A/N: Episode 169.

Enjoy!

edited on august 2nd, 2024 @ 7:45pm

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𝓒𝙷𝙰𝙿𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝚂𝙸𝚇𝚃𝙴𝙴𝙽,
𝓦𝙴𝙽𝙳𝚈 𝚅𝚂. 𝚂𝙷𝙴𝚁𝚁𝙸𝙰.  

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"𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗧 𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗪𝗜𝗡' 𝗔𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗, 𝗟𝗔𝗫𝗨𝗦!" Natsu shouted. "Get serious!"

"What's he doing?" Gray wondered.

"Laxus is getting beaten up?" Lucy questioned in disbelief.

"Something doesn't feel right about this..." Erza muttered.

"I don't sense anything coming from that Alexei-san, though..." Wendy informed.

"Oh, boy! What a one-sided development! Is this as far as it goes for Fairy Tail B team and Laxus's tale of triumph?!" Chapati questioned.

"It's devastating, really... He's showing such great strength." Yajima commented. Freed had his fist clenched as Lisanna looked into the binoculars.

"And yet I'm not sensing much magic power. Perhaps it means he's not going all out yet?" Lahar guessed.

Laxus continued getting kicked around. "Is that really Laxus?" Lily questioned. "The impression I got of him from you is totally different, Happy."

"He does have a connection with that guild's master, so maybe it's making him hesitant." Carla guessed.

"This isn't like you, Laxus!" Happy shouted as Laxus's illusion fell to the ground.

"Anti-Fairy Tail guild?" Laxus quoted.

"That's right!" Flare claimed.

"Made up of Wizards who are masters at all of the Fairy Tail members' weaknesses." Ivan informed.

"And the four of us are the guild's elite." Blacksnake added.

"Do you intend to go to war with us?" Ivan asked. "We know every detail of your weaknesses. Shall I release the power that my guild has been accumulating these past seven years?"

"Gramps has already done a thorough investigation of you." Laxus replied.

"Ivan... Laxus..." Makarov thought.

Laxus's illusion continued to get beaten up. "A thorough investigation, you say?" Ivan repeated.

Laxus narrowed his eyes. "Do I have to say it again?" He questioned. "The number of your members, your guild's location, funding... We know everything that's been going on these seven years."

"What?!"

"It was Gajeel! He tricked us!" Flare exclaimed.

"He seemed like a nasty fellow, and I guess that impression was correct." Nalpudding said.

"Then he was a double agent?" Ivan questioned.

"He doesn't seem to be one for fine details, but it backfired on us." Blacksnake claimed.

"What the hell?! Why is he havin' a tough time?! Stupid Laxus... What, does he have a cold?! Crap." Gajeel mumbled before he sneezed. "Are those bastards talkin' trash about me?"

"An anti-Fairy Tail guild?" Mavis questioned.

"I already have info on my foolish son and his wizards, but I don't have a precise report yet on some of them. Particularly that Alexei person... I have no information on his existence, let alone his background." Makarov responded.

"But isn't that strange?" Flare asked.

"Considering all of our secrets have been leaked, he hasn't really had any reaction." Nalpudding added.

"Even though Gramps knew all that, he didn't make a move on you." Laxus said as Ivan widened his eyes.

Laxus was sitting outside of the guild. "Hey, Gramps... Are you sure it's okay to let them be? You said my old man had information that could be damaging to Fairy Tail." He said.

"Seven years have passed since then." Makarov pointed out.

"But still..."

"During those seven years, there's been no sign any of that info has leaked."

"You can't be sure of that."

"No. I'm certain. They're well aware of how dangerous that information could be if it gets out."

"What is that information, anyway?" Laxus asked.

"You're better off not knowing. Every guild has their forbidden secrets." Makarov replied as he looks at the sky. "I've heard that in these seven years, Ivan hasn't been up to any mischief or done anything to harm our members. As long as he doesn't make a move, I have no intention of stirring anything up either."

"Maybe... somewhere in Gramps' heart, he had faith in you." Laxus said. "Because you're father and son..."

Ivan grits his teeth. "Silence!" He shouted, attacking Laxus with paper dolls.

"I've been waiting all this time for this day! It was all to get Lumen Histoire! I did your guild no harm for seven years? Of course not! There's no way the dregs you left behind had any information on that! Inside your guild, Magnolia, Tenroujima, too! I searched every place associated with your guild! But I still didn't find anything! Where is Lumen Histoire?! Where is it?! Tell me, Laxus! You're my son, aren't you?!"

"Even if it's for the sake of family, the guild can't stand by if the lives of its members are threatened. That's how the previous master protected this guild, too. That's Fairy Tail!"

"The guild is our family! It's our place to go home to!"

Makarov and Natsu's words rang in Laxus's ears as Ivan struck him with a blast of purple Magic. However, he was still standing.

"I thought you were standing there a little too quietly... You were taking measure of my Magic, were you? That part of you never changes. Or is it just that you can't bring yourself to hit your father? You're such a nice boy, Laxus-chan." Ivan taunted.

"Laxus!"

Laxus looked over to see Makarov holding his index and thumb in the air, making him smile.

"Obra! Do it! Extinguish his Magic! Now, unleash the power of the anti-Fairy Tail guild!" Ivan ordered.

Laxus charged forward with lightning covering his body. "Is this the guy who attacked Wendy and Carla?!" He exclaimed, sending a lightning kick at Obra.

Flare and Nalpudding charged forward. "Scarlet Hair!" Flare called out, lightning her hair on fire as Laxus dodged.

"Needle Blast!" Nalpudding shouted as Laxus dodged his fists.

"This is for Gray!" He exclaimed, striking Nalpudding with a lightning-infused punch and sending him to the ground.

Flare grabbed onto his wrist with her hair. "Gotcha!" She claimed.

"This is for Lucy!" Laxus releases his breath attack at Flare.

"It can't be..." Ivan said.

Blacksnake appeared behind Laxus. "Sand Fake!" He said.

"You..." Laxus blasts Blacksnake with a pillar of lightning. "I don't understand."

"M-My elite team!" Ivan exclaimed in shock.

Laxus stepped forward, his body covered in lightning. "Damn you, old man! I don't know what it is you're after, but you're gonna pay for hurting my comrades!" He declared.

"W-Wait! I'm your father! We're family! You would hit your own father?!" Ivan said.

"My family is Fairy Tail!" Laxus declared.

"You ungrateful wretch! Begone!" Ivan three more paper dolls at Laxus.

Laxus destroyed them as he charged forward. "I crush my family's enemies!" He shouted as he attacked Ivan with bolts of lightning, breaking the illusion in the process.

"W-What in the world...?!" Chapati exclaimed in shock.

"Laxus has a twin?!" Natsu said.

"Wrong, dumbass. Laxus disappeared and another Laxus appeared..." Gray told him.

"No. This is..." Mavis trailed off.

"Ivan..." Makarov muttered.

"And the others, too..." Happy noticed.

"Don't tell me..." Lily trailed off as the Thoughtforms of the Raven Tail members disappeared. "Thoughtforms?"

"We were duped!" Carla said.

"But what happened here?!" Chapati asked.

Mato freaked out upon seeing Ivan's face. "That face... The guild master-kabo! Alexei was really Master Ivan-kabo!"

"Then the battle we were watching between Laxus and Alexei was just an illusion?!" Chapati questioned. "Laxus is still standing! The match is over!"

"So we couldn't see it, but he was under attack by five people... On top of that, the master participated in the tournament... Any way you look at it, that's a breach of the rules." Yajima said.

"That guy wiped out all of the Raven Tail members by himself?!"

"First, there was Erza, then Cana..."

"Fairy Tail's full of monsters!"

Orga just grinned. "At any rate, the victor... is Laxus Dreyar of Fairy Tail B!" Mato announced as Fairy Tail cheered.

"It's like he got payback for me..." Gray commented.

"He beat all of 'em?! Why does he get to steal all the glory?!" Natsu complained.

"I just hope that Flare girl isn't abused again." Lucy said with worry.

"You really are a nice person..." Erza told her.

"That was playing dirty... Ivan..." Makarov spoke with disappointment laced in his voice while Mavis had a dark shadow casted over her eyes.

Laxus was soon heading out of the arena. "Laxus... I lost this time, but remember this... Lumen Histoire is Fairy Tail's darkness. Eventually, the time will come... when you learn Fairy Tail's true identity." Ivan claimed as he chuckled while being carried away by guards.

The rest of Raven Tail was soon arrested by the royal guards. "After some consultation, it's been decided that Raven Tail is disqualified! And they're banned from participating in the tournament for three years." Chapati said.

"Naturally!" Yajima agreed.

"We'll meet again... Fairy Tail." A small creature spoke from atop a statue.

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"Well, that result was an embarrassment, but let's move on to the fourth match, the last match of the day-kabo!" Mato said as the audience cheered.

"From Fairy Tail A, Wendy Marvell!" Chapati said.

"I changed my outfit!" Wendy claimed.

"Good luck!" Natsu and Gray said in unison.

"Versus Sherria Blendy of Lamia Scale!" Chapati finished, saying who Wendy's opponent was.

"I'll do my best!" Sherria waved.

"Wendy..." Doranbolt thinks to himself.

"It looks like they don't know Sherria's strength yet. I can just picture the look of surprise on Gray's face." Lyon commented, thinking of Juvia.

"That's not the face I see..." Yuka commented.

"Laxus got revenge for my sock!" Toby cried out.

"What am I doing?" Lyon asked himself.

"Give it your all." Jura said.

"Right!" Sherria agreed.

"If you lose, you're gonna spin. You know that, right?" Obaba said.

"Alright, the moment you've been waiting for! Both contestants are taking the field-kabo!" Mato announced.

Sherria walks out onto the arena but trips over a rock, causing her to fall and the audience to laugh. "U-Um, are you okay?!" Wendy asked, rushing to her, but tripped on a rock as well.

"N-Nice to meet you." Wendy greeted.

Sherria nodded. "Same here!" She greeted back.

"Is that girl gonna be okay?" Carla asked.

"To me, it looks like she's got Magic and motivation in spades!" Lily replied.

"Knowing Wendy, I'm sure she'll be fine!" Happy added.

"Wow. I can tell even from here... She's improved enormously compared to seven years ago. But still..." Doranbolt trailed off.

"That Sherria girl's Magic..." Mavis muttered to herself.

"This is sure to be an incredibly cute showdown! I'm rootin' for 'em both-pyon!" Chapati exclaimed as his butt was moving side to side.

"'Pyon'?" Lahar repeated, not amused.

"Your character's changed..." Yajima commented.

Outside of the stadium, Jellal felt something as did Ultear and Meredy. "Ul... This Magic..." Meredy muttered.

"Yeah... Zeref...?" Ultear questioned.

'Jellal! You felt that, didn't you?!' Meredy asked telepathically.

'In the arena? Ultear, Meredy, stand by! Don't move!' Jellal ordered.

'Understood!'

'Be careful!'

"Alright, the final match of day three!" Chapati said as the gong rang out, signaling the start of the match.

"Begin!" Mato shouted.

Sherria and Wendy stared at each other. "Good luck, Wendy." Doranbolt wished her luck.

"See Sherria's ability and be stunned, Gray." Lyon said.

"Don't underestimate Wendy, Lyon." Gray claimed.

"Truly a cute combination! I'm tickled pink!" Chapati said.

"Was that girl in Fairy Tail?" Yajima asked.

"Yes. I only know a little about her, but she's a very courageous wizard." Lahar responded.

"After all my training, I have to do my best here!" Wendy thought as her face showed determination. "Here I go!"

"Ready!" Sherria nodded at her.

Two blue Magic Circles appeared from Wendy's hands. "Arms, Vernier... Enchant!" She shouted. "Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!"

Wind went straight for Sherria who easily dodged. "She dodged it?!" Wendy said in shock.

"North wind, become the breath of the gods and blow on the land! Sky God's Boreas!" Sherria shouted, attacking with black wind.

"Wendy!" Carla shouted out in worry.

"Black wind?!" Natsu exclaimed in shock.

"She's..." Orga trailed off.

Wendy landed back on the ground with her arms out, blowing the wind away.

"Wow! You dodged that, huh? In that case..." Sherria charged forward. "Wind! Wind! Bore through the ground and make it dance up to the sky! Sky God's Dance!"

Wendy was soon propelled into the air as Sherria jumped up. "I'm not done!" Sherria claimed as wind came from Wendy's feet.

"Sky Dragon's Talon!" She called out.

Both Sherria and Wendy landed on the ground. "Sky Dragon's..." Wendy puffed up her cheeks for her breath attack.

"Sky God's..." Sherria puffed up her cheeks as well.

"I don't believe it! That brat..." Gajeel began.

"... has the same Magic as Wendy?!" Doranbolt finished.

"Lost Magic!" Mavis exclaimed.

"Sky God Slayer Magic..." Lyon commented.

"... Roar!"

"... Bellow!"

Both Wendy and Sherria released their breath attacks as blue and black wind collided, causing wind to go up into the arena.

"Is this for real?!" Gray exclaimed.

"Awesome!" Natsu commented.

"Hey!" Lucy was holding down her skirt.

"It's ferocious!" Obaba said.

"Cut it out, Obaba." Yuka told her.

"That'll be in my dreams!" Toby shouted.

Lyon had a calm look on his face "Hmph." He simply said.

"Who are you?" Wendy asked.

"A Sky God Slayer." Lyon stated.

"God Slayer?! God Slaying Magic?!" Doranbolt exclaimed.

"So that guy wasn't the only one..." Natsu commented, remembering Zancrow.

"You know her?" Erza asked.

"That one guy from Grimoire, Shinpachiro or something..." Natsu responded.

"Didn't he say it was Zancrow?" Gray sweat dropped.

"He used God Slayer Magic too?" Lucy questioned.

"God Slayer?! Nah, it wasn't that big a deal!" Natsu replied.

"No matter who her opponent is, right now, Wendy has to face her on her own. This is Wendy's moment of truth." Erza said.

Wendy stood up, holding her arm. "I'm surprised..." She confessed.

"I heard about you from Lyon. He said there was a girl in Fairy Tail who can use the same Magic as me. Maybe I was a little too rough? Sorry. Did it hurt?" Sherria asked.

"I'm fine. This is a battle." Wendy answered.

"Since we're here, let's have more fun, okay?" Sherria suggested.

"I... don't really know what it means to have fun fighting, but I'll do my best for the guild!" Wendy declared.

Sherria winked. "I think that's fine. I'll do my best for love and the guild, too!" She said.

"Gadzooks! To the eye, they're as cute as can be, but both of them are impressive wizards!" Chapati exclaimed.

"Your wig..." Yajima trailed off.

Both Sherria and Wendy attacked one another. "Oh, my! Two wizards, both wielding Wind Magic, but is Sherria-tan one rank higher?!" Chapati said.

"Sherria... tan?" Lahar repeated.

"Strictly speaking, it's Sky Magic." Yajima corrected.

"Everyone... Everyone has... made it this far. Takashi-san said the rest is up to me!" Wendy told herself as memories flashed in her mind. "I don't like to fight, but when I have to fight for the sake of the guild... even I will do it seriously!"

Wendy soon began eating air. "So you eat air, huh? Then I'll do it, too!" Sherria said as she began sucking up air. "Time to eat!"

"Well, well. Who would've expected Sherria to eat air during a battle? Does that mean she recognizes her opponent as worthy?" Jura wondered.

"Do it seriously! If you don't, you'll lose a sock!" Toby exclaimed.

"Cool it. And socks have nothing to do with it." Yuka commented.

"Sherria is just warming up." Lyon said.

"W-What are Wendy-tan and Sherria-tan doing?! Is it my imagination or has the oxygen thinned out a bit?" Chapati asked.

"Dragon Slayer's Secret Art!" Wendy called out as a blue Magic Circle appeared from underneath her feet.

"Has she already mastered them both?!" Porlyusica wondered.

"There it is!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Go!" Lucy cheered.

"Wendy knows the Secret Art?!" Lily questioned.

"Incredible!" Happy said.

"She's as good as won." Carla commented.

"What is this? A Magic wind barrier? You've sealed us inside!" Sherria stated.

"Shattering Light: Sky Drill!" Wendy finished as the barrier blasted towards Sherria. Once the light disappeared, Sherria dropped to the ground.

"Sherria!" Lyon shouted out.

"Yeah!"

"She did it!"

"I haven't mastered Milky Way yet... so this was my full force. I used all my magic..." Wendy noted.

"W-Well, well..." Mato muttered to himself.

"You were wonderful, Wendy." Porlyusica thought as Doranbolt widened his eyes.

"Maybe I went overboard... But this way..." Wendy trailed off as Mato went to check on Sherria.

"Sherria's down! The winner, from Fairy Tail A..." Mato started to say.

"Sorry! Wait a second!" Sherria's voice interrupted Mato, shocking Wendy. "I'm just getting started!"

Sherria was shown to be healing herself. "You're impressive, Wendy." She complimented.

"P-P-Pardon me! Let the match continue-kabo!" Mato said.

"What is she?" Natsu asked.

"Look! Her wounds are gone!" Lucy pointed out.

"Whereas Wendy can't heal herself, with Sky God Slayer Magic you can." Lyon explained. "Sorry, but she has no chance of winning this."

"What kind of girl is she?!" Erza questioned.

"Damn you, Lyon... To keep a secret like this..." Gray muttered.

"Even though I told her to give it her all..." Jura began.

"... she hasn't put her whole heart into it yet, huh?" Yuka finished.

"Just how strong is she?!" Toby shouted.

"That's my cousin!" Sherry exclaimed.

"She's far stronger than you!" Obaba scolded.

Wendy stumbled back. "Are you okay? Want to give up?" Sherria asked.

"Wendy..." Doranbolt muttered in concern before someone bumped into him.

"Excuse me."

"No problem." Doranbolt said before he noticed Jellal, disguised as Mystogan, walk by him. "Mystogan?"

'Jellal, can you hear me?' Meredy asked telepathically.

'Well? Have you found anything?' Ultear questioned.

'No, nothing yet.' Jellal answered as he looked out into the arena.

"Sherria... Don't tell me that girl is mixed up with Zeref... Oh, no! At this rate, Wendy will be in grave danger!" Jellal thinks to himself.

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A/N: Another chapter is finished! Thanks for reading! 

Word Count: 2747 words.