A magic merchant infiltrating Fairy Tail

Silver didn't refute it, but just laughed it off and changed the subject: "Who said it's only about machines and technology? There's also magic and alchemy, isn't there?"

"The 'technology' I'm referring to is anything that can be cultivated and learned according to theory, which naturally includes magic and alchemy! But it doesn't include your absurd conclusion that 'appearance is related to magic'! Did you get your head slammed in a door?"

Silver: "..."

"Hey, seriously?! Your head really got caught in a hole?!" Val burst out laughing.

After Val finished laughing, Silver said, "Alright, alright... let's get back to the point. Anyway, it doesn't matter to you how it's designed. It's better to believe it's true than not, after all, this is a world of magic!"

"Besides, designing them all in human form would be too monotonous!"

Val scoffed, "The last part is the real reason, isn't it? Fine, whatever you want with this, but if the final result isn't ideal, I'll hold you accountable!"

……

The mechanical nesting dolls have strong defense, so strong that they remained unmoved even after taking a solid punch from Natsu. If it were an ordinary iron block, even if it were ten or dozens of times larger, it would only end up being smashed away.

"This thing is so hard..." The terrifying force even caused a slight vibration in the air, leaving Happy and Lucy speechless.

"Could it be a defensive mechanical soldier?"

"Its hardness is extraordinary! Its body is its best weapon!"

Lucy stared at the tiny matryoshka doll for a few seconds, then shook her head and said, "The explosive speed that just ambushed me, combined with its inherent toughness, was even more terrifying than the president's full-force punch!"

"The president's fist...??"

Happy's mind immediately conjured up the image of Makarov slapping Natsu to the ground, Natsu struggling desperately but to no avail, and his 'intelligent' gaze instantly turned to panic.

"Huh?! Doesn't that mean Natsu is in big danger?!"

"Don't worry! Natsu will be fine!!"

Lucy smiled confidently, her gaze filled with trust as she looked at the figure ahead.

Happy looked Lucy over carefully for a moment, then turned away, a barely suppressed smile playing on his lips. He thought to himself with smug satisfaction, 'Great! Lucy's not angry anymore! She's so easy to fool…'

Lucy was oblivious to Happy's inner thoughts. At this moment, her attention was focused on Natsu and the mechanical nesting doll in front of her. Her intuition told her that this enemy was not so simple and was fundamentally different from the Weakness Effect Soldier that had appeared before.

Thinking of this, Lucy reached behind her back and pulled out the key from her waist, instantly radiating a completely different aura: "Okay, I'll go up and help too!"

She had originally decided to help because she was worried about Natsu, and it should have been a perfect doubles match, but Natsu, quite oblivious to her feelings, refused: "No need to come over, I can take care of this guy in no time!"

"Isn't he supposed to be an iron man? Gajeel is a hundred times harder than that!!"

Lucy "..."

"Pfft..." Happy covered his mouth and chuckled to himself, his eyes full of mockery.

"What's so funny, you dead cat?!"

The resentment that had subsided after he saved the damsel in distress resurfaced, and his shy hormones turned into cholesterol, causing his fair face to flush red once more. This time, he was both angry and embarrassed: "Fine, fight me by yourself then! I don't care about you anymore! You idiot Natsu!!"

Happy whispered, "Lucy's jealous..."

"I don't!!"

"It's still Gajeel's..."

"No way!!!"

"Poor Lucy..."

"Who wants your pity?! That's enough!!"

The two's bickering did not hinder Natsu's battle with the mechanical doll; the two had already clashed.

Calling it a fight is not entirely accurate, because the mechanical doll has no hands. Its fighting style is the same as Lucy predicted: it uses ramming. However, its super speed and unparalleled weight make each of its attacks extremely destructive, and it blasted the mechanical toy house to pieces in just a few moves.

Looking at Natsu, his fighting style remained as ingenious as ever, but it had an unexpected effect in this indoor setting, with each strike hitting the opponent's vital points.

He can boost speed by unleashing flames from his elbows, increase destructive power by wrapping flames around his fists, and enhance defense by covering his entire body with flames. Combined with his agile movements and keen senses like a wild beast, he can hold his own against the odds.

A few minutes later, Natsu noticed something was wrong: "Damn it! Is it just my imagination? Why does it feel like it's getting faster and stronger..."

Thud! Thud! Thud! ...

The increasingly intense sounds of impact echoed in my ears, like a symphony about to reach its climax, like a torrential downpour in summer; the movement of the iron dolls began to leave afterimages, and my dynamic vision couldn't keep up with their speed. Eventually, three iron dolls appeared directly in my field of vision, and their number kept increasing.

Bang! !

With another punch, Natsu sent his opponent flying. He finally confirmed his suspicions: "It's not an illusion! Its attack frequency is indeed increasing!! And its power is much stronger than at the beginning!"

With increasingly faster movement speed and heavier attack power, Natsu was soon overwhelmed.

Boom! !

After a muffled thud, Natsu was knocked back two steps by the powerful force, and this time, he felt pain in his fist.

"That attack was incredibly powerful!!"

"Natsu!! Are you alright?" Seeing Natsu's momentum gradually weakening, Lucy disregarded his request to finish the battle alone and immediately drew her Star River from her waist and stood behind him.

"Ah... I'm fine!" Natsu didn't reject Lucy's sudden intervention, but said with a worried look, "It's just that this guy gets stronger the more we fight him, this is really troublesome!"

Lucy smiled smugly: "Hmph... Looks like you can't 'solve it quickly'! Oh well, let me help you!"

Natsu blinked and laughed heartily, "Lucy, it's okay if you don't need help, I can manage on my own..."

"Stop arguing! Hurry up and finish the game so we can go eat!!"

Happy behind her covered her mouth and chuckled: "Lucy's being tsundere!! Just like all blondes..."

"Wow!! Lucy's treating us to dinner??" Natsu was so excited, drool involuntarily dripping from the corner of his mouth. He couldn't help but roar to the sky, "I'm fired up!!"

Lucy: "..."

Happy looked speechless: "Natsu...you...sigh..."

Chapter 548 The Real Mechanical Matryoshka Doll

Just as Natsu and Lucy were getting ready for battle again, the mechanical nesting dolls' attack came to an abrupt halt.

"What happened? It stopped?"

"Could it be that we don't have enough energy?"

Natsu and Lucy looked at each other in astonishment, staring at the motionless mechanical nesting doll standing not far away.

No way...we're just about to prepare for battle! Have you lost your motivation? Is this really that bad? You're even worse than those mechanical soldiers from before...

"That's strange..."

Lucy's murmurs puzzled Natsu: "What's wrong, Lucy?"

"Look there! Isn't the color of its tie a little different from before?"

Following the direction of the finger, Natsu saw the gold tie on the mechanical nesting doll: "Now that you mention it... I remember it was white just now, wasn't it?"

"The color has changed... What does that mean?"

Generally speaking, the color of something indicates a change in its state. For example, a traffic light changing from green to red means that the road ahead cannot be crossed; a crab changing from grayish-black to red means that it is ripe; an apple changing from red to black means that it is rotten; a baby changing from yellow to... even a chameleon changing from color A to color B means that it has moved its location.

So the change in the color of the doll's tie must indicate a change in its state, but the direction of this change is not yet apparent.

Yes, these two people are unaware of the status and income gap between white-collar and gold-collar workers, so naturally they don't understand whether the other has become stronger or weaker.

Just as the two people and the cat were on high alert, the gold collar on the mechanical nesting doll suddenly shone brightly, and the surging magic quickly engulfed the entire doll.

Nazuna and Lucy were both taken aback, their eyes widening in surprise: "This is...?!"

The golden light intensified, and the size grew larger, quickly expanding from half a person's height to about the same size as Natsu. Then the light dissipated, revealing a mechanical nesting doll the size of an adult.

Natsu muttered to himself, his voice filled with doubt: "It's gotten bigger? Is this its power?"

After a few seconds of contemplation, Lucy said, "I don't think it's that simple! If it maintains the speed and power it had just displayed, its attack power will also increase significantly with its increased size! And don't forget, it can become faster and heavier as it fights! Moreover..."

"What else?"

"His tie has turned white again!"

Lucy gestured to Natsu with her eyes, "If the change in the tie's color means it's accumulating magical energy, then when it turns gold again, it will likely expand again like it is now, making it even more difficult to deal with!"

"The biggest problem is that we still don't know how many times it can expand! What if it eventually becomes as tall as a giant? Will we still be able to defeat it then?"

Indeed, Lucy's concerns were valid, and she was almost right about the truth, which is why Silver made this new type of mechanical soldier look like a matryoshka doll!

But Natsu didn't care at all. How could the war that had just started be surrendered so easily?

"Anything goes!! Just like Kira said, let's go for it! We're mages from Fairy Tail, after all!!"

After saying that, Natsu charged forward with all his might!

"Fire Dragon's... Iron Fist!!"

With a loud shout, a powerful blow landed squarely on the metal sheet, and a burst of flames exploded at the same time!

Thump! Bang!

Amidst the swirling flames, the metallic vibrations were deep and resonant, indicating that Natsu's attack had not achieved its intended effect.

blah blah...

The heavy punch exhausted the magical metal attached to it, and the flames, lacking fuel, quickly dissipated. There was no fist mark where the fist struck, only a few wisps of white smoke.

"No way?! I didn't hold back at all with that punch..." Natsu's eyes narrowed, his face full of shock.

The mechanical nesting doll in front of him, which was about the same size as him, had a defense as strong as a towering mountain. His small fist could hardly budge it, and Natsu felt the pressure increase.

"It feels like facing Gildarts..."

Natsu didn't have Tikira, because Kira wouldn't stand still and take his punch, then mimic Gildarts by saying "You're too green." Instead, Kira would knock him away before Natsu could land a hit.

"One more punch! Fire Dragon's... Crushing Fist!!"

Unwilling to give up, Natsu charged up his fist again, this time with greater power and more intense flames, but... the effect remained the same!

clang!

The same low hum echoed in her ears, and Lucy's expression changed drastically as she sensed Natsu's failed punch: "No way?!"

"Damn it!!!"

Furious at his second defeat, Natsu jumped up and down, his anger blazing. "Since that's how it is... Fire Dragon's... Ugh—!"