章 87: Chapter 87: Precht: Accusing Fairy Tail Before Its Founder and Second Guild Master? You Are Quite Brave
"Uh..."
When Jose Porla truly felt the overwhelming magic power emanating from Precht, he finally realized just how small and weak he truly was.
For a moment, Jose recalled the fear that Ian had once instilled in him.
"This old monster!"
Jose gritted his teeth, silently cursing in his heart.
"Even though I'm one of the Ten Wizard Saints, why are there still so many people in this world stronger than me?! Why is that?!"
Indeed, in Jose's eyes, Precht was undoubtedly beyond the human level—he was, in essence, an "inhuman" class monster.
At the same time, Jose began to believe what Crawford had said: Precht was a monster whose strength rivaled or even surpassed that of the Wizard Saints of Ishgar.
"Esteemed Master Hades, we mean no offense..."
"The reason we have come all this way to find you is to ask for your help in dealing with a certain 'light' wizard guild."
Before Jose could say anything, Crawford fell to his knees with a loud "thud," kowtowing before the elder seated on the throne and pleading for his help.
"Hahaha..."
"This is truly amusing."
"That is why I say people like you are simply hypocritical."
Hades was amused by Crawford's words. He couldn't help but laugh as he dispersed the magic power surrounding him, looking down at Crawford and Jose Porla with a cold and mocking gaze, as if he were watching two clowns.
"Heh heh heh..."
"One of you is a former chairman of the Magic Council, and the other is a guild master of a prominent wizard guild in Fiore, a member of the Ten Wizard Saints..."
"And now, you are asking me, the master of a dark guild, to help you deal with a 'light' wizard guild? Isn't this a bit too much of an irony?!"
After confirming their identities, Hades sneered at Crawford and Jose.
"No! It's not ironic at all!"
"Not at all!"
"To be honest, that so-called light wizard guild, while technically legitimate, is essentially no different from a dark guild."
"In fact, their actions are often even less righteous than those of dark guilds! At least dark wizards never claim to be righteous."
"Unlike them, who claim to rid the world of evil while doing things that are utterly reprehensible, causing frustration and trouble for the members of the council."
"So in a way, I am also helping rid the world of evil..."
Crawford, ever adept at finding excuses, stroked his long beard and said with a smirk.
"You sure know how to justify yourself."
Hades let out a cold laugh, not bothering to refute Crawford's words.
In this world, the boundary between light and darkness is indeed blurry...
Being aligned with the light doesn't make one's hands clean, and being aligned with the darkness doesn't make them inherently dirty. Oftentimes, light or darkness is simply a matter of perspective.
After all, even magic itself was born from the abyss.
If one were to divide the world into right and wrong, and categorize wizard guilds into light and dark, then perhaps no one would be left using magic.
"I am not particularly interested in your discussions of light or darkness..."
"Now let's talk about something that truly interests me~"
"If you want me to act, it's not impossible."
"But at what cost?"
"You, as a former chairman of the Magic Council, should understand that even if you ask for the help of light wizards, there's always a price to pay!"
"Moreover, you are now asking me, an old bone that has long fused with the darkness, to act from the abyss of magic."
"My assistance comes at a high cost."
Hades remained seated on his throne, glancing coldly at Crawford, who was kneeling before him.
"Heh heh..."
"Rest assured!"
"I guarantee you'll be satisfied."
Crawford gave a servile smile, though beneath that facade lay a steady stream of curses aimed at Hades in his mind: "Damn old man, this whole conversation is just about wanting more money, isn't it?! You think I'm short on cash? Back when I was at the Magic Council, I embezzled plenty."
"As you know..."
"Not long ago, I was still the chairman of the Magic Council ERA, and in that capacity, I gained quite a bit of wealth from the major kingdoms across Ishgar!"
"As long as you help me eliminate that accursed light wizard guild, I'll pay you this much! Not a penny more or less—a full 100 million J!"
Crawford's wrinkled face split into a wide grin, as he offered what he believed to be a reasonable sum.
"100 million J?!"
"This damn old man is so wealthy?!"
"Even I, one of the Ten Wizard Saints, don't have that kind of net worth..."
"Even if I sold all of Phantom Lord, it wouldn't be worth 100 million J!"
"It's true, this old guy must have been taking a lot of bribes while in office!"
"Heh, being chairman of the Magic Council is certainly lucrative..."
Jose, standing by Crawford's side, widened his eyes in shock upon hearing the figure. He silently cursed Crawford as a corrupt fox who, while in office, did nothing but embezzle every penny he could.
A person like Crawford, who only cared about lining his own pockets, should have been glad to leave the Magic Council ERA unscathed, as far as Jose was concerned...
And yet this old crook still wasn't satisfied?!
To Jose, Crawford should be thankful for the Council's mercy. If Jose were an enforcer, someone like Crawford would have long been arrested and given the harshest punishment.
Of course, with Jose's temperament, if he ever became a councilman, he would likely join forces with Crawford, perhaps even more greedy than Crawford, taking corruption to a whole new level.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk~"
Meanwhile, Hades, sitting on his throne, heard Crawford offer 100 million J and clicked his tongue in disdain.
He raised his right index finger and wagged it at Crawford, clearly implying that the amount he offered was still far from enough.
"This old man is also greedy—even 100 million isn't enough."
"In Jose's opinion, for that amount, he'd abandon the light side entirely and turn to the dark side."
Jose looked up at Hades, his thoughts turning.
"If 100 million isn't enough?!"
"Then I'll offer 300 million!"
"If that's still not enough, then 500 million!"
"Honestly, if there's one thing I'm not short of, it's money..."
"If 500 million doesn't suffice..."
"Then take everything I own! If I sell all my assets, I can at least raise one billion."
"No matter the cost, I want that light wizard guild erased from history!!"
Seeing that one hundred million couldn't satisfy Hades's greed, Crawford offered several higher prices, finally settling on one billion J.
"How much did this old bastard embezzle?!"
"I don't believe he only has one billion! He must have at least another billion stashed away!" Jose Porla glanced at Crawford, silently speculating.
Jose cast a sidelong glance at Crawford, trying to gauge the extent of his wealth.
"Enough with the offers!"
"I mean, money has no use for me."
"Because I don't need it at all!"
"We dark guild mages, if we want something, we simply take it."
Hades spoke dismissively, yawning as if bored.
After all, why would a clown, rich as he might be, try to bribe an organization that practically operated on theft and zero-cost acquisition?!
Indeed, whatever Hades wanted, he always took by force...
Besides, Hades himself had no interest in worldly riches. What he craved were lost tomes of magic.
"Then what is it that you want?"
Crawford paused, seemingly struggling to figure out what could possibly interest the leader of the dark world.
"Crawford, don't play dumb with me..."
"You know exactly what I want!"
"Now, tell me everything you know—all the locations of the ancient weapons recorded in the Magic Council ERA's archives."
Precht, known as Hades, seemed to have lost his patience with Crawford's act and spoke plainly.
"You want me to betray the Council?!"
Crawford's expression changed drastically, a look of terror and hesitation flashing across his eyes.
"Cut the theatrics..."
"There's no one else here but the three of us."
"Who exactly are you performing for?!"
"You came here asking for my help—isn't that betrayal enough?!"
"The moment you came seeking my aid, you had already turned against the Magic Council ERA..."
Precht's eyes filled with contempt as he spoke coldly.
"Heh heh..."
"You saw right through me."
Crawford's expression changed dramatically—what had previously been a mask of hesitation and inner conflict was quickly replaced by his sycophantic grin.
Crawford reached into his cloak and pulled out a prepared dossier, offering it to Precht with a grin that resembled that of a groveling dog.
"Master Precht, these are the documents from the Magic Council ERA archives, detailing all information regarding the ancient weapons and unlocking methods for the entire Ishgar continent and beyond."
Crawford smiled fawningly.
"Oh?! You've really put in the effort..."
Precht lightly moved his fingers, and Crawford's dossier seemed to be pulled by an invisible force, floating up into the air and landing gently in Precht's old hands.
"Let me see what ancient weapons and super magic are recorded in these documents."
Precht murmured as he began to peruse the documents Crawford had handed him.
"The super ancient world balance magic weapon, Nirvana, capable of reversing light and dark attributes."
"The ultra-ancient destructive weapon, the Phoenix, which, with a single tear, can grant eternal life."
"The super magic pulse bomb, Face, capable of disturbing the entire world's magic equilibrium, eradicating magic in the entire Earthland."
"The super orbital cannon, Etherion, capable of drawing magic from ley lines to wipe an entire country off the map."
"And in the northern continent of Guiltina, Duke Barbaroa's alchemically forged anti-dragon weapon, Athena..."
Precht's lips curled into a smile as he read through Crawford's offering.
However, as Precht listed each ancient weapon or super magic, Jose Porla's face grew increasingly stiff, his expression filled with terror as he looked at Crawford: "This guy, he really betrayed the Magic Council ERA! No, this isn't just a betrayal of the Council—it's a betrayal of the entire light wizarding community and the people of Ishgar! I think I've boarded a ship of no return."
Note: While Jose Porla's methods may be despicable, he had always been firm in his stance against dark guilds. To become a Wizard Saint, he had defeated many dark guilds for the Magic Council ERA.
"Each of the ancient weapons recorded in these documents could destroy the entire world of Earthland! Yet, for your selfish desires, you handed these secrets over to me—someone deep in the abyss. Crawford, you truly are wicked."
Precht set the documents aside, adding them to his already vast collection of magic knowledge—including research materials from the former director of the Bureau of Magic Development, Brain, who was eliminated by Ian, along with the R-System (the Tower of Heaven), the Magic Development Device (a modified version of the Tower used to forcibly enhance Jellal's magic power), and countless lost magics.
With these additions, Precht had amassed enough power to rival the Alvarez Empire of the western continent of Alakitasia, created by Zeref himself. Mavis would now be protected by him, Precht, as always.
Of course, these super ancient magics and weapons could only reach their full potential in the hands of Precht! The Magic Council ERA had stood atop a mountain of treasure for years, yet never knew how to use it.
Take Etherion, for example—if the Magic Council used it, they might only be able to wipe out one country.
But if Precht wielded it, using the pseudo-infinite magic source "Devil's Heart" as the power source, he was confident that he could use Etherion to destroy the entire continent of Alakitasia, wiping out the invincible Alvarez Empire in an instant.
And that was just using "Devil's Heart" as the power source! If he used the genuine infinite magic source "Fairy Heart" as Etherion's power supply, Precht might even be able to burn Earthland's surface and destroy the entire planet.
Indeed, these super magic weapons...
Only by using them together with other super magic weapons could they achieve their best results.
"Now, tell me…"
"You came all this way, willing to betray the entire light magic community, just to present me with such a great gift! Which wizard guild do you want me to help you deal with?!"
Precht set the documents aside and looked at Crawford and Jose, asking.
"We want you to help us deal with Fairy Tail!"
Crawford now believed he had already won...
Thus, he slowly rose from the ground, looked up at Precht, and revealed the name of the wizard guild that had angered him so much.
"Fairy Tail?!"
Precht froze.
"Are you saying that the guild operating under the guise of a light guild, but committing acts worthy of a dark guild, is Fairy Tail?!"
Precht looked at Crawford for confirmation.
"Indeed!"
Crawford gritted his teeth, nodding furiously.
"Boom!"
"Who told you to stand? Kneel down and keep talking..."
Before Crawford could react, an immense force pressed down on him, forcing him back onto his knees before Precht.
Precht remained quietly seated on his throne, his gaze filled with curiosity and scrutiny as he looked at Crawford.
"Tell me more, in detail, about what exactly makes Fairy Tail so wicked?!"
Precht asked Crawford.
"You have no idea!"
"This wizard guild, Fairy Tail, under the banner of light, often demolishes docks, blows up churches, destroys train stations—all in the name of fighting bandits, causing tens of millions, even hundreds of millions, in damages!"
"And they frequently engage dark guilds without filing any official reports! They claim to be helping the people, but in truth, they're merely satisfying their base urges for violence..."
"Even your subordinate dark guilds weren't spared!"
Crawford recounted every crime Fairy Tail had committed.
"Keep going, tell me more."
Precht looked seriously at Crawford.
Crawford thought Precht was getting angry, and this motivated him to speak louder, "Especially that Makarov! During the guild masters' meeting, not only did he drink, but he also bullied other guild masters!"
"Later, during the Ten Wizard Saints meeting, he didn't apologize to that guild master. Instead, he incited his own guild members to keep bullying that poor wizard guild master! Truly despicable."
"Sigh..."
Jose stood next to Crawford, listening to his complaints, feeling tears well up. He didn't want to remember, but Crawford's words brought back all those grievances.
It was a flood of tears.
What followed was a tirade from Crawford against Fairy Tail.
He went on about how Fairy Tail ignored public wishes, forcibly tearing down newly built houses and towns. How they fought dark guilds relentlessly, even destroying sub-guilds under Grimoire Heart and not allowing any surrenders.
How, during the Ten Wizard Saints meeting, Fairy Tail held three seats and used that as a pretext to monopolize the conversation! Crawford complained relentlessly about Fairy Tail's arrogance and the threat they posed to Grimoire Heart.
Precht kept nodding, occasionally smiling.
An hour later...
"Those are all the crimes and threats posed by Fairy Tail."
Crawford finally finished his tirade, wiping the sweat off his forehead with a handkerchief, feeling immensely satisfied.
"This time, Fairy Tail will surely be destroyed."
Jose Porla smiled, convinced that Fairy Tail would be wiped out by Grimoire Heart's overwhelming power.
"Makarov, that brat, has grown up!"
And then Jose Porla and Crawford heard Precht, the leader of Ishgar's strongest dark guild, Grimoire Heart, smile and exclaim in wonder.
"Huh?!"
Jose and Crawford exchanged bewildered glances, utterly confused.
"It seems I've been away from Fairy Tail for far too long!"
"When I read that Fairy Tail had become the top wizard guild in Fiore, I felt anger in my heart."
"To protect 'Lumen Histoire,' Fairy Tail should not be exposed to the light. Excessive exposure to light makes magic impure!"
"But I forgot the simple truth that the greatest darkness lies within the light itself. I am indeed inferior to that brat Makarov in this regard."
Precht smiled, continuing to praise Makarov.
Yes, listening to Crawford and Jose's grievances about Fairy Tail had genuinely pleased him. This was truly great news.
"What do you mean by that?!"
Crawford and Jose exchanged glances, unsure of what to make of Precht's words.
"I haven't properly introduced myself yet."
Precht smiled and decided it was time to give Crawford and Jose a proper introduction.
"Aren't you Master Hades?!"
Crawford and Jose felt an impending sense of doom.
"That's just an alias."
"Years ago, after a fight with Warrod, Hyberion, and Wolfheim, I changed my name..."
"My real name is Precht Gaebolg!"
Precht smiled as he revealed his true name.
"Hahaha..."
"That name—it's exactly like the name of that legendary founder of Fairy Tail who disappeared from Ishgar before I was even born, the name of the second guild master of Fairy Tail!"
Jose let out a sarcastic laugh but then froze as a realization hit him.
"To think that after 43 years in hiding, there are still people who remember my name! It's truly an honor~"
"Yes, I am Precht Gaebolg, founder of Fairy Tail and its second guild master!"
"It's a pleasure to meet you here, boy from Phantom Lord..."
"No, to be precise, I should call you boy from Blue Skull."
Precht looked at Jose, sneering as he spoke.
"Blue Skull?"
Even Jose seemed unfamiliar with the name.
"That's the predecessor of Phantom Lord—the guild I personally destroyed."
Precht explained with a smile.
Jose: "I'm going to die!"
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