In the royal palace of Edolas, King Faust slammed the cup in his hand to the ground with a heavy crash.
"What did you say? Someone is attacking the palace!"
The soldier kneeling on the floor was drenched in cold sweat as he replied, "The villains are launching attacks on the palace from all directions.
They are all using powerful magic, and the guards have already been overwhelmed. They're closing in on the palace center."
Faust struck the armrest of the throne with his palm and shouted, "Why does it have to be now?!"
The four captains of the Magic War Division—Lily had taken most of the troops to hunt down Fairy Tail, and the third division captain Hughes had also left with part of the unit to execute the God-Slaying Plan in Extania.
So the palace's defense forces were at their weakest at this very moment.
The enemy chose to strike at such a time—Faust couldn't help but feel something was fishy!
And enemies wielding such powerful magic… Faust quickly identified who they were.
By his orders, the powerful magic of Edolas had long been consolidated under the kingdom's control.
So outsiders could only have come from Aslant—it had to be Fairy Tail. But their objective was puzzling.
The massive Anima had yet to be activated, and he hadn't even turned their companions into magic crystals yet—there was absolutely no reason for them to attack now!
Could they be seeking revenge for the Fairy Tail of this world? Faust refused to believe something so ridiculous.
With too many questions and no clear answers, Faust chose to focus on the immediate threat.
"Notify Erza and Sugarboy. Have them intercept those villains. Under no circumstances are they to be allowed near the palace core."
The palace core contained Anima, the Dragon Chain Cannon, the Dragonoid, and other key magical weapons—none of which could be allowed to fall into enemy hands.
Even though he gave this strict order, not even Faust himself had much confidence.
He had seen Sugarboy return seriously wounded. According to Knightwalker, that had been the result of a one-on-one defeat.
And she herself hadn't managed to defeat the Erza from the other world. Now with so many enemies—this really could be the fall of the palace!
Bairo walked in from outside and asked, "Your Majesty, what should we do next?"
A sudden thought came to Faust, and he looked up. "If it really comes to it, then we'll have to use that!"
Cold sweat poured down Bairo's face as he dropped to his knees. "Your Majesty, please reconsider! If we use that, this world will be destroyed!"
Bairo's words might have sounded exaggerated, but based on his understanding, he wasn't wrong.
This so-called ultimate weapon was Edolas's hidden trump card, known as [Soul Meteorite]—called the Dragonoid in the language of Aslant.
As the name implies, it was a dragon-shaped enhanced armor piloted by a human. It contained magic crystals specialized against magic, rendering it immune to all magical attacks except Dragon Slayer Magic.
Come to think of it, Dragon Slayer Magic really was special in this world—not only could it resist Anima, it could also restore magic crystals to their original state as living sources of magic.
Having one more thing that could damage the Dragonoid wasn't a big deal.
What made the Dragonoid so terrifying was its ability to continuously absorb external magic power. If left active, it could potentially drain all the magic from the entire world.
According to Bairo's knowledge, that would indeed mean the world's destruction.
Faust glanced at the trembling Bairo and asked, "In that case, do you have a solution for the current crisis?"
Bairo looked up and said, "Your Majesty, we can carry out the plan we discussed earlier!"
Faust's pupils narrowed. "Release him? Can you control him?"
Bairo wiped the sweat from his forehead and pulled out a small vial from his robe. "This is a potion I made using most of my magic power. As long as he drinks it, I can control him to a certain extent."
Bairo's magic was potion-based—meaning the vial in his hand. By injecting magic power, he could produce potions with various effects.
Faust gave him a look and said, "Then go do it."
Bairo bowed deeply and backed out of the grand hall. But as he turned his back, he didn't see the dark expression on Faust's face.
Faust hadn't abandoned the idea of using the Dragonoid. In his eyes, both the one he had agreed to release and the invaders were enemies to be eliminated.
Bairo arrived once more in the depths of the prison and spoke to the iron door. "So, have you made your decision about what we discussed earlier?"
A boy with an identical appearance to Charles—namely Edolas's Charles Arclow—spoke up. "Doesn't seem like I had a choice. What, you figured out how to control me?"
Bairo tossed the prepared potion through the iron-barred window in the door. "Drink this."
With the sound of clinking chains, Ed-Charles reached out and picked up the vial.
He swirled the bottle and said, "I knew it—only this thing could uphold your so-called trust. But whatever."
With that, Ed-Charles downed the potion in one gulp.
Watching carefully through the window, Bairo gave a satisfied smile. Then he inserted a uniquely patterned key into the lock at the center of the iron door.
With a series of clunks, the iron door slowly opened.
The first thing Bairo saw was the boy's blood-red eyes, and in an instant, he felt suffocated.
He immediately understood why the boy had drunk the potion so readily. He wasn't some coward begging for freedom, nor someone who agreed just to see the light of day again.
This boy had already become a demon. His heart held only hatred and boundless rage. He walked out of his cell simply to vent through blood and slaughter.
Bairo began to regret releasing him—but it was too late. What was done could not be undone.
Yet Ed-Charles didn't act like a madman. His tone was even a bit humorous.
"Hey old man, you're not planning to send me into battle like this, are you?"
Bairo steadied his breath and replied, "Of course not. Come with me."
Then Bairo led Ed-Charles to a treasure vault.
This was where the kingdom stored its top-tier magical equipment. Only those of high status were permitted to select a magic item from here.
After Ed-Charles had been arrested, his magic tools had been confiscated and stored here.
The reason Ed-Charles had once been hailed as the Empire's rising star was because his body could simultaneously handle the magic power of two high-grade magical tools.
That was the strongest natural talent in Edolas. Compared to ordinary people, Ed-Charles had double the magic power amplification, a feat unmatched by anyone.
His previous title—"Sword and Shield of the Kingdom"—came from the two magical tools he wielded: the Sword of Conquest and the Shield of Guarding.
Ed-Charles walked over, picked up his old partner, and then—without a hint of sentiment—tossed the Shield of Guarding to the ground like trash.
"Useless junk."
He said it with disdain. He had no one left to protect now.
He then walked over to the side and picked up a black-and-red long sword.
Strapping both swords to his waist, Ed-Charles looked at Bairo and asked, "So now tell me—who am I fighting?"
Seeing the savage smile on Ed-Charles's face, Bairo couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
The author reflects on a comment today that struck a chord.
Doing things the way some readers suggest definitely feels satisfying, but reality can be frustrating.
As a writer, we feel this even more deeply—it's precisely because reality is full of helplessness that we use keyboards to build freer, lighter worlds.
It's like this simple issue: the author is no longer a child. The things we say and do carry different consequences. If we act on impulse, it could affect family and relationships. In a society driven by personal ties, the consequences are serious.
If only we had a system—we'd fight back too. But without one, we still have to bow to reality.
Here's hoping the new year brings fewer of these troublesome problems, and that everyone can live more easily and freely.
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Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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