At the Alvarez Empire capital.
"Sire, there have been no signs of Karna Vermillion since our drones and our men placed near the council saw him disappear the moment the Faces were destroyed throughout the continent," the Alvarez minister reported as he looked at the projection of Zeref in the lacrima.
Zeref had a contemplative look on his face, but he calmed down.
"If anyone can survive impossible situations presented to them, it's that boy. So we have no need to worry about him. Is there any other urgent information detected by our informants spread throughout the world?"
The minister paused for a second but continued.
"Sire, our scouts report that the Apocalypse Dragon has gone missing. Normally this is ignored, as the dragon randomly goes to places he feels like going so fast that our agents won't even be able to sense him when he leaves. But this time there was a coincidence that does not feel like one."
"The dragon vanished the same moment Karna did, right?" Zeref managed to speculate immediately. "Take the Spriggan Twelve and begin moving towards Ishgar. I had already formed a preliminary alliance with the Ishgar Three for the foreseeable catastrophe that is going to be faced by all of Earthland. They might not allow the million-numbered army to enter the continent, but they will allow the main generals of our kingdom along with their direct subordinates since they are few in number."
"Of course, my liege."
Zeref was going to cut off the call but paused at the last moment.
"Oh, before I forget. I know that a few of them have their own agenda. But if any one of them decides to go on their own and harm this alliance, they will face my wrath, which will remind them why I am their king." Even through the projection, the aura released by Zeref was clearly felt by the minister, who felt as if there was a scythe of death on his neck.
"Yes, my lord. I will remind them," the minister barely managed to speak out, and the projection faded.
He then turned towards the shadows of the room, where eleven people were standing right now.
"So I don't have to tell you why he reminded this old minister about it at the end, right?" he said to the Spriggans, among whom many had sweat flowing down their brows.
They had realised that Zeref had discovered their presence even when they had hidden themselves completely from the projection, and his final words were not a message to be conveyed by the minister, but a direct warning.
August, Irene, Brandish, and a few Etherious had small smiles on their faces as they watched the rebellious members of their group, who had currently realised the depth of the lord they were serving. They knew that a few among them had rebellious thoughts, especially the Ice Wizard, who wanted to go against Zeref's wish to die and wanted to place him as an immortal king of Alvarez for eternity.
They were already planning on eliminating them earlier and had only kept them around, seeing that they would be useful in the later battles. But the moment they displayed their desire to go against Zeref's wishes, they would be taken down without question.
At the same time, in another location.
Zeref waved his hand and cut off the lacrima field before turning around. But the action was a bit bizarre, as he had turned without moving his legs. Zeref was currently floating a few feet off the ground, and he moved through the corridors until he reached the lab.
Within the lab, Mavis existed in astral form while using the equipment. All the equipment was covered with runes that seemed to resonate with the astral form she was currently in.
But the most important objects were the two lacrimas at the centre of the room, one holding her body and the other holding Zeref's body.
Realising that Ankhseram was able to attack while Mavis and Zeref were together, they researched intensively to find a way to hide from him.
Then they realised that Ankhseram was more strongly connected to Zeref when compared to Mavis, and the connection he formed that day seemed to be centred around Zeref.
At first, they hypothesised that it might be because Zeref had been cursed for a longer period of time compared to Mavis. But they felt like it was not that simple.
So they did a dangerous experiment in which Zeref separated himself from his body into a spiritual form just like Mavis and contacted Mavis's spirit directly. And they realised that there was no reaction at all.
Seeing this, they conducted another experiment in which Mavis's spirit made contact with Zeref's body. They realised that the closer Mavis's spirit came towards Zeref's body, the more the body began exhibiting fluctuations similar to the day Ankhseram came to their world.
Zeref and Mavis then infiltrated the Fairy Tail guild in spiritual form to test the same theory by making Zeref's spirit make contact with Mavis's body. But unlike last time, Mavis's body did not exhibit similar fluctuations.
So they conducted many experiments through which they were able to come to an answer.
Ankhseram requires both Zeref and Mavis to appear within the world, as he seemed to be trapped by a hidden condition that prevents him from entering it.
To activate the magic, he requires both the souls of Zeref and Mavis. But to complete the ritual, there needs to be the existence of one of their physical bodies while they maintain contact with each other.
But this can be prevented as long as the body is sealed within a lacrima that completely shuts off any kind of release of the curse or the release of the body's magic.
Precht had constructed the lacrima holding Mavis all those years ago after realising that Mavis was inflicted with the Curse of Ankhseram. The crystal was a form of barrier made to protect Precht in case the curse activated while he was experimenting nearby.
So Mavis and Zeref constructed another lacrima and placed Zeref's physical body within it to conduct experiments so that they would not have to place the entire weight of the coming war on Karna's shoulders alone.
A/N - Hope you liked it.