A Sudden Change! The Mangekyō Returns

"That's..." Mira raised an eyebrow, brandished her little fist, and laughed, "Don't mess with me, or I'll beat you so badly you won't be able to take care of yourself."

But then, a silence fell over the scene. The guards clearly wanted to arrest them, but they were no match for the group due to their overwhelming strength.

"Pfft!"

Suddenly, a piercing tearing sound reached everyone's ears.

Mira's entire right hand was covered in sky-blue scales, and her hand sank into Chiba's chest.

Mira's face was mostly covered in sky-blue scales, and her eyes had turned extremely scarlet, filled with surging killing intent.

"Tick-tock~ Tick-tock~"

Blood dripped onto the ground, and a deathly silence fell over the surroundings.

Things happened so suddenly. One second Mira was laughing and joking with Chiba, and the next second she severely injured him. The demonization happened almost instantly.

Chiba's chest was a bloody mess, blood dripping from his claws. He gripped her arm tightly, a burning pain shooting through him, and he took a step back. Then, he watched as Mira's skin was covered in sky-blue scales, and a long tail emerged from behind her.

"A demon! A demon has appeared!!"

Screams erupted from the crowd, and soon everyone was in an uproar. Several magic circles were simultaneously formed, and magical power from different people burst forth at the same time.

"Erza! Laxus!" Chiba suddenly shouted.

"Requip! Adamantine Armor!" As soon as Chiba finished speaking, Erza instantly Requip into Adamantine Armor, her strongest defensive armor!

Laxus, enveloped in lightning, stood in their way.

"Don't you understand?!" the village chief roared, his voice trembling. "Her consciousness has been corrupted by demons; it's only a matter of time before she becomes a true demon! She can't see anything anymore! She's become a killing machine! If this continues, we'll all be killed by her!"

"Shut up!" Laxus snapped, clearly annoyed.

This was a mission he wanted to complete, and because of some personal motives, he invited Chiba and Mira to join him. But he didn't expect this to happen before the mission even started. Ultimately, if he hadn't wanted to find out Chiba's true strength, Mira wouldn't have been possessed by a demon.

"Lord Laxus..." Jura spoke up, looking at Chiba, who had one hand on Mira's shoulder and the other on her arm. He said, "And Chiba... Miss Mira isn't feeling well right now. Perhaps we should subdue her first, and then discuss things later?"

"That's true..." Totomaru said lazily, hands behind his head, "Fairy Tail has an uncontrollable demon that only knows how to kill, heh... that's quite a piece of news."

"Boom!"

A bolt of lightning shot out instantly, heading straight for Totomaru. The latter grinned, conjuring a crimson magic circle beneath his feet, flames rising up to deflect the lightning.

"Oh dear! Are all Fairies a bunch of violent freaks? That really scared me to death..." Totomaru said, still shaken.

Laxus's eyes turned cold. "If you're looking for death, I don't mind sending you on your way."

Chiba gripped Mira's arm tightly, and as he tried to pull away, Mira's face showed a pained expression.

He froze for a moment, and then, as if possessed, he let go, allowing Mira's arm to pierce through his chest.

"Pfft..."

They stood face to face, the girl's forehead touching the boy's nose, the fragrance of her hair wafting in the air. It was the first time they had been so close, face to face, that they could almost hear each other's heartbeats.

Mira seemed stunned, then she covered her head with her other, normal hand and let out a hoarse scream.

She jerked her arm away, clutching her head with both hands. Blood streamed down her arms, staining her snow-white hair and flowing down her cheeks, making her look like a female ghost who had escaped from hell.

"Why... why didn't you... knock me out..."

Tears streamed down her cheeks, and she made a hoarse sound, like weeping, like the low murmur of a demon.

"Who knows..."

Chiba embraced her, seemingly forgetting the injury to his chest. Just as he was about to use the Genjutsu of his Mangekyō Sharingan to control her, a figure suddenly appeared behind Mira.

Aria!

"How... tragic..."

He seemed to sigh, then tears streamed down his face, and at the same time, countless lights shone forth.

"Oh no!"

Neither Erza nor Laxus noticed that Aria had broken through their defenses and reached where Chiba and Mira were.

But at that moment, Chiba suddenly threw Mira away, and then he himself was enveloped in light.

He felt all the magic in his body being torn away, and then... vanished into nothingness.

"Thump!"

He knelt on one knee, his head bowed.

"Damn it!" Laxus roared, his entire body crackling with lightning that filled the entire space.

Immediately afterward, a massive golden magic circle formed beneath Aria's feet. In an instant, countless bolts of lightning erupted from beneath his feet, forming a giant ball of lightning, and everyone around was blasted away by the magical surge.

"Boom!!"

The lightning ball exploded, creating a massive shockwave. The surrounding trees were completely destroyed, and even the mountain was blasted into a huge crater, with rocks tumbling down and the entire mountain beginning to shake precariously.

"Rock Iron Wall!"

Jura clasped his hands together abruptly, causing rocks to surge across the ground. Solid stone walls held back the collapsing mountain, while some extending Rock Iron Walls caught the guards who had been blown away by the aura of the lightning ball.

The village chief was deathly pale, his lips trembling. Only after witnessing their battle up close did he realize just how terrifying the mages in the guild truly were. Especially this group; they could even collapse mountains...

Mira, who had been thrown up the mountain path by Chiba, stared blankly at Chiba kneeling on the ground, her head throbbing with pain. She wanted to go over and help him up, but in the next instant, the demon's consciousness once again invaded her mind.

She unfurled her wings and, flapping them, soared towards the distant horizon.

"Aria! What do you want to do?!"

Erza had changed into the Purgatory Armor, wielding a jagged greatsword, and the throbbing veins on her forehead spoke volumes about her rage.

Laxus's lightning subsided; he knew that although his attack had been fierce, Aria had clearly dodged it.

"Oh, you pitiful Fairies..." Aria appeared beside Totomaru, tears still streaming down her face, "To confront evil, this is the responsibility of a mage from a legitimate mage guild..."

"You!" Erza was about to explode in anger, but she suddenly sensed a terrifying aura coming from behind her.

Chiba, who should have suffered from Magic Deficiency Disease due to having his magic power drained by Aria's [Void Annihilation], actually stood up. His expression was as cold as an iceberg, and his dark pupils transformed into Red Eyes with three black Tomoe. Then, these three black Tomoe rotated and finally condensed into a pattern.

Erza and Laxus had seen this pattern before, but this time, they sensed a chilling aura emanating from it.