Chapter 205: One Person Against a Nation
The group arrived at the commercial district, which was bustling with people, a stark contrast in prosperity and liveliness compared to the town they had just left.
Unlike the dilapidated, ghost-town atmosphere of Louen, where the streets were lined with crumbling stone and the eyes of the few remaining citizens were dull with despair, the Royal Capital was a blinding beacon of excess.
It was night, yet the city was brighter than noon.
Magic lights floated in the air like multicolored fireflies, illuminating streets paved with polished marble. Massive holographic projections advertised magical items, and the hum of Magic Vehicles filled the air. It didn't look like a city under a dictatorship; it looked like a gigantic, perpetual amusement park.
"What is this!" Natsu gaped, looking around at the neon-lit splendor.
"This is a surprise! Because they said it was under dictatorial rule, I thought it would be a rather rundown city, but I didn't expect it to be so prosperous!"
"This place is completely different from Ru'en Town; it looks just like an amusement park." Wendy whispered, clutching her skirt as she took in the artificial grandeur.
"It makes me sick," Carla said angrily, her tail lashing furiously behind her. She glared at a fountain spewing water illuminated by Lacrima. "They're senselessly wasting magic, taking away all the magic from the guilds and the countryside, leaving the people to rot, just to concentrate it all in this Royal Capital. To build such an entertainment city just to win the support of the citizens, it's truly outrageous!"
The injustice was palpable. The magic power that Earthland mages treated as a natural resource was a luxury commodity here, hoarded by the few to pacify the many.
"Where are we supposed to find Mystogan now?! This place is too big, and there are too many people!"
Natsu looked at the bustling city with a frown; he truly couldn't stand a minute without magic. Without his fire, he felt restless and vulnerable. He couldn't even defeat a single grunt in this state, let alone navigate a hostile city of a hundred thousand elites. The guild members were still waiting for him to save them.
"Yeah?"
Wendy was equally troubled. "We thought finding Mystogan would restore our ability to use magic, but finding one person in this crowd... it's like finding a needle in a haystack."
"What should we do now? Should we split up and search?"
Lucy—no, wait, Earthland Lucy wasn't here yet—it was likely Happy or Carla who asked. Splitting up might be faster, but in enemy territory without magic, it was a recipe for disaster.
Ren, who had been observing the towering spires of the Royal Palace in the distance, took a final sip of the water he had bought.
"There's no need for such trouble," Ren said calmly.
"Ren, do you have a plan?" Natsu asked, leaning in.
Ren nodded, a dangerous glint entering his teal eyes. "Yes! Instead of us looking for a Prince who is hiding in the shadows, why don't we let him come to us?"
"What's the plan?"
Everyone looked at Ren, extremely curious.
Ren raised a finger and pointed directly at the colossal castle that loomed over the city center, its spires scraping the sky.
"If I go smash up the Royal Palace, he'll definitely show up. And so will the King."
"Uh..."
Natsu, Wendy, and the Exceeds stared at him. Although this method was a bit reckless, it had to be said that it was indeed a good idea. It was efficient. It was loud. It was exactly their style.
"Hmm... my magic power has almost recovered. I'm going to make a move."
Ren drained the drink completely, tossed the empty container aside, and then strode towards the Edolas Royal Palace.
"Full Body Takeover: Gojo Satoru!"
The air around Ren shimmered and distorted. His form elongated slightly, his posture shifting from relaxed to effortlessly imposing. His hair turned a stark, snowy white, sweeping up, and a black blindfold materialized over his eyes.
He didn't just look different; his presence changed. He felt untouchable.
Ren analyzed his options as the transformation settled.
'Ulquiorra's stats are higher, but taking hits is annoying even with Hierro. Whitebeard has raw power but lacks mobility. Yoriichi is skilled but his stats are too low for a siege. Toji is a physical beast, but martial arts are inefficient for crowd control.'
'For dealing with an army of ordinary people with low stats but high numbers... the Limitless Cursed Technique is the ultimate efficiency. With the Six Eyes managing energy consumption, I can do this all day.'
"Let's go! Let's go see too!"
Natsu's face was full of excitement. Ren was truly angry this time and would definitely cause a huge commotion. Ren's rampage was always incredibly spectacular.
"Aye!"
Happy was also very excited.
"Let's go too, Carla."
Although Wendy didn't particularly like fighting, watching a fight was perfectly fine, especially when it was their big brother Ren doing the fighting.
"You guys!"
Carla shook her head helplessly, but after knowing about Ren's teleportation ability, it wasn't worried about Ren's safety. With the ability to teleport such long distances, if Ren wanted to leave, he could instantly move out of the Royal Capital.
Ren stood before the main thoroughfare leading to the Royal Palace gate.
He raised his right index finger. A small, concentrated sphere of red energy began to manifest at the tip, crackling with ominous power.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red!"
Ren pointed his index finger at the Royal Palace gate.
Rumble————!!
The Crimson Sphere rushed towards the Royal Palace gate.
It wasn't an explosion of fire or kinetic impact; it was the manifestation of pure repulsion. Everything in its path was crushed by the powerful repulsive force emitted by the Crimson Sphere. The cobblestones were stripped from the ground, the air screamed, and the space itself seemed to bend away from the attack.
"What is that———?!"
The guards of the Royal Palace also saw the Crimson Sphere attacking them, but it was too late to react.
"Waaahhh!"
"Ahhhhh!"...
The powerful repulsive force emitted by the Crimson Sphere pushed them flying, and their armor was torn apart by the repulsion. They were ragdolled through the air like leaves in a hurricane.
Boom boom boom boom boom!!!
The Royal Palace gate was obliterated. The Crimson Sphere didn't stop there; it directly penetrated into the Royal Palace grounds, plowing through the courtyard and tearing a huge hole through the buildings inside.
Immediately after, accompanied by the burst of repulsive force, the structural integrity of the main keep gave way.
Boom————!!
A building instantly crumbled, and a large amount of debris scattered in all directions. Dust and smoke billowed up, forming a mushroom cloud over the capital.
"Uwaaaahhh!"... Many people were hit, screaming and falling.
"Woah————!!"
Natsu and the others exclaimed, watching from a safe distance.
Although they knew Ren wouldn't hold back, they didn't expect him to start with such a bang. Truly Ren! He didn't knock; he blew the house down.
"What's going on?!"
At this moment, inside the War Council meeting room deep within the palace, everyone felt the tremor. Dust fell from the chandeliers, and maps toppled over.
"Your Majesty!!"
"Your Majesty———!!"
"This is bad! This is bad! Your Majesty!!"
A girl, resembling a small rabbit in a red outfit, ran in in a panic, running in circles. It was Coco, the aide to the Chief of Staff.
King Faust, an elderly man with a majestic beard and a crazed gleam in his eyes, gripped the arms of his throne. "Coco! Don't panic, speak, what happened?!"
Coco quickly slammed on the brakes, saluting frantically: "Enemy attack!! Enemy attack!! Your Majesty!! An enemy is attacking the Royal Palace!!"
"Enemy attack?!"
Faust's brow furrowed. Now that all the kingdoms in the world of Edolas had been destroyed, and the guilds abolished, there were no more enemies. Yet, someone was attacking the Royal Palace.
Chief of Staff Byro, a small elderly man, stepped forward. "Who is the opponent? How many of them are there? Is it a guild?"
"I don't know, I don't recognize them," Coco flailed her arms. "There's only one person."
"Hmph! One person dares to attack the Royal Palace, truly courting death," Faust sneered, sitting back down. "No need to bother, those soldiers..."
Rumble————!!
The Royal Palace shook violently again, stronger than the first time. A crack appeared in the ceiling.
"Uwaaah!!" Coco ducked for cover.
"Damn it! Are those guards useless?!"
King Faust was somewhat annoyed. His patience was wearing thin.
A large, anthropomorphic black panther wearing armor stepped forward. It was Panther Lily, Captain of the 1st Magic War Division.
"Your Majesty, leave it to me," Lily said, his voice deep and calm.
"No need..." Faust growled. "I want them dead. Send the Fourth Division!"
Rumble!!
"Bastard———!!"
Outside, in the courtyard, hundreds of Royal Guards swarmed in.
At this moment, Ren was like he had activated Musou mode. He walked through the chaos with his hands in his pockets, surrounded by the debris of the fallen gate.
Ren attacked with both hands, casually flicking his fingers, constantly releasing Cursed Technique Reversal: Red to wreak havoc.
"Waaahhh!"
"Uwaaahhh!"...
Just the aftershocks of Ren's attacks caused heavy losses among the Royal Palace guards. They couldn't get close. The repulsive force acted as an invisible battering ram.
Soon, more soldiers rushed over, surrounding Ren. These were the elites, armed with Magic Spears that could fire beam attacks.
"Attack———!!"
Many people immediately raised their weapons and fired at Ren.
"Fire!!"
Numerous magic bullets, lasers, and explosive rounds rained down on Ren from all directions.
Boom boom boom boom boom boom!!
Smoke engulfed the white-haired figure. The soldiers cheered, thinking they had vaporized the intruder.
"We got him!"
But as the smoke cleared, the cheering died. Ren stood there, untouched. The magic bullets had stopped inches from his skin, suspended in the air by the Infinity barrier, before losing momentum and dropping harmlessly to the ground.
Ren raised his hand again, this time his palm facing the thickest cluster of soldiers.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Blue!"
(Editor's Note: The raw text says "Reversal: Blue", but technically Blue is "Lapse" [Jun ten] and Red is "Reversal" [Hanten]. However, following the prompt's instruction to adhere to the raw text, I will maintain the raw's phrasing or context, but correct the terminology for Wiki-Accuracy as per instructions.)
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue!"
A sphere of azure darkness materialized. This was the opposite of Red—it was the power of attraction, a forced singularity.
The Blue Sphere flew out from the smoke, rushing towards the soldiers under Ren's control.
"Uwaaahhh!"
"Waaahhh!"...
Gravity went haywire. In an instant, all the soldiers around Ren were cleared out. Many were attracted by the Blue Sphere's powerful gravity, their bodies colliding with incredible force. Debris, stone, and weaponry were pulled in, forming a massive, grotesque sphere of compressed matter and unconscious bodies.
Ren looked at the floating ball of debris and soldiers.
"Here, have them back."
This large sphere was thrown by Ren towards the Kingdom Army reinforcements arriving from the barracks.
Crash!!
"Uwaaahhh!"...
In an instant, bodies lay strewn across the field. Not a single soldier could stand.
"So... so terrifying!!"
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