A magical beast with twin horns on its head and double wings on its back, almost the size of a giant dragon, strides forward boldly.
On its head stands a red-haired woman, holding a long spear, clad in armor, looking valiant and heroic.
Not far behind her, the Captain of the Fourth Demon Combat Team, Shugboy, wearing pink armor, is leading the main force forward.
Every soldier in the army moves with the aura of a seasoned warrior, clad in full armor, holding long spears, and every step they take exudes power.
The orderly formation gradually spreads out under Shugboy's command, seemingly to encircle Fairy Tail.
Under normal circumstances, with Natsu and Wendy, even with thousands of enemies, Rhode would think they could fight.
But now...
"Let's ask first, can you... use magic?"
Natsu and Wendy both look at Rhode, and a second later, they simultaneously clutch their heads in shock and exclaim:
"We forgot! We can't use magic here!!!"
Then what were you doing walking out so grandly earlier? Rhode shouted irritably at Natsu, "Didn't you say Dragon Slayer Magic is special?"
Natsu yelled back, "That only keeps us from being sucked away by Anima! As expected, Edolas's Rhode is an idiot!"
I damn...
Hasn't this idiot recognized it yet? Was the punch I gave earlier not hard enough?
Wendy quietly pulled Natsu aside and told him this is our Brother Rhode.
"I can still use a bit of my magic, let's take a gamble."
Rhode has no other choice, he can only bet on the strength of the Big Spider.
If not, they'll have to see if they can buy some time for them to prepare the Teleportation Magic Array, and then escape together.
He clutched his pendant, feeling unusually nervous before the battle.
Lisana stood at the entrance, a little tense: "Are you... okay?"
"If Rhode says it's okay, then it's okay." Natsu seemed quite relaxed, even grinning foolishly at Lisana, "If it doesn't work out, we can always think of a way to escape again."
That smile... how long has it been since I last saw it?
And, the brother-in-law over there, is he really so trusted?
The gigantic magical beast stopped not far away, and a tall tree was pushed aside like a blade of grass by its body, revealing broken roots and fresh soil.
Without magic, just this magical beast alone would be enough to exhaust them.
'Erza' flashed a slightly cruel smile: "Fairy Tail's 'Fireball' Natsu, and... two unfamiliar faces, not running away this time?"
Rhode looked at her and retorted, "At this point, there's no need for you to hunt us down, right?"
"Oh? Why do you have such a ridiculous thought, sinner?"
Perhaps suspecting Rhode of stalling for time, 'Erza' gestured to Shugboy to hasten the encirclement.
Rhode realized this opponent might not be easily deceived, so he forced himself to talk: "Hasn't the Kingdom already acquired ample magic power? The little magic we have left isn't worth a large-scale siege anymore."
"Oh?" 'Erza' seemed surprised. She had been out for several days and knew of the super-large Anima plan, but she wasn't sure if it had succeeded.
Shugboy, who walked to the side of the gigantic magical beast, looked up at 'Erza' and said, "We just received word that the large Anima operation succeeded, and His Majesty ordered all outside magic war teams to return to the Royal Capital. However..."
He looked at Rhode and continued, "Even we just got the notification, so how did you know?"
"Damn..." Anger surged in Natsu, "So it was you guys! What did you do to our companions?!"
Rhode wanted to punch Natsu, he should've reminded him not to speak up.
"Companions?" Shugboy looked at Natsu oddly, then burst into laughter, "You even consider the Fairy Tail from there as your companions?
"That's really unfortunate then, those guys have already been turned into giant magic crystals and will soon become…"
"Shugboy!" 'Erza' interrupted him, casting a meaningful glance at Hapi and Carla, "They are probably not from Edolas, but from Fairy Tail of Aslan!"
Hapi was startled: "We've been found out!"
Carla sighed: "Of course, that idiot said something like that."
Rhode's point of focus was on the mention of their Guild by both parties: "Even Aslan's Fairy Tail knows about it, have they been targeting us for a while?"
Do they have a way of gathering intel through Anima? Or is someone in Atlas providing them with information?
On the other hand, a piece of not-so-bad news is that their companions turned into magic crystals instead of disappearing completely.
There might be a way to turn them back, like... yes! Moon's Drop!
Rhode had previously heard Lucy talk about their experience on Demon Island with Mira.
At that time, Leon tried using Moon's Drop to undo Ultear's Absolute Ice Purity cast with her life.
Moon's Drop... is magic that can break any magic, and it can break Anima too!
There's hope!
Though conditions are strict, Mira, and everyone else, all have a chance to be saved!
"Listen, Natsu, Wendy, I've thought of a way to save everyone."
"Really?!" The two of them and the two cats showed surprised expressions.
"Yes, next, as long as we find them and use that magic, we can save them. We absolutely cannot fall here!"
"Yes!"
"Of course! To save our companions, even if it's a thousand or ten thousand people, we absolutely won't fall here. I'm fired up!"
Magic is the power of the heart, and Rhode believes that as long as Natsu and Wendy's hearts ignite with hope, they definitely won't lose.
Even if they can't use magic now, there will be a way later.
Then he can let go and give it his all.
'Erza' looked at them: "What's that?"
Even in dire straits, they still managed to smile, and that hope could be seen in their eyes... she hated that kind of smile and gaze.
For years, she lived each day in fear that the world would lose its magic at any moment. People she saw might smile, but behind their eyes would lie deep worries.
Why does Edolas have to lose its magic?
Why is Aslan's magic inexhaustible?
Why can they still show such expressions at times like this?
She despised those kinds of eyes!
'Erza' pointed forward with her long spear: "Regian!"
"Roar~" Like a mountain, the magical beast immediately let out a roar, charging towards Rhode.
The roar sounded like thunder exploding next to their ears, and as the beast charged, it seemed to cause an earthquake.
From the Guild, 'Lucy's voice was heard: "Is it ready yet, stupid Reby!"
"I said I need time, you idiot Lucy!"
"It's over, we're finished!"
"We can't escape this time, Al Al..."
"At least we can die together, Bith Bith..."
"Rather than waiting to die, let's fight them!"
The Guild was in chaos, with people shouting various things.
Lisana at the doorway covered her mouth, as if recalling the night she faced the Beast King with her brother and sister.
Shugboy quickly reminded: "Erza, the 'Survivor' is to be captured alive!"
Rhode gripped the pendant tightly, this time there must be no accidents... No, Mira and the companions are still waiting, so there will be no accidents:
"Summoning · Throat of Dishonor!"