Geoffrey's Legacy
Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Fairy Tail - all rights and stuff belong to Hiro Mashima. If I was the one to start Fairy Tail, fan-service wouldn't be so prominent and there would be side-series' focused on Irene's ascension to a Queen, how the Mermaid Heel, Lamia Scale and Phantom Lord guilds came to be, Makarov's rise to Guild Master and how Gildarts joined Fairy Tail and became Guild Ace. I only own self-made characters, magic and storylines (I don't).
"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone." - David Cameron
Chapter 17.
"Sooooo… you gonna pick a job or what?"
Boze cringed at the crimson eye which narrowed as it glared back at him before turning back to the job board.
"Hrn, escort a merchant trader back to the Bosco-Fiorian border... Beat up a pack of monsters lurking along the Fiore-Seven border..."
"Dude, it's not that hard. Just pick one and then we can go."
"Shut up."
"He has a point. We've been watching you muse over what job you wanna take for the past thirty minutes." Sue added, shrugging.
"Bite me."
"I mean we could've been doing something productive already, Gajeel-chan."
A studded eyebrow twitched, "You wanna die or something? Keep going."
"Indecisiveness is unbecoming of a Phantom Lord mage. Swift thinking is a necessity." Boze commented, mimicking the sneer and vocal tone of their Guild Master.
"Hump a log and die."
Sue coughed to hold back a snicker, "Ooooh, kinky. What would that be, Dendrophilia?" Also, watch your language."
"Eat shit and drop dead."
"Dude, look at this one. A-Class Dark Mage, Katherine Queens. Age: 28. Magic Used: Light Magic. Last Known Attire: Black trousers, dark purple trainers, and a black blazer worn over a white long-sleeved shirt. Hair colour: Blonde. Eye colour: Grey. Last Known Location: Hargeon Town. Bounty for Capture: J52,800,000. This is right up your alley." Boze suggested, taking the paper from the board and waving it in Gajeel's face.
The Iron Dragon Slayer glared at the paper which had dared to invade his personal space before diverting his intense stare to the bastard holding it.
"Hn. Fifty-two million and eight-hundred thousands jewels. That's fucking sound. Although, if you useless bastards leave all the fighting to me, then I'm taking a higher percentage." He growled, getting understandings nods from the other two.
"Pack your shit. We'll be gone for a few days." Gajeel added, snatching the paper from Boze.
Then, he stalked off, leaving Boze and Sue to stare at his back, the latter scratching her head with apprehension.
"This is gonna be painful."
Boze snorted, "Yeah, no shit, let's just stay out of his way. He'll have a hissy fit otherwise."
"Amen to that." Sue replied with a chuckle.
(Hargeon Town Train Station - 1 Hour Later)
"W-Wait, stop walking, m-my head needs to stop spinning." Gajeel moaned in a pitiful manner, flinching as his stomach cramped painful as he staggered on weak knees to vomit into a nearby bin.
A few metres away, his companions stopped, the two of them making disgusted faces as the heavy yet early stench of vomit invaded their nostrils.
"Oh man, that must suck. Public transport is like torture for him. Dragon Slayers are awesome; fancy techniques and better physicals than normal people, yet they're incapacitated by simple things like horse-drawn carriage and trains." Boze uttered, holding back a snigger.
The corners of Sue's mouth twitched, "He can definitely hear you. You're just asking for an iron club to the face."
The dark-skinned Phantom Lord mage hummed and then smirked, "In his current condition? Nah, I'm fine. I mean look at him, he can barely stand on his own feet. A little gust would knock him over right now."
"Fucking motion sickness. I-I'd kill you if it w-weren't for this b-bullshit." Gajeel retched into the bin again.
Sue shoved Boze, slung her backpack off of her back and took out an iron 13mm spanner.
"Seriously?" Boze deadpanned.
Sue raised an eyebrow, "Would you rather stand here for thirty minutes, waiting for him to get over his motion sickness?"
"...Fair point. But if he recovers and kicks my ass, then I'm kicking your ass in return."
"Try me, pretty boy."
Walking over to the Iron Dragon Slayer, Sue shoved the spanner into his mouth as he opened his mouth to groan again.
Red eyes locked onto her with such animalistic ferocity that the mage scrambled backwards, then Gajeel glanced away and began chewing on his new meal, his munching sounding like your average person munching on cereal.
That's if your teeth were tough enough to handle a cereal composed of nails, nuts and bolts.
Sue wasn't entirely sure if her ears were working properly, but she could've sworn that the raven-haired mage was purring in content.
It was honestly cute, but she'd never say it to Gajeel's face. That was just asking to be ignored for the rest of her life.
The young man sighed as he swallowed down the meal provided to him.
Boze coughed to suppress a laugh, "So, are you ready now."
"Fuck yeah, I'm all fired up. Let's go kick some ass." Gajeel growled, raising himself up into a standing position.
The three were soon out of the train station, with the raven-haired Dragon Slayer glaring down at the paper in his hand.
"So, how are we gonna find this chick? She could've left the town already." Boze stated.
Gajeel snorted, "Dumbass. Ever heard of asking for directions and hints?"
"Ha, he's got you there." Sue laughed as they walked over to the central market.
The trio walked into one of the shops which appeared to be a selling place for various magical items and equipment. Shelves full of Celestial Spirit Keys and Elemental Magic lined the walls which were pained a dull grey. There were even two, long display counters full of various magical weaponry; battle-axes, sledgehammers, shields of varying colours and swords which thrummed with magic energy.
At the end, next to the smiling shopkeeper was even a plastic mannequin which had the most beautiful piece of clothing Gajeel had ever laid eyes on.
And he was the sort person who didn't pay much attention to clothing.
It was covered by a dark blue, revealing kimono which looked more like a sleeveless tunic; decorated with various flowers. It was revealing in the sense that whoever wore it would be display a good amount of cleavage and side-boob. The revealing openings were held together by a thick, dark obi which had a thin red robe tied around it.
There was also a small, white belt wrapped around a pink, flower adorned cloth which circled around the mannequin's waist, and the groin was hidden behind long cloth which hung down from the front of the tunic, the top of the cloth emerging from the large obi. The legs were hidden inside light, thigh-high stockings and simple sandals adorned the mannequin's feet.
Sue let out a low whistle, noting how expensive the whole thing looked, the magic power which saturated it and the dangerous looking bisentō which stood next to the mannequin.
Boze looked impressed with the assortment of lethal weaponry.
"Hello! How may I help you?" The shopkeeper greeted, a wide smile on his face.
Gajeel grunted, "Yeah, you seen someone by the name of Katherine Queens around here recently? Before you ask, she's a dark mage. Late-twenties, blonde hair and grey eyes, and dressed like some kind of businesswoman?"
The shopkeeper sighed, "Unfortunately, yes. She came around here a few hours ago; looked to be in a bit of hurry. I think she was headed north."
The Iron Dragon Slayer raised an eyebrow, then cocked his head to one side.
'Hold on, what's that smell?'
Sue glanced at him, "Hey, what's wrong?"
Gajeel's nose twitched as he inhaled deeply, then he began to sniff at the air, walking around like a headless chicken until he was stood by one of the weaponry display counters. He sniffed a few more times, then looked up at the shopkeeper.
"Did you have anyone come in here after Katherine left?" He asked.
The shopkeeper narrowed his eyes and shook his head.
"He's trying to pick up her scent, right?" Boze whispered to Sue.
She nodded in response.
"Did she happen to smell of... elderflower and wild berries?" Gajeel continued.
The shopkeeper paused before nodding.
"Thank you for your time. Sue, Boze, come on. Let's not hold this man up any longer." The Dragon Slayer growled as he stalked out of the shop.
The duo followed him out.
Boze smirked, "Man, who knew you could be so respectful to people."
"Shut up. If I was an asshole about it, then he probably would've thrown us out of his shop and we'd have gotten no information. Did you see some of the shit he had in there. He could've blasted us six ways to Sunday and then some." Gajeel sneered.
"Being diplomatic, huh? You looking to succeed Master Jose as Guild Master sometime in the foreseeable future?" Sue asked.
"Fuck no. I'd rather be out here, kicking ass and taking names." The small grin on Gajeel's face said, 'Fuck yes. Then all you bitches will answer to me'
Shortly afterwards, the trio found themselves in the forests to the north-east of Hargeon Town; Gajeel leading while Sue and Boze followed behind him.
The latter two exchanged apprehensive looks.
Sniffing even harder than before, indicating that the dark mage's scent was stronger than it had been at the magic store in Hargeon Town, Gajeel began to let out a low growl.
Several nearby animals perked up in fright, and believing the growl to be that of a predator coming to hunt them down, scattered with haste.
"Katherine Queens!" Gajeel roared at the top of his lungs.
For a moment, besides the leaves which rustled gently in the soft wind, nothing moved.
A second later, there was a flash of light so bright that the trio had to quickly close their eyes lest they be blinded - followed by a dull 'Vroop' - and Katherine Queen appeared, smiling at them as she dusted off her shoulders.
"Got a pair of lungs on you kid. How can I help?" She asked, causal arrogance rolling off of her in waves as he cloudy grey eyes scanned over all three of them.
Boze sweatdropped, "I didn't think you'd actually respond to that call. Were you waiting for us?"
Katherine grinned, "Yeah, I felt the raven-haired brat's magic power as soon as he entered Hargeon Town. Had a hunch that whoever it might be was coming for me, so I rolled with it. Turns out, I was right."
Sue opened her eyes and fixed the woman with a glare, "You're an A-Class Dark Mage wanted for stalking and threatening the daughter and wife of a Navy Admiral, the destruction of the sloop-of-war, RFNS Crocus, which served as the flagship of the Royal Fiorian Navy, on June 8th, X776, and 53 counts of murder. We're bringing you in. A platoon of Rune Knights should be on there way to Hargeon Town for your capture."
The blonde tilted her head and gave them a mocking pout, "Oh no, whatever shall I do? Threatened by three kids who are way in over their heads. I-I think giving up now might be my only option."
"Avoiding a fight would be welcome. So if you could just kindly-"
"Let me stop you right there. Firstly, no. Secondly, I'm an S-Class Dark Mage. And thirdly, it's actually 67 counts of murder. I don't know where they got 53 from, I guess you can't really record someone who's been blasted to dust." Katherine sniffed, running a hand through her hair.
Boze's shoulders sagged, "Worth a shot."
Sue felt herself begin to sweat, 'She's an S-Class? Oh shit. I didn't sign up to take on someone of this calibre.'
Gajeel shot the dark-skinned male a dangerous glare that promised pain.
'Tch, Lorraine and Huiqing wouldn't have tried to bitch out on me. She's a new Phantom Lord mage and definitely more reliable than this pussy.' He thought, his mouth twisting itself into an ugly and irritated snarl.
"Still, to think that three brats like you think that they have a chance of fighting a dark mage like me. It's almost hilarious. Guess its not your fault. They listed me as an A-Class. I'd hoped that I'd be having a faceoff with Guildarts Clive or something." Katherine said, smirking upon noticing how Gajeel's fists had clenched.
"You best watch your fucking tongue, bitch." He hissed.
The smirk didn't disappear from Katherine's face, "Or what, you'll rip out my tongue? I invite you to try."
A sadistic grin nearly split Gajeel's face in two, "Well then, if you insist. Don't cry when you lose the ability to speak properly. Guys, get ready to fuck shit up."
Sue offered a slightly shaky grin, "Finally. I was getting bored.
Boze looked like his soul had just ejected itself from his body.
"Oh, if that's how you feel, then I'll be sure to entertain you to the best of my ability." Katherine said, the smirk getting widely as she began to radiate a aura of white, blinding magic power.
(Phantom Lord subdivision in Crocus - Training Area 2).
"My boy, if you're having second thoughts, you can always stop before we get started." Balderich offered, his eyes soft.
Stood opposite to him, Ryos shook his head, "I know what your thinking, but I'm a Dragon Slayer. Don't underestimate my endurance. You better not overestimate your hips."
The older man belted out a laugh and gave the Dragon Slayer a respectful nod, then looked over at Huiqing and shot her a small thumbs up.
She stepped forwards, glancing at Ryos before shifting her gaze over to the subdivision master, "Right. No killing each other and this fight ends when one fighter concedes defeat, is rendered incapacitated, or runs out of magic power. Are you both ready? Begin!"
Neither fighter moved once her announcement was finshed, nor when she stepped back.
Balderich's eyes focused and his soft gaze became stern and that of a hardened man who'd seen several decades of fighting. Subconsciously, he began to exert his magic power, making it seem like the atmosphere around them was slightly thicker than it actually was
Ryos' lips settled into a thin line as he shot back his own glare, lightly exerting his magic power which cloaked him in a faint veil of darkness.
"Fro cheers for you both." The newborn cat cheered by his position on Masika's shoulders.
For a tense moment, nobody spoke or moved. They simply watched with bated breaths as Balderich and Ryos tried to overpower one another through the pressure and sense of intimidation released by their magic power.
Then, Ryos burst forwards, leaping into the air and delivering a spinning kick top Balderich's head. The foot was grabbed before it could make contact and Ryos was flung onto the floor behind Balderich, but he manoeuvred himself into a roll as soon as he hit the floor.
Not to be deterred however, the younger mage was upon the subdivision master once again. A punch to the face was blocked and Ryos crossed his arms to block against the retaliatory punch intended to hit him in the chest, causing him to grunt as he was sent stumbling back.
'Jeez, this old man hits hard. Oh sh-'
Balderich took the initiative, lunging forwards and thrusting a knee towards the Dragon Slayer who widened his eyes as he barely managed to twist his body out of the way, then threw a shadow-augmented punch at the older man's waist.
That, however, was swiftly avoided as Balderich - much to Ryos's horror - jumped over the attack, landed on his other side, grabbed his shoulders and pivoted on one foot to spin around and toss him to the ground.
The young Dragon Slayer grunted as he hit the floor and quickly got back to his feet.
'I underestimated how agile he is. That evasion manoeuvre took me completely by surprise.' Ryos thought, narrowing his scarlet eyes.
It was time to pick it up a notch.
Ryos took a few more steps back, cupping his hands in-front of his mouth as he began to gather magic in his lungs and throat, the former feeling slightly heavy with the all too familiar feeling of his shadows.
Clearly, Balderich was thinking along the same lines as he clenched his left fist and brought it to rest over his chest whilst his right hand was thrust outwards and curled as if he was holding a mug full of beer.
"Takeover - Machina Soul: Crusader." He said and Ryos watched as the bulkiest set of armour he'd ever seen materialized over the man's body - with small holes lining the armour here and there, black claws resting on the back of the gauntlets, a bizarre-looking contraption on the forearm of the left wrist, what appeared to be a snarling lion's head etched into the pointed, golden breastplate and a lining of fur by Balderich's neck.
He wouldn't be able to properly notice from where he was standing, but what appeared to be massive exhaust ports lined the armour; two at the lower leg portions of the armour, another two sitting in the small gaps of the armour's elbow sections and another which seemingly took up a majority of the space where Balderich's upper back was.
On the man's head was a golden helmet with a glowing, blue visor, with a dark blue Phantom Lord guild mark etched proudly into the right side of the helmet.
It made the man seem to be twice as wide and increased his height by a good eight inches.
Despite that, Ryos had the sinking feeling that the massive armour would do absolutely fuck-all to slow the man down.
However, in Balderich's right hand was a massive sledgehammer.
The bottom had a ball with multiple spikes protruding from it and this was attached to a long shaft which was easily 6ft in length, wrapped in brown leather, and attached to a rectangular, golden head which had magical blue flames emanating from the back of it, whilst the front was flat-faced and appeared to have a two inch wide line running vertically down the middle.
Ryos didn't even noticed he'd exhaled without releasing the attack he'd been building up, which came out of his mouth as a pathetic burst of black smoke, 'Right, stay well away from the massive murder hammer.'
Over in the side-lines, Masika whistled, "Damn, Master Balderich is bringing out the big guns. I'm pretty excited; haven't seen it properly in action since his fight with Gajeel."
"Yeah, the kid is gonna be in trouble now. He might win if the master decides against going all out." A mage next to her replied.
"Fro thinks so too!"
"I hope you're not having second thoughts, my boy. Looks like you had a little misfire." Balderich chuckled, prompting Ryos to recompose himself and re-prepare his attack.
Ryos narrowed his eyes as his magic gathered once more in his lungs and throat. Like before, he took in a massive lungful of air, causing Balderich to tense in preparation for whatever he might throw at him.
There was no way he was about to back out of the fight now! Especially since he was already having lots of fun, fighting against the subdivision master.
'Shadow Dragon's Roar!'
Ryos exhaled, unleashing a spiralling blast of shadows from his mouth towards Balderich who smiled underneath his helmet as he positioned his left arm horizontally in-front of his chest.
"I can see that has a lot of power behind it, but it won't be enough. Barrier Field!" The older man exclaimed.
Ryos could only watch in mild disbelief as a rectangular blue shield of magic rippled out from gauntlet - and expanded until it was twice as tall as Balderich himself and three times as wide - and his attack crashed into it at full force.
It did absolutely nothing, and Balderich didn't even look like he'd been pushed back slightly.
He watched as Balderich's forearm twitched and the barrier dissipated. The subdivision master then proceeded to clutch his sledgehammer with both hands and carved a trench in the ground with it, collecting dirt and debris in the spikes at the back.
Then, with a mighty grunt, he swung the sledgehammer upwards, unleashing a blazing crescent of orange-red flames which roared towards him.
"Fire Strike!"
"Shadow Dragon's Guardian Wing!"
Ryos coated his right arm in shadow, then swung to his left side, prompting a giant mass of shadow which resembled the wing of a dragon to burst forth and form of protective barrier; similar to Balderich's own.
He watched as the barrier of darkness shuddered violently as Balderich's attack collided with it, but fortunately managed to hold.
Then, he stopped channelling his magic into the shadow barrier and allowed it to crumble apart as he prepared his next attack.
"Shadow Dragon's-"
Ryos yelped as another crescent of fire - this one considerably larger than the first - burst through his disintegrating barrier and slammed into his chest, knocking the air from his lungs and taking him off his feet.
He grunted as he hit the ground a few dozen yards from where he'd initially been standing and rolled onto one side, pausing to catch his breath.
'Shit, no time.'
The Shadow Dragon Slayer hissed as he scrambled back onto his feet and leapt aside to avoid another crescent of fire, cutting it close with this one as it lightly singed his left arm.
Painful, but nothing debilitating.
"Hm, I don't mean to sound arrogant, but I'm surprised you're still standing after taking a near full-power Fire Strike head-on." Balderich commented, watching Ryos as he gently flexed and massaged his left arm.
"Sorry, old man, but Dragon Slayer's can endure a lot more damage than the average person." Ryos retorted with a smile.
"Heh, clearly." Balderich grinned as the exhaust port by his upper back roared to life, releasing a powerful burst of bright orange flame. propelling him forwards towards Ryos.
The Shadow Dragon Slayer barely had time to blink before the man was practically on top of him, swinging the sledgehammer over his head to bring it down on him.
"Earth Shattering Strike!"
Ryos jumped back, eyes wide, as the attack obliterated the ground where he'd been stood. A small shockwave spread outwards from the point of impact, resulting in him being knocked off his feet yet again as a small piece of debris struck him above the right eye.
Ryos let out a small hiss of pain, before gathering magic into his lungs and throat once again.
'Shadow Dragon's Roar!'
"Fire Strike!"
The Shadow Dragon Slayer's straightforward attack was countered by a crescent of flame, resulting in a small explosion which hid both fighters from view as dust and smoke covered the area
"Fro can't see anything." Frosch complained, eyes wide.
"Neither can I, you little munchkin." Masika replied, giving the little cat a smile.
Next to them Huiqing continued the fight, "He's good. Ryos has lasted almost as long as Gajeel managed to last against Master Balderich. Makes me wonder how long that Natsu kid from Fairy Tail would last."
With both of their vision obscured, Ryos seized the opportunity and sunk into the shadow of the dust cloud and reappeared behind Balderich who seemed to be trying to peer through, rising out of the shadows behind him like some kind of horrific creature in a horror movie.
As if aware of his new position, Balderich began to turn to face him.
"You're too late! Shadow Dragon's Waxing Flash!" His body melted into shadow, bursting into many concentric circles which surrounded the subdivision master and began attacking him at such as ferocious pace that it dispersed the dust cloud surrounding them.
Balderich grunted as a multitude of scratches were carved into his armour - one even being carved into his visor - and almost as quickly as it started, Ryos' assault stopped, having forced him to stagger backwards slightly.
Shadows gathered and Ryos rematerialized a few metres away from Balderich, observing the damage left behind by his attack and narrowing his eyes upon noticing that it hadn't done very much to the older man's armour.
'Tch, this guy is tough. Perhaps I should amplify myself with Shadow Drive? But I haven't fully mastered it yet.' He thought, clenching a fist.
"Hmm, you've got a lot of power, determination and the will to win behind your attacks. You'll be a fine mage when your older." Balderich said, his scratched helmet hiding whatever facial expression he was currently making.
Ryos allowed a small smile a grace his face, "Thanks, and if this is how powerful you are now, then you must've been an absolute monster when you were in your prime."
A laugh erupted from underneath Balderich's helmet, then the atmosphere became thick and heavy with anticipation.
Both fighters then shot forwards, Balderich propelled by his exhaust ports, whilst Ryos left a dissipating trail of shadows behind him.
The former cocked his right arm back, whilst Ryos cocked back his own left arm.
"Heavy Fist of the Crusader!"
"Shadow Dragon's Slash!"
Ryos' fist, wreathed in a mass of darkness, clashed with Balderich's gauntlet which thrummed with greyish-sliver magic power, prompting an explosion of force to be unleashed from the point of impact, rippling through the air and cracking the ground underneath them as they were both pushed back.
Ryos shot forwards again as soon as hit feet hit the ground, twisting his body in mid-air to avoid a heft swing from Balderich.
"Shadow Dragon's Crushing Fang." The younger mage let out a yell as he unleashed a mass of shadows from his hand and swiped at the subdivision master.
He felt a thrum from within his magic power as the shadows engulfing his arm shifted and coalesced into shapes resembling the serrated teeth of a dragon, then he heard a surprised grunt from Balderich and the sound of metal being torn asunder.
Ryos was suddenly aware, through his twisting and turning in mid-air, that he was now upside now.
With narrowed eyes, he cupped his hands in-front of his mouth and gathered his magic power into his torso.
'This should be the finishing blow. Shadow Dragon Roar's!' A spiralling vortex of shadows ripped its way out of Ryos' mouth and slammed into Balderich's chest, twisting and cracking the humongous breastplate; his Barrier Field flickering momentarily into existence, too late to do anything about the attack.
As Balderich fell backwards, he swung the arm holding his sledgehammer vertically against the ground in a wide arc, gathering dust and cutting through the air as his swing completed his trajectory.
"Oh, s-" Ryos cried out as an arc of flame burst forth and slammed into his chest, knocking him out of the air and harshly slamming his back into his ground, forcing a jolt to shoot through his body.
For a moment, neither fighter moved from where they were position on the floor.
Then, Balderich rolled onto one side with a pained groan and picked himself up off the floor. His armour, which practically shone with polish and excellent maintenance at the beginning of the fight, was now a dull silver - almost appearing grey - and his breastplate had three large gashes torn into it, but it came away and clattered to the floor after being disrupted by his movements.
It shone gold, then disintegrated into a flurry of magic particles.
A few seconds later. the rest of the bulky armour followed suit and Balderich let out a sigh of relief.
On the other side of the training ground, Ryos stirred and let out a pained groan as he slowly sat up and rubbed his head which had struck the ground after he'd been hit by Balderich's last Fire Strike.
"Ouch." He deadpanned, giving Balderich a look of bemusement.
Balderich snorted, then let out a boisterous laugh.
Huiqing stepped forwards, gazing as the younger mage with concern, "Ryos, can you continue?"
"I'd like to, but I think it'll be better if I don't. Master Balderich is an incredible fighter." Ryos stated, his lips curving upwards into a small smile.
"Very well. Winner by forfeit is Master Balderich." Huiqing announced, causing the audience to begin and cheering clapping to show their appreciation for the fight.
"Yeah! There was no doubt the master was gonna win."
"Heh, and that's why Master Balderich is subdivision master."
"That kid was amazing too. Don't count him out. Heck, I'd love to have a crack at him."
"Same. I haven't seen anyone push the master like this since he fought that Redfox brat. Those dragon slayers sure are something else."
"Kyyaaaaaah! We love you Ryos!"
"He's so good looking already. Marry me!"
"No, marry me!"
Ryos paused, then shot Balderich a questioning look, "What's that all about?"
"You're a member of Phantom Lord, and we all support each other. It seems like you've made a great impression on the rest of your guild master. Ha, keep this up and you'll be famous in no time at all." The older mage explained.
"N-No, not that. Why were those girls squealing." The Shadow Dragon Slayer inquired.
Balderich let a chuckle rumble through his chest as he knelt down besides the newly instated Phantom Lord mage and clapped him on the back.
"That, my boy, is what we call fangirls. The bane of all handsome and powerful men. You already acquired some after you joined us, but now you've gotten some more."
"Bane? Does that mean that I should... avoid them?"
"Well... yes, it would be better for your... er, health if you did." Balderich advised.
Ryos looked momentarily startled, "My health."
"Um, yes, fangirls can be rather taxing on your mental health. Worrying when you'll next bump into them, worrying about what they'll do upon getting their hands on you, and so on and so forth."
"I see. It seems I've landed myself in an unpleasant predicament."
At that moment, Masika came over with a smiling Frosch.
"Hey, Ryos, that was an amazing fight. I'd hate to be on your bad side. You really pushed Master Balderich there." She said, giving him a thousand megawatt grin and a thumbs up.
"Fro thinks so too." The new-born cat said, staring off into space.
Ryos' smile grew slightly, "Thank you, the both of you. And you too, Master Balderich, for accepting my request."
"You're welcome, my boy."
A/N: As promised, although eighteen months late, the fight between Balderich and Ryos. To those still following this story, don't get excited, this may be the last chapter of this story. I just couldn't go on without delivering this.
