"Cough… cough…"
After being whisked away at incredible speed, Wendy's hazy consciousness suddenly cleared as fresh air rushed back into her lungs.
"Haaah—!"
She sucked in a huge breath and opened her eyes, only to stare blankly when she realized she had somehow escaped the world of sand.
Then she spotted the raging sandstorm frozen in place not far away, while a streak of golden light darted repeatedly through the suspended grains.
Wendy immediately understood.
"Jellal!"
Watching Sawyer race in and out of the frozen sandstorm to rescue their companions one after another, Jellal finally breathed a sigh of relief. He smiled and gave Wendy a small wave.
"You took your sweet time…"
Now that reinforcements had arrived, Laxus relaxed slightly as he stood beside Jellal, his voice heavy with exhaustion.
Jellal gave him a helpless smile.
"You were moving too fast. Crime Sorcière's status is still… complicated, so we couldn't exactly use the Magic Council's teleportation network."
Ultear smiled mysteriously.
"Still, the trip wasn't wasted. We happened to bring another reinforcement along the way."
"Jellal…"
At that moment, Ajeel realized that everyone had escaped from Sandstorm World and stared coldly at Jellal from the distance.
"So it's you, Ajeel."
Ajeel sounded almost as though he were greeting an old acquaintance, and Jellal responded just as casually.
Yet both men silently shifted into the opening stances for their strongest spells.
Back on Tenrou Island, Jellal had been the one to fight Ajeel.
Their battle had technically ended without a winner.
Or rather, Ajeel stubbornly refused to admit that he had been losing.
Seeing the newly arrived members of Crime Sorcière, then glancing at the exhausted and battered fighters behind them, Ajeel gave a cruel smile.
He was eager to reveal something that would finally wipe the calm expressions off their faces.
"You're awfully determined to protect them."
"Unfortunately for you, several kilometers away on that mountain, one of my comrades already has his cannon aimed directly at this position."
Ajeel grinned wider, almost desperate to see panic spread across Jellal's face.
"He specializes in Mechanical Magic."
"One shot from that cannon has power comparable to a miniature Etherion."
"Every one of you will be reduced to ash."
Jellal listened calmly to the threat.
Then he gave Ajeel an almost apologetic smile.
"Sorry."
"We noticed your companion a long time ago."
Ajeel's grin stiffened.
Jellal's smile faded as he silently added,
'We're just not the ones dealing with him.'
'A very reliable old man volunteered for that.'
...
Some distance from the battlefield, atop a tall mountain, a black-haired young man sat quietly on the ground.
From below came repeated explosions as sections of the mountainside shattered apart.
"Gildarts and Wahl," the young man asked calmly. "Who do you think will win?"
The man sitting there was none other than Zeref, the Black Wizard whose name inspired terror across the world.
Behind him stood his ever-present secretary, Invel.
Invel adjusted his glasses and considered the question before answering.
"Your Majesty, Wahl is by no means weak among the Spriggan 12. He is a genius of the Machina race and an expert in both alchemy and Mechanical Magic."
"Gildarts may be a legendary mage, but he lost seven years of progress. Our empire's elites, meanwhile, have continued improving since the incident on Tenrou Island, so I believe—"
Zeref impatiently waved one hand.
Invel immediately stopped talking.
Zeref listened to the earthshaking explosions below for a while longer before asking quietly,
"How is the situation with Acnologia?"
"Neither side has gained a decisive advantage. The battle is nowhere near as intense as what occurred on Tenrou Island."
Invel delivered the report with his usual precision.
Zeref chuckled softly.
There was a trace of mockery in the sound.
"Of course."
"After witnessing the power of a god, that cunning Black Dragon would never risk his life in this battle unless He moved first."
Invel did not fully understand what Zeref meant.
"Then… whom should we assist? The Fairy God of Death, or…"
Zeref stared absently into the night sky for several moments.
"Ankhseram may lose."
"But he will not die."
"As for Acnologia… He has no intention of discarding such a useful piece just yet."
His voice remained indifferent.
"We help neither side."
"Tell Ajeel, August, and the others that no matter who loses that battle, they are not to interfere."
"Continue the feigned offensive against Ishgar. Concentrate our real forces on Guiltina and seize control of its Magic Council as quickly as possible."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Invel bowed immediately.
Silence returned.
Knowing his emperor well, Invel quietly withdrew and left Zeref alone with his thoughts.
Zeref stared into the distance in a daze, as though his eyes could somehow pierce the darkness and see the violent battle unfolding far away.
Then a terrified rabbit suddenly burst from the bushes and dove straight into his arms.
A fierce-looking tiger emerged behind it.
The moment the tiger saw Zeref, however, it froze and began trembling where it stood.
Only after waiting for some time and realizing Zeref had no intention of driving it away did the animal cautiously approach.
Soon, rabbit and tiger were circling around him.
Zeref smiled faintly and reached out with one hand, seemingly lost in thought.
A faint, ink-black light appeared.
The rabbit and tiger, which had just been scrambling over his lap and back, instantly went rigid.
Zeref stared at the power floating above his palm.
With his other hand, he gently stroked the trembling rabbit in his arms.
"Perhaps having the inheritance completely taken away wasn't such a bad thing after all."
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"It's only a shame…"
"That it didn't take this sinful life of mine along with it."
The words vanished into the wind.
So did the faint power carrying the pure essence of death.
Only after a long while did the rabbit and tiger recover.
They immediately resumed their strangely friendly game of predator and prey, chasing each other around Zeref once again.
Two natural enemies darted back and forth while the black-haired young man sat quietly between them with a gentle smile.
No outsider looking at that peaceful scene would ever imagine that the soft-spoken young man was the infamous Black Wizard cursed and feared by the entire world.
...
High above the earth, several enormous shadows raced between the clouds.
Brilliant magic circles and elemental particles glittered through the wind.
Igneel and Ignia led the assault.
Their magma-like flames scorched even Acnologia's scales as both Fire Dragons attacked from the front.
Acnologia roared and slammed both fists outward, stopping them simultaneously.
Emerald light then enveloped Weisslogia and Skiadrum as supporting Sky Magic strengthened them.
Two completely different elemental roars hammered Acnologia from opposite directions, constantly disrupting his judgment.
Then silver-blue light flashed directly above the Black Dragon.
Selene emerged from space with Ankh riding upon her back and dove straight down.
The Dragon God's Arsenal expanded enormously in Ankh's hands.
Using the tremendous momentum of Selene's descent, Ankh brought the gigantic blade down like an executioner's guillotine—
Straight toward Acnologia's head.
BOOM—!
Acnologia barely managed to raise one arm in time.
The immense force behind the slash knocked the Black Dragon completely out of the sky.
His colossal body crashed into the ocean below.
A massive tsunami erupted, swallowing Acnologia beneath raging waves.
None of the dragons in the sky relaxed.
They could still feel that violent, furious power surging from beneath the water.
Ankh's expression suddenly changed.
His gaze locked onto the depths below.
Under the enormous waves and churning black sea—a deep green light suddenly began to glow.