Now! Immediately! Right This Second! You Be the Guild Master!

A dazzling 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 and raging wind sent everyone stumbling in every direction. When the dust finally settled, the sight before them left everyone speechless.

Several rolling hills that had once stood there had vanished completely, replaced by a massive, horrifying crater. Its interior was scorched black, with molten rock that had been instantly liquefied by lightning scattered everywhere.

The air was thick with burnt, pungent odors, and from time to time, faint crackling sounds could be heard as the lava in the crater cooled and fractured. As far as the eye could see, the landscape had been permanently rewritten. The lush forest and hills from before had become a charred basin dotted with small pools of lava.

Looking at the scene before him, Ed nodded in satisfaction. He then exited Sage Mode, turned to the others, and asked, "That move had some serious power, didn't it? What do you think?"

Everyone looked at one another. After a while, Goldman, the master of the Four Hounds Guild, spoke. "The power was beyond question, and Lullaby was successfully destroyed. Overall, it was pretty good, but..."

"You went way too far!!" Makarov shouted in despair. "Where are the mountains that used to be here?! Where's the forest?! We're finished!! The Magic Council is going to kill me!! What do I do, what do I do... I've got it! Ed! You take over as Fairy Tail's guild master! You be the fourth master! I'll retire right now! You go take the punishment from the Magic Council! Now! Immediately! Right this second!!"

Watching Makarov start to ramble nonsense, Ed smiled sheepishly. "Come on, you're still going strong. Let's talk about stepping down another time. At least the results are good, right? Iron Forest has been dealt with, Lullaby has been dealt with, and Erigor was captured alive. That's great."

"You're not the one going to the Magic Council to be punished!! Of course you can say that!! After what you did, it wouldn't be strange if Fairy Tail got branded 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 become wanted!"

"Yeah, yeah, got it. We'll put in a good word for you."

Hearing his two old friends' reply, Makarov finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then he fixed Ed with a fierce glare and gritted his teeth. "Ed... from now on, your Sage Mode is classified as a forbidden technique. That includes all the moves used with it. Unless it's an absolute emergency, you are never to activate it. Do you understand...?"

"Ahaha... yes..." Under Makarov's resentful stare, Ed could not help shrinking back and answered quietly.

After handing Erigor and Kageyama over to the Magic Council troops that arrived late, the guild masters ended their meeting a day early and began their journey home. 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 really caused a huge scene!" "I heard you destroyed several mountains." "Just what I'd expect from you, Ed."

With Ed and the others' return, the guild instantly burst into excitement. Everyone crowded around them, firing off questions one after another. After finally fending them off, Ed went to the bar and started chatting with Mira behind the counter.

"That was awesome. I tried fighting at full power for once, and it felt incredible." Ed was still reliving the sensation of unleashing his full strength.

"I heard about it. You destroyed several mountaintops. You seem really happy about it, Ed, but you caused the guild master a huge headache. I heard the Magic Council was in an uproar and nearly branded us a Dark Guild." Mira pouted slightly as she looked at Ed. "Ed, you almost caused a disaster."

"They're not going to be that petty, are they? I saved an entire army and several guild masters, and I captured Erigor alive." Ed felt a little guilty as he 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 guilty-looking Ed and replied irritably.

"Alright~ Let the guild master worry about that. How about we go on a date later?" Ed chose to set the matter aside for now and planned to take Mira out for a stroll. "Sure, but where are we going?" Mira thought about it. There did not seem to be anything else to do, so going out was fine.

"Let's 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 carrying bags upon bags of purchases. Watching Mira head off to cook, Ed sat at the dining table with a broad smile, waiting.

Lisanna, sitting nearby, suddenly asked Ed, "Ed, you've been dating Mira for quite 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? Fine, then. When are you planning to propose to Mira?" Seeing Ed's innocent expression, Lisanna felt a little helpless and asked him 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 helplessly. "Now I have to find another chance."

"What kind of ring is it? Take it out and let me see."

"Engagement rings are like this..." Ed said as he pulled a ring box from his bag. He had only gotten halfway through the sentence when he suddenly realized something was wrong with the voice he had heard. That did not sound like Lisanna.

Ed's entire body stiffened. He raised his eyes toward Lisanna across from him and saw her covering her mouth, laughing 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 small box he had taken out. "Aren't you going to open it?" Mira asked with a smile.

"Ah... I'll open it right now." Ed hurriedly opened the box. Inside was an exquisitely crafted diamond ring. Mira looked at it, nodded in satisfaction, and then held out her hand to Ed. "?" Ed looked puzzled.

"Are you planning to make me put it on myself?"

"!!" Ed was stunned by what she 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.