Laxus raised his head, his gaze locked firmly on Alan, who was walking closer. At this moment, Alan appeared before him in the form of Gallantmon, radiating an aura that commanded awe.
Unable to contain his curiosity, Laxus slowly reached out and cautiously touched the incredibly hard armor on Alan's leg. The moment his fingertip brushed against the Chrome Digizoid, a sensation of piercing coldness and supreme hardness rushed over him, causing his eyes to widen in astonishment.
After feeling the hardness of the armor, Laxus's face was filled with envy as he sincerely praised Alan: "Big bro, you look ridiculously cool like this! Gramps, I want to learn Take-Over Magic too, can I?"
Standing nearby, Makarov felt his anger flare up the instant he heard Laxus's request. Raising his hand, he gave Laxus a light, unceremonious smack on the head and scolded, "What Take-Over Magic do you want to learn? You're about to get the Lightning Dragon Slayer Lacrima—aren't you satisfied yet?"
Stung by the blow, Laxus let out a yelp and hurriedly covered his head with both hands. After a moment, he lowered his hands, rubbed his head, and muttered under his breath, "But... how can Lightning Dragon Slayer Magic possibly compare to armor this cool?" With that, he pouted in lingering discontent.
At that moment, Alan smiled and comforted Laxus: "Don't rush, Laxus. Trust me, as you keep growing and training, your Dragon Slayer Magic will become just as cool in the future. Just think about it—if your speed can be as fast as lightning, your power becomes utterly terrifying, and you add some flashy, dazzling energy effects on top of that, who wouldn't envy your Dragon Slayer Magic?"
Yet, despite Alan's encouragement, Laxus still wore a reluctant expression. Clearly, for him at this moment, Gallantmon's appearance was simply too attractive to let go of.
Just then, Porlyusica walked into the spacious training ground with hurried steps. It turned out that while at home, she had keenly sensed the sudden and abnormal magic power fluctuations coming from the training ground. This had stirred up a wave of worry in her heart, so she decided to come over and take a look.
As Porlyusica stepped into the training ground, her gaze was immediately drawn to Gallantmon in the middle of the area. However, what she found strange was that in this vast training ground, she couldn't spot Alan anywhere for a moment. But when she shifted her gaze to the three figures conversing harmoniously, her confusion instantly melted away.
At the same time, Alan noticed Porlyusica walking in. He hurried forward, his face beaming with excitement and joy: "Grandma, look! This is the regular form of Gallantmon that has always existed within my consciousness space. Furthermore, it has even stronger forms, but with my current strength, I can't fully take them over and control them yet—I need to become stronger first."
Upon hearing this, Porlyusica simply said to him: "The strain of taking over Gallantmon must be immense. Cancel it quickly; Grandma knows you will definitely grow stronger, so there's no need to rush. You still have plenty of time ahead of you."
Alan nodded and then canceled the Gallantmon Take-Over, realizing that maintaining Gallantmon's form was indeed still a bit too much for him right now.
......
A few days later, an uplifting piece of news was brought back by Makarov: Ivan had successfully brought back the precious Lightning Dragon Slayer Lacrima! This news left Laxus immensely excited, and Porlyusica also began making intensive preparations for the procedure to implant the Dragon Slayer Lacrima into Laxus.
After days of meticulous preparation, the most crucial moment finally arrived.
Laxus was lying quietly on the hospital bed, his heart a tangle of excitement, anxiety, and helplessness. Standing nearby, Alan keenly sensed Laxus's complex emotions at that moment and gently comforted him: "Don't be too nervous, Laxus. Later on, you just need to get a good sleep, and when you wake up, the Dragon Slayer Lacrima will safely reside inside your body. Trust your own abilities, and trust Grandma's medical skill." Hearing his big brother's encouragement, Laxus nodded heavily, as if trying to add more courage to himself. Then, he took a few deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down.
At that moment, the door was slowly pushed open, and Porlyusica walked in. She first looked at Alan with a smile and said gently, "Alright, Alan, your help isn't needed here for now. Go outside first, and I'll call you when everything is done." Alan stepped forward and gave Porlyusica a hug. "Grandma, you've really worked hard during this time."
Outside the door, Makarov and Ivan had been waiting anxiously. For Alan, today was actually his first time meeting Ivan. Previously, due to various reasons, they had never had the chance to cross paths. Now, in this special setting, the gazes of the three intersected. Though there were few words between them, their solemn and expectant expressions spoke volumes.
During the wait, the silence settled over them. Ivan looked at Makarov and then at Alan before speaking: "This young man must be Alan. I've often heard my father and Laxus mention him. Today is our first time meeting, and as your uncle, I want to thank you for looking out for Laxus normally."
Alan waved a hand at Ivan. "Uncle, there's no need for that. I'm just growing up alongside Laxus, you can't really call it looking out for him—we just help each other out."
Ivan smiled at Alan and said nothing more.
Looking at Ivan's behavior now, there was simply no sign that he would later try to drain his own son's magic power. At this time, he was still a good father, which made it easy to understand why Laxus's personality changed so drastically after Ivan was expelled from the guild. However, with Alan around now, even if Ivan still betrayed the guild like in the original story, Alan wouldn't let Laxus's personality turn so eccentric.
After who knows how long, the door that the three had been staring at finally opened. Porlyusica walked out looking somewhat tired and said to them, "Alright, it's done. Just let Laxus rest here for a while. Since the implantation has just been completed, he might still have some trouble controlling his magic power, but it will improve through training."
Seeing Porlyusica's fatigue, Alan hurriedly stepped forward to support her so she could go back and rest. Makarov and Ivan entered the room to check on Laxus's current condition. Finding that Laxus had not yet woken up, Makarov used his magic power to sense the Dragon Slayer Lacrima inside Laxus, nodded to Ivan, and then led Ivan out of the room on light footsteps.