"I know where Nirvana is."
Reading Voldemort's message, Brain was shaken to his core.
'He even knows that...'
Brain grew even more curious about Voldemort's true identity.
Leader: "You know?"
Voldemort: "It's in Worth Woodsea."
Brain had only been probing, but to his surprise, Voldemort had accurately named the location.
Voldemort: "No need to thank me. I happen to be heading there soon myself."
Seeing this, Brain's face darkened.
'Could it be that this person is also after Nirvana?'
'No, if that were the case, there'd be no reason for him to share the information.'
Regardless, he had to get to Nirvana before this person!
With that thought, Brain quickly switched to the chat group.
Racer and Cobra were still bickering.
Leader: "Enough!"
Leader: "Since the mission failed, both of you return!"
Leader: "There's something more important to deal with!"
...
Nate noticed the other side had gone silent for a while and shook his head.
"Feeling anxious?"
Good. If it keeps him occupied, he won't bother me anymore. Let them focus on Nirvana instead.
By directing the Oración Seis toward Nirvana, it wouldn't be long before the Magic Council caught wind of their movements.
"Speaking of Nirvana... it's an ancient magic. Might as well check it out myself if I get the chance," Nate mused.
Nirvana was a super magic that swapped light and darkness. While he wasn't particularly interested in the power itself, he was curious about the magic knowledge behind it.
With one last glance at the forest he had just devastated, Nate turned and left. It was best to go before the local hermit, Porlyusica, found out and came to scold him for the destruction.
When Nate returned to his apartment, he opened the Fairy Tail guild chat, where everyone was already discussing the earlier commotion.
Gray: "I heard a huge boom and saw a bright light."
Macao: "Yeah, it came from the eastern forest."
Loke: "What's going on?"
Erza: "That magic energy... was it you, Nate? @SigmaMale"
Mirajane: "@SigmaMale, what happened?"
Seeing everyone tagging him, Nate couldn't ignore it and had to explain.
Sigma Male: "I ran into one of the Oración Seis members and had a fight with him."
Wakaba: "!!!"
Happy: "Ah! Those guys in black!"
Elfman: "What?! Oración Seis, one of the Balam Alliance?"
Erza: "Are you okay, Nate? Were you injured?"
Sigma Male: "I'm fine. I already chased him off."
Lucy: "What's the Balam Alliance? [Confused.jpg]"
Erza: "Our legal guilds have an alliance, and so do the dark guilds."
Cana: "The Balam Alliance consists of the three strongest dark guilds in the world."
Levy: "The Oración Seis, Grimoire Heart, and Tartaros are the three major dark guilds, each with many subordinate guilds under them, controlling the entire dark world."
Evergreen: "Even though it's called an alliance, it's not really cooperative. It's more like they try to avoid conflict with each other. It's shocking that new recruits don't even know this."
Mirajane: "Oh, and Lucy, the Eisenwald guild that you all defeated before was actually under Oración Seis."
Lucy: "Sorry for not knowing anything!"
Lucy: "It was Nate and the others who defeated Iron Forest. I didn't really do much."
Happy: "Aye~ Lucy was just sightseeing."
Lucy: "Shut up, you stupid cat! [Headsmash.jpg]"
Thanks to Lucy's question, the conversation in the guild chat quickly veered off course.
Nate shook his head, ready to wash up and sleep.
Just then, he received a private message from Makarov.
Fairy Tail's Grandpa: "Nate, have you gotten involved with Oración Seis? What exactly happened?"
He didn't expect the old man to be lurking too.
Nate thought for a moment before replying: "I'm not sure what they want, but it seems like they're after me. Probably because of the Internet Magic. Maybe they want the rings?"
Fairy Tail's Grandpa: "As long as you're safe. Recently, the Magic Council has been warning guilds to keep an eye out for Oración Seis. I'll report tonight's incident to them."
Report to the council?
Nate raised an eyebrow and immediately thought of Ultear.
Might as well send her a message.
Ultear's status was grayed out, indicating she was offline. However, after sending the message, she quickly came online.
Ultear (Witch of Pain): "Oh my, how touching! You actually messaged me first."
Witch of Pain: "Did someone from Oración Seis attack you? Are you hurt? Do you need a hug? [Hugging.jpg]"
Sigma Male: "..."
Sigma Male: "Focus. Isn't the council tracking Oración Seis?"
Witch of Pain: "Seems like you're fine, so I'm relieved."
Witch of Pain: "If you were hurt, you'd be asking me for a few selfies to soothe your wounded soul."
So much drama...
Nate chuckled at her antics and decided to play along.
Sigma Male: "Maybe you should send me a few selfies to comfort me."
Almost immediately, she sent a picture. Clearly, she had them ready.
This time, the picture was even more provocative.
Ultear was wearing nothing but a pair of white panties, sitting in front of a full-length mirror in a duck-like posture. One hand covered her face, while the other concealed her chest.
Nate instantly saved the photo without hesitation.
Witch of Pain: "How do I look? [Shy.jpg]"
Sigma Male: "You're the reason I won't be able to sleep tonight!"
Witch of Pain: "Oh dear, should I send a few more photos? [Thinking.jpg]"
'Damn, teasing me like this every night.'
Nate thought to himself, realizing that his poor sleep lately was all her fault.
Tempting as it was, his fingers typed swiftly.
Sigma Male: "You're beautiful, Ultear. [Smiling.jpg]"
Witch of Pain: "Mm, time for me to sleep now. Don't worry, I'll bring up your attack by Oración Seis at the next council meeting. Bye-bye. [Waving.jpg]"
'Wait, what about the photos?'
She left just like that?
Nate stared at the screen, dumbfounded. That woman really knew how to leave him hanging.
A few minutes later, Ultear came online again and sent one last picture.
Witch of Pain: "Goodnight~ [NaughtyTongue.jpg]"
Then she immediately went offline again.
Nate zoomed in on the picture.
The pose was similar to the last one, but this time, her hand had moved, leaving nothing covered.
It was the kind of photo that gave just enough but didn't reveal too much, making it all the more enticing.
...
The next day, Nate strolled into the guild around 1 p.m.
"Morning, Mira."
Nate yawned and took his usual seat at the bar.
"It's already afternoon," Mirajane chuckled. "Have you been working on another update? You look exhausted."
'It's all Ultear's fault—sending those kinds of photos every night...'
Nate couldn't help but feel a bit helpless about the situation.
'If I don't look at the pictures, I feel like I'm missing out. If I do, my sleep suffers.'
"The new feature will be ready soon," Nate replied with a smile.
"Well, take care of yourself. Staying up late is bad for your health."
Mirajane's warm, gentle smile was always healing to the soul.
If Ultear was a temptress, Mirajane was an angel!
She disappeared into the kitchen for a moment, returning with a meal for Nate.
As usual, Nate didn't bother being polite—he had never paid for any of the meals Mirajane had served him, and she always insisted it was her treat.
The two chatted idly as time slipped by.
Suddenly, the sound of marching feet echoed from outside the guild.
"The Magic Council's army?"
Elfman put down his drink, stunned as he saw knights gathering outside. "The Rune Knights?"
The guild went quiet as everyone turned to look at the entrance.
"Excuse me, is Nate here?"
Standing at the forefront of the armed knights was Ultear, hand on her hip, smiling brightly.
"I'm Ultear, a member of the Magic Council, here to investigate the Oración Seis incident."
Hearing that familiar voice, Nate turned around, completely taken aback.
'Ultear... She's really here!'