Chapter 16: Ryujin Jakka, Torch!

Intense flames burned fiercely, engulfing the forest and staining the sky red.

Among them, Laxus's face glowed with excitement.

"As expected, this kind of power, even its appearance brings great disaster. But precisely because of this, it's worth it for me to crush." Laxus showed no fear.

All there was, was a fierce battle spirit.

"Rage of the Thunderous Waves!!"

Laxus's hand pointed towards the sky, uttering an incantation. Countless lightning bolts gathered in the sky, eventually forming a massive thundercloud.

An exaggerated amount of lightning surged towards Alex, who stood amidst the flames.

Alex held Ryujin Jakka behind his head. As the lightning approached, he executed the Hitotsume: Nadegiri (First Strike: Mow Down) of Ryujin Jakka. With the swing of the blade, the surrounding flames began to churn violently.

The scorching flames clashed with the golden lightning, resulting in a violent explosion that even Makarov and the others in the distance could hear.

Makarov silently watched the large screen disturbed by the explosion.

Gildarts patted Makarov's shoulder, knowing the Guild Master was deeply concerned about the condition of the two young ones.

The explosion subsided, leaving behind a massive crater.

"Tsk." Laxus was dissatisfied that his technique was easily broken by Alex. He transformed into a bolt of lightning and headed straight for Alex, who was bathed in flames.

"Ogre of Lightning!"

Laxus utilized the lightning's incredible speed to appear behind Alex. With fists raised high, a large amount of lightning gathered on his fists, fiercely smashing towards Alex.

"Taimatsu! (Torch!)"

Alex's body instantly erupted with terrifying explosive flames. Laxus's fist was knocked back before it could land, due to the explosive flames.

Heat! Indescribable heat. At this moment, Laxus's body began to redden, showing signs of enduring high temperatures.

Even the flow of magic felt sluggish.

Laxus knew that if he didn't resolve the battle quickly, he might fall in this world of flames. He had to strike Alex as soon as possible.

Alex, not backing down, moved his feet and shot out amidst the flames.

Both roared simultaneously. The next moment, their figures collided. The clash of lightning and flames caused the surrounding land to seem unable to bear such pressure, beginning to crumble and break apart.

Alex resisted Laxus's crushing fist, a trace of blood oozing from the corner of his mouth. However, wielding Ryujin Jakka, he restrained his power and swung the blade just enough to fend off Laxus, knowing full well the flames could easily turn Laxus into ashes if he unleashed their full potential.

"Taimatsu! (Torch!)"

Instantly, the flames gushed out from Ryujin Jakka, forming a swirling flame wall that completely enveloped Laxus and began to rotate and burn.

The towering flame tornado covered a range of over a thousand meters.

Flames soared to the sky.

"Guild Master, I feel that if they continue fighting, this island will be completely destroyed." Gildarts, seeing the exaggerated flame tornado and the surrounding trees burned to ashes, spoke.

Even the ground beneath their feet seemed to be melting.

This was a catastrophe!!

"Gildarts, let's go take a look. If necessary, we'll intervene." Makarov also realized the seriousness of the situation. He originally thought an uninhabited island would be enough space for them to wreak havoc, but he underestimated Alex's destructive power.

It was fortunate they hadn't started their own fight. If these two destructive maniacs really clashed, leaving aside other consequences, the island would definitely face sinking.

With this in mind, the two didn't hesitate and headed towards the center of the battle.

The flame tornado quickly dissipated, which Alex voluntarily canceled. After all, if he didn't cancel it, the flames would have turned Laxus into ashes.

After all, this was just a competition, not a fight to the death.

Laxus fell from the sky.

Just when Alex thought he had won, Laxus struggled to get up.

Covered in tatters, with several burns, clearly at his limit, Alex couldn't understand why Laxus still wanted to stand up. In the end, this battle was just a trial.

"Come on! Alex, swing your sword!" Laxus gritted his teeth and shouted.

"I can still fight, don't underestimate me, you bastard!!"

Alex was stunned, then seemed to understand something. Feeling his magic nearing depletion, he sheathed his sword.

The power of Ryujin Jakka was formidable, but it consumed too much magic. Despite having magic far beyond his peers, Alex couldn't keep it up for long. Additionally, he had been holding back, not wanting to use the full destructive power of Ryujin Jakka against Laxus.

Ultimately, Alex had awakened his magic only a year ago.

With Alex's action, the sky full of flames gradually extinguished.

"What are you trying to say? Look down on me?" Laxus continued to shout, unwilling to accept that his pride had been shattered by Alex's sword.

Despite giving his all, why did he still lose? Laxus couldn't accept it.

Alex sighed with a bitter smile, shaking his head. "I don't look down on you. It's just that my magic is exhausted. In fact, I respect you. Right now, we're just two ordinary people who can't use magic."

With that, Alex took the first step forward, still feeling the pain from Laxus's direct hit earlier.

Laxus fiercely bit his lip, forcing himself to stay alert. Then, he also stepped forward, clenching his fists and charging straight towards Alex.

Under the shining sun, on the devastated uninhabited island, two figures were engaged in relentless hand-to-hand combat. Punch after punch echoed through the air.

Alex's powerful fist landed heavily on Laxus's face, causing the bruised and swollen Laxus to stagger back several steps, his vision blurred.

*Cough, cough...* Blood continued to trickle from the corner of his mouth.

On the other side, Alex wasn't faring much better. His clothes were tattered, and his muscular chest bore a large bruise.

Lifting his left leg slightly to ease its strain, Alex found some relief this way.

Laxus was now swaying unsteadily, but his trembling hands still clenched into fists.

With a hoarse throat, Laxus let out a final roar. He raised his fist high and staggered forward. Alex remained silent, watching Laxus's approaching fist.

Bending slightly, Alex dodged the feeble blow. His right fist struck Laxus's chest heavily, the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Laxus couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to the ground.

Makarov, watching from afar, couldn't bear to keep his eyes open.

The outcome on the scene had been decided: standing was Alex.

Seeing this, Gildarts looked at Makarov and asked, "Do we still need to proceed with the second stage of the assessment?"

Makarov took a deep breath to calm himself, trying to return to his usual state of mind. After a while, he casually said, "What further assessment? Do you want to destroy this island?"

"In this S-Class advancement assessment, both of them have shown me what I wanted to see: strength, wisdom, and even spirit."

"They both qualify, but only one can advance to S-Class Mage this time. And now, standing there is Alex, so the winner of this assessment is Alex!"

After saying all this, Makarov let out a sigh of relief, looking towards Alex with gratitude in his eyes.

On the other side,

"You're strong, Laxus," Alex said as Laxus finally fell. The tension in his nerves, tightened from the melee, relaxed completely. Ignoring the condition of the ground, he sat down, looked up at the calm sky, and sighed.

"You're stronger than me," Laxus said calmly, his body now powerless. There was no hint of a good mood in Laxus's face when he spoke to Alex.

Alex paid no attention to Laxus's mood and continued, "You know, I used to think you were an extremely selfish person, indifferent to everyone, looking down on everyone."

Laxus chuckled disdainfully.

"But today, I think I should reconsider you. I admit you're strong, and I acknowledge your efforts."

Laxus's pupils flickered slightly. Indifferently, he said, "You're mistaken. I just inherited my old man's power. Any achievements I've made are just because of his legacy."

Listening to Laxus's somewhat petulant words, Alex smiled and said, "You don't need to deceive yourself. Fists don't lie. I felt your relentless effort in your fists."

"I felt your non-stop hard work. You've reached such heights, which is truly remarkable."

Laxus fell silent, his eye sockets seemingly moist. A complex mix of grievance and joy entangled Laxus's heart, lingering and not dissipating for a long time.

Grievance because his efforts never seemed to earn others' recognition, joy because he finally found someone who understood him.

"I... I just don't want to live under my old man's fame."

"You're not going to cry, are you?" Alex teased, watching Laxus's trembling body.

Laxus hurriedly raised his hand to wipe his eyes, solemnly saying, "How could I? I'm not a crybaby."

Feeling his strength returning somewhat, Alex stood up and walked over to Laxus, extending a hand. "Can you still stand?"

Without saying much, Laxus grabbed Alex's hand and let Alex help him up.

"Lean on me

," Alex said, hooking Laxus's arm around his shoulder and supporting him as they walked away.

Watching the two who had just fought to the death now walking arm in arm, Makarov's eyes were full of relief.

"Well done, both of you," Gildarts applauded continuously, encouraging the two young men.

"Hehe, old man, what's the next challenge?" Alex asked with a smile.

Gildarts shrugged, gesturing for Makarov to announce.

Makarov nodded and said solemnly, "After observing just now, considering your current physical condition and the condition of the field, the second stage of the assessment has been canceled."

"Canceled? So that means..." Joy gleamed in Alex's eyes.

Makarov announced solemnly, "Now I declare, the S-Class Mage assessment is officially over. The winner of this assessment is Alex!"

Then he turned to Laxus and said, "Laxus, I've seen your strength, but only one can advance to S-Class Mage in this assessment. I hope you'll continue to work hard next year."

Laxus nodded and said, "I understand this result. I have nothing to say losing to Alex."

---

For those who want to know, this is indeed a translation. Here is the link to the raw:

https://wap.faloo.com/1107895.html