I bet you guys were looking forward to this chapter. Last time, Fox and friends went to rescue Erza from the Tower of Heaven, fighting weirdoes and such, but when they found her, she doesn't want them to rescue her and asked them to leave. Let's find out why.

Oh, and Happy Holidays!

Chapter 14: Light vs Shadow

"This is unprecedented!" Org exclaimed angrily. "How could this have possibly happened!?"

In the chambers of the Magic Council Headquarters, where all the council members were located around a table, were having a heated argument over the reports they have about spotting the Tower of Heaven on an ocean near Akane Resort, where the people got attacked by members of the cult who ransacked villages eight years ago. Strange enough, they also received reports that Fairy Tail was somehow involved.

"Calm down, Org," Belno said to her companion, though she also looked troubled. "Still, I thought we handled everything related to the Tower of Heaven fiasco when we captured the Cult of Zeref?"

"Perhaps some stragglers somehow rebuilt the tower," Crawford guessed, stroking his beard.

"That still doesn't explain how they managed to finish the tower without us noticing," Yajima said, wondering how not even a rumor has reached them regarding the tower. "In any case, we must do something."

"Come now, isn't it obvious," Siegrain said before sighing. "Of course not, since you old geezers can't see a simple solution."

"Come now, Siegrain-sama," his assistant said, hiding the amused giggle with her mouth.

"Stop mocking us and tell us, you damn brat!" Leiji exclaimed in annoyance.

"We destroy the Tower of Heaven with our greatest weapon, Etherion," he said, causing the other Council Members to look at him with wide eyes.

"Are you mad!?" Org exclaimed as he stood up, slamming his palms on the table. "If we used Etherion, it will destroy any nearby towns! The casualties will be devastating."

"And we don't have time to evacuate," Yajima said. "There must be another way."

"There is no other way," Siegrain said, looking at the Council Members seriously as he stood up. "The Tower of Heaven must be destroyed, at all costs. Would you rather have the world face a resurrected Zeref?"

The Council Members all looked troubled as they weighed their decision, except for Yajima, who was looking suspiciously at Siegrain. Suddenly, Crawford stood up.

"I seconded the use of Etherion," he said, shocking everyone. Soon, all the Council Members slowly stood up one by one, agreeing with the use of Etherion.

Eight Years Ago…

"Charge!" An eleven-year-old Erza shouted as she held a chipped sword and wooden shield, dressed in dirty rags, a bandage wrapped around her right eye. Behind her was a younger Simon, wearing dirty rags, holding a spear as they led the other slaves, attacking the cultists that tried to stop them.

"Stop, you damn mongrels!" a fat cultist exclaimed as he threw a whip towards Erza. She blocked the whip with her sword, causing it to wrapped around the blade, before she pulled it away from the man and she rushed, slamming the shield that sent the man down the floor, hitting the ground.

"Simon-kun! You look after everyone!" she exclaimed to Simon, who stabbed a cultist in the chest. "I'm going to save Jellal-kun!"

"Erza-chan! Wait!" Simon cried out, but she was already rushing to the top floor.

Erza climbed up the stairs, taking down any cultists she met along the way, a determined glint in her eye. Ever since she got captured by the Cult of Zeref, it was hell, forced to build a large tower while being abused. She and almost everyone lost hope, but two people helped her keep going. An old man named Rob, who told her stories about a guild called Fairy Tail, and a boy named Jellal, who became her best friend during their time together in the Tower of Heaven.

Thanks to them, she managed to keep surviving despite the years of abuse. But earlier, she recently lost Rob, who protected her from a cultist that tried to kill her, and Jellal was taken in to be tortured for trying to save her when they tortured her for them trying to break free, which caused her to lose her right eye. Losing Rob and the thought of losing Jellal, Erza unleashed her magic for the first time, which gave her and the slavers a chance to fight back.

"Hold on, Jellal-kun, I'm coming!" she said as she almost reached the top floor.

When she got there, she broke down the door and rushed in. She saw a blue-haired boy in rags with a red tattoo on the right side of his face, being held up by chains attached to the ceiling. Hitting him with a whip was a lankly looking cultist, who was laughing hysterically as he whipped the child relentlessly.

Seeing this, Erza quickly rushed at the cultist, who was too surprised to defend himself, and knocked him out by bashing the side of her blade on his head, making him crumple to the floor.

"Jellal-kun!" Erza cried as she cut down the chains holding him, causing him to fall on the floor. She rushed towards him, dropping her weapons, and checked on him. "Jellal! Wake up!"

"…Erza…" he mumbled as he opened his eyes, making the young red head cry tears of relief.

"Thank goodness! You're alright!" she cried as she hugged him tightly. "We did it, Jellal-kun. We're finally free."

"Free…" Jellal mumbled as he sat up, rubbing his head.

Erza stood up, a smile on her face as she walked to the door. Finally, the dream they had ever since they were captured was about to come true. They'll finally be free from the tower and see the world that Rob told them.

"Come on, the others are waiting below," Erza said as she turned to Jellal, just in time to see him blast the cultist into pieces with Light Magic. "Jellal-kun!?"

"Freedom…That was a joke," Jellal said as he stared at the cultist as he started grinning madly. "There's no such thing as freedom. Our lives are worthless. There's only one thing that's true, and that's power. The reason why we're in this tower was because we were weak, but now, I'll take this tower and revive the most powerful person in the world!"

"Jellal-kun! What are you talking about?" Erza cried, frightened as Jellal started laughing, a dark aura surrounding him. "Cut it out! Let's meet the others so we can finally leave!"

"I'm not leaving," Jellal said as he raised his hand and pointed it at Erza. Suddenly, black, smoke-like tendrils wrapped around Erza and lifted her in the air, pulling her towards Jellal. She screamed as she struggled to get free, but she was trapped. "I need this tower to be finished, but I can't do it alone."

"Jellal-kun…Please…let me go!" Erza groaned as she tried to get free.

"I can't let you take the others, Erza-chan," Jellal said in a taunting voice as he stroked her cheek. "I need them to finish building the tower. I can find other slaves, sure, but that's a hassle. But they might refuse…so maybe I'll just kill them."

"No…please…Jellal-kun," Erza said.

Jellal smirked before the tendrils disappeared and Erza fell on her knees, panting heavily. Jellal then grabbed her chin and lifted up her face, making her fearfully look at him.

"If you don't want me to kill them, then go away," he said, making Erza widened her eye in shock. "I'll let you leave, but in exchange, you'll never return and never see the others again. Deal?"

"Jellal-kun, please…" Erza pleaded, tears streaming from her eye. She winced as Jellal tightened his hold on her face.

"Leave and don't come back, or stay and I'll kill everyone and find other slaves, deal?" Jellal repeated in a harsher tone.

Erza nodded, making Jellal smile as he let her go and stood up. He walked towards the dead body and took the cloak and draped it over his body, ignoring the bloodstains. He then walked away from Erza, who was kneeling on the ground.

"Hurry up and leave," Jellal said as he exited the room, leaving Erza alone, as she started sobbing.

They were unaware that Simon was hiding in the corner, having seen everything, his fists clenched tightly before he quietly left the room.

Flashback End…

"…and that's the truth," Simon said to the people listening. Everyone was quiet and in shock, especially Millianna, Sho, and Wally, who looked at Simon and Erza.

"No…B-but Jellal-san said Erza betrayed us!" Sho exclaimed, looking at the two. "That she abandoned us to save herself!"

"Do you really believe that the girl who protected you would abandon you so easily?" Simon said, causing Sho to pause. "The same girl who helped you sleep at night after working for hours? The same girl who shared her bread with the hungry children without complaining?"

Sho, Millianna, and Wally all looked down as they remembered the kindness Erza showed them during those dark times, and they started feeling ashamed of themselves for thinking she had betrayed them years ago.

"That bastard!" Natsu exclaimed in anger, his fists igniting. "Where is he!? I'll beat the hell out of him!"

"Get in line," Gray said, looking angry.

"Kurama, lead them back to the resort," Fox said, causing everyone to look at him.

"…You sure?" Kurama asked, jumping off Fox's head and floating in front of him, looking serious.

"…Go," Fox said as he started walking.

"Wait!" Lucy called out in surprise.

"Fox-sama!" Juvia cried out as reached out her hand.

"Wait, Fox!" Erza exclaimed as she ran after him. "You can't beat him!"

Just as she was about to grab him, the shadows erupted in front of her, blocking the way. Startled, Erza started pounding on the shadows, but it did nothing.

"Damn it!" Natsu exclaimed as he started punching the shadow wall with blazing fists. "Get back here, Fox! I'm the one who's gonna kick that bastard's ass!"

"Kurama! We need to get him back!" Gray exclaimed.

"No, we're getting out of here," Kurama said as he walked towards Wally and Millianna. "Take us to a shortcut out of this tower."

"What!? We can't leave Fox to handle that Jellal guy alone!" Gray exclaimed. "We need to help him!"

"You'll only get in his way," Kurama said calmly as he looked at the two in the eyes. "You should know by now how strong Fox really is. And he doesn't want you guys getting caught in the crossfire. Now, let's get going."

"Erza-san…" Lucy said as Erza fell on her knees, looking on the ground. She then looked at the wall of shadows. "Fox-kun…"

"Fox-sama will be okay," Juvia said, looking sad, but her tone was full of assurance.

"I know…" Lucy said, looking sad. "I just wish I could fight alongside him…"

"Erza, we need to move," Simon said as he grabbed Erza's arm and gently lifted her up her feet. He then turned to the others. "Follow me, I will lead you out of the tower."

Meanwhile, Sho was quiet, his mind in turmoil from the truth. He was confused with his anger. His anger all his life was directed at Erza for abandoning them, but then he learned that Erza was innocent.

He was lied to.

By Jellal.

All the anger he felt towards Erza slowly shifted to Jellal, remembering his smiling face as he told them that finishing the tower would make everything all right. He gritted his teeth in anger as he saw the look on Erza's face.

"Jellal…"

Just as Simon was about to lead them into the shortcut, a card flew towards them and exploded, covering them in smoke, surprising them.

"What the hell!?" Natsu exclaimed, as he and the others coughed and swatted the smoke away.

When the smoke cleared, they saw that Sho and Erza were gone, making Simon cursed as he saw a secret passage on the wall opened.

"Wally! Take them out of the tower! I'll go after Sho!" Simon exclaimed as he entered the secret passageway.

"Wait up!" Natsu and Gray exclaimed, only to find themselves wrapped in ninja wire by a transformed Kurama.

"We're getting out of here, now," he said as he effortlessly pulled the two before he faced Wally. "Lead the way."

"R-right," Wally said as he walked towards the other secret entrance and led them away.

"Are you sure your friend will be okay, nya?" Millianna asked the two women.

"Don't worry," Lucy said as she looked at the direction Fox went, the wall slowly disappearing. "Fox-kun can handle this."

"B-but Jellal-san is strong," Millianna said in a worried tone.

"So is Fox-sama," Juvia said. "He will defeat this Jellal and come back safely."

Millianna looked at the two women before they followed Wally.

Meanwhile, Sho was running through the upper floors, blasting anyone that got in his way with his card magic.

"Move!" he exclaimed angrily as he threw exploding cards towards the cultists that tried to stop. "I'm here to take down Jellal!"

"Sho! Let me out!" Erza called out, trapped inside a card Sho was holding.

"Don't worry, Erza-nee," Sho said as he kept running until reaching a door, opening it without hesitation. "I'll make Jellal pay for hurting you!"

"Fufufu, how cute," a voice said, causing Sho to stop. "It's so cute you think you can beat Jellal-san."

Inside the room was the pink-haired woman wearing the kimono, looking mockingly at Sho, who held Erza's card protectively while readying another card in his other hand.

"Who are you?" Sho demanded as the woman mockingly giggled at him.

"I am Ikaruga of the Trinity Raven, and their strongest member," she said as an intricate, long blade katana appeared in her hands. "And unlike my two incompetent teammates, I won't fail to kill you."

"RAH!" Sho threw three cards towards Ikaruga, who just stood there, smirking. Suddenly, just as the cards glowed, there was a flash before the cards fell to the ground, splitting in two. "Wha?"

"You think you can hit me with your little cards?" Ikaruga asked, her hand on the hilt of her sword. "Though, I expected this from a stupid child like you, who believed Jellal-san's lies about your friend."

"Shut up!" Sho exclaimed angrily as he threw more cards at Ikaruga. This time, the cards exploded, making Sho cheer, but his victory was short-lived when he saw Ikaruga has vanished when the smoke dispersed. "Where did she go!?"

"Behind you~."

Startled, Sho turned around and felt a painful impact on his gut due to the hilt from Ikaruga's sword. He fell on his knees, holding on to his gut as Ikaruga stood in front of him. The card holding Erza fell from his grip as she slammed her fists on the sides of the card, trying to break free.

"Too bad, I wanted to fight Titania," Ikaruga said as she started beating Sho with her sheathed sword. "I guess I'll settle with you, and then I'll go after those intruders and the rest of those traitorous brat."

Erza's eyes widened when she heard that. Helplessly, Erza watched as Ikaruga beat Sho mercilessly, a sadistic gleam in her eyes. When she imagined the rest of friends getting beaten by Ikaruga, she snapped. Her body started glowing, catching Ikaruga's attention. In a burst of light, the card exploded, and Erza was free.

"So, finally ready to fight?" Ikaruga said before kicking Sho away, causing him to slam a wall.

"Erza-nee…" Sho grunted in pain, surprised that she escaped his card magic.

"Get out of my way," Erza growled as she glared at Ikaruga, her sword appearing in her hands. Ikaruga smirked as she unsheathed her sword, revealing a long, beautiful blade.

The two women looked at each other before they charged. Sparks fly as metal clashed against metal in a fury of slashes. A furious look was plastered over Erza's face, but Ikaruga looked amused.

"I heard tales of your strength, but honestly, this is disappointing," Ikaruga said as she effortlessly blocked Erza's strikes. "Honestly, what a letdown from Fairy Tail's strongest woman."

Angrily, Erza jumped back from Ikaruga before she glowed.

"Flame Empress Armor!"

In a flash of light, she was wearing her Flame Empress Armor. She then charged at Ikaruga, her sword blazing. But as she went to slash at Ikaruga, but she found her sword suddenly flying off her hand.

"What!?" she said in shock before Ikaruga did a downward slash at her. Suddenly, her armor shattered into pieces, revealing her naked chest.

"Oh my~," Ikaruga said, leering at Erza's breasts. Feeling uncomfortable, Erza covered her chest. "You're surprisingly big~. Why hide all that underneath such ugly armor?"

Growling in anger, Erza glowed before she was wearing a different armor, her Black Wing Armor, holding two black battle axes. She then started flying around Ikaruga at high speed, hoping to confuse her opponent. Ikaruga calmly stood at the center, unbothered by her movements.

Erza stopped behind Ikaruga and swung both axes, but in a swift movement, both axes flew out of her grip before her armor shattered again. She fell to the ground in shock as Ikaruga stood in front of her with a smirk. Then, with her sheath, started prodding Erza's breasts, making her groan in protest.

"Look at you, how pathetic," Ikaruga said with a sneer. "I heard you were strong, but you're weak."

Erza slapped the sheath away, making Ikaruga jump back in amusement.

"Adamantine Armor!"

In a flash of light, Erza was wearing bulky, darkly colored armor consisting of a lower plate which covers her stomach and most of her chest bears a simple diamonds and stripes pattern engraved into it near the top with another plate which hangs from the neck and goes to her midsection. Extending over this top plate are four round, metallic extensions which attach underneath the plate around the neck. The neck features a large cylindrical plate which is sectioned off into six progressively larger sections. Around each shoulder are very large shoulder guards with four distinct sections with a large spike jutting off to separate each section from the next. On her arms were large gauntlets bearing the sectioning pattern of the rest of the armor with the sections becoming smaller as the gauntlets move in towards her hands. Underneath the bottom chest plate is a skirt bearing a woven pattern which bears small spikes, and a larger spike hangs beneath every other small one, dangling over the leg greaves. The greaves bear the same sectioning pattern as the rest of the armor but are split down the middle with a large piece covering the knee. Several curved spikes jut out from the outward facing sides of the greaves. Atop her head sits a large, spiked headdress. The shield on her gauntlets growing in size, preparing for Ikaruga's attack.

Ikaruga just tilted her head before she got into a cutting stance. Then, in the blink of an eye, she was in front of Erza, who quickly tried to shield herself with her gauntlets. With a swing from her sword, Ikaruga tore off the shields and sent Erza flying, her armor shattering in pieces.

"You know, I do enjoy fighting girls like you," Ikaruga said as she licked her blade sensually. "Women who think they're strong and beautiful, I enjoy stripping them until they reveal what they really are; weak, ugly, and pathetic."

"Enough!" Erza exclaimed in anger as a strong flash of light surrounded her. "Purgatory Armor!"

Erza was wearing a black metallic dress with a lighter gray trim. The shoulder guards are a light gray color with a large spike protruding from it, the arm guards bear a simple weaving pattern with three spikes jutting out, each smaller than the last, the leg greaves start just below her hips with three progressively smaller spikes protruding starting at the knees, around her neck is a small necklace of black, diamond shaped jewels, and a single horn works its way out from underneath her hair atop her head. In her hand was a large, black broadsword covered in spikes.

With a roar, she charged at Ikaruga, holding the sword with both hands. Her enemy just sheathed her weapon and got into a stance. Just as Erza swung her sword, Ikaruga drew her blade, and in a blink of an eye, she was behind Erza, who fell on her knees, screaming in pain as her armor burst to pieces, her broadsword landing a few feet away from her.

Smirking, Ikaruga walked towards the defeated Erza until she was in front of her. She then roughly grabbed her right breast, making Erza cry out in pain. Despite not liking the painful grip, she didn't have the energy to stop her.

"I can see why Jellal-san dumped you," Ikaruga said as she kept painfully groping Erza's breast, noticing the redhead flinch from her words. "Look how ugly and pathetic you look. That body of yours is wasted on someone like you. Maybe I should just cut these breasts off you."

Erza's body shook, stung by Ikaruga's words. She could feel her eyes water as Ikaruga mocked her. Despite being the strongest woman in Fairy Tail, there was a part of her that felt inadequate. That was the reason she has so many armors, to protect herself from the world, to hide from the fear of being seen as weak and pathetic.

"Maybe she's right…" she thought as she looked down. "If I was stronger…I would have saved Simon, Sho, Wally, Millianna, Rob…and Jellal…If I was beautiful…I wouldn't have been thrown away…"

Ikaruga smirked as she saw the defeated look on Erza's face. She let her breast go and lifted her sword. But before she could swing, a card hit her face, exploding upon impact. When the smoke cleared, it showed Ikaruga unharmed except for a small soot mark on her face. She calmly wiped the mark off and looked at Sho, who stood up, panting heavily.

"Shut up!" Sho exclaimed angrily as he held more cards. "Stop insulting Erza-nee! She's the strongest, kindest, and most beautiful person ever!"

"Sho…" Erza said, looking at Sho, who started crying.

"Despite us hating her, Erza-nee never forgot us!" he cried out as he readied to throw his cards at Ikaruga. "She was getting hurt! No more! I won't let her get hurt anymore!"

Before he could throw the cards, Ikaruga appeared in front of him and slammed her sheath to his face, knocking him to the ground. When he looked up, he was met with the tip of a sword.

"I was saving you for later, but maybe she'll break even more if I cut you to pieces," Ikaruga said as she raised her sword, looking bloodthirsty.

Erza snapped out of her depression as she saw Sho about to be killed. Seeing this, a fierce feeling of determination blossomed within her. All the doubts Ikaruga planted in her disappeared as she remembered why she became stronger, to protect her friends, to make sure the people she cared for would never get hurt again.

Her body glowed brightly, getting Ikaruga's attention. When the light tied down, Erza was wearing a pair of baggy, flame-printed pants and bandages wrapped around her breasts, her hair tied to a ponytail. Resting in her hand was a sheathed katana.

"What's this?" Ikaruga asked as she looked at Erza's new form with a sneer. "Did you get tired wearing those ugly armors and just decided to give up?"

"…Thank you," Erza said calmly as Ikaruga tilted her head in confusion. "Though my armor isn't ugly, I realized that I was using it to hide. But now…everything is clear. I'm stronger with or without my armor."

"Hahaha!" Ikaruga laughed as she readied her sword. "Have you been traumatized so much that your head is all mush? How about I take you out of your misery!"

She then rushed towards Erza, who slowly got in a stance as she closed her eyes, focusing her magic power on her sword. When Ikaruga was in front of her, swinging her sword, Erza opened her eyes and drew her sword.

Ikaruga blinked in shock as she saw her long-bladed weapon shatter in her hands, Erza right behind her as she sheathed her katana. Suddenly, her clothes turned to shreds, leaving her completely naked.

"Kya!?" she exclaimed in shock and embarrassment as she covered her breasts and groin. "Wha-!? Ho-!?"

Erza suddenly slammed the hilt of her katana to Ikaruga's side, knocking her out. She felt face first to the ground, beaten and naked.

"Erza-nee?" Sho asked as he slowly walked towards her, wincing from the pain.

"Are you okay, Sho?" Erza asked, looking at him with a worried expression.

Seeing the worry she had for him made him look guilty before he shook it and gave her a reassuring look.

"I'm okay, Erza-nee," he said, making her nod before she looked up at the ceiling with a fierce expression.

"Leave the tower, Sho," she ordered as she walked towards the door, shocking Sho. "I will stop Jellal."

"What!? But Erza-nee!" he protested, but stopped when Erza looked at him, seeing the determined glint in her eyes.

"Don't worry," she said as she turned back. "This time, I won't run away."

Sho watched as Erza exited the floor and continued to the top floor, to finally face her past demons.

Meanwhile, on the top floor of the tower, the hooded man stood from his seat and looked at the horizon. Suddenly, his silence was broken by the sounds of footsteps.

"So, I finally get to meet the mysterious Fox-kun?" he asked as he turned around, facing Fox as he walked to the center of the room from the shadows. "What an honor."

"…You know me?" he asked tersely as the guy chuckled.

"I heard the rumors, to think someone who was seen as a C-Class weakling was doing something so outrageous," he said. "It's not everyday I see a monster that specializes in crushing Dark Guilds."

Fox tensed as the hooded figure laughed, removing his hood, revealing a face he had seen before, blue hair, blue eyes, and a strange tattoo across the right side of his face.

"It wasn't easy, since you move so quickly, but I managed to get enough concrete information about you," Jellal said. "The Demon Fox. When I first heard of you, I thought it was a myth, yet here you are, in the flesh."

"…I see," Fox said as he tilted his head. "You're using Thought Projection. The Siegrain in the Magic Council is you."

"…My, you really are clever," Jellal said with a chuckle. "In all the years, no one, not even those old codgers of the Magic Council, noticed. I guess there are advantages of blindfolding yourself."

"What exactly are you planning?" Fox asked. "You infiltrated the Magic Council, for what? To hide your little tower?"

"Yes, but that's not the only reason," Jellal said as he lifted his hands, which started glowing brightly. "But a dead man doesn't need to know."

A giant magic circle appeared in front of Jellal and beams of light shot towards Fox, who jumped away, dodging the beams. He ran around the room, dodging the beams as Jellal kept firing. He started running on the walls and into the ceiling before jumping towards Jellal, raising a hand.

"Shadow Grace: Shadow Shuriken!"

He fired multiple shuriken-shaped projectiles towards Jellal, who fired his beams towards it, but saw the shadows absorb the light. He then dodged the shurikens by turning into light, dispersing before it could hit him. The light then gathered behind Fox, forming back into Jellal, who aimed his hand at Fox.

"Heavenly Body Magic: Pleiades!"

Orbs of light burst from his palm and struck Fox, causing an explosion of light. When the light disappeared, all he saw was a burned log. Jellal landed on the floor as the shadows swirled behind him, revealing Fox.

"Impressive," Jellal said as he turned to look at Fox. "Though it makes sense that someone who crushes Dark Guilds would be strong."

"You are also impressive," Fox commented. "Despite only being in half strength, you are still so strong. I guess even though your Siegrain persona is fake, your title of Wizard Saint isn't."

Jellal smirked before a magic circle appeared below him, covering his body with a golden glow.

"Heavenly Body Magic: Meteor!"

In a burst of speed, he appeared in front of Fox and delivered a punch of the face, surprising him. He was sent flying towards the ceiling before he appeared above Fox and delivered a devasting kick to the stomach that sent him towards the ground, but before he could crash into it, Jellal flew towards his side and kicked him towards the wall, causing him to slam to it.

Landing with a grunt, Fox used his magic to have the shadows chase after Jellal, but the man was faster than the shadows could reach him. He was then punched in the face that sent him flying across the room before he righted himself with a flip, landing on his feet.

"Your magic is impressive, to absorb other magic, but it doesn't mean much if it's so slow," Jellal said as he raised his hands which were glowing. "Compared to my magic, you can't hope to touch me, let alone hurt me."

"You're not the first to make that observation," Fox said as he pulled back his left sleeve, revealing a seal on it. "As time went on, I met many people who could outrun my shadows. That's why I had this made."

Swiping blood on the seal, it glowed before releasing a puff of smoke, revealing the package he got from Kaseki. He removed the wrap, revealing a sheathed katana with a flower-like edges in the shape of an octofoil on the handguard, the hilt wrapped with black silk with a golden end cap , and the sheath is black, decorated with dark red circles split into even thirds. He unsheathed the sword, revealing a black blade with a disticny reddish-purple reverse wave on the hardening line.

The hilt felt comfortable in his left palm, fitting perfectly. The blade was perfectly balanced as he swung it in front of him before getting into a stance. Jellal watched in interest as the shadow below Fox's feet traveled towards the sword, seeing it covering the blade.

Suddenly, Fox swung his katana towards Jellal, releasing a wave of shadow magic towards him. Surprised, Jellal managed to dodge by the last second his cheek getting grazed, causing him to bleed as the wave sliced a pillar.

"Good. I will name that move…Shadow Grace: Shadow Cloak: Lightless Slash," Fox said with a satisfied nod. "As for the sword…I shall name you…Shusui, Autumn Water."

Shocked, Jellal touched his cheek, seeing the blood. He then smirked as he looked at Fox with renewed interest.

"Great, finally someone who could actually entertain me," Jellal said as his body glowed brighter. "I wonder though, could you defeat me before I fulfill my goal?"

"Your goal?" Fox said with a tilting head as Jellal smirked. Suddenly, he felt a large amount of magic coming from the other side of the continent, so strong that he could feel it from where he was standing. He turned his head towards the direction, so did Jellal. "What have you done!?"

"Just something to help me with completing the true purpose of the Tower of Heaven, the R-System!"

And done! Wrapping it up here, since it feels like a good place to stop. So, the truth of Erza's betrayal has been revealed, and everyone did not take it well. Poor Erza, having to go through all that. And then she got humiliated by Ikaruga, taunting her, twisting the knife at her weak points, making her doubt herself, but she managed to pull through.

Hope you guys enjoyed that sexy fight.

As for Fox, you finally saw what Kaseki made him for him. Yup, it's the beloved blade from another anime, Shusui from One Piece. Shusui is my favorite katana, second only to Enma, a bit bummed Zoro had to give it away, but fair trade, I guess. There's also his Shadow Cloak technique, which I'm sure you guys know is from Yami Sukihiro from Black Clover. Huh, coincidence that both characters are badass sword masters with the same English voice actor. Anyway, expect me to use a lot of Yami's techniques.

There's also Fox's secret being a Dark Guild crusher. I'll explain that later on in the story.

Man, what a year 2023 has been. Sorry if I hadn't been active much. Just had a lot going on, some good, some bad. This year has been pretty crazy. Went to a bachelor party in another town, attended a wedding, went to the hospital, a lot of anxiety and joy. Man, what a ride. So many good things happened, so did a lot of bad things, seriously, what a roller coaster of a year.

Let's pray and hope that next year will be good as well. Well, see you guys in 2024!

See you later, and Happy New Year!