"This is a move I prepared just for you—enjoy it to your heart's content!"
With those words, Charles transformed into a red comet, hurtling toward Patri at breakneck speed.
"Light Magic: Judgement Light Swords!"
Patri no longer dared to treat him with anything less than full seriousness. The current Charles had become a genuine threat. He unleashed one of his most powerful spells—but to his shock, the light swords that once pierced everything shattered on impact with the approaching Charles.
If Charles's body before had been like wood, then now it was forged of the toughest alloy. Unfazed, Charles closed in and grabbed one of the incoming light swords bare-handed—crushing it with ease.
Startled, Patri quickly dodged a flaming roundhouse kick, retreating far into the air. Charles's foot struck the already cratered cliffside, reducing the rest of it to rubble.
Amid the raining debris, Charles looked up at Patri.
"Did you really think you could run?"
To those watching below, it looked like a red and a golden light streaking and clashing through the air, spiraling around the cavern's ceiling. Each exchange unleashed shockwaves that sent rocks tumbling down like hail.
Thankfully, Finral had already teleported the injured away from the cavern. Otherwise, they might've survived their wounds only to be buried alive.
"Amazing!" Asta stared up, unblinking, though he couldn't make out a thing.
"I can't see what's happening at all! Damn it… if only I had magic power…" Asta groaned in frustration.
Yami gave him a whack on the head. "Idiot. If you can't see it, use ki!"
He then began teaching Asta about sensing "ki" and how to use it in battle.
While this "friendly" lecture continued down below, the clash above was approaching its conclusion.
In their final exchange, both Charles and Patri unleashed everything. The explosive backlash blew the entire top off the mountain cave.
Hovering in place, Charles exhaled a puff of white-hot steam and ripped off his shredded, scorched shirt. He looked toward Patri, who was likewise scorched, his robes half-burned, body marred with burns of varying sizes.
Gone was Patri's composure. His face twisted with frustration and confusion.
"What's wrong? Confused?" Charles said coldly. "This is the result of the training I put myself through after losing to you. I call it… Dragonblood Mode."
…
Three Days Earlier – After the Capital Riot
Though Charles had suffered some heavy wounds, most were surface-level. The real issue had been blood loss. With his inherently strong physique, he fully recovered after three days of rest.
Then, he immediately sought out Yami for directions to one specific place:
Yultim Volcano – a High Mana Zone
In this world, some regions are so saturated with mana that they develop supernatural phenomena.
Yultim Volcano, deep within the Clover Kingdom, was one such place. Because of its overwhelming fire-element mana, the entire area resembled hell itself.
The intense mana alone was enough to kill mages with weak magic power. But for strong mages, these dangerous lands served as crucibles of training.
High mana areas accelerate magical growth. Just to survive, one must hone their control, refine their spells, and strengthen their body. For Charles, this made Yultim Volcano the perfect training ground.
When he arrived and gazed out over the rivers of lava, he understood: the first challenge would be climbing the volcano.
His initial goal was to master the local technique known as Mana Skin.
Mana Skin was a method of refining mana control to maintain constant magical reinforcement over one's body, cloaking it with their innate elemental attribute.
At its peak, Mana Skin could evolve into Mana Zone, allowing the user to explosively transcend their limits.
To achieve that, Charles would need the pressure of a harsh environment like this.
But Charles went further. During his climb, he completely sealed off his own magic. With his high reserves, the volcano's exterior wouldn't even affect him—he needed to step into the core for real training to begin.
So he forcibly suppressed all his mana and relied solely on his physical strength to resist the overwhelming heat.
As a Dragon Slayer Mage, Charles already had high resistance to harsh environments. Ordinary flames were like warm water to him.
But the volcano wasn't just hot—it was pressure from raw elemental mana. Even Charles began to falter. His skin darkened to a deep crimson, as if it were iron heated in a forge.
He could've released his magic to alleviate the pain at any moment, but instead, he gritted his teeth and kept climbing—step by agonizing step.
The trauma of the capital riot weighed heavily on him. Though his performance had been impeccable, Charles couldn't forgive himself.
Fuegoleon remained critically injured. The loss of his arm had been avoided this time, but the result was the same.
Charles had believed he could change the outcome. But the cold truth slapped him in the face—he'd changed nothing.
He never told anyone, but Charles had always carried a secret ambition: to change the fate of Igneel's death.
To do that, he would one day have to face the root of all tragedy—Acnologia, the Dragon King of Despair.
But he hadn't even been able to defeat Patri. What right did he have to think he could slay Acnologia?
Yes, he had time. He wasn't at his peak yet. But when he recalled Acnologia's overwhelming power…
In the original story, Acnologia, after devouring the Space Between Time, split into his human and dragon forms. The dragon was sealed by a continent-wide ultimate spell, Fairy Sphere, fueled by the collective mana of all mages.
The human side? It took Natsu and seven other peak Dragon Slayers to destroy him.
Facing such a future foe, Charles couldn't believe he'd ever been proud of his strength. The arrogance of being a "transmigrator" had long since vanished.
His body screamed under the strain. Mentally exhausted, his thoughts turned chaotic. Eventually, only one phrase remained:
"I… am too weak."
His nails dug into his palms, blood dripping to the ground and sizzling into steam.
Crack!
A sound echoed from deep within his body—like something shattering.
…
Meanwhile – In the Fairy Tail World
Amidst rivers of lava and seas of fire, two glowing eyes opened in the darkness.
A massive dragon stirred.
"So… the awakening has begun," the dragon murmured with pride.
"Dragons are proud beings. But true pride begins only after accepting one's weakness. Recognize your frailty—and keep moving forward."
Back in Yultim Volcano, Charles stood frozen.
Then he realized—it had begun.
The dormant Dragon Seed within him had sprouted.
A newer, fiercer, and more explosive power surged through his veins.
His Dragon Force… had awakened.
(Igneel: But… something's wrong. I can't sense Charles's location anymore. Where did that kid go…?)
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