Chapter 104.1 : Angel's Defeat!!

"You killed Karen!"

Suddenly, a roar pierced the air.

Lucy looked over and saw, "Hibiki?"

The person who had arrived was Hibiki from Blue Pegasus. As soon as he got there, he heard the shocking news.

Karen was his girlfriend!

"You bastard!" Hibiki roared, charging at Angel.

"So what?" Angel replied indifferently.

With a flash, Gemini transformed into Natsu, flames bursting from his hands, and punched Hibiki.

"Now!" Lucy seized the opportunity and ordered Loke to attack Angel.

"I'm sorry," Aries apologized while blocking Loke.

"Happy, let's go!" Lucy pulled out her whip and swung it at Angel.

"That's quite decisive, but..." Angel smirked.

'Boom!'

Hibiki was knocked to the ground by Gemini in Natsu's form, and Angel caught Lucy's whip, pulling it hard.

"Huh?" Angel was surprised. Why didn't it move?

"Happy!" Lucy rushed towards Angel, but Happy arrived first, picked up a dried fish like a stick, and threw it at Angel.

'Boom!'

Angel kicked Happy away, and Lucy charged in.

One punch! 

I'll knock her down with just one punch! 

Lucy's eyes were filled with determination. This was the confidence she had gained from training with Natsu during this period! 

She was no longer a weak celestial wizard!

"Good plan, but it's a pity," Angel said, still unruffled.

'Boom!'

Flames erupted from the side, enveloping Lucy.

"Ah, it's hot, hot!" Fortunately, they were near the river, and Lucy quickly dived into the water to extinguish the flames.

She lifted her head, only to find Angel standing in front of her, ready to kick.

'Boom!'

Lucy had no time to react and was kicked away, tumbling backwards onto the riverbed in disarray.

"Despicable!"

Hibiki struggled to rise again, only to be knocked down once more by Gemini Natsu's fire attack. This time, it was a struggle for him to even stand.

As Lucy attempted to get up, Angel delivered another punch to her face.

"You're getting closer!" Lucy's mouth was bleeding, and she was drenched, but she ignored everything else. Seizing Angel with newfound strength, she pressed him down forcefully!

"How is this possible? How can you have so much strength?!" Angel was bewildered. 

We're all celestial wizards. 

Where did you acquire this unusual strength? 

Is it some hidden technique?

She reminded him of that guy, Cobra!

"Because I battle a fire dragon slayer every single day!" Lucy finally understood the exhilaration Natsu felt when he overwhelmed his foes with sheer power.

"Damn it, let me go!" Angel struggled desperately.

But Lucy was unyielding!

Any attempt to resist her was futile, far from enough to overpower Natsu.

She still had reserves of strength!

"Bam!" Lucy landed a punch squarely on Angel's face.

"How dare you strike me in the face!" Angel was almost losing it.

"So what if I hit you in the face!" Lucy struck him again.

Meanwhile, Hibiki and Carla desperately tried to hinder Gemini.

Their efforts, however, were ineffective against Gemini's strength, and they were ultimately defeated.

In a short span, Lucy's relentless beating left Angel's entire face swollen.

In the end, she couldn't escape the same fate as her comrades, left humiliated.

"Boom!"

Gemini finally arrived and delivered a powerful kick to Lucy's stomach, sending her flying.

Lucy stood up, clutching her stomach.

"I want you dead!" Angel seethed with rage.

"The Gate of the Chisel Key." She summoned forth a silver key.

"Caelum, eliminate them both!" Despite his anger, Angel retained enough composure to target Lucy's most formidable celestial spirit first.

"I'm sorry!" Aries, under Angel's control, moved to capture Loke.

"Aries!" Loke was stunned.

"Bzzt!" The enchanted chair fired a magic cannonball, piercing through Aries and Loke.

"Damn it, Lucy!" Loke vanished reluctantly.

"What?!" Lucy, Happy, and the others couldn't believe that this Celestial Spirit Mage would attack her own Celestial Spirits directly!

For Lucy, this shattered her worldview!

"What have you done?!" Lucy yelled furiously. "Can you still call yourself a Celestial Mage?"

"They won't die anyway," Angel said coldly. "But worry about yourself first. Caelum, target her."

"But they'll feel pain too!" Lucy protested.

"Don't worry, soon it'll be your turn to feel pain," Angel said.

"Kill her."

Angel gave the order, but secretly instructed Caelum to reduce the power output.

She wasn't naive. Even though he had said, "Attack with full strength; death shows their own weakness," if she truly killed his comrade, she'd likely be next — how could she trust the words of a deceitful wizard?

So, despite her anger, Angel didn't dare to kill Lucy.

"Bzzt!"

The magic cannon fired.

"Lucy!" Hibiki struggled and stood in front.

"No!" Lucy was shocked.

Hibiki, gravely injured, turned to Lucy and gripped her shoulders. Looking at her with hope, he pleaded, "Please, help me seek vengeance."

"This is the last thing I can do."

"I'll impart to you the secrets of super magic."

Magic power surged with a loud explosion.

Danger!

Angel immediately sensed something was amiss, but before she could react, her body froze in place.

"Don't move~"

That devil's voice!

Angel stared in horror at the floating city in the sky. Even though that guy was imprisoned, could he still control the situation here?

No!

He must have control over everyone's fate!

Angel's heart raced with fear. She glanced at Lucy—her eyes were vacant, clearly under the influence of some magical inheritance.

Despair, anger, and unwillingness flashed across Angel's face, but finally, she reluctantly lowered her hand.

Meanwhile,

Lucy declared, "Gaze into the distant sky, count all the shimmering stars. Reveal my true self, and I shall command them all. I am the master of the stars, and I bid you, open the gateway to the wilderness. With 88 stars in the heavens, shine forth, Urano Metria!"

'Boom boom boom'

The power of the eighty-eight stars in the sky locked onto Angel completely, unleashing terrifying magical attacks one after another.

"Ah—"

Angel collapsed, screaming.

In the dungeon,

"Mr. Everit? This duck intestine is too tough," Wendy said, puzzled as she looked at Everit. His chopsticks held a piece of overcooked duck intestine.

"Huh? Oh, I like it chewy," Everit replied, snapping back and smiling as he picked up the duck intestine.

Urano Metria?

It seemed like an incredibly powerful magic, but its heavy drain on magic power made it impractical.

Everit disliked magics that consumed too much magic power in one go during battles, leaving him vulnerable in complex situations. 

That was why he had never learned Fairy Law—if forced to use it, the enemy might not give him the chance. 

The surge of magic power from Fairy Law would expose Everit's true position to the enemy, almost certain suicide.

If victory was impossible, escape was the option. If a direct approach was needed, Everit could risk a close encounter with his opponent, wielding Haven to strike with a single sword. 

If Haven couldn't penetrate the defense, then against such foes, Fairy Law was useless.

Thus, this magic needed modification.

It could serve as a finishing move, but Lucy lacked conventional attack magic, suggesting a need for adaptation.

Everit pondered altering Lucy's magic into a design akin to the "Ball Girl".

This would significantly enhance Lucy's strength.