Marco's body radiated intense magical fluctuations that resonated with the star chart in the sky.
The constellation of Aries shone particularly bright, continuously showering starlight to sustain the 'Wall of Ishgar' that resembled the Wailing Wall.
The massive 'Crystal Wall' stood there—though intangible, its outline had become visible now.
The magic had grown so dense that the entire wall glowed, this starry barrier firmly holding back the Magic Beast Tide from Nord Forest.
"How on earth is this possible..."
Yajima stood nearby, too stunned to speak, repeating the question in disbelief.
He truly couldn't comprehend—was this wall really magic?
Even more confused were the magic beasts of Nord Forest.
How could they suddenly crash into something and die mid-charge?
Their tiny brains couldn't process this.
Even under normal circumstances they wouldn't understand, let alone in their current frenzied state.
Yet they kept charging forward one after another.
Only after countless beasts had perished did the remaining creatures finally halt their advance.
"Has they learned their lesson?" Marco sighed in relief as he watched the receding Magic Beast Tide.
Though Marco appeared calm on the surface, maintaining this Wall drained him tremendously—primarily due to its massive scale.
Sustaining such an extensive 'Crystal Wall' required enormous magical energy.
For days, Marco had been constructing this wall, building 'Crystal Walls' section by section while maintaining them with minimal magic.
Only today had he fully activated them, having kept them in 'standby mode' until now.
Lately, Marco had even resorted to nearly pure physical combat against beasts, all to conserve magic for maintaining these constructed walls.
The results justified his efforts, though the strain was immense.
Fortunately, the frenzied beasts merely mindlessly charged without employing other attacks, otherwise the pressure would have been unbearable.
"Is it over?" Yajima asked as the commotion faded, watching the distant Crystal Wall cease its magical fluctuations with no more beasts crashing against it.
He seemed to awaken from a dream—this boy Marco had actually held the line.
"For now, at least." Marco nodded.
The beasts had stopped assaulting his 'Crystal Wall', settling into relative calm compared to earlier.
The Magic Beast Tide came in waves.
"Will there be another wave?" Yajima blinked, posing an odd question.
"How would I know? Shouldn't you be telling me that?" Marco replied exasperated.
Without experience in such matters, wasn't this when elders should share their wisdom?
"Ahem... there truly are no records about this." Yajima's aged face flushed red.
He didn't know what would follow either—the last occurrence was so long ago that he hadn't even qualified to be summoned back then.
Moreover, the records in the books never mentioned anything like what was happening now.
Those magical beasts from the Nord Forest hadn't even managed to break out of the woods before being blocked by Marco.
There was simply no precedent for this.
"It's fine. We can keep guarding here a while longer. I feel alright—this surge hasn't even come close to my limit yet."
Marco nodded, dispersing the magic power around him.
In the distance, the walls also lost its glow and vanished without a trace.
"This is truly..."
Watching the 'Crystal Wall' disappear and return to its usual state, Yajima couldn't help but sigh in amazement.
Everything felt like a dream—so surreal and unbelievable, as if it couldn't possibly happen in the real world.
The most unbelievable part was that Marco had done all this alone.
And this kid was just a rookie S-Class Mage in his early teens!
Faintly, Yajima seemed to see the next 'Ten Wizard Saint' of Fairy Tail rising before his eyes.
Becoming one of the "Ten Wizard Saints" wasn't just about strength—it also required fame, contributions, and more.
After completing this mission, Marco's contributions would speak for themselves, and his reputation was already strong.
The only things holding him back were his young age and the fact that Makarov still held the title of Ten Wizard Saint.
Otherwise, Yajima would have seriously considered bringing it up back at the council.
But for now, even if he did, the other council members would never agree.
The idea of granting Fairy Tail another 'Ten Wizard Saint' seat to a young boy would be more unbearable to them than death itself.
"See? I told you I could handle this myself."
Standing by the remnants of the "Crystal Wall," Marco grinned at Yajima.
After witnessing what had just happened, he was sure Yajima would take back all his earlier doubts.
"I owe you an apology, Marco. I shouldn't have questioned your strength."
Yajima was straightforward about it, refusing to stubbornly cling to his earlier stance.
Instead, he openly apologized and admitted his mistake.
"No hard feelings, Councilman Yajima. I understand where you were coming from. You were just being cautious, worried I couldn't handle it and might cause trouble. So, do we still need to call in the others?"
Since Yajima was being so forthright, Marco naturally wouldn't embarrass him.
After all, this man was a senior member of Fairy Tail and had a close relationship with Makarov.
By all rights, Marco should even call him 'Grandpa'.
"We still should. Since the beast surge has already happened, everyone needs to be informed. Besides, this is a good chance to boost your reputation—let everyone see what you're capable of."
After a moment's thought, Yajima decided to follow standard procedure.
Normally, when a beast surge occurred, the Magic Council would organize a coalition of mages to repel or eliminate the creatures.
"Alright, we'll wait for them then." Marco nodded.
Though he didn't particularly care for the fame, if Yajima wanted to go through the formalities, so be it.
It might even save some trouble later.
If someone were to dig up old grievances later and question Yajima about not following the proper procedures, it could be quite troublesome.
Procedures are sometimes genuinely important.
Yajima often spoke up for Fairy Tail in the Magic Council, so it was only fair to cooperate with him on such matters.
"Alright, I'll go notify them right away."
Without further ado, Yajima immediately set about preparing to contact headquarters.
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