"This is our first time meeting, isn't it?" The woman- Huld- looked at me with a polite smile. "A pleasure to meet you, Fairy King- that is what they call you now, right?"
I grimaced as she addressed me by the name... It felt like it was mocking coming from her.
"Just Ash is fine," I responded. "I wasn't expecting one of the Ten Wizard Saints to escort me personally- even if you are a Thought Projection. I'm honoured."
She just waved it off. "Oh, no need for that. I am part of the Magic Council, so this is also part of my job. Walk with me."
She immediately began to walk ahead, and I noticed her hips swaying. I didn't entertain any idea that she was actually attracted to me, this was obviously a seduction tactic to make me lower my guard and disclose the information she wanted from me.
Ultear had probably taught her how to do this.
People often looked at Fairy Tail as a show about friendship and bonds- to the point they overlooked that the very first chapter was about slave traders and implications about how Lucy was going to be made into a sex slave by Bora and his group. This was not a 'happy go lucky' world, it was a Dark World with danger around every corner.
Because of that, it didn't surprise me that Huld- her fake name, no doubt- was using her body to her advantage to get what she wanted. It wasn't an uncommon tactic, even Mira wasn't ashamed to flaunt her body to get what she wanted. Hell, even Lucy did the same thing in the very first chapter to get a discount in a magic item shop.
Hell, the Miss Fairy Tail competition alone showed how the girls weren't very prudish...
Even still... That was a phat ass.
"So, what is it you want to talk to me about?" I decided to be blunt- beating around the bush would just waste both of our time here.
She chuckled in amusement. "You're a blunt one, aren't you? That's fine, I like people who don't make small talk; it makes talking so much easier..." She looked at me. "Be honest. The Magic Council thinks your speciality is a magic used to repair things alongside your dragon slaying magic... But in truth it's Time Magic, isn't it?"
"You're right," I didn't bother lying. Ultear, as the user of Arc of Time, would immediately recognise my temporal based abilities if she went to investigate the places I'd restored. Lying was just pointless.
"How interesting," she smiled in amusement. "Anything else besides restoring things to their base state?"
"The only other thing I have is a spell that can speed up the natural process of things- but that only works on things that aren't alive. Useful if you want to grow fruit, but worthless in combat."
A total lie, I could think of several ways to use such a spell in battle... Especially against a female opponent.
God, BB had turned me into such a degenerate.
[That's a slander, you were always a degenerate!]
"A shame," Huld chuckled, but made no effort to correct what she believed to be my narrow world view. "There is another rumour I've heard about you..." She looked at my exposed wings and halo. "One that appears to be true- you aren't human, are you?"
"I am not," I confirmed once more. "My species are known as Flugel- of which I am the last... To put it in simple terms for you, I'm a War Angel."
She hummed, looking fascinated... Perhaps she was planning to use me in her 'resurrection' scheme to give Zeref a 'Divine Body' suitable for his stature?
"How fascinating," she smiled. "Well, that's all the questions I'll ask for now. I won't pry any further, especially given we're about to have a rather important meeting and I wouldn't want to become biased... But, for your own sake, I'll give you a warning..."
Her smile faded just slightly as her eyes looked at me seriously. "Don't get too close to Erza Scarlet. It won't end well for you."
"You mad bro?" I said without even thinking about it. It was pure, trollish instinct.
Huld's smile faded entirely as she stared at me with a look of pure, baffled confusion. "I... What?"
"If you have feelings for her, you should just tell her. Driving other people away from her because you're jealous isn't very chill of you," I tutted in disappointment.
Her cheeks turned red. "I- F- Feelings!? What are you even-!?"
"Don't worry, just be honest and tell her your feelings," I comforted her. "Worst case scenario, she says no, and you move on with your life. Best case scenario, she says yes, and you can do all sorts of kinky sex play. I hear she has twelve different whips."
"Wh- what nonsense are you talking- did you say twelve whips?" She cut herself off and actually looked surprise. "I... Damn, I didn't know Erza was like that..."
While I was restraining my laughter, BB was cackling hysterically while holding her stomach. [O- Oh my me...! I didn't know you had this side, Senpai...!] She began to wheeze with laughter.
"Welp, I'll see you in there," I quickly walked past Huld and headed to the doors leading to the court room that the magic council had set up.
"I- Wait-!" She called out, but gave up as she just vanished to go and join the rest of the Council in the room... After taking a moment to compose herself from the embarrassment she felt.
[... So, does Erza actually have twelve whips?] BB asked as she finally stopped laughing.
"I don't know, does she?" I shot right back.
She just smirked and didn't answer the question, making me roll my eyes.
The doors opened as I approached, and I walked in without hesitation. I shifted uncomfortably as the eyes of the Magic Council fell upon me and I walked to the middle of the room.
"State your name and guild affiliation for the court," the magic council leader- who's name I didn't know off the top of my head- told me.
"Ash Crestfall, Fairy Tail," I responded after taking a moment to compose myself.
"Hm..." Another member began to look over things. "Hm... Interesting, this boy- despite being a member of Fairy Tail- actually doesn't have a bad history like the rest do."
"Oh?" The leader raised an eye. "Go on."
"On every mission he has gone on, he has left no collateral damage behind. In cases where he does leave collateral damage, he repairs the damage first before he leaves. As a result, he always receives commendations and good reviews from those who receive his services."
"Hm..." He rubbed his chin. "Very interesting... Someone with self-control and responsibility- how rare for Fairy Tail to find one of these types."
My eye twitched... I didn't like how they were talking about me like I wasn't there... Come on, old prick. I already knew I was arrested on exaggerated charges, so just give me a scolding and let me off with a warning as a first time offense.
Instead, they continued to talk and posture in front of me... For ten minutes. Ten whole minutes that felt like it went on for ten hours...
The posturing and trying and failing to flex on me was so exhausting just to watch... None of them even addressed me directly, instead just talking with one another as they went on and on about the rules and how I 'needed to make sure I was responsible' and...
'I think I'm going insane...'
"Given the... Circumstances behind the situation," the leader finally spoke, "we will let you off with a warning to be more careful in the future."
His words rang hollow in the ears of everyone there. The damage I had caused was far less than what you would expect when dealing with a Dark Guild- leaving only holes in the ground rather than buildings torn to pieces.
Still, with his words, a rune knight stepped forward and undid the cuffs. I felt the magic no longer flowing as sluggishly through my body, my wings fluttering.
My magic had been slightly inhibited by the cuffs, but not outright stopped. That was because, unlike humans, the source of my magic came from the spirit corridors within my wings. Putting the cuffs on me had momentarily messed with my magic flow and caused my transformation magic to break, but I could feel that I could still use magic without a problem.
Of course, I was hardly going to tell anyone that. It was an advantage that they didn't know the true source of my magic flowed primarily from my wings.
"I thank the Magic Council for their mercy," I told them, bowing politely, before I turned and left the room... I was glad to finally get out of there; it felt less suffocating in an emotional sense for me.
Once I was out of the court room, I didn't hesitate to re-apply my transformation magic- though with one difference from before. I left my Halo out.
It was a small step to trying to get better. I knew I couldn't hide my flugel appearance forever behind transformation magic, so leaving my Halo free of the magic was a slow step for me to also letting my wings out all the time.
As I stepped out of the building, I inhaled the fresh air and felt myself relax... It seemed that the others had managed to keep Nozomi restrained and stop her from causing any issues with the trial. It meant that we wouldn't be locked up for a few days, something I was grateful for.
I began to walk through the streets back to Fairy Tail. I felt unease filling me as people looked at me, eyes focusing on my halo, but I pinched myself through my pockets in order to keep myself focused and not let anxiety take me over.
I pushed the unease away as I instead focused on the meeting with the magic council... And the more I thought about it, the more things made sense and the more annoyed I got.
It was no wonder Ultear and Huld were able to manipulate the magic council- they were so self-righteous and acted like they were completely in the right. Even with me repairing all the damage we'd caused during the mission, they still had found trumped charges to arrest me.
And why did they do it?
Because they could.
They just wanted to flex their power on me because they felt threatened- not just by me, but by Fairy Tail. They just wanted to warn me 'stay in your lane, or else.'
The more I thought about it, the more I felt anger welling up within me. Perhaps it was my more modern values, but I despised the government trying to put pressure on me and intimidate me.
Or maybe it was my Flugel bloodline, indignant at the idea of mortals trying to intimidate and control me... After all, I had more magic power in one spirit corridor than they had in their entire bodies.
Still, I forced myself to calm down... There was no point getting angry. The current council would be disbanded after the Tower of Heaven incident- once Huld tricked them into firing Etherion.
Once that happened, the council would be disbanded, and I would have almost no interaction with the Magic Council against until the Tartaros Arc... Even then, I'd likely not have much interaction with them.
I ran a hand through my hair and felt my body relaxing as I approached the doors of the guild, a smile curling onto my face.
I slowly reached out and pushed open the doors, making my way inside as eyes turned to me- lighting up with relief as I made my way inside. I felt some eyes flicking up to my halo, but their eyes mostly focused on me instead.
I waved with ease as I made my way over to the bar and took a seat. "Mavis, pasta please."
Levy snorted as she sat beside me, and Mavis just grinned. "Coming right up."