In this dead, gray-white world, Ryoma took a step forward.
This step seemed to land on the pulse of time.
Buzz!
The magic circle centered on him glowed brightly, and a vast amount of magic power was frantically extracted, transformed, and then poured into the giant ice in front, which sealed Deliora.
Gray, Erza, Natsu, and Lucy found that although they retained consciousness, their bodies were now frozen in space-time, unable to move. They could only watch, helplessly witnessing the scene that defied common sense.
The ice… didn't melt.
Not a trace of water vapor appeared, nor any change in temperature.
It was gradually rewinding!
Like a video played in reverse, the solid ice covering Deliora's body was undergoing a reverse change. The structure of the ice began to reorganize and peel away, gathering outward inch by inch from Deliora's body surface.
And the outline of the terrifying demon gradually blurred in this bizarre reversal.
Then, a human outline slowly became clear at the very core of the ice layer.
"This… this is…"
Lucy's eyes widened, the shock in her heart beyond words.
"So… so amazing…"
Natsu's mouth hung open, even his single-track mind sensed the terror of this power.
Erza's face was also filled with astonishment. She had witnessed many types of magic, but this was the first time she had seen magic that directly interfered with time itself.
This no longer seemed like magic, it was more like a miracle.
Among everyone, Gray had the most intense reaction.
His body trembled violently, tears already blurring his vision again, but this time it wasn't because of sadness or despair.
It was hope!
It was the ecstasy and excitement of witnessing a miracle unfold.
That outline… that figure that had appeared countless times in his dream was slowly coming back to life from that cold seal.
"Ur…"
Gray's lips trembled, his voice so faint it was almost inaudible, yet it carried all his longing and regret from the past ten years.
"Ugh!"
Lucy, standing behind the others, was the first to let out a muffled groan. She felt her magic power being drained at an alarming rate, and her body began to weaken.
Natsu and Erza followed immediately.
Even Erza, an S-Class Mage whose magic power far exceeded ordinary people's, felt an unprecedented sense of weakness.
The magic power consumption of this magic was far greater than any of them had imagined.
Ryoma stood at the very front, bearing the greatest pressure.
The torrent of magic power, gathered from everyone's strength, surged through his body. Each circulation felt like tearing him apart.
His face had turned pale, and his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat. But he didn't stop, his eyes fixed on the changes in front, pushing his last bit of strength.
"Just a little more…"
Finally!
At the very moment everyone's magic power was about to run out, all the solid ice completely vanished. It didn't turn into water but seemed to have never existed, completely annihilated in this gray-white space-time.
In the place where the ice seal disappeared, a figure stood quietly.
It was a woman with neat, dark short hair, wearing a jacket and trousers, her posture tall and straight. Her hands remained crossed in front of her body.
That was the starting stance of Iced Shell.
Ur!
She was back!
The moment her figure completely solidified, Ryoma could no longer sustain it and cut off the magic power output.
"Ha… Ha…"
Gray and Lyon simultaneously collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. Their magic power had been completely drained, and they didn't even have the strength to stand.
As the magic power supply was interrupted, the entire Space-Time Corridor began to fluctuate violently.
Buzz... Buzz...
Cracks began to appear at the edges of the gray-white world, and vibrant colors seeped in from outside the cracks.
Time was about to resume its flow.
Everyone lay sprawled on the ground from exhaustion. Only Lyon, with his last ounce of strength, managed to raise his head and look at the motionless figure.
It was Ur… it really was Ur…
She remained still, in the posture of casting magic, like a perfect sculpture.
Lyon's gaze was incredibly complex.
Ecstasy? Excitement?
No.
None of them.
It was a kind of almost panicked helplessness.
He had spent ten years, striving to surpass her, to defeat Deliora.
But what was the result? Deliora was killed by Ur, and now, Ur was back.
How was he supposed to face her?
Tell her all the foolish things he had done for a false goal over the past ten years?
Tell her that he had almost released Deliora, making her ten years of sacrifice meaningless?
He didn't dare nor could he face it.
Lyon took advantage of the fact that time had not fully resumed, and that everyone's attention was scattered due to exhaustion.
He struggled to get up from the ground, glanced at the figure that haunted his dreams, his eyes filled with pain and reluctance.
Then he resolutely turned around, dragging his weakened body, and limped quietly into the shadows deep within the cave, disappearing from sight.
No one noticed his departure.
Crash!
A sound like shattering glass rang out, and the gray-white world completely collapsed.
Colors, light and shadow, sounds… everything returned to this world in an instant.
"Hoo… Hoo…"
Natsu and the others gasped for air, as if they had just struggled out of deep water.
"Did it… succeed?" Lucy asked weakly.
No one answered her.
Everyone's gaze was focused on the center of the cave.
At this moment, another anomaly occurred.
Deliora, freed from its ice bind, did not let out an earth-shattering roar the moment time resumed its flow.
Its body froze.
Immediately, spiderweb-like cracks began to spread rapidly upwards from its feet.
Crack… Crack…
Crisp shattering sounds continuously echoed.
Under everyone's astonished gaze, this demon, which had once brought endless calamity to the continent, its flesh, its bones, its very existence were rapidly weathering away.
In just a few seconds, its massive body completely turned into a pile of gray-black powder, and a gust of wind blowing through the cave completely dispersed it into the air.
The demon of calamity, Deliora.
At this moment, it was truly reduced to ashes.
Its last foundation of existence, the trace of magic power that sustained its immortality, was erased by the Space-Time Corridor's interference with space-time.
Silence once again returned to the cave, leaving only the heavy breathing of the crowd.
And… the woman standing in the center.
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly.
Everyone's hearts were in their throats.
Gray clenched his fists tightly, his fingernails digging deep into his palms, yet he felt no pain.
Ur slowly lowered her crossed hands in front of her body. Her eyes, which had been closed for ten years, finally opened again.
A trace of confusion flashed in her eyes, immediately replaced by sharp vigilance.
An unfamiliar cave, an unfamiliar environment, and a group of unfamiliar faces.
A pink-haired boy, a blonde girl, a red-haired woman and a pale-faced young man.
And a black-haired boy whose outline was somewhat familiar.
Her instinct as a top mage made her instantly adopt a defensive posture.
"Who are you?"
Her voice was clear, strong, and filled with undeniable vigilance, echoing through the cave.
Gray's body trembled violently, his lips quivering as he tried to utter that name, but found his throat seemed to be blocked by something, unable to make a sound.
Ur didn't wait for an answer. Her gaze swept around, seemingly searching for something.
She remembered.
That's right!
Deliora!
To seal that demon, she had used Iced Shell, turning herself into eternal ice.
But now… where was the ice?
Where was the demon?
Ur's pupils suddenly constricted, and an anxious and solemn expression appeared on her face.
"Where is Deliora?!"