Charles had had enough of that noisy wand. With a casual flick of his hand, he cast a sealing spell and tossed it aside.
After all his training, he might not have mastered every type of magic, but dealing with something like that was well within his capabilities.
He then turned to the man whose eye color had completely changed—no longer Brian, but Zero.
Once his inner personality emerged, the leader of the Oración Seis exuded a completely different aura.
Unlike the knowledge-seeking Brian, Zero's presence was pure madness. After all, he was a lunatic whose sole pursuit was to annihilate all things tangible.
"Useless, every single one of them!" Zero snarled, tearing off the long robe on his back and revealing a powerful, muscular torso.
A surge of violent magic instantly wrapped around his upper body, forming what looked like a military-style jacket made of magic energy.
"So you're the one who took down the others? Then, as the guild master, I'll be the one to finish this properly!"
With that, Zero raised a hand, unleashing a magical blast that sounded like the screams of countless souls—hurtling straight toward Charles.
Charles quickly backed away, dodging the attack just as it smashed into the ground, carving out a massive crater where he'd just stood. The sheer power was unmistakable.
He could feel it—this unsealed version of Zero was definitely on the level of a Ten Wizard Saint. Facing such a formidable opponent, Charles's fighting spirit ignited.
Seeing Charles dodge his attack, Zero finally took his opponent seriously. And then… he sensed Charles's overwhelming magical power.
"What a tremendous pool of magic… destroying you will be exhilarating!"
Madmen will be madmen. Feeling the strength of his enemy only made Zero's urge to destroy stronger.
He burst forward, black magic swirling like a storm, and in the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Charles.
"Going for close combat? You really do underestimate me."
As Charles spoke, he raised his arm and caught Zero's punch cleanly, then drove his other fist straight into Zero's chest.
Zero skidded backward, his heels gouging trenches into the ground, and smoke rose from the seared point of impact as if a red-hot brand had been pressed against him.
Yet the searing pain only made Zero laugh maniacally. He immediately countered with another swirling wave of darkness.
Wailing specters surged toward Charles, but the flames erupting from his body incinerated them into nothing.
Only then did Zero notice the fine dragon-like scales forming at the corners of Charles's eyes and cheeks. Behind Charles, it looked as though a massive beast was roaring into the skies.
Charles had entered his Dragonblood Mode—now resembling a humanoid dragon.
"Dragon Slayer Magic, huh?! As expected, the power of dragons is the ultimate force of destruction!"
Zero shouted with manic glee and launched another magic beam from his palm.
"Dark Fantasia: Dirge!"
Despite his insanity, Zero wasn't stupid. In fact, in combat, he was vastly superior to Brian.
This spell—more focused and far more powerful than anything Brian had cast—was fired suddenly to catch Charles off guard.
But Charles's fist ignited with intense flames, burning so hot that even the air itself twisted.
"Iron Fist of the Fire Dragon!"
Charles's punch met the magic head-on, pushing against it with sheer force!
"Igneel's power… my power was never meant for destruction!"
The flames flared even hotter, consuming Zero's magic and tearing through it—before exploding in front of Zero's grinning face.
BOOM!
Charles's blow sent Zero flying. As he soared backward, he managed to land a kick on Charles.
Charles stumbled back a few steps and brushed off the spot where he'd been hit.
Zero crashed into the ground, his feet shattering the earth beneath him.
Charles then felt a massive concentration of magic forming between Zero's hands.
"You brat… You really don't get it, do you? Power… power only has one purpose—destruction!"
Behind Zero, it looked as if the gates of hell had opened. Countless shrieking spirits emerged, howling in unison.
Zero pointed at Charles, and the specters lunged forward in a swarm.
They descended like a meteor shower. Charles, undaunted, charged through the onslaught, moving like a phantom through the chaos.
"Four Symbols Fist Style: Azure Dragon - Flowing Water!"
Zero brought down a palm blade to stop him. Dark magic extended from his hand, forming a massive whip-like blade that slashed toward Charles like a guillotine.
But Charles caught it barehanded. His fingers clenched and snapped it into pieces.
Zero's other hand fired off a barrage of magic blasts aimed directly at Charles's face.
But Charles opened his mouth, and from the spinning magic circle in his throat erupted a jet of fire.
"Roar of the Fire Dragon!"
The flame torrent blasted through the dark magic projectiles and struck Zero square in the chest.
The wailing spirits, still under Zero's control, surged forward to intercept the flames.
Flame and darkness collided in a violent storm. After a few seconds of deadlock, the two opposing magical forces exploded, sending both combatants flying backward.
After a long moment, the berserk magic energy finally subsided. The smoke cleared, revealing both of them still standing.
Zero's magically formed military jacket was intact, but he was covered in soot, and even his hair had been scorched into curls.
Charles's face was steaming with heat, and a small cut on his cheek was healing rapidly.
As they squared off once more, a sudden beam of light shot up from the distant forest. It glowed with an ominous black mist, radiating a foreboding aura.
Zero's eyes lit up with manic joy as he spread his arms wide.
"Nirvana's seal has been broken! The power I've waited so long for… to destroy every guild!"
Charles scoffed, "Hey. Save your dreams for bedtime. You think you're actually going to get your hands on that?"
Zero's eyes locked on him. With a sadistic grin, he growled, "Then I guess I'll just have to finish you first!"
Charles felt a twinge of unease. In the original timeline, the amnesiac Jellal had overheard Brian's rant about Nirvana, and in a moment of atonement, decided to destroy both himself and Nirvana by installing a self-destruction spell.
But in that timeline, Brian was the one who taught Jellal how to use that self-destruction array. Without the keyword, Brian canceled the spell.
Yet this time, Brian—now Zero—was stuck here, fighting Charles.
So what had happened on Jellal's end?
What Charles didn't realize was that he himself had unknowingly contributed to Jellal's survival.
Just like the original story, the lost and dazed Jellal had indeed found Nirvana and initiated the self-destruct ritual.
But before it activated, Erza arrived.
After defeating Midnight of the Oración Seis, Erza had pressed on—and found Jellal just in time, casting the fatal spell.
She quickly changed into her newest armor: the Anti-Magic Armor and Spellbreaker Blade, forged by none other than Charles.
After returning, Charles—hoping to ease his financial burdens—had considered doing what he did in Orario: selling gear to make money.
But unlike adventurers, mages in this world didn't rely heavily on equipment.
As a result, most of Charles's finely crafted, high-end equipment had gone unsold. And Charles, a smith acknowledged even by Hephaestus, refused to devalue his work.
The only set he had ever sold was the anti-magic gear Erza now wore—specifically made to counter ritual-type magic.
Erza had been broke ever since, but right now, she couldn't have been more grateful for that purchase.
Without it, she would've been forced to watch Jellal die.
But because she intervened, Nirvana's seal had been broken. The light of the forbidden magic now loomed over everyone present.
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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