Though he planned to exchange hostages, Jehfrit wasn't about to recklessly barge in.
First, he discussed the situation with Guild Master Makarov and the others, finalizing a rough strategy before setting out.
"Master, please be careful," Emily said tearfully, looking up at Jehfrit.
"Mm, you listen to everyone and follow their instructions. Don't leave the group," Jehfrit ruffled the little girl's hair.
"Jehfrit," Erza said, "I trust you."
"Good luck," Natsu raised his fist.
"Good luck," Lucy echoed.
"You won't disappoint us—do what you need to do," Gray clenched his fist.
"Juvia agrees with Gray-sama."
"Good luck."
Everyone trusted Jehfrit deeply.
"Mm." Jehfrit nodded, adjusted his hat, and pressed the brim down slightly.
He turned and left.
Late into the night,
Jehfrit arrived outside the Roya organization's main base.
They were currently stationed in Fecanita Town.
The town was eerily quiet, as if uninhabited.
Whoosh
A cool breeze swept by, carrying a handkerchief that fluttered past his eyes.
The scene was desolate and bleak.
Even the king had fled, and the townsfolk of Fecanita weren't fools either.
Fairy Tail was coming in full force, and their reputation for destruction was well known across the continent. Anyone paying attention to the news knew this.
So they'd already evacuated.
No point blaming Roya or Fairy Tail now—it was meaningless. The collateral damage from mage battles didn't discriminate between friend or foe.
Survival came first.
Half the town was saturated with an abnormal magnetic field.
"They're really on high alert," Jehfrit muttered after scanning the area with magic, unable to find a single weak point.
But.
That didn't mean he couldn't get in.
Magnetic fields could sense him, but they couldn't grant immunity to individual beings against his magical infection.
Standing just outside the magnetic field, Jehfrit first infected several guards and hidden sentries.
Under the influence of his Deception Magic, they inexplicably went and turned off the magnetic field sensors.
The seamless coverage of the magnetic field instantly cracked.
"Scale Angel."
"Aza, mirror refraction."
Miko's scales covered Jehfrit, and he summoned the Mirror Demon Aza, who cast a low-tier version of the same magic he once used on Miko—a spell that refracted all light, rendering him effectively invisible to the naked eye.
With that, he boldly walked straight into the enemy's main base.
Ordinary people lacked resistance to Deception Magic. From Jehfrit's observations, detecting him directly through magnetic fields would require something like a third eye—something he could easily avoid. His magical perception range extended farther than the magnetic field detection distance.
This disguise wasn't primarily to fool people but to avoid being recorded by magical imaging devices.
He surveyed the outer perimeter of the Roya organization.
At first glance, it appeared to be a large garment factory.
But inside, the workers were all mages with considerable magical power—close to the average Phantom Lord mages. Some were even as strong as Lucy—but so far, no three-eyed monsters.
The number of people was staggering, and the density was incredibly high.
Jehfrit recalled the encounters on Galuna Island and during the Oración Seis battle.
This organization had multiple teams scattered across the continent studying demons.
But judging by the current personnel density, they must have recalled everyone from the field.
Clearly, the Roya organization intended to go head-to-head with Fairy Tail.
This was a formidable group, filled with highly intelligent scholars. As a covert research-based organization, their upper echelons weren't fools.
If confronting Fairy Tail was a unanimous decision—and they prepared accordingly—it meant they were confident in dealing with six Wizard Saints, four guild master-level mages, and a host of regular S-Class mages—
Wizard Saints: Makarov, Gildarts, Laxus, Jehfrit, Erza, and Mystogan—though his stay in Edolas was kept secret, so outsiders still counted him as part of Fairy Tail.
Guild master-level: Ikuto, Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel.
This was Fairy Tail's current lineup—a veritable forest of powerhouses.
Compared to other guilds, Fairy Tail's mages of the same rank were stronger than those one rank higher.
For example, Phantom Lord's top-tier fighters—the Four Elements—would only qualify as A-Class within Fairy Tail. Gajeel, once hailed as "Phantom Lord's Strongest Man," was just another powerhouse here.
What other guilds considered S-Class, Fairy Tail had in abundance as A-Class mages.
Don't let Lucy's timid demeanor fool you; she was already among the elite A-Class mages in other guilds and at the top tier of Celestial Spirit Mages.
And Natsu's group? Though struggling to reach S-Class within the guild, outside, they each rivaled ordinary guild masters.
Take the Thunder Legion—three members capable of wiping out an entire dark guild.
And the Wizard Saints? They were on another level entirely.
Makarov, a veteran Wizard Saint.
Gildarts, who aside from facing super-spec ops threats, was practically unbeatable, embodying the "limit of human potential."
Laxus, who once took on Natsu, Gajeel, and Gray simultaneously, then fought Makarov afterward. His strength was growing rapidly, and with Speed recently joining him, his combat performance skyrocketed.
Erza wasn't any weaker. If not for the Council wanting to keep Fairy Tail humble, her upright nature and good image might've earned her a Wizard Saint title.
As for Jehfrit, though the general public didn't know much about him, this organization had been beaten twice by him. The second time, they watched as he effortlessly slaughtered seven opponents. His strength was undeniable to his enemies.
Add to that Tiffania, whose power rivaled Erza's.
Mystogan's stay in Edolas was also kept under wraps, so most people assumed he was still around and counted him among the Wizard Saints.
With such a lineup,
how could the Roya organization still be confident in winning?
The enemy wasn't foolish. Even the kingdom's king had fled. Jehfrit certainly didn't think they'd win by simply steamrolling through.
How had the enemy set this up?
They knew there was a trap but didn't know its nature.
Honestly, this was the first time Jehfrit felt this way—he usually infiltrated enemy bases to eavesdrop on confidential meetings.
"Heh."
Jehfrit chuckled softly. "This is the first time I've felt nervous."
"Don't worry," Miko reassured him. "No matter what happens, I can protect you."
"Of course," Jehfrit nodded.
He proceeded deeper.
After passing through the outer garment factory area,
the interior's atmosphere changed drastically.
Massive steel structures resembling eggshells enclosed the core area.
Occasional flashes of magical light flickered across the surface.
Though it was nighttime,
people were bustling in and out, all working overtime with serious expressions—clearly prepared for battle.
Here, relying solely on Deception Magic wouldn't allow him to sneak through unnoticed.
But Jehfrit wasn't without options.
He was bound to be exposed sooner or later anyway.
He moved to the side, summoning a demon and handing Hani to it.
Then, he returned to the main entrance.
Whoosh
Despite his earlier setback against Ansa, Hani still cut through steel like butter.
The demon slashed a massive crack into the steel structure with a single swing.
Buzz—
Alarms blared immediately.
Magnetic field devices installed on the building activated at maximum power.
"As if they're the only ones who know how to use magnetic fields."
Though Jehfrit wasn't as refined with magnetic fields as this organization, causing destruction was simple enough.
He pulled out a card and flicked it into the sky.
BOOM
An explosion followed, accompanied by intense magnetic field fluctuations that disrupted all the sensors.
"Enemy attack!"
"They've infiltrated our inner sanctum!"
"It must be Jehfrit!"
The surrounding people grew panicked. Masters of magnetic fields, they'd never encountered an enemy who could penetrate so deeply before being detected.
The demon swung Hani a few more times.
"There!"
"Hurry!"
Though the magnetic fields couldn't detect him, the demon disguised as Jehfrit was spotted by the enemies.
The demon dropped the blade and fled, drawing everyone's pursuit.
Jehfrit flicked another card, recalling Hani. The card returned, and Hani was back in his hand.
Buzz
The gates opened wide, no longer requiring individual card swipes for entry.
Mages wielding magic staves poured out in pursuit.
Jehfrit, however, moved against the flow, entering the facility.
Inside were numerous corridors, with personnel rushing past in every direction.
Jehfrit kept his magic active, "foreseeing" and avoiding the enemy's three-eyed monsters.
"Found her."
When his magical perception circle touched a magical seed, Jehfrit located Mirajane.
"Aza, construct a model of this place and calculate the optimal route in real-time."
Jehfrit instructed.
"Yes, Master."
Jehfrit transmitted all the information he'd gathered to the Mirror Demon Azazel.
Aza immediately constructed a 3D model of the base within the mirror world.
Jehfrit's magic could only detect living beings, so it couldn't fully map the physical structure of the building.
But Aza had strong computational abilities. Using everyone's coordinates, movement paths, and collected magnetic field data, he quickly created a rough model of the base.
Then, the route planning was complete.
"Aza, I'll transfer Edolas' magic permissions to you. Connect and control all nearby mirrors, linking them together."
"Yes, Master," Aza nodded.
Jehfrit had complete control over Ansa's magic from Edolas.
But he rarely lacked magic, so he didn't use it often—Deception Magic was notoriously frugal.
However, this time, he handed it over to Aza, allowing him to expend it freely.
Aza constructed a mirror world, connecting all the mirrors.
This way, everything nearby was under his surveillance.
Unfortunately, Aza's evolution was still in its early stages.
Far from achieving the ultimate goal of controlling all mirrors worldwide from home.
Currently, he could only connect nearby mirrors, and like Deception Magic, the connection broke if the distance became too great.
Jehfrit followed the route provided by Aza.
"Master, information updated. Turn left ahead," Aza prioritized mirrors along the route.
Anyone reflected in a mirror provided clues.
And mirrors weren't limited to cosmetic ones—any reflective surface clear enough to make out facial features could serve as a gateway to the mirror world.
Aza continuously updated the information, refining previous models and routes.
Thanks to this, Jehfrit avoided all three-eyed monsters along the way.
Magic recording devices were also manipulated by Aza through mirror reflections, ensuring Jehfrit's figure couldn't be captured.
Jehfrit smoothly approached Mirajane's location.
Soon,
he arrived at a prison cell.
Outside was chaotic, but here, it was eerily quiet.
The mages guarding the prison weren't easily mobilized.
There was one three-eyed monster here.
Aza provided the range of its magnetic field detection. Jehfrit stopped exactly one meter outside its range.
Exhale
At this point, no tricks would work.
Jehfrit said, "Aza, get ready."
"Yes, Master."
Jehfrit held a gun in his left hand and a blade in his right.
"Go!"
Buzz
Aza pulled him into the mirror world.
Then abruptly pushed him out.
The three-eyed monster, suddenly sensing Jehfrit's presence, froze in shock.
Before it could react, Jehfrit burst out from a nearby room, cutting down the guards with swift precision. Their faces twisted in horror as they collapsed.
Jehfrit showed no mercy—all were slain.
He then slashed open the prison cell.
Inside,
Mirajane was confined in a specially made steel cage covered in sealing magic circles.
Jehfrit examined her.
She bore no injuries and seemed mentally stable.
This relieved him.
"Jehfrit?!" Mirajane was startled to see him.
"Let's go."
Jehfrit rushed to her, slicing through the cage.
"There's a bomb around my neck," Mirajane pointed to her neck, her tone calm, without much worry or fear.
She trusted Jehfrit to find a solution.
Jehfrit looked closer. A collar around her neck emitted dangerous magical energy.
"It'll explode once I leave here," Mirajane explained.
"Don't worry," Jehfrit reached for the collar.
"Miko, assist," he said.
"…," Miko immediately transferred some scales.
The scales enveloped the collar.
She didn't like using her scales to protect anyone other than Jehfrit—mainly because she didn't want to stray too far from him.
But.
This request was manageable.
The scales wrapped around the bomb.
Jehfrit squeezed it.
BOOM
The bomb exploded within the scales.
Yet not a single ripple of force escaped.
Mirajane's eyes widened.
She'd always known Miko's defense was formidable, but she hadn't expected it to be this extreme.
Even in her Demon Queen form, she wouldn't dare withstand such an explosion. Yet this thin layer of scales rendered it completely harmless.
"Let's go," Jehfrit extended his hand.
Instead of taking it, Mirajane stood on her own.
"I can walk myself."
She spoke briefly, then unleashed her magic, transforming into her Demon Queen form.