At the Magic Council branch, outside the courtroom corridor.
Makarov, draped in his Ten Wizard Saints cloak, sat on a low wall. Beside him was a short, elderly man.
The old man wore a tricorn hat. His gray-white eyebrows were thick. His eyes were narrowed. His limbs were quite thin and small, as if a gust of wind could blow him away.
His name was Yajima. He was one of the nine councilors of the Magic Council. In his youth, he had been close with Makarov, Porlyusica, and others, often serving as a defense attorney for the various troubles Fairy Tail caused.
"Strip Jose of his Ten Wizard Saints title, disband Phantom Lord, imprison Jiemon. Fairy Tail, of course, is not guilty..."
Makarov broke the silence first, his voice low. "The verdict turned out about as expected."
Since this guild war was entirely provoked by Phantom Lord and Sabertooth, unlike the heated disputes in the original story, the Magic Council hadn't specifically targeted Fairy Tail this time.
Even Org and Michello, who usually couldn't stand Fairy Tail's ways, were much more subdued, only picking at minor, inconsequential issues.
"Although the evidence was solid, Little Mak, I did my best to refute the objections raised by the others, you know."
Yajima held up one finger and spoke slowly. "Especially regarding the amount of compensation for your losses."
"Thanks, Little Ya. Come visit once the new guild hall is built. I'll treat you to ramen." Makarov expressed his gratitude.
"If it's Fairy Ramen, I want twelve slices of chashu." Yajima didn't stand on ceremony.
"Hey, twelve slices is way too many!"
"According to Article 26 of the Guild Management Regulations—"
"Fine, fine. Twelve or twenty, whatever you want!"
"Hmph. I only want twelve."
After the lighthearted topic ended, the two fell into another brief silence.
Yajima lowered his head in thought, recalling a certain woman in the courtroom who had acted very out of character.
"But Ultear—that woman who always remained silent and neutral—actually stood so firmly on Fairy Tail's side and even argued with Michello. I never expected that."
Hearing this, Makarov rubbed his nose and looked up with a slightly smug expression. "That's all thanks to my guild's children. Especially the ones who cause the most trouble!"
After the Phantom Lord incident ended, he had learned the full story of what happened on Galuna Island from Chase.
That of course included the demon Deliora, Ur and her daughter, and the history between Gray and Lyon as fellow disciples.
At the time, he had marveled at how wonderful fate was—he remembered that when Gray first came to the guild, he had wanted to find a way to undo Iced Shell!
"You're talking about that brat Chase, aren't you?" Yajima shot Makarov a glance.
In less than a month since returning to Fiore, that previously ill-reputed kid had stirred up quite a bit of trouble.
Even though his recklessness was still familiar, he had unknowingly changed the views of many neutral councilors toward Fairy Tail, adding more voices of support.
"That's right. Now that Jose has been stripped of his title, I'm thinking of nominating him for this year's Ten Wizard Saints qualification!" Makarov chuckled as he revealed his thoughts.
"Something that sounds so unrealistic—it's better not to consider it, Little Mak." Yajima shook his head and sighed.
It wasn't that he didn't recognize Chase's strength. After all, the kid had fought Jose to that extent.
What he questioned was Chase's character. Letting someone rules bondage become a Ten Wizard Saint wouldn't be a good thing for Fairy Tail.
Besides, Makarov himself was already a Ten Wizard Saint. If the guild had another one, the Magic Council would certainly raise many objections!
"Precisely because of that, I need him to join. Let those at the top of the Ten Wizard Saints suppress that brat's arrogance." Makarov let out a mischievous chuckle.
"I see. Using external forces to help him mature further."
Yajima pondered for a few seconds, then agreed with Makarov's idea. "Those few are indeed unfathomably powerful. Some have even long surpassed the realm of ordinary humans."
Regarding those monsters, he had heard that there was recently some discussion about something called the "Four Heavenly Kings of Ishgar," though it hadn't yet been formally brought to the table.
"After all, I'm at an age where I'll have to retire soon enough..." Makarov suddenly sounded a bit melancholy.
"It's good that you recognize this problem, Little Mak." Yajima nodded approvingly.
With the tragedy of their old friend Rob (the old man who sacrificed himself to save Erza at the Tower of Heaven) fresh in mind, he had been planning to persuade Makarov to step back and stop doing dangerous things like the war against Phantom Lord.
"By the way, Little Mak, I just received some good news to tell you."
"What good news?"
"Someone anonymously donated 1 billion Jewels to Fairy Tail."
"How much? One... one billion?!!"
While Makarov's smile stretched from ear to ear, in a spacious, open office at the Magic Council...
"Stop this, Siegrain. Everything we've done before—it was all wrong!"
Ultear, dressed in form-fitting casual clothes, wore a pained expression. She looked at Siegrain—Jellal—sitting before her, his face twisted with madness, and spoke in a slightly trembling, pleading voice.
After returning from Galuna Island, in order to atone for the mistakes and sins she had committed, she had immediately confessed everything to Siegrain—that is, Jellal—and revealed all the truth.
But Jellal, who had been steeped in darkness for so many years, had long lost his true heart. He simply couldn't accept this version of events. He remained firmly convinced that he was the one chosen by the Dark Mage.
The obsession to complete the final plan of the Tower of Heaven, offer up the sacrifices, revive Zeref, and usher in the Great Magical World had taken deep root in his heart, usurp all rationality!
"Heh. You're saying you've been behind everything? What nonsense!"
Jellal's eyes radiated crazy killing intent as he fixed a cold, piercing stare on Ultear. "Wake up, Ultear. The one who's been brainwashed and deceived by that damned Chase—is you!"
As a staunch supporter of his Tower of Heaven plan, Ultear's change had occurred after she returned from Galuna Island.
Combined with Ultear's own account and experiences, he naturally directed all blame toward Chase.
He didn't know what kind of magic Chase had used to "brainwash" Ultear, but it was obvious—among everyone present at the time, only Chase had the ability to do something like that!
Seeing Jellal in this twisted state, Ultear's heart ached painfully. She clenched her fists tightly at her sides.
She pressed so hard that her nails pierced her skin. Tiny traces of blood stained the hem of her white clothes.
"Siegrain, everything I said is the truth. When you were captured by the Dark Magic Cult, I used—"
"Enough, Ultear!"
Before she could finish her explanation, a furious Jellal slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "This is the last warning. If you spout those boring, childish arguments again—even you—I won't hesitate to eliminate you!"
"And don't even think about running off to inform the old men at the Magic Council. If the Tower of Heaven plan is leaked, everyone in that tower will be buried alive with it!!"
"Siegrain..."
Ultear's pain deepened, crushing her until she could barely breathe. Her eyes, shimmering with tears, lost their light.
She was truly desperate. She didn't know what to do anymore to save the Jellal standing before her now.
Perhaps this was karma.
The karma for her own unforgivable sins!
Seeing her like this, Jellal's restless emotions gradually calmed. A flicker of light passed through his eyes, as if he were brewing some plot.
Don't worry, Ultear.
Soon... you'll return to normal.
***
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