The moment the words left her lips, before Makarov could even react, Erza had already acted.
With a flash of light, she equipped her most resilient armor Diamond Armor and sprinted past the guild members, leaping to the front lines.
In a swift motion, she raised her massive white shield and summoned an impenetrable defensive magic circle in front of her.
Just as she finished casting, the Magic Cluster Cannon: Jupiter roared through the sky, tearing across the surface of the lake and slamming directly into Erza's shield with unstoppable force.
BOOM!!!
The instant the blast collided with her barrier, a monstrous shockwave exploded outward like a hurricane.
The land was scorched and ripped apart.
Lake water vaporized into steam with a hiss.
"Ugh... it's so heavy!"
Erza's long crimson hair whipped through the air as she clenched her jaw, hands trembling as she gripped the shield tighter.
She had barely managed to stop the cannon's initial impact. But Jupiter wasn't just a single shot it was a continuous stream of concentrated magical energy, and its force kept pushing her back.
Cracks spiderwebbed across her Diamond Armor.
Her legs slid against the ground. Her footing began to falter.
The armor buckled.
Her shield trembled.
She was at her limit.
And just as her strength was about to give out, she felt it
A steady, strong hand pressed gently down on her shoulder.
Her backward slide came to a halt.
"I can't let you hog all the spotlight, Erza."
Chase's voice was calm and confident, a slight grin on his face.
"Chase, you !"
Before she could say anything else, her body was suddenly pulled forward, the crushing pressure of Jupiter's beam vanishing in an instant.
Erza's eyes widened. She looked down and saw a rotating magic circle under her feet and then quickly looked up.
Floating on either side were two distinct, cylindrical magical devices, each glowing with power.
One cylinder had completely absorbed Jupiter's beam, like a magical black hole.
The other now crackled with an identical black and purple vortex, gathering energy for retaliation.
"Blocking it would've been a waste," Chase said coolly.
"Something this powerful should be returned to sender."
He raised his arm and declared
"Trap Card: Magic Cylinder activate!"
The second cylinder pulsed, then fired.
FWOOM!
A concentrated beam of magical artillery shot back twice as focused, twice as furious heading straight for the central gun barrel of Phantom Lord's fortress.
BOOM!!
The impact rocked the entire island.
The cannon barrel, crafted from enchanted steel and laced with reinforced energy lines, cracked then shattered entirely. Inside, the core energy crystal exploded into fragments, releasing black smoke as alarms blared through Phantom's command room.
The Magic Cluster Cannon: Jupiter, Phantom Lord's pride and symbol of intimidation, had been completely destroyed.
I almost forgot… the kids in my guild are all incredible.
On the rubble-strewn, broken shoreline, Chase stood with his chest rising and falling rapidly, his breath just a little uneven.
Though Erza had taken the brunt of the cannon's initial burst, that had still been Jupiter a weapon capable of obliterating an entire mountain range in an instant.
Reflecting something like that wasn't just flashy it drained an immense amount of magic power.
And as for why he didn't use Holy Shield – Reflector Force for a wide-range reflection and instead chose Magic Cylinder for a precision counterattack?
There were two clear reasons:
First Jupiter's destructive power was simply too overwhelming. A mistargeted reflection could have leveled not just the guild, but the entire town. That kind of force had to be redirected carefully.
Second Phantom Lord's elite troops, including the Four Elements, were basically experience points gift-wrapped for Fairy Tail's mages.
Bonds between comrades were forged in battle fight after fight, shoulder to shoulder.
Chase had no intention of robbing his guildmates of those growth moments, even if it would have been cool to just one-shot the whole army.
Unlike the desperate stakes in the original timeline, this time they had Makarov at full strength, and Mira had already unleashed her demonic form in advance.
The scales were tipped.
So let Natsu, Gray, and the rest stir up as much chaos as they liked.
"Chase, are you alright?"
Erza had reverted to her standard armor and approached with concern in her voice.
"You really took a beating... that was Jupiter, you know."
"Hahaha, we both did," Chase said with a sheepish grin, scratching his head.
Erza let out a deep sigh and gave him a look that said you idiot without saying a word.
Click, click, click
The soft whirring of mechanical gears broke through the tension and quiet cheer.
All eyes turned to the massive six-legged fortress.
At its very top, the thick steel walls slowly pulled open, revealing a platform.
Standing on it were four familiar figures... and one very bitter man.
Joseph Porla, guild master of Phantom Lord, had finally arrived.
Behind him stood the Four Elemental Warriors, each staring down with battle-ready expressions.
"So... you've finally shown yourself, Joseph," Makarov said quietly.
He stepped forward to join Chase and Erza, his eyes narrowing as he looked up at his old rival.
"It's been quite a few years, hasn't it, Mr. Makarov?"
Joseph's tone was calm, but his face was twisted with fury.
The moment his eyes locked onto Chase, the malice behind them was unmistakable.
"You've picked up quite the magician."
He spat the words like venom.
It was Chase who had shattered his perfect plan.
Chase, who stopped Gajeel and hung him from the clock tower, turning Phantom Lord into a public joke.
Chase, who obliterated Phantom's most powerful weapon Jupiter in full view of the entire guild.
Joseph had planned to use Jupiter to weaken Makarov, to wear him down before the real battle began.
And now?
That plan had gone up in smoke.
At the very least, Phantom Lord had hoped to take out one of Fairy Tail's top-tier fighters.
But now?
After firing Jupiter, they hadn't even managed to singe a hair
and on top of that, they had blown up their own energy core.
"Enough with the theatrics,"
Makarov said sternly, voice echoing through the lakeside.
"Are you really sure you want to go to war with us?"
He crossed his arms and stared up at the Phantom Lord platform, gaze unwavering.
"If you kneel down right now and admit your mistake, I'm willing to let this go just this once."
"Hah! You want me to apologize?"
Joseph barked out a forced laugh, trying to mask the growing rage beneath his skin.
"Wasn't it you Fairy Tail who beat the living daylights out of our loyal ally, Saber Fang?!"
He was practically snarling.
Still, he forced down his killing intent for Chase, threw out his arms dramatically, and sneered.
"But… if you agree to one condition just one maybe I'll consider backing down."
His tone suddenly shifted.
Cold. Focused. Cruel.
His gaze pierced through the thinning fog… and landed on someone standing in the middle of the crowd.
Lucy Heartfilia.
"That's right. Hand over Lucy Heartfilia right now."
The entire atmosphere changed in an instant.
The demand wasn't random. It wasn't personal vendetta.
This was Phantom Lord's true objective all along.
If his original plan to drain Makarov's strength with Jupiter had worked, Joseph would've leisurely destroyed Fairy Tail afterward.
But now? With the battle plan off course, he figured he'd at least complete the mission that mattered most:
Capture Lucy Heartfilia.
"Lucy?"
Makarov blinked in surprise.
All the nearby members glanced at one another in confusion.
Of course, none of them would ever consider handing over Lucy.
But what puzzled everyone was:
Why her?
Why was Phantom Lord targeting the newest, most cheerful Celestial Spirit Mage in the guild?
Standing near the back, Lucy's heart trembled at the sound of her full name echoing through the mist.
She clenched her fists at her sides, lowering her head, a tight knot forming in her chest.
She had a terrible feeling she knew exactly what this was about.
"Oh?"
Joseph smirked when he saw their expressions.
"You mean to tell me… you didn't know?"
His voice dripped with scorn.
"Lucy Heartfilia is the daughter of the Heartfilia Konzern."
A wave of shock rolled through the guild.
Even Mira gasped and covered her mouth in disbelief.
The Heartfilia Konzern was no ordinary noble house.
Their influence spanned all of Fiore railway infrastructure, city development, transportation networks they had their fingers in everything.
For someone from such a powerful family to be standing in their guild…
To think that Lucy, of all people, was the daughter of a tycoon...
It was no wonder they were stunned.
After all...
Lucy Heartfilia never once acted like a "rich girl" inside Fairy Tail.
Not once.
....
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