearly a different magic.

Hellfire Dragon Soul!

Rod never expected that the first real battle of the Hellfire Dragon Soul would be against his own guildmate.

Thinking of this, Rod felt a twinge of discomfort, so he added a bit more strength to his attack: "Hellfire Dragon's Crushing Fist!"

Rod's right dragon claw formed into a fist, and as it smashed down, it seemed to thicken with molten lava from the fist to the elbow.

The dazzling red firelight and intense heat made it impossible to underestimate this punch.

And with that feeling...

"Interesting, is this your true power?" Perhaps testing Rod's strength, Laxus had no intention of dodging. Instead, he channeled golden lightning throughout his body, raised both arms, and braced himself to endure the attack.

Boom!

The downward punch landed on Laxus' arm, and molten lava erupted like a blooming trumpet flower.

"Ugh..." Laxus' feet shattered the floor beneath him, and a small piece of the ground sank several inches.

Immediately after, more lava and hellfire erupted from Rod's fist, forming a raging lava waterfall that engulfed Laxus from above.

In reality, there were three inconspicuous red streams of light mixed within, landing on Laxus' arm as the punch struck.

Rod showed no mercy. With a good opportunity, he called for his companions to continue the pursuit: "Mira, Erza!"

"Absorb · Demon Hiert!"

Mira transformed into Hiert's form, her cloak billowing, surrounded by hellfire.

"Change · Fire Emperor's Armor!"

Erza donned a set of fiery Fire Emperor's Armor, but in her hand, she held a large serrated sword that matched the Hellfire Armor.

The two acted simultaneously. Before the lava and hellfire had completely dissipated, one demon claw struck at the heart, while the other swung the large sword horizontally, penetrating the red waterfall and hitting Laxus within.

"Ahh!"

Laxus was knocked back, his coat almost completely burned away, and there were visible scars on his arm.

His chest and abdomen also had torn clothing, with five thin claw marks in one spot and a horizontal sword wound in another.

Rod took a deep breath, and a surge of lava mixed with hellfire erupted from his mouth: "Hellfire Dragon's Roar!"

"Is this your confidence?!" But Laxus revealed a smile, adjusting his body in mid-air and grabbing the ground to halt his retreat.

He also took a deep breath, and a golden lightning storm erupted from his mouth: "Thunder Dragon's... Roar!"

"What?!"

Mira, Erza, and Mystogan all showed looks of disbelief.

Laxus was also a Dragon Slayer Archmage?!

They had never heard of such a thing!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end