— — — — — —
At the entrance of the Phantom Lord branch guild, bodies were strewn everywhere.
"Cough… cough!"
"Wh-what a damn monster…"
Gajeel dragged himself up from the pile of bodies, slamming his fist into the ground in frustration. He never thought the day would come when HE—Iron Dragon Slayer—would have to play dead just to survive.
He could turn his whole body into steel—not just his skin. Even his internal organs.
That punch should've killed him outright, but he survived only because he'd turned his organs into metal at the last second, avoiding a fatal blow.
By cutting off his breath and heartbeat, he'd tricked Kazuma for a moment. But if Kazuma had stayed even a few seconds longer… or if Erza hadn't interrupted him…
He would already be dead.
"Even so… my body's wrecked. Is everyone in Fairy Tail a damn monster?"
Gajeel limped forward, trying to find somewhere to patch himself up, but he only managed a few steps before someone rushed up and blocked him.
"Hello! I'm Yakoda! Can I interview you about what happened here?"
"Your injuries—are they from battling members of Fairy Tail?"
"Please describe what the attacker looked like, what kind of magic he used, and walk me through the battle in detail, okay?"
Yakoda had finally arrived, and one look at the sea of unconscious bodies—plus the single man still standing—sent her sprinting toward Gajeel with bright, eager eyes.
"…Scram."
Gajeel stared at her, momentarily stunned. Was this girl insane? Could she not see that he was severely injured?
If she wasn't going to get him medical help, fine—but interviewing him? Right now?
"W-wait, don't be mad!" she said quickly. "I know you're badly hurt. I'll call a doctor right after the interview, I swear!"
She was a good kid at heart… just completely brainwashed by her workaholic boss into becoming a reporting machine.
"You know I'm injured, yet you're still yapping? Get. Lost."
Gajeel almost coughed blood from sheer rage. This was like someone telling a dying man he wasn't allowed to sleep there.
"Alright, alright! I'm going, I'm going! Oh—by the way, I heard that Fairy Tail's Kazuma was here earlier."
"Do you know where he went? I'd love to get an exclusive interview!"
Gajeel didn't even want to look at her anymore. "That way."
He only wanted to find a quiet corner to eat some scrap metal and heal.
"Thank you so much!" Yakoda said happily. "Oh, and—your injuries… they weren't caused by that Kazuma guy, were they? What magic does he use? Is he really that strong? Because wow, you look really messed up. You should rest immediately."
"GET. LOST." Gajeel snapped. "If you don't leave right now, I swear I'll kill you even if it kills me!"
He lashed out with a punch—he didn't care if he worsened his injuries. If he died here, he was taking this nuisance with him.
"Don't be mad! Don't be mad! You're seriously injured, you shouldn't move around!" Yakoda squeaked.
"Fine, fine! I'm leaving! Geez, what a temper!" She scurried away like her life depended on it.
---
"… I'll remember you," Gajeel growled.
He spat blood, then noticed a newspaper someone had dropped. Seeing the press logo made his veins throb with fury.
"Sorcerer Magazine, Big News... When I'm healed, your office is the first one I'm smashing."
He gritted his teeth, staggered, and limped away.
— — —
Meanwhile, inside the Phantom Lord HQ—
"W-why are you kidnapping me?" Lucy demanded, struggling against the cuffs around her wrists.
"No, no, you misunderstand," the eerie-looking man said. "I'm not kidnapping you. I'm taking you home—from that dangerous place called Fairy Tail."
"Miss Lucy Heartfilia, your father paid us handsomely to retrieve you."
"Yes, the methods were a touch rough," he added, as if commenting on the weather, "but nothing too serious."
Jose liked to think of himself as a gentleman—dressed in extravagant clothes, speaking with noble affectation.
But the rot and malice clinging to him like damp mold couldn't be hidden. A sewer rat in silk was still a sewer rat.
"My father…" Lucy's expression twisted, but she quickly forced a smile. "You treat me like this, and you're not afraid of what happens when I go home and tell him?"
"If you went home and told him? Of course we'd be afraid of retaliation," Jose said cheerfully.
"But—hahaha—Miss Heartfilia, you aren't going home."
"If we returned you, your father would pay us nicely. But if we hold you hostage…"
"Well, then we can ask for far more. Enough that we'd never need to worry about money again."
"And then, Phantom Lord will become the strongest guild. No one will be able to oppose me! Bwahahaha."
Jose laughed loudly. He had never been a good person to begin with—rules meant nothing to him if money was involved. Kidnapping, extortion—he didn't care.
"And the first thing I'll destroy will be Fairy Tail—especially that annoying old man Makarov!"
His expression twisted with hatred.
But their grudge wasn't even a big one.
Years ago, the guilds had a party. Both Jose and Makarov got drunk and insisted their own guild was Fiore's number one.
Jose refused to back down, they fought, and he lost.
He'd held a petty grudge ever since—skipping gatherings and obsessing daily over how to defeat Makarov and erase Fairy Tail.
"In your dreams!" Lucy snapped. "The master isn't someone you can beat. And on top of that, the guild still has Erza, Natsu, and Kazuma."
"You're no match for Fairy Tail. They'll find out I'm missing. They'll definitely come save me!"
"Hahaha—save you? Those people you mentioned might not be alive to try."
"That kid—what was his name again? I already forgot. But he's probably a corpse by now."
"Three of the Four Elements plus Gajeel went after him. He should be very, very dead."
The more Lucy trembled, the more delighted Jose became. If Makarov were standing here instead of Lucy, Jose would be in pure bliss.
"Hmph. Kazuma won't die."
"He doesn't talk much, he isn't gentle, and he doesn't appreciate my charm. But his only redeeming quality is that he's strong."
"Strong like a total monster. There's no way he's dead."
Lucy said it with absolute confidence. Ever since she entered the world of wizards, she'd never seen anyone stronger than Kazuma. No matter the enemy, no matter the problem, nothing ever seemed to trouble him.
"Then wait, Miss Heartfilia," Jose said with a grin. "My men will bring his corpse back and lay it at your feet."
"Once you see it, you'll stop being so stubborn and you'll cooperate nicely."
He turned to walk out and check on the situation outside, but the moment he reached the door—
"Hey, Lucy. I'm here to get you."
The door was kicked open like cardboard, and Jose, who happened to be behind it, was sent flying straight into the wall.
"Kazuma!"
Lucy stared at him, stunned for a second before her eyes grew hot, she still felt like crying.
Just like with Macao back then. Whenever a guildmate was in danger, Kazuma always showed up.
"You… you're alive?!" Jose crawled out of the crater in the wall, staring at Kazuma with wide eyes. A moment ago everything felt trivial. But thinking back, he realized something terrifying.
The man had been standing right outside the door, and Jose hadn't sensed him at all.
His ability to hide his presence was horrifying.
"I'm alive," Kazuma replied. "But the people you sent? Dead. I forgot to bring back the bodies, though. Would've loved to see your face when I showed them to you."
"And remember my name. Kazuma. That'll be the last thing you hear before you die."
He sized Jose up. The man's magic felt… average. Was this really a Wizard Saint?
Makarov's magic was nothing like this.
"Kazuma, be careful," Erza called out as she helped the injured Juvia down the hallway. "Jose is also one of the Ten Wizard Saints. His power isn't far from the master's."
Kazuma frowned. "Rumors really can't be trusted. This old bat is supposed to be on the master's level? Not even close."
"If the old man were ten years younger, he'd beat this guy senseless with basic magic. Even now, at eighty-something, if he got serious he could still one-shot him."
"The Ten Wizard Saints are just the ten strongest recognized by the Council. Doesn't mean they're on the same tier."
As he spoke, countless dark soldiers rose from Kazuma's shadow, flooding through the fortress like a tidal wave. Their numbers dwarfed Jose's Shade troops dozens of times over.
A wave of magical pressure burst outward, greater, wilder, and heavier than Jose's, blanketing all of Phantom Lord headquarters.
"To defeat you, one hit is enough. No tools, no magic cannon. Just pure magic power focused into a single punch."
"More-More Fruit… attack power multiplied ten times."
"Armament Haki, Conqueror's Haki, entwined."
Kazuma stepped toward Jose. With every step, the air trembled harder. The ground shook. Birds, insects, and beasts outside fell flat, shaking uncontrollably.
Lucy clutched the floor, face flushed, gasping for breath. "It's… too much…" The pressure felt like it was crushing her lungs.
And this wasn't even aimed at her. She was just too close, catching a fraction of it.
Erza's armor shuddered. She'd never felt Kazuma release magic like this. It could rival a Wizard Saint.
Her armor cracked. She swallowed, tightened her grip, and shifted her stance.
Beside her, Juvia lay on the ground staring at Kazuma, eyes full of pure admiration.
"I know I'm stupid," she whispered. "But Kazuma-Sama, you're stupid too. We only met once, yet you still came to save me."
"You knew the enemy was a Wizard Saint and you still came. You're just as much of a fool as I am."
Juvia never felt such pure love.
"..."
Jose snapped. "Kid! You think magic power alone is enough to fight me?"
"Do you know how many years I've mastered magic? My control is perfect!"
"You've barely studied magic for a few years and you think you can challenge me? Die!"
He panicked. Kazuma's power was too overwhelming. The fear was instinctive. But a moment later, fear turned to rage. There was no way he could accept being afraid of a kid.
He launched a spell.
Kazuma didn't even look at it. He kept walking. The spell shattered midair before touching him.
His magic surged higher. The pressure became crushing. Stones cracked. Jose's Shade soldiers burst apart. Jose himself froze in place, pinned by the weight.
"I've studied magic for a little more than a year," Kazuma said calmly. "And yes, I'm not as good as you."
"But I don't care about control. I like overwhelming force."
"So... tell me. Can you survive my move?"
Kazuma reached Jose. Even he didn't know how strong the punch was anymore. His magic was already near a Wizard Saint's level, and with the stacking buffs…
It was probably twenty times stronger. Maybe more. And with his eight glowing mana bars, his total magic reached a monstrous range. He could only control a portion of it, but even that was dozens of times the norm.
"S-Survive?"
Jose stared at the approaching fist. Terror swallowed him whole. He wanted to run. He wanted to scream.
But too late.
The punch landed. His defenses meant nothing. The magic enveloped him, and his flesh, bones, and organs dissolved instantly.
One of the Ten Wizard Saints died without even managing a scream.
But the punch wasn't done.
Kazuma had to twist his arm upward, redirecting the excess force into the sky.
The sky looked as if it were cracked.
Phantom Lord's entire base crumbled under the shock. Stones flew. Walls collapsed.
"Erza, take Lucy and Juvia and get out. I can't move yet. That punch went way too far, I can't stop it until the magic runs out!"
"You idiot!" Erza shouted. Her Light Armor shattered, and she switched to Adamantine Armor. "When we get back to the guild, I'm teaching you how to control your magic properly! You're going to learn!"
She grabbed the nearly collapsed Lucy and Juvia and rushed out.
Honestly, she didn't realize Kazuma was this bad at controlling his magic… and saying 'bad' is already putting it nicely.
.
.
.