Inside Kardia Cathedral, the air felt as heavy as lead.
Ace stood ten meters from the edge of the magic circle, facing Laxus, who hovered just beneath the dome.
The three members of the Thunder God Tribe waited solemnly nearby.
The flickering candlelight cast eerie, distorted shadows across the stained-glass windows.
Evergreen was the first to strike.
She tore off her glasses and opened her eyes wide.
The purple patterns deep within her pupils spun to their limit like bewitching whirlpools.
Without warning, the power of her Stone Eyes erupted!
It was a well-known, lethal magic among the Fairy Tail members—a forbidden eye technique usually sealed away behind special lenses.
Its only weakness was that it required direct eye contact and couldn't function through glass.
But here, in an enclosed hall at a distance of less than fifty meters, that weakness was practically nonexistent.
"Turn to stone," Evergreen whispered softly, her gaze locked on Ace.
Pale purple ripples warped the air, spreading toward Ace like waves on a pond.
Wherever the ripples passed, candle flames froze, dust particles halted in mid-air, and even the light itself seemed to thicken.
It was the physical manifestation of "petrification," a terrifying power that could slowly erode even time itself.
But Ace didn't even look at Evergreen.
He merely raised his left hand, spreading his fingers and gently clenched the empty air.
Dark gold Digital Soul surged from his palm, forming a razor-thin transparent barrier flowing with intricate data patterns.
The moment the barrier appeared, the power of Evergreen's Stone Eyes crashed into it.
It was a silent collision.
There was no explosion, no physical impact—only a clash of concepts.
The pale purple ripples washed against the dark gold barrier, attempting to erode and transform it into stone.
But the data patterns acted like a flawless firewall.
They forcibly analyzed, dismantled, and ultimately reduced the concept of "petrification" into basic, harmless magical particles.
Three seconds later, the petrification ripples completely vanished.
Evergreen's face paled as she staggered back, disbelief flashing in her eyes.
Her Stone Eyes had been countered so effortlessly?
"My turn," Ace said calmly.
He raised his right hand, palm facing the ceiling.
Dark gold Digital Soul poured out, drawing a three-meter-wide summoning circle in the air.
At the center of the array, a short, comical figure radiating a sinister aura slowly materialized.
Puppetmon.
He leaped out of the summoning circle, landing with a soft thud.
The small puppet wore a red-and-white jester outfit, his wooden face painted with exaggerated makeup.
He sported a cast-iron nose, a wooden boomerang strapped to his back, and held a massive iron hammer that was entirely disproportionate to his size.
"Hehehe! Long time no see, Master!" Puppetmon gave Ace a theatrical, comical bow before turning to the three Thunder God Tribe members with a wide, wicked grin.
"What game shall we play this time? Marionettes? Or... smashing toys?"
"Deal with them," Ace ordered simply.
"As you wish!"
Puppetmon giggled, pulling the wooden boomerang from his back.
Though it looked ordinary, with a light flick of his wrist, the boomerang split and multiplied in mid-air.
It transformed into dozens of flying blades that swarmed toward Evergreen and Bickslow like a hive of angry bees!
"Fairy Bomb: Gremlin!"
Evergreen gritted her teeth, her hands flashing through a series of seals.
Countless phosphorescent magical particles materialized around her like shimmering stardust.
Though beautiful, these particles contained terrifying explosive energy.
But Puppetmon's boomerangs were faster.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The wooden boomerangs traced eerie arcs through the air, piercing perfectly through the center of each phosphorescent particle.
The moment they were struck, the internal magical structure of Evergreen's spell was forcibly disrupted.
Instead of exploding, the glowing dust rapidly dimmed and vanished like deflated balloons.
"What?!" Evergreen's eyes widened in shock.
At that exact moment, Bickslow sprang into action.
Bickslow's five bizarre, cup-sized wooden dolls—Pappa, Peppe, Pippi, Poppo, and Puppu—flew forward and swiftly enlarged into two-meter-tall combat puppets.
They formed a pentagram formation, completely surrounding Puppetmon.
"Attack!" Bickslow roared.
The five massive dolls lunged simultaneously!
Their movements were stiff but carried astonishing physical force.
Their punches and kicks tore through the air, sealing off all of Puppetmon's escape routes from five different directions.
Yet, Puppetmon didn't even move.
He merely stood his ground, tilting his head as he watched the approaching dolls.
His cast-iron nose twitched slightly, as if he were sniffing the air.
"Puppet magic... What a coincidence. That's my specialty too!"
Before the words faded, Puppetmon lightly swung his massive iron hammer.
Thud.
He didn't smash the floor, he just tapped it gently.
From the point of impact, an intense shockwave radiated outward.
Suddenly, glowing strings shot up like living tentacles, instantly entangling the limbs, necks, and torsos of Bickslow's five dolls!
The strings were as fine as hair but incredibly resilient, rendering the combat puppets completely helpless no matter how hard they struggled.
Puppetmon's wooden fingers danced through the air as if he were playing an invisible piano.
With a flick of his wrists, the five dolls abruptly froze—and then began attacking in reverse!
Pippi's fist slammed into Poppo, Poppo's leg swept Papa, Papa's head rammed into Peppe, Peppe's elbow struck Puppu, and Puppu's wooden claws tore at Pippi!
Under Puppetmon's control, Bickslow's five dolls descended into a frenzy of mutual destruction!
"No! My babies!" Bickslow roared, desperately trying to reclaim control.
But Puppetmon's strings had already pierced deep into the dolls' core structures, completely overriding Bickslow's magical command links.
In just five seconds, all five dolls collapsed to the floor.
Their joints were shattered, their magic was dissipated, and they were completely disabled.
Puppetmon retracted his strings and dusted off his hands in satisfaction.
"Two down! One left..."
His wicked gaze shifted to Freed, who had been standing silently in the back the entire time.
But just then, a sudden change occurred.
The transparent strings that Puppetmon had secretly attached to Evergreen and Bickslow during the chaos began to vibrate violently!
A glint of fierce struggle flashed in both of their eyes as they attempted to break free.
Puppetmon's "Puppet String" technique could turn any target into his personal toy.
But somehow, Evergreen and Bickslow were resisting the mind control through sheer willpower!
"Interesting!" Puppetmon's eyes flashed with twisted excitement, his fingers plucking the strings even faster.
"Let's see whose will is stronger, then!"
As the strings tightened, Evergreen and Bickslow's faces grew increasingly pale.
Their bodies began to jerk uncontrollably in bizarre, stiff motions, like true marionettes.
Yet their eyes remained fixed on Puppetmon, burning with resentment and fury.
However, one person is free.
It was Freed.
Just as Puppetmon focused the bulk of his attention on breaking Evergreen and Bickslow, a sharp glint flashed in Freed's eyes.
Freed followed the flow of control magic through the strings and channeled his own power in reverse!
"Dark Écriture: Concept Reversal!"
Freed's low voice rang out.
The strings attached to him suddenly flashed dark purple, and then—began wrapping around Puppetmon in reverse!
"Oh?" Puppetmon raised a wooden eyebrow, but it was already too late.
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