Caprico and Zoldeo

Seeing that his sneak attack had failed, Caprico (Zoldeo) snorted coldly and waved his hand to cast a spell.

Magic gathered in his palm, emitting a blinding white light.

[Lost Magic - Human Subordination Magic]

A flash of white light, and a burly figure stepped out from the light.

He was a burly man wielding a Guan Dao (a type of halberd), exuding an ancient warrior aura, the blade of which gleamed with a cold light.

Rubenga's hero, Sanpōshin, wields a Guan Dao (a type of halberd) and slashes at Leo.

With a heavy whooshing sound, the Guan Dao (a type of halberd) cleaved down from above, aiming straight for Leo's head.

Leo reacted extremely quickly, using his feet to propel himself to the side. The guandao grazed his shoulder and slashed the ground, leaving a deep crack.

"Tsk, this guy's got some strength."

The Sanpōshin relentlessly pursued, sweeping and slashing with his Guan Dao, each strike pressing forward, tightly binding Leo.

Leo was forced to retreat continuously. Although he was able to dodge every attack, he couldn't free up any hands to support Lucy.

Zoldeo pushed off with his toes and rushed towards Lucy.

His target was Lucy from the very beginning.

Once the Celestial Spirit Mages are eliminated, the Celestial Spirits will crumble on their own.

When Lucy saw Zoldeo charging towards her, she instinctively took a step back, but quickly regained her footing.

She felt the abundant magic within her body; the power surging from the emblem had not yet dissipated, and both her magic and physical strength were continuously recovering and growing stronger.

"Now I can use the full Star Dress!"

Lucy clenched her fists, magic surging through her body.

As soon as she finished speaking, her whole body shone with golden light, which transformed into a gorgeous evening gown that enveloped her.

The dress was designed to match Leo's suit, with star-like patterns adorning the skirt.

Zoldeo paused for a moment, his steps faltering slightly.

What kind of technique is this? He has lived for so long and seen countless Celestial Spirit Mages, but he has never seen anyone who can wear the power of the Celestial Spirits on their body.

"What kind of magic is that?"

Lucy did not answer; instead, Regulus appeared in her hands, and golden light gathered on her fists.

With a sudden burst of speed, her toes left a small crater in the ground, and her body left a golden afterimage as she instantly rushed in front of Zoldeo.

She threw an uppercut, her fist glowing with golden light, slamming upwards towards Zoldeo's chin.

Zoldeo executed a backflip, spinning once in the air before landing steadily on the ground.

Lucy's fist grazed his chin, the force of the blow making his collar flutter.

"Very interesting magic, no wonder it's from Lady Layla's lineage."

Zoldeo straightened up, dusted off his collar, and spoke with a hint of appreciation.

On Leo's side, he punched the Sanpōshin in the chest, golden magic exploding from his fist and knocking the Sanpōshin to the ground.

The Guan Dao flew out of his hand and landed on the ground with a thud.

Leo did not pursue, but quickly turned and rushed towards Zoldeo, taking over the battle with Zoldeo.

The two exchanged blows, producing dull thuds.

Lucy took a breath and thought for a moment.

She looked down at her hands; that punch hadn't been very effective. Physical combat wasn't really her strong suit.

She took out a second key.

"Open the door! Sagittarius!"

A magic circle unfolded on the ground, a flash of light appeared, Sagittarius made its appearance.

He appeared with a bow and arrow in hand, drew the bowstring, and aimed the arrow at Zoldeo.

Lucy immediately activated Sagittarius Star Dress.

Her dress transformed instantly, the skirt becoming a shorter, more convenient garment, Sagittarius bracers appeared on her wrist, and a bow and arrow materialized in her hand.

He switched from a melee-oriented outfit to a ranged shooter.

Lucy knew in her heart that her physical skills were really a bit pathetic.

Using the Leo Star Dress for melee combat is a complete waste of mana.

Choosing Sagittarius's ranged attacks and having her provide cover for Leo from behind is the most suitable strategy for her.

Leo frowned; as he fought Zoldeo, he sensed something was wrong.

A strange sense of unease lingered around Zoldeo, as if something was amiss, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Lucy and Sagittarius begin shooting.

Arrows were fired in rapid succession, each imbued with magic and slicing through the air as they hurtled towards Zoldeo.

Lucy drew her bow and released her arrow quickly, but not as quickly as Sagittarius.

Her arrows veered off course dramatically, and several even nearly hit Leo.

"Miss Lucy, your aim still needs practice."

"Stop talking nonsense! Just shoot!"

Leo discovered the key problem. He dodged Zoldeo's punch by the side, his pupils slightly contracting as he glanced at Lucy out of the corner of his eye.

"No, Lucy, your condition is clearly deteriorating!"

"Ah?"

Lucy paused, her hands moving for a moment, not understanding what Leo meant.

She felt great; she had plenty of magic and energy.

Sagittarius, however, understood; his observation skills were even sharper than Leo's.

He squinted and stared at Lucy for two seconds.

"Miss Lucy, your condition has been weakened; the power of your archery is decreasing. It's not a problem with your magic; it's a decline in your physical abilities."

Lucy tried jumping, but she couldn't jump as high as before.

She jumped again after landing, this time even lower.

"Really! I don't feel tired, but I just can't jump higher!"

Leo leaned back to avoid Zoldeo's kick, his toes barely touching the ground as he slid two steps backward.

"Neither Sagittarius nor I have experienced a decline in our abilities, which means his magic is targeted at humans. It definitely has a limited range; you guys attack from a distance!"

"Clear!"

Sagittarius fired as he retreated, his arrows constantly suppressing Zoldeo's movement as he pulled Lucy backward.

His retreat was swift and decisive; with each step he took, he fired an arrow, maintaining perfect rhythm.

Lucy jogged backward, retreating about twenty meters, then stopped and tried jumping again.

Still not high enough, she retreated another ten meters.

She was finally satisfied after jumping to the same height as before.

"Right here!"

She drew her bow and began firing wildly at Zoldeo.

The arrows flew in a straight line, whistling as they shot towards Zoldeo.

"Take this arrow! Oh no, take a hundred arrows!"

Lucy felt incredibly excited.

With an endless supply of magic, she effortlessly opened Double Gate Opening while donning the Star Dress.

She had never fought such a rich battle before. Summoning just one Celestial Spirit was already a struggle, but now she could simultaneously open two and maintain continuous damage output. It felt amazing.

This was the first time Leo had ever felt so good in the human world.

With abundant magic and stamina, his punches were several times more powerful than usual.

He fought with increasing ferocity, his Regulus exploding from his fists, each punch carrying a golden shockwave.

Zoldeo was in an awkward position.

He gradually found himself struggling against the combined attack of three men.

Leo's fists pressed down from the front, Lucy's arrows rained down from afar, and Sagittarius's precise shots were specifically aimed at his weaknesses.

He tried to summon the other heroic spirits he had, but they were immediately destroyed by Sagittarius's arrow, leaving them no time to be of any use.

"Hateful..."

Zoldeo gritted his teeth, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

His steps began to falter, and his blocking arm went numb from Leo's punch.

His eyes narrowed; this was the only way.

Zoldeo suddenly abandoned his defenses, allowing Leo to punch him in the chest.

Using the force of the impact, he fell backward and simultaneously tightened his grip on Leo's neck.

"You!"

Leo tried to break free, but Zoldeo's arms were firmly wrapped around his neck.

Zoldeo summoned the Sanpōshin, Sanpōshin a type of halberd) and aimed it at the two men.

Puff!

The halberd pierced through both Zoldeo and Leo.

Lucy's eyes widened, and she nearly dropped the bow and arrow in her hand.

"Leo!"

She didn't understand what this Capricorn was trying to do.

Leo is Celestial Spirit; if he is seriously injured, he can return to the Celestial Spirit World to recuperate and his body can recover.

But why did Zoldeo want to take Leo down with him? Wasn't he unable to return to the Celestial Spirit World?

Leo and Zoldeo fell to the ground simultaneously with a dull thud.

Both of them lost consciousness and lay motionless on the ground.

Sagittarius frowned and put down his bow and arrow.

"The magic just now... Logically speaking, Celestial Spirits shouldn't be able to learn human magic, which contradicts their Celestial Spirit. He might not be Capricorn, at least not a pure Capricorn."

"Then who is he?"

"I don't know, but it's definitely not Caprico himself."

At that moment, Leo stood up.

He dusted himself off, his movements as natural as ever.

"Hey Lucy, it's over!"

Just as Lucy was about to breathe a sigh of relief, she suddenly sensed something was wrong.

She secretly gripped the Leo key and tried to force the door shut.

As expected, the door couldn't be closed.

If it really is Leo in front of me, forcibly closing the door will definitely send him back to the Celestial Spirit World.

But the door won't close now, which means that the Leo in front of us isn't Leo at all.

Lucy's heart sank, and a chill ran down her spine.

She gave Sagittarius a look, Sagittarius nodded slightly, drawing the bowstring taut again.

Leo (Zoldeo) clicked his tongue when he saw that the two didn't approach, and the expression on his face became distorted.

"Ah, ah, you really aren't easy to fool. How come you Fairy Tail people are all so smart?"

He gathered the Regulus in his hands, and golden light danced in his palms.

He pointed his hand at his chest, as if to stab himself through.

"Miss Lucy, throw all the keys over here, or Leo will die here today."

Seeing Lucy 'Zoldeo shamelessness, Lucy's face flushed red with anger, and her hand holding the key trembled uncontrollably.

You bastard!

She glared at Zoldeo through gritted teeth, but her hand still reached for the key pouch at her waist.

She didn't know if Zoldeo would keep his promise.

Even if he hands over the key, he might still kill Leo.

But if he doesn't pay, Leo will...

Lucy was reluctant to part with the Celestial Spirit, and she was also reluctant to Leo.

Her hands trembled more and more violently, and the keys clinked crisply in her fingers.

Just as she was about to throw the key away.

Behind Leo (Zoldeo), a figure swayed as he stood up.

Caprico.

A true Capricorn is covered in blood, with a wound on their chest from being stabbed by a dagger.

But he gritted his teeth, straightened his body, and then punched Leo in the back.

Bang!

Zoldeo was punched out of Leo's body, and a phantom figure sprang out from Leo's body, floating in mid-air.

It was a bizarrely shaped humanoid figure with a distorted face and an aura of coldness emanating from it.

Leo swayed, but he managed to stay upright.

He raised his hand, Regulus condensed into the brightest radiance in his palm.

"Go to hell, you bastard."

The golden light transformed into a beam of light, completely annihilating Zoldeo.

The black figure vanished in the light, turning to ashes before it could even scream.

Lucy rushed over with tears in her eyes and hugged Leo tightly.

"Thank goodness! You scared me to death! I thought you were really going to die!"

"Hey, be gentle, I still have a wound on my chest."

Leo winced as Lucy hugged him, but he still reached out and patted her head.

"Don't worry, I'm not that easy to kill."

Caprico stood to the side, clutching the wound on his chest, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Miss Lucy, thank you."