The sea breeze carried a sharp chill as we stepped onto the ruined shores of Galuna Island. The jagged cliffs loomed like black teeth, and the shattered temple ruins stood in the distance, half-buried in ash and shadows. Even the air felt wrong here—thick, heavy, as if poisoned with some unseen malice.
Natsu wrinkled his nose and clenched his fists, sparks already dancing across his knuckles."This place stinks of curses," he muttered. "I can't wait to smash whatever's causing it."
Happy zipped overhead, but even his usual cheer seemed forced. "Aye, sir! B-but… don't you think it feels… spooky?" His wings twitched nervously as he glanced at the dark treeline.
Erza, leading the way in her armor, didn't slow her steps. "Stay sharp. These ruins aren't ordinary. Every instinct tells me we'll face resistance before reaching the source." Her voice was steady, but even she gripped her sword tighter than usual.
I stayed a step behind them, my notebook clutched tightly. To anyone else, it probably looked like I was taking notes on our surroundings. But in reality, I was running diagnostics through my system, overlaying faint grids across the ruins, tracing energy lines only I could see.
[Environmental Scan Complete.]⚠ Cursed Residue Detected.⚠ Monster Spawning Probability: Elevated.⚠ Unstable Magic Field. Recommend Reinforcement.
My heart thumped faster. This wasn't just Fairy Tail's cursed island anymore—it was a dungeon. A Minecraft dungeon.
And something deep inside the ruins was twisting the rules.
The temple ruins loomed closer, and the others slowed. The cracked stone steps rose before us, half-swallowed by vines and black moss. Strange markings glowed faintly along the pillars, pulsing with cursed energy like veins of fire under stone.
"Do you hear that?" Gray whispered suddenly.
We all froze.
At first, I thought it was the wind. But then I caught it too—a low, guttural groaning, echoing from within the temple. The kind of sound that clawed at your nerves, scraping like nails against bone.
"Undead," I muttered before I could stop myself.
Gray turned sharply. "What did you say?"
"Nothing," I lied quickly, forcing my notebook shut. But my system was already flashing alerts.
[Warning: Hostile Entities Detected.]
Zombie (Corrupted) – Strengthened by Cursed Energy.Skeleton (Corrupted) – Accuracy boosted.Unknown Entities – ???
Erza raised her blade. "We move forward. Stay in formation."
The temple doors groaned as she pushed them open, and the moment we stepped inside, the darkness seemed to swallow us whole.
The first attack came almost instantly.
A blur of movement lunged from the shadows—rotting flesh, glowing eyes, jaw hanging loose. The thing snarled like a beast as it clawed toward Erza.
"ZOMBIE?!" Natsu yelled, more out of shock than fear.
Erza met the strike with a clean arc of her blade, cleaving the creature in two. But instead of falling, the halves writhed on the floor, squirming with cursed energy.
Happy screeched. "It's still moving!"
I didn't hesitate. My hand dipped into my inventory, pulling out a splash potion I had prepared earlier. The glass shattered against the floor, releasing a wave of shimmering light that burned across the writhing corpse. Within seconds, the cursed flesh disintegrated into ash.
The others froze, staring at me.
I forced a casual smile. "Holy water substitute. Just a little… experiment I whipped up."
Erza nodded once, accepting it without question. But Gray narrowed his eyes at me, clearly suspicious.
Before anyone could press further, more groans echoed through the temple—dozens this time. Shadows shifted along the walls, eyes glowing in the blackness. The sound of rattling bones followed.
Skeletons, armed with rusted blades and bows, began pouring out from the cracks in the stone.
"Now this," Natsu grinned, fire roaring in his fists, "is more like it!"
He charged forward with a wild yell, flames lighting up the chamber as he smashed the first skeleton to pieces. Gray followed, ice forming into jagged spears he launched across the room, shattering two more.
Erza re-quipped into her Heaven's Wheel armor, blades whirling around her like a storm, cutting through the cursed horde.
And me?
I opened my inventory.
With a flick of my wrist, I placed down a glowing line of enchanted lanterns along the floor, their light pushing back the shadows. At the same time, I activated an instant barrier—a shimmering wall of bedrock, blocking one of the temple's side passages where more mobs were spilling out.
The guild members fought like warriors, but I fought like a builder. Every step was calculated—lanterns, barriers, potions.
And yet, even with all of that, something felt wrong.
The mobs weren't just spawning. They were being pulled.
Like strings tied to a puppeteer deep within the ruins.
Minutes later, the chamber fell silent again, the last skeleton crumbling to dust under Erza's spinning blades. The air was heavy with ash and smoke, and the faint glow of my lanterns was the only thing keeping the darkness at bay.
Gray wiped his brow, breathing hard. "That… wasn't normal. Those things weren't natural."
Erza nodded grimly. "This island's curse is stronger than we thought."
Natsu, still burning with adrenaline, grinned. "Good! Then I get to punch it even harder!"
But I wasn't smiling.
Because my system was still flashing red.
[Warning.]
Estimated Threat Level Increasing.Entity Awakening Detected.Deliora's Influence Spreading.
My throat went dry as I stared at the message only I could see.
We hadn't even seen the true enemy yet.
This was just the welcome party.
And somewhere in the depths of the ruins, the shadow of Deliora stirred.