As soon as that name was mentioned, the expressions of all the Councilors turned sour.
Yajima spoke deeply, "Only Fairy Tail members are there, and they are the only ones who can make it in time. No other guild has mages in that vicinity!"
Ultear smiled and added, "Regardless of what they accomplish, the charge of destroying the city is one they won't escape!"
The other Councilors quickly chimed in.
"Once the Lullaby matter is settled, the necessary investigation must proceed. No one gets away."
"Trial where trial is due; not a single participant from Fairy Tail will escape."
"The demons from Zeref's books are terrifying, yes, but we cannot encourage Fairy Tail's behavior. What needs to be suppressed must be suppressed."
"If this continues, all guilds will follow Fairy Tail's example, and there will be no point in the Magic Council's existence!"
...
Yajima listened to the one-sided arguments and let out a soft sigh.
Fairy Tail's way of doing things was too brutal; they had been on the Council's blacklist for a long time. Given any opportunity, the Council would find a way to punish them. It didn't matter how great their contributions were. No matter how many Dark Mages they wiped out, it wouldn't change the Council's perception of them.
Yajima thought to himself: Makarov! It's almost time for you to retire, otherwise, it will be hard for you to meet a peaceful end!
On the other side!!
"Natsu!" Lucy saw Natsu struggling even to walk. she quickly ran over, draped one of his arms over her shoulder, and began leading him along.
Natsu lifted his head to look toward Lucy.
However!
He couldn't see her face.
Two "mountains" blocked Natsu's line of sight.
Gulping quietly, Natsu whispered, "Thanks, Lucy!"
What a mountain! Such majestic peaks are enough to be admired for a lifetime!
"We're partners!" Lucy said with a smile.
She picked up the pace while supporting Natsu. Even though her magic power was fully intact, she didn't attempt to drive the Magic Four-Wheeler. Natsu was already pitifully hungry; making him endure more motion sickness would be too cruel.
What a considerate young girl!
Unfortunately, she had no idea that a certain someone, supposedly too weak from hunger to move, was currently busy admiring the spectacular and beautiful "mountain scenery."
City Hall.
The moment Erza appeared, she was surrounded by the army.
"Fairy Tail, back off! This is army business now. We will handle the Dark Mages inside!"
"We will definitely file a complaint with the Council against the culprits who destroyed the station!"
"Stop trying to destroy my city, leave at once!"
...
Facing these people who had no idea how serious the situation was, Erza didn't even bother to waste words.
Requip!
The Black Wing Armor appeared, complete with wings. She lunged forward, flapping them powerfully. It wasn't that Erza couldn't disperse these people, but if Kageyama reached the broadcasting room and played Lullaby, the sound would instantly spread throughout the entire city.
At that moment, every person in town would have their soul stolen by the flute. Rather than wasting time evacuating the crowd, it was better to speed up, find Kageyama, and take that thing out.
She pushed her speed to the limit. The magic shells fired by the army couldn't even catch Erza's exhaust.
"Damn it! Don't let her destroy my city!"
Inside the City Hall, Erza searched through several rooms but couldn't find the broadcasting room, and she began to grow anxious.
"Seize her! Don't let her destroy the City Hall!"
More meddling army members rushed in.
Erza raised her sword to meet them: "Where is the broadcasting room?"
Swish, swish, swish!! Her twin swords flashed, and dozens of magic light beams swept through the ranks. With Erza's precision, none of the beams harmed a single person, but every one of their weapons was sliced in half.
The disarmed magic army stared blankly at Erza. She walked up to one man and glared, shouting, "Where is the broadcasting room?"
The man was in such a daze he couldn't answer.
One second passed with no response.
WHAM! A headbutt.
She moved to the next person: "Where is the broadcasting room?"
Another second of silence.
WHAM!
After six people were knocked unconscious by Erza's headbutts, the seventh person finally pointed out the location.
A dark shadow flashed as Kageyama's voice drifted back: "Much appreciated for helping me find the broadcasting room!"
He had also arrived at the City Hall slightly earlier than Erza, but knowing there were powerful pursuers he couldn't defeat, he hadn't dared to ask for directions. After circling around without success, he had happened to see Erza interrogating the soldiers.
"Damn it!" Erza cursed under her breath. Her twin swords danced, magic light shining brilliantly.
The City Hall was raked by the magic blades, cracks appearing everywhere, but the shadow had already escaped.
Erza hurriedly gave chase: "If Natsu were here, he would definitely just destroy the entire City Hall!"
"In that case, we wouldn't have to worry about Eisenwald's schemes!"
Looking at the sword in her hand and thinking it over, Erza decided not to use her big moves for the time being. Destroying the City Hall was a small matter, but bringing trouble to the Fairy Tail guild was a big one.
Right now, Fairy Tail was already being watched like a hawk by the Magic Council!