Mest and Lahar were somewhat questioning their lives.
The Fairy Tail guild of the Fiore Kingdom, although often causing trouble and destruction, undeniably contributed greatly to the Magic Realm.
They strived to follow most of the rules that a Mages' Guild should abide by and even wrote reviews honestly when they made mistakes.
So, generally speaking, they were still considered a legitimate guild.
But now, the Dark Guild Demon's Heart was actually organized by your second generation leader of Fairy Tail?
Who is the branch and who is the headquarters between Fairy Tail and Demon's Heart?
If they didn't know that Demon's Heart was fighting to the death with Fairy Tail on the island, and that little white cat beside them also looked shocked,
Lahar would have suspected that Mest's identity was exposed, so Fairy Tail and Demon's Heart were conspiring to lure the Council's forces to kill them.
Reality was so absurd that Makarov, Carla, Lahar, and Mest all needed some time to digest it.
But Hades—or rather, Precht—didn't hesitate, striking fiercely at Makarov.
Magic Power condensed into two purple and white Magic Chains with grappling hooks at the ends, flying out and piercing Makarov's transformed giant shoulder.
That position also has a name called Scapula.
Precht suddenly swung his hand, and Makarov's huge figure was actually thrown out by the chains hooked on his Scapula.
Lahar and Mest shouted in concern, "Lord Makarov!"
Despite realizing something incredible, it currently appeared that Fairy Tail was indeed still their ally.
If Makarov couldn't deal with the president of Demon's Heart, then the two of them probably couldn't either.
"Pres…" Carla widened her eyes, initially wanting to shout along with them, but she stopped.
Because her occasionally unreliable Foreknowledge Magic had activated on its own, showing her an even worse situation.
No, this can't be ignored!
Fortunately, Makarov was not defeated so easily. After being thrown out, he immediately returned to his usual size, freeing himself from the opponent's control.
He deftly flipped over and landed on the ground, even having spare effort to use Requip Magic to change his floral shirt and big shorts into the formal attire of the Ten Wizard Saints.
—Maybe because wearing such clothes lacked momentum, or maybe out of respect for the second generation leader.
However, Makarov did not want to fight Precht right now, because that person had raised, taught him magic, and principles, like a father figure.
His past decades of pursuit, beliefs, and efforts as president were almost entirely inherited from Precht.
Becoming enemies with President Precht brought pain to Makarov's heart.
Precht ignored Lahar and Mest, jumping to the shore on his own, walking towards Makarov, smiling faintly:
"Don't look at me with those eyes, it's painful for me too, to personally destroy Fairy Tail."
Makarov questioned, "You entrusted Fairy Tail to me back then with your own hands. Why have you become part of a Dark Guild now? And why are you attacking Fairy Tail?!"
As these words left his mouth, both Makarov and Precht recalled the past scene.
That day, he suddenly said he wanted to go on a journey, handing the guild over to him impulsively.
Today, he suddenly returned to Celestial Wolf Island, again saying he wanted to destroy Fairy Tail on a whim.
That day, he had also questioned him like today.
He never seemed to understand his actions.
"You still don't understand darkness, kid, the absolute darkness lurking in the abyss," Precht spoke words that Makarov didn't understand, "You've overexposed magic to the sunlight."
Makarov thought he meant that dark era before the first guild was born when mages were persecuted.
Although he hadn't personally experienced it, he had heard about that era: "Exposing magic to sunlight and making it a part of daily life was the result of all mages' efforts.
"Now, both magic and mages have long become an indispensable part of this world. You should know this."
Precht shook his head lightly, they were not on the same page.
He was no longer the second generation leader who would seriously teach this kid, and the kid was no longer the one from the past.
So this time, Precht still did not plan to make Makarov understand him.
Now, it was merely a battle between two presidents—perhaps it couldn't even be called a battle.
Precht raised his right hand, curving two fingers, drawing from above his left shoulder to his chest position.
Intricate structures of purple spells appeared out of thin air in an instant, interconnecting to form a complex Magic Array.
Most spells circled around himself, serving as the magic power source and control part, while a small portion surrounded Makarov, visibly the attacking part.
"Amaterasu's Formula 28 Magic Array?!" Makarov was shocked, not at the magic itself, but at the speed of its activation.
He too could perform this magic, or rather, he knew this entire series of Amaterasu's Formula Magic Arrays.
But to use it for attack, no matter how fast, required a few seconds to prepare, with larger numbers indicating greater complexity and longer preparation time.
The more difficult ones even required both hands to form intricate Seals.
Yet Precht completed the release in an instant, with the necessary gestures reduced to just one.
What level had his magical attainment reached?
Makarov had no choice but to deploy Defense Magic at the fastest speed to withstand this attack.
Only to hear a thunderous explosion.
For comparison, with just a casual move, Precht easily achieved the power of Zankuro's full-force 'Flame God's Kagutsuchi'.
"You can't resist me, kid."
"Don't call me kid, you're no longer 'family'!"
"Is that so…" It didn't surprise Precht that Makarov was able to withstand one of his attacks, perhaps even a small comfort that the kid had finally grown up.
Unfortunately, even so, Precht still intended to kill him personally.
A chain from each hand shot out, Makarov tried to dodge but was still hit in the shoulder hollow.
Such magic was far from as simple as it appeared.
Makarov was once again flung away, crashing into a tree trunk.
He struggled to break free from the chains' restraints, but…
The ground shook, and the Celestial Wolf Tree fell.
"The Celestial Wolf Tree, actually…" Makarov, clutching his wound, suddenly felt powerless, collapsing to the ground with a grim face.
Meanwhile, Carla, having seen the 'future where the president is defeated', had already set off for this position.
She originally intended to help the president escape, but just as her wings spread, they disappeared, and she too fell weakly beside Makarov.
"Azuma finally took action?" Precht was unsurprised, the time it took to control the island's magic matched his estimates.
"You've lost, Makarov." Precht no longer called him a kid, "Lost Magic, Great Tree Arc, a child I've spent years personally nurturing. Now, Fairy Tail doesn't even have a one-in-ten-thousand chance."
Great Tree Arc…
Makarov had heard of this magic, how such a dangerous person landed on the island without him noticing at all.
With this, the children's lives couldn't be guaranteed either…
Makarov felt a deep sorrow, acknowledging his incompetence as a guardian!
"Then let this move send you on your way." Precht opened his arms, "Amaterasu's Formula 100!"
A series of magic arrays, several times more complex than the Amaterasu's Formula 28, completely surrounded the fallen Makarov and Carla together.