Chapter 447: The More Destruction, the Better
"As expected, not many people believe Mystogan is actually the Prince," Ultear said, shaking her head.
"It is only natural that people wouldn't immediately believe a man who disappeared seven years ago suddenly showing up out of nowhere," Erza added from the side.
"Now it all comes down to Mystogan himself," Mirajane said, looking at Mystogan standing on the castle balcony.
"Exactly. No amount of words can ever compare to genuine action," Noah said very seriously.
Standing on the castle balcony, Mystogan did not waste any time talking. He leapt directly from the balcony—dozens of meters above the ground—smashing into the pavement below. The moment he landed, he sprang to his feet and sprinted straight toward Natsu.
"Hold on! Isn't Mystogan unable to use magic right now? How could he jump from that high up without getting hurt?!" Lucy asked, her face full of astonishment.
While the surrounding citizens hadn't fully adapted to the sudden disappearance of magic, Lucy already knew that magical items were completely useless, having witnessed the failure of the Royal Army's and Edo-Lucy's weapons earlier.
That meant Mystogan had just jumped from that incredible height relying purely on his physical body, hitting the ground running without sustaining a single injury.
"That is the power of the Guild Mark, of course," Noah said with a look of immense pride.
"The Guild Mark is that powerful?!" Lucy asked in shock.
She knew the Guild Mark had many effects, including passively strengthening the physical body. But she had never imagined it was this potent—jumping from such a height without a scratch was insane.
"The Guild Mark strengthens the body subtly and gradually. If you look at it over a short period, the effects aren't very obvious. However, Mystogan has been in the guild for nearly seven years. He has been continuously receiving the Guild Mark's strengthening effects for all that time, which is why the results are so prominent," Erza explained.
"In other words, in this world without magic, Mystogan—who possesses a physique far beyond that of an ordinary person—is anything but weak. My sister Lisanna from this world is similar, though she has only had her mark for two years, so the strengthening effect is nowhere near Mystogan's," Mirajane said with a gentle smile.
"Does that mean I will eventually have a super strong physique too?!" Lucy's eyes instantly sparkled.
Who wouldn't want incredible physical strength? However, if one didn't exercise properly, it was easy to ruin one's figure; when she worked out at home, she always had professional instructors guiding her. Now, knowing she could effortlessly improve her physical condition without compromising her figure—she just had to look at Mirajane and Erza's stunning curves—Lucy was naturally overjoyed.
"Of course you can. But as your body gets stronger, your physical control must also improve so you can properly manage your strength. You cannot neglect your daily training," Ultear told her seriously.
"Mhm! Mhm!" Lucy nodded repeatedly. Daily training was far easier than grueling physical conditioning.
"Dragneel!"
A loud shout from Mystogan drew their attention back to the battlefield.
Mystogan had already dashed to the front of the building where Natsu was standing, looking up at him.
"Prince?"
"Is it really him?"
"Is he planning to fight that self-proclaimed Demon King all by himself?! That monster can breathe fire!"
"And he has those two servants! One whose arm turns into a sword, and another crackling with lightning! They are all monsters!"
Seeing Mystogan bravely step forward to face the Great Demon King Dragneel, the citizens' belief that he was the Prince grew stronger, but they were also incredibly worried for his safety.
Hearing the citizens repeatedly refer to them as 'Natsu's servants', both Laxus and Gajeel's faces darkened considerably. However, for the sake of the plan, they kept their tempers in check. Laxus shot a deeply meaningful glare up at Natsu, but Natsu remained completely oblivious.
"Sleep!"
Mystogan drew a magic staff from his back and pointed it sharply forward, as if preparing to cast a spell. But after emitting a brief, weak glow, the staff quickly sputtered out, entirely unresponsive.
When the citizens saw Mystogan prepare to cast magic, they were thrilled. A man claiming to be the Prince would surely possess powerful magic. But when they saw that his magic completely failed to activate, the smiles froze on their faces.
At that moment, they remembered—their magic was continuously draining away, and that self-proclaimed Demon King was the culprit stealing it.
"What is wrong? Can't do anything without your magic?!" Natsu laughed loudly from the rooftop. "I guess so! Magic is power, after all!"
With that, Natsu wrapped his fist in roaring flames and slammed it directly into the roof of the building beneath his feet.
Boom!
"Wah!"
"What kind of destructive power is that?!"
"Is this the power of magic?!"
The entire building instantly shattered. Countless pieces of rubble were blasted in all directions, and the surrounding citizens frantically scrambled for cover.
Laxus blurred, appearing beside the unconscious King—who was falling alongside the collapsing building—and carried him safely to an open clearing nearby.
"Aren't Natsu and the others going a bit overboard?" Yukino couldn't help but ask, looking at the heavily damaged street before them.
"Not at all. The more destruction they cause, the better. That is the only way to prove just how powerful this 'Demon King' is. Because once they do that, the stage is set for a showdown between the terrifying, magic-wielding 'Villain' Demon King and the powerless 'Hero' Mystogan," Sorano said with a smile, patting Yukino's head.
Yukino nodded, seemingly half-understanding.
At that moment, the dust from the collapsed building slowly cleared, revealing Natsu and Mystogan facing off on the ground.
"Let's settle this!" Natsu roared. With his fists wreathed in fire, he charged straight at Mystogan.
Mystogan quickly leaped to the side, narrowly dodging the flaming punch. Natsu's fist slammed into the ground instead.
Boom!
The earth instantly shattered, and a deep fissure violently tore forward, forcing the citizens standing behind Mystogan to scatter in panic.
Boom!
The fissure extended directly beneath a nearby house, causing half the structure to collapse instantly.
"Prince!"
"What a brutal monster!"
The citizens who had dodged to safety breathed a sigh of relief. Keeping a wary eye out to avoid the aftershocks of the battle, they watched the fight between Natsu and Mystogan with bated breath.
Having dodged Natsu's punch, Mystogan immediately lunged forward to counterattack. However, Natsu opened his mouth and unleashed a torrent of flames directly at him. Mystogan was forced to tuck and roll to evade the attack.
The pillar of fire shot diagonally into the sky, instantly superheating the air and causing the citizens below to break out in heavy sweat.
Mystogan sprang back to his feet. Sweat beaded on his face, and the tips of his hair were slightly singed from the intense heat.
"What is the matter? Are you scared?!" Natsu loudly mocked Mystogan.
"Hah!"
Without a word, Mystogan exhaled sharply. He stomped his right foot hard enough to shatter the pavement beneath him and launched himself at Natsu.
Natsu rapidly threw a flurry of flaming punches, but Mystogan miraculously managed to dodge every single one by a hair's breadth.
Bam!
Seizing the brief opening after Natsu threw a punch, Mystogan landed a solid blow right on Natsu's face, sending him flying backward.
"Ohhh!"
"Prince!"
"Great hit!"
"Beat him!"
"You can do it! Please!"
Seeing Mystogan successfully strike Natsu, the surrounding citizens erupted into loud cheers.
Natsu flipped mid-air and landed smoothly on his feet. Flames were already brewing in his mouth, and he immediately fired another blast of fire at Mystogan.
Mystogan rolled forward, dodging the flames while rapidly closing the distance to Natsu. The citizens behind him, having anticipated the attack, had already scattered to safety.
The flames struck a nearby house, instantly obliterating its upper half and sending debris flying everywhere. The citizens retreated even further, watching Mystogan with deep concern. The Demon King was simply too powerful; could the Prince really win?
Taking advantage of Natsu breathing fire, Mystogan slid in close and delivered a vicious uppercut straight to Natsu's chin. Natsu hurriedly jerked his head back to dodge. Mystogan immediately followed up, pressing the attack with a relentless barrage of close-quarters punches.
After dodging the uppercut, Natsu quickly adjusted his stance and engaged Mystogan in a fierce hand-to-hand brawl.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The sound of fists and kicks colliding echoed endlessly. The ground beneath their feet shattered under the sheer force of their blows, leaving behind a trail of cracked footprints.
The shockwaves from their clashes kicked up thick clouds of dust, gradually obscuring their furiously fighting figures. Occasionally, a shockwave would blow the dust away, revealing brief glimpses of their intense battle before new dust rose to cover them again.
All that remained was the relentless sound of physical impacts, the scattering of shattered pavement, and the occasional blast of fire shooting diagonally into the sky from the center of the dust cloud.
"You can do it, Prince!"
"You have to defeat the Demon King!"
"Do not lose!"
"You have to win!"
The surrounding citizens kept a wide berth, terrified of being caught in the crossfire. They stared nervously into the dust cloud. At first, only a small handful of people cheered for Mystogan, but as the fight dragged on, more and more voices joined in.
Hearing from others that Prince Mystogan was battling the Demon King, and seeing the terrifying flames streaking across the sky, everyone began to lend their voices to the cause.
Gradually, cheers for the Prince echoed throughout the entire Royal Capital, resounding from the inner city to the outer walls.
"Alright, that should be enough."
Seeing that the citizens' emotions had peaked and they were all fervently praying for Mystogan's victory—and sensing that the reversed Anima was about to lock onto their magical signatures—Noah decided it was time.
A small golden magic circle appeared before Noah. A gentle gust of wind blew outward, completely dispersing the thick dust cloud surrounding the two fighters.
Natsu and Mystogan were finally revealed clearly to the crowd. Both were panting heavily, covered in sweat and visible bruises, their punches and kicks having noticeably lost their speed and power.
Bam!
They punched each other simultaneously, both stumbling backward several steps before regaining their footing.
"Pant... pant..."
Both were gasping for air. Natsu couldn't help but say to Mystogan, "You really are amazing! I am so glad I got to fight you!"
"You too," Mystogan said, trying to steady his breathing as he looked at Natsu.
"Looks like it is over. It is time to say goodbye."
Amidst the endless chants of "You can do it, Prince!", Natsu's voice carried clearly into Mystogan's ears.
Mystogan fell silent.
Natsu, however, flashed a bright smile. "Do not make a face like that! This is the moment the 'Hero' defeats the 'Demon King'! The 'Hero' should look much happier!" Natsu told Mystogan. His voice was drowned out by the roaring crowd; only Mystogan could hear him.
"Even though we are parting ways, you must never forget the spirit of Fairy Tail," Natsu said with utmost seriousness.
"Of course. I will never treat my life lightly again. I will live on strongly." Mystogan looked toward Noah's group, then back at Natsu. "I will never forget friends like you for the rest of my life. And I will never, ever forget Fairy Tail!"
Mystogan's expression was incredibly earnest.
Natsu broke into a massive, joyous grin. "That's perfect, then!"
The citizens could see them speaking, but due to the distance and the deafening cheers, no one could hear a word. As the two fighters stopped moving, the cheering gradually died down, replaced by a suffocating, tense silence.
Everyone realized this was the final clash. They stared unblinkingly at Natsu and Mystogan in the center of the street.
"Hah!"
After steadying their breathing, both men shouted simultaneously. Raising their fists, they charged at each other one last time.
Bam!
Their fists connected with each other's faces simultaneously, freezing them in place.
The crowd watched in agonizing suspense, waiting for the final result.
Both men swayed heavily before staggering backward. The crowd's hearts leaped into their throats.
Mystogan stumbled back several steps, planted his foot firmly, and managed to stay standing.
Natsu stumbled backward, his legs noticeably giving out, and he collapsed heavily onto his back.
The citizens were dead silent for a split second before erupting into a deafening roar of pure triumph:
"OOOHHHHHH!!!"
"The Prince won!!!"
"We are saved!!!"
"That was amazing!!!"
"PRINCE!!!"
"Incredible!!!"
The massive cheers shot straight into the clouds, rapidly spreading and echoing across the entire Royal Capital.
~~~
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