In the Fairy Tail Guild Hall, besides Makarov, who was trapped by the barrier, only a handful of people remained: Natsu, Gajeel, Mirajane, Lucy, and Levy.
Just as Makarov was frantic over being trapped, the magical script forming the Barrier in the center of the hall suddenly became agitated, detached itself, and rapidly converged in mid-air.
Laxus's arrogant voice once again vibrated through these characters, spreading throughout the entire Guild.
"The game doesn't seem exciting enough, so let's raise the stakes."
The voice, composed of magic power, echoed in everyone's ears.
"So that the Battle of Fairy Tail can proceed smoothly, I have prepared a grand gift for you—Thunder Palace has been activated."
"If you cannot defeat all of us within two hours... Thunder Palace will activate, and Magnolia will be reduced to scorched earth by the lightning."
"Enjoy yourselves, fairies! Hahahaha!"
The wild laughter reverberated through the hall, and then the face constructed of runes instantly disintegrated, turning back into scattered script that flew off in all directions.
"The Thunder Palace..."
"That bastard! He actually wants to destroy the entire town!"
"He's crazy! He's truly lost it!"
Inside the Guild Hall, the faces of the remaining members were filled with horror and rage. Their fists clenched, cracking audibly, and their volatile magic power was almost impossible to suppress.
"Laxus!"
Makarov let out a heart-wrenching roar of fury, his short body trembling violently from extreme anger. Involving innocent citizens had shattered his last psychological defense.
His face flushed red as he stretched out his hand toward the sky, as if trying to grasp the culprit who had already vanished.
"You... scoundrel!"
Before he finished speaking, Makarov's body suddenly stiffened. He clutched his chest, the color instantly draining from his face, and he collapsed stiffly.
"Master!"
"Gramps!"
Mirajane let out a horrified scream and rushed forward, managing to catch Makarov just before the back of his head hit the floor.
"Quick! Go get Master's medicine!" Mirajane's voice was tearful, and she abandoned all pretense of being a lady, turning and rushing toward the storage room behind the bar.
—
Inside the Isolation Room, the soundproofing of the walls wasn't very effective. Ryoma heard Laxus's declaration and the cries and roars from outside clearly.
'The Thunder Palace...'
His mind buzzed. The anger and self-reproach he had just forcibly suppressed surged up again. If he hadn't tried to be clever, if he hadn't been tricked by the opponent, things wouldn't have escalated to this point.
'Calm down!'
Ryoma forced himself to close his eyes, recalling the ability he had learned in another world.
He adjusted the rhythm of his breathing and exhaled the stale air from his chest. Anger wouldn't solve anything, it would only make his situation worse.
He had to get out! Immediately!
Since his magic was sealed, he would try pure physical strength.
"Total Concentration."
He muttered to himself, adjusting the rhythm of his breathing.
A method originating from the world of Demon Slayer, designed purely to enhance physical function, was activated. Muscle fibers began to vibrate at a specific frequency, blood flow accelerated, pumping far more power than usual into his limbs and body.
This was not magic, but the purest form of the Breathing Technique used to unleash human potential.
Boom!
Without hesitation, Ryoma's figure suddenly vanished from his spot. The next instant, his fist, gathering all his strength, slammed fiercely into the room's wall.
With a loud crash, bricks and stones exploded, and dust filled the air. The entire room shook violently, spiderweb cracks spread rapidly across the wall, and loose debris rattled down.
The pale purple runes forming the barrier flickered intensely before stabilizing.
'It's no good. Pure physical destructive power is still far from enough to shake this barrier.'
Ryoma looked at his slightly reddened knuckles and quickly made a judgment.
Unless he could punch with enough force to twist space, it would be impossible to break this rule using brute force.
However, the loud noise immediately attracted the attention of the few people remaining in the hall.
"Hey! What was that sound inside?!"
"Who is in there!"
"Hey! Is someone still causing destruction in the Guild?"
Natsu and Gajeel exchanged glances and charged toward the source of the sound simultaneously, with Levy close behind.
When they reached the end of the corridor, Natsu, Gajeel, and Levy saw the room that was almost half-destroyed. They stared at the mess inside the room and Ryoma standing in the center of the ruins, all momentarily stunned.
"Ryoma! What are you doing here? This is great! Hurry up and come with us to beat up that bastard Laxus!" Natsu's face lit up when he saw Ryoma, and he lifted his foot, ready to rush inside.
"Ryoma! That's wonderful, you're okay!" Levy immediately looked delighted when she saw Ryoma. "With you here, we can definitely stop Laxus."
As she spoke, she habitually started to walk into the room.
"Don't come in!"
Ryoma's urgent voice made Levy stop in her tracks.
Natsu and Gajeel also stopped, looking at him confusedly.
A flicker of unconcealable shame crossed Ryoma's face. He avoided Levy's concerned gaze and whispered, "This room has a barrier set up. The rule is... no magic power allowed."
"I'm sorry. I was too careless and walked right into the trap they set. Now, it seems I have to rely on you guys."
The three were immediately startled.
"What? No magic power allowed?" Natsu's eyes widened.
He pointed at the wall Ryoma had smashed a large hole into. "Then what was that just now?"
"Just pure physical strength." Ryoma's voice was muffled.
Natsu and Gajeel looked at the two lines of rules, then at the destruction Ryoma had caused in the room, their faces filled with shock.
'What the hell... No magic power allowed, yet he caused this much destruction? Is this guy a dragon?' Gajeel grumbled internally.
However, Levy's focus was completely different. She quickly walked up to the doorframe, adjusted the Gale-Force Reading Glasses on her head, and leaned in to carefully observe the purple script floating in the air.
"I see... This is a variation of Magic Script, a Formula Magic used to construct rules." Levy's tone became serious. "It's Freed's Jutsu Shiki."
"Ryoma, don't worry. This is the domain of Script Magic, I should be able to find a way to break it."
After Levy finished speaking, without waiting for Ryoma's reply, she turned and ran toward the Guild's Archives Room.
Watching Levy's small figure disappear at the end of the corridor, Ryoma's tense body finally relaxed slightly.
That's right, he had almost forgotten that the Guild had an expert in Script Magic.
He had no better option.
Thankfully, Levy hadn't rushed straight in like Natsu.
Thankfully, Fairy Tail was never a one-man fight.
"Heave-ho!"
Before long, Levy came running back, panting, clutching a stack of heavy books taller than herself.
She dumped the books with a 'clatter' by the door, ignoring her sweat. She put on her glasses, opened a book, picked up a quill, and began comparing and transcribing the runes on the barrier.
"This rune structure is a variation of Ancient Script..."
"Here he incorporated the concept of negation, which is why it can prohibit magic power..."
"It's complicated... but there are clues to follow."
The girl was completely immersed in her own world, muttering to herself. Her quill rapidly wrote on the parchment, making a continuous "shush-shush" sound.
Natsu and Gajeel, the two battle fanatics, were bewildered and could only pace back and forth anxiously nearby.
"Hey, shorty, is this thing actually going to work?" Gajeel asked impatiently.
"Quiet down." Levy replied without lifting her head, her quill moving even faster.
"Freed's barrier is extremely rigorous. The arrangement and combination of every single character must be precise. If I get even one node wrong, the entire barrier could undergo unpredictable changes."
Time passed minute by minute.
Levy's speed in flipping pages grew faster and faster, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.
Suddenly, she stopped writing.
"Found it!" Levy looked up and let out a surprised gasp.
Her eyes shone brightly as she looked at Ryoma.