After Faust was completely defeated, that dilapidated dragon body also began to turn into points of light and disappear into the air.
Immediately after, Faust's human form was revealed, and the extent of his injuries was equally gruesome.
Looking at the barely breathing Faust, Ankh sighed.
He stepped forward, crouched beside him and extended a hand to release his Life Divine Power.
Faust's tattered body began to recover, at least enough to look humanoid again.
But his spirit was still somewhat dazed, he seemed to have been beaten into the state of a senile dementia patient.
Laxus didn't care about Faust's life or death, saying offhandedly, "It is fine to just leave him be, right? He brought this on himself anyway."
Ankh shook his head and said, "Forget it. He is Mystogan's biological father, after all. Let him have some last bit of dignity."
"What dignity does he need? He acted more like an enemy than a father." Laxus curled his lip in disgust.
"And also," Ankh suddenly grinned mischievously at him, "Don't you think the King's voice sounds a lot like the Master's?"
"Huh?"
Laxus was stunned for a moment, then began to recall Faust's voice.
'Now that you mention it... it really does sound similar.'
'It is just that his tone was always sinister and irritable, completely opposite to the old man's dignity, which is why I never noticed it before.'
'If that's the case...'
'I'm Makarov's grandson. Faust is Makarov's alternate-world counterpart. And Mystogan is Faust's son...'
Laxus's face suddenly turned a sickly green.
Rounding it off, that little punk Mystogan practically became his father!
Seeing Laxus's ugly expression, Ankh knew he had figured out the key point and immediately laughed heartily in utter satisfaction.
The two chatted for a while before dense crowds of Exceeds began gathering all the members and converging toward them.
Having overthrown the source of evil, everyone was cheering and leaping for joy.
The scene descended into a clamorous, celebratory uproar.
Mystogan walked over to Faust's side, let out a long sigh and sat down cross-legged beside him.
He spoke softly.
"I'm sorry, Father, but... I believe that even without Magic Power, everyone can live well."
The people around had fewer reservations, especially the long-oppressed Edolas Fairies, who had suffered countless casualties.
Many were weeping with pure joy.
Even though they had lost their Magic Power, the fact that their companions would no longer suffer casualties because of it was also a great thing.
Watching as Edolas Lucy lifted the unwilling Edolas Levy over her head like a ragdoll, a smile spread across Ankh's face.
"Lucy, Faust has already squandered most of the Magic Power. What are your plans from now on?"
Edolas Lucy put down the resentful Levy and said with full confidence, "Of course, to strengthen the guild!"
"We will move the guild to the royal capital when we get back. The kingdom needs rebuilding everywhere now; there must be lots of requests for us to take. Plus, we have the Prince here, surely we can restore things to how they were before!"
The members of the Edolas Fairy Tail guild all showed heartfelt smiles, expressing their full confidence in the future.
Hearing this, Mystogan quickly said, "I actually cannot be the King of Edolas. After all, I betrayed my father and led everyone to attack the royal capital. It would be better to let Lily or Byro..."
Whack!
Laxus slapped the back of Mystogan's head with a highly motivated palm strike, making Mystogan grimace in pain and stop talking.
Without his Magic tools now, Mystogan was no match for a physical strike from an S-Class Mage.
Laxus hooked an arm around Mystogan's neck and spoke with a laugh, "Why do you think Ankh sent you to Extalia in the first place?"
Ankh also smiled and comforted him. "Don't worry. The rebellion that overthrew the kingdom was us. The disappearance of Magic Power was because the King wanted to destroy the world. You can easily say you returned to your homeland, took in the rebel army—that is, everyone in the guild—and defeated the scheming King. You would be the legitimate, righteous third party."
Gildarts chimed in at this point, laughing, "Actually, you do not need that many reasons. You have the Prince's royal status, the citizens have personally witnessed the strength of everyone in the Edolas guild, and if they fully support you, no one would dare gossip."
"But..." Mystogan was still hesitant.
Lily then said firmly, "Your Highness, building Edolas into a strong and prosperous nation even without Magic Power... no one else can accomplish this but you."
Seeing he couldn't refuse, Mystogan reluctantly agreed.
Everyone understood that Mystogan truly didn't want to be King, but they also knew that Mystogan indeed had the ability to be a good one.
Plus, he couldn't abandon this homeland. He was the most suitable ruler for the kingdom now.
Ankh clapped his hands, calling out to everyone. "Alright, alright. The matter is settled for now. Let's all take a break before celebrating."
Immediately after, under Ankh's arrangements, the guildmates who had just been overjoyed entered work mode again.
There were actually quite a lot of things to handle.
They needed Mystogan to take some members to the royal capital first to stabilize the situation.
Then they needed to go to the guild and meet up with Master Makarov.
While everyone from Earthland hadn't left yet, they could help move the Edolas Fairy guild building to the royal capital.
The Exceeds needed temporary accommodation, as after reversing the Anima, they would also arrive in an unfamiliar world.
These matters could be left to Lily to handle.
And so, everyone temporarily parted ways, each starting their assigned tasks.
After resting for a night, they endured another day of hard work.
Finally, everyone finished their tasks and gathered in the royal capital.
The Edolas Fairy guild had been moved to the royal capital, and Mystogan had temporarily brought the kingdom's situation under control.
Without Magic Power, the city lights of the royal capital had diminished by more than half.
But in the guest hall deep within the palace, it was unusually brightly lit.
Knowing that everyone from Earthland would be returning soon, although Mystogan was reluctant to see them go, he could only bid farewell with a grand feast.
All the members wore their most formal attire, mingling in the vast hall, occasionally picking up delicacies from the tables and eating ravenously.
For a time, the hall was filled with the clinking of glasses and cheerful laughter, which soon—as always—evolved into fights and brawls.
Natsu, waving the underpants he had just stripped off Gray, ran away clownishly.
The completely naked Earthland Gray, furious and embarrassed, chased after him.
The two Juvias were involuntarily drawn to his naked form, their faces blushing bright red.
Edolas Gray sat dejectedly off to the side, drawing sad circles on the floor.
Edolas Lucy and the drunkard Earthland Cana were competing in drinking.
One was aggressively hugging Edolas Natsu, the other holding Edolas Cana, and they began acting completely drunk and rowdy.
Earthland Bisca and Alzack each secretly went to consult their own "intimate" Edolas counterparts for relationship advice.
Earthland Levy was perfectly satisfied obtaining a large number of books from Reporter Gajeel.
Earthland Gajeel and Edolas Levy watched from the side with deeply displeased expressions.
...
Mystogan looked out over the lively hall with a wine glass in his hand and a bitter smile inevitably forming at the corner of his mouth.
"Really... I don't want you all to leave..."