Interception! Obstruction! Picking a Fight!

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"Clap clap clap..."

Clear applause echoed through the area, making Noah, Erza, and Laxus frown slightly as they turned toward the sound.

At some point, a group of people had formed a circle around Noah, Erza, and Laxus, surrounding the three of them. Every one of them wore a sinister smile, their expressions thoroughly unfriendly.

They were Phantom Lord's mages!

"Although you all seem rather busy, we'll still have to interrupt you. My apologies..." Moglia said as he clapped, his face full of smiles while his eyes shone with utter coldness.

"So, could you save your brothers' quarrel for later?"

"Of course!" Moglia narrowed his eyes, the smile on his face growing wider.

"That is, if you have a later!"

Hearing those words and seeing the hostile expressions of Phantom Lord's mages around them, even if Noah, Erza, and Laxus had been fools, they would have realized these people had come with ill intent.

"Hmph!" Laxus quietly released Noah's collar, burying the hesitation Noah's words had stirred deep within his heart as he spoke mockingly to Moglia.

"Looks like someone can't take a loss. No wonder you can only scrape by in some tiny branch!"

The smile on Moglia's face stiffened, and his expression gradually faded, though his gaze grew increasingly sinister.

"To remain so calm in this situation... you truly are Makarov's grandson."

"What do you mean, Makarov's grandson?!" A fierce look appeared on Laxus's face.

"The only one here is Laxus, not Makarov's grandson!"

"That doesn't matter!" Moglia impatiently waved a hand.

"Whether you're Makarov's grandson or not, as long as you're from Fairy Tail, that's enough!"

Noah's hands paused briefly as he straightened his collar, and he raised his head.

"So Phantom Lord really intends to make enemies of Fairy Tail?"

"I don't know whether Phantom Lord intends to make enemies of Fairy Tail!" Moglia sneered.

"All I know is that you people piss me off. Really piss me off!"

"Are you trying to start a conflict between the two guilds?!" Erza asked, her face full of vigilance.

"Didn't you say that wasn't a wise choice?"

"Then let me tell you what the truly wise choice is!" Moglia stepped forward and spoke.

"For you, the wisest choice is to kneel and apologize!"

At those words, not only did Laxus smile, his smile exceptionally vicious, but Noah and Erza's expressions also turned cold.

"Kneel and apologize?" Laxus swept his gaze over all of Phantom Lord's mages before fixing it on Moglia.

"Sorry, unlike you, I won't give you the chance to kneel and apologize to me!"

The moment his words fell, Laxus vanished from where he stood.

"Whoosh—!"

Amid a piercing rush of air, an afterimage wrapped in golden lightning flashed before Moglia. At nearly the same instant, a fist carrying golden arcs of electricity filled Moglia's vision.

"Ha—!" Watching the fist wreathed in violent lightning slam toward his face, Moglia's pupils contracted sharply. He let out a furious roar, and golden currents suddenly surged over his body as well.

"Boom—!"

With a thunderous collision, a wave of wind swept outward from the point of impact, while golden currents spread in every direction. The Phantom Lord mages surrounding them cried out and staggered back in panic.

Noah and Erza were closer to the collision, but they reacted faster than Phantom Lord's mages. The instant the impact rang out, they retreated explosively, stopping only after reaching a place the electricity could not touch.

At the center of the collision, Laxus, his body crackling with golden arcs, looked at Moglia, whose body was likewise coursing with golden electricity. His expression darkened slightly.

"You already knew I would be on this mission?"

Lightning magic was not particularly rare.

Rather, elemental magic with specific attributes like this was extremely common, and mages who could use lightning magic were hardly unusual.

However, someone capable of using lightning magic to a level rivaling Laxus's, who also happened to be leading this mission to obstruct Fairy Tail's branch, could not possibly be a coincidence.

In other words, Phantom Lord had known Laxus would be part of this mission. That was why they had sent Moglia, who was also proficient in lightning magic, to lead the team against him!

They had long intended to target Fairy Tail!

At that thought, Laxus's expression grew somewhat grave.

Meanwhile, looking at Laxus across from him, whose body still flashed with golden arcs and formidable magic power, Moglia's face turned ugly.

Laxus had guessed correctly. Moglia had appeared specifically to deal with Laxus!

Originally, Moglia had thought that dealing with a fifteen-year-old brat would be easy, even if he could not take him down effortlessly. Yet after exchanging one move, not only had his opponent not fallen behind, he seemed not to have used his full strength!

Could he lose to a fifteen-year-old brat?

"Don't make me laugh!" Moglia roared in jealousy and unwillingness, shouting furiously at the Phantom Lord mages around him.

"Kill them!"

"Ooooooh—!"

Phantom Lord's mages immediately shouted one after another. Without caring that their opponents were merely three underage children, they swarmed forward together to attack.

Naturally, Noah and Erza were included among their targets!

"A bunch of trash!" Laxus slowly clenched his hand, and magic power along with soaring lightning burst violently from his body.

"Die!" With a furious roar, Laxus transformed into a bolt of golden lightning and charged straight toward the Phantom Lord mages attacking him.

"Stop him!" Seeing Laxus's move, Moglia immediately shouted in a low voice. While ordering a group of people to surround Laxus, he cast a vicious gaze toward Noah and Erza in the distance.

"The rest of you, take care of those two brats!"

As Moglia's shout fell, three relatively weaker Phantom Lord mages who feared facing Laxus were overjoyed and turned to rush Noah and Erza instead.

"Get back!"

Knowing Noah could not use magic, Erza barked at him. Then, without the slightest fear, she stepped in front of Noah, her stern gaze piercing the three charging mages as streams of magic power swirled around her.

"Requip—!"

Magic power like flowing air gathered into Erza's small hand, causing it to suddenly shine with bursts of light.

When the light faded, a Knight Sword with a wing-shaped guard appeared in Erza's hand.