"I remember now... I remember everything."
Wraith opened his eyes as his ghostly form slowly began to fade.
Marco had seen this happen before with Roubaul.
Spirits like them remained in the living world only because some powerful regret or obsession kept them there.
Once that final attachment disappeared, there was nothing left binding their souls to the world.
"Marco... Makarov's grandson." Wraith smiled at him. "Thank you. Thank you for helping me."
He knew that regaining his memories meant he would disappear, but to him, that was not another death.
It was freedom.
For decades, he had wandered without knowing who he was, driven by the belief that someone had murdered him.
He had searched endlessly for a killer who did not exist, never finding a single clue, yet unable to let go.
It had been a miserable way to remain alive.
"You're as strong as your grandfather," Wraith said, his fading face filled with warmth and nostalgia.
"And just as kind as him."
As he looked at Marco, the young man before him began to overlap with his memories of Makarov—the old friend who had desperately encouraged him to stay alive all those years ago.
Wraith had never imagined that Makarov's grandson would be the one to save him in the end.
Perhaps that was simply the bond of Fairy Tail.
Marco remained quiet.
Kind was not necessarily the word he would have used for himself.
He simply did everything he could to protect anyone he considered part of Fairy Tail.
He was fiercely loyal to his own people, but far less forgiving toward everyone else.
Right was right, and wrong was wrong.
"Rest in peace, Senpai."
Marco gave Wraith a respectful nod.
Wraith smiled one last time before his soul faded completely.
Like Roubaul, he did not travel anywhere else. His spirit simply dissolved, returning to the natural flow of the world.
"Wraith consumed a Spirit Dragon," Elefseria explained from nearby. "That made him an especially troublesome opponent. A ghost gaining the power of a dragon that could manipulate souls was an unusually perfect match. Most mages would have had no way to fight him."
"He had a difficult life."
Marco said nothing more.
His attention shifted toward the Great Dogra Labyrinth.
With a single glance, he saw the soul hidden deep inside it.
As expected, Dogramag had never truly died.
Buzz.
Marco vanished, then returned almost immediately with a heart in his hand.
It belonged to Elefseria.
"Here."
He tossed it toward the old Law Dragon. There was no longer any need to use Elefseria's human heart to suppress Dogramag.
Elefseria caught it and swallowed it whole.
The heart had been formed from his own power, so absorbing it was simple. Unfortunately, it could no longer restore his human body.
His dragonification had progressed too far, and his body had permanently become that of a dragon.
Buzz!
The instant the heart was removed from the labyrinth, the entire Great Dogra Labyrinth began to shake.
Dogramag was waking up.
"Everyone, move back."
Marco sent the others away from the area, then rose into the sky.
Flight had become instinctive after he reached the level of a true Gold Saint.
He no longer needed the wings of the Sagittarius Gold Cloth to remain in the air.
The newly unlocked Aquarius Gold Cloth formed around him.
It was the first time he had worn it, and its design was elegant and traditional, carrying the clean, dignified beauty one expected from a Gold Cloth.
Below him, the Great Dogra Labyrinth thrashed violently as Dogramag struggled to break free.
Marco raised his arms and assumed one of the most iconic stances of the Aquarius Saints.
Aurora Execution.
It was the greatest technique of Aquarius, a move that pushed freezing energy toward its absolute limit.
When performed, the image of Aurora, Goddess of the Dawn, appeared behind the user.
Marco lifted both arms high. The golden armor covering them came together to form the shape of an urn.
His Cosmo erupted.
From the mouth of the golden urn poured a brilliant wave of freezing air, its colors shifting like an aurora.
Absolute Zero.
A cold capable of freezing all matter and energy. At that temperature, all movement ceased and every form of energy fell silent.
It did not merely freeze the physical world.
It froze space and time themselves!
"Aurora Execution!"
Boom!
The freezing blast crashed down across the entire Great Dogra Labyrinth.
In an instant, the enormous structure was completely encased in ice. The labyrinth that had been shaking violently only moments ago fell perfectly still.
"Absolute Zero!" Gray shouted in shock.
He knew that cold better than anyone. It was something he could never forget.
Years ago, Ur had sacrificed herself before his eyes and transformed her life into the freezing power of Absolute Zero.
It might have sounded disrespectful to say it, but Marco's Absolute Zero was far beyond the cold Ur had created with her life.
"So this is what ice magic looks like when it reaches the highest possible level..."
Gray clenched his fists.
Compared with power like this, the forbidden spell he had once feared so much seemed almost insignificant.
They did not belong on the same scale!
"No. This still isn't the highest level."
Marco descended beside him with a smile.
At its absolute peak, Aurora Execution evolved into God Aurora Execution, an attack capable of permanently freezing even an immortal god.
The ice it created would remain unbroken even after the universe itself came to an end.
And beyond even that was Aurora Extinction.
Once unleashed, its crimson aurora would wipe out all life in its path—a technique built for genuine, total destruction.
"You'll get there eventually, Gray." Marco gave him an encouraging pat on the head. "Aquarius is the higher constellation connected to Cygnus, so once we return, you'll begin training with me."
He then turned toward Natsu.
"You too. It's time for you to form a connection with Leo."
Lucy would also need to join them.
The constellations connected to all three of them could now be upgraded. Once that happened, they would be able to summon Gold Cloths when they faced serious danger.
Combined with the weapons of the Libra Gold Cloth, there would be very few enemies capable of defeating them.
"I'll work hard!" Gray answered eagerly.
He desperately wanted to master an Absolute Zero that did not demand his life as the price.
"Leo?" Natsu's eyes lit up for an entirely different reason. "A lion obviously sounds stronger than a water jar!"
Gray slowly turned toward him while Natsu was already looking back.
And.... their foreheads collided a moment later.
"Leo is stronger!"
"Aquarius would freeze your stupid lion solid!"
The two immediately began arguing over which constellation was better.
As usual, they had found a way to turn absolutely anything into a competition.
Marco shook his head with an amused sigh and left them to it.
He walked toward the frozen Great Dogra Labyrinth, raised one finger, and lightly tapped the ice.
Crack.
The entire labyrinth shattered into countless glittering fragments, which scattered through the air and disappeared.