Everyone in Eisenwald stared at Su Yan in horror.
Their swords couldn't even scratch his skin, and their magic had no effect. Was this guy even human? Their attacks were useless, while his strikes were devastating, either maiming or killing anyone who got in his way. Fear spread among them.
Seeing his guild's fear, Erigor's face twisted in frustration.
"Useless fools!" he spat. "I'll handle this guy myself! The rest of you, take care of those two women and the kid!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Eisenwald members breathed a sigh of relief, grateful to be spared another round with Su Yan.
"Charge!" Erza cried, her magic sword flashing as she threw herself into the Eisenwald crowd.
*Shhh! Shhh!*
With dazzling swordsmanship, Erza cut through the enemies like a scythe through grass. Though not as raw and brutal as Su Yan's attacks, her graceful precision was just as deadly.
"Incredible!" Lucy gasped, mesmerized by Erza's strength.
Lucy hadn't been with Fairy Tail for long, and the only wizards she'd met were Natsu, Su Yan, and Erza—each one a powerhouse that seemed inhuman.
"Tch! Let's see if she can handle a ranged attack!"
But before they could launch their spells, the magic sword in Erza's hand transformed into a spear.
"What?!"
With a wide sweep, she took down the ranged attackers in one blow.
"Whoa!!"
"A spear?!" Lucy exclaimed, watching Erza's magic sword change form.
As Erza landed, the spear transformed into twin swords, and then into a massive axe.
"Does she change her gear that fast?!"
"Change her gear?" Lucy wondered aloud.
"Happy" explained, "Her Requip Magic works a lot like your Celestial Spirit Magic. She summons weapons from another space, and she can switch them at will!"
"Wow! That's amazing!" Lucy marveled.
"And that's just the start with Erza."
Erza's expression grew serious as she assessed the number of enemies around her.
"This is too slow," she muttered. "I'll take them all down at once!"
"Requip: Heaven's Wheel Armor!"
With a flash, she changed into her Heaven's Wheel Armor, a magnificent suit of silver-white steel adorned with countless floating swords.
"Whoa, she's beautiful!"
"Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!"
The steel swords around Erza spun in a deadly ring, cutting down every enemy within range.
"Amazing!!" Lucy cheered, her eyes wide in admiration.
"Most magic swordsmen just change weapons in battle, but Erza takes it further. She fights by transforming her armor as well. That's her magic!"
Su Yan watched Erza's fight with a smile. Her skill was breathtaking—a reminder of why he admired her so much.
"Damn it!" Erigor muttered under his breath. This woman was more formidable than he had thought.
"Erza... could she be...?" Karacka from Eisenwald narrowed his eyes, beginning to recognize her.
"B***h! I'll take you down!" shouted Piado, one of Erigor's henchmen, charging at Erza.
Without missing a beat, Erza cut him down in a single strike.
Karacka gasped. "No way! She took Piado out with one move! That's definitely her… the strongest woman in Fairy Tail, Erza, the 'Queen of Fairies'!"
"Erza, the Fairy Queen?!"
The name struck fear into the Eisenwald members. Fairy Tail was already well-known, but Erza's reputation among the new generation was legendary.
Kageyama grimaced, realizing they were up against Erza herself. Desperate, he looked around and spotted Lucy.
"Gotcha!"
With a swift movement, he pressed his hand to the ground, sending a shadow tendril to grab her.
The noise jolted Natsu out of his daze, snapping him to attention just as the shadow reached Lucy.
"Yeah!" Lucy cried out as the shadow arm lunged toward her.
But Natsu appeared in a flash, igniting his hand in flames and slicing through the shadow tendril.
"Natsu!"
Kageyama's face twisted in anger as he recognized him. "It's you… Because of you, Erigor cut my ear!"
Natsu smirked, gesturing for him to come forward. "So it's you! This time, it's a fair fight!"
Flames blazed around Natsu's fists and feet as he charged into the Eisenwald crowd, knocking them away with flaming punches and kicks.
"You little—take this, my big fireball!!"
One Eisenwald wizard gathered magic into a massive fireball and hurled it at Natsu.
Natsu's eyes lit up as the fireball approached, and with a grin, he opened his mouth and devoured it in one gulp.
"Hmm… not bad, but I've had better. Got anything stronger?"
"What?!"
The Eisenwald members froze, watching Natsu swallow flames with ease.
"Fire…?! He just ate the flames!"
"Is this guy even human?!"
"Ahh, thanks for the snack!" Natsu grinned, patting his stomach and wiping his mouth.
Karacka's eyes widened with dread, piecing together Natsu's identity.
"You b*****d!" Kageyama shouted, pressing his hand to the ground. "Eight Shadows!!"
From his shadow, eight shadowy snakes lunged toward Natsu.
Natsu's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Did you call me a fly again? I'll make you regret it!"
He inhaled deeply, gathering magic in his throat.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!!"
A fierce torrent of fire erupted from Natsu's mouth, obliterating the shadow snakes and barreling toward Kageyama.
"Ahhhhh!"
With a deafening explosion, Kageyama was blasted back by the fiery roar, screaming as he fell. When the smoke cleared, he lay unconscious, a flicker of flame still smoldering at the corner of his mouth.
"Little Kage!!" one of the Eisenwald members shouted, horrified.
Karacka's face drained of color as she finally realized. "That hair… the dragon-scale scarf… magic that devours flames! He's Fairy Tail's Fire Dragon!!"
"It's over… It's really over this time!"