Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.
August 6, x791.
The morning after Alfonzo, Lucy, and Brandish returned from their quest in Hargeon, all the women living in the Mansion on the Lake, Alfonzo's wives and lovers, were gathered in the mansion's dining room to join Alfonzo, the children, and the guests, Retsu and Yoruichi, for breakfast served by the maids.
"Don't take this the wrong way, but wouldn't it have made more sense for you to wait until next week to come for vehicle maintenance?" Alfonzo asked while cutting a piece of the steak and cheese omelet on his plate. Then, with the piece of food speared on the end of his fork, he brought it to Bianca's mouth. "I mean, you're gonna be back for Amar'e's birthday party, right?"
"Of course, I will." Retsu replied after swallowing a piece of her own breakfast and wiping her mouth gracefully. "However, I have to take a trip to Era before then. And I wanted to make sure that there would be no issue on the trip."
"Huh?" Yoruichi, sitting next to Retsu, exclaimed in confusion. "I thought the trip to Era was next month--- Ow!"
Before Yoruichi could finish, she winced in pain when an elbow slammed into her ribs at a speed that she would have barely been able to perceive even while using [Shunko].
"Hey! What was that---" Yoruichi began to say, complaining about the sudden elbow to the ribs she just took.
However, before Yoruichi could finish her question, she made eye contact with Retsu, who was smiling in her usual, gentle, way. Yet, when Yoruichi looked into Retsu's eyes, her words came to a complete, and sudden, halt. Because the message she could read in Retsu's eyes terrified her.
"Oh, right... Ha... Ha... Ha..." Yoruichi said before she let out a hollow laugh. "I forgot, you told us that the Council meeting had been rescheduled. Sorry, I forgot. You know, I already memorized the schedule... So, I'm still getting used to the changes. Ha... Ha... Ha..."
Hearing that, the threat of intense, probably fatal, training in Retsu's eyes vanished and her aura settled down as she returned to her breakfast. Meanwhile, everyone else at the table, with the exception of the three children, rolled their eyes so hard that the maids thought they would pop out of their heads.
"So, when do you think you'll have time to get to my motorcycle, Alfonzo?" Retsu asked as if the little interlude with Yoruichi never happened.
"Well, I still have to report to Master Mavis on the quest we finished a couple of days ago." Alfonzo replied while shaking his head with a wry smile on his face. "After that, I should have time."
"I see." Retsu replied with a nod. "Well then, after that, would you mind going on a ride with me through the surroundings of Magnolia. No one else in Mermaid Heel has a motorcycle, you see. And I would like to ride with another person, for once."
{"I'll put the entire magic vehicle division of Sixth Sense Holdings on the fact that as soon as we're far enough away from the town, she'll challenge me to a duel to the death."} Alfonzo said, using the telepathy afforded to him by [Archive Magic] to speak to everyone at the table other than Retsu and the children.
{"And who the hell would take that bet?"} Cana asked, once again rolling her eyes. {"I'm sure that even Sasuke's brother, Itachi, could see the glint of murderous intent in her eyes."}
As previously mentioned, Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke's elder brother, had, like Sasuke, evolved his Clan's special eyes, the Sharingan, into a higher form known as the Mangekyō Sharingan. However, this evolution came with a downside. And that was blindness after overuse. And unfortunately, by the time he fought Sasuke last year, he was nearly blind from his Mangekyō's overuse.
{"Yeah, none of us are dumb enough to take that bet."} Ultear added with a grin.
{"Besides, who has anything that could even compare to that?"} Yoruichi asked, a gaze filled with nervousness directed at Alfonzo. {"Even so, you should be careful. Master Unohana is one of the most powerful wizards from the Soul Continent."}
{"I figured."} Alfonzo replied. {"Ever since the first time Lici fought Sui-Feng, I felt it. And that battle intent and bloodthirst is something else. Even so, I get the feeling that if I decline, things will get even worse."}
All the ladies nodded in agreement with that statement. Meanwhile, Retsu continued to eat her breakfast elegantly. Though, the glint of amusement in her eyes after noticing the telepathic conversation that she was not a part of could not be hidden.
"Sure." Alfonzo said, finally replying to Retsu's question. "It's been a while since the last time I rode my bike. It should be fun."
Hearing that, Retsu's amused smile widened into one filled with genuine happiness, excitement, and a touch of madness. She then wiped her mouth with her napkin once again before nodding at Alfonzo.
After that, breakfast continued in a harmonious manner. Then, after it was finished, all the Fairy Tail wizards left the table and started getting ready for morning training at the guild. Meanwhile, Grayfia, Maria, and the other maids took the children to get cleaned up. As for Yoruichi and Retsu, they decided they would relax in the mansion and enjoy their time away from their responsibilities at the guild.
About an hour later, after a short walk, all the Fairy Tail wizards living at the Mansion on the Lake arrived at the guild hall. While the ladies headed up to their favorite training room to start their training, Alfonzo headed up to Mavis' office to report on the quest at Yajima's restaurant.
However, when the elevator opened, Alfonzo was surprised to see that Mavis was not alone. That's not to say that it was uncommon to see someone else in Mavis' office. Rather, the people who were with her were what surprised him.
The first of the people in the office other than Mavis was Ireen, not all that surprising, as Irene spent most of her time with Mavis whenever she was at the guild hall. Rather, it was the second person in the office that surprised Alfonzo.
"Um... Did I come at a bad time?" Alfonzo asked while scratching his head awkwardly as he tried not to laugh.
"Stop standing there and smiling like an idiot, Brat!" Makarov, laying on the floor in front of the couch where Irene sat and sipped a glass of wine first thing in the morning, shouted, his face red from what Alfonzo hoped was embarrassment.
The fact that Makarov was lying in front of Irene was strange enough. Unfortunately, that was not the entire reason that made Alfonzo feel so awkward.
As previously mentioned, Makarov's face was red. On top of that, he was tied up in turtle bondage. Add to that the fact that Irene was using him as a footrest. Yet, instead of responding to Makarov immediately, Alfonzo turned to Irene with an eyebrow raised.
"Irene, I know you're really into being sadistic." Alfonzo said, his tone completely flat, though there was an amused undertone in his words. "But is there something you want to tell me? Are you keeping this shameless old pervert behind my back?"
"What!?" Makarov exclaimed indignantly. "Stop joking around, Brat! Get me away from this crazy woman! Urgh!"
"That was quite rude, Makarov." Irene said after jabbing one of her heels into Makarov's back. "Don't you know the right way to address a lady?"
"Of course, I do." Makarov shot back. "Just show me one and I'll speak to her properly."
Seeing the playful, yet sadistic, smile on Irene's face, Alfonzo decided he would not get involved in this conversation. Besides, if Makarov was tied up like that, there was a good chance he deserved it. At least, that was what Alfonzo thought. So, instead of giving the scene any more of his attention, he walked towards Mavis' who was sitting behind her desk with an eyebrow twitching to give his report.
"So, you were also attacked by the demons of Tartaros." Mavis said after Alfonzo finished retelling the events from two nights ago. "Well, I guess I should have expected as much. There was no way they would leave the guild's strongest, publicly known, wizard to his own devices."
"Yeah, after finding out that Magnolia was attacked, too, I'm not that surprised that we were attacked in Hargeon." Alfonzo replied. "The real issue was the fact that the one we fought back at Org's and Crawford Seam's execution was there, too."
Hearing that, Mavis lowered her head to think. Even Makarov and Irene stopped their back and forth, both wearing serious expressions.
"Does that mean they have the ability to resurrect their fallen?" Makarov asked in a deep tone. "Just what kind of forbidden magic must they be using?"
"I don't think it's that simple, actually." Irene said as she took her feet off of Makarov. "I remember Zeref mentioning something off-handedly about this. But he never went into detail about it."
That sentence was enough to snap Mavis out of her thoughts. At the same time, Alfonzo and Makarov turned their attention towards Irene. Though, Makarov did look rather comical trying to change the direction he was looking while so thoroughly tied up on the floor.
"Apparently, whenever the Nine Demon Gates are defeated, their souls are pulled towards a magic device in their headquarters." Irene continued in a solemn tone. "From there, they wait until the device rebuilds a body for them. But I never really cared enough to get into the details. So, I can't give you any more information than that."
"That's more than enough." Mavis said while shaking her head gently. "Now, we know that until we can find their HQ, we haven't seen the last of them. And when we do find it, that device will be our first objective."
"As expected of the first Master." Makarov said with admiration in his eyes. A moment later, however, his gaze filled with admiration turned into one filled with annoyance as he looked at Irene and Alfonzo in an alternating manner. "But seriously, would one of you just untie me already?"
"Actually, finding their headquarters is pretty much a forgone conclusion at this point." Alfonzo said while grinning... and conveniently ignoring Makarov's request.
"What do you mean?" Mavis asked curiously.
"Well, Riot, while I took down that one called jackal for the second time, marked his soul." Alfonzo said, his grin widening into a smile. "Right now, I'm just waiting for Riot to let me know when his soul stops moving. And when it does, I'm gonna load up as many weapons as I can on the Blackbird and turn their HQ, and everything in it, into dust."
Makarov, Mavis, and Irene found themselves surprised when they heard that. Alfonzo never mentioned that the [Soul Armaments] had the ability to do something like that before. Even Irene, the only one of the three who had a [Soul Armament], never considered doing something like that with her [Soul Armament]. Then again, since she rarely fought in close quarters, and never faced anyone who could be revived repeatedly, there was no reason for her to consider doing something like that.
A moment later, Mavis' surprised expression changed into a pout as she glared at Alfonzo.
"Huh? What's wrong, Master Mavis?" Alfonzo asked in a confused tone.
"Didn't you say you were gonna make a [Soul Armament] for me, Alfonzo?" Mavis asked as she forced out a couple of tears. "Were you lying to me?"
Having lived with so many women, for so many years, Alfonzo could recognize Mavis' crocodile tears immediately. Even so, seeing her on the verge of tears, no matter how fake they were, was like a critical hit to his heart. So, instead of teasing her, he reached into his pocket and quickly pulled out a thin, silver chain with a Fairy Tail emblem hanging from it.
"I didn't forget about you, Master." Alfonzo said with a smile while holding out the [soul Armament Embryo] to mavis. "Things have just been a little hectic since the end of the Grand Magic Games. You know, since Amar'e's birthday party is only a few days away. Even so, I made some time to finish one for you."
*Swish!*
Before Alfonzo even finished what he was saying, Mavis' image blurred for a moment. When she was completely solid again, the pendant was no longer in Alfonzo's hand. Instead, it was in mavis'. On top of that, she was holding it up in front of her with a wide smile on her face.
"Thank you, Alfonzo." Mavis said cheerfully. "I never doubted that you'd keep your promise. Add that to the fact that you never cause excessive property damage, that's why you're my favorite child in the guild."
Alfonzo's only response to that was to roll his eyes. He then turned around and started walking towards the elevator to make his way back down to the ground floor.
"What will you do for the rest of the day, Alfonzo?" Irene asked with a giggle after seeing how quickly Mavis' expression changed. "Perhaps you would like to come to my place for dinner this evening."
"I'd love to." Alfonzo said with a smile. "I'll bring Amar'e, Bianca, and Calvin around, too. They like hanging out at your house, after all. And they kinda mis Heine and Juliet, too."
"Those two miss them, as well." Irene said with a smile. "I'm sure they will be pleased."
"As for the rest of the day, I'm going to be doing maintenance on Master Unohana's motorcycle…"
"Wait! That woman is here, too?" Makarov asked, his body starting to shudder in fear. He then started to struggle violently. "Hey! Untie me right this instant. I need to get out of here!"
"*Sigh* What did you do this time? I mean, you're so scared of her? Even more than usual, from what I can tell." Alfonzo asked in an exasperated tone. "I thought you two, although not on the best terms, were at least cordial."
"Of course, he either said or did something perverted." Irene said with a shrug. "What else could it have been?"
"It's not my fault!" Makarov said indignantly. "All I did was say that she was still as beautiful as she was back when we were young. Then I asked her what her secret to such a youthful appearance was even though she was so old."
*Sigh!* x 3
"Looks like I was wrong." Irene said after exhaling an exasperated sigh in unison with Alfonzo and mavis. "Instead of something perverted, you said something stupid."
Alfonzo nodded in agreement with Irene. Meanwhile, Mavis shook her head in disappointment. She then hung the [Soul Armament Embryo] around her neck and stood up from her seat behind her desk.
"Let's go, Irene." Mavis said as she walked around her desk towards the elevator. "Looks like Maki needs time to think about what he's done wrong."
"Indeed." Irene said as she stood up from the couch. "And if he's lucky, he'll have figured out how to get out of those ropes before we get back."
Reaching that point, Irene smiled with a sadistic glint in her eyes as she looked into Makarov's eyes.
"If not, I'll just deliver him to that unpleasant woman myself." Irene continued. "Maybe that will be enough for the two of us to bury the hatchet."
Makarov paled immediately upon hearing that. Meanwhile, Mavis and Irene joined Alfonzo in the elevator. The three then made their way down to the main hall where Mavis and Irene sat at the bar to continue chatting and Alfonzo left the guild hall to return to the mansion on the lake to do the maintenance on Retsu's motorcycle.