"It's fine. You guys were just too weak, that's all."
Seeing the man before him, Kael finally remembered. Among the Oración Seis, there was still a Guild Master. This guy's magic power was immense—surpassing even Jura's by a significant margin.
"Hahahaha! Exactly! Brain spent all those years just to scrape together a bunch of trash. But no matter how useless they are, they're still members of my guild. As their Master, I have to step up for them."
Kael narrowed his eyes and countered, "You just want a fight. We're enemies anyway, so there's no need for excuses. The urge to kill is practically spilling out of your eyes."
"Ha! You saw through me? That's right! I just want to destroy!! I'll destroy every last thing, ahahaha!!!"
Zero shouted, thrusting his palm forward.
"Watch out!"
Jura shouted a warning.
BOOM——!!
A massive swarm of dark spirits erupted from the ground.
"Gwahhh!!"…
The group failed to dodge in time and was caught in the blast.
"Dark Capriccio!!"
Zero tucked his right hand behind his back while pressing his left index and middle fingers together, unleashing a high-speed, spiraling bolt of darkness.
"Iron Rock Wall!"
Jura invoked his magic to intercept the strike.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
The Iron Rock Wall was pulverized instantly.
"What?!"
Jura gasped in disbelief. Earlier, he could easily block the opponent's magic, but now he couldn't hold the line. What happened to this guy?
Despite the shock, Jura immediately shifted the orientation of the Iron Rock Wall to deflect the trajectory of the attack.
"Hah!"
With a flick of Zero's hand, the magic that Jura had redirected suddenly curved through the air, slamming directly into Jura.
"Gack!!"
Jura let out a pained cry as his body was sent flying.
"Don't go thinking I'm the same as Brain."
"Now, vanish!"
Zero waved his hand again. The magic circled back, aiming to impale Jura's body. Erza immediately drew her sword and lunged forward to intercept it.
CLANG! CRACK!
Her magic swords were shattered into pieces.
Just as Zero prepared to launch another follow-up.
SHUA!
A Moonlight Sword slammed into Zero's Dark Capriccio.
BOOM——!!
The Dark Capriccio was knocked clean off course by the Moonlight Sword.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
The stray dark magic tore through the nearby buildings, piercing straight through the stone.
Zero stopped and looked at Kael. From Brain's memories, he already knew this kid's profile. The brat's record was nothing short of staggering.
He had defeated two Wizard Saints, bested the Celestial Spirit King, and even managed to teleport away the Magic Council's ultimate weapon, Etherion. Adding in Kael's performance against the rest of the Oración Seis, even Zero had to remain cautious.
"Erza, everyone, leave now. I'll handle this guy. Also, get as far away from here as possible."
"Kael, he's just one man. We'll take him down together."
If Kael were at full strength, Erza wouldn't have minded letting him handle it alone. But Kael had been fighting for too long; he had maintained his Take Over magic for an extended period, and his magic reserves had to be hitting rock bottom.
"She's right! This man's magic power is terrifying. It's even higher than mine."
Jura added from the side. He had just sustained injuries and his own magic power was low. He couldn't let Kael face such a dangerous monster alone.
"Exactly! If we team up, we can definitely take him out!"
Lucy chimed in.
"Blegh... huff..."
Natsu was fighting back the urge to vomit from the motion sickness, still wanting to join the fray. The previous battle had just ended, and Happy was out of magic, forced to drop Natsu onto Nirvana's surface.
Kael smiled and said, "Alright, everyone. It's just one guy; we don't need a crowd. If it weren't for the fact that people are still on Nirvana, I would have started tearing this thing down already."
Erza froze for a moment, then realized something. "Kael... you plan to..."
Kael nodded. "Exactly what you're thinking. As for my magic power, don't worry. I have more than enough for this guy. If you stay here, you'll just get in my way."
"This... fine!"
Seeing Kael's persistence, the group could only agree.
Jura helped Lyon up. "Kael, please be careful!"
Erza supported Gray. "Kael, I'm leaving him to you."
Lucy held onto Natsu. "Good luck, Kael! Take him down!"
"Aye!"
"Don't worry about it!"
The group retreated quickly. Their magic was indeed near empty, and they were all carrying significant injuries. Staying would only make them deadweight.
Zero watched Kael with a cruel grin. "The deadweight has finally vanished. I suppose it's time to get serious."
"They aren't deadweight. They're my comrades. They might not be strong enough yet, but they are working hard to grow. Don't look down on them—their future potential is immense. They might even become stronger than me one day."
The mages of this world could grow at a frightening pace.
Natsu and the others were the protagonists; their strength would skyrocket in the later stages.
Right now, Kael was significantly stronger than Natsu's group, but that gap would shrink over time. He might even be surpassed by Natsu eventually.
Naturally, he wouldn't underestimate them.
"Heh! You're too modest."
Zero didn't believe a word of it. To him, those people were no different from trash.
Kael spread his hands. "I'm telling the truth. Whether you believe it is up to you."
Zero's lips curled into a sadistic smile. "Don't worry! They'll never get the chance to be stronger than you! Once I've finished you off, I'll make sure they disappear from this world entirely. I'll send them to keep you company!!"
"Dark Capriccio!!"
Zero unleashed his magic, lashing out like a dark whip.
BOOM!
Kael swung his Moonlight Sword, blocking the strike.
"There's more!"
Zero's other hand released an identical spell, whipping it toward Kael. Kael parried it away with the Moonlight Sword.
The two magical lashes began weaving through the ground and surrounding structures, relentlessly striking at Kael from all angles.
Kael either dodged or used the Moonlight Sword to deflect the trajectories.
"Sonido!"
Kael's body flickered, appearing instantly in mid-air. He pointed his index finger down at Zero.
"Cero Oscuras!!"
SHUA——!
A black beam of light plunged downward toward Zero with terminal velocity.
"Hah!"
Zero swung both hands, meeting the Cero Oscuras with two Dark Capriccio spells.
BOOM——!!
The collision of two different magics caused a violent explosion that erupted in the sky.
"Dark Gravity!!"
Zero aimed both palms at Kael. Kael felt a massive gravitational force wrenching at him. The magic footholds beneath his feet shattered, and his body was dragged toward Zero. Kael flapped his wings to stabilize his position, driving the Moonlight Sword toward Zero in a downward slash.
Zero raised a palm. "Dark Rondo!"
A mass of rotating dark magic slammed directly into the Moonlight Sword.
BOOM—————!!
The battle continued with the same intensity.
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