Etherion

The Magic Council voted on whether to fire Etherion at Paradise Tower. The result was five votes in favor and four against, so they decided to use Etherion.

Yajima said, "Do you have any idea what kind of consequences using Etherion will cause?!"

Siegrain looked at Yajima. "Councilman Yajima, have you forgotten who Paradise Tower is trying to revive? Compared to the ecosystem, that is nothing!"

Yajima was left speechless by Siegrain's question. Indeed, compared to the ecosystem, the revival of the strongest wizard from four hundred years ago would be a catastrophe that could destroy the world.

"Enough! By decision of this meeting, Etherion will be used to launch a dimensional strike against Paradise Tower."

"Prepare to fire Etherion in thirty minutes!"

The entire Magic Council quickly became busy. Etherion required an enormous amount of magic power. It was formed from the fusion of several kinds of magic, its power rising exponentially. It was the pinnacle of fusion magic!

Ultear came up behind Siegrain and said, "Congratulations, Lord Jellal. You've waited a long time for this moment, haven't you? Your wish of eight years is finally about to come true."

"Yes, the moment has finally come. I'll be leaving first. Handle what comes next."

"By your command, Lord Jellal."

On one of Paradise Tower's floors.

Natsu and the others charged ahead without obstruction.

Just as they turned a corner—

Bang!

"Ow! Which bastard was blocking the way?!"

"The warrior of justice, Owl, is here!"

"B-Birdman!"

Natsu stared blankly at the birdman before him.

"Simon, it's a birdman! He's talking to us!"

Simon looked at Natsu speechlessly.

"He's obviously an enemy, okay?"

Simon stared seriously at the enemy before him. He had the strange feeling that he had seen him somewhere before.

"This is bad, Natsu, get out of the way! He's from an Assassination Guild!"

Natsu turned back to Simon in confusion. "An Assassination Guild?"

Taking advantage of the moment, Owl pounced on Natsu and swallowed him whole.

"Natsu, break free!"

Natsu's entire body burst into blazing flames.

Owl immediately spat Natsu back out.

"Hot, hot!!"

"You bastard, what are you trying to do?!"

"Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!"

Owl was sent soaring into the sky by Natsu's strike.

"Fire Dragon's Crushing Fist!"

Owl was struck by Natsu again in midair and sent flying out of sight.

"So strong! Is this Fairy Tail's Fire Dragon?!"

Natsu scoffed. "Tch, what a boring guy. Simon, let's go."

At the top of Paradise Tower.

"Jellal!"

"So it's Sho and Erza. I figured you two would be the first to arrive."

Sho said furiously, "Jellal, why did you betray us back then?!"

"Betray you? I never betrayed anyone. I simply had the strength to rule this place."

"Bastard, I'll kill you!"

"You? I taught you all your magic. I know exactly what you're capable of!"

As he spoke, Jellal casually released a dark spell that struck Sho, instantly leaving him unable to fight.

Erza looked at Jellal sternly. "Do you really enjoy toying with others like this?"

"I'm merely striving toward my goal. A few sacrifices along the way are insignificant."

"Bastard, what did you say?!"

"Sho, go rescue the hostages. Leave this place to me."

"But—"

"Don't worry."

"Damn it!" Sho ran off unwillingly to rescue the hostages.

"You think you can handle me, Erza? Let me tell you the truth. Etherion will be fired in fifteen minutes.

"Fifteen minutes? That's enough! Sho! Get everyone into your cards as quickly as possible, then find Happy. He can fly you out!"

"But what about you, Sister?!" Sho asked, his expression changing.

"I'm staying here to settle things with him."

"Go!"

Sho ran off unwillingly.

"Now it's time to settle the grudge between us."

"Requip! Heavenly Wheel Armor!"

"Oh? Armor that can control multiple swords?"

"Erza, you weren't my opponent eight years ago. Eight years later, you still aren't."

"People grow. Don't underestimate the effort I've put in over these eight years!"

"Heavenly Kin Chaos Sword!"

Jellal used dark magic to knock down the many swords Erza had unleashed, then flashed to her side. A magic circle struck directly against her armor, sending her flying backward. She smashed through several pillars before crashing into the wall.

Erza regained her senses in an instant.

"Requip! Black Wing Armor!"

"Is it really okay for you to destroy this building with your own hands?!"

"They're only a few pillars. They mean nothing."

"Those few pillars are where Sho and the others were deceived by you for eight whole years."

"Don't look down on me from up there. People like you can never understand how great the thing I am about to accomplish is. This is an undertaking that can overturn the entire world of magic! If you understand nothing, then don't put on that face and lecture me!"

"But you hurt my companions. That is unforgivable!"

"Black Wing: Night Flash!"

Jellal effortlessly dodged the attack.

"Too slow, Erza!"

Erza looked at Jellal solemnly. "Your Paradise Tower isn't complete yet, is it?"

"Oh? What makes you think that?"

"If all you wanted was a sacrifice, it didn't necessarily have to be me. Anyone would do. Yet you still haven't acted. I think it must be missing a crucial element."

Jellal looked at Erza in surprise. "It seems you've gotten smarter these past few years. You're right. It is indeed missing one thing."

"If I'm not mistaken, it's magic power!"

The two turned toward the entrance.

"Ye, you came!"

"You're right. It's magic power. Activating this spell requires a full 2.7 billion units of magic power. Human effort could never achieve that."

Ye said, "So Etherion is the only option, right?"

Lucy said in shock, "So that was real!"

"It was real. Other than that, everything else was fake."

Just then, a figure suddenly appeared.

"Oh my! Everyone's here. Let me tell you some unfortunate news. The Magic Council has just agreed to fire Etherion here."

"Siegrain! Why are you here?"

"Of course, it's for my troublemaking little brother."

Erza said sternly, "If Etherion is fired here, what will happen to all the innocent people here?"

"Compared to their sacrifice, stopping Zeref's revival is nothing."

Lucy said seriously, "How can there be two Jellals?"

Erza explained, "One is Jellal, and the other is Siegrain from the Magic Council."

"You really are a bastard, Jellal! You even deceived women."

Ye looked at the two of them. "Erza, they are both the same person. One is merely a thought projection."

"What?!"

"Hahaha, as expected of the War God Ye. You really are clever. Only an idiot like Erza would believe everything I said."

"Damn it! You bastard! How many people have you deceived in your life, Jellal?"

Jellal thought about it seriously. "I've lost count! Hahahaha!"

"I originally planned to use Erza's body as a sacrifice to revive Zeref, but because of you, an even better sacrifice came to me. Erza, I truly have to thank you."

"Oh? I'm going to be the sacrifice? I wonder if you can stomach me?!"

"I have quite the appetite. Don't worry!"

Lucy said frantically, "Everyone, isn't this the wrong time to be discussing that? We need to run for our lives!"

"It's already too late, Lucy."

"Ehhhh!!!!"