Chase instantly recognized the cold, sharp-eyed swordswoman waiting in ambush inside his home.
That's right this was Ikaruga, one of the Three Crows, the elite special operations unit of the assassination guild known as Skull and Bones!
At the moment, the Three Crows were working under Jellal in the Tower of Paradise.
Her appearance in Magnolia could only mean one thing Ultear's attempt to "redeem" Jellal had failed completely.
Chase wasn't surprised. After eight years of indoctrination and manipulation, Jellal's mind was deeply twisted. His obsession had sunk into the core of his being, impossible to reverse so easily even for Ultear, the very mastermind behind it all.
The Jellal from the original events was proof enough of that madness.
As for the exact reason they had sent assassins after him, it was likely because they blamed him for the drastic changes in Ultear since her return from Karna Island.
The Tower of Paradise was nearly complete. Jellal intended to manipulate the Magic Council into firing Etherion to trigger the final step of his plan, and Ultear's cooperation was critical. This stage was too important to allow any interference.
Which meant removing Chase the "culprit" responsible for Ultear's shift was necessary to restore her to "normal."
Yet Jellal hadn't come himself. Instead, he sent the Three Crows. Was it because revealing himself might jeopardize the Tower of Paradise, or… did he simply underestimate Chase?
If it was the former, Chase could understand.
If it was the latter, well then someone was about to get a very rude awakening.
"I didn't expect Mr. Chase to recognize the Skull and Bones. It's truly an honor for this daughter of mine," Ikaruga said smoothly, her voice calm even as the hexagram binding held her firmly in place. A dangerous smile played on her lips. "As for who wants your life, I'm afraid I can't say."
"Oh, and for the record, I am Ikaruga, of the Three Crows special operations for Skull and Bones."
The moment she finished speaking, the air thickened with the scent of smoke and gunpowder.
With a deafening roar, flames burst through the living room. A huge, muscular figure with the head of a bird came hurtling forward, propelled by roaring magical thrusters.
"And I am Owl," the newcomer bellowed, "who upholds absolute justice!"
"You ugly brute don't even think about getting close!" the Dark Magician Girl shouted.
Already prepared, she spun her staff in a tight arc, conjuring a shimmering pink barrier between herself and Chase.
But Owl's movements were unnervingly agile. As if predicting her defense, he abruptly shifted direction mid-flight, thrusters screaming as he cut a perfect ninety-degree turn upward. Then, with lethal precision, he dove from above, bypassing the shield entirely.
His target was obvious Chase.
The impact slammed into him like a runaway train. Street tiles shattered, dust billowed, and Chase's boots skidded backward, gouging two deep trenches in the cobblestones.
The force kept driving him toward the riverbank, threatening to send both of them crashing into the buildings beyond.
But before that could happen, Chase planted his feet, arms bulging with strain as he caught the thruster pack squarely against Owl's back.
Veins stood out along his forearms as he growled and stomped forward, pulverizing the hard stone of the riverbank beneath his heel.
The backward slide stopped dead.
"What?! With his bare hands " Owl's eyes went wide in shock.
As professional assassins, they had researched Chase in detail before the hit. His most dangerous weapon was said to be his unpredictable cards, and his personal combat strength was supposedly nothing extraordinary.
Their plan had been simple overwhelm him with speed before he could bring his deck into play.
But the outcome was clear now: Owl had badly underestimated him.
Whoosh!
Before Owl could recover, a bronze glow flared from a magic circle at Chase's feet, deep and mysterious.
His left hand gripped the smoking thruster, locking Owl in place. His right arm sealed and reinforced drew back into a fist, magic swirling around it like a storm.
A wind-wrapped magic card shimmered in his grip as he drove the blow forward, aiming to smash it straight into his opponent.
Boom!
Chase's fist came down like a hammer, smashing the magic thruster to pieces. Steel fragments and shattered parts scattered through the air.
Owl coughed a mouthful of blood and crashed heavily to the ground at Chase's feet, the impact cracking the stone beneath him.
"Your justice doesn't seem all that impressive," Chase said coolly. He flexed his sealed right arm and planted a foot firmly on the unconscious assassin.
"Master, that was amazing! So cool!" the Dark Magician Girl cheered, giving him an enthusiastic thumbs-up.
"Leaving your back open to a professional assassin isn't a good habit, my lovely blonde lady."
The cold voice made the Dark Magician Girl stiffen in shock. She quickly raised her staff to cast a spell but a razor-sharp slash struck first, slicing her in two.
"Weren't you trapped by Master's trap card "
She never finished the sentence. Her wounded body burst apart into motes of starlight and returned to the deck.
"I'm afraid that fragile trick can't hold me," Ikaruga said smoothly. She glanced down at the shattered fragments of the hexagram clinging to her white kimono, her tone dripping with confidence. "There is nothing in this world that I cannot cut."
She slid her blade back into the sheath at her waist, lowered her stance, and leveled her gaze at Chase. Her fingers shifted subtly an unmistakable sign she was about to draw.
A crushing wave of pressure filled the street. The motion of her draw was graceful, almost slow, yet the slashes that followed were devastating, each one fierce enough to seem as though it could cleave through space itself.
"Moonless Style Yaksha's Sky Flash!"
Chase's eyes flicked toward the row of homes across the river. Making his decision in an instant, he reached out with his right hand.
With a shimmer of magic, a massive shield materialized before him drawn from the Monster Card, Giant Shield Gardna.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The storm of blades roared toward him like a hurricane of steel. Even the residual force tore the river's surface into ribbons and carved deep scars into the streets beyond.
Kata.
A faint sound echoed and the next moment, the massive shield in Chase's hands shattered into countless fragments.
"It seems Mr. Chase doesn't care for the townsfolk as much as the rumors say," Ikaruga remarked knowingly.
She had already heard from Magnolia's residents about Chase's true nature. Now, with her assumptions confirmed, the next move would be simple.
Flipping her blade, she prepared a wide-range slash that could cut down everything in its path.
But there was no way Chase would let her continue.
A magic circle spun above, and three radiant swords descended, their holy light pushing back the darkness and bathing the street in brilliance.
Ikaruga halted her attack, reversed her grip, and swung her blade in a smooth arc.
Shhh! Shhh!
The flash of steel shattered the floating swords, scattering them into a glittering rain of fragments.
"The Holy Swords of Sealing… meant to bind the opponent's movements. Unfortunately, they're no match for my blade "
Thud!
Her words cut off with a grunt as pain exploded in her abdomen.
Using the glittering fragments of the broken swords as cover, Chase had leapt in and driven a powerful kick into her midsection.
When it came to controlling the flow of battle, Chase understood far more than Ikaruga realized.
It was no surprise to him that a slash capable of breaking through even Erza's armor could also destroy the Holy Swords of Sealing when they weren't amplified by cards like the Book of Secret Arts.
That was why the swords weren't the real attack at all they were just the perfect distraction.
....
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