Chapter 29: Phantom Lord – The Beginning of War (2)
Fairy Tail – Basement Level 1
Normally used as a storage space for items the guild rarely needed, the basement had been temporarily converted into a dining hall. Now, members gathered together, the air filled with chatter.
As Erza descended the stairs, some guild members spotted her and greeted her warmly.
"Oh! Erza's back!"
"And Natsu and Gray are with her~."
"Did you see it?! What they did to our guild!"
"Those Phantom Lord punks! How dare they touch our home!!"
"We've been at each other's throats with them for years…"
"This time, let's smash their guild to pieces!"
"Calm down! We're talking about Phantom Lord, the most notorious in Fiore!"
Lucy tilted her head at their words.
Being new to Fairy Tail, she had no idea about the guild's history with Phantom Lord.
While she was still wondering, Makarov—sitting on a barrel with a drink in hand—spotted Natsu's team. He downed the rest of his drink in one gulp before giving them a wave.
"Hey, you're back."
"Yes, we just returned."
"Old man! This is no time to be sitting around drinking!"
"Oh, you're right."
Natsu blinked in surprise at Makarov's agreement, while Lucy and Gray stared, just as shocked—
—only to realize they were mistaken.
"You lot! Sneaking off with an S-Class request on your own?!"
"Eh?!"
"What?!"
"Punishment time! Prepare yourselves!"
Makarov stretched out his arm, delivering sharp chops to Natsu, Gray, and Happy's heads.
As for Lucy, she received a special penalty—a firm smack on the backside—thus putting an end to the matter of their unauthorized S-Class job.
Lucy, of course, let out a shriek at the guild master's inappropriate touch.
"Master! Do you realize what situation we're in right now?!"
"The guild's been wrecked!"
Once the brief scolding was over, Natsu and Erza shouted angrily, confronting Makarov about the destruction of their guild.
Even Erza, who had come ready to reprimand Natsu, joined him in frowning at Makarov.
But the master only looked away with a bored expression.
"Now, now, calm down. It's nothing worth making a fuss over."
"What are you talking about?!"
"Phantom Lord, huh? This is about their limit. What fun could they possibly get from attacking an empty guild?"
Erza's eyes narrowed at his remark about the guild being empty.
"Empty guild?"
Mirajane, standing nearby, explained.
"It looks like they attacked in the middle of the night."
"So there were no injuries… At least that's a relief."
Hearing that everyone was safe eased Erza's anger—if only slightly.
The guild's destruction was infuriating, but nothing was more important than the safety of her comrades.
"If they can only hit us from behind like that, they're not worth getting angry over. Just let it go."
"No way! I won't rest until I've wiped them out completely!"
"This discussion is over. Until the upstairs is repaired, all jobs will be handled here."
"You think this is the time to be taking jobs?!"
"Hold on… I've really gotta go."
Natsu, unable to stomach it any longer, barked back at Makarov.
Yes, it was fortunate that no one was hurt. Natsu could agree on that much.
But that didn't change the fact that Phantom Lord had started this fight—and there was no way he could just sit still.
In Natsu's mind, if someone hit you once, you hit them back twice as hard.
Knowing full well what was coming, Makarov ignored him completely and escaped to the bathroom.
MiraJane stepped in to speak on the master's behalf, trying to calm the blazing anger in Natsu's voice.
"Natsu… the master's just as frustrated as you are. But inter-guild warfare is strictly forbidden by the Magic Council."
"They struck first!" Natsu shot back immediately.
Erza agreed with Natsu but still tried to restrain him.
"If it is the master's will…"
Though she didn't agree with Makarov's stance, Erza couldn't openly defy his orders.
Other guild members also burned with the desire for revenge, but with Makarov himself forbidding any retaliation, none of them were foolish enough to charge recklessly into Phantom Lord's territory.
They could only shout about payback while knowing their hands were tied.
...
That night…
On the southern streets of Magnolia, Levy, Jet, and Droy were heading home together after completing a job.
On the way, they picked up some daily necessities Lucy had asked for, with Jet and Droy escorting Levy back.
"Ugh, seriously… Is the master really going to just let Phantom Lord get away with this?" Jet grumbled.
"Yeah! If Shadow Gear took them on, we could crush Phantom Lord without breaking a sweat!" Droy agreed.
"Guys, calm down… I'm sure the master has his reasons," Levy replied.
"Alright, Levy~!!"
With just one word from her, the two men—who had been raging moments ago—instantly softened, sidling up to her on either side. No matter how angry they were, if Levy disapproved, they'd drop it in an instant.
Levy herself wasn't unaffected by Phantom Lord's attack, but if even the hot-blooded Natsu was staying put, she figured she shouldn't complain either.
For now, she decided she could put up with staying in the basement.
The trio was passing by the grand Kardia Cathedral when—
"Huh…? What's that sound?"
"Hey, Jet."
"Yeah… I hear it too. Sounds like… a dull thud coming from the cemetery?"
They stopped in their tracks.
No one visited the graveyard at this hour. And even if someone did, there was no reason for such loud, heavy banging.
"Could it be… a ghost?"
"Eeeek! I can handle monsters or demons, but ghosts are where I draw the line!"
"Same here!"
"Seriously? Afraid of a ghost?" Levy scoffed.
"Well…"
"L–Levy?!"
Jet and Droy, spooked, were ready to walk past and ignore it, but Levy sighed and stepped toward the cemetery.
"It's strange, isn't it? Such a loud noise at this hour, and no one's checking it out."
"M–Maybe it's just cathedral workers doing repairs?"
"Even if they were, nobody works construction at night—it's way too dangerous."
"Levy… let's just go back."
"No! What if something's happened? That cemetery holds Fairy Tail's own comrades!"
"…When you put it like that…"
"We have no choice."
Jet and Droy had wanted to take Levy home, but they couldn't ignore her words. Buried there were their fallen comrades—Ciel and Lisanna—who had helped them greatly in life. Walking away would be unforgivable.
"See? The graveyard at night is creepy."
"I'm telling you… this is scary."
"…Guys, look—over there…!"
They stopped as Levy pointed ahead.
"…Huh?"
"What the—?!"
At the spot she indicated, a man was digging up Ciel's grave, preparing to smash the coffin to pieces.
Unable to hold themselves back, Jet and Droy leapt in front of Levy and shouted at him.
"You! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"Do you even know whose grave that is?!"
"Trying to desecrate the dead—you'll pay for that!"
The man turned toward them with a twisted grin.
"Kihih?"
Jet, Droy, and Levy stepped in front of the man, calling out to stop him.
He had long, black hair, his face dotted with numerous piercings, and one of his arms had transformed into a steel club.
Clicking his tongue, the man glared at the three who had appeared so suddenly.
"Heh… I thought I caught a whiff of something foul. Turns out it was the fairies."
With that, he smashed the coffin with his fist.
Furious, Jet charged at him at full speed.
"You…! You know we're Fairy Tail wizards, and you still dare to pull something like this?!"
"Gahhh?!"
"Jet!"
Jet, who had lunged with all his might, was sent flying in a single blow.
Unable to stand by any longer, Droy and Levy rushed in at the man as well.
...
Late that night…
In Oak Town, located in the northeast of the Kingdom of Fiore, a man with long hair entered the master's office on the top floor of the Phantom Lord guild.
"I'm back, Master."
"You're a bit late, Gajeel."
"Yeah… some pests got in my way."
"Oh? I trust you weren't injured?"
At Jose's question, the long-haired man—Gajeel—smirked.
"Not at all. Even if a whole swarm of those flies came at me, I could swat them down."
"I see… and the item I asked for—you brought it back safely."
Jose's eyes fell on the spear in Gajeel's hand.
It was cracked beyond repair, entwined with lotus flowers—completely useless as a weapon.
Gajeel handed the spear over to Jose and asked:
"Hey… do you really need this?"
"Hohoho… That's quite an uncharacteristic look for you, Gajeel. You almost seem… uncomfortable."
"…Of course I am. That's a keepsake of my senior, Ciel. I'm relieved the coffin was empty, but still…"
Jose feigned a sympathetic look before smiling once again.
"It would have been better if the body had been there as well… but with a vessel of this quality, there's no problem."
"You mean…"
"Yes. As you wished, I'll give you the chance to face him once more."
"…"
Jose's grin widened, as if he'd just found a delightful new toy.
"But first, we'll crush those damned Fairy Tail brats. …Just imagining the look on that old man Makarov's face makes my blood run wild."
...
The Next Morning
At the Kardia Cathedral cemetery in the heart of Magnolia, a crowd had already gathered, murmuring and blocking the way.
Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Erza, and Mirajane pushed forward through the throng.
"Sorry, please move—we're from the guild."
"Out of the way!"
"Please, we're Fairy Tail. Let us through!"
Forcing their way past the wall of people, the group froze at the sight before them.
"Urgh!!"
"Ugh…"
Hanging from a large old tree were Levy, Jet, and Droy—covered in wounds. And nearby, where their comrade should have been resting peacefully, lay the desecrated remains of Ciel Illusian's grave.
The ground was torn open, the headstone shattered, and the coffin splintered into pieces.
Mirajane staggered forward, step by step, until she collapsed before Ciel's broken coffin.
Someone she had loved… not only had his grave been violated, but even his keepsakes had been stolen.
No one could look at such a thing and remain composed.
Wrapping her arms around the ruined coffin, Mirajane broke down in tears.
"How… how could they…? No matter what… to desecrate the grave of the dead… to do this to Ciel's grave…"
"Mirajane…"
"Jet! Droy!"
Lucy, unable to bear the scene, ran to support Mirajane.
Then she looked up at Levy and the others—on Levy's stomach was the branded mark of Phantom Lord.
It was an act of sheer cruelty.
Lucy could only shake her head in disbelief at such a vile display.
The murmuring crowd parted as Makarov arrived, his face grim and heavy.
"Ciel… Ciel…"
"Mirajane, steady yourself…"
"Ghh… Those Phantom Lord bastards…"
Makarov trembled at the sight of the unthinkable, pressing a hand over his eyes.
Then he turned to address the gathered Fairy Tail members.
"I could overlook them wrecking our bar… but there isn't a parent alive who could stay silent after seeing their child's blood. And now… they've dug up the grave of my dead child… and stolen his remains…"
His face flushed with rage, Makarov slammed his fist down on the trunk of the great tree.
His expression twisted into something darker than anyone had ever seen—a face like that of a demon.
"I will tolerate this no longer! From this moment—this is war!!"
At his declaration, Natsu, his team, and every Fairy Tail wizard present roared in unison, their voices echoing across the cemetery.
It was the cry that signaled the beginning of the war between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord.
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