Carla swooped in just in time, catching Lucy before she hit the ground.
"Why didn't you summon a Celestial Spirit?" she scolded, exasperated.
"Because…" Lucy's voice trailed off, her face flushing red. She couldn't exactly admit she had seen Rhodes flip that monstrous dog with one hand and thought she could pull off something similar.
Besides, technically, Star River counted as a Celestial Spirit weapon, right?
Having just learned her lesson firsthand, Lucy didn't argue. She obediently pulled another silver key from her belt.
"Open! Gate of the Golden Bull, Taurus!"
A shining portal burst open, and the massive black-and-white bull spirit leapt forth, raising his double-edged axe high.
"Moooh! I will protect Miss Lucy's beautiful figure!"
The axe came down with thunderous force, slamming onto the Hellhound's central head. The beast's middle neck sagged instantly, its body lurching from the impact.
Before Taurus could recover, the left head lunged and clamped its jaws around the axe's edge. Its teeth ground against the metal with a sharp clang, and then, with a single heave, it hurled Taurus backward.
The bull spirit crashed into the dirt, sliding several meters before he managed to dig his hooves in.
Rhodes's eyes flicked toward the beast. 'So, all three heads have to be taken out, huh?'
His gaze settled on the deep scar Taurus's strike had left on the drooping head. 'Still, that blow wasn't bad. Taurus is definitely stronger than before.'
At least his attack output was now above that of a beginner Amaterasu Magic Circle. It was possible the Hellhound's fire alignment made it unusually resistant.
The creature, now two heads active and snarling, reared up again, ready to pounce on the dazed bull.
Lucy quickly drew another key. "Don't even think about it! Open, Gate of the Ram, Aries!"
Second Gate!
Twin golden portals shimmered in the air, and from the new one emerged a timid, pink-haired girl wrapped in fluffy white wool.
Summoning two Zodiac spirits at once was the result Lucy had been dying to show off to Rhodes.
Rhodes, however, only rubbed his chin. 'Finally, she's at the level of a proper Celestial Spirit Mage.'
He had met five Celestial Spirit Mages before and was already planning to visit a sixth. Both Angle and Yukino could open two gates simultaneously, but Lucy, despite owning the most golden keys, had only just reached parity with silver-level users.
'If she weren't in my guild, I'd call that a waste of talent.'
"Fluffy, I'm sorry!" Aries squeaked, stretching her hands forward. Pink wool burst forth like a tidal wave, enveloping the Hellhound in a cocoon of soft fluff.
The beast's tremendous strength crashed into the wool barrier, but instead of ripping through, it slowed, its movements dulled as though submerged in water. It clawed, bit, and thrashed, but its power only dispersed harmlessly through the plush barrier.
Aries gritted her teeth, holding the spell together, while Taurus, having regained his footing, snorted twin jets of steam from his nostrils.
"Now, Taurus!" Lucy shouted. "Carla, let me down!"
"Alright, Miss Lucy!" Carla called, swooping lower.
Taurus leapt high, dragging his enormous axe in both hands. Passing right over Aries's head, he brought it down in a tremendous swing that cleaved straight into the Hellhound's left head.
At the same moment, Lucy descended from above, twisting midair.
"Lucy Kick! And Star River!"
Her heel slammed into the right head's eye, followed by the blue whip snapping out in a flash, cracking the other eye dead-on.
"Graaahhh!"
"Ahhh!"
The left head whimpered and went limp. The right one recoiled, slamming backward with a guttural snarl that sent Lucy flying once again.
Taurus dropped his axe and lunged forward, eyes transformed into giant red hearts.
"Miss Lucy! Don't be afraid, I'll catch you!"
Unfortunately, he completely missed, sliding face-first into a pile of grass and hugging it tightly instead.
Carla caught Lucy midair again and sighed deeply.
"If you keep this up, you're going to turn into Natsu."
"How could that be?!" Lucy puffed up proudly, even as her hair stuck out from the rough landing. "Fighting alongside my Celestial Spirits is my fighting style!"
Carla just shook her head. "Now's not the time to brag."
"Right! Wendy!" Lucy yelled down.
"Dragon Slayer Secret Art!"
Wendy spread her arms wide, and a spiraling barrier of wind surged outward, encircling the Hellhound.
The Hellhound stirred uneasily at the rising sound, thrashing inside Aries's wool cocoon with its eyes squeezed shut. When it slammed into the wind barrier, it was instantly repelled, tumbling backward.
As the barrier vanished, Wendy's magic ignited.
"Shattering Light: Sky Drill!"
A column of compressed wind magic tore upward like a spiral lance. It pierced straight through the pink wool and into the heavens, punching a hole through a low-hanging cloud.
"It worked!" Lucy cheered.
Carla placed her beside Wendy, wings fluttering lightly.
Rhodes, however, frowned. "It ran away, underground."
He sensed the two Krugs he'd left beneath the surface had been destroyed, and the Hellhound's magic signature had vanished.
"How could that be?" Lucy gasped. "Aries, return! Open, Gate of Virgo, Virgo!"
A flash of gold, and the maid-like spirit appeared, curtsying.
"Is it time for me to be punished, Princess?"
Lucy spluttered. "No! Get underground and find the Hellhound!"
"Yes, Princess." Virgo spun once on her heels, then dove straight into the earth.
Moments later she popped up again, then vanished and resurfaced somewhere else, like a mole tracing a zigzag path through the soil.
Finally, she burst out right under Lucy's feet.
"Princess, target not found. Please punish me."
Lucy shrieked, landing on her backside and clutching her skirt. "Don't pop out from under people like that!"
Expressionless, Virgo tilted her head. "Then… would you prefer punishment?"
"Go back!" Lucy groaned, waving her hands.
Wendy sniffed the air. "Only a faint residual scent remains. I can't tell which way it went."
Rhodes summoned two Crabs and tapped their antennae. "Go. One that way, one this way. Use Void Divination."
The creatures scuttled off in opposite directions. When they stopped, a thin mist spread from their antennae.
The haze drifted through the forest, sank into the soil, and even seeped into the river. As it expanded, Rhodes's vision extended with it, seeing through mist and matter alike.
He saw animals scurrying beneath leaves, layers of earth and roots, the tunnels Virgo had carved, fish darting through the current, grains of sand tumbling in the water, but nowhere, not a trace of the Hellhound.
Rhodes exhaled slowly. "So it's not just earth magic. It used spatial magic as well… that's troublesome."
Creatures capable of manipulating space were the hardest to track.
They searched for some time, with Rhodes releasing groups of lesser monsters to help sweep the area, yet nothing turned up.
With no immediate solution, he finally drew a Hex Gate magic circle on the ground, leaving a number of wild summons stationed nearby, and also near Lutes Village to keep watch, just in case the beast returned.
Once everything was secured, the group set out for Quatro Cerberus.
Lucy and Wendy went ahead to ask around for the mages from Phantom Wing, while Rhodes studied the surroundings in silence.
The town where Quatro Cerberus was located was nothing like Magnolia. The streets were less lively, though in terms of magical engineering and technology, this town clearly surpassed them.
From somewhere down the street, a drunken voice slurred, "It's you again, huh? Figures…"
...
Bonus @1600 PS
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