"Everyone, Laxus and I are back! Did you miss us?"
Zorn and Laxus strode into the guild, excitedly announcing their return to Everyone, but the people around them didn't react at all, continuing with their own tasks, paying no attention to Zorn and Laxus.
Cana, however, rushed directly into Zorn's arms from the side, looking up at him with happy eyes: "Welcome back, dear."
"Mm, I'm back." Zorn lowered his head, kissed Cana's cheek, and said to her with deep affection.
"Tch~" Laxus couldn't bear to watch, turning his head and scoffing. With a mix of envy and jealousy, he walked straight up to the second floor of the guild, escaping the couple's display of affection.
Whoosh~
A scroll-like object flew directly from the bar towards Zorn. Zorn raised a hand to catch it, looking at the item in his hand with confusion. On the scroll was the ERA (Magic Council) emblem.
"Magic Council? Ten Wizard Saints selection?" Zorn looked somewhat puzzled at the Master, who was already walking towards him.
"That's right, the Ten Wizard Saints selection. The notice has come down, so let's go now." Makarov bypassed him and walked towards the door, looking as if he was rushing to the morning market.
"What's wrong? Let's go! Oh, right, Laxus, you're in charge of the guild. Erza and Mirajane have all gone on missions."
Makarov turned to look at Zorn, who hadn't moved, urging him to hurry. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he shouted at Laxus on the second floor in a loud voice.
"Got it, old man."
"You should go quickly, the Master is getting impatient." Cana pushed Zorn, signaling him to hurry.
Zorn ran a few steps, caught up with the Master who was walking ahead, then turned to wave at Cana by the guild entrance. He then used Light Magic to lift the Master into the air, saving him from a leisurely walk.
----Separator----
Grand Magic Games Arena—Domus Flau.
When Zorn and Makarov arrived at the Magic Council, they learned that the Council members were all at the Grand Magic Games Arena. The assessment wasn't just for Zorn; there were also others whose achievements and contributions had reached a certain standard.
Their assessment time was before Zorn's, so they went ahead to conduct the assessment for others at the venue.
Zorn and Makarov were currently flying through the air, heading to the assessment location, and also catching up.
"Master, have Natsu and Gray also gone on missions?"
"Yes, they heard you're becoming a Ten Wizard Saints, and they're all very motivated, saying they want to surpass you. They're all good kids."
"I hope they remember what I told them last time: to be careful when doing missions and not damage the surrounding environment."
"Well, that is a problem. They should rein it in a bit. I specifically told them before they left."
"Is that so? That's good."
"Mm, Gildarts is also coming back soon. I heard news last time that the ten-year mission is complete. We should celebrate properly this time when he returns."
"Huh? What's wrong, Zorn?"
Upon hearing the Master's confirmation, Zorn realized that Gildarts was returning soon. It was likely this time that Gildarts would take on the extremely difficult century-long mission, encounter the Black Dragon during the mission, suffer severe injuries, and lose an arm. It seemed he needed to rush back quickly and try to prevent Gildarts from taking on that mission.
Thinking of this, Zorn's flying speed with Makarov suddenly increased dramatically, making Makarov look at Zorn with some confusion.
"It's nothing, nothing, haha, I'm just a bit hungry." Zorn casually made up an excuse. He couldn't tell the Master about this yet, otherwise, he wouldn't be able to explain how he knew about future events.
"I sensed it."
Zorn had kept his Observation Haki active and suddenly felt many powerful magic clusters gathering in the distance. That place should be the destination.
A golden magic circle unfolded in their path, and Zorn and the Master flew straight through it, disappearing into the air.
"Yo, it seems we arrived just in time, Master. You go wait in the viewing area. It'll be over soon."
A golden magic circle appeared in the venue, and Zorn and the Master's figures emerged. They saw the last examinee being sent flying by Jose's "Dark Stream" attack. Zorn casually caught him with magic and sent him and the Master to the viewing area.
"What a disgusting aura. Let's finish this quickly." Zorn showed a look of disgust, eyeing Jose with disdain. A powerful golden magic surged from his body; he wanted to end everything quickly and return to the guild.
"Oh, what splendid magic." The observing Council members felt Zorn's magic and nodded in approval, giving Zorn their initial recognition.
"Damn brat, truly as annoying as Makarov." Jose heard Zorn's dismissive words, and all the evil magic on his body erupted. His eyes were enveloped in darkness, and the ground he stood on instantly shattered, clearly indicating he was serious.
"Oh, how scary! You really frightened me. But have you ever been kicked by light?"
Zorn's flippant words echoed behind Jose, full of level ten taunts. His right foot, glowing with light, delivered a powerful kick to Jose's body.
Jose flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing with a thud into the arena wall. The wall instantly collapsed, burying Jose within.
Zorn's attack wasn't over. Light flared from his right hand, and countless light swords appeared behind him. With a wave of Zorn's hand, they instantly shot out, each light sword accurately striking the spot where Jose was buried.
The ground began to tremble with Zorn's attack, and Everyone in the viewing area, swaying with the tremors, cast defensive magic to guard against the residual damage from Zorn's attack.
"This kid is truly strong, Makarov. You're really lucky."
Everyone in the viewing area looked at Makarov with envious eyes, which made Makarov instantly swell with pride. With his arms crossed, he gazed at the battle scene with admiration, thinking to himself, "If you knew that I also forbade Zorn from using that sun-like magic, you'd be even more jealous."
"Still not coming out? Senior, how long are you going to cower? I'm in a hurry." Zorn stood with one hand on his hip, looking at the ruins, continuing to taunt.
He could clearly sense that Jose had only sustained minor injuries so far. It truly showed that he was a Magician with the title of Ten Wizard Saints. He recalled that during the mission at the ruins, this attack had directly taken down that Magician.
"Bang!"
Rocks exploded from the ruins, and Jose pushed aside a stone slab with one hand. His entire body was enveloped in dark magic, which surged skyward, directly affecting the weather. His gaze was fixed on Zorn, and he spread his palms. As Jose manipulated his magic, the surrounding air and ground trembled with the terrifying magic, becoming oppressive. The clouds in the sky began to swirl.
"Tch, do you think your magic is so strong? Don't think changing the weather is that impressive."
Zorn also released his own magic directly. Golden magic instantly surged skyward as well. The light and dark magic were clearly distinct, opposing and pressing against each other. The resulting storm directly pulled the clouds down from the sky.
A rare dragon-absorbing phenomenon was formed.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, isn't this a bit exaggerated? At such a young age, to possess such terrifying magic."
Everyone in the viewing area watched the scene before them in astonishment. They hadn't expected Zorn's magic to be so terrifying, no less inferior to a Ten Wizard Saints. At this moment, he was even subtly suppressing Jose.
To be continued~
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