"Why isn’t my curse working?"

  Seih was utterly dazed as Zirconis’ cws swatted her aside. Her head buzzed, unable to comprehend what had happened.

  Smming a hand on the ground, she quickly flipped several times, dispersing the impact. At that very moment, the curse she had pced on Erza dissipated.

  "Heaven’s Wheel: Multiple Sword Requipping!"

  As Seih regained her footing and looked up, she saw dozens of magical swords flying toward her.

  "Stop."

  Seih stretched out her hand and activated her curse magic.

  In an instant, the swords halted midair, frozen just before reaching her.

  Erza quickly realized the nature of Seih’s ability and deduced, "Is it a type of incantation magic? It even works on objects!"

  "It’s curse magic," Seih corrected calmly.

  "Curse magic, incantation magic—doesn’t matter. You’d better surrender now," Cana said, flinging three cards into the air. Each card unleashed a different elemental force.

  "Thunderbolt’s Fate!" A bolt of lightning shot forth.

  "Wind Edge!" A slicing gust of wind sshed toward Seih.

  "Sun’s Strength!" Fiery fmes surged forward like a bzing serpent.

  The three elements intertwined, though they were not fusion magic—merely individual attacks cast simultaneously by the same person.

  Cana’s combat style was diverse, and her strength had surged significantly since unlocking her Second Origin. In any other guild, she would easily be recognized as an S-Css Mage.

  Seih, however, remained calm as multiple glowing books appeared around her. The books intercepted Cana’s attacks: fmes burned their pages, wind shredded their covers, and lightning charred them to ash.

  At the same time, Juvia took a deep breath.

  "Water God’s Bellow!"

  A torrent of bck water erupted from Juvia’s mouth, surging forward like a massive wave to engulf Seih.

  "Water God Syer Magic?" Seih was once again surprised.

  Are all the women of Fairy Tail this strong? She had only heard of Titania Erza’s reputation.

  Faced with six opponents, Seih barely had time to counter or use her curse magic effectively. Unable to ponder further, she swiftly dodged Juvia’s Water God’s Bellow.

  But at that moment—

  "Arc of Time!"

  Ultear smiled faintly, summoning a silver-gray magic circle in her palm.

  "Damn… another one!"

  The ground beneath Seih’s feet turned to sand. Losing her footing, she staggered and fell backward.

  "Water Lock!"

  Juvia seized the opportunity, clenching her fist in the air. The bck water, which Seih had just dodged, curved back and enveloped her. It solidified into a translucent bck sphere, trapping Seih inside.

  Simultaneously, Mirajane struck the demon Lulby like an arrow, piercing straight through its head. The demon didn’t even have a chance to demonstrate its power before being effortlessly obliterated.

  They’re too strong… I can’t compete! Inside the water sphere, Seih watched this unfold, her heart sinking.

  One-on-one, she was confident she could defeat any of them. Even two-on-one wouldn’t have fazed her. But six against one? That was too much. She couldn’t even properly fight back.

  "Juvia, she won’t break out of this, will she?" Lucy asked, instructing Zirconis to keep an eye on Seih, ready to subdue her if she tried to escape.

  Juvia responded, "This Water Lock was cast with Water God Syer Magic. It’s much stronger than usual. She… shouldn’t be able to escape."

  Cana retrieved her cards and grinned. "Well then, it’s interrogation time~."

  Ultear walked up to the bck water sphere, pressed her index and middle fingers together, and activated her telepathic magic:

  [Don’t bme us for ganging up on you, Miss Seih~ You’re incredibly strong, and your… curse magic is particurly troublesome since it can control people.]

  Seih considered self-destruction. She couldn’t win the fight, but if she self-destructed, she could escape and be reborn in the Core of Tartaros.

  But she really wanted to win the Pokémon championship.

  [I surrender. Ask what you need to,] she replied telepathically.

  Mirajane nded, deactivating her Satan Soul: Halphas form. She smiled and asked, "Ultear, what’s she saying?"

  "I’m asking her now…"

  After a brief moment, Ultear ended the telepathic link and turned to the others. "She seems to genuinely be here for the tournament."

  "Huh?!" the five women excimed simultaneously, tilting their heads in disbelief.

  A demon joining a Pokémon tournament? For the prize money?

  "But," Ultear’s expression grew serious, "aside from participating, Tartaros is also searching for the legendary Bck Mage, Zeref! She said the Magic Council previously detected traces of Zeref. Tartaros got simir intel. Apparently, Zeref’s presence is in this city!"

  Lucy gasped, "Zeref? As in the Bck Mage from 400 years ago?"

  Cana widened her eyes. "He’s still alive?!"

  Erza pondered for a moment, then asked solemnly, "Should we tell Nate about this?"

  The women exchanged gnces.

  "Looks like this was a misunderstanding," Mirajane concluded.

  She approached the bck water sphere, her expression calm and kind. "Your name is Seih, right? You’re a demon? Would you mind if I… borrowed your powers a little?"

  As she spoke, she extended her hand into the water and grasped Seih’s hand.

  Take Over Magic: Demon Soul, Activate!

  Seih’s eyes widened as a strange fear surged through her. She could feel her Command Curse being extracted, as if the woman before her was stealing her power.

  Demon Take Over?!

  Moments ter, Mirajane pulled her hand back, her face turning serious. "What a terrifying curse. Once you’ve controlled someone, you can maintain control indefinitely, even from a distance."

  The others immediately turned to Erza.

  "Is there a way to break it?" Erza asked.

  Mirajane looked back at the bck water sphere, smiling warmly. "Can it be undone?"

  If not, they’d have to deal directly with the curse caster.

  Who’s the real demon here?! Seih thought, silently removing the curse mark she had pced on Erza.

  After confirming the curse was gone, Mirajane rexed, her tone softening.

  "Sorry about that, Miss Demon. It seems this was all a misunderstanding.

  We won’t report you for now, so don’t cause any trouble, okay? If you understand, nod."

  Seih nodded repeatedly. These women are terrifying…

  They had dragons, Lost Magic like the Arc of Time and Water God Syer Magic, Demon Take Over, and the Titania herself. The only one who seemed remotely ordinary was the one using card magic.

  Shortly afterward, Nate watched as the group of women left.

  I have to say, my girlfriends are all exceptionally strong, he thought. I assumed the unfamiliar curse magic might give them trouble, but they subdued Seih so easily.

  Even Cana, whose Card Magic is retively simple, might need a bit of a power boost ter.

  His gaze shifted to the demon below.

  Seih stood there, dripping wet. The cold winter breeze hit her, and she sneezed.

  Poor demon…

  Nate chuckled to himself. Can demons even catch colds?

  Bleam