"This is my battle form."
'Take Over... huh.'
Laxus examined Jenny's so-called battle form through the blinding light.
Even if it was a Lost Magic, it meant little to Laxus.
After all, he was a man qualified to learn the three grand fairy magics.
But the use of Take Over made him look twice, considering both Raizel and Mira, who used the same magic, were formidable fighters.
'Could she actually be strong too?' Laxus decided to get serious, not wanting to capsize his reputation in a minor ditch.
Four heavy machine guns appeared behind Jenny, hovering in mid-air.
They spewed bullets relentlessly, the blue flames on their barrels flashing in rapid succession. Laxus didn't dodge.
Instead, he simply activated his magical power.
Thick arcs of yellow electricity danced wildly around him, effortlessly vaporizing every bullet before they could even touch his skin.
"Then try this!" Jenny gritted her teeth and waved her hand.
Behind her, the guns transformed into two heavy sniper rifles, resembling smaller versions of the Magic Cluster Cannon Jupiter.
"Fire!" The two sniper rifles began charging up, then unleashed two golden shock beams straight at Laxus.
Laxus remained planted in place, not even bothering to disrupt the attack with his electric arcs.
Instead, he activated his Lightning Fire Dragon Mode and took the two beams head-on with his bare chest.
The smoke cleared.
Laxus's chest was completely unscathed, emitting only a faint wisp of white smoke.
Yajima stated the obvious. "The gap in raw magic power is simply too huge."
Jason, practically vibrating on the commentator's platform, waved his arms excitedly.
"COOL!!! Taking sniper shots head-on is COOL!"
'So this is what it feels like...' Laxus finally understood.
Taking hits head-on was genuinely enjoyable.
Having your opponent's strongest magic blast against you while you remain completely unharmed was an exhilarating rush.
No wonder Raizel liked doing it so much!
An ordinary person might think Laxus was humiliating them, but Jenny didn't feel insulted.
As someone with a strong competitive spirit, she also had another defining trait—admiration for the strong.
If Laxus were only slightly stronger than her, she might have felt envy.
But he was far, far beyond her. So much so that no amount of jealousy could bridge the chasm between their abilities.
"Next is my most powerful attack. You'd better think carefully." Another sniper rifle appeared behind Jenny, the three rifles forming a triangular configuration linked together.
All three sniper rifles charged up... and charged... and charged...
Three shock beams merged into one massive, golden triangular shock beam, roaring toward Laxus like a freight train.
This time, Laxus still didn't evade or defend.
"Is this bastard crazy?!?" Makarov stomped his feet in frustration from the stands.
As the devastating shock beam was about to hit, Laxus opened his mouth and took a deep, forceful breath.
This shock beam truly lived up to being Jenny's most powerful attack.
Even Laxus had to bend his knees slightly and tilt his head back to swallow it all in one go.
Jenny stared blankly as Laxus completely devoured her most powerful magic.
"What's going on??? He ate it!!!"
"Dragon Slayer Mages can consume magical power of the same attribute!"
"COOL!!! Laxus eating lightning is COOL! COOL! COOL!" Jason got so excited he started dancing on the commentator's table.
When Laxus took the first hit directly with his chest, he had already determined that Jenny's Machine Soul attribute was primarily lightning-based energy.
"I surrender." Jenny immediately conceded, even pulling out a small white flag.
It seemed she had planned to surrender outright if her ultimate attack failed anyway.
Laxus was momentarily stunned, then nodded.
"Fine. I didn't really want to fight a girl either."
As Laxus turned to leave, Jenny whispered. "Um..."
"?" Laxus turned back, giving her a puzzled look.
Her voice was so soft that if Laxus weren't a Dragon Slayer with enhanced hearing, he wouldn't have been able to catch it at all.
"Do you have a girlfriend...?" Jenny asked quietly, her face flushed.
"Are they exchanging words??? It's just too quiet, we can't hear them!" Chapati Lola practically wanted to press his face against the Magic Crystal screen.
Laxus didn't answer, just shook his head, then turned and left the arena.
He had encountered some fleeting romances during his travels, but a girlfriend? He truly didn't have one.
And he had to admit, Jenny was exactly his type!
"YES!" Jenny clenched her fist and cheered quietly for herself.
"I know what she said." Natsu grinned mischievously, baring his teeth in the waiting room.
"You could hear that?!?"
"Not hear, I can read lips."
"So what was it?"
"That Jenny girl asked Laxus if he has a girlfriend."
Several female guild members immediately covered their cheeks, blushing.
"Good grief! I'm calling it right now—good grief!"
"Riajuu like Laxus really deserves to die!"
Meanwhile, some of the older male members, represented by Macao and Wakaba, were indignant, complaining about why a gravure model like Jenny didn't fancy them instead.
That Jenny had suddenly taken a liking to Laxus was quite unexpected for Raizel too.
Amid the relentless teasing from his guildmates, Laxus found another dark corner to pretend to sleep in.
After Jenny returned to the Blue Pegasus viewing stand, she looked at her guild's preening, dramatic men.
The gap between them and a real man like Laxus was just too big.
Jenny leaned against the wall, gazing longingly toward the Fairy Tail side, trying to find him in the crowd.
"Laxus, come quick! She's looking over here." Natsu and Gajeel, looking like they were enjoying the show way too much, tried to drag Laxus up from his nap.
Macao and Wakaba watched in confusion, wondering if Natsu and Gajeel had a death wish.
"Go play somewhere else." Laxus gave each of them a heavy punch to the gut and finally got some peace.
What did those two idiots know? The unattainable is always the most desirable!
...
"Everyone, the final match of the second day of the Grand Magic Games is about to begin!" Chapati Lola yelled.
"Sabertooth's young lady, Minerva, versus Mermaid Heel's ace, Millianna!"
Raizel had originally thought there might not be any notable fighters from Mermaid Heel in this tournament, but not only did they participate, they actually had a designated ace.
This was quite surprising to him.
Mira raised a finger. "This Millianna's weapon is quite interesting—it's a pair of iron fans."
'A fan? Such a rare weapon.' Raizel raised an eyebrow.
For someone with such an unconventional weapon to be the guild's ace, she must be quite powerful.
Knowing everyone was curious, Mira continued her introduction.
Millianna was relatively old and had only joined Mermaid Heel last year.
On the field, Millianna wore a plain white robe with a belt tied at the waist.
Her sleeves were very wide, keeping her weapons completely hidden.