Chapter 304: Battle Begins
This floor was just like the one before: nothing but guards and cells.
They searched several floors in succession, and the situation was the same each time.
Finally, they reached a floor where the architectural style was distinctly different from the ones below.
It was much cleaner, and instead of cells with iron bars, there were ordinary rooms with regular doors. The corridors were brightly lit, and they could see people in casual clothes chatting with the uniformed guards they had seen below.
Seeing this, Noah led the group into a secluded corner.
"This looks like the living quarters for the Black Magic Cult members. But why haven't we seen any innocent prisoners? Noah, didn't you say they captured many people to use as slaves for building the tower?" Mirajane asked Noah via Telepathy.
"That's true. The Black Magic Cult cells I helped raid years ago were full of innocent people, especially children forced into slave labor," Noah confirmed.
"If Noah's information is correct, then this cult must have captured many innocents too. But we haven't seen a single one. There are only two reasons for that," Ultear said.
"One: they're all dead," Erza said, her face pale.
"Two: they've all become members of the Black Magic Cult," Sorano finished.
"Neither is a good outcome," Mirajane sighed.
Noah nodded. He knew from experience that after the initial deaths from overwork and cruelty, very few prisoners died later on. Instead, they were indoctrinated into the cult, becoming "willing" workers.
Jellal had told him this. After being possessed by Hades (Ultear's master), Jellal changed the way the cult operated. Instead of constant beatings and starvation, he gave the slaves food, rest, and better conditions.
However, he also subjected them to constant brainwashing, convincing them to dedicate their lives to the great Zeref. This made them work voluntarily and far more efficiently than fear ever could.
This change had accelerated the tower's construction significantly, earning Jellal praise from Hades. Even after Noah broke Hades' control, Jellal maintained the better living conditions, realizing that aside from the twisted ideology, the cult members were living better lives than many people outside.
Once they destroyed the tower, they would have to figure out how to deprogram the brainwashed victims.
"Let's check a few more floors up to see if it's the same," Ultear suggested. Everyone agreed.
Noah teleported them up several more levels. It was the same story everywhere. In fact, the higher they went, the better the facilities became, indicating higher status for the residents.
They stopped on one floor to discuss their next move.
"It looks like the rest of the tower is like this. What do we do now?" Mirajane asked.
"We fight, of course! We take them all down!" Natsu declared, flames igniting on his fists.
This time, no one argued. Everyone looked ready for a fight.
"Since everyone agrees, let's start from the bottom floor and work our way up. We'll take down everyone," Noah instructed via Telepathy.
Everyone nodded.
Noah raised his hand, teleporting the group back to the lowest residential level. Then, he dispelled the invisibility magic.
Suddenly, a large group of people appeared out of thin air.
"Who are you?!"
A patrolling cult member spotted them immediately.
"Let's go wild!" Noah grinned.
"YEAH!"
The group shouted in unison. They had been suppressing their anger during the investigation, and now they could finally let it out.
"You don't even know who you're messing with?!"
Natsu punched two cultists, his fists wreathed in fire.
BOOM!
"Gah!"
The explosion destroyed the wooden bridge they were standing on, sending the cultists flying.
"We are Fairy Tail! You bastards!" Natsu roared.
"Muscle Angel!"
Sorano summoned a giant, muscular angel that punched a group of cultists, sending them smashing into a wall.
"Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!"
Erza requipped instantly, sending a circle of swords flying outward to cut down multiple enemies.
"Ice-Make: Lance!" x2
"Open, Gate of the Maiden!"
"Satan Soul: Evil Spark!"
"Open, Gate of the Little Bear!"
"Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!"
"Light-Make: Lances!"
Everyone unleashed their magic simultaneously. The cultists, who weren't particularly strong, were blown away like leaves.
The surrounding structures were demolished, bridges collapsed, and dust filled the air.
"My turn. Light-Make: Light Lances!"
Noah extended a hand, summoning a golden magic circle. Countless solid light spears shot out in all directions, pinning down cultists hiding in corners.
He refrained from using his light beams to avoid accidentally punching through the tower's structural supports and causing a collapse. He intentionally limited his power.
Within moments, amidst a series of explosions, all the cultists on the floor were defeated.
"Too weak. They went down before I could even warm up," Natsu complained, looking at the unconscious bodies.
"There are plenty more upstairs. You'll get your fill," Gray said.
"How do we go up? I don't see any stairs. Noah, can you teleport us?" Lucy looked around.
Rumble, rumble...
Suddenly, the sound of machinery echoed. Everyone turned to see a metal ladder descending from a hatch in the ceiling that hadn't been there a moment ago.
"A door opened!" Natsu exclaimed.
"Does that mean we're invited up?" Mirajane tilted her head.
"Looks like it. Let's go."
Noah climbed the ladder first, followed by the others.
"Considering the noise we made downstairs, I expected an ambush," Sorano said, looking around the empty room they arrived in.
"Maybe they haven't had time to gather yet," Mirajane suggested.
"How did that door open?" Wendy-kun asked curiously.
"It wasn't opened from here. It was controlled remotely by magic," Noah explained.
"That means we've been spotted?" Meredy-kun asked nervously.
"Of course. With all that fighting downstairs, it would be strange if we weren't," Ultear said calmly.
"Then I don't get why they opened the door for us," Lucy said, confused.
"It's a provocation," Gray mused.
"Provocation... possible," Erza agreed.
"Doesn't matter. Let's clear this floor first," Noah said. Everyone nodded.
"Found them! Intruders!"
A large group of cultists ran out from around a corner, charging toward them.
"Fire Dragon's ROAR!"
Natsu took a deep breath and unleashed a torrent of fire.
"Sky Dragon's ROAR!"
Seeing Natsu attack, Wendy-kun followed suit, releasing a blast of wind.
Seeing the two dragons attack, the others held back to watch the combo.
The two roars merged in mid-air, creating a massive firestorm that engulfed the cultists.
BOOM!
The explosion sent bodies flying, filled the corridor with smoke, and blasted a crater in the floor and walls.
"That's powerful. The combination of roars is impressive," Ultear commented.
"Wind feeding fire... it amplifies the power significantly. Wendy-kun, your training is paying off," Noah praised.
"Hehe... I wanted to help everyone," Wendy-kun blushed and smiled.
"Wendy-kun works very hard! She trains every day!" Carla said proudly.
"Yeah! She trains with us every day!" Yukino-kun and Meredy-kun added.
"That's wonderful. Hard work now gives you the power to change bad outcomes later," Mirajane smiled at them gently. She knew better than anyone the value of strength in protecting loved ones.
"Alright, more are coming. Let's finish them off and chat later," Noah said, seeing another wave of cultists charging over their fallen comrades.
~~~
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