After cutting through the lifeless sea, a towering shape slowly emerged on the horizon.
It rose from the water like some colossal steel weed its narrow base anchored to a small island, its twisted body stretching nearly a kilometer into the clouds. The whole exterior was a tangle of thick, corroded pipes, jagged platforms, and rusted metal, as if scavenged from scrap heaps and crudely welded together.
Rather than "magnificent," it looked like the fever dream of amateur builders a chaotic, patchwork monstrosity with no grace or symmetry.
"So… that's the Tower of Paradise? The name doesn't fit at all. I thought it'd look like some fancy amusement park," the Dark Magician Girl quipped, gliding alongside the city-guarding pterosaur. Her body shimmered in a warm pink glow from her flying magic.
The three-person saddle was far too cramped, so she hovered freely in the air.
"The real name's the R-System," Mira said with a faint smile. Her gaze lingered on the steel spire, the light in her eyes sharp and unreadable. "And… I think the design's rather interesting."
Her tone was so matter-of-fact it was impossible to tell if she was joking.
"Ahaha… still as unique as ever, Sister Mira." The Dark Magician Girl scratched her cheek with a sheepish grin. For all her years steeped in black magic, she still preferred things bright and cute this looming monstrosity was not her style.
"Mira," Chase said suddenly, his voice cutting through the wind, "are you ready for some big trouble?"
He rose to his feet, a fierce light burning in his eyes. His dark cloak unfurled in the high-altitude gale, snapping like a battle flag.
Around him, buff cards floated in slow orbit Book of Mysticism, Pot of Greed their glowing glyphs feeding magic into his body until his aura swelled to its peak.
"Always," Mira answered, standing as well.
With a hiss, a crackling magic circle formed around her, spilling arcs of dark purple light. When it faded, she had fully embraced her Satan Soul horned, winged, and wreathed in a wicked aura that could chill the bravest heart.
"Then let's give our enemies a proper greeting."
Chase slid a glowing card between his fingers and raised his arm high.
The city-guarding pterosaur bellowed in reply, tucking its wings and diving like a spear toward the tower.
BOOM!
A streak of blue light smashed into the base entrance, shaking the entire island. Smoke and dust burst outward as chunks of stone and rusted scrap rained down.
The crash sent the tower's sentries into chaos.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! All units to the entrance!"
Dark-armored guards poured in from side corridors, weapons drawn, their eyes glinting with fanatic zeal from beneath steel helms. These were loyalists devotees of Zeref's darkness and every one of them was ready to kill or die for Jellal's R-System.
As the dust cleared, their formation faltered.
Before them loomed a nightmare menagerie ten-meter rock soldiers with fists like boulders, sharp-fanged blue drakes snapping at the air, bone demons glaring with hollow eyes, and fire-spitting yellow dragons. Above them floated the Dark Magician Girl, her magic swirling in luminous pink arcs.
And at the heart of it all stood two humans radiating magic so suffocating it felt like the gates of hell had swung open Chase and Mira.
"I know that man… Fairy Tail's S-Class wizard Chase!"
"Then… is Fairy Tail attacking us?! Has the Tower of Paradise been exposed?!"
"Teams One and Two engage! I'll alert Jellal immediately!"
Their discipline held, but their shadows stretched long in the flicker of the looming summons.
And then the ground shook because the giant rock soldiers had already begun their charge.
The giant sword came crashing down metal screamed as an iron pipe split apart, the sheer impact shattering the platform beneath the guards' feet.
The shockwave blasted outward like a cannon, flinging armored men into the air before they could even cry out.
They hadn't even begun to reform their ranks when the cursed dragon's hellfire surged toward them.
BOOM!
The flames erupted with a deafening roar, casting a blinding glow over the bleak sea.
The battle for the Tower of Paradise had begun.
"Ah… looks like I used my Take Over magic a little too early."
Mira, in her demonic form, stood among the smoking wreckage, gazing down at the broken, groaning guards with a sigh.
In only a handful of moves, the tower's first line of defense was gone.
"Hahaha, maybe you overdid it?" Chase dusted off his hands, his voice dripping with amusement.
While he spoke, magic light flickered around him, transforming the unconscious guards into glowing silhouettes that vanished into his cards.
He knew full well that once the fight with Jellal began, the Tower of Paradise would be reduced to rubble. There wouldn't be time to sort the guilty from the innocent, so the only option was to take everyone now and let the Magic Council figure it out later.
"It's fine," Mira said with a wicked smile, catching the subtle kindness in his actions. "Besides… Chase can be so gentle when he wants to be."
So that was the real reason for starting from the bottom and working their way up.
Fight whoever you meet that was the plan.
And, honestly… she loved that about him.
"Who… are you?"
The voice was frail, trembling.
A group of figures emerged cautiously from behind a heap of broken stone thin-faced, sallow-skinned, dressed in plain rags.
In their hands were shovels and pickaxes, not weapons.
They were laborers prisoners forced to build the Tower of Paradise.
Chase's gaze swept over them. Compared to how they'd looked back in Erza's time here, they were in slightly better condition, but the magic-sealing cuffs on their wrists told the real story.
He remembered the fate of these slaves from the original tale when the tower neared completion and chaos broke out, they had simply… vanished. No one ever said what Jellal did with them.
"We're here to set you free," Chase said, stepping forward. A blank card twirled between his fingers, catching the light. "If you trust me, step inside."
The workers froze.
No joy, no gratitude only confusion and suspicion filled their eyes.
Jellal had promised them that in half a month, their freedom would be restored. And now, with that deadline so close, years of captivity had left them too afraid to move.
Before they could decide, the card in Chase's hand lit up.
Magic flared, spilling out to wrap every last one of them in a gentle but unyielding glow.
"I forgot to mention," Chase said with a small smile, "even if you don't believe me… you're still coming."
The workers vanished into the card's magic space.
"Devil! That man's a devil!"
"Damn it how do we get out?!"
"It's over! I'm doomed! Farewell… my childhood sweetheart back home!"
Yet inside the card's realm, their panic was quickly overshadowed by relief before long, the former captives were stumbling about, shouting and even laughing, their fear melting into something they hadn't felt in years.
....
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