The black tablet suddenly radiated dazzling light. Within the glow, a hazy figure appeared, faint at first, but gradually growing clearer—as though someone was walking toward this world from afar.
"This… this is your final trump card? Pathetic." Joseph's heart sank in frustration. He cursed himself for letting his guard down enough to allow Fairy Tail one more chance to resist. Still, outwardly, he kept his composure and even grew more arrogant.
"My army… show them your true power!"
At his command, the ghostly soldiers that had been slaughtering townsfolk and Fairy Tail members alike halted all movement, then shot up into the sky in unison.
In the air, they twisted into arcane arcs, merging with writhing tendrils until they formed an enormous magic circle.
It was none other than the forbidden spell—Purgatory Shatter!
A spell of such catastrophic, destructive power that the Magic Council itself had classified it as forbidden.
This was one of Joseph's fallback measures. If his ambush failed, and without the Ghost Guild's MK II weapon available, this spell was his last resort to bring Fairy Tail to heel.
"Purgatory Shatter! You went as far as to practice such forbidden magic?" Erza's voice trembled as she recognized the spell above. Shock rippled through her—not only at Joseph's sheer audacity, wielding taboo arts while still running a so-called "Light Guild"…
But also because of how he had done it.
The ghost soldiers he had summoned… he'd broken them back down into raw magic power.
Magic was the foundation of all spells, while spells themselves were processed forms of that raw power. To reverse a finished spell back into its base energy was extraordinarily difficult—like trying to turn a carved statue back into unworked wood and stone. Nearly impossible.
But somehow, Joseph had succeeded. Not only breaking his summoned ghosts back into raw mana, but refining it again into a new product: the forbidden array now looming above.
The complexity was staggering. A single mistake, and all his efforts would have been wasted. Yet he had pulled it off with his strength alone.
This was why Joseph truly bore the title of one of the Ten Wizard Saints.
"I know you can see me," Joseph said coldly, ignoring the stunned faces of Fairy Tail's members. His tone remained calm and confident.
"And don't even think about killing me to stop this. My body is linked with a living trigger array. The moment I die, the array in the sky will activate, and Magnolia will be reduced to rubble.
Every citizen, every Fairy Tail mage—they'll all perish."
Fairy Tail's faces darkened with fury. The Ghost Guild was officially recognized as Fiore's number one guild, and Joseph was a Saint. Yet here he was, resorting to such vile, cowardly tactics.
"And don't think you can just knock me out either," Joseph continued with a sneer, rolling up his sleeve to reveal two glowing micro-arrays carved into his flesh. "There's another trigger. Every thirty seconds, it asks me a question—one only I know the answer to. If I fail to answer, or I answer wrong, the spell will activate, kill me… and the array will still detonate."
The two glowing sigils on his arm pulsed faintly, proof that his words weren't lies.
"So, let's talk," Joseph said smugly. His gaze shifted to the figure emerging from the tablet. "First—stop moving. Don't take another step."
The figure paused, as if in thought.
Joseph's face lit up, and he pressed his advantage. "Good. Now, disable your magic. Dissolve Fairy Tail."
Fairy Tail erupted in outrage.
"No way! Master, don't listen to him! If we do that, he'll butcher us all anyway!" Natsu roared, flames surging again around him, his fury reignited.
"Pai Pai, don't! Not!" Even Makarov, his consciousness hanging by a thread, forced himself to cry out, dragging his broken body for one final protest.
"Shut your mouths!" Joseph's eyes narrowed dangerously. Dark magic lashed out, invading both Natsu and Makarov's bodies, ripping through their insides in torment.
"AHHHHH!"
"Ughhh!"
Their screams rang out, one after another. Makarov finally collapsed, fainting from the pain.
Joseph turned his gaze back to the tablet's figure. His voice dripped with poison.
"Well? You still have a chance to protect what you cherish. Just a little compromise, and the ones you love can live. Ghost is Fiore's number one guild—we won't waste time crushing nobodies from a guild that no longer exists. Rest easy, I'll have no reason to pursue you further."
He pinched his fingers together, gesturing "just a little," as though mocking how insignificant a sacrifice he was asking for. His tone was smooth, persuasive—but his words carried not a shred of real credibility.
At the same time, Fairy Tail's battered mages turned their eyes to the glowing figure within the tablet, desperately waiting for his decision.
"Master, don't! That spell would kill him too—he's bluffing! Don't listen—" Gray rasped, trying to warn them. But his words were cut short as Aria struck him down, sending him tumbling through the air and carving a deep trail into the ground.
"You have thirty seconds," Joseph said coldly. He adjusted his hat, then casually seated himself among Fairy Tail's ruins, one leg crossed over the other like a king on his throne. "Make your choice, or watch this city and your so-called family vanish."
The moment he finished, the figure inside the tablet stirred. Step by step, he moved forward.
"Wait—you'd destroy this whole city?" Joseph demanded, his brows furrowed. He knew Fairy Tail well. They were the archetype of a "Light Guild." Their values weren't flawless, but they were unwaveringly upright. They cared for their comrades and the people—weaknesses Joseph always exploited.
That was why he'd been so confident.
But now… this man was ignoring all of it.
The figure—Pai Pai—kept moving forward. Silent. Unshaken.
"You've wasted my goodwill," Joseph said regretfully, shaking his head. He raised a hand, fingers poised to trigger the spell. His heart raced with anticipation. It had been far too long since he'd felt such a thrill—dancing on the knife's edge between annihilation and victory.
Still, Pai Pai's pace never faltered. His form grew clearer, more solid with every step.
"Wait… does the old man mean to kill us, too?"
"Stop! Don't—!"
"Master…"
Even Ghost's members began panicking. If Joseph truly activated that spell, they would die as well. They didn't know who was emerging from the tablet, but Joseph's words had made it clear—the choice this figure made was critical.
And yet… instead of compromise, Pai Pai walked forward, calm as stone.
"Fine then. You've chosen death. Let Magnolia vanish!" Joseph growled, channeling his magic. He watched the figure intently, waiting for even the slightest flicker of hesitation—any chance to bargain again.
But still, Pai Pai pressed on, undeterred.
"Very well. You win. We'll both—"
"Look! The array in the sky—it's collapsing!!"
Lucy's voice suddenly pierced the chaos. Her trembling finger pointed upward.
Everyone turned. Joseph snapped his gaze skyward.
The massive magic circle above was crumbling. Pieces of light rained down like falling stars. The array was disintegrating—utterly and irreparably.
"This… this is impossible! Once a spell is formed, it can't just…" Joseph's scream tore the air, his face twisted with disbelief and despair. But he had no time left to think.
An unseen power swept over the battlefield. Joseph, his Ghost Guild members—everyone vanished without a trace.
And not just them.
The shattered Fairy Tail guildhall, too, was restored in an instant—its structure rewound to the design it had borne six or seven years ago, but otherwise renewed, fresh as if untouched by war.
Every injured mage, every wounded citizen—even Makarov himself—was healed as though nothing had ever happened.
It was as if the entire nightmare had been nothing but a dream.
…It's done.