Chapter 16: Fighting Gildarts! I'm Done, I'm Done!
"Ay, ay… newbies are all monsters these days, huh."
Inside the empty lava cavern, a weathered voice echoed.
As the voice rang out, a figure slowly walked out of a dim corner.
The man had his arms crossed, wearing a half-smile that wasn't quite a smile, completely unconcerned that he'd been discovered.
"An examiner?"
Ren raised an eyebrow, surprised by the figure in front of him.
"Let me introduce myself. I'm Gildarts, an S-Class mage of Fairy Tail!"
"I'm the guardian of the tenth flag. If you want to take the tenth flag from me, you'll have to make me acknowledge you first."
The rugged middle-aged man nodded, then pointed at the red flag not far away with a smile.
Ren gave a small nod.
In the next instant, Ren's figure vanished from Gildarts's sight, turning into an afterimage as he shot toward the red flag.
Gildarts raised an eyebrow. His figure disappeared as well.
At the exact moment Ren appeared in front of the flag, Gildarts lifted his fist and smashed it down toward Ren's back.
Knowing it would hurt to take that punch head-on, Ren didn't dare tank it.
He flashed away from the flag, staring at Gildarts with a serious expression.
"Hey, hey, hey. Young man, you can't be that shameless."
Gildarts looked at Ren's cautious face and sighed helplessly.
He really hadn't expected Ren's first move would be to grab the flag and run.
Ren shrugged, not feeling like he'd done anything wrong.
He said with helpless honesty, "Mister, I can't beat you. What else am I supposed to do?"
Gildarts smiled. "One thing I forgot to tell you—taking the flag is useless. Until I acknowledge you, it doesn't count."
Seeing Gildarts's confident smile, Ren knew a fight was unavoidable.
He sighed, and his eyes sharpened instantly.
"Alright, then."
Ren spoke softly, staying alert, his eyes locked on Gildarts.
Gildarts kept one hand behind his back like a senior, and with his right hand he beckoned Ren forward with a curl of his fingers.
Boom!
A thunderous impact echoed through the cavern. The rock under Ren's feet exploded, spiderweb cracks spreading outward.
Ren appeared in front of Gildarts in an instant, clenched his fist, and threw a straight punch at Gildarts's face.
Gildarts raised an arm to block.
Fist and forearm collided.
Gildarts's expression sank slightly.
He shook out his arm, staring at Ren in surprise.
"Crazy strength."
Ren bared a thin grin. "Mister, you'd better get serious."
Behind Ren, raging flames and a dark thundercloud appeared.
Thunder roared. Fire howled.
Lightning crashed down again and again, blasting toward Gildarts.
Prometheus kept spitting fireballs, scorching heat surging outward, almost turning the entire cavern into a sea of flames.
Ren drew Napoleon from his waist.
The blade, black as ink, gleamed in the firelight.
Sword in hand, Ren closed in and tangled with Gildarts at close range.
As they exchanged blows, Gildarts grew more and more shocked.
The boy seemed able to predict every attack. Each time, he dodged by a hair's breadth, then countered in the gaps between strikes.
Suddenly, Gildarts felt a wave of dizziness hit his head, his movement stalling for a split second.
In that instant of hesitation, Ren slashed.
A sharp sword arc shot toward Gildarts's throat.
Gildarts snapped back to himself. The sword arc was already inches away, and his face darkened.
His gaze turned serious.
He swung his right hand forward.
The sword arc shattered instantly, breaking into countless fragments that sprayed outward.
They slammed into the surrounding rock walls with booming impacts.
When the dust settled, the walls were covered in dense cut marks.
Prometheus and Zeus drifted down beside Ren, their vicious faces coming into Gildarts's view.
Ren reached out, grabbed Prometheus, and fused him onto Napoleon.
In an instant, the blade elongated dramatically.
"Emperor Sword: Shatter Blade!"
Ren leapt up, standing on Zeus as he rose into the air.
Wrapped in overwhelming flames, Ren swung Napoleon down.
A blazing slash tore through the cavern, the scorching heat sweeping outward.
With a sky-shaking explosion, Gildarts walked out of the dust.
His clothes were torn in places, and excitement burned in his eyes as he muttered, "Guild Master… you really recruited a monster this time."
He charged straight at Ren, ignoring the flames and lightning rushing at him.
From below Ren's feet, Gildarts sprang upward, rushing straight at him.
"Crush!"
Appearing in front of Ren, Gildarts suddenly placed his palm on Zeus.
Bang!
With a sharp blast, Zeus exploded beneath Ren's feet.
He split into countless small thunderclouds that scattered everywhere.
Ren fell from the air, his expression turning heavy as he watched Zeus break apart.
So he's finally using magic.
"My magic is a Lost Magic—Crush Magic. I can crush anything I touch, including humans!"
Gildarts raised his arm and smiled at Ren.
"You're just telling me your whole secret like that?"
Ren sheathed his sword and asked with a grin.
Gildarts waved it off, unconcerned. "I acknowledge you. Go take the flag."
Ren was surprised that Gildarts stopped fighting so suddenly.
But when he saw that half-smiling expression, he felt it wasn't going to be that simple.
Sure enough, the moment Ren reached for the flag—
A bolt of lightning crashed down nearby, exploding right next to Ren.
The instant the lightning struck toward him, the countless small Zeus clouds gathered together again, forming a shield in front of Ren.
They swallowed the lightning in one gulp.
Smoke drifted from Zeus as he glared fiercely toward where the lightning had come from.
"Hey, hey, hey. Kid, are you really going to keep using sneaky tricks?"