Jellal looked perfectly at ease, his eyes filled with a teasing playfulness, as if he were looking down at pawns on a chessboard. He glanced past Erza to the members of the Allied Forces standing behind her and asked, "Is that mage named Kira not here? What a pity. I was hoping to use this chance to settle the score from last time."
Erza took a sharp step forward, her voice stern. "Stop trying to change the subject! Answer my question!"
"Don't be so impatient, I was just getting to that," Jellal said, spreading his hands. "Last time, when your friend Kira blasted me into the bottom of the ocean, I nearly died. Fortunately, Brain pulled me out just as I was on the brink of death. I took the opportunity to join forces with them."
As he spoke, Jellal pulled off his shirt, revealing a torso covered in mottled, jagged scars. He spun around slowly to show them off. "See? These are the wounds he left me with. It took nearly a month of lying in bed just to heal this much! Even now, these scars still ache with a dull throbbing."
Although Fairy Judgment was a spell Kira had modified from Fairy Law, its effects were functionally closer to Fairy Glitter. While Law was a mental deterrent, Judgment was a physical attack using condensed starlight—and based on the damage, it clearly packed a punch.
Jellal's upper body, which should have been defined and muscular, was marred by ugly, crisscrossing scars. The longest one ran all the way from the left side of his neck, across his heart, and down to his lower abdomen.
Hibiki from Blue Pegasus wiped cold sweat from his forehead. "I can't believe it... he actually survived an attack like that?"
Hibiki knew Kira well. They had a good relationship and often shared intel on the magic world. Out of everyone present, aside from the Fairy Tail members, Hibiki had the clearest understanding of Kira's true power.
As a talented young mage who mastered the data-analyzing Archive Magic, he knew exactly what kind of energy readings had come from the Tower of Heaven. The magical fluctuation of Fairy Judgment was more than enough to be classified as a Super Magic.
From the back of the group, Happy muttered a dry roast, "But... if his body got hurt that badly, why is his face still totally fine?"
Lucy: "..."
Behind the group, Wendy stared blankly at Jellal. She didn't realize that the "Jellal" she had met and who had saved her in the past was actually Mystogan. Hearing their conversation, her emotions were a turbulent mix of confusion and shock. "Jellal..."
Seeing the scars on Jellal's body, Erza faltered for a moment, a flicker of sympathy passing through her eyes. But she quickly suppressed it. "That is the retribution you deserve!!"
"The pain suffered by the victims of the Tower of Heaven—the people hurt by your schemes—is infinitely heavier than anything you're feeling right now!!"
"Heh... say whatever you want. You can't stop me this time anyway," Jellal replied with arrogant indifference, pulling his shirt back on. "Remember what I told you? I said it would take five years to rebuild the Tower of Heaven."
"But now that Nirvana has been activated—a magic capable of freely flipping light into darkness—I'll soon have plenty of manpower to realize the Tower of Heaven plan. The whole process can be shortened to a year... maybe even six months! Hahaha!!"
Erza gritted her teeth, her body trembling slightly. Her grip on her sword tightened unconsciously as she glared ferociously at him.
"You show absolutely no remorse!"
Currently, Nirvana was in the early stages of activation. It appeared as a massive pillar of black light, eerily absorbing the dark elemental particles from the entire forest.
Hibiki, the only one who truly understood Nirvana's effects, subtly scanned the Allied Forces. He felt a wave of relief. Thank god! Looking at the situation, it doesn't seem like anyone is showing signs of being turned. But we have to stop Nirvana quickly. If it fully activates, the Light Guilds are done for!
"Enough!"
Brain stared coldly at the group. "Maggots. Since you've gathered here, you've saved us the trouble of hunting you down. Your fall will serve as the trumpet blast heralding the arrival of a new magical era!!"
Hearing this, everyone snapped to attention. Natsu and the Allied Forces tensed their muscles, channeling their magic power and shifting into their optimal combat stances.
Opposite them, the Oración Seis focused their energy, ready to wipe out their opponents in one fell swoop.
"I can see right through your thoughts!"
"I can hear the fear in your hearts!"
"Let me teach you a lesson: Money makes the man powerful!"
"We need to wrap this up fast. You guys are in my way!"
Over twenty distinct magical auras flared, pushing the tension on the battlefield to its peak. For a moment, time seemed to stop; the air grew heavy, and even the falling leaves and dust seemed suspended in mid-air.
"Attack!"
A heavy shout signaled the start of the battle.
Following Brain's command, four of his subordinates moved in unison—excluding Midnight, who was asleep, and Jellal, the ally who didn't take orders.
Cobra and his closest partner, the poison snake Cubellios, were the first to rush out.
Relying on his Sound Magic, he could hear the inner voices of his opponents, allowing him to predict their moves with perfect accuracy. He would dodge an attack, then plant a lethal dose of venom the moment the enemy revealed an opening.
In all his past battles, no one had been able to block his eavesdropping. It was a strategy that worked every time; just a few days ago, he had easily schooled Fairy Tail's Thunder Legion when they tried to start trouble.
Cobra wasn't worried about rushing in too fast and getting surrounded, because he knew that among the Oración Seis, there was one person even faster than him!
A man with a blonde mohawk, glasses, a long pointed nose, a jaw guard, and a red-and-white biker outfit—Racer.
Racer represented speed. True to his name, he was the fastest member of the Oración Seis.
In reality, however, he wasn't using Speed Magic, but Slowing Magic.
He altered the perception of time for everyone within a certain range, lowering their physical sensation of speed, which indirectly made him appear incredibly "fast." But aside from their leader, Brain, not even all of his fellow Oración Seis members knew the truth behind his magic.
Racer launched himself forward, a blur of motion that overtook Cobra in the blink of an eye.
At the same time, Hoteye—a large, blocky man with long, wavy orange hair—stood his ground and launched an offensive. His Liquid Ground magic caused the terrain to undergo a massive transformation. The solid earth and rocks turned fluid under his control, surging toward the Allied Forces like ocean waves.
Angel pulled out a golden Zodiac key and summoned two small, cute, twin celestial spirits—Gemini.
Gemini could instantly copy someone's appearance, magic, and memories. Right now, they were hiding among the Allied Forces, preparing to silently stab their "teammates" in the back.
Over a decade ago, a wicked cult had built eight "R-Systems." The five members of the Oración Seis were children Brain had taken from one of those towers.
Coincidentally, they were as unfortunate as Erza, having suffered through tragic childhoods. Because of this, after escaping the R-System, they cherished their freedom and future even more intensely.
Regrettably, they weren't as lucky as Erza to find salvation in a place like Fairy Tail. Instead, under Brain's tutelage, they strayed further onto the wrong path, sinking so deep into the darkness they could no longer extricate themselves.
Regardless, they were companions who had grown up together. Their synergy was no worse than Fairy Tail's, allowing them to analyze the battlefield and coordinate in seconds.
Erza and Jellal were locked in a standoff, and no one wanted to interfere. The enemy's strongest mage, Jura, was being personally blocked by Brain. Gemini had copied Ichiya to make him fight himself. Hoteye used AOE attacks to sweep the weaker fighters and create openings. And the slightly stronger mages were being harvested by the tag team of Racer and Cobra.
It was practically flawless teamwork!