The Kingdom of Fiore.
Magnolia Town.
"The hunt begins!"
A townsperson sat quietly in his home, warming himself by the fire. He seemed to have predicted everything that was about to unfold outside.
Did those dark guild people really have no idea what made Fairy Tail hold its ground in the Kingdom of Fiore?!
"Mom, what's happening outside?"
"I see lots of the Fairy Tail guild brothers and sisters running out of the guild! Some of those brothers and sisters even gave me candy during the festival. The candy was really sweet!"
At the window, a girl no older than five, dressed adorably like a doll, leaned against the sill, peering out with wide, curious eyes. She didn't understand why all the townspeople were hiding inside their homes after noticing that Fairy Tail seemed ready to "go out of control." Turning her head, she asked her mother, who was kneeling in front of a shrine, praying.
"Oh dear, close your eyes, don't look out…"
"You'll have nightmares if you see these things."
The young mother quickly covered her daughter's eyes. Demons were about to be unleashed, and the coming scenes would be horrifying, even for adults—much more so for a child.
At the same time…
"Hey, hey, hey!"
"I must be seeing things, right?!"
"How are those fairies unscathed and charging towards us?!"
"What happened to our advance forces?"
"Didn't that kid, Bast, bring despair to these fairies?! What a useless fool!"
"The main forces of Fairy Tail aren't even here…"
A group of dark guild mages gathered together, their expressions full of confusion. They thought they were seeing things—the weak fairies they intended to hunt had turned the tables, treating them as prey instead.
"BOOM!!"
Just as the dark mages finished speaking, they heard a thunderous sound. A golden figure charged towards them from the distance, tearing through the ranks of Fairy Tail mages as if it were nothing.
"What?!"
"How can this guy be so fast?!"
The dark guild mages were stunned.
"Hey!"
"You dark guild guys better listen up!"
"It's true that the main forces of Fairy Tail aren't in Magnolia right now! But that doesn't mean we're weak…"
"It's never meant that you lot are stronger than us!"
The golden figure was none other than Laxus. His entire body crackled with lightning, and in one swift move, he knocked down several dark guild mages.
"Ahh!!"
Amidst screams, countless dark mages were struck down by the lightning that descended from the sky.
Among those taken down by Laxus were quite a few powerful individuals—ones said to be capable of matching S-Class mages from the Light Guilds.
"What immense magic power!"
"I can't believe Fairy Tail has monsters like this besides Gildarts, the strongest mage in the West, Ur of the Ten Wizard Saints, and Ian, the 'Shooting Star'! Unbelievable!" Fear spread through the Dark Mage ranks.
Fear filled the hearts of the dark guild mages.
"Now that you understand, scram!" Laxus glared at them, his voice cold.
"Uh…"
The dark mages were immediately cowed by the oppressive gaze of Laxus. Fearing they'd be his next target, they scattered like frightened animals.
"Hmph, what are you so afraid of?!"
"I know this guy…"
"Isn't he the grandson of Makarov, one of the Ten Saints?"
"There's nothing special about him!"
"Should we call him a mage who got famous because of his grandpa?"
"Hahaha…"
But, of course, there are always fools in the world.
A flamboyantly dressed dark mage stepped forward, pointing at Laxus with a mocking grin.
"Huh?"
"You said I got famous because of my family?"
A vein throbbed on Laxus' forehead, his eyes flashing with lightning.
"I said you got famous because of your…"
The mage continued, his tone full of arrogance.
"Roar of the Thunder Dragon!!"
Laxus had no intention of wasting more words. He opened his mouth wide, sucking in the surrounding magic power, and in an instant, a dragon-shaped magic array formed before him. A flash of lightning roared from his mouth, striking the mocking mage.
"BOOM!!"
The thunderous sound was deafening, like a tactical nuke detonating in the crowd.
In an instant, the dark mage who dared to mock Laxus lay on the ground, unconscious.
"If I'm relying on my family, then what do you rely on?!" Laxus sneered at the fallen mage. "That pathetic strength of yours? You're a joke!"
"Zath, that well-known dark mage, was defeated instantly?!"
"Did we pick the wrong guild to mess with?"
Panic spread among the dark guild members. The one who had mocked Laxus was actually among the strongest in their group—ranking within the top five of the dark guild alliance that had come to attack Fairy Tail. Not to mention, the strongest of them had already been taken down by Irene.
"Now you realize it!"
"But it's too late…"
"Once you've provoked Fairy Tail, there's no hope of a peaceful ending!"
With that, Erza led a group of Fairy Tail mages, confronting the terrified dark guild members. She raised her sword high, her voice echoing.
"Requip! Heaven's Wheel Armor!"
With Erza's words, countless swords rained down from the sky, attacking the dark mages.
"Damn you, Erza, damn you, Laxus…"
"Wait for me!"
"Takeover! Satan Soul!"
Faced with these weak dark guild mages, Mirajane didn't even bother using the soul of Deliora. Honestly, these riffraff weren't worthy of her full power.
"Super Sadistic Flash!!"
"Heaven's Wheel Dance!"
At the same time, Erza and Mirajane unleashed their ultimate moves, swiftly knocking out wave after wave of dark mages.
"They're so strong!"
"Fairy Tail mages are like monsters…"
Seeing Erza and Mirajane's display of power, the dark guild members lost all hope and began to flee. The so-called alliance against Fairy Tail was completely shattered.
"Whew…"
However, before they could run far, they suddenly found themselves overwhelmed by an intense chill. Their bodies began to lose sensation.
"Strange, doesn't it feel suddenly cold?!"
In confusion, the dark mages found themselves transforming into countless ice sculptures.
"Ah~"
"Who gave you permission to escape after challenging Fairy Tail?"
Ultear played with a crystal ball in her hand, a smirk on her face as she blocked their escape route.
Ultear held the crystal because the first guild master, Mavis, and Warrod had discovered that, besides her Arc of Time, Ultear also had immense potential for Ice Make magic. They retrieved information about lost time magic from the library that hadn't yet been destroyed by those troublemakers in Fairy Tail for her to study.
"Is that Ice Make magic?!"
"Wait, isn't that Ur, one of the 'Ten Saints'?!"
A knowledgeable dark mage instantly recognized Ultear's magic. Seeing her face, they cried out in shock.
"What?!"
"Isn't Ur, the continent's strongest ice mage, at a council meeting with the Magic Council? How is she here?"
Panic set in among the dark mages. They would never have dared to come if they knew Ur was around. No dark mage had the luxury to risk attacking a Saint Wizard. They were already well acquainted with the might of the Saint Wizards, regularly purging them like mice being hunted by cats.
"Oh my, do I really look that much like my mother?" Ultear smiled. Though well developed for her age, she was only fifteen.
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
"Ice Make: Unlimited Sword Rain!"
"Ice Make: Ice Dragon (Flying Version)!"
On the other side, Natsu's flaming fist and Gray and Lyon's ice creations relentlessly targeted the dark mages.
"Card Magic…"
"Gaze of the Fool!"
"Emperor's Decree!"
"Straw Man's Shatter!"
Behind Natsu and the others, Cana summoned countless cards, hurling them at the dark mages.
The Gaze of the Fool immobilized the dark mages. Emperor's Decree summoned knights strong enough to rival A-Class monsters. Straw Man's Shatter was a special card made for Cana by Gildarts, which contained his own destructive magic.
Within moments, dozens of dark guild members were wiped out by Cana's magic. Cana's strength was undeniable—in any other guild, she'd be a core member, but Fairy Tail was full of monsters, relegating her to being an S-Class candidate for years.
"Takeover: Beast Soul! King Boar!"
"Takeover: Animal Soul! Bounding Bunny!"
"Wood Make: Cross!"
Elsewhere, Elfman, Lisanna, and Laki fought fiercely. They had all reached the limits of A-Class and were more than capable of taking on the dark guild mages.
"Can't let the kids have all the glory," Wakaba and Macao said. The two gamblers of Fairy Tail were putting on quite the show. Their training over the past year had finally paid off.
Fog from the sky turned into massive ghostly hands, blinding over a hundred dark mages, while Macao used the chance to ignite their bodies with unquenchable flames.
"Ahh! It burns!"
Minutes later, "We surrender! We surrender!"
After Fairy Tail unleashed its full strength, the thousand-strong dark guild alliance—assembled from over ten different guilds—was completely routed by the fewer than one hundred Fairy Tail mages. Cries of pain and shouts for surrender rang out.
"Surrender?"
"Sorry, but we don't accept surrenders!"
"Fairy Tail has never accepted surrender, in any form…"
The Fairy Tail mages sneered, a mocking look in their eyes. Surrender? What a ridiculous word…
From the moment these dark guild members decided to cross Fairy Tail, this stopped being a fight—it became war!
"Go write down the names of all the dark guilds that attacked us while Father and the Guild Master were away!" Erza ordered, her sword pointing at the surrendering dark guild members. "We're going to destroy their headquarters! Burn their banners, erase their names from the magic world!"
"Oh!!"
Those who had tasted the thrill of battle responded enthusiastically.
And so began the division of tasks.
Laxus led the Thunder God Tribe.
Mirajane led her siblings.
Wakaba and Macao worked as a pair.
Erza led Natsu, Happy, and Gray.
Ultear led Laki and Lyon.
These five groups would spread out in five directions to eradicate the dark guilds involved in this attack on Fairy Tail.
As for the remaining Fairy Tail members, Cana was in charge of calming the citizens of Magnolia and watching over the defeated dark mages until the Magic Council arrived.
Even then, there was always the chance some of the dark guild mages could escape, warned by the ongoing destruction…
That's why Eresh decided to act alone.
"Sister, I'll go ahead!" Eresh smiled sweetly at Erza.
In the next moment, her body underwent a massive transformation!
Within seconds, she took on the form of a colossal celestial fox, akin to the "Moon Dragon" Selene, with nine fluffy tails. The sky darkened, and the sun seemed to transform into a bright full moon.
It was as if those present could hear the hymn of the Grim Reaper.
"It's nighttime?!"
"Is that a giant fox?!"
The dark guild mages gaped at Eresh, her transformation leaving them in shock.
"No! That's no ordinary fox—it's a dragon! A real, living dragon!!"
"Fairy Tail was hiding a dragon among them?!"
The dark guild members were stunned beyond belief—they never thought they'd live to see a real dragon.
If they were to cross over into our reality, they'd certainly have an interesting conversation with conspiracy theorists.
They had all seen a dragon.
"Move out!"
Upon Erza's command, the mage squads, including Eresh, launched their assault on the dark guild headquarters.
Sorry, but the tables have turned!
The hunter had become the hunted!
What was once prey was now the fiercest predator on this continent!
Meanwhile, in the headquarters of the dark guilds that had attacked Fairy Tail…
"Hahaha…"
"By now, Fairy Tail must be in ruins after our allied attack!"
"Fiore's strongest? Ishgar's number one? What a joke!"
"How can they call themselves the best when they haven't even experienced real bloodshed?"
The dark guild members were getting drunk and celebrating, mocking Fairy Tail.
"Yeah! Without Makarov from the Ten Saints, Fairy Tail would be nothing!"
"They'd be struggling in the shadows like us!"
"Or maybe even worse off!"
Their jealousy and hatred for Fairy Tail was palpable. They were envious that the mages of Fairy Tail lived freely under the sunlight, while they, too, had caused no less trouble in this world, yet were hunted.
"Rumble…"
Suddenly, the ground began to shake, and cups rattled on tables.
"An earthquake?!"
Confusion spread among them.
"Run! A meteor is coming!"
The door slammed open, and a panicked man rushed in.
"A meteor?"
"Hahaha! Stop joking!"
"We're surrounded by mountains hundreds or thousands of meters high. Even if a meteor came, it'd be stopped by the mountains."
"Unless the meteor comes straight down at us… but that's impossible, right?"
His words drew laughter from the others—none believed a meteor would strike them.
"Whoosh!"
But in the next moment, no one could laugh.
A blazing meteor pierced through the sky, tearing through the clouds and crashing down.
In an explosion of flames, the dark guild was erased from the land.
"The isolation barrier will fade in ten minutes. I'd better hurry!"
From above the clouds, Eresh looked down at the destroyed dark guild, her expression devoid of any human feeling. In her dragon form, Eresh was cold, indifferent, dismissive of everything—the embodiment of a dragon's pride. She glanced at the countdown timer of her isolation barrier, then vanished into the sky like a shooting star.
Eresh was responsible for the dark guilds hiding in remote mountains, those with secretive movements. Erza and her group were tasked with dealing with the ones lurking in towns, those colluding with the town authorities.
About fifty kilometers from Magnolia…
"BOOM!"
With the roar of thunder, Laxus gazed at the hundreds of fallen mages, his voice cold as he spoke, "Don't ever come after Fairy Tail again."
"So powerful…"
"But isn't he too reckless…"
"Destroying a hundred-year-old cathedral just to fight a dark guild… isn't that going too far?!"
The townspeople looked at the ruined cathedral in shock.
Meanwhile…
Other towns harboring dark guilds…
Docks, train stations, alleys—all had suffered various levels of damage.
And the most extreme case was Erza's team—Natsu had set several streets controlled by the dark guild ablaze.
Indeed, Fairy Tail's approach to dark mages was simple: if you tried to escape by train, they'd tear down the station.
If you tried to flee by boat, they'd destroy the docks.
If you hid in alleys, they'd smash the alleys.
If you took refuge on a street, they'd send you and the entire street flying.
To thoroughly eliminate these dark guild mages, Fairy Tail was ready to destroy the entire Kingdom of Fiore.
"BOOM!"
That day, countless explosions and roars echoed throughout the Kingdom of Fiore.
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