Finn raised an eyebrow. "Let's not dawdle; we seem to have arrived at a city."
As Finn finished speaking, a city filled with countless buildings appeared before them.
"Finally! After all this walking, I'm completely exhausted," Natsu exclaimed, letting out a sigh of relief as he gazed upon the city before them.
"Alright then, let's head over there without further delay," Carla stated, her arms folded across her chest.
Wendy nodded in agreement and turned to Edolas Lucy. "Thank you so much for guiding us here. You've been a tremendous help."
Edolas Lucy, secretly pleased by Wendy's heartfelt expression of gratitude, composed herself and replied, "Let's head inside without wasting any more time."
Edolas, Luen Town.
"It seems rather deserted around here," Wendy observed, her gaze sweeping across the somewhat desolate landscape surrounding them.
Despite the bright daylight, the streets were surprisingly devoid of pedestrians.
"That's because all the wealthy individuals have relocated to the royal capital. It's the only place in the entire kingdom where magic is still permitted," Lucy explained.
"But what exactly are we doing here?" Natsu questioned, his brow furrowed in confusion as he stared at the passageway that was sealed shut by wooden planks.
Edolas Lucy began to pry open the wooden planks obstructing the passageway. "This is the magic black market," she explained.
"A magic black market?" Finn inquired, his voice laced with curiosity.
"I know about this," Nancy announced from her perch on Finn's shoulder, raising her paw in a gesture of acknowledgment.
She continued, "Due to the king's decree, the use of magic is strictly prohibited throughout the land.
Consequently, the sale of magic has been driven underground, necessitating clandestine transactions."
"So that's how it is," Finn murmured, nodding his head in understanding.
Edolas Lucy added further clarification. "Over time, it's evolved to the point where even possessing magical abilities is considered a criminal offense."
Natsu's eyes widened in disbelief. "Simply possessing magic is a crime?"
Lucy offered a silent nod in confirmation.
"Then what happens to those who were already capable of using magic?" Wendy asked, her voice laced with concern.
"Huh?" Edolas Lucy's brow furrowed in confusion. "Nothing, really. They just have to give up using magic."
"Besides," she added, her voice tinged with a hint of bewilderment, "what do you mean by 'those who were already capable of using magic'?"
Edolas Lucy's puzzled question prompted a moment of mutual bewilderment among Finn and his companions.
"It's like this," Finn explained, extending one hand. With a subtle manipulation of his magical energy, a burst of flames erupted from his palm.
"Whoa!!" A collective gasp of astonishment echoed from the assembled onlookers, their eyes wide with disbelief.
"Using magic without any magical tools or artifacts?!" Edolas Lucy's eyes were wide with astonishment, her voice laced with incredulity. This was a concept utterly foreign to her understanding.
"No way…"
"Finn, how are you able to use magic?"
"I mean, how is this even possible?"
Natsu, overcome with excitement, seized Finn's arm, his gaze fixated on the flames that danced and flickered across Finn's palm.
He could feel the intense heat radiating from the flames.
"It's really your flames! But how is this possible?!" Natsu exclaimed, his eyes darting back and forth between Finn's hand and his face, his voice filled with a mixture of awe and bewilderment.
He was utterly baffled by this unexpected display of magical prowess.
Hearing Natsu's perplexed tone, Finn's brow furrowed slightly, his own face mirroring the confusion.
"You can't use magic here?" he asked, his voice laced with a hint of uncertainty.
"We've been unable to use any magic whatsoever since the moment we arrived in this world!" Happy exclaimed, his voice filled with a sense of profound shock and disbelief.
"Is that so? Did you happen to encounter Mystogan?" Finn inquired, a sudden thought occurring to him.
"Mystogan?" Natsu turned to Wendy and the others, seeking clarification.
"No, we didn't encounter anyone by that name. Is he somehow connected to this?" they replied, their voices laced with uncertainty.
Upon hearing their response, Finn's understanding of the situation crystallized.
As Mystogan had explained, in order to utilize magic within this world, it was necessary to consume a special medicinal pill that he had provided.
It now became evident that Natsu and his companions had arrived in Edolas without ever encountering Mystogan.
With this realization, Finn proceeded to offer a detailed explanation of Mystogan's role and the significance of the medicinal pills.
Upon hearing Finn's explanation, Natsu's face was etched with anxiety. He grabbed Finn's arm, his voice laced with urgency. "Finn, do you still have any of those pills left? Do you have any more pills?!"
He continued to shake Finn's arm insistently.
The sight of this unexpected display of childish behavior sent a wave of discomfort through the onlookers. Could anyone truly imagine a grown man behaving in such a manner in public—shaking another man's arm with the petulance of a spoiled child?
Finn's forehead began to twitch, several prominent veins throbbing visibly.
He raised his fist, preparing to deliver a well-deserved punch to Natsu's head.
Natsu, sensing the imminent threat, wisely released Finn's arm.
Finn smoothed down his sleeve and spoke, his voice tinged with a mixture of frustration and resignation.
"It was indeed my oversight that I failed to request additional pills from that fellow. However, at this juncture, there's no way of locating him," he explained.
With a helpless gesture, Finn shrugged his shoulders.
It seemed that their only recourse was to pray that they would encounter Mystogan once they reached the royal capital and that he would then be able to provide them with the necessary medicine.
Upon hearing Finn's words, Natsu and his companions let out a collective sigh of disappointment.
"So, this is the magic of Earthland? Magic that can be unleashed without the need for any magical tools or artifacts?" Edolas Lucy inquired, her gaze fixated on the now-extinguished flames that had once danced across Finn's palm.
Finn nodded in response. "In Earthland, mages absorb ambient magical particles that float freely in the air, storing them within their bodies."
"And it is this stored magical energy that they then utilize to cast spells," he explained further.
Edolas Lucy's eyes widened in amazement upon hearing Finn's explanation.
"This is simply incredible! It's just like the Exceeds in our world," she exclaimed, her voice laced with wonder.
Turning her attention to Natsu and Wendy, she offered a sympathetic smile. "However, since you're currently unable to utilize magic, if you intend to continue your journey, I believe you'll require some assistance."
…
"Well, it seems we'll have to adapt to the rules of this world and use their magic system," Natsu declared, his tone surprisingly accepting of the situation.
Despite his inability to utilize his own magic, Natsu demonstrated a remarkable capacity for adaptation and a keen curiosity regarding the unique magical system of Edolas.
"In that case, follow me," Edolas Lucy announced, leading the way into the passageway.
The group followed closely behind her.
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Luen Town…
Two figures, their bodies completely shrouded in cloaks, arrived at the edge of the town.
"Finally, we've found a city! I can't believe we were blown all the way out here to this godforsaken place," one of the figures grumbled, his voice laced with irritation.
"Enough complaining, Gajeel. We need to gather information as quickly as possible. We need to find out where the guild members are being held," the second figure urged, his voice tinged with a sense of urgency.
"Then let's get moving, Laxus. Let's go into town and start asking people around," Gajeel stated, turning to address Laxus.
"Let's go," Laxus replied curtly.
The two figures proceeded to enter Luen Town.
"Hey there, we have a few questions we'd like to ask you," Gajeel announced, his voice confident and assertive.
Within Luen Town, Gajeel and Laxus traversed the streets, their efforts to gather information hampered by the uncooperative attitude of the townspeople.
Despite their repeated attempts, no one was willing to engage in conversation with them.
The townspeople seemed to be deliberately avoiding them, scurrying away at the mere sight of the two imposing figures.
Laxus's patience began to wear thin. "What's the meaning of this?!" he growled, his voice laced with growing frustration.
"Hey, calm down, will you?" Gajeel cautioned, his voice low and urgent.
To be perfectly honest, Gajeel was genuinely concerned that Laxus's simmering rage might boil over, resulting in a violent outburst that could jeopardize their mission.
From the corner of his eye, Gajeel noticed a group of small-time thugs observing them with malevolent grins.
A sly smile spread across Gajeel's face.
"Looks like we've got ourselves a group of people who are more than willing to talk," Gajeel remarked, his voice laced with a hint of amusement.
Laxus turned his attention towards the group of thugs, a predatory grin spreading across his face.
"Perfect. I'm practically bursting with pent-up frustration, and these punks will be more than happy to serve as my punching bags.
And while we're at it, we might as well extract some information from them," Laxus declared, his voice dripping with menace.
After a period of careful consideration and selection, Natsu and Wendy finally settled upon their respective magical tools.
Natsu chose a sword hilt, rumored to possess the ability to conjure forth flames that would then coalesce into a formidable greatsword.
Wendy, on the other hand, selected a small, exquisitely crafted box, known as the Sky Crack Cannon.
Both Natsu and Wendy expressed considerable fascination with these novel magical artifacts.
However…
The bill for these magical tools was ultimately settled by Edolas Lucy.
After all, none of the Earthland Fairy Tail members possessed any currency from this world, and their combined resources were insufficient to cover the cost.
"Edolas Lucy's quite different from Earthland Lucy. Edolas Lucy's definitely more dependable," Happy remarked thoughtfully as they exited the magic black market.
"Many thanks to you, Scary Lucy!" Wendy expressed her gratitude with a slight bow.
Edolas Lucy's face darkened with a mixture of exasperation and confusion. "Why on Earth am I being called 'Scary Lucy'?" she demanded.
"It's because Edolas Lucy's rather violent," Happy explained, his voice laced with a hint of amusement as he recalled Edolas Lucy's numerous displays of physical prowess against Natsu.
"I'm not scary at all! You darned cat!!" Edolas Lucy retorted, her voice laced with a mixture of exasperation and indignation.
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