When Sho heard this, a resentful expression appeared on his face. Yes, that's right—this was all Jellal's doing. It was Jellal who deceived him and made him believe his sister was a traitor.
They had willingly spent eight years building the Tower of Heaven for him. Eight full years of hard, devoted work went into completing it. Sho had once been proud of this accomplishment, but now it was a source of deep shame. As long as the tower existed, his shame would remain.
Jellal must be killed, and the Tower of Heaven destroyed, to wash away that disgrace.
Su Yan looked at Erza and asked, "Erza, what do you think?"
Erza nodded. "I was weak before, which led to Sho and the others suffering so much. This time, I won't run away. Also, the Tower of Heaven is a very dangerous thing. Anyone who wants to resurrect Zeref must be stopped."
"Zeref?!"
Natsu frowned, "Why does that name sound familiar?"
Lucy explained, "The legendary Black Wizard, remember? The cursed flute 'Lullaby' and Deliora from Galuna Island were both demons created by Zeref. If he could create such terrifying demons, imagine how dreadful he must be!"
Lucy shivered at the thought. Gray's face darkened as well—Zeref's demons were responsible for destroying his hometown and killing his master. If Zeref had never created such monsters, Gray might still have had a complete family.
Su Yan only frowned upon hearing Zeref's name. Resurrect Zeref? As far as he knew, Zeref wasn't actually dead. Still, if Jellal truly intended to unleash that evil power, Su Yan wouldn't hesitate to stop him. If they became enemies in the future, Su Yan would kill Zeref without hesitation—once he found a way to break the life-link magic between Natsu and Zeref first.
"Tell me the location of the Tower of Heaven, and I'll kill him," Su Yan said to Simon.
"Don't be careless," Simon warned. "Jellal's strength is great, and victory can only be assured if everyone works together. There are also many others in the Tower of Heaven who have been deceived, just like we were, and we must save them. The best plan is for everyone to go and launch a surprise attack."
"A sneak attack? Let's just rush in and beat him!" Natsu protested, and Su Yan's attitude was similar—he wasn't fond of sneaky tactics.
Sho gritted his teeth, "I'm going to kill that b*****d Jellal myself!"
Magic Council Headquarters, ERA
"What did you say?! The R-System still exists?! That's impossible!!" Council member Org slammed his fist on the conference table in anger. The intelligence department had just discovered the R-System, a forbidden magic, so all Council members had been called to discuss this crucial matter.
"Eight years ago, the Dark Magic Order poured huge amounts of resources into rebuilding the R-System."
"We destroyed seven towers back then, didn't we? They should have been gone."
"There's an eighth tower, just off the coast of Calrum."
"No… don't tell me it's already complete?"
"The investigation team's report is no joke—yes, it's already built."
"Why would the R-System appear now?"
Siegrain suddenly spoke, "The Tower of Heaven is indeed the R-System, just under another name, right?"
"I don't care what it's called!" Org shouted. "The R-System is taboo magic!! It violates the laws of life and death and can stir up extremely dangerous thoughts. It will cause immense chaos! No matter who is occupying it, we must send troops immediately. We can't delay—we must suppress it at once!"
"Incompetent," Siegrain said coldly.
"What did you say?! Siegrain, you b*****d!"
"Sending troops is a move for the incompetent. It's too dangerous. You haven't grasped the severity of this situation yet. The only way to completely destroy the Tower of Heaven is to use the satellite magic circle and fire Etherion—the Magic Bomber!"
"What?!"
All the councilors were stunned. Etherion was the ultimate weapon of the Magic Council, with destructive power enough to obliterate an entire country. It was usually kept as a deterrent, similar to a nuclear weapon. Even when Su Yan attacked the Council, they hadn't considered using Etherion because it was too destructive. Besides, Su Yan's attack hadn't killed anyone, revealing he intended only to scare them, not commit mass slaughter.
"Use intercontinental destruction magic?! Are you insane?!"
"The range of destruction is unpredictable! A whole country could be wiped out!!"
"Etherion is our ultimate weapon. It's more dangerous than the R-System!"
Siegrain said passionately, "But Etherion can hit any target on the ground and destroy a huge structure like the Tower of Heaven. There's no time to waste! We must not let the R-System activate!"
"I agree," Ultear said, raising her hand.
Meanwhile, at the top floor of the Tower of Heaven:
"Lord Jellal, we just received news that Erza was successfully captured and is now on her way here," reported a long-haired man.
"Captured Erza, have they?" Jellal said thoughtfully. "It seems those fools aren't completely useless after all. Since Erza has come, the real sacrifice to resurrect the great Zeref should begin soon."