**Chapter 22: Kaito VS Laxus**
Natsu and Bickslow both quieted down. Their little fight was nothing compared to this. Watching Kaito and Laxus battle was an opportunity they couldn't miss—it was the perfect chance to see the true strength of their future rivals.
At that moment, Kaito and Laxus stood facing each other. Between them stood Gildarts, Fairy Tail's only S-Class Mage, acting as the referee for this duel.
"Alright, first things first. This is a battle to decide the S-Class promotion qualification. It's not about who wins and immediately becomes S-Class. The rules are simple: fight until one side can no longer continue. If things get too dangerous, I'll step in and stop it."
"Good. Begin!"
After speaking, Gildarts turned and walked back to stand beside Guild Master Makarov.
While Gildarts was explaining the rules, Kaito was casually doing stretches, completely ignoring Laxus.
Laxus stood with his arms crossed, staring at Kaito with cold, intense eyes. Before Kaito appeared, most mages in Fairy Tail talked about him. But shortly after Kaito joined, his name became the most mentioned in the guild. Even though most of the talk was negative, it was still attention.
Although Laxus looked down on almost every mage in the guild, being pushed from the center to the sidelines made him extremely uncomfortable.
On top of that, his grandfather interacted with Kaito far more often, almost as if the brat were his real grandson. Envy, jealousy, and hatred—all three emotions mixed together. Still, he hadn't taken it too seriously.
But when he learned that the only person chosen for the S-Class qualification was Kaito, his dissatisfaction finally exploded. He was the grandson of Makarov Dreyar—one of the Ten Wizard Saints and Guild Master of Fairy Tail.
How could he lose the qualification to someone four years younger than him (Kaito had registered as twelve years old when he joined Fairy Tail, even though Makarov suspected he was only ten or eleven. Kaito had stubbornly insisted on twelve, and Makarov eventually gave in.)
It was something Laxus's pride would never allow. He absolutely refused to let someone younger surpass him.
Seeing that Kaito had been stretching for quite a while without stopping, Laxus said impatiently, "Are you stalling for time?"
Kaito bent backward until his head nearly touched the ground, then looked at Laxus. "I just ate a big meal. Doing intense exercise right after isn't good for the body. But I'm about done now. We can start anytime."
"Hmph! Then I won't hold back!" Kaito's attitude fueled Laxus's anger even more.
"Crackle~! Crackle~!" Golden electric arcs began surging around Laxus's body, flowing toward his hand.
"Lightning Spear!" Laxus swung his arm, sending a powerful bolt of electricity shaped like a spear shooting toward Kaito.
"Buzz~! Swoosh—!" Golden cross-shaped light glowed on Kaito's right index finger as he instantly fired a laser beam.
Laxus's Lightning Spear collided with Kaito's laser in mid-air.
"BOOM!!!"
A terrifying explosion erupted, and the shockwave spread outward.
"Ughhh~!"
The spectators in the distance had to raise their arms to shield their faces. After a while, when everything calmed down, everyone looked toward the center of the battlefield.
A massive crater had formed where the two attacks met. The distance between Kaito and Laxus had increased, but Kaito hadn't moved an inch. It was Laxus who had been forced to retreat.
Gildarts exclaimed in admiration, "What incredible destructive power! The young ones these days are really something. Guild Master, that new kid has some serious strength!"
Gildarts had watched Laxus grow up and had expected his level of power, since Laxus had inherited a powerful magical body from Makarov. What surprised him was Kaito—this newcomer who looked about the same age as Natsu could release magic of such terrifying force.
Makarov curled his lips. "Just keep watching."
Gildarts raised an eyebrow. There must be more to it. He was still quite shocked that the Guild Master had given the S-Class qualification chance to such a young boy.
Sure enough, once the fight began, Kaito entered his battle state. His fighting instincts were carved into his bones. He genuinely enjoyed combat.
"Buzz~! Swoosh—!"
Another golden laser beam shot from Kaito's fingertip.
"Crackle~!" Laxus turned into a bolt of lightning and dodged the attack.
"BOOM!!!" Another devastating explosion erupted.
"Buzz~! Swoosh—!"
"BOOM!!!"
"Buzz~! Swoosh—!"
"BOOM!!!"
...
Kaito stood in place, not even breathing hard, continuously firing terrifyingly powerful laser beams from his fingers.
At first, many guild members cried out in shock. Only a portion of them had seen Kaito use this level of magic when he first joined. After that, he had never used such destructive power inside the guild again, usually just fighting with his fists.
Now they were completely stunned. This kind of power—comparable to ultimate spells—was being spammed so casually.
Even Gildarts stood with his mouth wide open. He turned to Makarov and said, "Guild Master, where the hell did you pick up this little monster?"