What Raizel and the others did not know was that after August parted ways with them yesterday, he and Emperor Zeref had spoken for the entire night.
Though it could not really be called speaking.
It was more like the two of them arguing while each held firmly to their own view.
One side said humanity had to be destroyed once.
The other side said humanity was living perfectly well right now, so why should it be destroyed?
One side said the threat of the Black Dragon was immense, and only Fairy Heart could eliminate the Black Dragon.
The other side said the eastern and western continents could clearly join forces to kill the Black Dragon together.
Perhaps Irene alone had not been enough before, but now there was Raizel, Moon Dragon God Selene, Sword Saint Dragon Kurnugi, and more.
The two sides could clearly cooperate.
In addition, August expressed one more view.
Zeref could no longer create more slaughter.
Although the curse of Ankhseram was extremely contradictory—the more one respected life, the more one released energy that spread death.
Conversely, if one did not respect the lives of all things, that death energy would not be released.
Even so, August now increasingly believed that more killing might instead make Zeref sink deeper into it, until he finally fell into an irreversible abyss.
He truly worried that because Zeref insisted on starting a war and seizing Fairy Heart, he would end up truly dying.
Although death might be considered good news for Zeref, Zeref firmly believed in the curse of Ankhseram.
He believed that starting a war was the only way to suppress the activation of his death hunt to the greatest extent.
In short, the two of them passionately argued over all sorts of viewpoints.
August sat down, closed his eyes, and shook his head.
Raizel nodded in understanding.
"As expected. When I spoke with Zeref yesterday, I already noticed it. He was unexpectedly determined."
Lucy frowned, her expression somewhat complicated.
"Is war really unavoidable?"
A trace of seriousness appeared on August's face, subtle but unmistakable.
"Among the Spriggan 12, Neinhart, Ajeel, Dimaria, and Wahl are extremely fond of battle. Now that His Majesty is also determined to fight, I believe war will be difficult to avoid."
Raizel lightly tapped the armrest of the sofa.
"If war is unavoidable, can the conflict be limited to a mid-to-high-level battle between the Spriggan 12 and the people sent by Ishgar?"
August's slightly cloudy eyes instantly brightened, and he nodded.
"I have had that thought as well. If His Majesty insists on fighting, then Ishgar will need to show its strength and let His Majesty see that Ishgar can find Mages stronger than the Spriggan 12."
As August spoke, he looked at the people sitting in the hall.
Even August had to admit that these young people's strength was worthy of praise. Looking at it this way, defeating the Spriggan 12 became possible.
Mm.
As long as they did not start fighting among themselves first.
While Raizel and August were speaking, for some reason, Kurnugi, Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel began arguing again. The four of them were red-faced from shouting at each other.
In the end, Erza made a heroic appearance and gave each of them a chop to the head, finally ending the dispute.
The military strength of the two sides was not equal.
Ishgar's main assets were Etherion and F.A.C.E.
The western continent, on the other hand, had organized magical fleets.
August continued,
"I believe this method is worth trying. Under all the praise from every part of the empire, the Spriggan 12 have in fact developed a degree of arrogance. If we take this approach, first, it may stop His Majesty. Second, it can also let the members of the Spriggan 12 suffer some setbacks. That would not be a bad thing. I will do my best to try."
...
In the end, the result did not proceed according to the script Raizel and August had imagined.
Zeref insisted on having his own way.
Aside from August and Brandish, the other members of the Spriggan 12 all supported launching an expedition against Ishgar.
The imperial army had already fully assembled, showing a clear trend of preparing to attack.
Moreover, Zeref changed his strategy.
He would no longer attack Ishgar as a whole.
All forces would attack one target—Fairy Tail.
After everyone discussed the matter with August, August suggested that Raizel and the others should return first.
Seeing Natsu and Gajeel's extremely agitated expressions, August slowly explained,
"What you will face is not only the Spriggan 12, but also an organized army. Various magical mortars, railguns, and convergent cannons. You may be able to withstand one or two shots, but your Magic Power will eventually be exhausted."
Natsu and Gajeel also knew that what August said was true, so they had no way to refute him.
Ultear and the others agreed with August's opinion as well, so Raizel made the final decision.
"Then we'll go back."
If it were only the Spriggan 12, Raizel would have taken Kurnugi and the others and started the battle at the border.
But if the Spriggan 12's squads and the army moved out together, then no matter how strong they were, they could not stop that many people. It would be better to return and prepare for battle.
...
They could not take their time on the way back.
Raizel directly used teleportation Magic to bring everyone back to Magnolia.
"August has already told me that the armies of the Spriggan 12 will all move, including the army that previously belonged to Irene. Their target is only one place—Magnolia."
Raizel did not doubt that this information might be false intelligence released by Zeref.
That was because Zeref's ultimate goal was Fairy Heart. No matter how things turned, the final target could only be Magnolia.
Raizel lightly tapped the table.
"The first thing we need to do right now is request reinforcements. This is not just a matter concerning the city of Magnolia."
"I'm already contacting the Council."
Mira raised her hand to signal him. A long-distance communication lacrima was placed in front of her.
Ultear, Erza, and the others also said,
"We are contacting Sabertooth, Blue Pegasus, and the others."
They had already begun making contact before Raizel even gave the order.
Raizel nodded and raised two fingers.
"Good. The second matter is defensive deployment and choosing the battlefield."
Raizel pointed at the map with a magic pen.
"First, the battlefield cannot be Magnolia. The eastern plains are not suitable either. The area is too wide, and there are no real cover points. It is not suitable for interception or defensive deployment."
"I think this place is good."
Raizel pointed at a mountain range between Crocus and Magnolia.
"This place is fairly suitable as a battlefield for interception. In addition, we also need to guard against a surprise attack from Hargeon Port in the south. For that, we can have Lamia Scale nearby help with surveillance."
The reason they chose this place to meet the western main force was also because if Magnolia suddenly came under attack, they could fight while retreating or shift their defense.
The Council's response came very quickly.
Mira came to Raizel's side and reported to him, Makarov, and the others.
"The Council says all of the Ten Wizard Saints will move out together to help with the defensive deployment. In addition, the assault force from the Council led by Mr. Richard will also join."
Raizel nodded.
The assault force was currently led by Midnight, Richard, Cobra, and the others, so it was also a decent combat force.
"This battle will be hard on you. Satan Soul: Seilah's Curse is very effective against humans."
Mira raised a hand and brushed back the hair beside her cheek, her expression suddenly becoming more serious.
"I understand. Fortunately, my Second Origin has already been opened, and I also have the portable Magic Power source Selene gave me, so I don't need to worry about running out of Magic Power."