In the end, the secret was kept.
When Makarov heard Mavis say this, he immediately realized that it wasn't a kidnapping.
So, he let Caesar go.
Mavis was a little unhappy about this, but she was soon distracted by the various desserts made with star mangoes that Caesar brought out.
She quickly put everything else aside.
Caesar took out all the desserts stored in his game backpack, finally freeing up space inside.
The young ladies in the guild had their eyes light up instantly when they saw three long tables piled with desserts, almost overflowing.
When Mirajane proudly said they were gifts for everyone, the three tables were instantly surrounded by the girls.
Sure enough, girls could never resist desserts.
Of course, that's only if their figures didn't change.
After settling Mavis and the others, Caesar finally found time to tell Makarov about his plan.
According to how things were developing, Edolas was about to activate a massive Anima absorption spell.
Buried beneath Fairy Tail was the Fairy Heart, a source of infinite magic power, which would naturally be Anima's first target.
However, the Fairy Heart was protected by powerful spells, so Anima couldn't extract it directly.
Even so, the guild and the entire city of Magnolia built above it would still be in danger.
If nothing was changed, the whole city would be absorbed and turned into magic crystals for Edolas to use up.
Caesar couldn't just watch that happen.
He was also dissatisfied with how rushed the original event had felt.
If it was going to happen, he might as well make it a full story and enjoy the process.
Since he had nothing else to do, he decided to turn it into a kind of guild-wide play — and maybe even a fun trip for everyone.
As for the reason, Caesar decided to blame it all on the cat, Carla.
Who told her she could predict the future? She could take the blame for this one.
After hearing the explanation, Makarov thought for a long while before nodding.
"Alright. Mistgang is a member of Fairy Tail too. As guild master, it's my duty to protect everyone. In that case, I'll play along."
"Good. Now that we have our villain, let's get the protagonist involved," Caesar said with a grin.
Since it was a farewell, he wanted it to be a lively one — not something sad.
...
Caesar and Makarov contacted Mistgang and explained the plan.
Mistgang immediately objected.
It was his world's problem, and he wanted to handle it alone without dragging anyone else into it.
Now that the whole guild would be involved, he couldn't accept it.
Facing his stubborn attitude, Caesar decided to "communicate" with him directly.
After some time, Mistgang suddenly changed his mind, realizing how narrow his thinking had been.
He agreed to Caesar's plan.
When the male lead met Makarov, the old man glanced at Caesar — who was wrapped in bandages and had one arm in a sling — with a helpless sigh.
"It's fine, take care of yourself first. I'll handle things when it's time," Makarov said.
Caesar waved his good hand dismissively. "Don't worry, just small injuries."
Makarov coughed twice and said to Mistgang, "Here's the plan. For now, only the three of us know—"
"Four. I told Mira," Caesar interrupted.
Makarov froze. "I suddenly have a bad feeling."
The three of them discussed for a long time before ending the meeting.
Early the next morning, Makarov entered the guild to find everyone reading books about acting.
He realized the so-called secret plan was already public knowledge.
Caesar stood in front of Mirajane, pulling at her cheek with an irritated look.
The plan had leaked, and it was obviously Mirajane's fault.
"Ow ow ow! I only told Elfman!" she cried.
Immediately, Elfman stood straight and pointed at Lisanna. "I can't beat Lisanna. She told Happy!"
Caesar turned to Lisanna, who just stared silently at Happy.
The blue cat was in the middle of the crowd, whispering to others and giggling.
Then, a shadow fell over him.
Happy froze, a chill running down his spine. He slowly turned his head to see Caesar glaring down at him.
"Love! A cat like me would never mean harm!" Happy said, sweating nervously. "I'm just a cute little kitty!"
"Hehe," Caesar sneered.
Moments later, Happy's world went dark.
Two minutes later, he was tied up like a dumpling, wriggling on the floor with a sign around his neck that read: I was wrong. I'm a big mouth.
"Rift! Let me go!"
Next to him was Natsu, also bruised and tied up, writhing on the ground in the same state.
"This is giving me a headache," Caesar muttered, rubbing his temples.
"Levy, come help me."
"Okay," Levy said, giggling as she followed him out of the guild.
Together, they began carving a large magic circle around the guild building.
"Caesar, we need to account for Anima's spatial properties. It should cover the entire area's magic field," Levy said seriously.
"The buildings also need to be preserved," Caesar added. "I don't want to rebuild everything if Anima destroys it."
"By the way," Levy asked, "when we go there, won't we lose access to our magic?"
"Yes," Caesar said. "But Mistgang made some potions. I've tested them they work."
"Good. We've all received one," Levy said. "He prepared plenty for everyone."
The two worked together smoothly, and before long, the massive circle was complete.
Caesar stood up and clapped his hands.
Everything was ready. Now, they just had to wait for Edolas's Anima to activate.
Of course, while Caesar said it was just acting, he also wanted to test the guild's true strength.
And he was curious just how valuable was the title of Mavis, the Fairy Strategist?
After all, even though the Albares Empire had been suppressed for now and the original story disrupted, there were still the demons of Tartaros and the Gate of the Underworld to come.