"It is just trouble, that is the Council we are talking about!"
"Heh, and what if it is the Council?" Lyon suddenly raised his voice and stood up from the stone throne.
The eyes hidden under his helmet swept sharply over everyone present. He clenched his fist, full of grim resolve, and declared,
"No matter who comes to cause trouble, they will not stop our ritual. All of you want to witness me defeat Deliora with your own eyes and complete my revenge, right?"
As soon as he spoke, Sherry, Yuka, and Toby dropped to one knee in unison, looking up at Lyon with worship in their eyes.
"We believe in Lord Reitei. Everything is for the sake of the past!!"
Their devotion made Lyon tilt his chin up, very satisfied.
But just as he was about to sit down again, the corner of his eye caught the only figure still standing and silent, that hunched silhouette.
"Sarudi, you are not saying anything. Do you think I cannot do it?"
Lyon's voice went cold. At his question, Sherry and the others all turned their heads and fixed that figure with sharp looks.
The one he had called, Sarudi, flinched slightly, then slowly straightened his back. He lifted his head, revealing the demon mask hiding his face, then quickly lowered it again. His tone was extremely respectful.
"No, of course not, Lord Reitei. I am just timid and was frightened when I heard the Council was involved. But thinking about it carefully, as long as you are here, even the Council is nothing to fear."
At his explanation, Sherry and the others relaxed and their gazes softened, no longer hostile.
Only Lyon's brows drew together slightly. He did not swallow that flattery so easily.
Compared to Sherry and the others, whom he had spent considerable time seeking out and recruiting, Sarudi was a "newcomer" who had shown up about ten days ago of his own accord.
If the man had not claimed to be another victim of Deliora's rampage, and if he did not have passable magic of his own, Lyon would never have accepted someone with such an unclear background.
But right now Lyon was at the peak of his arrogance.
Whether Sarudi had ulterior motives or not, as long as he could help with the ritual, Lyon did not care.
With that thought, he flicked his cloak and sat back down on the stone throne, ready to dismiss everyone.
"We still have to continue the ritual tonight. If there is nothing else, go back and rest."
Once Reitei had spoken, Sherry, Yuka, Toby and Sarudi naturally obeyed, turning to leave.
And then, right as they were about to walk out--
"Bang!"
The outer wall of the temple was suddenly smashed inward from the outside. Rubble exploded into the hall and a cloud of dust billowed up.
"Cough, cough, what is with this dump? Why do you villains always like to put your base in some creepy, dark corner?"
Covering his nose and mouth, Kabe grumbled as he stepped over the pile of stones and walked right into their line of sight like he owned the place.
The sudden appearance of a stranger made them all jump.
Sherry and Yuka instantly shifted into combat stances. The dog faced Toby was half a beat slower, still scratching his head and trying to figure out who this person was.
Lyon's face darkened beneath his helmet. He shot up from the throne, eyes cold as he stared at the intruder and demanded,
"Who are you? Why are you here?"
"Ptui, ptui, damn it, I got dust in my mouth."
Watching this stranger ignore his question and just keep spitting grit onto the floor, Lyon felt completely disrespected. His face went even darker as he flicked his hand.
In an instant, several ice birds formed in the air and dove at Kabe to peck him apart.
With Lyon's motion, Kabe also sharply felt the surrounding temperature drop a few degrees.
He looked up. Seeing the ice birds rushing at him, a spark flashed through his mind as something clicked.
"Ice Make, huh? You are Lyon!"
With that, he lazily slapped his hands a couple of times and shattered the oncoming ice birds into a shower of frozen shards.
For a moment Lyon was both shocked and furious. Shocked that the intruder had actually recognized him, furious that his spell had been broken in such a casual way.
"You bastard, just who are you?!"
Kabe frowned and could not help muttering,
"Every time it is 'Who are you.' Is there no other line in the villain script?"
He had said it quietly, but this was a big, echoing stone temple. Not only Lyon, everyone present heard him clearly.
After one long chain of confusion, Toby finally realized that the guy who had just barged in was an enemy.
At once his ten fingernails turned into ten razor claws, and he charged straight at Kabe.
"Jerk, you are not allowed to call Lord Reitei a villain!"
Toby had only made it halfway across the hall when Sherry suddenly stared at Kabe, eyes going wide.
"Stop, Toby! You are not his match, get back here!!"
Hearing her shout, Toby actually stayed in his charging pose and skidded to a confused halt.
The sight left Kabe genuinely speechless.
Interested, he turned sideways a little. When the dog man ran past him, Kabe casually stuck out his foot and kicked him in the butt.
Toby pitched forward, flew right back out through the hole Kabe had made, and rolled off into the distance like a hairy bowling ball.
Turning back, Kabe dusted off his hands and gave a very sincere evaluation.
"Your teammate does not seem very bright."
Lyon and the others: …
Sherry stared at Kabe's handsome face, swallowing hard. Her hands and feet trembled slightly, completely out of control.
"Black hair, black eyes, a belt with a dragon scale buckle at his waist. There is no mistake. I have seen that look countless times on Sorcerer Weekly's 'Most wanted as a boyfriend' list. He is the real thing, Fairy Tail's Destroyer himself!"
"What? You are saying he is that Destroyer Kabe?!"
Hearing Sherry's shriek, even Yuka could not help changing expression.
Even the mysterious Sarudi took two hurried steps back in shock. Clearly none of them had expected to run into the famous Destroyer out here.
Lyon frowned and looked between his companions.
"Destroyer? Sherry, Yuka, you two know him?"
He had spent these years with his mind entirely on how to resurrect Deliora and had long since fallen out of touch with the current magic world. He did not know who Kabe was at all, and his understanding of Fairy Tail was little to none.