Chapter 148: Battling an S-Class!

"Yes, Guild Master!"

Upon receiving the Guild Master's command, Aria launched a lethal attack against the disoriented Makarov, whose consciousness was fading after his magic was drained.

"Death's Void: Zero!"

A void capable of swallowing everything materialized, aiming to shred Makarov to pieces.

At that critical moment, a golden blur streaked through the air, pulling Makarov out of the void's range just in time.

It was George, who had been monitoring Aria's sudden appearance and promptly used his flight magic to save the Guild Master.

"How dare you interfere? You're courting death!"

Seeing that Makarov had escaped, Jose flew into a rage, summoning dark magic to attack George.

But before he could act, three figures arrived at his side.

"Requip: Black Feather Armor!"

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

"Ice-Make: Ice Cannon!"

Fairy Tail's strongest team had gathered, combining their powers to confront Jose.

Meanwhile, George, after saving Makarov, quickly descended and handed him over to Mirajane.

"Take the Guild Master and retreat! Everyone needs to fall back!"

Although Erza, Natsu, and Gray were strong, they were no match for Jose, even after his magic had been depleted in the fight with Makarov.

The priority now was to protect Makarov and regroup, allowing him to recover and handle Phantom Lord later.

"Be careful of Aria! You must defeat him before he opens his eyes! If he unleashes his full power, he'll be much harder to deal with!"

Mirajane urgently relayed her knowledge of Aria to George as she carried Makarov away.

At this moment, George was the only one capable of holding off Aria.

But Aria was the strongest of the Element Four, while George's victory against Gajeel was due to his unique abilities countering him.

"I won't let him open his eyes."

An idea sparked in George's mind as he formulated his strategy.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Drawing his wand, George unleashed a Killing Curse aimed directly at Aria.

Sensing the deadly threat, Aria instinctively dodged, his heart tightening with fear. His S-Class instincts warned him that being hit by that green beam would result in either death or severe injury.

"Diffindo!"

Without giving Aria time to recover, George followed up with a Severing Charm.

An invisible, razor-sharp blade slashed toward Aria. If it landed, it could bisect him on the spot.

Aria's prowess as the leader of the Element Four shone through. Even without unleashing his full power, he managed to counteract the spell by channeling pure magic energy, reducing the damage to a shallow one-centimeter cut on his abdomen.

However, the curse effect of the spell caused persistent bleeding, slightly slowing Aria's movements.

By then, George had launched a third spell.

Defeating an S-Class mage wasn't easy, so the first two spells were distractions. The real aim was this seemingly harmless third spell.

"Conjunctivitis Curse!"

This was the same spell used by wizards in the Harry Potter world to blind dragons and even disable the Basilisk. It wouldn't harm Aria but would force his eyes shut until the magic wore off, effectively blinding him.

Without his full strength, George stood a chance to stall for time.

"My eyes!"

Aria clutched his face, stumbling backward as he exclaimed in disbelief.

"I didn't expect you, a mere 'healing cat,' to have such abilities.

But if you think blinding me will save you, you're mistaken. Let me teach you a harsh reality. Even with my eyes closed, I'm the strongest of the Element Four!"

He smirked confidently. His usual blindfold wasn't just for suppression; it was also part of his training. Though the curse prevented him from unleashing his full power, it didn't hinder his usual combat prowess, as he relied on airflow to sense his opponents.

"Allow me to send you to the afterlife, pitiful cat!"

With a push of his hands, Aria summoned a barrage of air cannons, their magic circles filling the sky as they rained down on George.

"Protego!"

George swiftly cast a Shield Charm to protect himself.

In other worlds, his wand's limitations made the Shield Charm weaker than his light magic barriers. But in this world, with a top-tier wand enhancing his spells twentyfold, his Shield Charm outclassed even the Three Pillar Gods' protection.

The air cannons bombarded his barrier, but it held firm, absorbing the relentless assault.

"Where did he go?"

When the attack ended, George scanned for Aria, only to realize he had vanished. His heart sank as he heard a smug voice behind him.

"Let me show you the same fate as Makarov."

Aria had used invisibility magic during the air cannon assault, sneaking behind George to perform the same magic-draining technique he used on Makarov.

"Void Zone: Annihilation!"

A unique magic circle appeared as Aria activated his spell.

"Sorry, but you've been tricked."

Just as Aria unleashed his magic, George's frightened expression vanished. His body rapidly expanded into a towering five-meter-tall super-sized feline, and he swiped a massive paw at Aria.

With his psychic abilities, George could detect any fluctuations in an opponent's thoughts, rendering invisibility ineffective against him.

Everything up to this point had been an act to catch Aria off guard.

Empowered by his panda-like strength and amplified by giant magic, George's strike sent Aria hurtling toward the Phantom Lord Guild Hall. Though not fatal, the blow left Aria momentarily stunned.

"Let's finish this!"

George didn't stop there. Dozens of sharp blades flew out of his backpack, chasing after the airborne Aria.

Aria's body, tough as it was, couldn't withstand the onslaught. As the blades closed in, they mercilessly slashed his neck.

Before he even hit the ground, Aria's head had separated from his body, ending his life.