Simon reached for his face, brushing a finger near the scarred edge where his left eye used to be. The memory stung.
"Back then... Erza suddenly awakened her magic. She led us to fight back and defeated the guards with overwhelming courage."
The name "Rob" was unfamiliar to Rhodes. Curious, he glanced at Mira and Gray, but both shook their heads.
According to Simon, Rob had already been quite old when they met him. He once claimed to be a wizard from a legal guild, but after leaving the guild life, his magical power had declined severely. If not, he wouldn't have been caught and forced into labor at the Tower of Heaven.
Hearing that even elder wizards had suffered under the hands of the black magic cult, everyone fell into a quiet, simmering anger. The pain of a generation's sacrifice weighed on them—especially when the ones responsible had long since vanished into the shadows.
Simon continued, "We eventually hijacked a ship belonging to the cult. Erza went to rescue Jellal, who was being tortured in solitary confinement. The rest of us waited, thinking we'd all escape together."
But Simon paused, face tightening.
"Then... Jellal came running back alone. He said Erza had planted a magic bomb on the ship and ordered us all to abandon it immediately. The ship exploded moments after we jumped into the water."
"What?!" Mira and Lucy gasped in shock.
"That's impossible!" Gray exclaimed, practically leaping from his boat into Rhodes'. "Erza would never do something like that!"
"We didn't want to believe it either," Simon said solemnly. "But after what we saw... it was hard to argue."
He lowered his voice. "Jellal told us it was because Erza had obtained magic in the wrong way. He claimed that the power had corrupted her, that she wanted to erase the shame of her past... even if it meant killing us."
Simon clenched his fists in frustration. "Truth is, none of us know what really happened during those few minutes when she went to rescue him."
Gray breathed heavily and slowly backed down, his expression stern. "So everything is just Jellal's version of the story?"
Simon nodded. "Yes. But when the ship exploded... and we were still alive... everyone believed him. They trusted him. We followed his lead and helped rebuild the Tower of Heaven."
He closed his eyes. "Jellal was different. He fed us, gave us clothes, spoke of a paradise. He said we were building something for our future—a tower that would bring freedom. A place where we'd never be powerless again."
"And so we kept building. Day after day. For eight years."
He looked at them, pain flickering behind his calm voice. "Over time, people began to hear rumors from the outside. News about Erza... how she had become a great wizard. A hero. The resentment grew. They felt betrayed. Abandoned. But me..." he paused, eyes softening, "I never gave up on her. I just pretended to follow Jellal, so I could stay close and wait for the right moment."
Rhodes narrowed his eyes but made no move to untie Simon. His voice was firm.
"If you trusted Erza so much, then why didn't you take her and escape in secret when night fell? Why go along with those other lunatics and attack us instead?"
"Because I've been waiting for the right moment—specifically, when powerful wizards like all of you would be gathered together," Simon said earnestly, his voice rising with emotion. "Jellal is too powerful. Only by combining your strength can we stand a chance of defeating him… and truly saving Erza!"
Gray and Natsu were momentarily moved by his sincerity.
Rhodes, however, just wanted to say: 'Seriously? What the hell, man.'
"If that was your plan, you should've told us from the start!" he snapped. "What if one of us got hurt—or worse?"
He wasn't wrong. If Simon had explained things earlier, Erza could've joined them to take on the Trinity Raven. With her strength, the fight would've been a breeze. And more importantly, they wouldn't be racing against an invisible clock while their friends were in danger.
Simon replied with complete honesty, "I needed to see if you were strong enough. If any of you died just from that, then I wouldn't have put my hopes on you."
"You—!" Gray was visibly furious, his fists clenched.
"You've made Lord Gray angry… you will sink," Juvia muttered ominously, her aura turning cold and stormy.
Lucy took an instinctive step back. "W-Whoa… she's scary when she says that."
Rhodes didn't even know where to begin with this guy. He was just too honest, and honestly infuriating.
And worse… he was stupid.
There were so many better ways Simon could've handled this.
He could've gone to the Magic Council.
He could've contacted Fairy Tail directly and requested a coalition of legal guilds to storm the Tower of Heaven.
He could've reported to the kingdom's authorities, or reached out to powerful mages in neighboring countries.
Fiore is huge. There's no way someone, somewhere, couldn't have helped.
Even if none of that worked, couldn't he at least have warned them? Given them a heads-up before springing this whole disaster on them?
They could've tried to reason with or detain Simon's misguided comrades. They could've taken out the Trinity group cleanly. They could've actually planned this rescue.
But instead?
They were flying blind, rushing in without Erza's strength, with Rhodes now forced to consider how to destroy the tower without endangering Erza or Happy, whose lives were now tied to some unknown ticking clock.
Simon might not have been acting in bad faith—but he clearly had zero strategic sense.
'You waited eight years for this… and this was your master plan?' Rhodes wanted to scream.
What an awful teammate. It made his blood boil.
Lucy, trying to make sense of it, asked, "But… if this was so serious, why didn't Erza ever tell us? If she had just told the Master back then…"
Gray rubbed his chin, thinking about their guild master. 'If she had told the Master eight years ago… maybe the old man would've shown up, decked Jellal in the face, and shut this whole thing down.'
"Maybe they had leverage, like hostages," Mira said thoughtfully. "Erza probably saw everyone in that tower as her companions… so she never dared reveal anything. She must've been tormented by guilt and fear all these years. That's probably why she always wears armor."
Mira knew her old rival better than most.
If it hadn't been for her former companions suddenly turning on her, and Lucy being taken hostage, Erza never would've been captured so easily.
"Of course she's like that…" Gray muttered, eyes shadowed by memory. "I still remember… back when we were kids, I saw Erza hiding somewhere, crying all alone."
He once believed that Erza had changed over the years.
But now, it was clear, she had always been carrying that pain. She just buried it beneath steel.
That armor wasn't just for battle. It was a shield for a fragile heart pretending to be strong.
"But it doesn't matter now," Gray said, his voice resolute. "We'll seal away the darkness in her heart."
No one spoke, but everyone could feel the weight of his words.
"R-Really? You mean that?" Simon's voice trembled, eyes brimming with tears.
For eight long years, he'd lived among those who hated and distrusted Erza. He endured the silence, the loneliness, the ache of wanting to speak up for her, and holding back every single time.
Now, someone had finally said what he couldn't.
The legendary demon, was actually such a kind and gentle woman.
And this Ice Mage… his magic was cold, but his heart was anything but.
Erza found wonderful friends… she really did. That's… amazing.
Juvia clutched her face, sighing dreamily. "Gray Sama… you're so cool!"
"Enough with the talking!" Natsu smacked the back of the river crab pulling their boat. "I'm gonna rescue Erza and Happy, and then knock that Jellal guy's lights out!"
"Stop rushing in on your own!" Lucy barked, exasperated. "And don't smack the poor crab—it's the one doing all the work!"
"..."
Rhodes sighed, one hand to his forehead. Things had gone so far off-script.
Still, there was no time to complain. They had a job to do.
First priority: rescue Erza and Happy.
Second: dismantle the Tower of Paradise, and free Erza from the chains of her past.
Third: consider the people Jellal had manipulated. If they could be saved, Rhodes would try.