"What?!"
Natsu's pupils shrank slightly. He hadn't even seen what the opponent had done before his magic was neutralized.
"Is that all?"
Midnight lazily picked his ear. "If this is all you've got, just lie down and let me kill you. It'll save everyone the trouble."
"Don't you dare look down on me!"
Natsu roared as flames erupted around him. His figure turned into a streak of fire once more as he charged at Midnight. "Fire Dragon's Iron Claw!"
The flame-wrapped kick tore through the air, aiming straight for Midnight's head.
However, at the moment of impact, Natsu's clothes suddenly tightened, constricting his body and forcefully interrupting his attack.
With a wave of Midnight's hand, Natsu—who was still struggling with his own clothes—was sent flying as if hit by a heavy hammer, crashing violently into the ground.
"What's going on?!" Lucy watched the scene in shock.
Mystogan's gaze was solemn. "It's Reflector. The space around Midnight seems to be distorted by some force, causing all attacks to be forced off their trajectory."
"He can even distort the clothes someone is wearing..."
Mystogan thought to himself that this was bad. Midnight's 'Reflector' magic was a direct counter to Natsu's fighting style. If he weren't injured, he might have been able to handle Midnight.
But now... Mystogan's headscarf was soaked with sweat, and his abdomen was stained a deep red. He had only managed to stop the bleeding by using the bandages from his arms.
"Brother, let me help you."
Wendy, who had been somewhat frightened, snapped out of it and hurried to Mystogan's side. A gentle green light emanated from her hands and fell upon his abdomen.
Instantly, Mystogan felt the pain in his wound recede and his body felt less heavy. "Wendy... your magic?"
While Wendy focused on the treatment, Carla explained for her, "Wendy is the 'Sky Dragon Slayer' Mage, the Maiden of the Sky."
"Eh? She's a Dragon Slayer Mage too?!"
Seeing Lucy look at Wendy in wonder, Carla gave her a disdainful look. "Ignorant woman. Although Dragon Slayer Mages are rare, there's no need for that expression."
"Haha..."
Lucy scratched her head. "Actually, it's the opposite. I've seen quite a few Dragon Slayer Mages, so I was starting to wonder if this magic really should be classified as Lost Magic."
Seeing Carla's disbelief, Lucy held up five fingers. "Our guild has five Dragon Slayer Mages. There's no need to lie to you."
"Five Dragon Slayer Mages?!"
Lucy's words caused even Wendy, who was focused on healing Mystogan, to become momentarily distracted.
The reason Wendy joined the Guild Alliance was in hopes of meeting Natsu, a fellow Dragon Slayer Mage. Now she was being told that Fairy Tail had four more like him... Wendy's healing magic was incredibly effective; even a fatal injury like a stomach perforation was completely healed in less than five minutes.
"Thank you, Wendy."
Mystogan hadn't expected the little girl from seven years ago to be so powerful. However, Wendy's healing magic inexplicably reminded him of Granny Polyushka.
There were clearly no similarities, so why did he suddenly think of Granny?
Mystogan shook his head; now was not the time for his mind to wander. The 'Dragon Force' state consumed a lot of energy and couldn't be maintained for too long, otherwise, it would accelerate the Dragon Slayer Mage's Dragonification process.
Taking his five magic wands back from Lucy, Mystogan returned to the battlefield. "Natsu, let me handle him."
Natsu didn't object. He had bombarded Midnight for several minutes to no effect. An enemy like this was best left to Mystogan, who could attack spiritually.
"So you're the leader, huh? I'm going to beat your big head in!"
Natsu immediately changed direction and lunged toward Brain.
However, in the next second, an overwhelming number of ghost shadows flew out from the surrounding woods. Lucy and Gray's expressions changed as they recognized the magic.
The former Phantom Lord Master, Jose Porla, had used this move during his battle with their Master, Makarov.
But wasn't Jose missing... Could it be?!
"Jie jie jie~"
Accompanied by a cold laugh, Jose descended from the sky and landed beside Brain. "Brain, I told you Fairy Tail is hard to deal with. Look, only two of your Oración Seis are still standing."
Brain ignored Jose's teasing and spoke calmly, "Leave the girl named Wendy. You can kill the others."
"Are you commanding me?"
Jose was annoyed by Brain's tone, but he had to endure it. If the Master of Oración Seis was released later, everyone present would die.
Jose walked forward slowly, grinning at Natsu and the others. "You aren't still counting on Jura and Ichiya, are you? Jellal went to intercept them personally. They won't be coming anytime soon."
Jellal?!
He was still alive?!
The expressions of the Guild Alliance members turned grim.
Jose alone was shocking enough. If Jellal was added to the mix, their mission to subjugate Oración Seis was no longer a question of success, but whether they could leave alive.
Jose snapped his fingers, and the flying Shade soldiers descended in unison, surrounding Gray, Lucy, Wendy, Lyon, the awakened Thunder God Tribe, and Sherry.
Simultaneously, a large group of Dark Mages rushed out from the woods. They were from the subordinate guilds of Oración Seis, as well as Mages formerly of Phantom Lord.
This scene made Mystogan feel that something was wrong.
First, Sorano, codenamed 'Angel', had infiltrated the villa where the Guild Alliance gathered and attacked Ichiya and Jura.
Then Cobra, Hoteye, and Laxus blocked their path.
Then Brain, Midnight, and Jose appeared one after another, while Jellal was at another battlefield intercepting Jura and Ichiya.
Finally, a large group of ambushing Dark Mages appeared.
The enemy was so well-prepared; it seemed they had known the details of the Guild Alliance members in advance.
Even the Masters of the four guilds didn't fully know who would participate in the Alliance, so how did the enemy know?
Amidst his thoughts, Mystogan sensed magic coming his way. He dodged and saw Midnight also attacking Natsu.
Damn, they're trying to divide the battlefield to their advantage!
But Mystogan couldn't pull away now. Jose had clearly recovered his strength; if he got distracted, he would die a miserable death.
Despite the mask, Jose seemed to see Mystogan's solemn expression and couldn't help but laugh loudly. "What a pity. Those two brats who cut off my legs aren't here, so I'll just have to kill you to collect some interest."
As soon as he finished speaking, a light voice suddenly reached Jose's ears.
"Oh? Do you miss us that much?"
"But Erza and I have no interest in an ugly, greasy middle-aged man like you."
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