Chapter 135: Guild Master Jose Takes the Blame Again (Patreon)

The moonlight began to emerge, bathing the earth in a silvery glow that enveloped Makarov, covering the Giant of Light in a layer of white radiance and making him appear even more majestic.

Towering like a mountain, Makarov stood firmly upon the earth, his hands hanging at his sides, his expression as calm as an ancient, undisturbed well. That terrifying aura, as if capable of shattering the heavens and splitting the seas apart, slowly returned into his body.

Just moments ago, in order to let Hughes witness the true strength of a "Wizard Saint," Makarov had unleashed his full power for one final clash with Hughes.

The terrifying magical power directly created a world-ending scene around the Magic Council, where heaven and earth changed color.

Unsurprisingly, Hughes was instantly defeated under Makarov's all-out strike.

At this moment, Makarov raised his eyes and looked toward the black speck disappearing at the edge of his vision. He sighed inwardly.

"I'm sorry, Hughes. This old man has too many things to worry about. I can't just watch you act so recklessly."

As his magic returned to his body, the golden light faded, and Makarov's giant form visibly shrank...

A moment later, after returning to his normal size, Makarov glanced at the Magic Council that had been turned into nothing but ruins. He let out a breath and turned around, leaving directly.

During his battle with Hughes, he had not used any flame abilities at all. Crawford Seam and the others definitely would not associate him with the fake Jose who had appeared at the Magic Council.

As for anything else, an old geezer like him could not concern himself with it.

Meanwhile, Crawford Seam, who had long since hidden in a safe location, watched the entire Magic Council through a memory crystal. He was so furious that he felt like his insides were burning.

During his tenure, the Magic Council had been destroyed. This would definitely cause an uproar throughout the magical world, and he might even be punished because of it!

"Damn it!"

Crawford Seam's face twisted. With a single punch, he shattered the memory crystal in front of him.

Oga and Michello, who were in the same room, frowned and exchanged glances.

Who exactly was this person disguised as Jose Porla?

They could be certain that the person who fought Makarov was absolutely not the real Jose. Jose Porla only used Dark Magic, and his physical constitution was not particularly strong.

Michello raised his cane and tapped the ground. With a troubled expression, he said:

"Do you think this person is the same fake Jose who appeared in Thunder Valley a few days ago?"

Oga shook his head. There was too little information, making it impossible to analyze anything useful.

A few days ago, the Thunder Valley incident had spread throughout the magical world.

The victim, Jose, immediately issued a statement, declaring that the person defeated by Makarov's grandson was not him, but someone impersonating him. To prove his innocence, Jose had even provided a clear alibi.

At the time, with the goal of recruiting Jose, this "Wizard Saint," the Magic Council immediately dispatched an investigation team to Thunder Valley.

After five or six separate magical energy detections and analyses, they were basically able to confirm that Jose's magical energy had never appeared in Thunder Valley.

That investigation report was still sitting in the Chairman's office.

Crawford Seam looked at Oga and Michello and said:

"What do you think we should do about this?"

"The destruction of the Magic Council is no small matter. Not only I, the Chairman, but all nine of you Councilors also bear unavoidable responsibility!"

"I agreed not to pursue the things you Radical Faction members have done behind the scenes. I even went against the principle that the Chairman must remain neutral and made certain shady deals with your faction."

"We are all on the same boat now. If we want to achieve a win-win situation and continue holding onto our positions, you two must find a way to let me escape unscathed from this matter of the Magic Council's destruction!"

As soon as Crawford Seam said this, Oga could not help but curse inwardly.

"Agreed not to pursue their actions"? Bullshit.

If he truly had no intention of pursuing it, he would not have demanded two Councilor positions from them...

Everyone knew that among the nine Councilors, the two who were preparing to retire were both members of the Radical Faction.

Originally, after those two retired, the Radical Faction had already arranged candidates to take over their positions.

However, because Hughes exposed the Radical Faction's ambition to seize the Chairman's position, Crawford Seam, that mad dog of a man, had immediately begun using every excuse possible to relentlessly suppress their faction the moment he woke up.

In the end, they had no choice but to hand over those two Councilor positions in order to preserve the Radical Faction as a whole.

Now, Crawford Seam was bringing up this matter again, clearly rubbing salt into their wounds.

Perhaps noticing that Oga and Michello's expressions had changed, Crawford Seam coughed twice and continued:

"I did not ask you for those two positions entirely for my own sake.

"After these two incidents, you have also seen that the Magic Council headquarters lacks powerful mages stationed there to protect it.

"I intend to use these two Councilor positions as compensation to invite powerful mages who have reached the level of a 'Wizard Saint' to join the Magic Council."

At this point, Crawford Seam paused for a moment and smiled.

"Once something has a beginning, there will inevitably be a second and a third time.

"For the sake of the Chairman's position, I can put aside my dignity and pretend that nothing happened, without caring about anything else.

"But you do not possess the authority of the Chairman, and you have made countless enemies. If next time it is one of you who gets taken hostage, what do you think the Councilors from other factions will do?"

Oga and Michello did not respond. There were some things they understood clearly. The Magic Council might not be large, but there were many people who wished for their deaths.

In all the years since the Magic Council was established, no one had ever dared to take the Chairman hostage. However, just as Crawford Seam had said, Hughes had set the precedent. In the future, there would be a second time, a third time.

If even the Chairman could be taken hostage, then Councilors could also become targets. It was even possible that this method would become a weapon used by different factions against one another in the future.

Because of Crawford Seam's words, the two remained silent, lowering their heads and pondering for a long time.

Seeing this, Crawford Seam patted their shoulders.

"Therefore, having powerful mages stationed at the Magic Council is beneficial for everyone. I can guarantee that I will not choose anyone from the various factions. Only people with no factional ties will take these two positions. Furthermore, I will weaken the authority of these two Councilors."

"Of course, this matter does not need to be rushed. Those two old fellows still have two or three years before retirement, and Wizard Saint-level mages are extremely rare in the magical world."

"For now, what matters most is thinking about how we can escape unscathed from the destruction of the Magic Council!"

After saying this, Crawford Seam patted Oga and Michello again, as if he truly valued them.

The safety room where only the three of them were present remained silent for a long time, until Michello's slightly sharp voice suddenly broke the silence.

"I do have a good plan that can ensure all of us get through this without trouble.

"The destruction of the Magic Council is a fact. With such a huge commotion tonight, we cannot hide it from the entire world. However, we can shift the world's attention and weaken the impression that we were incompetent in this matter."

"If you want to cover up one major event, you need to ignite another major event."

"Recently, Jose, this 'Wizard Saint,' has become quite famous. Since the one who destroyed the Magic Council was also 'Jose,' we might as well announce to the outside world that it was the 'Wizard Saint' Jose who destroyed the Magic Council. We can even release the contents of the memory crystal to further support our claims."