Magic Council — ERA
BAM!
"What?! The R-System still exists?! That's impossible!"
Org slammed his fist on the table, visibly shaken. He'd just been summoned to the meeting—and now they were hit with something this serious?
"Eight years ago, a black magic cult invested heavily to rebuild the R-System."
"You mean those seven towers? Weren't they already dismantled by the Council? They should've been completely wiped out!"
"There's still the eighth tower—near the shores of Kalrum."
"…Don't tell me it's already finished?"
Eight years. That was more than enough time to build another tower.
"Unfortunately," Ultear said coldly, "the on-site investigation team wouldn't joke about something like this. It's complete."
"Ugh…"
Org rubbed his temples. Dealing with Fairy Tail was enough of a migraine already, and now another R-System?
Then Siegrain spoke up.
"It's not the R-System. That's not what it's called anymore. It's the Tower of Heaven."
"Shut up, Siegrain! I don't care what they're calling it. That thing will cause untold chaos if it activates! We need to send forces immediately to suppress them!"
"But this time, the ones involved aren't a dark cult. It's a man named Jellal. We don't know the enemy's strength..."
Sure, the Council had the Rune Knights, but sending them blindly against an unknown force was risky. They'd already lost too many squads on similar operations before.
"The R-System defies the laws of life and death itself! It fosters dangerous ideologies! Whoever controls it—no matter who they are—is our enemy! We must send troops now!"
Arguments erupted around the table as Council members debated whether to deploy military forces immediately.
"Pathetic fools."
Siegrain's voice cut sharply through the room, drawing everyone's attention.
"What did you say?!"
"Siegrain, you—!"
The other Council members were furious. How dare this upstart insult them?
"Sending troops is exactly the kind of pathetic thinking I'd expect from you lot," Siegrain said. "That tower is beyond dangerous—and you still don't get the scale of the threat."
"There's only one way to erase the Tower of Heaven permanently—launch Etherion."
Gasps echoed around the chamber. Everyone froze.
"What?!"
"You're proposing we use Etherion, the spatial destruction weapon?! Are you insane?!"
"The blast radius is unpredictable! You could wipe out an entire country!"
"Etherion is our last resort! It's more dangerous than the R-System itself!"
Nearly every councilor immediately rejected the proposal.
But Siegrain persisted. "It's the only thing that can destroy that massive structure."
"I vote yes," Ultear said, raising her hand.
"Ultear?! You too?!"
"There are nine councilors. If three more agree, the vote will pass. We have no time to waste. We cannot let the R-System activate!"
Tower of Heaven
"Lord Jellal, we've received word that Erza has been successfully captured. They're bringing her back as we speak. But... with your immense power, couldn't you have handled her yourself? Why go through the trouble?"
A long-haired man stood before Jellal, confused.
"Ha ha ha... That wouldn't be fun," Jellal chuckled, eyes gleaming with mania.
"…What?"
The long-haired man grimaced. His boss was slipping into lunacy again.
"The Tower of Heaven is complete. The time has come. As for Erza—she's merely bait."
"Bait?"
"That's right. Bait for the sacrifice to resurrect Zeref."
Aboard the Ship to the Tower
As the Council argued, Kaien and the others were already on a ship heading straight for the Tower of Heaven.
Mirajane, knowing she couldn't help in battle, stayed behind at the hotel.
"Erza... I'm so sorry."
"We're sorry, Erza…"
Milliana and Wally apologized sincerely. They had believed Jellal's lies and resented Erza all these years.
Erza gently patted Milliana's head. "It's okay. What matters is that you're all safe."
"Ughhh—hurk—"
Natsu stumbled past, seasick as ever.
"Get away from me!" Gray barked, disgusted. "If you're that sick, why didn't you just stay at the hotel?!"
"But seriously... why is one of the Element 4 here too?!"
Lucy stared at Juvia in confusion. This incident had nothing to do with Phantom Lord, so why was she here? And at the resort, no less?
"Phantom was disbanded," Gray explained. "Juvia's a free mage now. She wants to join Fairy Tail."
"Join Fairy Tail?!"
Erza and the others were surprised—but Kaien wasn't. Juvia would become one of Fairy Tail's core members eventually.
"Yes!" Juvia said, puffing up with determination. "Juvia wants to join Fairy Tail!"
Erza nodded thoughtfully. "Phantom Lord may have had issues with us, but you personally never wronged Fairy Tail. Now that they're gone, your joining us is reasonable. I'll speak to the Master."
Juvia beamed with joy. Getting a recommendation from an S-Class mage like Erza was a big deal.
Just then, Happy—who had been on lookout at the ship's bow—shouted:
"Hey!! There's a tower!!"
Everyone turned—and saw it.
A massive tower, larger than the entire island it sat on.
"Woah…!"
Even from afar, its grandeur was awe-inspiring.
"It's really been completed…"
Erza stared at it. This was the place where she'd endured a living hell.
"This tower… we built it with our own hands. It took us eight years," Wally muttered, fists clenched.
Simon added, "We've already reported to Jellal that Erza's been captured. If everyone enters Sho's card magic, we can infiltrate and ambush him—"
"No need."
Kaien cut him off.
"Sneaking around isn't my style. We'll just crush them head-on."