Since forming a team several years ago, the three of them had always completed missions together and often stayed in each other's company.
Levy was genuinely worried about Jet and Droy's safety, for while she was relatively secure in the girls' dormitory with powerful mages like Cana.
"It's fine, we're a team after all and three people are stronger than two," Levy insisted.
"That's right! We'll definitely protect Levy!" Jet and Droy were overjoyed to hear Levy's words, and since both of them had feelings for her, her trust in them naturally made them happy.
However, they were unaware that a shadow was watching them.
Gajeel had been secretly following the trio all this time.
He was the mastermind behind the destruction of the Fairy Tail Guild but he hadn't expected the Fairy Tail members to be so patient, refraining from retaliating against Phantom Lord immediately.
So, he had made a unilateral decision to ambush a few Fairy Tail members and provoke their anger to spark the war!
"Gi hi..."
Crouched on a rooftop, Gajeel let out a sinister chuckle, unable to wait to teach the three "fairies" below a lesson in pain.
With a powerful leap, Gajeel jumped down from the roof, his right arm transforming into a jagged Iron Dragon's Club as he lunged at Levy and the others.
Levy suddenly sensed something amiss, saw a dark shadow rapidly growing larger in her vision.
The attack was too sudden, so all Levy could do was cross her arms in front of her head and curl up, bracing for the impact.
BOOM!
A loud crash echoed through the silent street, sending dust flying.
'Huh? I'm fine?'
Levy had thought she would be injured or crushed, but nothing happened.
She cautiously peeked through her fingers to assess the situation.
"Raizel?"
Jet and Droy had also turned around in horror, only to see Raizel standing where Levy had been a moment ago.
He had descended from the sky, slamming the figure that had intended to ambush them face-first into the street, shattering several cobblestones under the impact.
"Raizel, what's this?" Levy gasped, quickly realizing that the person pinned down by Raizel had tried to ambush her.
Under the moonlight, Levy got a clear look at her would-be assailant: long black hair that was spiky and upturned, five earrings on his left ear, three under each eye, one on his nose, and clad in dark metallic clothing.
Combined with his ferocious expression, he looked every bit like a gangster!
"Droy, Jet, take Levy and leave first."
Raizel, having used Take Over: Jesmon to transform his right arm into a gleaming blade, kept it pressed against Gajeel's neck as he glanced at Levy and the others.
Gajeel struggled incessantly, but three sword spiritrs pinned down his back and legs, rendering him immobile.
Levy hurriedly said, "We can help!"
"Don't worry, for against someone like him, I can handle it with one hand."
"Alright, we'll go first!" Jet and Droy obediently grabbed Levy and used Jet high speed to flee the scene.
'How is this possible?! I didn't notice him at all!'
Gajeel, still pinned down by Raizel, was utterly shocked.
A Dragon Slayer Mage's sense of smell and hearing were incredibly sharp, so it should have been impossible for him to have been completely unaware of Raizel's presence.
Either Raizel had appeared out of nowhere, or he had closed the distance instantly from far away.
This guy had been playing the 'mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind' game...
'But I hadn't even succeeded yet!!!' Gajeel was baffled, wondering how this person could have appeared here so silently.
"This armor looks somewhat familiar..." Gajeel strained to turn his head and look by the moonlight, feeling a sense of recognition as he murmured to himself.
"Fairy Tail's Raizel..."
Raizel knew Gajeel would likely attempt to ambush Fairy Tail members again.
After leaving Lucy's home, he had used his Archive Magic to scan all of Magnolia, and having identified Levy as a likely target due to her smaller team size, it was easy to locate Gajeel quickly and shadow him.
The reason Gajeel hadn't noticed him was because his attention was entirely focused on Levy and the others, while Raizel had been walking far behind on the street, masking his presence and only appearing when Gajeel was about to strike.
"It's you!"
The name was very familiar to Gajeel, as Raizel had not only appeared in various newspapers and weekly magazines, but those publications had also hailed him as one of the strongest among the younger generation mages in Ishgar.
Jose Porla had mentioned him multiple times within Phantom Lord, stating he was one of the few truly capable mages of Fairy Tail.
Gajeel remembered how he had arrogantly claimed that if he encountered Raizel, he would devour his armor like a snack.
One of the reasons for Phantom Lord's current operation was the intelligence that Raizel was away on a mission and the other Wizard Saint, Ur, was also absent.
Phantom Lord had maintained informants in Magnolia for years, integrating into the city's daily life to monitor key Fairy Tail members.
Gajeel's attack on Levy had been carefully selected by these informants precisely because Shadow Gear was considered a weaker target.
Actually, Gajeel had originally wanted to target the real objective but had to abandon the plan when informants reported that both Raizel and the Salamander were gathered at her home.
"So you're the one who destroyed our guild?"
Raizel pressed down harder with the blade on his right arm, forcing Gajeel's face and neck tightly against the ground.
Gajeel wanted to speak, but the pressure was too intense for him to form words, making it difficult to even breathe.
'...I might be pressing too hard,' Raizel realized, noting he was also kneeling on Gajeel's chest with his full weight.
'No wonder the man couldn't speak.'
"Let's change locations."
Raizel used Teleportation Magic, and in a flash of red light, they vanished from the street to reappear in the Eastern Forest.
Fighting in the city would be too noisy and would damage the streets and buildings, which Raizel wanted to avoid.
"You ambushed me! This victory isn't honorable!"
The moment he was released, Gajeel immediately jumped back several steps, rubbing his neck and making excuses.
"Weren't you planning to ambush our guild members?" Raizel retorted calmly. "Why didn't you try ambushing me or the other S-Class Mages in our guild? Do you think your actions just now were honorable?"
Raizel fired back with three consecutive questions, nearly laughing at Gajeel's audacity.
First destroying their empty guild without anyone present, then planning to ambush Levy from a rooftop and yet he had the nerve to accuse Raizel of dishonorable tactics!
"I..." Gajeel didn't know how to respond because the facts spoke for themselves.
"Whatever, since that's the case, beating you up will serve the same purpose."
Though Gajeel didn't know much about Raizel's personality, he could tell he wouldn't win this argument, so he decided to strike first!
"Iron Dragon's Sword!"
Black iron blades formed from Gajeel's right arm, extending past his palm as he swung at Raizel.
Gajeel's Iron Dragon Slayer Magic differed significantly from Natsu, while Natsu could wreathe his hands and feet in flames, Gajeel could transform his limbs directly into iron swords or clubs, changing the shape according to his will without restrictions.
Due to his ability to transform his entire body into metal scales, granting him exceptional defensive capabilities, his Iron Swords had always been unstoppable, making him the ace of Phantom Lord.
He held great confidence in his own strength, and the only reason he dared not ambush Lucy earlier was because her residence was too crowded.
Attacking civilians or destroying an apartment complex would inevitably draw the Council's investigation, and that old woman Belno would surely lecture him again.
---------
Read 40 chapters ahead and support me on patreon.
patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator