Aftermath

After everyone had been properly settled, Allen took out the Communication Crystal and prepared to contact Makarov.

However, what Allen had not expected was that when the Communication Crystal was successfully activated and displayed an image, the person appearing on the screen was not Makarov, but a kind and familiar face—Polyushika!

Although his heart was filled with surprise, the instant he saw Grandma Polyushika, Allen's eyes still reddened involuntarily, and his originally steady voice became slightly choked: "G-Grandma..."

At the same time, after seeing Allen and Laxus standing beside him through the Communication Crystal, Grandma Polyushika's eyes also reddened, and tears welled up in them. In a trembling voice, she said, "Grandma heard from Grandpa Makarov about everything you two went through before. I haven't been able to stop worrying about you, so I wanted to see with my own eyes how you two are doing now." Hearing the concern in his grandmother's words, Allen hurriedly raised the Communication Crystal in his hand and tried his best to get both himself and Laxus into view. At the same time, he worked to calm his emotions and said to Grandma Polyushika in as relaxed a tone as possible, "See, Grandma? We're both doing fine now. Just a moment ago, we successfully completed a mission concerning the Dark Magic Group. We were actually about to report the details to Grandpa."

Just then, Makarov suddenly sprang out from beside Polyushika and shouted unhappily, "Oh, come on! Don't just stand there chatting. Hurry up and have Allen tell me the details of this mission. You two can take your time catching up later!"

Polyushika had been immersed in her own thoughts, but her emotions were abruptly interrupted by Makarov's unexpected words. She could not help glaring fiercely at him in annoyance, but in the end, she unwillingly handed the Communication Crystal back to him.

Allen gradually calmed down from his nervous excitement as well. He took a deep breath, composed himself, and began telling Makarov about everything involving Malcolm and Asmodeus, focusing especially on how Asmodeus's strange magic had drifted toward the north.

Makarov listened quietly to Allen's account without interrupting even once. After Allen finished, he fell into brief contemplation. Only after a long while did Makarov slowly raise his head, fix his gaze on Allen, and ask, "Child, I remember that you were already planning to head north, weren't you? Now that this has happened, are you planning to continue investigating the Dark Magic Group?"

Hearing Makarov's question, Allen nodded without hesitation, his tone firm and resolute: "Grandpa, that's right! Since I've encountered these things, there's no way I can stand by and do nothing. Just think about it—Malcolm was able to control all the residents of an entire town so easily with only a portion of Asmodeus's magic. If Asmodeus's true body really appears here, the consequences would be unimaginable! So no matter what, I have to completely wipe out this evil Dark Magic Group! Even if the road ahead is fraught with danger, I won't back down!"

Makarov knew that no one could change Allen's mind once he had made up his mind, and he had no intention of trying. After these two incidents, Makarov had clearly recognized the danger posed by the Dark Magic Group, so he could not possibly let Allen and Laxus fight them alone.

After forming a general plan, Makarov said to Allen, "I will also issue an S-Class mission concerning the Dark Magic Group at the guild and arrange for Gildarts to take it. At the same time, I will discuss the Dark Magic Group with the members of the Council. If you encounter anything you can't deal with, make sure to tell me in advance. Everyone in the guild is your backing!"

"All right, Grandpa. Laxus and I will be careful."

Allen nodded in response to Makarov. Then Polyushika snatched the Communication Crystal away and resumed catching up with Allen and Laxus, while Makarov helplessly shook his head beside her.

After Allen and Laxus sweet-talked her, they finally managed to make Polyushika laugh. After speaking with Makarov for a few more moments, the two of them ended the call.

After the communication ended, the mages of the Foxes of the Forest also gradually woke up.

They all looked somewhat blankly at their surroundings. Then Harry spotted Allen and Laxus in the distance and looked pleasantly surprised. Just as he tried to sit up, however, the pain in his body left him unable to control himself. Allen hurried over and helped Harry up into a sitting position. Harry really had been rather unlucky—the injuries he had suffered earlier had not even healed, and now he had run into this mess as well. Still, there was good news: after fusing with Asmodeus's magic, Harry's overall magical power had increased tremendously, raising him from a B-Class mage to an A-Class mage. All one could say was that timing and fate both played their parts!

Elsewhere, Yahar walked over to the guild master of the Foxes of the Forest—Nick Mack.

After explaining that he was a member of the Investigation Team sent by the Council, Nick's taut nerves finally relaxed slightly. He slowly lowered the weapon he had been gripping tightly, and his wary gaze gradually softened.

Next, Nick looked at Yahar before asking sincerely, "What exactly happened here? Why don't we remember anything about what happened?"

Yahar recounted the entire incident to Nick in full detail.

After hearing Yahar's account and learning that this entire series of events had been caused by Malcolm alone, all the mages of the Foxes of the Forest widened their eyes, their faces filled with disbelief.

Seeing the shock on Harry's face, Allen asked him, "Why are you so surprised that Malcolm caused all of this?"

Harry clearly had not yet recovered from the shocking news that had stunned everyone. His mind was still in complete disarray, and for a moment, he did not know how to answer Allen's question.

Seeing this, Allen did not urge Harry on. Instead, he patiently waited for him to sort out his emotions and thoughts. After a moment, Harry finally regained some of his composure, though his words remained somewhat incoherent: "I... I don't know how to put it... This is just too hard to accept!" Seeing his reaction, Allen smiled comfortingly and encouraged him, "It's all right. Just tell me what Malcolm was like in your eyes before all this happened."