"It's been a full year since then, Master Hades."
Marco told the members of Grimoire Heart how much time had passed, leaving every one of them staring at him in disbelief.
"Time was stopped..."
Ultear looked shaken.
Her Arc of Time gave her power over the time of objects, yet stopping an entire island for a full year was on a completely different level.
Of course, if she were willing to sacrifice everything, she could also produce something extraordinary—such as turning back time itself—but Fairy Sphere had accomplished this without destroying the island or anyone inside it.
"Fairy Sphere... So it really was Fairy Sphere..."
Hades stood frozen.
He knew the spell well. Whatever had happened between them since, he and Mavis had once been inseparable companions.
A small spirit floated toward him.
Mavis looked at Precht—the man now known as Hades—with a painfully complicated expression.
"Ma... Mavis..."
The moment she appeared, Hades's shock deepened.
"Huh? You can actually see me?"
Mavis looked equally surprised.
She had assumed the current Precht would no longer be able to see her at all.
"You never removed your Fairy Tail mark?"
Marco was surprised too.
Only people bearing Fairy Tail's guild mark could see Mavis's spirit. It served as a kind of identification unique to the guild.
Hades had left Fairy Tail and founded Grimoire Heart, yet somewhere on his body, he had apparently kept the mark of his old guild.
Hades did not answer.
He simply stared at Mavis, unable to speak, as memories he had buried for years came rushing back.
"This is all my fault," Mavis whispered. "Everything that happened to you—to all of you—was because of me..."
That guilt had remained in her heart ever since she learned what had become of Fairy Tail after her departure.
The guild had once been thriving, yet after she left, some of her closest companions died, others walked away, and one lost himself completely.
Yuri's early death, Precht's fall into darkness, Warrod's departure...
Mavis had convinced herself that all of it began with her.
"How is any of that entirely your fault?" Marco cut in. "Don't give yourself that much credit, Mavis. People don't stop being able to live just because someone leaves, and Fairy Tail didn't fall apart because you were gone."
He glanced at Hades.
"What happened to him isn't your responsibility either. If he couldn't revive you, that means he lacked the ability. If darkness corrupted him, then his own will wasn't strong enough. You never asked him to do any of this. He chose it all by himself."
Marco was not merely defending Mavis because she was one of his own.
It was simply the truth.
Precht had always been obsessive.
He was undeniably a genius—Zeref himself had acknowledged that—but obsessive geniuses were often the easiest people to lead themselves down the wrong path.
If Precht had truly understood Mavis, he would never have driven himself this far.
Mavis's soul had spent decades alone on Tenrou Island, yet she had never once considered forcing herself back to life.
She had not even dared leave the island as a spirit because she feared the Curse of Ankhseram might still cause harm to others.
How could someone like that possibly want to watch Precht destroy himself trying to resurrect her?
They had only ended up torturing one another.
"I lacked the ability?" Hades snapped, Marco's words finally breaking through his daze. "Are you claiming you can bring her back to life?!"
This was resurrection. Restoring the dead.
Marco spoke as though it were some ordinary task.
"Yes," Marco answered seriously. "You're right. I can. I was already planning to take Mavis back and resurrect her."
"Huh?"
Everyone present froze.
For a moment, none of them knew what expression to make.
"Are you serious?" Mavis asked, just as stunned as the others.
This was the first she had heard of it. Marco intended to bring her back to life?
Was that truly possible?
"Hah... Hahahaha!" Hades burst into wild laughter. "Ridiculous! Do you really expect me to believe that?!"
To him, Marco sounded completely delusional.
"You don't have to believe me," Marco said calmly. "You can come back and watch."
Hades's mockery did not bother him in the slightest.
It was only natural that ordinary people struggled to understand miracles.
"You... You're actually serious?"
Marco's complete composure slowly wiped the laughter from Hades's face.
He could tell that Marco genuinely did not care whether he was believed. That was not the attitude of someone bluffing.
Marco seemed absolutely certain he could do it.
"There's no point arguing. Seeing it will be quicker."
With that, Marco stopped paying attention to him.
Buzz!
He swung his fist and used Genro Mao Ken on the remaining members of Grimoire Heart, placing them all under his control.
They would be handed over to the Magic Council and judged for their crimes.
Marco had already reported that Grimoire Heart had been destroyed, but the Council had never seen any evidence and still harbored doubts.
Delivering the surviving members directly to them should finally put those doubts to rest.
"As for you two, you're coming with me."
The only members he left untouched were Hades and Ultear.
Both had personal connections to members of Fairy Tail, so it would be careless to send them straight to trial without first resolving those ties.
Ultear was connected to Gray and Lyon through their teacher, Ur.
She also had ties to Brain of the Oración Seis and to Jellal, who was currently imprisoned.
She had somehow become a link between an absurd number of people and events.
Ultear swallowed nervously.
She had no idea what awaited her. Part of her wanted to run, but she did not dare move.
Marco's power was simply too terrifying. She had no hope of escaping while he was watching her.
"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you," Marco added casually. "I really did kill Acnologia."
The remark struck Ultear like another blow.
"His corpse is outside the island. I'll show you while we're here."
Before Hades or Ultear could argue, Marco produced the evidence.
Buzz!
He grabbed one in each hand and disappeared.
A moment later, they reappeared high above the island.
When Hades and Ultear looked down, they saw the collection of enormous dragon corpses below.
Gildarts could not possibly have dismantled all of them so quickly. He was still concentrating on the largest one, Aldoron, while Acnologia's remains lay untouched nearby.
"This... This can't be real..."
Hades stared at the scene as though trapped in a dream.
He began to wonder whether Acnologia had actually killed him beneath that claw and everything since then was nothing more than a dying hallucination.
Mavis had appeared.
Acnologia was dead.
Marco claimed he could resurrect the dead.
It all made far more sense as the final delusion of a dying man than as reality.
"Stay with us. We're returning to Fairy Tail."
Snap!
Marco struck Hades's mind with a sharp psychic pulse.
The former Second Guild Master had begun losing his grip on reality.
Marco had already healed his physical wounds, but the emotional shock had apparently been too much for him.
"Ughghgh!"
Hades convulsed before his eyes regained focus. The mental fog cleared, forcing him to recognize what was real instead of retreating into denial.
"Let's go, Mavis. We're heading home."
Marco turned toward her.
Under Mavis's surprised gaze, he activated his power and teleported everyone present away.
Only one person remained behind.
Gildarts stared at the empty space where they had been.
"The kid couldn't have taken me along to watch it?"
He complained under his breath, then returned to work.
He had promised Marco he would dismantle the dragon corpses, and he intended to finish the job.