To most people, Gajeel's defeat might have looked underwhelming. But the guild's information specialist knew better. Gajeel Redfox was Phantom Lord's ace for a reason. His reputation wasn't exaggerated, and his strength was absolutely on par with the Four Elemental mages.
That reputation had been earned the hard way. Gajeel had once taken on multiple dark guilds alone and walked away victorious.
"Um… it wasn't us," Levy said quickly, her face flushing as she waved her hands. "We couldn't even slow him down. Rowan did it. He beat Gajeel by himself and saved us."
"Rowan?!"
Every mage present turned at once, staring at the small cat who had been quietly lost in thought a moment ago.
If Levy and her team had defeated Gajeel through teamwork, it would have been shocking but believable. But Rowan defeating Phantom Lord's strongest mage alone?
That was like saying Happy had beaten Natsu in a straight fight.
"I told you, it was luck," Rowan said helplessly, spreading his paws. "Do you really believe I'm that strong?"
He wasn't being modest. With his wand, his spells, and his abilities working together, he might be able to stall someone like Erza for a short while or escape intact.
Winning outright was another matter entirely.
That much, at least, he understood.
Unfortunately, no one looked convinced.
In truth, Rowan himself had no clear sense of where he stood. Fairy Tail's S-class mages weren't the same as S-class mages elsewhere. The only one he'd fought before, Eisenwald's Erigor, had felt far weaker than Erza.
What Rowan didn't realize was that Erigor already surpassed many guilds' S-class standards. His only benchmark had been Erza, and that had skewed his perspective badly.
Fifteen minutes later, Erza arrived, flying in wearing her Heaven's Wheel armor, dragging Natsu and Gray along with her. Happy followed close behind, wings flapping as he carried Lucy, while Jet sprinted along the streets below.
Another five minutes passed, and Mirajane arrived with Guild Master Makarov.
Makarov landed heavily, his face still twisted with rage. His magic pressure rolled outward uncontrollably, thick and suffocating.
"Destroying the guild hall is one thing," he said coldly. "But laying hands on my children crosses a line."
He raised his voice, magic shaking the air.
"All Fairy Tail mages, hear me. Tonight, we go to war with Phantom Lord. We move now."
"War!"
"War!"
"War!"
The shout echoed through the streets as the guild erupted. All the anger they'd been holding back finally found an outlet.
Rowan felt his own pulse quicken.
So this was it. A full-scale clash between top-tier guilds. A chance to see the world's strongest mages fight with his own eyes, including battles between members of the Ten Wizard Saints.
Before Makarov could give the order to depart, Rowan spoke up.
"Guild Master, wait. Let me check his memories first."
He gestured toward the unconscious Gajeel.
"Phantom Lord hasn't crossed this line before. I want to know why now."
Makarov paused, surprised. "You can read memories?"
"That kind of magic is rare," he said slowly. "Very rare."
Rowan shrugged. "I figured it would be useful someday."
He lifted the stun spell just enough for Gajeel to regain awareness. Before the Dragon Slayer could gather his thoughts, Rowan met his gaze and acted.
"Legilimency."
Moments passed in silence.
Rowan's expression shifted.
"So that's it."
From Gajeel's memories, the truth became clear. Phantom Lord's real objective hadn't been Fairy Tail at all. They were after Lucy.
Lucy Heartfilia was the daughter of one of the richest families in the kingdom. She'd fled home to escape an arranged marriage, but her father hadn't given up on controlling her future.
Phantom Lord had accepted the commission. Capture Lucy, force her compliance, and use her as leverage to seize control of the Heartfilia fortune.
Crushing Fairy Tail along the way was simply a bonus.
Gajeel suddenly stirred and roared, trying to unleash his magic—
Only for Makarov's enlarged fist to slam him straight into the ground.
"Behave, brat."
With Gajeel knocked out again the old-fashioned way, Makarov turned back to Rowan. "What did you find?"
Rowan explained everything.
The guild fell silent.
All eyes turned to Lucy.
"You're… a noble?" someone whispered.
Lucy bowed her head, guilt flooding her face. "I'm sorry. I didn't know my father would go this far. I never meant to drag the guild into this."
Rowan spoke gently. "Even without you, Phantom Lord would've found an excuse. They want your family's wealth, and they already hated Fairy Tail. This was inevitable."
Natsu grinned, cracking his knuckles. "Then it's simple. They picked a fight, so we knock them flat."
"Exactly," Happy chirped, raising a paw.
Lucy let out a shaky breath, her resolve hardening.
The decision had already been made.
Tonight, Fairy Tail would answer Phantom Lord's challenge.