Fairy Tail: This Healing Mage's hits hurt so much!

Mirajane stared at the dog and chicken with hostility, a slight smirk playing on his lips, but that smile was unsettling no matter how you looked at it.

Kana and Lisana, standing behind her, took a step back upon seeing the smile.

They knew that expression all too well; whenever Mirajane showed that smile, it meant someone was about to be in trouble.

With Sunlight absent, Mirajane became completely unrestrained.

"You bastard, you're really ugly."

The dog-headed man immediately lost his composure; the fur on his face stood on end, and his two ears stood straight up.

"Hey! You're going too far, woman! You start swearing as soon as you arrive!"

Enraged, he drew his katana from his waist, the blade flashing in the sunlight. He swung it at his companion, spitting as he did so.

"Attack her together! Tear her mouth apart!"

The man and the chicken let out a strange cry, flapped their wings twice, and pushed off the ground with their toes, charging towards Mirajane at the same time.

The kobold's katana thrust straight at Mirajane's face, while the chicken's claws swooped in from the side; their coordination was quite impressive.

Mirajane snorted coldly, not even lifting an eyelid.

She stood still, completely ignoring the two guys.

The dog-headed man was secretly delighted; this woman was too arrogant, not even bothering to dodge.

The tip of his knife was less than an inch from Mirajane's nose.

Then, Mirajane disappeared.

hum!

She vanished without a trace, leaving only a slight ripple in the air.

The human-chicken disappeared along with her.

The kobold's sword slashed at nothing, the blade striking the air, and the momentum carried him forward two steps.

He turned around abruptly, his pupils shrinking sharply.

The chicken was being held up in mid-air by Mirajane's neck, its two legs kicking wildly and making hoarse clucking sounds.

The chicken's eyes were filled with terror, and its claws frantically clawed at Mirajane, but it couldn't reach her at all.

"Giggle...let go...giggle..."

Mirajane remained expressionless, her fingers tightening slightly.

The next second, a blazing pillar of black fire rose from the ground and engulfed the human-chicken.

boom!

The pitch-black flames surged and churned, distorting and warping the surrounding air.

The pillar of fire lasted for about three seconds before suddenly dissipating.

A fragrant aroma of roasted chicken wafted through the air, filling everyone's nostrils.

"It smells pretty good."

Kana swallowed hard, her stomach growled, and then she quickly shook her head and patted her face vigorously.

"No, no, that's the enemy, we can't be tempted. Kana, wake up, that's not roast chicken, that's human chicken."

"But it smells really good."

Lisana muttered to herself from the side.

Mirajane casually tossed the human-chicken aside. The human-chicken fell to the ground with a thud, its body charred black, and it was completely still.

A few wisps of black smoke rose from its body and quickly dissipated in the wind.

She turned her head and looked at the kobold, her gaze eerily calm.

"What is your purpose in coming to Sirius Island?"

The kobold's hand holding the sword trembled, the tip of the sword bobbing up and down, making a soft, tinkling sound.

He staggered back two steps, his heel hitting a stone, and he almost fell again.

Mirajane walked slowly toward him, each step unhurried, but the oppressive feeling was overwhelming, like an invisible hand pressing on his chest.

The air seemed to freeze, and with each step forward, the kobold found it harder to breathe.

The kobold stumbled, lost his footing, and his knees buckled, causing him to kneel down.

The katana slipped from his hand and fell to the ground with a clatter.

"I...I won't tell!"

He gritted his teeth, trying to make his voice sound tough, but the trembling at the end betrayed him.

"It doesn't matter."

Mirajane spoke in a flat tone, as if he were asking what to have for dinner.

The kobold was taken aback, not understanding what she meant.

What do you mean by "it doesn't matter"? Wasn't she asking for information?

Mirajane gave him no more time to think.

She grabbed the kobold by the collar, swung her arm, and tossed him into the air.

The kobold's body flipped in the air, its limbs flailing wildly, completely unable to find its balance.

Before he could react, Mirajane's fists had already been unleashed.

"Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora..."

With the help of the flames accelerating, both fists left afterimages as they swung, their movements so fast that the naked eye could only see a blurry trajectory.

Every punch landed squarely on the kobold's body—chest, abdomen, shoulder, cheek. The fists landed in random places, but covered every inch of the kobold's body.

The sound of bones cracking and the dull thud of fists colliding blended together, so dense that there were almost no gaps, forming a continuous, teeth-grinding cacophony.

The kobold was knocked into the air and floated up. Every time it was about to fall, it was punched back up.

His body became like a suspended sandbag, swaying back and forth as Mirajane's fists pounded into him.

Kana and Lisana huddled together, shivering behind a nearby tree.

"Thank you for being lenient during the assessment, sister."

Kana's voice was trembling.

"Yeah, yeah, if that fist landed on us, we'd be covered in bruises."

Lisana nodded vigorously, her chin almost touching her chest.

"I feel like we'll be scattered here and there."

"Sunshine always yells 'Ora Ora' when he hits people, and Mira somehow picked it up too."

"That's called 'couple resemblance.' When two people are together for a long time, even their habit of hitting each other can become contagious."

"Keep your voice down, or we're doomed if Mira hears us."

Kana quickly covered Lisana's mouth and glanced guiltily at Mirajane.

Mirajane's final punch landed, and the kobold slammed heavily to the ground with a dull thud.

The kobold was beaten to the point of near death, lying on the ground, his body covered in wounds.

His face was so swollen that it was unrecognizable, his clothes were tattered, and blood was seeping from the corners of his mouth and nostrils.

After all, Mirajane has no cure; once he's beaten, it's over, and no one will heal him.

Mirajane stepped on the dog's head, grinding it with her toe and rubbing the sole of her shoe against his face twice.

"Is this all the heart a demon can produce?"

Blood and foam gushed from the kobold's mouth as he managed to squeeze out a few words, each one seemingly uttered with all his might.

"Don't... be so smug... I'm just... the vanguard, one of the Seven Kin... has already... arrived on the island... Once Lord Azuma... finds you... you'll..."

"Heh, you mean that wooden figure that can crawl into trees?"

Mirajane's tone was light and casual, as if he were saying that the weather was nice today.

"?!"

The kobold's remaining consciousness was filled with shock.

Lord Azuma has been captured? How is that possible? He's the strongest of the Seven Kin! How could he be captured so easily...?

His eyes were wide open, and he made indistinct sounds as if he wanted to say something, but blood and foam blocked his throat, so he could only make gurgling noises.

Mirajane stopped talking nonsense, and a black flame ignited in her hand, dancing on her fingertips.

She flung the flames at the dog-headed man and the human-chicken, and the dark flames landed on their bodies, instantly spreading out and enveloping them completely.

The two bodies quickly turned to ashes in the dark flames, leaving not even bones behind.

The ashes drifted in the wind, mixed into the air, and soon disappeared without a trace.

If it weren't for the charred marks still visible on the ground, the battle would have seemed like it had never happened.

Mirajane dusted off his hands and then turned to look at Kana and Lisana.

But she forgot to restrain her aura; the cold killing intent from the battle still lingered in her eyes, startling the two women, who shuddered and shrank back.

"Look at you guys, I'm really not going to pass you in the next assessment."

Lisana was the first to react, and she went over with a grin, hugging Mirajane's arm and starting to act coquettishly.

She shook Mirajane's arm in a sweet, coquettish voice.

"Sister, you're so powerful! We're just scared. When you hit the kobold, I felt the pain too."

"Exactly, Mira, the look you gave me just now made me feel like I was going to be burned to ashes. I almost knelt down."

Kana scratched her cheek, chuckled awkwardly, and quickly changed the subject.

"So, what's the situation now?"

Mirajane looked towards the sea, her gaze becoming serious, and the murderous aura she had shown earlier subsided considerably.

"The Demon's Heart has attacked; their main force has arrived. The assessment is now over, and everyone must return to assemble. This is no joke."

Kana sighed, her shoulders slumped, and she looked completely dejected.

"I felt like I had a great chance this year, but it all came to an end. I finally got this far, the second round had even started, and then it was all interrupted."

She became increasingly frustrated as she spoke, and took a swig from the bottle at her waist.

"You can take the exam anytime, but you only have one life. You have to live to have another chance to take it."

After Mirajane finished speaking, he turned and led the two men toward the camp.

Kana followed behind, looked around, and suddenly remembered something, slapping her forehead.

"By the way, I was saying something felt missing. Where's Riyao? Shouldn't he be sticking to you all the time? He's usually like a leech, impossible to shake off. Why is he nowhere to be seen now?"

Mirajane mimicked Sunshine's gesture, spreading his arms wide to draw a huge circle.

He said there was another troublesome customer who needed to be asked to leave.

"What kind of customer wants such a big circle drawn? A dragon?"

Kana looked at Mirajane's outstretched arms; the circle was about two meters in diameter.

"The president looked really grim. I've never seen the old man with such a serious expression. He wanted to go with him, but Riyao said it was more appropriate for him to go; he's a life mage and nothing would go wrong."

Lisana frowned, her little face filled with worry.

"Even the president reacted like that, just how troublesome must this guest be? There are probably only a handful of people on the entire continent who could make the president's face change like that."

"I don't know. Riyao and the chairman are playing coy. They're both very secretive and won't reveal a single word."

Mirajane narrowed his eyes, his tone turning dangerous, and he clenched his fist.

"When we get home, I'll give Riyao a good beating. He's been hiding things from me; he's got some nerve. I wasn't done with my Ora Ora just now."

Kana and Lisana exchanged a glance, and at the same time silently mourned for Sunrise for a second.

Kana muttered to herself.

"Sunshine, oh Sunshine, may you have good fortune."

Lisana nodded in agreement.

"My brother-in-law is really in trouble this time."

Somewhere in the forest, Riyao suddenly sneezed.

A sneeze!

He rubbed his nose, looked around, and muttered something to himself.

"I guess Mira misses me."