The guild’s backyard.
The early morning air carried a chill.
Laxus stood on the dirt ground, golden electric arcs dancing on his fingertips.
Aether stood ten paces away, holding his Dull Blade in one hand.
“Pulling out a piece of scrap iron like that, who are you looking down on?” Laxus snorted coldly and swung his right hand violently.
A thick bolt of lightning struck directly toward Aether’s face.
Aether didn’t dodge.
Bennett’s combat instincts took over his body.
He gripped the hilt with both hands, and pyro element surged from his palms, instantly enveloping the grayish-black blade.
Facing the lightning, Aether slashed down with his sword.
Dark red flames and golden lightning collided in mid-air.
There was no stalemate of magic canceling each other out.
“Boom!” A massive explosion erupted from the ground.
A violent wave of red and purple air swept outward, scraping a layer of soil off the ground.
Laxus hadn’t expected this turn of events at all.
The shockwave hit his chest, sending him flying.
His feet plowed two deep furrows into the ground, and he retreated five or six meters before barely steadying himself.
Aether was also pushed back several steps by the recoil.
Both his hands gripping the sword went numb, but the Dull Blade remained intact.
Teyvat’s elemental laws: When pyro element meets Electro, it triggers Overloaded.
It causes a violent explosion and produces a strong knockback effect.
“What did you do?” Laxus brushed the scorched earth off his clothes, his expression darkening.
There were plenty of fire users in Fairy Tail, but he had never heard of fire and lightning exploding instantly upon contact.
Aether didn’t answer.
He exerted force with his legs and charged toward Laxus.
Bennett’s swordsmanship was bold and wide-sweeping.
Aether leaped high, his longsword carrying a blazing fire as it cleaved down.
Laxus crossed his arms, and lightning condensed on them to form a blinding lightning shield.
The blade struck the lightning shield.
“Boom!” A second Overloaded explosion erupted.
The center of the explosion was right between them.
Aether used the reaction force to roll and land in the air.
Laxus, however, was blown back into a stumble; the lightning on his arms was completely torn apart, and a large portion of his sleeves was scorched.
Laxus shook his aching arms and stared fixedly at the sword in Aether’s hand.
He figured it out.
“As long as my lightning touches your fire, it triggers that explosion.” Laxus curled his lips into a dangerous smile.
“The power is decent.
But as long as they don’t touch, it’s useless.” As soon as he finished speaking, Laxus burst with blinding golden light, and his entire person instantly vanished from the spot.
He gave up on head-on collisions.
Aether’s vision blurred, and Laxus had already appeared to his left.
A slender bolt of lightning struck precisely toward Aether’s knee.
Aether hurriedly swung his sword to parry.
The lightning hit the Dull Blade but didn’t come into contact with the flames.
The current surged along the iron sword toward Aether’s wrist.
Aether groaned, his wrist trembling, and the sword nearly slipped from his hand.
Laxus didn’t pause.
He moved at high speed around Aether, his golden figure leaving behind afterimages.
Lightning strikes shot out continuously from every blind spot.
Aether was forced into a full defense.
He had to maintain the flames on his sword at all times and accurately use the flaming part to intercept the lightning strikes, triggering Overloaded to neutralize the attacks.
“Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!” The sound of Overloaded explosions echoed continuously in the backyard.
But Aether’s movements were getting slower and slower.
Although the Overloaded reaction could neutralize the lightning, the recoil from every explosion was draining his stamina.
Bennett’s physical stats weren’t top-tier to begin with, and the fatigue from yesterday’s blacksmithing hadn’t fully recovered.
Now, facing Laxus’s high-mobility kiting, Aether’s thigh muscles began to tremble uncontrollably.
Laxus saw Aether’s predicament.
He stopped in mid-air and raised both hands high.
A massive amount of lightning gathered in his palms, forming a blinding orb of lightning.
“It’s over!” Laxus shouted.
Aether gritted his teeth, gripped the Dull Blade with both hands, and squeezed out the last bit of pyro element in his body, preparing to take the hit head-on.
A massive shadow blotted out the sky.
A palm the size of a house descended from the sky, slamming precisely between the two of them.
The massive impact kicked up a cloud of dust.
The lightning orb in Laxus’s hand was forcibly dispersed.
Aether was also shaken and fell to the ground.
The palm quickly shrank and retracted.
Makarov stood on the second-floor balcony, holding a cup of steaming coffee.
“It’s early morning, and you’re about to flip the guild’s backyard upside down.” Makarov took a sip of coffee, leaped down, and landed smoothly.
Laxus clicked his tongue, dispersed the lightning on his body, and shoved his hands into his pockets.
“Old man, mind your own business.” Makarov ignored his grandson’s complaint.
He walked up to Aether, his gaze falling on the Dull Blade in Aether’s hand.
“A good sword.” Makarov nodded.
“The material is very special; even Laxus’s lightning couldn’t leave a mark on it.
Moreover, that explosion produced by your magic collision just now was very interesting.
It wasn’t simple magical repulsion.” Aether propped himself up with the sword and stood up, panting heavily.
“It’s barely usable.” “Your combat intuition is very strong.” Makarov looked at Aether, his tone becoming serious.
“But your physical stamina is too poor.
No matter how special your magic is, if your body can’t keep up, it’s all for naught.
You have the means now, but no vessel to carry them.” Aether remained silent.
This was the truth.
“Go check the request board.” Makarov pointed toward the guild hall.
“Take some basic requests.
Run some errands in town, carry some things.
Don’t spend all day thinking about fighting; combat isn’t the only way to get stronger.” Laxus sneered from the side, “Going to help some old lady find her cat?
That really suits you.” Aether turned his head and looked at Laxus, “Still better than someone who got blown away by his own lightning.” A vein popped on Laxus’s forehead.
He pointed at Aether, “Say that again!” Makarov coughed.
Laxus gritted his teeth and turned toward the gate.
“You just wait.” Aether put away the Dull Blade and walked toward the guild hall.
The request board was deserted.
At this hour, most Mages were still sleeping or drinking.
Aether rummaged through a pile of request forms.
Subjugating low-level monsters.
Not taking it.
Not enough stamina, going to the wild is too dangerous.
Finding lost pets.
Not taking it.
A waste of time.
Aether’s gaze stopped on a piece of blue parchment.
[Request: Transporting Magic Ore] [Location: Magnolia South Street, Tom’s Magic General Store] [Content: Transport three carts of magic ore from the warehouse to the shop’s backyard.
Requires abundant physical strength and steady movements.] [Reward: 2000J] This is the one.
Aether tore off the request form.
Half an hour later.
Magnolia South Street.
Aether took off his shirt, revealing a lean but slightly thin upper body.
He bent down, picked up a piece of grayish-black ore half the size of a person, and gritted his teeth as he walked toward the shop’s backyard.
Sweat dripped from his chin onto the ground.
Paimon floated in mid-air, holding an Apple he had gotten from who-knows-where, talking while munching.
“A bit to the left!
Watch the door frame!
Oh, walk faster, this is already the second cart.” Aether didn’t even have the strength to speak.
He placed the ore in the designated spot and straightened his back, feeling his spine protest.
Carrying heavy objects was the most primitive and effective physical training.
Bennett’s muscle memory was constantly adjusting his posture, allowing him to lift these ores in the most labor-saving way.
Three hours later.
The last cart of ore was finished.
Aether sat on the steps, gulping down water.
Tom, the shop owner, handed over a small cloth bag.
“Good job, young man.
Fairy Tail’s newcomers are getting more and more hardworking.” Aether took the bag.
It contained two thousand J.
Enough for him to have a few full meals.
The moment he stuffed the money bag into his pocket, a burst of golden light erupted in his vision.
A translucent panel automatically emerged.
[achievement Unlocked: First Pot of Gold (Complete the first guild request)] [Reward: Primogem × 110] Aether was stunned for a moment.
He quickly looked at the balance in the upper right corner of the panel.
Including the 50 Primogems from the previous blacksmithing task, the total was now 160.
Just enough for a single pull.
“Paimon,” Aether called out in his mind.
“I’m here, I’m here!” Paimon threw away the Apple core and flew in front of the screen.
“Are you going to pull?
Are you going to pull?” Aether stood up and brushed the dust off his pants.
“Back to the guild.” Back in his room on the second floor of the guild.
Aether locked the door and sat on the bed.
He took a deep breath and clicked on the Wish interface.
The diamond-shaped crystal began to spin.
160 Primogems were deducted.
A shooting star streaked down from the top of the screen.
Blue.
Aether’s heart sank.
A three-star weapon?
But immediately after, the color of the shooting star changed violently in mid-air.
A purple light tore through the blue, and then, a dazzling gold burst out from the purple!
Gold light!
Paimon covered his mouth and let out a scream, “It’s gold!
A gold on a single pull!” The entire room was illuminated by the golden light.
A card face slowly flipped over in the light.
A tall figure gradually appeared.
Light blue long hair, a magnificent knight’s uniform, holding a claymore that emitted a chilling aura of ice.
Aether stared at the card face, his pupils shrinking slightly.