"I know you're not afraid of death because you have some method of resurrection afterward."
Mira held her sword tip against Ethel's chin, displaying a mischievous smile reminiscent of her rebellious youth, and said gently,
"But if I gradually strip away your power and eventually take your soul entirely, can you still be reborn?"
Ethel tried to tilt his head back with all his might, involuntarily swallowing hard.
He wasn't afraid to die, but it depended on how he died.
If it was just his body being killed, it didn't matter, but if his soul was destroyed, he was truly finished.
Moreover, the woman before him reminded him of two people from his own guild.
One was Flamars, that one-eyed fat man in armor, whose enchantment absorbed others' power and seized their souls.
Because of this, Ethel didn't doubt that there were other people capable of such a thing.
The other was the Nine Ghosts Sect leader Kuanghua.
The expression and aura of this woman were simply comparable to Kuanghua's; if someone claimed she transformed into Kuanghua, Ethel would believe it.
The intimidation from the sect leader was overwhelming for him.
On the other side, Traffesa from 'Dim Shine' was equally tense; a human capable of taking a demon's power? This woman was practically their nemesis!
Once, he mocked Jia Ka'er and Dempsey Tower, saying their self-destruct abilities were too foolish, only the weak needed to resort to mutual destruction against enemies.
But now, he desperately wished he possessed the self-destruct ability. With one explosion, he could return to the guild; this ability was incredibly handy!
It's far better than having one's power taken away!
Additionally, the fact that the enemy could receive demon information needed to be somehow conveyed back to the Gate of the Underworld.
The problem was, neither he nor Ethel knew how!
Mira observed Ethel's hesitant look and activated Receiving Magic again: "This is your last chance."
Ethel felt his power being drained, even his soul seemed to be getting devoured.
But he wasn't a regular demon, in the end, he stiffened his neck and defiantly said:
"No matter! Even if you kill me, I'll ultimately return to Zeref! And you all, will die!"
Mira applied the same strategy to Traffesa, with the same outcome.
However, listening to their curses and resolutions, the most frequent phrase was 'return to Zeref.'
It seemed the Gate of the Underworld members were even more fervent followers than those Black Magic Sect fanatics.
Makarov gazed at the two demons, now mostly drained of power, and sighed: "Why do you believe in Zeref?"
Traffesa sneered: "Heh... Does worshiping one's creator require a reason?"
Zeref was the creator of the entire Ethereal Demon Race, to them, he was the creator, their god.
"I'm out of options, I'll go pick up Lucy," Rhode said helplessly, "Let's keep them for now."
Mira had already gained most of the two demons' power; their only value now was information on the Gate of the Underworld.
Since there was no way to make them talk, Gemini would have to try.
If Gemini couldn't do it, Rhode would need to initiate Plan B.
After working all night, even though the sun hadn't risen yet, the eastern sky already had a glimmer of light.
Rhode sprouted wings of a Cloud Sub-Dragon from his back and swiftly flew towards the city where Mikhailo resided.
Since he was heading west, it felt like he was being chased by the dawn sun, kind of like a reverse Kuanghua.
From dawn to dawn, Rhode hadn't counted how long it took.
Comparing the shape of rivers drawn on the map and the landmark bridge regarded by the locals, Rhode confirmed he had arrived.
He lowered his altitude and flew towards Mikhailo's home.
Then, suddenly felt a chill.
"Something's not right."
Mikhailo's house was by a small bridge in a narrower section of the river.
Initially, Rhode thought the area was shimmering with the river reflecting the white light from the sky, but upon closer inspection, it was all silver-white ice!
Mikhailo's home, the small bridge, the river surface, and the nearby open space were all thoroughly frozen by silver-white ice!
"Is it the person from Sun Village?!"
Though he hadn't personally been there, Gray had discussed that person's magic with him in detail.
This was the Ice Demon Slayer Mage, no doubt.
This wide-range ice magic... Mikhailo might be confirmed out of commission already.
Rhode performed a Void Divination and immediately saw two people standing on the frozen river.
One was Gray, the other was a man in silver armor with a scar on his left forehead.
Gray had no shirt on, his body marked with numerous small wounds, while the other was without a scratch.
It looked like Gray was being suppressed... understandable considering the opponent was an Ice Mage with the 'Slayer' prefix, likely immune to ice magic.
Rhode dove down and landed directly next to Gray: "Is this the only enemy?"
"Rhode?!" Gray exclaimed with some relief and hurriedly said, "Mr. Mikhailo and Erza and the others are frozen, but should still be alive!"
"I saw that, even Erza could be frozen." Rhode's recent Void Divination did reveal several ice statues.
Natsu and Hapi were standing, while Erza and Lucy were lying down.
Gray explained: "We were taking turns on night watch; when this guy arrived, it was Erza and Lucy's turn to rest."
Rhode nodded; the enemy's magic power was strong, without defense it's easy to fall into their trap.
"Reinforcements? Your companions?" The man opposite sneered, "Yeah, weak creatures like humans can only huddle together for warmth!"
What's up with this guy?
Rhode frowned: "Do you know who he is?"
"He..." Gray looked conflicted.
This person... was his father.
The face, the voice, it was exactly like his father's.
But his father had died at the hands of Dailola many years ago!
And this person even claimed...
"I am Dailola! The nightmare of the little brat next to you! Hahaha..."
He laughed wildly, "Brat, I'll now kill your companion, making you recall my horror, and slowly torture you to death in terror! Hahaha..."
Gray clenched his fists tightly: "Damn it..."
"Uh, don't rush to laugh." Rhode pondered for a moment, then said, "You don't seem like a demon."
The other was taken aback, then burst into laughter again: "If I'm not a demon, could I be a human? Want me to transform into the appearance the brat fears the most?!"
Between enemy and companion, Gray didn't need to think much to trust his companion's words more: "Rhode, are you serious?"
"In distinguishing between humans and demons, I've got a decent handle on it; this guy, despite carrying demon aura, is definitely human."
Rhode looked him up and down, curiously saying, "But you don't seem like someone who's alive!"