Clang ~ Clang ~
"Ugh… I feel like throwing up… Hades… Ugh… Let me off this train…"
The train sped along the tracks.
Inside, Natsu was sprawled on his seat, completely devoid of strength.
"How pathetic…" Gray scoffed.
Aux pursed his lips, looking at the scenery outside the window, secretly glad he didn't possess Dragon Slayer Magic.
Otherwise, he'd be sprawled here too.
"What kind of Magic does Gray use? Introduce it, so it'll be easier for me to assist you later," Aux suddenly asked.
He knew, of course, but it was still good to ask.
Gray introduced, "I learned Ice Magic from my master since I was young. I use Ice-Make Magic."
Speaking of this, Gray clasped his hands together, creating the Fairy Tail Guild emblem.
Aux held it.
The translucent emblem floated in his palm.
It emitted a faint coolness and felt surprisingly solid to the touch.
"Very interesting Magic," Aux replied.
He was thinking, should he use Addition Magic on Natsu, or on Gray?
Or directly on Happy?
"Gray's Ice-Make Magic is freeform Magic; he can create any shape," Happy added.
On the way,
Aux, Gray, and Happy chatted throughout the journey, sharing interesting experiences and discussing Magic formations, among other things.
After arriving at the station and disembarking,
the group quickly reached the client's home.
The client was the mayor of this town, and his house was also the most luxurious.
"I thought they would send an S-Class Mage, since that monster is so terrifying!"
The mayor saw Aux, Gray, and Happy.
None of them were S-Class Mages from the Fairy Tail Guild, so he was somewhat disappointed.
"Since we've come, we can naturally complete this job," Aux replied.
The mayor didn't deny it.
He recounted, "It's impossible to determine when that monster first appeared. The first incident involved the town's hunters; three experienced hunters went into the mountains and never returned."
"Later, their wives and children reported it, and the town's Soldiers went into the mountains to search. Ten or so went in and never came out either."
"Another three or four days passed, and suddenly a fierce roar came from the mountains. That monster, like a mountain, walked towards the town."
"After losing quite a few Soldiers, we finally managed to drive the monster back, but no one can say if it will come out again. We hope the Mages can eliminate it."
The mayor finished telling the story.
Aux listened very carefully, because this period was before the start of the main plot.
He couldn't rely on his memory to analyze the monster's strength.
So he needed details to analyze how strong the opponent was.
"Got it. I'll go burn it down right now."
Natsu immediately stood up, grinning, and rushed out.
Happy also immediately flew out.
Aux's mouth twitched, saying, "Let's go deal with the monster first."
The mayor apparently knew that Mages from the Fairy Tail Guild had reckless personalities.
He wasn't angry because of Natsu's impulsiveness.
Leaving the mayor's mansion,
Aux and Gray quickened their pace to catch up with Natsu, and together they left the town and entered the valley.
"How do we find it in such a large valley?" Gray grumbled.
Natsu, on the other hand, was excited to continue the adventure; he completely treated this place as a labyrinth.
Happy suggested, "How about I fly up and look?"
He could fly, so he could easily fly into the sky to search for the monster.
"Oh right, Happy, fly me!"
Natsu suddenly remembered this and immediately waved at Happy.
"Aye~"
The latter, without a word, grabbed Natsu and flew into the sky.
"You idiot, be careful," Gray grumbled.
Such a huge monster would definitely be extremely dangerous, and Natsu going there might lead to trouble.
"Don't worry about him, we'll chase after they start fighting…"
Aux didn't intervene.
Actually, he could use Addition Magic: Flight on himself and Gray to chase Natsu.
But after thinking about it, he gave up.
Let Natsu fight the monster first; that way, he could prepare a comprehensive plan.
Rumble… Roar~
In less than ten minutes,
a loud noise came from deep within the valley, along with a terrifying, soul-stirring roar.
Aux felt the ground beneath his feet shaking.
"Quick, chase!"
Gray, beside him, ran even more anxiously; this level of shaking was enough to indicate how formidable the monster was.
The two rushed along.
Soon, they saw Natsu clashing with the monster.
The monster had a bull's head, and its body was covered in scales that emitted a cold gleam.
Natsu's fists were wreathed in scorching flames.
He slammed them into the monster's body, yet couldn't inflict any wounds.
"Fire Dragon's… Roar!"
Natsu, in the air, clearly hadn't expected the monster to be so tough. After a few punches had no effect,
he took a deep breath and puffed out his chest.
Clasping his hands in front of his mouth, he unleashed raging flames, instantly engulfing the monster.
Even the surrounding dead branches and leaves were ignited.
Roar… Just as everyone thought the monster was doomed, another beastly roar came from within the flames.
A burning arm swung.
It accurately struck Natsu in the air.
With a clang,
Natsu and Happy were slapped away, crashing diagonally onto the valley ground.
Roar, roar, roar… The monster let out a triumphant roar.
Its entire body bathed in flames, it looked like a demon from hell.
"Aaaah… Let me at it!"
Gray clasped his hands, about to use Magic.
But Natsu's unwilling voice sounded, and Happy had already carried Natsu back.
"I suggest you two team up; this monster's strength is terrifyingly strong," Aux reminded.
It was immune to fire, and its strength was surprisingly immense.
The monster's overall strength felt even greater than Zeref's demons.
This was completely wrong!
"No need!" "I can do it myself!"
Natsu and Gray still didn't want to help each other.
They both believed they could handle it alone.
Aux could only shrug at this, planning to just watch for a bit longer before directly performing Addition Magic.
"Fire Dragon's… Iron Fist!"
Natsu charged again.
Both his fists were engulfed in flames, and he rapidly approached, wildly pounding the monster's head.
Although the monster's defense was astonishing,
its speed was lacking, and under Natsu's vigilance, it rarely had a chance to strike back.
"This monster has high resistance to fire, and its defense is even more frightening. Natsu can't break through its defense at all," Aux sighed.
Gray frowned, "Even if I went, it probably wouldn't work."
Not being able to break through its defense was very frustrating.
The monster's scales had some unknown property; they had been pounded for so long without any damage.
It was simply too abnormal.
"There's no hope."
Although he didn't know what was going on with this monster, given the current situation, it seemed only he could intervene.
To be fair, this monster was clearly overpowered.
Perhaps only Erza and a few other S-Class Mages could break through this monster's defense.
"Gray, I'm going to use Addition Magic on you now. Let's try to finish it in one blow," Aux said.
Gray looked troubled.
Even if Addition Magic was powerful, it was probably impossible to defeat this monster in one hit, right?
Aux's request was simply too difficult.