"Layla, Layla??"
"What are you thinking about? You're practically drooling!"
After constant calling from the group, Layla finally snapped out of her fantasy. Realizing her lapse in composure, the girl's face flushed red with embarrassment, steam practically rising from her head.
"Huh?? I... I'm fine!"
"Are you really?" Descartes leaned his face close to Layla's, staring intently for several seconds before pulling back with a look of regret. "I thought you'd developed some sort of hysteria; I was just about to help you break the hypnosis!"
Layla looked at him curiously. "You know how to break hypnosis??"
"One punch, works every time!"
What kind of 'breaking' is that??!
"Alright, you two, stop playing around." Brain cut off their joking, his gaze falling on Layla. "Regarding the mission, what do you think??"
In the seven-man squad, Layla was the youngest and the weakest, so she always received more care. The enemy this time, Tartaros, was stronger than all the enemies they had faced before combined and multiplied by ten. Therefore, even though Brain said he wanted Layla to participate, if she truly didn't want to go, he wouldn't force her.
Layla fell into a deep struggle, her features twisting in tension. After a long while, as if giving up some internal fight, she slumped momentarily, then took a long, deep breath to pull herself together.
"We're teammates in a squad. If you guys decide to do this, I definitely can't be a deserter!"
"So what if they're Demons of the Books of Zeref? We'll just fight them!"
"But... you all have to remember to protect me when the time comes!!"
Hearing this, satisfied and relieved smiles appeared on everyone's faces.
"Well said, Layla!"
"You didn't disappoint us!"
Through their time together, they knew Layla's personality was somewhat timid, so they often used various ways to train her, hoping she would gain confidence and become a wizard capable of standing on her own. Layla's answer now proved their "training" hadn't been in vain.
"Don't worry. Just stay behind me when the time comes. I'll protect your safety with my life!" Ur guaranteed, lightly tapping her chest with her fist. Her bright, confident, and gentle smile moved Layla deeply; the girl let out a "wah" and lunged into Ur's arms to act spoiled.
"That's a promise, Ur!!"
"Yes, yes... I promise!!" Ur was caught between laughter and tears by Layla's behavior, but she gently and tenderly patted the girl's back. As the only two females in the squad, their relationship was like sisters. Layla would always seek Ur's help first when in trouble; lunging into her arms like this was a common occurrence they were all used to.
However, being used to it didn't mean they lacked the normal reactions.
"I'm so jealous of Layla-chan! I also want to be held in Miss Ur's arms and comforted like that..." Gildarts watched the scene, his smile gradually becoming perverted.
Thump, thump, thump!
Descartes, Serena, and Silver simultaneously delivered a chop—hitting Gildarts on the left and right sides of his neck and the top of his head.
"Could you not talk like that, Gildarts? It's incredibly creepy!"
"How disgraceful! The reputation of the 'Seven Kin' is going to be ruined by you one day!"
"I went easy on you because you're a comrade, but it won't be so light next time!"
Gildarts remained unmoved, and instead of backing down, he burst into hearty laughter.
"Enough, let's end the joking here," Brain waved his hand for silence. "Let's continue discussing the operation."
"First is the combat power issue you were concerned about. The Council has indicated they will send personnel for support—and not just the investigation teams that usually show up after the fact. This time, there will be top-tier combat power as well. With that, Bluenote, you shouldn't have any complaints, right?"
Bluenote shook his head. "None."
"Excellent! Next is the second point: the intelligence issue Descartes mentioned... this was sent over by the Council along with the mission."
Brain took several printed documents from his person and spread them out one by one on the table.
"According to these files, the leader of 'Tartaros' is a figure known as the Underworld King, Mard Geer. His strength is sufficient to rank among the Ten Wizard Saints."
"Under the Underworld King are nine elites whose strength far exceeds ordinary demons; they are the guild's main force, known as the 'Nine Demon Gates.' Each wields a different power, but without exception, they are all at a level capable of easily destroying a city."
"Further down are a large number of other unnamed demons."
The Nine Demon Gates? Even if the squad members took them on one-on-one, the numbers didn't match up! It seemed they could only hope the Council's reinforcements would be strong...
"The next three points are especially important!" Brain picked up one of the files and continued. "The first is that the power used by these demons is not Magic, but Curses!"
"Curses?"
"It's a power similar to magic!" Descartes, the most knowledgeable in the squad, began explaining the details. "In this world, there are many types of power; Magic Power and Curse Power are among them. However, Magic Power stems from 'love' and positive emotions, whereas Curse Power is the opposite—stemming from 'hatred' and negative emotions. This is knowledge only found in the academy's elective courses!"
Everyone nodded in understanding.
Brain continued: "The second point is that among the Nine Demon Gates, there is an existence capable of releasing Bane Particles!"
At this, everyone's expressions turned grave. Bane Particles are lethally dangerous to wizards; even a small intake can cause one to lose combat effectiveness like being poisoned. Moreover, the more powerful the wizard, the greater the impact.
"They even have Bane Particles... things are getting a bit troublesome now..." Silver appeared somewhat fearful.
He had already imagined what would happen if their allied forces, ignorant of the "Bane Particles," recklessly declared war on Tartaros—the demons would surely choose a moment when the allied forces were gathered to detonate the particles! They were demons who used Curses; they themselves wouldn't be affected. Even if the ability had a certain cost, as long as they had a resurrection device, they would use it without hesitation.
If that happened, whatever happened to Tartaros, the allied forces of the Council and the squad would suffer heavy casualties—they might even be wiped out!
The others had clearly thought of this too, and cold sweat began to pour.