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*****
"Return."
George rolled his eyes, and in an instant, all the missiles, rockets, and machine gun bullets reversed course, streaking back at twice the speed.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The armed helicopters in the sky exploded one after another, turning into fiery blossoms of destruction before vanishing completely.
Behemoth's most powerful aerial strike force was annihilated in the blink of an eye.
The power George inherited from Magneto made him the nemesis of modern weaponry.
Even without his mastery of countless spells and his strength approaching cosmic level, his control over metal alone was enough to toy with Behemoth.
After all, what modern heavy weapon didn't contain metal?
"King! King! King!"
From the great hall behind him, the ordinary Nassen Guards and islanders erupted in cheers as they saw the terrifying armed helicopters obliterated by their new king.
Their faith in the divine tree and their devotion to the King only grew stronger.
"Ron, he must have the ability to control metal! Stop using modern weapons against him—send in the Hunting Squad!"
Just as Ron was paralyzed by George's overwhelming display, Gaide's voice came through the earpiece with a timely warning.
From the battleship offshore, Gaide had been monitoring the entire fight. Together with the experts on board, he quickly analyzed the situation and reached the correct conclusion.
"So that's it. Hyena, Explosive Man—his power is metal manipulation. Take him down. Capture him alive if possible. His ability is too valuable for research. The rest of you, provide support."
At Gaide's assessment, Ron's eyes lit up.
The destruction of over a hundred helicopters had stunned him. He hadn't expected the new King of Nassen to be so terrifying—so powerful that not even missiles and rockets could harm him.
If that was the level of strength they faced, then even if all their fighters attacked together, they likely wouldn't be a match.
Without defeating the King, they couldn't claim the divine tree. Failure here meant disaster for his family's standing within the company.
But Gaide's words rekindled hope.
Yes, superhuman abilities came in all shapes and forms. They might appear overwhelming at first, but once you understood the nature of the power, it could be countered.
Just like that mutant from Anywhere Company, Phantom, who could enter cyberspace at will—stealing intelligence, altering passwords, transferring funds, even pressing the button to launch a nuclear strike.
And yet, they developed a counter: uploading artificial hunter consciousnesses into the network to intercept and capture Phantom inside the digital world.
Everything had a weakness.
This new King of Nassen seemed terrifying because he controlled metal, conveniently countering modern weapons.
But without them, he was just another mutant with above-average power. And Behemoth had plenty of mutants who could bring him down.
There was nothing to fear.
In fact, if they could capture him alive and study his ability, creating more mutants who could manipulate metal, Behemoth would gain an immense advantage over every other major faction.
At Ron's command, the initially shocked Hyena and Explosive Man quickly recovered, grinning coldly.
"So that's all it is—metal control? I thought for a moment…"
Thought I was outclassed, Hyena sneered. He was the first to move, leaving behind an afterimage as his body launched toward George seated on the throne.
His ability was pure physical enhancement, second only to the hero Sean within Behemoth.
Explosive Man followed close behind, energy already crackling and condensing in his hands as he ran.
"You can control missiles—but can you control me?
The explosions I create are no weaker than those missiles!"
Behind them, more than twenty mutants clad in combat suits, each with unique abilities, also surged forward to attack.
"Should we intervene?"
Among the disguised soldiers of other factions, some hesitated, debating whether to seize this chance while Behemoth avoided modern weapons.
But they quickly dismissed the idea.
Their goal wasn't to save Nassen—it was to destroy the divine tree.
If they helped Nassen now, the King, his Guards, and the islanders would never allow the tree's destruction.
Better to wait. Even if Behemoth won, it would surely be a costly victory. They could then swoop in and finish them off before turning on the divine tree.
And if Behemoth lost, the King and his Guards would also be left with little strength, leaving the tree just as vulnerable.
But they had miscalculated.
When two rivals fight, a third party profits—but only if one side isn't a dragon. If it is, the story changes.
Not only would the fisherman fail to profit, he'd be lucky to survive. For if the dragon felt no mercy after crushing the bird, the fisherman too would be slaughtered.
"A pack of mongrels and strays, daring to act arrogant before me? Kneel before your King!"
George handed his teacup to Li Mumu, then pointed a single finger forward. A black magic circle instantly took shape in the sky above.
The next moment, an overwhelming gravitational force came crashing down.
Resistance was impossible.
Everyone below the throne—Hyena, Explosive Man, and the Hunting Squad mutants already charging up the steps, Ron and the gene-modified soldiers, even the undercover operatives from other factions—
All of them were crushed to their knees at once by the irresistible force.
The more they struggled, the heavier the pressure grew.
This was the gravity magic George had learned in the Fairy Tail world, refined and fused with multiple variations into something far deadlier.
Within his field of gravity, every living being was affected.
The stronger the resistance, the greater the weight pressing them down. Unless one's strength surpassed his, they would all be forced to kneel, unable to rise.
That was why Hyena, whose body was absurdly tough, was pinned just the same as Ron, an ordinary man.
If they had been subjected to the same gravity, Ron would have long since been crushed into paste.
"H-How… how is this possible?"
At that moment, everyone present—along with Gaide and the ability researchers aboard the battleship—was utterly dumbfounded.
If George's control of missiles and bullets could be explained away as mere metal manipulation, then what was this supposed to be?
So many people, so many powerful fighters, and yet not a single one could even stand before this new King of Nassen. How were they supposed to fight him?
If he wished to slaughter them, weren't they all nothing more than lambs awaiting the butcher's knife?
"Oh, that's right—you still have some comrades outside, don't you? Let them come in and kneel as well."
George lifted his head with a smile, gazing out toward the direction of the Behemoth battleships where Gaide was stationed, and once again unleashed his power.
(End of Chapter)