Chapter 439: Stop This!
"Comrades are meant to be protected, not sacrificed. You did very well," Noah smiled and said to Coco.
"I don't want Lily to die. Rather than eternal magic, I would much rather live happily together with everyone..." Tears flowed from Coco's eyes.
"That is a wonderful thought," Noah nodded, his hands not stopping their movements.
Ultear, seeing Noah had grasped the situation, had Natsu and Gray carry Coco to the side so as not to interfere with Noah's work.
"Done!" Suddenly, Noah spoke up loudly.
Everyone immediately turned their gazes to him. They saw Noah had stopped his work, the Archive screens around him disappearing, and the magic circles surrounding the console dissipating.
"Is it fixed?" Ultear asked, looking at Noah.
"Of course. As long as we turn this key, we can shut down the machine." Noah pointed at the giant key inserted in front of them.
"Then hurry up!" Lucy urged, and everyone else looked at him expectantly.
Noah did not waste any more words. He placed both hands on the end of the key, exerted force, and twisted it.
Click!
The sound of a lock clicking came from the device.
Then, everyone saw the entire Dragon Chain Cannon machine slowly cease its operation. The surging energy gradually subsided, the lights on the machine went out one by one, and the mechanical roar of its operation grew softer before finally disappearing.
The chain extending from the machine began to vanish into thin air, starting from its base and rapidly receding upwards.
"Everyone, keep pushing!"
"Push!"
"We can do this!"
The Exceeds continuously cheered each other on, pushing against the floating island with all their might.
Wendy and Meredy had not stopped buffing the Exceeds. Sorano, Yukino, and Gajeel were also working hard.
Happy and Carla were pushing desperately.
"This is...?"
Sorano suddenly felt the island shudder. She learned from her summoned Angels that the forward thrust of the floating island had dropped drastically.
She turned to look at Noah, and Noah smiled and nodded at her.
"Phew." Sorano let out a long breath, a smile appearing on her face.
"The chains... the chains are disappearing!" A sudden shout came from an Exceed who noticed the anomaly.
Hearing his words, everyone immediately looked down. They saw the massive chain connected to the bottom of the island rapidly vanishing.
Finally, under everyone's watchful eyes, the entire chain completely dissipated into the air.
"Keep pushing, everyone! Stop the island!" An Exceed shouted loudly, and the spirits of the other Exceeds were instantly lifted.
They all knew that the island was hurtling towards Extalia precisely because of that chain. Now that the chain was gone, it meant the driving force pushing the floating island forward had vanished.
If they just pushed a little harder and brought the island to a halt, the crisis facing their homeland, Extalia, would be resolved.
"Keep pushing, everyone!"
"Give it your all!"
The Exceeds continuously encouraged one another, pushing the island with all their strength.
Deprived of the momentum provided by the chain, the floating island's speed plummeted drastically, continuing forward solely on momentum. Under the relentless efforts of the Exceeds, its speed continued to decrease until it finally came to a dead stop in mid-air.
"Did... did we succeed?" An Exceed asked in a trembling voice.
"I... I think so," another Exceed nearby replied uncertainly.
"We did it!"
"We... we successfully protected Extalia!"
"Yeah!"
After confirming repeatedly that the island had genuinely stopped moving, the Exceeds erupted into loud cheers.
Many of them, having exerted too much energy earlier, found themselves completely drained now that the tension had suddenly snapped. Unable to even maintain their Aera magic, the wings on their backs vanished, and they began plummeting from the sky.
"Careful!" The Exceeds who still had some strength left quickly reached out and grabbed their falling kin.
"We succeeded..." Wendy and Meredy let out long sighs of relief, their legs giving way as they collapsed onto the ground.
Yukino also sat down, looking exhausted. Beside her, Libra vanished in a flash of light, returning to the Celestial Spirit World.
"You did well," Sorano stood beside Yukino, gently stroking her head with a smile full of warmth.
Hearing her sister's praise, a happy smile blossomed on Yukino's face.
"To think we actually succeeded..." The black cat, Lily, stared blankly at the cheering Exceeds.
"Hehe, of course we did," Gajeel said with a grin beside him.
"Next up is taking you back to the guild and making you my cat," Gajeel looked at Lily and declared seriously.
Hearing Gajeel's words, Lily was momentarily at a loss for words.
Just as everyone present was cheering loudly, a voice suddenly echoed from the distance:
"It is not over yet!"
Simultaneously, a barrage of magical blasts shot toward the Exceeds hovering in mid-air, as well as Noah and his group on the floating island.
"Crap!" Gajeel quickly transformed his arm into an iron club, extending it to block the magical blasts aimed at him.
Sorano also summoned her Angels to stand in front of the exhausted Wendy and the others, intercepting the incoming attacks.
However, the Exceeds, who had just exhausted massive amounts of stamina and magic power, were largely incapable of dodging. Aside from a select few who still had the strength to evade, the rest were completely defenseless.
Hum!
Just as they were about to be hit, a golden magic circle suddenly materialized in front of them. It rapidly expanded, shielding all the Exceeds behind it.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Exceeds watched in sheer terror as the magical blasts relentlessly bombarded the magic circle in front of them, producing deafening explosions.
After blocking the magical blasts for the Exceeds, Noah looked in the direction the attacks had come from.
He saw a massive number of Royal Army soldiers crouching atop large creatures known as Legions. They all carried cannon barrels on their shoulders, the magic circles in front of the muzzles having only just begun to dissipate.
"The... the Royal Army!" The Exceeds finally got a clear look at their attackers, their faces filled with panic.
Having learned that the Queen's overwhelming power was a lie, they no longer possessed the arrogant, high-and-mighty attitude they once held toward humans. Now, facing a powerful enemy, all that remained was panic.
Gajeel and Sorano watched the opposing Royal Army warily. Just as they were about to step forward and launch an attack, Noah reached out and stopped them.
"Someone is coming."
Just as he finished speaking, a figure appeared right beside Noah.
"Mystogan?" Sorano could not help but say, recognizing the familiar attire of the newcomer.
Mystogan nodded to Sorano and the others, then turned to face the Royal Army, shouting loudly:
"Are you trying to attack me, the Prince of Edolas?!"
He had already removed his usual face mask, revealing his true visage.
"The... the Prince?!" The Royal Army officer standing at the very front froze upon seeing Mystogan's face.
He had seen Mystogan when he was a child. The distinctive tattoo on the Prince's face was impossible to forget once seen.
The hair color and facial tattoo of the man standing before them were identical to those of the Prince from his youth, and his facial features bore a striking resemblance as well. It was highly probable that this was indeed the Prince himself. But the Prince had been missing for seven years. Now that he had suddenly appeared to stop their operation, the officer did not know what to do.
"Lily," Mystogan looked at Lily standing nearby. "You saved my life. I am truly glad we could protect your homeland."
"Mhm... It is so wonderful to see you again, Prince!" Lily said, tears streaming down his face as he looked at Mystogan.
Seeing that the Magic Warfare Unit Captain, Panther Lily, had confirmed the man's identity as the Prince, the Royal Army officer decided to temporarily order his subordinates to cease fire.
But just then, a voice boomed across the entire area:
"I have no such son!"
"It is the King's voice!"
"Where is he?" Wendy and the others looked around, trying to find the source of the voice.
"Not a trace of you for seven years, and now you have the gall to show your face again?!" The King's voice continued to ring out. "I know all about you going around Earth Land and closing up the Anima portals, you traitor!"
The King's voice echoed everywhere.
"Where exactly is this voice coming from?" Meredy looked around in confusion. Wendy and the others did the same, unable to pinpoint the source.
"Your Anima plan has failed. There is no point in fighting anymore, is there? Stop this!" Mystogan could not help but urge, not wanting his father to continue making mistakes.
"Point? You speak of the point of fighting?! This is not a battle! This is retaliation against those who dare to oppose the King! This is a one-sided annihilation!"
The King's voice arrived, accompanied by a ceaseless vibration in the atmosphere.
"What... this sound... no... this is..." Meredy said in shock.
"The air itself is vibrating due to the influence of magical power..." Wendy, possessing a keen perception of air currents, spoke with a serious expression.
At that moment, from an open clearing down in the castle, accompanied by a massive surge of magic power, a spherical mechanical object floated up from beneath the ground.
"Wh-What is that?" Yukino asked, her face filled with astonishment.
"A magical weapon?" Sorano guessed.
"If you intend to stand in my way, even you shall not be spared! I will erase you completely from this world without an ounce of mercy!" The King's voice emanated from within the mechanical construct.
"Father..." Hearing the King's words, Mystogan could not help but murmur.
"I am not your father! I am the King of Edolas!" The King declared mercilessly. As he spoke, the mechanical construct began to undergo a transformation.
"That is right! If I just eliminate you right here, no one in Earth Land will ever be able to interfere with Anima again! Once that happens, I can simply create another giant Lacrima and have it fuse with the Exceeds! I can do this as many times as I want!"
Amidst the King's rant, the mechanical construct gradually took shape.
"Fuhahahahaha! For the power of a King, nothing is impossible! The power of the King is absolute!" The King's maniacal laughter echoed across the sky.
"What is that..." Gajeel stared in astonishment as the mechanical construct, through a series of transformations, turned into a giant monster standing on its hind legs, with its front limbs raised, a cannon barrel inside its gaping maw, and a long tail swinging behind it.
"That form... that immense magic..."
"Ah... there is no mistaking it..."
"H-How could such a thing exist..."
"Th-That is..."
The Exceed elders could not help but gasp in horror upon seeing the mechanical monster's final form.
"Dorma Anim..." Queen Shagotte slowly uttered the monster's name.
"Dorma Anim... In the language of this world, it means Dragon Knight. It is an armored dragon mecha!" Mystogan explained.
"Dragon... now that you mention it, it does look a bit like one," Gajeel nodded, examining the monster below. It certainly bore a resemblance to a dragon.
"What is an armored mecha?" Happy and Carla had already returned to Noah's side, and Carla could not help but ask upon hearing Mystogan's explanation.
"It is a rideable suit of armor. It is built using Anti-Magic Lacrima, making it a piloted mecha completely immune to all external magic," Mystogan said.
"Does that mean the King is inside, piloting this Dragon Knight?" Happy asked.
Mystogan nodded silently.
"My soldiers! Capture those Exceeds!" The King commanded loudly.
"Yes, sir!" The Royal Army soldiers answered with a roar. They spurred the Legions beneath their feet, charging straight toward the Exceeds.
"Hey, you lot. Get down!" The Exceeds began to panic, and just as Mystogan was about to tell them to flee, Noah's voice rang out beside them.
He raised his right hand. A magic circle covering all the airborne Royal Army soldiers materialized above their heads.
Immediately after, a massive, irresistible gravitational force crashed down upon them, instantly pinning the soldiers flat against the backs of their Legions. The magic cannons in their hands became too heavy to hold, slipping from their grasp and plummeting.
The airborne Legions flapped their small wings desperately, trying to remain aloft. But under the crushing weight of the gravity, their efforts were entirely futile. Pinned down by the intense pressure, they plummeted rapidly toward the ground.
"You bastard!" The King yelled furiously from within the Dragon Knight, having witnessed Noah's actions.
"None of you will interfere with me! I will not spare a single one of you! You will all die right here! Begone! Aaaarrrgh!"
After his roar, the cannon barrel inside the Dragon Knight's mouth briefly charged with magic power. A magic circle unfurled in front of the muzzle, and a colossal magical blast was fired directly at Noah and the group.
Seeing this, Mystogan immediately sprinted forward. Standing at the edge of the island, he drew the magical staves from his back, planted them in front of him, and deployed a series of magic circles.
When the magical blast collided with those magic circles, it was completely blocked, unable to advance any further.
"Mystogan..." Sorano murmured.
"Is Mystogan the name you go by in Earth Land?! Jellal!" The King shouted loudly at Mystogan.
~~~
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