"Of course it's Gray!"
Natsu answered without hesitation; even though they're mortal rivals, he always trusts his guildmates and believes in Gray.
Lucy also believes Gray can win, but the question is how.
You should know that in the previous fight, Rio had been on the upper hand the whole time; if Hop hadn't suddenly intervened and interrupted the battle, Gray might already have been defeated.
"It's the casting stance."
Elucia spoke up, "Did you notice that Gray always casts with both hands, while Rio uses only one?"
"Does that make any difference?"
Lucy still didn't get it; after all, she's just a rookie mage, a holder-type, and hasn't studied casting stances in depth.
Elucia didn't explain further; instead she looked at Hop, "You also know shaping magic—why don't you explain it to Lucy?"
Hop shrugged, "For shaping magic, single‑hand casting is faster, while creations formed with both hands are more stable."
Lucy immediately understood his point.
Shaping magic cast with one hand forms quickly, but it's not as stable as dual‑hand creations and can fail at critical moments.
Especially in prolonged battles, as mana drains, the drawbacks of single‑hand casting become more likely.
Seeing Lucy's spot‑on analysis, Hop nodded appreciatively—no wonder she's the heroine; she gets it right away.
While the few chatted, the battle on the other side had reached its climax; Gray and Rio, both at their limits, were already giving their all for a final showdown.
Gray clapped his fists together, and ice instantly coalesced between his hands into a massive two‑handed greatsword, which he swung toward Rio with a whooshing sound.
"Useless, Gray!"
"My single‑hand casting is stronger than yours, stronger than Ulu's!"
Rio flicked his single hand, summoning a gigantic ice‑crafted white tiger that lunged at Gray with biting cold, shouting, "Defeat me, Gray!"
Rio, focused entirely on Gray, failed to notice that the final details of his own shaping were rather crude.
In contrast, Gray's dual‑handed shaping was slightly slower, but each creation remained stable and solid, flawless.
"The one who's wrong is you!"
With a roaring shout, Gray slashed the flawed ice tiger apart, then landed a crushing punch on Rio's face, leaving him stunned.
Rio staggered back a few steps, swayed, and fell to the ground, his dazed expression tinged with melancholy and resentment, "I... actually lost?"
"Since you've forgotten Ulu's teachings, losing to me was bound to happen," Gray said, plopping down in front of Rio. Both were covered in wounds, the assorted cuts staining most of their exposed bodies red.
Rio gave a self‑deprecating laugh.
Indeed, dual‑hand casting was Ulu's instruction to them.
Trying to prove he'd surpassed his master by denying her teachings—he was truly foolish.
"Regardless, I won't give up on unsealing Dailiora," Rio declared, even after recognizing his magical mistake, he still intended to release Dailiora.
This infuriated Gray, and also left him puzzled.
"Why? Why would you do this!"
"That seal was the last thing Ulu left to the world!"
Gray's angry accusations echoed atop the mountain, but Rio simply turned his face away.
"It's for revenge."
A man in a black robe stood up, pulled back his hood to reveal an utterly ordinary face, and said, "My family and friends were killed, and even my hometown was devastated by that vile demon."
"A demon like that being eternally sealed is far too cheap a fate for it. But I'm just an ordinary person; I lack the power to defeat a demon."
"Until one day, Lord Zero found me..."
"When he said he would eradicate Dailiora completely, I finally saw hope—a hope that would send Dailiora to its death!"
As the black‑robed man's words faded, more figures in black robes stepped forward, shedding their cloaks to reveal, at a glance, ordinary people.
All of them had once been victims of Dailiora.
It was Rio who gave them a chance to take revenge on Dailiora.
Gray fell silent; he suddenly understood why Rio wanted to unleash Dailiora and then destroy it.
It wasn't merely to prove he had surpassed his master Ulu.
Rio's true aim was to annihilate Dailiora completely, avenging Ulu!
"So, for revenge, you choose to harm the island's inhabitants?" Elucia stepped forward, bringing up the matter of the purple moon.
Rio's expression flickered, "Wait, that spell merely condenses Moon Drops—how could it possibly disrupt the villagers' memories?"
"Right, it was Jerut who set up the magic circle; I called him to confront you..."
Rio and the black‑robed crowd scanned the area but found no sign of the short masked man.
"No need to look… he's already fled."
Hop's voice rang out as he chewed on some fruit and sauntered up to Rio, "That guy Jerut has serious issues; I've already fought him, and he's far stronger than you."
Rio's eyes widened; he couldn't believe that his loyal subordinate of three years was actually stronger than him.
If that's true, his allegiance to him would indeed hide ulterior motives... Rio couldn't imagine—Jerut had always overseen the Moon Drop circle; if he were tampering to give the circle functions unknown to anyone, it would be far too easy.
It actually shook things up.
Seeing the silent Rio, Hop's mouth curled into a slight grin; he had only said it casually, never expecting the other to believe it so readily.
I don't know if it's sheer naivety.
Or perhaps he had sensed something was off all along but kept numbing himself?
Hop thought it was probably the latter.
At that moment, the entire mountain suddenly trembled.
The Moon Drop circle, which should only activate at night, began running on its own; the high‑concentration moonlight that could normally be gathered only after dark suddenly filled the circle.
The Moon Drop circle now stored a massive amount of lunar energy.
Clearly, this was Jerut's doing!
That way he could freely control the pace of the seal's removal!
Everyone here is merely a pawn for Jerut's unsealing scheme, and his goal is likely to release Dailiora!
Rio finally realized it, but it was already too late; the purple light, propelled by the unstoppable circle, instantly poured into the massive ice block beneath the mountain.
In that instant, the once‑unchanging icy seal cracked with countless fissures.
A huge crimson eye flared open—the great demon Dailiora, who had once destroyed countless lives and plunged many into despair, had awakened.