While the war in the capital of Edolas raged on, the feline squad wasn't idle either.
Extalia, located diagonally above the capital of Edolas, was the dwelling place of the "gods"—the Exceeds.
Detecting the unrest in the royal capital, Extalia had actually taken countermeasures early on, dispatching several support troops consecutively to aid the humans.
Although the Exceeds collectively looked down upon humans and didn't care about their "rebellions," for some reason, their Queen still ordered them to intervene.
With the Queen, who possessed Divine Power, personally issuing the command, no cat dared to question it.
As for why the royal capital still hadn't received any reinforcements by now...
Boom—!
Thunder roared in the clear skies.
The feline citizens of Extalia had heard thunder more than once today, all grumbling with displeasure that the humans below must be up to no good, causing such a commotion.
Beneath Extalia's royal capital, there was a remote, small island attached to the main landmass.
At this moment, a towering pile of unconscious cats was stacked upon it.
Laxus clapped his hands and disdainfully tossed the few cats he was holding onto the pile.
"We've intercepted nearly five squads already. Hasn't that Queen noticed something is wrong yet?"
Mystogan shook his head silently. "No one can guess what Queen Shagotte is thinking. She always does inexplicable things."
He was naturally referring to how Lily had been exiled from the country, and how a hundred children had been taken away, all because Lily had saved him back then.
Hearing Mystogan's words, a white-furred, thick-browed, bearded cat uncle emerged from a smaller building in the distance, shouting angrily:
"Don't put it so nicely—that Queen is a tyrant!"
Another middle-aged, blue-furred female cat, strikingly similar to Happy in coloration, sighed mournfully.
"Our child was one of those taken by the Queen back then."
Sitting around a circular table with Wendy, Gajeel, Carla, Happy, and Lily, the Earthland mages finally understood why this elderly couple had been so particularly kind to them.
When Laxus's squad arrived in Extalia for their mission, they first encountered this cat couple who stood apart from the other Exceeds, living quietly on the "outskirts."
Just as Laxus thought they were enemies and was about to attack, the white cat, Lucky, didn't fight back.
Instead, he angrily scolded them for trampling his farmland.
The blue cat, Marl, warmly welcomed everyone, showing particular affection and care for Happy and Carla.
So, the squad temporarily settled at Uncle Lucky's place.
Laxus and Mystogan found the location ideal and decided to block the Royal Army's "spawn point" right there.
Up to now, they hadn't let a single troop slip through.
Lily, despite being a large, muscular cat, was timidly covering his ears, his teeth chattering as he trembled.
"So this is why you left the royal capital, Uncle, Aunt?"
Marl sighed and said, "My husband's beliefs didn't align with everyone in the city, so we simply moved out to live here."
Happy, drinking the juice Marl had served, cheerfully comforted them.
"Uncle and Aunt are very righteous! That's not a bad thing at all."
"After all... he was my child..." Marl said, looking at Happy with a gentle bittersweet smile before turning to gaze at Carla, who had been frowning all along.
"If a young lady keeps frowning, she won't look pretty anymore."
Carla snapped back to reality, accepting the juice Marl handed her as she said uneasily.
"Thank you, ma'am. I'm just worried... was my birth truly meaningful?"
Wendy immediately chimed in encouragingly, "Of course! Carla is one of a kind. You just need to be yourself!"
Laxus leaned back in his chair, casually tossing an unconscious cat up and down with one hand as he remarked mockingly.
"Don't worry, little dumb cat. I'll catch that so-called Queen later for you to judge, alright?"
"I am not a dumb cat..." Carla muttered softly, though her furrowed brow relaxed slightly.
Wendy couldn't help but feel that Laxus and Carla were quite similar—both had a very awkward, gruff way of showing their concern for others.
But after witnessing Laxus's overwhelming power, Wendy trusted his abilities completely.
Still, as she gazed toward the distant royal capital, she asked worriedly, "I hope everyone is alright..."
Laxus didn't hesitate with his sharp tongue. "Rather than worrying about them, you should worry about that ragtag bunch from the kingdom."
"Even if all those worthless captains had Erza's strength, they'd still be no match for Ankh and Gildarts."
Lily felt somewhat offended.
But Lily was afraid of loud noises and didn't dare speak up...
...
Meanwhile, at the center of the royal capital where artillery fire raged and debris littered the ground, Mirajane was flying high above the palace with Ankh and Gajeel.
"Alert!"
"Someone come quickly! Enemies have flown in!"
Seeing the unusual activity in the sky, soldiers in the palace watchtower shouted in alarm.
Guards emerged from various parts of the palace, watching the aerial trio with deep trepidation.
"Let's go down," Ankh said, looking at the large forces gathering below.
Mirajane released Ankh and glided down, following his rapid descent.
The rushing wind whipped past his face as Ankh grinned widely. He extended his fist and bit his thumb.
"Gear Third!"
Under the horrified gazes of the palace guards, the falling man's fist suddenly began to enlarge, quickly becoming massive enough to blot out the sky, making the people below look like mere ants.
"Giant Rifle!"
Like a massive cannonball falling into an anthill, Ankh's giant fist descended from the sky.
Countless soldiers and guards were sent flying like insects blasted away by a shockwave.
Ankh's fist returned to normal as he landed steadily on both feet, not suffering any recoil damage at all.
Immediately after, Ankh violently swung his arms.
His translucent skin pulsed like a pump as it began glowing purplish-red, with hot steam emitting from his body.
"And... Jet Gatling!"
Ankh's figure flickered in and out of visibility while invisible, high-speed fists rapidly struck out, instantly clearing out the remaining defeated soldiers.
Mirajane landed beside him, looking at Ankh with some amusement.
She had seen the pure enthusiasm with which Ankh performed that Magic—it was exactly like a child showing off a new toy to his friends.
And these poor guards had suffered for it...
Meanwhile, Edolas Gajeel, whom Mirajane had gently set down, unfolded the map he'd been hiding.
Looking around, he said, "That's right, the king's administrative hall is just ahead. They say there's a statue of the Edolas kingdom's goddess at the hall entrance from years ago..."
Ankh and Mirajane remained silent, staring motionlessly ahead.
Just as Edolas Gajeel had said, Ankh indeed saw the statue of the "God Ankh" from this world standing right at the hall entrance.
Its appearance was truly strange.
No wonder Mystogan had such a complicated expression on his face back then...
Ankh's mouth twitched violently as he stared at the statue.
It bore an incredible resemblance to his own facial features, yet it had a completely different demeanor, hairstyle, physique, and... gender!
Why is it a goddess?!