The Magic Council's Fiore Kingdom branch is built atop a certain steep, isolated peak located in the south-central part of the kingdom.
Within a radius of dozens of kilometers around the isolated peak, there were only desolate wilderness and rugged mountains, with no towns in sight.
"So the Council is established in a place like this—"
"It's simpler than I imagined."
Weston and Mavis followed the only path up the mountain, recalling information about the Council as they walked.
"The core layer of the Council is composed of one guild master and nine Councilors."
"These individuals either possess highly respected status in the Magic World, have made extremely important contributions to the Magic World, possess formidable strength, or command vast connections and resources—"
"In short, they are not positions ordinary people can hold."
In the original work, Jellal's Thought Projection, Siegrain, and Ultear were able to infiltrate the Councilors primarily relying on their strength.
The guild master, Crawford Seam, who later colluded with Tartaros, relied on the powerful characteristic of the Super Archive which allows searching for information across the entire continent.
"All major affairs within the Council are discussed jointly by these ten Councilors, and then commands are distributed to the various branches."
"Each branch is equipped with an 'Executive chief,' a 'Judgment chief,' and an 'Enforcement Captain.' These three are of equal rank, responsible respectively for managing the branch's affairs, judging criminals, and detaining Wizards who violate the law."
In Weston's view, this model was somewhat like the 'Separation of Powers.'
"Below the branch level, the management methods of various countries differ."
"In our Fiore Kingdom, the model adopted is one of hierarchical management, dividing the kingdom into several regions and establishing Local Guild Alliances."
[Council Management Model: Continental Headquarters (Ten Councilors) — Kingdom Branch (Separation of Powers)
— Local Guild Alliance (e.g., Southern Guild Alliance, Northern Guild Alliance) — Guilds (e.g., Fairy Tail, Lamia Scale)]
The meetings Makarov often attended in the original work were those of the Local Guild Alliance.
The establishment and cancellation of ordinary Magic Guilds are also applied for at the Local Guild Alliance, which then forwards the application to the branch for approval.
After Weston's detailed explanation and demonstration, Mavis gained a deeper understanding of the Council's organizational structure. She then raised a new question: "So, where does the Council's funding come from?"
"A large part of it comes from the subsidies provided by various countries on the continent."
Weston replied, "Although the various branches nominally belong to the Council, they are actually maintained and funded by the kingdom of their respective territory."
"The weapons, uniforms, and even salaries of the Enforcement Team members are basically provided by the kingdom."
"Therefore, when the Council makes judgments regarding Magic Guilds and Wizards, it must also consider the attitudes of the various countries."
"Simply put, the Royal Families of various countries have a certain power to pardon the crimes of certain Magic Guilds and criminals."
"Of course, this is limited to Guilds and criminals within their own national borders."
This is also why Princess Hisui was able to directly pardon the members of Crime Sorcière at the end of the original work.
Since the entire branch is maintained by the Royal Family, if the Royal Family wants to pardon a few individuals, would the branch personnel dare to disobey?
"I see!"
Mavis pondered for a moment, then suddenly looked up at Weston, her eyes sparkling: "Speaking of which, you are currently the Fiore Kingdom's chief Imperial Court Wizard, so wouldn't you be—"
"Exactly!"
"This identity is equivalent to the representative of the Fiore Royal Family in the Magic World. Even the Executive chief, Judgment chief, and Enforcement Captain of the branch must treat me with courtesy!"
Look how smug you are.
Mavis's eyes curved slightly, and the corners of her mouth lifted gently, revealing a smile that was half resigned, half doting.
Before long, the two arrived at the top of the peak.
A massive two-story building stood on the peak. Its exterior was square and not overly ornate, but it conveyed a feeling of solemnity and grandeur.
This two-story building was clearly the main structure of the Council branch, housing the Judgment Hall and the Administrative Office Area.
Further back were the areas where the army was stationed, and most importantly, the Prison.
Soon, Weston explained his purpose to the Guards at the entrance, stated his identity, and was then led by an Envoy to meet the Executive chief of the branch.
"Lord Weston, it is a great honor to meet you."
"I am Larry, the Executive chief of this branch."
"Thank you for accepting the Council's invitation to participate in the conferment of the Ten Wizard Saints title."
Larry was an elderly man with a white beard, thin and unsteady on his feet, looking like he didn't have many years left to live.
Fortunately, he hadn't reached the point of needing a cane.
"Lord Larry, you speak too highly. It is equally my honor to receive the Council's recognition."
"This lady is the Vice Guild Master of our Fairy Tail, Mavis Vermillion, and she will accompany me to witness this Conferment Ceremony."
The three introduced themselves, sat down for tea, and got to the main topic.
"Regarding the information about the Ten Wizard Saints, I already have some understanding from the previous letter, but there are a few things I would like to clarify in person."
"No problem, Lord Weston, please ask away. I will tell you everything I know."
"First, regarding the members, besides myself, who else is included?"
Larry was prepared for this question. He took a document from a nearby Folder and handed it over.
"Please take a look!"
"These individuals are the Member List currently selected by the Council."
"Like you, they are Wizards who made outstanding contributions to quelling the chaos, restoring the economy, and defending their nations during this Trade War."
Weston took the document and carefully flipped through it.
"Fai, hailing from the Kingdom of Ceres, age 28. He is the strongest Wizard in that country, and during this Trade War, he repelled thirty thousand enemy soldiers single-handedly, achieving a great victory—"
"Kenryu, hailing from the Kingdom of Ameria, age 75. In his youth, he quelled 9 Demon Beast Riots, annihilated 27 Dark Guilds, and helped 3 kingdoms restore legitimacy—"
"Furenli, nationality unknown, age unknown (suspected to be over 100). She has killed demons that caused major disasters numerous times and destroyed over 30 fanatical organizations that worshiped the Black Mage Zeref—"
After reading through the entire list, Weston discovered that besides himself, none of the Wizards belonged to the Fiore Kingdom.
However, he was not surprised by this.
Ishgar is vast, containing nearly a hundred kingdoms and millions of Wizards. It was impossible for all ten people to be selected from the Fiore Kingdom.
"If I may ask, the people on this list—"
"Have they all agreed to become Ten Wizard Saints?"