Gildarts was having the time of his life. For once, his daughter was angry at someone other than him, and that brought the biggest smile he'd had in years.
But the fact that she was angry at a boy—and the reasons behind it—was also seriously pissing him off.
He was grateful to the boy in many ways. If not for him, Gildarts might've lost the only woman he ever loved and his daughter. Still, the mere thought of his daughter getting close to the boy sparked a quiet rage within him.
"I'll smash him up a bit—without killing him, I guess," Gildarts muttered.
"What did you say?" Cana suddenly turned around, narrowing her eyes.
"Nothing! Just thinking about killing the demon," Gildarts stuttered, trying to look casual.
"Hmmm." Cana gave him a suspicious glance but eventually turned and walked on.
'Damn, almost got caught,' Gildarts thought, wiping sweat off his brow.
After some time, they reached the factory where the flame demon was supposed to be.
"Alright, Cana, you deal with the worshippers, and Daddy will take care of the demon, okay?"
"Alright, Dad," Cana said, running off without hesitation.
'She's growing up, huh,' Gildarts thought wistfully. A moment of sadness washed over him before he shook it off and focused on the task ahead.
When he reached the demon's location, he found it standing in the center of the factory. It radiated immense magic pressure and heat, but nothing Gildarts couldn't handle with a bit of effort.
Gildarts was one of the strongest mages in the guild, second only to the Master in combat ability. Yet he knew his strength didn't come from innate talent. He lacked the natural gifts many wizards had, so he chose a different path: relentless focus.
While others mastered a variety of spells and techniques, Gildarts poured everything into mastering a single move—Crush. Decades of practice honed his body and magic to the point where he could wield Crush magic with unmatched strength, from any part of his body.
As Bruce Lee once said, "I don't fear the man who has practiced ten thousand kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick ten thousand times."
Walking steadily toward the demon, Gildarts exuded magic instinctively. The ambient Crush magic sliced through the oppressive fire magic surrounding the demon.
The demon noticed Gildarts and immediately felt something was wrong. Its instincts, which had never failed before, screamed at it to run—not just be cautious, but run.
The thought enraged the demon. How dare its instincts warn it about a mere human? Overcome with fury, it charged toward Gildarts in a mad rage.
But Gildarts just smiled—a wide, confident grin.
Cana had just dealt with the wizards conducting the ritual. She made sure to burn the factory afterward. It seemed like something Karna would've done.
'Wait... am I mimicking him now?' Cana thought, flustered. Her cheeks reddened.
'No, Cana, don't get ahead of yourself. From what Mavis and Mom said, I need to be patient and let him make the first move. Only then will I really get him.'
If Karna had overheard her thoughts, he'd probably have a long conversation with his adopted big-sister ghost, who acted like a child when pampered.
Shaking off her embarrassment, Cana ran toward where her father was.
When she arrived, she found him sitting atop a small mountain. Looking closer, she realized the "mountain" was made entirely of cubes.
"Done already?" she asked.
"Yeah, let's go find that idiot kid," Gildarts said, standing up with a satisfied grin.
The aftermath of defeating the demons was chaotic. Ultear had been crying nonstop at the sight of her mother's injuries.
Gray looked lost at first, but after some time, it seemed as though a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.
Lyon, however, wasn't taking it well. He couldn't accept that Ultear had sacrificed so much while Gildarts walked away with just a few burns. He muttered something about Deliora being stronger and disappeared the next day.
Ur was worried about him, but he left no clues about where he went.
'I'm pretty sure we'll see him again in a few years, probably trying to free Deliora,' I thought. But with Ultear home now, there were bound to be a lot of changes.
Aside from Ur, the rest of us escaped without serious injuries. Even Gildarts only had a few burns that would heal in days.
Looking at Ur's condition, I suggested she meet Porlyosika. There might be a chance to heal her wounds. The idea clearly appealed to Ultear, who begged her mother to come with us.
This wasn't an elaborate scheme to bring Ur, Gray, and Ultear to the guild as a package deal. Nope, definitely not.
As I stood there, I noticed Cana giving me a narrow-eyed look.
'I wonder what that's about.'
A/N- hope you like the rewrite and every 100 powerstone gets extra chapter of Jason.