Outside the village, all hundred-plus residents had gathered. They watched the closed gate with hopeful yet nervous eyes.
The village contained their homes, their daily necessities, and most importantly, their loved ones.
Through the old chief's introduction, they knew the wizards on this job were from the most famous guild in Fiore. The hope of success was greater than ever before.
So, this was their last hope. If even Lucy-sama couldn't do it, they would have to seriously consider leaving this homeland, carrying so many memories.
SWOOSH.
The closed gate slowly opened. Chase, Lucy, and Dark Magician Girl walked out of the village and came before the crowd.
"Lucy-sama, how is it? Has the magic egg's anomaly been resolved?" The old chief hurried forward to greet them, his voice trembling.
He had seen the inexplicable tornado earlier. Now, noticing the black mist in the village showed signs of dissipating, he couldn't help but be excited.
As the team's "leader," Lucy bore the weight of all eyes.
Seeing the hope in the villagers' eyes, Lucy sighed softly and shook her head. "I'm sorry. It might take a bit more time."
Though she didn't know what Chase planned to do next, she inexplicably felt he would definitely complete the job. So she wasn't particularly discouraged. Internally, she still complained, 'Please stop calling me Lucy-sama.'
It felt so awkward...
"I see." The old chief and the villagers, who had been waiting for so long, weren't as confident as Lucy. Their heads drooped, their expressions dim.
"So, Lucy-sama, what's our next move?" Chase looked up at Lucy.
"Ah ha, y-yes, what is our next move..." Lucy, feeling guilty, darted her eyes around nervously. Her smile was quite reluctant.
"The magic egg seems to have a magic absorption ability. The closer you get, the stronger the effect."
Chase ignored her. Frowning, he continued, "To investigate the egg's anomaly, we must enter the underground passage. But doing so might play right into its hands."
"Damn! Isn't there a way to enter while only losing a minimal amount of magic power?!"
Lucy was about to say she had no idea when, suddenly, a lightbulb went off. She seemed to get Chase's hint. "Wait! I've got it!"
With that inspiration, she, who had been completely lacking in confidence, suddenly became full of energy. She took a silver key from her key ring.
"Open! Gate of Canis Minor, Plue!"
The magic circle shone. Plue, adorably blank and walking unsteadily, appeared. It raised its hand to greet the gathered villagers. "Pupu~!"
In response, there was only silence.
Seeing Lucy so confident, the villagers had expected her to summon something that would dazzle their eyes.
And they got a little white dog?
Even Momo could probably kick it away!
In contrast to the disappointment on their faces, Chase nodded very happily, a faint smile on his lips.
Exactly. This was the hint he had wanted to give Lucy.
To understand the cause of the magic egg's anomaly, they had to go through the unknown underground passage. Directly entering would not only cost magic power but could also lead to unpredictable dangers.
Under these circumstances, sending in a weak spirit to scout and identify the situation in advance was the safest approach!
If he were alone, being powerful enough, he wouldn't need to go through this trouble. He could just brute force his way through.
But Lucy couldn't. As a weakling, she needed precise judgment and cautious thinking to face complex, changing jobs.
This was the quality of an excellent wizard. It was what he wanted to teach her on this SS-Class job, beyond just the hard power of Star Dress.
Soon, having received her exploration task, Plue looked determined. Bravely, it stepped forward.
Its pace, however, was comparable to an eighty-year-old's. It looked, well, somewhat unreliable.
To gather more comprehensive information and to give Plue a companion so it wouldn't be so scared, Chase summoned a Kuriboh to go with it.
Under the confused gazes of the entire village, the two adorable creatures set off together toward the underground altar at the village center.
Since Lucy had dealt with most of the demonized villagers already, Plue and Kuriboh faced little resistance and moved unhindered.
Reaching the central square, they exchanged a glance. After encouraging each other in their encrypted language of "Kuri kuri" and "Pupu pupu pupu," they stepped through the stone door and slowly descended the dark, damp stairs.
Through the magic link, Chase shared Kuriboh's vision.
After descending the narrow, long stairs and passing through a torchlit passage, their view suddenly opened.
The space was like an upside-down giant bowl. The walls were lined with light yellow bricks, carved with ancient runes, now faded by the passage of time.
In the center of the space was a moss-covered square altar. Above it floated an egg, dark purple and black.
According to the old chief's information, this egg had originally been a dead, gray-white fossil.
Now, the live creature inside seemed ready to hatch at any moment!
A energy ring, glowing with crimson light, enveloped the entire altar. It seemed to be a self-protective measure, and also the space's only light source.
Chase didn't immediately send Kuriboh to test the energy ring's strength. Instead, he focused on the altar and the surrounding stone walls.
Whether the blur runes carved into them or the overall style, they felt very familiar.
This scene... was exactly the same as the moon ruins on Galuna Island, where Lyon and the others had tried to use the Moon Drip!
If the similarity in appearance between the demonized villagers and the Galuna islanders could be explained by coincidence, now Chase could be 100% certain there was a connection between the two!
This information was extremely useful. It might be the key clue to unraveling the mystery of the magic egg and completing the SS-Class job!
Knowing the situation around the magic egg, the next steps became much simpler.
Kuriboh extended its two claws to hug Plue. Plue seemed to understand. It raised its cone-shaped nose, aiming it at the energy ring around the egg.
"Kuri! Kuri! (Plue, little brother, let's show this thing our passionate combo attack!)"
"Pupu~ Pu! (Got it, Kuriboh, big brother! This drill will pierce the heavens!!)"
Hovering mid-air, Kuriboh suddenly accelerated. Its eyes were resolute and unyielding. It dove out in a suicidal attack.
CRASH!
After their battle cry, the two adorable creatures flew straight into the energy ring.
Then, predictably, they dissolved into specks of light, not even causing a ripple.
Chase's view went dark. He was back outside the village.
He smiled and shook his head.
He had no idea what those two had been so excited about, but he strongly approved of their actions. Truly his card monster comrades.
"So, how was it, Chase? What's inside?" Lucy, full of curiosity, came over.
She didn't have Chase's convenient biological link shared vision. She only knew that Canis Minor's gate had been forcibly closed just now.
The old chief and villagers also gathered around.
Since the magic egg's anomaly had appeared, for safety reasons, they hadn't seen the altar.
The wizards who took the job hadn't been able to traverse the passage. So they were eager to know how the egg had changed over the years.
Chase cleared his throat and briefly described what he had seen underground.
"What?! The egg turned dark purple? There's a horrible living creature inside?!" The villagers broke out in a cold sweat.
Some of the more timid children burst into tears, clutching their parents' pants legs.
Lucy, who had already suspected something similar, noticed another important detail. "Wait, Chase, you said the altar holding the egg is a smaller replica of the Galuna Island moon ruins?"
"That's right." Chase confirmed.
"So, if we go to Galuna Island now, we can gather clues about the egg!" Lucy said matter-of-factly.
"That would make sense, but that's too much trouble."
With that, Chase pulled out a magic crystal ball from a regular card. "I have Ultear's contact info."
Driven by her twisted desire to witness Lyon resurrect the demon Deliora, Ultear had spent a long time on Galuna Island. Her understanding of the moon ruins was very deep.
Moreover, as a Magic Council councilor, she had access to much more information and secrets than ordinary people.
Asking her directly was clearly more convenient than making the trip.
As for why Chase had Ultear's contact info — back at the Tower of Heaven, ready to die, Ultear had proactively given it to him "just in case," to reveal the movements of Grimoire Heart and Hades.
He hadn't expected it to come in handy like this.
Using the magic crystal ball was simple. A bit like an old-fashioned landline. By injecting magic power and calling a stored number, you could achieve instant two-way communication.
Zzt, zzt.
Chase placed his hand on the crystal ball. After a few seconds of static, the video call successfully connected.
On the other side, mist swirled. Ultear was sitting in a bathtub, white foam covering key areas.
"Chase? I didn't expect you to contact me first." Holding the crystal ball, Ultear looked surprised.
Even though she was bathing, she calmly answered the call!
Lucy's cheeks reddened slightly, her eyes wide. She inwardly remarked, Truly the daughter of Ur, who taught Gray.
Of everyone present, she was the only one caring about such an odd detail.
"Mm. I have something to ask you about Galuna Island." Chase got straight to the point.
There was no need for beating around the bush or polite formalities with Ultear.
Hearing this, Ultear noticed Lucy, Dark Magician Girl, and the unfamiliar village background.
"Fairy Tail submitted an SS-Class job for the Forest of Bondari yesterday. So you're the ones who took it."
"Go on. How can I help?"
Chase compiled his words, then again described what he had seen in the underground altar, as well as the villagers' demonization and other similarities to Galuna Island.
Hearing this, Ultear lowered her head in thought. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly.
"I didn't expect t
he magic egg in that village to have such a history. Seems that ancient legend might be true."
"So, Ultear, you do know the cause of the egg's anomaly?" Lucy couldn't wait to ask.
At her urging, Ultear slowly told a legend she had heard.
About five hundred years ago, a special monster, the "Phoenix," brought considerable disaster to the world. At the same time, another monster of the same level existed — the "Demon King," also known as the Demon Lord.
To secure more resources and territory, these two dominant monsters had warned for over a century.
The end result was the Demon King, who had the power to absorb magic and demonize other creatures, was defeated and destroyed by the Phoenix.
The Phoenix, severely injured in the great battle, was then permanently sealed inside the Phoenix Stone by the Fire People, a clan skilled in sealing magic.
To this day, the Magic Council still had in storage a magical artifact, the "Evil-Crushing Arrow," left behind by a wizard named Caland (Éclair's father), which could completely destroy the immortal Phoenix.
But since the Phoenix and Demon King had vanished from the world, over time, the councilors had stopped caring. They considered it just an ancient, mysterious legend.
As for why the demonized villagers and the magic egg altar in Bondari Forest closely resembled those on Galuna Island —
The most likely explanation was that the demons on Galuna Island were the descendants of humans who had been demonized by the Demon King five hundred years ago!
That would also explain why the Galuna islanders, affected by the Moon Drip, suffered memory confusion specifically about "being human," rather than any other creature or thing.
Because their ancestors were human!
"Chase, Lucy, if I'm not mistaken, that magic egg is probably the Demon King that once terrorized the world. It's survived like this until now."
"I don't know what's causing its abnormality at this time, but clearly, it's showing signs of full recovery!"
With that, Ultear abruptly stood up from the bathtub. Her expression became extremely serious. "This is serious. I need to inform the old men immediately!"
Telling Chase not to act rashly, she quickly changed clothes and hung up.
"The Demon King..."
"Such a scary thing is in our village?!"
Lucy stood frozen, dumbfounded. She again regretted overestimating herself and coming on this damn job with Chase.
The villagers were even more shocked. Everyone's face was pale. They were speechless.
"Um, about what that young lady just said... I think I know the reason."
The old chief, trembling, walked over. His cloudy eyes were full of complex emotions as he slowly revealed the truth he had guessed.
"According to Éclair, the half-stone pendant around her neck is the Phoenix Stone."
"Perhaps the Demon King sensed the presence of the Phoenix's aura. That's why it's become unstable..."
***
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