Chapter 104: Why Aren't You Arrogant Anymore?
"Hmm? This form of yours?"
Gajeel Redfox, standing in the center of the arena, let a slow, predatory grin spread across his face. He looked at Ren's new form—the simple clothes, the scarred face, the raw, non-magical aura. "Gihi. So, you're the legendary 'Tyrant', huh?"
Upon seeing Ren's appearance, Gajeel also guessed Ren's identity.
Phantom Lord possessed a lot of intelligence regarding Fairy Tail. Although few people had seen Ren's true, base form, many in the underworld knew about his various transformed states.
Being able to appear after Erza, and subtracting the other S-Class Mages of Fairy Tail that he knew, that left only one person.
'Tyrant'.
"So this is the guy who's been making all the noise," Gajeel thought, his grin widening. He wasn't impressed.
Actually, the 'Tyrant' hadn't appeared many times in total. Once was when he annihilated that bandit group of tens of thousands, which made him famous overnight. The second time, not long ago, he annihilated the Dark Guild 'Eisenwald'.
In Gajeel's eyes, these were nothing remarkable. If they chose to become a bandit group, even if they had some Mages, they were just garbage Mages.
And the Dark Guild 'Eisenwald'? Even less significant. Gajeel had annihilated plenty of Dark Guilds in his time; it was just that none of them caused as much of an uproar. He was an Iron Dragon Slayer. He was on a completely different level.
"Kid," Ren's voice, now a lazy, dangerous drawl, cut through Gajeel's thoughts. "You were pretty arrogant just now, back in the tunnel. Destroying someone's guild and still being so arrogant... isn't that a bit much?"
Ren's voice carried a hint of pure, unadulterated disdain, as if he didn't put Gajeel in his eyes at all.
This just made Gajeel sneer. "Gihi. So what if I am?"
"It's good that you are," Ren said, slowly rolling his shoulders. "I don't like uncertainties. Now that it's confirmed you're the one who did it, I can relax."
"Huh? Relax?" Gajeel scoffed. "Shouldn't you be worried instead?!"
"Both contestants have entered the arena!" Chapati Lola's voice boomed.
"Fairy Tail VS Phantom Lord, the fifth, and possibly decisive, match!"
"Begin—!!!"
Clang—!!!!!
"Ha!! Iron Dragon's Club!!"
Gajeel didn't wait. He immediately went on the offensive. He raised his leg, and his foot instantly transformed into a massive, thick iron club, which he swung horizontally towards Ren's head with enough force to shatter stone.
"Heh!"
A sneer appeared at the corner of Gajeel's mouth. As the club swung, it instantly branched out, and numerous sharp, iron spikes shot out from its surface, stabbing towards Ren.
But... they struck empty air.
"What?!"
Suddenly!
Ren's voice rang out from Gajeel's side. He hadn't just dodged; he had vanished.
"Too slow!"
As Gajeel turned his head, his eyes wide with shock, he saw a foot already kicking towards his face.
Bang—!!!!
"Uwaaah!!!"
Whoosh—!!!!
The sound barrier cracked. Gajeel's body, which was made of iron, flew directly sideways, spinning like a top from the force of the impact.
Boom—!!!!
Gajeel's body crashed into the inner wall of the arena, creating a large, web-like crater in the solid stone.
"Bastard!!"
Gajeel pulled himself from the rubble, spitting out a chip of stone. He hadn't expected to be kicked away, and with such force, right after entering the arena. It was a great humiliation.
'He's fast... faster than I thought. But he didn't even use magic... was that just a physical kick?'
Gajeel quickly charged towards Ren, his feet pounding the ground.
But halfway through his charge, Ren's figure, who had been standing calmly where he'd kicked from... instantly appeared directly in front of him.
Slap!
Before Gajeel could even react, Ren grabbed a handful of his long, black hair, yanking his head down. Then, he struck Gajeel's face with his knee.
"Uwaah!"
Gajeel let out a scream as he felt his nose, which was covered in iron studs, break from the pure, concussive force.
Immediately after, Ren, still holding his hair, began to grab Gajeel and swing him around like a ragdoll, repeatedly slamming him into the arena floor.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
This scene, this display of raw, brutal, non-magical strength, made many people in the audience tremble.
In the Fairy Tail lounge, Natsu, who was watching, unconsciously flinched. This reminded him of the absolute, helpless fear of being dominated by Ren on Galuna Island just a few days ago.
"Bastard!!" Gajeel roared, finally breaking free from the humiliating assault.
"Iron Dragon's Sword!!"
Gajeel, in a fury, transformed his entire right arm into a massive, jagged-edged iron sword and slashed down towards Ren.
Slap!
Ren didn't dodge. He caught the Iron Dragon's Sword with one hand, his grip like a vice.
"What?! He caught it?!" Gajeel thought, his mind reeling.
Ren then twisted his wrist, forcefully.
Crack—!
The Iron Dragon's Sword, made of pure, magical iron, broke directly into two pieces.
Then Ren, still holding the broken half of Gajeel's own sword, slashed back at Gajeel.
Pfft!!
"Ugh ah ah ah ah!!"
A deep wound immediately appeared on Gajeel's chest, and blood—real, red blood—flew into the air.
"Iron Dragon's Lance!"
Gajeel, in a panic, raised his foot, his leg quickly transforming into a long, sharp spear. He thrust it, like a piston, towards Ren's head.
Ren, with a lazy, bored expression, slightly tilted his head, dodging Gajeel's attack by a mere centimeter.
At the same time, he grabbed the long spear with his free hand, and with the other hand, swung the broken sword directly at the spear.
Crack!!
The long spear was also cut in half.
Thud!
Ren threw the broken sword to the ground. He now wielded the front, sharp half of Gajeel's own spear in both hands, testing its weight.
He nodded with satisfaction. "Hmm… this thing feels much better to use."
Hearing Ren's words, Gajeel only felt that the other party was humiliating him. If his opponent truly took him seriously, he would be using his own weapon, his own magic. But now, he was using something Gajeel had created as a weapon. What else could this be but looking down on him?
Ren, holding the spear, slowly, menacingly, walked towards Gajeel.
"Iron Dragon's Club!!"
Gajeel, in a desperate, angry move, raised his leg again. This time, he created an enormous, spinning iron club. The diameter of the club's end was at least two meters.
Rumble!!!
The iron club swept across the ground, easily destroying it, tearing up massive chunks of the arena floor. This wasn't a simple attack; it was an avalanche of iron.
Slap!
Ren stood still. He placed one hand on the side of the massive, spinning iron club.
The rapidly moving, multi-ton club, which should have pulverized him on impact, came to a screeching, sudden halt.
"How... how is that possible?!"
Gajeel's pupils constricted. His strongest physical attack... had been blocked. By the other party. With a single hand.
Ren's mouth curved slightly. He raised his foot and kicked the giant iron club, forcefully.
BOOM!
The giant iron club flew directly sideways, carrying Gajeel, who was still attached to it, along with it.
Boom—!
Gajeel managed to revert his leg to its original form in time, but he was still repelled by the powerful impact. He transformed his hands into iron picks and plunged them into the ground, plowing two deep, ten-meter furrows in the stone before he finally stopped.
As soon as Gajeel stopped, his body screaming in protest, he heard a whoosh from above.
Ren's figure had already appeared in mid-air, directly above Gajeel's head.
Ren, still gripping the long, broken spear with one hand, brought it down on Gajeel.
"Iron Dragon's Scales!!"
Gajeel, with no time to dodge, roared as his arms were instantly covered in thick, protective Iron Dragon's scales. He raised them to block the attack.
Boom—!!!!
The ground beneath Gajeel's feet shattered from the force of the blow.
"Uwaaah!!!"
Gajeel cried out in pain. Even though the Iron Dragon's Scales had blocked the attack, he could feel the terrifying, blunt-force impact. He felt as if it would break his arms, scales and all.
"Weren't you very arrogant just now, in the tunnel?" Ren's voice came from above.
"Why aren't you arrogant anymore!"
Ren raised the long spear with one hand, casually swinging it down at Gajeel as if it were a simple walking stick.
Boom—!
The ground beneath Gajeel's feet shattered again.
"Keep being arrogant! Ah! Ah! Ah!!"
As Ren said this, he, in a blur of motion, continuously smashed Gajeel with the long spear. Gajeel's body was like a nail, repeatedly, brutally hammered into the ground.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
"Ugh... GAH!"
"Bastard!" Gajeel, his scales cracked, burst out from another part of the ground, putting distance between them.
He took a deep breath, his chest swelling high. This was his magic. His Dragon's magic.
"Iron Dragon's Roar!!"
Gajeel exhaled a massive, gray shockwave, a tornado mixed with thousands of razor-sharp iron fragments.
Ren, faced with a Dragon's Roar, didn't dodge. He just rapidly swung the long spear with both hands, creating a defensive, fan-like blur.
Boom! Clang! Boom! Clang! Boom!
The shockwave and the iron fragments were all knocked away by Ren's high-speed, purely physical defense.
"No… this is impossible?!"
Gajeel saw Ren block his Roar... his breath attack... so easily. He couldn't help but widen his eyes in disbelief.
Ren, his "fun" now over, grabbed the long spear and threw it, like a javelin, towards Gajeel.
Gajeel quickly dodged, but just as he moved, as he had been baited to move... he felt a figure appear in front of him.
"Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!"
Gajeel, in a desperate, reflexive move, immediately struck towards Ren's head with a fist covered in Iron Dragon's scales.
Slap!
Ren raised his palm and easily caught Gajeel's fist.
Then, his face still a mask of lazy disinterest, he twisted it outwards. Forcefully.
Click... CRACK—!
The sound of iron groaning, and bone snapping, echoed through the quiet arena.
"Uwaah!"
Gajeel cried out in pain as his wrist and arm were shattered.
Ren, still holding the broken arm, raised his foot and kicked Gajeel's knee.
"Waaah!"
Gajeel cried out in pain again, his leg giving out. He fell, kneeling on one knee, directly in front of Ren.
The stadium was dead silent. The 'Iron Dragon' Gajeel... was kneeling.
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