"Master, I told you to leave it to me," Rayn said, raising a hand to stop Makarov from speaking, a calm smile still on his face.
His words made Makarov feel a sense of déjà vu, as if it was the night Rayn had just arrived at the guild, and he had said the same thing as they walked outside.
"Sigh, do as you wish," Makarov sighed, getting up to make way. His once-straight back seemed to sag a little.
"..."
Laxus watched his grandfather, his lips moving slightly, but he didn't say anything. In the end, he stubbornly looked at Rayn. As long as he defeated this guy, it would prove that he was right! The guild only needed the strong!
"What did you mean just now?" Rayn also looked away from Makarov and met Laxus's gaze.
Kanna, next to him, rested her hands on the table, her small head peeking out as she also looked at Laxus. Her blank face was slightly puffed up; she was clearly a little angry too. Although she usually preferred to stay by Rayn's side, she remembered the kindness of Porlyusica, Makarov, Carolin, and the others. Now, seeing Laxus make Makarov sad, Kanna also felt angry.
The commotion here also attracted the attention of the other guild members. After all, they had all bet on the outcome of a fight between Rayn and Laxus before. Now that the two were finally going to face off, they couldn't help but feel excited. As for whether anything would happen, with Gildarts and Makarov, the two strongest in the guild, present, how could anything go wrong? So, all they had to do was watch the show!
Gildarts, however, walked over to Makarov with a glass of wine. Being a frequent womanizer, he was quite sensitive to emotions, even if it was a bit awkward to use it on the master.
"If I win, I'll give you my 100,000 Jewel. That should be enough for you to pay off your debt, right?" Laxus said proudly, ignoring the gazes of the onlookers, his arms crossed.
Even if he felt otherwise inside, he wouldn't show any weakness on the surface. And the 100,000 Jewel meant nothing to him. Unlike Rayn, Laxus had completed many missions.
"Alright," Rayn's eyes narrowed slightly, and he agreed without hesitation. It wasn't for the 100,000 Jewel, but to resolve their initial conflict. Although the 100,000 Jewel was nice, what was more important was to feel at ease. He did need the 100,000 Jewel, but what was more important was to let Laxus know that some things were more important than just sulking.
"You just finished a mission. I won't take advantage of you. Tomorrow at noon."
The swift agreement surprised Laxus for a moment, but he quickly responded.
"No need. I didn't use much energy yesterday. Let's do it now," Rayn said, refusing Laxus's offer, much to everyone's surprise.
"Hmph! Then you better not cry when you lose!" Laxus felt slighted and a fire of anger ignited in his heart.
"Let's go to the plains outside town," Rayn said, ignoring Laxus's mood. He then led Kanna outside.
The backyard was too small, and the street would damage the buildings. Rayn didn't want to be burdened with a pile of bills before he had even paid off his debt. After thinking about it, Rayn felt that the place where he had practiced Giant Magic before was a good choice. It was spacious, and he didn't have to worry about damaging other people's property.
This time, Laxus didn't say anything more and strode after them. It didn't matter where; as long as they could fight, it was fine.
"By the way... they don't seem to have said what would happen if little Rayn lost?" Macao asked, stroking his beard, a puzzled look on his face. For them, who often gambled, this was easy to notice.
"You idiot, haven't you noticed yet?" Wakaba rolled his eyes and said in annoyance.
"What?"
"Laxus is scared," Wakaba said, taking a puff of his cigar, his expression complex behind the white smoke.
"Still trying to act cool? Aren't you going to follow them and see!" Carolin's voice came from the front, and she quickly left the guild.
Looking around, Wakaba realized that not only Carolin, but even the master and the others were gone. Only he was still sitting in the guild.
"Macao, you bastard! Wait for me!" Wakaba swatted away the smoke in front of him and quickly got up to follow.
In an instant, the once-lively guild became empty.
On the plains outside the city, Rayn and Laxus stood opposite each other, separated by more than ten meters. A little further away, on a hillside, a crowd had gathered. Besides the members of the Fairy Tail guild, there were also residents of Magnolia who had heard the news and come to watch. Kanna was now being held in Carolin's arms with a look of disgust on her face, while a healing smile was on her face.
"You better use your full strength. It'll be boring if I win too easily," Laxus said, looking at the boy with the greatsword on his back. His magic power surged, and golden arcs of electricity flickered around him. The violent lightning magic within him gradually dispelled the unease in his heart.
"Crack crack."
Compared to the excited Laxus, Rayn appeared calm. He rotated his wrists and moved his head from side to side, making a cracking sound. He casually took the greatsword from his back and stuck it into the ground.
Rayn had not yet reached the stage where he could lift a heavy weight as if it were light. One smash could really break a person in two. Even if Laxus's physique was strong and it wouldn't happen, it would still be difficult to bear.
"Laxus, your only chance to defeat me was when we first met," Rayn said, stopping his movements. The blood in his body seemed to gradually heat up, and an excited smile appeared on his lips.
This was not a lie, nor was it to provoke Laxus. When they first met, his magic power was insufficient, and he couldn't even summon Kanna. But after returning and summoning the Boosted Gear, even if he couldn't summon Kanna, he could definitely drag Laxus down with him in a life-or-death fight. And after his magic power recovered, Laxus had no chance of winning at all.
"So the one in the weaker position... was actually you all along."
A cool breeze blew across the plain, lifting his black hair and revealing his bright eyes and the boy's unrestrained, flamboyant smile.
"Just a bragging brat!" Laxus's eyes burned with anger. His heightened emotions seemed to make his magic power even more active, and the golden arcs of electricity around him became more pronounced.
"Boom!"
A roar of thunder echoed across the plain. The ground where Laxus stood was instantly sent flying with dirt. His figure, like a golden bolt of lightning, streaked across the plain.
"Ddraig," Rayn whispered.
The Heavenly Dragon of the path of 'Dominance' roared in response to the call.
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