A blinding light erupted alongside a tremendous roar. The violent explosion kicked up a cloud of dust larger than all the previous ones combined, while the powerful shockwave, carrying fierce winds, sent everyone sprawling in all directions. When the dust finally settled, they were left speechless by the sight before them.
Several rolling hills that had once stood there had vanished, replaced by a massive, horrifying crater. Its interior was scorched black, with pools of magma scattered throughout—rock instantly melted by lightning.
The air was thick with a burnt, pungent smell, and from time to time, faint cracking sounds could be heard as the magma cooled. As far as the eye could see, the landscape had been permanently rewritten. The once lush forest and hills had become a blackened basin dotted with small amounts of magma.
Ed nodded in satisfaction at the scene before him, then exited Sage Mode and turned to the others. "This move's pretty powerful, right? What do you think?"
Everyone looked at one another. After a while, Goldman, the master of the Four Hounds Guild, spoke up. "The power is beyond question, and Lullaby was successfully destroyed. Overall, it went quite well, but..."
"You went way too far!!" Makarov shouted in despair. "Where are the mountains that used to be here?! The forest?! We're finished!! The Magic Council is going to kill me!! What do I do, what do I do... Ah, I've got it! Ed! You take over as Fairy Tail's guild master! You'll be the Fourth! I'm retiring right now! You go take the punishment from the Magic Council! Now! At once! Immediately!!"
Watching Makarov begin to ramble incoherently, Ed gave an embarrassed smile. "Come on, you're still in your prime. Let's talk about stepping down later. At least the results are good—Iron Forest has been dealt with, Lullaby has been dealt with, and Erigor was captured alive. That's great, isn't it?"
"You're not the one going to the Magic Council to be punished!! Of course you can say that so easily!! After what you did, it wouldn't be strange if Fairy Tail got labeled a Dark Guild! I still want to live a few more years!" Makarov grabbed Goldman and Bob beside him. "You two have to help me! I don't want to be wanted!"
"Yeah, yeah, we know. We'll put in a good word for you."
Hearing his two old friends' replies, Makarov finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then he fixed Ed with a furious glare and gritted his teeth. "Ed... from now on, your Sage Mode is classified as a forbidden technique. That includes all the techniques used in conjunction with it. Unless it's an emergency, you are absolutely forbidden from activating it. Do you understand...?"
"Aha... yes..." Under Makarov's resentful gaze, Ed's confidence wilted, and he answered in a small voice.
After handing Erigor and Kageyama over to the Magic Council forces that had arrived late, the guild masters ended their meeting a day early and began their return journey. After a full day of travel, they finally returned to Magnolia.
Pushing open the guild doors, Ed shouted, "We're back!" "Welcome back, Ed!" "You guys really caused a huge mess!" "I heard you destroyed several mountains." "Just what I'd expect from you, Ed."
With Ed and the others' return, the guild instantly erupted with excitement. People surrounded them, firing question after question. After finally shaking them off, Ed went over to the bar and began chatting with Mira behind the counter.
"That was really satisfying. Trying out what it felt like to go all out... man, that felt good." Ed was still reminiscing about the sensation of unleashing his full strength.
"I heard all about it. You destroyed several mountain peaks. You seem happy about it, Ed, but you caused the guild master a huge headache. I heard the Magic Council argued themselves hoarse over it. They almost labeled us a Dark Guild." Mira puffed out her cheeks slightly as she looked at Ed. "Ed, you nearly caused a disaster."
"They wouldn't be that petty, would they? I saved an army and the guild masters, and I captured Erigor alive." Feeling guilty, Ed tried to convince himself. "If you didn't have at least that much credit to your name, you'd already be wanted." Mira looked at the guilty Ed and replied irritably.
"Alright~ Let the guild master worry about that stuff. How about we go on a date later?" Ed decided to set those matters aside for now and take Mira out for a stroll. "That works, but where should we go?" Mira thought about it. It didn't seem like she had anything else to do, so going out was fine.
"Let's go buy you some clothes." Ed immediately took Mira by the hand and headed out.
The two spent the entire afternoon wandering through the shopping district, returning home with armfuls of bags. Watching Mira head off to cook, Ed sat at the dining table with a broad smile, waiting.
Lisanna, sitting nearby, suddenly asked Ed, "Big Brother Ed, you and Big Sister Mira have been together for a long time, right?"
Ed thought for a moment. "More than two years, I guess. Why?"
"When are you planning to take the next step?" Lisanna leaned closer like a little fox and asked teasingly.
"The next step?" Ed looked confused.
"You're definitely pretending not to understand, aren't you? Forget it. When are you planning to propose to Big Sister Mira?" Seeing Ed's innocent expression, Lisanna felt helpless and stated her question directly.
"I've actually wanted to for a long time. I even had a ring custom-made, but I never found the right opportunity." Ed rubbed his chin and continued while looking at Lisanna across from him.
"Come to think of it, I got the ring before Erza drafted me into helping her. I was planning to propose during those days, but then I got called away to help." Ed raised a hand to cover his eyes in frustration. "Now I have to find another chance."
"What kind of ring is it? Take it out and let me see."
"Engagement rings are usually like..." Ed said as he pulled a ring box from his bag. Halfway through his sentence, he suddenly realized that the voice he had heard was wrong. That did not sound like Lisanna.
Ed's entire body suddenly froze. He looked up at Lisanna across from him and saw her covering her mouth, smiling like a little fox that had stolen a chicken. On the other side, Elfman looked at him with tears in his eyes.
"Could it be..." Ed slowly turned his head and saw Mira standing behind him, her face slightly flushed as she looked at the little box he had taken out. "Aren't you going to open it?" Mira asked with a smile.
"Ah... I'll open it now." Ed hurriedly opened the box. Inside was an exquisitely crafted diamond ring. Mira examined it, nodded in satisfaction, then held out her hand to Ed. "?"
"You aren't planning to make me put it on myself, are you?"
"!!" Ed was stunned by what that meant. "You mean...!"
"I'll be in your care from now on, Ed. No—my fiancé." Her face slightly red, Mira smiled and gestured for Ed to put the ring on her finger.
Before you continue