At a side corner of the castle, Fairy machine guns sprayed wildly, puppet dolls fired lasers from their mouths, and Letter Magic burst with energy.
The shockwaves from the explosions swept through with irresistible force, sending the charging Grimoire Heart mages flying backward repeatedly. They fell to the ground one after another like dumplings being dropped into boiling water.
"Kehahaha! So this is the so-called strongest dark guild? They're no different from the ones we've crushed before!" Bickslow spread his arms and laughed arrogantly, his tongue with the Fairy Tail emblem exposed. "Babies! Crush them all for me!"
The puppet dolls floating beside him chimed in unison: "Crush them! Crush them!" x5
"As our first battle alongside our comrades since the civil war, we need to properly display the charm of 'fairies,'" Evergreen said, opening her green folding fan to cover half of her face in a enchanting pose.
"While Laxus is away, we have to work even harder. At the very least, we can't lose to Natsu and the others!" Freed said, his every word centered on Laxus, while simultaneously swinging his sword to clear wave after wave of Grimoire Heart mages, showing extremely strong motivation.
His thought was simple: if the Thunder God Tribe could make a commendable contribution in this battle, perhaps it would pave the way for Laxus's return and reduce some resistance.
Truly devoted...
Bickslow and Evergreen shared the same attitude. So, the Grimoire Heart mages on the receiving end were really suffering. They were pushed back again and again, and in the end, they didn't even have the courage to fight back. They simply dropped their magical weapons and fled.
They were, after all, a dark guild. Compared to legal guild mages, who at least had some bonds with their comrades, these people clearly didn't have the same level of resolve.
The Thunder God Tribe pushed forward like this until, up ahead, they were met by a large, imposing man with thick eyebrows and thick lips.
"Your journey ends here, Fairy Tail. This—the headquarters of Grimoire Heart—will be your grave!" Kain stepped forward, the ground beneath him cracking inch by inch under his terrifying physical strength.
Having come this far, this man, whose brain was probably not quite right, had finally succeeded in understanding Hades's "hospitality" and decided to eliminate all the invaders.
"What an ill-mannered, ugly man. Is this why you all need to wear masks and robes?" Evergreen said with a look of disgust.
"Kain Hikaru. One of the Seven Kin of Grimoire Heart. Not only does he possess incredible strength, but he also has agility and speed that belie his large frame," Freed said, his voice deep as he revealed the man's identity.
Among the Seven Kin, Kain's appearance was highly recognizable, Almost instantly recognizable.
"If I remember correctly, this guy uses an ancient Lost Magic called 'Usual Hour Arrival,' right?" Bickslow said, commanding his puppet dolls into defensive positions as he added, "Seems to be the same type of curse magic as Lullaby, which Natsu and the others destroyed."
"What?! H-h-h-how do you know that?!" Kain, who had been so imposing just moments ago, was instantly shocked, his eyes widening.
Soon enough, he found a reason himself. An image of a refreshing and handsome face surfaced in his mind.
"I didn't expect my heroic deeds to be so well-known even among legal guilds. Does this mean I'll be receiving lots of love letters with hearts on them from now on?"
"Oh my, oh my, what a headache. Sometimes being too handsome really isn't a good thing!"
After this delusion, Kain pulled out a puppet doll with his left hand and reached his right hand toward the Thunder God Tribe, his five fingers spread, his expression serious and sincere. "That's the situation. Please give me a strand of your hair. Just one strand. Only then can I unleash the full power of Usual Hour Arrival."
His main hit was sincerity.
Sincerity, my foot!
"Now that we know your magic, who would be stupid enough to hand their hair over to you?!" Evergreen said, exasperated.
"Hey, that's right!" Kain looked as if struck by lightning, belatedly realizing the truth.
Thunder God Tribe: "..."
Is this guy even dumber than the intelligence suggested?
But on the other hand, this unexpected discovery was a huge advantage for them!
The Thunder God Tribe exchanged glances. Years of teamwork had made them understand each other. A single look was enough to know what each other was thinking.
"Come to think of it, you don't know our magic yet, do you? Want to see?" Freed asked first.
"Yeah, yeah! You guys are legal guild mages, but you're actually pretty nice," Kain said, taking the bait. He widened his eyes and looked at them with curiosity.
Legal guild mages being nice is only natural!
After complaining to herself, Evergreen stepped forward and slowly took off her glasses.
"Watch carefully. My magic is—"
A green magical array lit up deep in her pupils. "Stone Eyes!"
"W-wait! This feeling?!" The moment their eyes met, Kain sensed something was wrong. He instinctively twisted his body, trying to resist the encroaching rule-based power.
But Evergreen's magic had already successfully activated. Almost instantly, Kain was completely petrified, frozen in place as a stone statue!
"That went even more smoothly than expected," Evergreen said, turning back with a smug smirk, covering her mouth as she laughed softly. "Not as troublesome as Ultear said. These so-called Seven Kin—"
"Look out!!" Bickslow shouted loudly.
A large shadow fell, enveloping Evergreen's relatively small body, bringing with it an extremely strong sense of oppression.
Evergreen looked up and was startled by the sight before her: Kain, already turned to stone, had somehow not lost his ability to move. He took a step forward, his pupils devoid of any light!
Why... can this guy still move?!
"Don't underestimate me. I am, after all, one of the Seven Kin of Grimoire Heart!" Stone Kain raised his stone right arm high, clenched his fist, and swung it down with tremendous force toward Evergreen's dazed head!
BAM!
The heavy punch sent out shockwaves, kicking up a fierce wind.
A wall inscribed with purple text stood in front of Evergreen, blocking the potentially fatal blow.
It was Freed's instantly deployed Letter Magic defense!
"Evergreen, get down!"
Bickslow's voice followed. The five puppet dolls lined up in a straight line, emitting a dazzling light. "Assault Formation: Enhanced Cannon!"
After all, they were a tacit team. The moment the attack was formed, Evergreen, snapping out of her shock, had already leaped away.
The cannon fired in a straight line, precisely hitting Stone Kain's massive body and exploding in a cloud of smoke.
"Petrification ability, Doll Possession, and Letter Magic..." Kain, having reverted to his human form, walked out of the smoke, dusting the stone fragments off his shoulders. "Thank you for the demonstration. I now know the magic of you three."
"What's going on? Why did my petrification have no effect?" Evergreen retreated back to Freed and Bickslow's side.
"Because right before I couldn't move anymore, I applied the petrification feature to Cursed doll," Kain said without any concealment, holding up the puppet doll with his own hair stuck in it. "It seems your understanding isn't thorough enough."
"Besides petrification, steel-hardening, and ice-hardening, I have many other forms and properties, you know. For example, turning Cursed doll into cotton makes my body lighter too."
As if to boast about his magic, Kain directly altered his body's composition, lightly leaping over ten meters into the air.
Then, with a dull thud, he smacked his head against the hard ceiling, falling to the ground in pain, clutching his head and rolling around.
Thunder God Tribe: "..."
"Even though he doesn't seem too bright... this guy is stronger than I expected..." Freed said, his expression serious.
"That's precisely what makes him more worth defeating, isn't it?" Bickslow laughed lightly.
His gaze, hidden beneath his helmet, was fixed intently on the puppet doll in Kain's hand.
This... is a good thing!
"We have to save face!" Evergreen said, showing no fear either.
Sensing the three's intense fighting spirit, Kain flipped up to his feet. His expression turned extremely vicious, losing all of his earlier goofiness and comic relief.
"You mentioned Sister Ultear earlier, didn't you?" His eyes filled with killing intent, his magic power restless and furious. "So it was Sister Ultear who betrayed us, wasn't it?!"
"I'll hold him back. You two find opportunities for ranged attacks," Freed said, completely ignoring Kain's questioning. There was no point in explaining anything to such a dark-crazed fanatic.
He slashed his sword across his chest, carving forbidden dark words into his own flesh, transforming into a demonic form with glowing light wings, all of his hair covered by his steel helmet.
Considering the enemy's magical characteristics and physical strength, this was the tactic that would best make full use of their Thunder God Tribe's teamwork!
"Got it!" x2
Bickslow and Evergreen instantly put distance between themselves and the enemy.
"I'm asking you a question! Why aren't you answering?! Was I just flattering myself?!!"
At the same time, the enraged Kain once again changed the characteristics of his puppet doll, transforming into a extremely fast light source that shot forward. "Flash Palm!"
Dark Freed crossed his hands and blasted out powerful dark magic. "Dark Energy Sphere!"
CRASH!!
The two magics collided head-on, a violent blast sweeping across the entire area!
***
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