Ryoma's words made Crawford's heart, which had just relaxed, leap into his throat again.
He frowned deeply, his voice tinged with suppressed anger and profound confusion. "You... what else do you want to do?"
Crawford almost gritted his teeth as he asked this question.
He had already made the biggest concession, publicly declaring Fairy Tail innocent, which had already caused the Council to lose all its prestige, but this guy still seemed unsatisfied.
Ryoma completely ignored his grim expression, merely tidying his collar nonchalantly.
"Mr. Chairman, you seem to have misunderstood something."
"This time, it wasn't us, Fairy Tail, who initiated the conflict."
His gaze calmly swept across the entire hall.
"It was Phantom Lord's people who destroyed our Guild and even prepared to attack our members."
"From beginning to end, we were merely acting in self-defense. We were even merciful enough to only capture the main culprit who attacked us."
Ryoma's voice paused, then his tone shifted, carrying a hint of righteous questioning.
"Our Guild's headquarters were destroyed, our members were terrified, and some even narrowly escaped death."
"Could it be..."
"All of this doesn't require any compensation?"
...
Compensation?!
This word drilled into the ears of all the Council members present, making them fall into a daze once more.
This guy... is he crazy?
Not only did he use force to compel the Council to bow down, but now he even wants to extort money in return?
This was no longer just audacious. This was practically throwing the Council's face on the ground and stomping on it repeatedly.
Leiji, who had just struggled to get up from the ground and hadn't quite stabilized, trembled with rage upon hearing this. He glared fiercely at Ryoma, and although he was roaring furiously in his heart, he could only keep his mouth tightly shut.
At the highest point, Crawford's face was extremely dark. He remained silent for a long time, seemingly weighing the pros and cons, and finally, he spoke.
"Phantom Lord's Guild Master, Jose Porla, is already dead."
"Their Guild has also been largely destroyed, and most of its members have dispersed."
"How do you expect us to provide you with compensation?"
These words were both an explanation and a veiled refusal, what could a largely defunct Guild use to compensate them?
However, Ryoma merely shook his head slightly as if he had heard a joke.
"Mr. Chairman."
His voice carried a hint of faint sarcasm.
"Investigating all of Phantom Lord's assets, consolidating their legacy, liquidating their crimes..."
"Aren't these matters that your Magic Council should be considering?"
"Or are you saying the Council is only responsible for judgment, not for execution?"
...
Crawford was left speechless by these words.
Yes, this was indeed one of the Council's responsibilities.
This kid had planned everything out. He used absolute strength as his backing, then stood on the high ground of the rules, forcing the Council to follow his script.
An open conspiracy.
Crawford took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.
He knew he had no choice: either agree to this seemingly absurd yet reasonable demand, or completely tear off his mask with this unfathomably strong and reckless monster before him.
The consequences... he dared not imagine.
"...Alright."
Crawford squeezed out this word from between his teeth, as if he had used all his strength.
"The assets of Phantom Lord will be handed over to Fairy Tail as compensation after liquidation."
Receiving a satisfactory answer, Ryoma nodded, and a lazy smile reappeared on his face.
"Since the trial is over, I'll be leaving first."
With that, he casually walked towards the main door of the conference hall with his hands in his pockets. He left nonchalantly under the gaze of the Council members and numerous staff.
Not a single person dared to step forward to stop him, nor did anyone dare to utter a single word.
It wasn't until the heavy door slowly closed, completely cutting off Ryoma's figure, that the extremely taut string in the entire conference hall finally snapped with a "crack."
"Hoo..."
"Hoo..."
Several Council members simultaneously sighed in relief, slumping into their seats as if they had just experienced a life-and-death battle.
The relief of surviving a disaster was quickly replaced by endless humiliation and anger.
"Outrageous!"
Leiji's roar finally erupted. He slammed his fist on the table in front of him, his face turning red with rage. He instantly perked up again, that arrogant demeanor returning to him.
He abruptly turned his head, his gaze fixed on two people.
"Councilor Siegrain! Councilor Ultear!"
His voice was sharp and full of questioning. "Just now, why didn't you intervene?!"
"You just watched that bastard swagger around here, trampling our Council's dignity underfoot!"
Facing Leiji's questioning, Ultear feigned alarm, patting her chest and showing a delicate, innocent expression. "Oh dear, Councilor Leiji, you can't blame me for this."
"Didn't you personally feel that terrifying magic power just now?"
She blinked, her voice sweet and soft. "I'm just a weak woman, how could I be a match for such a monster? What if he accidentally hurt me?"
Yajima almost couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Weak woman?
Among the Council members present, who wasn't a shrewd person? Ultear's words were simply blatant lies.
Leiji's lips twitched, clearly choked by her words, and he could only turn his spearhead towards the other person.
"What about you, Siegrain?"
"You are also one of the Ten Wizard Saints. Are you afraid of him too?"
Siegrain, who was called out, showed a perfectly timed look of helplessness, spreading his hands. "Councilor Leiji, I really wanted to help."
"But you should know that I am merely a thought projection sitting here."
"Facing that level of magical pressure, I was already using all my strength just to keep this thought projection from collapsing."
He sighed, his tone filled with regret. "I truly wished to help, but was powerless."
The two perfect excuses left Leiji's anger stuck in his chest, neither rising nor falling, making him extremely uncomfortable.
His face turned ashen as he roared, "So we just let him extort us and then swagger away like that?!"
"Our reputation! The Council's dignity! Do we still want them?!"
His impotent fury echoed throughout the entire conference hall.
Just then, a voice that had remained silent all this time spoke up.
Org spoke in an extremely calm tone, "Leiji, calm down. We still need to speak with facts."
"Firstly, the evidence in the record lacrima is crystal clear: it was Phantom Lord's people who first tried to kill Fairy Tail members."
"Secondly, we don't have direct evidence that Fairy Tail actively attacked Phantom Lord's headquarters. They have all sorts of reasons to deny it."
Org's voice was neither rushed nor slow, yet it gradually calmed down the agitated Leiji.
He paused and then stated the most crucial point.
"Thirdly, and most importantly, Fairy Tail has Makarov, and now that young man named Ryoma."
"Two Wizard Saint-level combat powers. And one's strength probably already surpasses most of our understanding."
"If we push them too far and they truly become a Dark Guild, who will take responsibility for that?"
Org's gaze slowly swept across the entire hall.
"You, Leiji?"
A series of questions left Leiji speechless.
He opened his mouth but found he couldn't refute anything.
Yes, who would take responsibility?
If it really came to a fight, among everyone present, who could control that monster?
With the anger and humiliation in his heart nowhere to vent, he cast a venomous gaze at the other three.
"Good! A 'who will take responsibility' indeed."
Leiji, angered to the point of laughter, pointed at Yajima, Org, and Michello.
"You just protect him like that! What about the Council's dignity?!"
"I think you three have long been in cahoots with Fairy Tail!"
Yajima, who hadn't said much until now, was full of confidence at this moment. He snorted coldly, a glint flashing in his eyes.
"Leiji, you can eat carelessly, but you can't speak carelessly. We are merely discussing the matter at hand."
He looked at Leiji's unwilling expression, and a cold smile suddenly appeared at the corner of his lips.
"What? Are you still unconvinced?"
"Then I'll call Ryoma back, and you can have a good talk face-to-face again, how about that?"
"..."
These words were like a bucket of ice water poured over Leiji from head to toe, instantly waking him from his furious state.
Call Ryoma back?
Just thinking of that young man's cold eyes and terrifying pressure, his body shivered uncontrollably.
He opened his mouth, his Adam's apple bobbing for a long time, but in the end, he didn't dare to say a single word, silently closing his mouth.