Chapter 203: The R-System and Etherion

Chapter 203: The R-System and Etherion

"They went to the Akane Resort Paradise, I think. Loke gave them a few accommodation vouchers for the luxury hotel there."

"Oh, right, you've been buried in the library these past few days, so you probably don't know—Loke is actually a Celestial Spirit."

Mirajane smiled as she shared with George what had happened over the past few days.

It turned out that Loke's real name was Leo, and he wasn't human, but rather the Celestial Spirit of Leo, one of the twelve Zodiac spirits.

Because he was dissatisfied with the previous Celestial Spirit Mage, Karen, and her abuse of spirits, he forcibly stayed in the human world, preventing Karen from summoning any other spirits during a mission, which led to her death.

As a result, he was punished by the Celestial Spirit King and forbidden from returning to the Celestial Spirit World.

Afterward, he remained in the human world disguised as a Human-type Celestial Spirit Mage and joined the Fairy Tail Guild.

Celestial Spirits cannot stay in the human world for long; they must return to the Spirit World periodically to replenish their magical power, or else they will vanish due to magical depletion.

Loke was very powerful, but even so, he had reached his limit.

After learning about Loke's situation, the Celestial Spirit Mage Lucy summoned the Celestial Spirit King and requested that he lift Loke's punishment, thus allowing Loke to become her spirit.

"Loke is actually a Celestial Spirit!"

George was visibly shocked after hearing everything; he truly hadn't noticed it before.

"I missed quite a show. I wonder what the Celestial Spirit King looks like."

Not having seen the ruler of the Celestial Spirit World himself left a bit of regret in his heart.

He had read about the Celestial Spirit King in magical books about spirits in the library. It was said that the ruler of the Spirit World was immensely powerful.

"But for Lucy to be able to summon the Celestial Spirit King—that's something only a few Celestial Spirit Mages in the entire history of humanity have ever accomplished."

"Mirajane! Mirajane!"

Just as George was contemplating matters related to the Celestial Spirit King, the guild's magic communication crystal ball suddenly lit up, and the figure of a thin, old man appeared inside.

"Councilor Yajima?"

Mirajane put down her glass and picked up the crystal ball, her expression filled with surprise.

Councilor Yajima was once a mage of Fairy Tail and a good friend of Master Makarov. He often spoke on Fairy Tail's behalf in the Council, handling many of the guild's troublesome incidents.

"There was a hijacking last night at the Akane Resort Paradise. According to eyewitness testimony, the one taken was Erza Scarlet, and the destination is a small island near the coast of Caelum.

The mastermind behind this hijacking is a dark mage named Jellal. He and a group of dark mages are constructing the R-System on the island, intending to resurrect the dark mage progenitor Zeref through it.

The military dispatched by the Kingdom was completely annihilated. Based on the proposal of Councilor Siegrain, the Magic Council has decided to use Etherion to carry out a destructive strike on the island.

You have twenty-five minutes.

Get Makarov to find a way to rescue Erza within those twenty-five minutes."

Yajima spoke sternly.

If Erza had been taken to the island, then Natsu and the others would surely have followed. If they didn't leave the island within twenty-five minutes, they would all be reduced to ashes by Etherion.

Yajima was the only one who voted against it. The other council members, afraid of Zeref's resurrection, all voted in favor of the strike.

"What?!"

Mirajane's expression changed drastically upon hearing this, and she immediately turned to George and said anxiously:

"George, go to Caelum at once, find Erza and the others, and get them off that island as soon as possible!"

With the master not at Fairy Tail, there was no way for him to make it to Caelum in twenty-five minutes either.

Only George, who could use spatial magic, could do it.

"Mirajane, calm down first and tell me what the R-System and Etherion are."

He had traveled to almost every city in the kingdom recently helping out guild mages with emergencies, so he had already been to the coastal city of Caelum.

That meant he could teleport there instantly with Phantom Shift.

But first, he needed to understand the situation clearly so he could respond appropriately.

Mirajane didn't waste time and quickly gave him a crash course.

The R-System was an evil dark magic system created by the progenitor of dark mages, which could resurrect the dead. A dark mage cult once constructed seven R-Systems on islands near Caelum in order to bring back Zeref.

The Magic Council had later mobilized all forces to destroy the seven incomplete R-Systems.

Before joining Fairy Tail, Erza had been one of the child slaves captured by the dark mage cult and forced to help construct the R-System.

As for Etherion, also known as "the Super Dimensional Destruction Spell," it was the Magic Council's ultimate weapon for maintaining order in the magical world.

Using satellite magic arrays, they condensed a massive energy projectile composed of 2.7 billion units of conceptual magical power and launched it precisely at any location in the world—a spell of extreme destruction.

Its power, if used properly, could destroy an entire country. It was truly terrifying.

"It's like a nuclear bomb in modern society, probably even scarier. A nuclear bomb can't destroy an entire country with just one shot."

George now had a clear understanding. He turned to look at the guild and then vanished with Phantom Shift.

He originally wanted to take a few guild mages to help, but found that the strongest—like Erza—were already there, and the other relatively strong members were all out on missions.

The mages remaining in the guild hall would be more of a burden than a help.

So, he decided to go alone.

His main goal wasn't to defeat the powerful dark mage group that had kidnapped Erza, but to rescue Erza and the others and get them off the island to avoid collateral damage from Etherion.

As long as he could locate Erza and the others, the mission wouldn't be too difficult or dangerous for him.

Phantom Shift and the Mirror World would allow him to easily help others evade Etherion's strike.

Over the skies of Caelum, George's figure appeared. He immediately spread his wings and shot toward the depths of the sea at high speed in the direction Yajima had given.

Phantom Shift could only take him to places he had been before. For places he hadn't, he would have to rely on his Wing Magic to fly there.

Fortunately, at full speed, he wasn't slow.

Soon, an island with a strange towering structure came into view.

Seeing the shattered ships bearing the Kingdom's flag floating near the island, he knew he had found the right place.

"Invisibility!"

He drew his wand and cast an invisibility spell on himself. Then, activating a tracking spell, he followed the footprints appearing on the island, flying toward the tower's main gate.

Being able to kidnap an S-Class mage like Erza meant the enemy's strength was no joke, so it was best to stay cautious.

—Recently some family matters came up, so updates have been inconsistent. I'll catch up in the next couple of days with mass releases!

(End of Chapter)