As they finally reached the ground, Astro and the others couldn't help but feel a chill. The sight before them was horrifying—lots of corpses scattered across the floor, all of them fresh.
"Well, I expected there to be bodies… but this is way too many. They look like they were killed just recently," Gray muttered, frowning as his eyes scanned the corpses.
Astro nodded silently. His gaze shifted to a massive door at the far end of the chamber. He could feel faint currents of air leaking through its seams to this side.
"As I thought, there should be another passage to the outside if we go through that door," Astro pointed out.
Shawn was the most unsettled by the corpses surrounding them. His small hands gripped the reins of his ash-formed birds tighter, guiding them quickly toward the door ahead of the group. Despite his inner discomfort, his outer expression stayed calm.
Gray stepped forward to open the door, only to realize it was locked.
"Well, since we don't have a key, looks like we'll just have to break it." He conjured a massive ice gauntlet around his arm and drew back his fist, preparing to smash the lock.
"Wait, let me do it. There are people nearby—it's better if we don't startle them yet." Astro moved past him and placed his palm against the keyhole. A faint hum of wind magic filled the air. A few seconds later, the lock clicked and the door swung open.
Cana raised a brow. "Wait, what did you just do?"
"I learned lockpicking from my father. I just used wind magic to turn the inner mechanisms instead of using tools." Astro shrugged casually.
"That's both helpful… and really creepy," Cana teased with a dry laugh.
Astro coughed and looked away, not interested in continuing the topic.
"Anyway, let's move on. I don't want to stay in this room much longer," Shawn said firmly. He was the first to step into the dimly lit hallway beyond, where torches flickered faintly on the walls.
The others started to follow, but Astro raised a hand to stop them.
"Hold on. I want to know who these corpses belong to. Some of them are too fresh, as if they were killed just a few days ago. I'm curious if they were wizards too—maybe they came here on the same job and didn't make it out."
"That's easy enough to check. We just have to see if they have guild marks," Cana suggested.
Astro nodded and crouched near the nearest corpse. Cana and Gray joined him, while Shawn lingered at the doorway, visibly conflicted.
"You don't have to look through them too," Astro said gently.
"Yeah, just keep watch at the door for us, Shawn," Cana added with a reassuring smile.
Shawn nodded in relief and kept his distance.
Astro examined one of the bodies, carefully peeling back a sleeve. "This one has a guild mark. I'm not exactly an expert on guild emblems though. Do either of you recognize it?"
Gray and Cana shook their heads.
They went through the corpses one by one. Out of all of them, only three bore guild marks that they could identify as belonging to wizard guilds from Fiore.
"So there's Silver Hydra, Emerald Crest, and Iron Vulture from Fiore… none of them are very well known, but they've been around for a long time," Astro said as the group exited the chamber and started down the hallway.
"Yeah, and the corpses didn't look older than a month at most," Gray added, his expression dark as he pondered over the scene they had just left behind.
"So we've got three confirmed facts so far," Astro continued calmly. "First, they were all wizards belonging to guilds. Second, at least some of them were from light guilds. Third, they all died either from poison or fire, and all of them came here recently."
"And these walls, this whole interior…" Gray muttered, trailing his hand along the stonework. "It's either newly built or extremely well maintained. There's barely any dust at all."
"Yeah. Doubt anyone bothers cleaning a place like this," Astro shrugged.
Shawn glanced back toward the room full of corpses. His hands tightened into small fists.
"Shouldn't we at least… bury them? If they were members of Fiore's light guilds, then they were good people, right?" His voice was quiet but heavy with emotion.
Astro stopped for a brief moment, his steps faltering. "…We'll deal with it after we finish what we came here for."
Gray and Cana exchanged glances before nodding. They knew Shawn was right, but it would take too much time and energy to bury so many bodies now. They couldn't afford that kind of distraction. And they were already planning to come back here after everything settles to bury them anyway.
Astro, however, was lost in a different thought. He stared down at his palm, his expression unreadable.
' Strange… When have I gotten too used to seeing dead bodies? I don't feel much anymore. No empathy. Not even guilt about leaving them unburied.'
"Astro, are you alright?" Shawn's voice broke his thoughts. The boy had noticed the subtle shift in his expression.
Astro forced a smile, brushing it off. "It's fine. I was just thinking about our next move."
The air grew heavier as they advanced deeper into the hallway. "Anyway," Astro continued, his tone sharpening, "we're close now. The other people haven't moved much since we got here. Be careful—every one of them is a wizard, and some of them are very strong."
They finally came to a stop before a side door in the hallway.
Astro set his palm to the lock and the door swung open. The corridor inside was dark; no torches burned. Cana flicked a card into the air and lit it, sending pools of warm light spilling across the chamber.
Two dozen figures came into view, all chained by heavy magic restraint cuffs. They sat in silence, eyes tired, every motion restricted.
"Well, look who we have here—Fairy Tail," a mocking voice drawled. Astro and the others turned toward it. A man with black-and-white hair and a ninja-like outfit leaned against the far wall and grinned. Astro and Shawn didn't recognize him at all, but Cana and Gray did.
"Totomaru," Gray said with a tight smile.
"I didn't expect to see you here," Cana added, voice laced with contempt. "But I have to admit, I am not surprised to see you locked up."
Astro cocked his head. "Do you know him, Cana?"
"He's from Phantom Lord. The so-called No. 2 guild of Fiore." Cana snorted.
"No. 2?" Totomaru barked, offended. "You lot are a century too late to catch up with us!" He puffed up, but there was no real threat in it—only bravado. He glanced over the newcomers. "And seems you've brought new rookies, too."
Totomaru's eyes flicked to Astro and Shawn, who still looked innocently curious.
" Why are you all imprisoned here?" Astro asked, stepping forward.
Totomaru's mouth curled into a sneer. "Who do you think you are to ask me questions, rookie? Has your useless guild leader not taught you man—"
He never finished the insult. Astro blurred forward like a shadow, a purple sword suddenly in his right hand. The blade flashed; a clean, brutal cut opened along Totomaru's left cheek. Blood welled and trickled down as fear flitted across Totomaru's face. Though he was cuffed, he could not see Astro's movement. It was too fast.
Totomaru stared into Astro's purple-glowing eyes as if staring straight into a door to hell. A low voice, flat and cold, issued from Astro's throat. "I'll ask you once. How did you end up like this? And If you speak ill of Fairy Tail or Master Makarov, I have no problem killing you here and tossing your body to the corpse dump out there."
Astro hated hearing someone belittle Makarov—the man who'd given him a home first in this world. The pressure of the sword at his face and Astro's unblinking stare made Totomaru stumble over his words. He could only babble, incoherent and weak, as the purple light in Astro's eyes seemed to eat the air from the room.
"We were attacked a few days ago by puppets when we arrived at our client's estate in Rosenwacht City," a middle-aged man's voice suddenly cut in. "We fought them off, but then realized the whole place was a trap. Sleeping gas came from somewhere while we were locked in a room… next thing we knew, we were chained up in here, mennnn."
Astro turned toward the voice. A short, orange-haired man stood among the prisoners. His expression was… strange. Striking. Overly dramatic. For a moment, Astro even forgot his anger—just staring in confusion.
"What—are you charmed by my handsome face, mennnn?" the man declared, tilting his head as if posing with only his head.
Astro blinked twice.
"Wait… you're Ichiya?" Cana blurted, shuddering as if her soul had left her body.
Astro finally broke from his stunned silence and looked at her. "You know him?"
Before Cana could answer, three cuffed young men beside the flamboyant orange-haired stranger shouted in unison, voices brimming with devotion.
"How could you not know our boss—the most handsome man in all of Ishgar!"
Even bound, they strained against their restraints to nod vigorously toward him.
"Behold our Big Brother I-chi-ya! The radiant light of Blue Pegasus! The strongest man in Fiore!"
Astro and Shawn just stared blankly. Gray pinched the bridge of his nose. Cana looked like she might actually faint. Even Totomaru—who had been sweating moments ago—looked equally dumbfounded, his fear forgotten, or replaced?
Astro even had a crazy thought looking back at Totomaru's face, this Ichiya guy was probably more scary to him than the guy who just almost stabbed him.
Astro didn't bother asking why the three men called him "Boss" one moment and "Big Brother" the next, or how the so-called "strongest man in Fiore" was currently chained up like the rest. But he did catch the guild name.
"Blue Pegasus," Astro murmured. He knew of them. A Fiore guild with quite the popularity—one whose master had close ties with Master Makarov.
"Um… so are all of you from wizard guilds, here on missions?" Astro asked quickly, cutting off the endless praises of Ichiya. He really didn't want to hear another speech about "the most handsome man in Ishgar." He is almost losing his confidence in his handsome face now.
Everyone nodded. Realizing Fairy Tail wasn't their enemy, the prisoners eagerly pleaded for help with the magic cuffs.
"Yes. I am from Black Wolf of Stella Kingdom," one man said, his tone bitter. "They attacked my group… my team was slaughtered by the puppets. I only survived by destroying the last of them."
"Same for me," another chimed in. "I'm from Emerald Crest of Fiore."
"I hail from Solaris Wing of the Seven Kingdoms," a third added.
One by one, they introduced themselves. Astro's sharp gaze swept across the room, piecing it together. Only those who survived the puppet attacks were brought here. Just the survivors. Even among the Phantom Lord, only Totomaru had lived. And strangely, only Blue Pegasus had managed to beat their puppets without losing anyone. Probably they are really–
Astro's attention shifted suddenly. Across the room was another heavy cell door, different from the rest. His senses prickled—there was definitely someone inside.
"And who's in there?" he asked, his voice low.
Totomaru clicked his tongue. "We don't know. The guards bring food there every day, but we've never seen the prisoner. Whoever it is, they were here before any of us."
"I see." Astro's tone hardened. He turned to his teammates. "Gray, Cana—check their guild marks. If they're from light guilds, free them. I'll deal with the other cell."
Gray and Cana nodded. Cana slipped Astro a glowing card, her expression serious. "Cut the card to activate the magic."
"Got it." Astro pinched the card between two fingers, its faint magical aura humming in the dark. Shawn remained at the door, keeping watch.
Astro approached the mysterious cell and pushed the door open. Inside was a wide chamber, completely dark.
His eyes narrowed. With a flick of his wrist, he sliced the card with magic, illuminating the room with bright lights.
The room beyond was large and bare. In its center knelt a single figure, bound by layer upon layer of shimmering chains. Astro stepped forward, looking carefully at the man bound by the chains.
Under the glow, the prisoner came into focus. He had long green hair that fell like a curtain around a thin, elegant face. From his build and bearing he looked around twenty-five to thirty years old. Astro paused a fraction of a second before him.
The man opened his green eyes and looked up. Even shackled, he radiated a presence that was impossible to ignore—calm, composed, and quietly dangerous.
No, Astro could tell he was very dangerous.
"You're not one of Margrada's minions," the man observed in a low, intoxicating voice.
"I'm Astro Blackmist, from Fairy Tail in Fiore," Astro answered, keeping his voice steady.
"Ah, that damned kingdom…" the man murmured, a sad, almost amused smile tugging at his lips. "Nobody dared to mention that kingdom to me—ever since she died. So… what are you planning to do, boy?" He grinned with teeth open, and there was no fear in his gaze.
Astro kept his eyes fixed on him. Every instinct and sense kept telling him this man was dangerous. "How long have you been in this cell?" he asked.
"Fourty Three days," the man replied without hesitation. "Just before my fool of an elder brother died, only to leave the throne to his mistress." He chuckled lightly, as if recounting a private joke rather than a sentence about imprisonment.
Astro's brows rose. "Wait—are you the prince of Joya Kingdom?" The mission had already been complicated; this revelation deepened the knot.
"You can call me Prince Sylvain," the man said, offering a mocking little bow. "My elder brother, the previous king, chained me up here because I wanted to invade Fiore and wipe it off the map. He didn't live to see it through—died soon after—and his mistress took the throne instead. She insisted on keeping me locked here, as otherwise she could not take over the kingdom."
He forced himself to his knees as far as the chains allowed. The bindings wrapped around his wrists, ankles, neck, and waist like living vines, clinking softly whenever he shifted. Even bound, he carried himself like someone who'd once been used to giving orders.
"I can see you're deciding whether to save me or not," the man said, leaning forward as if sharing a delicious secret. "I'll make this easy. You're a wizard from a well-known guild in Fiore, and right now you're standing in the most forbidden place in Joya — the prison of the former prince. If you free me, I'll help you escape this country without a problem. But once I'm back on the throne, I'll march on Fiore and erase it from the map." He flashed a grin that didn't reach his eyes as he locked onto Astro's gaze.
Astro didn't flinch. He met the man's stare evenly. "They I just won't save you and I don't need your help to get out of here either" he said, voice steady.
The man shrugged, amusement playing across his face. "Even if you escape, this will become a scandal between kingdoms. The current queen won't let you or your guild have one more peaceful day once she knows you saw me here. So your best option is to free me and take your guild into Joya as I burn Fiore to the ground. I'll make sure you're safe with your guild as a gratitude."
Astro looked at him coolly, thinking fast. There was only one word that fit. "You're insane."
The man — Sylvain, did not answer and laughed again like a maniac, deeper this time, as the sound was ricocheting off the walls.