Laxus stood with his arms crossed, his gaze calm as he looked down at another version of himself lying before him.
Tilting his head slightly, he asked, "What kind of trick is this?"
"It's a type of illusion magic," Alexei replied in a deep voice.
"The people around us can't see our real selves talking like this, nor can they hear our voices. What they see is merely an illusion of battle. Pretty convincing, isn't it? No one has noticed a thing—the audience only sees a Laxus who is being completely overwhelmed."
—
"Laxus, why is the battle so one-sided?!" Makarov watched the illusion below in shock, then, as if realizing something, he called out, "Bisca!"
Elsewhere in Flau, Bisca shook her head slightly and said, "Ivan hasn't made a single move."
"Thunder God Tribe, Lisanna!"
"Nothing from them either… They don't seem to be doing anything at all," Lisanna, who had been observing the Raven Tail members through binoculars, replied with a serious expression.
Meanwhile, the Thunder God Tribe was already shouting in frustration, completely losing their composure.
"There's no way! Laxus, it's about time you got serious!"
"Damn it!"
—
Back in the arena, Alexei glanced at the Fairy Tail stands, which were now in turmoil, and said with a meaningful smirk, "You must be highly respected in your guild. I wonder how your comrades feel seeing you like this."
"Hey, hey, I have no idea what you're even getting at." Laxus remained indifferent.
"So what if your illusion wins?"
"That's right—our goal isn't to 'win,'" Alexei chuckled coldly.
"This illusion can deceive the eyes of those around us."
"Huh?"
"An illusion is still just an illusion, but it allows us to display whatever outcome we desire in this match. In other words, depending on how our deal goes, we could simply hand you the victory."
"That's complete nonsense." Laxus shrugged off his cloak and tossed it aside.
Yellow lightning crackled faintly around his body.
"This has nothing to do with illusions. If I take down the real you standing right here, it's over."
"That's impossible."
"Reality can be pretty cruel, you know."
"Hahahaha..."
As a series of smug chuckles echoed, the remaining four members of Raven Tail—who were also participating in the Grand Magic Games—suddenly appeared behind Alexei without anyone noticing.
Their stance made it clear they had no good intentions.
"Even for you, taking down all of Raven Tail's elite at once would be impossible," Alexei said in a low voice.
"And there's one more thing..."
As he spoke, he removed his mask, revealing a face that was all too familiar to Laxus.
"You've got to be kidding me." Laxus, however, showed no surprise at all.
Instead, he called out calmly, "You bastard, old man!"
Alexei—no, Ivan—looked at Laxus and said, "Makarov would rather die than tell me, but you're different. I want you to tell me—where is Photon Reconstruction?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Laxus replied, completely confused.
"Don't play dumb… Makarov must have told you!"
"I really don't know."
"No, you do know!!"
"Hmm... even if I did, I wouldn't tell you."
Hearing Laxus' response, Ivan let out a cold chuckle, as if he had just heard something ridiculous.
"Hey, hey... In this hopeless situation where you're bound to lose, I'm literally offering you victory. If you refuse my conditions… it won't just be a simple loss to an illusion."
"Man, you sure love to ramble. Now I really get why the old man kicked you out."
Laxus raised his arm as immense magical energy surged around him.
He glared coldly at the Raven Tail members before him.
"All of you, come at me at once. My guild master's enemy is my enemy."
"Looks like we'll have to teach you a lesson—so you can understand just how powerful Raven Tail, a guild specialized in countering Fairy Tail, really is!"
"A guild specialized in countering Fairy Tail?"
"That's right. Every single one of us wields magic that your Fairy Tail members struggle to deal with." Ivan smirked confidently.
"We've studied every one of your weaknesses. You must be feeling hopeless, huh? Knowing that no matter how strong you are, you're still destined to lose."
"Yeah... about that." Laxus' voice remained cold.
"The old man already investigated everything about you."
Ivan's smug expression immediately stiffened.
"Your numbers, your guild base, your funding, and every move you've made over the past seven years… we know it all."
"WHAT?!"
"It was Gajeel. That guy did a damn good job."
"Double agent?!" Ivan muttered, his face darkening.
"The old man gathered so much intel, yet he still chose not to act." Laxus spoke grimly.
"Maybe... somewhere deep in his heart, he still trusted you—because you're father and son."
"SHUT UP!!" Ivan roared in a low voice.
A barrage of magical attacks, formed from countless paper talismans, shot toward Laxus.
"I've been living in the shadows for this day!! Everything I've done was for Photon Reconstruction! You think I spared your guild members for the past seven years out of kindness?! BULLSHIT!! Those useless leftovers could never have known anything about Photon Reconstruction!"
Ivan's attacks grew stronger, fueled by his seething fury, but Laxus remained unfazed, taking them head-on without a flinch.
"The guild!! The streets!! Tenrou Island!! I searched everywhere tied to Fairy Tail!! And STILL, I found nothing! WHERE IS PHOTON RECONSTRUCTION?! WHERE?! TELL ME, LAXUS!! You are MY SON!!" Ivan bellowed.
"Obra, GO!! Erase his magic!"
At Ivan's command, Obra, the Raven Tail member, lunged toward Laxus at high speed.
"Pathetic."
Laxus scoffed, his entire body turning into a streak of lightning.
Before Obra could even react, Laxus had already appeared in front of him—and with a single punch, sent him flying.
"Flare!!"
"Narpudding!"
Narpudding and Flare both launched their attacks at Laxus simultaneously.
But to him, it was nothing.
With just a few agile flips, Laxus easily dodged both attacks.
Then, raising both fists, he slammed them down—and a massive bolt of lightning crashed onto Narpudding, knocking him out instantly.
"Got you."
The moment Laxus struck down Narpudding, Flare seized the brief opening—using her red hair to tightly wrap around Laxus's arm.
But Laxus merely let out a faint smirk.
Without hesitation, he tilted his head up—and unleashed a Roar of the Thunder Dragon, blasting Flare straight into the air.
"Impossible!!"
Watching as Laxus effortlessly crushed three of his elite members, Ivan's face turned ashen.
At that moment, a figure suddenly emerged beside Laxus—Kurohebi, manipulating a swirling sandstorm.
Laxus tilted his head slightly. "And just what the hell are you supposed to be?"
BOOM.
Before Kurohebi could react, Laxus casually released a bolt of lightning, blasting him away.
--------------
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