Inside the Cait Shelter guild, the atmosphere was a mix of relief and exhaustion.
After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they changed into the colorful local tribal attire provided by the Nirvit people.
They waited for the Council's inquiry.
Outside, the Council's troops had finished their sweep of the ruins.
They collected the bodies of Hoteye (who surrendered willingly) and Zero.
However, they found no further traces of the other Oración Seis members—Cobra, Racer, Midnight, or Angel.
Lahar adjusted his glasses, frowning at the report.
He even began to suspect that the Allied Forces had deceived them about their achievements, and that they had only fought two or three members of Oración Seis while the rest escaped.
But then he thought about it—if even the Oración Seis guild master had been killed by Ankh, there was no reason for his subordinates to escape successfully against such person... unless someone let them.
Besides, he didn't have the courage to question a certain Wizard Saint whom the Council recognized as "barbaric" and "uncontrollable."
So Lahar simply steeled himself and decided to mention it to Ankh indirectly, letting him take the issue to the higher-ups later.
Many Council executives, including Lahar, felt that the councilors' plan to target the most prominent guild to establish the new Council's authority was unreliable and dangerous.
'It wasn't Fairy Tail that destroyed the old Council,' Lahar thought bitterly and so many Dark Guilds remain untouched.
Why are they always targeting their own people?
Besides... that guild alone has two Ten Wizard Saints (Makarov and Ankh).
And the Guild Master's close friends are all leaders of powerful guilds.
Rumor has it that a senior member of Fairy Tail might even be one of the Four Gods of Ishgar...
'If we were to flip the table, who would be afraid of whom?'
Lahar didn't ask Ankh where the Oración Seis had disappeared to, and Ankh was naturally happy not to bring it up.
Later, when Lahar made his request for Ankh to return to the Council HQ for a "debriefing," Ankh readily agreed.
"Sure. I'll go talk to the old men."
...
"What? Brother, you're leaving first?"
Erza, dressed in traditional folk attire with colorful patterns, was admiring herself in the mirror when she suddenly heard Ankh's news.
Ankh nodded, changing into a lighter set of civilian clothes he had packed.
"The other members of Oración Seis have vanished, and Jellal's situation remains unresolved with the Council. Lahar is worried he can't handle the politics and asked me to go reason with those idiots at the Council headquarters."
Lucy, wearing an exotic crop-top dress that suited her well, asked curiously, "They've all disappeared? Did they escape?"
Ankh shrugged, evading the question smoothly.
"Who knows? Maybe they ran away when Zero fell."
Erza's eyes narrowed with suspicion, but Ankh avoided her gaze, focusing on adjusting his collar.
Ankh figured Erza probably knew he had arranged for Jellal to help the Oración Seis escape...
But it didn't matter.
Even if she knew, Erza would absolutely maintain her complete trust in him.
After all, that's how things had been all these years.
Ankh instructed the two women.
"I'll take my leave first. You two rest up and take the ship back—no need to rush. I have to go to the Council headquarters to argue with those old men, and... take good care of Wendy."
Lucy laughed. "But this is Wendy's guild! She should be the one taking care of us."
Ankh didn't respond and his eyes held a hint of sadness.
"Just... be with her."
After bidding farewell to the others, Ankh headed in the direction of the new Council.
...
High in the sky, a trace of emotion flickered in Ankh's eyes as he looked back at the illusionary village of Cait Shelter.
'A guild created for just one person...'
After the Mystogan left Wendy behind all those years ago, Guild Master Robaul created the entire Cait Shelter single-handedly to ensure she wouldn't feel lonely.
Every fabricated person possessed independent thought and personality—the sheer Magic Power and dedication behind it were astonishing.
But now that Nirvana is destroyed, their mission is over.
They will fade away.
'Such unavoidable partings and losses...' Ankh sighed. 'I prefer to steer clear of them whenever possible.'
Now, Ankh had to go check on his "interns awaiting assignment."
As for going to the Council? That was just an excuse Ankh used when Lahar made his request...
After flying some distance and confirming no one was following him, Ankh descended abruptly into a hidden valley.
He landed at the entrance of a camouflaged cave.
Jellal, who had been meditating at the entrance, snapped his eyes open and looked warily toward the cave mouth.
He relaxed immediately upon recognizing Ankh and stood up to greet him.
"Boss."
Ankh looked puzzled at Jellal's disheveled, dirt-stained appearance.
His new clothes were torn again.
"Didn't I give you new clothes? How did you end up like this again?"
Jellal smiled wryly and whispered, touching a bruise on his cheek, "The Oración Seis woke up..."
Ankh froze, then understood. "You fought them?"
Jellal nodded. "Because of the Tower of Heaven incident, they were... unhappy to see me. So..."
"Fortunately, I set up a Magic Formula barrier in advance to contain the commotion."
Ankh entered the cave and gave him a thumbs-up. "You're always reliable."
"So, did you explain your experiences at the Tower of Heaven? That you were possessed? Or did you simply subdue them with force?"
Jellal lowered his head and said, "There's really nothing to explain. As long as they can vent their anger on me... it's fine."
"If we didn't know that, we would have killed him long ago."
A hoarse voice emerged from the cave depths.
Ankh and Jellal halted.
They looked at the group seated around the campfire before them.
Cobra no longer carried his previous arrogance, but there was still an innate defiance about him.
The one who had just spoken was this Dragon Slayer Mage.
"You went through all that trouble to save us and get us to join your organization," Cobra hissed, staring at Ankh.
"What exactly is your goal?"
Cobra stared at the man who had killed Brain, suppressing the trembling in his heart as he forced himself to speak calmly.
'This man is a monster.'
Ankh crossed his arms, leaning against the cave wall.
He quietly observed the four of them—Cobra, Racer, Angel, and Midnight.
"To eradicate the Dark Guilds and prevent another Tower of Heaven incident," Ankh stated simply.
"This is Jellal's ideal, and it's also your path to redemption."
Ankh spoke in a persuasive tone to Cobra.
"You should already know that Brain treated you all as pawns. He nearly killed Richard when he was no longer useful. He also abandoned Angel."
"You should hate betrayal the most and value your small group the most, shouldn't you, Cobra? You only have each other."
Cobra narrowed his eyes slightly.
He fell silent, staring blankly at the campfire.
After a long while, Midnight, who had been silent and hiding in the shadowy corner, inexplicably spoke.
"Richard... you know his name."
Ankh nodded, looking at Midnight in the darkness. "I know all of you. What about you, Midnight? As the leader's adopted son, do you still want to remain loyal to him? He is dead."
"Of course not," Midnight emerged from the shadows.
His ghostly appearance carried a hint of sinister energy as he spoke gloomily. "He was weak. But why should we pledge loyalty to you instead?"
Ankh and Jellal exchanged a glance before responding.
"Because you've actually lost your purpose," Ankh said. "And since you can fulfill your wishes in the light, why immerse yourselves in darkness?"
Ankh turned to Racer, whose eyes were vacant behind broken sunglasses as if he had suffered a great blow.
"You want to run faster, Racer. But why run only to save your own life? Why not run to save others? That is true speed."
Then he looked at Cobra and asked, "You want to hear your only friend's voice, but why not listen to the voice in your own heart first? Cubellios is waiting."
"And you."
Ankh gazed at Angel, who sat huddled like a walking corpse, having lost her previous charming demeanor after her spirit magic was broken.
"If you want to vanish from this world like an angel... why can't you exist in this world like a warm angel instead? You can fly in the light."
The cave fell silent, save for the crackling fire.
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