"Is that so? Thanks for the intel," Levy's voice turned icy.
Her hands moved in a blur, so fast they almost left afterimages!
[Solid Script: Silence]
[Solid Script: Blast]
The word "Silence" transformed into three transparent bubbles, quickly enveloping the heads of Levy, Lucy, and Virgo.
At the same moment, the word "Blast" exploded with a boom, turning into visible, distorted soundwaves that surged toward Gajeel like a tsunami!
"Argh!" Caught off guard, Gajeel felt like his eardrums were being stabbed by steel needles, his brain practically boiling from the shock. Clutching his ears in pain, he let out a muffled groan.
"Damn it! What kind of freaky magic is this?!"
Gritting his teeth against the searing pain in his ears and the dizzying nausea, he leaped off the rooftop. Using the momentum of his fall, his right arm morphed into a massive iron sword, slicing through the air with a vicious whistle as he aimed for the woman making all that noise!
Levy, nimble as a butterfly, gracefully leaped back, dodging the powerful strike.
The moment she landed, her fingers danced in the air, writing again!
[Solid Script: Stench]
The glowing words instantly turned into a nauseating cloud of thick yellow gas, shooting toward Gajeel as he hit the ground!
Still reeling from the buzzing in his ears, Gajeel couldn't make out what Levy was chanting. All he saw was an unidentified object hurtling toward him.
Instinctively, he swung his iron arm to swat it away!
Pop! The yellow gas burst on impact, and in an instant, a revolting stench—a mix of rotten eggs, spoiled milk, and something indescribably foul—erupted, engulfing Gajeel completely!
"Ugh!" His eyes turned bloodshot from the assault, his stomach churning violently.
"What the hell is up with this woman's magic?! Why is it all so disgusting?!"
The piercing noise still battered his hearing, and now this suffocating stench added to his torment. Gajeel's head throbbed, his thoughts a jumbled mess.
He held his breath, desperate to escape the foul cloud.
But in that split second of distraction, a massive, ochre-colored stone hand burst from the ground beneath him, clamping tightly around his ankle!
"Damn it! This blasted noise is screwing with my senses!" Gajeel cursed under his breath. His left arm morphed into an iron club, ready to smash the annoying stone hand.
But just as the club was about to connect, a layer of tough, green thorny light coated the stone arm's surface! Clang! The club struck the thorny shield, sending a powerful recoil and a strange tingling sensation through Gajeel's arm, freezing his movement for a moment!
In that brief pause, the stone hand rapidly expanded and reshaped, forming a nearly ten-foot-tall stone giant. It hoisted Gajeel upside down into the air and charged forward with heavy steps!
"Let me go, you bastard!" Gajeel struggled, but the piercing noise and vile smell sapped his strength, making escape nearly impossible.
"What kind of messed-up magic is this?!"
"Isn't that prissy girl a Celestial Spirit Mage?! How's she controlling earth now?!"
"And this damn noise and disgusting stench! Are all Fairy Tail mages this unorthodox?!"
Lucy watched Gajeel, dangling helplessly from the stone giant, her tense nerves easing slightly. She clenched her fists, a spark of excitement on her face.
"Awesome! He's a Dragon Slayer, like Natsu, so he's probably weak to motion sickness too!"
"QAQ All those sleepless nights practicing my puppet theater magic (from defeating enemies on Galuna Island) weren't for nothing!"
"Careful, Lucy! Don't let your guard down!" Levy's alert voice echoed in Lucy's mind.
"There's no magic drop notification yet. He might be playing dead or planning a last-ditch counterattack!"
"Per the Guild Combat Manual, Rule Seven, after defeating an enemy, it's best to follow up with a control or sleep spell to ensure safety!"
As she spoke, Levy's hands glowed with magic, forming the word [Sleep], ready to hurl it at Gajeel, still gripped by the stone giant.
"O_0! Guild Combat Manual? What's that?! This is the first I'm hearing of it!" Lucy exclaimed.
"Isn't that a bit overkill?" Lucy thought Levy was being overly cautious. "Natsu goes limp the second he's on any vehicle. As a Dragon Slayer, this guy should—"
Before she could finish, everything changed!
A surge of vibrant green magic erupted from Gajeel's body! His skin rapidly covered in cold, hard iron scales, exuding a ferocious aura!
"ROAR!" He let out an inhuman bellow, his immense magic exploding outward!
Boom!
The stone giant holding him shattered under the terrifying magical outburst, crumbling into countless fragments!
Freed, Gajeel landed like a cannonball, narrowly dodging the incoming [Sleep] spell.
He raised his head, his eyes blazing with murderous intent. His left arm stretched and morphed into a sharp iron spear, its tip glowing with a green magic circle.
[Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs]
In an instant, countless shimmering iron spear shadows rained down on Levy and Lucy like a storm! Clang, clang, clang! The spears slammed into the [Thorn Shield], producing ear-splitting grinding and cracking sounds. The shield's glow visibly dimmed.
"He can use Dragon Force too?!" Levy stared in shock at the iron scales covering him. None of the intel mentioned this.
"With that defense, most of my disruption magic will be way less effective. And he hasn't even used his Dragon Slayer Secret Art yet. If he targets Lucy, my magic won't fully protect her. Looks like I've got to play my trump card."
"Lucy! Fall back! Keep your distance!" Levy shouted.
"Got it!" Lucy gasped, overwhelmed by the barrage of iron spears. As she retreated, struggling to breathe, she saw a yellowish magic circle appear under Virgo.
Virgo sank into the ground, and in the next moment, the earth beneath Gajeel collapsed into a deep pit! Simultaneously, the surrounding ground churned violently, sharp stone pillars spiking up from all directions, converging on Gajeel!
The sudden weightlessness and the onslaught from the ground forced Gajeel's frenzied attack to falter for a moment.
Seizing the opportunity, Levy and Lucy hurriedly retreated!
Levy pulled a golden card bearing Gildarts' likeness from her waist, pouring a torrent of magic into it.
The card erupted in dazzling light! Without hesitation, she flung it toward Gajeel!
"Lucy! Force Gate Closure!"
At Levy's command, Lucy swiftly drew Virgo's key and slashed it through the air, the key's tip gleaming with golden light!
[Force Gate Closure]
In an instant, Virgo, who had just unleashed her earth magic behind Gajeel, dissolved into countless golden motes, safely returning to the Celestial Spirit World.
At the same time, the golden card shattered mid-air! A terrifying wave of magic, thick enough to freeze the air, exploded outward!
The card's fragments rapidly coalesced, forming a massive white fist made entirely of condensed magic.
The fist tore through the air like a meteor, hurtling toward Gajeel, who had just broken free of the stone spikes!
"What the hell is that?!" Gajeel's pupils shrank to pinpoints. His Dragon Slayer instincts screamed of lethal danger!
His scales buzzed with warnings, his battle lust replaced by survival instinct. He wanted to flee!
But the moment the thought crossed his mind, the white fist accelerated, as if locked onto him!
No dodging this!! Despair flooded Gajeel's mind.
With a roar, he poured every ounce of magic into his iron scales, maxing out his defense. Crossing his arms, he braced for impact.
BOOM!!
The white, destructive energy swallowed Gajeel's figure! The blinding light forced Lucy and Levy to shut their eyes.
Even from a distance, they could feel the terrifying force, capable of tearing and crushing everything!
"Pfft!" Amid the light, Gajeel's pained cough and the sound of him spitting blood echoed faintly. A figure shot out like a broken kite, crashing through the buildings behind with staggering force!
Crash, crash, crash! Walls shattered, houses collapsed, and a cloud of dust billowed, engulfing the street.
[Ding! Gained 20,000 Magic Points. Acquired Iron Dragon Slayer Magic.]
[Ding! Gained 8,000 Magic Points. Acquired Ability: Iron Consumption (Restores some magic and stamina by consuming iron objects).]
The notifications rang clearly in Levy and Lucy's minds.
They stared at the dust-filled ruins, barely believing their eyes.
Lucy rubbed her eyes, confirming it wasn't an illusion, before letting out an incredulous gasp. "Levy! What was that magic?! That was insane!!"
"One hit took down the Iron Dragon!"
Levy, still dazed, looked at her empty hand and murmured, "I… I've never used this card before. It was something Cana lost to me in a bet."
"It holds a single strike from the guild's strongest mage besides Roger—Gildarts."
She swallowed hard, glancing at the smoky ruins. "Cana said her magic was too weak to seal much of Gildarts' power."
"But even that tiny fraction was this powerful?" Both stood stunned, still reeling from the impact.
Levy was the first to snap out of it, taking a deep breath to steady herself. She turned to Lucy. "Lucy, we need to check on him. We have to make sure the Iron Dragon's completely out, maybe tie him up to prevent a surprise attack."
"Huh?!" Lucy's eyes widened in disbelief. "But didn't we get the magic drop notifications? Doesn't that mean we've already beaten him?"
"The notification only means we 'defeated' him," Levy explained, heading toward where Gajeel fell. "The Guild Combat Manual stresses this repeatedly: whenever possible, after defeating an enemy, you must restrain or finish them off, especially if your own attack power is limited."
She turned, her expression serious. "Think about it. If we go through all that effort to beat an enemy, then leave them lying there because we think they're done…"
"If they recover while we're drained and vulnerable, and launch a sneak attack, we're screwed."
"=_= That… makes a lot of sense," Lucy admitted, shivering as she recalled a close call on Galuna Island. "I almost got ambushed by a giant rat I thought I'd taken out."
"If Erza hadn't swooped in, I'd have been toast."
"A rat? Ambushed?" Levy looked puzzled.
"It's a long story," Lucy waved it off. "I'll tell you tonight if we get a chance!"
"Alright," Levy shrugged, moving forward while sharing more advice. "Lucy, you need to remember, our bodies aren't as tough as Natsu or Gray's. We're at a huge disadvantage in close combat."
"So we play to our strengths and minimize our weaknesses, using our magic's versatility."
"In battle, our top priority is keeping distance from the enemy. Only by staying safe can we keep casting spells to attack and disrupt."
"Our core tactic for ranged fighting is guerrilla warfare: advance when they retreat, harass when they hold, strike when they're tired, pursue when they flee. That's how we maximize our magic's diversity."
"This is where speed and reaction time come in. If I hadn't dodged the Iron Dragon's initial attack, I wouldn't have had the chance to cast all those spells, let alone counterattack."
"So, we train speed first, then proper magic development, and strength last."
"If we get that balance wrong, our ability to take down three enemies could drop to barely handling one."
"And in battle, judgment is critical. If I didn't have this card…"
"The moment he activated Dragon Force, I'd have used a communication card to call nearby guildmates for backup."
"That way, we avoid getting hurt and becoming a liability our teammates have to protect."
Lucy listened, awestruck, her eyes shining with admiration for the petite but dependable blue-haired figure ahead. "Wow, Levy, you know so much! Is all this in that Guild Combat Manual?"
"Pretty much," Levy said, turning with her hands behind her back, walking backward while smiling at Lucy. "The manual's a collection of everyone's experiences. Roger and Erza often share battle tips and strategies. That 'guerrilla warfare' idea? That came from Roger."
"Some of it's from pitfalls we've seen in comics and novels—people defeating enemies and ignoring them, only for them to become a threat again, or ranged fighters inexplicably turning into melee brawlers, lowering their damage and risking death."
"Add in all the random situations and solutions we've encountered on jobs, and it slowly became the Guild Combat Manual."
"It helps new guild members avoid common mistakes and stay safe. Hasn't Natsu mentioned it?"
Lucy shook her head. "Nope =_=| Never heard of it!"
Levy chuckled. "That sounds like Natsu. He probably forgot it exists. No worries, I'll lend you my copy later."
"Awesome!" Lucy nodded eagerly, then remembered something from the fight. "But I've seen Mirajane and Erza fight, and they never seem to bother tying up enemies or using sleep spells. Why's that?"
"Well…" Levy paused, thinking. "Those two are special cases. Most of the time, they just take their enemies out completely."
"If it's an enemy they can't finish off, weaker ones are usually so terrified after fighting them that they wouldn't dare try a sneak attack. Some even pass out from fear just hearing their names."
Lucy pictured Erza interrogating Eisenwald's Erigor, a bead of sweat rolling down her forehead. "Yeah, that tracks."
"As for stronger enemies," Levy hesitated, deciding some details might be too intense for Lucy right after a tough fight. "They have… more 'effective' ways of handling them. You'll see what I mean eventually."
Lucy's head sprouted three giant question marks, but before she could press further, a soft squish came from under her foot.
Looking down, she saw she'd stepped on a red fruit, her boot now sticky with juice.
The ground around them was littered with smashed fruits and goods.
She looked up at the street ahead—half-collapsed shops and buildings, as if a beast had rampaged through. Gasping, her voice trembled. "Th-these… we didn't cause all this, did we?!"