To research a "side-effect-free" Dragon Slayer Magic, a vast amount of capital and manpower is required, perhaps even dragon corpses.
Ordinary civilian organizations simply cannot bear such expenses, so the inference that there is national power supporting the Research Institute behind the scenes is perfectly logical.
Almost as soon as Lightning No. 7 finished stating his guess, Yuri agreed with his thought in his heart.
"What did you say your name was??"
"Lightning No. 7?"
"That doesn't sound like a normal name!"
Lightning No. 7 could only continue to explain: "We experimental subjects have lived in this Research Institute since we were children. Almost no one has their own name. For the convenience of the experiments, the researchers name us based on our corresponding magic attributes and numbers."
"For example, the experiment being conducted on me is for Lightning Dragon Slayer Magic, and I am the seventh experimental subject since the founding of this institute to undergo the Lightning Dragon Slayer Magic experiment, so my name is 'Lightning No. 7'. Similarly, there are 'Water No. 6', 'Wind No. 8', 'Fire No. 9'..."
Speaking to this point, Edolas-Yuri glanced at those nearby who were seriously injured and nearly dying.
"So, these people are..."
"They are people sent by the Research Institute to test my strength, but my control over Dragon Slayer Magic isn't mature enough yet, and I accidentally took them out."
"Of course, I can't let them actually die, so just now I was using a 'cardiac electrotherapy' method, trying to get them to wake up."
Cardiac electrotherapy...
Can Dragon Slayer Magic actually perform such delicate surgery?!
If he can do it, why can't I?
For a moment, Yuri felt enlightened, as if a broad and bright avenue was waiting for him to conquer!
"You..."
Yuri still wanted to ask how to perform the electrotherapy when a loud sound suddenly came from not far away, interrupting his words.
Turning to look, he saw the stone wall in the distance slowly sliding open to both sides, and a beam of bright light shot into the room.
Yuri instantly became alert: "Someone's coming!?"
"That's a given, right!"
Lightning No. 7 said indifferently: "I already told you, this is a Research Institute, I am an experimental subject, and those people are thugs sent by the researchers to detect my strength. Therefore, someone is naturally monitoring the situation in this place at all times."
"The two of you, people of unknown origin, suddenly barged in here, so of course they have to come and check the situation!"
As soon as he finished speaking.
Two figures walked in from outside the door.
Not by coincidence.
A situation similar to Yuri and Edolas-Yuri's was also happening to the two Warrods.
However, the place where they fell was not an arena, but a bald stone forest.
The person they encountered was called...
"Rock No. 3!"
"That is my code name."
Rock No. 3 was a middle-aged man with a robust build and muscles all over his body.
He was able to make his body as hard as diamond rock while still moving freely, possessing extremely strong offensive and defensive power simultaneously. Combined with being in a stone forest and holding the geographical advantage, such an opponent was truly extraordinary.
Unfortunately, he encountered the Wizards of "Fairy Tail."
Warrod's "Green Magic" could grow trees out of thin air, which possesses a natural counter to rock-type terrain. Although his counterpart Kenny could not use magic, he possessed mystical items that could similarly manipulate plants.
The two joined forces against the enemy, drastically changing the terrain, and soon turned the entire stone forest into a garden.
Losing the geographical advantage and being entangled by "soft-overcoming-hard" tactics, Rock No. 3 soon exhausted his strength and was tightly bound to a tree.
"Regarding the spatial magic that sucked us in, do you have any clues?"
"That... perhaps I do!!"
Rock No. 3 answered in a muffled voice: "This is the 'Magic Science Research Institute,' a place funded by an unknown power that specializes in researching various types of magic. The 'Dragon Slayer Magic Experiment' is just one of the subjects. Besides that, there are many other departments in the Research Institute specifically researching other magics!"
"It's possible that a magic experiment from another department accidentally resonated with the 'Transfer Magic' that happened to you and pulled you over; or perhaps the 'Transfer Magic' you encountered was simply caused by an experiment in that department."
"As for the specific situation, you'll have to wait until you get out of here to have a chance to find out."
By the pool.
"Sea King Dragon's Surging Tides!"
"Fire God Demon's Karma Crimson Lotus!"
Accompanied by two loud shouts, water waves dozens of meters high came rushing forth, and fire waves also dozens of meters high rolled away. The two collided in the air, instantly splitting the area hundreds of meters around the pool into two worlds, one cold and one hot.
The next moment, the flames were extinguished one after another, and the water flow rapidly evaporated.
After both were neutralized, only white steam remained rising before them, obscuring their vision and hazily making those present feel as if they were in the clouds.
The two currents of energy, cold and hot, formed a gale that swept the surroundings, blowing the steam toward the two fierce combatants, making their faces flush and sweat pour out.
Ten minutes ago, after the two Zeras emerged from the spatial tunnel, they fell beside this pool, and at the same time encountered a Water Dragon Slayer Wizard who happened to be preparing to go for a swim in the pool—
Water No. 6, a young girl who looked slightly older than Zera, with an exquisite figure.
"Looking at the emblems on your bodies, you should be members of 'Fairy Tail,' right?"
Zera subconsciously raised an eyebrow: "Oh? You've heard the name of Fairy Tail too?"
"That's a given!"
Water No. 6 placed a hand on her waist and said as a matter of course: "A while ago, the Magic Council granted your guild master, Weston, the title of 'Wizard Saint.' Nowadays, there are probably very few magic guilds on the continent that haven't heard of your Kingdom of Fiore and Fairy Tail."
Zera found it a bit strange upon hearing this: "Didn't you just say you were an experimental subject? You actually know about the changes in the magic world?"
"I thought that so-called 'experimental subjects' should be the kind of pitiful lab rats locked in secret rooms, wearing black-and-white uniform clothes, dispirited, with pale and lifeless complexions, unable to have any contact with the outside world, with every move being monitored, and not allowed to leave the observer's sight for 24 hours a day..."
The girl before her was not only dressed appropriately and full of energy, but could even receive information from the outside world. This completely overturned Zera's impression of the words "experimental subject"!
"We are experimental subjects, not slaves!"
Water No. 6 glanced at Zera like she was looking at an idiot.
"In the end, we are no different from Wizards in the outside world, except that most of our actions are within the Research Institute, and then we learn specific magic."
"We can still eat and drink, play and sleep, do what we want to do, and possess the maximum degree of freedom."
"In a certain sense, although we are experimental subjects, we are also researchers here!"