"Dead... Midnight really died just like that..."
Faced with that reality, the members of Oración Seis were all dumbfounded, utterly shocked.
Though they were battered and covered in wounds, at least they still had their lives.
But Midnight? He had already been completely erased from this world!
Only at this moment did the members of Oración Seis truly realize that this was a life-and-death war—a war between evenly matched forces, or rather one in which they were actually at a disadvantage.
Oración Seis could lose.
They could die.
They had been riding high for several years, making a name for themselves as one of the Three Great Powers of the Balam Alliance.
Oración Seis had never really suffered a setback, and that had made them swell with arrogance.
They simply did not take legal wizards seriously at all.
And honestly, it was understandable.
Even the Magic Council—the very symbol of lawful order—had been treated like an open house by them.
They had broken in and rescued prisoners with ease.
Earlier, the Council had even nearly been manipulated by Jellal and Ultear. It was no wonder they looked down on legal wizards.
But reality had now dealt them a brutal blow. It made them understand that the only reason things had always gone so smoothly was because they had never bitten into real bone before.
"Take them into custody."
Still wearing the Leo Gold Cloth, Marco walked up to the members of Oración Seis and spoke to Lahar, who had just approached.
As the representative of the Magic Council, Lahar naturally wanted to arrest them all and bring them back for trial before the Council.
Only by doing so could they wash away the shame on their side.
But these people had, after all, been defeated by Fairy Tail—and Marco had always been overbearing.
Within the territory of Marco, the Duke of Rose, crimes committed by wizards were all tried under the authority of Magnolia, with Marco himself passing judgment as the Duke.
This had effectively stripped the Magic Council of its law enforcement authority there, leaving them angry but unable to say much.
Still, Marco had not handled things too harshly.
At the very least, he kept the Council updated on the cases and did things fairly, openly, and transparently.
If a criminal objected, they could appeal to the Magic Council, and even seek a second or third trial.
So although Marco's methods were overbearing, he had still given the Magic Council enough respect.
And whenever something happened, he responded actively—like this campaign against Oración Seis.
As a result, the Magic Council's attitude toward Marco had truly become one of "love and hate."
With Marco here, Lahar didn't dare speak recklessly.
What if Marco wanted to drag the members of Oración Seis back to Magnolia for trial?
If Lahar just ordered the Council's men to seize them and guard them, wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?
But if he failed to bring them back—if he couldn't take Oración Seis back for trial—then Lahar himself wouldn't be able to explain things to his superiors either.
The order from above had been absolute: Oración Seis had to be captured.
Stuck in the middle, he truly couldn't win no matter what he did.
On his way over, on the way to see Marco, Lahar had been praying in his heart.
Considering how cooperative he had been with Marco, considering how hard he had fought and led his men into battle, he hoped Marco would be merciful enough to hand these people over.
And Marco had answered that prayer.
The moment he heard Marco say, "Take them into custody," Lahar felt as if he could finally breathe again.
He straightened his back at once and stood straight.
"Yes, sir!"
Lahar answered so loudly that even Marco was startled.
He glanced oddly at the special forces captain, whose face was full of "loyal devotion," completely unsure what the guy was on about.
Their goal in coming here this time had twofold: first, to stop Oración Seis's plot, second, to help the Magic Council save some dignity.
Naturally, Marco was not going to do something like drag all of Oración Seis back to Magnolia for judgment.
He still had to give the Magic Council some respect.
After all, he still needed that banner.
Marco switched back into the Aries Gold Cloth, then checked the task panel in his system.
There was only one target left before this crisis would be fully resolved:
Capture Brain.
[Mission Name: "The Balam Alliance's Three Great Powers — Oración Seis"
Mission Description: As one of the three towering powers of the dark guild world, and one of the Three Great Powers of the Balam Alliance, Oración Seis is undoubtedly the newest and weakest of the three heads. But the destruction they can cause is still far from small.
Eliminate them, stop their plans, and cut off one of the Balam Alliance's heads first!
Mission Requirements:Stop Oración Seis's plan and defeat all members of Oración Seis. (Incomplete)
Current Progress:Midnight (1/1), Racer (1/1), Hoteye (1/1), Angel (1/1), Cobra (1/1), Brain (0/1)
Mission Reward: Random Gold Cloth or skill.]**
Marco really wanted that mission reward.
Based on his own estimate, as long as he unlocked just one more Gold Cloth, there was a very high chance he would truly awaken his own Cosmo.
"Brain, where do you think you're going?"
With a thought, Marco's figure vanished instantly.
As his strength increased, his Teleportation, which had originally only worked over short distances, had gradually expanded in range.
That was also one of Marco's overwhelming advantages against Midnight, and one of the key reasons he had been able to toy with him so easily.
If Marco's Teleportation had not completely covered Midnight's movement range, he would never have bothered playing around with him for that long.
After all, if Midnight had slipped away by accident, Marco would never have forgiven himself.
He had to take down every single member of Oración Seis.
It wouldn't even matter if some of them were defeated by other members of the guild, because this had been a group battle from the start—and as the leader of the allied wizard forces, the power of the collective was also his power.
Bzzzz!!!
Marco reappeared in the Worthwood Sea, beside that giant pit.
He looked toward the edge of the crater.
There stood Brain, the leader of Oración Seis, and Jellal, both staring blankly into the pit.
At this moment, Brain was already somewhat different from before.
Most of the complex magical patterns covering his body had disappeared, leaving behind only a single sparse mark, making it stand out all the more strangely.
"I didn't expect... you'd defeat all five of them so quickly."
Holding his skull staff, Brain turned to look at Marco.
His face was grim.
It was obvious that he had already realized how serious the situation was. Things had gone far beyond his expectations.
The way events were unfolding was completely different from the script he had imagined.
"Actually, it was still a bit slow, since I played around with them for a while." Marco answered with a smile.
His gaze swept over Jellal.
The former member of the Ten Wizard Saints had an unreadable complicated expression—but it was easy to see that there was quite a bit of gratitude in it.
No matter what, Marco had in fact helped Jellal, freeing him from being controlled by others.
Though Jellal had suffered a huge mental shock because of it, and still hadn't fully recovered even now, Marco had still saved him.
At the very least, Jellal's tragic life would no longer continue in a haze of confusion.
In order to atone for his sins, Jellal had chosen imprisonment.
Though he had now been rescued, he still would not fight Marco.
He would rather let Marco capture him again and send him back to prison.
"Marco Dreyar..."
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