Geno's first instinct was to think of the black mage Zeref. After all, this was Magnolia, the town where Fairy Tail and Natsu were.
Since Geno knew there was a special connection between Natsu and Zeref, it was not all that strange to imagine Zeref appearing here.
And with such overwhelming magic power bearing down on him, there were only a handful of people he could think of.
One was Acnologia, the Black Dragon.
The other was the black mage Zeref.
"I really did not expect that just because I followed a passing thought and came here, I would end up running into Zeref himself."
"But why would he attack me?"
Geno could not figure it out. More accurately, he did not really understand Zeref that well. He had watched Fairy Tail many times, but that was mostly the earlier arcs. When it came to the later parts of the anime, especially the final arcs where Zeref really became central, he had only watched them once and never rewatched. His memory of those episodes was faint.
Most of Zeref's story took place near the end.
"It is interesting, in a way. Meeting Zeref here, I really would like to see the real him with my own eyes."
"But I have no idea why he is suddenly attacking me for no reason. Forget it, better not invite trouble."
If his opponent had been a mage on the level of one of the Ten Wizard Saints, Geno was confident he could handle it easily.
But if it was Zeref, then he had no such certainty. Zeref and Acnologia were both final bosses of the Fairy Tail story, existences at the absolute summit of this world's power.
Even though Geno possessed the five Great Magic Eyes, and among them the Copy Eye that allowed him to copy others' magic at will, he was not sure he could successfully copy Zeref's spells.
More importantly, from what he knew of Zeref in the anime, that magic definitely came with all sorts of side effects.
Geno had no intention of copying magic recklessly just for the sake of becoming stronger.
Especially not this kind of dark magic with unknown side effects.
"Flame Magic, Modified Form, Crimson Flash Cinder Annihilation Barrier."
If it had only been about saving himself, Geno could easily have dodged the incoming wave of darkness. But if he dodged, Rufus and Yukino in the carriage would be annihilated.
He spread out both hands toward the sky. A massive crimson magic circle quickly formed in midair.
From the circle, roaring flames rushed out, then swiftly merged into a huge, transparent wall of fire that wrapped itself around the carriage.
From the outside, the barrier looked like a blazing fortress.
"This is probably just a casual strike from Zeref, but even this one blow has enough power to wipe out any of the Ten Wizard Saints."
"But for me, I am not that idiot God Serena, the so called strongest among the Ten Wizard Saints. And you are only Zeref, not Acnologia. Destroying me with a single attack is not going to happen."
The dark shockwave crashed against Geno's flaming barrier.
Boom...
The impact thundered through the forest, making the ground tremble outside the wall. Inside, however, within the bounds of the barrier, there was not even the slightest tremor.
The sound of the explosion was so loud that it completely overwhelmed the normal "boom" of magic fruits falling and bursting against the ground.
"What... is going on out there?"
"Geno big brother, what is happening outside?"
Only now did Rufus and Yukino in the carriage sense that something was wrong.
After hesitating for a moment, both of them leaned out of the carriage to look.
Outside, a mass of thick darkness was smashing itself against the fortress like flame barrier.
"This dark shockwave is full of terrifying dark magic. Who could possibly unleash something like this... this already surpasses the power of any mage I have ever heard of."
Looking at the dark wave grinding against the barrier, Rufus, usually calm and composed, was completely shaken.
Yukino was just as stunned.
"This is... too frightening. We never sensed this dark magic approaching at all while we were sitting in the carriage."
"If not for this barrier protecting us, we might have already turned into ashes without even realizing it."
After their brief shock and relief, both of them immediately started gathering magic as fast as they could.
"Memory of Lightning Magic, plus Memory of Fire Magic. New Translation, Ancient Memory Make Magic, Total Coverage Thunderfire Barrier."
"Celestial Spirit Magic, Celestial Spirit Magic Shield."
They stepped out of the carriage, ready to cast, when Geno glanced back at them.
"What, is it too noisy for you, Rufus, Yukino?"
"Well, it is pretty noisy. I do not know what is going on, but this place definitely feels troublesome."
Only now did Rufus and Yukino fully grasp the situation. Aside from the two of them, only Geno was here. Which meant this mysterious shockwave of darkness had been stopped by Geno's fire barrier alone.
"So this is Geno big brother's true strength. Looks like what I thought I knew about him was nowhere close to the truth."
Rufus was stunned. Yukino felt the same. The magic they had just gathered dissipated without them even noticing, as they simply stared at Geno.
"Hey, did you two not hear me talking to you? Ah, forget it. It is too noisy here, and too troublesome. We should hurry up and leave this place."
Geno raised his right hand and swept it lightly across his eyes.
"Open, Annihilation Eye."
A blood red light flashed across his gaze.
The crimson cross pattern blossomed in his pupils, and the formation of the Annihilation Eye expanded outward.
"Annihilation Eye, devour power."
Black mist poured out from Geno's right palm. At the same moment, he dispelled the blazing barrier.
The dark shockwave surged straight toward the carriage.
"Not good, Geno big brother cannot hold it back anymore."
Rufus and Yukino had only just snapped out of their daze. Seeing the barrier vanish, they thought Geno had run out of strength and hurried to gather their magic again.
Before they could finish, Geno's figure suddenly vanished.
"Huh..."
"What happened?"
When their eyes found him again, the terrifying dark shockwave had already disappeared completely, leaving only Geno floating lazily in midair.
"It is gone..."