Seeing this, Gray grew serious as well. He placed one hand in a fist and the other flat over it in front of him, assuming the opening stance for his Make Magic.
"Then 3... 2... 1! The duel begins!" As the surrounding countdown reached zero, their duel officially began.
"Ice Make... Lancer!" Gray swept his hands out, scattering freezing air as several ice lances appeared in the air and shot toward Ed.
"A simple probe won't decide the winner." Ed casually threw out a Flying Thunder God Kunai, sending it through the gaps between the lances toward Gray.
"Wait, is that newcomer not going to dodge?" Mira watched Ed show no intention of evading. He had even thrown a strange dart at Gray, leaving her puzzled. "Maybe he has some kind of defensive method." Lisanna looked at the scene and responded casually.
Gray slightly shifted aside to dodge the incoming kunai. Seeing that Ed was about to be struck by the lances yet still had no intention of dodging, he could not help calling out, "Ed! Be careful! Don't get distracted! Focus on the duel!"
"Don't worry." Ed seemed to be paying no attention at all to the approaching lances. Instead, he stared at the kunai he had thrown and said, "I'm..." "Whoosh!" A flash of golden light passed, and Ed vanished from where he stood. "Very focused!" His voice came from Gray's side. "What?!" Gray had just turned his head when a fist appeared before his eyes. In that split second, Gray had no time to dodge or cast magic. He could only lean his upper body back and raise his arms in an attempt to block the blow.
The instant the fist struck Gray's arm, tremendous strength surged from Ed's fist. Gray immediately lost his balance and was sent flying.
What is this strength? Isn't his magic spatial? How can he be this strong? But don't think you can beat me just because you're strong! Gray flipped in midair, adjusted his posture, and once again assumed the opening stance for Ice Magic.
"Ice Make... Rocket Launcher!" Gray materialized an ice rocket launcher, aimed it at Ed, and decisively pulled the trigger. An ice cannonball flew toward Ed. At the same time, using the recoil, he cast again. "Ice Make... Spear Lancer!" More ice lances materialized and shot toward Ed's position.
"I'm not done yet!" Gray suddenly unleashed his magic power. "Ice Make... Siege Hammer!" A massive ice hammer formed in Gray's hands. He gripped the handle with all his strength and smashed the giant hammer down!
The billowing smoke obscured where Ed had just been. "Did I hit him?" Gray waved a hand, trying to disperse some of the smoke before him.
"Not at all." Ed's voice came from behind Gray. Gray's body instantly stiffened. "When?!" Before he could turn around, a huge force struck him in the butt.
Sent soaring into the sky again, Gray endured the intense pain and looked back, only to see Ed retracting his kicked-out left leg. "You bastard, Ed! You actually kicked me in the ass! Ice Make... Great Axe!" Gray angrily materialized a massive axe and chopped it down at Ed.
"Come to think of it, you should have realized by now that you can't hit me like this." Accompanied by another flash of golden light, Ed appeared behind Gray again and kicked him from the air toward the ground.
Gray slammed heavily into the ground and even bounced once. He seemed to appear at that dart's position after throwing it the first time. Then, the next two times, he appeared behind me. Wait, could it be?!
Gray climbed to his feet and turned to look at the arm he had used to block Ed's fist. There was a strange black mark clearly visible on it, and he could feel unfamiliar magic power clinging to it.
"So this is your magic, Ed! You teleport to places marked with an imprint, which is how you dodged those attacks just now. You marked me when you threw that first punch, didn't you?!" Gray said in sudden realization.
"That's right. But knowing doesn't mean you can stop it. Don't blink from here on out. It might end in an instant." Ed pulled out six more Flying Thunder God Kunai, three clamped between the fingers of each hand, then flung them out with force.
"Flying Thunder God! Pseudo—Spiral Flash Super Wheel Dance Roar: Third Form—Combo!!!!" With Ed's shout, he began his active assault.
As the kunai were about to hit him, Gray was just preparing to dodge when a familiar flash of golden light appeared before him, followed by a tremendous force that sent him flying again.
"Damn it..." Just as Gray prepared to adjust his posture in midair, he suddenly discovered that the kunai Ed had thrown were flying backward alongside him. "Could it be..." Before he could finish, golden light began flashing continuously around him. The rapidly flickering light almost connected into a line, and every flash came with a dull impact.
"Oh~ Amazing! Gray looks like he's going to lose. Is this newcomer going to win?!" The surrounding crowd exclaimed at the sight. "This seems really hard to beat one-on-one, right? Once you get touched, you're marked, and the attacks afterward become even harder to avoid."
"But Ed doesn't seem to have any other offensive magic right now. He just looks somewhat stronger than usual. In that case, if Gray finds the right opening, he should still have a chance to win." Some analysts also tried to find a path to victory for Gray.
"True, uncharged Monster Strength is still a little lacking. Then it's time to go all out!" Ed flashed to one side, clenched his right hand into a fist, and drew it back at his side. Magic power surged throughout his body and gathered in his right arm as he began charging Monster Strength.
Gray had only just landed and recovered from the barrage of attacks when he saw magic power surging around Ed's body as he took a charging stance. His hairs instantly stood on end, and he immediately launched his strongest defense. "Ice Make... Icebox!" A series of ice walls rose up, tightly enclosing Gray within. Seeing the ice walls around him, Gray let out a small sigh of relief.
Seeing Gray prepare his defense, Ed finished charging as well. He leaped high above the Icebox and threw a punch at the same time. "Don't worry, I promise I won't kill you!"
As Ed's fist crashed down, the ice walls shattered and exploded like potato chips crushed beneath a foot. Boom—!
Ed's fist grazed past Gray's face and struck the ground. The instant his fist touched the ground, it was as though an earthquake had occurred. First, spiderweb-like cracks spread beneath Ed's fist, then a terrifying shockwave howled outward in every direction.
Huge chunks of ground shattered and were blasted into the air. With a deafening bang, the entire street split open as if it had been hit by a level-seven or level-eight earthquake. Gray sat collapsed in a fissure on the ground, trembling as he said, "Is that really necessary, Ed? Are you trying to kill me?"
Ed waved a hand and eased the discomfort caused by his still-unfamiliar charging method. "Don't worry. I wasn't aiming at you. You won't die."
"What the hell have you two done?!!!!!" Makarov shouted in despair from among the spectators. "You tore up the entire street! Do you know how much the repairs will cost?! Don't even think about getting any income for the next year!!!" Makarov looked at the ruined street as if he were about to cry. His whole body seemed to have lost its color, turning gray-white.
Before you continue