Chapter 101: You Are Just a Make-Up Man
Elfman, his eyes burning with a desire to prove his worth, charged forward. "Here I come!"
His giant, transformed fist, Beast Arm: Black Bull, rapidly struck towards Sol.
Sol, with an effeminate and mocking "Ohoho," simply leaped gracefully into the air, dodging Elfman's straightforward, clumsy punch.
"My, my, non, non, so brutish!" Sol landed lightly, wagging his finger. "You... you once had a sister, didn't you?"
Elfman's expression subtly changed upon hearing this. His charge faltered. "What... what did you say?"
"Sand Dance!!"
Sol waved his hand, and a large, swirling cloud of sand erupted from the arena floor, instantly obstructing Elfman's vision.
"Rock Concerto!!"
Sol then swept his foot across the ground. A large number of sharp, heavy rocks shot out from the sand cloud, striking Elfman from all sides.
"Waaahhh!!"
Elfman roared in pain as the rocks pelted his body.
"Elfman!!"
In the Fairy Tail lounge, Mira became very worried when she saw Elfman being attacked, her hands clasped tightly to her chest.
"You once failed a Full Take Over, didn't you?" Sol's mocking voice echoed from all around Elfman. "It led to you rampaging, turning into a true monster. And your little sister, Lisanna... she lost her life trying to stop you, didn't she? Non, that is so sad. From that moment on, you could never use a Full Take Over again!"
"Shut up!"
"Beast Arm: Iron Bull!!"
Elfman, his heart pounding with rage and old guilt, used another Take Over, his arm turning into a solid, iron-plated version. He struck towards Sol, who had reappeared from the dust.
Whoosh!
Sol, with a laugh, burrowed directly into the ground, his body melting into the earth. He then emerged from another spot, his head popping up like a mole.
Elfman quickly pursued, but Sol's body, now fluid as mud, coiled around Elfman's arm like a snake.
"Hello, mon chéri."
"How disgusting!" Being entangled by such a thing, Elfman felt uncomfortable both physically and mentally. This man's magic... it was slick and defensive, the opposite of his own.
"No, no, no," Sol said, wagging his finger in Elfman's face. "Three 'nos' mean you're just too weak. A man should be able to land a hit, oui?"
"Let go of me!" Elfman roared, pulling his arm hard. "Mudfish Sol!"
"It's Monsieur Sol!"
Sol, with a spin, got off Elfman, then used the momentum to kick him directly in the face.
"Ugh!"
"Is that all you've got?" Sol taunted, smoothing his coat.
Elfman knew that even though this guy looked very sleazy, his magic and his disgusting, unorthodox physical combat skills were both highly proficient. He couldn't win this with just one arm.
'I... I have to go all out!' Elfman thought, his body trembling. 'For the guild! For Mira-nee! I have to be a man!'
"HAAAAA!!!"
Elfman immediately prepared to use his Full Take Over. He focused his magic, trying to draw out the power... but as soon as he tried, the memory flashed, unbidden, in his mind.
Rain. A dark forest. His own massive, clawed, uncontrolled hand...
"Stop, Elf-nii-chan!"
Lisanna's small, kind face...
"It's me! Please, stop!"
A flash of motion. A scream. His sister's body, small and frail, flying through the air.
"Ahhh!!"
The Take Over Magic immediately, and violently, stopped. The power recoiled, and Elfman fell to one knee, clutching his head, his body shaking.
"Hm! Don't push yourself," Sol sneered, seeing his opening. "Your magic power... it seems to be dropping significantly. You're just a broken little boy, not a man. Take this!!"
Sol quickly rushed in front of the faltering Elfman and kicked him hard in the abdomen.
"Waaahhh!!"
"Hm, a gentleman's final, powerful strike," Sol said, bowing as he raised his hands.
"Plaster Sonata!!"
A giant, towering fist, formed from the sand and earth of the arena floor, rose up and struck towards Elfman.
"Uwaaahhhh!!"
Elfman's body was sent flying by the giant fist, crashing into the stadium wall. He fell to the ground, covered in wounds, unmoving.
Sol walked over, his boots clicking on the stone, and arrogantly stomped on Elfman's back. "This," he announced to the silent crowd, "is the power of the Element 4."
Then Sol began to continuously stomp and kick the downed Elfman.
"Hahahahaha!"
"That's it! Show him!"
Everyone in the Phantom Lord guild burst into laughter at this sight.
Jose Porla sneered from his high seat. "That's right! It should be like this! Let those Fairy Tail trash understand how huge the gap between us truly is!!"
Mira, in the lounge, couldn't take it anymore. She cried out in distress when she saw her brother being so brutally injured.
"Elfman! No! Ren, please, quickly! Replace Elfman!" she begged, turning to Ren. "He can't do it! He... his trauma... he can't fight! Please, stop this!"
Ren, who had been watching with a cold, unreadable expression, didn't move. He just looked at Mira, and then at the defeated Elfman in the arena.
He stood up, walked to the edge of the lounge, and shouted, his voice booming over the arena, "What are you afraid of, Elfman? Didn't you say you're a man?"
Elfman's body, lying in the dirt, flinched.
Mira stared at Ren in shock. "Ren, what are you...?"
"Are you really only this strong?" Ren's voice was cold, laced with contempt. "Aren't you supposed to become a man who can protect his older sister?"
In the arena, Sol stopped kicking, intrigued by this.
"What kind of man can't even subdue a mere Beast Soul? You couldn't control it then, and you're still afraid of it now. In the end... you can't protect anything."
"Ren, stop it!" Mira whispered, her voice full of pain.
"You couldn't protect Lisanna then... and you can't even protect your guild's honor now. If that's the case, then you should just step down. You're a failure."
"O... OOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!!!"
A deep, guttural roar, one that was not entirely human, tore from Elfman's throat. A massive, uncontrolled wave of magic power erupted from his body.
Mira, seeing this, shouted in pure terror, "No!! Elfman, stop! You can only Take Over one hand!! Don't do it!"
"FULL TAKE OVER: BEAST SOUL!!"
Elfman roared loudly, and his entire body rapidly, and painfully, transformed. His muscles swelled, dark, shaggy fur sprouted all over his body, his hands and feet became massive, razor-sharp claws, and two large, demonic horns burst from his head.
He rose to his full, terrifying height. He was no longer Elfman. He was a giant, monstrous beast.
"NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!!"
Sol's arrogant, "gentlemanly" expression instantly changed to one of pure, unadulterated terror. He saw the readings on his magic glasses spike to an S-Class level. "This... this wasn't in the data...!"
"OOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!!"
Elfman, in his full Beast Soul form, furiously attacked Sol. He didn't use a named attack. He was a blur of pure, unrestrained, primal rage. He moved, and the ground shattered under his immense power.
Sol, in his panic, couldn't even cast a spell. Elfman's clawed hand, moving faster than he could see, slammed into him. Sol's eyes rolled back, and he fainted instantly, his body sent flying like a ragdoll, crashing into the far wall of the arena.
Elfman, his rage spent, stood over the arena, breathing heavily. He looked at his clawed hands... and he didn't lose control.
He raised his right fist high.
He roared loudly: "OOOOOOOOHHHHHHH!!"
It was a roar, not of a beast, but of a man.
"The... the victor has been decided!!!" Chapati Lola screamed, his voice breaking. "Winner: Fairy Tail's Elfman!!"
"That's awesome!"
"He was faking it! He was faking it the whole time!"
"The transformation was so cool!!"
"Fairy Tail has two consecutive wins! As expected, Fairy Tail is stronger!"
The audience in the stands, after a moment of stunned silence, all burst into applause.
"Elfman..."
Mira, in the lounge, saw that Elfman had not lost consciousness. He had controlled it. She covered her mouth, tears of excitement and relief streaming down her face.
Ren, his job done, quietly sat back down.
Mira turned to him, her eyes still wet. "You... you knew..."
"Elfman came to me a while ago," Ren said quietly, so only she could hear. "He told me about Lisanna. And he asked me how to control his Take Over Magic. For the past two months, he has been diligently training. He actually had the ability to control the Beast Soul for a long time... but he just couldn't overcome that mental barrier. Sometimes," Ren said, his gaze firm, "people need to be pushed."
"Thank you... Ren..." Mira whispered, knowing that Ren had just saved her brother in a way she never could have.
In the arena, Elfman, still high on his victory, turned to the Phantom Lord dugout. "Phantom Lord! Who's next?!!"
Ren, seeing this, pursed his lips. 'I let you on stage, and now you're getting arrogant.'
Ren immediately waved the substitution flag.
"Huh? Fairy Tail is making another substitution!" Chapati announced.
Elfman, who was still posing, looked confused and walked off the stage somewhat reluctantly.
"Ren? I can still fight! I'm a man!"
Ren said irritably, "You're so injured, what fight? I let you on stage just to make up the numbers. You really think you're a main player?"
Elfman's face fell upon hearing Ren's blunt, hurtful words. "You... you can't be so hurtful when you speak..."
"If you don't want to be hurt," Ren said, his voice softening just a fraction, "then go get stronger yourself. Get strong enough to strive to become a main player."
Elfman's spirit was invigorated upon hearing this. This was his next challenge. "Yes!!" he shouted, his spirit renewed.
Makarov nodded in satisfaction at this scene. Although Ren had only been in the guild for half a year, he was already deeply trusted by the guild members. He had guided Elfman through his trauma... even if his methods were... harsh. Despite his youth, he was very reliable.
Makarov looked at Jose opposite him, a slight, smug smile playing on his lips. 'Jose, you've lost twice in a row. To two of my "brats," no less.'
It was a six-on-six elimination match this time. If it were normal six one-on-one matches, Fairy Tail would be at match point with one more win.
Jose, in the Phantom lounge, was furious when he saw Makarov's smug smile.
"Useless! Useless! All useless!!" he roared, his ghostly form flickering.
He had clearly had a huge advantage just now. One more hit on that Fairy Tail trash would have ended the fight, but that idiot Sol insisted on tormenting the opponent and ended up being reverse-swept.
What he couldn't stand the most was losing to some unknown trash from Fairy Tail.
Soon, Sol was carried off for treatment, and the arena was restored by Earth Mages.
"The third match is about to begin!" Chapati's voice boomed. "Please welcome both contestants!"
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