Inside the Fairy Tail guild hall,
The usual chaos of shouting, laughing, and chairs and tables breaking filled the air, but at one of the long tables near the back, a young man with messy black hair in a red-and-brown jacket was completely absorbed in a lacrima device laid out in pieces before him.
Small tools were scattered around Warren as he adjusted the crystal's core carefully, muttering calculations under his breath while sparks flickered faintly between his fingers.
"What are you doing, Warren?" Cana walked up behind him, the brunette dressed as usual in her blue bikini top and brown pants, a card already twirling lazily between her fingers. It was rare to see Warren in the guild; he had a habit of stacking missions and disappearing for months at a time.
"One of my friends from Iceberg told me there's a tournament being held at the summit in the Iceberg Kingdom this year," Warren replied without looking up, tightening a small rune-etched ring around the lacrima. "Two Fairy Tail members are participating, too, apparently. He's helping me link into their broadcast so we can watch it live."
He didn't notice the way the guild's usual noise gradually thinned out behind him until it disappeared entirely. Conversations stopped mid-sentence, mugs hovered halfway to mouths, and even the brawling near the request board froze.
"But it's not stabilizing yet… I don't get why the frequency won't—oh wait, it's picking up something." Warren's face brightened as the lacrima flickered. He finally glanced up at Cana, only to stiffen when he realized the entire guild was staring at him. Even Master Makarov had turned his full attention to the table.
"What?" Warren asked, blinking.
"Summit event in the Iceberg Kingdom… isn't that where Astro and Laxus went?" Erza asked, her tone calm but focused as she looked toward Mirajane behind the bar.
"Yeah, Laxus went with him, too." Mirajane nodded, a faint frown on her face. "Astro said he'd ask Mystogan, too. It sounded like the King of Fiore personally requested him." She paused for a moment. They hadn't prepared for a tournament at all. Are they going to be okay?
"What? Astro and Laxus went to fight in a tournament? I'm going too. Happy, let's go!" Natsu shouted at the top of his lungs, already turning toward the door as fast as possible. Happy zipped up beside him instantly.
"Aye!"
Before they could take more than ten steps, a massive hand smacked the back of Natsu's head, slamming him face-first into the wooden floor.
"Calm down, you brat," Makarov said, retracting his enlarged hand. "The Iceberg Kingdom is far from here. By the time you get there, the event will be over, and they'll already be back."
"But—" Natsu lifted his head, clearly unwilling to miss what sounded like an exciting fight, even though he had no idea what the fight was about.
"Yes! It's connected!" Warren suddenly shouted.
The lacrima on the table pulsed brightly, projecting a wide, shimmering screen into the air like a moving window. The image sharpened into a massive colosseum packed with spectators.
"Whoa… this is amazing," Gray muttered, unable to hide his surprise. Even Cana leaned forward, impressed.
"Right?" Warren grinned proudly. "My buddies and I modified it. It's like the movie Lacrima you see in theaters, but it shows real-time events." His shoulders sagged slightly. "Though it's insanely expensive. Custom-made lacrima like this are difficult to produce and only last for a single broadcast."
"Don't worry, we'll cover it," Cana said easily as she plopped down beside him, throwing an arm around his neck and pulling him close while keeping her eyes on the screen. "Mira, can we get more drinks?"
"Of course," Mirajane replied cheerfully, already moving.
"No….Wait, wait… It's Fairy Tail's turn. Come here quickly!" Cana suddenly gestured to her…Everyone who was in the guild came behind them to look at the screen projected by the lacrima.
The announcer's amplified voice echoed through the guild hall from the lacrima as the screen shifted to a long stone corridor leading into the arena.
"Ladies and gentlemen, now for our final contestants! We have two wizards from Fiore! Astro and Laxus, both members of Fairy Tail! You may not know their guild well, but you certainly know their master—Master Makarov, one of the Ten Wizard Saints of Ishgar!"
"Hm… so Mystogan didn't make it," Erza murmured thoughtfully, tilting her head.
"Strangely, they didn't mention their last names," Gray said from behind Cana, crossing his arms.
"That's usually how it goes with wizards," Wakaba commented while puffing out smoke lazily. "There are probably nobles and royals attending. They want to keep identities vague. Makes the fighters seem less… human."
"Wakaba," Makarov narrowed his eyes in warning. He didn't want the kids to think about it too much. Wakaba shrugged and fell silent.
Gray glanced at them before looking back at the screen. "Sounds like a bunch of insecure guys if you ask me."
Elfman and Loke nodded in agreement.
"Doesn't matter," Natsu said with a grin. "With Astro and Laxus there, those people will get what they deserve."
"You do realize they're not fighting the nobles themselves, right?" Gray replied flatly.
"You don't believe in them, ice block?" Natsu lunged to grab Gray's collar, only to find his upper body clothes were somehow already missing. Without hesitation, he headbutted Gray instead.
"I'm not saying they'll lose, idiot," Gray shot back, smashing his forehead into Natsu's.
"They're entering," Mirajane said suddenly with a soft voice.
"Let's welcome them with all your voices!" the announcer boomed, and the crowd's roar rolled through the lacrima so vividly it almost felt like the guild was inside the stadium.
Two tall figures stepped out of the corridor.
On the right walked Laxus, his yellow shirt casually unbuttoned at the top, revealing the solid muscle beneath. Black pants and heavy boots completed the look, and a thick black and gray fur-lined coat rested over his shoulders, swaying slightly with each confident step. His blond hair gleamed under the arena lights, and his expression carried its usual unshakable arrogance.
On the left was Astro. He wore a fitted purple t-shirt under an unzipped black windbreaker dotted with faint blue accents, paired with black cargo pants. His hands rested calmly in his pockets as he walked forward without hurry, black hair shifting gently in the wind of the open arena. A long, unusual staff was strapped across his back—a bo staff. That alone was enough to make a few members exchange looks.
But what truly caught the guild's attention was the faint red mark along the left side of his face.
At first, the camera angle didn't make it clear, but as it zoomed in, the symbol became unmistakable. Erza, who had been watching with a small smile, suddenly went still. Her eyes widened slightly.
"Did he always have that mark?" Wakaba asked, curiously looking at the screen.
"No, but I feel like I've seen something like it before," Macao muttered, squinting.
Mirajane's gaze shifted from the screen to Erza. Just last night, she had jokingly mentioned that Astro resembled that person from the council, but now the similarity felt heavier.
"One of the council members, Siegrain, has a similar mark," Makarov said quietly while studying the image. "It could be the result of magic. Perhaps Astro learned something related."
"Siegrain…isn't he one of the ten wizard saints as well?" Elfmen couldn't help but ask loudly…
"Yeah, he is the youngest among all the wizard saints…" Master Makarov replied in a low voice… he honestly did not care much about it. He instead focused more on Astro's demeanor.
Master Makarov's eyes narrowed slightly. Astro seemed different beyond the mark. He usually avoided carrying weapons openly because he didn't want to intimidate others or appear distant. Makarov, who lived for more than eighty years and saw so many youths, could easily tell that. Yet now Astro carried a weapon without hesitation, walking as if he no longer cared how others perceived him.
Was that growth… or something else?
While the rest of the guild focused on the screen, Mirajane stepped closer to Erza and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. Erza glanced at her and gave a small nod to show she was fine, but the tight clench of her fist at her side betrayed the storm of thoughts she was holding back.
Inside the grand colosseum,
Astro had no idea that the entire Fairy Tail guild was watching through Warren's lacrima. He stood casually on the arena floor with his hands in his pockets, gaze drifting over the towering walls of stone and the countless spectators filling every seat.
The noise rolled over him in waves, but he remained calm. The red mark on the left side of his face didn't bother him much; with a bit of focus, he could have removed it entirely again.
Only those of the direct Synaris bloodline could have this curse mark anyway, because only they could unlock the Imperium Eye. Very few people in Earthland knew that. The fact that Siegrain had walked around with a similar mark for years without being exposed as a member of the imperial family of the Sin Kingdom was proof enough.
Astro was certain the Magic Council didn't know Siegrain's true lineage. If they did, they would have moved already and definitely would not have let him become one of the wizard saints. The Council despised the Sin Kingdom to the point that the kingdom had been forced to close its borders to avoid constant pressure and political aggression.
He didn't want to announce his own lineage either. He personally was not the type to show off anyway. Still, his eyes lifted toward the high stands where royal families and nobles from different kingdoms sat in lavish seats. Even from this distance, he could make out two familiar figures watching him closely from there.
Astro took a slow breath and looked away. He had never been the type to hide who he was or shrink himself for others, either. He still wasn't sure whether he wanted to return to the Sin Kingdom someday or remain in Fairy Tail permanently, but he had no intention of denying his family, either—especially knowing how much his parents had sacrificed just so he could live till today and meet so many great people.
His mind drifted to the conversation he had just had with Zenith before entering the arena, and to the unsettling vision Zenith had described. But before he could dwell on it, a loud voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Now that all fifteen participants are here, let's begin the main event! I can see most of you can barely wait to find out what it will be!" the announcer boomed, drawing the attention of the entire coliseum. Even the nobles leaned forward slightly.
"Well, before I reveal it, let's greet the man who made this event possible. That's right, ladies and gentlemen—joining me today is one of the Ten Wizard Saints of Ishgar, the pride of the Iceberg Kingdom… Master Izen!"
All the projection screens shifted toward the announcer's platform. A bald, middle-aged man with sharp eyes and a confident smile walked forward and took the empty seat beside the host.
"Thank you, Mike," Izen said smoothly. "I had to work quite hard for a few weeks to prepare this event. The participants here are considered among the strongest of their nations, and some could even be Wizard Saint candidates. We can't make it easy for them, can we?"
He smiled widely as his gaze scanned the arena floor. Astro wasn't sure if he imagined it or not, but that gaze paused on him for a fraction longer than the others before moving on.
"It seems everyone is eager," Izen continued. "So please, direct your eyes to the sky and observe the true arena."
Astro frowned slightly as he looked up at the clear blue sky. "We're not fighting in the colosseum?…" he murmured under his breath. For a brief second, he wondered if this would be some kind of aerial battle, seeing nothing there.
Then the sky cracked.
It fractured like a mirror struck by a hammer. A jagged seam split across the heavens, and a massive chunk of land forced its way through the rupture. More cracks spiderwebbed outward above the capital, and additional floating landmasses pushed through one after another.
They collided midair with thunderous force, grinding together, merging, fusing as if reality itself was being reshaped above them.
Within moments, a colossal floating island formed above the entire capital city, easily the size of the city below.
"You said you were stuck in air traffic," Laxus muttered quietly beside him, looking at the scene above him. "I believe you now."
Astro felt a rare moment of speechlessness. He was just joking earlier, but he hadn't expected this to be literal so soon.
"My Magic Mirror World, ladies and gentlemen," Izen announced proudly.
The projection screens shifted again, now displaying multiple angles of the island's surface. The terrain was rocky and uneven, filled with cliffs and jagged plateaus—but what truly stood out were the creatures roaming across it.
Massive monsters prowled in every direction.
"A lot of those… no, most of those… you only see them on S-Class missions," Laxus said, narrowing his eyes.
The screens zoomed in on different beasts: armored rhinos, colossal serpents, creatures radiating thick magical pressure. Then the image shifted to a gigantic winged monster that let out a deafening roar. Its body was covered in dark, stone-like scales, and it easily towered higher than a ten-story building.
"Now, as you can see, there are a lot of monsters on the island above… in total, one hundred monsters… some weak, some strong… and some…" Izen suddenly paused as the screen shifted to a gigantic winged creature.
It let out a deafening roar that echoed across the entire coliseum, its massive wings spreading wide as it stood tall on the rocky terrain. Even from the projection alone, the pressure it gave off was overwhelming.
"That is a Black Rock Wyvern… one of the closest things to dragons in Earthland…" Astro could hear Percival mutter quietly from somewhere in the distance.
"Some… very strong," Izen finished with a satisfied smile as the audience stared at the screen in awe. Most of them were ordinary city citizens; they had never seen monsters of this scale before, let alone so many gathered in one place.
"The rules are simple… each participant will start from the outskirts of the island in the sky. You have to earn points by defeating monsters. Defeating a monster, no matter how strong it is, will grant you one point each. You can either hunt monsters for points, or you can earn points by defeating other participants." Izen paused for a bit before continuing again…
"If you defeat another participant, they will be teleported out immediately, and you will receive all the points they have earned on the island." Izen paused briefly before continuing. "Your final goal is to reach the safe zone located at the center of the island. The moment you step into it, you will be teleported back here with all the points you have accumulated. The team with the highest combined total will be considered the winner."
The audience erupted into loud cheers, excitement spreading through the entire coliseum. Astro silently processed everything for a moment before turning his head slightly toward Laxus.
"We only have two members… so we have to work harder than others," Astro whispered.
Laxus gave a small nod in agreement, his eyes still fixed on the floating island above.
Inside the Fairy Tail guild hall,
everyone's eyes were fixed on the floating screen.
"These monsters seem so scary…" Levy said softly, clutching her hands over her chest as images of ferocious beasts flashed one after another. She recognized most of them from the books she had read… Red Centipedes, Minesta Scorpions, and many others that were usually only mentioned in high-difficulty mission records.
"The best strategy would be to rush near the middle zone early and wait there until the other participants arrive exhausted," Gray said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin as he analyzed the rules.
"But that isn't manly at all! Astro and Laxus are real men… they wouldn't do that!" Elfman shouted from the side, pumping his fist in protest.
"Well, of course, even I wouldn't do it. I was just analyzing it," Gray replied flatly, looking at Elfman as if he couldn't believe he had to clarify that.
"Astro and Laxus have to work harder than the rest, though," Loke added while watching the screen closely. "It looks like most of the other kingdoms sent three wizards each. Fiore only has two."
"It's fine," Natsu said with a wide grin. "It's them we're talking about. They won't let us down."
"Natsu is right. Let's cheer them on together!" Master Makarov declared loudly.
The entire guild erupted into cheers, their voices filling the hall with confidence and excitement.
Erza stood quietly for a moment, watching the scene. When she had first noticed the mark on Astro's face, her heart had tightened. She couldn't help but think about the curse that had once taken Jellal away from her…or so she thought… But now, seeing the unwavering trust in the guild members' eyes, a small smile formed on her face.
That's right. Even if Astro was under some kind of curse, it didn't matter. Unlike when she was a helpless child, this time, an entire Fairy Tail was standing behind him. If anything ever tried to drag him away, they could pull him back together.
Mirajane noticed Erza's expression soften and smiled faintly before turning her attention back to the screen.
Back in the giant colosseum,
the announcer took over again from Master Izen.
"Now… all participants… are you ready? The teleportation will begin shortly. If you wish to be teleported together with your teammates, hold onto them tightly."
Graxia narrowed her eyes at the projection of the monsters above. A white glow began to surround her body as a teleportation magic circle formed beneath her feet.
"Argen… Bradley… stay close," Graxia whispered, grabbing their hands on either side of her.
Most of the other participants made the same decision. Facing so many monsters alone would be foolish; starting together would, however, increase their survival chances dramatically.
Vera from the Isvan Kingdom was the only one without a partner. She looked to her left and right, then pouted slightly.
"Alright! You will be teleported to the sky island in ten… nine…" the announcer began counting down.
Astro glanced at Laxus. Laxus's forehead twitched in irritation, seeing Astro staring at him.
"I'm not holding hands with you."
"I wasn't going to suggest it. But why did you have to say it like that? You have a real talent for making things weird," Astro muttered dryly.
"Three… two… one…"
"Shut up, you virgin," Laxus snapped, his temper flaring.
"Better than being a pervert like you," Astro replied with a twitch of his mouth.
"What did you say—" Laxus started, but the ground beneath him began to glow warmly as the teleportation magic activated.
"Don't be scared out there, big kitty," Astro said with a faint smile as his body started to fade. "Remember, you're an S-Class wizard of Fairy Tail. Remember all the training and hard work you did."
Laxus gritted his teeth as his own body began dissolving into light.
"I'm going to kill that bastard after this… who does he think he is, lecturing me…"
Both of them disappeared from the colosseum floor.
Astro had no idea how irritated Laxus was, though even if he did, it probably wouldn't have changed anything. Space twisted around him for a brief moment before he suddenly found himself… high above the floating island.
"They could have at least mentioned we wouldn't be teleported directly onto the ground," Astro muttered speechlessly as he plummeted rapidly toward the rocky terrain below.
Wind roared past his ears while he calmly began thinking through his next move mid-freefall. Then he sensed something nearby. Slowly, he turned his head to the left.
A massive crow, easily ten times his size, was rushing toward him with its beak wide open.
Astro recognized it instantly from the books he had read. The Duni Crow. Normally docile creatures, but when left hungry for too long, they wouldn't hesitate to prey on humans. Judging from the thick saliva dripping from its beak, this one had been starving for… quite a while…
"Great… I'm about to become monster food already, I wonder how tasty it thinks I am…" Astro muttered flatly as the enormous crow closed the distance, its shadow swallowing him while its beak opened wider and wider.
"Do wizards have any insurance policy? I should look into it after today…." Astro muttered boredly as the figure of the crow enlarged more and more in his purple eyes.