"What are these? The Seven Kin of Purgatory?" Laharl asked, stepping closer.
He saw four people tied up tightly with thick rope.
Upon closer inspection, their faces matched some of the classified bounty information he had, leading him to this staggering speculation.
"That's right, Laharl. These are four of the elite Seven Kin of Purgatory. One other is dead in the jungle, and two are missing." Seeing them tied up securely, Laharl wasn't too worried and urged,
"Never mind them for now. Where is the Long-range Communication Lacrima?! Hurry and give it back to me! We need to notify headquarters to fire Etherion immediately!"
Doranbolt shook his head gravely. "Sorry, Laharl, but the Long-range Communication Lacrima has been shattered during my escape. But the situation is far less severe now. Please listen to me first."
"You heard it earlier—the Seven Kin of Purgatory have all been defeated by Fairy Tail, including Bluenote Stinger, who was just sent flying across the continent by Gildarts Clive. And I just saw with my own two eyes that the Black Wizard Zeref used Teleportation Magic to leave Tenrou Island entirely."
"Now, Grimoire Heart only has its Guild Master, Hades, left standing. Raizel of Fairy Tail promised me that after today, Grimoire Heart will cease to exist as an organization."
Doranbolt looked at the Captain seriously. "I think it's time for us to leave. The initial mission to infiltrate Fairy Tail has indeed failed, but capturing the majority of the Seven Kin of Purgatory alive isn't a bad outcome for our careers, is it?"
Laharl was silent.
He was deeply tempted—bringing in four of the most wanted dark mages in Ishgar alive was a massive opportunity for a promotion.
"All troops, retreat!" Laharl finally barked to his men. "All investigations and operations on Tenrou Island are hereby concluded! Set sail!"
...
Back on the Grimoire Heart airship, Precht's overwhelming attack was still ongoing.
"People have always debated whether fairies actually have tails or not. It's an eternal mystery, which is exactly why there are endless adventures to find out. The guild's name is derived from this adventurous meaning, right?" Precht lectured loudly over the explosions.
"I am the Second Guild Master of Fairy Tail! Your glorious predecessor!"
"Mavis entrusted her pure will to me, and I, in turn, entrusted my will to Makarov. Little did I know that this decision would be the biggest, most tragic mistake of my long life..."
At this point, Precht unconsciously furrowed his brow, his attacks growing heavier.
"Because Makarov actively changed the guild..."
"What's wrong with change?!" Natsu yelled, despite being beaten back by the dark magic, remaining fiercely defiant.
"He exposed magic far too much to the bright sunlight," Precht sneered.
Raizel, still sitting on the rafters, disagreed with Precht's dark viewpoint.
"Is it possible that you are the one who changed, Precht? Or that the guild led by Gramps is simply better than yours?"
"Oh? A battle of wills now?" Precht scoffed. "But I am the Second Guild Master! I was the one who personally entrusted the guild to Makarov! I taught Makarov many things!"
Raizel shrugged, resting his chin in his hand. "That's true, but so what? Those are all just memories in the past. Don't you understand the concept of taking the essence and discarding the dross? And what is wrong with sunlight, exactly? Would you rather have your children live in the dark shadows like rats everyone wants to chase away?"
"Exactly! This is what Fairy Tail is about!" Natsu roared, pushing through the barrage. "We are not like you! You are nothing but a walking corpse chained to the past! If you don't have the courage to seek change, then just stay stagnant until you die!"
"Kids these days sure are terribly stubborn!" Precht growled. "Amaterasu: Formula 28!"
A massive, golden lightning bolt descended violently from the sky, striking the entire airship and tearing through the roof.
...
"They've really broken in!"
Down in the engine room, Happy and Lily scurried around like headless flies as the ceiling shook and debris fell around them.
"I said you two! Calm down right now!" Carla yelled.
...
Up in the main hall, a powerful bolt of golden lightning suddenly interrupted Precht's spellcasting, forcing him to step back.
"Are you denying the guild led by the old man?"
From within the crackling golden electric arcs, Laxus slowly spoke, stepping onto the battlefield.
Thanks to Laxus's timely support, Precht's attack paused, allowing Ultear and Gray to finally drop their shattered Ice Shield and catch their breath.
"You really resemble that brat far too much..." Precht stared blankly at Laxus's fierce, determined expression.
For a brief moment, it was as if he had seen Makarov in his fiery youth standing before him.
Seizing Precht's rare moment of nostalgic distraction, Laxus instantly closed the distance and delivered a brutal headbutt charged with crackling lightning directly to Precht's forehead.
"Just now, even with Makarov's help, you couldn't defeat me. Do you honestly think you stand a chance alone?" Precht sneered, recovering quickly from the blow.
"I'm telling you all, passive defense isn't Fairy Tail's style. How can you guys just stand there taking hits like this?!" Laxus yelled to the others. Golden arcs of electricity surged violently around Laxus's muscular body, while Precht, unwilling to be outdone, summoned a suffocating aura of dark magical power around himself.
In the exact same instant, the magical power from both men vanished.
The next moment, Laxus transformed entirely into a blinding golden lightning arc, disappearing from Precht's front and instantly reappearing behind him.
He materialized back into human form just in time to punch Precht brutally in the face.
He transformed back into a lightning arc to chase after the sent-flying Precht, landing another devastating punch on the back of Precht's head, violently pinning the old man's face to the wooden floorboards.
'So that's how it is... such extraordinary physical skill... and magical power that is completely out of the ordinary,' Precht thought, his face pressed against the floor.
'Perhaps you have already surpassed your grandfather...'
Laxus's third punch didn't follow through, as Precht agilely leaped up and dodged it, flipping backward.
'Just how many monsters has Makarov raised?' Precht was inwardly shocked.
Earlier, when Raizel and Jellal were fighting, he had sensed Raizel's immense magical power from afar.
Even when Jellal used his true celestial magic, Sema, Raizel managed to effortlessly handle it.
Gildarts had easily defeated Bluenote in physical combat and Laxus wasn't an opponent to be taken lightly either.
In fact, when the grandfather and grandson had teamed up earlier, it was more like Makarov was actively holding Laxus back.
Laxus had defended against many of Precht's lethal attacks just to protect Makarov.
Not to mention, there were also those like Erza and Ultear standing right there, who were highly capable of defeating his elite Seven Kin of Purgatory.
"I remember now. The old man once said that when facing a powerful enemy, you shouldn't focus on how strong they are. What truly matters is whether you can bravely stand up and challenge them. Did I remember that right, Natsu?" Laxus asked, lightning crackling from his teeth.
"How boring. Sounds like a pathetic excuse made by the weak," Precht scoffed. "I suppose those warm-up exercises are enough now."
Hearing Precht's arrogant words, a flicker of dark recollection passed through Laxus's eyes.
"Heh, come to think of it... I used to arrogantly talk about 'the strong' and 'the weak' all the time, too," Laxus smirked, dropping into a low stance.
"Bring it on, you bastard."
"Lightning Dragon Roar!"
Laxus opened his mouth and unleashed a massive, continuous pillar of golden lightning, sweeping aggressively toward Precht.
Precht didn't just dodge; he shot a spiked dark chain directly toward Laxus.
Laxus merely tilted his head slightly to evade the incoming dark chain.
However, Precht's dark chain wasn't aimed at Laxus from the start.
It shot past the Dragon Slayer and violently seized the large, spherical lacrima instrument sitting behind Laxus.
"I have a very bad feeling about this..." Lucy stood by, sensing something was terribly wrong.
Precht tried to violently yank the heavy orb device to sweep Laxus off his feet, but it didn't work.
Once released from his magical grip, the massive orb began rolling rapidly across the tilted wooden deck.
Straight toward Lucy.
"Full Gravity Release!" Kagura shouted.
She stepped in front of Lucy, shielding her by unleashing her Gravity Magic at full power, barely managing to halt the massive orb's crushing momentum.
This was but a minor interruption as the chaotic battle continued.
"Amaterasu: Formula 100!" Precht chanted.