Elfman looked at Mira, who had embraced Satan's Soul, in panic: "Sister! This seems to be the city center. If you use that move..."
Mira couldn't hear him anymore. She held her hands opposite each other like claws at her side, and terrifying magic power gathered between them, forming a blackish-purple energy ball.
Looking at the soldiers gathered in front of her, Mira pushed her hands forward:
"Demon Blast!"
In their panic, the soldiers activated the magic shields on their arm armor. Over a dozen soldiers stood in a line, forming a solid line of defense with pale blue translucent magic arrays.
The soldiers in the rear, armed with guns, were prepared to launch an attack as soon as their comrades in the front managed to block the attack.
This was their specialized tactic against mages, almost always effective.
But this time, the situation was beyond their imagination.
The surging dark torrent engulfed all the soldiers, and the thin magic defense line shattered completely, unable to hold even 0.1 seconds.
Whether they were the soldiers responsible for defense or those preparing to attack, all were overwhelmed by the powerful dark magic power.
Dozens of them were swept away helplessly, crashing into the buildings behind.
And that wasn't all. The powerful attack also pierced through the walls of the six or seven-story building, causing a violent explosion inside.
The ground rumbled, bricks and wood chips flew everywhere, and a perfectly good building turned into ruins in an instant.
The reserve team stationed in the building, always ready to launch an attack, was also blown away, including their captain, Panther Lily.
"What... what is that?"
The nearby street fell silent for a moment, followed by countless screams.
If Gajeel's earlier attack scared people into wanting to flee, then Mira's move made them run for their lives as if facing a natural disaster.
Mira glanced at them, placing a hand on Gajeel's shoulder: "Now that there's no one in the way, explain what's going on."
Gajeel swallowed, recalling being beaten by Mira and Erza together. At that time, they didn't seem to hit so hard?
This woman's usual gentle demeanor, could it all be an act for someone?
"It's like this. According to Mystogan, apart from him and Lucy, only the Dragon Slayer Mages and two cats survived in the entire Magnolia.
"And if we use Dragon Slayer Magic to attack the magic crystal, everyone can return to normal. So he gave me that medicine to send me here to save people.
"After gathering some intelligence, I rushed to the Royal Capital. I heard that the king was planning to display the magic crystal here, so I came to rescue people and then search for the other magic crystals.
"I heard they plan to officially start extracting magic power after today, so we're really pressed for time. But before that, most people should be safe."
Gajeel's final words calmed Mira considerably. So, it might just be that Rhode was cut off when they split him up—it doesn't necessarily mean something happened.
But Mira's brow was still tightly furrowed. Even the President and Kildas got caught. This seems to be no ordinary trouble.
She asked again: "So where are Natsu and Wendy?"
Gajeel said: "I don't know. They came to this world ahead of me. Maybe they were the ones who tried to snatch the magic crystal yesterday."
Elfman was still fairly optimistic: "It must have been them. Natsu must also be trying to save everyone."
Mira hoped so too. She nodded: "Then the remaining thing is to find the magic crystal."
Gajeel just said, as long as they use Dragon Slayer Magic to attack the magic crystal, everything can return to normal. Now they have ready Dragon Slayer Mages, and the remaining issue is the location of the magic crystal.
Of course, there are likely to be enemies obstructing them.
"I'm also searching for the remaining magic crystals." Gajeel looked at Mira and Elfman, saying:
"With just the two of you turning into such a large piece, the entire town turned into magic crystals probably can't fit here."
In the Royal Capital, if they head to the northernmost point or stand on the tower of the Royal Palace, they should be able to spot the island where the magic crystal is located.
But from where the three are standing now, the view isn't good. Even if they saw the island's outline, they wouldn't see the magic crystal on it.
Given the current situation, they certainly can't stay hidden and low-profile in the Royal Capital anymore. After a brief discussion, they decided they should meet up with Natsu and the others.
"You won't get away!"
They saw a bloodied Panther Lily fly over with his wings spread, brandishing a great saber overhead, swinging it downwards.
The saber grew rapidly in the wind, turning into a length of over ten meters within seconds.
The three dodged to the sides, and the blade struck the ground, carving out a long crack and raising a cloud of dust.
Panther Lily landed with the great saber, blocking the three in front of him: "Captain of the King's Army First Magic Combat Team, Panther Lily, will not allow criminals who steal magic crystals, destroy cities, and attack the military to escape!"
"Hee hee~ We really have a lot of charges against us."
Elfman rolled up his sleeves and grinned: "A real man! We've always been like this, haven't we?"
"So, you're the official guarding the magic crystal?" Mira only looked at Lily coldly, "Where is the magic crystal?"
"Hmm?" Lily's expression grew serious; this woman was not to be messed with and could be as strong as Erza.
Mira suddenly vanished from where she stood, already before Lily when she reappeared.
"So fast!" Lily was shocked and hurriedly swung the great sword on his shoulder forward.
Mira's fist shot out, shrouded in dark light, directly hitting the blade.
The sharp blade caused no harm to Mira's hand; instead, Lily felt a tremendous force strike him.
His arms went numb, and he slid back, nearly losing grip of the great saber.
Mira vanished from his sight again, appearing above to shatter Lily's shoulder armor with a punch.
Lily only saw a blur before his eyes, and when he looked up, he saw an extremely terrifying gaze. Following that, a pain in his shoulder sent him sprawling onto the ground.
"Ugh..."
The stone tiles paved on the ground shattered under Lily's body as the great saber clattered to the ground, returning to a length of over one meter.
Mira kicked, and the saber hilt was in her hand. She stepped on Lily's chest with her left foot, letting the blade rest on his neck: "I ask you, where is the magic crystal?"
A thin line of blood appeared where Lily's throat met the blade—a scarlet hue that matched sinisterly with Mira in Satan's Soul state.
That cold gaze reminded Lily that this woman was serious. If he didn't obediently reveal the location of the magic crystal, his throat would truly be slit.
"Cough..." Lily coughed, spitting out blood—his ribs were cracked just from trying to struggle.