"What is your goal?" Lyon asked, his face pressed against the cold stone floor.
"The same as yours, so we can get along peacefully," Nate replied, slowly releasing him.
Nate didn't know how to perform the Moon Drip ritual, so to melt the ice, he needed someone who knew what they were doing.
Lyon stood up, casting a serious glance at Nate, then at Ultear.
"You want to revive Deliora too?"
"Not at all," Ultear immediately denied. As a member of the Magic Council, she couldn't admit that. Her plan was to manipulate Lyon into breaking the seal and then take control of Deliora herself. Unfortunately, Nate had seen through her disguise as the man "Zalty," which left her in an awkward position.
But since Nate wanted the ritual to proceed, it actually worked to her advantage, so she wouldn't interfere.
After a moment of silence, Lyon spoke. "It will take another day to break the seal."
Given the power imbalance, he had no choice but to comply for now. He would wait until Deliora revived before making his move.
"Good. You should join the ritual as well. The more people, the faster it will go," Nate said.
"...Fine." Lyon gritted his teeth, nodded, and silently walked over to join the cloaked figures, kneeling to worship the moon.
At that moment, distant rumblings came from the forest. Nate, using his Six Eyes, saw Erza and Juvia fighting Lyon's three subordinates.
He sent a quick message.
Sigma Male: "Don't kill them, Erza. Bring them to the temple."
Before long, five more people appeared at the temple. Lyon's subordinates, Yuka, Toby, and Sherry, had been defeated by Erza and Juvia near the temple and were dragged back.
The three were now kneeling beside Lyon, also participating in the Moon Drip ritual.
"What's going on?" Erza asked, bewildered.
Nate explained casually, "We might as well take down Deliora. If we don't, someone else will come along and try to revive it again. This island's unique geography makes it ideal for the Moon Drip ritual. I don't want to come back for another round."
Erza thought for a moment and reluctantly agreed. "That makes sense, but do we have enough strength to win?"
"We'll win."
He paused, realizing it sounded ominous, then added, "Besides, we have a Council member here."
Nate gestured toward Ultear, who had been quietly watching. When the others looked at her, Ultear forced a smile and said, "If we fail, I'll ensure everyone gets out safely, and the Magic Council can handle the rest."
Her statement was half-true. She would save them, but by the time the Council intervened, Deliora would already be under her control. And, of course, she planned to pin the blame on Nate—he did call her "flirtatious," after all. She wasn't flirty! She was a pure, innocent 18-year-old girl!
Nate stifled a laugh. It was quite the scene—everyone had their own agenda.
Lyon's group wanted to defeat Deliora. Ultear sought to control the demon. As for Nate, while he claimed he wanted to rid the world of Deliora, his true goal was to melt the ice and collect Ur's soul.
Even with different motivations, for now, everyone was aligned in continuing the Moon Drip ritual.
…
Time passed slowly. Except for Laxus, who was still lost somewhere on the island, all the mages had gathered at the temple.
When midnight struck, the ground shook, and the roar of a demon echoed from beneath the temple. The Moon Drip ritual was interrupted.
Lyon's face lit up with joy. "Deliora is revived!"
Without hesitation, he rushed away.
"Lyon-sama!" His subordinates quickly followed.
Ultear's expression briefly showed delight, but she quickly masked it.
"Let's go see what happened," Nate said, closing his magic book and addressing the group.
They descended into the underground cave just in time to see Deliora disintegrating into dust. Lyon fell to his knees, muttering in disbelief.
"Deliora… is dead?"
For three years—three long years—he had transported Deliora to this island and carried out the Moon Drip ritual. Now, after finally breaking the seal, the demon inside was dead. What had he been fighting for all this time?
Ultear bit her lip, struggling to accept what had happened. That woman's magic had actually killed the demon?
Nate glanced at her, amused.
'Didn't expect that, did you? Deliora was killed by your own mother.'
Only Erza seemed relieved. "Looks like we didn't even need to fight. So, Nate, what now?"
"Let's shatter the evil barrier in the sky and finish the mission," Nate said, turning to leave without a second thought.
As he walked away, Juvia quickly followed, her attention solely on Nate. Erza glanced at Ultear, then also left.
Ultear took a deep breath and approached the pool of melted ice. After a moment, she let out a small scoff.
Turning to Lyon and his subordinates, she said, "This was boring. But since you didn't cause too much trouble, I'll let you off this time."
She had lost interest and, with a thought, her body dissolved like ripples in water—revealing that she had been using a Thought Projection the entire time.
"Lyon-sama…" his subordinates called out to him, but Lyon was too disoriented to respond.
Now, he felt utterly empty. He wanted nothing more than to be left alone.
"Leave me alone for a while," Lyon said, standing up with a blank expression and wandering aimlessly out of the cave.
…
After some time, the cave was quiet. At the edge of the pool, a golden magic circle suddenly flared to life, and Nate appeared.
"Finally, they're all gone. Do you know how hard it is to collect souls?"
Muttering to himself, Nate crouched and reached into the melted water. With the Six Eyes, he could track the flow of magic and began carefully collecting the fragments of Ur's soul.
It was a painstaking task.
…
In a strange, unfamiliar world, Ur slowly opened her eyes. She was completely naked.
"Where… am I?"
"I died, didn't I?" Ur touched her face, feeling its contours but lacking any sense of warmth. She could still feel her body, yet something was off.
Looking around, she saw streams of numbers, 0s and 1s, flowing endlessly.
"What is this place? The afterlife?"
"No, this is the 'Deep Web'—a part of the Internet magic I created. You're the first visitor."
A male voice echoed, and a young man in his twenties appeared before her.
"Who are you? And what is this Deep Web?" Ur frowned slightly, holding her head, her memories muddled. She vaguely remembered seeing this man while she was encased in ice.
"Nice to meet you, Ur," Nate smiled. "The Internet is a magic I created, and the Deep Web is its core."
With a snap of his fingers, the endless 0s and 1s around them formed into displays, showing the various functions of the Internet—forums, games like Fruit Ninja, and chat groups with messages constantly refreshing.
An overwhelming stream of information flowed around her, all made up of those same 0s and 1s.
Ur stood there, stunned. "What kind of magic is this?"
"Did you… bring me back to life?" she asked, her eyes wide, filled with shock.
In her understanding, resurrection magic was legendary. She had only ever heard of it, never seen it.
"No, I just gathered your soul and brought it into the Deep Web," Nate said, admiring her figure for a moment before adding, "But first, you should put on some clothes."
With another snap, a fitting blue dress materialized, covering her body.
Ur, still in shock, touched the dress—it felt real.
Was it conjured out of thin air? Was this man a god? A god of magic?
"Don't be too surprised. In the Deep Web, everything is 'virtual.' For example… time can flow backward."
Nate clapped his hands, and the surrounding data began rewinding in time. Then, with another clap, everything stopped.
Ur was speechless. This magic was far beyond anything she had ever known.
With newfound reverence, she asked, "Great mage, may I know your name?"
"Nate."
~~~
Ur is here!!
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