After Suzaku introduced himself, Raizel was mildly surprised to discover that the young swordsman before him was the famous Vermilion Dragon of Guiltina's Black Dragon Slayer Knights.
Suzaku was clearly younger than Skullion and Madmole. He looked around Natsu's age, perhaps even slightly younger.
Raizel introduced himself in turn.
"Raizel, from Fairy Tail of Ishgar."
"Flaxen hair, taller than Skullion, sky-blue eyes..."
Suzaku compared Raizel with the description Skullion had given him.
"You're the Fairy Tail Mage. Your guild is the one opposing Diabolos."
He immediately took a fighting stance, turning his body sideways with his right foot forward and resting his hand loosely over the sword at his waist.
His hostility could not have been clearer.
Unlike Misaki, Suzaku held no resentment toward Guild Master Georg Reizen. On the contrary, he was deeply grateful to the man.
Anyone who made an enemy of Diabolos was therefore Suzaku's enemy as well.
Skullion and Madmole had already told him how Fairy Tail prevented them from taking the powers of the Water Dragon God and Wood Dragon God.
"You intend to aid the Five Dragon Gods?" Suzaku asked, his eyes cold. "Even though you are human?"
Raizel remained perfectly calm and shook his head.
"No. We're carrying out the Hundred Years Quest, so technically, the Dragon Gods are our targets. We simply judge each one according to the circumstances."
Suzaku paused, his hand loosening slightly upon the hilt.
"You judge according to the circumstances? What does that mean?"
Raizel considered the question before answering.
"The Water Dragon God Mercphobia protects and helps humans. The Moon Dragon God Selene wishes to live as a human and is genuinely working toward that goal."
"We can coexist with dragons like them and even become friends."
Suzaku frowned.
"Do you not find that idea absurd?"
To him, it truly sounded impossible. Guiltina had never known an age in which humans and dragons lived together peacefully.
Raizel shook his head.
"Not at all. People in Ishgar dreamed of coexistence between humans and dragons four hundred years ago. Some dragons worked to make that dream a reality, even sacrificing their lives for it."
"Our guild master's target is Selene, the Moon Dragon God. If you consider her your friend, then you are my enemy."
Suzaku had his answer.
Diabolos was determined to defeat the Five Dragon Gods, so there was no avoiding conflict between them.
His resolve hardened as he placed his hand over his sword once more.
"There's no need for that stance. You aren't my opponent."
Raizel smiled faintly at the wary swordsman.
Suzaku was clearly stronger than Skullion and the others if he had earned a place among the Black Dragon Slayer Knights.
His Magic Power was respectable, and Raizel had yet to see his swordsmanship.
Even so, he was nowhere near strong enough.
Suzaku narrowed his eyes at Raizel's dismissive attitude.
"You speak boldly. Are you certain you can evade my sword?"
Raizel shrugged.
"You're welcome to try."
[Take Over: Crusadermon X.]
After receiving the X-Antibody, the pile bunker once mounted on Crusadermon's right arm had evolved into a pair of weapons capable of both offense and defense—the Rose's Pile Bunker shield and the thrusting sword known as the Rose's Fencer.
The armor covering Crusadermon X's face could rapidly analyze the battlefield, then guide the course of combat in its favor through relentless pressure and calculated attacks.
As a supreme commander of the battlefield, it possessed the ability to dominate any engagement.
Even the ribbons flowing from its back had been enhanced, transforming from simple strips of cloth into wings.
Raizel had chosen Crusadermon X for two reasons.
First, Suzaku was also a swordsman.
Second, as the saying went, the more pink someone wore, the harder they hit.
Raizel pointed the Rose's Fencer toward Suzaku.
The moment the blade aligned with him, tremendous Magic Power surged through the corridor like a raging tide.
The pressure struck directly at Suzaku's nerves, causing the hand resting on his sword to tremble faintly.
When Raizel made no move to attack, Suzaku drew a deep breath and seized the initiative.
He flashed past Raizel in an instant, drawing his blade in a lightning-fast diagonal slash.
"!!!"
Suzaku's pupils contracted sharply.
The image he had expected—Raizel's breastplate or shield being cleaved apart—never came to pass.
The Rose's Pile Bunker remained perfectly pristine.
Even Suzaku's full-powered draw slash had failed to leave the slightest mark.
"Impossible! He blocked it that easily?! My sword can cut through dragon scales!"
Even Misaki and Kirin, his fellow Black Dragon Slayer Knights, would never have dared to receive that strike so casually.
Suzaku immediately understood the gap between them.
The shield's durability was one thing.
Raizel being able to read the motion of his draw and intercept it perfectly was another matter entirely.
"I don't understand!"
Suzaku reached for his sword again, preparing another draw slash.
Raizel raised the Rose's Pile Bunker in the direction of his advance.
A hurricane filled with rose petals erupted from the shield and swallowed the corridor, sealing Suzaku's movements.
The narrow passage put him at a severe disadvantage.
There was nowhere to escape when the rose-filled storm covered the entire width of the corridor.
"Now it's my turn."
Raizel's voice reached Suzaku through the layers of swirling petals.
Suzaku refused to sit still and accept defeat. He slashed repeatedly, trying to carve open the hurricane.
Every strike temporarily split the storm, only for fresh currents and petals to immediately fill the gap.
'To cut through this storm, I need to concentrate more deeply...'
Outside the hurricane, Raizel's Magic Power continued to climb.
It became almost tangible around him, gathering like towering waves before he suddenly surged forward.
The Rose's Fencer locked precisely onto Suzaku's position within the storm.
Raizel brought the blade down.
The strike carried the force of a sword cleaving heaven itself, advancing with unstoppable momentum.
As a swordsman, Suzaku could feel the overwhelming intent contained within that single blow.
It crushed his fighting spirit before the blade even arrived.
Its speed was far beyond anything he could defend against.
By the time Suzaku reacted, his robes had already been torn apart.
A vicious sword wound stretched from his shoulder to his lower abdomen, pouring blood as he collapsed onto the stone floor.
This was usually what Suzaku did to his opponents.
Now their positions had been reversed.
Raizel stood beside the fallen swordsman, the Rose's Fencer pointed at his throat.
Suzaku closed his eyes.
He assumed Raizel intended to kill him. Having lost due to his own inferior skill, he had no complaints to offer.
However, he had misunderstood.
Raizel only wanted him to surrender. Suzaku closing his eyes so readily left him standing there in awkward silence.
"You can leave. I'm not going to kill you."
Raizel lowered his sword and stepped back twice.
Suzaku opened his eyes in surprise.
He could barely move, but he still clenched his teeth and forced himself upright through sheer willpower.
He had completely lost the ability to fight and was now entirely at Raizel's mercy.
"You truly have no intention of killing me?"
Raizel released his Take Over and frowned.
"Why would I kill you? We have no personal grudge against each other."
Privately, he could not help thinking,
'Do people in Guiltina kill everyone they defeat? This continent is a little too "peaceful" for me.'
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