A month after the fight with Tartaros and Acnologia, Ben's name was called by Makarov. They talk in the guild master's office and Makarov even activated the soundproof magic tool. Ben was curious, but he didn't ask any questions and just waited for Makarov to talk.
"Ben, I plan to disband the guild." Makarov suddenly announced.
Ben was surprised, but he calmly asked. "Is there a reason you want to do that?"
"Our guild is unsafe and threats keep coming our way. I'm sure you know it as well because you have a wider network of information than me. Zeref is targeting our guild and he is not someone we can ignore. So I plan to go to Alakitsia and get information about the Alvarez Empire that he rules." Makarov explained.
"I thought there was a big problem that you didn't know about, but it's just Zeref. Don't concern yourself with that asshole, I'll take care of him. As for the Alvarez Empire, you don't need to go there because it will just put you in danger and it's not worth it. Just manage the guild and take care of the children like usual. This is our problem, not your problem." Ben said in a serious tone.
"You talk as if facing Zeref and the Alvarez Empire is easy." Makarov replied.
"It wasn't easy before, but it's a lot easier now. Zeref is the core of the Alvarez Empire, so long as he's killed, then they will collapse." Ben said with a smirk.
"Ben, you know that he is immortal, right?" Makarov asked.
"Yeah, but immortal doesn't mean undefeated." Ben calmly answered.
Ben isn't worried about killing Zeref anymore because nothing is holding him back now. He had rewritten the Book of E.N.D, so Natsu won't die if Zeref dies. Not only that, but he changed a few more things in the book so Natsu will never turn into a true Etherious while his demon traits will become his power once he surpassed a limitation.
It was possible for Ben to modify the book to such an extent because of his vast knowledge and all the data that Quorra saved. The only problems in the rewriting process was the demonic energy and curse that came out of the book and tried to stop him.
However, none of the demonic energy and the curse really affected him. Other than slight discomfort, he was fine thanks to his Sun Devil Slayer Magic. The demonic energy and curse that came out of the book were strengthening his Sun Devil Slayer Magic instead.
Because of that, Ben took his time when he rewrote the book. He was trying to get every last bit of the demonic and curse energy that he could get from it. Natsu is away now, so he didn't know if it would affect Natsu's dormant demonic power.
But he hoped it would and kept absorbing the demonic and curse energy until nothing came out of the book anymore. If Zeref knew what he did, then the bastard would be furious or maybe he would be left speechless.
After knowing the effect, Ben told Mira to rewrite the other Books of Zeref that he had collected. She tried to rewrite a book under Ben's watch and the same thing happened to her. Her magic was strengthened because it is the power of demons.
One of her forms was becoming exceptionally stronger when she rewrote the books. It's her newest Satan Soul form that she obtained after absorbing all of the remaining souls in Tartaros's cube. The form's name is Mirajane Alegria which came from Mard Geer's curse that formed the cube.
Her Seliah form was also strengthened significantly while the other forms were only strengthened a bit. The only explanation is that the power came from the book of Etherious. It is very compatible with the forms she got from the Etherious.
Ben had a lot of the Books of Zeref after collecting them for a few years. He also got some in Tartaros's cube even though Zeref had taken most of them. But the demonic energy stored in those books was enough to strengthen Mira.
She hadn't even finished absorbing all the power from those books. Her absorption rate was slower than Ben's and she needed to process the demonic energy every once in a while. The power she absorbed was expanding his MP reserve too, so she needs to be careful.
Ben didn't need to do that thorough process because his Sun Devil Slayer Magic was very powerful. Also, he had the Evil Sun Dragon God lacrima now. All the power he took entered that lacrima and was immediately processed automatically without affecting him too much.
Besides, compared to the overall energy, the demonic energy he got from the Book of E.N.D wasn't that much. So while the demonic energy overwhelmed Mira sometimes, it could never overwhelm him. His raw power was too much for the demonic energy to overwhelm him.
That's why, even if he got all the demonic energy from the Book of E.N.D, it didn't increase his power that much. Still, he won't refuse free power ups even if it wasn't a lot. Every bit of power can affect the result of battles and every bit counted.
"Ben, are you really sure about this?" Makarov asked, breaking the silence.
"Yeah, 100%. You don't need to go to the Alvarez Empire at all because Zeref's target is in our guild, so he will come here eventually. We just need to prepare ourselves for that time." Ben nodded.
Makarov was surprised and asked, "You know about his goal?"
"I have a theory after encountering and talking to him many times. Even with his twisted personality, he's still thinking about defeating Acnologia. That guy was always worried that I would become the next Acnologia, that's why he kept observing me. Based on our conversations, 1st Master's memories of him and his exceptional interest in Fairy Tail, I have assumed what his goal was and the probability is high." Ben said.
Ben once thought Zeref's interest in Fairy Tail was merely Natsu. But after speaking a lot with Mavis, he realized Zeref had another interest in Fairy Tail. He tried to think of many possibilities and there was one possibility with the highest chance.
"He's targeting the Lumen Historie. That's the conclusion I came to." Ben said, surprising Makarov.
He came to that conclusion after careful thought based on his interactions with Zeref and Mavis's stories. Zeref is aiming for Acnologia and trying to kill that black dragon. But he was far weaker than Acnologia and didn't stand a chance.
He needs to become much stronger to defeat Acnologia. So he needs something to raise his power that has been stagnant for hundreds of years. And Ben can only think of one thing that can raise Zeref's power, Lumen Historie.
Zeref needs Lumen Historie because the magic power contained there is very compatible with his magic power. Lumen Histore is essentially Mavis's body and magic power. Both she and Zeref were cursed by Anhksheram which made their power very compatible to be combined.
Ben didn't know how much of a power boost Zeref can gain by absorbing Lumen Historie. But it must be high if Zeref truly plans to do it. His goal is to defeat Acnologia, so he will need a lot more power.
"If we know what his target is, we can prepare for anything he might do." Ben said with a smile.
"But we don't know what they're capable of. The Alvarez Empire had a group of elites known as the Spriggan 12. Each of them is said to be equal to a Wizard Saint." Makarov said.
"I don't see the problem there." Ben remarked.
"What?" Makarov blinked.
"Are they stronger then Acnologia even when they are together?" Ben asked.
"...I don't think so." Makarov answered.
"Then it's not a problem. If I want to defeat Acnologia, then I need to be able to defeat them all. Also, they are Zeref's subordinates, and I am confident that I can defeat Zeref. If Zeref can defeat them too, then so can I." Ben smugly said.
Makarov sighed and said, "You make it really simple."
Ben just smiled because he spoke the truth. If he can't defeat the Spriggan 12, then he won't stand a chance against Acnologia again.