"Purple Flame!"
On the arena, a mass of purple flames roared as it was unleashed by Macao's.
Opposite him stood Totomaru of the 'Great Flame', clad in a red samurai outfit.
Facing Macao's 'Purple Flame', Totomaru kept one hand in his pocket, his expression was disdainful.
"Whoosh!"
With a mere wave of his hand, the roaring purple flames instantly reversed direction, flying back towards their caster, Macao.
The sight made Macao's face pale and the spectators gasped in shock—this move was utterly astonishing!
These were clearly purple flames formed from Macao's own magic power, yet Totomaru had effortlessly seized control and turned them against their creator.
It was practically NTR in broad daylight!
Macao dodged frantically.
His Purple Flame was no ordinary fire—it was a blaze even water couldn't extinguish, packing tremendous offensive power.
Though the middle-aged man usually seemed unreliable, this Purple Flame Magic alone placed him far above average Mages.
Macao was indeed one of the guild's core strengths.
"Playing with fire before me? How arrogant."
Watching Macao's flustered expressions, Totomaru—still with one hand in his pocket and barely moving—shook his head.
He continued manipulating the Purple Flame, chasing Macao around the arena with it, creating a rather comical scene.
Macao didn't dare counterattack—any attempt would only result in more purple flames pursuing him!
His own magic had become the enemy's weapon, leaving him utterly helpless.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The Purple Flame struck the arena, blasting several craters before Totomaru dispersed his magic, completely extinguishing the flames.
His mastery over fire clearly outstripped Macao's by leagues.
Totomaru could wield seven-colored flame magic and even control others' flames, far surpassing Macao, who only commanded a single Purple Flame.
Their talents weren't even comparable.
"Huff... Huff..."
Gasping for breath, Macao stared at Totomaru in shock.
He hadn't expected Phantom Lord to possess such a strong fire Mage—truly worthy of being the 'Fire' among the 'Elements Three'!
This guy was practically the natural nemesis of all flame Mages!
Below the arena, Natsu gaped in disbelief.
This terrifying flame control, this ability to steal others' fire...
"That's straight-up cheating! This guy's cheating!"
Natsu jumped up and down, gnashing his teeth and shouting—until Erza's fist sent him crashing to the ground with a one-hit KO.
"Macao can't beat him."
Though she'd subdued Natsu, Erza still made the accurate assessment.
Of course, anyone with eyes could see that.
"Dammit! I can't embarrass myself here!" Macao refused to give up.
Charging straight at Totomaru, he abandoned fire magic—since it would just be hijacked—and opted for hand-to-hand combat instead!
His close-quarters combat experience was actually not bad.
However, Totomaru gave him no chance to engage him.
This was about reclaiming their honor, and Totomaru wasn't about to get careless now.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
He sent several fireballs flying, directly scorching Marco and making him howl in pain.
In the end, a final burst of flame blasted him right out of the ring.
"MACAO!"
The children rushed forward, with Gray using his magic to extinguish the flames on Macao, finally stopping his agonized cries.
"That guy's really tough to deal with!"
Macao grimaced as he stood up, inwardly cursing his recklessness for challenging these people without thinking.
"Fairy Tail is nothing special."
After effortlessly defeating Macao, Totomaru spoke up, instantly provoking the crowd's fury.
Both the adults and children of the guild glared angrily at Totomaru and even the surrounding citizens grew angry.
Totomaru's arrogance had truly stirred public outrage.
The guild members were itching to teach him a lesson.
Though Macao had lost, everyone knew it was just a matter of magic disadvantage.
'Super Muscle Mage' Joe eagerly pushed forward to take the stage.
His bulging muscles were intimidating, making Totomaru's eyelids twitch.
Truth to be told, he wasn't very good at handling this type of opponent.
However, before Joe could step up to avenge Macao, the gathering crowd drew everyone's attention.
The Element Three grew uneasy.
Were the people of Magnolia about to turn violent?
Were they planning to overwhelm them with sheer numbers?
It felt like the entire city was about to charge at them!
The crowd parted, making way as Marco appeared, with Juvia gracefully following by his side.
Though only thirteen, Marco's development had always been far beyond the norm.
His sturdy build and commanding presence made him seem anything but a child—this was why clients trusted him so easily.
Marco calmly led Juvia to the ring, eyeing the Element Three and Gajeel with slight surprise, mainly due to the aura radiating from Gajeel.
"How come Dragon Slayers are popping up everywhere all of a sudden?"
Marco voiced his confusion, which momentarily overshadowed everything else.
It was truly bizarre.
Before this, he had only ever met Laxus, who had gained his powers through a Dragon Lacrima.
But ever since Natsu appeared, Dragon Slayers had been emerging one after another—this was already the third!
"You don't happen to have a dragon for a parent too, do you?" Marco asked Gajeel directly.
"Huh?" Gajeel blinked, then scowled. "What's it to you?! Who the hell are you?!"
"..."
Faced with this ugly looking punk, Marco was momentarily speechless.
"You came all this way to pick a fight with me, but you don't even know who I am?"
Marco wondered—hadn't his photo been in the papers?
Did these Phantom Lord guys not read the news?
"Wait—you're Marco?!" Gajeel's jaw dropped in disbelief.
His behavior was so embarrassing that even his own guild mates couldn't stand it.
Totomaru covered his face in shame, feeling humiliated to be associated with Gajeel.
The three members of Element three naturally recognized Marco's appearance, but Gajeel had never seen a photo of Marco.
That was precisely why he hadn't chased after Marco's train—he simply didn't know what he looked like, so pursuing him would have been pointless.
Thats not because he have motion sickness okay!
"You've finally returned, Marco! I challenge you!"
After confirming the person before him was indeed Marco, Gajeel immediately began taunting him.
After fighting small fry for so long, he had finally encountered the boss!
This was his moment to make a name for himself!
"Sure, bring it on." Marco nodded and agreed without hesitation.
Before the excited Gajeel could step forward, Marco turned his gaze to the other three—the 'Element Three' of Phantom Lord.
"You've waited long enough. Why don't you all come at me together?"
The moment these words left Marco's mouth, the expressions of the mages from Phantom Lords darkened.
"How Arrogant!" Totomaru shouted angrily.
Though he was wary of Marco's strength, the sheer disrespect made him furious.
"Not a bad idea..." Sol muttered under his breath.
Marco's confidence unsettled him and he felt things were slipping out of control.
If Marco was inviting them to attack together, why not take him up on it?
"Bullying the weak is bad enough. How could we gang up on him too?"
Aria spoke tearfully, his voice filled with sorrow, shutting down Sol's idea.
They still had some dignity to uphold.
The others stared at Aria in confusion.
If they weren't going to fight together, fine—but why was he crying?
"Alright then, you can come one by one. No need to argue over the order—don't worry, I'll make sure each of you gets your turn."
Marco released Juvia, gesturing for her to join Erza and Mira, before smiling at the members of Phantom Lord.
His grin was bright and cheerful, but it sent an unmistakable sense of danger through the mages of Phantom Lord.
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