Simon and Wally exchanged a look and also began to retreat without hesitation.
Wally's body broke down into countless cubes, flowing like a tide into a ventilation duct.
Simon merged into the shadows, moving swiftly along the wall.
"Don't run!" Natsu tried to give chase, but Gray stopped him.
"Don't chase them. There might be a trap," Gray said, walking over to Lucy and cutting her ropes with an ice blade.
Freed, Lucy gasped for air. "Th-thank you..."
"Let's help the others first," Gray said, looking around.
Juvia was using a gentle stream of water to calm a startled Levy.
Lisanna and Mirajane had also arrived from the virtual battle zone; both had clearly been attacked as well, but they seemed mostly unharmed.
"Where are Ace and Erza?" Mirajane asked.
"They went after the enemy," Gray frowned. "This was obviously a diversion. Their target was Erza from the start, and possibly Ace too."
"Then let's hurry and help them!" Natsu said.
"Wait." Gray looked toward the east side of the amusement park, the direction Ace and Erza had left.
"Since they dared to lure them away, they must have prepared something more dangerous. We need a plan..."
"Plan, what plan!" Natsu interrupted impatiently. "We can just fight our way through! Besides—"
He suddenly remembered something, and his expression turned strange.
"Besides what?" Gray asked.
Natsu pointed at his own mouth and said indistinctly, "Besides, that bastard Wally, while I was tied up, he shoved a cube in my mouth! Said it was some 'insurance measure'! It took me forever to spit it out!"
Everyone: "..."
"Shoving square things in people's mouths, what kind of fetish is that!"
The more Natsu thought about it, the angrier he got and his body began to emit flames again.
Gray sighed and rubbed his temples.
"Anyway, let's notify the guild first. Then... we'll go after them."
....
On the sea, about ten nautical miles from the coastline, a small, single-masted sailboat was cutting through the waves.
On the ship's deck, Wally leaned against the mast, the cube armor on his back slowly self-repairing with soft clicking sounds.
Simon sat opposite him, using dark magic to treat his frostbitten left leg.
Millianna was at the stern, steering the boat, occasionally looking back behind them.
Sho stood at the bow, the sea breeze fluttering his flashy jester's costume.
He was toying with a card in his hand, which displayed a blurry image—it was the scene inside the amusement park, where Natsu could be seen shouting and Gray was organizing the others.
"The plan was a success," Sho said softly. "Erza-nee is on our tail."
"But that troublesome one followed her. If we had captured the others, maybe we could have used them as hostages."
"That ice user is a problem," Simon said in a low voice. "He was acting from the very beginning. My Dark Moment had a limited effect on him."
"Gray Fullbuster, a candidate for Fairy Tail's S-Class. He is indeed strong," Sho nodded. "But it doesn't matter. Jellal's main target is Erza-nee and that man who can summon monsters. The others are just extras."
"That Ace..." Wally spoke, his voice still muffled.
"His power is bizarre, the moment my cubes came into contact with his magic, their structural stability dropped by 13%."
A grave look flashed in Sho's eyes.
"That's why Jellal specifically instructed us not to fight him head-on. Our mission is just to lure them to 'that place'."
"What's next?" Millianna asked.
Sho raised his head and looked toward the sky.
"We wait."
...
High in the sky, above the clouds.
HerculesKabuterimon's massive body flew steadily through the night sky.
Its golden carapace gleamed with a cold light under the moon, and the yellow sparks of electricity crackling around it left a brilliant trail in the clouds.
Its speed wasn't fast, but each beat of its wings covered hundreds of meters.
Ace and Erza stood side by side on HerculesKabuterimon's broad back.
The wind at this altitude was strong, but the energy field around HerculesKabuterimon naturally formed a barrier, keeping the gales at bay.
Erza had been silent the whole time.
She had requipped back into her usual armor, her long red hair fluttering in the wind.
She looked down at the dark sea below, her eyes vacant.
"What are you thinking about?" Ace asked.
Erza didn't answer right away.
After a long while, she finally spoke in a low voice, "Wally, Simon, Sho, Millianna... they were my childhood friends. We're lock in the same tower, starved together, were punished together, and dreamed of escaping together..."
Her voice choked with emotion.
"Later, I escape. But I didn't have the strength to take them with me... I promised I would go back and save them, but I... After I returned to Fairy Tail, the Master took me in and trained me. The guild became my new home. I gradually forgot that promise, forgot that they were still suffering there..."
She covered her face, her shoulders trembling slightly.
"It's not your fault," Ace said. "You were just a child back then. It was a miracle you managed to escape at all."
"There's no point in blaming your past self."
"But because of me, they..."
"No." Ace cut her off, his voice calm but carrying an unquestionable force. "The choices they're making now are their own. No matter what they went through in the past, it's no excuse for them to harm innocent people."
He paused, then looked at Erza.
"Besides, did you notice? Your reaction when Sho mentioned 'Jellal' was strange. Do you know him?"
Erza's body shuddered violently.
She lowered her hands, her face terrifyingly pale.
"Jellal..." she repeated the name in a murmur, her eyes flashing with pain, fear, nostalgia, and a deeper emotion.
"He... was the most important person to me when I was a child. He was smarter than me, stronger than me, and always protected me. When I escaped, he was the one who lured the guards away for me..."
Her voice grew quieter. "But he..."
"But he's becoming your enemy." Ace stated.
Erza closed her eyes in anguish.
"I don't know... I don't know what he's been through all these years... Why he wants to capture me..."
"Then ask him face to face," Ace said, his gaze turning toward the distant sea. "He laid this trap precisely to lure you over, didn't he? Then let's grant him his wish."
He looked at Erza with a cold glint in his eyes.
"Besides, I'm very curious. Jellal clearly know me and he still dares to make a move on you..."
As if sensing its master's emotions, HerculesKabuterimon let out a low roar.
The lightning around its body suddenly surged, ionizing the clouds for hundreds of meters around them and illuminating the area in a dazzling golden-white light.
Ace's voice sounded in the thunder's echo, yet every word carried a bone-chilling cold.
"Very well. I'll play along with you."
Erza looked up at Ace's face.
In the moonlight, his face appeared exceptionally hard and cold, and a dark golden light danced in his eyes.
At that moment, she suddenly felt a complex sense of security—this man would stand by her side.
No matter what lay ahead, he would be there.
"Thank you, Ace," she said softly.
Ace didn't respond, merely raising a hand and pointing ahead.
"Look, there they are."
On the sea's horizon, the silhouette of a single-masted sailboat was clearly visible in the moonlight.
And ahead of the sailboat, on the even more distant sea, the shadow of an island was slowly emerging in the night.
Above the island, an ominous, dark purple tower loomed.
Jellal was there.
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