Chapter 180: The Second Round Begins
The moment Noah finished speaking, the five participants leaped backward in unison.
Noah's magic power exploded from his body, surging in every direction. The atmosphere roared, the earth trembled, and the sea churned, sending massive waves crashing against the shore.
He raised his right hand, a magic circle unfolding before it as he unleashed a cannon-type spell.
"Heaven's Sundering Light!"
The five of them managed to dodge the incoming beam of light. It struck the sea behind them, instantly carving a massive trench in the water's surface before a colossal explosion erupted. The resulting shockwave, laced with a fine mist of seawater, blasted them from behind. The cool spray shocked their senses, sharpening their focus.
"Full-Body Take Over: Satan Soul! Evil Spark!"
"Angel Summon: Angel of Victory!"
"Card Magic: The Reaper's Icicle!"
"Ice-Make: Eagle!"
"Darkness Magic: Dark Arrow!"
All five unleashed their magic simultaneously, launching their attacks at Noah.
With a single wave of his right hand, Noah's immense magic power simply erased the five incoming attacks, causing a series of explosions to detonate in front of him. The blasts threw up a thick cloud of smoke and dust, completely obscuring their view of him.
The moment the explosions ceased, a hole was punched through the lingering smoke. Mirajane burst forth, her hands crackling with dark energy as she lunged at Noah.
Noah sidestepped her attack, his right hand shooting out to grab her wrist. Using her own momentum, he flung her high into the air. She flew upward so fast that the dark magic in her hands dissipated against her will.
Just then, the other four broke through the smoke screen and charged him.
Unfazed, Noah waved both his hands in a blur of motion, as if he had grown seven or eight arms, and effortlessly blocked all four of their attacks. The force of his counter-attack sent them staggering backward.
High above, Mirajane had stabilized herself. She gathered a large amount of dark energy in both hands and, with a rapid series of movements, unleashed a barrage of dark energy bullets down at Noah.
"Evil Spark!"
Noah glanced up as the dark bullets rained down on him. His body suddenly dissolved into a flash of golden light and vanished. A moment later, the light reappeared behind Mirajane, and Noah's form solidified from within it. Below them, the dark energy bullets struck the ground, causing a powerful explosion.
Mirajane knew an attack like that would never harm Noah. She kept her senses sharp, scanning her surroundings for any movement. Suddenly, she sensed something behind her and spun around to see Noah floating there.
Seeing he'd been spotted, Noah's right hand shot out in a motion that was both deceptively slow and impossibly fast. His palm gently tapped Mirajane's shoulder.
She had no time to react. The light tap felt like a catastrophic blow, and she was sent rocketing from the sky towards the ground.
BOOM!
Her body slammed into the earth, carving out a large crater.
The four on the ground had just managed to steady themselves when they saw Mirajane fall. Their faces tightened, and they began gathering magic for another attack. But Noah's form once again dissolved into a flash of golden light. He reappeared in front of Sorano.
He tapped her shoulder with the same casual gesture, and she too was sent crashing to the ground with no chance to defend herself, creating another deep crater.
The remaining three saw what was happening and tried to flee, but it was too late. Noah appeared before each of them in a flash of light, delivering the same gentle tap. One by one, they were slammed into the ground, each impact creating another crater.
Noah floated back a short distance, quietly observing the five he had just taken down.
The guild members watching from the sidelines were stunned by the rapid turn of events. Ultear and Erza began to discuss the fight, and everyone else leaned in to listen.
"So that's what Noah was working on," Ultear said. "Turning his body into light to dodge and move. It's incredibly fast."
Erza nodded, her eyes fixed on the battlefield. "He's been researching that for a while. By converting himself into light, he can move at unbelievable speeds over both short and long distances, making it easy to evade attacks. But the learning curve is extremely high. It took him a long time to develop, and it's only compatible with Light Magic. He'd have to start his research all over for any other element."
Many of the guild members who used elemental magic sighed in disappointment. If Erza said it was difficult, it was likely impossible for them. And since it only worked for Light Magic, they had to abandon any hope of learning it themselves, though they could still ask for pointers.
"Never mind that," Ultear said, turning to Erza. "Were you able to follow his movements just now?"
Erza's expression was grim. "I could barely see them, but there was no way I could have reacted. The speed of his strikes was too fast. My eyes could see it, but my body wouldn't have been able to keep up."
"I agree," Ultear said. "With that level of close-quarters combat, most S-Class wizards wouldn't be able to block his attacks. And his physical strength is immense. A single hit was enough to keep Mira down."
She looked towards the crater where Mirajane was struggling to get up. Thanks to her Take Over, Mirajane's physical constitution was the strongest of the five candidates. Yet, after that one tap, she was still having trouble standing. It was a testament to the power behind the blow.
"Noah's gotten even stronger," Erza mused. "He rarely ever does that when we train with him, does he?"
"Maybe because if he knocked us out instantly, we wouldn't get much training done?" Ultear suggested, uncertain. She saw Mirajane finally manage to stand and turned her attention back to the fight.
After several attempts, Mirajane finally got to her feet, her entire body screaming in pain. Even though Noah had only touched her shoulder, it was her back, which had slammed into the ground, that hurt the most. It was clear the force of the tap was only meant to propel her downward—a feat far more difficult than simply striking her to the ground.
She stood there, panting heavily. The other four also managed to struggle to their feet, their bodies aching and their legs trembling.
Noah didn't rush them. He waited patiently as they recovered.
Once their trembling subsided, he asked, "Well? Ready to continue?"
"Of course," Mirajane growled, her eyes burning with defiance. "I'm not about to give up."
~~~
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