They found Ichiya in the restroom, having been attacked by Angel. Ichiya, even by Erza's standards, was a skilled mage. Despite his flamboya
They found Ichiya in the restroom, having been attacked by Angel.
Ichiya, even by Erza's standards, was a skilled mage. Despite his flamboyant personality, he was surprisingly resilient.
Thanks to his fragrant magic, which had pain-relieving properties, he recovered quickly from his injuries, and the operational briefing resumed.
Amidst the ruins of the villa, Jura spoke, "You said Oracion Seis's goal was Nirvana. What is that?"
Drake explained, "Nirvana is an ancient forbidden magic, said to have the power to switch light and darkness.
Oracion Seis probably discovered Nirvana's location and intends to unseal it to achieve their ambitions!"
Hibiki used his magic to project information from his memory onto a surface visible to everyone.
"Mr. Drake is correct. According to our intelligence, Nirvana is located in the forest ahead. Because of the magic, a large portion of the forest has already undergone a transformation."
Looking at the image of the vast expanse of forest that had turned black, Lucy couldn't help but exclaim, "How disgusting! We absolutely cannot allow Oracion Seis to obtain that magic."
Drake remained noncommittal; in truth, the Nirvana magic was quite fascinating.
In ancient times, the neutral Nebit tribe, in an effort to maintain the balance of the world, had completely transformed their city into a massive magical base for the Nirvana magic.
Unfortunately, something went wrong; Nirvana went berserk, forcing the Nebit to seal it away.
Every individual is complex, possessing both good and evil within their hearts; it is simply the stronger aspect that manifests outwardly.
In its initial stages, Nirvana could shift the allegiances of those who were wavering, meaning that righteous individuals harboring negative emotions could be swayed towards the darkness.
Conversely, evil individuals with benevolent intentions could be transformed into righteous individuals. Rustyrose, a member of Oracion Seis, had been driven to evil deeds in his relentless search for his missing brother, but after Nirvana was activated, he underwent a transformation and turned away from his wicked ways.
Individuals like Lucy and Gray, lacking intense negative emotions, were largely unaffected by Nirvana's initial effects.
However, the truly terrifying aspect of Nirvana was its fully unsealed state, granting the controller absolute dominion over its effects.
It must be said that Brain possessed a certain level of strategic acumen; he believed that the greatest strength of the official guilds lay in their unity and mutual trust, and Nirvana had the potential to shatter that foundation. Of course, Drake would not allow him to succeed.
Hibiki continued, "Because Master Ichiya's memories were copied, our previous operational plan has been completely compromised. We require a new strategy."
Natsu suddenly interjected, "A new plan? Why don't we just charge in there and take those six guys down? That snake-wielding bastard, I'm going to defeat him this time!"
In the previous encounter, Natsu had engaged Cobra in a one-on-one battle, but because Cobra could anticipate Natsu's every move, Natsu had been severely suppressed.
In the end, Oracion Seis retreated, with Cobra riding away on his snake, Cubellios.
This was a classic trope; in battles against villains, the protagonist always takes an initial beating before ultimately emerging victorious in the rematch, demonstrating the adage that those who laugh last, laugh best.
Drake stroked his chin thoughtfully. "While Natsu's approach is a bit reckless, he does have a point. Plans often go awry; perhaps a direct assault is the most efficient course of action."
"If Drake says so, then what are we waiting for?!"
Natsu, flames erupting from his mouth, made a move to rush out, but Drake, with remarkable speed, grabbed Natsu's scarf, preventing him from leaving.
"Hold on a moment, you impulsive fool! Even if you charge in there right now, do you even know where to find Oracion Seis?"
Natsu, appearing to have suddenly grasped the situation, ceased his struggles and turned his head towards Drake. "Then what should we do?"
Drake released his grip on Natsu's scarf and turned towards the Blue Pegasus mages. "Do you, Blue Pegasus, possess any information regarding the location of Nirvana's seal?"
Hibiki nodded. "We only have a general idea of the area."
Drake declared, "That will suffice. Since Oracion Seis's objective is Nirvana, all we need to do is wait for them at that location."
Jura nodded in agreement. "You're absolutely right; they will undoubtedly make their way there."
Ichiya chimed in, "It doesn't have to be so complicated, Men!"
Drake, his gaze fixed on Ichiya, whose forehead was still bleeding, asked, "Oh? And what is your proposed course of action, then?"
Even his injuries couldn't dampen Ichiya's penchant for theatrics! He spun around dramatically. "Naturally, we shall utilize Blue Pegasus's secret weapon, Men!"
As he spoke, a shadow passed swiftly overhead.
"Blue Pegasus's Magic Bombardment Airship, Christina!"
A massive airship, shaped like a majestic pegasus, soared through the sky, its shadow engulfing everyone below.
Drake could sense the immense magical energy emanating from the airship's magical reactor.
Ichiya spoke with unwavering confidence. "Our previous plan was to lure Oracion Seis to a specific location and then use Christina to unleash a devastating bombardment upon them. We shall employ the same tactic this time; we will use Christina to bombard the area where Nirvana is sealed, and that will undoubtedly draw Oracion Seis out into the open!"
The plan did sound rather plausible. Christina was, after all, a Magic Bombardment Airship; in addition to its flight capabilities, it was equipped with powerful magical cannons capable of inflicting significant damage.
However, Drake harbored a certain degree of skepticism regarding the reliability of this particular piece of equipment.
Large, flying contraptions of this nature tended to have a rather unfortunate habit of plummeting from the sky. It wasn't entirely inaccurate to describe them as flying coffins.
The airship Christina's performance in the original storyline had been no different. In its first appearance, during the Oracion Seis extermination operation, it had been swiftly shot down by Oracion Seis.
Its sole moment of glory had been in the future, when it had inadvertently played a role in pushing Acnologia into a temporal rift.
For the most part, this so-called "bombardment airship" had served primarily as a means of transportation.
As if to confirm Drake's suspicions, before Ichiya could even finish his boastful explanation, the central section of the airship exploded with a deafening roar, splitting the vessel cleanly in two and sending it plummeting from the sky.
Drake wasn't particularly surprised; considering that Oracion Seis had already obtained knowledge of their previous operational plan, it was only logical that they would have tampered with Christina.
Drake glanced at the wide-eyed Blue Pegasus mages. "Well, it seems we'll have to resort to the more straightforward approach, then."
The Blue Pegasus team had previously been so confident in their ability to defeat Oracion Seis on their own due to the existence of Christina; now, they were completely speechless.
Natsu, however, seemed quite pleased; after all, he would no longer have to endure a ride aboard that precarious flying machine!
Erza gripped her sword tightly, her resolve hardening. "Then there's no need for further discussion. Let us all work together to defeat Oracion Seis!"
Natsu, flames erupting from his body, declared, "I'm already fired up!"
Jura, along with Lyon and Sherry, added, "We won't be lagging behind!"
Wendy, having never participated in such a high-stakes battle before, couldn't help but blush with a mixture of excitement and apprehension.
Seeing the unwavering determination in his team's eyes, Drake nodded in satisfaction. "It seems there's no need for further words. Let us proceed!"
With a focus on minimizing risk, the various guilds decided to advance separately, while maintaining sufficient proximity to provide mutual support if needed.
Naturally, Drake couldn't allow Wendy to operate independently, so he integrated her into the Fairy Tail team.
And so, the extermination of Oracion Seis officially commenced.
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