Reby's call not only failed to work but also made Gajeel run faster.
His target was very clear, he had been focusing on that big bald guy from the start.
That guy dressed so much like Jura, he must be very strong, right?
Gajeel thought this and charged into the crowd without hesitation.
"Get out of the way!
He punched down a person in a black cloak.
"Don't get in my way!"
With one move, the Iron Dragon Staff knocked down a mid-low level cadre who was grappling with Council soldiers.
"Move it!"
Then, with a two-handed Iron Dragon Sword, he cut down two black cloaks trying to flank him.
This guy completely treated himself like an armored vehicle, locked onto his target and bulldozed his way through, knocking down all obstacles.
These ordinary cult members couldn't withstand Gajeel's onslaught, and were forced to step aside.
The dignitary in their rear noticed this brute and realized that this guy must be dealt with personally.
He raised his left palm, and a unique Requip Magic was instantly activated.
His clothing didn't change at all; instead, a bunch of strange tools appeared around him.
Pliers, shackles, candles, large hammer, whip, chains... and some unnamed tools appeared out of thin air, floating in front of him.
"Those who defy Zeref shall suffer torture!"
As the dignitary waved his hand, those tools shot out one after another.
The attack style was somewhat like Erza's Celestial Wheel: Chaotic Sword, but the scene of these tools flying out was bizarre beyond belief.
To the extent that, a little afar, Reby wanted to shout "Watch out," but swallowed her words back forcibly.
Could he be Laki's long-lost relative?
What kind of opponent did this fool Gajeel choose to face?!
Lahar also had his doubts. They were supposed to be the support squad, so why was Gajeel charging faster than him?
In the original plan, this bald guy was supposed to be his opponent...
However... nevermind, it's Fairy Tail we're dealing with.
Lahar promptly adjusted: "Task change, we'll be the support, cover the fourth squad!"
"Yes!"
"What kind of attack is this?"
Gajeel punched the flying whip and candle away, slightly turned to dodge the large hammer, bit through the iron shackles, continuing to charge at the dignitary without slowing down.
"Taste my Triangular Wood Dragon!" The dignitary pushed his palm forward, a crude dragon made of wood... or rather, a horned donkey charged straight at Gajeel.
"How can something like this be effective!"
Gajeel slightly turned his shoulder and directly shattered this ridiculous torture device.
Amidst the flying wood fragments, Gajeel also slightly guarded against any mechanism inside.
But it was really just a pile of rotten wood.
At that moment, the dignitary smugly shouted, "Fell for it! The true finishing move is at the back!"
An Iron Maiden had already opened on Gajeel's rear side, clamping him in it, and dense spikes inside pierced into Gajeel's body.
"Execution!" yelled the dignitary, believing he had won.
However, the Iron Maiden's moving parts trembled slightly, unable to close in.
Gajeel grinned, staring at the spikes piercing him but unable to break through his Iron Scales defense.
Instead, the spikes bent and even broke.
The dignitary was shocked, eyes wide open. "What? My strongest instrument actually..."
"Chuckle~" Gajeel bit off half the Iron Maiden's head and chomped a few bites into its exterior, commenting:
"Nice taste, but how wasteful to use such good iron for this!"
The dignitary thought of a possibility: "You must be..."
Gajeel swallowed the delicious morsel, inhaled deeply: "Roar of the Iron Dragon!"
"Wah..." The dignitary was blown away by the oncoming Iron Blade Storm, collided against the clock tower but still didn't stop, crashing into the hall with half the wall.
Cracks ran from the damaged wall straight to the tower's pinnacle, teetering on collapse.
"...Iron...Dragon Slayer Mage..."
The dignitary lay amidst the rubble, uttering the phrase, then lost consciousness as his head tilted.
On the clock tower's other side, Jerome had completely subdued two captains.
The Dark Sword destroyed their weapons, corroding multiple tears in their robes.
Both were wounded, with black vapor mixing with blood, hard to stop even if they pressed hands on it.
"Next move, I'll finish you!" Jerome quickly rushed forward, slashing the Dark Sword downward, splitting the struggling duo.
When they almost gave up, a youth with scars on his face suddenly appeared at Jerome's rear side.
Jerome heard the wind, not turning before feeling a heavy kick on his side face.
"Mr. Dolanbart!" The two captains joyfully called his name, sitting on the ground.
Jerome spun sideways, crashed heavily on the floor, the black sword flew out.
As he tried to get up, Mest appeared again at his rear, kicking in the same spot with almost identical stance.
Jerome flew out again, crashing into the clock tower's wall, dislodging several stones.
Mest exhaled in relief.
The kick Rhode used to rescue Mr. Org from jackal Jia Ka'er left a deep impression on Mest.
It felt very fitting for his magic, so he had been practicing this move recently.
Not sure if it was cool enough... Such curiosity made Mest want to gnaw on something.
He suddenly realized he might have destroyed a historical monument-like clock tower...
What would the ancient clock tower taste like? Really wanted to know!
…
"Pain of the belly!"
"Pain of the head!"
"Damn it!"
Mary used disease magic several times but found it had no effect at all.
The enemy not only remained unaffected but got stronger because of the blue-haired child... If only she directly dealt with her...
Mary prepared to aim at Wendy.
But a small white cat descended from the sky and suddenly transformed into a cat-eared maiden:
"Not on my watch! White Moon Spin Kick!"
"Ah—" Mary screamed, kicked flying by Carla.
The timing of this kick was exquisite, precisely as Mary was about to act, as if completely reading her moves.
Then, another small black cat suddenly transformed into a brawny cat-headed man, its fist like a heavy bowl smashed onto Mary's head:
"It ends here!"
Reby took out the Demon Sealing Stone Handcuffs and deftly cuffed Mary's wrists.
Then, she produced a small Communication Magic Crystal: "Mary arrested, disease magic threat nullified."
Hearing the voice from the Communication Magic Crystal, Lahar nearly burst into tears—someone actually remembered to report crucial battle updates!