The gong signaling the start of the match rang out.
Wendy's small face immediately tightened with focus.
Her petite figure leaped into the air as she shouted, "I'm going in!"
She spread both hands, and two Magic Circles appeared at her sides. Light radiated from them, wrapping itself around her body.
"Arms! Vernier! Armor!"
"Enchant!"
Three differently colored lights of magic settled over her, noticeably enhancing her attack power, defense, and speed.
While still airborne, Wendy swung both arms forward. Two surging gusts of wind swept ahead like the wings of a dragon.
"Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!"
Sherria watched the powerful strike coming toward her and smiled in surprise.
"Magic that strengthens yourself? That's amazing!"
Even as she praised Wendy, Sherria moved like a dancing butterfly, nimbly weaving through the formation of fierce winds that Wendy had sent crashing down.
Unlike Wendy, who did not particularly enjoy fighting and had only grown stronger because she wanted to protect her friends and her guild, Sherria seemed as if she had been born for magical combat.
She possessed a terrifying talent for magic.
The reason she had even learned God Slayer Magic was because a certain councilor had been pestered by her until he could not take it anymore.
In the end, he had picked out a God Slayer Magic book from the Magic Council's collection and given it to Sherria, firmly believing she would never be able to learn it and hoping it would finally make her leave him alone.
As a result, the little girl had learned it after reading through it once.
At the same time, she was the complete opposite of Wendy.
Sherria enjoyed battle from the bottom of her heart. She loved it, possessed a natural battle instinct, and had accumulated considerable experience.
Without even casting a spell, Sherria twisted her body and gracefully dodged Wendy's wide-range attack. Then, black wind suddenly gathered in her palm.
"Black wind?"
From the stands, Orga and Natsu cried out in shock at almost the same time.
Lyon's lips curved into a cold smile.
"Sherria is a Sky God Slayer."
Taking advantage of the moment before Wendy could recover, Sherria let the black wind in her palm surge violently.
With a flick of her hand, she hurled it out like a spiraling gale.
"Sky God's Boreas!"
The black wind became a sharp storm, slicing like countless blades.
Wendy, still in midair, could only barely twist her body aside, narrowly avoiding the highly destructive spell.
But Sherria showed no intention of stopping. With a smile on her face, the black wind wrapped around her like a divine beast protecting its master.
She closed the distance to Wendy, who had only just managed to regain her footing, and began to dance.
"Sky God's Dance!"
Sherria flowed smoothly into her next attack. The rising black wind swept Wendy, whose stance was still unstable, into the air once more.
At the same time, Sherria's fist became wrapped in black wind, and she punched toward Wendy's abdomen.
"Sky God's Fist!"
Wendy, who was gradually being pulled into her opponent's rhythm, quickly forced herself to focus.
Gathering her strength, she flipped backward, avoiding Sherria's attack.
At the same time, white wind coiled around her small leg, and she brought it down toward Sherria's head.
"Sky Dragon's Claw!"
Bang!
The sound of bodies colliding rang out. Sherria, who had been attacking with such ferocity, was finally knocked back.
Yet the fighting spirit on her face did not diminish at all. She still wore that excited smile.
"You actually reacted to that. Then try this!"
Sherria gathered her strength, her cheeks puffing out. A familiar breath of raging wind came pouring forth.
Seeing this, Wendy immediately began gathering power as well, refusing to back down.
A white storm burst from her mouth in response.
"Sky God's Bellow!"
"Sky Dragon's Roar!"
The black and white tornadoes collided violently.
Powerful gusts swept through the venue, making it almost impossible for the spectators to keep their eyes open.
The two tempests clashed within the arena.
But very soon, the black storm gradually began to gain the upper hand.
Wendy's eyes trembled, and she hurriedly twisted away, trying to avoid the black breath attack.
Even so, she was still blown away by the bellow. S
he crashed heavily onto the ground, then forced herself back to her feet at once. Her clothes had begun to show slight tears.
From the stands, Ankh frowned as he watched the scene unfold.
In a low voice, he said, "This Sherria… she's troublesome. Wendy's in danger."
Mirajane said worriedly, "Can Wendy win? That girl doesn't look like someone she can handle."
In previous battles, Wendy had mostly played a support role or dealt with weaker opponents. Whenever a truly powerful enemy appeared, someone else would always take over.
She had never faced a strong opponent alone before. She had been protected very well.
But looking at it now, perhaps they had protected her a little too much…
"Believe in Wendy," Ankh said firmly, watching Wendy below as she defended herself against Sherria's storm-like assault.
"She has her own resolve too."
…
"I heard from Lyon that Fairy Tail had a girl who used the same kind of magic as me. You really are pretty good."
Looking at Wendy, whose steps were unsteady and whose entire body looked battered, Sherria spoke with a hint of surprise and a trace of reluctance.
"Sorry. Did I go too hard?"
Wendy held her arm, but her expression did not waver in the slightest.
Breathing heavily, she replied, "It's all right. This is a battle, after all."
"That's true. Then let's enjoy it properly!"
Sherria said this with great enthusiasm.
'I don't really understand… what's fun about fighting…'
'But I'm standing here as a representative of my guild!'
'The guild cannot lose!'
Wendy silently repeated those words in her heart as she placed her hand over the crystal on the necklace at her throat.
Her training was still far from enough.
She could not yet freely activate Dragon Force the way Natsu and Gajeel could, and she could not maintain it for very long either.
But if she activated it now, it should last until the end of the match…
Wendy suddenly straightened her body and puffed out her cheeks. The atmosphere in the sky itself seemed to begin flowing into her mouth.
"So you can eat air too! Then I'm doing it as well!"
Seeing this, Sherria excitedly began copying her.
The two of them became like whirlpools devouring the sky in the middle of the arena, countless currents of air pouring into their mouths.
The spectators sitting closer to the arena even felt the air thinning, making it difficult to breathe.
"Hah…"
After a while, the two of them stopped at almost the same time.
Wendy immediately sank her Magic Power into the Sky Dragon Crystal that Ankh had given her.
Pink magic began to faintly glow around her entire body.
Sherria looked on curiously.
She did not interrupt Wendy. Instead, she seemed to be looking forward to seeing what kind of move Wendy still had hidden.
With the crystal's help, the pink Magic Power around Wendy began to take physical form, and her entire appearance started to change.
Unlike Natsu and Gajeel, Wendy's Dragon Force did not cover her whole body in dragon scales.
Instead, soft, milky-white feathers appeared around her wrists and ankles, floating lightly.
A pair of fluffy snow-white wings also grew from her back.
Wendy's eyes turned a bright pink, and her smooth ocean-blue hair changed into a longer, fluffier pink style.
The level of Magic Power surrounding her underwent a qualitative leap. Wendy slowly clenched her fist, feeling as if her entire body had become so light that she could fly.
At the same time, strength seemed to pour endlessly through her.
"Dragon Force!"
Wendy's Dragon Force.
Natsu's eyes lit up, and he could not help cheering. "Wendy can finally use that power too!"
On the other side, Gajeel gave a low laugh.
"About time you learned it, brat…"
In contrast to the two of them, the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth looked absolutely terrible when they saw this scene.
Dragon Force was supposed to be something unique to the Third Generation Dragon Slayers!
So why, aside from Natsu, could this little girl use it too?!