Endless Darkness Engulfed the Light

Because they had to perform extremely heavy physical labor every day, the laborers were all emaciated, but each one of them possessed strength that was beyond the reach of ordinary people. They were a group of demons who walked on the edge of death.

Erza, wearing tattered armor made of some unknown material, casually picked up a shield and longsword that had fallen to the ground. Surprisingly, they were quite easy to use. Even though it was her first time using them, she didn't find it difficult at all, and killing enemies was as simple as slicing melons and chopping vegetables.

The rebellion proceeded very smoothly under Erza's leadership, liberating seven districts in less than a day. More and more laborers joined their ranks, completely suppressing the overseer's army.

"Give it your all, everyone! Today, we must successfully liberate District 8!" Erza shouted, standing atop a mound of earth.

"Impossible! That's the central area; the defenses are far too tight!" However, someone immediately objected.

"But... if we don't rescue Jellal soon..." Erza knew it was asking the impossible, but she desperately wanted to save Jellal. She knew all too well what kind of torture he would suffer in that room.

Seeing Erza's concern for Jellal, Simon was suddenly overcome with jealousy. The innocent feelings between the young boy and girl almost made him forget that this was a battlefield.

Boom!!

Just as Simon was about to take the opportunity to confess his feelings to Erza, a magic bullet landed right at his feet, sparks flew everywhere, and he was blown away, his body mangled and his fate unknown.

"Ah! That's... the magic soldier legion!"

Suddenly someone exclaimed and pointed to the sky. Countless magic soldiers appeared above them, opening their terrifying maws, and magic poured down like a torrential rain.

The roar of the explosion, the bursts of flame, and the splattering blood and flesh instantly jolted these hot-blooded laborers back to reality.

They were just ordinary people wielding primitive weapons. How could they possibly fight against those dark mages who controlled magical creatures? The fact that their rebellion had gone smoothly before was simply because the other side hadn't taken them seriously at all.

Now that a proper magic soldier legion has been deployed, what can these cowards possibly do against them? Risk their lives?

More and more people are choosing to protect themselves, believing that it's better to live a miserable life than to die. Few can remain calm in the face of the threat of death.

"No! Everyone, don't give up! We must fight to the very end!"

Erza stood in the chaotic crowd, shouting incessantly, but no one paid any attention to her. Some even pushed her to the ground because they thought she was blocking their escape route.

Despair!

Watching the group run further and further away, Erza fell into deep despair. Hope was so close, she was so close to saving Jellal, but it all vanished in an instant.

The most despairing thing in the world is never being in hell, but when you've gone through countless hardships and are about to touch the gates of heaven, you suddenly realize that you're still in hell, and everything was just a bubble.

The magical soldiers in the sky all aimed at Erza, who was the last one to fall. The magical light was so dazzling that she couldn't open her eyes and could only wait for death in despair.

Rumble!!

An explosion rang out, but Erza found herself not dead. Opening her eyes, she saw a slightly hunched, aged figure with a bright, dazzling fairy emblem beneath flowing silver hair.

"Grandpa Rob!" Erza couldn't help but exclaim.

Rob didn't turn around to take care of Erza. Instead, he clasped his hands together in front of his chest, ruthlessly squeezing out the last bit of magic power within him, flames rising from his palms.

Even if my magic is depleted, I can still protect the people I love. How can you so easily destroy such young lives!

The devastating flames instantly engulfed the land, burning even the soil to ashes. Countless magical soldiers were engulfed by the flames and vanished into nothingness in the blink of an eye.

The massive explosion ripped a large hole in the side of the tower, allowing everyone to once again see the long-lost sunlight.

However, Rob had no heart to enjoy the warmth anymore. At this moment, his whole body was pale, his skin had begun to crack, and he knelt weakly on the ground.

Erza rushed forward to help him up, but the part of Rob's body that had been touched gradually turned into dust, Erza's tears immediately welled up uncontrollably.

"Grandpa Rob..."

"Hehe, this old codger isn't entirely useless after all," Rob seemed to be in a good mood, smiling slightly at Erza.

"Magic is the source of life for mages. I, your grandfather, lost my magic long ago, so this ending was inevitable."

"But... Erza... you have endless possibilities! Never forget your smile, and remember, freedom resides within your own heart."

"Erza, your dream will surely come true one day..."

Boom!!

The remaining magic soldiers, fearless of death, unleashed another barrage of magic, their target being Grandpa Rob stood in front of Erza.

"Grandpa Rob!" Erza, who had gotten up again, ignored her injuries and hurriedly looked up to look for him, but Rob was nowhere to be seen. The frail old man had long since been broken into pieces and shattered into dust.

Erza stared blankly at the handcuffs that Grandpa Rob had left on the ground, reaching out to grab the dust in the sky, but she couldn't get anything.

Why? Why do the people around me have to suffer like this?

Why? What did we do wrong?

The taut nerves transformed once again; the desire to change and the belief in protecting triumphed over everything.

Magic is the power of belief.

"Ah!!"

With Erza's scream, a huge crimson magic circle suddenly appeared beneath her feet. The tools and weapons that had been scattered around her seemed to be drawn into the air by a magnet, and with Erza's movement, they shot towards the remaining legion of black mages.

In an instant, blood stained the earth red. These sharp iron weapons pinned the black mages to the ground, and no one survived.

"Amazing... in an instant..."

"They even brought along magic soldiers..."

"Erza can use magic now!"

With her back to the murmuring crowd, Erza looked at her hands, feeling no joy whatsoever, only tears glistening in her single eye.

But now is not the time for sorrow. With the power of this magic, we can save Jellal and lead everyone to freedom.

As for the dream of flying, let's talk about that after all this is over, Grandpa Rob...

Raising her longsword high, Erza shouted, "We must seize freedom! Everyone, follow me!"

"Oh!!"

"Get out of my way!"

With a single slash, Erza sliced through the two dark mages, one fat and one thin, who had abused her before, and finally arrived at the dark room where Jellal was imprisoned.

After rescuing Jellal from the bronze pillar, Erza couldn't help but burst into tears. She had been through so much on this journey; some of her companions were seriously injured, and some even sacrificed their lives. But in the end, they won. After a valiant fight, they won the victory and gained their freedom. They would soon be able to escape from here!

Supporting Jellal, Erza excitedly continued talking, completely unaware of Jellal's abnormal condition.

Suddenly, Jellal grabbed Erza, who had a small mouth, and whispered in her ear with a wicked, crazed look in his eyes. "Erza, there's no need to run away anymore. True freedom is right here."

"Jellal, what are you saying? We need to get out of here quickly!"

Hearing Jellal's words, Erza instinctively pushed Jellal away. The person in front of her felt unfamiliar, even frightening.

"Erza, freedom doesn't exist in this world." Jellal slowly moved to the center of the hall, stroking a magical crystal that looked disgusting.

"I've come to a complete understanding. What we need isn't this false freedom, but true freedom—that is... Zeref's world!"

Erza stared in horror at Jellal before her. Wisps of evil magic, almost visible to the naked eye, emanated from him. His eyes, no longer clear and bright, had become incredibly chaotic, and strange patterns could even be faintly seen flickering within them.

"Jellal, what are you saying?" Erza shivered from the chilling aura emanating from him.

However, Jellal ignored Erza's words and instead tore off his tattered work clothes and walked over to the two dark mages who had been injured by Erza.

"Now I can kind of understand these guys' thinking; they built this tower because they wanted to resurrect Zeref."

"But they're just a pathetic bunch of believers who can't even sense Zeref."

The sunny and confident Jellal from before seemed to have never existed; the Jellal before us was like a completely different person—evil, ruthless, and insane.

"I will take over this tower, I will complete it, and I will bring Zeref back to life. I am the one who has truly been chosen."

As he spoke, Jellal suddenly unleashed a massive surge of dark magic, mercilessly killing the two fallen dark mages and turning them into dust.

Erza covered her mouth in disbelief, her eyes filled with terror. "Jellal, what happened to you? How did you become like this?"

"This is who I should be! Erza, let's complete RSystem together, no, let's complete our Tower of Heaven together, and then bring Zeref back to life in this world!"

"Stop talking nonsense! We need to leave this island right now!" Erza was almost in tears, not understanding why Jellal had become like this.

Jellal glanced coldly at the agitated Erza, clearly dissatisfied with her answer, a bloodthirsty glint in his eyes.

Erza was instantly blasted away by the magic, even crashing through the wall and slamming into the foundation of the next floor.

Jellal stood on high ground, looking down at Erza, who lay limp on the ground, his eyes filled with a morbid madness, as if he were possessed.

"Hehe, alright, since you're so eager to leave this island, then go ahead and run away alone. I'll take over the rest of the crew; after all, I need manpower to help me complete the Tower of Heaven."

"Don't worry, I'm different from those guys. I'll make sure everyone has clothes to wear, food to eat, and time to rest."

"While using fear to control people may increase hatred, it's far too inefficient and not what I want."

Erza stared at the stranger before her, not even recognizing him as Jellal, and struggled to speak, her voice trembling with tears, "What are you saying? Everyone's already on the ship waiting to depart, how could they possibly want to come back here to work...?"

But no matter what Erza says, Jellal always has a set of arguments, a set of evil theories he inherited from who-knows-where.

"Jellal, please, wake up!" In the end Erza could only shout this desperately, trying to rouse the real Jellal.

However, this only enraged Jellal. With a flick of his wrist, he skillfully used magic to restrain Erza, lifting her into the air, and coldly said...

"I don't need you anymore. Go leave this island and enjoy your false freedom!"

"However, I forbid you from mentioning the existence of the Tower of Heaven to anyone! If the government finds out, it will be very troublesome."

"If you dare to leak this out, I'll have no choice but to erase this tower along with everyone in it."

"I won't allow you to come any closer to this place! If you dare to return, well... how about this, I'll just kill Xiu first."

"This is the freedom you've been seeking. Live on, carrying the lives of your comrades on your shoulders, Erza!"

Jellal gripped Erza's neck almost frantically, his eyes flashing with evil crimson runes, and the dark aura plunged Erza into utter despair and agony.

In the end, the deep darkness swallowed up all the light, and all hope was shattered into deep despair.

Erza's Memories became very blurry after that. When she regained consciousness, she found herself on an unfamiliar beach. Lonely and desperate, she had no home and didn't know where to go.

Subconsciously, he took a step toward the Fairy Tail that Grandpa Rob had mentioned, and pushed open the dilapidated guild door.

Read Fairy Tail: Thoughts Follow Your Heart