Chase's explanation to Ichiya had been that he sensed some strange presence around the villa—it was possible an enemy had infiltrated, so he should take precautions.
In reality, of course, he was relying on his foreknowledge of the original plot.
After all, facing an enemy of Jura's level, even someone as arrogant as Sorano wouldn't easily expose her magic power.
But even so, if Chase wanted to, there were plenty of ways to flush out the hidden Sorano earlier.
However, that would clearly be much more troublesome than letting Sorano expose herself. And making too big a commotion might scare off the prey.
More importantly, under the allied forces' righteous gang-beating, Lucy wouldn't get to eat the experience pack that was Sorano!
Absolute mastery of intelligence and an overarching view of the plot development gave Chase more flexible options in his actions.
Just like Sorano—frozen in shock at Ichiya's appearance—for Oración Seis, trying to overturn the world, this was absolute information dominance!
It was just a bit unfair to poor Jura, who had been passively used as bait...
"When did you get the illusion that you had defeated me—"
The charming speech made Lucy's heart race a little. "Th-that's such a cool line!"
A lovestruck maiden like her, who had never even been in a relationship, couldn't resist Ichiya's deep, magnetic voice. It was as if she were under a spell, unknowingly about to become entranced.
"So... could you please stop trying to look cool with THAT face?!"
The moment she saw Ichiya's face, the girl's heartthrob vanished completely.
Feeling as though something filthy had gotten into her eyes, Lucy's desire to become blind had never been stronger.
Thankfully, her aesthetic sense was still somewhat normal. If her ancestor Anna Heartfilia had been standing there at that moment, she probably would have immediately bowed down at Ichiya's feet—leg hairs and all.
"So it's true? You mean you already discovered my trail?"
Compared to Lucy's sharp complaint, Sorano was completely gnashing her teeth. She shouted angrily at Ichiya on the balcony, "That's impossible! What kind of joke is this?!"
"Well, to be honest, even I was deeply shocked when I heard this information."
Ichiya put away his flamboyant, bizarre poses. His eyes narrowed as he said gravely, "But unfortunately, it's the truth. Your failure is already inevitable!"
"So get ready... to face my fierce counterattack, man~!"
To make his speech more convincing—and, more importantly, to look cool—Ichiya stepped off the railing and leaped into the air, attempting a stunning, dazzling entrance.
And then—
THUD.
Slipping for just a moment, he unsurprisingly ate dirt, landing face-first in a head-over-heels posture.
The good news: it was certainly stunning enough.
The bad news: stunning in the "face-planted into the ground" kind of way.
"Is this guy here to be funny?! Please stop ruining such a good voice already!!"
Lucy completely lost it, her eye twitching. Any last remaining goodwill she had toward him evaporated. She just wanted to get as far away from him as possible.
"I was outsmarted by this filthy, comical man? No... the real mastermind is Fairy Tail!"
Sorano wore an expression of utter despair. Then, suddenly coming to her senses, she looked up at Chase. "I clearly hid my presence! How did you bastard find out?!"
Her reminder finally snapped Lucy out of rant mode. Her slightly widened eyes were full of shock.
This strange woman was right. The one who saw through the scheme wasn't Ichiya—it was Chase!
Whether it was Ur, who had charged toward the Wise Woods with Natsu, or Jura, lying on the ground behind her... none of them seemed to have noticed the enemy's presence.
In other words... Chase was stronger than all of them?!
"The answer to that question... you can have it after you've defeated my adorable little sister," Chase said with a casual yawn.
Sorano's strength wasn't weak—by guild standards, she was probably somewhere between A-Class and S-Class. But to him, she was completely beneath notice.
Hearing this, Lucy—who was also very curious about how Chase had noticed the enemy—couldn't help but whispered in her heart:
Damn card freak... still trying to be mysterious at a time like this... "after you've defeated my adorable little sister"...
Then, as she thought about it, Lucy's eyes suddenly became clear.
"W-wait! 'Adorable little sister'? Watashi?!"
Even if it was a sneak attack... Sorano was still a terrifying monster who had taken down Jura, one of the Ten Wizard Saints. She was a member of Oración Seis.
To put her—a rookie—up against that... wasn't that a bit too reckless?
Lucy blinked and looked at Chase for confirmation.
"Jura and Ichiya are already incapacitated. The only one who can fight right now is you, Lucy," Chase said matter-of-factly.
"And what about you, Chase?" Timid Lucy was still clinging to a sliver of hope.
"Too weak. Can't be bothered," Chase said with a shrug.
The moment those blunt words left his mouth, before Lucy could even respond, Sorano had had enough.
As a member of Oración Seis—a guild that commanded countless other dark guilds—when had she ever been subjected to such insult?
BOOM!!
Ferocious magic power exploded. The gale-force winds it kicked up tore at her feathered coat, making her with her twisted, hideous expression look like a terrifying angel fallen into hell.
Lucy jumped at the sudden magical storm. "So scary!"
"That woman is clearly a Celestial Spirit mage too. What's there to be afraid of?"
Chase looked at the cowering Lucy, his expression growing slightly more serious. "Don't forget, Lucy. You're strong now too. And you represent Fairy Tail. How can you back down without even trying?"
His stern tone made Lucy stiffen. "H-huh? Yes!"
Come to think of it... even if this woman could single-handedly wipe out an entire guild... Chase was still right by her side. There was nothing to be afraid of!
The moment she successfully realized this, her confidence doubled. She stepped forward, meeting Sorano's raging magic power head-on.
"This is a battle between Celestial Spirit mages. I won't interfere,~" Chase's relaxed voice floated over from behind.
Those words were meant for both Lucy and Sorano.
"I'm still not entirely sure what's going on, but..."
Having regained some of his strength, Jura came over to Chase's side. Looking at Lucy's retreating figure, he said with some concern, "Is it really okay to let Miss Lucy fight someone so dangerous alone?"
What he really wanted to say was that they should gang up on enemy quickly, capture her, and extract more information about the other members of Oración Seis.
"Don't underestimate our guild's Celestial Spirit mage, Mr. Jura," Chase said with a confident smile.
"If my very best friend says so, then this should be quite a wonderful battle, man~!"
Ichiya appeared as well, his face smeared with dirt, his expression as calm as if he hadn't just embarrassed himself moments ago.
Jura glanced at him with a mixture of surprise and suspicion. He silently marveled at how fitting it was that this man was Blue Pegasus's S-Class mage—setting everything else aside, his mental fortitude was truly strong.
If he himself had made a fool of himself like that, he would have definitely hidden away for three days and three nights before daring to show his face again!
As they spoke, the battle between Lucy and Sorano had already begun.
"Eh?! Two wata****shi?!"
Lucy, who had been ready to show off her skills, yelped. Her eyes bulged out exaggeratedly.
When Chase had brought her back to the scene, Gemini had already canceled their transformation, so she hadn't known about Gemini's copying ability.
***
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