Charles stood at a high vantage point, and with his sharp eyesight, he could track the changes across the entire battlefield.
Progress in all areas was going smoothly—except for Erza's side, which had run into trouble.
Not long after Erza appeared, Knightwalker had come looking for her, completely ignoring everyone else. It looked like she was determined to settle a score with Erza.
But come to think of it, the destruction caused by their battle was worse than that caused by those intentionally sowing chaos elsewhere.
Charles shook his head and shifted his focus to other fronts. Even against another world's version of herself, Erza wouldn't lose. Fairy Tail's buff was no joke.
Just then, Charles noticed a new development on Gray's end.
Originally, Gray was fighting Sugarboy, who had previously been defeated by Natsu.
Sugarboy wasn't sure if he was lucky or not. After being defeated by Natsu, he thought punishment awaited him.
But upon returning to the capital, not only was he not punished, he received top-notch medical treatment, and even the loss of the Rose Sword wasn't held against him—in fact, he was given a different magical tool.
Sugarboy didn't think for a second that the king had grown merciful. He quickly understood that it was only because the kingdom was now severely lacking in combat power.
So what he needed to do now was to rack up some achievements to cushion Faust's inevitable reckoning later.
At first, he was relieved not to see that fire-breathing brat with the scarf, but he soon realized the ice-using kid was just as difficult to deal with.
To make matters worse, the magic tool he'd been given didn't sync well with him, and not long into the fight, he was already being pushed back by Gray.
Just as he was racking his brain for a way to turn the tide, he noticed Gray suddenly showing a puzzled expression.
Then Sugarboy heard footsteps approaching from behind.
He turned his head and saw a raggedly dressed boy walking over with two swords hanging at his waist.
The reason for Gray's strange expression was because the boy's face looked so much like Charles's.
Except this boy's face was a bit leaner, with a pallor that suggested he hadn't seen daylight in a long time.
But most notably, the boy exuded a violent aura completely unlike Charles's. Naturally, Gray immediately realized that this was the Edolas version of Charles.
Sugarboy felt like he couldn't breathe—he had recognized the boy too.
He simply couldn't understand how someone like him had been released from that prison. How could the king be sure he wouldn't turn on them and side with the invaders?!!
Ed-Charles walked up under their gaze and gave Sugarboy a smile. "As expected, you've always been useless."
Gray's pupils nearly contracted to a line—he hadn't even seen what happened.
One moment, Ed-Charles and Sugarboy were standing across from each other. The next, Ed-Charles was holding his black-and-red longsword, while Sugarboy collapsed with blood gushing from his chest.
The drawing and swinging of the sword had been as if edited out entirely.
Gray instinctively went on guard. If that strike had been aimed at him, he knew he wouldn't have been able to dodge it.
At that moment, someone patted him on the shoulder.
He turned to see Charles stepping past him and moving to confront Ed-Charles.
"Since he's the other world's version of me, let me handle this."
Gray nodded. The pressure from Ed-Charles was indeed intense, so he didn't insist and stepped back.
Suddenly, Charles twisted his body and caught the blade aimed at Gray with his palm, which was covered in a Dragon Slayer scale.
"Even if you're another world's version of me, I won't forgive anyone who hurts my comrades!"
"Comrades?" Ed-Charles let out a mocking smile. "Didn't expect the me from another world to still believe in such nonsense. Comrades always end up betraying you in the end!"
Sparks flew as the sword clashed with the gauntlet, and the two were forced apart.
To give up trusting others completely just because of one betrayal—Edolas's Charles really was overly fragile.
But fragile or not, Charles had to admit Ed-Charles was powerful.
He could sense that Ed-Charles hadn't used any of his magic tool's powers in that earlier attack—it was purely swordsmanship so fast it surpassed human perception.
Charles flexed his wrists, and flames began to erupt from him. Ed-Charles also drew his second sword from his waist.
Their gazes locked—and they charged at each other.
Charles suddenly had a feeling similar to when he fought
But the two were different. Edelweiss's swordsmanship was from zero to a hundred instantly—instant acceleration.
Ed-Charles's swordsmanship, however, was raw speed—like going three hundred from the get-go, surpassing the limits.
There was no superiority or inferiority between the two—both were equally troublesome.
Charles exhaled, and his arms moved so fast they left nearly a dozen afterimages, each one smashing apart a sword light.
Then the two clashed. Charles sidestepped the slash from the black-and-red longsword.
He could feel the ominous energy radiating from the blade—if he had to guess, it was probably some kind of curse magic.
Raising his arm, Charles used his Evil Dragon gauntlet to block the second sword's slash.
"Fire Dragon's Talon!"
With flames coiling around his leg, Charles kicked the crossed swords and knocked Ed-Charles back.
Looking at the small gash on his Evil Dragon gauntlet, Charles could somewhat guess the nature of Ed-Charles's second sword.
The Evil Dragon and Dragon Slayer Gauntlet were both inherent spirit weapons—crystallizations of magic power materialized from the soul. Normally, they couldn't be damaged.
Unless hit by something that surpassed their limits—like how the Iron Shadow Sword was broken after Black Iron Ikki fought Edelweiss.
But Charles didn't feel Ed-Charles's attack had reached that level, so the scratch must've come from a magic close to the level of a rule.
Ed-Charles noticed Charles staring at his twin swords and raised them as he spoke: "Curious? I don't mind telling you. These two blades are basically Edolas's national treasures. They're called the Sword of Conquest and the Sword of Hell.
The Sword of Conquest can cut through all physical matter, and the Sword of Hell causes pain that never fades, even after the wound heals."
Charles raised an eyebrow—he didn't expect Ed-Charles to be the chatty villain type. How did he develop such a bad habit of explaining his powers to enemies?
Ed-Charles seemed to sense what Charles was thinking and added, "The reason I say it doesn't matter if you know is because it won't help you at all!"
Charles understood. Were the swords powerful? Of course. But Ed-Charles's true strength lay in his swordsmanship.
The swords' abilities were just the icing on the cake.
Charles waved him forward. "Is that so? Then come try again!"
Man, the New Year is exhausting. Started prepping food two days ago, and yesterday was non-stop. On top of that, had to deal with a bunch of relatives—talk about mentally and physically drained!
------------------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get early access to chapters by joining my Patre@n!
Find me at: patre@n*com/Mutter
You can read each novel for $5 or get them all for just $15.
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)
[+50 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[+5 Reviews = +1 Extra Chapter]