A magic merchant infiltrating Fairy Tail

Chapter 774 The Emerald Princess: We must stand together with everyone!

The air vibrated continuously, and cracks began to appear in the relatively fragile walls and ground of the mountain and venue. Under the unprecedented magical pressure, some areas experienced weightlessness due to the imbalance of magic, and dust rose slightly.

At this moment, everyone's fate is hanging by a thread.

A massive magical black hole blocked the setting sun, which was just about to disappear behind the mountains. Under the influence of the violent magical force field, countless ominous clouds gathered above the venue, darkening the entire sky.

This scene was even more terrifying than when Aroc summoned the Eighteen War Gods of Calamity a few days ago!

Suddenly, a huge black dragon head burst out of the black hole, followed by an even larger pair of black wings, which brought out a huge, pitch-black dragon body.

A force that blots out the sky? Brings darkness? A world-destroying dragon? Terrifying beyond belief? ...

Several words flashed through the minds of the mages, who stared in disbelief at the voice high in the sky, finally realizing the true meaning of the difference between species.

At that moment, humanity finally remembered the fear of being dominated by dragons!

“Acunorolia…”

Someone, in a trembling voice, uttered the name of the black dragon, leaving the mages who had never seen or heard of it before stunned.

"Who is Acnologia? Is that the dragon's name? Why is it so long?"

"What?! It's Acnologia?! The world-destroying black dragon recorded in the Book of Revelation, capable of destroying a nation with a single blow?!"

"I know! It's the dragon that ended the age of dragons four hundred years ago!! Damn it! That kind of being is simply beyond human capability to contend with!!!"

"Wait... I remember now! I heard it was defeated by Fairy Tail two years ago, right? Why is it here?! By the way, their guild's mages should have a way to fight it, right??"

"The sheer power released, though invisible, is terrifying; how incredibly powerful it is..."

"Don't tell me that the ten thousand dragons mentioned in the prophecy are like this, or I'll turn around and run right now!"

"Should I say you're naive? Acnologia's power and style are far beyond your imagination!! He could easily kill ten thousand dragons and all of us, and then leisurely go back to have dinner."

"Can't we ask the mages from 'Fairy Tail' to help again?"

"Times have changed. Although they are very strong, no one can guarantee that there won't be casualties! This is war!!"

"..."

As people spread fear through their words and actions at the venue, morale crumbled, and mages from various magic guilds began to back down.

No one can stop this phenomenon, because it is the survival instinct of living beings when facing a life-or-death crisis—seeking help from the same beings around them, hoping to receive a little encouragement and comfort.

Unfortunately, no one can stand tall and say, "Don't worry, I'll take care of it," when facing Acnologia directly. Even Kira, who just received the title of "Kingdom's Number One Mage," is not like that, because he has never been a show-off.

At least that's how it is now.

"This is the third time. Will this time be the final showdown?" Kira murmured, barely audible to himself, as he gazed at the figure in the air that was larger than the venue.

The third time? What third time??

Those around Kira looked at him with puzzlement, exchanging bewildered glances. Only a few knew that the 'third time' Kira referred to was his third meeting with Acnologia.

The first time was two years ago in the Zonya Mountains, which ended with Kira escaping in an airship; the second time was also two years ago, on Tenrou Island, which ended with Kira defeating Acnologia.

The third time is now!

It's fair to say that Kira and Acnologia share a very "deep" bond. After all, it's hard to find someone in this world who could fight Acnologia more than three times.

"Phew~ I wonder if I can beat him now, that guy looks stronger again!"

Hearing Kira's mutterings, Gray and the others around him all gave him a "Are you kidding me?" look. In their opinion, no matter how strong Kira was, he shouldn't be able to beat Acnologia, at least not by himself.

Kira was enjoying the prelude to battle between himself and Acnologia, a bond seemingly formed between the strong, when he overheard someone talking about him behind his back.

"As expected, Kira still loves to show off..."

"What? Who's slandering me?! What do you mean I'm a show-off? That's complete nonsense! This level of slander is practically a personal attack!" Kira immediately turned around and glared angrily, wanting to see which guy was talking about him behind his back. He was determined to teach him a lesson after the battle.

Everyone in Magnolia knows that I, Kira, am the most law-abiding and model citizen, an outstanding young man. The label of "show-off" should be something like Laxus's!

When he turned his head, he saw that the group of guys were either looking up at the dragon, looking down at the ground, or looking at other people, but none of them dared to look at him.

"Nobody's admitting it, huh? Well then, I'll make a note of it all, and I'll deal with you all when I become the president!"

Wait, isn't something wrong? This kind of thing shouldn't be said, right?

Forget it, fighting is the priority now!

Acnologia's appearance undoubtedly gave the hundreds of mages present a strong shock. It is unknown whether the citizens in Crocus, who are all retreating to the refuge zone, can feel this shock.

Roar! ! !

The dragon roared, shaking the heavens and the earth, causing the entire training ground to tremble.

His Majesty King Thomas, who had just run out of the venue, fell flat on his face, bruising his nose. As for Princess Emerald beside him, she was caught by the Knight Commander in time because of her height advantage, thus avoiding being hit and bleeding.

Makarov spotted the father and daughter rushing out immediately and, out of concern for their safety, went to greet them: "Your Majesty, Princess Emerald! What are you doing here? This place will soon become a battlefield between us and Acnologia. You'd be safer inside..."

In fact, Makarov's plan to place the two members of the Fiore royal family behind the battlefield was correct. They should be blown up. They are the current mentally challenged leaders of the Fiore Kingdom. If something happens to them at the same time, the operation of the entire kingdom will definitely be paralyzed. There may even be internal strife or foreign invasion. Even if they win this battle, their lives afterward will not be easy.

However, in response to Makarov's suggestion, Princess Emerald preemptively answered for old Thomas: "No! Especially in times like these, we must stand together! As the king and future heir of the Kingdom of Fiore, even if we are powerless, we cannot cower in the back and rely on others for protection!!"

Listen to this! Listen to this! What kind of talk is this?!

If it were someone else, in a different situation, or with a different opponent, one could praise the successor for having the aura of a king, the vision, and the sense of responsibility. But here, these words come from the mouth of a princess with no fighting ability, and the enemy she is about to face is Acnologia, a being capable of destroying a country in one blow. It just makes one want to laugh.

Kira overheard everything the other person said and was completely speechless. He thought to himself, "Has this girl been reading too many novels and gone crazy? You know you have absolutely no fighting ability, yet you still rush out at a time like this, saying you'd stand with the mages and the kingdom's soldiers. Isn't that just nonsense?"

As a princess of a nation and the future heir to the kingdom, how can you stand here so openly and brazenly on a battlefield of this magnitude, like a fat sheep, forcing everyone to divert their attention to protect you? What's the difference between this and putting on a show?

In other words, Kira only has Acnologia as an enemy right now. If it were the situation in the original work, where there were seven giant dragons and countless small dragons attacking Crocus, Kira would have simply punched her unconscious and thrown her back to the palace.

Of course, Lady Macallo, being a shrewd and worldly-wise woman, would never directly tell Princess Emerald that "what you're doing is not good." Instead, she would pretend to be someone who "has great vision," whose "demeanor is no less than that of any monarch," and who "is not at all surprised."

"You've spoken so well, Your Highness!!"

Don't say that again!

Chapter 775 Is he really a genius?

I never realized this old man was such a drama queen...

Kira glanced sideways at Makarov, filled with admiration.

It's not that I admire his acting skills that much, because Kira himself is also a very good actor, and he can easily lie and say things against his conscience. But I can't imagine that he can still be so relaxed and natural in his eighties.

Just as he was about to say something to complain to Lucy and the others, a gust of bloody wind interrupted him before he could even speak.

Turning around, I saw that it was Acnologia who had landed.

boom!!

Two enormous dragon hooves landed in the center of the arena, on the open space that had previously been used for the mages' competitions.

Acnologia didn't seem to intend to engage in battle right away, so it landed slowly and gently, like a bird landing on a branch, giving the impression that it was just stopping to rest for a while before continuing its flight.

The moment Acnologia landed, a hurricane swept out in all directions, the strong winds blowing everyone's hair into disarray, making it flutter wildly in the wind like a chaotic dance of demons; it also made the skirts of the girls fly wildly, giving the group of mages a feast for the eyes.

"Thank you... thank you for the hospitality... oh no!! Acnologia is here!!"

"Everyone, don't panic! Prepare for battle!!"

"Follow behind me, be careful to protect yourself, and if you can, look after the others..."

Facing an enemy like Acnologia, very few mages could remain calm. Seeing the opponent get close but not fight, just standing there quietly like a statue overlooking the venue, made more than 90% of the people present panic. They looked at each other and hesitated to move forward.

Fortunately, at this moment, a person with both strength and reputation stepped forward without hesitation, giving a boost to those supporting characters who might have been mere extras in a real fight.

He is Jura!

Jura's rebuke was effective, immediately igniting a fighting spirit in the hearts of the mages present.

"Let us follow behind you? That's...great!!"

"With so many people around, I don't feel afraid of anything."

"It's up to you guys, the big shots of 'Fairy Tail'!! Let out all the frustration from not being able to fully enjoy the competition these past two days! Let us witness the full power of the number one ranked magic guilds!!"

With several powerful figures standing in front of them, some of the bolder ones gradually broke free from Acnologia's intimidation and regained their fighting spirit. The first thing they did after returning to their normal state was to start making a fuss, trying to push 'Fairy Tail' to the forefront.

But that's normal, since everyone knows that Fairy Tail is the strongest.

Laxus was slightly annoyed and snorted coldly at those who had just made him step forward to lead the charge: "Although I'm not happy about being pushed forward and used as a pawn, I'll let it go this time. I really want to see how much I've improved over this period and the gap between me and this guy."

He looked up again, his gaze falling on Acnologia, whose massive, dark body almost blended into the darkening night sky.

Tonight's battle will be fought with extremely limited visibility.

Acnologia's arrival filled the sky with heavy, ominous clouds. The moonlight, filtering through the layers of dark clouds, fell to a very faint glow. Crocus's lights were also far from the arena and could not reach this place at all.

"This time, I won't be as pathetic as last time!!"

Laxus's thoughts drifted back to that night on Tenrou Island two years ago, when the guild members had fought against 'Heart of the Devil' and 'Tarren's Gate', so they were fighting with injuries and in poor condition.

Although he wasn't seriously injured before the battle with Acnologia, as a key member of the opposing force, he had to take care of Wendy, Natsu, Gajeel, and others who hadn't fully developed yet and didn't have much chemistry with each other. So he took on most of the damage and basically fought with injuries the whole time. Calling him disheveled would be quite accurate.

But things are different now!

Laxus's current strength is vastly different from his strength back then. It's no exaggeration to say that he could fight ten times his strength from two years ago now. In addition, Natsu, Gajeel, and even Wendy have all grown up, and there are so many mages around to help him. Therefore, if he were to fight now, he would definitely be able to fight better and more fiercely than he did back then!

"Roar!!!" Acnologia roared, startling everyone.

The special sound waves formed its first attack, an invisible attack, an energy equivalent to a giant's blow, which began to wreak havoc in the venue, overturning floors, cracking stone walls, stimulating everyone's eardrums, and even blasting them all away at once.

Seeing the immense power Acnologia wielded with just a single roar, the mages who had been inspired by Jura and regained their confidence once again hesitated, breaking out in a cold sweat and trembling all over.

"A single roar... is this really something we can handle?"

"Impossible! We absolutely can't win!! Even with Kirasan and Jurasan, can they really repel them again? Can we survive??"

"The most crucial question is, will there actually be ten thousand more dragons appearing?!"

The trembling cries made everyone's faces stiffen: Yes, Acnologia's appearance was completely unexpected, not at all in the original predictions. The reason they were staying here was because of the prophecy letter brought by the king! Now, Wanlong hasn't come, but Acnologia has come first. What exactly is going on? Was there a mistake in the prophecy letter? Or was something omitted?

"Don't overthink it, just focus on dealing with the enemy in front of you!!!"

At this moment, Makarov also realized that something was wrong with the atmosphere around him, so he decisively left the king and princess in the care of the knight commander, and then with a bang, he transformed into a giant, attracting everyone's attention.

As expected of a seasoned veteran, he immediately sensed the unease among the mages, and once again raised his voice, full of energy, strength, and confidence.

"Whether it's Acnologia or Wanlong, they are all beings that threaten the safety and stability of our country! They are ultimately our enemies; now it's just a matter of who to attack first!!"