On the Earthland side, there was no effective way to travel to Edolas. They would have to use the spatial channel opened by Anima.
According to Mystogan's assessment, because the energy needed for the large-scale Anima required concentrated resources, similar artificial phenomena would not appear in other places for a while.
In other words, to solve the root problem and defeat the Edolas army led by their king, the safest approach was to conserve their strength and wait for the day the massive Anima descended upon Magnolia.
But a problem remained. Mystogan was not confident he could withstand that level of energy output. He could not safely transport the Fairy Tail members to Edolas without endangering the entire city.
"That is a problem we must consider carefully," Makarov said.
Evacuating the entire town's residents in advance was far too difficult. Not to mention the possible complications. For example, the large Anima's location might shift. How to convince the mayor and the Council of such an unbelievable story. And Mystogan's face, among other things...
With that, Makarov looked at Chase. "Can Nirvana detect the exact time?"
"No," Chase shook his head.
His claim that Nirvana had detected Anima was a tall tale to begin with. Even knowing the date of its appearance in the original story, he could not the guarantee the butterfly effect his presence had caused in the Fairy Tail world had not indirectly affected Edolas, leading to different circumstances.
"However, Nirvana might be able to cancel out the energy of the large Anima you mentioned."
As Fairy Tail's magical weapon, Nirvana was not just limited to detecting good and evil.
The interplay of light and darkness gave birth to chaos energy. Guided by a Chaos Ritual Array set up by Dark Magician of Chaos, Nirvana also possessed a powerful attack: the Magic Chaos Cannon.
This attack converted the vast magical power drawn from the earth into pure chaos energy. Its destructive power far exceeded that of Phantom Lord's Six-Legged Walker, the Jupiter cannon.
For safety reasons, only Chase and Makarov knew how to activate the Magic Chaos Cannon.
Makarov immediately understood what Chase was implying. He sighed deeply. "It seems we have no better choice."
"Perfect. We can use this opportunity to test Nirvana's power," Chase said.
"Fool! That is not the point!" Makarov smacked him on the head.
Though confident in Nirvana's firepower, his main concern was the safety of the city's residents.
They would have to wait until they were sure Anima would appear over Magnolia. Then they would forcibly evacuate the people. At least they had time. They could set up teleportation magic circles around the city in advance.
"That sounds so cool! Chase, let us go activate Nirvana right now!"
Natsu, who had only heard the word "power," was excited. He wanted to show everyone in town how powerful Fairy Tail's magical weapon was.
"Are you an idiot? If we use up its power now, what if Anima appears suddenly?!" Gray scolded.
"Gray, your clothes," Mirajane said.
"Nani? When did that happen?!"
Makarov could not be bothered with the two fools. He turned to the others.
"It is decided, then. On the day the large Anima appears, we will go to Edolas. Our objectives are to destroy their magical weapon and defeat the royal army."
"Now, who wants to volunteer for the mission?"
Since someone needed to stay in Magnolia to set up and activate the teleportation circles and handle the aftermath, they would have to split into two teams.
"I will go, I will go! Just the thought of fighting people from another world gets me fired up!" The warmonger Natsu was the first to raise his hand.
"Well, since he asked me, I suppose I will go," Chase said, putting his arm around Mystogan's shoulder.
For him, knowing all about the Edolas arc, this mission was not much of a challenge. He could probably wrap it up in minutes.
What he was more curious about was whether that world had counterparts of the Five Dragon Gods or Acnologia that had not appeared in the original story. What roles would they play?
Though on the Earthland side, they were dragons that had existed for over four hundred years, the example of Porlyusica, who was the human counterpart of the Sky Dragon Grandeeney, showed that the timeline of Edolas seemed to differ from Earthland's.
Based on this, it was possible that Edolas might "refresh" and create its own counterparts.
Even if it did not, he could still explore the possible connection between magic-poor Edolas and Elentear, a world of excessive magic.
What would happen if the two worlds were connected?
(Elentear is the other world from the 100 Years Quest. Its magic power is so immense that it gave rise to the White Mage, who specialized in removing magic.)
In any case, Chase was definitely going to Edolas.
"Heh heh, Master, I am going too." Gajeel put down the steel he had been chewing on and walked out of the shadows.
If you looked closely, you could see several scratches on his face, like claw marks.
Ever since he realized that Natsu and Wendy, being Dragon Slayers like him, had cats, Gajeel had begun a search for his own cat.
The results were disappointing. Every cat he caught did not have wings. They could not even fly. They certainly could not carry him like the Blue Cat and the White Cat.
But after hearing Mystogan and Carla's explanation, Gajeel finally realized that the cats he wanted, the Exceeds, were in Edolas.
So, his reason for volunteering was simple and pure. He was going there to catch a cat he liked.
"I cannot let this idiot steal the show, old man. I am in." Gray immediately followed, his main principle being to not let Natsu get ahead of him.
No one was surprised by these three. They were always the ones looking for action.
But the next person to volunteer was a bit of a surprise.
"Um, Master. I want to sign up too!" Lucy raised her right hand.
"No way! When did Lucy-chan become so proactive?"
"Did she catch the warmonger virus from spending too much time with Chase?"
"Normally, would not Natsu just drag her along screaming 'I do not want to go'?"
Everyone started chattering. Someone even started imitating Lucy's supposed reaction.
"Hehe. I have to be serious once in a while~" Lucy surprisingly held her head high, not firing back with her usual sarcasm.
The little person inside her mind was laughing to herself. You idiots. With Chase and Mystogan there, no matter how strong the enemy is, they are no match for them.
Since she was aiming to take the S-Class mage trial, she needed to show the master she existed.
"With just Lucy, there is no way she can control those three..." Erza sighed and walked over.
She meant Chase, Natsu, and Gray.
With that, the Edolas special operations team was set. It included Happy and Carla, the Exceeds from Edolas, and Wendy, who stuck close to Carla.
Wendy, Happy, and Carla themselves, plus the ones who had volunteered: Natsu, Chase, Gray, Lucy, Erza, and Gajeel.
Worth mentioning was that Juvia and the Thunder God Tribe, wanting to make up for their role in the civil war, also wanted to join. But Makarov sent them back to Earthland, saying they had enough people.
Poor Juvia, once again separated from her dream of being with Gray.
With the plan set, all they could do was wait for the large Anima to appear.
Since they could not pinpoint the exact date, Chase, Mystogan, and the others could not take any quests. They stayed in Magnolia on standby.
Not wanting to waste potential workers, Makarov sent them to help with the construction of Nirvana.
Amid hard work and daily brawls, several days passed.
Soon, it was the day Nirvana was officially completed.
All the guild members who were not on a quest, led by Makarov, went to tour the new Nirvana.
After the remodeling, Nirvana looked brand new. Lush greenery surrounded its exterior. Granite paths led in all directions, making it look like a miniature resort island.
The most eye-catching feature was the arena in the center. It resembled a colosseum.
The arena had a stone magic circle at its base that could automatically repair damage. It was perfect for everyday training and brawling.
This would not only help guild members improve but would also prevent damage to guild property to a certain extent. From now on, if anyone had a problem with someone, they could settle it on Nirvana.
On either side of the arena were two stone pillars, one black and one white. Ancient runes were carved into their surfaces. They were Nirvana's core, responsible for detecting goodwill and evil intent.
Behind the arena was a tall Western-style tower.
This was, of course, Nirvana's control center. It handled everything from movement and flight to releasing magic. It also served as VIP seating for watching the fights.
The high-powered telescope that Makarov had secretly installed had been forcibly dismantled by Mirajane. It was now just an empty tube.
Below the arena were fully equipped activity rooms, rest areas, and storage for emergency supplies.
With its powerful propulsion system, Nirvana could finally be called a true magical weapon. If necessary, it could carry the entire guild into battle.
Of course, Fairy Tail was a kind, peace-loving guild that always followed the rules. They would never go looking for trouble. Even against someone like Phantom Lord, they would seek help from the Council and ask for instructions before taking action.
Yes, that was the promise Makarov had made to the Chairman and the councilors.
Whether that promise held up would only be known when a similar situation arose.
Chase certainly did not believe it.
Dong~ Dong~ Dong~!
Just as everyone on Nirvana was marveling at the magnificence of their guild's new weapon, a loud, melodious bell echoed across all of Magnolia.
"Attention! Attention! Magnolia is about to activate Gildarts Mode. Citizens, please take cover!"
The magical loudspeakers floating above the streets repeated the warning message again and again.
Experienced citizens hurriedly grabbed their families and rushed for shelter, afraid of getting caught in the chaos.
"That bell! It is Gildarts! Gildarts is back!"
"Come to think of it, it has been three years since Gildarts was last here!"
"His timing is perfect. Today of all days. That man has a good nose!"
On Nirvana, the already excited Fairy Tail members exploded into even greater celebration. Whistles and cheers filled the air.
It looked like the New Year.
"Gidarts? The recognized strongest mage of Fairy Tail?!" Lucy was startled.
Even though she had heard of his reputation, her guildmates' reactions still shocked her. "The ground... the ground is shaking? What is this 'Gildarts Mode' that rivals Chase's 'Chase Mode'?"
"Right there. That is Gildarts Mode," Mirajane said, pointing.
The top of Nirvana's control tower was higher than the guild, and it was positioned above the lake. From there, they could look down on all of Magnolia.
Lucy spun around, following Mirajane's finger.
With a loud rumble, as if following a pre-programmed pattern, the buildings of Magnolia began to shift. Some moved up, some moved down. Others slid left or right. A clear path opened up from the outskirts of town, straight to the guild.
"Eh... eh?!" Lucy's eyes nearly popped out. "The city is splitting in half?!"
"Because Gildarts always forgets the way home when he returns. And when he thinks, he tends to accidentally destroy the buildings around him. So Magnolia created a straight path just for him. That is Gildarts Mode," Mirajane explained helpfully.
"...I think I might have an idea what kind of person Gildarts is."
Lucy's eye twitched. She let out an awkward laugh.
The image that came to mind was Chase riding on Rock Giant Soldier's shoulder through the streets of Magnolia.
"Huh? Where are Chase and the others?" Lucy suddenly realized only she and Mirajane were left.
"They ran off to the guild the moment the bell rang."
"Why did you not say so earlier?!"
Impressed by the title of Fairy Tail's strongest mage, Lucy was very curious about Gildarts. She was also afraid that as a new member, she would leave a bad impression if she did not greet him in time.
In her mind, she had already imagined Gildarts as a terrifying monster.
As luck would have it, the very thing she feared came to pass. When she and Mirajame came out through the guild's back door, Gildarts was just passing through the main entrance, walking straight toward them.
Lucy was terrified. Mirajane, however, greeted him naturally. "Gidarts, welcome back."
"That is strange..."
Wearing a tattered cloak and carrying a backpack, Gildarts looked around at his unfamiliar surroundings. Then he scratched his head and looked at Mirajane with a puzzled expression.
"Miss, I seem to remember a guild called Fairy Tail being near here. Would you happen to know where it is?"
He is so polite!
Wait, this is Fairy Tail! And that is Mirajane!!
Looking at this sleepy-looking middle-aged uncle, Lucy suddenly felt her earlier fears and worries were entirely unnecessary.
***
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