"Fire Dragon's Roar!"
Natsu, who had leaped high into the air, took a deep breath and roared out a massive blast of flames, instantly knocking down over a dozen guards in a single strike.
"Sky Dragon's Roar!" Wendy followed up with a vortex of wind.
"Ice Make: Lance!" Gray unleashed a volley of ice spears.
"Myriad Gods Shine!" Ultear unleashed beams of light from hovering crystal orbs.
Dozens of crystal balls appeared around the remaining guards, shooting out precision beams of light that incapacitated them instantly.
"Open, Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"
Virgo emerged from the ground in a puff of smoke and bowed politely.
"You called for me? Princess."
"Please punish them," Lucy said, pointing at the guards rushing them.
"Understood," Virgo replied stoically.
Juvia was surrounded by over a dozen guards wielding swords, but they couldn't injure her in the slightest.
Their blades passed harmlessly through her liquid body, and due to their excessive force, they ended up stabbing their own allies on the other side.
"Then how about this? Let's turn her into a honeycomb!!!"
The guards panicked and pulled out magic guns, firing magic bullets as if ammo were free, shooting desperately at the blue-haired woman.
Juvia simply stood in place, watching the magic bullets come.
All the bullets passed through Juvia's water body without causing any damage, merely creating ripples.
"What's going on with this woman?!"
"Drip, drip... Water Slicer!" Juvia swung her hand, sending high-pressure water blades that sliced through the guards' weapons and knocked them out.
Seeing the last guard fall, Raizel clapped his hands a few times.
These guards were quite weak; Raizel didn't even use his Take Over magic, relying purely on physical skills to handle them.
Lucy covered her face with her hands, sighing. "With all this noise we're making, we've probably attracted attention long ago..."
Virgo chimed in appropriately, "Shall I punish them for being loud, Princess?"
Suddenly, a heavy mechanical door in the underground passage opened automatically, and a long ladder extended down on its own.
Ultear looked at the descending ladder with suspicion.
"Does this mean they want us to go up?"
...
"Lord Jellal, why are you letting the intruders into the tower?"
Vidaldus Taka looked at Jellal with confusion.
These intruders weren't weak; letting them in was just asking for trouble.
The fact that they dealt with so many guards so easily without getting injured already spoke volumes about their strength.
"Haven't I said it before? This is a game," Jellal replied calmly. "They've passed this level; it's that simple. The situation is getting more and more interesting."
Vidaldus continued to try and persuade him. "But... we need to proceed with the ritual quickly. Are you sure they won't stop it? Since the ship sunk a few days ago was the Council's investigation team, it means the Council already knows..."
Jellal, sitting in his chair with his legs crossed, exuded an air of calm composure and interrupted his subordinate.
"Vidaldus, why are you still worrying about this now?"
"They can't stop it. Those useless fools at the Council..." Jellal sneered.
At that moment, he sensed that three Council members had already agreed to use Etherion.
...
"ERZA! KAGURA!"
Natsu shouted loudly, his voice echoing inside the stone tower.
Lucy quietly tried to dissuade him, putting a finger to her lips. "Don't shout so loudly, we're sneaking in!"
Raizel shook his head, signaling Lucy not to be nervous.
"It's fine. After the fight we just had downstairs, hiding our tracks now is too late. Besides, that door and ladder were probably lowered via remote control, clearly indicating they already know we're here."
"Even so, it's still very strange that they're letting us eat, isn't it?"
Lucy stared with a dazed expression at Natsu and Gray, who were devouring food frantically at a fully stocked dining table they had stumbled upon.
"This appears to be a dining hall, Princess. Would you care to join them?" Virgo suddenly materialized beside the table, holding a napkin.
Shaking her head, Lucy ignored the feasting duo and turned to Raizel.
"Never mind that... But why would they do this?"
Gray commented between bites, "I think it's deliberate provocation."
"Either provocation or twisted amusement," Raizel agreed. "Or perhaps he's so confident of victory that our presence makes no difference to him."
"Provocation?" Lucy pondered, pinching her chin thoughtfully.
"Found them! Intruders!"
A new patrol squad arrived, brandishing spears and blocking the exit.
SLASH!
Two flashes of blade light swept through the air.
"Erza! Kagura!"
Erza and Kagura appeared before the group, each holding a sword, having dispatched the patrol squad in an instant.
Simon and his friends followed close behind them.
"Thank goodness you're all right!" Lucy cried out.
Raizel, however, frowned at Erza and Kagura. "How did you escape?"
'Could those Magic Shackles have been defective???' he wondered.
Magic Shackles weren't easily broken, especially since the ones used on Erza and Kagura were interconnected, making any movement to remove them even more difficult.
Erza shook her head in confusion. "To be honest, we don't know either. We just tried to pull them apart, and they simply came off."
'It almost feels like they never intended to capture Erza and Kagura in the first place,' Raizel thought, his suspicion deepening.
...
Magic Council Branch (ERA)—
In the Council chamber, Siegrain clenched his fist, speaking with grave seriousness.
"At present, the only course of action available to us is to utilize the satellite magic circle to activate Etherion! The R-System is a forbidden magic that must never remain in historical records. Everyone understands what that means, correct?"
Org maintained his opposition. "An attack launched with Etherion will reduce everything to nothingness—even if there are civilians inside."
Michello added immediately, "Moreover, Jellal is your twin brother. Once Etherion is activated, he'll be obliterated along with everything else. Are you truly unconcerned about that?"
Siegrain lowered his head slightly, closing his eyes as if making a momentous, painful decision before looking up at the other council members with feigned resolve.
"I've long been prepared for this."
Leiji nodded in agreement. "We have always advanced by stepping over sacrifices, which is what has built the magical world we see today."
Org pleaded earnestly, "Leiji! If we attack the sovereign territory of Caelum without authorization, this crime will be eternally etched in history! In truth, I understand the need for trade-offs, but if any issues arose from using Etherion, this Council would be condemned for generations."
Belno seemed swayed by Siegrain's performance, lowering her head as she said.
"So this, too, becomes one of the sacrifices mentioned earlier..."
Org hadn't expected Belno to be persuaded. "Belno!"
Leiji cut off Org's impending words. "The dead will never return to life. When we must teach children the preciousness of life, we have to say this without fail."
Belno raised her arm slowly. "There's no other way. I vote in favor of deploying the Etherion attack."
'Just one more person,' Siegrain thought, masking his triumph.
'One more vote needed, is it? Just one more and the game will be over.'
...
"Hahaha—" Jellal leaned against the armrest, laughing heartily as he sensed the votes tipping in his favor.
...
Everyone briefly exchanged information in the dining hall.
Simon's friends were all children who had been captured to build the Tower of Heaven.
Erza immediately followed up, her expression grim. "We don't have much time left. We need to act quickly. According to what Vidaldus said, at dawn, when the Black Wizard Zeref is resurrected, they plan to become rulers in their twisted paradise."