The eight Blue Orbs vanished, and only then did Evergreen finally exhale.
"Kaien, you really are a cold-hearted man… You didn't even save your own woman!"
Kaien turned slowly, fingers raised—index and middle fingers twisted together—clearly maintaining a stance ready to activate Domain Expansion at a moment's notice.
"YAAAH—!"
Evergreen quickly shielded her body, only to realize belatedly that Kaien's eyes were still covered.
Then came his voice.
She froze. Cold sweat beaded down her face again.
He never intended to abandon anyone.
If she'd truly tried to kill Mirajane or the others… they might've been fine—but she would've died.
She had no doubt now. Kaien wasn't bluffing.
His strength? She had felt it. Her magic couldn't scratch him, while his could tear her to pieces. Even her ability to fly was meaningless—he could teleport. The pressure he exerted was suffocating.
"If you don't want to end up brain-dead for a month, report to the Guild Master for punishment. And don't ever pull something like this again."
Whoosh!
Kaien vanished in an instant.
Evergreen collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.
"Too… too terrifying… That's Kaien Blaze?"
Watching a battle and being in one were worlds apart. None of her spells worked. All of his could end her. She couldn't escape. She couldn't win.
He wasn't human.
Fairy Tail Guild
Kaien vs Evergreen
Winner: Kaien
CRACK—!
All the petrified girls in the guild turned back to normal.
"Huh? What…?"
"Juvia? What's going on?"
"What just happened?"…
Each of them blinked in confusion.
Makarov beamed in joy. "Good work, Kaien!"
His biggest fear had been the girls' safety. Now that they were fine, Laxus had no hostages left—this chaotic battle could finally end.
"Master, what happened here? Why's no one around?" Erza asked, puzzled.
Makarov began explaining what had transpired while they were statues.
"Fairy Tail Civil War?!"
Lucy's eyes widened. She'd only blinked—and the entire guild had erupted into chaos?
"Laxus… did this?"
Cana, though only eighteen, had joined the guild early. Among the younger generation, she was practically a senior member—one of the few who had known Laxus the longest.
"It's over now. You're all back to normal. No need to humor Laxus's ridiculous game."
Suddenly—!
A figure appeared inside the guild.
"The game isn't over yet, old man."
"LAXUS!!"
Everyone turned. The figure was unmistakably Laxus.
But—
"It's a projection!" someone realized.
Makarov glared, shouting, "Laxus! You've lost your leverage! No one wants to keep playing this nonsense! Come back and accept your punishment!"
"I always expected Evergreen to lose—especially to someone like Kaien. I just didn't expect her to lose that fast. That's why I made a backup plan. And now it's time to use it."
"To keep the Civil War alive—I'm activating Thunder Palace."
"Thunder Palace?!"
Makarov's eyes went wide in horror.
He knew that spell. It was powerful enough to destroy the entire city.
"Laxus, what the hell are you trying to do?!"
"What do you think? I want you to hand over the title of Guild Master."
"That's what this is about?!"
Makarov was stunned. Laxus's goal… was the guild itself.
"Yeah. Fairy Tail's gotten soft. And you're old. The guild should've been mine already—but you kept dragging it out. Since you won't give it to me… I'll just take it."
"Use the guild's voice amplifier. Tell the entire city you're naming me Guild Master. Do that—and I'll end the war."
Makarov immediately refused. "Never!! I already passed the position to Kaien. If that brat hadn't turned it down, he would be the Master of Fairy Tail right now!"
"Kaien?!"
"Master?!"
The girls around them gasped. Aside from Mirajane, none had known the truth—Makarov had already chosen Kaien as his successor.
Laxus froze for a brief second. Then his face twisted with rage.
"Old man—!!"
"You gave that position… to some rookie who's barely been in the guild for a year?! A total outsider?! And not to your own grandson?!"
Laxus had grown up believing one thing: that he would inherit Fairy Tail.
It had always seemed inevitable. A birthright.
But now…
Now the title had gone to some upstart.
To a stranger.
To someone who wasn't him.
It felt like his entire world—his very home—had been stolen.
"Fine. Fine!! If that's how it is, then I'll take back what's rightfully mine! With force! You did this, old man! You made me do this!!"
With that, the projection disappeared.
"Hey—look outside!!"
Lucy pointed at the sky.
Everyone rushed to the guild's front steps—and what they saw chilled them.
Countless spherical magic lacrima floated skyward, glowing with dangerous intensity. Each one brimmed with powerful lightning magic. They hovered above the city, slowly forming a ring that encircled all of Magnolia.
Makarov's face twisted in horror.
"Thunder Palace?! Are you insane, Laxus?! You're going to drag innocent civilians into this?!"
"Ugh!"
Suddenly, Makarov clutched his chest, a sharp pain stabbing through his heart.
"Master?!"
"What's wrong?!"
"Damn it! His medication—he hasn't taken it!"
Mirajane rushed toward the second floor.
Makarov collapsed in agony.
"Master! Stay with us!!"
Cardia Cathedral
Freed stood behind Laxus, his expression grim.
"…Do you really have to go this far?"
Laxus's face twisted with rage. "I didn't want this either. But that old man forced my hand."