Glaring at Laxus through our colliding magic power, we pushed each other several meters back while everyone else was forced to quickly distance themselves lest they get swept up in our fight. "G-Get away! Laxus and big bro are about to fight!" "Go where!? They'll destroy all of Magnolia if they really go all out!" "Yeah, Laki's right, we need to find Master! Only he can stop those two!" "He went shopping! He should return, there is no way he hadn't sensed their magic power." Seeing nearly everyone rapidly leave the area except for Erza and Mira, I stared fixedly at Laxus, who tossed his cloak onto the ground while cracking his knuckles, causing me to narrow my eyes.
"Are you dead-set on being hardheaded, Laxus? I'm not even asking you to apologize." "Heh, don't tell me you've gotten cold feet now; if you're scared to face the strongest in Fairy Tail, just tell me." Said Laxus with an arrogant grin as he unbuttoned his shirt before flaring his magic power, releasing his true strength, causing violent arcs of lightning to erupt from his body as they indiscriminately rained down, a few even hit my body, but other than leaving faint burn marks, they did nothing. Clicking my tongue since it looked like Laxus was determined to fight, I enhanced my body to the limit, and while there weren't special effects like Laxus's, the air around me faintly sizzled from the sheer strength of my body.
"It's been quite some time since we've really fought, hasn't it, Cooper?" Laxus asked with a smirk as he flexed his muscles, straining his shirt, while eyeing me. "Yeah… Since the S-class trial." "When I beat your ass." "That was years ago, and a lot has changed… Besides, you barely won." Scoffing, I cracked my neck and lowered my stance, though Laxus didn't seem to appreciate my truthful words, given the twitching of his face. "Tsk, freaking bastard!" Gritting his teeth, Laxus transformed into a bolt of lightning and rushed towards me at an immense speed, far faster than I remembered; however, it was nothing that surprised me, as I instantly reacted and dashed towards him.
As a faint grin crept onto my face, three pillars jutted out from the ground around us just as I met Laxus head-on; digging my fist into Laxus's gut, his fist slammed against my face, creating a large explosion of magic, which the three pillars contained, while we were forced back. "Did you do this?" Raising an eyebrow at Laxus, who gestured to the three pillars while wiping blood from my mouth, I scoffed and shook my head. "Hmph, why ask such a stupid question? I only know a few different magics, and this seems to be the Three Pillar Gods." "Tsk, that old senile fool." Just as Laxus finished cursing Gramps, the man himself suddenly landed on the ground in between us, and he didn't look pleased.
"Yes, it's me, the old senile fool." Said Gramps sternly as he held a bag of snacks in his hand while glaring at the two of us. "Do I need to inform you two of the consequences of what you were about to do?" Grunting, I inwardly sighed and retraced my magic power while lowering my arms. "Sorry, but Laxus was asking for it, Gramps." Receiving a stern glare from Gramps, I promptly shut my mouth and averted my gaze; it was somewhat reckless of me to entertain Laxus in the middle of Magnolia, even if he was asking for it. 'Who knows how much of Magnolia would've been destroyed?' Sticking my hands in my pockets, I glanced at Laxus, who merely scoffed before turning around and walking away after grabbing his cloak. "Tch, whatever, I don't need to listen to some weak old man."
"Show some damn respect Laxus, or I'll beat it into you." Narrowing my eyes at Laxus while stepping forward, causing him to briefly stop, Gramps outstretched his hand, preventing me from continuing. "Hmph." Watching Laxus leave the confines of the three god pillars, he vanished into a bolt of lightning, leaving Magnolia swiftly, prompting Gramps to deeply sigh as he lowered his hand, dispersing the three god pillars. "So, what snacks did you get, Gramps?" Grabbing the bag out of Gramps' hands, I scoured through it before grabbing some beef jerky and tossing a few into my mouth. "S-Seriously, Cooper?" Tilting my head in confusion, I glanced at Gramps, who rubbed the bridge of his nose, causing me to shrug my shoulders.
After consuming a few more pieces of beef jerky, I checked on Erza, who seemed fine, and while doing so, everyone started to return to the scene now that everything had calmed down. "Ha, Gramps is here, thank goodness!" "Aw, I wanted to see Laxus and big bro fight." "Just shut up, Natsu. That wouldn't have been a manly fight anyway." Walking past Elfman, I saw Cana and Lucy approaching me with looks of concern, which made sense as they had been unable to get close, so they had no idea what had happened. "Big bro, what happened?" Asked Cana while I plopped onto the ground away from everyone.
"Nothing much, just Laxus throwing a temper tantrum." Resting my head on my hands, I glanced at Lucy and Cana, who sat on either side of me. "Ha, you call that a temper tantrum? The amount of magic power you gave off was more than when you fought Deliora, and Laxus matched that! How can that be a mere, 'temper tantrum'?" Said Lucy with a twitching expression while she aggressively eyed me, causing me to yawn.
"Well, what do you expect? I've gotten stronger since then. Besides, I've been fighting Laxus for years, so it's nothing special… Cana knows." "I do know, and that's why I'm a bit concerned." Said Cana lightly with a slight frown as she lay on my chest, causing me to raise an eyebrow. "About what?" "Don't play dumb, big bro. Haven't you said it yourself? You're tactically stupid, right?" Playfully smirking, Cana repeatedly poked my head, causing my face to twitch, only to sigh.
"You've fought Laxus a lot, but it's NEVER gotten that severe before." Grunting, I pinched Cana's nose, causing her to blankly look at me with her brown eyes. "What do you want me to do about him? I'm not Laxus, I can't control what that dumb ass thinks and does. All I can do is keep him in check while he goes through this dumb phase. After all, despite his recent behavior, he's just as kind as Gramps."
Although Lucy seemed somewhat skeptical of my words, Cana and I knew precisely how Laxus truly was; he always came off as a bit harsh and rude, but he was just as kind, if not more so. "Um, we're still talking about the same Laxus? The one that tried to sexually harass me for accidentally bumping into him?" Asked Lucy with a twitching expression as she glanced between Cana and I. "Well, he's always been a bit lustful." "Yeah, he has." Descending into silence, I faced the sky and closed my eyes while ignoring Cana, who was messing around with my hair. "I'm going to go pick out a job." Nodding at Lucy, Cana and I continued to silently lie together, only for her to return half an hour later with a quest in hand. "Heh, took a while, but how about his, big bro?"
Opening my eyes, I lifted my head and glanced at Lucy before grabbing the paper out of her hands, reading the contents, I couldn't help but suspiciously eye Lucy. "Deal with a group of bandits near the mountain hot springs… You just want an excuse to use the hot springs, don't you, Lucy?" "I-I don't know what you're talking about, big bro." Awkwardly tapping her fingers together, Lucy refused to look me in the eye, causing me to shake my head. "Well, whatever, we'll leave tomorrow, so get ready… You, too, Cana." "Eh, me too? But I'm not a part of your team." "Well, you are now. So deal with it." "Hehe, welcome to team Lucy, Cana!" "Ha, the hell did I get myself into? I'm going to need a drink." "Drink as much as you want now, since no drinks are allowed during the mission."
After a bit of arguing, I left Cana and Lucy and headed to find somewhere to take a nap, though along the way, I saw Fried, Evergreen, and Bickslow, prompting me to approach them. "Hey, you three, do I need to punish you?" Wrapping my arms around Fried and Bickslow, I prevented them from doing anything and stared at Evergreen, who, unlike her normally confident self, was somewhat uneasy.
"W-Why? W-We didn't do anything?" "Y-Yeah, big bro, we were just watching when everything happened." Seeing Evergreen and Bickslow quickly try to free themselves from the blame I'm sure they deserve, I grunted and glanced at Fried, who stood silently. "Hmph, influence Laxus better or I'll return to punish you as well." Leaving three alone, I turned around and entered the guild before finding a random spot in the basement, only to fall asleep.