Charles disengaged his Qilin Strike and Spirit Assimilation, bracing his hands on his knees as he panted heavily.
His abdominal wound still throbbed painfully—this was why he hadn't canceled Dragon Blood Mode. He still needed the dragon power to purge the curse.
After resting for a moment, and with the pain somewhat dulled, Charles walked over to Ed-Charles.
Ed-Charles had his eyes closed, but his chest still rose and fell—he was alive.
Those two swords had absorbed most of the force from Charles's punch, sparing him from death.
Not that Charles had intended to kill him in the first place. Once Jellal initiated the New Era, perhaps Ed-Charles would change.
"I should go check on the others. The toughest one's dealt with—no one else should be in too much trouble."
As Charles spoke, he suddenly looked up at the sky.
The land of the Exceed, Extania, was situated atop a floating island. As beings who considered themselves gods, they hovered above Edolas's capital.
But now, Charles sensed a massive surge of magic from Extania's direction. Then, countless magic signatures rose into the air—among them were Natsu and Wendy's.
He didn't know exactly what was happening up there, but he had no choice but to trust them now.
The royal palace was falling into greater chaos. Sugarboy had been defeated by Ed-Charles. Knightwalker and Erza were locked in fierce combat. The palace guards, like headless flies, were powerless to stop the Fairy Tail members.
Powerhouses like Mirajane and Gajeel were already closing in on the palace's core.
"So they really used that thing…"
Charles suddenly spoke aloud. He felt the surrounding magic begin to converge on the palace.
There was no doubt—Faust had deployed his ultimate weapon: the kingdom's forbidden magical tool, the Dragonoid.
In the original timeline, the Eternal Magic Plan had already become unviable, yet Faust still brought out the Dragonoid when he was in control of the situation. Let alone now, with the kingdom on the brink of collapse.
Having been raised by Igneel, Charles was all too familiar with a dragon's roar—and the sound coming from afar was nearly identical, though it carried the metallic resonance of steel.
BOOM!!!
Still somewhat weakened, Charles staggered slightly and looked up at the construct before him.
The steel dragon lowered its head to look at Ed-Charles, who lay on the ground.
"Useless fool. But whatever—I planned to get rid of you in the end anyway!"
A voice emerged from within the steel colossus—cold and laced with madness. The steel dragon opened its maw toward Ed-Charles, magical energy gathering within.
A beam of magical energy shattered the ground—but the dragon turned its head as something interrupted it.
"Are you out of your mind?"
From within the Dragonoid, Faust stared at Charles, who now held Ed-Charles in his arms, through a magical display screen.
"You were just fighting each other moments ago—why save him?" Faust truly couldn't understand Charles's reasoning.
Charles set the unconscious Ed-Charles down and replied, "Get it straight. I defeated him. You don't get to finish him off."
Faust burst into laughter. "Then I'll just take both of you down!"
The steel dragon roared and leapt at Charles.
"Hyper Blaster!"
A burst of black magic collided with the Dragonoid, slamming it back.
But as it emerged from the smoke, aside from some singed marks where it had been hit, the Dragonoid showed no signs of damage.
Charles called up to Mirajane, who hovered midair. "Don't waste your magic! That thing's immune to all magic attacks—only Dragon Slayer Magic works against it!"
Empowered by her Satan Soul, Mirajane no longer carried her usual gentle demeanor. She gave a scornful snort. "What a pain."
"Looks like it's time for me to take the stage!" Gajeel strode forward, standing beside Charles.
They had never planned to destroy the palace entirely, so once the others noticed what was happening on Charles's side, they converged there.
Charles said, "Mystogan should've started moving by now. Leave this to Gajeel and me. Mirajane, you go support the others."
Mirajane gave Charles a long look. "You sure you don't need us?"
It wasn't that she doubted Charles's strength—if he were in top form, he could tear that iron monster apart with ease.
But Charles was clearly not at full strength—anyone could sense his fatigue.
He had used all his trump cards against Ed-Charles, and he was injured and almost completely drained of magic.
But then again, Charles had received a new skill from Danmachi World: Blessing of the Spirit Elves, which granted him the passive effects of Magecraft and Spirit Healing during magic use.
So while he looked worn down on the outside, he had already recovered a significant portion of his combat strength.
Gajeel chimed in, "Leave it to this guy right here!"
Mirajane glanced at the two of them and nodded before flying off to help the others.
Charles turned to Gajeel. "Don't slow me down."
Gajeel huffed, "Look at you all beat up—who's slowing down who?"
With that, the two charged at the Dragonoid together.
Faust scoffed, "Just two bugs—watch me crush you!"
The Dragonoid actually raised its foot, aiming to stomp down on the pair.
"Iron Dragon Club!"
Gajeel's arm transformed into an iron rod, bracing against the Dragonoid's descending foot.
Perhaps unwilling to lose face in front of Charles, Gajeel grit his teeth and actually managed to stop the stomp.
Seizing the opportunity, Charles slammed a Fire Dragon's Iron Fist into the Dragonoid's chest.
Cracks spiderwebbed from the impact point, and the Dragonoid staggered backward.
"Iron Dragon Sword!"
Gajeel leapt up, his arm transforming into a serrated greatsword and plunging into the cracks Charles had created.
With a twist, he tore open the Dragonoid's armor.
The Dragonoid let out an ear-splitting roar as panels on its back opened, revealing rows of missiles.
The missiles launched and began homing in on the two of them.
"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"
Charles released a blaze that engulfed the missiles, detonating them midair.
As the roar of explosions echoed, the steel dragon's enormous tail swung toward them.
Gajeel stepped forward and blocked it with his steel-armored arms, leaving deep grooves in the ground, but he managed to stop it before it reached Charles.
Charles wasn't about to waste Gajeel's support—he charged in.
"Fire Dragon's Talon!"
His kick shattered one of the Dragonoid's claws entirely.
"Dammit! You bastards!" came Faust's scream.
"Pathetic," Gajeel sneered as he bit down on a chunk of steel ripped from the Dragonoid's tail.
"Iron Dragon's Roar!"
A metallic storm burst forth, blasting the massive Dragonoid backward.
Meanwhile, Charles had prepared his final, decisive move, channeling all his remaining magic into one strike.
"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!"
To Faust, it looked like a roaring fire dragon was charging straight at him. He frantically worked the control levers—but after the repeated damage, the Dragonoid's systems were malfunctioning. It couldn't move properly.
Charles smashed through the Dragonoid's armor, grabbed Faust, and punched straight through the machine.
"Your greed ends here."
Holding Faust by the collar, Charles landed on the ground and said those words coldly.
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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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