Astro could feel that Sylvain had finished healing himself, but the man still did not get up. Astro turned back and extended a hand toward him.
"Sylvain, do you still have the strength to fight Margrada? I'll handle Riser," Astro said, waiting for his answer.
Sylvain took one last look at Lisa's body before raising his gaze toward Riser and Margrada again.
"You won't be able to defeat him. He's too powerful now with that Aetherkrone. We're no match for him," he said quietly.
Riser laughed when he heard that. "It's good to see you've learned to use your head for once. Looks like my lesson wasn't in vain after all."
Sylvain clenched his fist. Everything had gone wrong. He had failed the Rosenwacht royal family and the centuries of pride and legacy that came with that name.
"I'm sorry, Father… Brother… I should never have released that weapon without fully understanding the situation," he whispered, clutching his right arm with his left hand.
Astro lowered his hand when he realized Sylvain didn't have the mental strength to continue. Instead, he turned his focus toward Riser and Margrada. As he walked forward, he took off his long coat and threw it aside.
"The Sylvain I saw before was confident and reckless. Just because of a breakup and a betrayal, you've lost all that? How disappointing," Astro said as he stopped, his eyes locked on the two figures standing like mountains before him.
He could feel it clearly—both of them possessed far more ethernano than he did. Each of them was leagues stronger. But Astro wasn't afraid. If that was not obvious by the way he looked at both of them with excited eyes.
"If you're not going to help, then stay back and hide," he said calmly. "I'll just fight them both at the same time."
Not only Sylvain, but even Margrada and Riser were taken aback by his words. Margrada had already fought Astro once, so she understood his strength better than anyone. As for Riser, he glanced at the young man and then at the weapon in his own hand.
'I thought having this weapon would be enough to intimidate anyone. Is that still not enough? No, it is enough. This boy must have some problem in his mind,' he thought, baffled by Astro's resolve.
"I thought you were smarter than this. Don't you realize you don't stand a chance?" Riser shouted, irritated. He hated the expression on Astro's face—the calmness, the unshaken confidence. There was no fear there, only pure excitement. As Astro started walking forward again, that devilish grin grew wider.
"It's your fault for dragging Fairy Tail into this mess," Astro said with a smile. He pressed his right foot into the ground, and the earth beneath it cracked from sheer force.
Then he whispered, "Also, you're just not enough to make a Fairy Tail wizard tremble in fear, old man."
In the next instant, Astro dashed forward with a speed invisible to the naked eye. Margrada, however, managed to see it. She moved in front of her father, ready to intercept.
"Hey, our fight isn't over yet, boy!" she shouted.
But Astro ignored her completely. He zigzagged through the air, vanishing from her line of sight, and in the blink of an eye appeared before Riser—driving his knee straight into the man's face.
Margrada looked over her shoulder, eyes wide. "What insane speed… Is he even faster than when he fought me?"
Riser trembled—not from fear, but from shock. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. He thought Astro was just bluffing. After all, he had obtained the greatest power he knew of. He was supposed to be the strongest man in this room, no, in the entire kingdom. Yet this young boy in front of him showed no respect for that strength at all. If even this wasn't enough to make other wizards kneel to him, then why had he spent all these years just to find the Aetherkrone?
Astro's knee slammed into the palm Riser had raised to block.
"You're a complete idiot," Riser growled. "Does your damn guild not teach you how to live? Such a useless guild, with no respect for strength… I'll destroy it after I kill you here!"
Astro tried to kick with his other leg midair, but Riser blocked again—this time with the hand holding the Aetherkrone.
Astro didn't care. He landed lightly on his feet and followed up with a swift round kick. Riser blocked it again, the Aetherkrone still in its long-rod form, ringing with impact.
"Oh, shut up," Astro said casually. "I remember Sylvain saying that Margrada would do the same if she thought we were a threat. Now what was my answer to that again?" His tone turned teasing.
At that exact moment, he sensed Margrada behind him. She lunged, trying to stab him.
"Black Wither Spear!" she shouted. The spear pierced through Astro's body—only for him to dissolve into a swirl of purple smoke. The smoke shifted to the side and reformed into his solid figure again.
"Oh yeah, I remember," Astro said with a cold smile. "Get in line."
He wasn't bluffing. Even though he had never fought Master Makarov himself, Astro could feel the enormous ethernano inside his body. Compared to that, this so-called power of Riser's was nothing. The old man didn't even come close.
Riser didn't know what Astro was thinking, but rage filled his chest. Years of effort to become the strongest suddenly felt meaningless.
"Then I'll just have to make you see the strength of this weapon!" Riser shouted, fury cracking his voice. "I'll make you realize what true fear is!"
He channeled magic into the Aetherkrone. It glowed with a deep black light as he pointed it toward Astro.
"Aether Radiant Burst!"
Dozens of green and black wind bullets erupted from the rod, shooting toward Astro at incredible speed.
Astro tilted his head slightly, watching them approach. "So Aether really is just a better version of wind magic, huh? That'll make things easier."
Before Riser could even process what he meant, Astro took a deep breath and inhaled all the incoming wind bullets in one go.
"What the—" Riser stared, speechless.
Astro exhaled slowly, purple light burning in his eyes as he raised his head, locking eyes with Riser again. "That was some tasty air."
He rushed forward in a blur and slammed his fist toward Riser's chest. Riser didn't block this time—he threw his own punch to meet Astro's head-on, his free hand glowing with destruction magic this time..
"Tempest Fist!"
"Destruction Fist!"
The two attacks collided in a deafening blast, cracking the ground beneath their feet.
As their fists connected, a violent shockwave rippled through the area. Astro felt his arm being forced back, the impact shaking his entire body. Then the pain hit—his skin began to decay rapidly where his fist touched Riser's magic-infused hand. But Riser wasn't unharmed either. The moment his fist met Astro's, he felt several tiny wind needles forming around his knuckles, slicing through his flesh in dozens of shallow cuts.
"I never thought I'd see one… a slayer magic user?" Riser muttered, gritting his teeth. "What terrible luck." He was shocked, but at least he still had his Destruction Magic to rely on.
"It's the same as Margrada's…" Astro murmured. He yanked his hand back and ducked as Margrada came from behind, her leg sweeping through the air in a roundhouse kick aimed at his head. Astro crouched and gathered a swirling purple wind sphere in his uninjured hand. He launched it toward her without hesitation.
Margrada barely managed to dodge as the attack streaked past her, its edge grazing her cheek.
By the time she managed to stabilize her balance, Astro had already healed his decayed hand. A purple blade formed at his now healed right hand. With a twist of his body, he swung it in a clean vertical slash aimed at her waist.
Margrada reacted instantly, summoning a black spear and blocking just in time. Sparks of purple wind and black light scattered through the air. But Astro wasn't finished—he turned behind and fired the purple wind orb in his left hand backward, straight toward Riser.
"Aero Dominion."
"Aghh!"
Riser, who was still trying to heal his shredded hand, was struck before he could react. As he was thrown several meters behind, the sphere expanded into a massive dome of swirling purple wind, cutting into him with countless invisible blades. Blood scattered as the dome tore through his body.
Margrada seized the opening. As Astro turned from his attack, she swung the back end of her spear into his face. The blow sent him crashing to the ground, sliding across the floor as his cheek burned from contact with Decay Magic. The skin darkened and crumbled, but before Astro could focus on healing, Margrada came in front of him..
She spun her weapon again, this time ready to pierce his chest with the sharp end. But Astro kicked upward from the ground, his heel slamming into her waist and sending her stumbling backward. His body dissolved into purple smoke—
—and reappeared directly in front of her before she could regain balance.
Astro showed no mercy. He inhaled deeply, purple energy swirling in his lungs, and roared, "Sky Devil's Rage!"
A violent purple tornado erupted from his mouth, hitting her on the face before engulfing Margrada completely. The blast sent her crashing into a distant wall with a deafening crack.
"You'll have to do better than that, boy," came Riser's voice from behind.
Astro's eyes widened. He tried to dodge to the side, but Riser's speed caught him off guard. The Aetherkrone pierced straight through his back and out of his chest.
Astro gasped, staring at the glowing black rod impaling him.
Riser leaned close, whispering into his ear. "I have to admit, your slayer magic is fascinating. But this is the end. Can you feel it? The Aetherkrone is slowly drawing out your soul. You should've run while you still had the chance."
Astro's breathing grew shallow. He could feel it—the weapon wasn't just tearing his flesh; it was attacking his very soul. His consciousness flickered, fading as though his soul itself was coming out of his body and getting sucked into the weapon.
Riser smiled faintly. "Looks like even you can't fight back when his soul is being devoured."
"Now I finally don't have to worry about anyone else standing in my—"
Riser didn't get to finish. A sudden kick slammed into the side of his head from behind, sending him flying across the room. The Aetherkrone was ripped out of Astro's body as Riser was clenching hard on it as he crashed into the wall with a violent thud.
Astro groaned in pain and collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath. He didn't even need to look to know who had saved him.
"What? Did the prince finally grow a spine?" Astro muttered between breaths, his voice hoarse as he began healing the hole in his chest. He had to admit—whatever that weapon did hurt like hell.
Sylvain rushed over to him, his hands already glowing with healing magic. But Astro raised a hand weakly. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. Don't waste your magic," he said firmly.
Sylvain hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"I am sorry. This was supposed to be my fight." Sylvain muttered.
Riser pulled himself out of the damaged wall, blood trickling down his forehead. His once-proud expression was twisted in rage as he glared at Sylvain and Astro.
"You shouldn't have interfered!" he shouted through gritted teeth. "I could have given you an easy death out of respect for you being my student once—but now, I'll make you suffer! No I will make everyone in this damn kingdom suffer and let you watch, you bastard."
He had thought this battle would be easy. That everyone would bow to him and tremble before his newfound power. But nothing was going the way he expected. It's like everything he did for half of his life is slowly becoming useless.
From the opposite side of the room, rubble shifted as Margrada climbed out, brushing dust from her hair. She glared toward Astro with fury burning in her eyes.
"Father, let me kill that boy," she hissed, her voice trembling with rage. "How dare he strike a woman's face." Her wounds were healing, but she could still feel the warped skin where Astro's attack had hit—ugly and raw.
Sylvain took a deep breath, looking at both of them as they started circling the center of the room where he and Astro were.. He extended a hand toward Astro.
"This isn't about me anymore," he said quietly. "I don't care about the Aetherkrone, my family's legacy, or even the woman I loved."
His eyes drifted to Lisa, still on her knees, her head lowered. No one could see her expression.
"It's not for any of them," Sylvain continued. "I want your help because I can't let evil like this corrupt my Joya. Even if I can't be her king, I at least want to die doing my duty for her. Will you accompany me?" His eyes glowed a determined shade of green.
Astro blinked twice before taking Sylvain's hand and pulling himself to his feet. His wounds had already closed, the last traces of decay gone.
"You know," Astro said with a faint grin, "you'd actually be a great king with that level of convincing."
He cracked his neck, then stepped forward behind Sylvain. Across from him, Riser continued circling, searching for an opening. On the opposite side, Margrada mirrored him, her spear raised, her gaze locked on the two men.
Sylvain spoke calmly, never taking his eyes off her. "You wanted to fight against the Aetherkrone, right? Wind magic doesn't seem to hurt you, but it seems to attack the soul as well. Can you really win?"
Astro smiled faintly. "I won't lose," he said. "As long as I can face him one-on-one without any distractions." He cracked his neck with his right hand, displaying quiet confidence in his movements.
"Not telling me your plan, huh?" Sylvain asked. "Then tell me this—what are the chances your plan fails?"
Astro didn't answer. His eyes remained fixed on Riser and the weapon pulsing with dark light in his hand.
"Well," he said finally, with a small laugh, "if we fail, you'd be mentioned with me as two of the biggest idiots in Joya's history for the next hundred years at least. So we'd at least be famous whether we win or lose."
Sylvain snorted softly.
Astro did not care about Sylvain's response or the lack of response. His purple eyes were glowing faintly as he looked at the weapon Riser was holding.
He had an insane theory—one that might shake the foundation of this kingdom. That weapon wasn't actually using Aether Magic at all. It was using Sky Magic.
From what Astro could tell, Aether Magic was definitely an advanced form of wind magic. It allowed the user to manipulate air with extreme precision and even imitate some of the effects of the lost art of healing magic. But Sky Magic went far beyond that. Sky Magic could not only do those but also interact with the soul itself, and even let the user use a lot of enchantment arts—strengthening their original magic to terrifying levels. And that's what Aetherkrone has been doing.
"Well, there's no time to learn enchantments the proper way," Astro muttered, his gaze locked on Riser. "So, I'll have to push myself to the limit and figure it out right here. Only then will I stand a chance against him."
His eyes burned with determination, glowing brightly. There were still so many things he wanted to do in this world—people to protect, goals left unfinished—and none of them would happen if he stayed the same.
This was the perfect opportunity to grow stronger.