Kira was getting more and more excited as he spoke, his face a mix of barely-concealed pride and feigned humility. "I mean, sure, I've gained a bit of a reputation and earned a little cash in Fiore recently, but I'm still under 20. I'm not even a Wizard Saint yet! But as for Headmistress Konas? She's a seasoned—"
Azuma grew increasingly frustrated with the chatter. But the moment Kira mentioned Konas, his expression suddenly shifted. He quietly lowered his head to stare at his wooden leg.
Kira instantly sensed that something was off from Azuma's reaction.
The instinct honed over years in the magic world alerted him to a faint, almost nonexistent, trace of killing intent in the air. A quick analysis by the clever brain on his neck concluded that this killing intent probably belonged to a certain obasan (older woman) he'd only recently met.
Kira narrowed his eyes and quickly followed Azuma's gaze to the wooden leg. Through the wood's polished sheen, he caught a glimpse of the graceful figure behind him. He smoothly changed his speech, "Headmistress Konas? Why, she's an accomplished, rising talent that even my old man—I mean, Master Makarov—highly praises!"
"Not only is she beautiful and incredibly powerful, loved by the students and faculty, but she's also a major figure in the magic world!"
Finished, Kira casually turned around, then acted "surprised" to see Konas standing right behind him, her lovely face beaming like a rose.
Kira showed the appropriate mix of astonishment and the shyness of someone caught praising another person. "Oh, Headmistress Konas! You're back so soon?"
Konas offered a sweet smile. "The enemies have been taken care of, and the rescue efforts for the faculty and students are underway. I saw a huge commotion here, so I rushed over to check."
For some reason, her smile made Kira think of Mirajane—the kind of smile that hides a dagger, ready to pierce you when you least expect it.
"Nothing went missing from the academy, right?"
Kira asked casually. He had heard from Ultear that their goal this time was those two Lost Magic spells he remembered.
If he was right, the two spells should be recorded in a magic book or a grimoire. But he hadn't found anything like that on Bluenote, so either they hadn't gotten their hands on it yet, or his "Holy Light Judgment" had destroyed it.
Since Bluenote was currently unconscious, Kira couldn't ask. He hoped it wasn't the latter; it would be a huge waste if he had accidentally destroyed something so valuable!
"Don't worry," Konas shook her head and replied. "Although I don't know their true objective, judging by the direction he was heading, it seems they were going for the academy's magical library. Thankfully, the academy's valuable archives are very securely hidden and aren't easy to find!"
Kira nodded, then cautiously offered a hint. "As far as I know, Grimoire Heart's elite forces all use Lost Magic. If the academy holds any of those, you should definitely double-check!"
Konas gave a noncommittal nod. "I understand."
While they were talking, Hyberion and Goldmine walked over, dragging the equally unconscious Zancrow.
Kira wasn't too surprised by Zancrow's presence; he already knew from Ultear that the arrogant God Slayer of Fire was on the hit list. What did surprise him was how Goldmine had fought him to a standstill.
He deduced this because Goldmine had several burn marks, clearly traces of Fire God Slaying Magic, while Zancrow had a lot of lingering magical residue on him that felt similar to Goldmine's own magic. These injuries were sufficient proof that the two had been locked in a worthy, well-matched battle.
'Old Man Goldmine's strength is comparable to Zancrow's?! No way, right? When did a Council Member become capable of taking on one of the Seven Kin?'
Kira was amused by his own thought. In the original timeline, the new Magic Council was wiped out by Jackal, which led him to believe Goldmine couldn't be that strong.
Thinking this, he turned and looked at Azuma, trying to signal with his eyes: See? The truly embarrassing one in your attack squad is right here, defeated by an old man from the Council.
Since Kira had his back to the others, only Azuma, sitting on the ground, could see his expression. But Azuma wasn't one of Kira's longtime Fairy Tail guildmates. No matter how much Kira wiggled his eyebrows or blinked until his eyes were dry, Azuma couldn't figure out what he was trying to convey.
Konas looked at the blonde man in their hands and asked, "This person...?"
"He's another one of the academy's attackers. He's a user of Fire God Slaying Magic! It's all thanks to Mr. Hyberion arriving just in time to help, or this old man would have been dead," Goldmine stated plainly, not caring about saving face.
Compared to Goldmine's straightforward honesty, the reactions of the others present were varied.
Hyberion remained silent, feeling this was no big deal and not caring about being owed a favor by Goldmine.
Konas was silent; she didn't care how the battle was won, only that they did win and that everyone was safe.
Azuma was silent; he knew Hyberion was the Second Wizard Saint and was lamenting Zancrow's bad luck. Then he thought of his own trio's upcoming fate and sighed wistfully.
Kira was silent. Ah, I guessed wrong. It was Hyberion who beat Zancrow, not Old Man Goldmine. It was unexpected, but still made perfect sense.
With that thought, he stopped his eye-to-eye complaining toward Azuma.
Looking at the severely injured Azuma and the unconscious Bluenote, Goldmine threw Zancrow from the magic cage down with the others and asked, "Are these all the attackers?"
Kira nodded. "Yes, that's right."
Hearing this, Azuma, leaning against the tree, secretly felt relieved. It looks like Zoldier and Ultear haven't been caught...
However, before he could finish his thought, Kira continued, "There was also one guy who could summon people. He was the main force in attacking the academy, but I killed him. His corpse turned to ash and blew away in the wind!"
Azuma: "..."
To prove he wasn't exaggerating, Kira even pulled in an eyewitness. "Mr. Hyberion knows. He saw it with his own eyes."
Konas and Goldmine looked to Hyberion, who nodded and confirmed, "The facts are exactly as Mr. Kira stated."
He cooperated with Kira tacitly and didn't mention the Celestial Spirit, which was, after all, Kira's spoils of war.
There's no rule in the magic world that says you have to hand over spoils to the Council after defeating a Dark Guild. It has always been, "Whatever you get after the fight is yours." Of course, evil items that threaten the stability of the magic world or the lives of ordinary citizens, like the Lullaby flute, are exceptions.
Because of this, even if they knew Kira took the Celestial Spirit Key, what could they do? No one there used Celestial Spirit Magic, and no one was going to demand spoils from a junior like Kira. What would that say about their reputation?
Goldmine turned his gaze to the only conscious prisoner and demanded fiercely, "What was your objective?"
He had always had little patience for Dark Guild members, typically adopting a hardline approach—a textbook strongman.
"With three captured and one dead, whatever the goal was, it can't be accomplished now. Is there any point in knowing?"
Azuma knew his fate wouldn't be good, but he still wanted to avoid betraying the Guild as much as possible. Master Hades taught him the Arc of the Great Tree magic, so he held some level of gratitude and respect for him.
It looks like Ultear hasn't been discovered? Did something happen to her on the way, or...
Kira watched the scene quietly, thinking, Good thing Ultear didn't show up, or Grimoire Heart would be completely annihilated!