"Ah, this…what is this?" Jellal stared at the surrounding flames. The intense heat was unbearable, even with his magical protection.
Millianna's eyes widened at the giant fireball that suddenly appeared above the tower. "Is that…the sun?"
Simon wiped the sweat from his brow. "So that's why he's called the Sun God. Because he is the sun!"
From outside the fireball, Finn reached out a hand.
The fireball engulfing Jellal began to shrink.
"No, I have to break free!" Jellal gritted his teeth and charged forward, the intense heat searing his body.
"Ah——" A scream of pain escaped him.
Finn frowned.
The fireball's surface rippled, and a charred figure burst forth.
"Damn it…damn it all!" Jellal roared, his face contorted with rage, leaping into the air. "I won't lose!" His scorched right hand gestured wildly. "I will create a free nation! Only I can understand Zeref!"
"I am the chosen one! I will create a truly free world with Zeref!" He unleashed a furious roar.
Countless star-shaped blasts rained down, causing a series of devastating explosions.
"Only the strong will to change the world can drive history forward! Why don't you pathetic fools understand?!" He roared in bitter frustration, his resentment burning at those who dared to obstruct him.
The extreme heat and the constant, deafening explosions jolted Erza awake.
"Finn…" she murmured, struggling to her feet and gazing at the scene that resembled a fiery inferno.
"That magic?" She saw the magical words and formation Jellal was frantically inscribing and activating in the air.
"Abyss Break? Are you trying to destroy this tower too?!" Erza let out a cry of alarm.
"In eight more years…no…five years this time, I'll complete the Tower of Heaven again." When speaking of Zeref, Jellal sounded like a devout, almost fanatical, believer.
"Zeref, wait for me…"
"You won't get the chance!" Before Jellal could finish, Finn was already before him.
"Abyss Break!" Although unfinished, the spell still possessed immense destructive power.
Finn swung his blade again. "Taimatsu!"
A gigantic, swirling vortex of flames engulfed everything, including the incomplete Abyss Break.
"Finn——" Seeing Finn directly confronting the Abyss Break, Erza cried out in a voice filled with alarm and dread.
The expected cataclysmic explosion never came. Instead, there was only the sound of flames consuming something.
"Even…even magic is burning?!" Through the raging flames, they could faintly see the energy blasts from the Abyss Break being steadily devoured.
The magical energy was being absorbed, fueling the flames, causing them to burn even more intensely.
"Impossible!!" Jellal stared in utter disbelief at this impossible scene.
"You will never achieve true freedom. A puppet bound by the undead will never know freedom," Finn slashed downwards, drawing more than half of the surrounding flames towards the edge of his blade. The scorch marks on Ryūjin Jakka multiplied.
"Free yourself first!" The blade, now burning with a faint, almost ethereal flame, grew larger and larger in Jellal's horrified eyes. That weak flame…had the potential to ignite a prairie fire!
The blade fell, and all was consumed.
Gazing at the figure that remained standing amidst the flames, the figure seemingly embraced and protected by the very fire it commanded, it appeared utterly invincible. Then, the figure collapsed.
"Jellal…is defeated…" Erza felt the weight of a long-held burden lift from her heart, a sense of liberation washing over her.
"This eight-year battle…is finally over."
Erza struggled to her feet, running towards Finn. The ground was scorched; she felt the intense heat on her bare feet.
But she didn't care. She ran to Finn's side and threw her arms around his broad back.
"Thank you, Finn!"
Finn turned, gently stroking her crimson hair once more.
A tense calm descended upon the area, broken only by the looming presence of the Etherion in the sky. The magical energy gathering above had reached an almost incomprehensible level.
"We need to leave. The Etherion is about to fall," Finn said, scooping Erza into his arms and beginning to run towards the distance.
As Jellal had stated, the tower was no longer capable of withstanding the impact of the Etherion. To remain would almost certainly mean certain death for both of them.
The light in the sky grew increasingly brighter, the Etherion fully formed, yet escaping this area would still require some time.
Finn knew, with a grim certainty, that escape was no longer possible.
"Then…" Finn looked down at the Ryūjin Jakka in his hand.
"Old friend, we've been together for many years now. Whether we make it out of this alive…depends on you," Finn whispered, his voice barely audible above the growing roar of approaching destruction.
In Finn's mind, two options remained: a desperate attempt to escape, which held the best chance of survival, or the far riskier second option: directly confronting the Etherion.
The latter option offered little guarantee of success, but it was now their only choice.
Erza, sensing their desperate situation, felt surprisingly little fear or despair. "Perhaps dying together with you…would be the best possible ending," she thought.
Gazing at his handsome face, a sudden surge of emotion overwhelmed Erza. There were words she had longed to speak, words that might never have another chance to be uttered.
Erza reached out, gently cupping Finn's face in her hands. The hardness in her eyes softened, replaced by an overwhelming tenderness.
"Finn…" she whispered, her voice barely a breath.
Bathed in the ethereal glow of the approaching holy light, the faint blush on her cheeks was clearly visible.
"Hmm? What is it?" Finn responded, his voice gentle.
"I…" Erza began, but Finn interrupted her, his voice urgent.
"Erza, there's no time. We can talk later. I need to take care of this first." Finn spoke with exceptional speed, gently setting Erza down on the ground.
He turned and began to run, his movements swift and determined.
"Later? What are you doing…?" Watching Finn's movements, Erza suddenly understood his plan.
Finn planted his foot firmly on the ground, a burst of intense flames erupting from beneath his feet, propelling him skyward with tremendous force.
Erza's eyes widened in shock and fear.
"Finn——" A cry of terror, filled with both fear and desperate hope, echoed across the night sky.
"All Things in the Universe, Turn to Ashes, Ryūjin Jakka!!" At that moment, Finn's magical power surged, pouring forth like a broken dam.
This was Finn's true, unreserved power—his magical energy transformed into a raging inferno of flames, threatening to incinerate the very night sky itself. In that instant, he was the sun.
Outside the Tower of Heaven, as the Etherion prepared to fall, the immense magical energy unleashed upon the sea created a gigantic tsunami, as if the ocean itself was enraged by the impending destruction.
Natsu and the others' boat was instantly shattered by the monstrous waves.
Just as they were about to be swallowed by the churning sea, Juvia, with her mastery over water, swiftly created a massive water sphere, capable of keeping them afloat above the raging waves.
"Hey, hey, hey, the Etherion is about to fall, but Finn and Erza aren't out yet!" Gray's voice was filled with intense worry and anxiety.
"Finn! Erza——" Lucy shouted at the top of her lungs from within the protective water sphere.
"What's that?" Simon, with his sharp eyes, noticed a red point shimmering intensely below the descending Etherion.
"That…" Happy also focused his gaze on the same point.
The red glow intensified, becoming brighter and brighter, the temperature rising at an alarming rate.
"Finn!!" Gray and the others exchanged a look of dawning understanding; the familiar searing heat and the unmistakable fiery glow.
"But what is he doing?" Lucy covered her mouth, her voice barely a whisper, unable to believe what she was seeing.
"He's…he's confronting the Etherion head-on…" Even Happy seemed to find his own words unbelievable.
Shô shook his head vehemently. "Impossible…That's the holy light that destroys everything! There's no way a human could possibly withstand it!"
"But that's Finn!" Natsu, despite the lingering effects of his recent seasickness, spoke with unwavering faith and confidence.
"Nothing can stop Finn, not even the Etherion!" With that, Natsu, fighting back the nausea, roared at the top of his lungs, "Finn! Crush that Etherion! AAAAAAH!"
"You're a Fairy Tail mage!!"
The roar, like a dragon's cry, reached Finn's ears. A slight smile played on his lips. "Of course!"
The Etherion slammed down, its light so blinding it transformed the night sky into a searing white day.
"Burn!" With a furious roar that echoed across the battlefield, Finn channeled all the surrounding flames onto his blade, the scorch marks on Ryūjin Jakka multiplying dramatically.
At that very moment, a profound understanding seemed to dawn upon Finn; he felt as though he had finally, truly grasped the power of Bankai!
..... .. ...
In a heartbeat, the flames that had engulfed the night sky vanished completely.
"Did…did he fail?" Gray stared in disbelief at the sudden, inexplicable extinguishing of the flames.
Natsu bit his lip hard, his eyes wide with disbelief, refusing to accept this outcome.
Finn's blade finally made contact with the Etherion.
Instantly, a terrifying surge of magical power tore at Finn's body, threatening to rip him apart. Finn remained unyielding, his hands clenched tight, the veins on his hands bulging from the immense strain.
"Burn it all to ashes!!" With a roar that defied death itself, Ryūjin Jakka seemed to respond to Finn's unwavering will, the faint flames clinging to its edge beginning to spread across the Etherion.
Slowly at first, then with terrifying speed, the flames consumed the Etherion.
It was like a tiny spark igniting a wildfire, spreading its inferno with unstoppable force.
Burning—everything was burning, and in that burning, hope was reborn.
"He did it…the Etherion is burning!!" A look of pure, unadulterated joy replaced the despair on Erza's face.
"I knew it!" Natsu shouted excitedly, his voice filled with unrestrained relief and pride.
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