Chapter 73: The Man Revived, Nirvana Activated (2)
"Jellal…"
When I called his name, Jellal said nothing — he merely looked back and forth between Brain and me.
I had poured everything I had into him back at the Tower of Heaven. I had finished him off. I killed him.
So why…?
As I stood there puzzled, Wendy — trembling and crying — whispered in a frail voice.
"I'm… sorry… hic… this person is… my… he is…."
"Wendy, did you use healing magic?" I asked.
Wendy collapsed after apologizing and sobbing. I stepped forward, slammed Brain into the wall, shoved Jellal aside, and picked Wendy up.
At that moment Jellal reached out to me and unleashed a gleaming gold surge of magic.
"…"
"Tch… healing magic is incredible. He even restored the power of someone who was on the brink of death, did he?" Brain laughed uproariously.
His magic was strong — but useless against me right now. I raised a wall of mist to take the blow, stood back to my feet, and in the rubble Brain rose and put his hand on Jellal's shoulder.
"Still incredible magic, Jellal," Brain said.
"…"
"Wha—?!"
The moment Brain's hand rested on Jellal's shoulder, Jellal turned toward him and motioned. The ground beneath Brain buckled and he dropped down into the depths of the cave.
"Waaahhh!!"
"…"
"…Jellal," I said.
"…"
Midnight, one of the remaining Oracion Seis, was sleeping through the commotion. Sorano stood at the cave entrance, sensing Jellal's power and preparing to attack, but I stopped her.
"Stand down, Sorano."
"But… that man—"
"That's an order."
"…"
Jellal stared at me blankly for a moment, looked around dazedly, and then walked out of the cave.
At first I was taken aback, but then I realized, from the look in his eyes: he was empty. He was Jellal, but he had no awareness of who he was, why he was here, or what he'd been doing — a living revenant.
"Why did you send that man away?" Sorano asked.
"That isn't the Jellal you know. He's nothing but a living corpse."
"A living corpse…?"
"There's no time to argue. We must rescue Erza first."
Cradling Wendy, I rose and addressed Sorano and Happy. There were still Brain and Midnight inside the cave to deal with, but we could handle them any time. Right now the priority was Erza, who was burning with fever.
"I'll run holding Wendy. Happy, take Sorano and fly. It's safer if we separate so we don't get caught in a fight."
"Got it!"
"…This cat is going to fly?"
"She's with the Oracion Seis — dangerous?"
"Don't worry. Right now she's my property."
"P-proper—? Haah… haah… sell me more— please— ♥"
"Anyway, move quickly."
I dashed out of the cave holding Wendy. I activated the Asura Path's Eye, boosting every muscle and reflex, and sprinted toward our temporary base. Above us, Happy carried Sorano and flew.
What was that sound…?
Explosions and rising dust echoed through the forest. Fighting was happening all across the sea of trees. But now escaping without fighting was the urgent task.
We ran along the quietest path we could find.
"Ciel? Can you hear me?"
"Hibiki's voice…?"
Hibiki's consciousness came through in my head.
"Yes, this is Hibiki of Blue Pegasus. Thank goodness… nobody could connect and I was worried."
"Wendy has been recovered."
"You used telepathy with flame — nicely done. As I suspected, one of the enemies has particularly keen hearing. That's why I'm speaking directly into your head."
"…"
Cobra — the Serpent — had extraordinarily acute hearing and smell. He could pick up a voice from anywhere and even detect the sound of a muscle tensing or relaxing, instantly telling posture and condition. Using ordinary telepathy would be risky around someone like him; hiding intel through flame-telepathy was the smart move.
I responded to Hibiki with flame-telepathy.
"There's fighting all over the sea of trees. If possible I want to avoid combat and get there quietly."
"Don't worry. I'm going to upload a safe route into your head right now so you can reach us."
After he said that, a loading-like sound echoed inside my head, followed by a ringtone, and then a clear map of the forest and a path to our location flashed into my mind.
"With this, you'll get here soon enough."
[Hurry. Erza's fever is getting worse.]
[Three minutes… I'll be there within that time.]
....
After Ciel left, Brain rose from beneath the rubble of the collapsed cave.
"Well, this is unexpected… no, it was my mistake to release the restraints."
He hadn't anticipated that Jellal, who knew the location of Nirvana, would attack him.
Even as the leader of the Tower of Heaven and Brain's former disciple, Jellal had never shown such hostility before. Brain muttered bitterly to himself, calling him an ungrateful wretch.
"But… in the past he never held such animosity toward me. Did he perhaps hear about Nirvana while he was in that half-asleep state?"
The words slipped out of his mouth, but then Brain's eyes went wide with realization.
If Jellal had heard about Nirvana while unconscious… then, after the failure of the Tower of Heaven plan, perhaps now he sought to create his own world using Nirvana.
"That bastard Jellal! Don't tell me he intends to claim Nirvana for himself?!"
Blood vessels bulged on Brain's forehead as he gnashed his teeth.
He could not forgive the treachery of a rat who dared to snatch his lifelong ambition away right before his eyes.
"No… never! Nirvana is ours! It won't belong to anyone else!"
He bellowed with all his might:
"Cobra! Can you hear me?! Jellal has escaped! Chase him down! Wherever he's headed… that's where Nirvana is!!"
But even as he shouted, a piercing headache struck him. Brain clutched his temple.
"Tch! This can't be… Racer is… dead…?"
His lifelink to Racer had been severed.
Reeling from the shock, Brain overturned the altar — scattering skulls and ritual implements in a fit of rage.
The Oración Seis was collapsing. Angel had betrayed them, and now Racer had fallen.
He had underestimated the enemy. He had thought too little of the Ten Wizard Saints and never once considered the Allied Guilds capable of defeating them.
"Ohhh… I truly underestimated them…"
Clenching his trembling fist, he turned to the one option he had long avoided. He shook the shoulder of the figure he least wished to awaken.
The strongest of the Oración Seis.
"Never thought I'd have to wake him… Midnight!"
"Mmm…"
Midnight stirred, rubbing his head groggily.
"Destroy them. Leave not a single one alive!!"
At Brain's furious command, the man who had remained asleep through everything finally stood and replied softly:
"Yes, father."
And without hesitation, Midnight walked out of the cave.
....
"Arrived."
"Ciel!"
Parting through the forest where battle still raged, Ciel appeared carrying Wendy in his arms.
Seeing him return unharmed, Hibiki and Lucy ran forward to greet him with relief.
"Are you alright?"
"Thanks to you, I made it back without trouble."
"More importantly—Wendy…"
Hibiki, noticing Erza sweating with fever, immediately pleaded with Ciel to wake the unconscious Wendy.
Following his words, Ciel conjured a mist at his fingertips and scattered it over Wendy's face.
Whatever the substance was, it worked—Wendy screamed and bolted upright.
"Hi… hiiiieek!!!"
"Wendy, calm yourself."
"I-I'm sorry… I…"
The girl curled up, hiding her face behind her arms. Lucy wondered at her reaction, but Ciel simply took hold of Wendy's ankles and spoke firmly.
"Wendy, this isn't the time to worry about that. Please—I beg you. Erza was bitten by a venomous serpent."
"Venom?"
"I removed the poison, but her immune system is shattered. She's burning with fever. I've bought some time, but if this continues, she'll die. Please… save her."
"To fight Oración Seis, we need Erza's strength."
"Please… save her!"
Following Ciel, Hibiki and Lucy also knelt and pleaded. Wendy's eyes cleared with determination; she raised her arms.
"O-of course! Yes, I'll do it!"
"Thank goodness~."
Wendy rushed to Erza's side and began casting her healing magic.
Though exhausted from restoring Jellal earlier, she could not allow a comrade before her eyes to die. And with Ciel and the others bowing their heads to beg, there was no way she could refuse.
After the treatment, Wendy wiped sweat from her brow and turned to Ciel.
"It's done. Erza's fever is gone."
"Is… is that so…?"
At her words, Ciel immediately leaned to Erza's side to confirm.
The wound on her chest had closed, and her faint breathing had returned to normal.
Pressing his forehead gently against hers, he confirmed the fever had broken. A sigh of relief escaped him, followed by a smile.
"Whew… what a weight off my shoulders. Thank goodness… Erza…"
Seeing Ciel pressing his forehead against Erza's with such joy, the others couldn't help but whisper among themselves.
"Hey Lucy… those two aren't really lovers, are they?"
"To think my master looks that happy… what's his relationship with that woman?"
"I-Isn't this… the kind of thing you should be embarrassed about…?"
"Don't ask me—ah?!"
As the others pressed her for answers, Lucy tilted her head uncertainly—until a thought flashed through her mind.
"No way… is this the reason he rejected Mirajane's confession…?"
Her eyes grew suspicious as she glanced at Ciel and Erza, letting her imagination run wild.
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