On the sky island…
"I didn't expect to be saved by you guys of all people…" Graxia said while catching her breath, looking at Swan and her team as they walked toward them. After a moment, she asked, "So what's the catch? Did you guys want to defeat us yourselves so the points we earned don't go to waste?"
Graxia narrowed her eyes at Swan. Swan might have saved them, but they were still in the middle of a competition. If they stayed inside the sky island arena until the end, they would have to fight eventually anyway.
"Aren't you a smart girl… but even if you figured it out, what can you do? Do you have any more energy to fight now?" A grin formed on Swan's face as she looked at Graxia.
In the colosseum…
"The young generation sure has a lot of talent nowadays… they are not that bad, are they?" At the VIP stand, in a far corner, away from the nobles and royals, an old-looking man with a thick white beard and hair spoke, asking the person beside him.
Belno finally stopped looking at Aurora and turned to Org with a bit of surprise on her face.
"That is not like you. I remember you used to hate young people's guts the most… Is it because of your new student that you changed your mind?"
"Well, I still do hate their guts… but I am not going to deny their potential," Org said after a moment, looking back at the screens. There were three of them now. One screen was showing Laxus and Percival. Another was showing Astro against the Joya Kingdom wizards. The last one was showing Swan's Stella Kingdom team facing Graxia's Seven Kingdoms team.
"Potential of young wizards?"
Belno slowly turned her gaze back to the screens. It was unknown what was going through her head, but she no longer looked at Aurora and simply focused on the battle displays.
On the sky island…
Astro didn't know what was happening outside the sky island. He looked at the Joya Kingdom wizards and slid down the rocks, landing on the ground with the bo staff in his hand. His gaze stayed locked on them as he slowly walked forward, but his mind was racing somewhere else entirely.
'I have to finish this fight fast… if I can get her help, then I should be able to avoid my death in the vision Zenith saw…' Astro thought to himself.
He narrowed his eyes at the Joya Kingdom wizards in front of him. All of them seemed tense and already standing in defensive positions. If Astro remembered correctly, the guy standing at the front was called Herb.
He had a black bodysuit and a brown cloak casually draped over it. There are two girls behind him… The slim, brown-haired girl wearing a blue T-shirt and shorts, the one who crushed the fake Astro's head earlier, was called Shyla. The girl beside her, a black-haired, curvy woman wearing a green T-shirt and a short skirt, was Acacia.
Astro didn't remember seeing any of them when they were in the Joya Kingdom before, but they all seemed to be around his age… or probably younger?
"By the way… why did you guys attack me out of all people?" Astro asked slowly as he continued walking forward.
The black-haired girl, Acacia, took a small step back and answered calmly.
"Who said we were specially targeting you?"
Astro didn't seem to believe it. He tilted his head slightly, looking puzzled.
"Really? I don't think people usually look up and expect enemies to appear from there, and Alvi was flying very fast, too."
"His Majesty told us that you are the biggest obstacle to our victory, so we targeted you." Shyla, the brown-haired girl in shorts, said.
"Idiot, he was just bluffing. Don't tell him that." Acacia looked at Shyla speechlessly.
Shyla's eyes widened as she realized what she had just said.
"Oh… don't worry… I won't tell him you have a secret weapon specially prepared to deal with him. The handsome guy won't see it coming, right, Herb?"
Shyla said this in a serious voice while still standing in a defensive pose beside Acacia.
Acacia blinked, then slowly broke her stance and turned to stare at her friend speechlessly.
Herb, who was standing at the front, also broke his defensive pose and looked back at her with the same expression.
"Why is it that when you mention me, you call me Herb, but you call this guy a handsome guy? Am I not handsome or something?"
Acacia blinked again and looked at Herb speechlessly, just like she had looked at Shyla a moment ago.
Really? Was that the point here?
Astro tilted his head a little while looking at the trio and continued walking forward slowly, dragging the bo staff along the ground. The tip scraped lightly against the rock as he moved. Alvi stayed back, watching the scene with a bored look in his eyes.
"Guys, he is coming, focus… don't forget that he said he is going to kill us," Shyla shouted, making Herb and Acacia turn their attention back toward Astro again.
"Don't worry, I won't really kill you… But if you give up now, I promise it won't hurt as much." Astro said with a casual smile, his eyes still examining each of them as he walked forward.
"Yeah, that is not going to happen… You can only win by going through our corpse." Herb narrowed his eyes as he watched Astro walk toward them so casually.
"Um… maybe it doesn't have to be that harsh… how about we call it an end the moment someone breaks a bone or something… um… probably as soon as someone gets a slightly big wound would do too," Shyla said from behind them in a low voice.
"You literally tried to crush his head moments ago… do you think he would go easy on us?" Herb said while looking back at Shyla, completely ignoring Astro again.
"Hey, I heard his body is very durable… that's why I didn't hold back." Shyla protested loudly.
"Really… I thought you finally grew up… you are still a child." Herb said while twitching his mouth.
"What did you say?" Shyla's brown hair rose slightly into the air as she got angry.
"Uhh… come on… can you two save the fight for later? We have an enemy to deal with." Acacia finally couldn't help but shout.
Both Herb and Shyla blinked and suddenly realized they were still in the middle of a battle. They quickly looked back at Astro again.
Astro had already stopped walking and was simply looking at them, quietly waiting for them to finish arguing. To be honest, the moment Astro realized that they were younger than him, he decided not to go too hard on them. So, he did not mind waiting a bit.
Acacia felt her face heat up slightly from embarrassment that the enemy had to stop and wait because of her friends' antics, but the feeling only lasted for a moment. She quickly regained her focus and looked at Astro seriously.
"Alright… Shyla and Herb, you will be the vanguard. I will support you from the back. Don't give him a moment to breathe." Acacia said in a firm voice.
Herb and Shyla didn't need to be told twice.
"Power magic: Accelerate," Shyla shouted.
Her figure disappeared from her place in an instant.
Astro's eyes widened slightly as he rotated the bo staff in his right hand and turned his body slightly, planting one end of the staff on the ground behind him.
Boom.
Shyla's fist collided with his bo staff in the next instant, sending a shockwave bursting around them. But neither Astro nor Shyla stepped back even a bit.
"Power magic: Heavy Hand," Shyla shouted.
Astro could immediately feel the strength pushing against his staff increase significantly. He had to grab the bo staff with both hands to hold her back.
"You are pretty good," Astro said with a smile while looking at the girl in front of him.
"It's useless to look at me with that smile. I am wearing the anti-handsome guy mask now. Your flirting won't work on me anymore." Shyla said while looking at him seriously.
"Um… I don't think I flirted with you before." Astro tilted his head slightly in confusion. Um… did he ever flirt with a girl before?... I mean, the only girl that he usually 'flirts' with would be Mira…but…
"You looked at me with those beautiful eyes," Shyla said while staring back at him with the same serious but innocent expression.
"..."
Ok, this was one imaginative girl…
"Wood Magic: Ironwood Daggers."
Astro suddenly heard a voice from behind him. He turned his head slightly without moving his body and saw Herb rushing toward him from the back with two black wooden daggers in his hands.
'It would be easy if I could just use my magic… but Imperium Eye can't be overused, and Sky Devil Slayer Magic is also limited now… And I don't want to break the spirit of these young people anyway, going all out already….'
"Guess I will just do it the old-fashioned way for a bit," Astro murmured.
He quickly shifted the bo staff from the horizontal position to a vertical one and suddenly swung one end of it toward Shyla. Shyla, who wasn't expecting the sudden change, was struck by the staff and sent sliding back several meters.
At the same time, Astro heard Herb leap into the air behind him. From the sound and angle, he could already tell Herb was about to come down with a downward slash from above his back.
Astro rotated the bo staff with both of his hands just in time and turned his body, raising the staff slightly above his head to block the downward slash from Herb's dagger.
Herb saw his attack getting blocked so easily, but instead of panicking, he immediately threw the dagger in his left hand, aiming straight for Astro's head.
Astro watched the dagger come closer and closer to his face. At the same time, he could hear someone running behind him. From the sound alone, it was obvious that Shyla had already recovered and was planning to attack again.
Astro tilted his head slightly to the right at the last moment and dodged the incoming dagger. The blade missed his face by barely an inch.
But the real problem was now behind him.
Shyla appeared behind Astro again. Even Astro had to admit that she was pretty fast. Although he didn't have eyes on his back, he could already sense what she intended to do. She caught the handle of the dagger midair and swung it toward Astro's neck with a backhand slash.
Astro's purple eye glowed faintly as he reacted instantly. He kicked Herb away while swinging his bo staff behind him with a backhand strike, hitting Shyla at the same time.
The entire exchange, from the moment Herb joined the fight, lasted barely a second, yet Astro managed to push both of them back without using any magic.
Herb flipped backward in the air and landed about ten meters in front of Astro. Shyla slid across the rocky ground behind him for roughly the same distance after being struck by the bo staff.
Both of them looked up at Astro with a hint of surprise.
"He is good…" Acacia, who was standing behind Herb, narrowed her eyes while looking at Astro carefully.
"Oh, this is going to be so fun." Shyla wasn't discouraged at all. She dashed forward again immediately.
Herb let out a quiet sigh but followed her lead, matching her speed as he rushed forward as well.
"Flower Magic: Vine Attack."
Acacia shouted from the back.
Both Herb and Shyla grinned slightly, hearing Acacia's voice, and accelerated even more.
They rushed toward Astro again. Astro only turned his head to look at Shyla. She seemed even faster this time. In the blink of an eye, she appeared behind him and swung her dagger in a backhand strike aimed straight for his chest.
Astro tilted the bo staff and managed to block the attack with the lower section of the staff. The moment the blade struck the bo staff, he twisted the staff slightly and snapped the lower end upward, striking Shyla directly under the chin and sending her flying backward again. Astro obviously didn't want them to pressure him at the same time.
Without pausing, Astro pushed the bo staff forward again and struck Herb on the shoulder with the opposite end before he could even get close enough to attack with his dagger.
However, just as Herb was forced back, Astro noticed something strange.
Several vines were already growing around his feet through the cracks in the rocky ground.
Each vine twisted like a snake and lunged toward him from different directions. At the same time, Herb and Shyla, who had both been pushed back again, dashed forward again with their daggers aimed directly at him.
Astro looked at the attacks coming from every direction. With quick footwork, he spun his body rapidly and rotated the bo staff with both hands.
The movement looked almost like a casual dance. The staff moved in smooth arcs around his body, deflecting every vine that lunged toward him from all sides.
Then Astro glanced at Shyla, rushing toward him again.
He bent his knees slightly and swept the bo staff across her legs, knocking her off balance. In the same motion, he rotated the staff with only his right hand and thrust the opposite end of it into the ground behind him at an angle.
Before Shyla could even recover, Astro turned his body and kicked the upper end of the staff with all his strength.
The bo staff shot forward while spinning rapidly through the air and slammed straight into Herb, sending him flying backward until he crashed into a rock and got embedded in it.
"Herb!"
Shyla shouted, but Astro didn't give her any time to react.
The bo staff rebounded after hitting Herb and flew back through the air. Astro casually caught it with one hand, aiming to hit her with it.
Boom.
Suddenly, a blue gas exploded beneath Astro's feet, before his attack could connect.
Then several smaller explosions followed immediately after, erupting around the area and engulfing both Astro and Shyla in an instant.
"Flower Magic: Sleep Bomb."
Acacia pointed her hand toward the cloud of smoke where Astro had been standing. Blue smoke spread across the battlefield, completely covering the area.
'Did I get him?'
Acacia narrowed her eyes as she stared at the smoke, trying to sense any movement.
Then suddenly she heard a voice right behind her.
"Not those four words in that order… please… never… ever… say those words right after attempting a sneak attack on someone."
Acacia turned around instantly, only to see…
A purple wind sphere was floating directly in front of her face, held within Astro's palm. The swirling wind pressed against her skin. It was clear that if she made even the slightest wrong move, Astro could fire it at her head immediately.
"You guys are pretty good," Astro said calmly.
"Your two friends never gave me a moment to breathe with their constant physical attacks, and you used that time to plant a lot of small Vilse flowers on the ground with your magic."
Astro briefly glanced toward the area still covered in blue smoke. Inside the haze, the faint silhouette of something could still be seen standing there. His bo staff had been left embedded in the ground to create the illusion that he was still inside the smoke.
Even so, credit had to be given where it was due.
"Flowers so tiny they are almost impossible to notice… but when they explode, they release a large amount of sleeping gas. And you planted quite a lot of them in such a short time… I am impressed."
In Astro's opinion, these three weren't overwhelmingly strong individually, but their teamwork was very good. If someone underestimated them, their coordination alone would be enough to take down even a powerful wizard.
"Get away from her…"
Astro suddenly heard a voice from inside the blue smoke. The smoke dispersed in the middle as Shyla dashed forward toward him at incredible speed. Astro wasn't too surprised. She probably had an antidote with her or was already immune to the sleeping gas her teammate used.
"Wood Magic: Tree Rush."
Astro suddenly turned his head to the left and saw Herb standing there. A huge tree had grown beside him. Their trunks twisted like giant snakes before shooting toward Astro at a terrifying speed.
Astro then looked back at Acacia, or rather above Acacia, where Shyla had already jumped high into the air and was aiming her fist straight at him.
"Power Magic: Heavy Punch."
"Flower Magic: Vine Trap."
Acacia jumped backward while shouting at the top of her lungs. At the same moment, Astro felt vines wrap tightly around his legs, trying to lock him in place.
"You guys are pretty amazing…"
Astro looked at the incoming fist and smiled.
"Compliments are not going to save you," Shyla shouted when she saw that Astro wasn't even trying to dodge.
"Um…saving from what?" Astro asked with a small smile, looking at his side.
The giant tree was about to smash into his lower body, while Shyla's heavy punch was about to crush his head.
Then suddenly—
Astro's body exploded into a cloud of purple smoke.
The smoke spread out instantly and covered all three of them before they could react.
Acacia, Herb, and Shyla suddenly felt their bodies being grabbed by massive wind hands inside the smoke. Before they could even struggle, the smoke hands slammed all three of them into each other with tremendous force.
The smoke then rushed toward a single direction and slowly began to reshape itself. From feet to legs, then torso, then head, Astro's body reformed out of the swirling purple smoke.
Astro casually walked forward without even looking back and grabbed the bo staff from where it had been stuck in the ground.
"I don't mind sparring another time in the future, but right now there are some places I have to be at."
"Where are you going? The fight is not over yet… we are still not done yet… come back…"
Shyla pushed herself up after the impact and shouted toward Astro in a strained voice. But before she could say anything more, she suddenly looked up.
Right above their heads, a purple wind sphere was spinning rapidly in the air.
"Aero Dominion."
Astro whispered.
A massive purple wind explosion erupted behind him. The blast shook the ground as the compressed wind detonated where the three Joya wizards were lying.
Astro didn't look back even once. He simply walked forward until he reached Alvi, who was standing there quietly like a well-behaved…. Um…well-behaved dog? Did Alvi forget that it was a crow?
Inside the colosseum…
The entire audience was captivated. Loud cheers erupted throughout the stadium. For many of them, this was the first time they had ever seen wizards fight other wizards, and the sheer amount of strategy involved had completely drawn them in.
"Oh my god, we got our first elimination… and it's a team wipe! Astro from Fiore managed to defeat all three wizards from the Joya Kingdom at once. Fiore is still in the lead!"
The announcer, Mike, shouted excitedly before turning toward the man beside him.
"Master Izen, what do you think of the fight? How did the wizards perform?"
Izen looked down toward the arena where the three defeated wizards were teleported to and were now being carried away on stretchers. None of them seemed seriously injured, mostly bruises and surface wounds.
"I would say his fighting style is far too ruthless… which is not something the Magic Council actually likes to see from a wizard. He was obviously stronger than the Joya kids. He could have gone much easier on them." Izen said while narrowing his eyes at the screen showing Astro climbing onto Alvi's back and signaling the creature to fly.
"Also, magic related to taming monsters is highly regulated by the Magic Council. I personally don't think an eighteen-year-old kid should be using magic like that either."
The entire audience suddenly fell silent.
Most ordinary people knew that the Wizard Saints were among the highest authorities connected to the Magic Council. If someone like him was suggesting that a wizard might be dangerous…
Inside the Fairy Tail guild…
"Izen… that fool." Master Makarov muttered while staring at the screen.
"I am going to kill that guy. Who does he think he is, talking about Astro like that?" Natsu shouted angrily as flames began burning around his fists while he glared at the bald man on the screen.
"He is one of the Wizard Saints of the Council, isn't he? It would make sense that he would hate a Fairy Tail member." Gray shrugged beside Natsu after finally putting his clothes back on, though Makarov could clearly see the veins popping from Gray's forehead as well.
"I don't think it's because Astro's from Fairy Tail… It's more likely because of the mark on Astro's face." Makarov rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Mark? I was wondering about it… is it some kind of secret magic technique, Master?" Levy asked in confusion. She had never seen that kind of mark in any of the books she had read. Although if she remembered correctly, there had been something similar mentioned in a newspaper once.
"One of the Wizard Saints, Siegrain, also has a mark somewhat similar to that… although his is on the right side of his face. Izen, as far as I know, hates Siegrain's guts, so he is probably projecting that hatred onto Astro." Makarov said while examining Izen on the screen.
Erza's hand tightened slightly at the mention of Siegrain. However, aside from Mira, who looked at her, no one else seemed to notice.
"Do you think Astro is under some kind of curse because of that mark, Master?"
Erza took a slow breath and walked over beside Makarov while asking the question, her eyes still fixed on the screen.
"Why would you think that?" Makarov raised an eyebrow.
"Well…"
For a moment, Erza didn't know how to answer.
"I think you understand the rules, but just in case… You are forbidden to speak of this to anyone. If the Council finds out about the Tower of Heaven, all of this would go to waste."
"The moment word gets out, I will destroy all of the evidence… this tower and everyone within it."
Erza clenched her teeth slightly before answering.
"Nothing… He seemed a bit different, so I was just a bit worried."
Makarov looked at her for a moment. It seemed like he wanted to ask something more, but a voice from the colosseum suddenly interrupted the moment.
"Izen… for a Wizard Saint, it seems to me that you are just jealous of Astro's strength."
Sylvain, the now king of the Joya Kingdom, suddenly spoke. His voice was amplified through his Aether magic, and the wind carried it across the entire colosseum so that everyone could hear it clearly.
Izen paused and slowly looked to his left toward the VIP stands. One of the large screens also shifted to show the source of the voice.
Sylvain didn't even wait for Izen to respond. Lisa, who was standing beside him, lightly patted his shoulder to calm him down, but Sylvain clearly ignored the message.
"As the king of the Joya Kingdom, I am proud of my wizards for fighting bravely despite all the odds. I also acknowledge Astro Blackmist's victory over them."
Sylvain crossed his arms before continuing.
"So now shut the hell up. Not a single person wants to hear how your bald head is jealous of the young generation."
"Why would I be jealous of a young wizard weaker than me, your majesty… I was just stating the…"
"Oh wait… Don't tell me… Are you jealous of people with hair? It's okay… not everyone gets to have beautiful hair after twenty-five…There's nothing to be ashamed of…Hahaha.."
Sylvain said proudly while flexing his long green hair like it was a trophy.
Lisa, standing beside him, couldn't help but facepalm. This was not how a king should act… this guy still has a lot to learn… But Lisa didn't blame him; it was what she wanted to say, too, anyway.
The entire audience grew even quieter than before.
"Your Majesty… I…" Izen tried to speak, but Sylvain simply waved his hand dismissively.
"Just stop already…. I have no problem with the fighting happening out there. Every wizard is giving their best in that arena. Don't undermine their efforts… We are not here to criticize their effort… As a wizard saint, you should celebrate the fact that they are all trying their best."
Inside the Fairy Tail guild hall…
"Yeah, that's right! How dare a Wizard Saint frame Astro as the bad guy? Those guys should know their place. That's not how a real man should behave."
Elfman shouted while staring at the screen.
"You do realize our master is also a Wizard Saint, right?" Levy looked at Elfman speechlessly.
"Prince Sylvain… he was there during our Joya Kingdom mission. So he already became the king?" Shawn said while staring at the screen. He clearly remembered the green-haired man.
"Well, looks like Astro doesn't have to worry anymore… isn't that right, Master?" Macao said while glancing toward Makarov.
But Makarov didn't respond.
His eyes were fixed on the screen.
"Um…master?"
But Master Makarov still didn't answer. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the screen carefully.
'It was only for a moment… but…. Was that….Arthur?'
Makarov narrowed his eyes slightly while looking at the VIP stand shown on the screen.
On the VIP stand…
"I'm honestly a bit surprised you didn't walk down to the announcer's stand and beat up Izen yourself."
Arthur said in his thoughts as he leaned back in his seat, watching Sylvain and Izen argue.
Aurora broke her gaze away from the screen that was showing Astro and looked at Izen for a few seconds before returning her attention to the screen as if watching Izen was a waste of time.
"In a way, we are still criminals… or at least that's what the Magic Council considers us. They obviously can't attack or arrest us directly… because of our identities and diplomatic reasons. But Astro and Siegrain are different. It would be better not to expose their connection to us publicly yet."
Aurora said calmly inside her head.
Then she suddenly paused and turned her head toward Arthur, studying his face carefully.
"If we defend Astro, People would start questioning his connection to you…since you kind of look like Astro."
"..."
Shouldn't it be the other way around?
Astro should look like him.
This wasn't a chicken-and-egg situation. Arthur was obviously born first… considering he was Astro's father.
Aurora did not care about Arthur's thoughts; she looked at the screen with a soft smile instead.
"Also, it is useless to throw dirt at him…Astro might not have inherited your ability, but he inherited your charisma perfectly… "
"Yeah, my look too… You know… he inherited my look…he looks like me… not the other way around…I came first… " Arthur said slowly in his mind, pouting a bit.
"..."
Aurora couldn't help but roll her eyes seeing him still caught up on it… Thankfully, Astro inherited her intelligence, not his…
Although…
Aurora gave a kiss to Arthur's cheek to calm him down before resting her head on his shoulder…
For her man, she didn't mind him being a bit stupid. In a way, she found it more charming.
On the sky island…
Astro was flying quickly across the sky on Alvi's back.
His eyes were narrowed as he looked toward the distant corpse of the bat-like monster far ahead. His purple eyes glowed faintly as he signaled Alvi to go even faster.
'I don't know how I will convince her… but there is no other option. I just hope she hasn't been eliminated from the competition yet.'
Beside the corpse of the giant bat monster…
Graxia panted heavily as her legs finally gave out, forcing her to sit down on the rocky ground.
She looked behind her and saw Argen and Bradley both lying on the ground, groaning in pain.
Then she looked forward again at the three people from the Stella Kingdom who were slowly walking toward her.
"You guys were pretty good…but you wasted too much magic defeating that monster…" Swan said with a smile as she raised her feet under Graxia's chin to raise her face.
Graxia could feel the feet right under her chin… she gritted her teeth, seeing how Swan was trying to humiliate her.
"I am not done yet…" She whispered as her golden eyes began to glow.
"Gold Make…"