Chapter 36: The Rescue
The data and experimental records they had just seen would have been a huge shock even for an adult, let alone a child. Ur was terrified that the experience would cause some psychological problems for Noah.
Noah waved his hand, signaling that he was mostly fine. The scenes had indeed been a great shock to him. Even though he had been mentally prepared, the physiological revulsion still made him feel incredibly sick.
After a moment, Noah finally felt a little better. He took out his communication lacrima and contacted Makarov. Makarov answered immediately. Seeing Noah's still-pale face, he was very concerned.
"Noah, are you alright? You look terrible."
"I'm fine, Gramps. I just saw some things that made me feel sick, that's all. I'll be fine in a bit. I'm sending a portion of the data to you now. You should prepare yourself, Gramps."
With that, Noah sent a small part of the data over and waited for Makarov to look through it.
While he was waiting, Ur asked curiously, "Was that Lord Makarov, one of the Ten Wizard Saints? Is he your grandfather?"
Noah shook his head, then nodded. Ur looked confused.
"He's not my biological grandfather," Noah explained. "But we're both members of the guild Fairy Tail. He's our Guild Master, and he treats me like his own grandson, so I usually call him Gramps."
Ur nodded in understanding. She was also relieved; with Makarov's involvement, it was much more likely that the people at the Magic Development Bureau would receive the punishment they deserved.
The image on the communication lacrima began to flicker and break up. It was obvious that Makarov, after seeing the data, was so enraged that his magic was going out of control, interfering with the lacrima. After a while, the image stabilized. Makarov, given his age and experience, was able to regain his composure relatively quickly.
"I will give this data to your Grandpa Yajima," Makarov said, his voice grim. "Then I will join with several other guild masters and a number of Councilors to speak out. The people at the Magic Development Bureau must receive the most severe punishment."
"Mhm, I'll leave it to you, Gramps. I'll watch things here to make sure they don't escape, and I'll help suppress the facility."
"You take it easy. Don't go too overboard." Makarov was now worried that Noah, in his current state, might accidentally send the entire Magic Development Bureau into the sky.
"I won't, Gramps. I know the consequences. I won't do anything reckless."
Wait, what does he mean, he won't do anything reckless? Hearing that, Makarov became even more alarmed.
Noah ended the call, leaving Makarov staring with a worried expression.
"Alright," Noah said, putting away the lacrima. "Let's get to work. First, let's rescue everyone."
"I'm afraid they'll harm the children inside," Ur said. She had considered a direct assault, but with just the two of them, if things went wrong, the children being used as test subjects could easily be harmed.
"That's why we need to make preparations first, so we can get everyone out safely."
Noah once again applied their various concealment spells. Then, they returned to the outside of the Magic Development Bureau. He didn't go in. Instead, he began to inscribe a magic formula on the ground, encircling the entire facility. The formula had two effects: first, it would temporarily and greatly strengthen the life force of everyone inside; second, it would instantly put anyone inside who didn't possess a special protective item to sleep. The life force enhancement was to ensure that none of the test subjects would die from accidents or neglect after the staff fell unconscious.
After finishing the inscription, Noah's face was pale with fatigue, and sweat beaded on his forehead. Ur asked with concern, "How are you? Was the cost that great?"
"Mhm. Inscribing a formula of this scale with such a powerful effect was quite draining. But I'll recover quickly. Let's get ready to go in."
Noah took out two items and handed one to Ur. "Activate this with your magic and keep it on you. You won't be affected by the formula."
Ur did as he said. Noah then activated the magic circle. The two of them walked to the entrance of the Bureau and went inside. As expected, all the staff members were lying on the ground, fast asleep.
They split up. Noah went to the rooms they had missed to copy the rest of the data, while Ur began to carry people—both staff and victims—outside. By the time Noah had copied all the files, Ur had already moved a large number of people out of the building.
To speed up the process, Noah learned Ice-Make magic from Ur on the spot. After she demonstrated it once, Noah was able to use it immediately. The shapes he made were rough and unrefined, but he didn't need them to be elegant; he just needed them to be large and functional. He created a large, flat ice sled, partitioned down the middle to carry different groups of people.
They moved deeper into the facility. Whenever they encountered a staff member, they would throw them on the left side of the sled. When they found a victim, they would place them on the right. Once the sled was full, they would pull it outside and separate the two groups. In this way, they moved back and forth, and finally, they had evacuated everyone from inside.
Noah first began to treat the people who had been used as test subjects, stabilizing their conditions. Further, more specific treatment would have to wait for specialists. Many of the rescued were children, and he could see that they bore all sorts of scars, clear evidence of the inhumane treatment they had suffered. Even in their magically induced sleep, most of them had pained expressions, their bodies curled up like infants with their arms wrapped around their knees.
After stabilizing their conditions, Noah turned to look at the staff of the Magic Development Bureau.
"I don't care what kind of judgment or punishment you face later. But for now, I'm going to help you experience some of what you've done."
"Don't do anything too extreme," Ur warned. "It wouldn't be good if it affected you." She hated these people as much as he did, but she didn't want Noah to get into trouble because of them, which could affect her and her daughter's future. That was why she hadn't taken matters into her own hands.
"I won't. Even if you were to break their arms and legs, you could just say it happened while they were resisting."
Ur looked at him, completely shocked. She had never thought of such a method. It would allow her to get a measure of revenge without causing too much trouble.
Noah waved his hand. "Of course, that's something to consider. But what I want to do now is something else. Since they love using others as test subjects, they should get a taste of what it's like to be one. I'm going to set up an illusion and let them experience it for themselves."
Ur relaxed, relieved. She went to help Noah, placing the unconscious staff members into individual cells made of ice to prevent them from any violent outbursts later.