There was no time to grieve for shattered blades or broken armor.
In the next instant, a storm of flying swords appeared behind Erza, floating densely in mid-air like a wall of steel.
With a commanding wave of her hand, every sword from her Heaven's Wheel Armor activated at once. Each blade turned into a streak of light, piercing through the sky toward the Cursed Dragon soaring above.
But before it could be reduced to a pincushion, the Cursed Dragon flapped its withered bone wings and dispersed into countless golden motes of light.
The motes cleverly dodged the deadly barrage, flowing upward like a rising tide until they reached the higher sky.
There, they converged into a vast and ominous dark magic circle.
In the blink of an eye, the skies turned black. Rolling thunder echoed from above, and clouds as dark as ink swallowed the sun, blanketing the area in a stifling gloom.
Crack!
A sharp bolt of lightning split the heavens.
Amid the dazzling light, a tall and sinister figure emerged, shrouded in crackling electricity.
It was the six-star, high-attack monster Devil's Summons.
The instant Erza laid eyes on it, her breath caught in her throat. Her brows furrowed as her posture became tense and focused.
A magic circle lit up beneath her. She was just about to re-equip into new armor when Devil's Summons made its move.
The devil struck faster than lightning itself.
Before she could finish the transformation, a blinding bolt of thunder rained down, aiming straight for her position.
They were old rivals.
Erza's reflexes, sharpened by countless battles, kicked in immediately. She leapt aside with incredible speed.
Boom!
The bolt struck the spot she had just vacated. An explosion followed, hurling dirt into the air. The ground was left scorched black and cracked like shattered glass.
And that was only the beginning.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
One after another, bolts of lightning fell like divine punishment from the sky. Each crash forced Erza to dodge with all her might.
Her movements were like the wind fluid and swift.
To the Fairy Tail members watching from a distance, the scene was surreal. Their Queen was nothing more than a blazing scarlet streak, darting between collapsing thunderbolts.
Wherever she passed, the earth trembled.
Thunder roared, lightning split the sky, rocks shattered, and dust clouds billowed high.
"Wow! This is amazing!" someone shouted in awe.
"So this is the real power of Chess-kun and Erza?!"
Lucy's breath came in rapid gasps. Her heart pounded as she stared at the apocalyptic spectacle unfolding before her.
This wasn't just a duel anymore it felt like a war between gods.
And she wasn't the only one left speechless.
Even some of the core guild members who had joined long before Lucy were frozen in place, eyes wide with disbelief. None of them had expected Chase and Erza to go all out like this.
As for the true veterans Makao, Cana, Wakaba, and the others they had seen enough wild things to know better.
Without a word, they had already slipped toward the back of the crowd, subtly dragging the stunned newcomers with them.
If they stayed any closer, they'd end up getting caught in the crossfire or worse, get struck by lightning.
"Everyone move back," Makarov warned, raising a finger with a calm smile, "and be careful of Laxus falling from the sky~"
The next second, a blazing red gust whooshed past his face followed by a bolt of lightning that raced down the very finger he was pointing with.
Boom!
In an instant, Makarov was singed black from head to toe, his wild hair standing straight up like a porcupine.
"...Damn it, Chase!" the tiny Guild Master exploded. "Pay attention to where you're aiming, brat!"
In the distance, Chase scratched his head awkwardly.
"Ah la ha." Mira chuckled, clearly enjoying the chaos.
Back on the battlefield, deep within the swirling storm, Erza finally seized a fleeting opportunity.
She landed hard on the cracked earth, eyes blazing with determination, and her magic circle finished forming in a flash of blinding light.
"Change clothes!"
Boom!
A bolt of lightning crashed down, but this time it struck a glowing blue barrier and bounced away harmlessly.
Her armor shimmered as electricity danced across it. Long crimson braids swayed in the wind.
She now wore the Thunder Emperor Armor, the lightning-resistant gear she rarely used its sleek design crackled with energy.
Gripping the double-ended Thunder Emperor's Spear, she gave it a swift spin.
Blue lightning gathered at the tip, sparking like a wild beast straining to be unleashed.
With a sharp cry, Erza raised the spear.
"Blue Thunder Light Cannon!"
Zzzzzzrrrrmm!
The compressed thunder burst from the spear, a blinding beam of pure electric power that ripped through the sky and roared toward the Devil's Summons.
The devil, engulfed in crackling magic of his own, raised both arms. Using its mastery over lightning, it twisted the incoming beam, redirecting it away in a dazzling arc.
BOOM!!!
The redirected blast exploded in the air, shaking the heavens.
But Erza didn't flinch.
This battle wasn't over.
It was only heating up.
The Blue Lightning Cannon veered sharply off-course, carving a glowing hole through a distant mountain before dispersing into the heavens.
"Well done," Erza said with a smile, genuinely impressed.
The Devil's Summons gave a silent nod in return. Then, lifting its arms skyward, it began drawing in the storm around it. Dark clouds churned, and the air twisted violently as raw magic crackled in every direction.
It was beginning to chant its ultimate move Demonic Thunder.
Erza's eyes narrowed.
"If I let that spell complete… not even the Thunder Emperor Armor can fully withstand it."
With a sharp breath, a transformation circle lit beneath her. She was about to change armor again
RUMBLE!
Suddenly, the earth beneath her feet buckled and split. Jagged cracks webbed outward like a shattering mirror.
From the depths of the fractured terrain, something massive stirred.
A towering figure rose slowly, a behemoth of stone and steel. Its emergence blocked out the sun, casting a long, ominous shadow over the battlefield.
Erza's expression turned serious.
Her gaze flicked past the crumbling dust toward Chase in the distance.
Beneath him, a black vortex trap card pulsed with dark energy still glowing with fresh activation.
So that's how it is. While she was distracted by the Devil's Summons, Chase had quietly prepared another summon.
He had gotten faster.
More efficient.
More dangerous.
"Tch… He's improved again."
There was no time to analyze what trap had triggered because the Legion Soldier was already moving.
With a low mechanical growl, the stone titan reached over its shoulder and pulled free a sword the size of a house. Its blade gleamed like polished granite, humming with power.
With no hesitation, the soldier brought it crashing down at Erza!
BOOOOOM!!!
The earth exploded beneath the strike, the sheer weight and force of the blow cracking open a canyon. Dust shot skyward in a billowing storm.
Lucy shielded her face. "That… that was insane…"
Gray watched closely, arms crossed, eyes sharp. "That was one heavy blow. Did Chase finally land a decisive hit?"
His voice was cool, but his posture was tense.
...Also, he had once again lost most of his clothes somewhere in the commotion.
Only his boxers remained.
"Gray… clothes," Lucy muttered without even turning her head.
Gray blinked. "Eh? Again?"
Meanwhile, back on the battlefield
The dust began to settle.
And from within the rubble...
A faint glow sparked.
This fight was far from over.
"What the ?! Since when did the Rock Giant Soldier's slash pack that kind of power?!"
"…You literally took your clothes off again, didn't you?!"
Ignoring Lucy's retort and Gray's clueless response, Makarov narrowed his eyes and stared intently into the swirling cloud of dust and debris.
"No," he muttered, voice low and firm. "That power wasn't from the soldier… it was Erza. She turned the attack against it."
CRACK !
Just as he spoke, the massive stone sword along with the Rock Giant Soldier's entire right arm split with a thunderous snap and shattered into flying chunks of rubble.
A tremor rippled through the battlefield.
The soldier staggered back in shock.
Broken shards clattered against the earth, bouncing off the shimmering Diamond Armor that protected Erza's body.
Behind its raised shield, arcs of lightning crackled wildly. Crimson hair fluttered through the wind-torn air, framing Erza's narrowed eyes like a banner of war.
She was unscathed and standing firm.
The Rock Giant Soldier froze in disbelief.
Then, without hesitation, it lunged again gripping the massive sword with its remaining left hand. The air howled as it brought the blade down in a brutal, horizontal slash.
But Erza didn't flinch.
The moment the attack neared, she dropped into a crouch, twisting at the waist and dipping her head just enough
Whoosh !
The enormous stone blade missed her by a hair's breadth.
Still, the violent pressure from the swing sliced through the space beside her, cleanly severing a long strand of crimson hair.
Erza didn't blink.
Planting her feet, she shifted her weight, and her right hand lit with pure white magic.
Then she struck back.
A flash of silver burst forth, crushing the gravel floating mid-air into nothing more than dust.
"HYAAAAAA!"
With a fierce battle cry, Erza hurled the Evil-Breaking Spear from her Giant Armor set.
The white spear screamed through the air like a comet, its spiraling light tearing a path straight through the Rock Giant Soldier's chest.
CRASH!!
The monster barely had time to register the impact before its core erupted in an explosion of shattered stone.
But it didn't stop there.
The spear, its force undiminished, continued on its path
toward the Devil's Summons.
The demon's glowing eyes widened as the spear came barreling toward him.
He raised his arms to defend but it was too late.
BOOOOM!!
The wind howled, flames erupted, and both summoned monsters vanished in a cascade of burning light.
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