"Ichiya..."
Even Finn had to admit he hadn’t seen this coming. Should he have expected it? Perhaps. For all his absurdity and his undeniable status as a comedic relief character, Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki was genuinely strong.
Right now, Ichiya’s face was a swollen, bruised mess—an equal mix of hilarious and grotesque after taking Finn’s kick for Laxus—but his eyes never wavered. They burned with a fierce fighting spirit completely befitting the strongest mage of Blue Pegasus.
As for being the most handsome?
Finn decided to politely ignore the claim.
"ICHIYAAAAAAAAA-SAAANN!!"
Up in the stands, the entirety of Blue Pegasus screamed his name in absolute adoration. Why? Because to them, he was the absolute pinnacle of handsomeness!
"Laxus, can you stand up?" Ichiya asked. His voice was firm, but his legs trembled violently as he forced himself to stand after absorbing Finn’s devastating attack.
He was at his peak, using his Power Perfume to massively enhance his physical abilities—making him taller, far more muscular, and, in his mind, significantly more handsome. Yet, taking just one hit from Finn had made the unfathomable gap between them painfully clear. Frankly, Ichiya knew he couldn’t beat Finn alone.
But what if he had backup?
"Thank you, Ichiya. But I’m not that weak."
Laxus should have been at his absolute limit. His body was shattered, and he shouldn’t have been able to twitch, let alone stand. Yet, running on pure, stubborn willpower, the Lightning Dragon Slayer pushed himself up to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Pegasus mage.
"Excellent. Shall we do this together, Laxus?" Ichiya grinned, despite the massive swelling ruining his face. "The two of us against him. The ultimate Double Ikemen combination!"
The most handsome man of Blue Pegasus paired with the rugged powerhouse of Fairy Tail! An unstoppable duo!
"....."
The entire stadium fell into a deadpan silence.
Yet, ignoring the sheer absurdity of the moment, Laxus took a ragged breath and nodded. "Let’s do it." He was no longer arrogant enough to think he could defeat Finn alone, but with Ichiya backing him up? They might just have a chance.
"Are you ready, Laxus?"
"Yeah."
Finn raised an eyebrow, feeling deeply weirded out by the combination. However, he remembered that during Laxus’s exile from Fairy Tail, the Dragon Slayer had briefly worked with Blue Pegasus. There was a genuine camaraderie between Laxus and Ichiya. After all, as the strongest mage in his guild, Ichiya was a highly respected gentleman... probably.
Despite all of Ichiya’s eccentricities, Finn had to admit his magic was incredibly unique. Perfume Magic. Unlike the purely destructive spells favored by most mages, Ichiya’s magic was unexpectedly delicate and highly versatile, using scent as a medium to buff strength, summon thunder, or even heal grievous wounds.
If I’m not mistaken, doesn’t he have a ’Handsome Perfume’ too? Finn shuddered internally.
In the original timeline, Ichiya had invented a perfume capable of altering everyone’s face to match his own, triggering a localized zombie apocalypse where the infected sought to spread the ’handsomeness’ to others. While that was terrifying, Finn firmly believed Ichiya’s Armpit Perfume was genuinely the most lethal biological weapon on the continent. Why would the self-proclaimed most handsome man invent something so vile? If Finn asked, he could already picture Ichiya shaking his head and sighing that Finn simply didn’t understand the mind of a true gentleman.
"It seems he is trembling in fear of us, Laxus," Ichiya declared proudly, emboldened by his new tag-team partner.
"Don’t underestimate him, Ichiya. He isn’t just ’not weak.’ He’s a monster," Laxus warned, his eyes locked dead on Finn.
"I am well aware! But allow me to make the first move!" Ichiya’s magic power surged violently. He pulled out two small vials of perfume and jammed them directly up his nostrils! "Fleet-Foot Perfume! Zero Distance Inhalation!"
Burst!
Ichiya’s speed exploded. Moving so fast that he felt practically unstoppable, he launched his secret technique.
"Smiling Smash!"
It was, fundamentally, just a straight punch boosted by his Power Perfume. However, the true crux of the technique was the dazzling, blindingly distracting smile Ichiya flashed right before the strike connected.
"....."
Everyone watching felt a profound sense of psychological discomfort. According to Ichiya, the smile was devastatingly handsome. To the rest of the world, it was an act of visual terrorism that should probably be outlawed by the Magic Council. If he ever got arrested for it, Finn imagined Ichiya would just lament being punished for his own beauty.
BOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The heavily buffed punch slammed directly into Finn’s chest.
"Eh?" Ichiya blinked, looking up slowly.
Finn hadn’t moved a single inch. He was completely unscathed, entirely unaffected by the blow.
"Are you done?" Finn asked dryly.
"....."
"Don’t underestimate my elegance!" Ichiya roared, immediately launching his next technique. "Sparkle to Infinity!"
Utilizing his massively enhanced strength, Ichiya spun in place like a rapid-fire tornado, building an insane amount of centrifugal momentum before launching himself forward to deliver an explosive, corkscrew punch!
"TAKE THIS!"
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!
The earth roared, and the wind violently swept the debris away from the point of impact. The stadium was rendered speechless, utterly dumbfounded by the sheer destructive output Ichiya had just demonstrated. Even if they physically couldn’t stomach looking at his face, they had to admit the man was immensely, terrifyingly strong.
Yet, as the dust cleared... Finn was casually holding Ichiya’s ultimate punch in the palm of a single hand.
"Eh?"
Ichiya froze, unable to comprehend what he was seeing. As a faint, amused smile began to form on Finn’s face, Ichiya felt a cold sweat break out across his neck. He gulped audibly.
"P-Please be gentle with me, okay?" Knowing full well that an apocalyptic counterattack was coming, he was terrified. "A-And whatever you do, please don’t strike my handsome face!"
"...."
There were so many deadpan remarks Finn wanted to make, but in the absurdity of the moment, he had almost forgotten one crucial detail. Ichiya wasn’t fighting alone!
"Lightning Dragon’s Jaw!"
Blazing through the air at the speed of light, Laxus clamped both of his hands together into a heavy, hammer-like strike, bringing a massive, concentrated column of black lightning crashing directly down onto Finn’s head!
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMM!
Using the explosive impact of the strike, Laxus successfully forced Finn to drop his guard, allowing Ichiya to break free.
"Are you okay?" Laxus grunted, landing beside him.
"Of course, Laxus!" Despite nearly being obliterated, Ichiya didn’t show a shred of timidity; his fighting spirit was burning brighter than ever! "Then let us show him our true power! The debut of the Double Handsome Guys!"
Handsome x Handsome! The Ultimate Ikemen Duo! Forwards!
"....."
Both Finn and Laxus stared at him in complete, agonizing silence. But ridiculousness aside... the real tag-team battle had just begun!
----
So handsome!