The Magic Merchant in Fairy Tail

When Klaue attacked Kira, he retaliated instantly.

"Earth Flow Wall!"

A circular stone wall rose from the ground, completely surrounding Kira in a 360-degree defensive sphere. The countless exploding cloud balls collided against the barrier with deafening roars, but none of them reached Kira.

"Earth magic?" Klaue's eyes narrowed, but she didn't let herself pause for long. She lashed out with her Iron Cloud Sword and Whip again, aiming to shatter Kira's defenses.

"You've trapped yourself! Let's see how long you can stay in there!" she sneered.

Before her weapon could land a decisive blow, two sharp stone pillars burst out from the wall, piercing the Iron Cloud Sword and rendering it useless.

"Stone Gun!"

Klaue's shock turned to frustration. "What?! How…?" The suddenness of the counterattack left her momentarily stunned, allowing Kira to press his advantage.

"Gravity!"

A powerful gravitational force enveloped Klaue, immediately disrupting the delicate balance of her cloud magic. The cohesive structures of the Cloud Ball, Rope Cloud, and Iron Cloud began to disintegrate under the strain, and even the Sea Cloud at her feet dissipated into harmless mist.

The overwhelming force caused Klaue to lose her balance, plummeting from her lofty perch.

Falling rapidly, Klaue's instincts kicked in. Her body transformed into a mass of elemental cloud, allowing her to avoid injury as she landed on the battlefield. But before she could recompose herself, Kira launched another attack.

"Rock Cannon!"

Dozens of jagged stone shards hurtled toward her from all directions.

Elementalized, Klaue allowed the projectiles to pass harmlessly through her vaporous form. The stone shards collided with one another in the air, shattering into smaller pieces. These fragments rained down onto the snowy battlefield and embedded themselves in the ground.

"Is that all you've got?" Klaue smirked, fully reforming her humanoid figure.

But then, she noticed something peculiar—her feet wouldn't budge.

"What is this?!" Klaue screamed, trying and failing to move. It felt as though the ground itself had turned into a sticky mire, anchoring her in place.

Stone spikes erupted from the ground, wrapping tightly around her form. Starting at her ankles, they coiled upward like snakes, encasing her legs, torso, and finally her arms and neck.

"You think this can hold me?!" Klaue raged, trying to elementalize and escape. But no matter how much she struggled, her body refused to obey.

"What… is happening to me?!"

From outside the stone prison, Kira stood calmly, watching his handiwork. "This is called the Stone Seal," he explained, his tone confident.

Kira tapped the stone prison with his knuckles, checking its sturdiness. Satisfied, he turned to Natsu, who had climbed out of the snow pit with Lucy's help.

"Natsu, the enemy's been dealt with," Kira said matter-of-factly.

"Dealt with?! Already?!" Natsu's eyes widened as he looked at the stone structure holding Klaue. "You mean she's in there?"

"Yep."

"WHAT?!" Natsu clenched his fists in frustration. "I was just getting started!"

Kira smirked. "Then you should've fought smarter, not harder. You wasted too much time trying to brute force your way through her magic."

Natsu bristled but said nothing, glancing at Happy, who had landed beside him.

"Happy, can you confirm?"

The blue cat nodded, flying over to inspect the stone prison. He returned a moment later, flapping excitedly. "She's totally trapped! Can't even move a whisker!"

"Damn it!" Natsu muttered, kicking at the snow.

Lucy, still catching her breath, looked at Kira with newfound respect. "That was… incredible. I didn't even see what happened. It's like you beat her without breaking a sweat."

Kira shrugged modestly. "It's not about strength alone. Strategy matters."

Inside the stone prison, Klaue screamed and cursed.

"Let me out! This isn't fair!"

"Damn it! How is this happening?!"

Kira chuckled. "Word magic, Silence."

The muffled sounds from the stone structure faded completely, leaving a blissful quiet.

As Kira walked back to Natsu and Lucy, he caught Happy trying to sneak away. The blue cat froze as Kira's shadow loomed over him.

"Harpy," Kira said, his tone playful but menacing. "What did you just say about me earlier? Something about not being serious?"

Happy tried to play innocent, putting on his most adorable face. "M-Me? I would never say that!"

"Oh, really?" Kira grabbed Happy by the tail, dangling him upside down. "You were the one who got Natsu into this mess, weren't you? And now you've got the nerve to criticize me?"

"N-No!" Happy wailed. "It was Natsu! He made me do it!"

"Is that so?" Kira rubbed the cat's round belly, eliciting a squeaky protest. "Maybe you need some special training when we get back to the guild."

"Natsu, help me!" Happy pleaded, flailing his paws.

But Natsu remained silent, guilt flashing across his face.

"Don't worry," Kira continued, his voice laced with dark amusement. "Natsu's getting punished too. Special training for both of you!"

With Klaue securely imprisoned and the battlefield quiet, Kira turned to the others.

"This mission isn't over yet. There are more demons out there, and we've still got to figure out what's really going on in this snowy wasteland."

Lucy shivered, pulling her coat tighter around herself. "What could be worse than what we've already faced?"

Kira's expression darkened. "If Klaue is just a pawn, then the real challenge is yet to come."

His words hung heavily in the cold air, a foreboding reminder that this was only the beginning.

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