The fourth day of the Grand Magic Games began.
It was also the second-to-last day of the tournament, a crucial turning point.
Inside the inn where Fairy Tail Team B was staying, the people on the second floor had already gotten up early and were waiting.
Laxus quietly poked his head out the window and secretly observed the street below.
"Someone's watching us."
His eyes narrowed slightly. Before long, he spotted the hidden agents stationed around the inn.
One glance was enough to tell they were people arranged by the royal army.
"What do we do? Lucy and Natsu can't go outside now."
Mirajane looked worriedly at Future Lucy, who was sleeping on the bed, then turned to Ankh beside her.
Ankh shook his head and said, "We'll take them with us to the Grand Magic Games arena."
Gajeel cracked his knuckles and asked, "How about I just go drag those guys watching us out of hiding?"
"Even if you find them, they can just say they're monitoring us because of the trouble we caused yesterday."
"Besides, even without those people watching us, I wouldn't feel safe letting those two leave on their own."
Ankh's gaze was deep as he looked at Future Lucy, who was asleep from sheer exhaustion.
Team A had also hidden Natsu away on their side.
There had been no victory banquet last night. Instead, Lucy had told everyone about what happened before the end came.
According to her memory, the king and princess had seemingly wanted to fight the dragon swarm by using the Eclipse Gate, a device created by Zeref, to destroy the dragons.
According to legend, the Eclipse Gate was a powerful magical artifact related to space and time, possessing the ability to travel through time itself.
Lucy and Natsu had stumbled into the Eclipse Gate by accident while escaping under their friends' protection, which was how they had arrived in the present.
In that timeline, Lucy had once spoken briefly with Princess Hisui.
According to what Hisui told her, on July 7, the Eclipse Gate would undergo an abnormal change that could destroy the attacking dragons.
That was why, in order to prevent Celestial Spirit Mages from interfering with the Eclipse Gate's activation, the kingdom had captured both Yukino and Lucy.
They had even personally explained to them that the kingdom bore no ill will.
As a companion, Ankh naturally had to judge the situation from a position of trusting Lucy completely.
But the story she told contained many suspicious points.
According to Lucy, Princess Hisui had found a way to save the kingdom, which was the so-called opening of the Eclipse Gate.
The part Ankh doubted most was why the Eclipse Gate, after undergoing some abnormal change, would suddenly possess enough destructive power to wipe out a swarm of dragons.
In the end, it was still just a gate!
Moreover, judging by what happened after Lucy woke up and escaped, Princess Hisui, the king, and the others had also been killed by that mysterious masked person.
That meant the plan might not have succeeded at all.
Or perhaps it had succeeded, but the final result of that plan might not have been what the kingdom wanted.
The dragon swarm ran wild, the kingdom collapsed, and the guild was destroyed.
No one seemed to have benefited from any of it.
Even if the mysterious masked person was behind everything, Ankh could not understand what advantage there would be in letting dragons ravage the world.
Knock, knock.
A light knocking sounded at the door.
Juvia, who was standing by the entrance, quickly opened it.
A figure wrapped in a black robe slipped inside from outside.
Jellal pulled down his hood. The moment he entered, he sensed the unusually heavy atmosphere in the room.
He looked at Ankh and said, "No one followed me. Is there anything I can help with?"
On the surface, the kingdom was watching Fairy Tail and the others constantly, so Ankh had secretly used a coded signal last night to call Jellal back.
"There are indeed a few things I'd like your help with."
Ankh glanced at Lucy behind him, then quietly repeated the events Lucy had experienced to Jellal.
After hearing everything, Jellal immediately frowned and quickly reacted.
"You think the kingdom's higher-ups were deceived?"
Ankh nodded. Recalling Lucy's words, he said, "If we gather Lucy's information together and assume the dragons really will appear out of nowhere, then why did the Eclipse Gate enter the kingdom's field of vision in the first place?"
"And I really find it hard to believe that after the Eclipse Gate undergoes an abnormal change on July 7, it will be able to destroy the dragon swarm. That gate feels far too abrupt in this story."
"But if we assume the dragon swarm doesn't appear out of nowhere…"
Jellal and Ankh's eyes met.
Both of them saw a flash of astonishment in the other's gaze.
"If the dragon swarm doesn't appear out of nowhere… then it can only be connected to the Eclipse Gate."
Jellal swallowed.
Shock surged through his heart as he said the exact thing Ankh had been thinking.
Ankh nodded, then swept his gaze around the room.
"That's right. So I need Team Ram to secretly infiltrate the palace and investigate the Eclipse Gate, along with that mysterious person. You don't need to get too close. Just find out the general situation."
"As for us, we're out of the question. The kingdom is clearly already monitoring us. If anyone misses the tournament today, they'll probably notice something is wrong."
"I understand. Leave it to me."
Jellal understood how urgent the situation was.
He pulled his hood back up, decisively opened the door, and slipped out silently.
Laxus watched Jellal disappear into the distance, then sighed at Ankh.
"You don't need to look so grim. With Lucy's information, at least we can prepare in advance now."
"There has to be a hand pushing all of this from the shadows. Dragons appearing, the apocalypse arriving… compared to believing all of that is fate, I'd rather believe someone caused it."
Ankh shook his head, throwing aside the tangled thoughts in his mind.
Then he glanced at the wall clock and said, "Let's go. It's time to head to the arena."
…
The Grand Magic Games venue was still bustling with prosperity and excitement.
If Future Lucy had not warned them, Fairy Tail would never have been able to tell that this city was about to face the end of the world.
Outside, the cheers roared like thunder. In the seats occupied by Fairy Tail's support group, a large group of guild members protected Future Lucy and Future Natsu in the middle, afraid that someone might try to snatch them away.
Future Lucy gazed at the lively scene in front of her, which felt like it belonged to another lifetime.
Tears silently slid down her cheeks as the corners of her mouth lifted gently.
"It's only been a few days, but I really missed this. Today should be the day I go on stage, right? I remember losing in a really embarrassing way…"
Makarov stayed close beside Future Natsu, whom he had coaxed back to sleep early that morning.
In a kindly voice, he said, "How could that be? Someone who fights bravely is never embarrassing."
Lisanna stroked Future Lucy's back with aching tenderness, then asked nervously, "Lucy, I remember you said you were taken away today?"
Lucy nodded and hesitated before saying, "I was attacked while receiving treatment in the infirmary."
Makarov sent a look toward Freed beside him.
Freed immediately responded in a low voice, "I made urgent temporary arrangements and set up ten layers of Jutsu Shiki. We also spoke with Erza and the others. After Lucy leaves the stage, someone will stay by her side at all times."
Makarov nodded, but he still felt uneasy and reminded them, "Have either Ankh or Laxus follow her too. We cannot afford to be careless."
Although the kingdom might not have intended to harm Lucy, their actions had indirectly caused her suffering.
Because of that, Makarov remained extremely wary and displeased with the royal side.
"Speaking of which, where's the First? I wanted to hear her opinion."
Makarov looked around, but he did not see the ghostly young girl who had always stayed by their side.
At that moment, Asuka suddenly raised her hand and said with a smile, "I know! First Master went to find the bad guy!"
"The bad guy?"
"Yeah. That's what she told me."