bookbashuk Chapter 578 578
Chapter 578 578
"That magic power…"
Azuma didn't know what the weapon truly was, but judging from the amount of magic Gray was gathering, he knew it was nowhere near as simple as he had assumed.
"Roar of the Earth!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Azuma used his own strongest magic as well.
Magic surged wildly.
Countless trees extended their branches like a frenzy, sweeping toward Gray.
At the same time, Azuma awakened the sleeping magic within the earth itself.
He was going to unleash all the magic buried underground and create a super-explosive fruit that would blast everything in sight straight into the sky.
"Die!"
Holding the golden sword overhead, Gray roared.
He had never felt anything like this before.
At that moment, he felt as if he truly possessed the power to destroy everything—not like with Iced Shell, but as though he could genuinely split the entire world in two with one slash.
The feeling made even him tremble.
Facing that vast flood of trees rolling toward him like an enormous tidal wave, Gray didn't panic at all.
He simply swung the sword.
Boom!!!
Terrifying magic power erupted from the golden blade.
A wave of light was released in an instant, swallowing everything before it in the blink of an eye.
The tide of trees, Azuma himself—everything was consumed by that light.
For a moment, it felt as though nothing remained in the world except that single slash of radiance.
Buzz!!!
The light flashed past, then quickly lost momentum.
Gray collapsed to the ground, and the golden longsword in his hand dissolved into points of light, returning to Marco's treasury.
As the light faded, everyone gradually came back to their senses.
They stood there blankly, staring at what lay before them, feeling as though it could not possibly be real.
The place that had just been swallowed by that light had now become complete emptiness.
Nothing remained.
The wildly growing trees, the bomb fruits Azuma had thrown, and Azuma himself—all of it had vanished along with the light.
Vanished in the most literal sense.
Gone.
Everything was gone.
"Azuma… died just like that?"
The members of the Seven Kin of Purgatory could hardly believe it.
They found it impossible to accept.
Among them, Azuma was unquestionably one of the top two—possibly even strong enough to compete with Ultear for the title of strongest among the Seven Kin of Purgatory.
And yet he had just… died?
Died without even understanding how?
"W-What… was that thing?!"
The "goat" asked with fear written all over his face.
He truly had been terrified.
This had gone beyond anything he could imagine. Even their Guild Master Hades probably couldn't kill Azuma that easily, could he?!
Gray was certainly strong—they all admitted that. Being able to fight Azuma to that extent was already impressive.
But by his own strength alone, how could he possibly have one-shot Azuma?
It all came down to that dazzling golden longsword Gray had summoned.
At first, they had all thought the same as Azuma—that the golden sword couldn't possibly amount to much.
At most, it was just some magical tool.
And in the world of Earthland, magical tools usually weren't considered especially threatening.
Combat-oriented magic items in this world were underdeveloped, and there were no famous legendary tools to inspire caution.
So it had been natural for them to look down on the golden sword at first.
But now, Gray had proven with cold facts that it was indeed a magic item capable of taking their lives with ease.
Buzz!
A terrifying wave of magic swept across the field, and two figures appeared beside what was left of the Seven Kin of Purgatory.
Though now, they could probably only be called the Five Kin of Purgatory.
No—maybe the Four Kin of Purgatory.
Rustyrose wasn't making much sound anymore either. He looked like he had more breaths going out than coming in.
"That attack just now… what was it?"
The helmeted Hades asked in a grave tone.
Naturally, what he meant was Gray's slash from moments earlier.
"It was… a summoned golden longsword."
Ultear lowered her head and answered softly.
"A golden longsword… summoned…"
Hades repeated the words, sounding utterly confused.
Even with all his knowledge, he couldn't make sense of it.
After living so many years, he had never once heard of such a thing.
"Where is Zancrow? And Azuma?"
Hades continued, then looked over at Rustyrose lying nearby and could not help twitching at the corner of his mouth.
"Zancrow… was defeated by the Salamander. Azuma disappeared within that light. And Rustyrose ended up like this…"
Ultear explained one sentence at a time, her voice growing softer and softer.
The more Hades listened, the heavier his breathing became.
Finally, he drew a deep breath and turned his gaze toward Fairy Tail in the distance.
"Makarov, the Fairy Tail you have led truly cannot be underestimated. You have given me a tremendous surprise."
Looking at the short old man standing with his hands behind his back, Hades could not help but sigh in admiration.
Makarov had actually brought Fairy Tail to this point.
"Y-You are?!"
Yet Makarov, on the opposite side, was nowhere near as calm as Hades.
The moment he clearly saw Hades's face, the old man completely lost composure.
His whole body began trembling.
"Grandpa, who is this guy?"
Marco crouched down and placed a hand on the old man's shoulder.
At the same time, he kept his eyes fixed on Hades, his expression already turning cold.
"He… he is Precht… there's no mistake…"
Looking at the man opposite him—the man he could never mistake—Makarov's expression became extremely complicated, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Makarov had heard it already.
He had heard those people call Precht "Guild Master." He had heard them call him "Hades."
His identity was already obvious.
He was the Guild Master of Grimoire Heart!
"Precht?!"
Even Marco was startled by that name.
Everyone in the guild who understood what that name meant wore the exact same expression.
"How could that be?!" Gildarts looked just as shocked.
Of course he knew who Precht was.
Though unlike Makarov, Gildarts had not been personally familiar enough with Precht to recognize him immediately.
But now that Makarov had spoken the name, he saw it right away.
That man… wasn't he the guild's Second Master? The legendary mage, one of Fairy Tail's four founders?!
"Wait…?! Then why has he become Grimoire Heart's Guild Master now?!"
After learning who Precht actually was, the other members of Fairy Tail were all dumbfounded too.
His original identity and current identity were simply too far apart.
From one of Fairy Tail's four founders and its Second Guild Master… to one of the Three Great Powers of the Balam Alliance, the master of the strongest dark guild Grimoire Heart.
To Fairy Tail, those identities were as far apart as heaven and hell.
They were impossible to connect in one mind.
"Such a pity, Makarov. Even now, you still fail to understand the true essence of magic. Instead, you have led Fairy Tail down the wrong path."
Looking at Makarov—and at the shocked Fairy Tail members—Hades shook his head with an expression of deep regret.
There had indeed been a time when he thought highly of Makarov.
But the Makarov of today had clearly disappointed him.
"What are you talking about…?"
Makarov could not understand Precht's words at all.
The Precht he had once known had never been like this.