Chapter 278: Rest, and Substitution
"Even though Fairy Tail has annoyed me for a long time, the spark for this war was something trivial," Jose said, his voice dripping with disdain. "We learned that the Heartfilia heiress had joined your guild. The daughter of the kingdom's richest man... joining Fairy Tail? And her parents sent you all those supplies?
"How big do you intend to get?!"
Jose's voice rose, and the frequency of his attacks increased, making it harder for Ultear and the others to dodge.
"If you get free access to the Heartfilia fortune, you'll become stronger than us. That is the one thing I absolutely will not allow!"
Jose screamed, retracting his right hand and thrusting it forward again. A massive wave of dark magic erupted from the magic circle, splitting into five streams that shot toward the five women.
Ultear and the others countered with their own ranged attacks.
BOOM!
The spells collided, exploding violently and filling the room with smoke. The shockwaves cleared the air, revealing everyone again.
Ultear and the others were panting heavily, their magic and stamina critically low. Jose, while breathing harder than before, was still in much better shape.
"Starting a war just to prove who's superior... that's pathetic," Erza said, shaking her head.
"And do you know why Lucy didn't join Phantom Lord?" Mirajane asked with a smile.
"What?" Jose blinked.
"Because of your reputation," Sorano said, picking up where Mirajane left off. "Your guild's conduct is so terrible that Lucy's parents wouldn't dream of letting her join you. And your actions now... well, they just prove them right, don't they?"
Jose's face darkened.
"Lucy is training here," Ultear said, sighing. "She lives in a 70,000-Jewel apartment. She works the same jobs we do. She laughs with us, fights with us, cries with us. She's a wizard of our guild. She hasn't spent a cent of her parents' money since she joined; she earns everything herself. How her parents spend their money is their business.
"A 'spark for war'? No. That's just your jealousy talking." Ultear shook her head in pity. "And you think we need the Heartfilia fortune to become stronger than you? You really don't know anything..."
Erza and the others nodded.
Number one in magic? Number one in talent? Number one in funds?
Thanks to Noah's interventions years ago, Phantom Lord had lost those titles long ago.
Magic? Excluding the Master, Fairy Tail had three people at or above the level of a Wizard Saint.
Talent? They had a pile of S-Class wizards who were far stronger than the S-Class standard of other guilds. Even their regular members were S-Class quality elsewhere. And they had a roster of young, high-potential members still growing.
Funds? Thanks to Noah's partnership with the Heartfilia pharmaceutical company, money hadn't been an issue for him in years. Even after his research costs, he had a massive fortune. He had quietly funneled funds into the guild, making Fairy Tail the richest guild in the kingdom by far. Only the Master and the S-Class members knew about this fund, so the regular members wouldn't get reckless with spending.
The S-Class women knew the truth. So when they heard Jose's rant, they couldn't help but laugh.
"I'll find out soon enough," Jose said coldly, firing magic bullets from his fingertips. The women dodged desperately.
"Do you think that after I capture her and force her into Phantom, I'll let her play house? No. I'll keep her... safe... until I've squeezed every last jewel out of her family. The Heartfilia fortune will be mine."
Jose's smile was pure evil.
"Despicable! You bastard!" Erza shouted, firing lightning from her spear. The others joined in with their own attacks.
Jose raised both hands, summoning two massive, three-meter-tall specters to block the assault.
BOOM!
The specters wavered but remained intact.
"It's time to finish this," Jose said.
Ultear and the others tensed. Jose had recovered significantly during his monologue. He had been stalling, letting his magic regenerate while harassing them to keep them from doing the same. They, on the other hand, were exhausted.
"Finish us? Do you think you can?" Cana challenged.
"Of course. Your strength is praiseworthy, but the gap between us is heaven and earth. As long as I'm vigilant, your tricks won't work. Now... die."
The two giant specters unleashed a swarm of smaller ghosts, charging at the women.
"Ice-Make: Eagle!"
"Evil Spark!"
"Angel of Sunlight!"
"Thunder Empress's Spear!"
"The Sun's Inferno!"
The five women fired back, destroying some of the ghosts, but more kept coming. They were being overwhelmed.
"NOAH! How long are you going to watch?!" Sorano screamed.
"What?" Jose started. Was someone else here?
"How did you know I was here?"
Noah's voice rang out as he and Natsu's group materialized in the corner of the room. A gentle light radiated from Noah, instantly vaporizing every single ghost in the room, including the two giant ones.
"You're Noah?! You have this kind of power?!"
Jose realized instantly that Noah's strength was far beyond what the rumors suggested.
"I don't need to report my strength to you. You've just been guessing all this time."
Noah led Natsu and the others forward.
"Erza."
"Ultear."
"Sister."
Natsu and the others greeted the women.
Mirajane narrowed her eyes at Elfman. "Elfman... were you just standing there watching us fight?"
"Noah wouldn't let us help!" Elfman immediately threw Noah under the bus.
"Your strength isn't enough for this fight yet. Watching was the right call," Noah said, walking up to the women. He raised his hand, and a warm light enveloped them. "Let me heal you first."
Ultear and the others felt their magic, stamina, and wounds healing rapidly.
"I suppose that makes sense. You are still a little weak," Mirajane said, her expression relaxing. Elfman let out a huge sigh of relief. If he'd messed that up, he would have been in for a world of pain later.
"You little brat! Ignoring me?!" Jose roared, furious that Noah was casually healing his enemies right in front of him.
He waved his right hand, sending a volley of ghosts speeding toward Noah.
Noah didn't even turn around. He simply slapped his left hand backward, firing several beams of golden light that intercepted and destroyed the ghosts.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
"Alright, you're healed. Go rest over there," Noah said to the women.
"We'll head over there, then," Ultear said, leading Erza and the boys to a safe corner.
Noah finally turned to face Jose.
"Alright. My turn."
"Just you, brat? Where's Makarov? Is he scared?" Jose glanced at the retreating group but dismissed them. Only Makarov was a threat. Once he beat Makarov, he could do whatever he wanted with the rest.
"Gramps doesn't need to come for you. I'm enough," Noah said calmly.
"Hah? Are you here to throw your life away? Makarov doesn't care much for his comrades after all," Jose mocked.
"Incorrect. It's because he cares about his comrades that he sent me," Noah smiled.
"What do you mean?" Jose frowned. Since Noah was willing to talk, he didn't interrupt; he needed more time to recover. He felt something was off, and he wanted to be at his best.
~~~
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