BOOM
One second, Kazu was sitting beside Levy, and the next, he was above Laxus, doing an axe kick with Red Ethernano violently being released from his leg.
CRACK
Yellow lightning flickered on Laxus's arm as he blocked Kazu's leg with his right arm.
THUD
A loud sound came from the clash, causing the others to instinctively put their hands on their ears.
"How the fuck could you kill an innocent bystander!? Eris wasn't even that vile! I know you enough to cross out the possibility of you blindly believing in the Council's information."
More red Ethernano violently burst out of Kazu's leg, causing the air around to tremble under pressure.
If not for the barrier Kazu had instinctively put around the cabin, the train would have been damaged beyond repair.
"Calm down. I didn't kill anybody." Laxus calmly said, his face was opposite to the look on Kazu's face.
Kazu blinked. The red light around him flickered—then dimmed like a flame smothered by doubt. His pulse still pounded in his throat, but the rage felt… misplaced.
He sat back, forcing calm onto his face. "So, what happened? You did say you attacked her, no?"
Laxus replied without batting an eye. "I did knock her out. She was a mage, so she could take it."
Kazu nodded. "I see." He then turned to the other four, who were giving him a shocked look.
"You guys look like you have seen a ghost. Is something behind me?" He joked.
Their expression didn't change, which actually took Kazu aback. He slowly turned his head back and—
Nothing.
There was nothing other than the wall.
"What do you mean, ghost? You just got super angry one second and calm the next second. How can we not be shocked at your mood swing?" Levy looked at him with a baffled expression.
Kazu shrugged. "Oh well. I didn't think it through, so..."
"What's with that Red ethernano? Isn't your normal colour blue?" Natsu tilted his head.
"My ethernano's colour represents my emotions. Red is anger."
Before Natsu could follow up, Mira beat him to it. "Are you really alright? Your body is shaking." Mira frowned as she pointed her finger at Kazu's arms, which were trembling.
"Right, I almost forgot...Do you guys have any healing artefacts left? The healing ones."
Mira shook her head. "We used all the ones we had on you beforehand. Your body was pretty beaten when you came. What just happened in your fight?"
Kazu frowned. He turned to Laxus. "Right. What happened? I can't recall most of what happened when I told you that I was going to use that move. Did Eris escape?"
Everyone also turned to Laxus.
The blonde man frowned, already seeing that explanation would be a pain in the ass.
"Eris is dead. You killed him."
As if a thunderbolt had struck near them, everyone's face turned shocked.
"Kazu killed an S-rank?"
"No way!"
"I knew it!"
Everyone paused as they glanced at Levy, who had a 'knew it' expression on her face.
They then ignored them and turned to Kazu.
"Oh...I am that strong?... As expected of me." He laughed nervously. His knuckles turned white around his knee.
"So...what happened with his body? Won't you need it for the proof?" Kazu searched Laxus up and down. However, he found nothing.
"I contacted the council people to take it away. You did a number on his body, making it disfigured. So, they would need a specialised mage to confirm that it's his body, which will take a while."
Kazu's worst fears were confirmed with his statement. "I did what?"
"Just as you said, you went berserk. If not for Eris being your target from the start and chipping you down, even I would have fallen. During that, you killed it. I tried to stop you, and luckily, I was somehow able to knock you out."
This was the longest time everyone had heard Laxus talking. The others would have noticed this if not for the content being even more shocking.
"Kazu went berserk? Wait, what?" Levy furrowed her brows as she turned to Kazu.
'Why are my instincts telling me that she is thinking something ridiculous?' Kazu didn't address his doubt.
"So, what happened after I went berserk? If you don't mind, I would really appreciate it."
Laxus sighed. He didn't really want to do this. 'Though...' He frowned before opening his mouth.
"You started releasing Black Ethernano. I'm not sure if you have done this before, but it completely covers your entire body. Eris was freaked out, so he quickly tried to eliminate you and bring you into his domain.
However, the ethernano was too thick for his normal attacks. You did counterattack, but he immobilised you. During that time, I engaged with him, causing him to have a lot of hits and misses.
This continued for a while. The most ridiculous thing was that the Ethernano you were emitting wasn't decreasing, but rather increasing with each passing moment. Eris had a plan to wear you out, but realised that it was futile, so he started going all out.
But his actions were futile, too. Maybe if he had done that from the beginning... then maybe he might have escaped alive." Laxus shook his head.
Looking back, Eris wasn't given much time to think, given both Kazu and Laxus's continuous assault.
"Then?" Natsu asked with an impatient expression.
Suddenly, Levy furrowed her eyebrow. "Why are you so enthusiastic? Weren't you motion sick?"
Natsu pointed outside the window. "We are currently not moving."
"That reminds me. Aren't you a dragon slayer too, Laxus? Do you feel motion sick too?" Kazu asked the blonde man.
Laxus scoffed. "I don't have such obvious weaknesses."
'That's a lie.' A grin morphed on Kazu's face.
"You have something to say?" This irked Laxus.
"Nope. Please continue."
"Right. After that, you got a punch, and well, that hit was a fatal one. He had a big hole in his chest. So, pretty much dead."
Kazu instinctively looked at his fist.
He slowly brought it close.
Sniff Sniff Sniff
"Why the fuck are you smelling that?" Levy had a livid expression.
Kazu chuckled. "There is a lingering funny smell. It smells like human flesh and blood. Given that you touched me for a while, you might want to take a shower later."
The expression she gave made Kazu feel regret that he didn't have a camera to record.
"I did remove the smell from your body with my magic, but it seems it wasn't fully done."
Levy looked at Mira with a betrayed expression. "So, you knew!? And you didn't even tell me."
Mira shrugged. But the smile on her face betrayed her. "Well... you did seem pretty excited to give him a lap pillow for some reason. So, how could I reject you?"
Levy had a half expression of disgust and a half expression of regret.
Kazu patted her. She flinched at his touch.
"I am sorry. If you get PTSD, do let me know. I will do my best to help you."
"..."
Laxus ignored the interaction and continued. "Anyway, just as Eris was going to die, he used a special move he was saving... Last Star. It was... something. I didn't have the confidence to survive. Surprisingly, you had analysed his magic and neutralised it well.
His expression was a sight to see." Laxus chuckled at that. Though nobody laughed at that.
"Hmm, now that I think about it, I do feel like I could neutralise several of his earlier spells. Like, I just know and more. This is so weird." Kazu stroked his chin. This was an interesting thing to ponder, especially when his entire body was screaming in pain.
"Wait, you never explained about you going berserk."
Kazu turned to Mira.
"Well..."
Everyone's attention turned to him. Even Laxus looked at him with interest.
"Do you guys know that if you feel intense emotions, your Ethernano density increases? Basically, you become stronger."
Natsu squinted his eyes. He was feeling sick as the train had started moving, but he still could think a bit.
His eyes widened in realisation. "I get it! No wonder Erza, Laxus and Mira are strong. They always remain angry. That's why!"
CRACKLE
A wave of lightning flowed from Laxus's hand, directly hitting Natsu.
"Aaaahhh!" The pinkhead got electrocuted for a few seconds.
He then shivered. Looking to his right, he saw Mira.
"So, I always remain angry, huh? I wonder what the angry me would do now~"
"I..." Natsu attempted to get up, but before he could—
BAM
He got hit on his head.
"OUCH..." Natsu groaned in pain.
Kazu watched the scene with amusement. 'He really doesn't have any situation awareness. Even the newborn Happy seems to have more wisdom than him.'
"By your logic, shouldn't Kazu also always remain angry? I have rarely seen him like that." Levy patted the pink head.
"Uhh...Kazu is Kazu. That's why."
***
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