"Mmm~, all right, that takes care of that." Zorn stretched. "Let's go check out the ruins over there and see what's going on."
"As for them..." Zorn turned, resting a hand on his chin in a thoughtful pose as he looked at the two people he had bound with magic nearby.
The middle-aged man and woman were both grimy and disheveled, their heads lowered. Three rings of light held them tightly bound, their magic power completely sealed, and they wore expressions of resignation.
"The people who were created here have all disappeared too," Cana told Zorn with a smile, sharing what she had noticed.
"Mm-hmm, looks like things have been dealt with at the ruins too," Zorn said with a nod. He glanced east, then turned to the old man and Cana. "Then let's get ready to head over now. There are still people waiting for us there. As for these two, it would be better if they were unconscious for the time being." He reached out and struck the backs of their necks with magic power. Both instantly lost consciousness and fell to the ground.
Still not at ease, Zorn raised several defensive shields around them to ward off outside attacks and keep the pair from finding a way to escape if they woke up. Given his current strength, there were very few people who could break through these shields, and none of them were here now, so he could rest easy.
"Let's go. They're probably getting impatient over there." Zorn held out a hand, and a giant golden magic circle appeared beneath the three of them. Cana quietly reassured the old man, who was a little startled and worried. As Zorn activated his magic, light flickered around them, then flared brightly, and the three disappeared from where they stood.
Only a man and a woman remained, lying within the shield magic.
At the ruins...
"Hmph~ Who am I? You're not worthy of knowing." His cape swaying in the wind, a young man with a lightning mark on his face stood with his arms crossed, looking arrogantly at the scrawny man before him, who was clutching one arm and still in shock.
The scrawny man had just been hurriedly preparing to open the ruins. He had first worked with the middle-aged man and woman to obtain blood from various villagers and create copies of them to confuse Zorn and Cana, then rushed here to obtain the power within the ruins.
"Damn it, I was so close." The scrawny man glared venomously at the young man. His hands flashed to his waist and produced several vials of bright red blood. He squeezed, shattering the glass, and the blood floated before his chest under his control.
"Blood Copy Magic, appear, my servants!" A surge of blood-colored magic power stirred, and the blood began to change, gradually forming mages who could use all kinds of magic. They looked at Laxus with equally sinister gazes.
"Tch, a bastard like you who plays with blood won't get anywhere with just these." Laxus looked coldly at the scrawny man, who seemed confident of victory now that he had more people. Laxus clenched his fists as lightning magic power surrounded his entire body.
"Die!" Seeing that Laxus remained as arrogant and aloof as ever, the scrawny man immediately ordered the puppet mages to surround him and launch all kinds of attack magic.
Laxus darted from side to side, easily evading the attacks. They struck the surrounding area without touching him in the slightest. Seeing this, the scrawny man's magic power surged even more violently, and blood-red color shrouded his eyes. The puppet mages' magic power also grew stronger, making their attacks even more powerful.
Laxus dodged even faster, kicking several puppet mages away one by one and sending them crashing down in front of the scrawny man.
"Too weak, bastard. You can't even give me a warm-up. I'm done playing with you." Laxus continued to look at the scrawny man mockingly.
"Lightning Magic: Lightning Bullet!" Laxus held out one hand, and as he drew on his magic power, several electric orbs surrounded by lightning and radiating a dangerous aura appeared around him. With a wave of his hand, he sent them flying toward the scrawny man at lightning speed. The man hurriedly summoned the puppet mages in front of him to block the attack.
"Boom! Boom!" "Argh~!" Smoke billowed, and a cry of pain came from within it. When the smoke thinned, a man lay unconscious on the ground, his whole body twitching.
Laxus cast a disdainful glance at the scumbag who had fallen before him. Then he sensed something and turned to see a golden magic circle appear behind him. Zorn, Cana, and the old man appeared before him.
"Yo, did you miss me, Laxus?" Zorn held up one hand and waved in greeting with a smile.
"Tch~ Don't flatter yourself. I've been perfectly comfortable without you," Laxus flatly denied it, but Zorn rushed over and slung an arm around his shoulders, acting like a close brother.
"Laxus, how have things been at Fairy Tail? Is everyone doing well?" Cana helped the old man to the side and asked Laxus about the guild, her voice gentle and happy.
Laxus was struggling with Zorn's arm and had nearly managed to peel him off. "Yeah, everyone's doing pretty well," he replied to Cana with a confident smile. At that very moment, he lost his grip on Zorn, who pulled him in by the shoulder and burst out laughing.
"Hahaha, I still won."
"Pfft, Zorn, let's hurry and finish the job." Cana was amused by Zorn acting like a child, but she quickly reminded him that the job was not over yet.
"Ahem, yes." Zorn let go, closed his eyes, and sensed his surroundings. After taking a moment to confirm, he gathered a sword of light in his hand and swung it effortlessly downward toward the southeastern side of the ruins.
As the sword of light cut through what had been empty air, a golden crack appeared high above and gradually spread outward, shattering the space around it. The original villagers appeared along with it.
A group of people sat on the ground, huddled together and comforting one another, their faces utterly hopeless. When the invisible wall shattered and they saw Zorn and the others appear before them, along with the village chief, their eyes instantly lit up. A middle-aged man and a woman among them rushed excitedly toward the old man. They embraced, and the old man looked at his son, his daughter-in-law, and the villagers with tears in his eyes.
"All right, next up is the ruins' magic circle." Zorn turned to look at the giant platform around them, which was covered in runes. Every rune exuded an ancient and mysterious aura.
"Honored mage, please help us open these ruins. Ever since the secret of this treasure was leaked, wave after wave of mages have flocked here, posting requests in our name. Our once-peaceful lives have been shattered. We only want to live in peace, and we don't want the treasure anymore. Could you take it as payment for this job?"
Supported by his son and daughter-in-law, the old man unsteadily expressed their simple wish on behalf of all the villagers. Zorn nodded and raised a huge magic shield with one hand, protecting the villagers and Cana inside it.
He placed both hands on the ground again and channeled his own magic power into it. The magic circle began to glow, light flowing through the runes as magic power gathered from the surrounding air to form a powerful vortex of energy. Laxus's cape billowed in the strong wind as he calmly watched the changes around him.
Suddenly, a gigantic book appeared in the center of the magic circle. It looked ancient and imposing, with no words written on its cover, yet it radiated a powerful aura of wisdom. Its edges shimmered with starlight, too brilliant to look at directly. As the light faded, the giant book shrank and floated before Zorn. He reached out to catch it, looking at it curiously.
It looks like it should be some kind of Lost Magic, or perhaps a forbidden magic... Zorn thought.
To be continued~