Natsu and Happy, ever the thick-headed pair, didn't notice anything odd—but the reactions of both sets of Mirajane and Elfman were clearly strange, and Lisanna's behavior only raised more suspicion.
Charles knew exactly why.
This Lisanna was actually from Aslan (Earthland). Two years ago, during Elfman's berserk rampage, a small-scale Anima just happened to open up at that spot, and Lisanna was sucked into Edolas.
At that same time in Edolas, the native Lisanna fell off a cliff during an accident and went missing—presumed dead. So, the Lisanna from Earthland ended up assuming her identity.
But despite their similarities, the two Lisannas were not identical. As her closest relatives, Edolas Mirajane and Elfman would've recognized the difference the moment they embraced her.
Perhaps they didn't want to accept that their sister was truly gone, so for the past two years, they treated this Lisanna as their own.
And Lisanna, in turn, had embraced the Edolas versions of Mirajane, Elfman, and everyone in the guild as her own family.
But in that tearful reunion, Earthland Mirajane and Elfman had already realized it—this was their lost sister, the one they'd mourned and believed dead.
That was the "surprise" Charles had promised Mirajane.
The joy of being reunited with a loved one was followed by painful clarity: Lisanna couldn't stay in both worlds. No matter which world she chose, someone would have to feel the pain of losing her.
For someone as kind as Lisanna, that was an impossible decision.
As the weight of that dilemma hung in the air, Charles stepped forward and said, "Alright, now that everyone's here, let's talk about why we came."
In Edolas, due to constant pursuit by the king's forces, the one in charge of Fairy Tail was Lucy.
She stepped forward and said, "We didn't get a full explanation earlier. Now tell us… why are you really here?"
Charles answered, "Mystogan—that is, your world's Prince Jellal—he wants to stop his father's atrocities. As his comrades, we're here to help him."
"Stop the atrocities? What do you mean?" Edolas Lucy pressed.
Charles replied, "Essentially, we're going to overthrow the king and let your prince create a new order."
"That's impossible!"
Lucy suddenly shouted emotionally.
Realizing her outburst, she sat back in her chair and said, "That's not something anyone can do. No one can go against the king. Even the Charles of our world failed. The kingdom is just too powerful.
And you all… you're just a few people. You can't possibly fight the entire kingdom."
Charles glanced around and saw that everyone from Edolas wore the same expression as Lucy—one of sorrow and hopelessness.
Natsu jumped out and shouted, "Hey! Don't hang your heads like that! What kind of Fairy Tail are you!?"
In Aslan, Fairy Tail was known for being rowdy and fearless—never afraid of anything, not even the heavens.
To see Fairy Tail cowering like this in Edolas… of course Natsu was annoyed.
But Charles understood how Edolas Lucy and the others felt.
Since the king outlawed all guilds, Fairy Tail had become a dark guild on the run, constantly hunted by the kingdom's forces.
Surely the guilds didn't go down without a fight—including Fairy Tail—but in the end, only their guild survived thanks to its unique ability to teleport through space.
Along the way, they must have lost countless comrades.
That pain had crushed their hope and shattered their will to fight.
So Charles held Natsu back and said, "I understand. You're afraid of losing your loved ones again. That's why we're here. No matter who stands in our way—we'll defeat them. Because we're Fairy Tail!"
The entire Aslan team stood behind Charles, smiling with unwavering resolve.
Tears welled up in Edolas Lucy's eyes. For a moment, it felt like the old Fairy Tail had returned.
Charles understood the true nature of this world—put simply, Edolas was a sick world.
Whether it was its humans or its unique species, the Exceed—they were all deeply ill.
And the root of their illness could be summed up in one word: fear.
Humans feared losing magic. Unlike Aslan, which was thriving in an era of magical abundance, Edolas's magic was dwindling day by day.
In Edolas, magic wasn't just power—it was the foundation of everything: production, transportation, even the streetlights. Magic was energy, and energy was life.
Imagine a modern society losing electricity—that's how terrified the people of Edolas were of a world without magic.
For rulers like King Faust, that fear turned into obsession—a greed for magic so twisted it warped their very minds.
They kept the Anima project going for seven whole years, siphoning life from Aslan to create magic.
Not a single royal advisor objected to the idea of exchanging lives for magic.
They forgot that just like modern society evolved over time, Edolas, too, had existed before magic was discovered. Life without magic was still life.
Magic and life are not equivalent.
The disdain for life shown by Edolas's Erza Knightwalker came from this corrupted worldview.
The Exceed, too, revered as gods in this world, were acting out of fear.
Though born with magic, Exceed were far weaker than humans.
Fearing enslavement, they spun a lie so convincing they even fooled themselves.
They called themselves gods and angels. They claimed their magic proved their divinity. With Queen Chagot's ability to foresee human deaths, they staged so-called "divine punishments" to scare humanity into submission.
But they didn't realize that ruling through fear only invites explosive backlash.
The Exceed sat on thrones meant for gods, but lacked the power to uphold that illusion. And with time, they grew arrogant.
Even if King Faust didn't exist, the Exceed's system would have eventually collapsed. After all these years, the rift between humans and Exceed had become irreconcilable.
That's how this world ended up—sick from top to bottom.
The only true cure might be Mystogan's plan: send all of Edolas's magic—including the Exceed's—into Aslan.
If they're afraid of losing magic, then show them it's not the end of the world.
And Charles and his comrades? Their role was to help Mystogan remove any obstacles in the way.
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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