"Did the former Speaker find the councilor with the key?!"
After Crawford was brought in, they confirmed two keys had already been unlocked—only one remained to fully release Face.
"I'm looking," the former Speaker said. "Don't worry. With my Archive magic, I can search the entire continent in no time."
"It's all those Fairy Tail brats! Let's see… are you in Fairy Tail now?"
Crawford's fingers danced over the magic panel, and an image appeared on the surgical screen.
"Huh?! Ultear! You're hiding here?!"
His face twisted with surprise and resentment. He remembered the day she and Jellal had convinced other councilors to unleash Etherion. Without knowing the full situation, he had been held jointly responsible and stripped of his position as Council Chairman.
Now, seeing her, and realizing she carried the last key, his anger burned hotter.
"Ultear? Grimoire Heart? Shameless—using the word 'devil' for a guild name without even paying royalties. How much is the copyright worth?!" Franmalth grumbled as Crawford stepped down from the dais.
"Lord former Speaker, have you found the last key?!" Franmalth asked.
"No… but something more interesting happened," Crawford replied with a smug grin. "I've already transferred the key using my Archive magic."
"Transferred…?"
"Yes. Ultear's key is mine now. And with the same method, I can transfer it to someone else—then kill them to break the seal."
"Anyone?"
"Anyone! We've already captured two from Fairy Tail—no need to bargain for those councilors now. Just give me one of them, I'll transfer the key, then you kill them."
Franmalth blinked. "Wait… that means you are the last key?"
"That's right! Even I didn't expect such a method. Truly, the power of the super ancient document is incredible. The seal of Face will be broken, and the world will be ours!"
Franmalth smirked. "Can't believe such a closely guarded key could be stolen so easily."
"This," Crawford said proudly, "is the authority of a former Speaker!"
"Really?"
Pfft!
A sharp blade burst through Crawford's back. Kyôka stepped forward, her voice cold. "Then the seal will be lifted."
Crawford gasped in agony before collapsing.
"Oops, oops," Franmalth chuckled, looking down at the corpse like it was nothing but a dead insect.
Suddenly—BOOM!
The entire Underworld Island shook.
Across the continent, massive white pillars erupted from the ground, standing in key points across Ishgar.
"The island's reacting—Face's seal is broken!"
"That's right," Franmalth confirmed. "The seal's lifted."
"Coordinates?" Kyôka demanded.
"Far from what we expected," Franmalth replied.
"No matter—just activate it."
"Can't. It can't be started from here," Franmalth said. "Manual mode only. If the Speaker were still alive, long-distance activation would have been possible. But now…" He grinned. "It's only a matter of time before we power it manually."
Kyôka cursed inwardly. She should have waited until Crawford had activated Fez before killing him. "Send someone there. And hope Fairy Tail doesn't interfere again."
Rumble—!!
The headquarters shook again.
"What now? Face?"
BOOM!
"No! Enemy invasion!"
Outside, on the floating island of Tartaros, Su Yan landed.
Dozens of soldiers rushed at him.
A wave of overwhelming Conqueror's Haki burst from him, blasting them all back. The ground trembled under the sheer force.
"Who dares invade Underworld Island?!" Kyôka snapped.
"It's Fairy Tail!!"
Franmalth flicked his fingers, bringing up a new screen—Su Yan's image filled it.
"Another Fairy Tail pest?! In such a short time, two of them invade our island?!" Kyôka's face twisted in fury.
Tartaros soldiers poured toward Su Yan.
He raised his palm, and countless black blades of condensed power shimmered into existence.
With one sweeping motion—
Shing!
The blades shot forth in a torrent.
BOOM BOOM BOOM!
Screams filled the air as soldiers collapsed, cut down in droves.
Kyôka and Franmalth paled at the sight.