After nearly a night at sea, the group finally reached the Tower of Heaven. Along the way, they spotted numerous shipwrecks, suggesting that many had already fallen victim to this place.
"I'm alive! Ahaha... haha!" Natsu shouted as he ran onto the shore. It seemed being trapped on the boat had nearly driven him insane.
Bang! Erza delivered a punch to Natsu's head. "Behave yourself! You'll draw the enemy!" she shouted, seemingly unaware that her own voice was even louder.
"No, you're the one who's going to draw the enemy," Lucy and Happy muttered in unison.
Subconsciously, everyone acted as if the previous night hadn't happened. Erza was Erza again the gallant Titania of Fairy Tail. Her heroic spirit was fully restored.
She turned to Simon. "Can you contact Shô and the others yet?" Her gaze swept past Chen Fan without a pause. Chen Fan knew better than to interrupt her while she was in this state, so he stood by quietly.
Simon pressed his fingers to his forehead, concentrating. After a moment, he sighed. "No, I can't sense them. I don't know what's happened... I hope they haven't done anything foolish." His voice was heavy with worry.
Erza was equally concerned, but she remained calm. She looked at Simon and asked, "Is there a secret passage that leads up quickly?"
"There is, but it's underwater. It takes about ten minutes," Simon replied.
"That's fine," Natsu said confidently.
"Yeah," Gray agreed.
"Are you crazy?!" Lucy cried out.
Suddenly, Juvia spoke up. "This... this can solve the breathing problem. This water sphere contains breathable air." She held out a ball of water.
"That's a huge help!"
"Thank you, Juvia," Gray and Erza said.
Juvia's face turned bright red. "Ah! Juvia was praised by Gray-sama!" She immediately dashed over to Lucy. "Gray-sama was praising me, not you!"
"Uh... did I even do anything to you?" Lucy was baffled. Chen Fan chuckled; it seemed Juvia had designated Lucy as her primary love rival.
The group moved quickly through the water. Chen Fan didn't use Juvia's water sphere he didn't even bother to change his clothes.
As soon as they hit land, an alarm blared. "Intruders!"
A group of armed men appeared before them. "Who are you?"
Smack! Natsu smashed his fists together, flames erupting from his hands. "Don't you bastards even know who you're dealing with? We're Fairy Tail!"
Boom! A blast of fire erupted from beneath Natsu's feet as he charged. The others followed suit. Chen Fan lagged behind, hands in his pockets, taking it easy. Sometimes, if you don't go looking for trouble, trouble comes looking for you.
Seeing how fierce Erza, Natsu, and Gray were, the attackers ignored them and swarmed toward the relaxed-looking Chen Fan.
"Sigh..." The sigh didn't come from Chen Fan, but from Erza and Natsu. They looked at the enemies with pity, leaving the attackers confused.
Chen Fan scratched his head, feeling a bit depressed. Was being handsome and honest-looking a crime?
The enemies watched his every move nervously as he lifted his leg. Tap. The sound of his foot hitting the ground echoed through the cavern.
Everyone blinked. Even Erza and the others looked at him, wondering if his magic had failed.
Seeing that nothing happened, the attackers jeered and charged forward again. They hadn't gone two steps when a massive Rumble! shook the room. The ceiling collapsed, sending massive rocks crashing down onto them. Screams filled the air as a thick cloud of dust rose.
Natsu and the others stared wide-eyed. They hadn't expected such a blunt solution.
"Cough, cough... I hate dust. It ruins the air." Chen Fan stepped out from the debris. Everyone gave him a look of pure disdain; despite the collapse and the water, not a speck of dust or a drop of water was on his clothes.
Suddenly, a mechanical sound echoed. A ladder extended from the mouth of a lion-headed statue.
Natsu ran forward. "What's this? Does it want us to go up?"
"This is bad. Jellal has found us." Simon looked terrified; it was clear Jellal had left deep scars on his psyche.
"Calm down!" Chen Fan shouted.
Perhaps Chen Fan's voice held a certain calming magic, because Simon regained his composure.
At the top of the Tower of Heaven, a magic screen displayed Chen Fan and his group. A man standing next to Jellal asked, "Lord Jellal, why are you letting the intruders in?"
"Didn't I say? This is a game. They've passed the level, that's all. Doesn't this make things more interesting?" Jellal sat in his chair, swirling a wine glass as he watched the magic projection with a smile.
"But the ship sunk the other day was the investigation team's... The Magic Council will surely..."
"Vidaldus, are you still worried? Don't be. As long as this person is here, everything will go smoothly." The magic projection zoomed in on Chen Fan.
"Alright, no more hiding. Let's just knock him out! Let's go!" Natsu shouted and charged ahead.
Erza, Gray, and Simon followed. Chen Fan stayed at the rear. Once the others had entered, he looked up and smiled at the sky.
On Jellal's magic screen, Chen Fan was smiling directly at them. Then, his lips moved, spelling out four words: "The game begins."
Crack! The wine glass in Jellal's hand shattered. He stood up, his face contorted with madness, and pointed at the screen. "Just you wait! You will die by my hand! You will! Aah!" He threw the remains of the glass at the screen. It passed through the image and shattered on the floor with a loud Bang!
Once he had vented his rage, Jellal sat back down, leaning his head on his hand, lost in thought.
Beside him, Vidaldus Taka was trembling. He had never seen Jellal this furious. He stood silently to the side, too afraid to make a sound.
Erza looked back and saw Chen Fan grinning foolishly. Her temper flared. "What are you standing around for? Keep up!"
"Oh, coming!"
🚨 Note: Consider supporting this story on Patreon.com/kleinmoretti to access 100+ advance chapters and 2 new chapters daily! (Full story bundles also available without a subscription).