Chapter 74
Magic power was a relatively easy attribute to quantify.
For example, the destructive force of magical attacks could be measured in a unit known as Edea.
The problem was that this world had far too many different systems for measuring magic power, with no single universal standard.
Marshall had always relied on the values provided by his System.
Energy and Stamina, however, were much harder to measure.
Energy represented vitality and defensive endurance to some extent.
Marshall thought of it as a health bar.
Most Mages were fragile fighters with tremendous offensive power but relatively poor defenses.
Some people, however, possessed such ridiculous vitality that knocking them down became nearly impossible.
Natsu was the most obvious example.
Marshall believed Natsu had more Energy than anyone else in Fairy Tail.
If Marshall currently possessed around twelve hundred, then Natsu had at least eight times that amount.
His vitality was so excessive that it barely seemed human.
Dragon Slayer Magic probably played a part.
The Dragon Power cultivated through a Dragon Seed greatly strengthened the user’s vitality, and Natsu’s Dragon Power was likely already approaching Level Three.
Unfortunately, Marshall primarily trained his own Dragon Power by consuming space-time energy.
Space and time supposedly existed everywhere, yet the amount he could actually consume was pitifully small.
He could never eat enough to feel satisfied, so his progress remained painfully slow.
His Dragon Power was still stuck at Level One.
Fortunately, he no longer lacked other methods of strengthening his body.
Gray’s Energy wasn’t nearly as monstrous as Natsu’s, but he was still exceptionally gifted.
Marshall estimated that he possessed roughly two thousand.
Stamina, meanwhile, was closely connected to physical strength, endurance, and similar bodily attributes.
Running out of magic power left a Mage mentally disoriented.
Running out of Stamina left them unable to move.
Ten-year-old Marshall already possessed more than one thousand Stamina, placing him close to the level of an ordinary adult male Mage.
Fourteen-year-old Natsu and Gray, however, were anything but ordinary.
Both specialized in close combat, and their overall strength was nearly equal.
Marshall estimated their Stamina at slightly above two thousand each.
That placed their approximate base attributes at:
Natsu — Energy/Stamina/Magic Power: 9,500+/2,000+/5,500+
Gray — Energy/Stamina/Magic Power: 3,000+/2,000+/5,000+
Marshall — Energy/Stamina/Magic Power: 1,000+/1,000+/9,000+
Natsu and Gray possessed considerably more Energy and Stamina than Marshall.
But it didn’t matter.
Battles between Mages were ultimately decided by magic power, which remained the most important factor in determining combat strength.
Natsu’s and Gray’s combined magic power only barely matched Marshall’s.
He had no reason to fear them, even if they attacked together.
Nearly everyone in the guild followed the three of them to the open field behind the building.
Even Laxus refused to miss the spectacle.
The entire crowd was looking forward to the fight.
More than anything, they were curious about Marshall’s true strength.
Makarov constantly boasted about how quickly Marshall improved.
Erza was said to spar with him regularly.
Cana’s terrifying Summoning Cards had been developed with his help, and Elfman’s explosive growth had also come from Marshall’s guidance.
Countless stories circulated about him inside the guild.
Everyone knew that Marshall possessed wisdom and strength far beyond his age.
No one knew exactly how powerful he had become.
Today, they would finally see his true abilities for themselves.
The thought had everyone excited.
"Wait, what kind of garbage odds are these? Marshall alone pays 2.1, while Natsu and Gray together pay 1.8? Natsu alone is 1.9 and Gray is 1.7? Who opened this betting pool? Do you not want customers?"
"I’m the one taking the risk here. Bet or don’t!"
"You seriously think Marshall might win? Natsu and Gray are four years older than him."
"Who knows? The important thing is that only one of those three will probably still be standing at the end."
"That... actually makes sense. Fine, ten thousand Jewels on Gray!"
"Wouldn’t Natsu be safer?"
"Marshall definitely isn’t weak either!"
"Quiet! They’re about to start!"
...
In the makeshift dueling ground, Marshall floated leisurely in the center with his hands clasped behind his back.
Natsu stood on his left.
Gray stood on his right.
For several moments, none of them moved.
Marshall looked between them.
"Aren’t you two supposed to stand on the same side?"
"Heh. I’d rather die than cooperate with that fireball bastard," Gray said. "Let’s fight you one at a time."
"Hmph! I’m not on the same side as that ice-block idiot!" Natsu declared. "I’ll beat you by myself!"
He crooked a finger arrogantly at Marshall.
"You can attack first. Don’t complain that I bullied you afterward!"
"You’re letting me attack first?"
Marshall smiled.
"You might not get a chance to fight back."
He extended his right hand.
Light gathered within his palm, gradually forming a long staff that shimmered with golden radiance.
"Light-Make: Ruyi Jingu Bang."
[Spear-and-Staff Arts LV3: 2.3%]
"Now then~ Be careful, Natsu~"
Marshall vanished from Natsu’s sight.
Every hair on Natsu’s body immediately stood on end.
Danger!
Without caring how undignified it looked, Natsu threw himself forward and rolled across the ground.
A thick golden staff smashed down where he had been standing a moment earlier.
BOOM!
The earth split apart.
Cracks spread outward like a spiderweb as fragments of stone sprayed through the air like shrapnel.
The shock wave swept across the field, carrying a wall of dust into the watching crowd and swallowing their startled cries along with their flapping clothes.
Everyone sucked in a breath at the same time, as though trying to inhale the entire dust cloud.
"Marshall?! Were you trying to kill me?!"
Cold sweat poured down Natsu’s face.
What followed wasn’t fear.
It was excitement.
"So you really are that strong! Fine, then I don’t need to hold back either!"
Natsu inhaled deeply.
"Fire Dragon’s Roar!"
Marshall calmly watched the flames rush toward him.
He could have teleported away with ease but he simply chose not to.
He intended to crush Natsu head-on!
"Script Enchantment—Wind!"
A glowing character appeared along the Ruyi Jingu Bang.
Marshall swung the staff, now wrapped in roaring wind, directly into the fireball.
Natsu’s own roar reversed direction at an even greater speed and engulfed him completely.
"W-What?! It didn’t work?"
Natsu burst out of the flames, blackened but otherwise unharmed.
"Damn it! Try this!"
"Fire Dragon’s Claw!"
Abandoning long-range attacks, Natsu launched himself through the air and kicked at Marshall with one foot engulfed in fire.
It looked impressive.
But an attack of that level... was useless.
"Useless! Useless, useless, useless, useless!"
Marshall spun his staff.
Within seconds, he and Natsu exchanged more than a dozen blows.
After surviving Erza’s hellish training, Marshall found Natsu’s close-combat skills somewhat lacking.
"Script Enchantment—Tremor!"
Marshall spotted an opening.
One end of the staff suddenly expanded, becoming several times thicker before slamming into Natsu’s body.
A violent magical vibration briefly stunned him.
The overwhelming force that followed launched Natsu more than ten meters through the air.
"Damnnnn—!" ×108
An eerie silence settled over the field.
"W-Was Marshall always this strong?"
"Natsu... couldn’t fight back at all."
"Gray! Maybe we should surrender! Aye!"
Gray had been observing coldly from the side, but sweat was now running down his back.
The pressure became so intense that he hurriedly removed another piece of clothing.
"Don’t be ridiculous! A man can’t run away before the fight even begins!"
He pressed his hands together.
"Marshall, take this!"
"Ice-Make: Hammer!"
A gigantic ice hammer formed above Marshall and came crashing down.
"Light-Make: Thicker, Bigger, Longer~"
Marshall casually planted the golden staff against the ground.
The Ruyi Jingu Bang expanded toward the sky.
Before Gray’s hammer could land, the rapidly lengthening staff struck it from below and launched the entire construct away.
"Ice-Make: Lance!"
Several ice spears shot toward Marshall.
A wall of light couldn’t reliably stop attacks designed for piercing.
So he changed its properties.
"Script Enchantment—Iron!"
Another glowing character appeared on the staff.
Its radiant surface gained the texture and durability of metal.
Marshall spun it in a smooth flourish, knocking every ice spear away.
"Ice Geyser!"
Gray swept one arm forward.
A surging wave of freezing air rolled across the ground and encased one of Marshall’s ankles in ice.
"Got you!"
Gray punched both hands forward.
"Now—Ice-Make: Prison!"
A massive block of ice formed around Marshall, freezing his entire body inside.
"D-Did Gray win?"
"No! Look! The ice is glowing!"
The light surrounding Marshall grew brighter.
His body gradually transformed into pure radiance.
The block shattered apart as blinding light flooded the field.
A Giant of Light more than ten meters tall stood upon the earth, holding a distinctive heroic pose.
"TIIIIIIIGA!"
Gray panted heavily as he stared up at the towering figure.
Disbelief quickly gave way to despair.
’What the fuck is that? why is he so huge?’
’How am I supposed to fight that?’
Then an enormous foot descended toward him.
"W-Wait! Something’s wrong! Hold on—AAAAH!"
Marshall stomped Gray into the ground.
Then he ground his foot back and forth for good measure.
His Giant of Light differed from Makarov’s Giant Magic.
It was formed entirely from light and only appeared massive, possessing very little actual weight.
There was no danger of crushing Gray to death.
"Damn it! I’m not losing that easily!"
Natsu had finally recovered on the other side of the field.
Unable to accept his defeat, his frustration ignited the flames inside him until his entire body began burning.
"Marshall! Take this!"
As he charged toward the Giant of Light, Marshall continued stepping on Gray while crossing the giant’s arms into a classic pose.
Light energy gathered between them and a brilliant beam erupted forward.
"Deracium Light Stream!"
The ray struck Natsu continuously.
It halted his charge, then forced him backward one step at a time.
"W-What is this beam?! It stings! And it’s making me numb!"
Natsu tried to withstand it.
"Ow! AAAAAH!"
He attempted to escape, but the beam followed his every movement.
There was nowhere to run.
Normally, the attack would have burned its target as well, but Natsu’s resistance to heat rendered that part useless.
The impact of the light alone was still enough to make him howl.
"Damn it! Stop blasting me! Stop! Quit shooting!"
Natsu threw up his arms.
"Marshall! I surrender!"
Marshall continued firing for a little longer.
Only after Natsu went completely silent did he finally end the attack.
"Shuwatch!"
The Giant of Light launched itself into the sky.
When the radiance disappeared, Marshall remained floating peacefully in midair with a relaxed smile.
Gray lay unconscious beneath him.
Marshall’s clothes didn’t carry so much as a speck of dust, creating a sharp contrast with his two battered and filthy "big brothers."
The sight left everyone from Fairy Tail utterly stunned.
"What... are all of you doing?"
At that moment, the girls returned from the fashion exhibition carrying bags of purchases.
They looked at the scene in confusion.
Marshall’s eyes immediately lit up.
He teleported to Erza’s side, pushed out his lower lip, and complained with the most pitiful expression he could produce.
"E..erza-nee! They all ganged up to bully me!"
"They even opened a betting pool over the fight! They’re horrible!"
The Fairy Tail members scattered in every direction.
Furious roars echoed faintly behind them.
"MARSHALL, YOU DAMNED LITTLE BRAT!" ×108