Demon Ruins Island, inland away from the beach.
At the end of the developed jungle lay a basin filled with jagged rocks of grotesque shapes.
Looking down from above, the weathered rocks spread out in intricate patterns, vaguely piecing together the form of a reclining ancient giant.
Many tourists drawn by the reputation stood atop them—some capturing scenes with magical cameras, others curiously looking around, still others setting up easels to paint quietly...
The place was buzzing with activity, the scene was quite lively.
Yet beneath this peaceful, stable surface, a terrible crisis was brewing.
Beneath the giant skeleton, deep underground in the basin's depths.
Oil lamps flickered, casting light on dark, deep passageways. The occasional dripping of water sounded like demon whispers, soul-piercing.
The passageway had no entrance. At its end lay a secret room, not particularly spacious.
A group of black-robed figures gathered before a stone altar engraved with complex magical texture.
The leader was thin and small, a scar crossing half his face looking extremely hideous in the dark light.
He was the mastermind behind the pirate incident—Marshall's true body!
"Lord Marshall, are you sure you want to awaken Lord Sky Drum in advance?" a subordinate asked.
"The plan's exposed. If we don't start now, it'll be too late."
Marshall stared intently at the ancient stone altar—the heart of the Eighteen Demon Gods' Sky Drum.
"But with just these people's magical power, we won't achieve the ideal perfect state, will we?"
The subordinate pointed toward a dungeon in the secret room corner.
There, dozens of mages were trapped within chaotic space—some solo adventurers, some teams from the same guild.
Perhaps sensing what was coming, all wore expressions of terror.
"No time to pursue perfection. Awaken him first. What's missing will be delivered to us." Marshall said lowly.
The conditions for Sky Drum's descent were threefold: Demon Descendant blood, vast magical power, and human sacrifices.
Blood awakened the demon's soul and will. Magical power sustained its broken body. Sacrifices allowed the demon's true form to full manifest!
The final step was most crucial—which was why Marshall had proactively revealed the demon ruins to the Kingdom of Fiore.
To attract enough sacrifices and realize the world of "gods"!
"Understood, Lord Marshall."
The attendants nodded firmly, absolutely obedient to Marshall's commands.
"Bring those mages over. Prepare to extract their magic power."
Marshall confessed expressionlessly. Then he took out a dagger and slashed his palm.
Blood dripped onto the stone heart altar.
BOOM!
Like throwing a torch into dry kindling, the The altar's magical lines rapidly activated, outlining the demon's form.
Crimson light instantly erupted, illuminating the dim chamber, and rapidly spread through the passageways in all directions.
Those passageways were actually the demon's veins.
Amid the mages' desperate screams, massive amounts of magical power surged into the altar, blending and spreading with the red light.
THUMP...
THUMP THUMP...
THUMP THUMP THUMP!
The altar began beating—slowly at first, then faster, until finally sparking thunderous roars!
An ancient being gradually revived. The gloomy and violent atmosphere slowly descended.
On the island, the central basin.
In the demon's head region, now developed into a tourist attraction, the hollow huge eye sockets suddenly burst with mesmerizing red light!
Before tourists could react to what was happening, the "ruins head," pieced together from countless rocks, lifted off the ground, carrying a lot of sand and debris!
BOOM BOOM BOOM!
Instantly, the entire island was violently trembled.
Seabirds flew high. Beasts fled!
"What's happening?"
On the beach, Mirajane, who'd been discussing follow-up collaborations with the Weekly Sorcerer editor, suddenly turned toward the ruins where the earthquake was originated.
There, a large number of tourists, their faces filled with terror, were desperately running toward the beach.
And behind them, dust flew everywhere as the figure of a giant, fierce-eyed, slowly stood up.
Its huge body blotted out the sun, covering the distant sunset and casting a chilling shadow!
"Mira-nee! Magical power—I sense incredibly powerful magical power!"
Dark Magician Girl's pupils contracted as she stared at the revived Sky Drum, her expression solemn. "Completely different from anything before—ancient and deep. What is that...?"
The first tourists to reach the beach answered Mirajane and Dark Magician Girl's questions with their terrified words.
"A demon! One of the Eighteen Demon Gods has revived!"
"Run! Run! I need to get on a ship! I need to leave this godforsaken place!!"
With that, the man scrambled frantically toward the magical vessels docked at the shore.
Mirajane's expression changed drastically.
Not waiting to ask more details, she turned to the stunned editor and shouted, "This is urgent! Contact the Magic Council immediately—request support!"
"R-right away."
The editor snapped out of it and subconsciously asked, "Miss Mirajane, what about you?"
"I'm going to stop that monster. We absolutely can't let it reach the magical vessels."
With that, Mirajane quickly draped on her coat and, her serious expression, stared at the huge monster slowly approaching.
Though she no longer had power now, her justice and kindness remained unchanged.
As a mage, she must step forward in this crisis!
"Mira-nee, I'm with you!"
Dark Magician Girl quickly summoned her magical battle robe and staff, entering battle mode.
She knew exactly what state Mira-nee was in now.
Setting aside her relationship with Chase, like Mirajane, she'd long come to regard her as a true sister—something she absolutely can't let happen to!
"Mm!"
Mirajane glanced back at Dark Magician Girl, then nodded firmly.
By the time they traveled upstream, reaching the huge monster's feet, the area around them was already in chaos.
Many tourists who hadn't evacuated in time were trapped amid ruins, running around like headless flies.
Some of the more timid ones had even collapsed, their pants soaked, staring helplessly as the huge monster's foot descended from above.
BOOM!
Sky Drum casually stepped, causing the ground to violently tremble and kicking up rolling dust.
Within the thick smoke, pink light flickered.
Dark Magician Girl sat atop her magic wand, carrying the terrified tourist who'd wet himself.
Quickly flying out of Sky Drum's stomping range, she deposited him in a relatively safe area, then immediately turned back.
Meanwhile, on the ground, Mirajane worked tirelessly to guide the disoriented tourists, urging them to evacuate toward the coast.
With their cooperation, the tourists trapped deep in the demon ruins soon evacuated the most dangerous zone.
"Heh. No matter where you go, there's never a shortage of idiots rushing in to die..."
Marshall, whose consciousness had merged with Sky Drum's remains, quickly spotted Dark Magician Girl darting through the air.
He naturally wouldn't allow anyone to interfere with harvesting his sacrifices. He immediately manipulated the huge black arm to grab Dark Magician Girl directly.
The giant arm swung, squeezing space and whipping up gales.
Dark Magician Girl instantly alerted. She shielded the rescued little girl behind her, magical power gathering in her staff.
"Super Magic Wave Cannon!"
BOOM!
A dark pink energy beam shot through the air, precisely striking the huge black palm and exploding into sky-filled sparks.
***
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