Silver watched as Ulfheim gathered increasingly terrifying magical power, a trace of weariness appearing on his face. He suddenly said softly, "It's useless. This isn't Tartaros, and there's no one inside anymore!"
Lahar was shocked: "What did you say?"
"I said there's no one left. My mission was only to keep you all here."
An ice pillar rose from the ground beneath Silver, lifting him a hundred meters into the air: "Rather than continuing to fight me, you'd be better off going back to see if the Magic Council is still there."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed drastically. Could it be that Tartaros had already gone to attack the Magic Council?
"Nonsense! Let me test whether there's anyone or not!"
Ulfheim snorted coldly, compressing and gathering magical power in his mouth before unleashing a roaring blast.
A dazzling light streaked across the sky, instantly shattering the entire Tartaros headquarters and turning the area into a sea of fire.
Jellal looked at the flames filling the sky and said gravely, "There wasn't even a defensive barrier. Tartaros has already been emptied out!"
Lahar's eyes blazed with anger: "Then why didn't we receive any news about Tartaros relocating?"
And with the Magic Council's intelligence network, any movement from Tartaros should have been impossible to escape their notice.
Ultear said calmly, "Isn't it obvious? Your scouts have long been theirs, feeding you false information just to leave your rear vulnerable."
"And the fact that this Nine Demon Gate is no longer stalling for time indicates their operation has already succeeded."
"Damn it!"
Lahar didn't even dare to imagine what state the Magic Council must be in now.
Ulfheim also understood the severity of the situation and walked over directly, saying, "We've really been played this time. Let's retreat. There's no point wasting time with that kid here."
"All units, retreat!!"
Lahar didn't dare delay and immediately gave the order. Everyone quickly formed ranks and withdrew.
Silver watched quietly as the Magic Council members left, shaking his head slightly: "I'm sorry..."
...Acnologia and the others were rushing towards this area. Soon, they spotted the Magic Council's Landship on the road, so the four of them and the cat flew directly onto it.
Two Mages surrounded them, demanding sharply: "Who are you?"
Seeing them, Lahar waved his hand: "No need to be alarmed. They're from the Fairy Tail Guild."
Although Fairy Tail could cause trouble, they weren't considered a Dark Guild. Moreover, the people before him were the world-ending dragon king and the scarlet despair. They absolutely could not be made enemies, at least for now.
Erza walked up, seeing their anxious and restless appearance, and asked in confusion: "What happened? Did you fail?"
Lahar hung his head, anger barely suppressed in his eyes. He gritted his teeth and said, "We were all deceived by Tartaros."
He briefly explained the situation: Tartaros had lured their main force out to launch an attack on the Magic Council. The current situation was unpredictable.
Natsu was somewhat shocked. Someone really dared to move against those people? They were even braver than him!
Suddenly, he felt dizzy and slumped onto the deck like a dead pig: "Transportation... Irene... I'm gonna... puke..."
"If you're going to puke, don't say my name."
Irene looked disgusted, waved her magic staff, and cast Enchantment Magic on him. Natsu was instantly revived, full of energy.
Jellal, Ultear, and Meredy walked over and said, "Tartaros is very powerful. Just one of their Nine Demon Gates was able to hold back Ulfheim, one of the Four Heavenly Kings. And they have at least nine such members!"
Erza found it hard to believe: "Doesn't that mean they have nine Mage's of the Ten Wizard Saints caliber?"
The Magic Council had only selected ten Ten Wizard Saints-level Mages from across the entire continent. For one organization to have nine such beings was simply outrageous.
Ultear nodded: "Yes. Tartaros's strength is comparable to that of Oración Seis and Grimoire Heart combined."
To act without first understanding the enemy's strength was the Magic Council's greatest mistake.
Natsu declared confidently: "Let me go beat them up!"
The stronger the enemy, the more excited he became. Dragon Slaying Magic was invincible.
Irene rolled her eyes at him: "You really dare to say that. You can't even beat one Erza."
Erza was furious: "Am I that weak?"
Damn her mother, always treating her like a weakling.
Happy flew above Natsu's head: "Those are the Ten Wizard Saints, you know."
"Actually, I already have the power of a Ten Wizard Saint!"
Natsu remained stubborn. Aside from a few S-Class members in the guild, he felt he was invincible.
Acnologia said: "Aside from me, Irene, Erza, Gildarts, Guild Master Makarov, and Laxus, your strength still isn't enough. Talk again after training for a year or two."
Now, with her Dragon Knight powers, Erza's strength surpassed even Laxus's. Dealing with a single Nine Demon Gate member would be more than enough.
Natsu looked thoroughly displeased. In a team of four, aside from Happy, he was actually the weakest.
He somewhat missed the days when Lucy was around. Lucy would be at the bottom, never looking down on him.
He would definitely train in secret when he got back, surpass Erza, surpass everyone... After half an hour, when they arrived at the Council, what they saw was a burning ruin, with severed limbs and bodies. All the Magic Council members had been annihilated.
Many reporters were already filming, and numerous guilds were rushing over to observe. This event was no less significant than the fall of a kingdom; it was like the sky collapsing in the magical world.
Lahar looked at the bodies of all the Council members laid out on the ground, his eyes filled with helplessness and despair.
All the Council members were dead!
It was completely over!
"Whoever did this, show yourself!"
Lahar clenched his fists tightly, his eyes seeming to spit fire, his hoarse voice echoing to the heavens.
All his steadfastness and justice felt like a joke. The Magic Council had actually been destroyed by a Dark Guild!
Justice had actually been defeated by evil!
Why was this!
Erza turned her head away, unable to bear looking any longer. So many dead, it was truly a horrific massacre.
Although the Magic Council always liked to give Fairy Tail trouble, it was usually just verbal criticism. They weren't bad people.
Jellal looked at Lahar, who was questioning his life's purpose, placed a hand on his shoulder, and comforted him: "The dead cannot return. You still need to carry on the will of the Magic Council and look forward. You and Mr. Ulfheim can gather the Ten Wizard Saints and rebuild the Magic Council."
Ultear said quietly: "The Magic Council's operational methods still had various problems. Each person's power was too vast. Once a wrong judgment was made, it could easily lead to irreversible consequences."
"Jellal and I were once part of it, and we understand the dangers deeply. It's far too easy for those with ill intentions to exploit."
"Consider this destruction a chance to break and rebuild!"
She used the Arc of Time to restore the Council building to its original state. However, it couldn't be used on people. The dead could not be revived.
"Life is unpredictable..."
Ultear sighed softly. Now that the Magic Council was destroyed, how were they supposed to atone for their sins?
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