"The Assault and the Reunion"
Since the Lullaby incident, Erza had frequently teamed up with Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Happy.
This team's strength even surpassed Laxus's Thunder Legion, earning them the title of Fairy Tail's strongest team.
Natsu had wanted Drake to join their strongest team, but a four-person team was the most efficient configuration. Drake's inclusion would only lead to redundant combat power and complicate reward distribution.
Of course, Drake was also considering Makarov's feelings. The current strongest team already kept Makarov on edge; Drake's addition would likely cause the old man sleepless nights.
Sure enough, Natsu and Gray had destroyed half a town on their last mission. Drake, when contacting Mirajane, heard that Makarov had been reprimanded by the Council again.
The team was on their way back from a mission.
That night, at their inn, attackers surrounded them under the cover of darkness.
The peaceful night was shattered by an explosion. Half the inn's roof was blown away by a burst of flames, and Natsu, still in his pajamas, leaped out, fire erupting from his mouth.
Countless tiny cubes accumulated before Natsu, forming a figure with a perfectly square head and body.
"BOY, a man must live elegantly as a gentleman!"
Natsu yelled, "Shut up! Who are you? Why are you attacking us?!"
The cube-shaped man shook his head. "That's terribly inelegant. If you cannot live elegantly, then you should simply die! Understand?"
With that, the cube man dissolved into individual cubes and vanished. When he reappeared, he was standing directly in front of Natsu, his arm transformed into a cannon pressed against Natsu's head.
Just then, an ice pillar shot up from beneath their feet, piercing through the remaining half of the inn's roof.
Natsu, leaping to safety onto the intact portion of the roof, shouted down through the hole, "Hey, you underwear-obsessed freak, are you trying to take me out too?!"
Gray's voice came from below, "Shut up, you scarf-wearing idiot! I'm dealing with my own problems down here!"
Gray could see a tall man standing in the shadows ahead. He was wearing a headscarf and a long scarf embroidered with peculiar patterns.
The strangest thing was the iron mask covering the man's lower face.
Lucy ran out from the hallway, attempting to locate the others amidst the chaos.
The attack had come so suddenly, while everyone was still asleep, that if they hadn't been so alert, they might have been instantly eliminated. Lucy, however, was completely bewildered, unsure even of the attackers' identities.
At that moment, Lucy saw a girl with cat ears on her head approaching from the opposite direction.
"I've found a comrade of Erza's, meow!"
To Lucy's surprise, a rope resembling a cat's tail wrapped around her wrist.
Instinctively, Lucy reached for her keys, intending to summon Loki, the Celestial Spirit she had recently contracted, to battle, but the Celestial Spirit Gate refused to open.
"What's going on? My magic isn't working!" Lucy exclaimed in astonishment.
The cat-eared girl replied, "Of course it isn't. My restraint magic is capable of sealing magic power."
Lucy's eyes widened in alarm, and she was lifted into the air by the cat-eared girl's rope, with more ropes swiftly wrapping around her body.
However, perhaps due to the character's design, the bound appearance seemed rather suggestive.
Erza, too, had sensed the attack, but the moment she stepped out of her room, she encountered a dark-skinned young man.
"I've finally found you! Erza-nee," he greeted her.
The familiar term instantly evoked a flood of distant memories for Erza, and she recognized the young man before her.
"Shô! Is that you? You... are you alright?" she asked, her voice laced with concern.
Shô's expression was unsettling. "Alright?" he echoed, his tone laced with a strange inflection.
Erza realized that the question had touched upon painful memories from their shared past, and her voice became slightly flustered. "No, that's not what I meant!" she corrected herself.
Shô shook his head. "Erza-nee is worried about me. I'm truly happy to hear that!"
Just then, a struggling figure came flying towards them—Lucy, tightly bound by ropes.
The cat-eared girl approached, "Long time no see, little Erza!"
Erza exclaimed in surprise, "Millianna, you're here too? Lucy is my comrade! What have you done to her?!"
"Comrade?" Shô sneered, his voice cold and sharp. "Weren't we comrades once upon a time... before you betrayed us?"
Erza's expression froze, her mouth opening and closing silently, unable to utter a response.
The tiny cubes coalesced into a humanoid form, and the cube-shaped man spoke, "Don't bully Erza like that, Shô! A gentleman should always maintain control over his emotions, you understand!"
"That voice... you're Wally!" Erza exclaimed, recognizing the speaker despite his altered appearance.
"You've all learned magic?!"
Erza had already noticed that her former companions had not only grown older but had also undergone a significant transformation.
The ropes used to restrain Lucy and Wally's peculiar method of appearing both indicated that they had become mages.
With a resounding boom, the ceiling above them shattered, and a tall figure descended from the opening.
"There's nothing to be surprised about! With the right knowledge, anyone can master magic!" the newcomer declared.
"Simon?!" Erza exclaimed, recognizing the final member of the group to appear.
Lucy struggled against her bonds, "Erza, who are these people? And what's going on with my sister?"
Erza hung her head, her voice barely above a whisper, "They're my former comrades."
As if reluctant to delve into the subject, Erza raised her head and addressed the four individuals, "We'll discuss our past later. For now, release Lucy!"
Wally shook his head, "That's simply not possible!"
He produced a pistol formed from cubes, pointing it at Lucy's head. "We're here to take you back! I suggest you cooperate, or else…!"
Just as Wally issued his threat to Erza, a voice echoed from above.
"Well, well! What a touching reunion! Would you mind if I joined the party?"
All eyes turned upwards, where a figure stood silhouetted against the opening in the ceiling. The evening breeze caused the figure's scarf to billow dramatically in the moonlight.
"Drake! What are you doing here?!"
Erza and Lucy instantly recognized the newcomer, but they were even more perplexed by Drake's timely arrival.
Drake sighed, "Naturally, I received word of your situation and came to lend a hand!"
Before his words had even fully left his lips, Simon and his three companions were astonished to see Drake's form vanish into the moonlight.
"You're quite a mess, Lucy! Perhaps you need to work on your training a bit," Drake's voice echoed from beside Lucy.
Everyone turned their heads stiffly; Drake, who had just been standing on the roof, was now crouched beside the bound Lucy.
A single flame erupted, instantly severing the ropes that bound her. Lucy, freed from her restraints, quickly retreated to a safe distance.
Simon and his companions remained motionless, completely paralyzed by Drake's overwhelming aura, unable to make any further move.
Only when Lucy took her position behind Erza, the imposing aura that had emanated from Drake began to dissipate, and the four individuals simultaneously distanced themselves from him.
Wally wiped the sweat from his brow, "A gentleman should always act wisely. I believe it's time for us to make our retreat!"
Shô, his voice laced with a hint of reluctance, countered, "Not necessarily! With my magic, there's still a chance we can take nee-sama back!"
Simon's voice cut through the air, cold and resolute, "Jellal has instructed us that there are certain individuals who warrant a temporary suspension of our operations, and he is one of them. Do you intend to defy Jellal's wishes?"
Shô fell silent, his earlier insistence dissolving into acquiescence.
Simon turned his gaze towards Drake, "Consider this merely a brief greeting. We shall meet again!"
Dark Magic: Dark Flash!
A dense wave of darkness enveloped the room, completely obscuring Drake's vision.
When the darkness finally receded, the four figures had completely vanished from sight.
"They certainly made a quick getaway," Drake remarked with a sarcastic tone.
Behind Drake, Erza, upon witnessing the four's disappearance, stumbled and collapsed into Lucy's arms, her body wracked with pain despite not having sustained any physical injuries.
The trauma of those memories, it seemed, had a far deeper impact on her than Drake had initially anticipated.
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