Chapter 442: This Is My Spoils of War, Do Not Break It
Shouting all sorts of battle cries, the members of the Edolas Fairy Tail guild charged forward and clashed with the Royal Army soldiers.
Many of them couldn't help but feel their legs tremble involuntarily at the sight of the Royal Army, fighting the urge to turn around and flee. They had been mercilessly hunted and beaten by the Royal Army for so long that running away had become their subconscious reaction.
However, hearing the bold battle cries of their braver comrades charging into the fray, they were infected by that courage. Their hearts swelled with newfound bravery, and they mimicked their comrades, roaring out slogans as they charged ahead.
With the Edolas Fairy Tail joining as a fresh wave of reinforcements, the Earth Land Fairy Tail members immediately felt the pressure lighten significantly.
"We cannot lose to them!" Sorano declared enthusiastically.
"That is right! I need to give it my all as well!" Erza said with absolute seriousness.
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Natsu was already excitedly brawling with the Royal Army.
"We cannot lose either! Do not let the Earth Land Fairy Tail surpass us!" Hearing Sorano and the others, Edolas Lucy shouted loudly to her own guildmates.
"Yeah!" the Edolas Fairy Tail members roared in unison at Edolas Lucy's words.
The Fairy Tail members from the two different worlds glared at each other competitively before turning back and plunging into the Royal Army ranks.
"Waaaaah!"
Under the combined assault of the two Fairy Tail guilds, the Royal Army was instantly thrown into chaos, and large numbers of soldiers were struck down.
Furthermore, as the battle dragged on, many soldiers had lost the will to fight. They had vaguely figured out what their King had done and what he intended to do. Their conscience told them that the King's actions were wrong; not everyone could accept trading the lives of others for magic power. As soldiers, they had no choice but to follow orders, but their hearts were not in it.
Because their will to fight was so weak, many soldiers deliberately allowed themselves to be hit by weak attacks. They would then use the opportunity to fall to the ground, allowing themselves to be peacefully teleported away by Noah.
This sentiment spread like wildfire through the Royal Army ranks, making the battle increasingly easier for everyone in Fairy Tail.
"Not bad, truly not bad!"
Observing the battlefield through the eyes of his Thought Projection, Noah couldn't help but smile.
He had naturally considered the possibility that the Edolas Fairy Tail might come to help. Seeing them actually arrive exactly as he had hoped filled his heart with joy. Even if they were from a different world, Fairy Tail was still Fairy Tail; they shared the exact same spirit. How could he not be immensely pleased?
They had been hunted by the Royal Army for two years. For them to finally muster the courage to fight back was no easy feat.
"You despicable brat!"
Seeing that Noah actually dared to divide his attention while fighting him, the King was engulfed in boundless fury.
He piloted the Dragon Knight to fire several magic blasts in rapid succession at Noah, but they were all effortlessly blocked by the magic circle that materialized in front of the young mage.
"Do not be so hasty."
Noah's figure blurred, and he instantly appeared right in front of the Dragon Knight. He struck out lightly with his right palm, landing a blow on the mecha's abdomen.
Clang!
The seemingly soft and powerless strike forced the colossal Dragon Knight to skid violently backward across the ground.
Immediately after, Noah vanished from his spot. While frantically trying to stabilize the Dragon Knight, the King quickly searched for Noah's position, only to find that the boy had already reappeared behind the mecha and delivered a palm strike to its back.
Clang!
The Dragon Knight's backward momentum came to a dead halt, and it was violently launched forward instead.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Noah continuously teleported around the Dragon Knight, delivering palm strike after palm strike. He batted the towering mecha around in the air like a giant metal ball.
This time, Noah deliberately controlled his physical strength, ensuring he did not leave any handprints on the mecha's armor. He used the brief moments of physical contact during each strike to dive deeper into analyzing this kingdom's ultimate magical artifact, eagerly absorbing the technological knowledge it contained.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it!!!"
The King was utterly infuriated. He desperately manipulated the Dragon Knight to attack the blurring figure around him, wildly swinging the two broadswords formed from its front claws. However, every single strike was effortlessly dodged by Noah, followed by another palm strike that sent the mecha flying again.
The King could not bear the humiliation of being relentlessly attacked without being able to land a single counterblow.
Boom!
Taking advantage of the momentum when Noah knocked the mecha away, the King forcefully stomped the Dragon Knight's feet into the ground. The sheer force cratered the earth, propelling the massive machine hundreds of meters into the sky.
"Oh? To have such incredible jumping ability despite its massive size and weight. Truly impressive!" Noah looked up at the airborne Dragon Knight and sighed in genuine admiration.
"You insolent brat! Dragon Knight Spread Cannon!"
Under the King's control, the Dragon Knight spread its arms wide. The armor plating on its chest and abdomen flipped open, revealing neatly arranged rows of missiles.
The missiles ignited simultaneously, hurtling down toward Noah at breakneck speed.
Seeing this, Noah casually slapped the air above him, instantly conjuring a golden magic circle.
A sphere of condensed magic materialized in front of the circle, rapidly firing countless beams of light. The beams traced various arcs through the air, perfectly intercepting the incoming barrage.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Every single missile was shot down mid-air. A chain of massive explosions rocked the sky, filling the air with thick, billowing smoke.
Whoosh!
A powerful magic cannon blast tore right through the smoke screen, aiming straight for Noah.
Unpanicked, Noah stood his ground. The runes and structure of the magic circle in front of him shifted instantaneously.
Boom!
The magic cannon struck the magic circle and was completely halted. However, instead of dissipating, the energy gathered on the surface of the barrier.
"Mirror Water!"
Noah lightly tapped the magic circle with his right hand. The absorbed magical energy was instantly fired back, shooting straight at the airborne Dragon Knight.
Noah found spells like Mirror Water to be quite fun and interesting; reflecting an enemy's attack right back at them was a guaranteed way to deal a heavy psychological blow. Therefore, he had modified Mystogan's technique and made it his own.
Boom!
Suspended in mid-air and unable to dodge in time, the Dragon Knight was blasted by its own attack. It completely lost its balance and plummeted from the sky.
Seizing the opportunity, Noah flashed to the Dragon Knight's side as it fell, continuously tapping its armor to conduct further analysis.
Although Noah had managed to damage it slightly earlier, the reflected magic cannon just now had failed to leave a scratch. This Dragon Knight was clearly more specialized in defense than offense, particularly against magical attacks.
"Damn it all!!!"
Seeing Noah acting like this, the King finally realized with agonizing clarity that the boy did not take him seriously in the slightest.
In Noah's eyes, only the Dragon Knight held any value; the King piloting it might as well not exist. The King's desperate attacks were treated as nothing more than minor annoyances to be casually swatted away.
Being treated with such utter disregard caused the flames of rage within the King's heart to erupt uncontrollably.
"Dragon Missiles, fire!"
Completely ignoring the fact that firing at point-blank range would damage the Dragon Knight itself, the King threw open the tail armor. A swarm of missiles shot out, instantly detonating right next to Noah.
"Isn't this your kingdom's most important armor and weapon? Why are you treating it so recklessly? That is truly bad behavior." Noah shook his head disapprovingly upon seeing the King's reckless move.
He raised his right hand, and a golden magic circle appeared before him. It rapidly expanded, shielding both himself and the Dragon Knight behind it, keeping all the explosive force on the outside.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A massive barrage of explosions hammered the magic circle, but the barrier did not even budge a single inch.
"Do not damage such a fine magical artifact. This is my spoils of war, after all," Noah said, lightly patting the Dragon Knight beside him.
"This is not your spoils of war! It is my kingdom's ultimate magical weapon!" the King roared back instantly.
"But you cannot defeat me. Once you lose, doesn't it become my loot?" Noah stated matter-of-factly.
"Impossible! I will absolutely never lose!" the King shouted without a second thought.
Fueled by blinding rage, he piloted the Dragon Knight and slashed viciously at Noah.
Noah lightly hopped backward, effortlessly evading the strike.
Broadswords, various types of missiles, the main magic cannon, tail whips, heavy stomps—the King unleashed absolutely every weapon in the Dragon Knight's arsenal. Yet, he still could not even touch Noah.
To be precise, he couldn't even force Noah to get serious; every single attack was casually brushed aside.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!!!"
The King screamed in fury as he frantically forced the Dragon Knight to attack relentlessly.
By this point in the battle, he had realized that his attacks were entirely useless. He was completely incapable of inflicting even a scratch on his opponent.
His heart was filled not only with towering rage but also with overwhelming panic. The Dragon Knight was the kingdom's ultimate weapon and his greatest trump card. For it to be completely useless against the enemy standing before him—how could he not feel terrified?
He could only rely on his endless, manic barrage of attacks to slightly numb the sheer terror and anger eating away at his mind.
"Alright, I think I have a pretty good understanding of it now. It is time to end this battle."
Suddenly, Noah—who had been casually dodging attacks while standing right next to the mecha to study it—clapped his hands together, dusting them off with a bright smile.
"Go to hell!!!"
Hearing Noah's words, the crushing psychological pressure finally caused the King to snap. Piloting the Dragon Knight, he forced Noah back with a wild sword swing. Completely disregarding the mecha's structural integrity, he pushed the Dorma Anim into a massive overload.
The cannon inside the Dragon Knight's mouth rapidly accumulated a terrifying amount of magic power, aiming directly at Noah.
Noah could literally hear the various mechanical groans and grinding noises emanating from the Dragon Knight's chassis due to the critical overload. He could not help but shake his head.
"I cannot let you keep doing this. You are going to break my loot."
With a flash, Noah instantly appeared directly on the Dragon Knight's chest plate. His fingers blurred as he rapidly tapped several points on the armor. Tiny, intricate golden magic circles materialized at each point and immediately took effect.
"What did you do?!!!" the King screamed in sheer horror.
He realized that the magic cannon, which had been seconds away from firing, suddenly stopped charging and rapidly began venting its stored magic.
Furthermore, the Dragon Knight completely stopped absorbing magic from the atmosphere, instantly dropping out of its Black Sky form. The mecha's overall output and functionality were plummeting at a terrifying rate.
"What did I do? I simply turned the Dragon Knight off. You have been playing with it for long enough. It is time for me to collect my loot," Noah said with a calm smile.
"Impossible! Dorma Anim can only be operated from the inside! How could you possibly shut it down?! And why can't I restart it?!"
The King frantically slammed the controls, but none of his inputs registered. He could only watch helplessly as the Dragon Knight's systems rapidly powered down.
"That only proves that your understanding of magic is far too shallow. Magic can accomplish much more than you could ever imagine," Noah replied plainly.
But to the King's ears, those words were agonizingly harsh.
"Damn you!" The King's face twisted in pure, unadulterated rage.
Staring at the dead control console in front of him, he suddenly raised his royal scepter, aiming to smash it down with all his might.
Since he had lost, and the enemy was going to steal the Dragon Knight, he would just destroy it from the inside. He refused to let Noah have his way.
He had actually tried to initiate the Dragon Knight's self-destruct sequence a moment ago, but the system had completely flatlined. Now, his only option was to physically smash the console with his scepter. Even if this was all he could do, he absolutely refused to leave an intact Dragon Knight for his enemy.
Suddenly, he realized he could not move a single muscle. His body froze rigidly in place, his raised scepter suspended mid-air, completely unable to swing down.
At the same time, he felt a faint breeze carrying the scent of dust—something that should absolutely not exist inside the sealed cockpit. Then, a voice echoed right beside his ear:
"Now, that is not very nice. Do not break my spoils of war."
The King wildly darted his eyes to the side, only to realize that the Dragon Knight's heavily armored cockpit hatch had already been completely pried open. Noah was standing right outside, looking in at him, a small magic circle slowly rotating in the palm of his hand.
"Alright, it is time for me to collect my loot."
Noah grabbed the King by the collar and casually tossed him straight out of the cockpit. He then stepped inside and began examining the controls.
Thud!
The King crashed heavily onto the ground. Fortunately, his physical condition was decent enough that the fall didn't cause any critical injuries, though it still made him grimace in intense pain.
Realizing that his mobility had returned, he ignored his aching body and scrambled to his feet, desperately trying to flee the area. Even though the Dragon Knight had failed to defeat the enemy, he still refused to give up. He planned to escape first and figure out a new strategy later.
"Where exactly do you think you are going?"
Noah's voice floated down from above.
He had just finished a cursory inspection of the cockpit's internal structure. After confirming everything was intact and applying some protective magic to the systems, he stepped back out, just in time to see the King trying to scurry away.
Hearing Noah's voice, the King knew full well that escape was impossible. Yet, sheer panic took over. He accelerated his pace, breaking into a frantic sprint as he desperately ran toward the horizon.
~~~
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