Fairy Tail Guild, underground library.
Two figures darted through the rows of shelves.
"Master, are you here?"
"Master!!"
Mira and Erza's calls echoed through the library, but there was no response.
"Looks like Master must've gone to the Council." Mira sighed. As the guild's barmaid and face, she also served as Makarov's secretary, often handling communications with the Magic Council.
She knew that Paipai had intended to head there.
"Didn't Master say he has a lot of bodies?" Erza asked, unwilling to give up. She remembered Paipai mentioning his many avatars.
"He must've recalled them. According to him, the more of himself he leaves wandering outside, the higher the risks of something unpredictable happening." Mira smiled helplessly. "By the way, what happened? You seem desperate to have Master's help."
"...A friend reached out to me for help." Erza fell silent for a long moment. Mira waited patiently.
"A friend? Is it something serious?" Mira asked softly, concern flickering in her eyes.
"It's… very serious. The kind of thing where we might end up facing opponents on the level of the Ten Wizard Saints—or even worse." Erza's expression darkened. With Jellal's talent, it wasn't unthinkable that he had already risen to such heights.
And then there was Siegrain of the Council, another Saint. Although Jellal's twin, everything he'd done seemed like deliberate indulgence—shielding Jellal from scrutiny. Even his surveillance of Erza herself might have been a cover to protect Jellal's plans.
And now… the matter touched upon Zeref, the Black Mage, a living legend.
It was impossible to predict what kind of horrors they might face if they intervened.
"Then let me come with you," Mira suggested.
"Alright. We'll gather Natsu and the others as well." Erza thought for a moment before agreeing. Mira's strength was nearly equal to her own. Facing this alone was reckless—better to have allies.
"Wait—Natsu and the others don't need to come!"
"Hm?"
Mira explained, "We can still travel to Edolas, right? If things go wrong, we can retreat instantly. But if we bring Natsu and the rest, it might…"
Erza nodded. That was true. With Paipai's teleportation mark, as long as they had stamina and magic power left, they could escape at any moment. But if they tried to carry others along, the delay could prove fatal.
In normal situations, that slight delay meant nothing. But in a battle against high-level mages, it could cost lives.
"Then we shouldn't waste time. Let's go now!"
"Give me a moment to tell Lisanna and the others."
"Of course."
Three days later—
"Hm, seems Jellal-sama was right. Erza has indeed come. And she didn't come alone, either—another lovely lady is with her."
Within the Tower of Heaven, Ikaruga, the pink-haired beauty in a kimono, held her katana as she gazed down at the intruders, smiling serenely.
Beside her stood two others: a lanky man with long black hair styled like a cheap rocker, clutching a guitar, and a burly man with the head of an owl. Both grinned as they looked at the figures revealed in the lacrima below, as though appraising bounty.
"Ikaruga."
A man's voice suddenly resonated throughout the assassins' chamber.
"Jellal-sama, what are your orders?" The pink-haired swordswoman bowed slightly, her movements graceful.
"Bring Erza to me. Remember this—when facing those two, hold nothing back. If you do, the one who dies may be you."
At the very top of the Tower of Heaven, Jellal sat upon a black throne, clad in a dark coat, issuing his commands to the assassin trio.
"Oh my… then I can't promise what condition she'll be in by the time she reaches you." Ikaruga licked her lips with interest. She hadn't planned on going easy in the first place—but if Jellal had given such a specific warning, then Erza and her companion must be formidable indeed.
"That doesn't matter. Just mind your survival. Carelessness will only cost you your life. I don't want this operation stumbling right from the start."
Jellal moved the chess piece representing Ikaruga across the board until it stood before the piece symbolizing Erza.
A twisted smile crept across his face, hidden in the shadows.
Elsewhere within the tower, a dark-skinned young man named Sho shuffled his deck of cards. His eyes lingered on the lacrima screen showing the intruders, his expression complicated.
"Sis… this time, it all ends."
Meanwhile, Erza and Mira moved warily down a dim hallway, their expressions tense.
"So this is the inside of the Tower of Heaven? Doesn't look like much." Mira whispered. She knew little about Erza's tragic past here and only offered a casual assessment.
The exterior was grand, towering, and vast. But inside… it was just stone corridors.
"The Tower of Heaven was built by a cult of dark mages devoted to Zeref. Its true name is the R-System." Erza explained quietly.
"Zeref… the R-System?" Mira's eyes widened. She recalled what Paipai had once told them, and her heart tightened with wariness and curiosity.
"So this is the magic that can resurrect the dead…" she thought, as she expanded her senses outward.
Aside from the lacrima nodes that pulsed with magical energy, most of the tower's structure seemed to be ordinary stone.
"Nothing too special."
"Maybe… or maybe it hides deeper secrets." Erza shook her head. She had labored here as a child, but only as a menial worker. She'd never touched the true core of the project.
Before they could speak further, a voice rang out—
"Dark Magic: Instant Darkness!"
The world went black, as though the very lights of existence had been snuffed out.
"Erza. It all ends here."
The voice was followed by a sharp whistle of wind. A long whip lashed through the darkness, aiming to ensnare both Erza and Mira. Their magic froze for an instant as space itself warped around them.
"Go!"
The thought struck both women at once. In the next heartbeat, they vanished.
When the world lit again, Simon, Sho, Millianna, and Wally stood there—staring at the two blank cards left behind, disbelief etched across their faces.
That should have worked. Their perfect formation should have captured both women.
How had it failed so completely?
"Ha… as expected of my sister." Sho sneered, his voice dripping with hatred, though his eyes flickered with something more complicated.
The others remained silent. Simon controlled the darkness, Millianna sealed magic, Wally attacked midway, and Sho sealed the space.
It wasn't a combined spell, but their teamwork had crushed countless foes.
And yet, Erza and Mira had broken free with ease.
At the very top of the Tower, Jellal's eyes snapped open wide. His pupils shrank as he sat up, furiously rewinding the lacrima's playback.
But Simon's darkness had obscured everything.
Leaning forward, chin resting on his hands, Jellal muttered, "There's no way that should have failed. Those two couldn't have just vanished."
"Unless…"
A possibility crept into his mind, and he fixed his sharp gaze on the four.
Had they deliberately let Erza and Mira go?
But why? His brainwashing had been absolute. And after eight years apart, why would they betray him for her sake?
"Ikaruga. Clean up the scene—and keep an eye on Simon and the others."
His voice dripped with menace. His plan had already encountered its first setback.
Meanwhile, in the Council, as Siegrain passionately promoted Etherion, his face twitched.
…This is bad.