"Larcade-san…"
Touka lowered her head, visibly nervous.
Larcade sat cross-legged upon the raised platform before her, surrounded by an aura of such immaculate holiness that he looked almost divine.
His voice was equally gentle when he spoke.
"Faris. It seems your mission failed."
"Touka's" body trembled.
Fear flickered through her eyes.
Faris.
That was her true name.
Touka was actually an Exceed from the world of Elentear, while Faris was one of Elentear's shrine maidens.
After possessing Touka's body, Faris had crossed into Earth Land and eventually joined the White Magic Cult.
Now, however, she served beneath Larcade because he was holding something over her head.
The Whiteout Magic of Elentear was a form of White Magic entirely foreign to Earth Land.
That was why even experienced mages like Jellal and the others had understood almost nothing about the power controlling their minds.
After obtaining that magic, Larcade—already a master of White Magic himself—had modified and refined it, making Whiteout far more contagious than it had originally been.
That evolved version was the primary reason the White Magic Cult had managed to seize control of so many guilds throughout Fiore in such a short time.
Faris didn't dare raise her head.
"Touka did successfully join Fairy Tail, but… she became far too enthusiastic. The Fairy God of Death noticed something was wrong."
Larcade slowly opened his eyes.
A faint golden radiance spilled from them, while the same gentle smile remained on his face.
Yet his words made the atmosphere inside the cathedral feel considerably colder.
"You've spent all this time operating inside the White Magic Cult under Touka's name."
"And then you tried joining Fairy Tail using that exact same name?"
His smile never changed.
"Were you trying to get yourself killed?"
Sweat gathered on Faris's forehead.
She immediately bowed deeply.
"I'm sorry! I didn't think it through!"
Silence filled the cathedral.
After a long while, Larcade pressed one finger lightly against his forehead, affecting an expression of mild frustration.
"I had hoped you could trick that man into coming here before the plan began…"
Faris remained completely silent.
Eventually, Larcade stretched lazily and sighed.
"Forget it. It was only an idea I had on impulse."
"I'll handle him personally from here."
Then he looked directly at Faris, and something far less gentle entered his gaze.
"But I hope you don't disappoint me again."
"Elentear…"
"And the lives of everyone you care about there…"
His voice stayed soft.
"Whether they survive is entirely up to you."
Faris went silent.
Only after several seconds did she answer in a pale, subdued voice.
"I understand."
"Please… leave them alone."
Larcade gave a casual nod and closed his eyes once again.
The sacred white light surrounding him briefly flickered.
Faris quietly withdrew from the cathedral with a heavy heart.
Just before closing the enormous doors behind her, she glanced once more toward the massive Gate of Light concealed behind Larcade.
'Elentear…'
'I have to save them.'
The moment Larcade sensed Faris leaving, a cold smile formed within his heart.
Weak people were always like this.
When they wanted to protect something precious, all they could do was beg the strong for mercy.
But Larcade was different.
He was the son of Zeref.
If there was something he wanted—he would take it back with his own hands.
'Natsu Dragneel…'
The soft white glow surrounding Larcade suddenly sharpened, becoming completely unlike the gentle radiance Faris had seen only moments earlier.
...
Not long after Larcade and Faris finished their conversation, Northern Snow Village returned to its usual state of heightened security.
Until movement began appearing beyond its perimeter.
Magic Council airships landed far in the distance, after which Council troops concealed themselves with invisibility magic and camouflaging cloaks before advancing carefully toward the village.
Fairy Tail and the other guild teams had hitched a ride with them.
The Magic Council had recently made considerable progress in developing teleportation arrays, and this operation was important enough to justify using one of their still-limited systems.
As a result, the entire force had reached northern Fiore in a fraction of the usual travel time, saving several days on the road.
Hidden inside a trench carved into the snow, Ankh and the others cautiously looked toward the village.
Gray frowned.
"The security really is insane. Does even the Magic Council guard its headquarters this heavily?"
Standing beside Ankh was another familiar face—Lahar, captain of one of the Council's Custody Enforcement Units.
His expression remained serious as he explained,
"We've already conducted reconnaissance."
"The religious buildings around the outskirts of Snow Village have mostly been converted into holding facilities for ordinary civilians captured by the White Magic Cult."
"The cathedral in the center is different. That appears to be where they hold the mages they've subjected to mind control."
Lahar's expression hardened.
"Two groups enter the village at fixed times every day. One consists of ordinary civilians, while the other consists of mages."
"The civilians don't appear to undergo the same magical conditioning. Instead, peripheral members of the cult send them back out through other routes. Some are forced into slave labor."
His voice became colder.
"Others are trafficked for their bodies or organs."
"Scum."
Erza and Kagura muttered the word at exactly the same time, their expressions turning icy.
Ankh lowered his head in thought.
"So besides the controlled mages, there are still innocent civilians inside the village."
Lahar nodded firmly.
"If possible, we need to avoid involving them in the fighting."
"Understood."
Ankh's expression hardened.
"They've suffered enough already."
Gajeel, who had clearly grown impatient with all the reconnaissance, leaned forward.
"So how are we getting in? Just smash through the front?"
Juvia sighed helplessly.
"That would alert everyone immediately. And the White Magic Cult would probably send the captured guild members against us."
Ankh looked toward the village for another moment.
"A path somebody already walked through once is usually easier the second time."
Then he turned to Jellal.
"How did you infiltrate the group of controlled mages last time?"
Jellal blinked.
"But they discovered that operation while we were still inside Snow Village."
"That's fine," Ankh said. "We only need to get inside without endangering the civilians. Once we're in position, we're fighting immediately."
"We're not trying to spend days undercover like you were."
Jellal immediately understood.
The two lowered their voices and began discussing the details.
They remained hidden in the snow for quite some time.
Around noon, the forces concealed around the village finally spotted a group transporting another batch of brainwashed mages toward the settlement.
There were far fewer prisoners this time.
Most of Fiore's guild mages had already been taken, so these were likely independent mages unaffiliated with any formal guild.
The next stage of the operation proceeded with remarkable efficiency.
The Magic Council might not always be impressive as the spearhead of a battle, but when it came to preparation, logistics, and covert operations, few organizations could match them.
Within minutes, every cult member escorting the prisoners had been quietly subdued.
Several Council captains extracted the relevant memories from the White Magic Cult members and used Transformation Magic to assume their appearances, replacing the escort team without leaving any obvious trace.
At the same time, Ankh and the others quickly freed the controlled mages before using the same Transformation Magic to disguise their own people in their place.
Just like that, the entire transport group had been replaced.
Armed with the cultists' memories, the disguised Council captain handled the strict inspection at Snow Village's entrance without raising the slightest suspicion.
The gates opened.
Their group entered smoothly.
Once inside, they immediately saw patrols moving through nearly every street.
They also saw ordinary civilians in filthy, tattered clothes being marched in different directions under armed guard, their bodies thin and their faces hollow from hunger.
They were inside.
The infiltration was complete.
And from this point onward—things became much simpler.