Recaps

Hughes changed his plan to use Dojigiri to wear down Jose before defeating the Guild Master and winning Kailinfu’s trust. As Jose and Dojigiri faced off outside Ogre Town, Hughes watched from the shadows, ready to act.

• Lisanna complained that Lucy might seek revenge, and Hughes scolded her for trying to corrupt Mira before they continued toward Ogre Town.
• Hughes explained that he planned to defeat Jose to gain Kailinfu’s trust and would let Dojigiri weaken him first.
• Laxus told Hughes that Dojigiri had arrived in Ogre Town and was confronting Jose, so Hughes hurried ahead and left the Strauss kids behind for safety.
• Jose insisted that someone else had impersonated him in Thunder Valley, but Dojigiri rejected his explanation and threatened Ogre Town.
• Dojigiri powered up his four greatswords, and Jose recognized that the demon was stronger than he had expected.
• Hughes watched Jose and Dojigiri from the shadows as they prepared to fight.

Dojigiri and Jose fought fiercely outside Ogre Town, with Jose defending the town while countering Dojigiri’s attacks. As their strongest spells clashed, Hughes seized the opening and struck them both with a massive fireball, leaving Jose to take most of the damage.

• Dojigiri launched a four-sword attack at Jose and Ogre Town, and Jose used Dark Rondo before following with Dark Stream to stop the remaining slashes.
• Jose’s Super Magic Giant fired Jupiter to protect Ogre Town from Dojigiri’s attack.
• Dojigiri unleashed Demon Sword: Mikazuki, and Jose met it with his ultimate move, Death Storm, creating a destructive deadlock.
• Hughes emerged from hiding and formed a huge fireball above the two fighters.
• Hughes sent the blazing fireball crashing down, and Jose took at least three-quarters of the damage.

Hughes defeated the demon’s advance over Ogre Town, then disguised himself as Jose to ambush Dojigiri and absorb his Devil Factors. As Dojigiri unleashed a blinding light and threatened to die with him, Hughes was still holding him in place.

• Hughes’s Great Sun Traversing the Sky sent Jose and Dojigiri flying and blasted a crater outside Ogre Town.
• Hughes claimed credit for defeating the demon and persuaded the mayor to send a fruit basket and two sacks of local specialties to Fairy Tail.
• Hughes disguised himself as Jose and tracked down Dojigiri, who had survived the blast but was badly burned.
• Hughes grabbed Dojigiri from behind and painfully pulled his arm from the demon’s body, while the system absorbed Devil Factors and increased Flame-Flame Fruit Awakening.
• Dojigiri tried to move away, but Hughes pinned him in place and taunted him about their previous fight.
• Dojigiri’s body burst with blinding white light as he vowed to die with Hughes.

Hughes subdued Dojigiri and brought him to Mira and Elfman so they could try absorbing his powers. Mira quickly took over Dojigiri’s Demon Blade Curse, while Elfman prepared to attempt taking over his weakened body.

• Hughes knocked Dojigiri unconscious and carried him to a secluded valley to meet Mira, Elfman, and Lisanna.
• Hughes explained that he wanted Mira to take over Dojigiri’s Demon Blade Curse and Elfman to try taking over Dojigiri’s body after Hughes weakened him further.
• Elfman insisted he wanted to try despite Mira’s concern, and Hughes reassured them that he would intervene if anything went wrong.
• Hughes sent Lisanna and Elfman out of the valley, then Mira touched Dojigiri and quickly learned to take over his Demon Blade Curse.

Mira successfully took over Dojigiri’s Demon Blade Curse, while Hughes tortured Dojigiri to absorb devil factor and raise his Flame-Flame Fruit awakening. Dojigiri died after Elfman took over two of his arms, leaving Hughes wondering what he would look like if he returned to life.

• Mira tested her Demon Blade Curse by splitting a boulder, and Hughes told her to keep practicing.
• Hughes repeatedly wounded Dojigiri to absorb devil factor, while Mira, Lisanna, and Elfman watched.
• Dojigiri threatened Jose and Phantom Lord, and Hughes continued torturing him while disguised as Jose.
• After Dojigiri died, Elfman emerged with two of Dojigiri’s arms and apologized to Hughes for failing to take over more of him.

Hughes and the others returned to Magnolia after testing Elfman’s new form, while Jose’s fury destroyed Phantom Lord’s headquarters and worsened his reputation. Hughes arrived back at Fairy Tail and boasted that he would help with major problems, only to discover that Makarov and Magnolia’s mayor had overheard him.

• Mira, Elfman, and Hughes discovered that Elfman’s new form only gave him two extra arms, and Hughes explained how he had impersonated Jose.
• Jose raged over Hughes’s intervention and demands, destroyed Phantom Lord’s headquarters, and vowed to rebuild the guild with Element 4 and demonstrate Purgatory Shatter.
• Mages in Ogre Town mocked Jose and Phantom Lord, while Hughes, Mira, Elfman, and Lisanna traveled back toward Magnolia with Lisanna’s newly acquired animal pets.
• Hughes returned to Fairy Tail, beat down Macao, and bragged that he only helped with major matters such as beating the mayor or enraging the guild master.
• Natsu and the others gathered around Hughes as Makarov and Magnolia’s mayor stood outside the guild doors, having heard his boast.

Hughes returned to Fairy Tail as rumors of his victories spread, then stopped Natsu from recklessly seeking out a demon and Gray from reliving his past mistake. The mayor of Magnolia delivered a banner Jose had written, which insulted the guilds that had turned against Phantom Lord.

• Hughes realized guild masters had fueled the rumors about his victories to undermine Jose and Phantom Lord.
• Natsu asked Hughes where he could find a demon so he could defeat it and attract Igneel’s attention, while Gray prepared to stop him.
• Hughes punched Natsu and Gray, warning them that demons and the Ten Wizard Saints were too dangerous to challenge.
• The mayor of Magnolia gave Hughes a banner from the mayor of Ogre Town and hurried away.
• Hughes and Makarov read Jose’s message on the banner: “Filthy rats, ashamed to be associated with them.”

Hughes received a divine treasure ring from Kailinfu through Makarov, while his antics and rumors about his reputation continued to cause trouble. He planned to test the ring with Mira and was warned to keep his promise to Kailinfu and beware of Bloodman.

• Hughes dismissed Jose’s insulting banner and told Makarov he had concealed his identity when dealing with Jose and Dojigiri.
• Makarov gave Hughes a ring from Kailinfu, and Hughes mistook it for a romantic gift before learning it was the divine treasure.
• Makarov explained that Kailinfu had cleared the ring’s stored magic so Hughes could place a spell inside and release it with his mental power.
• Hughes decided to test the ring with Mira in the forest east of town, and Makarov told him Kailinfu expected him to fulfill his promise before she died.
• Makarov warned Hughes not to underestimate Bloodman, but Hughes said he would not risk his life for Kailinfu.

Makarov told Hughes that Sabertooth had secretly helped spread a false rumor about him, and Hughes prepared to confront the guild. Before leaving, he discovered Natsu and the others trying to imitate Phantom Lord’s Super Magic Giant, inspiring Erza to propose building one with Mira, Cana, Lisanna, and Levy.

• Makarov warned Hughes to keep the Alvarez Empire’s connection to Fairy Tail and the secret in the guild basement from Gildarts and Laxus.
• Makarov revealed that Bob had traced the false rumor about Hughes defeating Jose to Sabertooth, and he urged Hughes to make an example of the guild.
• Hughes learned that Sabertooth was behind the rumor and told Makarov he would set out to confront them the next day.
• Hughes went behind the guild with Mira and Lisanna and found Natsu, Gray, Elfman, Wakaba, and Macao struggling to form a giant.
• Hughes told the group to cover their Fairy Tail marks and pretend to be Phantom Lord’s Super Magic Giant, and Erza proposed forming one with Mira, Cana, Lisanna, and Levy.

Hughes’s casual explanation that Kailinfu had given him a ring made Mira furious, and Lisanna warned him that he needed to clear up the misunderstanding. The chapter ended with Lisanna sent to comfort Mira while Hughes waited anxiously outside her closed room.

• Hughes and Lisanna regretted losing the vote on the Super Magic Giant, while Elfman used Take Over Magic to clean the villa efficiently.
• Hughes and the Strauss siblings enjoyed Mira’s dinner, and Mira noticed the ring on Hughes’s finger.
• Hughes said Kailinfu had given him the ring, prompting Mira to break her plate and storm into her room.
• Lisanna questioned Hughes about Kailinfu, and he explained that she was his creditor because he had accepted her divine treasure in advance.
• Hughes forced Lisanna to go comfort Mira, then waited by her closed door while Elfman asked whether Hughes had done something wrong.

Hughes and Mira headed toward the Sabertooth guild, but Hughes stopped in a forest after receiving a quest to defeat “Three-Sword Liu Zoro.” After searching the forest and knocking out ten dinosaur-like beasts, they spotted what looked like a frog with a cat’s face.

• Lisanna left Hughes alone with Mira, who apologized for misunderstanding him and argued that he should have explained the ring’s importance.
• Hughes brought Mira along to the Sabertooth guild so she could take over demons while he absorbed their Devil Factors and increased his Flame-Flame Fruit Awakening.
• Two days later, the system gave Hughes a quest to defeat “Three-Sword Liu Zoro,” and he asked Mira to look for someone or something carrying three swords, especially with green hair.
• Hughes searched the forest with Advanced Observation Haki and knocked out ten dinosaur-like beasts while pursuing the quest target.
• Mira pointed out a frog with a cat’s face ahead of them.

Hughes and Mira found Frosch, who had become separated from Rogue, and helped reunite them in the forest. Rogue then warned them that ferocious beasts were chasing him, but Hughes and Mira stayed put as the dinosaurs emerged.

• Hughes recognized Frosch and learned it was searching for Rogue after getting lost.
• Mira offered to help Frosch find Rogue, and Hughes used his Advanced Observation Haki to locate him.
• Hughes and Mira reunited Frosch with Rogue, a young boy with no guild emblem.
• Rogue scooped up Frosch and urged Hughes and Mira to flee from the beasts pursuing him.
• Several dinosaurs emerged from the woods, while Rogue anxiously tried to get Hughes and Mira moving.

Hughes saved Rogue and Frosch from dinosaur-like beasts, then accidentally knocked them unconscious. After Mira helped them recover, Rogue thanked Hughes for rescuing them.

• Hughes hurled a flaming spear through the charging beasts and urged the frightened Rogue to face his fear.
• A quest notification appeared after Rogue and Frosch fell unconscious, and Hughes realized he had knocked them out.
• Mira examined Rogue and Frosch, said exhaustion and hunger had caused them to faint, and told Hughes to find them food.
• Rogue woke beside the campfire, and Frosch gave him the fruit he had saved for him.
• Rogue approached Hughes while he kept watch and thanked him for saving them, then assured him they would have fainted anyway.

Hughes learned how Rogue and Frosch came to the forest while they sought to join Sabertooth, then discovered Minerva surrounded by beasts after Jiemma had cast her out. Recognizing the scene that would transform Minerva, Hughes resolved to confront Jiemma.

• Rogue told Hughes that Phantom Lord had rejected him, and that he and Frosch had entered the forest to seek a place in Sabertooth.
• Hughes heard a noise and led Rogue, Mira, and Frosch into hiding to watch a wounded girl face several beasts.
• Minerva used Absolute Territory Magic to escape one beast, but her magic ran out as the others surrounded her.
• Hughes recognized Minerva and recalled that Jiemma had thrown her into the forest after killing Fingus and demanding she become stronger.
• Mira reminded Hughes that their master had told him to make a fuss on the trip, and Hughes decided he wanted to settle his grudge with Jiemma.

Hughes rescued Minerva from the beasts, then destroyed the Sabertooth guild and its surrounding mountain peaks to provoke Jiemma. He began fighting Jiemma, who trapped him in a spatial dome that prevented him from using Elementalization.

• Hughes blasted the beasts surrounding Minerva and left her behind, telling her that Jiemma would not come to save her.
• Hughes flew Mira and Rogue to the Sabertooth guild and told them to hide while he filled the building with green flames and blew it apart with Fire Fist.
• Hughes sensed Jiemma approaching with a group of people and waited to challenge him.
• Jiemma confronted Hughes over destroying a guild, but Hughes attacked him with Divine Fire: Shiranui.
• Jiemma dodged Hughes's next attack by swapping places with him and left a multicolored dome that trapped Hughes and stopped him from using Elementalization.

Hughes easily overpowered Jiemma and demanded to see his Eighteen Battle Gods of Calamity Demons magic before killing him. He prepared a Recording Magic Crystal and crimson flames as Jiemma rose to fight.

• Jiemma trapped Hughes in Confinement Space and attacked him with blazing spears, but Hughes shattered the barrier and defeated him with a kick.
• Hughes ordered the arriving Sabertooth members to stay put, then pursued Jiemma into the forest and stomped him into a crater.
• Jiemma secretly attacked Hughes with a spatial shock wave, but Hughes caught it barehanded and mocked his weakness.
• Hughes rejected Jiemma's offers of compensation and demanded that he demonstrate his Eighteen Battle Gods of Calamity Demons magic.
• Hughes aimed a Recording Magic Crystal at Jiemma and tossed crimson flames into the sky as Jiemma prepared to fight.

Hughes defeated Jiemma after recording his ancient spell, then saved Minerva from the attack and took control of Sabertooth. He left the guild members accepting him as their new master.

• Hughes threatened Jiemma with a falling fireball and recorded him reciting the ancient words of the Eighteen Battle Gods of Calamity Demons magic.
• Jiemma unleashed a massive energy beam as the fireball destroyed the mountain, but Hughes dodged it to protect Minerva.
• Hughes intercepted the beam before it reached Minerva and smashed it into stardust.
• Minerva realized Jiemma had tried to kill her, and Hughes knocked her unconscious before she could learn that he had killed her father.
• Hughes declared himself the new master of Sabertooth, and the guild members accepted his claim.

Hughes took over Sabertooth and activated a quest to make it the strongest guild on the Ishgar Continent. He set new rules for the guild, ordered its members to begin rebuilding, and revealed that Rogue was one reason he had taken control.

• After becoming Sabertooth's guild master, Hughes activated the quest to make Sabertooth the number one crew in the East Blue and unlock another Devil Fruit Slot.
• Dobengal asked Hughes whether Jiemma might return, and Hughes assured the former members that Jiemma was dead and that he would not kill them without cause.
• When Hughes asked who had managed Sabertooth's operations, nobody answered, so he decided to handle the guild's arrangements himself.
• Hughes kept Sabertooth's old ideals of strength but rejected Jiemma's rule that the weak must disappear, promising to provide resources and magic if members grew stronger without losing their humanity.
• Hughes ordered some members to rebuild the guildhall and others to placate the townspeople, while keeping his identity as guild master secret.
• Hughes told Mira to keep the takeover secret, then looked to Rogue and revealed that he had taken Sabertooth partly for him.

Hughes invited Rogue and Frosch to join Sabertooth, hoping to use Rogue’s potential to help the guild become the strongest in Ishgar. Rogue accepted after Hughes assured him that Skiadrum was alive and promised to help him grow stronger.

• Hughes considered how Rogue’s White Shadow Dragon Mode could lead to Dragon Control Magic and worried that Acnologia would detect dragons brought to Ishgar.
• Mira prodded Hughes into inviting Rogue and Frosch to join Sabertooth, and Hughes promised them food and lodging.
• Rogue doubted his own ability, but Hughes told him that Skiadrum was alive and urged him to grow stronger before meeting the dragon again.
• Rogue asked whether Hughes could teach him to become stronger, and Hughes agreed.
• Rogue and Frosch decided to join Sabertooth, and Hughes turned his attention to Minerva.

After killing Jiemma and taking over Sabertooth, Hughes accepted Minerva's request to join the new guild. When he learned the guild's funds had burned with its former headquarters, he decided to raise money from the town's wealthiest residents.

• Minerva asked Hughes why Jiemma had wanted to kill her, and Hughes told her that Jiemma was dead at his hands.
• Minerva asked to join the new Sabertooth, and Hughes welcomed her while warning her not to plot against him.
• Dobengal told Hughes that the guild had no money because its funds had burned in the destruction of the old headquarters.
• Hughes learned rebuilding Sabertooth would cost thirty or forty million J and decided not to borrow from Makarov again.
• Hughes ordered Dobengal to list the town's richest people so he could approach them for money.

Hughes raised money from Sabertooth’s town residents under the pretense of hiring the guild to clear beasts, then led Mira, Rogue, Minerva, and Frosch into the mountains to do the work. Two days later, the new Sabertooth guild was established with Dobengal managing it while Hughes kept his role as guild master secret and stayed away most of the time.

• Hughes clarified that he planned to persuade wealthy residents to fund beast-clearing work, and Dobengal agreed to compile a list of them.
• Hughes visited the residents wearing Dobengal’s ninja clothes and mask, collected money, and returned Dobengal’s ruined disguise and sword.
• Hughes took Mira, Rogue, Minerva, and Frosch to clear beasts from the surrounding mountains and forests.
• The wealthy residents complained to the mayor, then agreed to give false testimony and claim Hughes had robbed them of two hundred and twenty million J.
• Two days later, the new Sabertooth guild opened with about thirty people, and Hughes appointed Dobengal to manage it while he remained an absent, secret guild master.

Hughes left Dobengal in charge of rebuilding Sabertooth as an independent guild, then encountered a Magic Council investigation over a false report that he had stolen 220 million J. He ordered an investigation into the town’s wealthy residents and mayor before telling Mira they would return to Magnolia Town and then seek an uninhabited island to release two demon-containing objects.

• Hughes appointed Dobengal to manage Sabertooth and promised to arrange training plans for the guild members.
• Hughes told Dobengal to recruit Sting, Yukino, Rufus, and Orga, and he left Sabertooth with Mira.
• Hughes met a Magic Council investigation team and a toad messenger, then learned that the townspeople had reported him for stealing 220 million J.
• Hughes told the toad messenger to ask Crawford Seam to investigate the town’s wealthy residents and mayor for unexplained assets and possible dark-guild ties.
• Hughes contacted Dobengal and told Mira they would return to Magnolia Town before releasing two demon-containing objects so he could absorb their Devil Factors.

Hughes returned to Magnolia Town after killing Jiemma, destroying Sabertooth, and taking over the guild, then explained to Makarov that he intended to keep Fairy Tail as his home while using Sabertooth to prepare for threats from the western continent. Makarov agreed to handle the consequences of Jiemma’s death but reacted angrily to Hughes becoming Sabertooth’s master before hearing his plan.

• Mira beat Hughes for leering at a melon seller, who later revealed to a neighboring vendor that she had once been a man and had changed her body to attract customers.
• At Fairy Tail, Hughes gave Makarov half a watermelon and told him that Jiemma had died by his hand.
• Makarov warned Hughes that killing an official guild master could violate Magic Council regulations and said he would handle the matter.
• Hughes told Makarov that he had destroyed Sabertooth without killing anyone and had taken over as its guild master.
• Makarov threw the watermelon at Hughes and accused him of betraying Fairy Tail, but Hughes said he was staying and planned to use Sabertooth to secretly train powerful allies against the western continent.

Hughes persuaded Makarov to help train Sabertooth’s members, then summoned a demon on a deserted island to absorb its Devil Factor and strengthen his Flame-Flame Fruit. He found the scythe demon too weak to provide enough power, just as a bloody streak shot out of the dust toward him.

• Hughes gave Makarov Sabertooth’s members’ requests and convinced him to prepare training plans and suitable magic for them.
• Hughes went to a deserted island with Makarov, Granny Porlyusica, and other guild members to test absorbing demons and observe their Magic Barrier Particles.
• Hughes summoned Blood Scythe Daemon by breaking the blood dagger, and she attacked him with her scarlet scythe.
• Hughes seized Blood Scythe Daemon’s wrist and kicked her through boulders, absorbing a small amount of Devil Factor and raising his Flame-Flame Fruit Awakening to 75.01%.
• Hughes judged Blood Scythe Daemon too weak to provide enough Devil Factor, then a streak of bloody light shot out of the dust toward him.

Hughes defeated Blood Scythe Daemon, collected the Magic Barrier Particles, and helped Mira take over her Curse. Mira found that the Curse was a poor fit, so Hughes sent her to deliver the particles and scythe to Granny Porlyusica before preparing to take over another demon’s Curse.

• Blood Scythe Daemon attacked Hughes with her Blood Fang Slash, but he caught the attack and turned it back on her, splitting her body in two.
• Hughes pinned Blood Scythe Daemon with her scarlet scythe, forced her to release the Magic Barrier Particles, and collected them in a bottle.
• Hughes burned Blood Scythe Daemon to death, then helped Mira take over her Curse as Makarov opened the magic barrier.
• Mira learned that the Curse controlled the blood of anyone wounded by the scarlet scythe, but she shook her head when Hughes asked whether it suited her.
• Hughes gave Mira the scythe and bottle to deliver to Granny Porlyusica, then told her to prepare to take over another demon’s Curse.