The sky above the city of Magnolia was shrouded in an oppressive gray.
Heavy rain suddenly began to fall without warning, casting a creepy atmosphere over the entire city.
The usually busy streets of Magnolia were empty, as all the citizens had taken shelter indoors from the rain.
This actually made things easier for the guild members carrying out their missions.
"Hey!! Natsu! How does it look up there?"
Gray tilted his head upward, the violent rain mercilessly pounding against his face.
Unfortunately, no matter how loud he yelled, his voice could not break through the curtain of rain to reach the sky.
Natsu and Wendy flew upward through the heavy rain.
Completely drenched, Natsu twitched his nose slightly, trying to pick up any unusual smells.
"This is strange... Is the rain too heavy for me to smell properly? Why do I keep sensing an unfamiliar scent?" Natsu muttered to himself.
Wendy face completely soaked as she focused deeply on feeling the air and shouted to Natsu.
"Natsu-san, the air has changed! It is completely different from Earthland's air!"
Carla had an unreadable look in her eyes.
She pursed her lips and held tightly onto Wendy, remaining silent the entire time.
Just then, a voice suddenly echoed in their minds—it was Warren's telepathic magic connecting them.
Through the telepathy, Cana called out, "Come down quickly, Natsu and Wendy! The sky is acting very strangely!"
Natsu and Wendy immediately flew down.
They saw that a massive vortex had quietly appeared in the gloomy, rain-filled sky.
It swirled with rainwater and dark clouds, flashing constantly with lightning.
"This must be what Ankh has been preparing for..."
'Anima. ...'
...
"Ankh, a vortex has appeared in the sky. How do we stop it?"
Inside the guild, Warren stood nearby, acting as the communication hub for all the mages out in the city.
Meanwhile, Ankh and the others were discussing matters with the Master, all wearing serious expressions.
Hearing this, Ankh turned to look at Mystogan, who had experience with this.
Mystogan shook his head and said through gritted teeth, "This Anima is different from the ones before. The gathered power is almost equal to the total of all previous years combined. There is no way to fix it."
"Judging by this situation, Edolas probably plans to teleport the entire city in one go."
Makarov, who had already heard Mystogan explain the situation, snorted coldly before glaring at the sky outside the window.
"The king of that world... has gone mad. He sheds the blood of others to gain free resources for himself, claiming it is for his kingdom. Pah! That is the behavior of a bandit!"
As the old man condemned the evil actions of the other world's king, Ankh watched the rapidly growing vortex outside the window.
Beams of light had already started shooting out from inside the Anima.
This prompted him to quickly tell Natsu and the others outside.
"Return to the guild first. Do not stay in the sky."
At that moment, Freed entered the guild with the Thunder God Tribe and Levy.
Laxus immediately asked, "How did it go? Are the Magic Formulas complete?"
Freed quickly nodded and said, "The Magic Formulas for both Magnolia and the guild are finished. Thanks to everyone's help, their defensive strength will not be an issue."
Makarov looked at Ankh and asked, "Ankh, are you trying to cut off the connection between Magnolia and the guild?"
Ankh nodded.
He met the gazes of everyone in the hall and said, "We can take risks together, but the citizens cannot. I listened to Mystogan explaination how Anima works earlier. To put it simply, it is a forced spatial teleportation magic that crosses between worlds. It can also freeze all magical energy and turn it into pure magic crystals."
"To protect the citizens, we just need to trick the magic."
"With me, Gildarts, and Laxus boosting our magic power, we can fill the magic shortage in the citizens who have never learned magic. This will be enough to trick the tracking system of this Super Magic."
"As for how to avoid being turned into Magic Crystals..."
Makarov stared at the increasingly terrifying Anima and said seriously, "By using defensive magic circles supported by the Magic Formulas, and synchronizing everyone's magic power, we can create an effect that mimics the Magic Crystals."
Ankh snapped his fingers and said, "That is exactly what I meant."
Makarov gripped his staff and struck it heavily against the floor, looking seriously at the guild members standing before him.
By now, Natsu and the others had also returned to the guild.
Everyone stood before Makarov, forming a massive, dense crowd.
They had learned from Mystogan and the Master's earlier conversation what the vortex in the sky really was.
They understood exactly who wanted to harm their guild.
For the Fairy Tail mages, knowing this was enough!
Standing in the crowd, Lucy vaguely remembered the night when Ankh had led the members in a fast strike against the Phantom Lord guild.
This felt so similar to that day.
Lucy felt courage and confidence welling up in her heart.
She firmly believed that no enemy could defeat the guild when they were united like this!
"You have all heard it! The king of another world, Edolas, is using Anima to cross worlds and steal magic power and mages from Earthland!"
"For their own selfish desires, they drain the life from others to make themselves richer, all while proudly claiming it is for their kingdom and people. But whose people and whose country are they stealing from?!"
"Moreover!" Makarov violently crushed the staff in his hand.
His normally kind, old face now looked like a fierce demon as he roared word by word, "Daring to make the children of this guild bear the weight of their sins! Daring to reach their greedy hands toward our guild! There can only be one outcome!"
Mystogan's eyes wavered slightly as he looked at the short old man, whose presence felt overwhelmingly huge.
Makarov raised his head and roared with boiling anger.
"War!"
All the mages in the guild raised their weapons and fists at the same time, their powerful voices echoing through the hall.
"War! War!!"
Mystogan watched the angry crowd.
His hands trembled slightly beneath his black robe, and he looked somewhat lost as he stared at the Guild Master.
Laxus slapped his shoulder firmly and laughed with bold confidence, "Do not worry! We will make sure you return to your homeland openly and proudly!"
"And while we are at it... we will settle this score!"
Knowing Mystogan still had worries, Ankh smiled and spoke to him.
"So what if we get sent to another world? We are still together, advancing and retreating as one. What is there to be afraid of?"
Mystogan stayed silent for a long time before finally lifting his head and nodding firmly.
'Yes... I am also a mage of this guild. With everyone together with me, what is there to fear?!'
"Attention! Anima is beginning to activate!" Levy, who was standing by the window, pointed at the sky and shouted urgently.
Makarov's expression became as calm as a still lake once again as he called out to the guild.
"Everyone, get ready!"
Ankh and the other mages with immense Magic Power began unleashing power far beyond their normal limits.
At the same time, Freed and the others desperately strengthened the guild's defensive and support Magic Formulas.
Makarov clapped his hands together and shouted.
"Defensive Formation: Three Pillar Gods!"
A thick, earthy-yellow defensive light wrapped around the entire guild building as Makarov laughed heartily.
"Children! Let's go have some fun in another world, hahaha!"