Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 169: Second Stage, Passed

Rhodes' body surged upward, his frame expanding until he stood over three meters tall. His arms, legs, head, his entire form turned to gleaming, rune-etched stone. The joints still moved like a human's, but his forearms and thighs were inscribed with ancient-looking symbols, and a glowing sapphire gem pulsed steadily in the center of his chest.

From a distance, he resembled some kind of enchanted stone giant—like a magical suit of armor designed to smash through mountains.

Boom. Boom.

With each step he took, the ground trembled beneath his heavy feet. Magic swirled around him, dense and undeniable.

Rhodes raised one enormous fist and punched to the side.

CRACK!

The mountain wall shook violently, splintering under the force. A large crack spread outward, and rocks of every size came tumbling down.

"Oh?" Laxus grinned, interest sparking in his eyes. "That's more like it."

Rhodes rumbled forward, his voice echoing with stone and magic. "Let's see you talk tough after you eat this!"

His fist, roughly the size of a dinner pot, came crashing down toward Laxus's head.

But Laxus, ever proud, didn't dodge. He met the blow head-on, punching upward with a lightning-coated fist.

A shockwave exploded outward, spiderweb cracks splitting the ground around them. Laxus dipped slightly, knees buckling under the weight, but he bounced back up with a grin.

"Not bad! But..."

This chapter is updat𝓮d by freēnovelkiss.com.

In the blink of an eye, his figure vanished from beneath the golem's fist.

BAM!

A sudden kick struck Rhodes in the chest, forcing him to stumble back several steps. Before he could react, another hard blow landed on his back.

"You're too slow!" Laxus taunted, weaving through Rhodes' attempted counterpunch like a streak of lightning. He zipped around him, landing rapid strikes all over Rhodes' rocky form—arms, legs, sides, testing for weak points.

But Rhodes barely felt it.

Laxus' attacks, though lightning-fast, lacked the power to pierce the reinforced defense of the Blue Sentinel form. The punches and kicks bounced off harmlessly, as if he were hitting a wall of solid granite.

Laxus clearly noticed. He leapt back and raised a clenched fist, electricity gathering like a brewing storm.

"You're not getting through with just a fancy turtle shell!" he roared.

"I'll tear it down! Summon—The thunder that roars through the skies, the lightning that falls from the heavens—!"

Lightning swirled around him, growing fiercer with each second. The air grew tense.

'Chanting?'

Rhodes' eyes lit up. He loved opponents who stood still to charge up.

He raised his stone arm. "Blue Cannon!"

Chunks of stone jutted from the surrounding mountain wall, forming twin protrusions. Blue energy lit up between them before they detached, transforming into two small floating golems, each with a glowing gem in its core.

"Fire!" Rhodes shouted.

The mini golems blasted twin beams of blue energy toward Laxus.

With no time to finish his chant, Laxus had to leap aside to dodge. The light waves struck the ground where he stood, blasting out small craters. At the center of each pit was a deeper borehole that pierced straight through the rock, proof of the spell's serious penetration power.

"Tch... What are these things?"

Laxus growled, retaliating with two bolts of lightning that struck the floating cannons, reducing them to rubble mid-air.

But even before the dust settled, two more golems emerged from the rock wall.

Rhodes smirked. "You can blast them all you want. I can summon more!"

Laxus narrowed his eyes. A magic like Bickslow's? He filed the thought away. "Then I'll just break you instead!"

"Come, try it!" Rhodes laughed. His excitement was palpable. He commanded the floating golems to open fire, wave after wave of blue energy raining down toward Laxus.

The cave echoed with blast after blast.

Laxus weaved and jumped with fluid precision, dodging shot after shot. The moment he closed the distance, he raised his hand and unleashed another set of lightning bolts, shooting down the floating cannons once again.

Before Rhodes could summon another floating cannon, Laxus surged forward with lightning crackling through his arm. He swung his fist, now wreathed in blinding electricity.

Rhodes met the attack with a punch of his own—but in a flash, Laxus's fist expanded, transforming into a massive, thunder-charged gauntlet, even larger than Rhodes' own stone fist.

BOOM!

The clash shook the mountain. Lightning burst outward like a storm unleashed, scattering stone and debris in every direction. The very ground cracked beneath them, and the mountain walls on either side shuddered violently, as if the world itself was breaking apart.

For just a moment, Rhodes could've sworn he saw the image of Natsu roaring with fire, superimposed over Laxus. That same raw, overwhelming force.

And then, the stone arm of the Blue Sentinel shattered.

Followed by his shoulder. Then his chest. His helmet.

The entire armor cracked apart like a crumbling statue, and Rhodes was launched backward by the explosive force. He flew clean out of the narrow passage, skidding along the ground like a ragdoll before finally coming to a halt.

His magic power spent, the Take Over magic forcibly canceled itself, and Rhodes returned to his normal form.

He couldn't even sit up.

Lying flat on his back, staring up at the sky, he caught his breath. His entire body ached, but his spirit, felt oddly light.

How long had he lasted against a fully serious Laxus?

A minute? Maybe less?

He chuckled. "Haha, I lost. You got me good."

Laxus, who had just lowered his fists and was about to reply, suddenly turned his head.

A golden light shot into the sky, bursting into a dazzling firework.

"Laxus!" a familiar voice called.

At the center of the magic circle stood Cana, leaning proudly on the flagpole. The two Krugs beside her flickered and disappeared in a shimmer of magic.

She grinned and waved, calling out cheerfully, "We passed!"

"What...?" Laxus blinked. He suddenly remembered the stone beetle like creatures he'd blasted earlier, the one that had tried to shield Cana. Now that he thought about it, it looked exactly like the two that had just vanished.

Cana tilted her head with a teasing smile. "Yup. Those were the same ones. While you were too busy playing with Rhodes, they used earth magic to tunnel me straight here."

Her voice was strong and steady, no trace of the exhaustion or pain from earlier.

Truthfully, her magic reserves had been dangerously low during the battle. But thanks to Rhodes' intervention, she'd had enough time to recover a good portion of it.

And those injuries? Well, let's just say it was sixty percent real and forty percent acting.

As for all the crying, shouting, and stubborn defiance...

Yeah. That was mostly acting too.

But the tears were real.

Cana had been too immersed in the role, too drawn into the moment. The pain of failure from her past resurfaced before she could stop it. She hadn't meant to cry, but once the memories came flooding back, the emotions overwhelmed her.

She wanted this. She'd always wanted this.

As for the "final move" that Rhodes had declared earlier? It wasn't some hidden magical trump card. It was strategy—showing just enough power to keep Laxus interested, while secretly sending Cana toward the magic circle.

All the flashy attacks, the desperate stand, it was never about beating Laxus.

The goal from the start was the flag.

Oh, and that extra Krug hidden underground? That was Plan C—meant to delay Laxus even more if needed. But it vanished when Rhodes lost the strength to maintain his Take Over spell.

In the end, it was all about using Laxus's own arrogance against him, pretending to be beaten, drawing his focus, holding him just long enough for Cana to slip past.

Rhodes finally managed to sit up, swaying slightly, and offered a faint smile as he muttered, "Sorry... it was too hard to find your weakness. So... this was the only way to win."

He couldn't help but worry. Laxus wasn't exactly known for taking tricks lightly. The last thing he wanted was a lightning-wielding S-Class wizard flying into a full-blown tantrum.

Sure enough, Laxus realized what had happened, and his temper exploded.

"Y-You tricked me?! You were playing me like a fool?!"

Zzzzt!

Lightning crackled furiously around him.

"Hey, hey, Laxus!" Cana waved frantically from inside the magic circle. "We passed the test, remember?!"

"I don't agree!" he shouted, furious.

"That's enough, Laxus," a firm voice echoed across the clearing.

Master Makarov approached, walking calmly with his hands behind his back. Beside him was Erza, her scarlet hair flowing like a banner in the wind.

The electric pressure in the air eased slightly as Laxus glanced at them, though sparks still leapt from his shoulders.

"Old man, I was the examiner here!" he barked. "And I don't accept this cowardly way of passing!"

"If you're the examiner," Makarov said sternly, "then fairness is your responsibility."

He stood tall, small in stature but towering in presence. "Magic, intelligence, courage, teamwork, these are all signs of strength. There's no 'right way' to pass. And certainly no shame in tactics."

His voice boomed with finality. "Cana and Rhodes accomplished the goal in spite of your interference. That's not cowardice. That's skill."

Erza stepped forward, her armor clinking as she gently helped Rhodes to his feet.

"I saw part of your fight," she said with a warm smile. "You were amazing. You're stronger than you think, Rhodes."

"Thanks," he murmured, leaning into her support. Her armor might've been cold and heavy, but the kindness of his guildmate made it feel warm.

"We passed!" Cana shouted with joy, dropping the flag as she sprinted over and threw her arms around Rhodes, then pulled Erza into the hug too.

Caught off guard, Erza still returned it, wrapping her arms around both of them. "Congratulations."

THUD! THUD!

Cana yelped with a giggle. "Ow, Erza, you're hugging too hard!"

Rhodes didn't even have the strength to complain. His brain was still buzzing.

Behind them, Laxus and Makarov continued to argue quietly. The tension hadn't completely faded. After a brief exchange of harsh words, Laxus finally turned away, scowling.

"Don't make me do something this boring again," he muttered before disappearing into the woods, lightning trailing behind him.