Chapter 571 - 571: Do You Actually Believe You've Caught Up to Me?

Actually, Noah didn't just stay in the Alvarez Empire for the entire duration of their months-long tour.

Roughly once a month, he would split off a Thought Projection and teleport back to Ishgar to check in on Ultear, the girls, and Makarov. He would deliver souvenirs, share the intelligence he had gathered, and update them on Mavis's progress with her son. Once he was finished, he would dissipate the clone and seamlessly resume his travels with August and Mavis.

August was perfectly aware of these monthly check-ins and didn't find them strange in the slightest.

From the stories Noah and Mavis had shared, August understood exactly how tightly knit Fairy Tail was. It was perfectly natural for Noah to return home regularly to reassure his family. In fact, hearing about the profound camaraderie and unconditional support within the guild only made August more eager to eventually visit Ishgar and meet the rest of the Fairy Tail family himself.

Mavis also understood that Noah was returning home to deliver intelligence briefings to Makarov.

However, unlike her initial, terrified reaction upon learning that Zeref controlled a militarized superpower, Mavis was now significantly more relaxed.

When she first discovered the Alvarez Empire, she had meticulously calculated the sheer logistical disparity between their forces. An empire consisting of over seven hundred assimilated magical guilds was a colossal threat. Mathematically, Fairy Tail had absolutely zero chance of winning a direct war.

But after reuniting with August and spending months by his side, Mavis realized something crucial: August would never be her enemy.

Despite having served Zeref for decades, August had never revealed his identity to his father, and Zeref had never recognized him. Zeref had never given August the parental warmth he so desperately craved.

Conversely, since the moment they reunited, Mavis had poured her entire heart and soul into being a mother to him. She genuinely felt she owed him eighty years of missed affection, and she constantly went out of her way to ensure he felt loved and cherished.

And her genuine affection had yielded profound results. August was genuinely, radiantly happy. The deep, heavy wrinkles lining his face had noticeably softened because he smiled so frequently. He looked decades younger, completely unburdened by the crushing loneliness that had plagued his entire life.

Mavis was confident that if a war broke out and August was forced to choose between her and Zeref, there was a massive probability he would side with her.

However, she didn't want to put him in that agonizing position. If a war occurred, she simply wanted him to remain neutral. And since August was undoubtedly the strongest shield, his neutrality would instantly neutralize a massive portion of the Empire's offensive capabilities, making the war exponentially more survivable.

Furthermore, Mavis hadn't forgotten the other major threat: Irene Belserion.

Based on Irene's surname, Mavis was almost certain she was directly related to Erza. And given Noah's deliberate avoidance of her territory, Mavis deduced that Noah was currently formulating a highly specific plan to neutralize her as well. Whether he intended to bring her over to their side using Erza, or simply force her into neutrality, Mavis trusted him completely.

If both August and Irene were removed from the board, Zeref would be stripped of his two greatest weapons. While the Empire's numbers were still terrifying, the playing field would be drastically leveled.

With the overarching strategic pressure significantly reduced, Mavis dedicated her full attention to simply enjoying her vacation with her son.

Back in Magnolia, Noah's monthly updates had sparked intense curiosity among Ultear and the girls. Hearing his stories and looking at the magical photos of the foreign architecture made them desperately want to visit the Western Continent. However, knowing that Noah was technically conducting a highly classified espionage mission deep within hostile territory, they suppressed their wanderlust. Noah's regular deliveries of foreign souvenirs helped pacify their complaints.

Originally, August had been slightly confused as to why Noah hadn't simply returned to Ishgar permanently.

Noah had explicitly stated that his only reason for infiltrating the Empire was to find Mavis's child. Now that the child was found and the reunion was a success, Noah's mission was over. As an unregistered Ishgarian mage deep within the Alvarez Empire, his continued presence was technically a massive security breach that August, as the highest-ranking general, was obligated to report.

But since Noah was his mother's savior, August had completely ignored protocol and pretended Noah's illegal status simply didn't exist.

However, since the mission was over, there was no practical reason for Noah to stay. He was essentially just third-wheeling their family vacation.

When August eventually asked him why he lingered, Noah answered honestly: he wanted to continue touring the Empire, but more importantly, he wanted to stay near August to study his magical theories.

August hadn't been surprised. Having spent a month with Noah, the Magic King was fully aware of the young man's absolute, borderline fanatical obsession with magical theory.

Since Noah's presence made Mavis happy, and since Noah was a fellow scholar of the arcane, August was more than happy to indulge him. He patiently answered Noah's endless questions and continuously supplied him with massive data packets containing rare, highly complex spells.

Thanks to August's unparalleled tutelage, Noah's understanding of magical theory skyrocketed at a terrifying, unprecedented rate.

Simultaneously, by maintaining his hyper-gravity training 24/7 for months on end, his physical constitution and raw Ethernano capacity had expanded massively.

Factoring in the combat experience he had gained from sparring with Acnologia, Noah's overall strength had experienced a profound, explosive evolution over the last few months.

Eventually, their grand tour of the Alvarez Empire's major cities concluded. August and Mavis were currently debating whether they should begin touring the smaller, rural towns, or finally cross the ocean to Ishgar so August could meet the rest of Fairy Tail.

While they were deciding, Noah finally made his move.

"I want to fight you," Noah stated, looking directly at August, his expression completely serious.

"I was wondering when you were finally going to issue a formal challenge," August chuckled softly, completely unbothered by the sudden declaration.

Through Mavis's stories, August had learned exactly what kind of person Noah was. Noah wasn't someone who cowered before strong opponents; he actively sought them out to temper his own strength.

When August learned that Noah had directly engaged Acnologia in hand-to-hand combat to buy Fairy Tail time to escape, he had been genuinely shocked.

Acnologia was the ultimate, apocalyptic nightmare. Zeref had literally built the entire Alvarez Empire specifically to combat the Black Dragon. As the man who had managed the Empire for decades, August intimately understood exactly how terrifying Acnologia was. Zeref, the immortal Black Wizard, feared the Dragon King.

Yet Noah, having ensured his guild's safety, had charged directly at the apocalypse without a second thought.

Given that level of absolute fearlessness, August knew it was only a matter of time before Noah challenged him. After all, August was undoubtedly stronger than Noah, but he wasn't going to try and kill him. It was the perfect, risk-free opportunity for Noah to test his limits against a superior opponent.

However, August was genuinely surprised that Noah had waited several months to issue the challenge.

Mavis, sitting nearby, simply smiled. Knowing Noah's intensely pragmatic nature, she already knew exactly why he had waited.

"I didn't challenge you immediately because, at the time, the gap in our raw strength was too massive," Noah explained calmly. "If we had fought back then, the disparity would have been so great that I wouldn't have gained any meaningful combat data or growth from the exchange."

"And do you actually believe you've caught up to me now?" August asked, raising an eyebrow curiously.

He wasn't angry; he knew Noah wasn't being arrogant. He was genuinely curious to hear Noah's self-assessment.

"No. There is still a noticeable gap between us," Noah shook his head honestly. "But thanks to the months of gravity training and the magical theories you taught me, I've bridged a significant portion of that gap.

"If we fight now, the resulting pressure will be immense, but manageable. It will force me to adapt and grow in real-time, yielding the maximum possible benefit."

"A highly calculated approach. You want to close the gap just enough so the battle pressure forces an evolutionary leap," Mavis noted approvingly from the side.

"I accept your challenge. I have been looking forward to this for quite some time," August smiled warmly. "However... where exactly do you intend to hold this duel? I must insist we do not fight within the borders of the Empire. I have absolutely no desire to clean up the catastrophic collateral damage, nor do I wish to explain a cratered mountain range to the Imperial Guard."

Given the apocalyptic scale of their combined magic, a serious duel between them would instantly flatten an entire region.

"Naturally," Noah agreed, fully aware of the collateral risks. "We'll fight over the ocean. Specifically, the deep ocean, far away from any coastlines or shipping lanes.

"When I fought Gildarts, we battled over the ocean. It's the only place where we can unleash our absolute maximum output without worrying about collateral damage or drawing unwanted attention."

"A flawless tactical choice. The deep ocean it is," August nodded in agreement. "Have you finished packing your belongings?"

"Everything is packed," Noah confirmed.

Since they had finished touring their current city, they were going to leave the inn regardless of their next destination. Noah was already fully prepared to depart.

"Excellent. Let us check out and head to the outskirts," August said.

The three of them quickly finalized their checkout and walked out of the city limits, ensuring no civilians were watching.

Noah and Mavis turned to look at August. While Noah could easily teleport them to the ocean using Spatial Magic, August was the local; he knew the precise geographical coordinates of the surrounding oceanic expanses far better than Noah did.

Seeing their expectant looks, August chuckled. He raised his massive wooden staff and tapped the ground.

In a flash of light, the three of them vanished.

When they reappeared, they were hovering directly over the vast, churning expanse of the deep ocean.

August tapped his staff against the water. Instantly, a colossal, perfectly flat glacier of ultra-dense ice violently erupted from the sea, creating a massive, stable platform for them to stand on.

"We are currently over five hundred kilometers away from the nearest coastline," August announced, his sensory magic instantly sweeping the horizon. "There are zero ships or biological signatures in the immediate vicinity. We can fight with absolute impunity here."

Noah opened his Archive interface, verifying their coordinates on his digital map. August was correct; they were perfectly isolated in the center of the ocean. Even if they unleashed an apocalyptic bombardment on the scale of his fight with Acnologia, the resulting shockwaves would dissipate long before reaching land.

"Perfect. This is exactly what I needed," Noah said, closing his Archive.

He immediately began stretching his arms and legs, rolling his shoulders to loosen his muscles. He had been looking forward to this duel for months. The prospect of fighting the Magic King at full power sent a thrilling, electric surge of adrenaline rushing through his veins.

"I must admit, it has been a very long time since I was required to exert my full strength. I am quite eager for this," August smiled, gripping his staff tightly, his own aura beginning to slowly, steadily rise.

Within the Alvarez Empire, Zeref was the absolute strongest. Naturally, August could never fight his father at full power.

The only other person who rivaled his strength was Irene. But she rarely ever left her northern territory, and the two of them essentially ignored each other. Furthermore, if the two strongest shields engaged in a full-power duel, the resulting devastation would severely destabilize the Empire, so they naturally avoided conflict.

As for the rest of the Spriggan 12... the gap in power between them and August was simply too vast.

Many of the more battle-hungry shields had challenged August over the decades. Every single time, August had effortlessly crushed them without breaking a sweat. In fact, he had to actively suppress his power during those spars to avoid accidentally killing them.

Because of this, August hadn't experienced the thrill of a genuine, high-stakes battle in decades.

~~~

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