"Flame Great-Saber!!"
This time, Zera formed the black flames into a gigantic scythe.
Though the scythe was huge, being made of fire it weighed next to nothing—so light it might as well have been weightless—and both the shaft's length and rigidity could change at will.
Thus, without moving a step, Zera swung the flaming blade and struck at Jofre.
Bathed in the firelight, she looked like a death-goddess swinging a soul-reaping scythe.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—
The fiery edge kept slicing the air, letting out shrill whistles.
Though Jofre still went hunting every month, he was already an aging man who had lorded it over Magnolia for years; his stamina had long since waned. After dodging a few dangerous strikes he was panting, sweat streaming down his face.
"Hah… hah…"
"Damnable little wretch!"
"Humiliating me like this—when I catch you I'll flay you alive!"
Unrepentant, Jofre shot Zera a venomous glare and brandished his staff again.
The next instant, something bizarre happened.
The blue flames scorching the ground seemed to come alive, contracting inward under Jofre's control before leaping up to form a 360-degree curtain of fire.
The move was so sudden Zera had no time to guard; her front and rear paths were sealed, leaving her with nowhere to retreat.
"Brat, drown in terror!!"
With a savage grin Jofre swept his arm, and the eerie blue blaze surged like a tidal wave, crashing straight at Zera.
Boom—!!
The sea of flame struck Zera squarely.
"Wretch, let me savor your exquisite screams!!"
"Hahahahaha—!!!"
Jofre laughed wildly, but after a long while the expected wails still never came.
A faint unease sprouted in his heart.
"What's going on?!"
Just then, a voice rang out from within the flames—
"Tastes awful!"
What?!
Jofre stared and saw the girl who should have been writhing, screaming and begging not only unaffected by the 'terror force' but completely unscathed by the flames.
Even more absurdly, she was clutching handfuls of fire and stuffing his 'Flames of Terror' into her mouth!
"Nani?!!"
"She's eating the flames!!!"
Jofre's eyes practically popped out; the goggles on his nose shattered and his jaw dropped so low it wouldn't close.
"What… what is that brat?!"
"Wait!"
"Devouring elemental flames to restore magic and stamina?"
"Could this be the legendary…"
A name he had once heard years ago—of a rumored, lost magic—surfaced in his mind.
A dreadful nemesis that countered his own spells, indeed all Fire magic.
In an instant sweat poured off him like rain.
Never in his life had Jofre felt such panic.
Flee!
He had to escape!!
Without the slightest hesitation he abandoned the fight and ran.
Subordinates—abandoned!
Guild—abandoned!
Treasure—abandoned!
Territory—abandoned!
The "kingdom" he had painstakingly built over more than a decade—everything discarded!
Alas—
Thud!!
He slammed into the magic barrier again!
[Members of Blue Skull cannot leave this place!]
A simple sentence, yet now it sounded like a death-knell he could not evade.
Clap!
Footsteps sounded behind him.
Jofre turned; the flame-devouring girl was approaching.
Step by step, unhurried.
Her gait looked light, yet every footfall seemed to land on his heart, crushing it.
"Didn't you say you wanted to hear me scream?"
Zera halted ten paces away, her gaze fixed on his aging face.
"W-wait!!"
Jofre flung away his staff, raised both hands in surrender and shouted for mercy.
"I'll give you all my treasure, kowtow to your father and to the people of Tenrou Island, disband Blue Skull and turn myself in to the Council…"
Zera paid him no heed.
She knew Jofre felt no remorse—only terror.
"Then listen up!"
Clenching both fists at her waist to steady herself, Zera inhaled; her small chest swelled as a black magic circle appeared before her.
The next instant she opened her mouth.
A torrent of black fire gushed out!!
"Wrath of the Flame God!!!"
Boooom—!!!
Black flames filled with fury and hatred swallowed Jofre whole in an instant!!
"Aaaaargh—!!"
A long while later.
The blaze finally died; smoke slowly drifted away.
Zera still stood there, panting softly, her chest heaving, fine sweat beading on her forehead.
Weston came to her side and gently steadied her as she swayed. "That spell burns huge amounts of magic power; you only just mastered it—don't be so reckless again."
"…All right."
The fight was over.
Jofre had been incinerated; he could not be any deader.
With his death, the 'Phantom Lord' might vanish from Fiore Kingdom, but that wasn't something Weston needed to worry about right now.
At barely the age of sixteen, Zera had avenged her father Giselev, the members of Red Lizard, and those who had died on Tenrou Island seven years ago—something worthy of celebration.
Yet having taken a life, she couldn't feel happy no matter what.
Fortunately Mavis was there to help her through the emotional trough.
Soon the three returned to the town.
The remnants of Blue Skull had been wiped out and captured by Yuri and the others; they would face the townsfolk's vengeance—and the Council's judgment. Night fell.
After the grateful townspeople left, Weston and the others gathered in what had once been Blue Skull's headquarters—Cardia Cathedral—for the next stage of discussion.
"Now that Magnolia has been liberated, we can proceed to the next step."
"Establish Fairy Tail right here!"
In this era, guilds had a major impact on a town's economy; without them, prosperity quickly waned.
—and that included not only Magic Guilds but also commercial guilds, artisan guilds, and other organizations.
Over the past decade, because of Blue Skull, no other guild had dared set foot in Magnolia.
Now that Blue Skull was gone, the town urgently needed a strong organization as its backbone to revive the economy.
"Starting tomorrow, we'll spread our guild's name throughout the town!"