Fairy Tail members are people of integrity, so naturally, they'd never dodge their debts.
Kira's rallying cry clearly worked. The group exchanged smiles, their faces lighting up with renewed hope.
Looks like these guys finally got a conscience and realized owing money isn't cool. Kira felt a twinge of pride.
Especially Cana, the one with the biggest tab. She'd probably buckle down and work hard to pay it off once they got back. Kira decided to give her a nudge by helping her reunite with Gildarts.
As an veteran S-Class wizard, Gildarts must have a ton of savings. With a dad like that, settling debts should be a breeze.
Wait… didn't Gildarts say he hadn't had income for three years?
"Kira's right! Don't give up hope!" Gildarts' voice broke through.
"Gildarts?"
Kira stared at the man, barely propping himself up, and was genuinely shocked by his strength and willpower. No wonder he's the guild's ceiling. Getting up this fast?
Kira knew his healing magic well. With injuries like Gildarts', no one should be able to stand and talk this soon. Most people would be down for the count.
From the moment Acnologia appeared, less than ten minutes had passed. The Black Dragon had attacked only four times, and their side was already out of fighting strength.
Gildarts was heavily injured. Erza, Gray, Lucy, Cana, Loke, and Elfman had poured all their magic into Natsu, leaving them unable to fight. That left Kira, with less than half his magic remaining, and… Natsu, still in Dragon Force mode.
Honestly, Kira hadn't expected Natsu to awaken Dragon Force here.
Unexpected, but I'll take it.
In the original story, Natsu first awakened Dragon Force in the Tower of Heaven, defeating Jellal after consuming Etherion. The second time was during the Oración Seis arc, beating Zero after eating Jellal's Flame of Rebuke.
But just now, Natsu had absorbed the magic of six others—way more than Jellal's alone!
Seeing Acnologia wasn't leaving, Kira sighed. "Looks like we've got no choice but to use that plan!"
"Hm?" Gildarts glanced at Kira, surprised. This kid's still got tricks up his sleeve?
"What plan?"
Kira tapped two fingers to his temple, instantly sending a battle strategy to everyone's minds via telepathy magic. It wasn't advanced magic, but it had huge tactical value.
He didn't say it out loud because he knew Acnologia could understand human speech. If the dragon caught wind of the plan and prepared for it, they'd be out of options.
The group, receiving Kira's message, looked puzzled.
"What?"
"This is…"
"Will it even work?"
"Let's give it a shot!"
"I got it!" Natsu shouted. "Let's do this!"
Step one: Natsu, powered by Dragon Force, would charge in as the vanguard while the others covered him to buy time.
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
"Fire Dragon's Talon!"
"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!"
"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"
Natsu unleashed a barrage of attacks, carried by Happy's [True Flight]. He went all out, hammering Acnologia without holding back.
The attacks barely scratched the dragon, but with Dragon Force, they at least slowed it down a bit.
Erza assisted from the side, hurling countless fine weapons at Acnologia—not to deal damage, but to stall its movements.
Step two: Elfman, Loke, Cana, and Lucy escorted the gravely injured Gildarts and the nearly forgotten tavern keeper, Pur, to safety to prepare for escape.
As Kira passed Cana, he slipped her a card—the key to the Prototype Fairy Airship, their escape plan.
Step three…
"Ready?"
Three figures stood side by side. Kira was in the center. To his left was Gray, shirt off, ready to mold ice at top speed. To his right was Winter, now in her Black-and-White Celestial Soul takeover form, her hair long and half-black, half-white, giving off a rebellious yet sacred vibe. Having consumed a ton of ice with her Ice God-Slaying Magic, her power was surging.
In front of Kira stood the Ice Demon King, recently subdued, now a mindless vessel of magic and power.
"Ready!" Gray and Winter said in unison.
"Then lend me your magic!"
It was the same trick Kira had used twice already today.
"Analyze… Transfer… Convert… Reconstruct…"
Three magic circles—black, white, and blue—formed in the air, connecting in an inverted triangle to create a massive new array.
Using Gray's Ice-Make Magic as the foundation, Winter's God-Slaying Magic as a buff, Kira's Word Soul Magic as a conversion hub, and the Ice Demon King's body as the output, their magics fused perfectly. Combined with Zonia's unique climate and terrain, they crafted a new Ice-Make spell with exponentially greater power!
Maybe it was because Zonia's changes were tied to the Black-and-White Celestial. Maybe it was because Ur and Gray's lineage traced back to her. Maybe it was the bond of the Fairy Tail emblem linking Kira and Gray…
Or maybe, it was simply their shared resolve and purpose that made the rare combination magic—something almost unheard of—manifest as a trio's spell, like a cheat code in action!
Kira began to chant, his voice calm yet divine, brimming with mysterious power: "By the words of magic, the oracle awakens; ice, civilization, form; the creation of the wise, the prayer of the faithful; the mountains beneath become wheels, the snow before us a cage, the words in our minds a chain!"
"Trio Combination Magic… Ice God's Creation… Word-Locked Dragon Carriage!"
The mystical chant summoned the power of the heavens and earth. The mountains trembled, the snow shifted, and words of power materialized, forming a colossal ice prison carriage around Acnologia!
Endless ice chains bound Acnologia—wings, claws, body, tail, mouth—wrapping it tightly. Thousands of ice pillars formed a cage, layer upon layer, at least ten deep, their clanging echoing across half of Zonia.
Most crucially, at the base was a massive ice platform, half the height of a mountain, supported by dozens of wheels to bear Acnologia's weight.
Under the trio's combination magic, Gray's molding speed was unimaginable. In a blink, a black ice prison trapped the black dragon, each piece infused with Kira's [Hardness], [Freeze], and [Daze] attributes, ensuring Acnologia couldn't move for a while.
The weakness of all Dragon Slayers: transportation!
The manga never spelled it out, but Kira had a theory: the stronger a Dragon Slayer's magic, the worse their motion sickness.
Reason one: Wendy didn't get motion sickness at first, but did later, likely because her power grew, tied to her dragon and its potential.
Reason two: Wendy could initially heal Natsu's motion sickness, but later couldn't, probably because Natsu's growing strength worsened his symptoms.
Reason three: Laxus also suffered from motion sickness, proving it wasn't tied to the era.
Reason four: Natsu, Gajeel, Wendy, and Laxus all developed motion sickness before using Dragon Force, so it wasn't caused by it.
If this theory held, Acnologia—a 400-year-old Dragon Slayer who'd killed countless dragons—would be the most motion-sick of all!
The ice carriage stopped Acnologia's rampage. Bound by chains, it lost its ability to resist, collapsing dizzily onto the platform.
"It worked!"
Thanks to telepathy magic, the group coordinated perfectly. As Kira's trio cast their spell, Happy grabbed Natsu and soared upward, while Erza donned her Black Feather Armor and took flight. The moment the ice carriage formed, they escaped the lockdown, speeding toward their planned direction without looking back.
"Now's our chance—run!!"
The plan worked. Why stick around and wait to die?
Kira knew Acnologia had been toying with them. Their earlier attacks, even Natsu and Kira's stronger hits, barely fazed it. But this move was different—it had been tricked by humans.
Putting himself in its shoes… no, Kira figured Acnologia wasn't as forgiving as he was. It was definitely pissed now!
The ice carriage wouldn't hold it long. Even without cheats, God-Slaying Magic might outrank Dragon-Slaying Magic, but this was Acnologia!
Drawing on his remaining magic, Kira sprouted massive wings, grabbing Gray and Winter and flying toward the Prototype Fairy Airship. They quickly caught up with Natsu, Happy, and Erza.
Thud, thud, thud! The group landed on the airship, where the others were already waiting. Seeing Kira and the rest arrive safely, they hit the takeoff button.
Engines roared! Full-speed escape!!
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