"That looks like it hurts just watching."
Rhodes had heard the phrase "makes your blood boil" before. Today he finally saw it demonstrated in person.
Makarov watched the giant being systematically dismantled and felt a persistent chill down his back.
Natsu, Gajeel, and Elfman had made it their collective mission to target Ikusa-Tsunagi's eyes, ears, and nose in rotation, giving it no point of stability to stand from. Wolfheim, meanwhile, had climbed all the way to the top of its head and ended its suffering with two decisive blows.
The enormous body tilted and fell, then vanished without a trace before it could even hit the ground.
The storm clouds overhead dispersed gradually, as though nothing had ever happened.
Arlock lay on the ground staring upward, muttering words like "impossible" and "monster" and "nightmare" in a dazed loop.
Most of the cult members stood where they were, too stunned to move. Part of it was that the will to resist had left them completely. The other part was the dawning realization that they themselves had been intended as offerings all along.
A small number of the more devoted tried to take advantage of the chaos and slip away. Erza had anticipated this. She had already positioned companions at every exit point, and not one of them got through.
Rhodes considered the situation, took out his communication Lacrima, and contacted Lahar to bring his people in to wrap things up.
"Good work, Wolfheim."
Rhodes greeted the compact old man as he walked over with his hands folded behind his back.
Wolfheim gave him a sideways look. "Good work for what. You lot were the ones doing the work."
He had the distinct feeling his presence on the field tonight had been superfluous, as though he had turned up uninvited and taken credit for someone else's effort.
The young mages of Fairy Tail were far beyond what anyone had projected.
If the Council's younger generation had even half their ability, he wouldn't complain.
Though their personalities were extremely difficult to manage. Was that perhaps the secret to their strength?
The thought led him to glance at Makarov with something approaching sympathy.
He was beginning to understand what the man had been dealing with all these years.
Makarov caught the look and felt vaguely unsettled. "That is. Everything went alright?"
Wolfheim nodded. "It did. They performed exceptionally. You have a fine guild."
Setting aside certain factors, Wolfheim was finding himself increasingly impressed by Fairy Tail.
Makarov exhaled with visible relief. As long as there were no disasters, it was fine.
"Do you know much about Ikusa-Tsunagi?" Rhodes asked. "What exactly is the Yakuma Eighteen Battle Gods Magic?"
Wolfheim thought for a moment. "Long ago, an ancient clan called the Yakuma worshipped eighteen divine beings. According to what has been passed down, their warriors could channel the power of those gods directly on the battlefield. They were said to be undefeatable."
"The Yakuma clan?"
"An old people. They were nearly extinct by a hundred years ago. I don't know much more than that."
Wolfheim glanced toward where Arlock had been tied up. "That one might know something. If you're interested, you're welcome to sit in on the interrogation."
Rhodes nodded and moved on. "Are these eighteen battle gods the same order of being as Ankhseram?"
Wolfheim shook his head. "No. They were called gods by the Yakuma, but outsiders rarely worshipped them. Most people outside the clan had likely never even heard of them."
So it would have to wait for the interrogation. Rhodes filed it away, and thought that he might want to find a certain woman and ask her directly where she had learned that magic, and whether her connection to it ran back to the Yakuma clan.
He made a rough assessment of Arlock's magical output and found himself disappointed. Lucy probably still had him well covered. There was unlikely to be enough there to allow Gemini to transform into him convincingly.
"Mr. Rhodes, I want special training."
After the celebration wound down, Lucy sought him out and said exactly that.
Rhodes looked at her. "Haven't you been in special training this whole time? You want more on top of that?"
"No, that's not what I mean." Lucy said, looking a little dejected. "Not that kind of regular training."
"The kind Natsu and Gajeel do, then?" Mirajane said with a bright smile. "Fighting dragons like it's nothing."
"No. Not that." Lucy swallowed. She had witnessed what those encounters looked like from Mirajane's end of things. It was too grim.
That reminded her of something. "Actually, where was Natsu today? I didn't see him."
"He and Happy went up into the mountains to train," Rhodes said. "He said he wanted to develop a new technique."
Out of curiosity, Rhodes had checked the Book of END afterward. It seemed Igneel had quietly done something during the battle, allowing Natsu to feel a new source of power awakening. Natsu had taken it as a natural post-combat breakthrough and gone off to refine it properly. When he came back, his strength would likely have taken a meaningful jump.
"That's it!" Lucy said, suddenly energized. "I need a new technique too."
After everything the training camp had put her through, Lucy could genuinely feel her magical power climbing steadily upward. As a result, her Celestial Spirits came out stronger than before when she called them. But she had always preferred fighting alongside them rather than behind them.
This had revealed a problem during today's battle. She was slowing them down.
Pure magical growth hadn't been enough to bring her close-combat ability up to a level comparable with her Spirits. If things continued on this path, she would only ever be standing at their backs.
What she needed was new magic. Ideally something connected to Celestial Spirit magic, something that could work in combination with her Spirits rather than separately from them.
Rhodes smiled. "I still have a Dragon Slayer Lacrima available. Want one?"
Lucy shook her head. "It doesn't feel right for me."
If it were a Celestial Dragon Slayer magic, she might have considered it. But she had never heard of that particular dragon.
"In that case," Rhodes said, thinking it over, "what if you put in a bit more work and brought your magical output up to roughly Cana's level? I could teach you Fairy Glitter."
Lucy's heart jumped. "You mean it? That's one of the Three Great Fairy Magics!"
"You said it yourself. It's guild magic. Every member of the guild can learn it."
"But how long would it take me to reach Cana's level?"
Rhodes made a rough estimate. "With some extra effort, roughly a year."
Lucy slumped slightly. "That's a long time."
Mirajane offered a consoling smile. "Cana is Gildarts's daughter, and she is older than you."
Lucy tried another angle. "What about Fairy Law?"
Rhodes shook his head. "That one requires a foundation of magical power on a completely different scale. Attempting it without sufficient reserves would kill you."
Lucy dropped her forehead onto the table. "I want something I can actually start learning right now. You use Summoning Magic too, so I thought you might have some ideas."
"My version of Summoning Magic is a bit unusual," Rhodes said. "Though now that you mention it, are you certain you couldn't learn Take Over Magic? Absorbing a Spirit, perhaps?"
Lucy said, "Normally speaking, if you absorbed the other party, they would disappear."
Mirajane went quiet for a moment, thinking it through carefully. "There might actually be a way to make this work. Not absorption exactly, but something like changing outfits. Or perhaps inserting yourself between both sides."
...
STONES 💎
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