The world could never develop entirely along the trajectory imagined by one person. People think, weigh the pros and cons, and make different choices.
Perhaps, at the very beginning, Charles really had been deceived by Extalia's mission, still caught between her so-called "duty" and her bond with Wendy.
But after arriving in Edolas, everything she saw and heard screamed that something was wrong.
So she started from the very beginning: suppose the "mission" was real, that every Exceed in Aslant had been sent to carry out the Queen's command—to kill every Dragon Slayer and safeguard world peace.
If that were true, then it would mean the Exceed possessed overwhelming power, strong enough to intervene in two worlds.
Yet the reality was clear: humanity's power was vastly superior. In population, economy, culture, productivity, and military might, humans completely dwarfed the Exceed.
Although humanity's thinking was shackled by traditions, once awakened, they could flip the table and trample the so-called "Exceed nobles" into the mud.
At first, Charles still had some confidence in the Exceed's power.
History wasn't without examples of individuals who bore the glory of entire civilizations. If the Exceed Queen had been someone on the level of Zeref, then all of it might have been possible.
So Charles investigated every bit of intelligence on the Exceed Queen's actions. What she discovered was that, from start to finish, the Queen had never once demonstrated absolute might.
She would announce a decree in advance: that someone would die, that something would occur.
And then it happened.
On the surface, it looked convincing. But there were countless ways to manipulate such appearances.
Human history was littered with charlatans posing as saviors or divine beings, exploiting information asymmetry to deceive kings and nobles, living in luxury for decades, sometimes only being revealed as frauds after their deaths.
If this was the stage of suspicion, then the truth brought by Edolas's Zeref shattered Charles's last doubts.
Because… the Exceed were creations of Zeref of Edolas.
"You created the Exceed?!!"
Extalia's Queen Chagot was horrified when she learned the truth. She fell into denial, screaming at Zeref of Edolas:
"This is impossible! The Exceed were born with magic! They are the chosen race of the gods! You lowly human, how dare you insult the divine!!"
And then—nothing more.
Some mechanism etched into the Exceed's very bloodline must have detected her words—or perhaps something deeper. Her brain burned out on the spot.
The iron-clad fact forced everyone to accept it: the Exceed were an artificially created race.
The two Fairy Tail guilds kept their distance from Zeref, for even now, creating life with magic remained a forbidden topic—taboo, and ethically abhorrent.
"Why did you do it?" Charle demanded of the Edolas Zeref.
"To create a warning system." His reply was chillingly simple.
"A… warning system?"
He elaborated:
"I quantified the effect of magic power on the world. You could say the Exceed were designed as a kind of ecological gauge.
Different creatures react differently to changes in magic concentration. By collecting enough data, I established a composite standard. Within that range, changes in magic cause little ecological harm.
But once that standard is exceeded… it becomes dangerous. It can trigger massive ecological disasters. Like now.
With that standard set as the upper limit, I created the Exceed. Of course, they weren't called that at first. But the name doesn't matter."
"By observing the Exceed race's overall adaptation—or abnormalities—I could understand the state of the world's magical ecosystem."
He then revealed one more crucial detail:
—to ensure the Exceed could survive in this world, he had bestowed some of them with precognition. With that, they could evade disasters and avoid dying too quickly.
After all, the Exceed served an important role.
As he spoke, Zeref's eyes lingered meaningfully on Charles.
And so Charles completely rejected the so-called "mission." If the mission was false, then the very purpose of the Exceed was questionable.
She was certain Zeref was still withholding much.
"That man…" Charle ground her teeth, wishing she could pry open his mouth and drag out every last secret.
Compared to these cruel truths, the angry roars of the Exceed elders in the palace were utterly trivial. Charle almost pitied them.
"So, this is your answer?" she sneered coldly, glaring at the Exceed on their high throne.
"I…" Queen Chagot opened her mouth.
"Guards, throw her out!" one furious elder bellowed, completely ignoring their Queen. The guards stepped forward, but Chagot stopped them with a wave, asking Charle instead:
"Why do you want to be Queen?"
The elder's face twisted as if he had swallowed a fly, but he said nothing further.
They were all shrewd creatures. Everything came down to interests and bargaining. If there was no choice, replacing the Queen wasn't unthinkable.
After all, this was mother and daughter.
"To withdraw from humanity's civil war. To let the Kingdom unify, consolidating all power to face the greater disaster ahead." Charle crossed her arms, her tone devoid of emotion.
This was the strategy agreed upon between Zeref of Edolas and Fairy Tail of Aslant. As for Edolas Fairy Tail, their strength was too weak to have a voice.
The Exceed elders' faces immediately soured. If labels could be pasted on, Charles and Happy would already be branded "traitors" and "fallen angels."
Chagot, however, seemed to have expected this. She looked downcast and softly asked:
"Why do this? Aren't you an Exceed?"
"Heh. If what you call an Exceed is like you, then you've truly disgraced the word."
"You—!" the elders seethed.
"Agree or disagree, just give me an answer. Do you think I came here because I wanted to?" Charle sneered, her eyes sweeping over the elders' hypocritical, disgusting pretense.
"…Very well." Chagot descended from the throne, removed her crown, and placed it upon Charles's head.
"But you must protect the Exceed. At least… lead us out of this plague."
"Your Majesty!!" the elders cried, but did nothing more.
"I will."
…
At the same time, within Edolas's human royal palace—
Massive troop movements were underway. Erza Knightwalker, captain of the Second Magic Warfare Division, suddenly defected. Panther Lily, captain of the First Division, was ordered to hunt her down.
In the grand hall, Mystogan accepted the royal scepter from King Faust, inheriting the crown.
The next day, Extalia announced its withdrawal from the human civil war, issuing a proclamation denouncing the rebels. This sparked chaos in the rebel camp, morale plummeting.
The Kingdom acknowledged Extalia's exit and declared they would no longer strike against them.
Internally, the Second Division was dissolved. Its members were redistributed to the First, Third, and Fourth Divisions. The Third and Fourth were dispatched to the frontlines.
The First Division was broken down into three-man squads and deployed across the Kingdom's towns to oversee conscription and training.
Three days later, the Kingdom achieved a great victory at the front.
That same day, within the rebel forces, all leaders declared allegiance to the Eternal Church and its pontiff. The loose rebel coalition dissolved, replaced by the Theocracy of Eternity, founded in the name of the "True God of Eternal Magic."
They welcomed the Kingdom's defector, Erza Knightwalker, and began raising armies to confront the Kingdom.