Chapter 214: The Amazing Uncle
Magic Council Headquarters, Era.
Due to the catastrophic betrayals of Ultear Milkovich and Jellal Fernandes, the Magic Council underwent a total and brutal reorganization.
The corruption ran so deep that almost all the Councilors from the previous administration were purged and replaced.
After all, although they pleaded ignorance claiming they were deceived by Ultear and Jellal, incompetence is a sin in itself.
Being deceived to the point of authorizing the firing of Etherion—the ultimate magic weapon capable of annihilating a country—necessitated taking appropriate responsibility.
The public trust had shattered, and the Council was scrambling to pick up the pieces.
Inside the grand, circular chamber of the Council, the air was thick with self-righteous indignation.
"Outrageous! Simply outrageous! How can there be so many self-reflection reports from a single organization?!"
"Property damage, inciting violence, destruction of landmarks... Are all these problems caused by one guild?!"
"Fairy Tail has been a headache since the previous generation, but this... this is escalating beyond tolerance!"
Org, the old Councilor with a distinctively oddly shaped head, sat quietly amidst the shouting. He sighed, adjusting his robes. "It's not that serious, is it? You must consider the context.
They also hold the undeniable credit for annihilating the Oración Seis, one-third of the Balam Alliance. If not for them, Nirvana would have plunged the world into darkness."
All the other Council members had been replaced; in this cold, sterile new Council, only Org remained as a bridge to the past. He felt like a fossil surrounded by wolves.
"The Council has no record of authorizing their operations," a sharp-faced new Councilor retorted, slamming a stack of papers onto the obsidian table. "They acted as vigilantes."
"This is the arbitrary action of a local guild Alliance. It undermines our authority!"
"Strictly speaking, even attacking a Dark Guild without a mandate violates the treaty prohibiting inter-guild conflict. Moreover, due to this reckless incident, the Balam Alliance is very likely to retaliate against regular guilds. They have poked the hornet's nest!"
"No... that won't happen," another voice interjected, though hesitantly. "Although they are called an Alliance, it's merely a non-aggression pact. They don't care about each other's fates."
"That is an assumption we cannot afford to make!"
"..."
Org fell silent, his eyes sweeping over the faces of his new colleagues. Facing these fresh bureaucrats, he felt a deep, throbbing headache. These guys seemed to have even more outdated, rigid, and rotten ideas about the current era than his own generation did. They were obsessed with control, blind to the nuances of the magical world.
"We are the new Council! What is new? We must show the public that law and order have returned!"
At this moment, Gran Doma, the newly appointed Chairman of the Magic Council, stood up. His presence was imposing, his voice booming like thunder in the enclosed space.
"To regain lost trust, we must strictly crack down on problematic guilds. We cannot let chaos reign." He paused, his stern gaze sweeping the room. "Fairy Tail will be an exception this time due to the magnitude of the Oración Seis threat. But hear me clearly: if it happens again, the guild will be disbanded. Everything is for the sacred order of the Magic World!!!"
Clap clap clap clap!!
Almost all the new Council Members broke into enthusiastic applause, nodding in agreement with their leader's hardline stance.
Org rubbed his temples, feeling the migraine intensify. The new Chairman was a capable mage, certainly, but his style of action was aggressive and lacked subtlety. These new Councilors looked like hungry dogs wanting to bite something to prove their teeth were sharp.
These fools, Org thought, closing his eyes. Their understanding of the current Magic World is too superficial. They believe the Magic Council is the supreme authority, possessing the power to crush everything beneath its heel.
He used to think similarly. He used to believe that the Council sat at the apex of power. That was... until the moment he witnessed the impossible.
He remembered the report regarding the Tower of Heaven. He remembered the moment Etherion was fired. And more importantly, he remembered how the energy of Etherion—a force capable of erasing a nation—simply vanished into thin air, transferred away by a power that defied logic.
After that incident, Org had investigated quietly, obsessively. He connected the dots between the Tower of Heaven, the sudden appearance of the mysterious mage Ren, and the inexplicable events surrounding Fairy Tail. He came to a conclusion that was so terrifying, so unbelievable, that he dared not speak it aloud.
If that boy, Ren, truly possesses the power to manipulate space on a planetary scale... then these laws and threats are nothing but paper tigers to him.
Org kept his mouth shut. This conclusion was too incredible, so he buried it deep in his heart, praying that the Council would never truly make an enemy of that monster.
Magnolia, The Backyard of the Fairy Tail Guild.
The atmosphere behind the guild hall was electric. The air felt heavy, charged with static, as if a thunderstorm were brewing at ground level. The usual chaotic noise of the guild had been replaced by a hushed, reverent anticipation.
"Freed, are you sure your Jutsu Shiki barrier protection is okay?"
Makarov Dreyar, the Guild Master, looked at the runic barrier shimmering in the air with a worried frown. He tugged at his mustache, his eyes darting between the barrier and the two figures standing in the center of the wasteland.
"Don't worry, Master! No problem," Freed Justine replied, his rapier at his hip. "After the last time, I specifically improved the formula. I have greatly enhanced its protective capabilities."
Freed was quite confident in his new Jutsu Shiki, even though the memory of his utter defeat by Ren during the Battle of Fairy Tail still stung. That loss had been a wake-up call. He had realized that rigid rules were useless against someone who could rewrite reality or simply overpower the logic of the enchantment.
It was because I didn't stop Ren... no, I didn't even manage to consume enough of Ren-san's magic power. My failure led to Laxus's defeat, Freed thought bitterly.
Since that day, he had diligently studied. He shifted his focus from creating complex, conditional "rules" to pure, raw protection. He abandoned the lengthy incantations for structural integrity.
"This barrier is different," Freed explained, his hand resting on the glowing purple wall. "By linking the structural integrity to my own living body and magic reserves, I can increase the defense by more than tenfold. It acts as a Dark Écriture: Absolute Shield."
"Hmm... that's good." Makarov nodded, though the sweat on his brow didn't recede. "I don't want the guild I have painstakingly built to be destroyed again. The repair bills are already enough to give me a heart attack."
Of course, Makarov was still a bit uneasy.
He looked out at the field. Both of these guys were legitimate monsters. Either one of them was capable of easily wiping the entire city of Magnolia off the map with a sneeze. He wasn't sure what would happen if these two fought seriously.
At this moment, everyone in the Fairy Tail Guild was lined up safely behind the barrier, eagerly watching the two people in the distance. Their faces were full of anticipation, excitement, and a hint of fear.
The two standing there, facing each other across the rocky terrain, were none other than Ren and Gildarts Clive.
Two days ago, after Gildarts had returned and settled in, he had slapped Ren on the back and proposed a spar with a hearty laugh: "Ren-boy! Let's see what you've got when we have time!"
Ren had agreed with a smile. So today, under the clear blue sky, the two strongest mages of Fairy Tail stood ready to clash.
Upon hearing this news, the guild had immediately erupted.
Gildarts Clive. The Ace. The strongest Mage in Fairy Tail. He wielded the ultra-high-class magic known as 'Crush'. It was a magic that shattered everything it touched into pieces—earth, air, and even magic itself.
Super Magic itself represents a tier far beyond ordinary casting. For example, the Master's 'Fairy Law' is a legendary Super Magic. Although 'Crush' is not a wide-range strategic deterrent like 'Fairy Law', in terms of raw combat potential and destruction, it is far more terrifying than ordinary Caster Magic.
He has been the strongest Mage in the Fairy Tail Guild for over twenty years, sitting on that throne unchallenged.
Opposite him stood Ren. The rising star. The anomaly.
Ren was undoubtedly the other contender for the title of "Strongest." He utilized strange, otherworldly powers—summoning figures like the Whitebeard or the Fourth Hokage—that defied the classification of Earthland's magic.
Although he only joined Fairy Tail a year and a half ago, his achievements were extraordinary. He had single-handedly dismantled two of the Ten Wizard Saints (Jose Porla and Jellal Fernandes), and a third Saint, Jura Neekis, had openly admitted his inferiority to him.
These two, even if placed on the entire continent of Ishgar, were top-tier Mages. The collision of such power was a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle.
"Who do you think will win between the two of them?"
Gray Fullbuster, having unconsciously stripped down to his boxers in anticipation, leaned against a tree and casually asked those around him.
"It's definitely Gildarts!" Natsu Dragneel shouted, pumping his fist in the air. Fire leaked from his mouth as he grinned. "That old man is invincible! I've challenged him a thousand times and never won once!"
"That's because you're weak, Flame Brain," Gray muttered, though he looked thoughtful. "But... although Ren's strength is great, is it sustained enough? Gildarts is a genuine monster with a bottomless pit of magic power."
"It should be Gildarts! A MAN must respect experience!" Elfman shouted, striking a pose. "That uncle's strength is unbelievably powerful! Ren is also a monster, but he is too young. In terms of raw magic power pressure, he is still inferior to Gildarts!"
Elfman's logic was simple: bigger muscles and older age equaled more manliness.
"I think it's Ren-san. Ren-san is super strong!"
Lucy Heartfilia chimed in, hugging Plue. She hadn't witnessed Gildarts' full power yet, having only met him recently. But she had personally seen Ren's strength—she had seen him shatter islands, summon meteors, and toy with dark guilds.
"Ren-san has defeated so many strong opponents," Lucy argued. "Even if Gildarts-san is strong, he would only be at the Ten Wizard Saint level, right? If he were stronger, the Magic Council should have given Gildarts the title of a Saint long ago!"
"What do you think, Erza?"
Lucy turned to the armored mage standing with her arms crossed. Erza Scarlet was an S-Class Mage and was very familiar with both the legend of Gildarts and the reality of Ren.
Erza narrowed her eyes, her gaze fixed on the two figures.
"Hmm... I guess Gildarts is still stronger," Erza said after a moment of deep thought.
"Eh? Even you think so, Erza?" Lucy was surprised.
"Ren's magic is versatile and devastating, yes," Erza explained, her voice serious. "But Uncle Gildarts' magic... 'Crush' is a conceptually unfair ability. It destroys the very structure of magic aimed at him. Coupled with his decades of life-and-death combat experience and magic power that feels like a crushing ocean... Ren's chances of winning are less than thirty percent."
"Is that uncle really that amazing?! Stronger than a Ten Wizard Saint?!" Lucy asked, her jaw dropping. She looked back at the scruffy, middle-aged man scratching his stubble in the distance.
Erza nodded affirmatively, her eyes filled with absolute respect.
"That uncle is indeed that amazing!"
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