Chapter 180 Actually, I'm also very fast
Boom—!
A deafening explosion shattered the silence of the Worth Woodsea, sending a violent tremor through the earth. A small, concentrated sphere of crimson energy—Cursed Technique Reversal: Red—detonated with apocalyptic force, unleashing a repulsive blast that tore through the dense forest like a solid wall of pressure.
Wherever the Orb of Repulsion passed, ancient trees were uprooted instantly, snapping like dry twigs, and the very bedrock was gouged out, leaving a deep, scar-like trench in the earth. Dust and debris formed a mushroom cloud that rose high above the canopy.
"Phew! That was close... too close!"
Racer rolled to a stop several dozen meters away, his chest heaving as he stared at the trail of destruction with wide, trembling eyes. Cold sweat drenched his racing suit. The sheer destructive power of that attack was irrational. If he had reacted even a fraction of a second slower, or if his speed had faltered, he would have been reduced to a smear of blood and bone on the forest floor.
"Oh? Not bad! You actually dodged it!"
Ren's voice, flippant and casually arrogant, drifted from the dust cloud not far in front of Racer. The white-haired mage stood with his hands in his pockets, his blindfold—or rather, his dark sunglasses—glinting in the filtered sunlight. There wasn't a speck of dirt on him.
"You bastard!" Racer hissed, gritting his teeth.
Ren tilted his head slightly, a playful smirk playing on his lips. "I was curious before why you seemed so slow to my eyes, yet everyone else was screaming about how fast you were. It was a bit of a logical paradox. So, I briefly adjusted the sensitivity of my Limitless barrier to analyze the mana flow."
Ren took a step forward, his presence suffocating. "Your magic is quite interesting, I'll give you that. It doesn't actually increase your physical speed to god-like levels, does it? Instead, it decreases the perception of time and speed for everyone within a certain range, making them feel like they're moving through molasses while you move normally. It's a sensory illusion, a relativity trick."
Racer's eyes widened behind his visor. He figured it out? In just one exchange?
Although Ren sounded dismissive, he acknowledged internally that this magic was indeed formidable against standard mages. It explained why Natsu, Gray, and the others—seasoned fighters—were beaten down without being able to land a single hit. Against an opponent who could manipulate the perception of time, raw power meant nothing if you couldn't perceive the target.
However, Racer was exceptionally unlucky today. His opponent was Ren, and Ren was currently utilizing the character template of Gojo Satoru. The Limitless Cursed Technique operated autonomously, filtering threats based on mass, speed, and energy. Perception-altering magic might fool Ren's brain, but it couldn't fool the automatic defense of Infinity that surrounded him.
"Don't you dare underestimate me!" Racer roared, his ego bruised by Ren's analysis. "Even if you know the trick, you can't stop me!"
"Red Domain!"
A complex crimson magic circle flared to life beneath Racer's feet, expanding outward rapidly. The air within the zone seemed to distort, the colors becoming saturated and heavy.
"I don't just reduce your perception of speed; within this domain, my speed is absolute! I am the fastest in the world!"
Racer stomped his foot, shattering the ground beneath him. He vanished.
To the naked eye, he was a blur, a phantom wind cutting through the air. He charged toward Ren, delivering a barrage of high-speed kicks and punches from every angle.
Bang, bang, bang, bang!
The sound of impacts rang out like machine-gun fire, but not a single blow connected with Ren's body. Racer's fists stopped centimeters away from Ren's skin, hitting an invisible, impenetrable barrier. The kinetic energy dispersed harmlessly into the air.
Ren yawned, standing perfectly still amidst the storm of attacks. "So what?"
He looked at Racer, who was moving so fast he appeared to be in multiple places at once. "Is this it? Your attack power is too low. I don't even need to dodge. It's like being hit by a breeze."
"Damn it! Damn it! Why can't I touch him?!"
Racer's face twisted into a grimace of frustration and fear. He was landing hundreds of blows, but it felt like punching a wall of infinite distance. He realized with dawning horror that he truly couldn't defeat this guy with his own strength. This was a monster capable of defeating a Wizard Saint; a mere assassin like him stood no chance.
"Kid, I admit you're powerful, but don't get complacent!" Racer shouted, backing away. "The Oración Seis will not fall here! The next time we meet will be your death day!"
Racer immediately turned and activated his maximum speed, fleeing into the depths of the forest. Escape! I have to escape! As long as I put distance between us, he can't catch me. Nobody can catch me!
"Trying to escape?" Ren watched the retreating figure, his smile turning predatory. "I won't let you get away this time. I hate chasing rats."
Whoosh!
The air cracked as Ren vanished.
In the next instant, a figure appeared directly in Racer's path, leaning against a tree casually.
"What?!"
Racer was startled, his heart nearly stopping. He immediately banked hard, changing direction to flank around the obstacle. How did he get in front of me?!
However, the next second, Ren appeared right beside him.
Ren was running—no, he was gliding—alongside Racer, matching his top speed with terrifying ease. He wasn't even looking at the path ahead; he was looking down at Racer, a serene smile on his face.
Racer looked at Ren with a grim expression, his eyes bulging. "You... You bastard..."
"I forgot to tell you," Ren said, his voice clear and calm despite the wind roaring past them. "My speed is also very fast. And unlike your deceptive sleight of hand, mine is genuine. Pure, unadulterated physical velocity."
Ren's eyes flashed blue behind his glasses. He immediately accelerated.
Zoom!
It was as if Racer was standing still. Ren instantly surpassed him, leaving a sonic boom in his wake. Soon, Racer couldn't even see Ren's back; the mage had vanished into the distance.
"How is that possible?!"
Racer's legs faltered, his mind unable to process the reality. This isn't magic... this isn't an illusion... He's actually faster than me?! Faster than the fastest man in the Oración Seis?!
While Racer was lost in shock, the air pressure ahead changed. Ren had doubled back.
Ren returned in a flash of white, his fist clenched and glowing with cursed energy. He struck towards Racer's midsection.
Due to the extreme speed, Racer couldn't dodge in time. His nerves couldn't even fire the signal to move. He hastily crossed his arms in a desperate attempt to block.
BANG!
The impact sounded like a cannon firing. The terrifying force shattered Racer's guard instantly, slamming his own arms heavily against his chest with bone-crushing weight.
"Uwaaah!"
Racer coughed up a mouthful of blood, his eyes rolling back. He screamed as he was launched backward like a ragdoll.
Crack, crack, snap!
Racer's body crashed through one large tree, then another, and another. Wood splintered and flew as he carved a path of destruction through the forest before finally tumbling to a stop in a pile of debris.
Dust swirled around him. Racer groaned, his body screaming in agony, but he slowly, shakily picked himself up from the ground. He was trembling violently, blood dripping from his chin.
Ren walked over, his footsteps crunching softly on the broken branches. He stopped a few meters away. "Oh? You can still stand up? Your durability is better than I expected."
Racer looked at Ren, one eye swollen shut, gritting his bloody teeth. His pride as a member of the strongest Dark Guild would not allow him to beg. "Don't underestimate me... I am one of the Oración Seis... Six demons, six wishes, six pillars that will never crumble! Anyone who tries to shake these pillars will only find death!"
"Is that so? A touching speech," Ren said coldly, raising his palm. A small, humming red orb—another Red—began to form in his hand. "Then I'll send you to your death. I have no patience for pillars of darkness."
Ren was never soft-hearted when dealing with enemies who threatened his guild or his friends. Mercy to the enemy was cruelty to oneself.
"By the title of Oración Seis! I will not allow myself to be defeated like this! For Father's wish!!"
Racer roared loudly, a vein bulging on his forehead. He quickly tore open his tattered racing suit to reveal a vest strapped to his chest—embedded with high-density explosive lacrima crystals. They were glowing with an unstable, pulsating light.
"One kill for one! Let's die together!!"
Racer, with a crazed, fanatical expression, lunged at Ren. He didn't care about survival anymore; he only wanted to take this monster down with him.
"Look out!!"
Wendy, who had been watching from a distance with Carla, screamed in terror.
BOOM—!!!
A violent, blinding explosion erupted instantly, consuming the clearing.
"Ugh, ah!"
The powerful shockwave swept outward, flattening the surrounding vegetation. Carla gasped and quickly tackled Wendy, pressing the young Dragon Slayer to the ground and covering her head to protect her from the flying debris and heat.
The earth rumbled for several seconds. After a while, the roar died down, leaving only the sound of crackling fires and falling timber.
Thick, black smoke billowed from the epicenter of the blast. The surrounding forest for dozens of meters had been completely leveled; the ground was scorched black, and the air smelled of ozone and burnt flesh.
"Ren-niisan... I need to save Ren-niisan!"
Wendy pushed herself up, her face covered in dirt. Her eyes welled up with tears as she looked at the inferno. Panic gripped her heart, and she immediately tried to run forward to heal him.
Carla grabbed Wendy's arm, holding her back firmly. "Don't go, Wendy! Look at that crater! Such a terrifying explosion... Ren... he... he's surely dead..."
Carla's voice trembled. No human could survive that at point-blank range.
Suddenly!
A calm, familiar voice drifted from within the thick smoke.
"Hey, hey! Honestly, don't always say such unlucky things, you little cat. I'm still perfectly alive."
Step. Step.
Ren's figure emerged from the center of the explosion, walking casually through the flames. He waved his hand to clear the smoke in front of him. He was not only unharmed; there wasn't even a scorch mark on his skin, and not a corner of his clothes was disheveled.
"Ren-niisan!"
Wendy gasped, her tears turning into tears of relief. Seeing that Ren was fine, she immediately broke free from Carla and ran over joyfully to hug his leg.
"How is that possible?! Such a terrifying explosion... you're unharmed?!"
Carla hovered in the air, her jaw dropping. She looked at the huge crater created by the explosion—a bowl of destruction carved into the earth. There was nowhere to hide. Yet Ren looked like he had just taken a stroll in the park.
"Hmm, simply put, it didn't hit me," Ren said, patting Wendy's head soothingly.
"Didn't hit you?! This place has been leveled! The air itself was burning! And it didn't hit you?!" Carla retorted, unable to process the logic.
Ren adjusted his sunglasses and pointed a finger at the space between him and the crater. "It's a matter of convergence. The explosion encountered the Infinity between it and me. Imagine the concept of Achilles and the Tortoise. The closer the blast got to me, the slower it traveled, traversing an infinite series of fractions. So, even though it appeared to be point-blank, in reality, it never actually touched me."
He paused, then shrugged. "However, if the explosion's power were ten times stronger, or if it continuously detonated for five minutes non-stop, I wouldn't be able to withstand the cursed energy consumption. I'd eventually run dry."
Carla stared at him, dumbfounded. "That's already insane enough!"
An explosion ten times stronger? Continuous detonation for five minutes? What kind of joke is that?
Although she had long known Ren was a monster from the rumors, she hadn't expected him to be such a terrifying, illogical monster. What Ren said sounded humble, but it was practically a boast of invincibility. He wasn't saying he couldn't dodge it; he was saying he could tank a nuclear blast if he wanted to, but it would just be tiring.
At this moment, Wendy peeked around Ren and noticed something lying at the very center of the scorched crater.
It was Racer.
His clothes were completely incinerated, his skin was charred, and he lay there motionless, covered in horrific wounds. But his chest was still faintly rising and falling.
Wendy was a little scared, hiding behind Ren. "He... he..."
Ren glanced back at the body, his expression turning cold and indifferent. "Yes. He's dead."
One could only say Racer lived up to being a character who appeared in the late stages of the original plot. Even under an explosion of that magnitude—one designed to kill a Wizard Saint—the guy was only severely injured and comatose, clinging to a sliver of life.
Stubborn, Ren thought.
In the original story, characters like Racer might have been redeemed, or allowed to return later as allies or recurring villains. The original author had a habit of sparing the bad guys.
But Ren was not the original author.
He knew the threat Oración Seis posed to Fairy Tail, to Wendy, and to the peace he enjoyed. He wasn't going to leave a loose end that could wake up and stab them in the back.
Ren subtly flicked his finger. A tiny, imperceptible blade of compressed magic shot out, piercing Racer's brain stem instantly. The faint rise and fall of the chest stopped.
"Don't look, Wendy," Ren said softly, turning her away and guiding her out of the crater. "Let's go. We have others to find."
Fortunately, Ren was kind-hearted in his own way. He couldn't bear to see this guy suffer from severe burns, so he directly sent him to the afterlife, completely cutting off any chance for this guy to threaten his friends again.
Any enemy who threatened him or the safety of Fairy Tail would be mercilessly eliminated. That was Ren's way.
[Akarin Note:
Your Support Keeps This Story Alive!
If you're enjoying this novel, your support means the world to me. Simple actions like leaving a review, power stone, comment, or sharing the story let me know you're out there. It's the greatest motivation for me to keep updating until the very end and ensures this project continues.
For those who wish to support me more directly, you can join my Patreon at [patreon.com/AkarinTL]. As a thank-you, you'll receive access to 50 advanced chapters.
I hope I am still worthy of your support. My life truly depends on this... haha, I know I'm so shameless.]