The Battle Ends

Ed watched the magical storm on the field. Rather than releasing his own magic power to join it, he condensed it in his hand, ready to form a Rasengan at any moment.

As the smoke and magical storm dispersed, Samir had lost his earlier gentlemanly appearance. His body had stretched to roughly three meters tall, his skin had turned blood-red, and muscles bulged all over him.

Red bat wings spread from his sides, bone spikes jutted from his elbows, fangs extended from his mouth, and blood energy surged throughout his body. He looked as though he had accepted some kind of demon.

"Everyone who has seen me like this is dead. You won't be an exception. Tell me where you took Edward, and I'll give you a quick death." After Samir's transformation, his entire demeanor had become violent, murderous intent spilling from him.

"Do you think I'd tell you?" Ed lowered his body slightly, drew several more kunai, and held them between his fingers as his legs began gathering strength.

"I think you're a smart man." Samir watched Ed's movements as magic power gathered in his hand.

"Guess again." Ed raised his hand and fired the kunai. Before they could reach him, Samir unleashed the magic in his hand and blasted them away. "Did you think I couldn't see through your little trick? As long as I knock those things away, your spatial magic is completely usele—"

Before Samir could finish, a flash of golden light streaked past, and Ed split him straight into the ground with a Heaven-Shaking Kick. "That's why it's such a good habit to leave marks anytime, anywhere~" Before Ed could finish speaking, his expression suddenly changed, and he returned to his original position.

"What happened? Why didn't you keep attacking him?" Mira was fast, but she still struggled to keep up with Ed's near-teleportation movements. Seeing him suddenly flash back, she could not help asking.

"The blood energy around him isn't right. It blocked most of my force." Ed recalled the sensation of the strike. It had felt like hitting a piece of rubber. "And it seems to be corrosive too." Unnatural red blotches had appeared around the heel that had struck Samir, accompanied by waves of stinging pain.

"Then don't use your fists. Blast that guy into dust with magic!" After hearing Ed's analysis, Mira immediately chose to confront Samir head-on with magic power. She raised her hand and unleashed a Super Torture Flash.

Samir did not back down. He fired off a spell, and the red magical cannon collided with the black one again. The impact shook the entire mansion, leaving it on the verge of collapse.

"Try this!" Blood energy erupted from Samir once more. "Blood Prison Devour!" With a shout, the blood energy condensed into a shockwave and flew toward Mira. Mira did not retreat, firing another Darkness Stream in an attempt to crush the attack.

This time, the black and red shockwaves did not explode as before. Instead, they held each other back for a moment and canceled out part of their power. Then the red blood energy wrapped around and devoured the black magic power before blasting toward Ed and Mira again.

"Hahahaha! This move was developed specifically to deal with Mages like you! The blood energy that devours everything will turn your magic power into my strength! Didn't you want to kill me? Come on!"

"You bastard!" Mira wanted to fire another attack, but Ed immediately teleported her aside and spoke to her.

"Stay calm. He's misleading you. When those two attacks collided just now, yours did block his. His attack only devoured yours because it had more magic power than yours did. Look, that move is clearly much smaller now. Even if you fire another attack and crush it, the remaining power won't be enough to defeat him. And you've already used up a lot of magic power."

"Tch... then what do we do?" Mira was still furious. "Let me try first." As Ed spoke, a pale golden sphere appeared in his hand. He vanished instantly and appeared above Samir.

"Rasengan!" Ed slammed the sphere into Samir's face. As the Rasengan erupted with the spinning force of a miniature typhoon, the blood energy around Samir was dragged into the rotation as well. Seeing this, Ed immediately increased his magical output, and even more violent fluctuations burst from the point where the Rasengan met the blood energy.

With a tearing sound, the blood energy around Samir was ripped apart by the Rasengan like tattered cloth. Ed followed up with an uncharged Monster Strength Fist to Samir's face. Without the blood energy interfering, Ed's fist struck Samir solidly and sent him flying.

Samir landed and quickly got back to his feet. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth as his Blood Garment covered him once more. He glared fiercely at Ed. "You're the first person to break through my Blood Garment's defense. I'll remember you."

"What an honor." Ed returned directly to Mira's side and said, "It looks like his own defense has been enhanced too, apart from the Blood Garment. Ordinary people can't withstand that move of mine head-on. I have an idea for what comes next, but I'll need your cooperation."

"As long as we can kill him, anything goes!" Mira glared back viciously. "I'll attack quickly and tear apart the defenses around his entire body. Then you'll need to finish him off with a high-powered move!" "No problem!" Mira was eager to try.

"Just focus on charging your power. Leave the rest to me! Flying Thunder God!" Ed appeared directly in front of Samir and kicked him into the air with a Monster Strength kick. Enduring the discomfort of the corrosion, he drew several more kunai and threw them at Samir in midair.

"Spiral Flash Super Wheel Dance Roar: Third Form—Combo!" Golden flashes rapidly streaked around Samir, and each flash consumed part of the blood energy around him. As the attacks continued, Samir's Blood Garment grew thinner and thinner. Then Ed shouted, "Mira! Now! Straight ahead!"

With one final Monster Strength Fist, Samir's Blood Garment was completely shattered, and he flew in Mira's direction.

"I've been waiting for you! Soul Extinction!" Mirajane compressed the magic power around her to the limit, and heart-pounding energy fluctuations erupted between her palms. A deep torrent of energy, mixed with pitch-black and dark purple, surged forth and struck the flying Samir head-on. The massive magical shockwave blasted Samir into the air once again.

"How... can this... be..." As Samir muttered unwillingly, he finally collapsed after taking the full force of Mira's all-out attack.

"Hah... we finally took down that bastard..." Mira had consumed too much magic power and exited her Demon Form, slumping onto the ground. Ed was not feeling much better either. After forcibly using Flying Thunder God together with Monster Strength to tear apart Samir's Blood Garment, his entire body ached.

Enduring the discomfort, Ed bound Samir tightly and made sure he could not break free before walking over to Mira and holding out his hand. "Can you still stand?"

"Who do you think you're looking down on?! I'm Mirajane, the Demon and an S-Class Mage of Fairy Tail!" Mira stubbornly grabbed Ed's hand and used it to stand, but her legs suddenly gave out from overexertion, and she began to fall forward.

Ed immediately caught Mira in his arms. "All right, all right. You're Fairy Tail's strongest female Mage, but you should rest for now~"

"Just this once... I'll let you off..." Mira blushed in Ed's arms.