"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"
An enraged Natsu sent Fukuro flying with a full-power strike, the explosion of fire illuminating the corridor.
"We won!" Happy cheered, throwing his paws up in the air.
Natsu panted, shaking off the dizziness from the battle.
He looked at Ultear and Lucy, who had just arrived, and asked, "Why are you two here?"
Ultear gestured for Happy to help Natsu up. "Let's talk while we walk. We need to hurry—things are getting more complicated."
"The opponents we encountered bore the emblem of 'Grimoire Heart,'" Ultear explained grimly as they moved.
"'Grimoire Heart'! Isn't that one of the Three Dark Guilds of the Balam Alliance?"
Natsu showed little reaction to the name "Grimoire Heart," but Happy was different—Happy knew that name and shivered.
Ultear nodded and continued, "Yes, for some reason, 'Grimoire Heart' is involved now. At this point, we have to resolve this as quickly as possible."
...
Magic Council Branch (ERA)
"Eight votes in favor, only one against. Therefore, the use of Etherion to attack the Tower of Heaven is approved."
The Council headquarters suddenly became a hive of activity, with frog messengers scurrying back and forth carrying orders and crystals.
"The Council has voted. In one hour, they will launch the Etherion."
"Hurry and prepare, quickly..."
...
Siegrain leaned back in his chair calmly, eyes closed in rest, as if the chaos outside had nothing to do with him.
Two knocks sounded at the door. Siegrain opened his eyes.
"Come in."
"Excuse me."
It was Yajima.
He was the only one who had voted against the measure. After the meeting ended, he immediately went to Siegrain's office.
"Siegrain, is this really the right thing to do? If we think about it more carefully, there should be other ways to resolve this, right?"
"Perhaps you cannot approve of this method, but we absolutely cannot allow Zeref to be revived. You understand that as well, don't you, Mr. Yajima?"
Yajima sighed helplessly and said, "I don't care what happens to the tower. But if there are any consequences, you will take responsibility, right?"
"Of course, I will bear all responsibility..."
Yajima turned around and angrily rebuked Siegrain, "I'm talking about responsibility for human lives! Your actions will bury the Mages of Fairy Tail, including your own twin brother!"
"And for the rest of your life, you will have to carry the weight of the sacrificed lives, Siegrain."
Siegrain looked out the window, his expression unreadable. "I am willing to bear it, along with Jellal's life."
...
Council Central Chamber—
A circular open space in the center of the Council suddenly split open on both sides, and four massive Magic Crystal towers rose from the ground, humming with energy.
"Output towers setup complete."
"Error margin zero."
"Activate displacement Magic Crystals, prepare to compress Magical Power."
"Begin coordinate correction, set spatial coordinates."
"How are the attributes and output? We're ready to fuse them—quickly calculate the compression force!"
"Etherion is prepared for fusion. Check preliminary actions, begin fusing attributes."
"Large wavelength interference detected in the mountainous region, reset spatial coordinates."
"Magical Power loading rate at sixty percent."
"Twenty-seven minutes until we reach the target airspace."
Org watched the Etherion charging sequence within the Council chamber with a heavy heart.
"Never thought we'd be forced to make such a decision while the Chairman is unwell."
Leiji shook his head and said, "There's no other way. When the Chairman is absent, the nine of us must take full responsibility for maintaining order in the magic world."
Michello spoke up, defending the decision. "No need to worry so much, Org. Although we're attacking another country under irregular procedures, this still complies with Section 4, Article 27 of the National Security Act."
Org turned to look at Michello sternly. "My concern isn't about legal matters. What we're about to deploy is Etherion—it's equivalent to unleashing a demon."
Michello disagreed. "The real demon is Zeref. To defeat him, we can only hope the Etherion becomes an angel."
'Almost complete...' Siegrain thought, standing at a high level overlooking the launcher with a sinister glint in his eyes.
...
Meanwhile, Erza, Kagura, Simon, Sho, and Wally arrived at a wooden corridor so long it seemed endless.
Strange, traditional music began to play from nowhere, and cherry blossoms slowly fell from the ceiling.
Clack... Clack...
The sound of wooden clogs on the floorboards was clearly audible.
Erza and Kagura stopped walking, sensing a powerful presence.
A woman appeared. She had cherry blossom-colored hair reaching her waist, tied up in the back with two strands flowing in front, and distinct red moles under her eyes.
She wore a white kimono and tall, thick red wooden clogs.
She approached slowly while holding a red longsword horizontally.
The approaching woman, Ikaruga, closed her eyes and slightly bowed her head politely.
"Greetings, everyone. My name is Ikaruga. Pleased to meet you."
Kagura narrowed her eyes, staring intensely at Ikaruga's longsword.
"Who do you think you are! Get out of our way!"
Sho shouted arrogantly as he charged forward, throwing several of his magic cards from his hand.
Flash.
Every card Sho threw was cleanly cut in half by Ikaruga in an instant.
"There's nothing in this world that I cannot cut."
In Sho's eyes, Ikaruga's sword hadn't moved at all, yet his cards had been sliced apart.
"Impossible! Are you some street performer? Damn woman!"
"What... my body..."
Sho prepared to throw more cards, but the cards in his hand suddenly shattered into dust.
His body fell uncontrollably to the floor, paralyzed.
"I can cut your nerves without cutting your clothes or flesh," Ikaruga explained calmly. "This is my Moonless Style."
'So fast!' Erza and Kagura exchanged wary glances.
"This woman's swordsplay is extraordinary. Be careful," Erza stepped back and warned Simon and Wally to stay back.
"Requip!"
Erza changed into a magic sword and looked at Ikaruga. "You said your name is Ikaruga? I have no business with you. Step aside."
"I haven't even greeted you properly yet."
Crack.
Before Ikaruga finished speaking, all of Erza's armor shattered into pieces.
Kagura tried to step forward to help Erza but was stopped by Erza's hand.
Ikaruga looked mockingly at the Fairy Queen. "You're too impatient, that's why you didn't notice you were already trapped within my sword's shadow."
Erza couldn't ignore such provocation, her expression changing to one of intense focus.
"Yes, that's the look. I'm not just some unrelated passerby."
"So it seems, you're an enemy."
"Requip! Heaven's Wheel Armor!"
Erza donned her multi-sword armor, gripping her twin swords.
Ikaruga gripped her sword hilt with her right hand, ready to draw.
"Come at me."
"Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!"
Dozens of magic swords formed a circle behind Erza, spinning rapidly as they flew toward Ikaruga.
"Moonless Style: Yasha Flash Sky!"
A flash of blade light swept past—Ikaruga remained standing in place, still gripping her sword hilt as if she hadn't moved, yet every magical sword Erza had unleashed was shattered to pieces in mid-air.
Simon wore an expression of utter shock.
"How is this possible! All of Erza's swords have been destroyed!"
As Erza landed, the Heaven's Wheel Armor covering her body began to crack and crumble.
"Moonless Style: Garuda Flame!"
Seizing the advantage, Ikaruga pressed her attack.
A massive blade surge wreathed in flames, mingled with splintered wooden planks from the floor, swept toward Erza with devastating force.
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