"I already heard everything from Erza."
"I approve the decision to go to war, but no matter what happens, you must protect everyone in the guild."
"Understood, brat?"
Through the magic crystal, Makarov fixed Kabe with a grave expression as he gave his order.
Kabe nodded seriously and made his promise.
"Trust me, old man."
"I will bring every single one of our people back."
"Not one will be missing."
Makarov gave a small nod, a weight in his heart lifting slightly.
Thankfully, Fairy Tail still had an outstanding young man like Kabe in the guild.
Otherwise, with Jose suddenly making his move like this, the children of the guild would have been in real danger.
"I am leaving the guild to you."
"I will be going with Gray and Sorano under orders from the Council to take part in the operation to capture Brain."
"I will not go into all the details now."
"Just protect yourself."
"You too, old man."
"If a Wizard Saint like you lets someone get away, it is going to look pretty embarrassing."
"You think this old man cares about something like that?"
"If I really cannot beat him, I will grab Gray and Sorano and run."
The little old man said such shameless things with a completely smug expression.
Kabe could not help laughing.
"Fine."
"I will learn from you properly."
"If I cannot beat Jose either, I will immediately grab everyone and run too."
Of course, that was never going to happen.
After sharing that brief joke, the two cut off the communication.
The very instant he finished speaking with Kabe, Makarov immediately sent a message to his old friend Yajima in the Council.
He accused Phantom Lord of violating Council law by attacking Fairy Tail, another legal guild, without authorization.
Of course, he was only giving Yajima a heads up.
He was not asking him to report it to the Council right away.
If they were going to complain to the Council, it would only be after Kabe had beaten Phantom Lord and repaid the humiliation in full.
...
With Erza, Mira, Macao, and Wakaba helping him, Kabe carefully arranged everything in detail.
Once all preparations were complete, he led the entirety of Fairy Tail, abandoning their main base for the time being, and headed straight for Phantom Lord's branch in Oak Town.
The culprits behind last night's attack on the guild, Iron Dragon Gajeel and Aria of the Element Four, were currently resting there.
Or rather, it was not just the two of them.
Most of Phantom Lord's elite had gathered in that branch.
That included the other two members of the Element Four, Sol of Earth and Totomaru of Scorching Flame, as well as Phantom Lord's absolute ruler, Guild Master Jose Porla.
...
Wearing a pointed wizard's hat and a purple short robe decorated with demonic wings, a neat bow tied at his chest so that he looked almost like a gentleman, Jose sat with one leg crossed over the other atop the throne on the raised platform in the hall.
He listened as Gajeel and Aria gave their report.
"Master, you should have seen it."
"Last night I turned their guild into a pincushion and not a single one of them came out to stop me."
"The people of Fairy Tail are like sheep who have been penned up too long."
"They have completely lost their instincts."
Gajeel, with his black spiked hair and iron studs through his ears, brows, and jaw, spoke with utter contempt as he recounted his little victory.
After he finished, Aria, his eyes hidden under his cloth wrap, pressed his hands together and spoke in a sorrowful tone.
"How tragic."
"That traitor really was worthy of the master's approval as a candidate for the Element Four."
"I failed to take her down immediately, and because of that she held on until reinforcements came."
"Although I still managed to drain all of her magic power in the end, I was forced to retreat by a girl who used Crush magic."
"Is that so?"
"What a pity."
Jose smiled without concern.
"But perhaps that is for the best."
"Let her live a little longer in pain and terror."
"Once I crush Fairy Tail, I will personally deal with her."
"I will make sure to torture her properly, so that everyone learns the fate of those who betray Phantom Lord."
His cold, sinister words sent a chill through the gathered Phantom Lord lackeys.
Sol, dressed in a brown little suit and wearing a monocle, twisted his body dramatically and spoke with a face full of pity.
"Non, non, non, master, how can you treat such a lovely girl in such an ungentlemanly way?"
Someone unfamiliar with Sol might have thought he was going to plead with the master on Juvia's behalf.
But his next sentence instantly revealed his true nature.
"When you do it, please make sure to tell me beforehand."
"My heart is too soft."
"I would not be able to bear watching such a scene."
"Heh heh heh."
"Mister Sol is truly a gentleman."
"Very well, I promise you that."
Jose did not mind showing a little magnanimity to one of his useful subordinates.
At that moment, the final member of the Element Four spoke up as well.
Totomaru, dressed in full ninja garb, tightened the grip on the short blade at his waist and stepped forward.
"Master, from what we have seen so far, Fairy Tail really is as empty internally as our intelligence claimed."
"Since we have already decided to go to war, I say we should stop delaying and depart at once."
"How impatient, Totomaru."
Jose lifted his chin dismissively and sneered.
"Without Makarov there to sit at the center, Fairy Tail is simply not worth fearing."