"Phantom Lord!"
Natsu immediately spun around, his anger barely contained.
"Nate, are you serious?"
"Look at these iron rods—don't they remind you of someone's magic?" Nate hinted.
Natsu furrowed his brow, taking a closer look. Nate's reminder brought back a memory from a recent meeting. He even had a fight with Gajeel!
"The Iron Dragon Slayer, Gajeel!"
Natsu clenched his fists, flames of fury blazing around him. "Let's go, Nate! There's no way we're letting this slide!"
"Wait, Natsu! Nate!"
Mirajane hurried to stop them as they were about to rush off.
"I understand how you feel, but the council doesn't allow guilds to engage in physical conflicts…"
"Mira, when someone comes looking for a fight, if we don't hit back, are we still men?"
Nate gave a slight smile and, with one fist, struck the air beside him.
Boom!
In an instant, the atmosphere cracked, and the very sky seemed to shatter. The ground beneath Magnolia trembled lightly, while the river's waters surged, splashing the ankles of nearby people.
"What... what's happening?"
"What was that?"
"The sky is breaking!"
Countless citizens looked up in shock, their faces filled with disbelief.
Back at the guild entrance, everyone stared in awe at what had just happened.
"If you want to go, follow me. An eye for an eye, blood for blood!"
Nate retracted his magic and turned to leave.
Natsu didn't hesitate to follow.
"These two hotheads…" Gray instinctively took off his shirt, grinning as he joined in.
"A man strikes when it's time to fight!"
Elfman raised his right fist high. "Sis, don't stop us! If anyone wants to join, follow Nate!"
"Yeah!"
"Count me in!"
"Women should stay behind. This is a fight for men!" Macao, Wakaba, Loke, Max, Vijeeter, and others—every man present—were fired up by Nate's actions, eagerly joining the battle squad.
"Elfman…"
Mirajane, seeing her brother go along with the others, opened her mouth to say something but couldn't bring herself to stop him.
Lucy, still somewhat out of the loop, watched as all the men marched off and finally realized what was happening.
"Mira, what should we do now?"
Mirajane quickly opened the Internet Magic, hastily saying, "I'll let the master know. Everyone, don't rush—just wait in the guild's storage room for now."
Levy, after glancing at her two teammates, bit her lip and made a decision.
"We can't let the guys have all the fun. We, 'Shadow Gear,' are part of 'Fairy Tail' too! Jet, Droy, let's go!"
"Levy!" Mirajane was stunned—now even the girls were getting involved.
Lucy blinked a few times.
"I-I'm going too!"
"Lucy…"
Mirajane sighed, rubbing her temples, hoping the master would see her message soon. If this continued, it would escalate into an all-out war between the two guilds!
...
In the eastern forest of Magnolia, deep within the woods, stood a small cabin. This was where Polyushka, the healer with restorative magic, lived in seclusion.
At the moment, this normally gentle old lady was angrily pointing at Makarov's nose.
"That Nate from your guild, right?"
"That brat was fighting around here two nights ago, and he wrecked a whole section of the forest!"
"Are you even listening, Makarov?"
"That's why I hate humans!"
Makarov, lost in thought, suddenly sneezed.
Boom!
At that exact moment, a loud explosion rang out from the sky.
Both of them froze.
"It wasn't me... my sneeze shouldn't have that kind of power..."
Makarov quickly explained, but when he turned to look outside, his face turned serious. The sky had cracked.
"That magic... it's him!" Polyushka instantly recognized the culprit, fuming.
"He's at it again! One day, he's going to tear down all of Magnolia!"
Just then, Makarov's ring flashed with white light. He had a bad feeling. When he opened the message, it was from Mirajane.
After reading it, he was left speechless.
"Natsu, Gray, Elfman... and Nate!?"
He had thought Nate was a good kid, but it turned out he was just as reckless. A whole group was charging toward 'Phantom Lord'?
Jose, that bastard!
Magic surged around Makarov, instantly shattering the wooden door behind him.
"You..."
Polyushka was furious—right in front of her, he had damaged her house. But seeing the heavy expression on Makarov's face, her anger subsided a bit.
"What happened? No, I don't want to know. Just get out of here."
"I'm sorry. I'll send someone to fix the forest later, but right now, I've got more urgent matters."
Makarov hurriedly left. With so many of the guild's kids heading off to fight, how could he not be there? Who else could take on Jose?
...
'Phantom Lord's' base was located in Oak Town, several hours away by train from Magnolia. But the enraged members of 'Fairy Tail' couldn't wait for the train.
So, they headed to a magic vehicle rental shop and rented several vehicles.
"Nate, aren't you coming with us?" Gray asked, already seated in one of the cars, ready to start the engine. But Nate hadn't gotten in.
"I've got my own magic bike. I can get there faster, plus you're out of room."
"Got it. We'll meet in Oak Town!"
Gray nodded and started the car, quickly catching up with the group.
Watching them leave, Nate returned home and hopped onto his 4.2 million J Obsidian magic bike.
As he revved the engine and sped off, something occurred to him. He quickly sent a message to Laxus.
[Sigma Male]: "The guild's been trashed by Phantom Lord."
A moment later, Laxus replied.
[Laxus]: "What? What happened?"
[Sigma Male]: "I'm about to go destroy their guild. If you don't hurry, you'll miss out."
[Laxus]: "I'll be there! Leave Jose to me!"
Not quite sure what had happened, Laxus was still eager to fight Phantom Lord.
Nate suspected he was dropping everything to rush over. With the bike roaring to life, he sped toward Oak Town.
"Am I forgetting someone?"
After thinking for a moment, Nate realized who was missing—some of the guild's S-class members.
Gildarts? Not here.
Mystogan? No contact information.
Mirajane? Not in fighting condition right now.
Erza!
Just then, he heard Erza calling his name.
Stopping the bike, Nate turned to see Erza walking out of a magic armor shop, holding a newly repaired set of armor.
"Erza, what's going on?"
"The armor you broke last time just got repaired today." She smiled, then asked curiously, "Was that magic just now yours? What's happening? Did the 'Oración Seis' appear again?"
Nate revved the engine, making a quick turn and stopping beside her. He gestured to the back seat.
"Get on. We're going to smash Phantom Lord!"
"Huh?"
A confused expression appeared on Erza's face.
"No time for questions. Just get on the bike."