Now that Natsu had joined the guild, Levy, Mira, and the others would be arriving soon as well.
Before long, the guild would completely transform into the chaotic, destructive guild that Byakuran remembered.
It seemed his peaceful days were numbered.
Since the Guild Master had returned, Byakuran went to ask him for help in guarding him while he performed Take Over on Mahoraga.
“Guild Master, thank you for your hard work on the journey!”
Makarov had only just sat down at the counter.
He was holding a glass of alcohol and taking a leisurely sip.
“Oh, Byakuran. Whenever you come looking for me, it’s usually because you’ve got something up your sleeve. Just say it. What is it this time?”
“Hehe, you really do see right through me.”
Byakuran smiled.
“Do you remember that interesting creature I mentioned before? The one I wanted to Take Over?”
“I’m planning to try it now, so I came to ask you to back me up.”
Hearing this, Makarov’s temples began to throb.
An expression of utter disbelief appeared on his face.
“?? Byakuran, did you forget what you promised me?”
“You actually still want to Take Over a dangerous creature, and you’re telling me this so casually? Are you provoking me?”
Byakuran smiled awkwardly, shrank his neck, and hurriedly explained.
“How could I, Guild Master? You misunderstood me.”
“This creature is different from ordinary ones. There will be almost no struggle for control of the consciousness. I’m very confident about it, which is why I want to try.”
“And precisely because I remembered your warning, even though I’m confident, I still came to ask you to back me up!”
“My trustworthiness can be witnessed by heaven and earth!”
Makarov looked at him suspiciously, skepticism still lingering in his eyes.
“Seeing as you refuse to give up…”
He sighed.
“How about this? Take me to see the creature you want to Take Over. I’ll make my judgment after I’ve seen it.”
“Mm, I was planning to let you see it anyway.”
Byakuran nodded.
“Let’s go to the forest outside the town. Once the Take Over is complete, I might still need you to help me test it.”
“You kid even brought that creature outside the town?”
Makarov stared at him.
“And you want this old man to test it with you? Are you trying to work these old bones of mine to death?”
“Hehe, the capable should do more work!”
Makarov gave Byakuran a helpless look.
I really need to find this kid some actual work to do.
“Laxus! Come over here.”
Hearing his grandfather call him, Laxus walked over with his hands in his pockets.
“What is it, Grandpa?”
“This kid, Byakuran, wants to test out some magic. Come with us. When the time comes, you’ll deal with him.”
“Oh~”
Laxus’s eyes lit up.
“Can we finally spar, Byakuran?”
“Uh…”
Byakuran hesitated.
“It’s actually just a test of some new magic. Let’s keep it to a friendly sparring match and stop when appropriate!”
Sparring with Laxus now didn’t seem too bad.
The current Laxus merely liked to act cool.
His rebellious phase hadn’t fully erupted yet, so he should know when to hold back…
Right?
In the forest on the outskirts of Magnolia, Byakuran explained the whole situation to Laxus as they walked, bringing him up to speed.
After listening, Laxus couldn’t help voicing his doubts.
“Taking Over a powerful creature carries extremely high risks.”
“You say this creature is powerful yet poses almost no risk. Does such a creature really exist?”
Byakuran looked around.
They were standing in an open patch of grass, with trees surrounding the area farther away and forming a small clearing.
It was spacious enough.
Byakuran stopped and answered simply.
“Actually, it isn’t strictly a living creature.”
“You’ll understand once you see it.”
“Let’s do it here. There’s plenty of space.”
“This old man doesn’t see any creature.”
Makarov stopped and looked around curiously.
“Byakuran, where is this creature you’ve been talking about?”
He was rather curious to see what kind of creature had occupied Byakuran’s thoughts for so long.
“Wait for me to summon it.”
Byakuran began chanting the incantation.
“Furube, Yurayura…”
“Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga!”
A pale monster emerged from Byakuran’s shadow.
It had two pairs of winged compound eyes and a massive wheel atop its head.
The moment it appeared, an oppressive aura spread through the surroundings.
Makarov and Laxus both froze momentarily.
They were astonished to see Byakuran use a summoning magic they had never encountered before.
The Guild Master stared at Mahoraga thoughtfully.
“A demon?”
He narrowed his eyes.
“No… that’s not right. It looks somewhat like one, but it isn’t.”
“Byakuran, what is this creature?”
After thinking for a moment and confirming that he had never seen such a creature before, Laxus asked directly.
“This creature is an otherworldly being that I happened to summon by chance.”
Byakuran calmly brought out the explanation he had prepared beforehand, fabricating a little of Mahoraga’s background to make its existence seem more reasonable.
“Its name is Mahoraga.”
“It has already been subdued by me and completely obeys my orders.”
“Its intelligence is extremely low—or practically nonexistent. Right now, it is completely under my control and has no consciousness capable of resisting me.”
“That’s why I said I wanted to Take Over it. Even though my proficiency in Take Over Magic isn’t particularly high yet, it shouldn’t be much of a problem.”
Laxus carefully sensed the aura emanating from Mahoraga.
He could feel a faint pressure coming from it.
“This oppressive feeling…”
His eyes narrowed.
“It really is a powerful creature.”
“Using it to complement your close-combat abilities is indeed a good choice.”
Makarov thought for a moment.
He knew nothing about otherworldly creatures either.
However, judging from the principles of Take Over Magic, a creature incapable of resisting should pose little danger.
And with him present, even a small risk was acceptable.
“An otherworldly creature?”
Makarov stroked his beard.
“That’s a blind spot even for me.”
“If you know what you’re doing, then go ahead and try.”
“If something goes wrong, the two of us can beat some sense into you.”
“By the way, Guild Master, Laxus…”
Byakuran suddenly became serious.
“Although the possibility is small, if an accident happens, you must use a powerful attack to knock me unconscious in a single blow.”
“Why?”
Laxus was the first to ask.
“This is one of Mahoraga’s traits.”
Byakuran pointed at the creature.
“If it isn’t directly defeated by a powerful attack, Mahoraga will begin adapting to whatever magic it comes into contact with.”
“It will continue adapting until it becomes immune to that magic—or even develops a way to counter it.”
“Once it has adapted to one type of magic, the only option is to attack it using a different type of magic.”
Hearing this, Makarov couldn’t help exclaiming in admiration.
“Hss…”
“Such a troublesome ability…”
“This creature really is remarkable.”
“Wouldn’t it be practically invincible as long as it kept building up resistances?”
Byakuran felt a sense of camaraderie.
Great minds really do think alike.
When he had first discovered Mahoraga’s ability, he had thought the same thing.
However, after studying it more carefully, he realized that Mahoraga had many limitations.
It couldn’t simply defy logic and adapt infinitely.
At most, it could be considered an extremely powerful ability.
“No. Every time it is resummoned, its accumulated adaptations reset, so it has to adapt all over again.”
“It isn’t quite that godlike.”
“That’s still very impressive.”
Laxus, on the other hand, looked increasingly excited.
“Oh!”
His eyes practically lit up.
“Then it sounds like we’ll have an exciting battle after you complete the Take Over!”
Seeing that everything had been explained, Byakuran reached out and touched Mahoraga.
He activated his magic.
“Take Over!”
The Take Over process proceeded without the slightest hitch.
It was completed incredibly smoothly.
Byakuran’s appearance didn’t change very much.
The only obvious differences were that his hair suddenly grew longer and turned white, standing upright behind his head in a hairstyle that would probably require an absurd amount of hairspray to maintain.
It resembled Nurarihyon’s hairstyle.
The whites of his eyes turned black.
A wheel resembling a golden angel’s halo appeared above his head.
Byakuran clenched his fists.
He could feel an explosive surge of power coursing through his body.
“It succeeded!”
Laxus was equally excited.
Seeing that Byakuran had successfully completed the Take Over, Laxus immediately took off his jacket and tossed it aside, leaving only a yellow short-sleeved shirt.
Faint sparks of lightning flickered across his body.
His expression was filled with anticipation.
“Then let’s get ready to start…”
Laxus grinned.
“Our battle.”