(Flash Back)
Laxus had never been a man to tolerate underestimations, especially those that threatened the one thing he valued above all else—his own strength. He was convinced he was the strongest, no matter what anyone else said, so inevitably, that personality would lead him to face Allen sooner or later.
During his last mission, rumors about the new Fairy Tail member reached his ears. At first, he heard trivial things like defeating an elite mage, overthrowing a duke, or beating Natsu. To Laxus, those things were insignificant.
But it didn't stop there. A couple of days later, just as Laxus was returning to Magnolia, more rumors came in: that this new mage had tied or even beaten Erza, that he defeated a dark guild and a S-Class mage, and that he stopped one of Zeref's demons. Laxus couldn't help but raise an irritated eyebrow. In his eyes, Allen was just a rookie—no matter how much he shined, that was all he was. Defeating dark guilds? Laxus had done that more than once. Defeating an S-Class mage? Everyone knew the S-Class title was meaningless since it wasn't regulated; many guilds just gave that title to their mages for status, but compared to Fairy Tail, it was nothing. And beating Erza? Laxus scoffed. Ultimately, Erza might be the strongest woman, but she was still beneath him...
Laxus was the embodiment of ego and arrogance, but the worst part was that his power allowed it—because it was true that he was among the strongest mages in all of Fiore.
However, there was one rumor Laxus couldn't let slide, one he didn't mock. When he heard it, he exploded with uncontrollable rage.
The rumor that the rookie had been compared to Gildarts Clive!
It was unacceptable!
A total insult!
That last rumor was the biggest insult Laxus could receive. What? Compared to Gildarts? Laxus was the strongest! How dare they act like he didn't exist?!
So when Laxus returned, he sought out Allen. But when he got to the guild, Allen wasn't there, so he waited. And when Allen returned, his gaze was fixed on him. But seeing how Allen interacted with Lucy and Erza, the presence he carried, his apparent magical power, his attitude—Laxus felt disappointment. The same reaction Siegrain and Ultear had... Laxus labeled him as overrated garbage.
'What a stupidity...'
He felt like a fool for worrying about a nobody... or so he thought—until Mystogan returned.
The magic of this silent mage was so powerful that even Laxus had to make an effort not to fall asleep.
Laxus grabbed his head and then observed something he could not understand. Mystogan had frozen upon seeing Lucy Heartfilia, the fully awake rookie girl who seemed unfazed by his magic. But Laxus' shock didn't end there—the insignificant man he had just despised, the man he had classified as trash mere seconds ago, remained completely unaffected, as if Mystogan's presence was just air.
Laxus growled through clenched teeth, "You little bastard, you almost fooled me for a second!"
Laxus hadn't finished getting angry when Allen disappeared, only to intercept Mystogan. At that moment, Laxus knew this man was no trash—he was only pretending to be. Laxus's gaze grew cold because he felt his throne threatened, and at that moment, he decided to utterly crush Allen Walker!
...
(Back to the present)
Wooden planks, now reduced to rubble, flew throughout the Guild. Laxus could be impulsive, but he wasn't crazy—he wouldn't destroy the Guild under normal circumstances, but right now he acted out of rage. Being looked down on by others irritated him, but it didn't compare to the frustration of having someone he considered a threat do it.
Laxus charged like thunder, surprising and frightening the entire guild...
"You're too arrogant…"
Allen set his cup down on the bar as time seemed to slow—at least that's how it felt to him and Chat. Allen turned to see Laxus approaching, his gaze full of fury, the power of lightning enveloping him, showing he didn't care if he killed someone.
Allen looked back at Lucy, who was on his left. The girl grabbed his arm, even knowing she might get hurt. On the other side, Erza had already drawn her sword, ready to intercept Laxus. Makarov reached out a hand toward Allen, as if trying to stop him.
'I… just wanted to rest in this arc… but if you force me… you'll learn an undeniable truth… there's always someone better.'
"One-Man Army... x50 Speed."
"Wait—!"
Makarov couldn't finish his sentence before Laxus disappeared, leaving everyone in disbelief and confusion.
"What?" Wakaba dropped his pipe.
"What just happened?" Gray gritted his teeth.
"Laxus is gone!" Levy exclaimed in surprise.
"He disappeared..." Droy murmured, confused.
"Impossible," Reedus denied.
"Did he really have that kind of power?" Laki spoke up, puzzled.
Makarov sighed behind the bar and walked toward the exit, but not before whispering near Allen, "Thanks." Allen tossed a small vial containing a pill to Makarov, who caught it without asking questions.
Erza sheathed her sword and sat back down without saying a word, but her gaze toward Allen was full of meaning.
Lucy opened her eyes and looked around before turning to Allen, "What happened?"
"Heh... who knows," Allen dodged the question, smiling as he gently ruffled Lucy's hair.
"..." Cana eyed Allen suspiciously but couldn't see anything this time. Still, she suspected Allen had something to do with it. Given Allen's teleportation magic, it made sense that he used it to get Laxus away. That explained his disappearance.
Natsu silently looked at Allen before grabbing his scarf and heading for the exit. "Come on, Happy…"
"Natsu? Where are we going?"
Natsu looked serious for a change and didn't hesitate with his answer, "To train, of course…"
Mirajane looked sadly at the second floor, which had been destroyed by Laxus. Seeing this, Allen murmured, "Reparo…"
A wave of magic spread, and slowly, piece by piece, every object, every fragment, every scrap returned to its place as if time itself was rewinding. Mirajane smiled at Allen, who raised his cup with a smile, and she came over to refill it.
While everyone's attention was elsewhere, high above in the guild, there was a hole the size of a person cutting through the roof. It repaired itself along with the second floor. Nobody noticed this except for one person—a woman—Erza, who looked at the hole, then closed and reopened her eyes.
'As I expected… you're incredible…' Erza smiled with melancholy, wishing she could be more like Allen. But she knew that as long as she remained a coward, that wouldn't happen, so all she could do was laugh at herself.
"…!"
Erza felt something warm on her head. Looking up, she noticed something she couldn't understand—a hand. It was the hand of a man.
The guild fell into shock. In this world, was there really someone who dared to pat Titania on the head?!
But now that question was answered; yes, that man existed. This man was the only one qualified to do it because, in his eyes, this seemingly indestructible woman had been stuck in the same place for many years. In his eyes, this girl was still a little girl.
"A—Allen?" Erza was frozen, not knowing what to say.
"I don't know what you're thinking, but you're wrong… you're stronger than you think you are…"
"…!"
A whole minute passed before Allen withdrew his hand. But at that moment, Erza didn't look up, hiding her face behind her hair, though there was one detail visible to everyone—the pair of red Titania ears.
Elfman bit his fingers, Macao spat out his beer, Cana dropped her keg again, Levy stumbled because she wasn't looking where she was going, and Mirajane, who was pouring coffee into Allen's cup, started spilling it. As for Lucy, she opened her mouth so wide it looked like her jaw might fall off.
Who could blame them? They had just seen the Yeti—Erza blushing all the way to her ears, even more than anyone thought possible.
Many in the guild swallowed hard. It was almost impossible to believe this was real; some even thought it was a dream or an illusion, but then, painfully confirmed with pinches and slaps, they realized it wasn't.
...
(Outside Magnolia)
Lying in a crater was a stunned blond-haired man. Laxus didn't understand. He had been about to fight Allen, but before he realized it, he ended up in this place. His eyes, reflecting confusion and surprise, stared fixedly at the sky. His mouth opened as if trying to say something but no words could come out.
'An illusion? Was I teleported?'
Laxus searched his experience for any magic that could cause this kind of phenomenon, but he came to no conclusion. Still, there was one detail that bothered him.
'Why can't I move?'
Laxus couldn't accept reality; he didn't want to think about the possibility that he had lost. So his mind worked at full capacity trying to find any explanation for his situation without resorting to the most obvious answer—that he had lost in an instant and in such an overwhelming way that he didn't even know how it happened.
*Footsteps*
"Laxus…"
Makarov's voice reached Laxus's ears. He made an effort to straighten his neck and look at him.
"O-Old man–!"
Makarov took advantage of this and threw the marble-sized pill Allen had given him. Laxus swallowed it involuntarily and then coughed.
"What are you doing, old man?!... Huh?!" Laxus left his anger in half as he realized that he was slowly regaining his body's mobility. "What did you give me, old man?!"
Laxus looked at Makarov with resentment; he hated the very idea of being helped by him—even if he was his grandfather!
Makarov Dreyar, Laxus Dreyar's grandfather, turned away before heading back to Magnolia. "Laxus, you've always been impulsive and arrogant, so you probably won't learn anything from this experience. But I ask you to think carefully about what happened, and maybe you'll realize a truth…"
"Shut up!" Laxus exploded, barely standing up. "Don't come to me with your self-improvement talk! I'm not one of those idiots in the Guild! I don't need anything from you! No matter what you say, I'm going to surpass everyone—even you! And I'll make you regret…"
Makarov closed his eyes with a painful look. What grandfather would be okay when his grandson looked at him with so much hatred?
Laxus stayed there watching Makarov walk away until he disappeared on the horizon.
"DAMN IT!"
Laxus shouted, full of frustration as his magical power burst out, creating a golden pillar that soared toward the sky.
...
(Two days later)
Allen returned to the guild with Lucy and Erza after another round of missions. Lucy was exhausted, Allen sighed deeply, while Erza seemed to be in a good mood. After this day, Allen bought Erza a new armor as he had promised, which cost him five million.
Gwen — "You know what's funny? If you weren't such a shameless womanizer, you'd save a lot of money..."
No comments...
MJ — "I was just thinking, wouldn't it have been easier if you made the armor yourself?"
Allen stopped at MJ's words. She was right, but there was a problem—although he knew the basics, he wasn't an exceptional blacksmith. Creating armor and weapons seemed complicated.
'Well, I have nothing to lose by trying, but for now, it'll be just a hobby...'
As they entered the guild, the atmosphere was heavy.
"So what happened now?" Lucy said, grabbing Allen's sleeve.
Nab shook his head. "Natsu and Happy stole an S-rank Request from the second floor. Gray went after them but hasn't returned, so it's assumed he went with them."
Makarov growled, "They stole the Galuna Island Request!"
"Those idiots!" Erza snapped, startling Nab.
Allen glanced sideways at Erza, and before she could say anything he'd regret, he pushed Lucy away by the shoulders.
"What, what's wrong?" Lucy had question marks over her head.
"Don't worry…" Allen said, but he soon felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Wait, we can't just let this go!" Erza, without waiting for Allen to respond, lifted him onto her shoulder and headed toward the exit.
"Deyabu?!" Lucy exclaimed.
Allen, resigned, shook his head. "At least can we eat something?"
"It's not possible, but don't worry, I'll cook something for you on the way," Erza replied without stopping.
Lucy resignedly followed them...
"Master, is it okay to let him go?" Macao asked Makarov.
Makarov looked up to the second floor where Laxus had remained silent. Right now, Laxus is unstable; it's better if Allen stays away.
"With that pair, there is no mission impossible," said Makarov.
"Master don't be cruel, Lucy-chan is also going with them~" laughed Mirajane. Then she looked into the distance where the three were walking away with a strange feeling of envy.
...
(Port City of Hargeon)
The target was the cursed island, Galuna. To get there, they first had to go to Hargeon, so Allen took the girls there directly by "Teleportation."
"No matter when I experience it, teleportation magic is unfair and very convenient," Lucy smiled, leaning forward.
"That's true, so jealous~" Erza smiled at Allen with bright eyes. Allen knew why—Erza had her personal dimension full of armors and weapons, always carrying a mountain of suitcases with her. Allen had offered to store what he could in his inventory, which put Erza in a very good mood.
"Do you think we'll catch up to them?" Lucy asked.
Allen shook his head. "They're way ahead…"
Natsu and Gray had left a day ago while Allen, Lucy, and Erza were still on a mission, so they should already be on Galuna by now. Knowing this, Lucy felt disappointed because she wanted to finish this quickly; she wasn't enthusiastic about going to a cursed island.
"Galuna..." Erza frowned.
Allen observed her silently. One would think an S-class mage would be assigned to missions like this, but the truth was those missions were rare on the second floor—there were only three missions, and even Erza would hesitate before accepting one of those. Not only because they were high risk but also because of their complexity—it could take weeks to complete, making A and B rank missions more profitable.
"...?" Allen diverted his gaze toward the horizon, toward the sea... There was a dark presence in the distance... something dangerous...
[Emergency Mission: Prevent the death of Natsu, Happy, and Gray – There is an 80% chance all three will die]
'What?! But this is only an S-rank mission?'
[Sorry, remember this world isn't normal…]
Allen thought for a moment. 'The destiny armor had been reduced by half, but if the death probability was 80%, where did the extra thirty percent come from?'
[Emergency Mission: The Demon of Misfortune, Deliora – An immoral demon is about to be released, and it still retains all its vitality and strength!]
'Now I get where the extra thirty came from...'
[Optional Mission: Save Ur – There is a brave mage who gave her life to imprison evil, a harsh and sad sacrifice. Everyone says it's impossible, but maybe you can do the impossible...]
'Optional? I thought no mission was mandatory...'
[Correct, none are. But optional means even for you it's very difficult to accomplish… so it doesn't matter if you ignore it.]
'Ur... huh'
[Main Mission: Galuna Incident, no matter how it ends or who wins, resolve the incident on this island...]
Allen smiled slightly. It seemed Galuna was something that was going to happen no matter what. He extended his hand toward the distance. 'Let's see how strong this demon Deliora really is...'
...
Sitting in his favorite chair, Lucifer's eyes lit up slightly before going dark. "Allen, things won't always go the way you want... and don't forget, you can lose too…"
The omnipotent devil smiled...
===
A/N: Lucifer is dangerous... even if he appears not to be.
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