Mirajane's departure didn't dampen the group's enthusiasm.
Elfman and Lisanna wanted to help their sister, but they simply weren't qualified yet.
If they forced themselves to tag along, they'd only become deadweight.
Elfman was frustrated.
He had thought his magical talent was high, but when it came to learning Take over magic, his progress wasn't fast—in fact, he was even slower than Lisanna.
Though part of it was because he was attempting to take over more challenging 'Beast Souls', the fact that Lisanna had already achieved full-body Take Over with several 'Animal Souls' while he hadn't even managed one full-body Take Over yet gnawed at him.
If he could just successfully take over one 'Beast Soul', he could be of help to his sister.
Still, Elfman didn't get discourage.
He would keep working hard.
He only blamed himself for being too slow to assist his sister.
"That Mirajane..." Watching Mirajane leave, Erza gritted her teeth.
The rivalry between them was intense.
Though Mirajane was new, she had quickly caught up and Erza was starting to feel a sense of crisis.
What made it worse was that Mirajane seemed to single her out, making it impossible for Erza not to feel the pressure.
"Marco, let the others handle the eggs. You and I should train!" Erza decisively challenged Marco to a spar.
If Mirajane was out there working hard on missions, she couldn't afford to slack off either.
'I have to get stronger—I absolutely can't let that flat chest bitch surpass me!'
"Sure." Marco agreed easily.
While the kids played and incubated the eggs, he and Erza could train—no time wasted.
"Marco, the last time we fought was a year ago, wasn't it?" Erza's gaze burned with fighting spirit as she looked at Marco.
She drew her sword, eager to test her skills against him.
"Yeah, it's been a while since our last match. We've both grown since then—time to see the results." Marco stretched and grinned.
As he watched the cold glint of Erza's blade, he silently anticipated how well his 'Bare-Handed Blade Catch' would perform in actual combat.
During his usual training sessions, Marco would have Natsu and Gray attack him with various weapons, but the practical results were mediocre since neither of them was particularly skilled in weapon-based combat.
Erza, however, was a true master of the sword.
Whether his 'bare-handed blade catch' could hold up under her strikes was the real test—and Marco felt confident.
"Hum!"
Magic power surged as Marco donned his Cloth—the white-and-purple Orion Bronze Cloth.
Lately, Marco had been trying to establish a connection with the constellation Orion, and he had made some progress.
At the very least, he could occasionally sense its presence, meaning true success wasn't far off.
"Crack."
Marco clenched his fist, the gauntlet creaking as silver light flickered across his body.
"Come on, Erza. Show me how much you've grown." Marco grinned, signaling for her to begin.
He had no intention of attacking first—he wanted to test his bare-handed blade catch.
"Hum!"
Without hesitation, Erza swung her sword and charged at him.
"Ha!"
With a sharp cry, she delivered a swift, precise, and ruthless slash, Magic power erupting from the blade.
Despite her small stature, the force behind this strike was something most people couldn't hope to withstand.
"Clang!"
Then, something unexpected happened.
Marco extended both hands and clamped them around her blade, forcibly stopping her mid-swing.
The abrupt halt made Erza freeze in shock.
In that split second of hesitation, Marco closed the distance.
With a powerful twist, he wrenched the sword to the right, throwing Erza off balance.
His right hand immediately shot down to seize the hilt while his left elbow swung straight for her face.
Caught off guard, Erza could only react instinctively.
She managed to dodge Marco's attacks, but her sword was already ripped from her grasp.
Holding Erza's sword, Marco twirled it deftly before resting the blade against her shoulder, satisfaction gleaming in his eyes.
"Wha—?" Erza was stunned.
She hadn't anticipated this move at all.
And judging by Marco's practiced execution, this wasn't some spur-of-the-moment trick—it was a technique he could reliably replicate.
"A little something I prepared just for you. Seems effective, doesn't it?" Marco chuckled as he flipped the sword and handed the hilt back to her.
"Just for me?" Erza blinked, momentarily at a loss for words.
Her emotions were a tangled mess.
Before the fight, she never imagined she'd lose so quickly—completely overwhelmed.
"Whoa!"
A sudden commotion from the side drew their attention.
The little ones had gathered around the 'dragon egg', holding hands in concentric circles as they hugged it, seemingly trying to warm it up.
But the 'dragon egg' wasn't having any of it.
It suddenly jerked to life, leaping out of their embrace—and straight into Natsu's arms.
"Whoa!" Natsu yelped in surprise.
Everyone else was equally shocked by the egg's reaction and Marco and Erza turned to see what was happening.
"Indeed, I knew this egg was already quite mature. This little one should hatch in just a few days."
Marco smiled as he looked at Natsu.
Unexpectedly, the egg had already chosen its master—though still unhatched, it had developed a special fondness for Natsu.
Who knew what kind of creature it would turn out to be.
"If it likes Natsu, then let Natsu should handle it himself."
Since the egg was picky about people, there was no other choice but to let Natsu work on it alone while the others just watched the show.
"Who knew it could be like this!"
The children weren't too disappointed, just increasingly fascinated.
Levy took out paper and pen, starting to record everything.
She wanted to document the habits of this magical creature—it was a new discovery!
Natsu was also thrilled.
The 'dragon egg' reaction made him more certain that it was indeed a dragon egg.
Why else would it like him so much?
Natsu sat on the ground, hugging the egg with both arms and legs, pressing his entire body against it.
As a Fire Dragon Slayer, his body temperature was naturally high, perhaps it was the reason why the 'dragon egg' favored him.
"Go for it, Natsu!"
The children gathered around, cheering him on.
"I'm really curious about what's going to hatch now."
Watching the scene, Erza smiled, though her expression was somewhat absent-minded.
Her thoughts were still preoccupied with the technique Marco had prepared specifically for her—how could she counter it?
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