Taking Down Oración Seis
However, before Jiang Bai's commission order worth 60 million J could even be warmed up on the bar, a dignified yet slightly weary voice came from the guild entrance.
No! You can't go right now!
Everyone turned around at the sound and saw Chairman Makarov walking in from outside.
"President!"
"President! You're back!"
The guild members greeted each other.
"The meeting is over. Welcome back, Chairman." Mirajane greeted him with a smile.
Recently, due to the unusual activity of the Dark Guilds, and the Magic Council being preoccupied with the destruction of "Etherion," they have had to frequently convene meetings of the guild leaders of regular guilds to discuss countermeasures.
Jiang Bai looked at Makarov with dissatisfaction. "Why? Grandpa, you stopped me in the same way last time."
"Look, Natsu is staying here safely. He didn't sneak into S-Class Mission this time."
Makarov's expression was unusually grave. He walked to the group and said in a deep voice, "There are more important matters that require your leadership. I don't trust anyone else to go."
"What is it?" Jiang Bai asked.
"It's that one you were just discussing, the 'Oración Seis'," Makarov said slowly.
"At the regular meeting, we unanimously decided that we would handle it."
"Huh?!!"
The entire guild was in an uproar.
"President, what exactly happened?" Erza immediately pressed for an answer.
Makarov explained, "At the regular meeting, we received definitive intelligence that the Oración Seis has begun a full-scale operation."
"Although we don't know their specific motives, we absolutely cannot ignore them. Therefore, the meeting decided to select a guild by drawing lots to be responsible for dealing with them."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Bai glanced at the old man and drawled, "Oh—so, old man, you've drawn the worst lot again."
"With your luck like that, next time you should bring someone to help you draw, otherwise the guild will be bankrupted by your luck sooner or later."
"Enough with the nagging!" Makarov's face flushed red, and he snapped irritably.
"Are we the only guild going?" Lucy asked somewhat anxiously.
"Of course not!" Makarov shook his head.
"Because this enemy is too powerful, if only our guild takes action, we are likely to be targeted by the other two members of the 'Balam Alliance.' Therefore, the meeting decided to form an Allied Forces."
"The Allied Forces?"
"That's right," Makarov nodded.
"The four guilds, 'Fairy Tail,' 'Blue Pegasus,' 'Lamia Scale,' and 'Cait Shelter,' will each select elite members to work together to complete this subjugation mission."
Upon hearing the word "Blue Pegasus," Erza and Jiang Bai both shuddered, as if they were thinking of something disgusting.
"We don't need so many people!" Natsu was already excitedly ablaze.
"Our guild is enough! No! I'm enough on my own!"
"You idiot!" Gray immediately poured cold water on his enthusiasm.
"Didn't you hear what the guild leader said? If our guild fights alone, we'll be targeted by the alliance! What will happen to the other guild members then?"
Lucy was still a little confused. "But didn't the 'Oración Seis' say there were only six of them?"
Mirajane explained from the side, "Although they only have six core members, they have the most directly affiliated guilds."
"If they mobilize all of them, then conservatively speaking, the enemy would have several hundred, maybe even a thousand people."
"So many people?!" Lucy covered her face in shock.
"Are they planning to attack our guild?"
Makarov said with a serious expression, "We don't know exactly what they want to do, but mobilizing so many people is definitely not a good thing."
"Moreover, during this period, the Dark Guild seems to be testing our limits. Many guild leaders have reported in meetings that their guild members were attacked while carrying out missions."
"If our established guilds don't step in to intimidate them and show them that we're not to be trifled with, many smaller guilds will suffer, and many mages will lose faith in us and leave."
Everyone nodded in agreement upon hearing the president's words.
There are indeed many such examples. The better ones retire from the game, while some with extreme views may even fall into depravity and join dark guilds.
Just like those corrupt legitimate guilds that Wakaba and Macao mentioned before.
"So, our guild sent me out." Jiang Bai pointed to himself.
"That's right," Makarov nodded.
"This mission is very dangerous. Only with you present can we be absolutely certain of its success, and only then can I feel at ease."
"Why?!" Natsu shouted in dissatisfaction.
" With Jiang Bai gone, I basically won't have a chance to make a move!"
"Hmph! If Laxus hadn't taken on another mission and gone out, I would have let him go with me!"
Makarov glared at Natsu, then announced the final selection.
"The team going this time has been decided: Jiang Bai, Erza, Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Happy."
"Huh?! I have to go too? No way!" Lucy wailed as soon as she heard she was going.
"Lucy, you don't have to go if you don't want to," Jiang Bai said calmly.
Lucy's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Really," Jiang Bai nodded, then changed the subject, adding seemingly casually,
"But I heard that one of the 'Oración Seis' is also Celestial Spirit Mage, and he seems to have the keys to the Zodiac."
"And what's more, she treats her Celestial Spirit like slaves, completely disregarding them."
Lucy was already intrigued when she heard about the "keys to the Zodiac."
When she heard the last sentence, that someone actually treated precious Celestial Spirit as slaves, a surge of anger instantly ignited in her heart, completely overwhelming her fear.
She clenched her fists tightly, her eyes becoming incredibly determined.
"I absolutely have to go! I'll teach her a lesson she won't forget! I want her to know that Celestial Spirit aren't slaves, but partners who deserve love and respect."