While Mystogan was battling Laxus, Mira and Dark Magician Girl, who had headed toward the eastern forest, predictably encountered Freed and Dark Magician blocking their path on the outskirts.
A gentle breeze swept through the area, lifting a thin layer of dust and causing the clothes of the four figures facing one another to flutter softly.
"Stop this, Freed."
Mira tried to reason with him.
"A lot of people have already been injured, and they need treatment as soon as possible."
She looked at him seriously.
"You're not the kind of person who would willingly hurt your comrades. You know this civil war is meaningless too, don't you?"
A fleeting trace of conflict flashed through Freed's eyes.
But it disappeared almost immediately.
His grip tightened around the hilt of his rapier.
"I'm sorry."
Freed's voice was calm, but unwavering.
"Laxus's will is my will. Whatever Laxus chooses to do, I will carry it through to the very end."
"For me, that takes priority over the Guild Master and everyone else in Fairy Tail."
He raised his rapier and pointed it directly at Mira.
"So I'm sorry, Mira."
"If you want to pass through here, you'll have to defeat me first!"
As Laxus's devoted companion and staunchest supporter, Freed's loyalty to him was absolute.
In some ways, the bond between the two of them was even closer than the one between Natsu and Happy.
"If that's your answer..."
Mira's eyes narrowed.
"Then I'll have to make you calm down first."
The moment she finished speaking, terrifying dark purple Magic Power erupted from her body.
Her elegant burgundy dress whipped violently in the magical pressure as her body transformed once more.
**Satan Soul!**
The oppressive aura of Demon Mira descended over the battlefield.
Freed immediately swung his rapier.
Dark runes appeared around him as he carved forbidden scripts directly onto his own body.
At the same time, he glanced toward Dark Magician, who stood nearby with his arms crossed.
Dark Magician understood immediately.
He rotated his staff, and an equally powerful wave of Magic Power surged outward.
"Hmph!"
Dark Magician Girl stepped forward.
"I don't know how that green-haired guy managed to convince you, stinky Master, but your opponent is me!"
A pink glow immediately enveloped her body.
Her aura rose sharply, filled with confidence.
Dark Magician narrowed his eyes.
It took him only a moment to discover the source of his foolish disciple's sudden courage.
Floating beside Dark Magician Girl was a dark brown magic book.
**Magic Spellbook.**
It was a Magic Card specifically associated with the master-and-disciple pair, capable of increasing both the upper limit and output of their Magic Power.
Judging purely by the numerical increase shown by the card's effect, Dark Magician Girl's current Magic Power had already surpassed Dark Magician's!
"The outcome of a battle between Magicians isn't determined by Magic Power alone."
Dark Magician remained completely calm.
"My foolish disciple."
"We're enemies right now!"
Dark Magician Girl puffed out her cheeks angrily.
"Stop lecturing me at a time like this!"
Her pink staff immediately lit up.
Without giving him another chance to speak, she launched the first attack.
At almost the exact same moment, the battle on the other side began as well.
Demon Mira and Dark Freed shot into the air.
Boom!
Their figures collided.
Then again.
And again.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The two exchanged blows at terrifying speed, clashing repeatedly in high-speed close combat above the outskirts.
Magic collided with magic.
Explosions continuously tore through the sparsely populated area.
The booming sounds spread throughout the outskirts of Magnolia.
Even the townspeople inside the city noticed the heart-stopping commotion in the distance.
Naturally, most of them reached the same conclusion.
Fairy Tail's fireworks show this year was especially extravagant.
Even the countless lightning lacrima suspended high above Magnolia were conveniently mistaken for part of the display.
It had to be said that after all the "training" Chases had put them through over time, the residents of Magnolia had developed remarkably strong nerves.
Meanwhile, back at the Fairy Tail guild...
Makarov sat weakly in a chair, breathing heavily.
Beside him rested a bottle of heart medicine.
Just moments ago, Levy had successfully rewritten Freed's enchantment.
Makarov had originally planned to rush outside alongside Natsu and Gajeel and personally teach that unfilial grandson of his a good lesson.
Unfortunately, his excitement and anger had caused his condition to worsen.
Although it wasn't serious enough to threaten his life, participating in the civil war was now completely out of the question.
"Guild Master, please stay here and rest."
Levy tried to comfort him.
"Even if Natsu and Gajeel fail, Chases definitely won't just stand by and do nothing!"
"I really have to admit..."
Makarov let out a heavy sigh.
"I'm getting old."
After a brief pause, he raised his head again.
"How is Bisca?"
Not long ago, Bisca had attempted to shoot down one of the lightning lacrima in the sky with her sniper rifle.
However, the moment she attacked it, the Thunder Palace's Organic Link Magic activated. The resulting backlash struck Bisca with lightning and knocked her unconscious.
Trying to destroy the Thunder Palace, which consisted of nearly three hundred independent lightning lacrima, through conventional means was simply unrealistic!
"Her life isn't in danger, but she'll probably need some time to recover."
Levy recalled what she had witnessed on the guild roof.
Her hands slowly clenched into fists at her sides, and her eyes darkened.
"Laxus..."
"This time, he's really gone too far!"
"I'm sorry, Levy."
Makarov's expression became complicated.
"I frightened all of you. It's because I indulged Laxus too much..."
"No!"
Levy immediately interrupted him.
"This isn't your fault at all, Guild Master!"
Meanwhile, at the abandoned factory...
Chases sat cross-legged atop the Duelist Platform, his eyes slightly narrowed as he quietly waited for his next challenger.
Ever since Lucy had left after completing her duel, no one else from Fairy Tail had appeared.
That wasn't particularly surprising.
By now, only a handful of guild members were still capable of fighting.
Boom!
Without warning, the tightly closed factory doors were kicked open with tremendous force.
"Damn it, Chases!"
Natsu charged through the entrance, stepping directly over the fallen door.
"Hurry up and fight me!!"
His face was practically glowing with excitement.
However, after looking around the factory several times, he couldn't find Chases anywhere.
"Strange..."
Natsu scratched his head.
"Is that guy not here?"
With no other choice, he walked over to the edge of the Duelist Platform.
There, he spotted a young man sitting with his back toward him.
Natsu leaned forward and, surprisingly, asked rather politely,
"Excuse me, crab-hair guy. Have you seen a card player named Chases?"
"..."
Chases fell silent.
This guy's natural stupidity really was something else.
"Before asking such a ridiculous question..."
Chases slowly stood up.
Then he turned around.
"How about you first take a good look at who I am?"
Natsu stared at him.
His eyes widened.
"Ch-Chases?!"
Then his attention immediately shifted upward.
"What an awesome hairstyle!"
Natsu's eyes practically sparkled.
"Where'd you get it cut? I want one too!"
"Mr. Tony's Hair Salon, Number Six, South Street."
Chases answered with a smile.
"Got it!"
Having obtained the information he wanted, Natsu immediately turned around and ran toward the door.
He made it halfway across the factory.
Then suddenly stopped.
"..."
Something felt wrong.
Natsu's expression froze as he finally remembered why he had come here in the first place.
He spun around and hurried back.
"No! That can wait!"
Natsu immediately shook his head and pointed at Chases.
"First, I'm going to defeat you! Then I'll beat Laxus into the ground and win this strongest-mage competition!"
"A fine ambition."
Chases casually dusted off his clothes and raised two fingers.
"Just like everyone before you, you have two ways to challenge me. You can either fight me or play a duel..."
"I choose fighting!"
Before Chases could even finish speaking, Natsu charged forward with flames roaring around his fist.
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
Chases remained where he was.
He simply shook his head with a smile and calmly raised his right arm.
Block.
Push.
Flick.
That was all it took.
Natsu, who had rushed at him with overwhelming momentum, was sent flying backward like a discarded rag.
Boom!
He crashed heavily into a pile of abandoned steel in the distance.
His head tilted awkwardly to one side.
Then he peacefully passed out.
"..."
Chases stared at him for a moment.
"There's really nothing I can do with this guy."
"It's already over!"
Evergreen, who was still tied up in the corner and unable to move, couldn't help filling in for Lucy.
"Hmph. I told you to think before you act, and now look at you. Completely embarrassing yourself."
The sound of leather boots striking the floor echoed through the factory.
Gajeel, who had arrived a step later, walked over to Natsu and immediately began mocking him.
The provocation worked instantly.
Natsu's eyes snapped open.
His teeth became jagged with rage as he shot upright.
"Damn it! If you've got the guts, then you go!"
"He just said there were two choices! Couldn't you wait for him to finish talking?!"
"A coward like you would obviously pick something other than fighting!"
"What did you say, Fire Dragon?! You wanna die?!"
"Come on! Maybe I can't beat Chases, but I can definitely beat you, you cowardly pile of scrap iron!"
"You bastard! Say that again!"
The two immediately leaned forward until their foreheads slammed together.
Their eyes burned with anger.
At this rate, they looked ready to forget everything else and start fighting each other on the spot.
Evergreen's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
She had actually been worried that Chases might get persuaded by these two idiots earlier.
How foolish of her.
"I said..."
Chases let out a long yawn.
"What exactly did you two come here for?"
"If you're here to fight each other, then please take it outside."
"None of your business!"
Natsu immediately snapped his head around and shouted back.
However, after being interrupted like that, Gajeel gradually calmed down.
"Hey, Fire Dragon."
He folded his arms.
"Let's put our personal grudge aside for now. The Guild Master's task comes first."
Natsu frowned.
Gajeel raised his eyes and looked toward Chases standing on the Duelist Platform.
"Neither you nor I can beat this monster alone."
A grin slowly appeared on his face.
"So how about it?"
"Wanna team up?"
"Huh?"
Natsu stared at him.
"Team up?"
He curled his lip disdainfully.
"Didn't you say there wasn't room in the sky for two dragons?"
"That was the blue cat!"
Gajeel immediately retorted.
Then he paused.
"...Although I basically meant the same thing."
Gajeel clenched his right fist.
His Magic Power began rising rapidly along with his fighting spirit.
"But if the opponent is a 'god'..."
His grin widened.
"Then making a small exception isn't unreasonable, right?"
During the time Gajeel had spent sitting in the corner of the guild gnawing on iron, he had overheard Mira and the others mention something important.
Chases could use God Slayer Magic.
A form of Slayer Magic even rarer than Dragon Slayer Magic.
Natsu stared at Chases, who stood calmly atop the platform.
Then he slammed his fists together.
"Fine."
"But let's make one thing clear."
"This is only happening once!"
"Obviously."
Gajeel bared his teeth.
"We'll settle things between us eventually!"
The moment those words fell, both Dragon Slayers inhaled deeply.
Then they simultaneously released all of their Magic Power.
Boom!
Two violent storms erupted inside the abandoned factory.
One carried the scorching heat of flame.
The other carried the cold metallic pressure of iron.
Red and dark gray currents surged outward, whipping through the entire building.
Natsu and Gajeel's auras rapidly climbed toward their limits.
Just as the two stepped forward and prepared to attack, something strange happened.
The Magic Power surrounding them suddenly trembled.
Then it began to distort.
As though caught by an invisible force, the two torrents of Dragon Slayer Magic were dragged toward the space between them.
"What the...?"
Natsu's eyes widened.
A vortex formed.
Flames and iron-colored Magic Power spiraled together violently.
At the same time, a brilliant magic circle appeared beneath their feet.
Lines intersected one after another, gradually forming the image of a Magic Card.
Chases smiled.
"Since you two are so conflicted over this whole 'two dragons' problem..."
He raised the card held between his fingers.
"I'll help you solve it."
Chases flipped the card over.
**Fusion!**
The Magic Card lit up instantly.
Previously, the Ice-Flame Dragon created by fusing Natsu and Gray, whose magical attributes were completely opposed to one another, had already produced astonishing results.
That fusion alone had reached the level of one of Fairy Tail's S-Class Mages.
So what would happen if the two people being fused were Natsu and Gajeel, both Dragon Slayer Mages?
Chases had already considered this possibility back when Gajeel first joined Fairy Tail.
He had simply never found the right opportunity to test it.
Now, with the civil war started by Laxus and both Natsu and Gajeel standing right in front of him, this was naturally the perfect chance to properly test the limits of Fusion!
"W-wait! I don't want to merge with this guy!!!"
The moment Natsu felt the familiar distortion spreading through his body, his expression changed drastically.
He struggled violently.
"Nani?! Merge?! Me and that damn Fire Dragon?!!!"
Gajeel, experiencing Fusion for the first time, looked even more horrified.
But in the face of the Magic Card's overwhelming power, the resistance of the two Dragon Slayers was completely useless.
The force of Fusion dragged them both toward the center of the chaotic vortex.
Then...
Boom!
A dazzling white light instantly flooded the entire factory.
"Wh-what happened...?"
Evergreen's pupils contracted.
She stared in disbelief at the muscular figure standing within the gradually fading light.
The unfamiliar man had long hair streaked with alternating black and cherry-blossom pink.
His eyebrows and the bridge of his nose were embedded with the same iron studs as Gajeel's, while Natsu's familiar scarf was wrapped around his neck.
A multicolored coat fluttered behind him.
On both his left and right arms were symmetrical Fairy Tail emblems.
He stood tall and imposing.
His gaze was sharp.
Even without moving, he seemed to radiate an incredibly condensed and steady aura of overwhelming strength.
Or at least...
That impression lasted for less than three seconds.
"AH! HOT! HOT! HOT!"
Nagiru suddenly screamed.
"Did someone turn on a heater?! Why is it so damn hot?!"
His right hand immediately swung backward and punched his own left cheek.
"Your body, bastard! Hurry up and lower the temperature!"
"Isn't being hot normal?!"
The other consciousness inside the fused body immediately fought back.
"And what's with this disgusting stiffness?! I can barely move!"
Nagiru had only just finished punching his left cheek when his left fist rose and smashed into his right cheek.
Bang!
"How could the body of an Iron Dragon Slayer not be hard?!"
"Damn it! If the temperature goes any higher, I'm going to melt!!"
Thump!
Thump! Thump!
The majestic aura vanished completely.
Nagiru began punching, pinching, and wrestling with his own body as the two consciousnesses fought for control.
One side tried desperately to lower his body temperature.
The other stubbornly tried to keep his iron-hard physique intact.
Within moments, the supposedly powerful fused Dragon Slayer had fallen to the ground and started rolling around while cursing himself.
The scene was indescribably ridiculous.
"I see..."
Evergreen slowly raised her head and looked toward Chases.
There was unmistakable fear in her eyes.
"So this was your plan."
"As expected... you're a truly malicious man."
With only a single Magic Card, he had somehow rendered two Dragon Slayer Mages completely incapable of fighting!
Chases ignored her.
His expression had gone slightly stiff as he stared at Nagiru rolling across the floor.
This wasn't right.
They were both Dragon Slayer Mages.
Logically speaking, their compatibility after Fusion should have been even better.
Even if the personalities of the two fusion materials were completely incompatible, it still shouldn't have resulted in something this absurd.
After all, the Ice-Flame Dragon formed from Natsu and Gray had been able to unleash its full strength despite their opposing personalities and completely incompatible magical attributes.
That fusion was proof enough.
So why had this one failed so badly?
Could it be...
Chases's eyes suddenly lit up.
A possibility had occurred to him.
This was a crimson world filled with flowing magma and constantly erupting volcanoes.
The entire space resembled a living hell.
A cluster of blue light suddenly entered this fiery world and traveled all the way to its deepest reaches.
"I didn't mean to disturb you."
The blue light hovered above the bubbling magma, its voice deep and somewhat bewildered.
"But I never expected we'd meet again like this, Fire Dragon King."
Within the blazing red light, a pair of enormous, oppressive dragon eyes slowly opened.
"Long time no see, Metallicana."
"So what exactly is going on?"
The Iron Dragon Metallicana spoke in a deep voice.
Until moments ago, he had been in a state of deep sleep. He had absolutely no idea how he had suddenly ended up in this strange space.
"As you can see."
Igneel exhaled through his nostrils, sending waves of scorching air rolling across the magma.
"Your child and mine have temporarily fused together."
Having already witnessed the previous fusion between Natsu and Gray, Igneel immediately understood that this was Chases's doing.
"Human magic has developed this far?!"
Metallicana was visibly shocked.
"No."
Igneel slowly shook his massive head.
"That should be an ability unique to that man."
His gaze shifted upward.
Through Nagiru's vision, he looked directly at Chases standing outside.
"Before this, I sensed the aura of a dragon coming from him."
Igneel's expression gradually became serious.
"An aura powerful enough that even I felt fear."
Metallicana's eyes narrowed.
"A dragon aura that even you fear?"
"Could it be Acnologia?"
"Perhaps."
Igneel paused.
"Or it may be something even higher than Acnologia."
His enormous eyes became solemn.
"A god."
"...A god?"
Metallicana stared at him in disbelief.
"How is that possible?! How could something like that appear on a human?!"
As a dragon who had ruled during the previous era, Metallicana had naturally heard rumors concerning gods.
But even he had never actually encountered one.
All he knew was that they were forbidden, terrifying existences possessing power that stood far beyond ordinary life.
Beings capable of bringing unimaginable destruction to the world.
"I'm not certain either."
Igneel's voice grew heavier.
"But if my suspicion is correct..."
"Then our chances of defeating Acnologia will increase considerably."
Metallicana's expression changed.
He opened his mouth, clearly intending to ask more.
But Igneel had already lost his patience after being abruptly awakened.
"Enough!"
The Fire Dragon King roared.
"This is nothing more than my speculation!"
"Now hurry up and get out!"
"..."
Metallicana's face darkened.
What the hell was wrong with this old dragon?
He was the one who had started talking about gods, yet now he was throwing him out before explaining anything properly!
Metallicana was furious.
However, after remembering that the unreasonable bastard in front of him was none other than Igneel, the tremendously powerful Fire Dragon King, he ultimately swallowed his anger.
Without another word, the blue light withdrew from the magma-filled space.
As the two dragons ended their brief reunion, the abnormality affecting Nagiru disappeared almost instantly.
The conflict between fire and iron vanished.
In its place came a perfectly blended torrent of Dragon Slayer Magic!
Boom!
Nagiru's Magic Power erupted wildly.
His aura climbed higher and higher without showing any sign of stopping.
"Ohhhhhh!"
Nagiru suddenly sprang back to his feet.
"I'm alive again!!"
Flames surged around one side of his body while metallic scales gleamed across the other.
The two powers intertwined seamlessly.
Nagiru cracked his knuckles and stared directly at Chases, a fierce grin spreading across his face.
"Get ready to be beaten into a pig's head..."
"Damn Chases!"
The Steel-Flame Dragon had finally awakened.