"Little girl, you're out of order!"
"Rules? What rules?" the girl asked with a naïve expression.
"The rules of gambling."
"What are you saying? I don't understand."
"Then let me down!" the man said, grabbing Millianna.
A rope flew out of Millianna's hands and hit the man in the face.
"Ugh!" The man screamed and fell to the ground.
"Wow ah ah ah!"
After seeing this, everyone screamed and ran away, leaving only Su Yan and this kitten-like girl behind.
"Meow~! You are Su Yan, right? Where is Little Erza?"
"Little Erza? Are you here to find Erza?" Su Yan asked lightly, raising his eyebrows.
"That's right!"
"What do you want with Erza?"
"We're taking Erza back!"
"Back? Where to?"
"Of course back to the Tower of Heaven… Wait, am I asking you, or are you asking me, meow? Why do you have so many questions, meow?"
Su Yan's eyes changed when he heard "Tower of Heaven," and a terrifying aura emanated from his body.
Tower of Heaven—Su Yan still remembered the name. It was also the place that caused Erza the deepest pain. Su Yan had once tried searching all over Fiore but couldn't find it. It wasn't surprising—traveling everywhere, even throughout one country or a single city, was difficult. He never expected to hear news of the Tower of Heaven here.
Millianna was startled by Su Yan's sudden burst of momentum. Why did this man suddenly seem so terrifying?
"Rip!"
With a slight exertion of force, the rope binding Su Yan snapped.
"What meow?!!"
Millianna's eyes went round. Her rope could restrain mages, preventing them from using magic. How could he just tear it apart?
"Tell me, where is the Tower of Heaven?"
At the Poker Table:
Erza revealed her last hole card. The five cards were the 10, J, Q, K, and A of spades—a royal flush.
"Yah—! That's amazing, Erza!!" Lucy exclaimed excitedly, hugging Erza's shoulder. The people around were equally shocked. Such a hand went beyond mere luck.
"Hehe, I'm just lucky today," Erza said calmly.
"It's time to change the dealer." A figure—originally known as Xiao Huangmao, now Sho—came over, pushing the timid dealer aside.
"Ah… Wait a minute…"
"No matter who the opponent is now, I can't lose," Erza said, remaining calm and confident even while gambling.
"That's right!" Lucy, now Erza's little fan-girl, chimed in. They started with a small amount of chips, and now they had a mountain of them. Exchanging all of them would yield a huge sum.
"So, how about playing something special? No chips this time."
Sho shuffled the cards in his hand quickly, then dealt Erza five cards. On the back of each card was a letter, together spelling 'DEATH.'
"How about gambling with your life, Sister Erza?" Sho said to Erza.
Erza raised her head to look at him. Her expression froze, her body trembling uncontrollably: "Sho…"
"Long time no see, Sister."
"Huh? Huh?" Lucy looked back and forth, confused.
"You… you're safe and sound?"
"Safe and sound?"
"Ah… not…"
Suddenly, the entire casino went dark.
"Why is it so dark?!"
"What's going on?!"
After a moment, the lights came back on. Everyone around Erza and Lucy was gone. The bustling casino was now empty.
"Stopped?" Erza murmured.
"I'm right here, Sister," Sho said.
He threw down a stack of cards, and inside each card was a person trapped, slapping the card's surface in panic, trying to escape.
"Everyone is inside the cards?! What's going on?!" Lucy was astonished at this scene.
"Unbelievable? I can use magic now," Sho said with a flick of his hand. A card flew toward Lucy.
"Lucy!" Erza cried out.
Lucy's figure vanished, leaving a card on the ground with Lucy's image imprisoned inside.
"Wh-What kind of magic is this?! I can't get out!" Lucy's voice came from within the card, shocked.
Erza's face changed, and she shouted anxiously: "What are you doing?! Lucy is my companion!!"
"Weren't we companions once too, Sister, before you betrayed us?"
"Companion? Betrayal?" Lucy's muffled voice sounded confused.
Erza felt immense pain hearing Sho say this, her body trembling uncontrollably.
At that moment, a voice said: "Stop bullying Erza like that, Sho. Mature men must learn to control their emotions, understand?"
A figure appeared, composed of mosaic-like blocks, forming a man's body that looked quite square.
"That voice… Wally?"
"It's hard that you don't recognize me. I'm a lot smoother now compared to when I was called Wally the rabid dog."
"This is 'smoother'?" Lucy complained, even while locked up.
"You can use magic too?"
Suddenly, a magic circle lit up on the ground. A big man appeared and said, "It's nothing surprising. Once you get the hang of it, anyone can use magic, right Erza?"
"Simon?!"
"Erza, who are these people?! What's with 'Sister'?!" Lucy asked, still trapped.
"They aren't blood-related siblings, but former companions," Erza said painfully.
"Companions? How is that possible? Hasn't Erza been with Fairy Tail since she was a child?!"
"That was before. Why are you here, Sho? Let Lucy go."
"We've come to take you back, Sister, back to the Tower of Heaven!"
Erza was shocked hearing the Tower of Heaven mentioned: "The Tower of Heaven… you?"
"That's right. The Tower of Heaven is complete, so we've come to take you back."
Suddenly, another voice said, "You can't go anywhere."