Seeing Chase and Nagrez finally disperse their magic, Erza let out a small sigh of relief.
Good thing the shop for armor repair and maintenance is in the next town… If I'd come back any later, I don't even want to imagine how bad this would've gotten.
"Oh my, Titania… I didn't expect you to be back so soon."
Nagrez crossed his arms over his chest and strode toward Erza, his eyes lowering just enough to give the impression he was looking down on her.
The cherry-black bangs across his forehead swayed gently in the breeze, and his posture radiated an unmistakable air of arrogance.
After experiencing the overwhelming might of fusion, some of that power had gone to his head. The woman he normally feared like a raging tiger didn't seem quite so fearsome at the moment and in fact, he was feeling a dangerous itch to challenge her.
He wanted to use this chance to pay her back for all the times she'd flattened him before one fight at a time.
However, before he could even voice his challenge with that full, misplaced confidence
Smack!
The crisp sound of a slap echoed through the air as Erza's hand connected squarely with his cheek.
"What did you just call me?"
Her gaze was cold enough to freeze the air, like a demon rising straight from the depths of hell.
Nagrez's arrogance crumbled instantly. Shoulders shrinking, he stammered, "…Erza "
That clean, sharp slap had awakened something primal: the instinctive fear of a creature at the bottom of the food chain for its apex predator.
Even if he could fight evenly with Chase, it didn't change the fact he was still the fusion of Natsu and Gray.
And who were Natsu and Gray most terrified of? There was no need to think twice.
When it came to Erza, it was double-layered, blood-deep suppression.
Smack!
Another slap, this time to the other cheek, left Nagrez momentarily stunned.
Meeting Erza's razor-sharp gaze, the "strongest wizard in the guild" bravado drained away completely.
"I'm sorry! Lady Erza!"
Nagrez's voice was almost trembling, his eyes wide and clear like a first-year student standing before a furious headmistress.
"That's better."
"I don't care whether you're Natsu or Gray," Erza continued icily. "And I certainly don't care about you acting tough in front of Chase or anyone else."
Her hand shot out, gripping the dragon-scale scarf at his neck. She yanked him forward until their faces were inches apart.
"How dare you act pretentious in front of me? I'll kill you."
Nagrez didn't even think of resisting. He nodded furiously, blurting out, "Love~!"
The fear carved into his very genes had reduced him into a pathetic, chirping Happy in an instant.
"It's rude to interrupt a fight between two men, Erza."
Chase dropped from the air, landing solidly on the cracked, ruined ground.
At those words, Erza released Nagrez and turned toward Chase, her expression darkening.
Nagrez, now safe, watched eagerly from the sidelines, his expression a mix of mischief and anticipation: Don't think I'm going to be the only one slapped today. Erza, hurry up and let that bastard Chase get a taste of your 'discipline.'
Under his expectant stare, Erza stepped up to the smiling Chase, saying nothing.
Boom~
The next second, there was a sharp clang as Chase's head made solid contact with Erza's steel breastplate.
Moving quickly, Erza wrapped her arms around him in a firm, unyielding embrace that left no room for escape.
"You're just letting Chase off that easily? Where's the slap you gave me?" Nagrez muttered in dissatisfaction.
Erza glanced over her shoulder at him, and his complaint died instantly.
"Chase is far too strong. Conventional intimidation doesn't work on him… so the only way is to influence him with love," she said matter-of-factly.
Pressed against the cold steel of her armor and unable to move, Chase let out a resigned sigh. "Your love is… truly unshakable."
Although the battle had taken a lot out of him, he could have avoided Erza if he wanted to. But at this point, there was no need.
After all, he had already gathered all the fusion and God-Slaying Magic data he needed only the final full-power test was left undone.
Besides… Erza wasn't wrong.
If this mountain range did get blown apart, the compensation bill would be astronomical even if he could easily afford it.
Fine, I'll let her have this one.
With that decision, Chase raised a hand and snapped his fingers.
A magic circle flared to life, waves of magical energy radiating outward. A brilliant white light enveloped Nagrez's body, and slowly, the fusion unraveled.
"So gross!" x2
Natsu and Gray reappeared, staring at each other for a moment before quickly putting some distance between them.
Just recalling the sensation of their bodies merging made them both gag and turn away to retch.
As for clothing Nagrez's bib and shorts had gone to Natsu, while Gray had reverted to his… let's say traditional state.
Seeing this, Erza finally released Chase and looked at the two in front of her, her expression thoughtful.
She had already gotten a rough explanation of Chase's Fusion magic from Happy on her way here, but seeing Natsu and Gray split apart before her eyes was still an incredible sight.
This magic was far more potent than ordinary fusion magic.
And with that, the battle between the Sky Dragon and the Ice Flame Dragon came to a close. The four of them made their way back across the lake to the construction site of the new guild.
"Erza! How could you do this? They didn't even finish the fight how are we supposed to settle our bets now?"
"Yeah! We were ready to rake in the winnings and buy enough fish for a feast!"
"At least let them fire off their last attacks! Chase can afford to pay for the damages!"
The gamblers among their guildmates voiced their displeasure, glaring at Erza.
Erza raised one eyebrow. In an instant, the chatter died into complete silence.
"Makao," she said evenly, "you seem to have a lot of opinions."
Macao, who was half a step too slow and was now shielded by his companions, broke into a cold sweat. "No, no! Absolutely not!"
At that moment, Mira walked over at a leisurely pace.
"Erza, you came at the right time. If they kept going like that, they would have scared off all the fish in the lake and the small animals in the mountains," she said with a gentle smile.
"That's… really not something to worry about "
Lucy trailed after her, taking in the wrecked lakeshore and torn-up mountainside ahead. She muttered under her breath, "Those little animals are probably sleeping peacefully right now."
The kind of peaceful sleep you don't wake up from.
"Lucy! Why didn't you stop Chase earlier?!" Erza's sharp voice suddenly rang out.
"Ah huh?"
Startled by the sudden call-out, Lucy's hair practically stood on end. She pointed to herself in disbelief, eyes wide. "Wait, me? You expect me to stop those two no, three monsters?!"
"Forget it. I'm too tired to even argue with you." Erza pressed a hand to her forehead with a sigh.
"You were actually serious! And you gave up on me that quickly?!"
Lucy slumped in despair, a wave of guilt washing over her.
I've let Erza down so badly…
"Love~ Don't worry, Lucy," Happy piped up warmly. "Even though you're awful, you were never very brave to begin with."
"Thanks. But honestly, it'd be even better if you just didn't talk." Lucy's voice was heavy with exhaustion.
"By the way, Chase, what's the story with that new magic card fusion of yours?"
Erza's gaze shifted to Natsu and Gray, who were back to bickering happily, before fixing on Chase. "And another thing why did the magic you just used feel like Dragon Slayer magic?"
That caught everyone else's attention.
They had all seen Nagrez's power firsthand and were just as curious to hear more.
"Hehe! Allow the cute and charming me to answer those questions for you, Erza!"
The Dark Magician Girl stepped forward proudly, raising one hand high.
By the time she was done explaining, everyone finally understood the basics of Fusion magic and the nature of God-Slaying Magic and they were left amazed.
Fusion was easy to grasp; just seeing Nagrez's S-Class level performance had proven its might.
But God-Slaying Magic? This was the first they'd heard of it ancient lost magic created to "kill gods."
"Tch. I'd never get along with that flame idiot," Gray muttered, turning away from Natsu. "Hey, Loke, if the two of us fused, we'd make a damn good team."
He had a solid friendship with Loke, and the two had already agreed to team up in this year's S-Class Wizard Promotion Trial.
"I'm sorry, Gray. I'm… not in any condition to consider that right now."
Loke adjusted the glasses perched on his nose, his voice noticeably weak.
"You okay?" Gray frowned, catching the hint of fatigue in his tone.
"It's fine. I've just been a little tired lately, so I'll head back first."
Loke didn't want his friends to learn his secret. With his hands stuffed in his pockets, he offered a brief farewell and turned to leave.
"That guy… is he lovesick or something?" Gray muttered, watching Loke's back disappear into the distance.
Meanwhile, Natsu had found his way over to the most manly man in the guild Elfman.
"Man!"
"It's on fire!"
The two seemed to click instantly, sharing an unspoken bond of mutual enthusiasm.
Standing nearby, Lucy could only cover her face in shame. A monster teamed up with a macho man… just picturing it makes me want to back away.
"It looks like Chase's fusion really can make one plus one greater than two! If we worked together, we could protect Levy-chan even better!"
Jet and Droy of the Shadow Gear team looked positively thrilled.
Lucy: Other than settling who gets to carry Levy's luggage, it doesn't really matter whether you two get along…
"I want to try fusing with Lu-chan too!"
Levy walked over with a bright smile and took Lucy's hand.
"Why even you, Levy-chan?!"
"Because fusing just sounds so exciting."
Levy's eyes flicked without thinking towards Lucy's rather generous chest, and her cheeks went red.
"What's the point of two girls? Lucy, just fuse with me instead!"
The guild's lecherous elder, Macao, strolled over with a grin. "An old member and a new member joining forces would be unstoppable!"
Lucy's mouth twitched, and she took two deliberate steps back. Your shameless schemes are practically written all over your face.
"Dad!" Romeo shouted.
"Damn it! He got to her first!" Wakaba cursed.
In another corner, Alzack and Bisca both flushed red.
Just hearing the word fusion was enough to make this young couple's hearts beat faster.
All around the guild, people were pairing up Cana and Lucky, Warren and Nab, Reedus and Hibiki.
Marx, the Sand Magic user, even spotted what he thought was a loophole. "You fools! If you're going to fuse, you should obviously pick the strongest person in the guild the Master!"
A… creative idea, but one that seemed like a bit too much even for Chase.
Soon, the whole place was buzzing with excitement as everyone debated the wild possibilities of fusion.
In a dark corner, far from the crowd
Juvia bit the corner of her clothes, struggling to suppress the urge to rush over, kneel before Chase, and beg for a magic card just so she could experience an icy fusion with Gray-sama. But for now, she was still considered an enemy of Fairy Tail.
"What they're saying has me curious. I wonder… what would it be like to fuse with Erza?"
Mira rested her delicate white chin in one hand, her eyes distant as she pictured the idea in her mind.
"If that happened, we wouldn't have a single rival in this guild."
Erza stood with one hand on her hip, a confident smile playing on her lips.
As a longtime rival, she knew better than anyone just how formidable Mira was when fighting at full strength.
"Erza and Mira-sis are so unfair!"
Lucy and Levy walked over after firmly rejecting the advances of the two pervy old-timers.
"About this… I actually want to try it," Chase said with a shrug, "but unfortunately, it's not possible right now."
The conditions for activating a fusion depended heavily on the strength of the fusion materials.
And clearly, even with his current magic power and every card buff he had, Chase couldn't pull off a successful fusion between Mira and Erza.
That combination of Requip and Take Over magic was definitely the most anticipated of all. As for the rest of the guild… Chase wasn't all that interested.
Even Natsu and Gray hadn't been able to draw a single card for fusion let alone anyone else.
Still, if he ever got bored, he could always mess around and try fusing some of the others for fun.
"By the way, I noticed something when I came back just now."
Erza's gaze shifted to a distant corner piled high with building materials, her expression turning slightly serious. "Isn't that person over there one of the Phantom Lord's Element 4?"
"Yeah. I think her name's Juvia," Mira replied, glancing toward the girl in question.
Juvia who had instantly ducked into hiding was easy to spot. Mira tilted her head and smiled. "She's been here since we started rebuilding the guild. Every morning, before dawn, she's out front keeping watch."
The Phantom Lord incident had only just ended, and Juvia's stealth skills weren't exactly refined yet. Being noticed was inevitable.
"Phantom? Element 4? An enemy?!"
As a newcomer, Lucy had no idea, and the revelation left her wide-eyed in shock.
"Don't be nervous. She doesn't seem hostile," Mira reassured her calmly.
Chase stepped in with a grin. "To be precise… it's more like she's fallen for someone in our guild."
"Ah, so you noticed too," Mira said, smiling knowingly.
"Love? Who is it?!"
At that, Lucy's earlier worry evaporated, replaced with wide-eyed curiosity. Even Levy couldn't help leaning in to listen.
"The Master seems to have his own plans for this," Chase said lightly. "So, for now, let's keep it between us."
Mira lifted the hem of her burgundy dress, stepped forward gracefully, and leaned in to whisper the man's name into Lucy and Levy's ears.
"What?!" X2
The two of them couldn't help crying out in unison.
Their reaction wasn't exactly unreasonable. Sure, Gray was undeniably handsome but he was also a chronic stripper!
Even now, he was still standing there completely naked, chatting casually with Cana as if nothing was wrong.
Noticing the odd glances being thrown his way, Gray suddenly looked up toward them.
Lucy and Levy instantly panicked, ducking behind Mira and Erza for cover.
"Oi, Cana, what's with those guys? Why are they acting all sneaky over there?"
Gray scratched the back of his head, utterly baffled.
....
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