Chapter 151: Feeding Natsu Fiendfyre

"What about Mystogan and Gildarts?"

George pondered for a moment before asking.

Mirajane shook her head.

"Gildarts is in the Northern Continent, so I can't reach him. As for Mystogan, nobody but the Guild Master knows his whereabouts.

However, I've received a reply from Councilman Yajima. He mentioned that a meeting is already underway regarding this matter. Once they reach a conclusion, they will send reinforcements."

"Good. As long as we can hold the line, whether it's waiting for the Guild Master to recover or for the Council to intervene, this will all be over."

George nodded confidently.

Although Laxus, Mystogan, and Gildarts were unavailable, hope remained strong. With a bit of luck, if Phantom Lord delayed their next move, the Council might arrest them first.

"Arzak and Bisca are back!"

At that moment, Arzak and Bisca, who had escorted Makarov to East Forest, returned to the guild. They relayed the Guild Master's current condition.

"Porlyusica said that the Guild Master's sudden loss of magical power at his age is serious. However, she has already contacted Mystogan to help recover the Guild Master's dispersed magic.

If all goes well, the Guild Master could recover by this afternoon."

"That's excellent news."

The crowd collectively sighed in relief.

That sense of relief lasted until midday. Just as everyone finished lunch and began resting, they were startled awake by a tremendous noise outside.

Rushing out of the guild, they saw an enormous castle resembling an island advancing across the southern lake. Powered by eight massive metallic spider legs, it marched straight toward Fairy Tail's guild hall.

The castle bore Phantom Lord's unmistakable emblem.

"Everyone, get ready! Activate all magical defenses and spell barriers!"

Despite being momentarily awestruck by Phantom Lord's mobile fortress, George's amplified voice snapped everyone back to reality. The guild members methodically executed their defensive plans.

Layer upon layer of spell barriers covered the guild. Magical devices deployed, creating a protective wall in front of the building.

Meanwhile, the massive fortress came to a halt in the lake and rooted itself to the bottom. A colossal cannon barrel extended outward, beginning to gather terrifying levels of magical energy.

"Wow, Phantom Lord must be swimming in money!"

George couldn't help but twitch his lips as he watched.

It was easy to imagine the astronomical costs of building a mobile fortress equipped with a magical cannon.

"Strengthen the defenses!"

Prepared for this scenario, George issued another command.

On top of the existing barriers and magical defenses, guild members with defensive magic stepped forward.

Gray constructed a massive ice shield, followed by layers of wooden walls, earthen barricades, and more.

Finally, Erza donned her strongest defensive armor, the Adamantine Armor, and deployed the indomitable Adamantine Barrier as the ultimate safeguard.

"Boom!"

The magical cannon fired, unleashing a devastating beam of pure magical energy aimed directly at Fairy Tail. The intent was clear: annihilate the guild and everyone within it.

"This magical cannon is ridiculous!"

George watched as the energy beam shattered spell barriers, pierced through the magical devices, and destroyed Gray's ice shield, the wooden walls, and the earthen barricades.

Even after losing half its energy, the beam still reached Erza's shield, causing it to crack under the strain.

"Restore to its original state!"

Standing behind Erza, George raised his wand and cast a Repair Charm.

The cracks on the shield vanished instantly under the spell's effect. Although new cracks appeared, they were promptly repaired. This cycle continued until the cannon's energy was exhausted. Erza's shield remained intact, with neither her armor nor her magical reserves depleted.

"That damn cat again!"

Inside the fortress, Phantom Lord's leader, Jose, slammed his fist on the table.

First, the inexplicable annihilation of his branch guilds had already pushed him to his limit. Now, his prized magical cannon, reconfigured to integrate the Iron Dragon Slayer's power, had failed to deal any damage.

"Fine. If that's how you want it, I'll send you all to hell!"

Since the cannon required 15 minutes to recharge, Jose decided to deploy another attack in the meantime.

"Dark Wraith Soldiers!"

Magic circles appeared in droves around the fortress, summoning countless ghostly soldiers. These spectral troops launched an assault on Fairy Tail, aiming to overwhelm them and leave them defenseless against the next cannon blast.

"We can't stay on the defensive. Natsu, get over here! We're taking out that cannon!"

Seeing the flood of ghostly soldiers and the cannon charging for another blast, George called the already eager Natsu.

"The cannon's core is powered by mages. Unless we take them out, it'll be hard to destroy it," Mirajane explained with concern.

George nodded.

"I know. But I have a method that might forcefully overload the cannon—maybe even take out the entire fortress."

Waving his wand, George summoned his signature blue flames. However, instead of attacking Phantom Lord's fortress directly, he sent the flames toward Natsu.

Given the current location in Magnolia, unleashing the cursed blue flames indiscriminately risked burning down the guild and the city along with the enemy. George's plan was simple: feed the cursed flames to Natsu, who could consume and harness their destructive power as the Fire Dragon Slayer.

During earlier preparations, George had tested this with Natsu. The results had been promising—after consuming the cursed flames, Natsu's magic surged dramatically. The fire attacks he unleashed were imbued with the cursed flame's properties and remained fully under George's control.

"Hahaha! I feel amazing!"

As George poured more cursed flames into him, Natsu's magic soared, and his excitement grew.

"Clear out those ghost soldiers first!"

With the spectral soldiers swarming overhead, George paused the infusion of flames and issued a command.

The Dark Wraiths, with their incorporeal forms and deathly magic, were difficult for ordinary mages to combat. However, the cursed flames' properties made them a perfect counter.

"Fire Dragon Slayer Magic: Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Natsu took a deep breath and cupped his hands around his mouth. A blue magic circle formed, and an overwhelming torrent of cursed blue flames erupted, engulfing the ghostly soldiers.