The story begins in a dark and gloomy building.
Young children and the elderly are captured by evil forces and sold to black magic cults, where they are enslaved and forced to work day and night in this dark and hopeless place.
To prevent the slaves from having any thoughts of escaping, the guards gave them only a small amount of food and very little time to rest.
But where there is oppression, there is resistance.
Faced with their cruel fate, a red-haired girl among the slaves conceived the idea of rebelling against the guards and leading everyone to escape, and she gained the support of another blue-haired boy.
The two children's indomitable will brought hope to others who had suffered similar misfortunes, like a glimmer of light in the darkness.
However, in the darkness, how much can a faint light illuminate?
Her repeated attempts to escape and resist ended in failure. As the leader, the girl endured numerous inhuman tortures, the most severe of which was that her right eye was cruelly blinded by the guards.
Until the final failure, the boy chose to take the punishment in place of the battered girl, whispering encouragement before leaving so as not to give up.
In order to liberate everyone and save the boy, the red-haired girl and her companions fought one last time, even if it meant certain death.
All the enslaved people fought a desperate battle with the guards who had enslaved them, but due to the disparity in strength, the slaves suffered heavy casualties, and even the old man who cared most about the children died saving the girl.
The horrific scene of her companions falling one after another constantly agonized the girl, and the mental anguish awakened her magic, allowing her to successfully turn the tide of battle and achieve victory.
However, when the girl went to rescue the boy, she discovered that he had undergone some kind of torment and had become incredibly cruel. He even decided to continue building the Tower of Paradise.
The girl naturally refused, but faced with a boy who had also awakened magic, the already exhausted girl was brutally violated.
Perhaps driven by a last vestige of his true self, the boy didn't kill the girl. Instead, he threatened her with the lives of his remaining companions, demanding that she keep everything here a secret and never return.
...
By this point, Simon and his companions had already come to believe Erza.
Or rather, they harbored doubts about Gerald's claim that "Erza abandoned everyone and left alone."
They didn't raise any questions simply because of their trust in Jellal and the shock of Erza's sudden departure.
Now that they had heard Erza's explanation, the four of them believed her without hesitation.
"Geralt…why are you doing this to us?"
Wally's block gun had turned back into his arm, and he slammed it against the wall. Now he understood perfectly well that Gerald was the one who had destroyed the ship.
For seven years, Gerald fed them well, clothed them, and made them sleep well. He taught them magic and had them work hard to build the Tower of Paradise, saying it was for the freedom that only darkness could bring.
But that desired freedom was already within reach seven years ago!
It was Gerald who destroyed their path to freedom in order to use them to continue building the Tower of Paradise!
"Erza, I'm sorry."
Seeing the tearful catwoman Miriam, Erza generously gave her a hug, never holding a grudge over the previous unpleasantness.
Hugh, who considers Erza like an older sister, also wanted to hug Erza, but he was too embarrassed to compete with Miriam for her, so he could only excitedly wipe away his tears on the side.
"By the way, Simon, do you know what Gerald is going to do with the Tower of Paradise?"
Erza looked at Simon, who was still relatively calm, and Simon did not disappoint Erza's trust, revealing information that Jellal had been hiding from the four of them but which Simon had still managed to find out.
"Jeral intends to use the Tower of Paradise to revive the Dark Mage."
"What!"
Erza, Miriam, and the other two all showed expressions of shock.
Even those like Miliana who had stayed in the Tower of Paradise for a long time knew who the Dark Mages were; they were the faith worshipped by the Dark Magic Cult they hated.
Black Magician Zeref!
Gerald actually wants to resurrect him!
Shocked, Erza breathed a sigh of relief and told her former companions about Jellal's arrest.
With her testimony, although Simon and the others helped build the Tower of Paradise, as victims deceived by Gerald, they are very likely not to be punished by the Council and will even receive a settlement allowance from the Council.
This immediately made Miriam cheer; her dream was to have a whole bunch of cats after she gained her freedom.
Wally and Hugh also dreamed about what would happen after leaving the Tower of Paradise. One wanted to find his brother who had been taken away from the Tower of Paradise, and the other wanted to see the world.
Even the usually composed Simon couldn't help but plan to find his sister, whom he had been forced to separate from, in the future.
Everything seemed to be going well, but a sudden flash of sword light shattered the joy of the friends' reunion.
Fortunately, Erza's vigilance did not relax due to her joy, and she drew her sword in time to block the sword light, which could only be considered a warning.
Click... click...
The sound of wooden clogs walking could be heard at a leisurely pace.
The newcomer was dressed in a kimono that reached her chest, with long, cherry-colored hair that fell to her waist. Her appearance was not particularly outstanding, but the two red moles under her eyes and her red lipstick gave her a stunning look.
The woman, wearing tall wooden clogs and carrying a longsword half her height, gracefully bowed slightly to Erza and the others, her voice soft:
"I am a humble woman named Spotted Dove. Please give me your guidance."
At first glance, Erza knew that the person was definitely a rare swordsman.
In this magical world, there are many mages who use swords as weapons, but very few can be called swordsmen.
"Be careful, she is Ikaruga, the captain of the assassination squad 'Three Crows'. Even Gerald has praised her abilities."
Simon stood in front of his companions, looking at the dove with a grave expression, wondering if his body could withstand her sword until his companions escaped.
Wally immediately saw through Simon's intention to sacrifice himself and quickly transformed his arms into block guns, standing shoulder to shoulder with him.
"Don't even think about it, Simon."
We must leave this place together!
Hugh drew his magic card and stepped forward with Miriam. Having finally gained their freedom, they certainly didn't want to see their companion face a powerful enemy alone.
A warm feeling washed over Simon, but he also knew how terrifying the dove was; in the eyes of the dove, his few second-rate mages were no different from watermelons.
Just as Simon thought, although the dove was very polite, she didn't take them seriously. There was only one person who deserved her attention.
"Fairy Queen, I've heard so much about you."
With his eyes lowered, the dove held the red longsword horizontally in front of his chest. "Geralt once said you were the best sacrifice, so please stay."
Hearing this, Erza's gaze sharpened, and she became serious: "I'm very curious to know what you mean by sacrifice, but I'm sure you won't tell me."
"So, I'll just use my sword to make you talk."
As soon as he finished speaking, the room fell silent.
The dove holds the sword in its left hand at its side, while its right hand lightly presses on the hilt.
Erza reached for one of the swords at her waist.
The next second, the sound of metal clashing rang out, and several thin sword marks appeared almost simultaneously on the surrounding walls and the ground beneath their feet.
Read Extra Chapter Visit My Patreon
I have only 1 tier
19$ Tier – Access to 40 advance chapters
patreon.com/Lempil
patreon.com/Lempil