BOOM————!!
Kaien's massive slash came crashing down, carving a massive fissure through the entire ruin. Everyone stood wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Even though they had already witnessed an attack like this once before, no matter how many times you saw it, it was still utterly shocking.
Crack———!!
A vertical line appeared down the middle of Deliora's body.
Crack crack———!!
Dense cracks rapidly spread across Deliora's body.
BOOM————!!
Its body began to shatter apart.
RUMBLE———!!
Deliora's remains crashed to the ground like a crumbling block of ice.
"What?!!"
Aside from Kaien, everyone was completely stunned.
"What… what just happened?!"
At this point, no one would be surprised if Kaien's attack could kill Deliora—his overwhelming strength had already been made clear.
But his attack didn't have the power to freeze things into blocks of ice.
"Could it be…?"
"No way… Deliora is… actually dead…"
Lyon finally understood. "Ten years… the ice that Ur became slowly drained its life away. We only witnessed its final moment… There's no more chance… I'll never surpass Ur now."
Tears rolled down Lyon's face—not just out of frustration at being unable to surpass his master, but also out of relief and happiness that, in the end, the strongest person in his heart hadn't lost to that monster.
Gray stood frozen, staring at the scene before him. So their master had already killed Deliora for their sake long ago.
"Master…"
Gray lowered his head and covered his face. The tears wouldn't stop.
With Deliora dead, there was no longer any need to fight. Kaien returned to his original form.
Whew————!
Kaien let out a deep breath. Whitebeard really was powerful, but using him burned through Mana extremely quickly. It left him with poor stamina again.
With five and a half stars worth of Mana, using Whitebeard was still a bit of a stretch. Maybe with seven stars, he could wield that power more freely.
"YEAH————!! This is great! Deliora's dead!! That means the village's curse is broken!!"
"Aye!!"
Lucy and Happy bounced and clapped in celebration.
"Not great at all! I didn't even get to do anything!!"
Natsu was clearly frustrated. Last time, during the Eisenwaldincident, he was out of action from the travel sickness and did absolutely nothing. This time, again, he was just a benchwarmer. An S-Class Mission like this should've been his moment to shine.
Lucy mocked, "Well, that's what you get for letting your guard down and getting frozen first. Serves you right!"
"Ugh! You didn't do anything either!!"
Natsu was practically fuming at being mocked by Lucy of all people. And it wasn't just a metaphor—his body was literally smoking with heat.
Lucy shot back defensively, "I… I just didn't get a chance to make a move yet, that's all. Yeah, exactly!"
Kaien chuckled. "Alright, if you're still hoping to complete the mission, there might still be a way."
"What do you mean? Wasn't Deliora already…?"
"Who told you the curse had anything to do with Deliora?"
"What?!!"
"The villagers' curse hasn't been lifted. If you figure out how to break it on your way back, I'll still count it as completing the S-Class Mission."
"Really?! That's great!!"
"Aye!"
Lucy groaned, "What are you so happy about? We couldn't figure it out in an entire day and night. How are we supposed to crack it just on the way back?"
At this point, she'd completely given up. As long as the curse could be lifted, she was fine with whatever.
Natsu grinned. "Well, at least there's still hope, right?"
Gray looked at Lyon and asked, "Do you know how to break the curse?"
Lyon shook his head. "No, but I've always had doubts. These past three years, we've been under that same light, even closer to it—and nothing happened to us. But they got cursed."
"That's right!!"
Lucy suddenly realized. If the curse was caused by moonlight or Deliora, then Lyon and the others should've been even more affected due to proximity. But they showed no signs of being cursed at all.
"Let's go. It's about time we head back. The villagers must be getting worried."
Kaien turned and walked away. Natsu, Lucy, and Happy quickly followed after him.
"Kaien, can't you at least give us a hint?"
"Yeah! Just a little one—just a tiny one!"
Lucy pleaded too. This was a huge chance to raise the guild's prestige—she didn't want to miss it either.
"Aye!"
If they completed this mission, it meant lots of fish money for Happy.
"Nope!"
"Tch! Stingy!"
They continued chatting as they walked out.
Gray paused and turned to Lyon. He felt guilty toward him. He knew Lyon's reason for resurrecting Deliora wasn't just to surpass Ur by defeating it—it was also to avenge Ur by destroying it himself.
"What are you looking at?"
Lyon snapped. He had lost—and not even to Gray. It was a humiliating defeat, and the last thing he wanted was Gray pitying him.
"You should join a guild. There are comrades there, rivals too. I'm sure you'll find a new goal."
"Boring… Just get lost!"
Kaien and the others returned to the village. They had discussed the curse the entire way back, but were still completely clueless. As they entered the village, they were greeted by the sight of demons everywhere.
"The curse really hasn't been lifted, huh."
They had hoped—just maybe—it had already been resolved. But clearly, things weren't that simple.
The village chief rushed over with the other villagers and asked anxiously, "Great mages! When are you going to destroy the moon?!"
Kaien smiled. "Don't worry. You want the moon destroyed? I'll take care of it right now."
"What———?!!"
Everyone jumped in shock when they heard that.
Lucy whispered, "Hey… do you even know what you're saying?"
"Aye!"
Natsu's eyes lit up. "I knew it! We're destroying the moon after all!!"
Gray waved his hands frantically. "No no no… That's not even possible, right?!"
"Full Take Over: Edward Newgate!!"
Kaien began to channel Take Over Magic, transforming into Whitebeard. His body rapidly grew in size, changing shape—within seconds, he stood there in Whitebeard's form.
"So huge————!!"
The villagers were stunned to see Kaien towering above them.
He planted his feet firmly into the ground and drew back his right fist to his left side.
Vmmm—————!
A transparent white spherical aura formed around his clenched fist.