However, if the Royal Capital vanishes, the people living there will vanish along with it, and there's no telling how many souls reside within Edolas's capital.
They might harbor a deep hatred for the King of Edolas for absorbing Fairy Tail, but they never intended to slaughter all those innocent civilians!
"I'm just kidding!"
Kael spoke up, flashing a gentle, composed smile after seeing the horrified expressions plastered on their faces.
"That's a pretty terrifying joke to crack."
Carla managed a dry laugh, though she had the distinct feeling that Kael hadn't been entirely joking.
"Alright, moving on foot is too slow. It'll take forever to reach the capital, so I'll speed things up for us."
"How?!"
Carla looked at Kael, her eyes filled with doubt.
"Take Over: Gojo Satoru!"
Kael took on the form of Gojo Satoru.
"Natsu, Wendy, grab onto Happy and Carla."
The two followed his lead, clutching Happy and Carla tight. Kael then reached out, seizing Natsu and Wendy by their collars and hoisting them up effortlessly.
"Alright, let's move!"
Vroom—!!
In the next heartbeat, they crossed an distance. Within a few short breaths, the group materialized in the middle of a town.
"Where?! I said, where the hell is this?!"
Natsu and the others were completely dazed, their minds struggling to process the situation or how they had suddenly landed in a town square.
"Teleportation!"
Carla stared at Kael in utter shock. It felt as though Kael was omnipotent; every persona he took over possessed such overwhelming, power.
During their time at Fairy Tail, she had heard that Kael utilized Take Over magic to receive the spirits of legendary heroes from other worlds. Each of these spirits was a powerhouse with unique abilities, and by receiving them, Kael could wield their power as his own.
"Not sure. I just spotted a town in this direction and figured we'd stop by to ask for directions to the capital. We could use the rest, too."
"Is this teleportation?! That's so cool!!"
Natsu's eyes sparkled. The scenery had shifted in the blink of an eye—it was undeniably badass.
"Aye!!" Happy mimicked Natsu's excitement, pumping his paws in the air.
"Yeah! It's amazing! That was my first time ever experiencing teleportation!"
Wendy was buzzing with excitement as well; this was a sensation she had never felt before.
Carla didn't show it openly, but she felt a small thrill herself. However, her stubborn personality wouldn't let her drop her guard that easily.
Kael smirked. It was hard for anyone, regardless of which world they came from, to resist the allure of instantaneous travel.
"Let's get our bearings and take a quick breather."
They stopped a random passerby to ask for directions. This place was Louen Town, a small settlement roughly four days away from the Royal Capital.
"Four days?!"
The group was stunned. With just a couple of teleports, Kael had slashed an entire day's journey. If he kept this up, they'd be at the capital in no time.
"Incredible!"
Just then, a roar cut through the air: "Found them!!"
"Block off the street exits!!"
Kael and the others turned toward the source of the noise, only to find a military force surrounding them with aggressive intent.
"The army?!"
Natsu felt a surge of apprehension at the sight of the troops. Back in Earth-land, he had caused enough trouble to have the military on his tail constantly, so his first instinct was to bolt.
Happy asked, confused: "What's going on?! Why is the army surrounding us?! Did they figure out we're from Earth-land?"
Carla snapped back nervously: "How should I know?!"
"You're Natsu from Fairy Tail, aren't you? Surrender peacefully, now!"
"They're after me?! The Kingdom's Army? Perfect timing..."
Natsu prepared to strike, but realized no flames were igniting in his hands. He suddenly remembered he was currently unable to use magic.
"Kael, help!"
Natsu shouted for backup without a shred of hesitation.
"They look like they're all together. Apprehend the whole lot of them!"
The Kingdom's soldiers charged toward Kael's group.
"Mhm, just what I needed."
Kael's silhouette flickered, his body blurring as he tore through the ranks of the Kingdom's Army in a flash.
"Gwaaargh!!"
"Aggghh!!" ...
In an instant, the soldiers were systematically flattened by Kael's heavy strikes.
"The target is resisting! Kill him immediately!"
Seeing their comrades wiped out, the soldiers in the distance immediately raised their weapons.
Pew! Pew! Pew!
Successive bolts of energy screeched toward Kael.
Kael didn't even flinch. He simply raised his palm. Before the energy blasts could even graze him, they were violently repelled by an invisible force, slamming into the surrounding structures.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
"What?!"
"What happened?! The magic was just... deflected?!"
The Kingdom's soldiers were paralyzed with shock. They had never witnessed magic capable of such a feat.
Kael leveled his palm toward the remaining troops.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue!"
A sphere of intense blue energy spiraled toward the soldiers at high speed.
"Defensive formation!"
The soldiers clenched their fists, manifesting energy shields to block the path.
The moment Blue made contact, it chewed through the energy shields like paper, shattering them instantly. Then, the blue orb erupted with a violent, crushing gravitational pull.
"Uwaaaaaah!!"
"Gahhh!!"
"What the hell is this?!" ...
The soldiers were dragged in by the singularity, their bodies flying toward the center of the orb against their will. In seconds, they were compressed into a massive ball of human limbs. Kael then casually flicked the "ball" of soldiers into a nearby building.
Crrrash—!!
The building buckled and collapsed as the soldiers were scattered across the debris, out cold.
"Nice work!!"
Natsu cheered, though he felt a bit pathetic realizing he couldn't even take down fodder soldiers on his own right now.
Right then, a familiar voice drifted over.
"Let go of me! What are you grabbing me for?!"
"You're Lucy, aren't you?"
"Yeah, that's me, but why the hell are you arresting me?!"
"Lucy?!"
Natsu's eyes nearly popped out of his head. This Lucy clearly wasn't the Edolas Lucy they had met earlier. This was the Lucy from their own guild. Even if they looked identical, her clothes and her vibe were unmistakably different.
"Why is Lucy here...?"
"What is going on?!"
Happy and Carla were equally baffled. They had crossed through the remnants of the Anima; Lucy should have been absorbed along with the rest of the guild.
"We have to go save her!"
Lucy reached for a key: "Open, Gate of the Scorpion..."
Wendy shouted a warning: "Lucy!! You can't use magic in this world!!"
"Scorpio!!"
A golden magic circle flared into existence, and the Celestial Spirit Scorpio manifested.
"Sand Buster!!"
A violent sandstorm erupted from Scorpio's tail.
"Gwaaaaah!!" ...
The surrounding soldiers were instantly swept up and tossed aside by the gale.
"Magic?!"
"How is that possible?!"
Natsu and Wendy were floored. Kael was a different story that guy was a monster, hardly human but how was someone like Lucy able to use magic here
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