"Finn…"
In the downpour, a familiar figure emerged from the nearby rain.
Finn paused, then hurried towards the figure.
"Mystogan? What's wrong?" Finn asked, his voice laced with concern, as he looked at the masked man.
Mystogan was leaning weakly against a wall, his exhaustion evident.
At Finn's approach, Mystogan removed his mask, revealing an alarmingly pale face. Finn had never seen him this weak before.
"Finn… leave Magnolia!" Mystogan urged, his voice tight with anxiety.
"What's wrong? Why should I leave Magnolia?" Finn asked, as he reached out to support Mystogan.
Mystogan grasped Finn's arm urgently. "My mission failed… Anima is unstoppable!"
Finn was taken aback. He knew Mystogan's mission: to seal portals from the other world, Edolas, which were siphoning this world's magic to replenish their own.
From Mystogan's words, it was clear that Anima's target was Magnolia.
Finn shook his head resolutely. "Everyone from Fairy Tail is still at the guild. I can't possibly leave alone! I have to get back there and save them."
Seeing Finn's distress, Mystogan said, "Finn, there's no time. Wendy's already gone back to warn the guild, but it's definitely too late."
"You're fast. If you leave now, you can escape Anima's range. Get as many people out as you can!"
Mystogan's voice was strained with desperation.
Ignoring Mystogan's pleas, Finn turned to run towards the Fairy Tail guildhall.
Suddenly, an immense, terrifying pressure descended upon them.
Mystogan stared up at the sky in horror. "No, Anima has activated!"
Finn also looked up at the sky.
A terrifying white light erupted from the hole in the dark clouds, descending upon Magnolia.
Before Finn's eyes, the buildings began to twist and distort, followed by the streets, trees, and everything else within his line of sight. Everything visible began to warp into irregular, chaotic shapes.
The stones on the ground, seemingly drawn by an unseen force, began to float upwards towards the sky.
Then, the buildings themselves, after twisting and contorting to an extreme degree, disintegrated into points of white light, ascending into the heavens.
Ryūjin Jakka suddenly appeared in Finn's hand. A crimson light spread through his body, but the world around him was already in chaos.
Finn's vision plunged into darkness.
Everything in the town vanished in an instant.
Finn pushed aside the dust covering him and clawed his way out of the debris.
His eyes widened in shock.
He was surrounded by a blinding white expanse. All the buildings had vanished without a trace.
Only white dust floated in the air.
Finn looked around, his gaze sweeping across the desolate landscape. There was no one here; he was utterly alone.
Finn stood up, desperately searching for any sign of human life, desperately hoping to find Mystogan, who had been standing beside him just moments ago.
"Mystogan~~" he called out, his voice strained.
"Is anyone there~~" His voice carried on the wind, echoing through the vast, white expanse.
To Finn's relief, he received a response from Mystogan.
"I'm over here…"
From amidst the dust-covered ground in the distance, a hand emerged.
From the sound of the voice and the distinctive sleeve of the clothing, Finn instantly recognized the hand as belonging to Mystogan.
Without hesitation, Finn rushed towards Mystogan, seizing his hand and pulling him forcefully from the ground.
"Are you alright?" Finn asked, carefully examining Mystogan's condition.
"I'm fine, but…" Mystogan looked around at the desolate landscape, his voice heavy with self-reproach.
"But everyone… they've all been sucked into Edolas," he finished, his tone filled with a profound sense of guilt.
If only his strength had been just a little greater, perhaps this catastrophic event could have been prevented.
Bang—
A fist, wreathed in flames, struck the ground, instantly causing a network of cracks to spiderweb across the earth's surface.
"Edolas, huh? I'm going to get them all back!" Finn roared, his voice filled with a burning rage.
Mystogan watched Finn's determined figure, letting out a long, weary sigh. "There's nothing else we can do now but this. Go to Edolas and bring everyone back!"
"But before we do that, let me explain the situation to you in detail," Mystogan said, rising to his feet.
"About you being from Edolas…" Finn began.
Mystogan paused, then let out a chuckle. "Indeed. There's no way you wouldn't have figured that out eventually."
He composed himself, his expression turning serious. "I am Jellal, from Edolas. I came to this world to thwart the ambitions of our king."
"So, the Jellal Fernandez met… that was you?" Finn asked, recalling the story Wendy had shared about encountering Jellal after becoming separated from Grandeeney. It had been Jellal who had entrusted Wendy to the care of Robin.
It now seemed evident that the Jellal Fernandez had encountered was none other than Mystogan.
Mystogan nodded in confirmation. "At the time, I had only recently arrived in this world when I encountered Wendy. However, due to the subsequent appearance of Anima, I was forced to entrust Wendy to the care of an elderly villager."
Finn nodded, gesturing for Mystogan to continue his explanation.
"Regarding Edolas… the magical energy in that world is finite, and as a result, the entire world is teetering on the brink of a complete magical drought," Mystogan began his detailed account.
"Therefore, the king of Edolas devised a plan to utilize this world as a source of magical energy, intending to siphon it away and convert it into magic crystals for their own reserves. This is the origin of the magic you witnessed earlier—Anima, a form of hyperspace magic known as 'Soul'!"
"In an attempt to prevent this catastrophic event, I came to this world and have been working tirelessly to thwart Anima's operation. However, with Anima's power growing exponentially, I've become increasingly overwhelmed and unable to contain it any longer," Mystogan explained, his gaze fixed on the gaping hole in the sky.
"In other words, everyone from the guild has been captured and transformed into magic crystals?" Finn asked, clenching his fists.
Mystogan nodded silently, his expression grim.
"However, something that puzzles me is why you weren't absorbed," Mystogan said, his eyes filled with intense curiosity.
It was a known fact that Anima would absorb anyone with magical energy within its range; yet, for some reason, Finn remained unaffected.
"Me…" Finn said, drawing Ryūjin Jakka.
As he gazed upon the blade, recalling the moment it had inexplicably appeared in his hand, Finn seemed to arrive at a conclusion.
It was likely that Ryūjin Jakka, acting instinctively to protect its master, had shielded him from Anima's effects the moment it sensed the imminent danger.
Upon seeing Ryūjin Jakka, Mystogan's eyes widened, and he felt an intense wave of heat radiating from the blade, causing him to quickly avert his gaze.
Noticing Mystogan's reaction, Finn sheathed Ryūjin Jakka, causing the oppressive heat to dissipate.
Once the ambient temperature had returned to normal, Mystogan spoke. "Regardless, the fact that you weren't absorbed and transformed into a magic crystal is certainly fortunate."
Finn nodded. "Then let's go get everyone back."
Mystogan's expression turned serious. "Let me first explain the situation in Edolas."
"Magic cannot be freely used in Edolas. I'll give you a medicine that will allow you to use your magic there," Mystogan explained, his voice low and measured.
"And since everyone from the guild was gathered together, their combined magical energy will have formed a single, massive magic crystal. To restore them, you'll need the power of a Dragon Slayer," Mystogan stated.
As soon as Mystogan finished his explanation, Finn's brow furrowed in concern. "But Natsu and the others were also sucked into Edolas, weren't they?"
"No!" Mystogan quickly corrected Finn.
"Anima is incapable of affecting Dragon Slayers. This is due to the unique nature of Dragon Slayer Magic—a form of magic that is completely unknown and incomprehensible to the inhabitants of Edolas."
"In other words, Natsu and the others must still be somewhere in Edolas. Even if they were drawn into Edolas by Anima, they wouldn't have been transformed into magic crystals; instead, they would simply be wandering around Edolas," Mystogan clarified.
"Is that so? Then this becomes considerably easier," Finn said, a sigh of relief escaping his lips.
Mystogan continued his explanation. "And as for the location of the magic crystals, I suspect they'll be located in the royal capital. Once you arrive in Edolas, simply head towards the capital."
"Aren't you coming with me?" Finn inquired.
Mystogan shook his head. "I'll search the area around the guild for any other surviving Dragon Slayers or any other survivors. Besides, I need to gather some essential items and information regarding Anima."
"Alright, then. Let's get me there first," Finn agreed, his resolve unwavering.
Seeing Finn's agreement, Mystogan produced a small vial containing several pills.
He carefully removed a single pill and handed it to Finn.
"Take this, and you'll be able to freely utilize your magic within Edolas. However, you must remember that the concentration of freely flowing magical particles in the atmosphere of Edolas is exceptionally low," Mystogan warned.
"Therefore, your magical energy will recover at an extremely slow rate. For someone like you, who expends vast amounts of magical energy with each technique, this will pose a significant challenge. You must be mindful of this limitation," Mystogan emphasized.
Mystogan was acutely aware of Finn's extraordinary abilities; his power was exceptionally formidable, but correspondingly, the more powerful his techniques, the greater the amount of magical energy they consumed.
However, Finn was an anomaly, possessing a similarly exceptional rate of magical energy regeneration. Under normal circumstances, Finn rarely needed to concern himself with the depletion of his magical reserves.
Finn responded with a confident smile. "Don't worry, I have more than just a couple of tricks up my sleeve."
He alluded to the potential utility of his Bakudo techniques in this situation, adding that his mastery of martial arts was also exceptionally high, implying that even without relying on Ryūjin Jakka, he could still unleash formidable combat prowess.
"Very well, then. I'll leave it in your capable hands," Mystogan said, his tone laced with a newfound sense of reassurance.
As Finn swallowed the pill, Mystogan produced his staff from behind his back.
"Get ready. I'm sending you now," he said, beginning to channel magical energy into his staff.
Finn nodded in acknowledgment, his eyes fixed on Mystogan.
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