The morning sun had just spilled over the oak fence of the manor, dyeing the bluish-gray granite floor of the training ground a warm gold.
The weeds in the stone crevices were still wet with sparkling dew. Riyao and Mirajane stood at opposite ends of the field; the moment their auras touched, a gust of wind carrying fine sand swirled up, blowing the tips of Lisanna's hair against her cheeks as she sat on a stone bench.
This training ground had been built at Mirajane's strong insistence. The materials were just ordinary, hard stone—easy to repair and cheap.
Lisanna sat with her legs dangling, feet resting on the rungs of the stone bench. She held half an iced, sandy-textured watermelon in her arms, her iron spoon making a 'crunch-crunch' sound as she scooped. She didn't even care that the watermelon juice was dripping down her fingers and onto her white dress.
Elfman, beside her, was even more exaggerated. He held a whole watermelon in his arms and gnawed at it, his mouth stained with bright red pulp, but his eyes were fixed straight on the center of the field. "Sis and Brother Riyao are so intense every time they fight. I wonder who'll win today."
"It'll definitely be Big Sister Mira!" Lisanna scooped a large spoonful of watermelon into her mouth, her cheeks bulging like a hamster's. "Last time, Brother-in-law was chased by Sister three times around the manor and finally fell into the vegetable patch! Hahaha, pfft—"
Riyao's pink hair fluttered as he performed a flourish with his firewood stick and gave a crooked smile. "Mira, you're not allowed to cheat and say the 'Satan Soul went out of control' later when you lose, and you're definitely not allowed to lean on my shoulder and act pitiful while crying, okay?"
This time, he not only activated [Life Mimicry: Celestial Spirit] but also used the [Star Dress] that Lucy used in the original work. Celestial spirit power flowed around him, wrapping him in a layer of liquid light.
Mirajane, who had fully taken over her Satan Soul, had sharp eyes. She raised a hand to tidy her wind-blown hair, her lips curling into a wicked arc. "Hmph, I'm definitely going to make you cry today. When that happens, I'll let you cry on my shoulder."
Mirajane cracked the ground as she lunged forward, executing a feint slash toward Riyao's face, her footsteps leaving shallow pits in the stone training ground.
Riyao shifted his feet slightly and summoned a Stone Ridge to create space. The ridge blocked the assault—elegant, truly too elegant.
A magic bullet followed immediately after a knee strike. Mirajane condensed miniature Dark Magic Bullets in her palms and fired them, blasting small stone pits into the ground upon impact.
Riyao sidestepped to avoid the knee strike. The firewood stick quickly shortened to block horizontally as the magic bullets exploded against the shaft.
While flying backward with her wings, the aftershocks of the magic bullets spread across the stick. The firewood stick shortened and lightly brushed her shoulder blade. Mirajane turned back with a playful glare, the wind pressure from her wings sending gravel sliding.
Riyao stepped forward to follow up. A Stone Ridge erupted diagonally from the ground to restrict her movement. As the firewood stick lengthened for a horizontal sweep, he slowed his speed to avoid vital points. A crack half a foot long spread through the stone near the ridge.
She twisted in mid-air to tear through the stone spikes. As she dove, her claws condensed dark electric arcs to deliver light slashes, sending stone fragments flying everywhere.
Riyao dropped his shoulder and braced his stick to block the arcs, the earthen light on the shaft neutralizing the impact. A Stone Ridge rose in front of him to serve as a stepping stone. The firewood stick shortened as its tip lightly parried her waist and abdomen, the shaft getting scorched with faint marks from the arcs.
Mirajane spun to avoid the stick while whipping her tail fin lightly. She opened her mouth and spat out a gentle beam of dark energy, which left white scorch marks as it grazed the stone wall.
Lisanna and Elfman hurriedly dodged the flying pebbles. Natsu and Happy were hit by stones the moment they walked in.
Natsu looked around. "Who! Who's sneak-attacking me?!"
Riyao retreated half a step, shortening the firewood stick to pull it back for a block. A Stone Ridge burst from the ground to force her back. Taking advantage of the momentum, he slightly lengthened the stick to poke her forearm lightly, the Stone Ridge kicking up a sheet of gravel.
Seeing her sharp claws swiping toward his blocking path, the earthen light on Riyao's stick flickered, and a second Stone Ridge surged up toward the area below her knee.
Mirajane sidestepped to let the firewood stick pass. Her dark magic lightly eroded the area, turning the stone floor black, but her wrist was lightly tapped by the shortened firewood stick.
She sprang backward while firing three miniature magic bullets in succession, which made the gravel bounce upon landing. Mirajane then condensed dark claw blades.
Riyao swung the firewood stick, lengthening it slightly to shatter the magic bullets. A Stone Ridge burst from the ground to block the claw blades. The firewood stick shortened and struck the claw blades with moderate force, leaving several gouges in the Stone Ridge.
The claw blades and the firewood stick clashed. Mirajane used the recoil to spin and sweep her claws at Riyao's lower body, though she held back her strength, only carving out a shallow groove.
Riyao slowed his speed as he leaped into the air. A Stone Ridge erupted half an inch from her foot. He threw the firewood stick to poke her back lightly. The crack in the stone near the ridge had already spread three feet.
Elfman watched the two of them fight and clenched his fists. "Now that's a man!"
Mirajane turned and used her claw blades to parry the flying firewood stick. She flapped her wings to create a breeze and fired a magic bullet point-blank. The wind pressure blew gravel out of the stone crevices.
Riyao dove, catching the firewood stick and instantly lengthening it to block in front of him. The magic bullet shattered into light fragments. He struck the ground to summon a circular rock wall, leaving an opening.
Her sharp claws lightly slashed the rock wall as she turned into a black shadow. She charged through the gap and made a feint grab for Riyao's face, stone fragments crumbling from the opening in the wall.
Riyao raised his hand and shortened the firewood stick to block horizontally, taking the impact of the claws head-on. A Stone Ridge burst from the ground to lightly nudge her ankle, while his other hand slightly lengthened the tail of the stick to sweep her arm. He took care not to break the skin, even as the Stone Ridge forced the stone slabs to tilt up.
The claw blade slashed horizontally, stopping half an inch from Riyao's neck. As Mirajane withdrew her hand to end her stance, she delivered a light knee strike to his abdomen, sinking the ground into another shallow pit.
Lisanna shouted happily, "Go, Big Sister! Teach this baddie Brother-in-law a lesson!"
Riyao leaned back to avoid the slash and pressed the firewood stick down to block the knee strike. An explosion of earth elements from his palm pushed him back two steps. He shortened the firewood stick and planted it on the ground to steady himself, the airflow sending gravel rolling.
The two charged forward simultaneously. Mirajane unleashed a gentle dark slash wave, which collided with the earth element airflow from Riyao's firewood stick in a light explosion.
Her claws pressed lightly against his shoulder. A Stone Ridge erupted beneath Riyao's feet, lifting him slightly. He went with the flow, letting go of the stick and raising his hands in surrender. The shockwave caused the loose stone slabs to tilt.
Taking advantage of the playful moment while her hand was on his shoulder, Riyao's firewood stick lightly patted Mirajane's bottom. A few stone chips fell from the vibration of the ground.
Mirajane's hair instantly stood on end as her aura exploded. Her dark magic turned frigid, and her claws became as solid as steel. The wind pressure sent gravel flying into the air, and the cracks in the ground widened.
She swung her hand back, unleashing a dark slash wave with doubled power that shattered half a stone wall in front of her. The collapse kicked up a cloud of dust. Riyao instantly lost his nerve, forgetting to retrieve his firewood stick. He put his hands over his head and retreated repeatedly, frantically crushing several loose stone slabs. He didn't even have time to summon a Stone Ridge.
While chasing him on her wings, her tail fin whipped away the gravel. Mirajane fired a barrage of medium-sized Dark Magic Bullets from both palms. They blasted fist-sized stone pits into the ground, sending stone chips flying even further.
Riyao waved his hands repeatedly, begging for mercy. His back hit a broken rock wall, causing another corner to collapse. He quickly braced himself against the wall. The firewood stick automatically flew back into his hand, but he didn't dare swing it.
The sharp claws stopped half an inch from the tip of Riyao's nose. The wind pressure carried by the dark magic made his clothes flutter loudly. The training ground was now covered in intersecting cracks, with gravel and rock piles half a foot high. A few strands of pink hair could be vaguely seen.
Riyao turned the firewood stick back into a bracelet, his face full of apologetic smiles. "My lady wife, please calm your anger! It was my fault!" Before he could finish his sentence, he stepped on and crushed a tilted stone slab.
She gave him a sharp glare and withdrew her claws, though some anger remained. The dark magic gradually receded, and the gravel slowly fell to the ground.
Riyao immediately went forward to soothe her, muttering incessantly, "I won't dare do it again next time."
Mirajane pinched Riyao's ear. "Tonight, your punishment is to sleep on the floor!"
Poor Natsu was buried in a pile of stones—it was unclear if it was a coincidence or if someone had done it on purpose.
The lighthearted Happy flew over to Lisanna's side, picked up some watermelon, and started gnawing on it.
Riyao deactivated his magic, and Virgo appeared.