A New Life in Fairy Tail

”Laxus, I’m going to step it up a notch!”

The sound of their blows was incessant. Noah and Laxus had already exchanged over a hundred punches. Laxus’s power was beginning to wane, and the lightning around his hands was starting to dim. When he heard Noah was going to increase the intensity, he knew it was bad. He had already expended a great deal of stamina and magic power, yet Noah showed no signs of weakening at all.

If Noah was going to get even stronger now, Laxus had to break away immediately. If he got drawn into his opponent’s rhythm, he would never be able to counterattack and would just be worn down until he lost. Even though he knew from the start that he couldn’t beat Noah, he didn’t want to lose like this.

Laxus threw a punch with all his might, knocking Noah’s fist back and forcing him off balance for an instant. Noah’s rhythm was broken. As he took a step back to steady himself, he saw Laxus take a deep breath, clasp his hands together above his head, and gather a massive amount of lightning into them. Laxus then swung his hands down with all his force, aiming for the top of Noah’s head.

”Jaw of the Thunder Dragon!”

Noah raised his left hand, a large amount of golden magic gathering in it, and caught Laxus’s heavy blow. The immense force shattered the ground beneath him, and both of them were left floating in the air.

Noah pushed Laxus’s clasped hands upwards. Laxus was thrown off balance, his center left wide open. Noah grinned. Laxus’s expression changed; he wanted to pull his hands back to defend himself, but it was too late.

Golden magic power gathered in Noah’s right foot, and he kicked out, striking Laxus square in the chest.

”Light-Speed Kick!”

SWISH!

In an instant, Laxus was gone, shot like an arrow from a bow, flying far into the distance. He flew for dozens of meters before finally falling from the sky, tumbling several times to bleed off the remaining momentum.

Noah retracted his leg and slowly landed in the crater he had just formed, then walked out.

Ur, watching from the side, marveled, ”Noah really doesn’t show any mercy!”

”Noah and Laxus have a good relationship; he’ll control his power,” Makarov said. ”Besides, it’s better for the S-Class exam to be strict. It prevents those without enough ability from becoming S-Class and makes them understand the true danger of S-Class requests.” Makarov wasn’t worried, even watching his grandson get beaten. Firstly, he trusted the bond between the two boys, and secondly, he knew Noah’s healing skills would fix any major problems after the match.

Laxus lay on the ground, his body covered in wounds. He slowly struggled to his feet, panting heavily, and watched as Noah walked to a stop about ten meters away from him.

”So? Do you want to continue?” Noah asked.

”Of course! I’ll never give up! I still want to beat you!” Laxus straightened his back, steadied his breathing, and began to gather his magic again. Lightning gradually reappeared on his body.

”Mhm, good spirit. Then let’s continue. Come on!” Noah said, standing straight and waiting for him to attack.

Laxus took a deep breath, gathering his magic to the absolute limit he could currently reach. He knew he was low on magic and stamina; he could only manage one or two more high-powered spells. Although it was highly likely Noah would just stand there and take his magic head-on, he couldn’t bet on it. It would be a complete joke if he unleashed his final spell, only for it to be dodged.

”Hah!” With a great shout, Laxus raised his hands above his head. A magic circle appeared, and a massive amount of lightning gathered in his hands, gradually extending and taking shape until it formed a golden, lightning-wreathed halberd.

”Thunder Dragon’s Heavenly Halberd!”

Laxus hurled the halberd at Noah. It flew at an incredible speed, making it very difficult to dodge. However, Noah had no intention of dodging. Golden magic gathered in his right hand, and he simply slapped the lightning halberd aside.

”Dragon Slayer’s Secret Art—”

Laxus had already gathered all of his remaining magic power in his right fist, converting it into lightning, and was charging towards Noah. Just as Noah was about to move to meet him, he found that the same lightning-infused magic circle from before had appeared at his feet, binding him. Although it wasn’t as strong as last time, it was enough to hinder him for a moment.

Seeing this, Noah smiled and stopped his own movement, gathering even more magic in his hands. Since Laxus wanted a head-on clash, he would grant his wish.

By now, Laxus was right in front of him, his right fist, carrying all of his magic power, flying towards Noah’s face.

”Roaring Thunder!”

Noah raised his left hand and caught Laxus’s fist. Countless bolts of lightning erupted from the point of impact, surging towards Noah. The lightning struck his body, creating a powerful explosion. Smoke and dust instantly enveloped them, obscuring them from view.

A strong gust of wind blew out from the center, scattering the dust. It was Noah, who had waved it away.

Laxus’s right fist was still caught in Noah’s hand. He was completely out of strength. His legs gave out, and he nearly collapsed. Noah quickly stepped forward to support him. Laxus glanced at Noah’s condition and couldn’t help but say with a bitter smile, ”You really are a monster. My Dragon Slayer Secret Art hit you dead on, and you don’t even have a scratch.”

”You’re wrong about that. I am a little injured.” Noah pointed to his clothes. Laxus saw a few small, scorched holes.

”This is what you call being injured?” Laxus asked, annoyed.

”There’s more.” Noah held up the left hand that had caught the punch. The palm was clearly bright red. ”Isn’t this an injury?”

Laxus rolled his eyes. ”Do you think I don’t know how strong your damn physique and recovery are? A red palm counts as an injury? Look, it’s already starting to heal.”

And it was true. The large red patch on Noah’s palm was already starting to fade and was much smaller than it had been a moment ago.

”None of my other magic had any effect on you,” Laxus said, dejected. ”You took so many spells head-on, and only my final Secret Art had any effect at all, and even then, not much. It’s really discouraging.”

”You can’t look at it that way. Your current strength is already better than most people’s. The S-Class wizards of other guilds aren’t as strong as you. Besides, you’ve only been learning Dragon Slayer magic for a year or two; you’re not very skilled with it yet. You have to remember, this is a magic meant to fight dragons. How could it possibly be weak?”

~~~

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