Elsewhere, Laxus had thoroughly beaten Skullion and Madmole without suffering so much as a scratch.
Madmole had caused him a little trouble at first. Lightning Dragon's Demolition Fist failed to inflict any meaningful damage, which gave the Armor Dragon enough confidence to start running his mouth.
That confidence did not last long.
"Lightning Flame Dragon's Demolition Fist!!!"
Laxus twisted through his waist and drove a devastating punch into Madmole.
The Armor Dragon, who had been so confident in his defenses, coughed up blood and went flying.
Laxus did not let up.
As Madmole hunched over and clutched his injured abdomen—
"Lightning Dragon's Jaw!"
The blow shattered the armor across Madmole's shoulder and drove him to both knees.
"Gah!"
Blood spilled from his mouth.
Pivoting on his left foot, Laxus spun and swept his leg across Madmole's face, sending him crashing into the stone wall.
Madmole collapsed to the floor, his body scorched black and an enormous lump swelling on his face.
"I... I lost."
The difference between them was simply too great. Struggling any further would accomplish nothing.
Skullion lay nearby, the skeletal armor covering his body blackened by lightning.
Turning into ash had been completely useless against Laxus.
Laxus could transform his own body into lightning, and electricity had no trouble striking dust.
If anything, Skullion's scattered form only made the damage worse.
'What is this Magic Power...? This strength...'
Faced with someone as powerful as Laxus, Skullion could not help thinking of Kirin, the Yellow Dragon of the Black Dragon Slayer Knights.
Footsteps echoed through the corridor.
A moment later, Kirin appeared before Laxus with his arms folded.
He had originally been exploring a different section of the labyrinth, but the scent of Laxus's Magic and lightning had drawn him here.
Still sprawled on the ground and struggling to breathe, Skullion forced out a warning.
"L-Lord Kirin... Be careful. This man is... as strong as a monster."
Laxus frowned as he studied the newcomer.
Kirin's Magic Power was in a completely different league from Skullion's or Madmole's. He was unquestionably a dangerous opponent.
Then there was the enormous coffin chained to his back.
For some reason, it gave Laxus a faint sense of familiarity.
"Well, well."
Kirin gently lowered the coffin to the floor and placed it in front of himself. Crouching down, he looked Laxus over carefully.
He rubbed his chin.
"This is troublesome. With that build of yours, you might not fit inside."
"Should I cut you into pieces first? No, that would be far too grotesque."
Laxus gave a quiet laugh.
"Don't worry about it. You're the one going into that coffin."
"Me? Inside the coffin?"
Kirin looked genuinely amused.
"My, I've never even considered that possibility. You're an interesting one."
He snapped his fingers.
A tiny point of light appeared against Laxus's abdomen—
then exploded.
Kirin's Magic compressed and distorted the air.
The light might have been small, but its power was anything but. The explosion hurled Laxus across the corridor.
After rising to his feet, Laxus pulled off his coat and tossed it aside.
"What was that attack?"
Kirin did not answer.
He merely continued snapping his fingers, and more than a dozen identical lights appeared all around Laxus.
Having already been caught once, Laxus had no intention of standing there and taking them.
He transformed into lightning and shot out of range.
The instant he moved—Boom! Boom! Boom!
The corridor erupted as though a series of bombs had detonated at once.
"Invisible Magic?"
Laxus punched the floor, sending lightning racing across the stone toward Kirin.
Kirin casually waved one hand.
The lightning bent away from him and crashed into the wall.
"What?"
From Laxus's perspective, it almost looked as though the lightning had obeyed Kirin's command.
Kirin raised his right hand, curled his fingers loosely, then clenched them.
"My Magic compresses and distorts the atmosphere."
The air beneath Laxus's feet exploded again.
Laxus had already anticipated it. Transforming into lightning, he rushed forward with electric arcs dancing around his right fist.
His punch stopped only a few centimeters from Kirin's face.
Something like an invisible wall of air prevented it from moving any farther.
Still suspended in midair with his fist extended, Laxus glared down at him.
Kirin tilted his head back and smiled.
"No attack can ever reach me."
"And then..."
He flicked his hand upward.
Laxus was struck as though by an enormous hammer and launched backward, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.
Kirin patted the coffin beside him.
"I place every one of my opponents inside this coffin."
"As expected of Lord Kirin!"
"He defeated someone we couldn't even touch..."
Unfortunately, Skullion and Madmole did not get to celebrate for long.
"I see."
Laxus brushed the dust from his clothes and slowly stood.
"That's an interesting kind of Magic. But claiming no attack can reach you is going a little too far."
Kirin's expression darkened.
"?"
"Electricity can travel through all kinds of materials."
Laxus remained where he was, but lightning flowed from his foot into the stone floor and raced beneath Kirin.
In an instant, electricity surged across Kirin's entire body.
Laxus seized the opening.
He stamped hard against the ground and launched himself forward like a cannonball.
"Atmospheric Death Spiral!"
Kirin waited until Laxus reached close range before sweeping out his right hand.
A spiraling vortex of compressed air formed around Laxus.
Laxus forced his way through it.
Kirin created another wall of air in front of himself, intending to stop him exactly as before.
"But crimson lightning can tear through the atmosphere!!!"
Laxus's fist, wrapped in blood-red lightning, punched straight through the barrier and slammed into Kirin's face.
"Thunder-Mercury: Crimson Imperial Lightning!"
Just as Laxus had declared, the crimson lightning ripped through the wall of air.
The furious punch sent Kirin flying across the corridor. He struck the stone floor and lay there for a moment, his eyes unfocused.
"Th-That's impossible!"
"Lord Kirin was actually..."
Skullion and Madmole stared in disbelief, fulfilling their roles as the perfect shocked audience.
"My, what a surprise."
Kirin struggled back up and settled onto one knee, resting a hand against it while he caught his breath.
"I never expected Fairy Tail to have someone of your caliber."
"You may be right. I really could be the one who ends up inside that coffin."
"I like you."
He raised his head, a vicious look spreading across his face.
"I suppose I should show you what I can truly do."
Magic Power erupted violently from Kirin's body, lifting his long hair into the air.
It was far stronger than anything he had displayed so far.
"Now this is getting interesting."
Laxus grinned.
"Looks like I can finally go all out too."
His body surged upward, growing larger and more muscular. The purple shirt covering his torso tore apart beneath the sudden expansion.
Crimson lightning joined the lightning and flames already raging around him.
Crimson Lightning Flame Dragon Mode!
Lightning Flame Dragon Mode enhanced by the crimson lightning flowing through Laxus's blood.
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