"I know you're not afraid of death," Mirajane said softly. "Because you believe you'll be reborn after it."
She lifted one black blade and pressed its tip lightly beneath Ezel's chin.
The smile on her face was gentle, and unmistakably wicked, the same one she used to wear back in her delinquent days.
"But if I peel your power away bit by bit," she continued calmly, "and finally take your soul entirely…"
Her eyes curved as she finished the sentence.
"Will you still be able to come back?"
Ezel leaned his head back as far as the restraints allowed, his throat tightening as he swallowed.
He wasn't afraid of dying.
But how one died mattered.
If it was just the destruction of his body, it meant nothing. But if his soul was erased, then he would truly cease to exist.
Worse still, this woman reminded him of two beings from within Tartaros itself.
One was Franmalth, the one-eyed, obese demon in armor whose Curse devoured power and harvested souls.
The other, Kyôka.
The leader of the Nine Demon Gates.
Mirajane's calm smile, her pressure, her absolute certainty, Ezel would have believed it instantly if someone told him Kyôka herself was standing in front of him in disguise.
That kind of intimidation crushed the will.
Nearby, Torafuzar of the Darkness felt his nerves tighten as well.
A human who could seize a demon's power…
She was their natural predator.
He had once mocked Jackal and Tempester, laughing at their self-destruction abilities, claiming that only the weak resorted to mutual annihilation.
Now?
He desperately wished he had such a Curse.
To explode and return to the guild instantly, that would be infinitely better than having his power stripped away piece by piece.
Even worse, this information had to be reported to Tartaros.
Immediately.
The fact that humans could take over demons was catastrophic.
But neither he nor Ezel had any way to send the message.
Mirajane noticed the hesitation in Ezel's eyes.
Her Take over Magic activated again.
"This is your last chance."
Pain surged.
Not physical pain, but the sensation of something fundamental being torn away.
Power drained.
And deeper still. His soul felt like it was being gnawed on.
Ezel trembled violently.
But in the end, he forced his neck stiff and snarled hoarsely.
"It doesn't matter! Even if you kill me, I'll eventually return to Zeref's side!"
His eyes burned with madness.
"And all of you, will die!"
Mirajane withdrew her blade.
She used the same method on Torafuzar.
The result was no different.
Even as their power dwindled, their curses never changed.
Again and again, the same words surfaced: Return to Zeref's side.
The members of Tartaros were fanatics, perhaps even more extreme than the zealots of the Black Magic Cult.
Makarov looked at the two demons, now barely clinging to their remaining power, and sighed heavily.
"Why do you place such faith in Zeref?"
Torafuzar sneered weakly.
"Heh… does one need a reason to believe in their Creator?"
Zeref had created the entire Etherious race.
To them, he was not just a master, He was God.
"Nothing else for it," Rhodes said, rubbing his temples. "I'll go pick up Lucy. Keep them alive for now."
Mirajane had already extracted most of the demons' power.
Their only remaining value was information about Tartaros.
If torture didn't work, then they'd let Gemini try.
And if even Gemini failed, Rhodes would have to move to Plan B.
They had been busy the entire night.
Though the sun had not yet risen, a pale line of light had already appeared on the eastern horizon.
Cloud Dragon wings unfolded from Rhodes's back as he took off, flying swiftly toward the city where Michello lived.
Heading westward, he felt as though he were racing against the dawn itself.
Time blurred as he flew.
Only when the shape of the river below matched the map, and the bridge used as a local landmark came into view, did Rhodes slow.
He had arrived.
Lowering his altitude, he glided toward Michello's house.
And then, a chill crept up his spine.
"Something's wrong."
Michello's house stood beside a narrow section of the river, right next to a small bridge.
At first, Rhodes thought the ground below was shimmering, just the pale light of dawn reflecting off the river.
But the longer he looked, the colder his blood ran.
It wasn't light, it was ice.
Silvery-white ice blanketed everything in sight.
Michello's house, the narrow bridge, the river's surface. Even the open ground along the banks.
Everything had been sealed beneath a flawless, frozen shell.
"Sun Village?" Rhodes muttered. "That guy?"
He hadn't been there himself, but Gray had described that man's magic in detail.
There was no mistaking it.
Ice Demon Slayer Magic.
Only someone like that could freeze an entire area so completely.
A sharp thought cut through him.
'If the ice reached this scale… is Michello already...'
Rhodes activated Void Vision.
The world peeled back.
Two figures stood atop the frozen river.
One was Gray.
The other was a man clad in silver armor, a deep scar carved into the left side of his forehead.
Gray was shirtless, his body covered in countless shallow wounds. His breathing was heavy.
The man opposite him, however, not a single scratch.
Gray was being suppressed.
Which was only natural.
An Ice Demon Slayer facing an Ice Mage was practically a hard counter.
Rhodes descended at once, landing beside Gray.
"Is he the only enemy?"
"Rhodes?!" Gray looked genuinely relieved, then quickly said, "Mr. Michello, Erza, and the others were frozen, but they should still be alive!"
"I see." Rhodes's gaze flicked across the ice. Void Vision had already shown him the frozen figures. "Even Erza, huh…"
Indeed.
Natsu and Happy were still standing, encased mid-motion. Erza and Lucy lay frozen on the ground.
Gray gritted his teeth. "We were rotating night watch. When this guy appeared, it was Erza and Lucy's turn to rest."
Rhodes nodded.
With magic power at that level, a surprise attack would have been devastating.
"So you brought reinforcements?" the silver-armored man sneered, eyes full of mockery.
"How predictable. Weak creatures like humans can only huddle together for warmth."
This guy.
Something about him was deeply off.
Rhodes frowned slightly. "Gray. Do you know who he is?"
Gray hesitated.
"He looks like my father."
The face.
The voice.
They were identical.
But his father had died years ago, slain by Deliora.
And then the man before them threw his head back and laughed.
"I am Deliora!" he roared. "The nightmare of that brat standing beside you!"
His eyes gleamed with cruelty.
"I'll kill your companion first, let you relive that terror… then slowly torture you to death in it! Hahahaha!"
Gray's fists shook.
"Damn it!"
"Hold on," Rhodes said calmly.
The laughter faltered.
"You're celebrating a bit early."
He studied the man carefully, head tilted.
"You don't look like a demon to me."
The silver-armored man froze for a split second, then burst into laughter again.
"If I'm not a demon," he sneered, "what am I? A human?"
His expression twisted.
"Do you want me to turn into the form that brat fears most?!"
Gray swallowed hard.
Between an enemy and a companion, there was no real choice.
"Rhodes," he asked quietly. "Are you serious?"
"I've got plenty of experience telling humans from demons," Rhodes replied evenly.
"This one carries a demonic aura, yes, but he's human."
He paused, eyes narrowing with genuine curiosity.
"That said."
He looked the man up and down once more.
"You don't look like a living human either."