Chapter 71: The Fallout
As Mira's magical image spoke, Makarov's arrogant and smug expression had long since vanished. It was replaced by his entire body trembling, and a cold sweat streaming down his wrinkled face. After Mira finished speaking and her image dissipated...
Bang!
Makarov's eyes rolled back, and he directly toppled from the table, crashing onto the floor in a dead faint. This startled all the surrounding Guild Masters, who, despite their rivalries, worriedly gathered around him. After all, Makarov was almost ninety years old, and it wouldn't be good for the Guild Master Alliance if something happened to him here.
"Makarov!"
"What's wrong with you?! Are you alright?!" Bob, the Guild Master of Blue Pegasus, rushed over, his usual flamboyant demeanor replaced with genuine concern.
Makarov lay on the ground, his heart in a panic, his mind racing.
'It's over! What kind of disastrous situation is this?! How did those two end up together again? The last time they were on a mission together, they slew a dragon and caused an entire mountain range to be restructured! They can really destroy a city!'
He was supposed to be here, at the regular meeting, ensuring his guild wasn't disbanded. Instead, his two most powerful—and most destructive—S-Class Mages were loose.
"The meeting will end today, and I can go back tomorrow," he whimpered internally, his eyes squeezed shut. "Please, please, please, don't let anything go wrong during this time! I beg you!"
Bob of Blue Pegasus blinked his long eyelashes. "Makarov, Ren... that must be the legendary child, right? The one you were telling us about?"
Goldmine, the Master of Quatro Cerberus, who looked like a man in a dog costume, was also stunned for a moment. Then, he remembered something and said in surprise: "Is it him?! The 'Tyrant'?"
Makarov, still on the floor, managed a weak nod. "It's that brat!"
Goldmine and Bob were both Makarov's old friends. The local regular meeting, besides being a conference, was also a place for these old geezers to brag and show off their "children."
Makarov, with his big mouth, had long since bragged about what Ren had done—especially his feat of slaying a dragon.
Or rather, there was no need to brag. Ren had caused several major incidents that had shaken the entire continent, though fewer people knew Ren's name and his identity as a Fairy Tail Guild member, instead only knowing his terrifying titles.
"That's great! Oh, I wish my Guild also had such capable, strong children!" Bob said, clasping his hands together with an envious expression. "All my boys just care about their looks!"
"I don't know how Makarov got so lucky, to actually encounter such a little monster," Goldmine grumbled, also a bit envious and jealous.
Although Makarov's children were all notorious troublemakers, there were truly too many talented individuals.
There were as many as six S-Class Mages, each of whom was a powerhouse capable of taking on entire guilds alone.
Especially Ren. The things this young man did in his short six-month career made even these old, veteran Guild Masters feel their hearts pound.
Just then, as a few masters were helping Makarov back to his chair, a messenger from the Magic Council, out of breath, ran into the banquet hall.
"Everyone! New news!! Urgent news!!"
"What new news?"
All the Guild Masters, who were always eager for news, quickly stepped forward to ask.
"The train heading for Clover—this town—has been hijacked by the Dark Guild, Eisenwald!"
"Eisenwald?" Goldmine growled. "Those guys are still active!"
"Hijacking a train? What do these guys want to do?! That makes no sense!"
The Eisenwald Guild was once a member of the local Guild alliance, but those guys chose to accept assassination-type requests, which was not allowed for legitimate Guilds. Because of this, they were expelled from the alliance six years ago.
"What happened next?" Bob asked. "How's the situation? Were they arrested? Are they still on their way here?"
The messenger nodded. "That's right! They were all arrested, sirs."
"Oh?" Makarov, who had just sat down, perked up. "Did the Rune Knight Order dispatch forces?"
It was impossible to rely on those local armies. No matter how bad the Eisenwald Guild was, it was still a Mage Guild, not comparable to an army of ordinary people.
Especially their current Master, 'Shinigami' Erigor. His own strength was rumored to be even greater than many of the Masters present.
The messenger, however, shook his head. "No, sirs. They were... eliminated by one person."
"One person?!"
"One person wiped out an entire Guild?!"
"Who is so powerful!"
Many of the Masters couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
Makarov, hearing it was "one person," breathed a slight sigh of relief. His panic subsided. 'Oh, thank the stars! One person. That means it wasn't Ren and Erza. They're still together, but they're not the ones who caused this. Phew, what a relief.'
"I heard," the messenger continued, his voice trembling a little, "that the scene was very tragic. The members of Eisenwald were either injured or crippled. Even the entire train was shattered. The locomotive... it was found hundreds of meters away from the incident site, as if it had been... thrown by someone."
"Quick! Who exactly was it?!" Goldmine demanded. "Stop building the suspense!"
"The person who did all this wasn't caught," the messenger said, "but according to the arrested and terrified Eisenwald members... it was done by the 'Tyrant'."
"Tyrant?!!"
The name silenced the room. 'Tyrant' was one of the most prominent—and feared—Mages in Ishgar recently, widely known for his brutal feat of fighting the Rocas Bandit Group, defeating ten thousand alone.
Bang!!
Makarov, who had just gotten up and was taking a drink to calm his nerves, heard this name. His eyes bulged, he choked on his drink, and he collapsed to the ground again, this time completely white.
"Makarov!"
"What's wrong with you?! He's not breathing! Quick! Call a doctor!!"
Makarov lay on the ground, looking utterly despondent, his mind in a state of total system failure.
'It's over! It's completely over!! "Tyrant"... "Tyrant" is Ren! He wasn't with Erza! He did all this... alone!! That brat is even more destructive by himself!'
Magic Council Chamber, Era
Bang!
A thick report was slammed onto the central table. "It's Fairy Tail again!"
Councilor Orga roared, his face purple with rage. "Destroying half the port of Hargeon last time wasn't enough, and now, after such a short time, they've destroyed another entire train! And the tracks! Do you know how much that costs?! Lawless!! Absolutely lawless!!"
Councilor Jellal—or rather, his thought-projection, Siegrain—leaned back, a small smirk on his face. "Calm yourself, Orga. This time, after all, it was to eliminate the Dark Guild Eisenwald..."
Before he could finish, Orga immediately retorted: "Even eliminating one Eisenwald won't solve the fundamental problem! There are countless Dark Guilds! What they did this time was too much! Are we to cause such great destruction every time we eliminate one Dark Guild?"
"Trains are an extremely important means of transportation," another councilor added, "and their value is very high. This 'Tyrant's' methods are too... extreme."
"Isn't the main reason Lullaby?" Siegrain pointed out, cutting through their complaints.
The room fell silent.
Eisenwald was a minor issue; there were countless Dark Guilds, and eliminating one or two was insignificant. The Magic Council had tried to eliminate Dark Guilds before.
However, the Dark Guilds' retaliation was severe, and they often harmed innocent people, which led the Magic Council to (unofficially) turn a blind eye to the existence of most Dark Guilds, as long as they stayed hidden.
"Yes... Lullaby," another councilor said gravely. "If anyone uses Zeref's magic again in the future... we won't be able to handle it."
At this moment, Lullaby, having been defeated by Ren, had transformed back into a simple flute and was being sealed away by Council mages.
"It's strange," one member mused. "How could such powerful, forbidden magic be so easily obtained by a guild like Eisenwald in the first place?"
"The responsibility seems to fall on the management," another said, his gaze pointed.
Lullaby was originally sealed and managed by the Magic Council, along with other forbidden items. The loss of a forbidden item was, naturally, their responsibility.
Siegrain said, his voice smooth and amused, "This time, we really owe it to Fairy Tail—the guild who usually makes people avoid them—for their timely assistance."
Ultear, standing in the shadows, lightly chuckled, covering her mouth with her sleeve. "To defeat an entire Guild, including Erigor and the Lullaby demon, with the power of just one person... Truly worthy of the legendary 'Tyrant'. How remarkable."
"Hmm..."
As some of the most powerful individuals in Ishgar's magic world, they naturally knew the true identity of 'Tyrant'.
Siegrain smiled, seeing their annoyed expressions. "Although you don't want to admit it, it's a fact. If Lullaby had succeeded this time, and all the Guild Masters at the meeting were killed... the consequences would be unimaginable. Shouldn't everyone put aside their prejudices for one moment and praise them?"
"..."
Everyone remained silent. Praising Fairy Tail, the guild that constantly caused them trouble, headaches, and mountains of paperwork, felt as bad as eating a fly.
[Akarin Note:
Your Support Keeps This Story Alive!
If you're enjoying this novel, your support means the world to me. Simple actions like leaving a review, power stone, comment, or sharing the story let me know you're out there. It's the greatest motivation for me to keep updating until the very end and ensures this project continues.
For those who wish to support me more directly, you can join my Patreon at [patreon.com/AkarinTL]. As a thank-you, you'll receive access to 50 advanced chapters.
As a special offer, I've opened a few limited-time tiers at a discounted price! You will get all the benefits of "The Founding Pillars" (normally $20), but at a much cheaper rate.
These slots are extremely limited:
"The Plot Uncoverer": $4.99 (Save 75% / $15.01) - Only 3 slots
"The Dedicated Fan": $9.99 (Save 50% / $10.01) - Only 7 slots
"The Lore Diver": $14.99 (Save 25% / $5.01) - Only 15 slots
I hope I am still worthy of your support. My life truly depends on this... haha, I know I'm so shameless.]