Chapter 93: I'll Beat You Again
"Here goes!" Freed swung his rapier through the air.
A magical barrier nearly twenty meters high shot up around them, glowing runes appearing across its surface: "Only one person leaves here alive!"
"This is the strongest enchantment I can create—a spell bound by my very life. If you want to reach Laxus, you'll have to kill me first!"
"Dark Écriture: Darkness!" The runes covering Freed's body shifted and twisted. His handsome features contorted, horns sprouting from his head as his transformation into his demonic form completed.
This was Freed's ultimate state—the reason he bore the title "Dark" Freed. Against Dino, he had no choice but to go all-out from the start. Anything less would mean instant defeat.
Ding!
Back at the Fairy Tail guildhall, the magical projection updated with new information: "Dino Maxim VS Freed Justine!"
Laxus's frown deepened. "Why the hell is Freed fighting him? I told that idiot I'd handle Dino myself!"
Then understanding dawned. Dino must have been closing in on his location, and Freed had intercepted him—acting on his own to protect his leader.
"Dammit, you fool…" Laxus muttered, his expression darkening.
Dino stared at Freed's demonic transformation and sighed, shaking his head. "Guess I'll have to teach you a lesson before I get to Laxus."
"Dark Écriture: Pain!" Freed's rapier traced glowing letters in the air. The runes shot toward Dino like guided missiles.
Dino didn't move. He simply stood there as the enchanted word struck his body.
Crack!
The moment the rune made contact, it shattered like glass, dissolving into particles of light.
"What?!" Freed's eyes widened, but his hands were already moving, writing new runes with desperate speed.
"Dark Écriture: Fear!"
Crack!
Just like before, the magical letter fractured the instant it touched Dino's body, crumbling into nothing.
"That's impossible!" Freed's voice shook with disbelief. His Dark Écriture magic had entrapped even wizards of the Ten Wizard Saints level—President Makarov himself had acknowledged its power.
So why were his runes shattering on contact?
Then it hit him. Dino's Tremor-Tremor Fruit ability—the power Gramps had called "catastrophic super-magic." The vibrations must be destroying his enchantments before they could take effect.
Whoosh!
Dino appeared directly in front of him. Freed threw a desperate punch. Dino casually stepped back, the attack whiffing past his face.
Then Dino's fist shot forward.
It didn't make contact—but the shockwave that erupted from thin air slammed into Freed like a battering ram.
"GAAHHH!" Freed screamed as his body rocketed backward, crashing into the very barrier he'd created. Because he'd designed the enchantment to be absolute, even he couldn't pass through it.
"Dark Breath!" Freed raised his hands, summoning a swirling vortex of shadow magic that howled toward Dino.
Dino punched the air.
CRACK! BOOM!
The sound of shattering space echoed through the street. The dark vortex exploded like a burst balloon, and the residual shockwave hammered into Freed.
"AAAGHHHH!"
Freed struggled to his feet, blood dripping from his mouth. "I… I didn't want to use this technique yet… but for Laxus's sake, I have no choice! You won't be able to dodge this one!"
He launched himself into the air, dark energy gathering between his palms. In seconds, it had formed into a massive sphere of concentrated shadow magic, crackling with malevolent power.
Dino clenched both fists. White spheres of compressed atmosphere materialized around his knuckles—the telltale sign of his Tremor-Tremor power activating.
"Dark Sphere!" The enormous ball of shadow magic plummeted toward Dino like a falling meteor.
Dino thrust his fist upward. CRAAAACK!
The air itself fractured—visible cracks spreading through space like a broken mirror. The sound was deafening.
BOOOOM!
The Dark Sphere detonated while still airborne. The explosion consumed everything—including Freed, who was caught in the backblast of his own spell.
"GAAAAHHH!" His scream echoed as he fell.
CRASH!
Freed slammed into the cobblestone street, cratering the ground. His demonic transformation flickered and vanished—his injuries too severe to maintain the magic.
Dino walked over and looked down at him. "Release the barrier. And dispel all the enchantments you've placed around town. Also, tell Evergreen to turn everyone back from stone."
"N-no…" Freed rasped, blood trickling from his mouth. "If you… want to leave… you'll have to… kill me…"
WHAM!
Dino's boot connected with Freed's ribs.
"Is your life worth so little?!" Dino shouted. "You're willing to die for something this stupid?!"
"You know what I can't stand? People who throw their lives away over pointless garbage! What are you, some kind of fanatic? You gonna jump off a building next? Slash your wrists? What the hell is wrong with you?!"
"How much food have you wasted growing up just to die like an idiot?! Living, you're wasting air—dead, you're wasting dirt!"
With each sentence, Dino punctuated his words with another kick. Freed groaned in pain, curling up defensively.
"I wasn't gonna—jump off a building!" Freed managed to yell back.
Dino's eye twitched. "Oh, you've got SASS now, do you?!"
He grabbed Freed by the collar and started slapping him across the face—left, right, left, right. Within seconds, Freed's handsome features had swollen into an unrecognizable mess. He could barely form words through his puffy lips.
Finally, Dino dropped him and turned to walk away.
Freed lay there, dazed. "Yu… yur… ledding me goh?" (You're… letting me go?)
Dino stopped. "If you weren't a Fairy Tail wizard, you'd already be dead. When I decide to kill someone, not even God can save them."
"But you're all part of Fairy Tail—no matter how much of a pain in the ass you're being right now."
Freed stared up at him. "But—"
Before he could finish, Dino pressed his palm against the magical barrier.
CRACK! SHATTER!
The enchantment that Freed had staked his life on crumbled like cheap glass.
"Treasure your life from now on," Dino said, glancing back over his shoulder. "If I hear about you pulling something like this again, I'll beat your ass so hard you'll wish you'd died here."