A New Life in Fairy Tail

Chapter 363: From Beauty to Middle-Aged Man

In that quiet corner, Noah's Thought Projection and Happy discovered a masked, exceptionally beautiful woman. Her hands and feet were tightly bound, her mouth was gagged, and she was thrashing around desperately on the floor."Ah! You're the woman who was dancing with Gray!" Happy gasped in surprise.

"Are you alright?"

The Thought Projection stepped forward and removed the gag from her mouth, allowing the woman to let out a long, ragged breath.

"Right when the ball started, I was ambushed by a man with an afro," the woman explained hurriedly. "He knocked me unconscious, and I only just woke up."

"It's Velveno!" Happy declared with absolute certainty.

"Which means the woman currently dancing with Gray is an imposter," the Thought Projection deduced.

Meanwhile, out in the center of the grand ballroom, Count Balsamico addressed the gathering at the top of his lungs:

"Come then, gentlemen! If you possess the courage to ask for my daughter's hand in marriage, step forward and claim the heirloom ring!"

"OHHH!!!"

The male guests in the hall surged forward as one, rushing frantically toward the pedestal displaying the ring.

With the rest of the male crowd breaking formation, the only couple left standing atop the levitating platforms was Gray and his partner.

Gray, your partner is actually Velveno in disguise! Noah's calm voice suddenly reverberated inside Gray's mind.

"What?!"

Gray was utterly shocked. His eyes snapped instantly to the beautiful woman standing directly across from him.

Sensing a sudden shift in Gray's demeanor, the woman immediately leaped backward, creating a wide berth between them.

"Deactivate: Transformation!"

A violent surge of magical light enveloped her body. When the radiance faded, the gorgeous woman had completely vanished, replaced instead by a middle-aged man sporting a massive afro.

"Ugh!"

Watching a stunning beauty transform into a scruffy, middle-aged man right before his eyes sent a wave of acute nausea straight to Gray's stomach.

"Ice-Make: Eagle!"

The afro-wearing man thrust both hands forward. A massive magic circle manifested in front of his palms, unleashing a dense flock of ice-sculpted eagles that soared straight toward the gathering of guests. While these frozen constructs lacked smooth, lifelike movements, their velocity was incredibly high.

"Ice-Make: Eagle!"

Gray let out a cold snort, countering with the exact same motion. A twin magic circle flared to life before him, releasing an identical flock of ice eagles to intercept the incoming projectile attack in mid-air.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The competing ice constructs collided violently in the airspace of the ballroom, thoroughly neutralizing Velveno's opening salvo.

"KYAAAH!!!"

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!"

The remaining civilian guests panicked as a high-level magic battle erupted without warning. Screaming in terror, the crowd scattered in every direction, fleeing toward the exits to seek shelter.

In a matter of seconds, the center of the grand ballroom was completely cleared out. The only individuals remaining on the floor were the members of Fairy Tail who had quickly converged on the area, alongside Count Balsamico and his daughter.

Noah's eyes suddenly flared as concentric layers of glowing geometric arrays manifested before his vision. Simultaneously, he accessed his Archive Magic, actively tracking and compiling the target's combat metrics and magical output data.

"So this is the true nature of Magic Mimicry? You've replicated my casting profile perfectly," Gray muttered, dropping into a solid combat stance. "Ice-Make: Lancer!"

With a decisive thrust of Gray's hands, a barrage of frozen lances erupted forward, tearing through the air toward the thief.

"Ice-Make: Lancer!"

Velveno mimicked the movement flawlessly. An identical volley of ice spears shot out from the magic circle before his hands, racing forward to meet Gray's attack head-on.

The opposing lances shattered against each other in a series of sharp cracks, completely canceling each other out until both volleys dissolved into fine frost.

"Precisely! While we were sharing that lovely waltz, I systematically copied your entire magical signature," Velveno sneered, a confident smirk playing on his lips.

"Ice-Make: Hammer!" Gray barked. A massive, heavy block of ice materialized directly over Velveno's head, dropping like a stone.

"Ice-Make: Shield!"

Velveno threw both hands upward. A solid wall of ice snapped into existence overhead, cleanly absorbing the crushing weight of the descending hammer.

"It's useless! Totally useless! I possess every single spell in your repertoire! Your attacks cannot touch me!" Velveno boasted, his posture radiating immense arrogance.

"Is that so? Let me take a crack at you then!"

Natsu marched forward, his face lit up with pure excitement. Seeing his comrade step up to take point, Gray took a clean step back to grant him the floor. He wanted to observe whether the thief could successfully replicate a Dragon Slayer's unique magic profile, and to what extent.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu roared, his right fist igniting into a roaring blaze as he launched a heavy punch straight toward Velveno.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Velveno bellowed the exact same incantation. Swirling flames instantly enveloped his own hand as he raised his fist to meet Natsu's incoming strike head-on.

"What?!" Natsu blinked in surprise.

BOOM!

The opposing fists clashed in mid-air, triggering a violent thermal explosion that shook the ballroom floor.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Natsu drew a massive breath and exhaled violently, unleashing a raging torrent of fire that swept across the floor toward the thief.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Velveno mirrored the breath control perfectly, spewing a matching column of consuming flames from his jaws.

CRASH!

The twin columns of fire collided, resulting in a massive detonation. A dense cloud of smoke and soot instantly blanketed the center of the hall, completely obscuring everyone's line of sight.

Seizing the sudden visual cover, Velveno pivoted and sprinted directly toward the clock tower pedestal where the heirloom was displayed.

"You coward!" Natsu shouted through the haze, charging forward to intercept the thief.

"Haha! The prize is mine!"

Velveno slid to a halt right in front of the display case, a triumphant grin breaking across his face as he reached out to snatch the gemstone.

ZAP!

The moment his fingers neared the casing, a solid, golden barrier flashed into existence. Velveno's hand smacked hard against the runic grid, and the immense kinetic backlash of Noah's defensive spell sent the thief flying backward through the air.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu intercepted the airborne thief, throwing a heavy punch mid-flight. Velveno scrambled to throw out a counter-punch to shield himself, but lacking proper leverage, Natsu's superior power shattered his guard and sent him crashing into the polished floor.

Velveno flipped dynamically through the air, correcting his posture to slide into a crouch, though he was still forced back several meters before halting.

"It seems I'll have to systematically dismantle you lot before I can claim the ring," Velveno muttered, dusting off his copied armor. Even after being thrown back, his confidence remained unshaken. "Fortunate for me, I've already replicated the magic profiles of every single Fairy Tail member in this room."

"Perfect! Then let's see exactly how far that cheap imitation of yours can carry you, you fake!"

Natsu advanced, his fist reigniting as he launched another heavy strike.

"Hmph! Ice-Make: Lancer!"

Velveno thrust his hands forward, deploying Gray's piercing ice spears to halt Natsu's advance.

"Gray's magic, huh? Let's see how it holds up against real heat!"

Flames erupted from Natsu's palms, extending outward like twin blazing whips. "Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!"

Wielding the fire whips with practiced ferocity, Natsu lashed out at the incoming projectiles, cleanly shattering every single ice lance into fine powder before the flames on his hands dissipated.

"Is that the best you can do?!" Natsu closed the distance, burying a fire-enhanced fist toward Velveno's jaw.

"Hmph! Don't underestimate me!" Velveno met the assault with his own flame-wrapped knuckles.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The two traded a rapid succession of over a dozen blows. Standing on the sidelines, Noah's sharp vision picked up a subtle tremor running through the thief's forearms with every clash.

"Haha! What's the matter, fake?! Running out of steam already?!"

Natsu noticed the slight shaking of his opponent's arms as well. Instantly dialing up his physical output, Natsu's heavy strikes began driving Velveno into a steady retreat.

"Grr... like hell I am!"

Velveno roared, throwing a desperate, heavy punch that momentarily halted Natsu's momentum. Borrowing the kinetic recoil to leap backward, he drew a deep breath.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

BOOM!

Natsu unleashed his counter-breath without a shred of hesitation. The two massive torrents of flame collided in the center of the hall, triggering a deafening explosion that sent a powerful shockwave rippling through the room.

When the thick smoke finally drifted apart, Velveno was standing hunched over, panting heavily as sweat drenched his brow. Across from him, Natsu's breathing remained perfectly steady, showing absolutely no signs of exhaustion.

"Haha! Looks like you're completely spent, pal," Natsu laughed, raising his fists to finish the job.

"Natsu, hold your position for a moment," Noah called out, stepping forward.

"Huh? Why? I'm right on the verge of crushing this guy," Natsu complained, turning his head back.

"Let Erza take the floor for a bit. I need to gather more data on the mechanics of his replication magic," Noah instructed, gesturing toward the glowing geometric arrays floating before his eyes.

"Fine, whatever," Natsu muttered, dropping his stance as he recognized the analytical look in Noah's eyes.

"Allow me to act as your next opponent," Erza said, stepping past Natsu to face the thief.

"Tch!"

Velveno watched Erza advance as Natsu retreated. His eyes darted toward Noah, Gray, and Lucy, who were calmly observing the match from the sidelines. Looking at the intricate, multi-layered magic arrays revolving in front of Noah's eyes, an icy chill washed over him—he felt as though every secret of his anatomy was being systematically dissected and scanned.

An involuntary shudder ran down his spine, and he took two subtle steps back, his eyes frantically mapping the ballroom exits as escape plans formed in his mind.

"Requip: Heaven's Wheel Armor!"

A brilliant flash of light enveloped Erza, replacing her formal attire with an elegant suit of silver armor, a halo of polished swords hovering gracefully behind her back.

"Requip: Heaven's Wheel Armor!"

Velveno mirrored the casting perfectly, his form shifting until he was clad in an identical suit of silver plate.

"Wow, that is profoundly unsettling!" Lucy yelled from the sidelines, pulling a disgusted face.

The armor that looked incredibly fierce and majestic on Erza looked completely ridiculous and stomach-churning when stretched over Velveno's bulky, middle-aged frame.

"Agreed," Gray nodded in unison, sweating slightly.

Erza didn't waste words on small talk. Whipping a longsword forward, she lunged into a swift slash. Velveno raised his own blade to parry the strike.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The sound of ringing steel echoed through the hall as a dazzling display of swordplay erupted between them, their blades weaving an intricate web of silver light.

CHIRP!

Their swords locked in a heavy clash, and both fighters borrowed the tension to leap backward, resetting their stances.

"Something is off. His weaponry behaves anomalously," Erza noted, keeping her eyes fixed on Velveno as she relayed her findings to Noah via the Telepathy link.

Mmm. The swords he's wielding aren't authentic steel constructs, Noah replied mentally.

"Huh? Fake? But I distinctly heard the sound of metal clashing just now!" Lucy whispered in surprise from the sidelines.

"That is the unique property of his mimicry spell," Noah murmured, before focusing back on Erza. "Did you perceive any other anomalies?"

Engaging him feels exactly like fighting my own reflection. The sword techniques and fluid combinations he's deploying match my personal style perfectly, Erza reported without hesitation.

Noah nodded silently, his fingers typing rapidly across the glowing interface of his Archive Magic.

Across the floor, Velveno was visibly flagging, his chest heaving violently as heavy drops of sweat poured down his face. His eyes continued to dart erratically around the perimeter of the room, desperately analyzing the structural layout to find a blind spot in their perimeter.

Noah and the team tracked his frantic movements with perfect clarity.

~~~

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