User blog comment:IamJakuhoRaikoben/Chapter 455: Magnolia's Defensive Battle, Review./@comment-118.137.238.59-20151005062507/@comment-5894890-20151005182502

Plus, I read somewhere, don't remember the source though... but Mashima was interviewed and the topic of death was brought up. Mashima stated something about how he takes deaths very seriously. (This is different from apparent deaths/major injuries). So if a character is 'emphasized' to be dead, they will most likely be dead lol.