Gajeel Redfox (ガジル・レッドフォックス, Gajiru Reddofokkusu) is a Dragon Slayer whose Iron Dragon Slayer Magic (鉄の滅竜魔法, Tetsu no Metsuryū Mahō) allows him to transform his limbs into iron weapons, cover his skin with impenetrable iron scales, breathe gusts of wind containing metal shrapnel, and consume iron objects for nourishment.[ch. 61] Transported 400 years from the past through Eclipse as a child in the surviving dragons' plan to kill Acnologia,[ch. 465] Gajeel is separated from his fellow Dragon Slayers and forgets his childhood besides being raised by the dragon Metalicana (メタリカーナ, Metarikāna).[ch. 510] He resents Metalicana for his disappearance,[ch. 66] becoming a delinquent member of Phantom Lord nicknamed "Kurogane" (鉄竜,くろがね, lit. "Black Steel", written as "Iron Dragon"), whose act of defacing Fairy Tail's guildhall and assaulting Levy McGarden's team instigates a war between the two guilds.[ch. 48] After Phantom Lord's dissolution, Gajeel reluctantly accepts Makarov Dreyar's offer of membership into Fairy Tail to atone for his actions,[ch. 212] gaining the guild's trust and acceptance after helping Natsu Dragneel defeat Laxus Dreyar in the Battle of Fairy Tail.[ch. 126] He subsequently develops protective feelings for Levy,[ch. 210] eventually confessing his love for her while being nearly killed during the war with the Alvarez Empire.[ch. 488] In the series epilogue, Gajeel has an implied conversation with Levy about a baby.[ch. 545]
Gajeel was the first of several Dragon Slayers besides Natsu to be introduced in the series, an idea Mashima considered upon creating the "Dragon Slayer" concept, creating him to be an "extremely scary" rival for Natsu.[vol. 8:190] The character's name is derived from the word kajiru (噛る, "to gnaw") and the onomatopoeia for eating, gaji-gaji (ガジガジ).[vol. 27:184] Similar to Natsu, Gajeel's age is listed as "unknown",[ch. 105] which became a subject of questions from readers following a scene where he and Natsu are caught in a runic trap designed to contain those over 80 years old, to which Mashima asserted that this was not their actual age.[vol. 15:188] Gajeel's backstory with Magic Council member Belno was a "simplified" version of what Mashima had initially planned, with the author's original intent being that Belno would be Gajeel's catalyst for joining Fairy Tail before changing it to Makarov.[vol. 47:185]
