A few minutes later, at Nirvana's location.
Erza and Jellal both seemed to have calmed down. One continued to watch Nirvana's disintegration, while the other stared intently at Erza's back.
When Zorn and Laxus arrived at Nirvana's location with Everyone, it was evident that a subtle, ambiguous tension filled the air between Erza and Jellal.
At this moment, Jellal's gaze remained fixed on Erza's back, like a longing stone.
Erza, however, kept her back to them, making her expression unclear, but the slight twitching of her body suggested she could feel Jellal's fervent gaze.
"Hey, Jellal, you bastard! How dare you show your face here again!" Natsu, oblivious to the ambiguous atmosphere, still regarded Jellal as an enemy and lunged forward, intending to punch him.
Gray, however, had already noticed and quickly pulled back Natsu's impulsive figure, saying helplessly, "Hey, Natsu, look at the current situation, will you!"
"What situation, Gray? Don't stop me, let go!" Natsu became even more agitated, flailing his limbs, almost accidentally injuring others, causing Gray to lose his grip.
"Take this!"
Natsu immediately acted like an animal let out of its cage, sprinting towards Jellal, intent on landing a punch.
But his intentions were good, while reality dealt him a heavy blow.
"Settle down!!!"
With a bang, Natsu was knocked to the ground by a punch from Laxus. After that punch, Natsu was completely silenced, lying on the ground, disoriented.
"Natsu~" Wendy, looking worried, ran over to check on Natsu, while Everyone else seemed accustomed to such scenes.
Zorn observed Laxus's actions, then noticed Laxus's contemplative expression, and nodded. He felt happy for Makarov, the Guild Master, who had worried about Laxus for a long time.
Laxus had always maintained a cool demeanor in the guild, only discussing work with Mirajane, not to mention Freed Justin, who was always Laxus's loyal little fan.
From his current actions and expression, it seemed Laxus had matured, or perhaps he was just the reserved type.
"Zorn, that expression of yours makes me a little uncomfortable!" Laxus glanced sideways, his tone stiff, immediately causing Zorn to rein in his imaginative thoughts.
"Jellal, how's the situation?"
Zorn's voice interrupted Jellal's thoughts. He turned to Zorn and said, "Nothing unusual. In another 30 minutes, Nirvana should be completely destroyed!"
"Is this the charm of love? It's truly captivating!" Hoteye, also known as Richard, stood with his hands clasped over his chest, his eyes filled with longing and envy for love.
His words successfully broke Erza's composure, and a rare puff of steam appeared above her head.
"We must thank Jellal for assisting us this time. The self-destructing magic circle here was set by Jellal."
Zorn pointed at the light pillar covered in symbols in front of them, successfully diverting Everyone's attention.
When Wendy heard the words "thank you," she immediately recalled her childhood, the period when the Sky Dragon suddenly disappeared. It was Jellal who had taken her to live and travel, and eventually found the Cait Shelter Guild for her.
Her heart was filled with gratitude for Jellal. Just as she was about to speak to him,
Zorn suddenly conjured a light barrier, encircling Everyone in a halo of light. To their confusion, it then rapidly expanded and surged outwards.
Behind them, the sound of synchronized footsteps echoed.
"What's going on!" Natsu, groggily waking up, saw a group of soldiers in Council uniforms approaching them from behind.
"We apologize, we do not wish to use force, so please remain where you are. Nirvana will be taken over by us!"
"I am Lahar, captain of the New Council's Fourth Forced Detention Unit."
Lahar, a delicate-looking man wearing glasses, stepped forward a few paces. He politely explained that he had just been about to use a spell to restrain them. Everyone then understood why Zorn had acted that way.
After Lahar finished speaking, he immediately arranged a line of people to surround Nirvana, taking complete custody of it.
Gray and the others watched them with wary eyes, constantly on guard.
When Natsu heard the words "Council," his slightly clear mind immediately became terrified again, clearly telling the other party that he was guilty, completely forgetting that he was on a mission and was on the side of justice this time.
Well, it just goes to show that he often made mistakes during his missions.
"Our purpose here is to apprehend the Oración Seis. Please hand over Hoteye to us. The other four have already been successfully captured!"
Lahar didn't pay attention to their reactions. He pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose and looked at Hoteye behind Jura with a serious expression.
"Wait... wait a minute, Hoteye, he..." Upon hearing this, Jura immediately stepped forward, wanting to defend Hoteye, to say that Hoteye had already turned to the side of good.
"It's alright, Jura. Even if I have abandoned evil and turned to good, it cannot erase the sins I committed in the past!"
"I want to turn over a new leaf, so that when I find my brother, I can face him with a clear conscience, truly!"
But Hoteye stopped him. In his heart, he was filled with guilt for his past mistakes, and at the same time, he thought about being able to face his brother openly in the future.
"If that's the case, then I'll help you find your brother! What's your brother's name?"
"Really? His name is Wooly Buchanan."
Hoteye, hearing that Jura was willing to help him find his brother, immediately became excited and thrilled, confirming it further in disbelief.
Natsu, Gray, and the others nearby were stunned upon hearing the name. It was a very familiar name, yet they couldn't recall it for a moment. After sifting through the people they had met before, a square-shaped person suddenly appeared in their minds.
"Square!"
Erza also understood, and with a knowing smile, she stepped forward and said to Hoteye, "I know that person of yours!"
"What!"
"He's my friend. He's currently traveling across the continent with his companions, full of spirit."
Upon hearing Erza's words, Hoteye immediately turned around excitedly. Hearing that his brother was safe and sound, traveling happily and healthily, his excited heart and the joy of rediscovery instantly transformed into hot tears, streaming down his cheeks.
"Ahhhhh~"
"Is this the miracle of grace that only those who believe in light and shun darkness can receive? Thank you...."
Hoteye knelt on the ground, his hands covering his face, regretting his sins, feeling fortunate for yearning for light, and happy for his brother. All these emotions transformed into tears of regret and release at this moment.
The Council's army silently watched everything unfolding, not stepping forward to disturb it.
Once Hoteye's emotions had somewhat calmed, he was escorted by the Council into a prison carriage. He saw the four others who were similarly restrained, and they, too, seemed happy for him.
"I really feel sorry for him!" Lucy said empathetically.
"We have another purpose for being here, and that is to bring back Jellal!"
At this moment, Jellal suddenly stood up and said, "It seems my time is up. I should return to where I belong!"
Erza stood frozen, her eyes filled with reluctance and sadness, watching Jellal's receding figure. She knew her feelings, she wanted to stop him, yet her body felt rooted to the ground, unable to move at all. She forcibly suppressed her emotions with reason.
"But he clearly stopped Nirvana from activating, he... he should be able to..." Wendy, however, became resolute. She stepped forward and courageously argued with Lahar, convinced in her heart that Jellal was good.
"According to the law... that reason doesn't mean anything. Furthermore, his release was decided by the Council, only allowing him a certain reduction in his sentence..." Lahar continued to strictly enforce the orders given by the Council.
Jellal seemed to sense Wendy's feelings and gently said to her, "It's alright... Thank you, Wendy. From your expression, I feel like we must have known each other before..."
Zorn, however, walked over to Erza, placed a hand on her shoulder, and quietly said something to her, which made Erza pause, and then her eyes became resolute, losing their previous dejection.
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