"Is what you said true?" Leon asked.
"I have no reason to lie about something like this."
Wes Elwin's answer actually made Leon believe him.
"Will Fairy Tail get involved? If so, we'll have to prepare defenses early." Leon looked worried.
Any S-class wizard is not easy to deal with. If the plan to resurrect Deliora is exposed, the Council will send its forces. Then it won't just be a failed plan — all of them will be branded dark wizards by the Council.
Most of the people involved in this plot were victims whose homes had been destroyed by Deliora; they wanted revenge but had no real power. So they turned to Leon, believing that as Ur's disciple he could slay Deliora.
Leon didn't want to see them rounded up as criminals, and he didn't want their hope to be crushed.
"Damn it," Leon muttered.
He was still a youth, and the situation was complicated; he couldn't think of an immediate solution.
Wes easily read the hesitation in his eyes.
Wes spoke at the right moment: "I can help. If we work together, not even S-class mages can escape."
Leon looked up and stared at Wes, emotions swirling.
Although Wes's proposal sounded like a solution, teaming up with such a powerful and unpredictable person was dancing on a knife's edge. Yet there didn't seem to be a better option.
"He might have a point," Toby said uncertainly. He knew his own strength was limited and that he couldn't help Leon much.
Leon kept up a brave front. "No need. With you, Yuka and Jeri's help, even the entire Fairy Tail guild wouldn't scare me."
Toby was so moved by Leon's bravado that tears sprang to his eyes. His voice trembled as he said, "Leon, you're amazing! I'll fight even if it costs me my life — I'll stop Fairy Tail!"
"See? We don't need this unknown fellow around," Toby sniffed, wiping his eyes as he waved Wes away.
Wes's gaze remained fixed on Leon; he waited for Leon to speak. Only Leon had the right to make the final decision.
"You can stay," Leon said after weighing things, "but you must accept our surveillance."
It was a hard decision for Leon, made after weighing the pros and cons.
"No problem."
Wes agreed cheerfully — surveillance was meaningless to him; if he wanted to slip away, it would be trivial.
"Leon," Toby whispered in his ear, lowering his voice, "this guy doesn't look like a nice person. Are you sure about letting him stay?"
Leon nodded slightly. "I know that. But trying to stop a mage who uses space magic is too hard. Better to keep him under watch."
"Oh — that makes sense." Toby brightened, looking at Leon with admiration.
"And," Leon lowered his voice again, "if what he says is true, when Fairy Tail's mages come onto the island we can push him forward to buy ourselves some time."
Leon thought that although the plan was crude and straightforward, it was currently the most effective approach.
"So that's how it is. Leon, you're really clever," Toby said with genuine admiration.
But in truth, only someone as naïve and inexperienced as Leon could come up with such a brainless plan—and only someone like Toby would actually believe it.
Wes Elwin ignored their muttering. Whatever they were scheming didn't matter to him—as long as their actions helped him achieve his own goal.
"Follow me," Leon ordered.
Leon and Toby began heading toward the ruins, with Wes trailing behind them.
"Don't try anything funny. I'll be watching you the entire time," Toby snarled, glaring daggers at Wes, silently warning himself not to let his guard down.
(I can't relax for a second. Who knows what this guy might be plotting?)
Wes raised his hand slightly, as if to show that he meant no harm.
(As long as I can get close to the ruins, everything else will be easy.)
Toby, still suspicious, followed right behind Wes, not daring to blink—watching his every move like a hawk.
Under Leon's guidance, Wes successfully entered the ruins.
As he descended deeper into the structure, the surrounding magical energy grew denser.
A purple mist hung in the air—a clear sign that the lunar magic here had reached a highly concentrated state.
Finally, they arrived at a vast, open chamber. There, a group of robed mages clad in purple were fully focused on maintaining a complex magic circle.
The circle was intricate beyond measure, with countless runes and lines interwoven into a web-like pattern.
Each rune flickered softly, emitting a faint blue glow. At the circle's core, moonlight converged into a single, radiant beam.
The moonlight from across the entire sea region was being gathered and refined, layer upon layer, until it condensed into a single droplet of violet liquid.
That droplet slowly fell onto the surface of a frozen mountain beneath them, glowing faintly upon contact. The ice pulsed in ripples, releasing a subtle hum.
Though the ritual looked overwhelmingly complex, the purple-robed mages moved with perfect synchronization.
Their hands drew intricate symbols through the air, constantly adjusting the array's flow. With every shift in gesture, the runes and lines trembled slightly—as if the magic circle itself were alive.
Wes watched closely, curiosity gleaming in his eyes, trying to decipher how the circle functioned.
But his understanding of this world's magical system was still shallow. He could only grasp fragments of its structure.
Even so, he could feel the immense power stored within the Moon Drop. It was undoubtedly a top-grade material for potion-making.
Wes's gaze locked on the formation as his mind began to race.
(If I could master this magic circle, I could collect Moon Drops across different worlds. That would be an enormous advantage for my future.)
Yet, to Toby, Wes's focused expression just looked like he was zoning out.
"What, never seen something like this before?" Toby scoffed proudly, tilting his head upward with a condescending smirk—as if looking at some clueless bumpkin.
Wes ignored him, his attention still fixed on the ice mountain below. Its surface was covered in a delicate layer of frost.
He pointed toward it and asked, "What's that?"
"That," Leon replied, "is Deliora—the demon that once ravaged the North. And it's the reason we're here."
Wes already knew their true goal.
But he also knew that transporting Deliora all the way from the northern continent to this isolated island wasn't something Leon and his small team could have accomplished alone.
They would have had to avoid the Magic Council and the major wizard guilds along the way.
That meant there were far greater powers working behind the scenes.
°°°
Hungry for more chaps? Then check out our pătreon!
Link: Påtreon.com/BaphometFiction
I post 20 advanced chapters of this fanfic there.
If you do subscribe, please do so in the web patreon, not the ios app.