The bone dragon beat its skeletal wings, gliding low above the scorched deck as Chase sat calmly astride its back.
Below, Ina and her two teammates along with the surviving crew were working frantically, using the emergency magic props stored onboard to extinguish the blazing fires.
The inferno that had threatened to consume the entire vessel was finally brought under control, leaving only small scattered flames flickering among charred crates and broken railings.
"Not bad," Chase said, holding his chin thoughtfully as he looked down at the scene. "Fighting side by side with everyone like this… actually feels kind of nice."
Ina, her fair face smudged with soot and speckled with ash and sawdust, looked up at him with wide, furious eyes. She clenched her fists and finally exploded:
"Fighting side by side like this is not what we wanted at all!!"
"Oh my god… the ship… the cargo…"Captain Lambert, who had earlier boasted about the merchant ship's sturdiness, was now collapsed on the deck, clutching his head and sobbing miserably.
The merchant ship's crew, who had previously hidden away in the cabin trembling, finally dared to emerge. They stood in stunned silence, looking around at the ruined deck and the trail of destruction left behind faces filled with sorrow and disbelief.
Perhaps even the crew themselves didn't realize it but after rushing to extinguish the fire, much of the fear and despair that had hung over them like a storm cloud seemed to quietly lift.
Even though the pirates still loomed in the distance, their main force watching menacingly from the other side of the sea…
The sense of calm that lingered came from Chase's words:"Fighting side by side."
"Alright, Captain Lambert," Chase said with a reassuring smile. "Battles always leave some mess behind."
He gave a light shrug. "But don't worry. Once I take care of those pirates and claim the reward money, I'll have this boat fixed up in no time."
To be honest, this whole disaster was the result of Marshall's conspiracy but if Captain Lambert hadn't agreed to let him board in the first place, they might not have been attacked at all.
People often misunderstood Chase. Yes, he had a reputation for always leaving chaos behind on his missions but that didn't mean he lacked a sense of duty.
He simply didn't like being held back by rules or petty concerns… or maybe he just couldn't be bothered to care about the details.
Even when it came to Natsu, who was hot-headed and constantly causing trouble, it was always Master Makarov who bore the burden and quietly cleaned up after him.
That's why the title of Fiore's King of Destruction wasn't just for show it came with a heavy price tag and a mountain of compensation.
Fortunately, Chase was never short on cash. He could afford it.
Captain Lambert, tear streaks still fresh on his chubby face, nodded blankly.
But suddenly, his expression changed drastically, and he shouted in alarm,"Behind you! Watch out!"
"Damn Fairy Tail! Just die already!"
A pirate, who had survived the hellfire thanks to his enchanted armor, had been hiding in the shadows. He seized the opportunity and lunged at Chase, his sword flashing with cold steel.
In the blink of an eye, the blade sliced through the air aimed directly at Chase's right shoulder!
But Chase, still seated atop the Cursed Dragon, didn't move an inch.
He had already noticed this straggler long ago.
Buzz.
The trap card [Curse of the Hexagram] that had been set earlier suddenly activated. A golden hexagram burst forth, locking the pirate in place with a surge of binding energy.
"Friend, if you're going to declare an attack, maybe check your opponent's back row first," Chase said with a smirk.
The immobilized pirate was frozen in panic, unable to comprehend what this lunatic was talking about.
But Chase had no intention of explaining.
He sprang from the back of the Cursed Dragon, magic energy surging through his body and concentrating in his tightly coiled right leg.
"Try this on for size Chase Flying Kick!"
Thud!
With a solid crack, Chase's boot crashed into the pirate's abdomen. The man's ribs shattered instantly.
But the momentum didn't stop there. Still hurtling forward, Chase carried the man like a missile across the air and smashed him straight into the hull of the pirate ship in the distance.
Boom!
The powerful impact caused the pirate ship to shake violently.
Every pirate could now feel it an overwhelming enemy had arrived!
Thick smoke billowed across the deck, but as the sea breeze swept through, the haze gradually cleared, revealing the scene within.
Chase stood tall, one boot firmly planted on the unconscious pirate beneath him his eyes rolled back, completely out cold. Chase's sharp gaze swept across the rest of the pirate crew like a blade, suffocating them with invisible pressure.
All eyes eventually turned toward the man now burdened with their collective fate the pirate captain and guildmaster of the dark guild Deep Swamp, Clooney Blood.
"Good afternoon, scumbags," Chase said, his smile bright but dangerous."Now, would you prefer to tie yourselves up nicely... or should I beat the crap out of all of you and do it myself?"
If the enemy could take the fight to them… then so could he.
From this moment on offense and defense had switched.
"The air force is only the weakest unit in our pirate crew. You don't actually think you've won just because you took them out, do you?"
"Are all the so-called Fairy Tail wizards this arrogant and full of themselves?"
Clooney, lounging lazily on his animal-skin throne, snorted coldly as he toyed with the skull necklace around his neck.
Chase kicked aside the unconscious pirate beneath his foot and casually brushed the dust off his clothes.
"That's right," he replied with a candid grin.
"You !"
Clooney's mouth twitched at the blunt honesty. All the intimidating lines he'd prepared were suddenly useless.
"You've got guts, I'll give you that," Clooney muttered. "But I wonder what tricks you'll pull once you're surrounded."
With a sharp look, he gestured to the pirates nearby.
The pirate brothers instantly got the message. Weapons in hand, they began to close in, slowly surrounding Chase from all sides.
Although they were deeply afraid of the bone dragon hovering in the sky, the overwhelming advantage in numbers and their guild master seated firmly at the rear gave the pirates a surge of courage.
A wizard from Fairy Tail?
So what? I'm taking him down!
"It's a bit troublesome indeed," Chase muttered, glancing at the encroaching pirates.
With a flick of his fingers, he flipped a magic card. "That is… if they can even move."
Magic Card: Holy Light Sealing Sword, activate!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Brilliant beams of light burst from the sky. Within seconds, three massive swords of radiant energy descended in an unshakable formation, piercing through the clouds and locking into place at three key positions on the pirate ship.
As the holy light's sealing magic spread out, every pirate froze in horror at the same realization…
Their bodies felt shackled by an invisible force, bound by some terrifying rule. No matter how hard they struggled, they simply couldn't move!
Even Natsu had a hard time breaking free from the Holy Light Sealing Sword's magic how could these weaklings with barely any magic power possibly resist it?
In truth, Chase had countless ways to wipe out these small fry in an instant.
But considering the commission's "capture alive" requirement, he'd decided after some deliberation to activate the Holy Light Sealing Sword instead.
Even if Marshall tried to deny responsibility later (which he probably would), Chase could still haul these restrained pirates to the House of Representatives as living evidence and demand payment with full confidence!
Clooney's eyes narrowed as he coldly surveyed the holy swords hovering around him.
"Card magic that restricts movement?"
His hands braced against his knees, and an ominous surge of magic power exploded from his body. The oppressive pressure rolled out in a storm of dark energy, so intense that to Ina and the others, it felt like purgatory itself.
Then, that bloated, grotesque torso… slowly began to rise. Inch by inch, Clooney straightened his spine.
Feeling his body return to normal, Clooney burst into wild laughter. He stomped heavily on the deck and bellowed, "In the face of absolute magical power, your little trick is useless!"
"Oh, with you?" Chase looked up lazily, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "I didn't restrict your movement because there's something I need to confirm."
…
That offhand remark instantly drained all tension from the air.
Wow, wow, wow.
A crow flapped its wings and flew over the pirate ship then suddenly…
Froze midair.
The mocking laughter died on Clooney's lips. His fists tightened, and veins bulged from his forehead in humiliation.
In that instant, he realized…
He'd been made into a complete fool.
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