Hughes once thought he had taken the wrong path.
His task was to capture the Dragon Slayer Mage alive on the Floating Island where the Magic Crystal was stored. But the problem was, the Floating Island was indeed here, where was the Magic Crystal?
Wasn't it said that the Magic Crystal was as big as a mountain?
After a few seconds of being stunned, Hughes realized that the Mages of Aslan had a way to restore the Magic Crystal to its original state.
In this case, the person he had to deal with might be an entire city.
That sounded a bit tricky, but Hughes didn't pay it much mind, because compared to their Royal Capital, this city was just a rural town, barely with any tall buildings.
He thought that there wouldn't be too many people here, and most were civilians; the only difficult ones to deal with were those few individuals.
"Regiun Team, surround! Magic War Team, move forward!"
Hughes, as usual, gave the order. In battle, besides cleaning up, the Captain always had to stand at the forefront.
So more than two hundred Regiuns spread out, prepared to surround them like they did Extalia.
And fifteen Flying Ships moved forward; they were preparing for a landing operation.
But before they could get close, Hughes saw an old little man standing at the edge of the Floating Island.
The little old man was very short and unremarkable, but his body rapidly swelled up as if blowing a balloon, and he transformed into a Giant in an instant!
The Giant stood tall against the sky, seemingly larger than the ships. Being stared at by his furious eyes was like being watched by the most terrifying beast in the world.
Just a look into the Giant's eyes made Hughes feel utterly uneasy: "Magic War Team, all members heed the order, Angel Cannon·War Type, target the Giant, fire!"
The main cannons on the fifteen Flying Ships turned to aim at Makarov, their barrels glowing faintly.
Makarov crossed his arms in front of him, the powerful Magic Power blowing the Ten Wizard Saints Cloak that expanded with him:
"Maximum Defense Magic Array·Three Pillar Gods!"
Three massive stone pillars engraved with arcane runes soared into the sky, forming an even more powerful Defense Magic Array than he had shown Rhode before.
Fifteen cannons fired simultaneously, dazzling lights accompanied by astonishing Magic Power fluctuations shot towards Makarov, yet all fifteen beams of light stopped abruptly at the Magic Array.
Whether it was the town or Makarov standing among the three stone pillars, none suffered a scratch.
"Fifteen shots of maximum power from the Angel Cannon were actually..."
"What kind of monster is that?!"
"Is that... the magic of Aslan?"
Hughes knew Aslan had powerful Mages, but he didn't know anyone could be this powerful.
Facing fifteen ships' main cannons alone, could that really be something humans can do?
"Now consider everyone outside the island as enemies!"
The Giant opened his mouth, his deafening voice rang in Hughes' ears and in the ears of everyone in the fleet.
The sound seemed a bit familiar, but they couldn't afford to think much of it.
With the performance of effortlessly blocking all the attacks, this mighty voice made everyone feel terrified.
With such a massive body, could it crush a ship with just one punch?
Makarov, ignoring what they were thinking, steadied his stance within the Magic Array, his hands forming a gesture similar to the ball-holding stance in Tai Chi Boxing.
Countless golden light dots like tiny Fairies gathered from all directions into his palms, converging into a light sphere, then shooting golden rays in all directions.
The light was so beautiful, so brilliant, yet so dangerous.
Makarov fixed his gaze on the fleet ahead, his voice booming:
"According to the Fairy Tail age-old judgment rules, I give you the count of three to consider, kneel down and beg for mercy before then!"
The golden light in the Giant's palm grew more dazzling, and the Giant's voice grew louder.
Many in the fleet were terrified, even the scattered Regiuns were restless.
Countless wanted to flee the battlefield, but as the King's Army elites, they couldn't retreat without orders.
Makarov's gaze locked on Hughes aboard the flagship, loudly saying: "One!"
Hughes swallowed his saliva, sensing something bad was about to happen, but how could he surrender just for the other party's words?
He was about to give an order to continue the attack when he heard Makarov continue counting: "Two!"
The Giant's thunderous voice seemed to make Hughes' heart tremble along with it.
He swallowed hard, seemingly emboldening himself as he loudly shouted to boost morale:
"Hughes, Captain of the King's Army Third Magic War Team, ordered to capture the Dragon Slayer Mage! Anyone who dares to block will be..."
"Three!"
Makarov, disregarding the other's clamor, finished counting in three and clapped his palms together:
"This is it! Fairy Law, activate!"
Hughes saw the golden light disappear the instant the Giant clasped his hands.
But immediately, he couldn't see anything.
Or rather, he knew nothing.
His mind went blank, all strength drained from his body, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the ground uncontrollably.
No one came to assist him, as the soldiers on the ship also collapsed to the ground like him.
The Floating Island seemed to explode with a star, the ground quaked beneath the Giant's feet, golden light emanated in all directions, so dazzling that it turned into blinding white light.
The light expanded in a flash, making the Floating Island appear to become a tenth sun.
After the light swept through, not a single person in Magnolia was injured, and not a single person stood on the fifteen Flying Ships.
The out-of-control Flying Ships floated silently in the air, seemingly triggered some emergency settings, descending slowly.
The more than 200 Regiuns, as if encountering their nemesis, defied orders, turned, and fled in panic.
But before they could fly far, they seemed to have suffered an impact, lost consciousness, and spiraled downward. Naturally, the soldiers on their backs also fell down sparsely.
Regiuns, people, helmets, weapons, it rained a strange rain over Edolas.
The light dissipated, the enemy camp was dead silent, no sounds of amazement were made—because no one could speak anymore.
Yet behind Makarov, weapons in the hands of the militia units standing in two rows clattered to the ground.
Even the members of the Fairy Tail guild couldn't speak for a while. Only Kildas had a subtle smile on his face.
Makarov's body returned to its usual size, the Giant who exuded authority and power just now reverted back to the usual nonchalant old man.
"Oh no~ I seem to have overdone it, hahaha..." Makarov scratched the back of his head, smiling sheepishly.
"Hahaha! For the President to go to such extents, that's what it should be, old man!" Kildas bent over, laughing and patting the President's back, making him stagger.
Once Kildas broke the silence, cheers erupted immediately.
"Long live the President!"
"Oh oh oh oh!!!"
"We've won!"
It began with Wolian, Laki, and others nearby, then the militia teams, next the ordinary people at a distance, and eventually spread throughout the entire city.
The cheers rose continuously, gradually merging into one.
Though many people didn't know exactly what happened, knowing they had won was enough.
Rhode came back after delivering the goods, finding the enemies already downed, and wryly smiled: "President, you make me look silly..."