"ROOOAAAR!!!"
"Graaah~!!"
The moment Ur burst out of the cave entrance, two deafening roars crashed into his ears. One belonged to the drake, Hitsuya. The other, of course, came from Natsu, the man whose damage output relied entirely on yelling.
At this moment, Natsu's entire body was wrapped in flames. The terrifying heat distorted the air around him, and strands of astonishing magic power, far beyond his usual limits, poured continuously from within, surging endlessly with overwhelming force.
"Is this… a power-up burst?" Ur couldn't help but mutter, shock flashing in his eyes.
The magic now surging through Natsu surpassed his original power in both quality and quantity, and not by a small margin. Yet strangely, despite its elevated "grade," the magic felt fundamentally the same as Natsu's own.
"So it really is the Fire Dragon King, Igneel..." Ur quickly pieced it together.
There was no other plausible explanation for this sudden surge except that the Fire Dragon King was sealed within Natsu.
"Latent potential awakening?"
"The power of the heart?"
What nonsense.
The quality of magic Natsu was displaying now was on a completely different plane. Even Ur, or even Makarov, couldn't come close to that level. They weren't in the same dimension.
Even Hitsuya felt an instinctive trace of fear when facing Natsu's magic.
"Fragrance Enhancement, Double Strength Perfume: Zero-Distance Inhalation!" A shout rang out above Ur's head. Looking up, he saw Ichiya, somehow flying through the air by unknown means.
He pulled out two test tubes and shoved them straight into his nostrils. It looked revolting, but the effect was immediate. The moment the perfume entered his system, Ichiya's body swelled dramatically. Veins bulged, muscles expanded, and he looked like some kind of demonic bodybuilder.
Clearly, Ichiya was going all out. This state was powerful, but obviously taxing. The instant he activated it, he shot behind Hitsuya at astonishing speed, so fast that even the dragon hovering midair couldn't react in time.
"Power MAX~~~ man!" With a furious roar, Ichiya hurled his fist forward, pouring every ounce of magic into it and smashing it straight into Hitsuya's head.
Boom!
A shockwave exploded outward. The massive force knocked Hitsuya's enormous head sideways, stunning him momentarily. The drake wobbled and plummeted from the sky.
Below, the Elephant King was already waiting. Everyone present had their own trump card. The Elephant King was no exception.
As Hitsuya descended, a savage gleam flared in the Elephant King's eyes. His already towering three-meter frame began to transform.
Crack! Crack!
His bones and muscles expanded violently. He grew from three meters to four. Before, he had been an absurdly muscular giant. Now, he was a monstrously muscular titan.
Unlike Makarov or Ichiya, the Elephant King didn't rely on magic to enlarge himself. He achieved this purely through mastery over his own muscles and bones, amplifying his physical strength to terrifying levels.
Ur couldn't help but feel speechless. Their trump cards were powerful, but their art styles really didn't match this magic world.
"Elephant King… Titanic Strength!" As Hitsuya's massive body hit the ground, the Elephant King roared wildly, face twisted, pupils dilated with frenzy.
Boom!
With his single arm, the Elephant King slammed into Hitsuya's body. The recoil shattered the ground beneath his feet into countless fragments.
"ROOOAAAR!!!" The dragon howled in pain. That blow had clearly done real damage.
"Humans…"
Struggling to rise, Hitsuya shook his head, about to speak, but Natsu moved.
"Hitsuya!" Natsu's furious shout rang out. The dragon instinctively turned. A blazing fist smashed into his face.
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist! Hook! Flaming Elbow! Crushing Fang!"
"Fire Dragon's Roar!"
Dragon Slayer magic was created to slay dragons. Against humans, it might have flaws. But against dragons, it unleashed several times the power of ordinary magic.
After a rapid chain of attacks, Hitsuya's massive body was engulfed in flames. The blazing inferno burned fiercely, and the intense heat made even Ichiya and the Elephant King, collapsed in the distance, feel their skin scorch.
But they ignored the pain, staring at the raging fire ahead, hope shining in their eyes.
"Did… did it work?"
This was everything they had. Their final hope.
Unfortunately, that hope shattered almost immediately.
"ROOOOAR!!!" A furious, pain-filled roar tore through the sky. The shockwave blew the flames apart in an instant.
Hitsuya slowly rose into the air once more. His vast wings spread wide, blotting out the sunlight, and with it, the final glimmer of hope in everyone's hearts.
"Cough… what a monster!"
"This is really the end… ~man!"
"Damn it!" Natsu lay on the ground, staring up at the dragon, unwillingness burning in his chest.
Hitsuya was truly enraged. Pain coursed through his body. Blood vessels burst across his dragon eyes, crimson killing intent spilling outward.
Their desperate assault hadn't been meaningless. Even Hitsuya had suffered grievous injuries, especially his right wing, which nearly broken.
That only intensified his fury.
"Humans… die!"
With a powerful beat of his remaining intact wing, the colossal dragon lunged downward like an eagle diving for prey.
In the blink of an eye, he was upon them. Drake claws gleamed with icy light.
At that very moment, a low, steady voice echoed in everyone's ears.
"Power of the Lava Beast Armor."
❖≔﴾═══════ﺤ
Next Chapter: Total Eruption
Next Next Chapter: Fierce Battle
Next Next Next Chapter: Slaying the Dragon