After confirming that Allen was determined to stick to his own idea, Carlton agreed to his plan. He then took Horst and Eve out to make arrangements for the wizards originally assigned to Allen and the others.
Once he had confirmed that the three of them had completely left, Allen quickly set up a soundproof Magic Circle inside the tent, ensuring that their upcoming conversation would not be detected from outside.
After checking everything, Allen turned to the others and said in a lowered voice, "The allied forces have already been infiltrated by the Dark Magic Group. Earlier, I sensed traces of dark magic on some of the wizards outside. I still don't know how deeply the allied forces have been infiltrated, but I already have a bad feeling about this. This mission may not be as simple as it seems."
Hearing Allen's words, Gildarts' expression also turned grave. He nodded in agreement and said, "I've vaguely felt that something was off too. Allen, given the current situation, do you have any countermeasures?"
Allen pondered briefly before replying, "When the time comes, Laxus and I will take the lead. Gildarts, you'll stay outside and hold the rear. If Maskara has any hidden S-Class or even higher-level forces, you'll handle them. As for Ur, stay behind us and take good care of Ultear. If we find Brian, I'll leave him to you."
Ur had originally wanted to fight alongside Allen and the others, but his words forced her to change her mind.
Indeed, if everyone threw themselves into battle, no one would be left to protect Ultear. After careful consideration, Ur ultimately agreed to Allen's plan.
At that moment, Gildarts couldn't help showing a trace of worry. He looked at Allen and Laxus at the same time and asked hesitantly, "Can the two of you really handle the main forces of the Dark Magic Group?"
Laxus snorted and replied with complete confidence, "Gildarts, you should have more faith in me and Big Bro! When there's a huge gap in magical power, no matter how many people they have, they're meaningless to us."
Allen nodded slightly with a smile, indicating his agreement with Laxus' view. He added, "Although Laxus can be impulsive at times, an ordinary numerical advantage truly poses no threat to us. However, we need to watch out for whatever trump cards they may be hiding."
Hearing this, Gildarts slapped his chest forcefully and guaranteed, "No problem. Leave all their hidden cards to me! But regarding the allied forces, shouldn't we keep a closer eye on them?"
Allen's eyes instantly grew profound. He then replied, "There's no need to pay them too much attention for now. They haven't revealed any flaws or unusual behavior, so we can't act rashly and alert them. The most important thing right now is to make thorough preparations for the battle ahead with all our strength." After saying that, everyone nodded solemnly.
Maskara was like a dazzling pearl, quietly nestled in the heart of the Ice Crystal Federation. It wasn't far from the federation's capital, so if something happened to Maskara, the capital would have a hard time escaping unscathed.
The city was surrounded on all sides by endless mountain ranges. At that moment, Allen and the others stood atop one of the mountains, looking down at Maskara below.
Although they were some distance away, their keen senses easily detected the faint traces of dark magical power hidden within Maskara. That aura was like an invisible gloom hanging over the entire city, putting everyone on guard.
Allen turned to the companions beside him and said seriously, "It looks like we need to enter the city and investigate first, to find out what's really going on inside. Ur, find a relatively safe place here and wait for us to return."
Allen then led Laxus and Gildarts toward Maskara.
When they reached a place not far from the city gates, Allen suddenly stopped. Seeing this, Laxus and Gildarts immediately halted as well. The three of them instinctively focused their gazes on the tightly closed city gate ahead. The reason they had stopped was simple: Allen had sensed the presence of a Magic Circle ahead, though he couldn't yet determine what kind it was.
After carefully observing and sensing it, Allen was secretly startled. He discovered that the Magic Circle before them was enormous, tightly encompassing the entire city of Maskara. Such a gigantic Magic Circle would inevitably consume an astonishing amount of magical resources, and its purpose was obvious—as soon as it was completed, all the people in Maskara would be sacrificed by it.
Faced with such a troublesome situation, Allen and the others grew increasingly grim.
As he moved closer and continued sensing it, Allen's keen perception instantly caught the crucial fact that the Magic Circle was not yet complete. Furrowing his brows, he turned solemnly toward Laxus and Gildarts and said, "Judging from the Magic Circle's current state, the residents of Maskara have probably all fallen under the control of those people from the Dark Magic Group. Once the Magic Circle is fully completed, the innocent civilians throughout the city will be sacrificed! There's no time to lose. We're going into the city to stop them!"
Before his voice had even faded, Allen, Laxus, and Gildarts charged into Maskara at full speed without the slightest delay.
After entering the city, their extraordinary senses allowed the three of them to simultaneously detect that everyone in the city had gathered in the central area. The situation was extremely urgent, leaving them no time to think. Without hesitation, the three of them sprinted straight toward the crowd.
However, after they had run for some distance, a large group of members from the Dark Magic Group suddenly flooded onto the road ahead. Every one of them looked ferocious, carried a variety of weapons, and radiated a chilling dark aura. After observing them, however, Allen discovered that even the strongest among them did not exceed A-Class. They were apparently nothing more than a bunch of insignificant nobodies.
Seeing this, Laxus immediately grew excited. A trace of fanaticism flashed through his eyes as he turned to Allen and shouted, "Big Bro, leave these people to me. You and Gildarts keep moving forward!"
Without waiting for Allen to answer, Laxus leaned forward slightly. The next second, he appeared in the middle of the group. With a furious roar from Laxus, a violent lightning storm erupted among the crowd.
"Lightning Armor: Chain Lightning Storm!"
Laxus' attack descended like a thunderbolt from the heavens. The previously aggressive underlings suffered heavy casualties in an instant. Several of those on the outskirts fled in terror at the sight, and amid the chaos, Allen and Gildarts passed through the group like two bolts of lightning, racing straight toward the center of the city.
However, they had barely gone any distance when the ground beneath their feet began to shake violently. Immediately afterward, a terrifying surge of dark magical power burst from underground like a raging tsunami. The next second, an enormous black tentacle carrying a massive amount of dark magical power broke through the earth. Like a savage black dragon, it lunged straight at Allen and Gildarts with its claws bared.
Faced with the sudden assault, Allen displayed astonishing reflexes. With a wave of his right hand, a flash of light appeared, and he instantly received Gram into his hand. Without the slightest hesitation, he swung Gram and thrust it fiercely at the black tentacle rushing toward him, carrying an incomparably sharp gust of wind.
With a resounding boom, the collision between the black tentacle and Gram produced the sound of clashing metal. However, under Gram's piercing force, it instantly shattered into countless fragments that flew in every direction.
"Clap, clap, clap..." At that moment, loud applause suddenly came from the other end of the street. The clapping was unhurried, yet seemed to carry an invisible pressure that made their hearts tighten.
Allen and Gildarts looked toward the source of the sound. Three figures were walking toward them unhurriedly. As they drew closer, their forms became increasingly clear. When the two sides were about twenty meters apart, the three finally stopped.
The person in the middle stepped forward and called out, "You two must be wizards from the Fairy Tail guild, correct? Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Klay Bailey. The man on my right is Ford Elliot, and the one on my left is Eddie Villa. As it happens, we've been waiting here for you for quite some time."
Allen sneered. "Waiting for us? Waiting to get yourselves killed?"
Klay wasn't angered by Allen's words. With a mocking smile, he looked at Allen and said, "You must be wondering where our other forces have gone. You don't actually think those underlings just now were our entire force, do you? They were merely some trash we hired here. Before long, they'll all become offerings to my master!"
By then, Laxus had finished dealing with the underlings and caught up with them. He happened to hear what Klay said. Still riding high from the battle, Laxus didn't wait for Allen to say anything before charging straight at Klay, shouting, "I don't care about any of that! If you dare stand in my way, then die!"
After Laxus charged forward, Allen naturally couldn't just watch him face them alone.
Allen hurriedly said to Gildarts, "The three of them are ours to handle. Gildarts, hurry to the city center and see what's going on. Something about Klay's words doesn't add up!"
Before you continue